Soon after the autumn harvest, the textile workshops began to operate at high speed, and Lü Buwei's caravan also set out on a journey southward.
Although the Chu State and Southern Qin were separated by the Yangtze River, they did not prohibit merchants from traveling between them.
Although the economy of Yue in the south of the Yangtze River was not developed, the pearls and silk from the Baiyue were luxuries favored by the nobles of Chu. The nobles of Chu could not live without these luxuries.
When Lu Buwei's caravan set foot on the land of Chu and dealt with the feudal lords of Chu in the name of "Lu Buwei's family servants", he also discovered a secret of Chu.
After the Chu State's ancestral land was swallowed up by Bai Qi, it was not only mentally traumatized, but also faced a more serious problem - Bai Qi fought too quickly and focused on annihilation. When the nobles fled, they would take their clansmen and guards with them, but would not take the lowly craftsmen with them.
The superb handicrafts of the Warring States Period, such as lacquerware, bronzeware, and ironware, were not only important sources of national fiscal revenue, but also a reflection of national combat effectiveness. Therefore, most monarchs would concentrate the best craftsmen near the capital for easier management.
The handicraft industry in Chu State was originally very developed.
From the unearthed cultural relics in the early Warring States period, we can see that the quality of Chu bronze swords was very high and the lacquerware was also very exquisite. The official bronze weapons and lacquerware were all written with the names and affiliations of the craftsmen. The craftsmen of the unearthed cultural relics in the early Spring and Autumn period were basically affiliated with the Chu State.
When Bai Qi attacked Chu, the handicraft technology of Chu regressed significantly.
In the tombs after the fall of Yingdu and the eastward migration of the Chu State, for example, the bronzes used by the Chu royal family unearthed from the Li Sangudui archaeological excavation, were of relatively simple casting and lacked the exquisiteness of the official bronzes of the early Chu State.
Most of these bronze vessels were cast by foreign casters, who were foreign craftsmen in the official workshops of the Chu State. The fact that the bronze vessels used by the King of Chu were cast by foreign casters showed that there was an extreme shortage of skilled craftsmen in the Chu State.
Many lacquerware with the inscription "Chengshi" were unearthed from the tombs of nobles in the late Chu State. "Chengshi" means lacquerware sold from Chengdu.
The State of Chu was originally a major producer and exporter of lacquerware. However, the lacquerware funerary in the tombs of Chu nobles was actually sold by merchants from Chengdu.
From these historical fragments excavated by archaeology, we can piece together a fact: the rapid decline of handicraft technology indicates the decline of productivity in Chu. At this time, Chu still seemed huge, but in fact it was empty inside, with too many places for people to take advantage of.
People in later generations were able to learn about these things from archaeological discoveries, but at this time, the people of the other six countries should not have known about them.
During the Warring States Period, transportation was blocked, wars were frequent, and information was very blocked.
Apart from spies from various countries, such as the terrible intelligence network built by Qin for the purpose of sowing discord, only caravans can find out news from other countries.
The spies sent by various countries would only spy on the behavior of the monarchs and high-ranking officials, and the caravans were only concerned with their own business. Therefore, no one inferred from the obvious decline of Chu's handicraft industry that Chu's national strength was even weaker than imagined.
It was not until more than two thousand years later that archaeologists glimpsed the truth from historical fragments.
Lü Buwei was not only a businessman, but also had a very good political vision. He came to Chu for the "trade war", so he immediately discovered important information that Chu itself had not seriously concealed but was habitually ignored by everyone.
However, he did not have the comprehensive inference of archaeologists two thousand years later. He only found that the decline of Chu's handicraft industry meant that he could sell more goods to the Chu nobles whose quality of life had declined a lot after moving east. In order to buy more goods, these Chu nobles were more likely to fall into the trap of "changing grain to cotton and linen".
Moreover, the official workshop of Chu State was extremely short of skilled craftsmen, and even the utensils used by the King of Chu were said to have few patterns. He could have trained skilled craftsmen as spies to enter the official workshop of Chu State to inquire about the news of Chu State's weapon manufacturing.
As long as we know the approximate number of weapons produced by several official weapon workshops in the Chu State, we can tell from the increase or decrease in the number whether the Chu State plans to send troops.
Lu Buwei already had a big beard, but he couldn't help but clench his fists and wave them vigorously twice.
When he was in Xianyang, although he was very close to the King of Qin, there was little he could do except making friends with other nobles and recruiting retainers.
At that time, he thought that nobles were like this, and it was enough to apply the intrigues in the business world to the officialdom. But Duke Xiang of Zhu said that his abilities should not be used for this.
"Your timely assistance to Xia Tong gave you the opportunity to make achievements in Qin. You must use your own abilities to establish real and irrefutable merits, so that you can truly have a foothold in the Qin court where interests are paramount." Zhu Xiang used himself as an example, "Is it because I am the prince's brother-in-law that I can enter and leave the Xianyang Palace freely now? No, because I am Changping Jun, who is the best at farming in Qin."
"Lü Buwei, you are already rich and famous enough. What remains is the desire to leave your name in history. You should not be blinded by the wealth and fame in front of you."
On his way south, Zhu Xiang had his first sincere conversation with Lu Buwei.
Lü Buwei actually didn't quite understand what Zhu Xiang said. But it didn't matter, he just knew that Zhu Xiang had pointed out a path for him, and he would be right if he followed it.
I want to make achievements with Duke Zhu Xiang!
I am in a high position not because I helped Crown Prince Zichu return to the country, but because I reached the high position step by step with real contributions!
For Lü Buwei, it was to replace his best hoarding and profiteering with doing business step by step to accumulate capital. Although he was not good at it, he was not afraid.
Lu Buwei thought that he would have to wait for a long time before he could see the weakness of Chu and then take action.
Unexpectedly, not long after arriving in Chu, he discovered the weakness of Chu from the dual perspectives of a businessman and a politician.
While Lü Buwei was excited, he was also worried whether he was thinking too much and whether rash actions would disrupt Duke Zhu Xiang's plans.
He hurried back to Wujun to ask Zhu Xiang for advice.
After hearing Lu Buwei's judgment, Zhu Xiang immediately linked the decline of Chu's handicraft industry to the northward migration of Chu's capital.
He also saw another weakness of the Chu State, a weakness that was even more fatal than the Chu State's susceptibility to being drawn into a trade war.
Wu County often traded with the southern bank of the Yangtze River, which later belonged to Nantong City. Many exquisite coins minted in Chu State were obtained in the transactions. The wealthy Chu merchants under the command of the feudal lords often used gold coins to settle goods.
Although gold is softer than bronze and may be easier to carve, judging from the patterns alone, there may be many craftsmen under the rule of the feudal lord here.
Compared with the bronze ware used by the King of Chu, which even had rough and exquisite patterns and had to recruit foreign craftsmen to make utensils for him, the life of the feudal lords of Chu might have been slightly better.
The coastal areas near the Yangtze River were not yet the fiefs of the traditional nobles of the Chu State. Then, were the fiefs of the three great nobles of the Chu State, Qu, Jing, and Zhao, more prosperous
After the reform of Chu ended, the most perfect and backward system of aristocracy and king co-governance was maintained. Qu, Jing and Zhao were the leaders of the aristocracy.
The three great nobles were all born from the royal family of the Chu State. To compare with the situation that is more familiar to later generations, the political system of the Chu State at this time was similar to that when the Qing Dynasty first entered the pass. The Chu State was "co-governance by the banner owner and the clan king". The clan leaders of Qu, Jing and Zhao were the "three largest banner owners", and the other feudal lords were "small banner owners".
In Yingdu, the three noble families each occupied a district, called "Zhaolu", "Qulu" and "Jinglu". The official who presided over the ancestral temple sacrifices in the Chu State was called "Sanlu Dafu", and managing the children of the three major families in Yingdu was also his most important responsibility. This is also similar to the Zongrenfu of the Qing Dynasty.
The King of Chu was nominally the "common leader of the Eight Banners", but in reality he could only directly control the "upper three banners".
The Battle of Yingdu caused heavy losses to the "Upper Three Banners", and the power of the King of Chu in Chu declined. The extent of the decline can be more directly seen from the decline of the handicraft industry in the King of Chu's new capital and the comparison with the handicraft industry in other fiefdoms of Chu.
The advantage of a long civilization span is not only that future generations can find "precedents" in the vast amount of ancient books, but also that time travelers like Zhu Xiang who inexplicably came to the past can infer from similar "futures" the difficulties that the State of Chu is facing, as well as where they can add fuel to the fire if they want to put the State of Chu into greater difficulties.
Zhu Xiang's mind suddenly became clear, and then his heart skipped a beat.
He was sure that his idea must be correct, because countless countries with similar situations to Chu in later generations had proved this point.
If I take the initiative to attack, is it possible that the State of Chu will be split, or even... destroyed in advance
Zhu Xiang quickly stopped this terrible thought, but immediately laughed at his own hypocrisy.
Qin wanted to unify the world, and Chu was its enemy. Qin and Chu were destined to have many wars. Whether he took action or not, the war between the two countries would result in countless casualties.
Better to win quickly.
If he hadn't sought a quick victory, he wouldn't have taken over the Qin-Chu trade war. What is hypocrisy now
"We need the cooperation of Li Mu and Wang Jian." Zhu Xiang paused and said, "Not only that, we need the cooperation of Shu County, Ba County, Qianzhong County, Nan County, and Wu County."
Lu Buwei was extremely shocked: "Ah?" Isn't it just a business, or planting some spies, why is there such a big fuss
Zhu Xiang said in a cold and hard tone: "The cracks that have appeared in Chu can be broken into pieces along the cracks."
"Break, break into pieces?" Lu Buwei repeated the word, his mind was empty, yet he felt inexplicably frightened.
"It's nothing more than turning the State of Chu into the first small Warring States of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty." Zhu Xiang clenched his fists, then slowly released them, speaking in a cold tone.
The term "Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period" has been mentioned many times in modern classics. Lü Buwei could understand what Zhu Xiang meant by "the Warring States Period".
Zhu Xiang's words made him excited and nervous, and he wished he could charge into battle with Zhu Xiang right now.
Zhu Xiang asked Lu Buwei to calm down and take a rest in Wujun, waiting for Li Mu and Wang Jian to come back to discuss the matter together.
After receiving Zhu Xiang's letter, when Li Mu and Wang Jian returned, not only did Ying Xiaozheng bring Li Si and Meng Tian to listen, but Han Fei, who had been "missing" for a long time, also finally arrived in Wujun.
Han Fei's fair and tender aristocratic face had now been tanned into a wheat-colored, energetic young man, and even his scholarly beard had turned into a short stubble that was easier to maintain.
He brought a large box of books to report his "academic achievements" over the years to Zhu Xiang. Before he had time to speak, he was pulled into a confidential meeting with the State of Chu to take notes.
Han Fei held the brush in his hand, and was so worried that he almost pulled the bristles off.
I haven't planned to completely surrender to the Qin State yet. Is it really okay to know this secret now
Li Si glanced at Han Fei and said in a low voice, "Will you go and tell the king of Chu about this? If not, why are you worried? I'm just asking you to take notes."
Li Si's words calmed Han Fei down.
Meng Tian looked at Li Si and Han Fei with envy.
He had known Li Si for a long time. Li Si was very respectful to him and never spoke to him in this tone. Even though he knew that Li Si and he were not of the same age and it was difficult for them to become close friends, he still felt very lonely.
Meng Tian bit the pen, feeling lonely.
Ying Xiaozheng looked at Han Fei and Li Si, then looked at Meng Tian who was acting like a child (although he was indeed young), and sighed in his heart with an air of maturity.
In terms of maturity and stability, my subordinates are no match for my uncles, let alone my uncles.
"Here is the current map of Chu." Zhu Xiang got straight to the point and hung the map of Chu on the wall. "Let me explain the meaning of the map symbols."
People who study agriculture are good at geography. Zhu Xiang may have a vague memory of administrative regions and major minerals, but he doesn't even need to think when drawing topography and hydrology.
Zhu Xiang could even mark the main grain output of each area on this map. But that was more than 2,000 years later and has nothing to do with the present.
Based on his memory and the maps of Chu State collected today, Zhu Xiang depicted the approximate locations of Chu State's mountains, rivers, plains and cities.
Li Mu was already very familiar with the maps drawn by Zhu Xiang, and he had already learned some of the map-drawing patterns "invented" by Zhu Xiang.
Wang Jian had seen this kind of map from Li Mu, and only then did he realize that it came from Zhu Xiang. Li Mu had never told him about it. He was really not a friend.
Lu Buwei, Li Si, Han Fei and Meng Tian knew nothing about it, so Zhu Xiang's introduction now was mainly to teach them.
After the introduction, Zhu Xiang marked the name of the feudal lord under the city.
From this map we can see that the King of Chu seemed to have become like the King of Zhou during the Spring and Autumn Period, with very few counties directly under his jurisdiction, and almost all large cities were controlled by feudal lords.
When Wu Qi carried out the reform, Chu also adopted the county system. After the reform was abolished, Chu, like the other six states, had both the county system and the feudal system, but the feudal system gradually gained the upper hand.
The counties directly under the king of Chu were generally located around the capital of Chu, Yingdu. When Yingdu was captured by Bai Qi, most of the territory directly under the king of Chu was lost.
Before Zhu Xiang even told them his intentions, everyone present was smart and they immediately realized that the King of Chu had been almost sidelined by the feudal lords.
After Zhu Xiang marked the territories of the feudal lords on the map, he mentioned the Battle of Yingdu and asked Lu Buwei to introduce what he had discovered during his trip to Chu.
Lu Buwei was very excited and was very grateful to Zhu Xiang for giving him this opportunity to perform.
Ying Xiaozheng was in a very complicated mood.
Well, he admitted that Lu Buwei was also a talented person. Even if he lost the opportunity to be his "father", he might be able to make achievements and be awarded a title with his own abilities.
But now even if he called Lu Buwei "Zhongfu", would Lu Buwei dare to respond
My father would kill him!
Ying Xiaozheng suddenly felt relieved and was finally willing to let Lu Buwei off a little.
It is better not to demote Lu Buwei just because he couldn't enter the Xianyang Palace with his feet. I will just keep him and work for me without rewarding him.
After listening to Lu Buwei's introduction, Li Mu and Wang Jian were both interested.
Li Mu had already smiled, while Wang Jian was still frowning and thinking. From their different expressions, it can be seen that Li Mu is now a little more mature than Wang Jian, and Wang Jian still needs some training.
Li Si, Meng Tian and Han Fei were also frowning and thinking.
Zhu Xiang did not state his conclusion immediately, giving everyone time to think.
"Zheng'er, what do you think?" Zhu Xiang asked Ying Xiaozheng first.
Ying Xiaozheng said: "If it were me, I would provoke further struggle between the King of Chu and the feudal lords, and support a feudal lord who is not one of the three great nobles to fight against the other feudal lords. What do you think of Lord Chunshen?"
Zhu Xiang looked at Li Si, Han Fei, and Meng Tian, the three "little ones": "What do you think?"
Li Si spoke first: "We are selling cloth and buying grain from Chu this time. What we are most afraid of is that the King of Chu will order a ban on Qin-Chu trade. The feudal lords of Chu will not obey the direct orders of the King of Chu. Perhaps we can sell cloth and buy grain directly from them."
Meng Tian thought for a long time and said embarrassedly: "My idea is the same as Li Si's." He is still a smart young man who does things efficiently and does not think too much.
Zhu Xiang said to Han Fei, who was about to speak but was a little hesitant, "Tell me slowly, there's no rush."
Han Fei took a deep breath and said, "I think we can just attack the State of Chu."
Han Fei still had a stutter, but after going south and communicating with the farmers, he learned to speak slowly, changing the repeated words into just strange punctuation, which was a big improvement.
Li Si and Meng Tian turned their heads to look at Han Fei. Ying Xiaozheng also looked at Han Fei with a suspicious look on his face.
Is Han Fei planning to do something bad in order to weaken Chu State in order to help Han State
After hearing this, Li Mu smiled and said, "I think so too."
Wang Jian objected: "Although Chu is weak, its territory is vast. It will take a million strong troops to conquer it completely."
Ying Xiaozheng touched his delicate chin. Oh, my General Wang Jian has not grown up yet. You said you only need 600,000 in the future!
Wang Jian continued: "Even if we have a million strong troops, if the other five countries come to the aid of Chu, we may still fail."
Li Mu smiled faintly and said, "We can attack Chu now, but we can't completely destroy Chu now."
Wang Jian frowned at first, then suddenly relaxed his brows: "You mean... I understand! It is indeed feasible!"
Han Fei said: "I think so too."
Li Si, who was strong in domestic affairs but not good at fighting wars and had little understanding of the affairs among the nobles, frowned so hard that he could kill a mosquito.
What do you mean by "this intention"? Why can Han Fei think of something that I can't think of
Meng Tian's eyes were empty. Sorry, I can't follow your train of thought.
Zhu Xiang looked at Ying Xiaozheng.
Ying Xiaozheng refused to admit defeat and said, "Uncle, don't say anything yet. Let me think about it."
Ying Xiaozheng jumped down from the chair, walked to the map and looked at it carefully, recalling what Zhu Xiang and others had said before, and speculating on the intentions of Li Mu, Wang Jian and Han Fei.
Zhu Xiang smiled and shook his head.
Ying Xiaozheng's legs are not short anymore, but he still has the habit of jumping off chairs. He is really too lively.
When he becomes the King of Qin in the future, he must not jump down from the throne. If Xunzi could live to that time and see this scene, he would probably break his legs.
"Zhu Xiang, is this how you teach Zheng'er etiquette?!"
Yes, break his own legs, not Zheng'er's legs. Xunzi's furious face appeared in Zhu Xiang's mind.
"Zheng'er, your uncle has a tip for you." Zhu Xiang said, "King Huai of Chu was furious after being deceived, and he led his entire country to attack Qin. He won a great victory at first, then suffered a great defeat, and was finally completely defeated in Lantian. He had no choice but to go to Qin to seek peace."
Ying Xiaozheng stood with his hands behind his back, frowned, and looked at Lantian on the map.
After a while, Ying Xiaozheng said: "When King Huai of Chu attacked Qin, Qin was originally unable to resist. Later, he persuaded Wei, Han, and Zhao to take advantage of the emptiness of Chu and attack Chu, leaving Chu with no way out..."
Ying Xiaozheng paused, then his brows relaxed and he laughed out loud, "So that's how it is. The Jianghuai area that Wei, Han, and Zhao attacked is where many feudal lords of Chu gathered."
Li Mu nodded with relief.
Ying Xiaozheng looked at the teacher's affirmation and continued to think along the lines of this inspiration.
"When the defeat in Lantian first appeared, the feudal lords immediately used this as an excuse to withdraw their troops, which led to the disastrous defeat of the King of Chu." Li Mu added, "At this time, many feudal lords and generals sent troops just to expand their own fiefdoms."
This was the case with King Zhaoxiang of Qin's uncle.
If a feudal lord attacks a city adjacent to his fiefdom, it belongs to his fiefdom, not to his country.
Ying Xiaozheng said: "If we only send troops to attack a few feudal lords, perhaps the King of Chu will not send troops to help?"
Li Mu said: "Zheng'er, think about it again, think about what I am best at."
Ying Xiaozheng originally wanted to say "water battle", but when the words were about to come out of his mouth, he swallowed them and thought about it for a while.
Is water fighting something the teacher is good at? Of course.
But is the teacher best at water battles? Of course not! The teacher became famous for fighting the Xiongnu in Yanmen County! The best thing he is good at is plain cavalry raids!
Ying Xiaozheng took a deep breath and said uncertainly: "Teacher, you don't want to send out several cavalry to harass different feudal lords' cities separately, so that they can't take care of the front and the rear, causing chaos?"
Li Mu smiled and said, "Zheng'er has thought of this, he is a great mentor."
Ying Xiaozheng first raised a smug smile, then remembered that he should not show his emotions, so he quickly suppressed the smile and said with a straight face: "But what good will this do us?"
Li Mu said: "I am only responsible for seeing the opportunity. As for what benefits there are, it depends on what Zhu Xiang thinks."
Zhu Xiang asked, "Zheng'er, do you want to think about it again?"
Ying Xiaozheng said with empty eyes: "I don't want to."
He sat back in his chair, raised his chin and signaled his uncle to speak quickly.
Zhu Xiang laughed and talked about his intentions.
This time he is using both trade warfare and invasion warfare, and he is also assisting in a battle that looks like a frontal offensive.
"Ba County has little farmland but many soldiers, and the barbarians are fierce. As long as Shu County provides Ba County with enough food, it can organize a barbarian army from Ba County to attack Chu from the flank. Chendu, the capital of Chu, is in the west of Chu. If Ba County sends troops to attack Chu, the King of Chu will be very nervous and summon the lords to help."
"In a frontal attack, Duke Lian and Wang Jian are the best at leading the troops."
"After the Chu army was assembled, Li Mu used the fleet to transport the cavalry to the south bank of the river, occupied the port on the south bank of the river, and then carried dry food for a long-distance raid..."
Zhu Xiang thought about it and looked towards the coast.
"We can also send troops from the sea, or do both and set up bases on both sides. The hinterland of Chu is now almost entirely flat, so the cavalry can move freely."
Li Mu said: "We only attack the city, not defend it."
Zhu Xiang nodded: "Yes, with..."
He gritted his teeth and said, "The main goal is to annihilate and disrupt the enemy."
Li Mu said: "The feudal lords of Chu will definitely want to withdraw their troops to protect their fiefdoms, but the King of Chu will not let them withdraw their troops, because if they withdraw their troops, they may become the next King Huai of Chu."
"It is time for Cai Ze and Lin Li to step in and encourage the feudal lords of Chu to establish themselves," Zhu Xiang said. "Their fiefdoms are gone. Even if the King of Chu saves the capital, what does it have to do with them?"
Han Fei said: "Whether they are independent or not, as long as we know that they are independent, that is enough!"
Han Fei clenched his fist and said, "There will always be a feudal lord who will establish himself!"
Li Si tried hard to think and follow everyone's thinking, saying: "The trade war can also cause estrangement between the King of Chu and the feudal lords. It is best to wait until the trade war has a certain effect before starting this war."
Lu Buwei continued, "That's right. First, let them change their food into cotton and linen, and then replace all the food in the warehouse with cotton cloth and other items for the nobles to enjoy. Then, when they go out to fight, they won't have enough food and they will fall into chaos even faster."
"The King of Chu probably won't buy too much cotton cloth. Maybe the King of Chu has food but the feudal lord doesn't." Li Si continued, "The King of Chu will definitely use the food as a threat to prevent the feudal lord from withdrawing his troops."
Han Fei said: "Perhaps there will be civil unrest!"
Meng Tian scratched his head anxiously, wanting to say something, but the others spoke too fast and he couldn't keep up.
Meng Tian was so anxious that he almost cried.
He originally thought that Li Si was at least on par with him, so how come he couldn't keep up? Even Han Fei, who came in the middle, caught up!
Do I have to be my father's number one and live a rich life in the future by relying on my father's connections and becoming a deputy general
Zhu Xiang said: "This is a long-term plan. If it succeeds, we can once again make peace with the State of Chu."
Li Mu raised his eyebrows: "Drawing the Huai River to govern?"
Zhu Xiang chuckled: "Then it depends on the abilities of General Li Mu and General Wang Jian."
Li Mu said: "Then let's divide the Huai River and govern it."
Ying Xiaozheng was dissatisfied: "Why can't we just destroy the State of Chu?"
Zhu Xiang said: "As long as Chu still has a breath, their king and vassal lords will not be united. So Chu must be destroyed last."
Li Mu half-jokingly said: "Even if only one capital of Chu is left, it can be considered that Chu still exists."
Ying Xiaozheng pinched his chin and said, "Well, that's a bargain for them."
Zhu Xiang said: "There is another benefit to taking over the Jianghuai Plain. The Jianghuai Plain is also a major grain-producing area..."
Zhu Xiang said with dissatisfaction: "The water and soil conditions in the Jianghuai Plain are so excellent, and Chu has also experienced Wu Qi's reforms. Why is it that the fertile land is still managed in a rough manner, and only a few nobles use oxen and iron farm tools?"
Ying Xiaozheng said, "Uncle, do you still expect the common people of Chu to use farm tools made of iron and bronze and have oxen plow the fields for them? Farm tools and oxen are much more valuable than the lives of common people."
Zhu Xiang said, "Zheng'er, don't learn from them."
Ying Xiaozheng was speechless. Uncle, do you think I'm stupid? My great-great-grandfather's great-great-grandfather provided farmers with farm tools and oxen. Am I not as good as my great-great-grandfather's great-great-grandfather
Zhu Xiang said: "This is a long-term plan. I will report it to the emperor first, and let the emperor and the officials in the court..."
Ying Xiaozheng interrupted, "It's better not to let Grandfather and the officials in the court discuss it. I'm afraid they will leak it to the State of Chu."
Zhu Xiang said: "Then let Your Majesty think for himself?"
Ying Xiaozheng looked at his uncle who had been so wise just now and now suddenly said stupid things, and he was too lazy to pay attention to him.
My uncle has always been like this, sometimes smart, sometimes stupid, I don’t know if he is acting.
Most likely not.
Ying Xiaozheng didn’t know that Zhu Xiang’s current behavior would be called “IQ dropping offline from time to time” in later generations.
Zhu Xiang didn't realize what he said was wrong. He discussed with everyone for a while and began to arrange the next things.
He never thought that the King of Qin would disagree with his suggestion.
Even if he said to attack Chu first, which would directly determine military and national affairs, the King of Qin would definitely agree.
Zhu Xiang either had this confidence or he just thought so naturally, and so did everyone else.
Lu Buwei continued to travel north and did business in the State of Chu.
This time, he not only wanted to sell "luxury goods" such as cotton cloth, eastern pearls, and rare furs from Yue to the feudal lords, and secretly teach them how to grow cotton cloth, but also used the opportunity of doing business to improve the map of mountains, rivers, and cities of Chu.
Li Mu had already drawn the marching route based on the map drawn by Zhu Xiang. Lu Buwei now wanted to go through all the routes planned by Li Mu, find out which feudal lord the land belonged to, the character and habits of the feudal lord's family, and the situation of cultivated land and taxation.
After Wang Jian is appointed by the King of Qin, he will go to Ba County to train his troops.
Zhu Xiang said that he and Lian Po could both go to Ba County, but Lian Po was attacking Han and would probably stay in the Three Jins, which he was most familiar with. The general who would go to Ba County would definitely be Wang Jian.
Wang Jian was a little nervous.
Although he had accumulated a lot of experience and gained a lot of confidence when he was Li Mu's deputy general, this was his first time as a main general.
What's more, it was an attack on the State of Chu.
With Bai Qi's outstanding performance as an example, Wang Jian did not dare to compare himself to Wu'an Jun, but he also wanted to achieve results that would impress others.
At this moment, he had to recruit soldiers, train them, set up camp and attack the State of Chu, and he had to take care of everything by himself. The pressure was so great that he couldn't sleep at night just thinking about it.
Li Mu comforted him, saying that he had done the same thing in Yanmen County. Now Wang Jian was finally going to take the first step.
Wang Jian was speechless. Was Li Mu trying to comfort him or insult him
Oh, sorry, I'm only taking the first step now.
Wang Jian said angrily: "Why did you come to Qin? If you don't come to Qin, I will definitely be the most outstanding general in Qin. I don't need to recruit soldiers and train them. I can directly lead the Qin army of millions to fight wherever I want."
Li Mu said: "Well, sorry, I came to Qin."
Wang Jian almost wanted to fight with Li Mu.
When Zhu Xiang learned about this, he quickly brought Ying Xiaozheng to join in the fun, shouting "Fight, fight!" Then he was suppressed by Li Mu and Wang Jian, and he had practiced sword and horse riding for a long time, which was extremely painful.
Ying Xiaozheng laughed so hard that he laughed loudly.
He was very happy when his teacher and General Wang were fighting, and he was even happier when his uncle was sad.
After Zhu Xiang decided on this matter, he sent someone to rush all the way to Xianyang, Qin State.
When King Qin Zhu received Zhu Xiang's encrypted letter, he was so frightened that he dared not open it.
He held Zichu's hand and choked up, "What's going on with Zhu Xiang? Why did you suddenly write an urgent report?"
Zichu was also worried, but he still tried to comfort her: "It's just an urgent report. Maybe he is going south again to farm with the Qin army. If there is something serious, I'm afraid General Li and General Wang will come to deliver the letter in person."
As long as nothing happens to Zhu Xiang, Xue Ji and Zheng Er, it’s not a big deal.
Even if Wujun is lost, it’s not a big deal.
Qin Wangzhu took a deep breath and said, "That's right."
He held his chest and opened the letter, which was almost torn in half: "Zhu Xiang wants to attack the State of Chu?!"
Zichu was so frightened that his heart almost beat too fast and he fainted: "Zhu Xiang led his troops to attack the State of Chu?!"
Lin Zhi and Cai Ze hurried over after receiving the summons from the King of Qin and were shocked when they heard what he said.
Cai Ze: "Zhu Xiang went to Chu?!"
Lin Zhi: "Where did Zhu Xiang attack Chu? How could he lead the army in person? Where are Li Mu and Wang Jian? Didn't Zheng'er and Xue Ji stop him?"
Qin Wangzhu took a deep breath and explained: "Zhu Xiang said that he found a good time to attack Chu."
Zichu, Cai Ze and Lin Zhi all gave Qin Wangzhu a disrespectful look at the same time.
Your Majesty, can you speak without breathing too hard? Is Zhu Xiang discovering a good opportunity to attack Chu the same as Zhu Xiang intending to attack Chu? !
Qin Wangzhu said happily: "Zhu Xiang really gave me a big surprise!"
Zichu, Cai Ze and Lin Zhi looked at the Qin King's Pillar silently.
My Lord, you are the one who gave us a "big surprise".
Qin Wangzhu then realized that the eyes and expressions of the three people were not right. After a moment of confusion, he finally realized what kind of confusion his previous words had caused to these three people.
"Well, come, let's take a look at Zhu Xiang's letter together." It was impossible for the King of Qin to apologize, never to apologize, so King Qin Zhu immediately changed the subject.
The three of them sighed and took their seats obediently.
After Zhu Xiang briefly described his plan, he sent the notes made by Li Si, Han Fei and Meng Tian to Qin Wangzhu for him to read.
There were omissions in the notes of the three people, and when put together they could barely give a complete picture of the entire meeting.
Qin Wangzhu looked at the vivid records and a kind smile appeared on his face: "Zheng'er has grown up again."
The three of them also smiled and nodded in agreement.
"It seems that there is indeed hope," Qin Wangzhu said, "We just need to wait a few years."
As for the State of Chu, it would only take a few years to cause chaos, and King Zhu of Qin could afford to wait.
No, Qin can wait. Qin Wangzhu suddenly felt a little depressed. As for whether he could wait, he was worried.
"Zi Chu, this matter is up to you. The three of you do it, and remember not to tell anyone else." Qin Wangzhu said earnestly, "Even I will not interfere in this matter."
Zichu's heart trembled.
He stood up, knelt down, kowtowed and said: "I will obey my father's order!"
This is not an order from a king to his subjects, but an order from a father to his son.
King Zhu of Qin thought that he might not live to see this day, so he wanted Zichu to complete this plan.
Even though Zichu's father-son affection for Qin Wangzhu was not so pure, he couldn't help feeling disappointed at this moment.
"Son, please go to Shu and Ba in person!" Zichu said, "and travel around the country on behalf of your father."
At that time, the King of Qin, feudal lords, and local officials all had the habit of touring their territories. The Crown Prince, entrusted by the King of Qin, could also tour the country on behalf of the King of Qin to supervise all officials.
King Zhu of Qin was old and frail, so he asked Crown Prince Zichu to tour on his behalf, and neither the six kingdoms nor the Qin court would be alert.
"Okay." Qin Wangzhu agreed and warned, "Take care of yourself."
Zichu kowtowed and stood up: "I know."
"Let Lord Lian conquer the Three Jins as much as he wants, and let the six kingdoms think that our focus is still on the Three Jins." Lin Zhi said with a smile, "Next, I'm afraid I'll have to go to Southern Qin as well. We need to swallow up the land of Chu, and the new land tax policy will be implemented soon."
Cai Ze said: "I will stay in Xianyang and assist the emperor."
Qin Wangzhu smiled and nodded.
Although he might not live to see the day when the Chu State is destroyed, he feels relieved to see such a younger generation.
(End of this chapter)