Back to the Warring States Period as Zhao Kuo

Li Yuan, Minister of Chu State and brother-in-law of the King of Chu.

Li Yuan, who was still having a meeting with the King of Chu in the palace of Chu during the day, had been quietly drinking with Zhao Guo's envoy Li Si in his own mansion at night.

It has been a while since Li Si came to Chencheng after he asked Zhao Kuo to send him as an envoy to Chu.

During this period of time, Li Si also attacked everywhere, hoping to use his previous contacts to do a good job in a big business.

But immediately, Li Si discovered a very cruel fact that the ministers of Chu State did not take Li Si too seriously.

They would warmly entertain Li Si and chat enthusiastically with Li Si about the glorious years together, but as long as Li Si started talking about something serious, no one would respond positively to Li Si.

From being disappointed and puzzled at the beginning to being confused later, Li Si finally figured it out.

What people value, in the final analysis, is Li Si's status as "the envoy of Zhao Guo" and "the confidant of Lord Wu Xin".

As for "Li Si", for these ministers of Chu State, it is completely dispensable.

Who made Li Si not an important minister of Zhao Guo, who couldn't decide the real military affairs of Zhao Guo?

This incident dealt a great blow to Li Si, and he suddenly realized that he had actually been living under the protection of other people all this time.

Li Si got very drunk, and after learning from the pain, he took the initiative to find Li Yuan.

Li Yuan was chosen by Zhao Kuo from the very beginning, but Li Si, who had just arrived in Chu, felt that he could do a good job without following Zhao Kuo's words, so he didn't go to Li Yuan.

After being educated by reality, Li Si obediently followed Zhao Kuo's prompt to find Li Yuan.

Facts have proved that Zhao Kuo's tips are indeed very useful.

Li Yuan was very happy to meet Li Si, and soon became friends with Li Si.

Then, Li Si discovered that Li Yuan had already had some secret cooperation with Zhao Kuo, and he was regarded as "Nightingale's old friend".

This discovery made Li Si couldn't help but want to slap himself. Come to Li Yuan earlier, why do we need so many bad things!So in the days that followed, Li Si became a frequent visitor to Li Yuan's mansion. The two often drank together, talked about the world, and talked about heroes in the world. Unknowingly, their relationship can be said to develop by leaps and bounds.

On this night, Li Si actually came here with the mentality of continuing to develop a relationship with Li Yuan. Unexpectedly, Li Yuan suddenly gave Li Si a big surprise while drinking.

Li Yuan put down his wine glass with a smile, and said to Li Si, "Brother Li Si, are you Zhao Guo ready for a two-front war?"

Li Si was stunned for a moment, and said somewhat uncertainly: "To tell you the truth, Brother Li Yuan, I'm currently abroad, and I'm not that well-informed about some things.

But since my lord dared to launch the battlefield, he should be able to take into account all changes in the battle situation. "

Li Si was quite confident when he said this.

When it comes to strategizing and winning thousands of miles, no one in this world can compare with Li Si's Marquis Zhao Kuo.

Li Yuan nodded in agreement, and said: "What you said makes sense, but I don't know if our king can understand this truth, alas."

With a slight movement in Li Si's heart, he immediately sensed something from Li Yuan's words: "Brother Li Yuan, could it be that your king wants to start a war with our country Zhao?

Honestly, it's not such a good idea. "

As a diplomatic envoy, Li Si is of course very clear about Zhao Kuo's diplomatic strategy this time, which is to keep other countries from sending troops, and just concentrate on destroying South Korea.

Fighting one enemy at a time is the most economical way of conquering wars. After all, after Korea is destroyed, the three strongest bones among the seven heroes of the Warring States Period will be ushered in Qin, Chu, and Qi.

Therefore, Li Si kept persuading the ministers of Chu State at all levels during his stay in Chu State, hoping that they would not interfere.

Of course, even if Chu State intervened, Li Si didn't feel afraid of Zhao Guoguo, but in that case, Li Si's original contribution would be lost.

After Li Yuan heard Li Si's words, he chuckled, with a strange expression on his face, and didn't answer immediately.

Li Si seemed to understand something, and said with a light smile, "Brother Li Yuan, to tell you the truth, a golden lion came to my side recently, and the weight seems to be about a hundred catties.

I don't know much about this kind of thing. I don't know if Brother Li Yuan is willing to help me taste it. If Brother Li Yuan likes it, then this golden lion will stay in Brother Li Yuan's house. It can be regarded as a friendship between you and me. witness.

By the way, there are still fifty ginseng, which will be delivered together at that time. "

Li Si is also a happy person, he just throws money at him when he comes up.

One hundred catties of gold, just ask if you want it!As for the fifty ginsengs, since Zhao State has annexed Yan State and obtained a large amount of Liaodong ginseng, the price of ginseng has been falling during this period, so these ginsengs can only be added.

When Li Yuan heard it, his eyes lit up immediately, and he said with a hearty smile, "Oh, how did this happen?

Brother Li Si, you should keep it. "

Li Si resisted the complaints in his heart, and said with a smile: "Brother Li Yuan, who is between you and me?

Can't you believe this little brother, brother, let people go back to the house now, and bring the golden lion. "

Li Si did what he said, and he called his entourage on the spot, and asked the entourage to take the carriage back to install the golden lion.

As for how this golden lion came to be, it goes without saying that it was actually the "activity funds" given to Li Si by Zhao Guo's government.

As a time traveler, Zhao Kuo brought many changes to Zhao Guo. One of the changes is that he was very willing to spend money on diplomacy.

In Zhao Kuo's words: "What's the point of giving these guys money now?

In fact, it is temporarily stored with them.

In the future, if we destroy their country, no matter how much money we give, won't it still have to go back to the treasury of Zhao State? "

For this sentence, the Zhao kings of all dynasties took it seriously. At the time when Zhao State had destroyed Yan State and Wei State, there was a lot of money to support this kind of diplomatic bribery and intelligence activities.

For example, the cash available for Li Si to transfer this time is a total of 3000 million yuan and a thousand catties of gold. If it is not enough, Li Si can report to Handan to continue to transfer more funds.

Things like money offensives have always been very effective.

In fact, in the history of China, when the Qin State destroyed the six countries, it was also a huge amount of money to clear the way, and all kinds of bribes of the important ministers of the six countries made the road to Qin's destruction of the six countries so unimpeded.

For example, in history, the prime minister of the state of Qi was bought by the people of Qin with a lot of money after the victory. He said good things about the state of Qin in front of the king of Qi, which caused the state of Qi to stand by and watch the other five countries be wiped out without sending a single soldier to help.

Now, Zhao Kuo just moved the practice of Qin people in history to Zhao State intact.

For Zhao Kuo, things that can be solved with money are not a big deal, not to mention that the money spent is from the treasury of Zhao State, not Zhao Kuo's own money.

Seeing Li Si's entourage leave, Li Yuan was completely relieved and smiled.

Although Li Yuan is an uncle of the country and has a very noble status, in fact Li Yuan has no power. The real power is in the hands of Chunshenjun and Zhaojingqu's three major families.

These days, if there is no power, where will the money come from?

So this one hundred catties of gold may not be taken seriously by Chun Shenjun and Jingyang, but it is really a huge sum of money to Li Yuan.

Li Yuan was overjoyed, and smiled at Li Si: "Actually, our king hasn't made a complete decision yet.

But what I can tell you is that the king is entangled, but at the moment it seems that he is more inclined to aid South Korea and start a war with your country Zhao.

If I'm not wrong, Jingyang's main fighters will definitely try their best to persuade the king to go to war during this time.

So brother Li Si, if you want to take any measures, you have to do it as soon as possible. "

When Li Si heard this, it was a big piece of information.

Some people may be about to say that what Li Yuan said is the tendency of the King of Chu, even without a definite statement, can it be considered a big piece of information?

In fact, if King Chu's attitude has been determined, it is not considered big information.

Because in that case, Zhao Guo will only know about it a few days later at most, and the result cannot be changed.

But now it’s different. Knowing that the King of Chu is still swaying, Zhao Guo can make a wave of operations in response to this situation, and it is very likely that the King of Chu will completely fall to Zhao Guo, thus changing the outcome of the entire war .

This one hundred catties of gold is worth it!Li Si smiled and drank a few more drinks with Li Yuan, and confirmed that Li Yuan hadn't missed anything.

Just at this time, the golden lion and ginseng brought over from the Zhao State embassy had also arrived, so Li Si kept these things for Li Yuan, and hurried back to the Zhao State ambassador in Chencheng by himself. in the hall.

After returning to the embassy, ​​Li Si immediately wrote a secret letter that was urgently sent to Handan at the fastest speed.

Li Si's confidant asked: "The official channel or our Nightingale channel?"

Li Si glared at his confidant: "Do you want the king to know that we still have our own Nightingale channel?

Of course it's official! "

Even the official channel was actually half a day slower than the Nightingale channel.

In many cases, the result can be decided within half a day, but Li Si thinks that this should not be the case.

The first person to see this secret report was not a member of Zhao Kuo's faction, but Zhou Shaoliang, a pedestrian of Zhao Guoda.

But Zhou Shaoliang knew that this was a state matter, and he didn't dare to neglect lest Zhao Kuo find a reason to attack him, so he immediately went to the palace to report to King Zhao.

Then, King Zhao immediately summoned Zhao Guo's important officials including Zhao Kuo to discuss this matter.

Since it was a diplomatic matter, Zhou Shaoliang, who was a great pedestrian, had a rare chance to speak: "Your Majesty, I think we can continue to bribe Li Yuan with a lot of money, so that Li Yuan can come forward to persuade Mr. Chunshen, and Mr. Chunshen will go there again." Persuading the King of Chu should have the effect of keeping Chu from participating in the war."

Since it is through official channels, then Li Si must clearly explain the source of Li Yuan's information.

Fortunately, Zhao Kuo was already prepared for this. The previous cooperation records between Li Yuan and Zhao Guo are still recorded in the secret files of Zhao Guo’s court, so this time it is very important for Zhao Wang that Li Si can connect with Li Yuan again. It is also a matter of course.

King Zhao fell into deep thought after hearing Zhou Shaoliang's words.

After a while, Zhao Wang said: "Wu Xinjun, what do you think?"

It has almost been the practice of Zhao Wang since this period of time to not make a decision first when encountering something, but to ask Zhao Kuo first.

Zhao Kuo said without hesitation: "I feel that although Zhou Daxing's proposal looks good, it is not very feasible."

Zhou Shaoliang immediately became unhappy when he heard this sentence. He is not his elder brother Zhou Shaofen, he won't bear what he says.

Zhou Shaoliang asked back on the spot: "Mr. Wu Xin, why do you say that my proposal is not feasible? Could it be that only your proposal can be passed?"

Zhao Kuo was not angry, but explained with a faint smile: "Mr. Chunshen has had many contacts with me, and I know him quite well.

Although he is indeed trusted by the king of Chu, his prestige in Chu State was severely damaged after he failed in the previous battle with our Da Zhao. Now the king of Chu doesn't actually trust him that much.

It is also because of the decline of Chunshenjun's prestige that the power of the three major Zhaojingqu families in Chu State is now the strongest. In this case, the three major families just strongly advocated war with us, and the King of Chu himself He is inclined to start a war with us, and Lord Chunshen alone cannot stop the King of Chu and the three major families from joining forces. "

After Zhou Shaoliang heard Zhao Kuo's words, he couldn't help but hesitate, unable to refute in embarrassment.

It was Zhou Shaofen who spoke up: "It's really not possible, just fight with Chu State.

With the strength of our great Zhao, are we still afraid that he will fail in Chu? "

Zhao Kuo chuckled, too lazy to refute.

Fighting is also worthwhile and not worth it. In Zhao Kuo's view, the battle to destroy South Korea is worthwhile, but fighting Chu State for no reason can neither gain land nor money, and at the same time lose a lot of soldiers. , This is what a fool can do.

King Zhao didn't go to see Zhou Shaoliang, but said to Zhao Kuo, "If you say that, is there no way to avoid war with Chu?"

Zhao Kuo said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, of course there are ways to avoid war with Chu."

King Zhao was overjoyed when he heard the words, and said, "What is the solution?"

Zhao Kuo said with a smile: "This method is very simple. I am willing to go to Chu as an envoy to persuade the King of Chu."

Chapter 979

Zhao Kuo's proposal was obviously very unexpected by King Zhao.

After several seconds, King Zhao said, "A mission to Chu?"

Zhao Kuo nodded and said, "Yes, I am going to Chu State."

Zhao Wangdao: "Is there no other way?"

Zhao Kuo said: "Of course other people can be sent to Chu, but in my opinion, if I go in person, I will be more confident."

Zhao Kuo didn't say where this confidence came from, but Zhao Wang could think of it quickly.

Everyone knows that the reason why Chu State and Zhao State had a "honeymoon period" was mainly facilitated by Zhao Kuo.

In other words, Zhao Kuo has many old friends in Chu State, and these old friends can help Zhao Kuo accomplish things.

Zhao Wang nodded slightly, and said: "That's fine, let's do it like this."

Zhao Wang didn't intervene too much, because in Zhao Wang's view, even if it really failed, it would be a big deal to fight.

Zhao Wang has no opinion, but this does not mean that other people have no opinion.

Zhou Shaoliang wanted to speak, but at this time his elder brother Zhou Shaofen suddenly gave him a look, signaling him not to speak.

Zhou Shaoliang didn't know why, but out of the usual respect for his elder brother, he endured it.

The court discussion ended here, and the Zhou brothers left the hall side by side, Zhou Shaoliang said rather annoyedly: "Why didn't you let me question Zhao Kuo just now, brother?

This Zhao Kuo is too hateful, obviously it is my business, and he has to do it for me! "

Zhou Shaoliang's current position is Da Xingren, that is, the foreign minister of later generations. He considers himself the real number one figure in Zhao's foreign policy, but now he has no room for him to intervene in matters such as envoys to Chu. Pretty upset.

Zhou Shaofen said lightly: "Let me ask you, if you go to Chu State, can this matter be done?"

Zhou Shaoliang was at a loss for words for a moment, and after a few seconds he said: "It's not that there is no hope of it being done."

Zhou Shaofen sneered and said, "You just like to be tough.