Pingyuan Jun's fief was in Dongwu City, but Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng was the prime minister of King Zhao, so he lived in Handan City. Zhao Bao soon arrived at Pingyuan Jun's mansion.
Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng was the son of King Wuling of Zhao and the half-brother of the previous King Huiwen of Zhao. He was deeply loved by King Wuling of Zhao and trusted by King Huiwen of Zhao and the current King of Zhao. His mansion occupied an entire street in Handan City, with buildings lined up one after another. At night, beautiful palace lanterns were hung under the eaves, and the faint lights gathered together like a fairy cloud.
Although Zhao Bao was also the brother of King Huiwen of Zhao, he was not as trusted by several generations of kings as Zhao Sheng, so his residence was naturally not as luxurious as Zhao Sheng's.
When he got off the carriage, he saw his brother's demeanor and couldn't help feeling envious.
But soon, he suppressed his envy.
The more important one is, the greater the pressure and danger he will face. Zhao Bao shuddered when he thought of his father, King Wuling of Zhao, who was trapped in the Shaqiu Palace for more than three months and starved to death.
Zhao Bao once had great ambitions, but the tragic scene of his father starving to death lingered in his mind for a long time. The hypocritical crying of his brother King Huiwen of Zhao after his father starved to death left him with a deep psychological shadow. Whenever he wanted to do something, these images would come out to interfere with him.
"Master, we're here." The coachman saw his master standing in a daze in front of the carriage door and reminded him.
Zhao Bao frowned and began to think about backing out.
At this time, the door of Pingyuan Jun's mansion opened and Zhao Sheng came out in person to greet him.
He asked in confusion: "I heard the guard say you were parked at my door, why didn't you come in?"
Since Zhao Sheng had already gone out to greet him, Zhao Bao had no time to back out.
He took his brother's outstretched hand and jumped off the carriage. As he walked into the house side by side with his brother, he said, "Brother, do you know that the Qin hostage is now in the home of Zhu Xiang, a retainer of Lin Xiangru?"
Zhao Sheng was more informed than Zhao Bao and said, "I know. Lin Xiangru's retainer Zhu Xiang was once abandoned by his elder sister and was taken in by Lin Xiangru when she was nearly starving to death. I didn't expect that the woman would become Yiren's concubine, give birth to Yiren's child, and then abandon the child."
Zhao Bao didn't know the deeper story yet. He said, "Since Zhu Xiang is the uncle of the Qin hostage, he can be considered a scholar. I see that both Lin Shangqing and Lian Shangqing are close to Zhu Xiang. Why don't you agree with Lin Shangqing's recommendation?"
Zhao Sheng stopped and looked at Zhao Bao in confusion: "You came to me today for this matter?"
Zhao Bao said, "I passed by Lin Xiangru's fiefdom and saw that Lin Shangqing and Lian Shangqing were celebrating the birthday of the Qin hostage."
Zhao Sheng frowned. "Why would they condescend to celebrate the birthday of a Qin hostage? When Yi Ren hosted a banquet in Handan, neither of them attended."
Zhao Bao said: "I heard that Zhu Xiang has health problems and has no offspring. The Qin hostage may be his only blood relative."
Zhao Sheng frowned: "You mean, the commoner named Zhu Xiang wants to take the Qin hostage as his heir? He is so bold! Even if it is the abandoned royal family of Qin, it is impossible to change his name and surname to become the heir of a commoner. He does this without distinguishing between the noble and the humble, and will be punished by heaven!"
Zhao Sheng attached great importance to family background, and the retainers he recruited were all well-known scholars. This is why, although he had a good relationship with Lin Xiangru and Lian Po, he was unwilling to help Lin Xiangru recommend Zhu Xiang.
Zhao Bao thought that Zhu Xiang's uncle would be less prejudiced against him and would be willing to recommend him to King Zhao. However, he did not expect that his casual remark that Zhu Xiang regarded the Qin hostage as his adopted son would actually cause his brother to dislike Zhu Xiang.
The reason why Zhao Sheng hated this matter so much was also related to Zhao Bao's psychological trauma, the fact that his father, King Wuling of Zhao, was starved to death in the Shaqiu Palace.
Zhao Sheng, as a child favored by his father, naturally found it difficult to accept his father's tragic death. But he could not blame his brother, King Huiwen of Zhao, for this. Moreover, King Huiwen of Zhao was indeed young at the time, and the government was controlled by powerful officials. So Zhao Sheng transferred his hatred to the powerful officials Li Dui and Prince Cheng.
Because the prince became a member of the Zhao royal family, Zhao Sheng hated Li Dui even more.
Prince Cheng died of old age, and although Li Dui was dismissed from his position as prime minister, he died a good death. Although Zhao Sheng hated these two people, he could do nothing about them because his brother King Huiwen of Zhao protected them. But the disgust for the powerful ministers who had no king or father and dared to starve the king to death had penetrated into Zhao Sheng's bones.
Zhao Sheng was deceived by the Qin State and taken into Qin State, where he was detained without authorization. He had no good feelings towards the Qin State. However, as a Qin hostage, he was also a nobleman, and he could not tolerate a commoner who treated the royal child disrespectfully and humbly after picking him up, and he actually went so far as to recognize him as his heir.
Zhao Sheng believed that if a commoner like Zhu Xiang became an official, he would be a scourge to the State of Zhao like Li Dui.
After hearing what Zhao Sheng said, Zhao Bao also hesitated.
He wanted to say that the person Lin Xiangru and Lian Po favored would not become like Li Dui. Moreover, they only recommended Zhu Xiang to be an idle official to appease Lin Xiangru and Lian Po, so that these two former officials who were ignored by the King of Zhao could feel the attention of the Zhao royal family again. But his brother transferred his dislike for Li Dui to Zhu Xiang, and Zhao Bao really couldn't think of words to persuade his brother.
In fact, Zhao Bao could have recommended Zhu Xiang himself. But he was used to playing it safe and would always hide behind his brother. Zhao Sheng refused to recommend him, so he was unwilling to take the lead.
Seeing Zhao Bao's embarrassment, Zhao Sheng advised: "Lin Xiangru and Lian Po are a commoner with no blood relationship. How close can they be to him? If you want to show your kindness to Lin Xiangru and Lian Po, wouldn't it be better to directly reward their clan members? You are obsessed."
Zhao Bao thought about it carefully and said, "That's true. How about recommending someone from their royal family?"
This time Zhao Sheng agreed readily.
When the leaves turned green in spring and the winter wheat began to grow, Li Mu bid farewell to Zhu Xiang and embarked on a journey north.
Before leaving, Li Mu took away a box of potatoes and instructions for planting potatoes written by Zhu Xiang.
"I will write to you every month to ask for advice on how to farm." Li Mu was reluctant to leave Zhu Xiang and Zheng'er who pulled his sleeve and called him teacher. He picked up Ying Xiaozheng and said, "Zheng'er, you must eat well. Next time I return to Handan, I will teach you martial arts."
Ying Xiaozheng nodded with a straight face: "I will definitely learn martial arts well and become better than my uncle!"
Li Mu was puzzled: "Why did you suddenly mention your uncle?"
Ying Xiaozheng sighed with an air of superiority and said, "Xunzi has always scolded my uncle that no matter what weapon he uses, it is a rotten wood that cannot be carved. Zheng'er must learn martial arts well and protect my uncle."
Li Mu laughed: "Zheng'er is really filial."
Zhu Xiang shrugged. He thought he had made great progress, but he was embarrassed to poke the opponent's vital points when holding a weapon. Which modern person can fight a life-and-death battle without any grudges
What he couldn't understand was that when Xunzi was teaching him how to use weapons, he wanted to fight him to the death, and he also told him not to worry and just go ahead. Zhu Xiang was so scared that he was afraid of accidentally hurting someone or getting hurt, how could he really fight Xunzi
No matter how you think about it, Xunzi chasing after you with a broadsword, isn't this teaching method too much? !
"You should work harder too." Li Mu was now familiar enough with Zhu Xiang to joke with him. "Aren't you ashamed to be protected by Zheng'er?"
Zhu Xiang said shamelessly: "Don't be shy. I have such a filial and powerful Zheng'er to protect me. Are you jealous? Ouch."
Lin Xiangru clenched his fist and hit Zhu Xiang on the head. Everyone laughed.
Li Mu left Handan reluctantly amid the laughter of everyone.
Although they had only known each other for a short time, Li Mu had already recognized Zhu Xiang, Lin Zhi, and Cai Ze as his confidants. Sometimes, the relationship between people is not only determined by the accumulation of time. Li Mu looked back at Handan, his heart full of melancholy.
When Zhu Xiang saw Li Mu looking back on horseback, he put Ying Xiaozheng on his neck and asked Ying Xiaozheng to wave to Li Mu.
When Li Mu saw this scene, he raised his hand and said goodbye to Ying Xiaozheng again, then he waved his whip to speed up his departure without looking back.
Shortly after seeing Li Mu off, the next person to leave was not Cai Ze, who had the intention of joining Qin, but Lin Zhi - Lin Zhi was assigned an important task and was to go to the east to serve as a county governor.
Lin Zhi kept complaining: "I am the only one left at home to take care of my father. If I leave, who will take care of my father?"
"Why are you complaining when you've been promoted? Just go ahead and be your county governor, I'll take care of you." Zhu Xiang patted his chest and assured, "Your father is my father, don't you still trust me?"
Lin Zhi complained: "Trust? I trust you too much. I'm afraid that when I go back to Handan next time, my father will only recognize you and not me."
Zhu Xiang said: "Isn't that your own problem? Reflect on it now!"
Lin Zhi was so angry that he chased Zhu Xiang with a sword in hand. Although Zhu Xiang could not beat Lin Zhi, he was not afraid of anyone when it came to running away. The two of them ran around the carriage several times.
Lian Po turned to Lin Xiangru and said, "You are just watching them play shamelessly? This is not like your character."
Lin Xiangru leaned on his cane and said calmly, "They have been together for five or six years, and their relationship is better than that of brothers. Now it's the first time they are separated, so let them quarrel."
Lian Po said happily: "I can see that you are reluctant to leave. If you are reluctant, then tell the Lord not to let your youngest son go far away to serve as an official."
Lin Xiangru said: "I am old, and he has the ability and opportunity, so he should start his own business."
"Okay, since you are willing to give up, I won't persuade you anymore." Lian Po said, "But Lin Xiangru, do you really just want him to start his own business instead of letting him avoid the whirlpool that will follow?"
Lin Xiangru remained silent.
Lian Po scratched his head and said, "Forget it, I won't advise you anymore. But you must remember that the current monarch is not your former benefactor. If you say too much, it may bring disaster upon yourself."
Lin Xiangru rolled his eyes at Lian Po and said, "Do I still need your advice? You should take care of yourself and stop worrying me."
Lian Po laughed: "Okay."
Before Lin Zhi left, he still couldn't give Zhu Xiang a chance.
He left angrily, and soon after the carriage left, he couldn't help wiping his eyes.
Lin Zhi leaned out of the car window and looked back. He didn't know when Zhu Xiang had brought out the huqin.
When he saw Lin Zhi leaning out of the car window and looking back, Zhu Xiang grinned at Lin Zhi as if he had expected this scene, sat on a big rock by the roadside, played the erhu, and sang "Xiaoya Baiju".
My friend left on a pony as white as snow, and his character was as graceful as an orchid and a jade tree. I hope he will write to me more often after we part, and never forget our friendship.
Some people think that the poem "Xiaoya Baiju" was written because the king wanted to keep a wise man in the court, but the wise man insisted on retiring to the mountains and forests, so the king wrote it because he could not find a wise man. However, the original meaning of the poem is to bid farewell to a friend, and many people in later generations also took it as a farewell to friends. Zhu Xiang sang "Xiaoya Baiju" at this time, which was very appropriate.
Lin Zhi burst into tears and sang "Mugua" from "Wei Feng" in response.
You give me papaya, and I give you jade pendant. Our relationship will always be as good as it is now!
Zhu Xiang and Lin Zhi sang and said goodbye to each other, attracting many passers-by to stop and watch. Many people were moved by the two people's reluctant farewell.
Lin Xiangru couldn't help choking up.
Only Ying Xiaozheng pulled Lian Po's sleeve and asked in a low voice: "Mr. Lian, is the county town where Uncle Lin will be appointed very far away from us?"
Lian Po said, "It's not far, just a day's journey."
Ying Xiaozheng asked: "Then why are uncle and uncle Lin crying like this?"
Lian Po said: "They are sick."
Lin Xiangru hit the ground hard with his cane and cursed: "Don't teach Zheng'er bad things! They have a good relationship!"
Ying Xiaozheng frowned. Who is right, Lian Weng or Lin Weng
Half a month later, when Lin Zhi returned home to visit his relatives and continued to tease Ying Xiaozheng and snatch the shortbread that Zhu Xiang made for Ying Xiaozheng, Ying Xiaozheng realized that it seemed that Lian Weng was right!
"Uncle Lin, aren't you going to be the county magistrate? Hurry up and leave!"
"No, I won't leave until Zheng'er gives uncle the pastry to eat!"
"All for you, hurry up and go!"
Zhu Xiang said to Xue, "Why is Lin Li becoming more and more childish? Is his age almost regressing to that of Zheng'er?"
Xue said, "Aren't you the same?"
Zhu Xiang coughed dryly and refused to admit it. No matter what he said, his mental age was older than Lin Zhi's, right
After Li Mu and Lin Zhi left one after another (but Lin Zhi would return to Handan to visit his relatives every month), Zhu Xiang's life became much quieter.
He still took Ying Xiaozheng to attend Xunzi's lectures every day, and then strolled around the ridges of the fields to guide the planting of winter wheat.
After winter wheat joints, it is the peak period for many diseases. Zhu Xiang checks the wheat in the field every day, instructing farmers to weed and eliminate infectious foci, add organic fertilizer in time to increase wheat's disease resistance, and dig ditches to drain water to prevent fungi from gathering.
Ying Xiaozheng didn't understand. He just held Zhu Xiang's rough hand and followed his uncle to stroll along the ridge of the field, accepting the compliments from the farmers passing by, and his steps became more and more stable.
The farmers were good at handicrafts. Whenever Zhu Xiang squatted beside the field and chatted with them, they would pick grass and flowers to make small toys. Ying Xiaozheng would go out every day and always get a lot of new toys.
The toys will wither on the next day, but on the next day, Ying Xiaozheng will have new toys.
Occasionally Zhu Xiang would visit carpenters and blacksmiths and ask them to make new farm tools.
At this time, Ying Xiaozheng would harvest large toys such as wooden animals and rolling hoops.
When Zhu Xiang saw that Ying Xiaozheng was becoming more and more skilled in running and jumping, he asked Xianghe to build a small unicycle for Ying Xiaozheng so that Ying Xiaozheng could push his toy friends around.
The wheelbarrow was invented and perfected during the Qin Dynasty and was already very common during the Western Han Dynasty. Now that the prototype of the wheelbarrow had been established, Zhu Xiang reduced the time it took to perfect it, and Xiang He was very happy. Soon, Ying Xiaozheng's toy wheelbarrow became a good thing that the nearby farmers always had on hand.
When Zhu Xiang saw a farmer pushing a wheelbarrow to transport things, he slapped his forehead and burst out laughing.
He had many things in mind that would be beneficial to this era, but he just couldn't think of them for the time being. Sometimes, things he did on a whim could provide great convenience to the common people.
Your brain is truly an inexhaustible treasure trove.
After Zhu Xiang praised himself, he immediately went to find Xianghe and asked Xianghe to conceal the origin of the unicycle.
Xiang He was helpless: "Duke Zhu Xiang, you don't have to be so timid. If you are really afraid of being a big tree and attracting wind, why don't you just make your reputation more famous and then go to a wise king? I believe there will be a king willing to protect you."
Zhu Xiang said: "I am just a commoner, where can I go? My life is good now, I am very satisfied."
It is even more helpless to be in harmony. You are satisfied, but we are not.
He was wondering whether he should visit Lin Xiangru and ask Lin Xiangru to persuade Zhu Xiang to leave.
Duke Zhu Xiang was reluctant to leave Zhao because of Duke Lin's kindness. But how could Duke Zhu Xiang, who had saved countless lives, be trapped in Zhao where he could not display his talent? Duke Lin should think about the people of the world, not just one country or one place.
After Xianghe made up his mind, he went to visit Xunkuang.
At the same time, both Mohists and Confucians supported the unification of the world, believing that the unification of the world was the fundamental solution to ending the suffering of the people. So Xianghe believed that Xunzi would stand on his side in the matter of Duke Zhu Xiang.
After Xun Kuang received Xiang He, he shook his head and said, "You Mohists believe in righteousness. That's why Xian Juzi died in the city after Lord Yangcheng abandoned him. I, the Confucians, also believe in trust. Zhu Xiang received Lin Xiangru's kindness and promised to stay in Zhao for Lin Xiangru. How can we destroy Zhu Xiang's righteousness and trust? If Zhu Xiang was a person who betrayed righteousness and broke his trust, how could he have saved so many lives?"
There was a great figure in the Mohist school who was once a subordinate and good friend of Lord Yangcheng of the Chu State. Wu Qi's reform threatened the interests of the old nobles of the Chu State, so the old nobles shot Wu Qi to death in the mourning hall of the King of Chu, and shot the King of Chu's body into a hedgehog.
After the new king ascended the throne, he exterminated more than 70 noble families, including Lord Yangcheng. However, although he killed these nobles, he abolished Wu Qi's law.
When Yangcheng Jun fled from the State of Chu, the great figure of the Mohist school committed suicide by dying in the city, saying that "if the great figure does not uphold righteousness, no one in the world may believe in Mohism", and more than 180 Mohist disciples died with him.
Later, the Mohists found that such an approach would only waste their disciples and fail to realize their political ideals. Therefore, Mohist thought gradually changed and became more inclined to unification.
Although Chu Mo was attached to the old nobles who opposed Wu Qi at the time, he also saw the benefits of Wu Qi's reforms to Chu. The king of Chu killed those who were hostile to Wu Qi, but did not continue Wu Qi's reforms, which made Chu Mo very disappointed with the king of Chu. They believed that if Chu did this, the incident of Yangcheng Jun would happen again.
This is the reason why Chu Mo gradually moved closer to Qin Mo.
Let's not talk about the subsequent events. Chu Mo knew that Lord Yangcheng was guilty, but he was still willing to die in the city to keep his promise, to show the righteousness of Mohism. Xunzi pointed out this point and told Xianghe that it was impossible to persuade Zhu Xiang to leave Zhao.
"Are we just going to watch Duke Zhu Xiang trapped in Zhao?" Xianghe sighed.
Xunzi said, "There is a chance, and the chance lies with Zheng'er. If Prince Zichu is made the crown prince, Zhao will definitely send this Zhao-born hostage back to Qin to compete for the throne. At that time, Zhu Xiang, as the person who raised Zheng'er, will definitely return to Qin with Zhu Xiang. The wise ruler you mentioned who can employ Zhu Xiang is the King of Qin, right?"
Xianghe nodded: "The King of Qin is indeed a great ruler. From what I have seen, the only country in the world that has the potential to unify is Qin."
Xunzi sighed: "But Qin values profit over righteousness. Is it really a good thing for the people of the world to unify the world by Qin?"
Xianghe said: "Duke Zhuxiang and Zheng'er may be able to change Qin."
Xunzi said, "You have great confidence in him. But I hope so too."
Xianghe said: "We Mohists will continue to stay with Duke Zhu Xiang, and we hope that Confucianists can also help Duke Zhu Xiang."
Xunzi nodded: "Of course. My disciples have already entered Zhao and become retainers of the Zhao royal family. They will make suggestions for Zhu Xiang at the appropriate time."
They bowed and greeted each other.
Xunzi bowed in return.
The leaders of Confucianism and Mohism reached a tacit understanding at this time and temporarily stood on the same front.
At this time, Xunzi and Xianghe both believed that it was still too early for Zhu Xiang to leave Zhao State and the situation in Zhao State was still stable.
Things always take a turn for the worse just when everyone thinks everything is going smoothly.
At the beginning of this year, after Qin captured Yewang, it took a brief rest for half a year and continued to march towards Shangdang, capturing Gaoshi and Lunshi of Han.
The King of Han sent someone to apologize to the King of Qin, offering to give up Shangdang County and asking the King of Qin to withdraw his troops.
The King of Qin agreed, thinking that the strategic goal had been achieved.
At the same time, Feng Ting, the prefect of Shangdang County, was unwilling to surrender to Qin, and sent people to Zhao State to lobby, wanting to offer Shangdang County to Zhao State and use Zhao State's strength to resist Qin's army.
The King of Zhao was very happy and immediately summoned his ministers to discuss the matter.
Zhao Taizu was originally far away from the throne. It was only because Crown Prince Kui died of plague that he was made crown prince and succeeded to the throne as King of Zhao.
King Huiwen of Zhao and his ministers were all worried about the young king, so they let Queen Wei of Zhao take charge of government affairs. The credit for repelling the invasion of Qin in the first year after King Zhao ascended the throne also fell on Queen Wei of Zhao. King Zhao was holding his breath.
Now that Feng Ting, the prefect of Shangdang County, had taken the initiative to offer the seventeen cities of Shangdang, the King of Zhao was overjoyed.
Someone took the initiative to bring the city to surrender. Doesn't this prove that the reputation of this heroic lord is far-reaching
Moreover, the Seventeen Cities of Shangdang, even for his father and grandfather, it would have been very difficult to conquer so much territory. He could obtain the Seventeen Cities of Shangdang without spending a single soldier, which proved that he was even more powerful than his father and grandfather.
The more King Zhao thought about it, the more excited he became, and he wanted to agree to it immediately.
But although he was incompetent, he was still cautious. Qin was strong, and the King of Zhao was a little afraid of the old King of Qin who had been an enemy of Zhao since his grandfather, so he still asked the opinions of his ministers one by one.
What the King of Zhao did not expect was that the always cautious Lin Xiangru opposed him to accept the city offered by the governor of Shangdang County. Everyone knew that Lin Xiangru was no longer as brave as before when he was old. His uncle, Zhao Bao, the Lord of Pingyang, had always been obedient to the Prime Minister Zhao Sheng, the Lord of Pingyuan. This time, he stood against Zhao Sheng and stopped him from accepting the city.
Zhao Bao burst into tears: "Your Majesty! Qin has been fighting for several years and is about to take Shangdang. We Zhao have done nothing, but we want to get Shangdang for nothing. The saints said that unprovoked benefits are a huge disaster! This is the Han people blaming Zhao, we absolutely cannot accept it!"
The King of Zhao was very dissatisfied: "How can this be said to be without reason? The governor of Shangdang County and the common people hate Qin's tyranny and yearn for my good governance, so they are willing to come to me!"
Zhao Bao wanted to persuade him again, but the King of Zhao asked him to leave. He stopped listening to Zhao Bao and accepted the advice of Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng.
Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng’s suggestion was that there were seventeen cities in total, so it would be a waste not to take them. Anyone who didn’t take something that was given for free was a fool.
King Zhao said, Uncle Pingyuan Jun is right.
Therefore, the King of Zhao sent Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng to Shangdang to accept Feng Ting's surrender and sent people to occupy Shangdang County.
The old King of Qin, who had accepted the city offered by Han and thought he could take a temporary rest after obtaining Shangdang County, was so angry when he learned about this that he smashed the wine glass in his hand.
King Zhao, are you sick? You and I cannot coexist!
When Zhu Xiang learned about this, his head buzzed and he was stunned for a long time.
Even though he didn't understand the historical context of the pre-Qin period, when he heard that Lian Po had stationed his troops in Changping, he knew that the Battle of Changping was about to begin.
Although Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng was short-sighted and blinded by greed, he had a better eye for people than the King of Zhao. He knew that Qin would never give up after taking over Shangdang County, so he recommended Lian Po to guard the city.
Lian Po put on armor and went into battle. Before leaving, he came to Zhu Xiang's house to scare Ying Xiaozheng, saying that he would defeat Ying Xiaozheng's motherland, Qin, and make Ying Xiaozheng cry.
Ying Xiaozheng didn't cry. He once again made a serious note of Lian Po in his heart.
Lin Xiangru fell seriously ill after accepting the city of Shangdang from the governor of Zhao. When Lian Po went to war, he was still supported by Zhu Xiang and went out of the city to see him off.
Lian Po consoled Lin Xiangru: "I am not as good as Bai Qi in attacking a city, but Bai Qi cannot gain any advantage over me in defending a city. Besides, the Qin general attacking Shangdang is not Bai Qi. You don't need to worry."
Lin Xiangru coughed a few times and held Lian Po's hands tightly with both hands: "Be careful, don't... rush forward!"
Lian Po patted the back of Lin Xiangru's hand and said, "Do I need your advice on how to fight? Take good care of yourself and wait for my victory report in Handan."
Lian Po put on his helmet, mounted his horse, and left Handan city in high spirits.
Lin Xiangru stood on tiptoe and watched Lian Po's back from afar as he left. When he could no longer see the dust raised by the horse's hooves, he coughed and said, "Go back."
Zhu Xiang squatted on the ground and said, "Mr. Lin, I'll carry you on my back."
Lin Xiangru did not refuse. He lay on Zhu Xiang's back, coughing dryly, his coughs were heart-wrenching.
Zhu Xiang did not send Lin Xiangru back to the Lin family, but took him back to his own home.
Lin Zhi was still the county magistrate, and Lin Xiangru had no young people to take care of him at home. Zhu Xiang was worried, so he let Lin Xiangru live in his home temporarily to recuperate.
But no matter how hard Zhu Xiang tried, Lin Xiangru's health continued to deteriorate rapidly.
It was not until Lin Zhi hurried home and hugged Lin Xiangru and cried for a while that Lin Xiangru cheered up and was able to eat reluctantly.
After being able to eat, it would be much easier to regulate the body. Zhu Xiang no longer hid his skills, and asked Xianghe to make an iron pot, squeezed vegetable oil from soybeans, and brought out the stir-frying and frying methods of later generations, and made delicious food for Lin Xiangru in various ways.
Although weak people need to eat lighter food, the most important thing is to be able to eat. As long as you can eat, you can absorb nutrients and your body will be healthy. As long as your stomach can tolerate it, some unhealthy cooking methods don't matter. Soybean oil is less burdensome to the stomach than animal oil. Lin Xiangru ate dishes cooked with vegetable oil, which had a strong taste and did not put too much burden on his stomach.
Lin Xiangru's favorite dish was stir-fried pork with shredded young ginger. He would mix the pork and ginger with corn rice and eat them together. He even drank two bowls of corn rice.
After the food intake increased, Lin Xiangru's spirits immediately improved and his coughing became less frequent.
Lin Zhi cried for a long time with joy to Zhu Xiang.
After Lin Zhi's brothers learned about this, they wrote letters to apologize to Zhu Xiang for their contempt for him because of his status and position, and said that it was a blessing for the Lin family to have a close friend like Zhu Xiang.
Cai Ze was originally preparing to travel west, but when he saw that Lin Xiangru was seriously ill and Zhao and Qin were on the verge of a war, he was worried about the safety of the journey, so he continued to stay in Zhu Xiang's house to help Zhu Xiang serve Xun Kuang and Lin Xiangru.
Li Mu somehow learned that Lin Xiangru was seriously ill, so he sent people to deliver a lot of ginseng and Ganoderma lucidum, saying that they were valuable things sold by the caravan from Liaodong of Yan State.
Yanmen County was adjacent not only to the Xiongnu, but also to the State of Yan. Merchants from the State of Yan often sold goods in the markets of Yanmen County.
With everyone's care, Lin Xiangru was finally able to go out for a walk with his crutches.
Zhu Xiang breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhu Xiang's parents died young, and Lin Xiangru was like a father to him. Although he knew that the life span of ancient people would not be very long, Zhu Xiang still found it difficult to accept that this respectable and lovely elder would leave him so early as he watched Lin Xiangru's body gradually decline.
Although Lin Xiangru's health had improved, the Battle of Changping was like a sword hanging over Zhu Xiang's head, and now it was Zhu Xiang's turn to be unable to sleep or eat.
Seeing that Zhu Xiang was in low spirits, Lin Xiangru turned around to comfort Zhu Xiang.
"A war between Zhao and Qin is inevitable, but you don't need to worry too much." Lin Xiangru thought Zhu Xiang was worried that the war between Zhao and Qin would affect Zheng'er. "The seven countries have fought against each other many times, but there has never been a case of killing hostages to vent anger. Zheng'er is young, even if the King of Zhao wants to vent his anger, he will not target a one-year-old child. Besides, not many people know Zheng'er's identity now."
Zhu Xiang forced a smile: "I'm not worried about that. I'm just worried that many people will die in this war."
Lin Xiangru sighed: "There is no war without casualties. Although Lian Po is old, he is still good at defending the city. As long as Qin cannot capture Shangdang and Changping, perhaps fewer people will die."
But the King of Zhao didn't just want to defend, he wanted to fight and defeat the Qin State! Zhu Xiang said in his heart, but he couldn't tell anyone about his distress.
He could not tell anyone about the follow-up of the Battle of Changping, so he could only hide his distress deep in his heart and devote more energy to farming.
People can only see and help the people and things in front of them. Zhu Xiang didn't want to think about the significance of the Battle of Changping to Qin's unification of the world. He just wanted to save the people in front of him as much as possible.
Zhu Xiang speculated that the Battle of Changping might take place next year. Before that, if he could harvest more grain, perhaps Lian Po would be able to resist the Qin advance at Changping.
Zhu Xiang soon discovered that he was so powerless.
In order to resist the Qin army, the King of Zhao quickly issued a conscription order. Young and strong men in Lin Xiangru's fiefdom were conscripted into the army. Zhu Xiang wanted to increase grain production, but he couldn't even find anyone to farm, let alone teach others better ways to farm.
Whether it is intensive farming to obtain a larger harvest, or planting potatoes in wasteland to supplement extra food, it is impossible to achieve when only the elderly, the weak, women and children are left in the fields.
Zhu Xiang had done his best by organizing the elderly, the weak, women and children to complete the most basic farm work.
In fact, there are still young and middle-aged people in the country who can work.
But these young men were either private soldiers of the nobles or retainers of the nobles. Zhu Xiang tried to ask Lin Xiangru to persuade the nobles in the court to let the private soldiers and retainers go to the fields to farm in order to ensure the grain harvest of Zhao this year.
But Lin Xiangru's eloquence could convince the King of Qin, but not the nobles. At most, they would let their private soldiers work on their own land, but they would never help the civilians.
The taxes on the land owned by the nobles were very low, and if the land was awarded as a reward, no taxes were even required. However, there were not enough people to pay taxes on the land owned by the common people, and the winter wheat was about to rot in the fields.
Seeing this, Xunzi sighed and went to meet Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng.
"Zhao is about to go to war with Qin. When the two armies are at war, food and fodder are of utmost importance. Now Zhao's grain is rotting in the fields but no one is harvesting it. How are the soldiers of Zhao going to fill their stomachs? Please ask Lord Pingyuan to persuade the King of Zhao to let the nobles' private soldiers and retainers help harvest the grain. If they are unwilling, it is better to allow them to take some of the grain as a reward than to harvest nothing."
Although Zhao Sheng looked down on the common people, he respected people of reputation very much and was willing to listen to their advice.
Xunzi's reputation was the best among the seven kingdoms. Zhao Sheng immediately accepted the advice and not only gave advice to the king of Zhao, but also took the initiative to order his retainers and private soldiers to help the common people farm.
After personally getting involved in farming, Zhao Sheng finally discovered Zhu Xiang's abilities.
Zhu Xiang finally became an official and was recommended to King Zhao by Zhao Sheng. However, because Zhao Sheng still had a prejudice against Zhu Xiang, Zhu Xiang was only responsible for guiding agricultural work near Handan, Zhao State.
Thanks to Zhu Xiang's efforts, the winter wheat in Handan was finally harvested, and millet and sorghum had also been planted.
Lian Po sent someone to deliver a letter to praise Zhu Xiang, saying that the army had sufficient food and he was confident of fighting against Qin.
Zichu, who had already returned to Qin, only learned two months later that Zhu Xiang had become an agricultural official in Zhao.
He locked himself in the study and slept all night. The next day, Zichu asked someone to bring a hundred gold coins and went to Yinghou Mansion to visit Prime Minister Fan Ju in person.
Fan Ju was not only the right-hand man of the King of Qin, but also his favorite minister. In order to avenge him, the King of Qin even tricked Lord Pingyuan into entering Qin and detained Lord Pingyuan in exchange for the head of Wei Qi, Fan Ju's enemy.
Everyone in Qin knew that if they wanted to accomplish something, it was always a good idea to look for Fan Ju.
Zichu spoke to Fan Ju from the bottom of his heart: "I suffered a lot of humiliation when I was a hostage in Zhao State, but fortunately my friend Zhu Xiang helped me. When I fled Zhao State in a hurry, I had no choice but to abandon my child in Zhao State, and it was my friend Zhu Xiang who helped to adopt and take care of him. Now Zhao State and Qin State are enemies, I am worried that my child will be in trouble, and then my friends will be in trouble. Please teach me, Prime Minister!"
Zichu knew that Fan Ju was a man who would repay a favor and a grudge. His experience was similar to Fan Ju's, and it would surely resonate with Fan Ju.
Sure enough, as the only minister of the King of Qin, Fan Ju, who had deliberately distanced himself from all the Qin royal family members, became much kinder to Zichu.
"It's easy. As long as you show your love for the noble ladies and concubines of other countries and forge the news that they are pregnant and pass it to Zhao, the King of Zhao will naturally protect your eldest son and his caregiver." Fan Ju said kindly, "Leave it to me. I'm about to send someone to Zhao. My lord, please relax."
Zichu prostrated himself on the ground and thanked him.
(End of this chapter)