In the palace, Zhao Kuo was lying on a rocking chair, basking in the sun, and teasing his children from time to time. Little Zhao Zheng was running back and forth next to him, and the palace maid followed behind and looked after him carefully.
Ever since he learned to walk, little Zhao Zheng couldn't stop, and he looked like he was running around and working hard.
Po Nu lay down next to him and slept obediently. The little guy finally recognized him and stopped crying and making fuss after seeing Zhao Kuo.
"It would be great if it could always be like this." Tian Shu lay on Zhao Kuo's chest and said softly.
She has never had such a comfortable life before. Although she is far away from her family in a foreign country, there is no one in Qi to miss except her mother. As for her brother, who is the king of Qi, she has no relationship with her. How much family affection.
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"Yes. It's a pity that we live in troubled times, and peace is short-lived after all." Zhao Kuo sighed.
"Greetings to the king and queen. The envoys from Qi, Chu and Han have arrived in Handan." At this time, Liu Ping walked in and when he saw Tian Shu, he quickly lowered his head and cupped his hands.
Tian Shu stood up in a hurry and bowed.
"Let Xiang Guo negotiate and tell him to remember that the main transaction is food, followed by other materials, and money last." Zhao Kuo waved his hand and said.
Money and so on are all external things. For Zhao State, the most important thing is food.
"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister has returned to the Kingdom of Wei." Liu Ping whispered.
"Oh, yes, I forgot." Zhao Kuo slapped his head. Wei Wuji asked him for leave half a month ago, saying that he planned to return to Wei for a while. Zhao Kuo told him that King Wei also missed him very much and asked him to go back to Wei to visit him when he had time. In this case, stay longer and come back.
At noon that day, Wei Wuji took his son back to Zhao State, while his wife, concubines and daughter stayed in Zhao State.
"Let the second brother go. He is in charge of the Zhao Guo Chamber of Commerce and it is convenient for us to talk." Zhao Kuo waved his hand. Anyway, if you can do it yourself, you must not do it yourself. The opportunity for this kind of performance should be left to others.
"Young master went to Qi State yesterday. Qi State is harvesting in autumn and the price of grain has dropped. You plan to take the opportunity to purchase a batch of grain and grass." Liu Ping said.
Zhao Kuo frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "Where is Lu Zhonglian?"
Lu Zhonglian's talent is very suitable for negotiation.
"Mr. Zhonglian has gone to Hedong and is moving the bones of the soldiers." Liu Ping said.
Zhao Kuo assigned everything to the ministers. How could the ministers be free? Everyone has their own things to deal with.
"Your Majesty, business is important, you'd better go and have a look." Tian Shu advised.
"Forget it, forget it, let's go and talk in person." Zhao Kuo shouted, and asked Tian Shu to take care of the child, got up and walked outside.
"Your Majesty, do you want to come here together or alone?" Liu Ping asked.
"Alone, please invite the envoy from Chu first." Zhao Kuo thought for a moment and said.
The Chu State reserved war horses last year, so they must discuss with them first. Moreover, the Chu State is the farthest away from the Zhao State and will not conflict with the Zhao State in a short time. Their needs must be met first.
Next is South Korea. South Korea has a small territory, small population, and low demand, so it cannot buy much.
As for Qi State, it depends on the situation. At least it cannot threaten Zhao State.
"The foreign minister pays homage to the king." Qu Shu straightened his robes, strode into the hall, walked to the center, and said with cupped hands.
"Sir, please take a seat." Zhao Kuo pointed to the seat, and after Qu Shu took his seat, he said, "Sir, since you are from the Qu family, do you know Qu Yuan?"
Qu, Jing, and Zhao are the three major clans of the Chu State. They control the government of the Chu State. Even the King of Chu has to look at their faces. Their status is probably equivalent to the status of Han, Zhao, and Wei in the Jin State. However, the three major clans of Qu Jingzhao and the King of Chu have the same roots.
Since Chu State can send Qu as an envoy, it shows that it attaches great importance to this matter.
"King Zhao, my father is Qu Yuan." Qu Shu said, cupping his hands.
"Qu Yuan turned out to be your father, I am disrespectful and disrespectful." Zhao Kuo quickly stood up and bowed.
Qu Shu was a little confused, so he had to stand up and return the greeting.
"I have admired your Majesty for a long time. I wish I could talk with him all night long and learn from his knowledge and conduct. It is a pity that I have not given birth to you, but I have given birth to you. I always think of you, who worked hard for the Chu State, and gave me advice and suggestions, but I don't Being accepted by the King of Chu, I felt heartbroken. It is a pity that our country of Zhao does not have a wise minister like Qu Yuan." Zhao Kuo said with great sorrow.
A trace of resentment flashed in Qu Shu's eyes, not towards Zhao Kuo, but towards the King of Chu. His father was forced to jump into the river and die. As a son, how could he not have any resentment? He could only endure it.
Since the death of Qu Yuan, the Jing family and the Zhao family have begun to support the Xiang family and suppress the Qu family. Now the Qu family's strength is not as strong as before.
If King Chu hadn't tried to balance the three major clans, this opportunity wouldn't have fallen to him.
Since the State of Zhao sent someone to notify the State of Chu, it means that it has agreed to sell the horse. As long as the State of Chu does not send someone with bad intentions, it will definitely be done. After Qu Shu came back, the King of Chu could take the opportunity to promote him and win over a group of people.
"I heard that after your father-in-law threw himself into the Miluo River, the people on both sides of the strait immediately rushed to row boats to rescue him...but they never found your father's body. The people were also afraid that the fish in the river would eat his body. When the body was dead, they all went home and brought rice balls and threw them into the river to prevent fish and shrimp from destroying the body of their father. To this day, on the fifth day of May every year, local residents still do this, and the scope is getting larger and larger." Zhao Kuo said.
"King Zhao is really knowledgeable. I didn't expect that he even knew about this matter." Qu Shu sighed in admiration, no longer having any doubts about Zhao Kuo's previous words about admiring his father.
Even in the Chu Kingdom, few people knew about this because the King of Chu had been blocking the news. Although Qu Yuan was not killed by the King of Chu, the impact on the Chu royal family was also very bad. Zhao Kuo, who was in the north, was able to find out. He must have put a lot of thought into it.
"Your Majesty will definitely be famous throughout the ages. Even thousands of years later, people will still commemorate him on the fifth day of May every year to commemorate such a great and upright man." Zhao Kuo said solemnly.
"Thank you, King Zhao. Thank you, King Zhao." Qu Shu was so excited that he didn't know what to say, and his favorable impression of Zhao Kuo exploded in his heart.
Needless to say, the pursuit of fame by celebrities goes without saying. There is no reputation that can surpass the eternal name. And as King Zhao, there is absolutely no need to praise a dead man, which means these words are completely sincere.
"I heard that my father-in-law wrote many Chu poems during his lifetime, such as "Li Sao", "Tian Wen" and "Nine Songs"?" Zhao Kuo asked.
"Your Majesty, does your Majesty even know this?" Qu Shu said in shock. These are 'forbidden books' in the Chu State and are not allowed to be disseminated. Even the Chu State is rarely known about them.
"I have admired your lord for a long time, how could I not know?" Zhao Kuo said with a smile, "I wonder if the Qu family has preserved these cultural treasures?"
"Except for what my father wrote before his death, everything else has been preserved." Qu Shu said. Some people say that Qu Yuan wrote a poem before his death and sank into the river with him, while others say not.
Even Qu Shu doesn't know the truth of the matter, perhaps only Qu Yuan himself knows.
"Such a famous piece should be spread all over the world and invited to be appreciated by everyone. How can it be kept privately in the house. I am willing to exchange treasures for all your works, and put them in the academy for students all over the world to study." Zhao Kuo waved his sleeves and said.
"Your Majesty does not mind that my father's rhetoric is vulgar. How could I, Mrs. Qu, be so stingy? I believe that my father's spirit in heaven will not refuse. After the foreign minister returned, he sent someone... no, the foreign minister personally sent my father's handwritten letter. As for the treasure, forget it. ." Qu Shu said solemnly.
