Ying Zheng recalled that when he was playing with Cheng Jiao in his childhood, he saw Cheng Jiao wearing this jade pendant.
"Has Cheng Jiao worn it?" Li Si asked puzzledly, "How come it is in Jinxia's hand?"
Ying Zheng sneered and said, "Don't forget who Cheng Jiao's master is. This should confirm my previous suspicion."
"The king is saying, Fan Yuqi?"
A few years ago, Cheng Jiao was bewitched by Fan Yuqi and rebelled. She wanted to oust Ying Zheng, whose life was unknown, from the throne, so Ying Zheng sent Wang Jian and his son to quell the rebellion.
At that time, Li Si and Jing Liang proposed to capture one and let the other go, so as to leave an excuse to attack other countries.
So Jing Liang changed his name, and on his way to Qi, he rescued Fan Yuqi and sent him to Handan.
But I didn't want to leave a curse after all.
"Take me to see Jinxia. I want to interrogate her again." Ying Zheng said.
Li Si responded and led King Qin to the dungeon where Jinxia was imprisoned.
Jinxia was seen half-lying on the mat with disheveled hair and a haggard face, obviously having been punished.
Jinxia was obviously startled when she saw Ying Zheng, and then turned her head away, pretending to avoid him.
"When you meet me, don't you have anything to say?"
Jinxia did not look back or answer.
Ying Zheng became angry and threw the jade pendant in his hand towards the wall she was leaning on.
Snapped!
The jade pendant hit the wall and fell to the ground, breaking into several pieces.
Jinxia looked down and realized that what he threw was her beloved object. She hurriedly picked up the broken pieces and then looked at Ying Zheng fiercely.
But the more she paid attention to this jade pendant, the more it confirmed Ying Zheng's suspicion.
"If I guess correctly, this jade pendant was just given to you by Yan Dan when he took the opportunity to enter the palace." Ying Zheng said coldly, "He not only gave you the jade pendant, but also brought Fan Yuqi's information."
Jinxia looked at Ying Zheng in shock. She couldn't figure out how Ying Zheng knew the secret that she refused to reveal even after being tortured.
Seeing her expression, Ying Zheng said with more certainty: "Then Yan Dan gave you a bag of poison and asked you to poison the Queen Mother and take the opportunity to disrupt the court."
"You did something bad and you were afraid of being found out, so you ran away overnight..."
"After being caught, I thought that as long as I could withstand the torture, I could keep the secret."
"Yes and no?"
A series of words left Jinxia speechless. Her psychological defense was completely defeated. She could only stare at the broken jade in her hand blankly, not knowing what to do.
Her reaction had already confirmed Ying Zheng's words, and there was no point in asking any more questions.
"Keep her alive, I want her to see Fan Yuqi's head with her own eyes!" Ying Zheng said harsh words and turned to leave.
After leaving the dungeon, Ying Zheng said to Li Si: "Send someone to check whether Fan Yuqi is still in Zhao State or if there are any accomplices similar to Jinxia in Xianyang City."
"Okay, Wei Chen will investigate thoroughly now." Li Si responded.
"Also." Ying Zheng added, "Send a letter to Wei Liao and ask him to find a way to sign an alliance with Qi, and then come back to protect Xianyang and inquire about Wei's situation on the way."
Previously, Yingzheng sent Wei Liao to secretly take Lu Buwei on an envoy to Da Qi, so as to appease him to remain a cold observer during the war of unification.
Wei Liao had previously received news that he had taken care of the Qi court. Now the whole court regards him as a friend and Qin as an ally, and the King of Qi also promised to renew the alliance with Qin and become the overlord of the world.
However, Ying Zheng was far away in the Western Regions before. Without further instructions from the King of Qin, Wei Liao could not directly sign an alliance with the King of Qi.
Li Si understood that letting Wei Liao sign an alliance with the King of Qi was a signal that the war for unification had officially begun.
Sure enough, I heard Ying Zheng continue to say: "Draft a memorandum and send troops to attack Zhao from now on until the King of Zhao sends Fan Yuqi to me."
The meaning is very clear. If you don't send Fan Yuqi, my attack will not stop.
"I understand." Li Si cupped his hands and said, "I will write down Fan Yuqi's crimes and raise troops to fight against him."
"Follow me to Sima's Mansion." Ying Zheng took a big step and walked out of the front door.
Sima and his son had just finished paying their condolences at the palace when they bumped into Ying Zheng outside the palace gate.
"It is unfortunate that Princess Nansu and the Queen Mother passed away one after another. Please express your condolences," Sima Hong said.
"I hope the king will punish me for failing to protect the palace." Sima Jie followed apologetically.
Ying Zheng said angrily: "Stop talking nonsense, I'm not here to tell you this."
Sima and his son were a little embarrassed, so they laughed and invited Ying Zheng into the house.
After sitting down, Ying Zheng said: "I came here this time to ask you, father and son, last time you said that the Sima family also has some properties in Zhao State, and you can help buy grain there. This matter can be done. how's it going?"
Sima Hong said with a smile: "I heard from Jie'er that the king wanted to pull out all the stops and purchase Zhao's grain to Great Qin, so I have been working on this for the past six months, and it has been quite effective now."
"Oh?" Ying Zheng frowned, "Let's talk about it."
Sima Hong said: "This matter can be difficult to handle or easy to handle. It all depends on whether we find the right person. Sima Shang of Zhao State, I believe the king has heard of this person. Let's talk about it. He is of the same generation, he is a few years younger than me, and he is also my clan brother."
Ying Zheng had not only heard of this man, he had also seen him when he went to Zhao State. When he had a drink with his father-in-law, the old Zhao King, Sima Shang had even toasted him with a glass of wine.
"Is this the Sima Shang who became the minister?" Ying Zheng asked.
"Exactly." Sima Hong said, "His duty in the court is to prepare military rations, plan the ratio of civilian rations to military rations, and coordinate the price of civilian rations."
Ying Zheng smiled and said, "No wonder Sima Jie was so confident when he said it before. It turns out there is still such a relationship."
Sima Hong said: "Although there are some clan members, they are still their masters. I cannot ask him to be used by Da Qin. It is just normal business between clan members."
"Then tell me how your business is done." Ying Zheng said.
Sima Hong smiled: "Last year, the king was bluffing to attack Qin, so Sima Shang stored a lot of military rations, but after waiting for a long time, there was no news from us. And the people sold the military rations at a low price, so naturally they didn't have enough on hand. Very generous.”
"So, I started purchasing grain at a higher price and selling our seeds at a lower price."
Ying Zheng frowned and asked, "What, you sold our original species to them?"
"It's not selling, it's also exchanging." Sima Hong explained, "The seeds that are transferred to Zhao are all leftovers from our selection. They are either small or hollow, and they will definitely not grow any good seedlings."
Only then did Ying Zheng understand Sima Hong's intention: "Doesn't that mean that Zhao Guoguo will reduce production during sowing this year?"
"Exactly." Sima Hong said, "If the year is bad, the people may only be able to fill their stomachs and not be able to produce excess food to sell to the court. Therefore, in about a year, Zhao Jun will definitely run out of food."
"This is good news." Ying Zheng said with a smile, "If there is no food, I wonder what Zhao will do to us. By the way, didn't Sima Shang stop this situation?"
Sima Hong said with a smile: "I asked someone to show him the ears of grain and bean sprouts harvested during the autumn harvest. He also exchanged military rations for some seeds. How could he obstruct it?"
"That's good." Ying Zheng pondered for a moment and then said, "It seems like we have to adjust our strategy. Originally, I wanted to fight Zhao Guo quickly and decide the outcome in one battle, but now it seems that we have to confront him. After a year and a half, Zhao will be defeated without any attack."
Li Sidao: "Indeed, in this case we can lose less soldiers."
Sima Jie asked: "Since the king agrees with this strategy, does the Chu State also use the same method?"
Ying Zheng thought for a while and said: "The situation in Chu State is not the same as that in Zhao State. The land there is vast and sparsely populated, and the grains produced are different from those in the north. I'm afraid it will not be easy to operate."
"I heard that the king has brought back two foreign envoys this time." Li Si said beside him, "Why don't we go to Chu State to collect grain in their name, and extend the time so that the Chu people cannot detect it. .”
"This is a good idea." Ying Zheng said, "Originally, we wanted to pacify the north and then set up a posture to study Chu. If we reach further business with them at this time, we will definitely appease them and turn a blind eye to the war in the north. "
Sima Hong cupped his hands and said: "We are willing to go to Chu State in person to implement this plan for the king."
"Thank you for your hard work, senior, but you must pay attention to safety." Ying Zheng pointed to Zhang Yong behind him and said, "I will assign Zhang Yong to you as your personal guard. You must remember that you can't force anything. If things don't go your way, Just withdraw and we will become subordinates again."
Sima Hong accepted the order, then nodded to Zhang Yong.
Who is Zhang Yong?
The leader of the Huben Army and the personal guard of Ying Zheng when he travels.
The fact that the King of Qin could bestow such a figure on Sima Hong shows that he attaches great importance to his safety.
Speaking of the Chu Kingdom, Li Siluo said with some worry: "Your Majesty, I have sent out a lot of people these days, but I still haven't caught Na Changwenjun. How should we deal with this accomplice?"
"Give a royal order to Lord Changping." Ying Zheng said, "Let him escort Lord Changwen back to Xianyang within two months. If he cannot be sent back, let him take the blame for his brother himself."
Sima Jie wondered: "Even if Lord Changwen really defected to him, he would not hand over his biological brother. Is the king trying to force him to rebel?"
"He doesn't dare to rebel." Ying Zheng sneered. "The most he can do is give up his title and run back to Chu."
What everyone didn't know was that King Qin had already made a private agreement with Lord Changping, and now taking advantage of Lord Changwen's affairs, it was an excellent opportunity for him to return to Chu.
At this time, Lord Changwen had indeed arrived in Yingcheng in disguise and entered Lord Changping's mansion.
"What nonsense you are!" Changping Jun scolded, "You have only known Yan Dan for a few days, and you are suddenly swayed by his sweet words? The person who died was the princess! She was the princess of our Chu Kingdom!"
Facing his brother's thunderous wrath, Chang Wenjun knew that he was in the wrong and did not dare to refute even a single sentence. He just stood with his head bowed.
Han An, who originally came to see Lord Changping to play chess, consoled him: "You should calm down. What happened has already happened. Is it possible that we can still tie him up and send him back to Xianyang?"
As the former King of Han, Han An's temperament has changed a lot now because he is aware of his current situation.
"Why not!?" Lord Changping stared at Lord Changwen angrily and said angrily through gritted teeth, "Before I send him back to Xianyang, I will whip him again with a whip, so that I will not be able to beat him again if I want to."
Chang Wenjun finally raised his head and explained in a low voice with grievance: "Don't I just want to vent my anger on you, brother? You lost your official position before, and Mrs. Huayang is not going to die soon. The Chu faction will definitely be suppressed. Instead of If you are angry in Qin, it is better to go back to Chu."
Although he was angry, Lord Changping knew that what he said was reasonable.
"Then you shouldn't have kidnapped Nansu's mother and son. Now that something happened, how do you want me to explain to the King of Qin?"
Chang Wenjun hesitated and had no idea for a moment.
Han An frowned slightly and said: "In my opinion, you two brothers will definitely not be able to escape the crime completely this time. If you want to save your lives, it is better to return to Chu State as soon as possible."
"What about you?" Changping Jun looked at Han An and asked.
"I don't want to lose my head either." Han An said, "If people know that I have met Mr. Changwen, they will definitely be involved. Why don't you just take me with you."
