In the court meeting hall, Shi Huan emphatically explained to King Ling the principle of dying lips and cold teeth, and said:
"The King of Qin is so ambitious that he has launched large-scale wars several times to break the pattern of other countries and want to annex the world. If the Ling Kingdom stays out of the matter, then there will be no eggs in the nest."
His voice was very sad. After hearing the words, King Ling nodded slowly and said neither lightly nor seriously: "Well, what the envoy said is very reasonable. Everyone on the road knows about the ambition of King Qin. I still understand this."
"Then, what does His Highness mean?" Huanshi was very nervous.
King Ling said: "In this case, please ask the envoy to rest in the post house first, and then I will give you an answer after consulting with the ministers. How about that?"
"This, this, Your Highness, the war is in crisis." Huanshi couldn't wait.
King Ling was slightly dissatisfied: "This matter is not a trivial matter, and sending troops cannot be decided with just one word. The envoy should know this. Of course, I will not ignore Huan Guo, but we must discuss it."
He did not refuse directly, and his words were helpful to Huan, but also showed some displeasure. Huan was afraid of offending him, so he quickly saluted and said: "Yes, yes, I will take my leave first and wait for your highness's good news."
After he left, Ling Xiang was the first to be unable to bear it any longer. He stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, the Xuan army has not retreated yet, and most of my troops are contained. If we send out more troops to help Huan, the country will be empty, and I'm afraid the Qin army will turn to attack me." ah."
After the attack on Qin, the other countries were weak, and the Ling Kingdom also suffered a major defeat. Its domestic troops were less than 400,000. Now that the Xuan Army has restrained more than half of them, the number of troops that can be mobilized is only about 150,000.
After listening to what Ling Xiang said, another minister stood up and said with cupped hands: "The Prime Minister's words are reasonable. Although Huan today's territory is huge, it is empty. It should not be regarded as an alliance that can be fought. If If we help Huan, the pressure our country will face will be greater than that of Huan."
"Are you just going to watch Qin annex Huandi?" King Ling asked.
"This... is an emergency, there is nothing we can do." The minister said.
"What do you think of your ministers?" King Ling looked around again.
People paused, and then another minister said: "The Qin army has 300,000 troops. If our country sends troops, there is no doubt that we will face the main force of the Qin army. Regardless of whether we can save Huan State, I think the gains outweigh the losses."
"I second the proposal."
"I also second the proposal..."
Among the ministers, few agreed to send troops. Seeing this, King Ling took a deep breath, then stood up and said, "Let's end today's discussion."
What does your Majesty mean? The ministers were puzzled, seeing that King Ling had already left the throne, so they could only salute him respectfully.
But after going to court, the old commander Huang Zu and the counselor Cheng Ping were invited to the palace study.
In the study, the Spirit King did not sit behind the case, but stood there with his hands behind his back, looking at the map of the empire on the wall.
After the two of them greeted each other, he turned back and said straight to the point: "What do you two dear ladies think of today's events?"
The two looked at each other first, and then Cheng Ping said: "Today's meeting, the ministers only talked about two aspects. One is to send troops to fight the Qin army, and the other is not to send troops and watch Qin annex the entire Huan Kingdom. , in fact, we can completely avoid these two points and choose the best solution."
"Oh? My dear, please explain in detail." King Ling remained calm.
Cheng Ping continued: "If the Xuan army does not move, we may still be able to support the Huan state, but in this situation, it is meaningless to support the Huan state. Instead of doing so, it is better to take the opportunity to expand the territory and seize the strategic points in the north that restrict the east." land."
What he said seemed to be completely expected by King Ling, so he was not surprised at all. He only said in a calm voice: "Master Cheng, do you mean to use Huan's name to send troops into Huan's land and occupy the places we need?"
"Yes." Cheng Ping said directly: "To help Huan, we need an army of 200,000, but if we need to occupy land, 50,000 elite soldiers are enough."
"But if Huan is destroyed, it will have a great impact on our country." King Ling said: "With King Huan by his side, he would never dare to be disrespectful to our country. But if he becomes the King of Qin, he will be the king of tigers and wolves. Just challenge me."
"But King Qin will definitely attack and destroy Huan in this battle. We can no longer change this outcome." Cheng Ping said.
"Well..." King Ling pondered for a moment, then looked at Huang Zu and said, "What does the old general think?"
"Old minister agrees with Master Cheng's opinion." Huang Zudao: "From the perspective of the battle situation and the strength of the troops, it is impossible to save us. If we do not take some necessary actions, our country will be in even greater danger when King Qin takes all Huan Di as his own. Therefore, Take advantage of this moment to occupy strategic places from the north to the southeast, such as Lukou. This place must not be allowed to the King of Qin under any circumstances, otherwise, the army can drive straight in from Huandi and invade the southeast."
Upon hearing this, the Spirit King's eyes flashed.
The most important counselor and general had said this. He dispelled the last doubt in his heart and said: "In that case, then tell Huan Envoy that we will send troops from Lukou and enter Huan Di to assist Huan Guo in fighting. In fact, , using Lukou as the point, spread to surrounding counties and counties, and contain it, and then the Northern Army will enter the southeastern main road."
"Your Majesty, your Majesty is wise." The two of them bowed at the same time.
The Spirit King has never been an indecisive person, he can be regarded as a wise king of the previous generation. After talking about the business, he also looked at the two of them and said with a smile: "My dear friends, don't go back at noon. It just so happens that we have a family banquet together." Have a few drinks.”
"This, I'm scared." The two said at the same time.
"You must stay today. I have something else to ask you. Let's go." King Ling couldn't help but say.
At noon that day, there was a family banquet in the palace. Not many people were present. There were only Ling Wang's two older sons, Ling Yang and Ling Hua, and Princess Ling Yu.
King Ling is already old, in his fifties, and Lingyang and Linghua have been fighting openly and secretly for the position of heir apparent. TV mobile terminal/
Before the banquet started, when they saw King Ling, they first bowed respectfully, and then bowed to Huang Zu and Cheng Ping.
After sitting down at the main seat directly above him, King Ling also glanced at his two sons and said lukewarmly, "Sit down."
"Yes." The two of them responded quickly and sat down on the ground next to each other, looking slightly nervous.
When the palace maid served the wine and food, King Ling also turned sideways to Huang Zu, smiled, and asked casually: "Old General Huang, what do you think of Lingyang and Linghua?"
Hearing this, the two princes immediately became nervous, and Lingyang even clasped their hands together, because they both knew Huang Zu's importance and right to speak.
This evaluation is most likely related to the Crown Prince.
When Huang Zu heard this, his heart tightened, and then he looked at the two of them, then faced King Ling, and said honestly: "How dare I speak nonsense about the prince? It's just that the king inquired, and he didn't dare not answer. In my opinion, both princes are kind-hearted. Honest, possessing both political integrity and talent..."
How dare he offend anyone easily.
King Ling was undoubtedly stunned, then shook his head in amusement, pointed at Huang Zu and said: "The old general is cunning, these words are really words of retreat."
"No, everything I say is true," Huang Zu said hurriedly.
The Spirit King looked at Cheng Ping again.
The latter didn't wait for him to speak, but he already lowered his body and said: "I don't know, my king, I forgive you."
The Spirit King was stunned again, then smiled heartily, and stopped talking about it. Instead, he said casually: "The food and wine are almost ready. Please invite me, my dear friends."
Lingyang and Linghua secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
