King Yan of Zhao sent Zhao Cong, a member of the royal family, to replace Sima Shang.
Guo Kai specifically instructed the person who was going to deliver the imperial edict to "capture" Sima Shang.
Ever since King Yan of Zhao wanted to destroy Lin Xiangru's tomb, Lin Zhi took over from Cai Ze and personally watched King Zhao's every move.
When the Qin and Zhao states went to war, he even came to the border between Qin and Zhao so that he could get hold of Zhao's intelligence as soon as possible.
When Prince Yan of Zhao was tempted, Lin Zhi quickly got the news.
He was a little surprised because he hadn't made a move yet.
Lin Zhi made many preparations, but before he could take any action, King Yan of Zhao did something even more outrageous than what he had planned.
Lin Zhi was indeed thinking about sowing discord between King Yan of Zhao and the Zhao court.
Previously, Pingyuan Jun and Pingyang Jun successively helped King Xiaocheng of Zhao to pacify the government, allowing King Xiaocheng of Zhao, who was almost deprived of power by the royal family, to maintain the precarious court.
When King Xiaocheng of Zhao died, Chunping Jun and King Yan of Zhao fought for the throne.
Although the struggle ended before it even began, so quickly that the Qin State had no time to do anything, a crack had already appeared.
Chunping Jun was older than Zhao Wangyan, and was trained by Zhao Xiaocheng Wang and Pingyang Jun. Although he was mediocre in talent, which made Zhao Xiaocheng Wang hesitate for too long and failed to make him the crown prince in time, it was better than Zhao Wangyan who had not been trained.
Most of the people who supported Chunping Jun were those who were left behind by Pingyuan Jun and Pingyang Jun.
This group of people are also the most sober ones in the Zhao court.
In order to quickly destroy the State of Zhao, it is necessary to induce King Yan of Zhao to "persecute loyal and good people."
The ancestors of these loyal and virtuous people were more or less related to the Lin family. Cai Ze was originally worried about Lin Zhi, so he personally handled all the affairs of Zhao State.
But when King Yan of Zhao wanted to move Lin Xiangru's tomb, even Zichu, Cai Ze, Zhu Xiang, and Li Mu could not stop Lin Zhi. Cai Ze had no choice but to hand over the affairs of Zhao to Lin Zhi.
Lin Zhi had already made plans to turn against all the old friends of the Lin family, but while he was still planning, King Yan of Zhao had already turned against this group of people.
Taking a prostitute as a concubine
Lin Zhi subtly felt that he had lost.
Even if he claimed to be full of evil schemes, he could not think of such an outrageous scheme.
There were women of low status in the palaces of other kings. Commoner widows, shrine maidens and singing girls, concubines of others. This was a time when rituals and music were in disarray, so it was normal.
Wasn’t Zheng’er’s biological mother just the one responsible for singing and dancing in Lu Buwei’s family
But no matter how low one's status is, it is still different from a prostitute.
As a direct disciple of Zhuangzi, Lin Zhi's ability to accept things was much stronger than that of ordinary people. He could not accept what King Yan of Zhao did, let alone the normal ministers in the court of Zhao.
Lin Zhi thought, he lost this time. Next time he will definitely do it himself.
Sending people to provoke Guo Kai was the beginning of Lin Zhi's evil plan.
This time, the Qin army's offensive was blocked in Yanmen County. Although Lin Zhi had a good impression of the generals in Yanmen County who followed the beliefs of Li Mu and Xinling Jun, he was also prepared to use a strategy of alienation.
He was just thinking about how to use it when Guo Kai made the first move.
Lin Zhi locked himself in the room for a long time.
He could understand King Zhao's desire to change generals.
Zhu Xiang could see the shortcomings of Zhao State, and of course Lin Zhi could see them too.
King Wuling of Zhao's reforms were mostly in the military, resulting in unprecedented power for generals leading troops in battle, while there were few means of restraint in the court.
When the new king ascended the throne, he no longer trusted the generals left by the previous king and wanted to replace them with his own trusted men.
For example, King Xiaocheng of Zhao did not trust Lian Po.
If Zhu Xiang were here, he would give a few more examples based on original history.
Since King Xiaocheng of Zhao, the kings of Zhao had a big problem: they did not know how to fight.
It is not impossible to change generals, but changing generals before a battle is a taboo in military strategy. However, starting from King Xiaocheng of Zhao, they all loved to change generals before a battle.
Why did the King of Qin's change of generals on the battlefield scare the six kingdoms? Because they all knew that the King of Qin was not a mentally ill person and would not make such a move.
But Bai Qi was different from other generals.
When Wu'an Jun became famous, almost all other generals of Qin State served as his deputy generals. Basically, the army of Qin State was trained by Wu'an Jun, and Wang He had always followed Wu'an Jun.
Therefore, there is no difference between the soldiers led by Wang He and those led by Wu'an Jun.
Wu'an Jun has a very high reputation in the hearts of the Qin people. If the soldiers knew that Wu'an Jun had become their chief general, not only would they not be uncomfortable, but their morale would also be unprecedentedly high.
This is also the reason why King Zhaoxiang of Qin wanted to kill Bai Qi.
King Xiaocheng of Zhao did not trust Lian Po and wanted to train Zhao Kuo, which led to the defeat of Changping. After that, he came to his senses and continued to rely on Lian Po to ease the decline of Zhao.
King Yan of Zhao also did not trust Lian Po.
He did something even more stupid than what King Xiaocheng of Zhao did. At least King Xiaocheng of Zhao allowed Zhao Kuo to bring reinforcements to replace the general when the two armies were in a standoff, which gave him some buffer time. Lian Po was losing ground, so he had a reason to replace the general.
King Yan of Zhao sent people to replace Lian Po in the midst of a battle when Lian Po was unstoppable and winning victory after victory. This made Lian Po so angry that he turned his troops around and attacked Le Cheng who wanted to replace him, causing Le Cheng to flee to another country.
Lian Po had no choice but to flee after committing such an act of arbitrarily mobilizing troops. Zhao lost two great generals in one fell swoop.
But King Yan of Zhao was a lucky man.
The State of Yan took this opportunity to attack the State of Zhao. The State of Zhao had no generals available and was on the verge of destruction. In desperation, he appointed Pang Nuan, who was nearly eighty years old and had never led troops, as a general.
Who would have known that Pang Nuan was actually a famous general who was buried.
After that, Li Mu, who had been stationed in Yanmen County, showed his prowess again and became his Wu'an Jun.
If King Yan of Zhao's opponent was not King Zheng of Qin, the "Xiang" in his posthumous title would have been well-deserved.
King Yan of Zhao deposed the crown prince born to his first wife and made the son of a prostitute the crown prince. King Qian of Zhao continued the tradition of the previous two kings of Zhao and did not trust the generals left by the previous king.
Now that Pang Nuan was dead, he took action against Li Mu, wanting to promote a general he could trust himself.
But his method of replacing generals was even more "powerful" than that of King Yan of Zhao.
At this time, Qin was sweeping across the world, and Zhao was at the brink of life and death. How could it have time to train new generals? As soon as he changed the generals, the Qin army immediately attacked and destroyed Handan.
Not only were the timing of the three Zhao kings' replacement of generals more "accurate" than the last.
King Xiaocheng of Zhao wanted Lian Po to come back and be raised in honor, King Yan of Zhao forced Lian Po to leave, and King Qian of Zhao wanted to kill Li Mu who had done nothing wrong.
The beauty of brainstem loss is more evident with each generation.
It was not Guo Kai's fault that King Zhao moved away from the Great Wall. This was indeed the tradition of King Zhao.
Guo Kai was just a sycophant who depended on King Zhao. If King Zhao was not incompetent, how could Guo Kai have the chance to rise
After Lin Zhi figured it out, he became even more confused.
He could be considered to have admired the "afterglow" of King Huiwen of Zhao. He could not understand why King Huiwen's descendants were more stupid than each other.
Is this destiny
Lin Zhi thought of Zhu Xiang and Ying Xiaozheng, and finally had to sigh.
Maybe this really is destiny.
The destiny lies with Qin.
Lin Zhi, who has once again recovered from the "blow", is determined to add fuel to the performance of Zhao Wangyan and Guo Kai.
The strategy of sowing discord can be used not only in the court, but also among the people.
This is what makes the two strategists Lin Zhi and Cai Ze different from other strategists of the same era.
The main reason why the Qin army's offensive in Yanmen County was blocked was that the common people in Yanmen County vowed to follow the defenders of Yanmen County to the death and were very hostile to the Qin army.
Lin Zhi sent people to spread the news throughout Yanmen County.
The prosperity of Yanmen County today is based on Li Mu and Zhu Xiang.
Li Mu was a good friend of Zhu Xiang. When Zhu Xiang was almost killed, he secretly took the seeds given by Zhu Xiang and put Zhu Xiang's ideas into practice in Yanmen County.
After Li Mu was humiliated by King Zhao as a "gift" to the State of Qin, Li Mu and Zhu Xiang persuaded Lord Xinling to enter Yanmen County and continue the policies of Yanmen County that were created by Zhu Xiang and Li Mu.
Xinling Jun sent troops to save Zhao State without authorization, which made the new King of Zhao jealous. King Yan of Zhao and King Wei jointly forced Xinling Jun to death, but Yanmen County still had Li Mu and the deputy generals and subordinates left by Xinling Jun. They continued to maintain the policy of Yanmen County.
But the new King of Zhao hated Zhu Xiang, Li Mu and Xinling Jun very much. He hated even more that the common people in Yanmen County lived well and did not provide all the grain to Handan.
Therefore, he would definitely send people to kill the old generals of Yanmen County, just like what happened to Zhu Xiang, Li Mu and Xinling Jun.
A strategy of sowing discord does not necessarily involve slander.
Inciting the public does not necessarily require spreading rumors.
The strategies of a strategist do not necessarily have to be conspiracies.
Lin Zhi was very good at this kind of upright "estrangement" - using the truth to alienate the common people and King Zhao.
Lin Zhi didn't know whether King Yan of Zhao wanted to kill Sima Shang, but he was not lying when he spoke seriously.
He personally came to the front line and asked Meng Ao to send an envoy to meet Sima Shang directly and openly, informing him that he would die at the hands of Zhao Wangyan and asking him to be prepared.
The Qin envoy did not persuade them to surrender. After informing them, they left, leaving Sima Shang and the former generals of Yanmen County uneasy.
Originally, Sima Shang and other former generals of Yanmen County got along very well with Pang Nuan.
Although they cannot be said to be all upright people, they are all qualified generals and have a lot in common with each other.
In particular, Sima Shang and other former generals of Yanmen County had old ties with the legendary figures Wu Chengjun and Xin Lingjun. Pang Nuan was very curious about Wu Chengjun and Xin Lingjun, and often talked with them about their past.
But after the arrival of the Qin envoys, a deep rift immediately developed between the two sides.
If King Yan of Zhao wanted to kill Sima Shang and other former generals of Yanmen County, Sima Shang and other former generals of Yanmen County would definitely not surrender.
The person who will help King Yan of Zhao capture Sima Shang and other former generals of Yanmen County will definitely be the leader of the troops, Pang Nuan.
"Is King Yan of Zhao sick? The reason we couldn't take Yanmen County was because of the old generals left by Lord Wucheng and Lord Xinling in Yanmen County, who were united with the people of Yanmen County. If he killed all the old generals of Yanmen County, wouldn't that mean he broke through the fortress of Yanmen County from the inside?"
Meng Ao was so surprised that the wrinkles on his face almost straightened. Wang He thought of Zhao Kuo who almost "played Wu'an Jun around", and showed a look of fear.
Lin Zhi smiled slyly and said, "King Yan of Zhao only sent Zhao Cong to replace Sima Shang and let Sima Shang return to Handan to explain his innocence. Even if he wanted to kill him, he should only kill Sima Shang."
Meng Ao and Wang He understood.
Zhao Wangyan wanted to capture Sima Shang and bring him back to Handan, so he said that Zhao Wangyan wanted to kill Sima Shang. Sima Shang was a former general of Yanmen County, so Zhao Wangyan must have wanted to kill all the former generals of Yanmen County.
No problem!
Meng Ao said to Wang He, "It seems you have to hold on for a while longer before you can achieve the first victory."
Wang He smiled bitterly: "I hope they can give me this opportunity as soon as possible."
Lin Zhi knew Wang He's physical condition and could only remain silent when he heard this.
Zhu Xiang said that Wang He’s illness was probably a parasitic infection, and that garlic and pumpkin seeds both had certain anthelmintic effects.
But garlic and pumpkin seeds can only prevent and delay the disease in the early stage. When the body organs have already been diseased, with the current medical level, it is a chronic death and there is no cure.
Lin Zhi also knew that Zhu Xiang had been farming in Nan Qin for so many years that he himself suffered from water-borne parasites, but he had been suppressing the disease by relying on his strong body and taking herbal medicines that inhibited parasites.
Like Wang He, these problems were hidden when he was young. When he was old, all it took was a weakening disease to cause the hidden dangers left over from his youth to erupt like a landslide.
Lin Zhi was very worried that Zhu Xiang would become like this in the future, or even worse.
But Zhu Xiang comforted him, saying that many generals could live to be 70 or 80 years old, and it was rumored that many old farmers who lived in much more difficult conditions than him could live to be 99. He paid great attention to health preservation, and it would not be difficult for him to live to be 60 or 70 years old in the future.
On the other hand, someone like Lin Zhi, who was addicted to alcohol and never took care of his health, would definitely have surpassed him.
He also said that he was waiting to play the piano, sing and dance in front of Lin Zhi's tomb, and eat the offerings in front of Lin Zhi's tomb every year.
Zhu Xiang described it so vividly that Lin Zhi suspected that this guy Zhu Xiang had already done such a thing.
Putting the unhappy things aside, the three continued to talk about King Zhao's stupidity.
At this time, Lin Zhi suddenly remembered something: "Where is General Sima? Why can't I see him?"
Meng Ao said: "Although General Sima and Sima Shang are not from the same clan, they have the same surname after all, so he sent people to persuade Sima Shang to surrender."
Lin Zhi was puzzled: "What does his sending people to persuade them to surrender have to do with his not being here?"
Meng Ao and Wang He also realized this problem.
Yes, Sima Jin told them that he would go to persuade them to surrender and would not attend the meeting. But what does sending people to persuade them to surrender have to do with not attending the meeting
Wang He, who had been the Wu'an Jun Bai Qi together with Sima Jin for many years, suddenly changed his expression.
"This brat..." Wang He held his forehead and gritted his teeth, "He won't go by himself, will he?"
Meng Ao was puzzled: "How is this possible?"
Wang He said weakly: "If Wu Anjun was here, it would be impossible. Sima Jin is still very steady."
Meng Ao was angry: "What! I am the commander, and he is not steady?!"
Wang He said: "This is not Lord Meng's fault. Sima Jin is the one who can take off his clothes and dance in front of King Zhaoxiang of Qin when he is happy."
Meng Ao was no longer angry: "Then it is indeed only Wu Anjun who can control him."
Lin Zhi: “…”
Although he not only stripped and danced in front of the King of Qin, but also pulled the King of Qin to strip and dance with him, he was brought to Xunzi by Cai Ze and beaten.
But this general was really amazing as he took off his clothes and danced in front of King Zhaoxiang of Qin.
"What should we do then?" Meng Ao was curious, "What would Wu Anjun usually do?"
Wang He said dryly: "Prepare to collect his body. If he doesn't die this time, beat him up and prepare to collect his body next time."
Meng Ao: “…”
Meng Ao said, "Okay, I will have someone make him a coffin out of wooden planks and put it in his tent."
Lin Zhi glanced at Meng Ao.
Now he realized that Meng Wu was indeed Meng Ao's biological son.
When they remembered the "missing" Sima Jin, his hair and beard had turned gray, and he was no longer the overly lively veteran that Zhu Xiang had seen in Changping. Sima Jin had already sneaked into Yanmen County.
When a rift arose between the old generals of Yanmen County and Pang Nuan, flaws also appeared in their defense.
Sima Jin swaggered into Yanmen County and first found the retainers left behind by Xinling Jun.
Before his death, Lord Xinling arranged the destinations of his retainers, and many of them stayed in Yanmen County.
When Xinling Jun's followers learned of Sima Jin's identity, they were so frightened that they almost fainted, but then they immediately asked about Xinling Jun.
Although the news that Zhu Hai took Xinling Jun's coffin south to look for Changping Jun had already reached Yanmen County, he still wanted to hear more details.
Sima Jin doesn't know much, but he can make it up.
Anyway, Duke Xiang of Zhu is already amazing enough. It wouldn't be any more amazing if he made up some story about Duke Xiang of Zhu angrily leading his troops north to welcome the coffin of Lord Xinling.
Xinling Jun's retainers were so moved that they burst into tears and asked, "General Sima, what can I do for you?"
Sima Jin said: "Sima Shang is a distant relative of mine. The King of Zhao wants to kill him, just like what happened to Lord Changping, Lord Wucheng, and Lord Xinling. I want to give him a chance to live."
Sima Jin sighed and said, "In fact, the Qin army doesn't care about this. As long as the King of Zhao changes his generals before the battle, Yanmen County will definitely be conquered. But I can't bear to see my fellow tribesmen being killed, and I can't bear to see Yanmen County, which Wucheng Jun and Xinling Jun have managed for many years, destroyed, so I took the risk to come here."
He wiped his eyes and said with red eyes: "If Yanmen County does not surrender, the Qin army will not withdraw their weapons, and the common people who fought for you will be slaughtered. If the spirit of Xinling Jun in heaven and Wucheng Jun in Southern Qin knew that Yanmen County was destroyed, I wonder how sad they would be."
Xinling Jun's retainer hesitated for a long time and asked, "General Sima, will the King of Zhao really kill General Sima Shang?"
Sima Jin said: "Whether it is true or not, you will know in the next few days."
Xinling Jun's retainer sighed and said, "General Sima is the deputy general of the Qin army and holds a high position of power in the Qin State. You have risked your life to take this risk. Why would I doubt you? Please come with me to see General Sima Shang."
Xinling Jun's retainers immediately drove and took Sima Jin to see Sima Shang, who had locked himself in his study for several days.
When Sima Shang learned that the visitor was actually Sima Jin, he was so frightened that he could not speak.
I am just a temporary garrison commander of Yanmen County. Why do I need the deputy general of the Qin army to come and persuade me to surrender
I'm flattered!
Sima Shang began to rack his brains to think about the family tree, wondering whether he was really related to Sima Jin.
After Xinling Jun's retainers left and closed the door, Sima Jin's expression turned cold: "Don't think about it, we are not of the same clan."
Sima Shang said awkwardly: "General, why would you take such a risk..."
Sima Jin said: "When Duke Zhu Xiang entered Changping, I was the deputy general of Wu'an Jun."
Sima Shang didn't know why Sima Jin started from something so far away.
Sima Jin continued, "Duke Zhu Xiang was willing to take risks for the sake of hundreds of thousands of Zhao surrendered soldiers. I admire him very much. After Duke Zhu Xiang entered Qin, the Qin army not only made achievements in beheading and capturing prisoners, but also made achievements in landing first and completing the deployment tasks. The military pay and food and fodder were also increasingly sufficient, and they could live better than before without looting."
He said to Sima Jin: "Generals and soldiers are also human beings. A normal person can avoid killing people indiscriminately. Who would be willing to do so? But the common people of Yanmen County are grateful to you and are resisting the Qin army on their own initiative. If Yanmen County does not surrender, they will definitely die."
Sima Shang was stunned.
He asked, "General, are you worried that the Qin army will kill people indiscriminately in Yanmen County, so you come to persuade me to surrender?"
Sima Jin said, "Yes. Yanmen County is very important to Lord Wucheng, Lord Changping, and Lord Xinling. They would not bear to see the people of Yanmen County suffer. They let the common people of Yanmen County live better than other places in Zhao State, not to see the common people of Yanmen County die for the incompetent king of Zhao."
Sima Jin bowed: "Please Sima Shang think about it carefully."
Sima Shang remained silent.
After a while, he said to Sima Jin: "I will send someone to escort the general away. Thank you for your generosity."
Sima Jin did not continue to persuade him. He left Shanwu City under Sima Shang's arrangement, saw Wang He who led the troops to pick him up, and then ran away at full speed.
"Stop!"
“No!”
"If you run again, you will be punished by military law!"
"I didn't violate military law!"
When Lin Zhi and Meng Ao learned why Sima Jin did this, they remained silent for a long time.
Meng Ao said: "I really didn't expect it."
Lin Zhi said: "Zhu Xiang's influence is quite great."
Meng Ao laughed when he heard this: "Indeed."
Sima Shang made some preparations in private.
The commotion among the former generals of Yanmen County seemed to have calmed down.
Pang Nuan was a little worried and asked directly whether Sima Shang would rebel.
Sima Shang said: "The King of Zhao falsely accused me of surrendering to Qin. This is not only an insult to me, but also an insult to Lord Wucheng and Lord Xinling. General Pang, you saw the battle in Yanmen County with your own eyes. If it weren't for the unity of the people in Yanmen County and the willingness of the common people to die to entangle the Qin army, the Qin army would have wiped out Yanmen County long ago. That was all the legacy left by Lord Wucheng and Lord Xinling."
Sima Shang paused and said, "It is also the legacy left by Duke Zhu Xiang."
Pang Nuan sighed deeply.
Sima Shang said: "I will not betray the King of Zhao and confirm his false accusation."
Pang Nuan breathed a sigh of relief, knowing Sima Shang's choice, and bowed to show his respect to Sima Shang.
Sima Shang sneered after Pang Nuan left.
He only said half of his words.
Zhao Cong, a member of the Zhao royal family, and the envoy of King Zhao came to take away Sima Shang's seal.
The envoy of King Zhao was very arrogant and wanted to put Sima Shang, the criminal, in a prison cart and escort him back to Handan.
The officers and soldiers of Yanmen County were all angry.
The common people of Shanwu City surrounded Sima Shang's prison cart and wanted to rescue Sima Shang.
They had already lost Lord Wucheng and Lord Xinling, and could not afford to lose General Sima.
Under Pang Nuan's strong protest, the envoy of King Zhao did not put shackles on Sima Shang.
Sima Shang stood in the prison car with his hands behind his back, facing the common people in Shanwu City who were angry for him.
He remembered Sima Jin's words.
He thought again of Duke Xiang of Zhu, whom he had never had the chance to meet but to whom he had received many favors.
He also recalled the face of his former commander, General Li Mu, which was almost fading, and the carefree smile of Lord Xinling, which still left a deep impression on him.
Sima Shang did not consider himself a noble man. He was just a deputy general who followed the chief general in doing things.
But at this moment, he seemed to really understand Zhu Xianggong's pursuit, understood the pain of General Li Mu looking at Handan from afar, and understood what Xinling Jun said about "awakening".
Sima Shang took out a hidden knife from his sleeve and shouted to the "rioters".
"Shang was falsely accused by the tyrant emperor and his treacherous ministers to surrender to Qin. He could not escape in order to prove his innocence."
"But everyone, after Shang's death, please surrender to Qin and find a way to survive."
"The grain in Yanmen County was grown with seeds given by Duke Zhu Xiang, the Northern Hu who harassed Yanmen County were driven away by General Li Mu, and it was Lord Xinling Wei Wuji who refused the heavy taxes for us."
"Not the foolish King Zhao!"
"Submit to Qin!"
"Let's go find General Li Mu and Duke Zhu Xiang!"
Sima Shang stabbed the short blade in his hand into his chest and slowly fell down.
"General!!!!"
The crowd was shocked.
The soldiers of Yanmen County, who were already prepared, took up their weapons, revealed their mourning clothes, and raised white flags.
Kill Zhao Cong, capture Pang Nuan, and open the city gate.
Surrender to Qin!
(End of this chapter)