Outside Shouchun City, in the Qin army's camp.
Wang Jian was lost in thought while looking at the military report delivered from Wei State. It was Wang Ben's first time as the commander of an army, and he was the commander of an army that destroyed a country. How could Wang Jian, a father, not pay attention? After Wang Ben entered Wei, Wang Jian sent people to Wei to keep an eye on the direction of the war. At the same time, whenever Wei sent military reports to Xianyang, he would rush to read them.
Unfortunately, Wang Jian was later assigned to the Chu State, but Ying Zheng also knew Wang Jian's thoughts and asked the person who delivered the military report to copy two letters, one of which was sent to Wang Jian. Wang Ben's various behaviors after entering the Wei Dynasty, as well as the subordinates Zi You had arranged long ago, made Wang Jian feel that letting Wang Ben get close to Zi You was the wisest choice in his life.
The backup arrangements arranged by Ziyou greatly facilitated the Qin army's attack. On the contrary, in places not governed by Ziyou's retainers, the Qin army encountered particularly fierce resistance. Wang Ben also fought many tough battles when he entered Wei.
"He actually defeated Lian Po? Not bad. It's a pity that Lord Xinping, who was more capable of fighting against Lord Wu'an in the past, is prone to fainting after getting old." Wang Jian sighed as he looked at the military report. This military report was from the army of the Kaifeng War. Report.
Lian Po believed too much in the existing intelligence and did not conduct careful inspection after receiving the intelligence. This is a big taboo for a commander. Of course, although this was the main reason for Lian Po's defeat, it was also inevitable. Even if Lian Po sent people to investigate carefully, Lian Po couldn't afford to wait for the time it took to send the information back. If the Qin army really had their food and grass burned, Lian Po's hesitation would be enough to give the Qin army a chance to breathe.
What made Wang Jian feel that Lian Po was dazed was because Lian Po did not prepare any back-ups and completely overwhelmed the Wei and Chu coalition forces, leaving no room for himself. This was a wrong strategy for the Wei-Chu coalition, which had a numerical advantage.
Then Wang Jian took out the military report. This military report recorded the process of Wang Ben's command of the battle. Any orders given by Wang Ben were recorded in detail. Wang Jian looked at the contents of the military newspaper and frowned. In his opinion, there were some mistakes in Wang Ben's command. If the Qin army had not been more powerful, the outcome of the Qifeng War would have been unknown.
"Is he still far behind? He has made all these obvious mistakes. I will definitely give him a few sticks when he goes back to teach him a lesson." Wang Jian said while blowing his beard, but he still couldn't hide the smile that flashed in his eyes. In order not to worry Wang Jian, no one from the army to the court told Wang Jian about Wang Ben's poisoning.
Wang Jian took out his pen and ink and wrote down Wang Ben's mistakes and opinions on the paper, as well as the correct approach. After doing all this, Wang Jian stood up and took out a box. There are already a lot of military reports and papers filled with writing in the box. After folding the paper, Wang Jian carefully placed the paper and the two military newspapers neatly into the box.
"General, the Commander of the State of Chu, Li Yuan, please see me!" the soldiers' voices sounded outside the camp.
Li Yuan? What is he here for? Wang Jian was a little confused, but he did not disappear. Instead, he closed the box and put it away while saying
"Let him come!"
"promise!"
Under the leadership of the soldiers, Li Yuan walked into the camp with a smile. After seeing Wang Jian, Li Yuan took the lead in saluting Wang Jian.
"Meet the General."
"Lord Lingyi, what do you want to do with Mr. Wang?" Wang Jian said in return.
In terms of status, Li Yuan, as the Lingyi and Grand Sima of the Chu Kingdom, was much higher than Wang Jian, the general. However, when Li Yuan saw Wang Jian, he took the initiative to salute before Wang Jian got up. This was not in line with etiquette, and even more so. It was a way of lowering one's status, but Li Yuan didn't feel it was inappropriate. After all, hard fists are the only way to go, and a weak country has no dignity.
"I heard that the general sent people to attack Chengfu. I wonder if this is the case?" Li Yuan looked at Wang Jian and asked.
Wang Jian was startled, thinking that Li Yuan had come to investigate. But he still smiled and replied
"That's right, Shouchun has been unable to be captured for a long time. I plan to capture Cheng Fu first, cutting off the way for the head of the Jing family to return for reinforcements, and buying time for us to attack Shouchun."
"So that's it. I heard that Confucianism in Qin is dominated by Gongyang Confucianism, and it is quite popular with the King of Qin. I wonder if this is true or not?" Li Yuan sat down and said with a smile.
Seeing that Li Yuan looked like he was visiting a friend to discuss Confucianism, Wang Jian was a little suspicious. Could it be that he had guessed wrong? Although he didn't know what Li Yuan's purpose was, Wang Jian began to speak
"It's true or false. There are hundreds of schools in Qin, and Gongyang School is indeed very popular, but I don't know if the king likes it. The king treats hundreds of schools equally. He will neither listen to them because Confucianism and Taoism are powerful, nor believe them. We will not abandon them just because Kanyu and other small sects have declined."
"The King of Qin has a heart for the world, and will not judge heroes based on their origins. This kind of mind is worthy of our King of Chu to learn from. I heard that the Confucian Gongyang Ru was famous for his great revenge. I couldn't help but think of the time when the Prime Minister of Qin, Zhang Zi and Zhang Yi, were in Chengfu. As for the insult, the Prime Minister of Chu framed Zhang Zi for stealing jade and whipped him. It is said that the person who framed Zhang Zi was a member of the Qu family, and the person holding the whip was a member of the Zhao family.
Later, Zhang Zi became the prime minister of Qin and entered Chu to seek revenge by stealing the country. I heard from a disciple that the Gongyang Confucian scholars in Qin State took Zhang Zi’s deeds as an example and promoted their own doctrines. Is this true? "Li Yuan continued.
After listening to Li Yuan's words, Wang Jian took a deep look at Li Yuan. He now understood what Li Yuan's words meant. Zhang Yi was not humiliated by his father in the city, but in Yingdu. Li Yuan mentioned Zhang Yi, deliberately confusing the place where Zhang Yi was humiliated, and also mentioned the Qu Zhao family. Combined with Gong Yangru's revanchism, it is obviously a hint that he hopes that the Qin army will take revenge on the three families of Qu Jingzhao for Zhang Yi when they attack Chengfu. In fact, they are getting rid of the three families of Qu Jingzhao on behalf of Li Yuan.
But Wang Jian is not a fledgling boy. He will not do anything that is not beneficial, so he smiled and said
"Yes, the Gongyang Confucian scholars really admired Zhang Zi, and they also highly praised King Zhaoxiang. They even considered King Wu's death in Luoyang with his tripod, and King Zhaoxiang's deeds to avenge his brother by destroying Zhou Dynasty."
If you use the story of Zhang Zi to hint to me, then I will use the story of King Zhaoxiang to destroy Zhou Dynasty to tell you. I need to obey the king's order to do this.
"Hahahaha, I have long heard that the General is the strongest general in the Qin State besides the Taiwei. I didn't expect that the General is not only accomplished in the art of war, but also academically accomplished." Li Yuan smiled. He said that he did not expect that Wang Jian and Xiang Yan were the same person. Not only were they extremely capable of leading troops, they were also good at playing politics.
"I just heard a little bit about it." Wang Jian said with a smile.
"I heard that the general likes to study the art of war. I happened to come across two volumes of the art of war written by Sun Tzu himself, with annotations on them." Li Yuan smiled and took out the two volumes from his sleeves. The good was gradually placed on the table.
"A gentleman does not take away what others love. Since this was collected by Lord Lingyi, how can I have the nerve to take it away?" Wang Jian said.
"Hey, as the saying goes, a sword matches a hero. I don't know the art of war. These two volumes of military books are like pearls covered in dust in my hands, and they can be carried forward in the hands of generals. Reading at night is harmful to the eyes. These are the night pearls treasured in the treasury of the Chu State. , put it in the darkroom, it was as bright as day, and gave it to the general as well." Li Yuan said, taking out another box and putting it on the table.
After Li Yuan opened the box, two luminous pearls suddenly illuminated the entire camp. Wang Jian closed his eyes due to the sudden bright light, and Li Yuan quickly closed the box.
"I have long admired the general. These are just gifts between friends. The general's brush is very special. Can you give it to me?" Li Yuan picked up the brush on the table and said.
Seeing Li Yuan like this, Wang Jian also knew that he couldn't shirk it, so he nodded and said
"This brush is indeed a bit uncertain. It was improved by Meng Tian, the son of General Meng Wu. It is indeed easier to write than other brushes."
"Then thank you, General. The Chu Kingdom is going to have continuous rainy weather recently. I am worried about the lack of suitable brushes to write memorials. Thank you, General." Li Yuan said with a cupped hand.
"As Lord Lingyi said, a sword matches a hero, so I give this brush to you," Wang Jian said.
"Thank you very much." Li Yuan said with a smile. Li Yuan understood the matter and Wang Jian agreed.
After Wang Jian and Li Yuan exchanged a few more polite words, they left. After Li Yuan left, Wang Jian's deputy general walked in.
"General, was it Li Yuan who was the commander of Chu State just now?" the deputy general asked.
"Yes, why are you back?" Wang Jian asked. The deputy general was sent by him to attack Chengfu yesterday.
"The city has been captured, and my subordinates will come back to inform the general." said the deputy general.
"So fast?" Wang Jian was a little confused. Chengfu was the gateway to Shouchun. Although it was not as strong as Shouchun, it could not be captured in one day.
"It's strange to say that apart from some resistance on the first day, Shouchun's defenders showed no resistance at all during the day. They captured the city in one fell swoop today. After entering the city, the three local members of Qu Jingzhao's family wanted to meet the general. , so I came back." The deputy general said.
"Yes, Cheng Fu is the foundation of Qu Jingzhao's three clans. There are people from all three clans in the city. It is naturally impossible for them to defend the city with all their strength."
Wang Jian quickly figured out the reason. Most of the city fathers were members of the three families of Qu Jingzhao. They would not do it if they were asked to go up the city wall to resist the Qin army. No one from the three families of Qu Jingzhao stood up to resist the Qin army, let alone Don't talk about other people. As for why Qu Jingzhao's three families are so confident, we have to mention the Chu family, the largest foreign relatives of the Qin State. Most of the Chu clan in the Qin State are Chu people. These people are either from the three families of Qu Jingzhao or are closely related to the three families, so they are not worried at all whether the Qin army will take action against them after they capture Chengfu.
"Now these people want to meet the general, do they want to meet or not?" the deputy general asked.
"Do you still remember what the king said before we marched?" Wang Jian said.
"I understand, I'll send someone to do it right away." the deputy general said, handing over his hand.
"No, Chu State is different from other countries. Qu Jingzhao's family has too much influence in Chu State. If we kill the clan rashly, the entire Chu State will be in turmoil, which is not conducive to our future rule." Wang Jian shook his head and said.
The influence of the three Qu Jingzhao families in the Chu State is self-evident. If they are killed rashly, it will cause turmoil in the entire Chu State. Local witches and people like them will try their best to incite the people to rebel. This is also the reason why Qu Jingzhao's three families are now fish and meat, but Li Yuan dare not take the knife himself. He needs an external force to destroy Qu Jingzhao's three families, and then Li Yuan will replace them.
"Then we just let them go?" the deputy general asked.
"Of course not. Don't take action against the three families for the time being. Send someone to contact the head of the Zhantai family and the head of the Chen family and tell them that Mr. Ziyou has important matters to discuss!" Wang Jian said.
"promise!"
After the deputy general left, Wang Jian put the two volumes of The Art of War and the Pearl of the Night together into a large box, and then wrote with a pen. After he finished writing, Wang Jian called his guards.
"Hurry up and present this letter and this box to the king!" Wang Jian said.
"promise!"
At this time, in Shouchun City, in the palace of the King of Chu.
Fu Chu sat on the throne, with the head of the Qu family and the head of the Zhao family below. Fu Chu looked at the two people below him with an extremely ugly expression.
"I know that you are connected with Wang Xiong Qi, and I don't care about this. Brother Wang and I are authentic descendants of the Chu royal family. Anyone who is not Xiong Han can be the king of Chu. Now the Qin army and Li Yuan's army are in the city "Except, Shouchun is in danger, and now only Brother Wang can come to save Shouchun. You write some letters and send them to Brother Wang, begging him to come to save Shouchun," said Fu Chu.
The two clan leaders looked at each other with helplessness in their eyes. They were not afraid of Fu Chu knowing that they had private contact with Lord Changping. What would happen if Fu Chu knew? As for writing letters to ask for help, since Li Yuan and Qin attacked, they have sent out at least three letters every day, but until now, without exception, they have all turned up without a reply.
Seeing that the two of them were silent, Zhen Chu's face became even more ugly. Although he was the King of Chu in Shouchun, he was actually a puppet. All the people in the Chu Kingdom with Shouchun as the center obeyed the orders of the three families of Qu Jingzhao. , he is just a decoration in the court. But after all, he was also a royal descendant of the Chu Kingdom, with the blood of all Chu kings flowing in his body. Now he had humbly asked the two for help, but their attitude completely angered Fu Chu.
Thinking that since he came to the throne, he has been completely treated as a puppet. If no one from the three families responds to his words in the court, no one in the court will dare to reply. Even his food and clothing expenses must be strictly controlled by the three families. You know. He is the King of Chu. I don’t know why I thought he was the pet of the three families!
"Do you really think that I am easy to bully?" Xiang Chu said with a gloomy face as he looked at the head of the Qu family and the head of the Zhao family.
The two also saw that Zhan Chu was not normal. Just when they were about to say something, Zhan Chu clapped his hands. The sound of armor clashing sounded outside the hall. As the hall door was violently pushed open, people wearing armor and holding weapons appeared. The guards rushed in.
When the head of the Qu family and the head of the Zhao family saw this scene, they immediately understood what Zhe Chu wanted to do, and immediately their expressions changed greatly and they looked at Zhe Cu and asked.
"What does this mean, Your Majesty!?"
"What do you mean!? You are bullying me like this. Do you really think that I dare not lift the table? Or do you really think that you are not the master of the Chu Kingdom!?" He kicked the table in front of him and said angrily.
(End of chapter)
