Before leaving, Zhao Kuo once again hosted a banquet for the kings of Chu, Wei, and Han.
"I want to buy some war horses from King Zhao." King Chu said with a toast.
War horses from the Central Plains have been used to pull carts for generations, and their size has deteriorated to the point where they are shorter than the war horses from the border areas and are not suitable for riding. If Chu wanted to obtain good war horses, it could only buy them from Qin, Zhao and Yan.
In the past, there were very frequent commercial exchanges between Chu and Qin. Chu exchanged lacquerware, gold, etc. for Qin's war horses. Although they were all castrated, the war horses purchased from Zhao and Yan were enough.
However, starting from last year, Qin State obtained stirrups and saddles from Zhao State, and began to recruit cavalry aggressively. It strictly prohibited the outflow of domestic war horses. It would rather give up exquisite lacquerware and gold than sell war horses to Chu State.
The road from Yan State to the south was also cut off by Zhao State. If you want to buy horses, you must pass through Zhao State's territory, but Zhao State's war horses are also prohibited from going south.
The huge Chu State could only purchase expensive smuggled horses.
But even this is not enough.
In desperation, King Chu had no choice but to come to Zhao Kuo himself.
What was said before about the horse and cart being exhausted and wanting some good horses was just a test. If Zhao Kuo's attitude was acceptable, he would then offer to buy horses. If Zhao Kuo's attitude was indifferent, he would not mention it again.
"I wonder how many war horses King Chu plans to buy?" Zhao Kuo asked.
"Thirty thousand." King Chu said.
Both cavalry and chariots require a large number of horses. If possible, King Chu even wanted to buy 100,000 horses, but he also knew that Zhao would not agree.
Even if he agreed, he couldn't afford it.
"To be honest with the King of Chu, our country, Zhao, has had constant wars in recent years, and its horses have suffered heavy losses. Moreover, the country is in decline, and the horse administration is on the verge of collapse. I'm afraid...it will not be able to meet the needs of Chu." Zhao Kuo sighed and shook his head.
"What about ten thousand horses? I can exchange them with grain and gold, and the price will be determined by King Zhao."
The King of Chu really had no choice. The Qin State refused to let go, even if the Chu State doubled the price, they would not sell it.
As for the State of Yan, let alone the State of Zhao, if the State of Zhao disagrees, not a single war horse of the State of Yan can even think of going south.
"Now even if there are 10,000 war horses, I, the State of Zhao, can't afford them. I guess the King of Chu doesn't want ponies under six feet either." Zhao Kuo said.
"That's natural." The King of Chu nodded and said. Chu State just lacks good horses, not horses. There are many ponies, and there are also wild ponies in the southwest. "In this case, how many horses can Zhao Guo buy?"
"King Chu, don't worry. I plan to send troops to attack the Xiongnu next year and recover the entire Hetao. By then, Chu will have as many war horses as they need." Zhao Kuo said loudly.
Since the Battle of Changping, the northern part of Zhao State has been weak. Tens of thousands of people have to defend the border of more than 2,000 miles. It is really difficult to take care of all places. The Huns took the opportunity to go south, break through Gaoque Fortress, and occupy the fertile Hetao.
Although Yanzhou and Li Mu both led their troops to repel the Xiongnu and regained some land, due to limited military strength, it was difficult to cause serious damage to the Xiongnu.
Moreover, the Xiongnu has grown stronger in recent years, and the threat to Zhao has become more and more serious. If Zhao wants to compete for hegemony in the Central Plains, it must have a stable rear. Now this rear is obviously not stable.
"Zhao plans to attack the Xiongnu next year?" King Wei said in surprise.
"Not bad." Zhao Kuo nodded.
"I heard that after the death of King Helu of Wu, Fu Chai was afraid that he would forget the hatred of the Yue Kingdom, so he arranged for the palace servants to stand on a high place and shout to him every day: "Fu Chai, have you forgotten that the Yue Kingdom killed your king and father? "?" Whenever he heard the shouting, Fu Chai would stand up and reply loudly: "Don't dare!" "In this way, Wu State finally became stronger and stronger day by day, and finally defeated Yue State and aspired to the Central Plains."
"Later, King Goujian of Yue, in order to avenge his hatred and revive the country of Yue, hung a piece of gall in the eating place. Whenever he ate, he would taste the bitter taste first, and then ask himself: "Have you forgotten the shame of the past? "He also removed the mat and used firewood as a mattress. He tempered himself with a difficult life and finally destroyed the state of Wu."
"Although I am not as good as the two kings Fucha and Goujian, I still have ambitions in my heart. Not even an inch of the land of our ancestors can fall into the hands of the enemy. Even if we throw our heads and blood, we must take it back. "
Zhao Kuo clenched his hands into fists and slammed them on the eucalyptus table. He stood up and looked excited.
"The words of King Zhao have won my heart." King Wei's face turned red, he stood up abruptly, picked up the wine glass, drank it all in one gulp, and echoed loudly.
When the king of Wei was young, the state of Wei continued to weaken under the pressure of Qin.
First, he lost 240,000 troops in the Battle of Yinque, which greatly damaged the country's strength. He also ceded 400 miles of land east of the river, then lost 61 cities, and then even his old capital Anyi was occupied by the Qin State.
From then on, the King of Wei vowed to revitalize Wei.
But in the second year after taking the throne, that man gave him a heavy blow, as if as a warning, and captured two cities in Wei.
In the third year, Wei Ran's troops surrounded Daliang.
In the fourth year, Hu Yang defeated Wei again.
In the fifth year, in order to restore his national power, King Wei decided to send troops to attack South Korea to expand his territory. This time he learned a lesson and joined forces with Zhao. Then Wei Ran, Bai Qi, and Hu Yang of Qin State pushed them to the ground and rubbed them. The entire army of 150,000 was wiped out, and only the coach Mang Mao escaped...
…
The successive defeats destroyed all the spirit of King Wei.
Bai Qi left a huge shadow in King Wei's heart.
He no longer thinks about how to revitalize the Wei State. As long as the Wei State does not perish in his hands, he will be satisfied.
But after regaining Hedong, King Wei's withered heart began to beat again, and he once again saw the hope of Wei's revival!
Hedong has been recovered, can Hexi still be far behind?
Both the King of Chu and the King of Han were a little excited in their eyes. The three suffering brothers were all suppressed by the Qin State, especially the Chu State. The old capital was still in the hands of the Qin State. The royal tombs were also burned down. Every year, the sacrifices could only be faced with empty spiritual tablets. In their hearts Like being cut by a knife, I don't know how to face my ancestors.
Zhao Kuo felt happy when he saw the three people's reactions. What Cai Ze said is indeed true. As long as he uses his ancestral soil to provoke him, King Wei will definitely not be able to bear it.
Now it seems that not only the King of Wei, but also the King of Chu and Han can't help it.
It would be fine if there was no hope at all for this kind of thing. The most fearful thing is that there is a little hope. At this time, in order to regain their homeland, the three countries will definitely try their best to attack Qin, and Zhao will take the opportunity to profit from it.
"King Zhao has great ambitions. I am here to congratulate King Zhao on his triumphant return." King Chu said with a toast.
"The same goes for me." King Han raised their glasses together.
If Zhao Kuo attacks Yan or Qi, in order to prevent Zhao from growing stronger, they will inevitably find ways to hold back, but attacking the Xiongnu is different.
From the perspective of the countries in the Central Plains, the surrounding alien races are all barren land. Even if they are defeated, they will not be able to increase their strength much and will lose their troops in vain. This is also one of the reasons why Chu State is trying its best to develop northward and completely disdains the south.
"Thank you three monarchs."
Looking at the backs of the three people leaving, Zhao Kuo showed a faint smile. The seed had been planted, and all that was left was to wait for it to sprout slowly.
