"My dear, why do you think that Chen Xiaomu would choose to attack Xinyangguan, the border crossing of Chu State, instead of Xinjing, the capital of Zheng State that is urgently needed for restoration?" Wu Dao looked at Gao Jianli with inquiring eyes.
Gao Jianli walked to the map of Zheng State on the wall, pointed to the mark of Xinjing, the capital of Zheng State on the map, and said: "Most people believe that if Zheng State wants to recover, the first step is to regain this symbol of Zheng State. Xinjing, the capital of the state, and according to my opinion, the current Xinjing, the capital of the Zheng state, has been managed by generations of the Su family. It is currently a high city with a wide river and is located in a plain terrain. It is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Although the Chu army guarding the city is elite They were all sent to attack Tianquan County by Han Fei. Now there are only some auxiliary troops recruited from the original Hubei region and the old, weak, sick and disabled remaining in the Chu army. The total strength is estimated to be no more than 40,000. But with the tens of thousands of Zheng Army's remaining soldiers and horses, it would be even harder to capture the new capital than climbing to the sky. From this, Chen Xiaomu twice used the remaining tens of thousands of Zheng Army's remnants to annihilate more than half a million of the Chu Army's elite troops. Come on, he won’t fail to see this, and he will definitely not take this risk!”
Then Gao Jianli took another step forward and pointed to a small black dot that almost reached the outside of the map. This Xinyangguan is an important border town at the junction of Chu State and Zheng State. It is only more than 300 miles away from Xinjing. More than ten years ago, it was A battle took place here between the Chen and Zheng coalition forces and the Chu army. Over the course of several days and nights, hundreds of thousands of people were killed on both sides, including the emperor of Zheng, Su Shangming, the prince, Su Chongyang, and the military god of Chu. Jiang Chao, known as Xinyang Jiedushi, suffered extremely heavy losses on both sides. After several years of management by the new Jiedushi Han Fei, it became the strategic base camp for the Chu State to attack Zheng State. In the past, there were 200,000 troops stationed all year round. Because of the war to destroy Zheng launched by the Chu State, most of the soldiers and horses in Xinyang Pass were taken away by Han Fei. The current garrison at the Chu State's gate should not exceed 50,000 people. Although Chen Xiaomu's soldiers and horses are few, But if an unexpected sneak attack strategy is adopted, the key is that this Xinyang Pass is within the territory of Chu State. The Chu army will not use the people of the country as their human shields. In addition, he has the magic weapon of explosives in his hand, and the chance of victory is certain. It is much greater than directly capturing Xinjing. If Xinyang Pass can be captured, it will naturally cut off the connection between Xinjing and the mainland of Chu. It will become an isolated city and besieged like this for half a year, or at most a year, and the new capital of the Zheng Kingdom will be defeated without attack! "
"If Xiong Ze gathered a large number of troops to recapture Xinyang Pass, wouldn't Chen Xiaomu fall short?" Wu Dao asked.
Gao Jianli shook his head and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, the Emperor of Chu still has troops! Before the war, the total military strength of the Chu State was only about one million people. Excluding the more than 200,000 people recruited from Hubei, these people are in Chu The country is called the Auxiliary Army. Because the Emperor of Chu adopted the strategy of using the civilians of the country as human shields when he first attacked the country of Hubei, and later suppressed the people of Hubei, these people all hated him, let alone for him. It is a good thing not to stab him back at the critical moment. Excluding the 200,000 Hubei auxiliary troops, Chen Xiaomu annihilated more than 500,000 people twice under Tianquan County, including the most elite black-armored soldiers of the Chu State. Tens of thousands of troops were stationed in Xinjing, the capital of the Zheng Kingdom, and tens of thousands of troops were stationed in Xinyangguan. There were only less than 200,000 horses left. This small number of troops was insufficient to defend Yecheng, the capital of Chu, which was so large, and there was no one close to our Qin State. The borders of Qi State, especially the borders of the northern grasslands, he will send heavy troops to guard! I predict that the Emperor of Chu will probably lower the age of the Chu State’s conscripts for younger ones, and raise those for older ones. Got it!"
After listening to Gao Jianli's analysis, Wu Dao nodded in appreciation and said, "I think Chen Xiaomu is not as good as Aiqing. Next, should we take advantage of the empty military strength of Chu State and take the opportunity to incorporate it into the territory of Qin State, and then Zheng State and Chen State?"
"Your Majesty, this must not be done for the time being!" Gao Jianli quickly stopped him and said, "Before Chen Xiaomu showed up, we might have been able to sneak in, but we can't do that now. Not to mention his tactics of using troops, we are in his hands." The big killer weapon called explosives we have is enough to give us a headache. My original intention was to see his next move after he captured Xinyang Pass in Chu State before making a decision. Also, I asked Yu Zhen from Yushitai. In any case, no matter how much it costs, we must get some samples of explosives back for analysis. If we can also master the formula of this explosive, His Majesty's unification will be at least ten years ahead of schedule!"
Wu Dao nodded when he heard this, and then suddenly asked Gao Jianli inexplicably, "You just said that the news that Chen Xiaomu was broken off by Princess Zheng Guo Qingfeng is not reliable?"
Just when Gao Jianli was about to answer in the affirmative, his eyes suddenly lit up and he immediately fell at the feet of the martial arts and shouted, "The Holy One is wise!"
Wu Dao said with a smile, "Everyone in the world has said that Xu Yu, Princess Huaiyu of the Wu Kingdom, is the most beautiful woman in the world today. Little do they know that Lian's daughter Princess Changxing is the most beautiful woman in the world!"
Qin Emperor Wu Dao had three daughters and two princes. Among them, Queen Lu Yan gave birth to the eldest prince Wu Cheng, the eldest princess Wu Luoqi, the noble concubine Wu Yan gave birth to the second prince Wu Ming, the second princess Wu Anran, and the talented Ji Ru The little princess Wu Nianyao was born to him. At that time, the eldest prince Wu Chengji was over 20 years old, and the eldest princess Wu Luoqi was also 28 years old.
What Wu Dao didn't know was that his daughter Wu Luoqi, who had rarely appeared in the palace for many years, already had a sweetheart. It was Wu Luoqi who loved poetry and songs at a poetry conference held in Lanling City, the capital of Qi State, a year ago. Wu Luoqi begged her mother, Lu Yan, to let her follow Gao Jian to Lanling City to attend the Lanling Poetry Festival. At first, Lu Yanren said no, so Wu Luoqi began a hunger strike behind closed doors, which lasted for two days. Lu Yan was eager to love her daughter, so she had to give in. However, a condition was put forward, that is, Wu Luoqi must cover her face with a face covering during the poetry conference and is not allowed to take it off. Wu Luoqi readily agreed without even thinking about it. After all, she was only obsessed with poetry and songs, and had nothing else in her heart. idea.
Then she followed Gao Jianli and his party to Lanling City, the capital of Qi State, after several days of hard work. Compared with Lanling City, Xijing, the capital of Qin State, it was not outstanding. Instead, it looked a bit rundown. However, after receiving Gao Jianli, the Prime Minister of Qin State, The delegation that attended the Poetry Conference was held to the highest standards among countries. Even Qi Emperor Xiao Yan personally attended the banquet to receive the Qin delegation. Wu Luoqi even attended due to the previous instructions of his mother, Queen Lu Yan. During the reception banquet, the people of Qi who attended the banquet felt strange and could not ask questions in person. When Gao Jianli introduced Wu Luoqi to the people of Qi, he also concealed his identity as a princess and only introduced him as Qin. There are officials in charge of women's virtues in the country's court. Fortunately, there are many talented women participating in poetry conferences from various countries, so no one cares about these details.
The next day, the poetry conference opened under the auspices of Yu Wei, Prime Minister of Qi State. Qi State arranged the poetry conference in Wenshan Academy, which is close to the palace. Although this imperial academy of Qi State is huge, it is also used by ten countries. The Poetry Mission was packed with people, and the entire academy was crowded and lively for a while. Gao Jianli specially arranged for two guards to follow Wu Luoqi to protect her.
The first prize in the poetry competition held by Qi State was one hundred thousand taels of silver, the second prize was ten thousand taels of silver, the third prize was one thousand taels of silver, the fourth prize was one hundred taels of silver, and the fifth prize was ten taels of silver. Only the top five are selected every year, and nothing outside the top five. Qi’s poetry conference is second only to Chu’s, but Chu’s poetry conference is held only once every few years, while Qi’s is held once a year, every year It started on the first day after the Laba Festival and lasted for three consecutive days. By the time Wu Luoqi participated, it had been held for five consecutive years. In the past five years, the first prize of 100,000 taels of silver had not been taken away once by anyone. The first prize was won twice by Gao Jianli, and once by Lu Yingshu of Qi State, but it was vacant twice. The remaining third, fourth and fifth prizes are not vacant every year, and the money is less, but the winners will have other rewards when they return to China. There are not only material rewards, but also official rewards. Generally, those who win the third prize are directly awarded seventh-grade officials if they are scholars or above, and are awarded sixth-grade officials if they are candidates. The fourth and fifth prizes are all official positions below eighth grade. .
Accompanied by two guards, Wu Luoqi, wearing a hijab, was concentrating on looking at the rows of poems and lyrics hanging on the wall in front of him. From time to time, several comments about the poems and lyrics hanging on the wall came from the crowd next to him. Occasionally, one or two compliments could be heard while speaking. After looking around, Wu Luoqi felt dizzy. She didn’t see a poem that caught her eye. She was about to go back, but as soon as she turned around, she was greeted by someone behind her. Holding a piece of white paper with poems written on it, the scholar-looking man bumped into it. When the two guards reacted, the scarf Wu Luoqi was wearing on his face had been knocked off. The scholar quickly bowed and apologized, waiting for him When he raised his head and saw Wu Luoqi's beautiful face, he was stunned and was stunned for a moment! Seeing his stupid look, Wu Luoqi smiled brightly at him, first picked up the face towel that fell on the ground and put it on, then picked up the white paper with poems that fell on the ground. It seemed that although the two guards were interested in the scholar, His eyes were wide with anger, but Wu Luoqi didn't say anything, and he didn't dare to act rashly in this poetry conference.
Although the harvest is auspicious, what will happen in the harvest?
There are poor people in Lanling, so the auspiciousness should not be too much.
Wu Luoqi read the poem softly, his brows gradually relaxed, and he looked up at the scholar standing in front of him. He was wearing a green robe and a black cloak. He had plump eyebrows and handsome eyes. Although he was not tall, he had a good temperament. But it is excellent." Wu Luoqi held up the poem written on the white paper in his hand and asked with a smile on his face, "Sir, did you write this poem? "
The scholar quickly bowed and saluted and said, "You are so talented, I will make the girl laugh!"
"Your poem is the best poem I saw at this poetry conference today! It's such a good poem, why doesn't it have a name?" Wu Luoqi asked puzzledly.
The scholar hesitated for a moment and said: "Xiao Ke and the girl met by chance. It is really a blessing. Xiao Ke wants to give this poem to the girl and let the girl name it. How about it?"
Wu Luoqi's face instantly turned as bright as a peach blossom, and his heart was beating nervously. He frowned and thought for a moment, then said in a voice, "How about I call it 'Xue'?"
Upon hearing this, the scholar immediately clapped his palms twice and exclaimed, "Okay, auspicious snow heralds a good harvest. The girl named snow is very expressive. To be honest, after Xiao Ke wrote this poem, he named it this poem. It’s so troublesome! If the girl doesn’t mind, Xiao Ke would like to invite the girl to the academy teahouse for a chat, I wonder if the girl is willing?”
Wu Luoqi glanced around secretly. Fortunately, no one noticed him and the scholar except for his two guards. Then he nodded lightly with a red face.
After entering the teahouse of Wenshan Academy in Qi State, Wu Luoqi realized that the scholar in front of him had an extraordinary status. First, when he was far away from the main entrance of the teahouse, two people who looked like scholars ran out of the teahouse and came to guide them. The interior was richly decorated with carved beams and painted beams. The two scholars led them all the way to the third floor, the highest floor of the teahouse, and led them into a huge room. The tables, chairs, and walls in the room were all made of mahogany, and the floor was covered with thick Persian rugs. There was a carpet, two stoves of smokeless charcoal were burning brightly in the stove, and three beautiful women were busy making tea on the stove. Everything seemed to be preparing and waiting for their arrival! Wu Luoqi asked the two guards following her to retreat outside the door and wait, and then she and the scholar sat down separately.
