Fan Yang was quite unhappy when he heard what the Marquis of Jin said, and he couldn't help but said with a hint of anger:
"This matter is of great importance. I hope your Majesty... will think twice."
How could Jinhou Wu fail to hear the intimidation in Fan Yang's words? However, he still looked as normal and replied calmly in his slightly childish voice:
"Since Duke Wen of Jin Dynasty, we have respected the king and resisted the barbarians. We have been called uncle among the princes for more than a hundred years, and our prestige has not diminished to this day. But today, the Marquis of Lu is in trouble, and I want to send an envoy to escort him back to the country. How can this be done? Is it a mistake? Since when did our country, Jin, perform such righteous deeds, but become so hesitant?"
"Jisun Yiru, who was a Qing of Lu in his lifetime, now allows the monarch to live in exile while he enjoys state affairs. Now there are rumors that he wants to send troops to Yunyi. This kind of behavior is really despised by the world! I also want to send an envoy. Soldiers, go to Qianhou to return to the country with the help of Luhou!"
"Zhao Yang, I will leave this matter to you!"
Qianhou is located at the junction of Jin and Lu and belongs to the territory of Jin. This move is actually tantamount to preparing to intimidate Ji Sun Yiru and form a confrontation with him.
When Zhao Yang heard this, he immediately took the order and said:
"My lord, take your orders!"
Seeing such a situation, Fan Yang couldn't help but sigh in his heart, knowing that if he tried to argue with Jin Houwu again at this time, it would be a taboo.
So, he changed his strategy and said again:
"Although this is the case, if we directly use military force to coerce, I am afraid that people will not accept it, so I think there is a better way!"
When Jin Houwu heard this, he was a little surprised.
"Oh? What can we do?"
"Your Majesty, Yunyi was originally the territory of the Meng family of the Lu state, and was later occupied by the Qi state. Now the Ji family is sending troops to go with the Meng family to regain the lost territory. This move is justified. As for the Marquis of Lu, you can send people to help him. We advise each other with words, courtesy first, then war. If the Ji family is willing to take the king back, that would be the best. If not, we can fight against him again!"
When Zhao Yang heard this, he couldn't help but sneered:
"Marquis Lu has been forced to flee for so many years. If the Ji family really wanted to welcome Marquis Lu back, why did she wait until now? Martingale is not talented, but he doesn't understand the key points."
But Fan Yang ignored Zhao Yang and said directly to Jin Houwu:
"Your Majesty, why don't we invite the Marquis of Lu and Ji Sun Yiru to the Marquis of Qian together? Then send someone to negotiate an alliance. Wouldn't it be great if the two monarchs and ministers could get back together? If Ji Sun Yiru insists on refusing, we can raise an army at that time. It’s never too late to ask for guilt!”
Li Ran knew that this was just Fan Yang's tactic to delay the war, but what he said was so reasonable that it was impossible to refute.
Yes, if the problem can be solved by talking nicely, why use violence?
What's more, after all, they are still in the same room.
Jin Houwu thought for a moment and thought that Fan Yang's method was indeed irrefutable.
This method not only demonstrates the dominance of Jin State, but also mediates the matter. If everything goes well, Jin will not even have to fight a single soldier.
How could he, the Marquis of Jin, refute such a solution that had the best of both worlds?
Moreover, if we take a step back, if Ji Sun Yiru really insists and refuses, then they end up forcing each other with troops, it will still be the same.
"So... that's not bad... Wei Qing, what do you think?"
Wei Shu, who was taciturn, mature and prudent, and in poor health, had long lost the heroic spirit he had when he invented the "Wei Shu Square Formation". I saw Wei Shu tremblingly stepping forward and kneeling on the ground:
"I believe that what Fan Yang said is reasonable, and it is okay to do so."
After Wei Shu said this, the matter was settled, and there was no room for maneuver.
After the court meeting, Fan Yang and Zhao Yang met again at the gate of the side hall. Fan Yang couldn't help but sneered:
"Haha, I originally thought that my father-in-law was only good at martial arts, but I didn't know that he also had such good means!"
When Zhao Yang heard this, he also pretended to be calm. He had been taught by Dong Anyu before and pretended to be confused:
"What do you mean by Master Fan's words?"
How could Fan Yang not know that Zhao Yang was pretending to be Hu Tu? His deep eyes glanced at Li Ran aside.
"Before, Mr. Ziming always wanted me to help Marquis Lu, but I refused. I never thought that he would come looking for you again in the end? And..."
After Fan Yang's "and", he didn't want to say anything anymore. What he wanted to say was that he didn't know anything about it, but saying this would inevitably directly reveal that he was secretly spying on Zhao.
In fact, Zhao Yang already knew all this, but he couldn't fall out with Fan Yang directly, so he could only laugh and say:
"Oh, it's just a coincidence. I just think that this matter will be beneficial to our country of Jin. So, I guess your Majesty also thinks so, right?"
Fan Yang laughed again when he heard this:
"Haha, that's fine! It's just... As the saying goes, 'The wise will be favored and warned, and those who are not favored will be favored and arrogant.' You Zhao family... Hehe, just take care of yourself."
(Translation: A truly virtuous person will be more cautious when receiving favor from the emperor. If not, he will become arrogant and arrogant.)
Fan Yang only said these words, which seemed to be out of tune, and then left directly.
In fact, Fan Yang’s words also have a lot of origin. This statement did not come from anyone else, but it was his grandfather Fan Wenzi who warned Zhao Yang's grandfather Zhao Wenzi.
At that time, Zhao Wenzi had just lost the crown, and Fan Wenzi was still on good terms with the Zhao family. He once warned Zhao Wenzi in the tone of an elder to guard against arrogance and impetuosity, and to know how to maintain a sense of proportion with the king, and not to be arrogant and do the same thing again. The mistakes of our ancestors.
However, what Fan Wenzi warned Zhao Wenzi back then was said by Fan Yang today, and its meaning was a bit more threatening:
Just take it easy! Don't follow the king too closely, and end up lame!
…
As for Fan Yang, after uttering harsh words in a polite manner, he resigned from Zhao Yang and immediately returned to his residence. Call his retainer and ask him to send a message to Ji Sun Yiru quickly.
He said that if the Marquis of Jin sent someone to invite him to go to the Marquis of Qian, he must go. As long as Ji Sunyiru comes, everything will be easy.
If you don't come, you may be in danger!
Moreover, in addition to this, he sent another person specifically to Yunyi, who also had to work harder.
When the two retainers left, Fan Yang looked at their leaving figures and murmured in his heart:
"Haha, Ji Sun Yiru, whether you can pass this level depends entirely on your own luck!"
On the other side, Zhao Yang also brought Li Ran to the Zhao Mansion first, and told Dong Anyu everything that happened in the court today, but Dong Anyu always frowned:
"Not good...I'm afraid there are still variables in this matter!"
Zhao Yang couldn't help but said curiously:
"Oh? How?"
Dong Anyu sighed:
"My lord doesn't know something. Fan's move must be a delaying strategy, and he must be prepared!"
Li Ran actually had the same idea, so after he came out of the palace, he immediately decided to let Confucius go back to Yunyi first and stay with Marquis Lu in case of any unexpected events.
And he himself wanted to follow the Jin envoy to prevent something from happening suddenly.
It is said that Jinhou Wu did things very quickly. He first sent two groups of people to Yunyi and Qufu respectively, and asked Lu Houchou and Ji Sunyiru to go to Qianhou respectively.
On the other hand, Xun Shu was specially ordered to form a mission and also go to Qianhou.
As the first person to mediate, Li Ran naturally followed Xun Shu.
Zhao Yang, on the other hand, is preparing a number of combat equipment in the country and is ready to deal with the war that may occur in the future.
On the way to Qianhou, Xun Shu deliberately approached Li Ran. Li Ran knew that he could not avoid it. Besides, he also wanted to know what Xun Shu in front of him thought about this matter.
Xun Shu was a relatively low-key among the six ministers of the Jin Kingdom. Their Xun family was also called the Zhi family, and their experiences were somewhat similar to those of the Zhao family.
Xun Shu's father died early, and because the Xun family and the Zhongxing family were from the same clan, they were protected by the Zhongxing family. The Xun family finally secured a place among the six ministers.
When Xun Shu was appointed to the left of the lower army, he was still underage, so he had always been relatively low-key among the six ministers, and he was quite special.
】
Why is he said to be extremely special?
On the one hand, just because the Xun family has good relations with the Zhonghang family, it can be said that without the support of the Zhonghang family, the Xun family would not be where they are today. And the Fan family and the Zhonghang family are now in the same spirit, so emotionally speaking, the Xun family is naturally more inclined to the side of the Fan family and the Zhonghang family.
But on the other hand, all of their Xun family's fiefdoms are in Taihang Shanxi. It can be said that the territories of Han, Zhao and Wei are intertwined.
Their main city, Zhiyi, was near Anyi, the main city of the Wei family, while their Gaoliang city was near Pingyang City of the Han family, and Tushui city was close to Jinyang of the Zhao family.
Therefore, it can be said that the Xun family's sphere of influence is inseparable from the three families of Han, Zhao and Wei. Under such circumstances, the Xun family did not dare to directly offend the three families, so they had to retain some dignity in everything.
Therefore, because of their extremely special relationship with the Xun family, Xun Shu was appointed as the envoy when they went to Qianhou for business.
Obviously, Li Ran had to have a good relationship with him at this moment.
That night, Xun Shu went to Li Ran for a drink. Zi Lu respected his master's orders and stayed by Li Ran's side. At this moment, he stayed outside the house to guard.
Li Ran and Xun Shu drank for three rounds, but Xun Shu said under the influence of wine:
"Mr. Ziming previously assisted King Chu Ling of Zuo. King Chu Ling died in the wilderness, and then assisted Zuo Wangzichao, but was imprisoned by Wangzichao. This time he assisted Lu Hou to return to the country, but he doesn't know what the future will be like this time?! "
After hearing this, Li Ran suddenly became alert.
What Xun Shu said can be said to be Li Ran's unbearable past. The provocative meaning of these words spoken now can be described as strong.
Li Ran stopped his cup and threw chopsticks for a moment, wondering what Xun Shu's intentions were.
