Heirs of the Seven Swords of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 921 The Baiyue Discussion
  In short, Li Si talked a lot in frustration, which was enough to pave the way.

And his actions were basically ordered by Ying Zheng, so our Emperor immediately took over and helped Li Si complete all the spell-casting actions.

"I also know what Tingwei said, but... what I need is a practical solution, not empty words."

Li Si lowered his head slightly and responded respectfully, "This... In my opinion, if you want to adapt to local conditions, you need the help of someone who knows yourself and the enemy."

Having said this, Li Si smiled, raised his head, and looked at Gu Xun beside him.

Gu Xun's eyes were drooped, he met Li Si's gaze blankly, and yawned boredly. He was not surprised at all that he was looking for him.

After hearing the words "conquer Baiyue", he understood why Ying Zheng specifically informed him that he was coming to court today.

When it comes to understanding the Baiyue in Lingnan, the one who has studied all over the Central Plains today is of course Gu Xun, the quicksand leader.

A puppet regime was successfully established in Fujian and Yue (from Ying Zheng's perspective), and the quicksand that also had contacts with South Vietnam, Xiou and other countries would definitely add luster and icing on the cake for the empire's southern expedition.

However, Gu Xun is not as optimistic as Ying Zheng and Li Si.

Precisely because he understood Baiyue tribes relatively better, he knew that there was really no trick to conquer Baiyue.

Not to mention the external objective conditions such as the harsh environment, the biggest problem is the group of Baiyue talents with square heads.

Over the past few years, even though Liusha tried his best to suppress Tianze's development, he still succeeded in taking back almost all the rights belonging to the King of Minyue.

Because those Yue people just support him and can't stand quicksand.

Whenever Liusha shows an obvious tendency to suppress Tianze, the King of Minyue, he may be unanimously opposed by them.

Before the war even started, the empire had already lost the latter two due to the right time, place and people.

As for the final Tianshi... This is not a battle, but to capture a huge territory that is almost equal to half of the Chu Kingdom. Tianshi cannot always be biased towards the empire, and it is basically a non-existent item.

This kind of battle is difficult to fight even if you think about it with your toes.

In the official history, Ying Zheng sent out five armies, and half a million troops marched together to defeat Baiyue. In the end, he fought with Baiyue's 50,000 troops, both sides suffered losses, and gained nothing. It was not until he had to painstakingly built the Ling Canal that he borrowed the power of the water channel. Lingnan was barely captured.

The most uncomfortable thing is that after Ren Xiao and Zhao Tuo captured Lingnan, they were basically in a state of self-reliance. Not two years later, Zhao Tuo even closed the new Lingnan Road, cut off contact with the Central Plains, and established himself as king.

This is actually an inevitable result.

The central government of the empire simply cannot exercise effective jurisdiction over the Lingnan region, which is thousands of miles away and does not even have a proper road for carriages and horses. The sky is high and the emperor is far away, who can help but get excited.

The idea of ​​‘a lieutenant in the southeast and a marquis in the northwest’ is all nonsense. It is even more outrageous than the Zhou Mu in the late Han Dynasty.

What's more, Zhao Tuo was able to sit in the position of Emperor Wu of South Vietnam later, and he was an ambitious master.

Li Si didn't know the complicated thoughts in Gu Xun's heart, so he expressed his 'opinion' in a leisurely tone to Gu Xun's eyes that were as dull as a dead fish's eyes.

"I have heard that the caravan under the name of the Imperial Master has many contacts with the Land of Baiyue. They sell rare specialties and treasures produced in Lingnan all the year round. I must have a long-term knowledge of the place."

"I wonder if the Imperial Master can... tell me a few things."

Gu Xun raised his hand to straighten his hair and looked at Ying Zhengdao expressionlessly, "What do you mean, Your Majesty?"

Ying Zheng naturally agreed with Li Si's opinion, because this was what he had instructed, "I have heard what Tingwei said."

"If the Imperial Master has a high opinion, he can express it clearly."

"Huh... okay." Gu Xun sighed, shrugged, and said helplessly, "According to my opinion, it's better not to attack Baiyue."

Although he has made plans to overthrow everything and start over, Gu Xun will not be ruined directly.

If you ask me for advice, I will definitely give you the most pertinent advice.

"Ah..." Even though he was used to Gu Xun's habit of not going to court and singing the opposite tune when he went to court, Li Si couldn't help but frown and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

The great events of the country are in the army and in the sacrifice.

Since the matter of starting a war has been put on the table for discussion, it means that it must be fought, but you asked us to stop...

Gu Xun's words couldn't help but make Li Si feel uncomfortable, and all the courtiers couldn't help but whisper, especially the military attachés who looked at Gu Xun with unfriendly eyes.

Blocking someone from getting promoted is a sign of discord!

Ying Zheng was the calmest, but his eyes became much sharper.

He is now different from the past after all. The reality of sweeping Liuhe in just ten years is not only the glory of Ying Zheng, but also his confidence.

The confidence to dare to defy any force.

However, he did not directly question Gu Xun.

As the emperor, he has someone to speak on his behalf.

Li Si immediately asked in a serious tone, "Does the Imperial Master's statement mean that he is not optimistic about the empire's conquest of Baiyue?"

Gu Xun spread his hands, not caring about the image above the court at all, and asked in a lazy tone, "Master Li, please tell me first, what are the benefits of defeating Baiyue?"

Lingnan has many luxury goods that are scarce in the Central Plains, and even a lot of hardware and mineral deposits, but for Liusha, it is a huge sum of money that will be difficult to finish in a lifetime, but for the empire, it is worth a lot of money, and that's all. That’s all.

Compared with the manpower, material resources, and time resources that need to be paid, there are places in the Central Plains that are more worthy of development.

Of course, in the long run, the value is great, provided the country can survive until that time.

Lingnan Baiyue was theoretically occupied and conquered as early as the Qin Dynasty, but in fact, the initial effective development can be traced back to at least...after the Jin Dynasty anyway.

With the rise of the nomadic regime in the north, and the first time people moved southward, the Jiangnan region began to become prosperous.

Anyway, in Gu Xun's view, the conquest of Baiyue must be... something that must be done, but it certainly cannot be done now.

Li Si looked at Gu Xun with complicated eyes, a little surprised by his rhetorical question.

This Imperial Master... was he just using this as an excuse, or was it really because of this that he disapproved of the conquest of Baiyue?

Li Si probably knew in his heart that conquering Baiyue might not be a good thing for the country, but his principle was to obey the emperor, so he deliberately ignored the problems involved.

In any case, it is not a bad thing to acquire such a large piece of land.

"The expansion of territory is the result of Sheji. Don't you think it's enough?" Li Si suppressed his thoughts and didn't bother to analyze the benefits, so he just blamed it.

Gu Xun didn't care at all that Li Si was using the imperial government to pressure him, and replied in a neutral tone, "I think it's not important whether it's enough or not. What's important is whether the government itself is satisfied with its contribution to the expansion of territory."

Many of the other courtiers did not even dare to show their anger at this time. They didn't expect that discussing the conquest of Baiyue would bring the topic to this point. They now regretted why they didn't take sick leave to avoid the meeting.

Sheji, what is Sheji?
  The country is the country!

So the next question comes, what is a country?

Different people have different opinions, but generally speaking, it can be said that it is the result of the sum of the three - the king, the people, and the country.

Those who can stand in this hall are basically capable people who have read hundreds of schools of thought, so almost all of them know the sentence in "Mencius: Part Two of the Heart"——

"The people are the most important, the society is second, and the king is the light."

It is obvious that in Meng Sheng's view, the people are the most important, while the king is the least important.

It is a pity that the empire implemented legalist governing ideas, not Confucianism.

The meaning of Gu Xun's words is obvious. He is not responding to Li Si, but questioning Ying Zheng.

The merit of opening up new territories and expanding territory may be enough for the emperor, but is this merit meaningful to the people? Is it valuable? And can it satisfy them?
  Li Si couldn't help but break out a layer of sweat on his head. He didn't expect Gu Xun to be brave enough to question the emperor in court.

The people are the most noble, that's what Meng Sheng said. In fact, the monarch must be the most noble!

What is the name of the people who are managed by the imperial court?
  They are called Daitianzi herdsmen.

Herdsmen!
  I have made it very clear - the common people are the production tools that eat grass and milk cows to create value for the emperor!
  Now that the emperor needs the credit for opening up new territories, is it time to consider the life and death of the people?

Li Si smiled bitterly, bowed his hands to Ying Zheng, and returned to the queue, not continuing to argue with Gu Xun.

Only His Majesty the Emperor himself could deal with the other party's remarks. He... was no longer suitable to continue to speak on his behalf.

Ying Zheng's eyes looked at Gu Xun quietly through the beaded curtain, and Gu Xun also looked at him.

After the monarch and his ministers looked at each other for a moment, Ying Zheng finally spoke.

He did not try to argue with Gu Xun about the pros and cons of right and wrong, but said directly and forcefully:

"I have made up my mind to conquer Baiyue, and there is no need for the Imperial Master to give up."

"Now, what I need is your advice on this matter, not your opinion!"

"Huh... ok!" Gu Xun took a long breath and shrugged. He had no intention of confronting Ying Zheng and replied with a relaxed expression, "Your Majesty must be very aware of the complex dangers in Baiyue Land, so I won't emphasize it. ”

"In short, if we send troops into Baiyue, we must ensure the timely supply of logistics supplies."

"This is not just a matter of food and grass supply, but also includes equipment, clothing, water supply, medicine, etc."

"You know, Lingnan is a place where there is not even a road, unless...you count the mountain forest paths formed by long trampling."

People can walk on the trails, but they certainly can't pass the army, and it's very expensive to open up wasteland.

The ministers in the court had nothing to say after hearing what Gu Xun said.

The land of barbarians is really a land of barbarians. They don’t even build roads! ?

Gu Xun ignored them and continued to talk to himself, "The poisonous miasma in Lingnan you often talk about is actually... it's a problem of water and soil anyway. There is no cure, we can only rely on adaptation."

"As for poisonous insects, poisonous snakes and the like, I do have suitable prescriptions on hand, but the quantity of medicinal materials... I think it is definitely impossible to supply hundreds of thousands of troops."

"In general, environmental problems have not been solved."

"The only good news I can give is that in order to facilitate trade, I built a reasonably usable road from Kuaiji County to Minyue. It's not too long. At least... it can give the army a good start."

Seeing that Gu Xun was relatively normal now, Li Si jumped out again and asked, "What do you think of the Yue tribes and national masters in Baiyue?"

Gu Xun glanced at him sideways and replied dryly, "The Yue tribe... is very stubborn."

"Stubborn?" Li Si's brows twitched. Is this the adjective that should be used here?
  "The Imperial Master might as well speak more clearly."

"It's very straightforward. The people of Baiyue have nothing but stubborn rejection of the Central Plains." Gu Xun couldn't help rolling his eyes and explained, "To be more straightforward, if the empire intends to conquer Baiyue by force, I'm afraid rebellion will be inevitable for a long time to come."

Ying Zheng suddenly asked at this time, "I heard that the relationship between the national preceptor and Tianze, a barbarian leader in the Minyue region who proclaimed himself king, is quite close. Is it true?"

Gu Xun didn't hide anything, he nodded sharply and admitted, "That's right."

"If you want to do business in Baiyue, you must have a good relationship with the local Yue leader."

Qin's national policy is to suppress commerce. As a high-ranking official, it is actually taboo for Gu Xun to talk about his so-called caravans so boldly.

But who dares to care about him? Ying Zheng doesn't care, and Li Si, a court captain, naturally doesn't care about him.

Ying Zheng then asked, "In this case, can the Imperial Master be confident that he can directly persuade the barbarian leader to surrender and join the empire?"

"Oh..." Gu Xun suddenly realized. No wonder he suddenly asked about Tianze. It turned out that he wanted to get rid of Bailang.

Although conquering the Minyue Kingdom next to Kuaiji County is basically a trivial matter for the empire, why bother with it when you can get it for free?

Attacking Baiyue is a big job, so it would be better to save a little on consumption.

Gu Xun did not answer in a hurry, but asked first, "If Tianze is persuaded to surrender, what will your Majesty do?"

"At that time, I can appoint him as the highest governance official in the Fujian and Yue regions, responsible for the local military and political power, and continue to manage this land." Ying Zheng answered lightly.

It sounds good, but actually...it's bullshit.

What is the difference between officials and nobles?
  Officials are not hereditary, not even for life. You can be appointed as an official today, but you will be removed tomorrow.

The conditions that Ying Zheng gave Tianze seemed very good, and still left him with power similar to what he has now, but in fact it was in the hands of Ying Zheng, the emperor of the empire.

If we look back and find a reason for Tianze to evacuate, there will be no further trouble for the three tribes.

Gu Xun smiled, shook his head and said, "If this is the case, I can tell His Majesty directly that it is impossible."

It's not that Gu Xun is protecting Tianze, but... he's not a fool and won't agree to it at all.

Ying Zheng was not angry at Gu Xun's rejection and asked calmly, "What do you think the Imperial Master needs to do to persuade the other party?"

Gu Xun gave the answer without much thinking:
  "In my opinion, I'm afraid we can only follow the example of the Qin Dynasty's annexation of Bazhong and implement the policy of restraining the emperor."

(End of this chapter)