In the middle of the night, there was a light rain, which moistened everything. The morning air was a little moist, but it also made people feel comfortable.
Zhao Gao came to the door and called Ying Zheng softly.
Ying Zheng was busy for most of the night, and before he woke up, he closed his eyes in a daze and asked, "What's the matter?"
Zhao Gao said softly: "Your Majesty, Lord Sima Hong and Meng Yi have asked to see you. They said they are ready and asked your Majesty for orders to travel."
Ying Zheng then opened his eyes, thinking that it must be about cultivating grain seeds, and stood up.
Princess Nansu also opened her eyes, hurriedly went to help Ying Zheng get his clothes, and said, "I am waiting for the king to get up."
Taking in the beautiful scenery, Ying Zheng's face turned red unconsciously. What was redder than his face was the bloodshot eyes. He didn't know whether it was the effect of staying up late or the surge of blood.
Ying Zheng hurriedly pushed Princess Nansu back and said, "You should rest for a while. Zhao Gao is here. I will go out and have a look and then come back."
Ying Zheng quickly tidied up his clothes and went out quickly. Zhao Gao helped him freshen up and went to the study.
Ying Zheng was not in a hurry to have breakfast. He just drank some water and went directly to the study. He saw Sima Hong and Meng Yi already waiting at the door.
"Your Majesty." Sima Hong and Meng Yi came together to greet him.
Ying Zheng raised his hand and said, "Come in and sit down."
After the three people sat down, Sima Hong cupped his hands and said, "It's still early, so I won't disturb the king's rest."
Sima Hong entered the palace and asked to see Ying Zheng, but heard Zhao Gao say that Ying Zheng had not woken up yet, so he was waiting outside the study. Although Zhao Gao didn't know what Sima Hong was doing, he asked briefly, but fearing that the matter was urgent, he had the courage to call out to Ying Zheng's door to see if Ying Zheng had woken up.
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter." Ying Zheng smiled and said, "Are you two ready and ready to set off?"
Sima Hong smiled and said: "Back to the king, we are fully prepared. We came here to invite you to start our journey. I don't know if you have any other instructions from the king."
Ying Zheng thought for a moment and said, "There is one more thing, please pay attention to it."
"Your Majesty, just ask." Sima Jie said.
Ying Zheng nodded and said: "On the way, if you encounter or hear about any deep mountains, dense valleys or princes' tombs in the local area, record them. If there are any folk legends in the local area because of this, write them down as well."
"My lord, I obey the king's order." Sima Hong responded, and then said, "I think the king's move must be related to Wen Leiju."
Meng Yi was also curious about what Ying Zheng said and wanted to ask, but Sima Hong said so and did not ask.
"There is this reason." Ying Zheng said, "But it is not entirely true. You will know it in the future."
Ying Zheng didn't explain in detail, and Sima Hong didn't feel comfortable asking further.
Ying Zheng added: "What Lord Sima is taking care of is state affairs, and this expense will naturally come from the national treasury. I ordered Zhao Gao to allocate some money, and Lord Sima will take it with him on the road. He will reward the farmers who breed and make sure they work hard." "
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, the Bashu and Shu people before me have been properly settled, and the farmers everywhere will do their best," Sima Hong said.
Sima Hong is an old man. How could he not think of these things? Although the land is his own, if the farmers want to work hard, why not give them some extra benefits?
"In that case, let's take it all together." Ying Zheng said, "I was so worried about the Chenglong incident before. I didn't expect it to be so detailed."
Sima Hong knew that Ying Zheng didn't like to be polite, so he held up his hands and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the gift."
Ying Zheng ordered Zhao Gao to allocate 50,000 silver coins to Sima Hong. Sima Hong felt that the gift was too much, so he only received 20,000 coins.
Ying Zheng ordered him to use the extra money to secretly collect some farmland for the royal family without making any announcement.
Sima Hong knew that Ying Zheng didn't want to make it public, so he received 50,000 silver.
In fact, judging from the current amount of grain seeds, it is true that so much money cannot be used. However, with the increase in grain seeds, there will be more places to spend money in the future, so Ying Zheng simply gave more, which would be enough for several years. expenses.
Ying Zheng told Meng Yi again to ensure Sima Hong's safety. Meng Yi accepted the order and said that he had prepared troops and horses.
After the two of them resigned from Ying Zheng, they left the palace.
Zhao Gao ordered two maids to bring some snacks into the study, and then followed Sima Hong and Meng Yi out of the palace gate to transfer money.
Ying Zheng was indeed a little hungry, so he ate in the study without waiting for Princess Nansu.
Before he finished eating, he saw Li Si entering the door with a pair of bamboo slips in his hand.
Li Si raised his hand and said hello, but saw Ying Zheng eating cakes, so he stood by the door and waited.
After Ying Zheng took a few bites, he took a sip of water, then walked to Li Si and pulled Li Si to sit down.
"Have you read the letter I wrote to King Zhao?" Ying Zheng asked, wiping the corner of his mouth.
"Weichen has seen it," Li Si replied.
Ying Zheng motioned to Li Si to sit down and talk, and then asked: "Is it feasible to write to King Zhao like this?"
"There is nothing wrong with the content of the letter." Li Si took out the brocade silk from his arms and handed it to Ying Zheng with both hands.
Ying Zheng took the letter and asked, "Sir, it seems that he has other intentions."
Li Si nodded and said: "Everyone can tell that the letter written by the King to King Zhao is a show. If you want people to believe it as true, you have to work harder."
"Isn't it enough that I married Princess Hu Yu, ordered Wang Ben to withdraw his troops, and didn't investigate Fan Yuqi's whereabouts?" Ying Zheng asked in confusion.
"Marrying Princess Hu Yu was something the king decided when he chose his concubine. It was also the basis for Qin and Zhao to step down from each other. Withdrawing Wang Ben meant to stop the army, but it was behind Zhao." Li Si After a pause, he said: "If the king wants to paralyze Zhao Guo and make him relax his vigilance, he will have to add more heat."
Ying Zheng frowned and asked immediately: "What should we do?"
"As far as I know, the king has not sent out the betrothal gifts from various countries, so it is better to increase the amount." Li Si said, "And send it in the name of arresting Fan Yuqi. This will convince King Zhao that The king does believe that Fan Yuqi is not in the Kingdom of Zhao. If this is the case, the King of Zhao will relax his vigilance but will not really drive Fan Yuqi away."
Ying Zheng patted the corner of the table and said with a smile: "This is a very clever plan. In this way, all countries will believe that Fan Yuqi is not in Zhao, and they will take the contradiction between Qin and Zhao lightly. The thoughts of profit will naturally be restrained."
Speaking of this, Ying Zheng thought of the Chu King stationing troops on the border and couldn't help but sigh.
Li Si continued his analysis: "And Fan Yuqi lives peacefully in Zhao State, which will not cause any trouble, but also enable our future plans to be implemented."
Ying Zheng murmured: "It's a pity that if we let him live a few more years, we will take advantage of this old fox."
"Your Majesty, does your Majesty know why Wei Chen insists that Fan Yuqi must live in Zhao?" Li Si asked.
Ying Zheng thought for a while and said: "I understand that Fan Yuqi is an excuse for me to start a journey to other countries. Could it be that... Sir, he means that the first one to attack in the future will be Zhao?"
Li Si smiled and nodded, and said: "Yes, that's exactly what I mean. Among the countries, South Korea is the weakest, and it can be said that it will be destroyed easily. The other powerful countries need to be defeated one by one, and they must not be allowed to Unite. In this way, there must be an order in the war against various countries."
Ying Zheng rolled his eyes and said: "Since our ancestors became kings, they have mostly adopted the strategy of making friends from far away and attacking close by. Sir, let me tell you why among the countries that border Da Qin, why did they attack Zhao first instead of Zhao? Wei, Chu."
"Although Wei's military strength is no longer as brave as that of Wei's soldiers in the past, its position is at the center of all the countries. If all countries send troops to help, even if the Qin Dynasty destroys Wei, it will inevitably be in a situation where it is attacked from all sides. Can it be I really can’t say for sure if I can hold on,” Li Si analyzed.
"Wei's position is indeed surrounded by enemies on all sides, so it's not appropriate to take it first." Ying Zheng said in agreement, "What about Chu?"
Li Si smiled and said: "As for the Chu State, although its national power is gradually declining, its territory is too vast and it will not be easy to annex it all at once. In the later stages, the front line will be extended and supplies may be interrupted. What's more, if the Chu State Even if we gather all our troops and fight to the death, our Great Qin may not be able to win quickly."
Ying Zheng nodded repeatedly, agreeing with Li Si's analysis, but he still didn't quite understand why Zhao State was weaker than Chu State, yet he wanted to attack Zhao State first.
Li Si continued: "Speaking of the Kingdom of Zhao, after the Battle of Changping, its military strength was not as good as before. This is one; second, as the king knows, King Zhao is now old, and he has abolished the elders and established the younger ones. This Prince Qian is narrow-minded and short-sighted, and cannot achieve great things, and the current important minister in the court, Guo Kai, is also greedy for money and profit. If he waits until Prince Qian comes to the throne, the government of Zhao State will definitely be in chaos."
"I grew up in the Kingdom of Zhao. At that time, I only knew that the people of Zhao were tough, good at riding and shooting, and that they had numerous talents. Now it seems that the Kingdom of Zhao is not a difficult nut to crack," Ying Zheng said.
"So, when the king starts the war for unification, he still needs to start from the chaotic countries in the border areas." Li Si said calmly.
Li Si is talking about a chaotic country, not a weak country. If a weak country is united, it will be more difficult to deal with than a chaotic country.
Li paused and then said: "Actually, it is Master's wish to treat Zhao Guo first."
"Oh?" Ying Zheng was surprised, thinking that the old man had such a request, the reason must not be simple, and asked randomly, "Senior has such intention, is there any other reason?"
"Master did not tell the specific reasons in detail. He wanted to inform the king personally." Li Si's expression became serious and he said, "Master just gave a general idea, and I only know some clues."
Ying Zheng heard that there was some secret information hidden in Li Si's words, so he asked: "What do you mean by the clues sir?"
Li Si leaned forward, lowered his voice, and said: "To the north of Zhao is the Hu region. The Zhao people learned their riding and shooting skills from the Hu region, and the Hu people were mainly nomadic. However, the folk customs are more sturdy than the Zhao people. The Zhao State has always resisted the princes internally and resisted the Northern Hus externally. The Huns were the dominant force in the Hu area, so the Zhao State built several defensive Great Walls at important passes to ward off the Hu people. Attack. If the king destroys Zhao first, he can be on guard against the Xiongnu as much as possible to prevent barbarian foreigners from taking advantage of the chaos to attack."
"That's the truth." Ying Zheng nodded, but changed the topic, "It's just that with such knowledge, even sir will understand. I guess the old man has other intentions."
Li Si smiled slightly and said: "In the end, I still can't hide it from the king. I only know that what the master cares about is indeed related to the city wall and the beacon tower."
"Oh?" Ying Zheng was a little surprised, but then he thought that something related to the senior in white might be related to Jiuding, so it is not impossible that it is related to Zhao's enemy wall.
"Your Majesty, does your Majesty know why there are only grass growing in the Hu Land in the north and no trees?" Li Si, who loves to ask questions, asked.
Ying Zheng said without thinking: "Isn't it related to the climate?"
Li Si shook his head lightly and said, "This has nothing to do with the cold and heat. Even further north, there are still trees growing. The reason why only grass grows on this grassland is not related to the climate, but to the soil quality."
"Soil quality?" Ying Zheng asked doubtfully.
Li Si nodded and said: "Because the soil there is made of volcanic ash, and there are the densest volcanoes in the world concentrated there. And it is also the place with the strongest energy in the Nine Nethers."
Ying Zheng: "..."
Seeing that Ying Zheng was hesitant to speak, Li Si guessed what Ying Zheng was thinking about and said: "As for the specific reason, I don't dare to guess. Please wait for a while, Master." I will guide the king."
Ying Zheng didn't think there was anything wrong with the word "guidance" mentioned by Li Si.
Ying Zheng retracted his thoughts and said calmly: "According to your opinion, sir, how will the order of unification be arranged in the future?"
Li Si took a blank scroll, spread it out flat, and took some pen and ink, and neatly wrote six characters on it: "Han, Zhao, Yan, Wei, Chu, Qi."
