Xianyang Palace.
Lu Buwei and two people appeared outside the door of King Qin's study.
The person on the left is Xiong Qi, Lord of Changping.
The man on the right has a strong build, a straight nose and a broad mouth. He is upright and awe-inspiring. He is dressed like a military general and looks energetic. He is Li Xin, the prefect of Yingcheng.
After Zhao Gao's notification, the three of them entered the study.
Lu Buwei took a step forward, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Li Xin is here."
Li Xin also took a step forward, bowed his hands and said, "Li Xin, a humble minister, pays homage to the king."
Ying Zheng held Li Xin's hand and said, "Why, we haven't seen each other for a while, and we have become alienated."
Li Xin and Ying Zheng are similar in age. When they were young, Li Xin and Meng Tian accompanied Ying Zheng to study and practice martial arts. After becoming Guanli a year ago, he was transferred to Yingcheng as the prefect.
"What are you talking about, Your Majesty?" Li Xin said with a smile.
"Sit down." Ying Zheng was also very happy to see Li Xin.
After several people sat down, Li Xin cupped his hands and said: "I heard that the king's wedding is approaching, so I came here to see if there is anything I can do to help."
"Not to mention, I really need your help." Ying Zheng paused and said, "Help me drink more wedding wine."
Several people laughed.
After a few more pleasantries, Lu Buwei said: "Li Xin, I have called you back this time. The king has something else to ask you."
Li Si asked: "But about the banditry in Yingcheng?"
Ying Zheng nodded and said, "Yes, that's exactly what happened. Please tell me about the situation over there first."
Li Xin cleared his throat and cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, Lu Xiangbang, since Wei Chen took office for more than a year, the people are living and working in peace and contentment. Most of the original Chu people have accepted the fact that they have become Qin people. Although they call Ying City Western Chu is just a complex of thinking about Chu, and the Qin people who later moved to Yingcheng got along well with the local people, which shows that the previous governor did have some tricks."
Lu Buwei said: "I heard before that after Bai Qi captured Ying City, many Chu troops were defeated and failed to retreat to the Chu territory in time, so they hid in the mountains and forests, and later occupied many mountains and forests. Became a bandit."
"Yes." Li Xin said, "This was indeed the case back then. However, with Bai Qi's reputation at that time, the remnants of the Chu army who became bandits did not dare to make any mistakes. They just occupied one area and made a living by farming and hunting. , unlike real bandits who live by robbing homes and homes.”
"So that's it." Ying Zheng said thoughtfully.
"Nowadays, most of the remnant soldiers of the Chu State are over sixty years old. At that time, they all took their wives into the mountains and forests. Some of them did not get married, and some also got married in the cottages. Now in the mountains and forests, most of them are The heirs of. So instead of saying that it is a green forest bandit, it is more appropriate to say that it is a country within a country." Li Si said.
"A country within a country?" Lu Buwei's face condensed, "How can this be done?"
Lord Changping frowned and said, "Then why didn't Governor Li control these bandits after he took office?"
Li Xin cupped his hands and said: "Firstly, Li has just arrived, and those bandits are deeply rooted, so I want to find out the details before talking about it; secondly, those bandits almost never cause trouble and do not harass the people; thirdly, , this matter is also closely related to the Chu State, if you act rashly, it will definitely affect the relationship with the Chu State."
What Li Xin said was reasonable and reasonable, and he was not shirking responsibility.
"According to you, how could Meng Tian be attacked by bandits near Ying City? If Wang Ben hadn't happened to pass by, the consequences would have been disastrous." Ying Zheng is still a little scared now, Meng Tian is his good brother.
Li Xin looked a little embarrassed, raised his hands and said, "Wei Chen is also quite guilty about Meng Tian. After all, he grew up with Meng Tian. If something really happened, how can Wei Chen feel at ease."
"Have you found out why Meng Tian was attacked?" Lu Buwei asked.
"Weichen has investigated it." Li Xin calmed down and continued, "Before, Chang'an Jun Chengyu led his army to attack the Wei State, and the Chu State also sent a hundred thousand troops to station at the junction of Qin, Chu and Wei. So. , those mountain bandits were ready to act, and they didn’t know which side the Chu State was sending troops to help. If Chu State attacked Qin, maybe they would cooperate with the Chu army inside and outside. If Chu State assisted Da Qin, those bandits could also take the opportunity to flee to Chu State. Unexpectedly, the Chu army did not participate in the war, but Cheng Xi rebelled. The battle became a civil war in the Qin Dynasty. Seeing that there was no hope of returning to Chu, the bandits also heard that Wang Ben would patrol along the border, so they wanted to capture a few detective horses to find out the news. .”
Lu Buwei's brows relaxed a little: "It seems that those bandits regarded Meng Tian as a detective."
Lord Changping added: "It's not that I want to cause chaos or rob."
"That should be the case. We haven't seen any movement from the bandits during this period," Li Xin said.
Ying Zheng nodded and said, "It seems that Meng Tian's attack was just an accident."
Lu Buwei shook his head and said: "Although this incident is accidental, the bandits in Yingcheng are a scourge after all, and we must find ways to eradicate them."
"Father Zhong, what is Chu's attitude towards these remnants of the Chu army?" Ying Zheng asked.
"Although Ying City has been returned to Qin for many years, the Chu State has always been grudges about it. During this period, it sent envoys several times to redeem Ying City, but several generations of the ancestors of the Qin Dynasty never agreed. According to investigation, the Chu State court also They have always been in contact with those bandits, but it seems that the Chu State has no intention of actually letting these bandits return to Chu State," Li Xin said.
"This power is like a nail nailed into the territory of our Great Qin." Lu Buwei said coldly.
Lord Changping was a little unnatural and his voice was a little low: "What Prime Minister Lu said is true, but it is not entirely true. The relationship between the Chu State and the bandits has not yet been determined."
After all, Lord Changping is from Chu, so I still have to refute any remarks that are not conducive to Chu.
Ying Zheng looked at Lord Changping and said, "As Lord Changping, I should be the best suited to resolve this matter."
Lord Changping cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, please make it clear."
Ying Zheng looked at Lu Buwei and then said: "I feel that for the mountain bandits, if we send troops to suppress them, it is indeed easy to cause friction with the Chu State, but if we let it go, it will always be a hidden danger. Therefore, I feel that there is no need to Being strong and able to solve banditry problems is the best strategy."
"The old minister thinks so too," Lu Buwei said. "If these mountain bandits can be formally incorporated, their identity removed, and transformed into the Qin army, then the problem will naturally be solved."
Li Xin shook his head and said, "I'm afraid it's not easy to do this. If they were willing to do this, I'm afraid they would have surrendered decades ago."
"So, the difficulty lies in how to subdue them." Ying Zheng looked at Lord Changping and said, "We need a person from Chu State to carry out this matter."
How could Lord Changping fail to understand what Ying Zheng meant? He raised his hands and said, "Your Majesty, please leave this matter to me."
Lu Buwei sighed slightly and said: "I'm afraid it's not appropriate. Although Lord Changping is the son of Chu State, after all, he has been in Qin State for many years and is now the prime minister. I'm afraid I'm not convincing enough. I think it's still necessary. Only a true Chu person can act, and this person cannot be an ordinary person."
Ying Zheng asked: "Mr. Changping, do you have a suitable candidate?"
Lord Changping stood up, twirled his beard, walked a few steps, thought for a moment, and then said: "Wei Chen is indeed acquainted with many Chu ministers, but if we say that the most qualified one is none other than Xiang Yan of Huainan."
"Xiang Yan?" Ying Zheng said.
In previous conversations with Meng Tian, Ying Zheng had heard of Xiang Yan, but deliberately acted like he didn't know.
Lu Buwei narrowed his eyes and whispered: "Xiang Yan is loyal and honest, and has won the trust of the King of Chu. He is a suitable candidate, but... Can Lord Changping be sure that Xiang Yan will act in accordance with our wishes? "
Lord Changping smiled bitterly and said, "Then it depends on whether our request is reasonable or not. Based on our friendship, as long as it is reasonable and not detrimental to Chu State, then it shouldn't be a problem."
Ying Zheng had actually thought of a plan for a long time, but he still pretended to think about it and said slowly: "My idea is to recruit these mountain bandits to form an army, which will be paid by Da Qin and controlled by Lord Changping. By nature, it is also the private army of Lord Changping, and its name can be called the Western Chu Army, and this Western Chu Army is the barrier between Qin and Chu to ensure that the two countries do not invade each other."
Lord Changping listened very carefully, and he was the biggest beneficiary of Ying Zheng's plan.
"Although the king's plan is good, there is no guarantee that the bandits will not secretly retreat to the Chu territory." Lu Buwei said, "I feel that this weight is not enough."
"What's Lu Xiangbang's proposal?" Lord Changping asked.
Lu Buwei took a breath and then said: "I think the king should use the opportunity of this wedding to create some weight."
"That's right." Ying Zheng patted his thigh and said, "This time Nan Su is pregnant and I haven't rewarded her yet. Why not send someone to spread the news to Shouchun and send some more silver coins and porcelain? And first canonize Nansu as a concubine, at least one level higher than the princess of another country."
"In this case, the chips must be almost enough." Lu Buwei said.
Li Xin touched his head and asked with some confusion: "Wei Chen doesn't understand why the king has to spend so much effort to let those bandits return to Chu. Wouldn't it be better?"
However, Ying Zheng shook his head and explained: "That's different. If the bandits now are the defeated army when they just captured Ying City, there is nothing wrong with them fleeing to Chu. However, these bandits now, They are Qin people who were born in the Qin Kingdom. If they were allowed to go to the Chu Kingdom, wouldn't it make people laugh? It would not only increase the morale of the Chu State, but also give the Chu Army an extra strength. You say, how can we let these mountains go? The bandits retreated to Chu territory?"
Li Xin looked suddenly enlightened and murmured: "This is really the case. It seems that this matter really cannot be dealt with simply."
"So, the king's plan is the most appropriate way to deal with it." Lu Buwei nodded slightly.
Mr. Changping also nodded repeatedly.
Ying Zheng looked at Lord Changping and said, "If you agree, then it's settled. I just don't know if Xiang Yan will agree to come forward."
"Leave this matter to Wei Chen. After all, this is something that is beneficial to both countries. It can also allow those mountain bandits to restore their identities and change from bandits to soldiers. I believe those bandits will also be willing. After returning, Wei Chen will Send a letter to Xiang Yanxiu." Lord Changping said.
"Then it's settled." Ying Zheng patted the table and said solemnly.
The matter was settled, and everyone looked much more relaxed.
Li Xin then took out a brocade box from his arms and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, this is a wedding gift."
