Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Gu Jun retorted with a face full of disdain.

“It is fitting for a child to visit a small country.”

This caused the expressions of everyone present, including Qu Ba, to darken noticeably.

This unconventional move, using self-deprecation to belittle the Kingdom of Linyi, was truly something Qu Ba had not anticipated.

“Your Excellency, at such a young age, you have only learned the advantage of glibness. Are you not afraid of bringing unwarranted disaster upon Rinan Commandery, or even the Great Han?” Qu Ba said coldly, his face slightly gloomy.

“Hahaha!!”

Gu Jun burst into a fit of laughter filled with mockery and delight, as if he had heard a joke, and said.

“You, a small country of Linyi, are merely established by Qu Lian, a petty clerk from Rinan Commandery. People like Qu Lian are not one in ten thousand in the Great Han, but at least eight thousand. You dare to say you can bring unwarranted disaster upon the Great Han? What a joke!”

These sharp words not only further angered the crowd, but even Qu Lian, who was originally slumped on the throne, raised his eyelids a little. His somewhat cloudy eyes stared at Gu Jun not far away, and he opened his mouth with a voice that was somewhat distorted and hoarse.

“The governor of Rinan Commandery sent you here to enrage this king?”

“Not so.”

Gu Jun looked directly at Qu Lian, shook his head, and then took out a bamboo scroll from his arms, saying.

“This is a document written by Lord Yu, ordering you to return the secretly encroached land over the years within a month, and return Linyi County to Rinan Commandery…”

After a pause, Gu Jun glanced at the dumbfounded nobles and ministers, and said coldly.

“If you fail to return the land by the deadline, do not say you were not warned.”

At this moment, a raging fire almost ignited within the main hall of the palace.

From the standpoint of the Great Han, returning the occupied land was merely giving the Kingdom of Linyi a chance.

But for the nobles and ministers of the Kingdom of Linyi, Gu Jun's actions were tantamount to treating everyone in the Kingdom of Linyi as subordinates, and the land of the Kingdom of Linyi was closely related to the interests of the nobles and ministers.

“Arrogant!!”

“Bold madman, how dare you utter such arrogant words.”

“Since you want to die, I will grant you your wish.”

“Your Majesty, please order that this madman be dragged down and executed immediately.”

…

For a time, the hall was filled with indignation. It was only because the nobles in the hall were not allowed to carry weapons, otherwise they might have been unable to resist attacking Gu Jun.

Qu Lian, who was originally slumped on the throne, also showed a look of anger, his palms tightly gripping the armrests of the throne, and he slowly sat up a little, like a sick tiger showing a bit of ferocity again.

“Little Han child, do you know what you are saying? Are you really not afraid of the blades of my Linyi Kingdom's 50,000-strong army?”

“Then are you, Qu Lian, not afraid of the anger of my Rinan Commandery's 200,000 people? Are you not afraid that if the Great Han is angered, the heavenly soldiers will arrive and crush you into powder in an instant?”

Gu Jun retorted without fear, pointing directly at Qu Lian and shouting.

“One month! Not only the land, but also you, Qu Lian, must bind yourself and go to Rinan Commandery to plead guilty and be punished, otherwise, when the time comes, your descendants will be implicated, do not blame me for not reminding you.”

At this moment, even Qu Lian, who had become cautious and timid due to old age, was so angered by Gu Jun's words that his blood surged.

Perhaps Qu Lian instinctively felt that there were many suspicious and doubtful points in this, but now that many nobles and ministers of the Kingdom of Linyi were gathered together.

If Qu Lian remained unresponsive even when scolded by such a child, then perhaps his prestige would be completely lost in an instant, and it would be difficult for him to maintain his position.

“Drag this child who is impersonating a Han envoy down and behead him!”

Qu Lian gave the order, concealing his true thoughts with the last bit of reason he had left.

With Qu Lian's royal order, between life and death, Gu Jun felt his consciousness slightly dazed for a moment.

Even though Gu Jun had already made such psychological preparations, but when the moment came…

“Hahaha!”

Gu Jun's laughter was even more unbridled, his voice alone echoing throughout the entire main hall, saying.

“What does it matter if I, Gu Jun, take the first step? You will surely regret it beyond measure one day.”

As two rather burly close attendants rushed towards Gu Jun, preparing to forcibly hold Gu Jun down and drag him away to be beheaded.

Gu Jun did not know where he suddenly burst out with a brute force, forcibly broke free from the control of the two close attendants, and said proudly.

“Why do you barbarians need to escort me? Death is death, what is there to fear.”

Immediately, in front of everyone, Gu Jun calmly and meticulously tidied up his clothes, and then strode towards the outside of the hall.

That calm back view stunned everyone for a moment.

At this moment, Gu Jun did not seem to be going to his death, but rather to be performing some solemn ritual.

This made Qu Lian frown tightly, feeling inexplicably uneasy in his heart, and then his gaze fell on the bamboo scroll that Gu Jun had dropped on the ground when he struggled to break free from the close attendants' control.

“Bring that document to me.” Qu Lian said.

Immediately, Qu Ba, without waiting for the others to move, personally picked up the bamboo scroll and sent it to Qu Lian.

Qu Lian laboriously opened the heavy bamboo scroll himself, his cloudy eyes scanning back and forth over the contents. At the beginning, Qu Lian's face became more and more displeased as he read.

But when Qu Lian saw the end…

【If Linyi refuses, then the Han soldiers will arrive, please do not misunderstand.】

This sentence, coupled with Gu Jun's attitude of seemingly wanting to die wholeheartedly, made Qu Lian's originally somewhat sluggish brain seem to explode suddenly, and he seemed to understand something in an instant.

Rinan Commandery was not bluffing, but must have something to rely on!

Gu Jun, who was from Rinan Commandery, was determined to die, probably wanting to completely cut off the last way out for the Kingdom of Linyi, wanting to use his life to cut off all the ways out for the Kingdom of Linyi.

Could it be… the Han court really sent a large army south here?

Qu Lian, who was once a county clerk of the Great Han, suddenly clearly remembered the education he had received in his youth, about the records of Nan Yue killing Han envoys and slaughtering nine commanderies.

Could today's Linyi be yesterday's Nan Yue?!

For a time, Qu Lian almost sat up in shock from his deathbed, and the whole person stood up from the throne, shouting in a hoarse and hurried voice.

“Quick! Spare his life!!!”

However, just as Qu Lian's voice fell, a somewhat muffled sound of a sharp blade entering flesh came from outside the hall.

Immediately, a close attendant walked back into the main hall holding a head, according to the usual practice, allowing Qu Lian to personally inspect it.

Qu Lian looked at Gu Jun's head, which was still not closed, and could even read a bit of contempt and ridicule from those completely lifeless eyes.

Unconsciously, Qu Lian's legs went weak, and he sat back on the throne, unable to recover for a long time.

Seeing this, Qu Ba asked in confusion.

“Your Majesty, could it be that something unexpected has happened?”

Qu Lian, who had recovered slightly, tightly grasped the bamboo scroll with his withered and thin palms, only feeling that this bamboo scroll seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, and then opened his mouth in a hoarse voice.

“The Han court, I'm afraid, is going to start a war with us.”

Upon hearing this, Qu Ba disapproved greatly in his heart, and was even quite disappointed with Qu Lian's reaction, only feeling that Qu Lian was indeed old, so old that he no longer had the slightest bit of his past spirit.

The former Qu Lian dared to rebel and stand as king, conquering east and west, and laid down the great Kingdom of Linyi.

Even though he is now old and frail, the entire Kingdom of Linyi is still in awe of Qu Lian, this heroic founding monarch.

Unexpectedly, Qu Lian actually showed such a distraught reaction, appearing afraid of the Han court.

“Why should Your Majesty worry? My Linyi Kingdom's strength is not inferior to that of the Han court. The entire country is united, and it can mobilize more than 50,000 troops. None of the surrounding countries dare to be disrespectful.”

After a pause, Qu Ba suddenly realized that this seemed to be an excellent opportunity, and quickly bowed his head and advised.

“As the grandson of Your Majesty, just as Your Majesty was able to defeat the Han court and establish Linyi, I, Qu Ba, am also willing to emulate Your Majesty!”

“Since the Han court dares to be so disrespectful to Your Majesty, not to mention whether they dare to send troops to attack, even if they do not come, I also want to lead troops north to attack Rinan Commandery, so that the Han court will know the consequences of sending people to insult Your Majesty with words.”

Qu Ba's words made Qu Lian's eyes regain a bit of brilliance.

Since things have come to this, it is useless to regret it.

Whether the Han court really sent a large army south is still unknown. Even if Qu Lian is old and frail, he would not be so frightened.

And Qu Ba's reaction also made Qu Lian quite satisfied, and he opened his mouth.

“Good, good, good! This king is very gratified that my royal grandson has such ambition.”

At present, Qu Lian has already decided to prepare for both possibilities.

On the one hand, Qu Lian quickly prepared a good coffin to collect Gu Jun's body, and then sent someone to carry heavy gifts and send Gu Jun's body back to Rinan Commandery, explaining that it was a misunderstanding, and testing the reaction of Rinan Commandery.

On the other hand, Qu Lian appointed Qu Ba as the commander-in-chief, and immediately urgently mobilized a large number of troops to the north and deployed them on the border.

And Qu Ba also said a word that resonated with Qu Lian!

If Rinan Commandery was really bluffing, then it would mean that the Han court might really be at the end of its rope, and he might as well take the opportunity to attack Rinan Commandery and occupy it completely.

In order to stabilize the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Linyi, Qu Lian naturally did not dare and could not show the slightest bit of timidity, revealing that the main purpose of deploying troops on the border was to resist the Han court's next revenge.

Therefore, Qu Lian simply used the reason that the Han envoy was arrogant and rude to mobilize troops, stating that if Rinan Commandery could not give him a reasonable explanation, then he would send troops to attack Rinan Commandery.

For a time, a large number of troops inside the Kingdom of Linyi began to gather towards the north.

(End of this chapter)