The next day, the envoy from the Western Regions hurriedly packed up and left. The purpose of the mission had been achieved. He had to go back quickly to tell the king the good news, which would also strengthen the people's will to resist. Many surrender factions have appeared now. .
Ten days later, news came from Meng Tian that the Xiongnu who attacked Jiuyuan County had been repelled, or it would be more appropriate to kill them all. Because of the reckless attack, almost all the 10,000 Huns lay dead at the foot of the Great Wall. The Great Wall in Jiuyuan County Already soaked with blood, the rammed earth turned dark red.
Wu Jian also came to report, but Dayuezhi retreated under the leadership of Bantes without even moving a single soldier.
At the same time, Meng Tian also sent two more important messages.
The first is that Motun has occupied all the Huns' old territories. Zalut's cavalry suffered heavy losses. Only more than 10,000 people returned to the original territory of Beihu alive. However, Motun did not continue to attack Beihu.
The second one was beyond everyone's expectations: Mao Dun sent a messenger to Jiuyuan, claiming to negotiate peace with Da Qin!
Xianyang Hall, court meeting.
Qi Wan read the report of the two to the ministers.
After speaking, Feng Jie immediately stood up and said: "Your Majesty, this must be Mao Dun's trick. He occupied the old territory of the Xiongnu, but suddenly stopped attacking Beihu and Daqin. He must be brewing a bigger conspiracy! Don't trust him easily!" "
Zhang Han also stood up and agreed: "What Prime Minister Zuo said is right. I believe that Mao Dun is here to recuperate. Once he is given time to grow up, he will probably be even more powerful than when Tou Man was in power. By then, it will be more difficult for Da Qin to win. ! I advise you to leave the Great Wall immediately and defeat Maodun quickly while his foothold is not stable!"
Most of the others held the same attitude.
I was a little disappointed in my heart. I didn't expect Zarut to be so vulnerable. I said in a deep voice: "Let's not discuss this matter for now. I want to think about it carefully. Zhang Han, please reply to Meng Tian. No matter what Mao Dun has planned, let him A messenger came to Xianyang, I want to see what he has to say!"
Zhang Han raised his hands and said yes.
Then I was not in the mood to listen to anything else, so I asked the ministers to go find Li Si if they had anything to do, and hurriedly left Xianyang Palace.
Before leaving, I told Zhang Han to wait for me at Sihai Palace.
After the court meeting, Feng Jie and Li Si always walked at the end, keeping their distance from others.
Feng Jie looked around and said in a low voice: "Prime Minister Feng, why do I feel that His Majesty's attitude towards the Xiongnu this time seems to be a little hesitant? He is no longer as decisive as before."
Li Si glanced at him and obviously felt the same way. He frowned and said, "Li also noticed it. Maybe it's because His Majesty doesn't want to start another war? After all, the court has too much money to spend now. If there is another large-scale war with the Xiongnu, , I’m afraid the national treasury cannot support it.”
Feng Jie shook his head: "Even if we fight the Huns twice more, the treasury will be a little nervous at most, but not to the point where it can't support it, right? I always think it's because of other reasons."
Li Si sighed softly: "Your Majesty has not yet been crowned. There are too many state affairs, and maybe your Majesty is a little tired. We try our best to do our part, just to share your worries for your Majesty, so we should not talk too much."
Feng Jie nodded, and the two said no more.
When Zhang Han arrived at Sihai Palace, I had already changed into casual clothes.
"Sit down, I'll make you some tea." I pointed at the tea set in front of me and said with a smile.
Zhang Han was a little hesitant. He also noticed something unusual about me. If it were me before, I would have ordered Wu Jian and Meng Tian to lead the army northward to completely solve the Xiongnu problem. Now it is really a bit abnormal.
But I thanked him and sat down.
I picked up the porcelain pot next to me, scalded all the tea sets with hot water first, and said, "This is called a warming set. First, it is to keep the tea set at a certain temperature. Otherwise, the hot tea will enter the cold cup and the taste will be greatly affected. Second, it is to keep the tea set at a certain temperature." It can be disinfected and kill the bacteria on it.”
Then pinch a pinch of Longjing, cover it approximately above the bottom of the medium bowl, pour in hot water, and use the upper lid to constantly skim off the foam: "This is tea. Because Longjing is spring tea and it is green tea, with fresh buds and tender leaves." , there is no need to wash the tea. If it is old tea, it must be poured out after the first brewing, which is called washing the tea. Of course, it is not poured casually, it must be poured on the tea set. Guests can judge the tea by the fragrance in the tea cup. I stirred it with the upper lid. First, if the temperature is too high, it will destroy the taste of the spring tea and make it bitter. Second, there is some foam, which can be skimmed off."
Then he picked up the tureen and poured the tea into the Gongdao Cup: "Spring tea leaves are young, so you can probably recite ten numbers silently. This cup is called the Gongdao Cup. The tea in the tureen has a light taste at the top and a strong taste at the bottom. Pour it into the Gongdao Cup. This makes the tea that everyone drinks have the same concentration, hence the name Fair Cup."
He picked up the Gongdao cup and poured it to Zhang Han. Zhang Han quickly held the cup with his hands and said, "Don't drink the tea in a hurry. Smell it first and feel the aroma of the tea leaves; then taste it carefully and taste the taste of the tea leaves; and finally savor it and feel the tea flowing through it." The suppleness of the throat and the fragrance of the lips and teeth.”
After completing a set of actions, Zhang Han looked at the small cup in front of him, holding it in for a long time: "Where did your majesty get this method of making tea?"
I smiled and said, "A good friend taught me how it was? Have you experienced the joy of tea ceremony?"
Zhang Han smiled awkwardly: "The fragrance is quite fragrant, but the cup is too small. It doesn't quench your thirst, and it's not as good as boiled tea to quench your hunger."
I sighed helplessly: "It's true that chewing peonies has ruined my Longjing."
Zhang Han smiled sheepishly and asked curiously: "Where did your majesty get the tea leaves and tea sets?"
"Tao Yao gave it to me. She is in the tea trade." When I left that day, I asked Meng He to bring back a set of tea sets. After the tea arrived in Xianyang, Tao Yao asked Ying Lan to bring some to the palace for me to drink. Tea can calm the mind.
I savored the aroma of the tea carefully. The tea made by Taoyao was quite good and tasted very good.
Zhang Han saw me drinking tea leisurely and became a little anxious. He said cautiously: "Your Majesty, what are your plans for the Huns?"
He couldn't bear it for a long time. Soldiers are very fast. If Mao Dun gets a firm foothold, he will have to spend more money, food and troops to deal with him.
I said calmly: "Do you think we should send troops?"
Zhang Han nodded: "Now that Maodun has just gone through a great battle, His Majesty has just agreed to let his messenger come to Xianyang. We can take this opportunity to confuse him and make him think that Da Qin is going to accept his request for peace and attack by surprise! We will definitely win!"
I chuckled: "Governing a country is like making tea. You can't be impatient. You have to taste it carefully to feel the origin of the tea. You and I will go to Rewu Fang later and make a decision after going to Rewu Fang."
Zhang Han's eyes lit up, and then he became discouraged: "Your Majesty, you want to rely on that gunpowder? But now we don't even have the raw materials, so I'm afraid it won't be possible to produce it on a large scale."
I took a sip of tea and responded: "Now the Qin Dynasty can no longer use weapons easily. I have decided that until thermal weapons are developed, we can no longer initiate wars."
Zhang Han looked solemnly and said, "Your Majesty, are you worried about wasting money and food?"
I nodded and shook my head: "I have considered this part, but not entirely. Okay, all the ministers should have left Xianyang Palace, let's go."
Sometimes I even feel that there are more hidden dangers in Da Qin today than when Ying Zheng just passed away. Hexi is better, but Donghu, Xiyu, and Beihu are not completely under my control. It seems that there are gunpowder depots everywhere. The appearance of Maodun this time has sounded the alarm for me. I'd better be honest for a while.
