"Does marriage mean seeking peace through marriage?"
"Exactly. The Xiongnu's mòdú Chanyu was powerful and ambitious, and he watched the Central Plains with eager eyes.
Today, our world has been settled for the first time, and all businesses are waiting to be prospered. If we confront the Xiongnu head-on, we may not be able to win.
What's more, as long as there is such a powerful enemy on the side, the northern border will not be stable either inside or outside. "
Liu Jing's words were quite euphemistic, but they played into Liu Ji's mind and coincided with his thoughts.
The princes and kings of Yanzhao and other places, including the deceased Zhang Er, the former Zhao king of Laobajiao, actually have inextricable connections and tacit understanding with the Xiongnu royal court. He has long known this, but there is nothing he can do about it.
The border residents have been neighbors with the grasslands since childhood, and their folk customs are similar. They are familiar with the conditions of the Xiongnu and other foreign peoples, and are also good at fighting against them. Although they have never won a big victory, they can somehow manage to hold on to part of the border.
This kind of private intrigue was an open-fire way to support the invaders to respect themselves. As long as the Huns continued to harass the border invaders, the emperor would not dare to rashly attack the northern princes, and had to adopt expedient measures to maintain the status quo.
However, if you continue to indulge them, it is tantamount to feeding a gluttonous beast with your own flesh and blood, and you will eventually be devoured by the greed of the beast until there is no trace left.
If one day the emperor is no longer willing to share power and is determined to eradicate the princes and kings one by one, then it will be obvious that the princes and kings who are unwilling to sit still and wait for death will join forces with the Xiongnu to fight against the Han.
This time, Yan King Zang Tu dared not to resist the decree, and he relied on the same confidence -
At the beginning of the new dynasty, powerful enemies were everywhere, and it all depended on him, the great man of Yan State, who was a shield and a vassal. Who dared to touch him?
Thinking of this, Liu Ji's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and the blood vessels on his forehead pulsated. These thorns in the eyes and flesh must be removed one by one by his own hands sooner or later. This is An Nei;
After the territory is calmed down and I have my hands free, I can concentrate on dealing with the Xiongnu without worrying about a fire in the backyard. This is to fight against foreigners.
Before fighting against the outside world, we must first settle the internal situation. The top priority of internal security is to ensure that there will be no chaos externally.
"So your strategy is to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron. In order to prevent the Xiongnu from forming an alliance with others, how about we show our kindness first and be the first to make amends with them?"
Liu Ji unconsciously clenched his back molars and remained silent for a long time before squeezing out the question.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty," Liu Jing bowed deeply.
"If our dynasty marries the eldest princess to the Xiongnu Chanyu Moton, and the two countries have a good relationship with the Qin and Jin Dynasties, according to my estimation, it can buy our dynasty twenty years of breathing time.
Enough for Your Majesty. . . . . . It is enough for Your Majesty to eliminate internal troubles.
This is the minister's "harmony" plan. "
"Princess, do you mean Lu Yuan? But she is already engaged to Zhang Ao... Well, it doesn't matter, it's not a big deal.
Let's do this. You write a memorial and I'll get everyone to discuss it. "
"I obey your order. Although this is a long-term plan, I'm just afraid that Your Majesty won't give up."
"Why should I not give up for national affairs?" Liu Ji's tone became more relaxed, and then he thought about it,
"By the way, don't reveal this matter to the Queen for the time being. I'd better find an opportunity to inform her personally."
Liu Ji was no stranger to the practice of exchanging children's marriages for political alliances. On the contrary, he was fully aware of the mysteries and benefits involved.
***
Five years ago, Liu Ji, who kept a low profile and bided his time, was still the county magistrate of Dang County. Although his position was low, his wings were gradually growing. Under the light of Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu, who was at the height of his power, he still showed his formidable power.
In order to avoid becoming a thorn in the side of Xiang Yu's group, Liu Ji did everything possible to be a lowly person. He worshiped Xiang Yu's uncle Xiang Bo as his eldest brother and promised to betroth his daughter Lu Yuan to Xiang Bo's son in the hope that Xiang Bo could help him turn around.
At the Hongmen Banquet where murderous intent abounded, as Liu Ji expected, Xiang Bo came to his aid and gave him a chance to escape the ambush.
Later, Xiang Yu enfeoffed the princes and adopted the vicious plan of his Yafu Fan Zeng. He planned to allocate Bajun and Shujun of the old Qin State to Liu Ji and let him be the king of Shu.
The Bashu region has a mild climate, rich products, and abundant water resources. It seems to be the backyard of the prosperous Qin Kingdom. However, the deep meaning behind this arrangement cannot escape Zhang Liang's sharp eyes.
Both Bajun and Shujun are located in the Sichuan Basin. Because of the rugged Shu Road, which is more difficult and dangerous than the Qingtian, it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. It is suitable for separatist rule and self-protection, but it is difficult to expand and enterprising.
Once Liu Ji entered Bashu, it was tantamount to walking into the most gentle cage and trap in the world. He could only live a peaceful life as a vassal king, and slowly drowned in the gentle countryside of the land of abundance.
Fan Zeng's intentions are profound. Fortunately, Zhang Zifang is still there to turn the tide.
He took a thousand taels of gold with him and visited Xiang Bo all night long, just to ask for one thing -
Now that the plan to make Liu Ji the king of Bashu has been completed, can we ask the good guy Xiang Yu, the overlord, to follow through and reward Liu Ji with Hanzhong, which is adjacent to Bashu?
After all, Liu Jijun took the lead in conquering the Hanzhong area, and it is now guarded by Liu Ji's subordinate Li Shang.
Under Xiang Bo's persuasion, Xiang Yu agreed, and Liu Ji obtained the three counties of Hanzhong, Ba, and Shu, made his capital Nanzheng, and was named King of Han.
Xiang Yu locked Liu Ji in a heavily locked cage, but inadvertently left him a key.
If you want to leave Bashu and enter Guanzhong, you need to go through the Qinling Mountains from the Hanzhong Plain. In the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were four roads that could cross the Qinling Mountains;
These four roads are respectively Tangluo Road, Baoxie Road, Ziwu Road and Chencang Road.
Among them, the last two winding paths in the mountains became world-famous six months later because of the God of War Han Xin:
Out of Ziwu in the clear and in Chencang secretly, the terrifying Han Xin led the Han army's surprise troops to escape from this giant cage created by heaven and earth.
After Xiang Yu committed suicide on the banks of the Wujiang River, Liu Ji treated the Xiang family favorably, and specially named Xiang Bo as Marquis of Sheyang, giving him the surname Liu.
However, Liu Ji never mentioned the marriage of his children that he had promised.
Xiang Bo was also very sensible and thought that the emperor had never promised, because at this time, Princess Lu Yuan, under the arrangement of Liu Ji, had made an early engagement with Zhang Ao, the son of King Zhao Zhang Er.
Regarding the reneged marriage, Liu Ji was calm and composed. After all, in order to escape for their lives, their children could just kick off the car and get out of the car, so nothing about a mere marriage was worth mentioning.
I just hate that there are too many people I want to win over, but I have too few daughters, so I am a bit stretched.
While thinking this, he adjusted his deep clothes and headed to Beigong.
***
At this time, Lu Pheasant was busy with another thing.
Liu Ji stepped into the palace and found that the maids were all gathered together, chattering and watching a novel thing.
The lower part of this object is similar to the Hu bed in the north. The front and rear legs are crossed in shape, with the intersection point as the axis. There are cross beams on the surface, with dense hemp ropes in between, much like a table that can be used to sit directly.
But what is different is that there is a backboard in the middle and behind this new type of bed. People can sit on it and lean back. It must be very comfortable.
Queen Lu Pheasant is sitting on it, constantly touching here, pressing there, adjusting left and right, while the palace maid standing on one side is busy taking notes.
"Go and tell Ling Cheng, who will be the young master, that the rope can be woven a little denser and an extra layer of soft felt can be put on the back, so that it will be more comfortable to lean against."
Seeing the emperor coming, Lu Zhi stood up calmly and murmured something.
"What is this, that I have never seen before?"
Even though he had written all the drafts about the marriage, Liu Ji couldn't help but ask about this completely irrelevant thing in front of him.
"This is called a 'chair'. It's more comfortable to sit on than a bed, a couch, or a couch. It's just that the size of this chair doesn't fit. I'll let the people in the Young Master continue to adjust it."
"When it's debugged, give me one too."
"This is absolutely not allowed. This is a thing in the harem. Your Majesty rules the world, so you must behave properly and not be rude."
Chairs were a good thing that only appeared hundreds of years later. The emperor of the Han Dynasty was not in his turn to enjoy this blessing.
Seeing that the emperor's face turned gloomy again, he sat down on the couch, thinking that he had something important to say. The maids observed his words and quickly dispersed, and the huge palace was suddenly silent.
Lu Pheasant also sat back quietly on his chair, waiting for Liu Ji to speak.
“I have something to discuss with you.
I came up with a plan today, which is called "harmony", which means that we will marry a daughter to the Xiongnu Chanyu as the Yan clan, and the two families will become in-laws.
In this way, in the future, the child born to the princess of my dynasty will be a Hun prince. I will be the child's eldest father. How can my grandson dare to resist the eldest father?
If things go on like this, the Xiongnu will gradually surrender, which can keep our border safe. "
Liu Ji held his breath and finished quickly, waiting for Lu Pheasant's attack in his imagination.
He had already thought of a strategy of retreating into advancement. If Lu Pheasant insisted on not complying, he would select a daughter of the right age from the clan, let the queen recognize her as his daughter, and marry the Huns as a princess.
“Oh, so that’s what happened.
It is not unusual to use in-laws to conclude peace treaties since ancient times. In the past, King Qingxiang of Chu and King Zhao of Qin had made peace with each other. Now, the marriage is just with a foreign country.
But I just want to ask Your Majesty, that Maodun Chanyu, who killed his father and his wife and unified the grassland with a single song of diprosium, was a peerless hero.
Even if you include Lu Yuan, how many daughters do you have in total? How many more do you plan to recognize? Is it enough to risk killing them one by one?
He even dared to kill his own father, how could he let you go because of a woman? "
This chair was already higher than the couch. Lu Zhi An sat on the chair calmly, looking down at Liu Ji slightly from top to bottom.
She was not angry, her eyes were calm and gentle, and there seemed to be a hint of smile on her face. However, in Liu Ji's view, the queen's scrutinizing eyes seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, bending his back more and more, until it pressed out of him. The most secret thoughts in my heart.
