After listening to Confucius' words, Li Ran's expression became more solemn.
"Tomorrow is the top priority, and Tian Qi will definitely not let it go!"
"Tian Qi must have been planning this alliance for a long time, and now his intentions have been foiled by Zhong Ni one after another. If he goes back here, wouldn't all this trouble be in vain?"
"Furthermore, if Qi and Lu really form an alliance, it will be of no use to Tian Qi. Tomorrow's alliance must be prepared and we must not slack off."
"In my opinion, this Tian Qi may have made some mistakes in the oath. Maybe he will make some unreasonable remarks in it!"
When Confucius heard what Li Ran said, he also believed deeply:
"What my benefactor said is absolutely true, but...what do you think this Tian Qi will do then?"
I saw Li Ran thinking, shaking his head slightly, and sighed:
"I'm afraid there's no way to know this, but we need to discuss it in advance to take precautions!"
Confucius also nodded and replied:
"Well, if that's the case, then please ask your benefactor to take the trouble to discuss it with Qiu again so that Qiu can be prepared."
Li Ran happily agreed, and then they had a long chat with candles in Confucius' tent until late at night before they went back to camp to rest.
At this time, Gong Eryue had already laid out the bedding for him and was waiting for Li Ran there. But after waiting and waiting, he couldn't resist the sleepiness, and fell asleep leaning on the table.
As soon as Li Ran entered the tent and saw Gong Eryue like this, he shook his head and put his clothes directly on Gong Eryue.
But at this moment, Gong Eryue woke up with a start. Seeing that Li Ran was back, he immediately stood up and said to Li Ran:
"Sir, you have just come back. You must have worked very hard, sir? Since you have nothing to do, please rest quickly. I am in the camp on the right and Chu Dang is on the left. If there is anything, just shout."
Li Ran smiled slightly at her and nodded.
"Then you should go and rest, you have been working hard these past few days."
Gong Eryue smiled and shook his head, but did not speak and quietly retreated.
Li Ran was lying on the quilt, still thinking about the meeting. Unknowingly, Li Ran fell asleep...
Early the next morning, Gong Eryue called out from outside the account:
"Sir, are you awake?"
Li Ran had actually woken up a long time ago, but it was not bright outside yet, so he was still lying there thinking.
After hearing Gong Eryue's words, Li Ran replied:
"Wake up! What happened outside?"
When Gong Eryue heard this, she didn't shy away and went straight into the tent. However, she saw that Li Ran was getting up and dressing. Gong Eryue was so reckless, which made Li Ran very embarrassed.
Gong Eryue continued as if nothing had happened:
"Sir, Confucius has also gotten up early and is waiting outside!"
Gong Eryue said, then came to Li Ran and dressed him up.
Seeing this, Li Ran had no choice but to suppress the throbbing in his heart and force himself to calm down.
He could have remained calm despite the landslide in front of him. However, when facing Gong Eryue, he was always uneasy.
This is mainly because deep down in his heart, he has been deliberately avoiding Gong Eryue.
After all, Gong Eryue was so much like Ji Le that Li Ran sometimes couldn't even tell the difference between reality and the past. I am also afraid that I will do something wrong.
After Li Ran got dressed, Li Ran walked out of the tent and saw Confucius outside.
"My benefactor, Qi's oath has arrived, and they asked us to take a look at it first. Qiu has already read it, but he didn't find anything wrong with it!"
Li Ran nodded, took the oath letter from Confucius, read it carefully, and then said:
"It seems that there is indeed no problem. In this case, our oath can also be written according to this, and we can also show it to Qi people when the time comes."
Therefore, Confucius wrote an oath as if he had ordered him to do so.
At this time, Li Ran was still reading Qi Guo's oath.
Suddenly, he suddenly found a clue from it!
Li Ran said quickly:
"Wait a minute, Zhong Ni! Zhong, there is something strange in Qi's oath! There are actually some gaps left at the end!"
As Li Ran spoke, he unfolded the oath and showed it to Confucius.
When Confucius heard this, he couldn't help being surprised:
"Oh? My benefactor thinks... is there something deceitful here?!"
Li Ran nodded first and then asked:
"At first glance, there is nothing wrong with this oath, but at the end of the seal, there are actually three empty columns! Why do you think Zhong Ni is doing this?"
After Confucius thought about it carefully, he could not help but understand:
"I'm afraid... Tian Qi's people did this on purpose! He probably wanted to write some oaths at the end that are unfavorable to our country of Lu, so as to force us to submit on the spot!"
After hearing this, Li Ran couldn't help but nodded slightly to him.
Speaking of this oath, it is actually not a contract signed by both parties as in later generations, but a declaration similar to offering sacrifices to heaven.
Both sides would write their own words first, and then they would read the oath in person, and then each would take their own oath and throw it into the river to sue the gods!
In other words, the so-called oath is not only written for both parties to see, but also for the gods to see.
Confucius quickly understood what Li Ran meant.
Obviously, Qi Guo's oath left such a large section blank at the end, which must have some ulterior motive.
Therefore, Confucius immediately followed the same instructions and left a blank in his oath of Lu.
Not long after, the Lu State's oath was also drawn up. After everyone read it, they all thought there was nothing wrong with it, so they made a copy of the same oath and sent it to Qi State...
wenhe
Just within Jiagu.
As for the Qi State, as the main alliance, a special swearing platform was set up by the river.
Chujiu, the Marquis of Qi, and Song, the Marquis of Lu, made an appointment to meet on this oath platform.
Qi Hou Chujiu saw that the Wen River was not very fast, but it was not peaceful either, and there were many undercurrents in it.
Just like this alliance, on the surface it looks like smooth sailing, but in reality there are constant hiccups, and there is a big undercurrent surging behind it.
Qi Hou Chujiu may have lost face because of some of his previous "irregular actions".
Therefore, he naturally wanted to take advantage of the Lu State in this alliance in order to protect his dignity as the king of a country.
On the other hand, Lu Housong also rushed to Wenshui with the support of everyone.
And Chu Dang was among them. Seeing that everyone seemed to be looking worried, he couldn't help but said blankly:
"Don't you all seem very happy? Haven't everything been discussed well? Don't worry, even if something goes wrong, I, Chu Dang, will definitely be able to protect you!"
When everyone heard this, they all burst into laughter at Chu Dang's innocence. And it was this burst of laughter that instantly relaxed the originally solemn atmosphere.
At noon, Luhou Song and Qihou Chujiu met at the swearing platform as scheduled.
I saw that Qi Hou Chujiu was quite grand. As soon as Lu Hou Song got off the car, he took Lu Hou Song's hand and led him directly to the high platform.
The two monarchs, the old and the young, really looked like two brothers for a while.
At this time, Tian Qi was heard saying from the side:
"My lords, the time has come!"
Qi Hou Chujiu was chatting happily with Lu Hou Song at this time. After hearing this, he came back to his senses and nodded:
"Okay, let's get started!"
I saw Li Ho walking onto the platform step by step holding an oath in his hand. In front of everyone, the alliance letter from Qi was read out.
Confucius listened attentively, but just as it was coming to an end, he suddenly heard:
"As we march out of the country, if you don't follow me with three hundred armored chariots, how can we have such an alliance!"
The meaning of this passage is that if the Qi army goes abroad for an expedition, the Lu army must send 300 military chariots to follow, and there will be alliances to testify!
And this item was obviously not included in the affidavit they saw before!
Confucius frowned after hearing this.
It's no wonder, after all, this request is indeed a bit excessive.
This is actually equivalent to making Lu directly a vassal of Qi in disguise.
However, before he could react, Li Hao had already finished reading. And he directly closed the oath and threw it directly into the Wen River.
At this point, this oath has become a foregone conclusion and cannot be changed.
Obviously, this move of Li Ho's was undoubtedly intended to provoke a rebuttal from the Lu State and thus disrupt the Huang Menghui.
Seeing this, Confucius knew that the deal was done. If he raised objections at this time, the alliance would be in vain.
He looked at Li Ran as if asking for help, but Li Ran made a look that told him not to panic.
When Confucius saw this, he immediately recalled the situation this morning.
So, he made a prompt decision and ordered someone to fetch a pen and ink for him immediately.
Later, Confucius was seen holding an oath and stepping onto the stage step by step.
Tian Qi, who was standing aside, had a hint of viciousness in his eyes. He clapped his hands and laughed:
"Okay! Then... please ask the Lu State to also read out the alliance letter!"
——
Chapter 650_Confucius changed his oath quickly
Confucius looked sideways at Tian Qi and said:
"Lord Tian, since you are the leaders of the alliance, if you go back on your word like this, aren't you afraid of being laughed at by the people of the world?"
Tian Qi also sneered and replied with his head held high:
"Master Kong, what do you mean by this? Is it possible that our country, Qi, has done something inappropriate?"
Confucius couldn't help but get even more angry when he heard how he was pretending to be stupid:
"Mr. Tian, three hundred armored chariots is not a small number! Although the two countries of Qi and Lu have different surnames, they are both members of the Zhou Dynasty. Why does the Qi country need to embarrass our Lu country? Furthermore, these three hundred armored chariots This was something that was unheard of during the previous peace talks, so why did you join the oath for no reason? Are you trying to deceive me, the Lu people?"
Seeing Confucius' anger growing, Tian Qi secretly rejoiced.
However, on the surface, he still looked calm and calm, and said:
"Haha, Master Kong is overly worried. This is just a harmless thing, isn't it? The State of Lu is a country of thousands of chariots, so why does it still care about the failure of a mere 300 armored chariots? What's more, since this covenant has been invested in Wenhe River, tell me How can the gods be changed? Is the State of Lu trying to make things difficult for us, the State of Qi?"
Confucius saw this situation and knew that what Tian Qi did was to force the Lu people to submit. He certainly wouldn't let it get his wish.
Therefore, although he was very angry, it was inconvenient for him to pursue this matter any further.
In fact, Chujiu, the Marquis of Qi, knew nothing about the whole thing. But seeing how indignant Confucius was, he thought that Tian Qi had succeeded, so he couldn't help but smile and said:
"If Qi and Lu become good friends in the future, if there is a war, it is understandable for Lu to send some soldiers and armor, right? Lu Hou, do you think so?"
Naturally, Lu Hou Song also felt that something was wrong, but it was difficult to say it out in front of Qi Hou Chujiu.
Moreover, he was a person with no opinions, so he could only smile awkwardly and try to cope with it.
Confucius continued to help and said:
"Marquis of Qi, three hundred chariots and armor are very expensive for our country of Lu. If the country of Qi has frequent wars in the future, how can our country of Lu be able to withstand it?"
At this time, Qi Hou Chujiu pretended to be confused:
"What Confucius said is too much, it's only three hundred times! Besides, now that the alliance letter has entered the river, it can't be changed at will? If not, wouldn't it be abandoned by the gods?"
"Or... you, the State of Lu, have no sincerity in negotiating peace with our State of Qi?"
After hearing this, Luhou Song quickly said:
"The Marquis of Qi's words are serious, his words are serious... How can we, the State of Lu, not be sincere in peace talks?"
Qi Hou Chujiu replied disdainfully:
"Since you are sincere, why don't you even agree to three hundred chariots? Could it be that the people of Lu still look down upon our Qi country?"
Obviously, Qihou Chujiu was not a fuel-efficient lamp.
Although this matter was caused by Tian Qi, it could be said that it directly touched his heart.
After hearing what the Marquis of Qi said, Marquis of Lu and Song couldn't help feeling more pressure, and he kept sweating in cold sweat.
After all, Qi Hou Chujiu was arrogant as the leader of the world. Just because Confucius' performance in the past few days was too perfect, they had no reason to be able to control the Lu State.
And now Tian Qi finally thought of something that could serve the interests of Qi State, and naturally he would not let it go.
At this time, Li Ran, who had not spoken for a long time, stepped forward and said:
"Haha, please calm down the Marquis of Qi, because the State of Lu is sandwiched between Qi and Jin. Although the State of Jin is in decline, it still has its power after all. If the State of Qi wants to conquer the Central Plains in the future, it will have to fight with The Jin Dynasty is fighting. Since Lu is a country with the surname Ji, how can we bear to fight with it?"
"What's more, the State of Qi is a big country. If you want to do kingly things, how can you not win the trust of the world? Although the State of Qi can gain the advantage of three hundred military strategists, it does not know that it will lose the trust of the people of the world. Heart!"
"Although the interests here are of no benefit to the State of Lu, I fear that the damage to the State of Qi will be even greater! It can be said that both are harmed, so why bother?"
"As the saying goes, 'The crooked part is complete, the wrong part is straight, the hollow part is full, the hollow part is new, the less part is gain, the more part is confusion." I hope the Marquis of Qi can think about it and be careful!"
This sentence originally came from the mouth of Li Ran's father Li Er, which means that bending can be preserved, and being compressed can straighten; depression can be filled, and withering can be renewed; wanting less can lead to gaining, and gaining more can lead to confusion.
What I am talking about is what Qi State should do now, which is how to make itself more humble, more open-minded, and more virtuous.
When Qi Hou Chujiu heard these words, he couldn't help but hesitate for a long time, while Tian Qi said:
"Anyway, now that we have completed our oath, will your Lu country obey or not?"
At this time, under the cover of Li Ran's gags, Kong Qiu had already figured out how to retaliate.
And during this gap, the oath in Kong Qiu's hand had been secretly modified by him.
I saw Confucius also walking forward quickly and immediately started reading aloud.
At the end of reading, Confucius was suddenly frustrated again. He stared at Tian Qi with burning eyes, and finally swore:
"You will not rebel against my land in Wenyang, and we will do the same to those who share our fate!"
The meaning of this last sentence is to ask Qi to return the three places of Yun, Xi, and Guiyin in the Wenyang area of Lu that were occupied by Yang Hu Ben Qi and the previous war between the two countries, so that Lu can be able to serve Qi. Provide military chariots, otherwise the state of Lu would be unable to afford it with its current financial resources.
Seeing such a situation, Tian Qi's expression couldn't help but change!
"How can we make a decision on such an important matter without discussing it?"
Confucius replied calmly:
"Haha, Master Tian. This is your request first! And your request is obviously beyond what our Lu country can currently bear."
"And if your country can return these places, then our country of Lu can consider accepting the order of the Marquis of Qi. Otherwise, please forgive our country of Lu for not obeying the order!"
Okay, now the problem is back to Qi Guo.
Confucius's move of "replying the other's way with the other's body" is really not unwise.
Qi Hou Chujiu was obviously extremely dissatisfied with this.
But at this time, Confucius had also thrown Lu's alliance letter into the Wen River, and said:
"The alliance of Qilu can be seen by the sun and the moon, and the heaven and earth can prove it! If both sides violate it, they will be abandoned by heaven!"
After Tian Qi heard this, he couldn't help but take a deep breath:
"This... this kind of oath is to be entrusted to the gods. How can it be changed at will?"
At this time, Confucius bowed deeply to Tian Qishi again:
"It's precisely because we have to serve the gods, so we can't treat it as a child's play! What's more, those places are the territory of our Lu country. Now we beg Qi to return them. These requests are not too much, right?"
Tian Qi's expression became increasingly gloomy, because all the places mentioned by Lu State now belonged to his Tian family!
So, how does this make Tian Qi not angry?
However, this Tian Qi is no ordinary person after all. Although he was extremely annoyed, he still said with a smile on his face:
"These places have been owned by our Qi Kingdom for many years, how can we just return them? Mr. Kong, this is a bit too much, isn't it?"
Confucius said calmly:
"The land of Wenshui is the inherent territory of our Lu State. Although the Qi State has occupied it for many years, it was obtained unfairly. Now it is time to bring order to the chaos and rectify the righteousness of the world! How can the Marquis of Qi cherish the land and Are you abandoning the justice of the world?"
"What's more, if these lands can be returned to the possession of Lu, then we, Lu, can better serve Qi! If Qi wants Lu to accompany us with three hundred chariots, we Lu will not dare to Don’t obey!”
"In the past, Duke Huan of Qi helped the Yan State defeat the Shanrong, and allocated land to Yan to achieve Duke Huan of Qi's hegemony! Why does the Marquis of Qi cherish the land today and lose the hearts of the people in the world?"
Confucius' words can be said to have dumbfounded the Marquis of Qi.
But Qihou Chujiu could only look at Kongqiu helplessly, and his expression gradually became gloomy.
(End of chapter)
