After listening to the introduction by Wei Zheng, the Prime Minister of Wei, Lord Xinling asked: "Qin entered the heart of Wei and wanted to attack it. But as soon as the merchants came out, the peace agreement was concluded?"
Wei Zhengdao: "Merchants are everywhere in the world, everywhere in grasslands and temples. In the past, Xian Gao returned to the Qin army with twenty oxen. Now that the Qin people have left the country and set up military markets in enemy countries, how can there be no merchants to help them! Kuang Duanmu's family, He is both a businessman and a Confucian!"
Lord Xinling said: "This is exactly what I suspected. I have always heard that Qin suppressed merchants and banned Confucian knights, Duanmu clan, Confucian merchants, all of whom were banned by Qin. How can it be allowed?"
Wei Zhengdao: "The time is the same and the situation is the same. How can we not understand it?"
Lord Xinling said: "I would like to hear the way."
Wei Zhengdao said: "After hearing this, the Duanmu family sent an old family member to leave the city and return in the evening. The Duanmu family reported that the Qin people were willing to make peace and invited the Wei envoy to come. The Wei Prime Minister sent Duan Ziqian as an envoy to go with him to unveil the seal, and it was agreed that day. What he proposed was presented to the general and he said it was good. Then the general made an alliance with Marquis Rang, and the peace discussion was completed."
Lord Xinling said: "General and alliance? Would you rather be afraid of Qin and betray his trust and attack the city?"
Wei Xin, who had the lowest status, said: "Although the general has made an alliance with Qin, the defense will not be lost. Although the four cities are now open, the weapons for defense are all ready, and there are police when encountering them. The city gates can be closed for a moment, and the defenders can go up to the city for a while. This general It was agreed upon with all the ministers. If it is not opened, the grain and fodder of the beams will not be maintained, the civil affairs will be difficult, and a lot will be lost."
Wei Ming said bitterly: "I don't care that all important affairs of the country are in the hands of merchants."
Wei Zheng didn't take it seriously and said: "Who wants to retreat from the Qin army, don't they rely on merchants?"
Lord Xinling said: "When Mr. Zhe returns, Mr. Zhongyue feels like he has lost his arms. Now that Mr. Zhe has returned, he is looking forward to it."
Wei Zhe bowed down and said, "I would rather behave like an animal to receive the kindness of the young master! Instead of just restraining the minister, everyone in the government will feel the virtue of the young master and urge the minister to repay him."
Wei Zhengdao: "A fool is stubborn and stubborn. If he can be taught by a young master, he will make a little progress, and his family will be lucky."
Lord Xinling said: "Master Zhe is good at numbers, and all the complicated matters can be simplified by him. The high lintel of the gate can be used for it."
Wei Zhengdao: "It all depends on the support of the young master."
Lord Xinling replied: "Although Liang is at peace with Qin today, Huayang has not yet made peace with it. The Qin people are attacking Huayang with all their strength. They are alone and have few soldiers. The city is shallow. What can they do?"
Wei Mingdao said: "Young Master has 100,000 soldiers and more than 10,000 soldiers, who were no less than Daliang. Although Huayang is small, Wei's army is also a military town. With a thousand people to guard it, it can still last three months, let alone 100,000 people! It can be protected. No worries."
Lord Xinling smiled bitterly and said: "A hundred thousand people need thousands of gold per day, and five thousand stones per day for food and fodder. After living in the city for only a few days, the feces and urine accumulate, and it is difficult to say anything. What about injuries? As soon as the Qin people came out, everyone died. Hundreds, this is really difficult."
Wei Ming smiled and said, "I don't care about the rest. If it's about feces and urine, I'm willing to worry about it for you. What is it? I'll send a hundred or ten people to pick it up in various camps. What can I do?"
Lord Xinling said: "With only a hundred and ten people, what can we do?"
Wei Mingdao: "If you don't do anything right, don't worry, sir."
Lord Xinling said to Wei Mang, "Mr. Mang has been with Sima for a long time, and he must be able to teach me."
Wei Ming was a little embarrassed and said: "Although I am in Sima Mansion, I am a guest. Guests come and go, and the cooks in the kitchen may ask questions. How can I dare to talk about the battle formation?"
Lord Xinling said: "Young Master Gao divides the meat very evenly, and I still call him that. His strengths make up for his weaknesses, and he can still be the leader of the world."
Wei Mingdao: "How fortunate it is that a fool can be used by a young master."
Mr. Zhongyue said: "I have something to do now, and I am asking Master Zhe and Master Gao to help me."
Wei Zhe and Wei Gao both said: "I am willing to follow your orders."
Mr. Zhongyue said: "The rear army burned pits. The Jin officials were angry and punished the armies with making pits for camps. The people and the army protect each other in the countryside, and the people in the camps are not uniform. Wouldn't it be better to have a fixed strategy for the pits?"
The two of them said: "I would like to follow you, sir, to inspect its condition and decide on its plan."
Both fathers warned: "If something goes wrong, you will definitely be punished!"
Wei Zhengdao: "Liang and Qin are at peace, and Huayang is at peace with Yan. Which one? What the generals and Ranghou discussed was between Liang and Qifeng; the king and those who discussed it were Wei and Qin, and Huayang was also among them. But the peace negotiation was not completed. , dare not relax even a moment. If the peace agreement is not concluded, only ten cities will be covered. If the young master is in trouble, even if a hundred cities are to be redeemed, how can the peace agreement be accomplished?"
Lord Xinling said: "If this is true, then the army will be defeated and lose its territory, and will not be able to enter the ancestral temple!"
Wei Min, who had been sitting at the bottom, suddenly said: "If a scholar is arrogant, he cannot be used. The prince is kind-hearted and considerate of the soldiers, but his mistakes are not enough. Soldiers are in danger, and the victors will all have their corpses scattered all over the field, and then You have gained a moment of heroism. You lost hundreds of people in this early battle, but the prince is very sad. Do you dare to use your troops in the jungle of thousands of swords again? Hundreds of people were killed, and they were trapped in chaos; thousands of people were killed, and the enemy was captured and killed; ten thousand people were killed. , roaming the world. If you want to protect the ancestral temple without hurting anyone, what would you rather do?"
Wei Xindao: "Although my young master's words are rude, the truth is as follows. Driving thousands of people to death, trying to survive from death, is like sitting in a leaky boat, under a house of fire. A wise man can't plan, a brave man can't be angry, so he will fight against the enemy. It's not based on careful consideration. Third, think ahead and look behind what you can do.”
Lord Xinling said: "When the Qin people arrived, all the troops were dispersed. What can I do? Not only the main camp, but also the remaining camps were trapped."
Wei Xindao: "The rewards and punishments are unclear. Any army that advances without caring about its own safety will be rewarded, but will be destroyed if it retreats. Therefore, there is no retreat. The army collapsed without punishment. It has been able to save its head until now. When it comes to battle again, it is as if it is running. . Why? If you advance, you will die, if you retreat, you will live."
Lord Xinling said: "I can't bear the people to die. If we kill all those who are defeated, I don't know how many hundreds of thousands of people there are, and blood will flow like a river!"
Wei Xindao: "Young Master, you are a benevolent king, but you should not be in charge of troops. Soldiers are a bad thing. The two armies are facing each other, fighting for life and death. Those who seek life will die, and those who forget about the life of the dead will die. If you have the thought of stealing life, you should put it to death. . I hope you will check it out."
Lord Xinling was silent for a moment and said: "That's what you said. I want to give orders, practice flags and drums, know how to advance and retreat, and know rewards and punishments. But I haven't found the way yet."
Wei Xindao: "If you advance, you will be rewarded, and if you retreat, you will be punished. Believe in the four seasons, and that is the way. Now if there is an advance, you will be rewarded? If you retreat, you will be killed? So we know that the battle cannot be won, but the defense cannot be strong. .”
Lord Xinling finally avoided the table and worshiped: "I would like to accept my teachings!" He stood up and said: "I would like to regard the young master of the people as the military leader. Please encourage me!"
Wei Min was stunned for a moment and finally bowed: "I obey your orders!"
Lord Xinling replied: "The ministers each sent their sons back to the formation. They did not avoid danger, and they forgot their own interests. This is the foundation of loyalty. There is no wine and meat in the camp, but a piece of salt and plum. Let's pay tribute!"
Everyone bowed down and said, "I'd like to accept it!" They all retreated and went back to their rooms to rest until it was time to eat.
Lord Xinling saw them off and asked Zhang He and others in a daze, as if he was talking to himself: "Will you kill them to establish your authority?"
The gentlemen didn't answer, they just lowered their heads quietly.
Lord Xinling sighed and turned around and entered the East Pavilion. Gai Nie stopped practicing and greeted him. He waved his hand to indicate that he should continue practicing. The little slave came to greet him, but he turned a blind eye and went directly to the window and lay down. The little slave took a quilt and covered him with it, and sat beside him to wait on him. He seemed unaware: there was a war between heaven and man in his heart.
Gai Nie finished his work and returned to the pavilion. He sat next to Xiaonu and did not speak. He only looked at Lord Xinling quietly.
After a long time, Lord Xinling finally sighed and said, "How difficult it is to rule the world with benevolence and righteousness!" When he came back to his senses, he saw two people sitting next to him and said, "I am a beautiful lady, but how can I fall into this world?"
Xiaonu didn't know what he meant and didn't answer. Lord Xinling sighed again and said: "Things in this world are often difficult to achieve as one wishes!"
Gai Nie understood this sentence and said: "If things don't go as planned, it's not because things are wrong, but because the intentions are wrong."
Lord Xinling was stunned and said, "What do you mean?"
Gai Nie said: "It's like a sword. Whenever it doesn't work as expected, it's not because of the sword's fault. But if it can follow the sword's intention, then it's even subtle!"
Lord Xinling jumped up and said, "Can you know the meaning of the sword? Give it a try!"
Gai Nie picked up a wooden stick on the ground, waved it casually, and stopped in front of Lord Xinling's throat. Lord Xinling said with great joy: "It's so good, what a skill!" After touching his body, he remembered that his sword had been given to Zeng Ji. But he was unwilling to give up and asked, "Can I care about other things?"
Gai Nie said: "Your Majesty, let me know."
Lord Xinling went out, looked around, and found a poker and a fire stick under the kitchen. He took them and ran back to the East Pavilion and handed them to Gai Nie. Gai Nie took it in his hand, danced it twice, and stabbed Lord Xinling easily. Although Lord Xinling was aware of it and was ready to hide, it was always difficult to avoid it. He was so happy that he shouted: "That's good, that's good!" This caused everyone in the courtyard to look over. Seeing Lord Xinling fighting a sword with a child, he initially thought it was just for fun. But after a closer look, some of the disciples also realized that this child is serious! Some of the disciples became stubborn and came up to give Gai Nie some tricks. Gai Nie had no problem and hit them one by one. Everyone cheered together. Lord Xinling's mood slowly calmed down. Later, a gentleman took out an iron sword from the room and handed it to Genie. The iron sword was too heavy, and Gai Niewu tried several times but was unable to do anything with it, so he had to give up.
Seeing this iron sword, Lord Xinling suddenly remembered that before going out into battle, Zhang Nou had given each of his disciples a sword and a long soldier. Sword. But where is the sword?
Go back to Mr. Zhang and ask for it back and give it to Gai Nie! Lord Xinling began to think so. Then I thought again, this proposal is inappropriate! The sword is an extraordinary thing, and a gentleman should carry it with him. Among the disciples, only the one hundred and twenty who went out into battle had swords. If I gave that sword to a child casually, what would other gentlemen think? So I gave up the idea again. "I wish I could be strong!" he thought.
In the blink of an eye, it was noon time, and the four young masters and their families came back again, all with baggage in their hands. Zhang He and others came to welcome him. They all presented their bundles one by one. It turned out that they were gifts to Lord Xinling to keep out the cold. They included robes and quilts. Liang Bugu came from the Dazai family and spent a lot of money, even giving him a fur. Lord Xinling thanked them one by one and collected them all in the hall. After the porridge was eaten, it was a ritual as usual. They chatted about some interesting stories about the capital and wartime chores, and then they dispersed.
The weather was getting colder day by day, and fever began to appear in the camp, with a tendency to spread. Mr. Zhongyue quickly cooked wild chrysanthemum soup with ginger and dates, and gave it to the fever patient, and the fever slowed down slightly.
With the assistance of the second son of the Wei family, the Hou Army and the People's Army finally completed the excavation project of the cave within a limited area. Everyone got into the cave before it started to snow and took basic measures to keep warm. Doctor Jin Bi announced that the army and the people would have a meal each.
