In various countries in the Central Plains, it is normal for ministers to give a portion of rewards to those who handle them. However, in the Qin State, this turned out to be against the rules. Zhang Lu retracted his hand in embarrassment and said: "I am from Wei, and I am not familiar with the laws of Qin. I hope you will not be guilty! Since Wangyi Palace is the residence of Marquis Rang, I should go to Huayang Jun's Mansion to pay orders. But it's time. It’s late, what can I do?”
The retainer gave Zhang Lu a piece of talisman and said, "Take this to Guanyi and spend the night there." Pointing out the location of Guanyi, Zhang Lu resigned.
Zhang Lu stayed one night in Guanyi leisurely and set off for Xianyang Palace. It was almost dusk when he arrived at Xianyang Palace Post, so Zhang Lu naturally found accommodation at Xianyang Palace Post and casually visited Huang Xie.
Huang Xie met Zhang Lu and praised him greatly: "As soon as Mr. Zhang came out, it was difficult for everyone to save him. Even though there are ancient sages, there is nothing more he can do."
Zhang Lu repeatedly said that he relied on the efforts of the young master and Mr. You and Zhong Er, and that he was just a physical worker, just a laborer.
Huang Xie told Zhang Lu: "Mr. King Shizan of Qin has ordered Lord Huayang to report his meritorious service and be promoted to a higher rank. Since Lord Shang established his military meritorious service, no one has been promoted beyond his rank. The King of Qin will give you a favor and allow Lord Huayang to become a minister. I will grant you the title of minister." Both Guan Ranghou and Wu Anjun have no objections."
Zhang Lu asked: "What's the discussion between Lord Jingyang and Lord Gaoling?"
Huang Xie said: "The two gentlemen did not say a word."
Zhang Lu said: "I thought of Tongyi Canal and pulled out the Qin army, and the two princes of Jingyang and Gaoling benefited from it. Even if I don't say anything, I should second the proposal. But why don't you say a word?"
Huang Xie said: "Sir's concerns are true. I understand the intention of the two monarchs. I think that you are not from Qin, and you don't want to be ranked higher than Qin. The people who are currently in charge of the court are Ranghou, Huayang Jun, the younger brother of the Queen Mother, and the king's Uncle; the two kings of Jingyang and Gaoling are the sons of the Queen Mother and the king's compatriots; King Wu'an is the descendant of the Qin people and was promoted to the army by Marquis Rang. These five are all relatives of the Queen Mother and are used by the king. . The guest made a mistake, and the official could only watch from the left; the guest from Hu Yang, the official stopped at the middle of the watch; now there is a guest's stove again, and I don't know what it can do. Although the guest is standing in the court, it is just to prepare personnel."
Zhang Lu said: "I practice this way, and I am good to Sima Jin. Who is Sima Jin?"
Huang Xie said: "Sima Jin is the grandson of Sima Cuo. The Qin State is an old noble. I heard that although Sima Jin is young, he has great military achievements and is almost as good as Lord Wu'an. Lord Wu'an believes in him and always takes up his post."
Zhang Lu said: "Sima Jin is a talented person. He plans strategies and has no plans left. If he has a clear path, he has a lot of power. Five thousand garrison troops, advance and retreat, set up camp, and rely on him for food, fodder and utensils. But Jin looks at it as if there is nothing. , I refer to it casually, and everything is in harmony."
Huang Xie said: "Sima Jin reports the profit to Lord Wu'an, and the Duke of Jin rides on it."
Zhang Lufu asked: "Qin's attack on Yiqu will inevitably end in Guandong. What is the situation in Guandong?"
Huang Xie smiled calmly and said, "Sir, sit down and let your servant explain in detail. In the former, Zhao sent Yu Qing to envoy Qin, telling Yan Gongsun Cheng'an Juncao to kill the king of Yan and ask Qin to attack him. Qin soldiers were all trapped in Yi Canal, so they ordered Chu, Wei and Zhao jointly attacked it. Yu Qing saw his servants and said that Chu was sending troops. The servants said that the way to attack Yan was not Qi, but Wei. Although the king of Chu wanted to attack Yan, what would he do? Yu Qing said that Wei would use the way. , Chu’s 30,000 troops, together with the armies of Wei and Zhao, will attack Yan in the suburbs!”
Zhang Lu said: "After Chu was defeated, why did he still attack others?"
Huang Xie said: "It would be difficult for Chu to raise a large army to fight against a big country. It would not be so difficult to gather 30,000 troops in a small area and attack the suburbs of Yan."
Zhang Lu said: "Where is the army?"
Huang Xie said: "I live in Qin and am not in the army. I don't know the direction of the army."
Zhang Lu said: "The kingdom of Guandong is attacking Yan with all its strength. I am afraid it will not be a blessing to Guandong."
Huang Xie said: "What do you mean?"
Zhang Lu said: "In the past, Qi and Qin stood together and became emperors. If the states in the Guandong region attacked together, Qin would rescue them, and when Qin attacked them, they would rescue each other, so all the countries were safe. Later, Qi destroyed the Song Dynasty in one dynasty, and the whole world attacked them together. Qi did not perish. Only two cities. Although the later Qi returned to its old territory, it did not regain its former appearance. Therefore, Qin's attacks on Chu, Han, and Wei were all victorious. They attacked cities and captured land with thousands of troops. Who? They lost strong reinforcements from outside! Today The only powerful country under the Qin Dynasty was Qin, but the three kingdoms attacked Yan with small things and lost it. Yan was a remote country with a cold land and a lack of people. If you gain it, you will not be strong, and if you lose it, you will not be weak. Cutting down a thousand miles will cost twice as much and gain nothing. This is not a wise man's strategy."
Huang Xie pondered for half a minute and said: "Sir's words are true. I will repay it to the king! I am short-sighted and short-sighted, and the burden is heavy. I hope you will consider it important, sir, and don't say goodbye!"
Zhang Lu said: "Young Master's orders are not something you dare to resign. However, I am old and sick, and I am afraid that I will mislead you, so I dare not accept my orders!"
Mr. Che You and Mr. Hu Zhong both said: "Sir, you go deep into the mountains, fill the valleys with the peaks, and connect 600 roads to Yiqu. It is the middle of winter, and I can't help but wait for the ministers to turn to the fire in their fur clothes, while I lie on the ice and snow, walking on the wind and frost." , Weathering the wind and rain without retreating, what can old and sick do?"
Zhang Lu said: "That's not what Mr. Qin said. I am under the command of the King of Qin, and the law of Qin is behind me. Although I saw the ax and did not dare to avoid it, it is wind and frost! The way is clear, I am sick, Ji Yue has to get up, and all my external things are lost. , My body is almost in danger!"
Huang Xie didn't know the details of Zhang Lu's illness. Seeing that he couldn't afford it, he hurriedly asked. Zhang Lu then described his illness with added detail. Speaking of which, all my belongings were lost. Huang Xie immediately picked up a bag of his clothes and gave it to Zhang Lu. Zhang Lu said: "Since I entered the Qin Dynasty, I have never touched the water. I would like to borrow the young master's place and give him a bath. I am very lucky!"
Huang Xie and Mang both said: "What's the difficulty!" Mang Shen and Mr. Che You went to light a fire. Mr. Hu Zhong picked up two jars of water each, poured one jar into the cauldron, and burned it until it boiled. A ladle was placed in the urn, the empty urn was placed next to it, and a curtain was propped up with dead branches to let Zhang Lu in. Zhang Lu stripped himself off, poured cold and boiling water into an empty vat, adjusted the water temperature to a suitable temperature, and washed one by one with warm water from head to toe. After an hour, I came out feeling refreshed and radiant. After putting on the clothes given by Huang Xie, it turns out that people rely on clothes. Putting on the colorful Chu clothes, the decadent old man's air was swept away, and he showed a bit of grace!
After sleeping all night and having breakfast, Huang Xie and the prince had already taken the car to Zhangtai Palace to attend court. Zhang Lu got on the road by himself and walked all the way to Zhangtai Palace. It was already noon. After asking about Huayang Jun's mansion, he came to see him. After inspecting the festival talisman, the disciples led Zhang Lu to the private room and went in to report. After a while he came back and said: "Your Majesty invites you!"
Zhang Lu entered the main hall gracefully. Mi Rong, Lord of Huayang, saw that Zhang Lu had changed into Chu clothes and asked a little strangely: "Why is Gongcao wearing Chu clothes?"
Zhang Lu answered honestly: "I came to the Xianyang Palace Posthouse at night, and when Duke Huang of Chu took a rest, he was there to pay homage to the Prince of Chu. I said that all my old things were lost in Yiqu, so he gave me his own clothes."
Mi Rong said: "Is Gong Cao old with Huang Gong?"
Zhang Lu said: "I live in Weiye and receive favors from Duke Huang. I want to make me a guest, but I refuse."
Mi Rong said: "Huang Gong Xie Jian is a disciple of Chu Zuo, and he is serving as the prince in Qin. He will later become the superintendent of Chu state. It's a good thing that Huang Gong created it. How can we abandon it?"
Zhang Lu said: "Although Huang Gong is a virtuous man, Chu is not his place, so he cannot do anything."
Mi Rong said: "Why did Gong Cao say this?"
Zhang Lu said: "I heard that Junhou, Ranghou and Xiang Shou are all Chu people, very humble. Once they entered Qin, they were all generals and ministers, and they were noticed by the world. From this, I know that Chu is not the place for me. Huang Gong Although he is virtuous, he is unable to do anything.”
Mi Rong said: "The ministers and others are generals and ministers because of the power of the Queen Mother."
Zhang Lu said: "The Queen Mother is also from Chu. She is of little importance in Chu, but she has entered Qin to be the most noble. Everyone in the Queen Mother's family can be used for Qin, but none of them can be used for Chu. The princes and princes are thinking about it. If they are in Chu, where are they?"
Mi Rong said: "My son and I! My son and I! I am in Chu and my head is preserved among the officials. I am lucky. Yu An dares to look at him! Your son is a very good person. I should recommend him to the king!"
Zhang Lu said: "I have been ordered by the king to assist you in your meritorious service. Now that the work of the righteous canal has been completed, I dare to pay the order and return to work with you." After saying this, he untied Jiefeng and gave it to Mi Rong.
Mi Rong took the talisman, bowed down in his seat and said, "I don't know the virtuous man, so I ordered you to deal with the wind and rain and deal with villains. This is the sin of a servant. When a servant invites you to the king, he will not change his position. The king scolds the servant. Servant is still dissatisfied. What I have seen today is that no one but the king can do it! Servant, please recommend me to the king."
Zhang Ludao: "I came to Qin to pay homage to Ji, and I have reported to the king. Because of the changes in Yiqu, the king ordered me to obey the king's orders. Now that Yiqu has happened, I will pay the order to the king and wait for the crime in Guanyi!"
Mi Rong said: "Sir, I dare not disobey the order." He went behind the screen and asked the scribe to write a talisman, "I am the guest of Zhang Lu and the title of the doctor." He personally held it out and presented it to Zhang Lu.
Zhang Lu took the talisman and said goodbye to Mi Rong, then went to Guanyi. He settled his personal belongings first and then came to Wang Ji's mansion. Wang Ji was on duty in the palace. Zhang Lu left his name and returned to the post office.
At night, Wang Ji got off work and returned home. Hearing that his family had reported Zhang Lu's visit, he hurried to Guanyi.
After meeting, Wang Ji couldn't wait to say to Zhang Lu: "You know it, Wang Ji said highly of you. Why do you plan to ram the soil to clear the Yi Canal?"
Zhang Lu said with a smile: "It's not just the Tongyi Canal. All counties and counties can be connected!"
Wang Ji said: "Sir, please don't joke. The country of Yiqu was destroyed and a county was established. However, the area covered by Yiqu is not a county other than Yiqu. The king will establish a county. Sir, how can we connect it with a road?"
Zhang Lu said: "The way is greater than the county, and it cannot be compared with the city. It must also measure its land, mountains, rivers, ravines, people and products, and then it can be done. It is beyond the power of a minister to wear a cloth. "
Wang Ji said: "This is the crime of the minister. I will invite you to the king."
After putting aside this serious matter, under Zhang Lu's questioning, Wang Ji talked about Chu, Zhao and Wei's joint attack on Yan. It is said that the army arrived at the outskirts of the capital of Yan. The king of Yan sent an envoy to apologize, saying that Gongsun Cao had rectified the law and that Yan had established a new king and hoped that all countries would have no worries. According to Zhao's opinion, he had to capture several more Yan cities before he would give up. However, Chu general Xiang Zhaoyang refused and said, "It would be unjust to attack them with thanks!" Wei general Jin Bi was also half-hearted, so the army retreated. .
In the following time, Wang Ji vividly said that after digging the Yi Canal, the King of Qin, Lord Wu'an, Lord Rang, Lord Huayang, etc. all burst into joy. He himself was also privately praised by the King of Qin. Finally, he said: "Hua Yangjun wants you to wear commoner clothes and go straight to the Jin Dynasty without changing." King Qin said: "It's not what you say, you should talk to the doctor!" Huayang Jun said: "Would you rather not betray the law of Qin?" The King of Qin said: If you practice Taoism, you should kill four levels with more than enough. If Jin does not do more, there will be no violation; if you open the Yi Canal, your merits will reach the lower city. Although there will be no killing, the actual slaughter of a city will be considered as surplus, which is not an error. If there is no change but there is surplus, what is it but a doctor? So I called him Mr. Dafujue. "
