After Qin defeated Wei, the small countries near the capital of the Zhou Dynasty did not dare to challenge the powerful Qin. Instead, they shrunk and joined forces to seek temporary peace. With its power, Qin State has completely controlled the situation in the capital of Zhou Dynasty.
Looking at the world, Qin has become the strongest vassal state, while Chu in the south, Qi in the east, and Zhao in the north have become second-rate countries.
If it wants to dominate the world, Qin must weaken Qi, Chu, and Zhao. Among them, Qi and Chu are the most difficult to deal with because these two countries have a good relationship and participate in the alliance.
After searching for a beauty, King Huai of Chu became very fond of Zhang Yi, but his weaknesses were exposed. He was very kind to Zhang Yi, reserved a high-class seat, provided a comfortable residence, and treated Zhang Yi naively and childishly.
When meeting with Zhang Yi, King Huai of Chu asked straight to the point that the Chu country was remote and humble, and Zhang Yi had come all the way, so he didn't know what he could teach him. Seeing that King Huai of Chu was so straightforward, Zhang Yi did not beat around the bush. He said neatly that as long as Chu and Qi broke off diplomatic relations, Qin would immediately cede more than 600 miles of land to Shang and Yu as rewards.
The land of Shang and Yu was the vast Hanzhong area, with fertile soil and rich products, making it a coveted place for all the vassal states. Duke Xiao of Qin once enfeoffed this land to the reformer Shang Yang, which further increased the reputation of this land.
As long as he breaks off diplomatic relations with Qi, he can gain more than 600 miles of fertile land, and King Chu Huai suddenly smiles. Zhang Yi also said that after Chu and Qi break off diplomatic relations, Qin will marry women to Chu, and Qin men will marry Chu women, so that the people of the two countries will be as close as flesh and blood brothers.
Being able to intermarry with the powerful Qin State and even swear to be brothers is also the dream of the vassal states. When King Huai of Chu heard this, he didn't say much or ask detailed questions, and promised to break off diplomatic relations with Qi.
The upper beam is not straight and the lower beam is crooked, the monarch is greedy for money and benefits, and most of the ministers are short-sighted, with the exception of Qu Yuan, Chen Zhen and others. It was heard that Qin State would cede more than 600 miles of land to Chu State. The courtiers came to celebrate, but only Chen Zhen made a strange sound.
The king was in high spirits, but Chen Zhen poured cold water on King Chu Huai. King Chu Huai was very angry at him. Loyalty has been unfavorable since ancient times. When meeting a king like King Huai of Chu, apart from fulfilling Chen Zhen's name of loyalty, there is nothing that can be done to reverse the situation.
Chen Zhen openly sang the opposite tune. King Huai of Chu was furious and asked Chen Zhen what his intentions were. The implication of King Huai of Chu was that since Chen Zhen was disgusted with things that benefited the country and the people, the country had no need to support him. King Huai of Chu has made this plan. If Chen Zhen is not careful when he speaks and makes a mistake in a word or a half, disaster will surely come.
However, Chen Zhen is a loyal minister. All loyal ministers have one characteristic. They are not afraid of bloodshed and sacrifice for their ideals. Chen Zhen said that he hopes the country will develop and even expand its territory. However, Qin is a country of tigers and wolves, and Zhang Yi is full of tricks. They have never done anything that harms themselves or others, so there must be deceit in the matter of ceding territory.
Chen Zhen went on to say that Qin's friendship with Chu was all due to the alliance between Chu and Qi to rescue each other. If Chu breaks off diplomatic relations with Qi for no reason, it will definitely offend Qi. Once Chu offends Qi, Chu will be isolated and helpless, and Qin will take the opportunity to invade. If Qin declares war on Chu, the resentful Qi will definitely take advantage of it, and the consequences will be disastrous.
Therefore, Chen Zhen proposed to break off diplomatic relations with Qi after receiving more than 600 miles of land from Qin.
This plan can be used to attack when advancing, and can be defended when retreating. It is a good strategy. If Qin does not cede land, the alliance between Qi and Chu will remain, and Chu will have peace of mind; if Qin cedes land, Chu can break off diplomatic relations with Qi first and obtain fertile land. In this way, Qin, Chu, and Qi are fighting each other, and Chu is in the middle and can reap the benefits. However, King Huai of Chu was dazzled by the benefits and refused to adopt it, and stopped Chen Zhen with stern words.
For King Huai of Chu, profit was the abyss of sin. He refused to listen to Chen Zhen and fell into Zhang Yi's trap step by step. King Huai of Chu sent a letter to the State of Qi to sever the alliance; at the same time, he granted Zhang Yi the seal of the State of Chu, presented a large amount of property, and sent a team to follow Zhang Yi into Qin to receive a 600-mile fiefdom.
King Huai of Chu was very happy to see Zhang Yi enter Qin. Convincing King Chu Huai so easily was the easiest time since accepting the task, and Zhang Yi was even happier. Thinking back to the time when Zhang Yi entered Wei, it took more than 4 years to completely convince Wei. In the end, he had to rely on the Qin army, which really humiliated his persuasion.
Although King Huai of Chu was confused, he also did a smart thing. He sent a team to follow Zhang Yi, essentially to monitor Zhang Yi and prevent Zhang Yi from using tricks in private.
But the cession of the land was just Zhang Yi's temporary strategy. If he believed it was true and King Huai of Chu sent an envoy to take over the land, it would naturally not lead to good results. Qin State relied on Zhang Yi's eloquent words and even dispatched a large army to finally expand its territory. Since the rise of Qin, only other countries have ceded land to Qin, and Qin has never ceded land to other countries.
So as soon as he arrived in Qin, Zhang Yi made a plan to make the Chu envoy stay in Qin and not return for a long time.
After entering the capital of Qin State and getting off the carriage, Zhang Yi pretended not to hold the rope firmly and fell off the carriage, injuring his bones.
Zhang Yi lay in bed with his muscles and bones injured for 100 days and did not go to court for more than three months. Zhang Yi did not go to court, and the cession of more than 600 miles of land was delayed. King Chu Huai was very anxious.
A good person suddenly fell down and was unable to go to court due to illness. A smart person can see the fraud at a glance. If Zhang Yi sincerely cedes the land, he can still order people to send a message to the King of Qin even if he is ill. Zhang Yi remained silent, and his intention of refusing to cede the land was obvious. There was simply no three hundred taels of silver in this land.
Zhang Yi's behavior was that there was no three hundred taels of silver in this place, but King Huai of Chu believed in Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi fell and was injured. Although King Chu Huai saw that it was just a show, King Chu Huai believed that Zhang Yi fell intentionally because the Chu State and Qi State did not completely break off diplomatic relations.
In order to completely cut off diplomatic relations with Qi and cater to Zhang Yi, King Huai of Chu performed a vicious show and insulted King Qi with vicious words. Chu State has severed diplomatic relations with Qi State, and envoys cannot enter or leave Qi State at will. In order to enter the state of Qi, King Huai of Chu sent warriors to the state of Qi to forcibly borrow the talismans of the state of Qi.
The warrior passed the test with integrity and insulted the King of Qi like a shrew in the streets. Sending out warriors, forcibly borrowing talismans, and using harsh words and insults, only King Huai of Chu who was bent on profit would do this.
A scholar can be killed but cannot be humiliated. As a king, he cannot be humiliated. The Chu State broke off diplomatic relations for no reason. In order to unite the great cause, the King of Qi had been holding back. Unexpectedly, the Chu State actually became more and more aggressive.
If such scandals can be tolerated, what else can't be tolerated? King Huai of Chu's performance entered the restricted area of King Qi. In order to retaliate, King Qi did not hesitate to destroy Hezong.
The king of Qi smashed the talisman of He Zong and flattered Qin in a low voice. The relationship between Qin, Chu and Qi has developed to this point, and the advantages and disadvantages have changed. Qin temporarily withdrew and watched Chu and Qi fight each other and reap the benefits.
At the beginning, Qin’s goal was Qi. However, the simple-minded King Huai of Chu was manipulated by Zhang Yi, and step by step he brought the Chu country into the tragic situation of betrayal and alienation.
It is said that Zhang Yi's tongue is the cause of trouble. In fact, it should be said that Zhang Yi's tongue is the cause of trouble, and King Huai of Chu is the cause of trouble.
The envoy from Chu State had been waiting in Qin State for more than 100 days, and King Huai of Chu was urging him urgently. After the envoy finally caught Zhang Yi, he refused to let him go and demanded that Zhang Yi fulfill his promise.
Zhang Yi told them that he would fulfill his promise to cede Liuli land. When the envoy from Chu State heard this, he was stunned and did not believe his ears.
The envoy reported that Zhang Yi had only cut six miles of land. King Chu Huai was furious and wanted to send troops to attack Qin. Before he realized that he was still being led by Zhang Yi. Chu's national strength was not as strong as Qin's, and sending troops to attack Qin was tantamount to throwing an egg against a stone, which would lead to self-destruction. Besides, the State of Qi was insulted and insulted by the State of Chu for no reason, and they wished they could eat King Huai of Chu alive. If Chu is involved in a war, Qi will definitely take the opportunity to retaliate, and Chu will be attacked from both sides.
Seeing that the country was in imminent disaster, Chen Zhen once again bravely remonstrated. Chen Zhen said that the Qin State was powerful and attacking Qin State would be harmful but not beneficial. Instead of sending troops to Qin, it is better to cede land to seek peace and unite the Qin army to attack Qi.
If Chu and Qin join forces and Qi cannot resist, they will definitely cede territory and seek peace. The Chu State ceded its land to the Qin State, and then cut off the Qi State's land to make up for it. The Chu State suffered little damage. Chen Zhen has a thorough understanding of the current situation, knows himself and the enemy, and acts safely and reliably. However, at this time, King Huai of Chu still did not use loyal words and insisted on going his own way.
King Huai of Chu mobilized the army, with Qu Gai as the general, and marched against Qin in a mighty manner. What matters in war is actual combat effectiveness, not superficial appearance. The Chu army was mighty and terrifying. However, the Chu army only had a superficial appearance and had no real combat strength.
After the rise of the country, the Qin army went south to conquer Shu and sent troops to Wei many times. The army had rich combat experience. In comparison, the Chu army was much inferior. First of all, the people of Qin are engaged in farming and fighting. Soldiers are professionals who rely on fighting to make a living and have strong combat effectiveness. The Chu army plowed the fields in peacetime and participated in battles in emergencies. Their professional quality was not as good as that of the Qin army.
Secondly, the Qin army has been in battle for a long time and has been tempered. The more enemies it kills, the greater the rewards, and they take pleasure in fighting. However, the Chu army is afraid of war, hates fighting, and its morale is not as good as that of the Qin army.
Finally, over the years, the Qin army fought and won every battle, and the enemy was invincible. The Chu army had long been frightened by the power of the Qin army. If they only fight against the Qin army, the Chu army has no chance of winning, not to mention that Qi State supports the Qin army. Qi's participation in the battle not only weakened the Chu army's combat effectiveness, but also highlighted the weakness and incompetence of King Huai of Chu.
The alliance between Qi and Chu is known to the world. King Huai of Chu listened to Zhang Yi's tempting words, saw the benefits, and openly insulted King Qi, which tarnished his image as a king. The king is so incompetent that no one with strength and strategy would be willing to sacrifice his life for such a person.
There are foreign troubles outside and internal worries inside. King Huai of Chu is incompetent and will definitely not be able to save the country.
The combined armies of Qin and Qi attacked the Chu army in two directions. The Chu army was vulnerable and more than 80,000 people were killed. General Qu Gai died in the battle, and the Danyang and Hanzhong areas were robbed. After this battle, the vitality of the Chu State was severely damaged, the people were trapped, the army was weak, and the people were desperate.
The country suffered from war and the people were in dire straits. King Huai of Chu not only did not know how to reflect on himself, but instead shouted loudly and claimed to seek revenge. However, revenge requires strength. Without strength, even if the ambition is as high as the sky, revenge still cannot be avenged.
At that time, after Qin Xiaogong succeeded to the throne, he determined to take revenge on the Wei State, recruited talents from all over the world, and appointed Shang Yang to reform. It took more than ten years to accumulate the ability to take revenge, but King Huai of Chu did not have such patience.
The first battle was a disastrous defeat. King Chu Huai did not learn his lesson and still persisted in fighting, and once again mobilized an army to counterattack.
The Qin army was fierce, and King Qin Hui was trying to annihilate the Chu army in one fell swoop, completely destroying the Chu state and rendering it incapable of fighting in the world. King Huai of Chu mobilized his army and marched out, which was exactly what King Hui of Qin wanted.
The Chu army came with ferocity, and the Qin army was even more ferocious, because with one more Chu army, the Qin army had one more chance of killing the enemy and making meritorious deeds. The Qin and Chu armies met in Lantian (today's west of Lantian, Shaanxi Province) and fought a massive positional battle.
The Qin army hopes to kill the enemy and achieve meritorious service, while the Chu army longs to kill the enemy and take revenge. Therefore, the Qin army will not let the Chu army go, and the Chu army will not spare the Qin army. The army fought in a melee, the sound of killing was loud, corpses piled up like mountains, and blood flowed like rivers.
Despite being outnumbered and eager for revenge, the Chu army was defeated miserably. After the Chu army was defeated, King Huai of Chu had to cede territory and seek peace for the sake of the safety of the country.
