In Xianyang, the capital of Qin, in the winter months, the wind was supposed to be raging and the north wind howling, but in the Chunhua Hall of Zhangtai Palace on the bank of the Wei River, there was not even a sound of wind.
It even seemed a little depressing inside.
The palace guards who kept watch walked forward and replaced the candles that were about to burn out. Approaching the king's bed, the palace people couldn't help but shudder.
In order to prevent King Qin's corpse from emitting a peculiar smell, all the furnaces in Chunhua Hall have been extinguished. Early in the morning, Queen Wei also asked the palace people to fetch a large amount of ice cubes from the "Ling Yin" in Zhangtai Palace, and laid them around King Qin's body to prevent the body from rotting.
Fortunately, it is winter now, so the body can be preserved for a longer time. Otherwise, even if it is preserved with ice, the body will probably stink when the prince comes back from Shu.
After hearing the queen's instructions, everyone hurriedly braced themselves up and started a new period of busy work.
The palace servants of Chunhua Palace hardly slept a wink for two consecutive days and nights, and they didn't even have time to put away their makeup. At this time, a layer of oil was clearly visible on their faces. Physical fatigue, coupled with high mental stress, everyone seemed a little depressed at this time.
Queen Wei spent the most difficult night and could finally sit down and take a breath.
Although the arrangement last night was a bit hasty, after all, she, the queen, was in charge, and there were so many people around her making suggestions, so now that I think about it, it was quite thorough.
However, most of the things she had to worry about were not something that her courtiers could explain.
Now is the time of war. In addition to ensuring the smooth succession of the throne, the Wei family also needs to maintain the morale of the frontline soldiers in order to achieve the final victory of this war.
The former can be said to be related to the stability of the country, while the latter is more related to the survival of the country.
So much so that the strategy set by Ying Si during his lifetime faced this war that swept through more than a dozen countries in China, and the Wei family did not dare to easily replace the generals at the front until the outcome was uncertain.
Although Prince Sheng is loyal and reliable, he still can't escape the word fame and fortune in his heart.
Wei saw this very clearly.
After a night of thinking, she firmly rejected the suggestion of Prince Sheng to change generals, including Wei Zhang, the commander-in-chief of Shang Yu and Wuguan, and Mi Bazi's biological brother Wei Ran.
...The ownership of Shang Yu in the two places can be compared to the fundamental source of this war. It was never just a point of conflict between Qin and Chu. It is a strategic balance point that includes Wei, Han, Qi, Song, and even Yan, Zhao and other countries.
However, in recent years, wars between the countries in the Central Plains have become more frequent, and the pattern of the countries has quietly changed.
The balance point at that time can no longer maintain the balance at this time.
Zhang Yi's bullying of Chu was just a trigger. What really triggered this war was the increasingly uncontrollable ambition in the hearts of the princes.
In order to win this war, Qin State completely emptied its wealth. In addition to the seven counties in the northwest that had just been pacified, the country once again recruited and gathered hundreds of thousands of troops. Fang was able to divide his troops into three groups.
On the frontal battlefield, after being recommended by the Qin court's civil and military officials and Ying Si's repeated speculations, Wei Zhang was appointed as the commander-in-chief, using the natural moat of Wuguan to block the main force of the Chu army.
The Qin and Chu sides on the Wuguan line have been facing each other for more than half a year, and there has been no large-scale conflict between the two armies during this period. But neither Qin nor Chu dared to relax here.
Business is the key to the victory of this war, and it is also the basis of the struggle between the two sides. Only by occupying this place can we take the initiative in this war.
You must know that the main force of the Chu army lies in Shangyu and Hanzhong, and the number of troops gathered exceeds 100,000. The Qin army has been divided several times, and the Qin army currently guarding Wuguan probably does not exceed 20,000. Being able to maintain the current state is of course indispensable to Wei Zhang's "waiting for war" contribution.
The second southwest battlefield was led by Sima Cuo, who plotted against Bashu in the name of quelling the rebellion. According to the original strategy of the Qin army, the only way to deal with Bashu was to use a false way to destroy Guo. That is, after the destruction of Shu, the two countries of Ba and Shu were unprepared, and then destroyed the two countries along the way.
Because the 50,000 Qin troops along the way had Ju and Ba as their internal support, the natural chasm on the Shu Road did not pose much of an obstacle to the Qin army. In the early stage, the Qin army took advantage of the route of Ju State, and the Qin army went south like a bamboo, with good news one after another. However, As they invaded the hinterland of Shu, they still encountered strong resistance from the Shu people. However, given the general trend, I think it won't take long before the success is achieved.
The main battlefield in the east on the third route is also the key to victory in this battle. The main force of the Qin army is commanded by Ying Hua.
This road was originally only used to assist Wei and Han in fighting against the coalition forces of Qi, Chu and Song.
But Qin gradually realized that if it wanted to win this battle, the key lies in Qi, not Chu.
Just as Gan Mao said: "If Qi does not retreat, this battle will not be fought at all. Otherwise, even if Chu is defeated, it will still refuse to give up and will not give up. However, if Qi withdraws, Chu will Then we have no confidence, and this battle can be ended as soon as possible."
Only by getting Qi out of the game as soon as possible can we unite the three Jins, use superior troops to suppress the Chu territory, and force Chu to retreat.
With Gan Mao's explicit analysis, Wei gradually understood Qin's current situation.
The Qin State has been at war for many years. If it were not for its unique legal system of farming and war, which relied on war to support war, the economy would have collapsed long ago.
Although it can barely maintain it now, it cannot last long. The root cause is the defeat of Jinyang and Hangu.
The fact that the huge war machine of the Qin State is still operating normally can be said to be all for support or gambling.
Bet that Qin can win this battle.
It is not difficult to see from Ying Si's strategic layout during his lifetime that Qin's focus is shifting, and he is now eager to break the blockade of the three Jins.
However, once one of the parties makes a mistake, the entire Qin State will be completely eliminated.
King Qin Yingsi was courageous and dared to bet the entire country, but Queen Wei did not dare.
Coupled with the sudden changes, she believed that what Qin needed most now was to end this massive war as soon as possible.
She decided to give up the strategy of Bashu for the time being.
Therefore, while recalling the crown prince Ying Dang, the Wei family also ordered in the name of Ying Si to have Sima Cuo lead the Qin army who had "aided Ju" in Shu to return home.
Although doing this is tantamount to giving up the fruit of Bashu, which is about to be obtained...but until it is obtained, everything is still a variable, right?
There are too many variables in Qin State now, and Wei must choose to cut off one of them to free up his hands to alleviate the current oppression.
Only in this way can the seamless change of rights be ensured.
Thinking of this, Mrs. Wei couldn't help but turn her head and glanced again at King Qin who had arranged his remains on the king's couch.
After several nights of running around, looking at the culprit who caused this turmoil, the trace of sadness in Wei's heart had already quietly dissipated.
There was only indifference in her eyes now.
Staring at the husband she used to share the same bed with, she couldn't even feel a trace of sadness in her heart.
It was like the cold ice beneath him.
What Ms. Wei is thinking about now is just hoping that her son can come back soon and inherit that position as soon as possible.
Only when the prince returns home can this turmoil be truly quelled.
