Unparalleled Evildoer

Chapter 256 Play hard to get
On the morning of the second day, He Qian arrived at the guest house and was overjoyed when he entered the study. When he saw Wu Zhan, he sighed, "The special envoy is really as good as a god. Shi Zecheng really handed over the military token to the king early this morning. The king has handed it to General Xu according to your instructions. After receiving the military token, General Xu was so grateful that he swore to be loyal to the king until his death. Now the whole situation is under our control!"

Wuzhan said: "My Lord, don't be too happy too soon. This is just the beginning. You must not take it lightly, otherwise you will fail."

"Don't worry, Special Envoy. I have secretly told General Xu to arrange for his confidant to replace the deputy general as soon as possible so that he can have a firm grip on the military power. He has already started to do it. The guards of the palace have secretly increased their manpower. As soon as there is any unusual movement, they will be by the king's side at the first moment!"

Wuzhang said: "There must be their confidants among the guards. They must know every move in the palace. Being too cautious will make them more cautious. Maybe they will do something we can't imagine. We should play hard to get and reveal some weaknesses appropriately, so that they can take advantage of the opportunity. This way, it's like leading them by the nose, step by step leading them into the circle we set. When they think they have won, it's time to get rid of them!"

He Qian sighed, "This is a brilliant plan, Special Envoy. I would never have thought of it in my lifetime. But I am stupid and don't know how to do it."

"Put yourself in his shoes. If you were Shi Zecheng and wanted to force the Southern King to abdicate, what would you do?"

"On the one hand, we secretly communicated with Wen Lang and sent a large army to the border to create panic. On the other hand, we united with the ministers and nobles in the court to put pressure on the king."

"If the king still hesitates, what should you do?"

"We have united all the ministers and recommended the young and brilliant, visionary eldest son to ascend the throne, on the grounds that the great king is old and frail and can no longer manage the overall situation."

"If the King of the South is displeased and imprisoned all these ministers, what will be the consequences?"

He Qian thought for a while, and suddenly exclaimed: "Then the king will become a tyrannical and despotic ruler who imprisons loyal officials. Oh my God! At that time, the court will be out of control and the people will lose their hearts. The whole Panyu City may even rebel!"

"The people don't know what they want. The ministers' mouths are the people's will. If they win the people's will, even if the Southern King holds military power, it will collapse!"

He Qian asked anxiously: "Then how should we resolve it?"

“Follow the will of the people.”

He Qian asked, "Follow the will of the people? Are we going to unite to resist Qin?"

"Exactly."

"If so, wouldn't the envoy's trip be in vain?"

"Empty and real are just a matter of changing one's mind. Your Excellency need not worry. I will continue to ask you, if the king agrees to send troops and sends General Xu to lead the army, will you be satisfied?"

He Qian pondered, "How can we accept that the military power is still in General Xu's hands? While General Shi is leading the army outside and the city is empty, we can launch a coup. When Panyu is under our control, we can recall General Xu and take back the military power!"

"If the king suddenly counterattacks at this time, will the ministers still side with the eldest son?"

"At this time, the usurpation of power has already taken place, and the ministers dare not say anything. However, the city will be empty at that time. How can the king counterattack?"

Wuzhan whispered the specific arrangements to He Qian. After listening, He Qian exclaimed: "The special envoy is really resourceful. Even if I live another 500 years, I will not be able to be even one tenth as resourceful as you!"

Wuzhan said: "Your Excellency is overpraising me. I just came up with a solution for the Southern King. Whether it will succeed or not depends on the Southern King and Your Excellency themselves."

He Qian smiled and said, "Special Envoy, don't forget one more thing. General Shi is still waiting for the antidote from the Special Envoy!"

Wuzhan said: "General Shi was not poisoned. I only gave him a pill to reduce internal heat."

He Qian laughed loudly and said, "If he knew that he was tricked by the special envoy, I'm afraid that even if he ate a cart of anti-inflammatory drugs, it would not be able to calm his anger. Sir, you have too many tricks. Fortunately, I am not the enemy of the special envoy, otherwise I would have been tricked!"

……

Three days later, in the palace hall, Fang Yu saw Lü Jia finish reading the declaration of war sent by Wen Lang, and said loudly: "Your Majesty, you can't hesitate any longer. Kill the special envoy and send troops as soon as possible to show your determination!"

All the ministers knelt down and begged, "We beg the king to kill the envoy and send troops to fight against the Qin army!"

Lu Jia sat on the throne and thought for a long time, then said: "It's not that I don't want to fight against the Qin army, but my Nanyue only has more than 50,000 troops. Once this battle is fought, no matter whether we win or lose, it will be difficult for the 50,000 troops to come back!"

Lü Meng said: "If Wenlang and Xizhen are gone, how can Nanyue survive? Only by defeating the Qin army can we protect our Nanyue land!"

Lu Jia shouted, "When the lips and teeth are separated, they are interdependent. When did Wen Lang ever regard South Vietnam as such a relationship? They always regard South Vietnam as the fat meat on their lips. Whenever they want to eat, they just come and take a bite!"

Fang Yu said: "This is a different time, and that is a different time. If we succeed in resisting Qin and become friends in need, our two countries will surely be able to live in peace in the future."

Lu Jia said: "I would rather believe that wolves don't eat meat than believe that Wen Lang can live in peace with my South Vietnam!"

Fang Yu said: "The Qin State is even less trustworthy. Everyone in the world knows Ying Zheng's ambitions!"

Lü Meng said: "My Nanyue soldiers would rather die in battle than surrender to Qin!"

The ministers echoed: "We would rather die in battle than surrender to Qin!"

Lu Jia sighed and said, "All the soldiers have died in the battle. What's the point of leaving this land? Forget it. Since all the ministers have no objection, then send the troops!"

All the ministers said in unison: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Lü Jia said, "I am old, and you are wise. Stand up!" As soon as the ministers stood up, a herald ran into the hall and knelt down to report, "Your Majesty, the Qin envoy abandoned the ship and fled last night. Now Princess Mengya is the only one left on the ship!"

The ministers were shocked when they heard this, and foul language flew all over the hall. Shi Zecheng remained calm the whole time, but now he could not help but curse: "The bastard knew I was going to skin him alive, so he ran away so fast!" He turned to Lu Jia and said: "I beg the king to allow me to lead the troops to capture him!"

Lu Jia said: "He has been running away for a whole night. How can you catch him? Besides, even if you catch him, you may not be able to capture him. Since he has escaped, he has nothing to do with our South Vietnam. Let him run away!"

Lu Meng said: "Father, Princess Mengya is still in Panyu. We can't treat her badly. Why don't we..."

Lu Jia said, "You are right. Invite her to live in my palace. Lord He, go and do it. Also, pull the boat to the palace. I want to see how luxurious it is inside. Is it better than my bedroom?"

Although Lü Meng was unhappy, he did not say anything more. After seeing He Chuan leave, he winked at Fang Yu, who understood and stepped forward and said, "Since the king agrees to the alliance, there is no time to lose. Please send the troops as soon as possible!"

Lu Jia asked, "How many troops should be sent?"

Fang Yu said: "This is a battle that concerns the survival of South Vietnam. We cannot weaken the prestige of South Vietnam and let other countries laugh at us. Naturally, the more troops we send, the better!"

Lu Jia asked, "How much is that?"

"I think all 50,000 soldiers should go, leaving only the 1,000 guards in the palace to protect Your Majesty!"

Lu Jia said: "Fifty thousand soldiers are all we have in Nanyue. You are really ruthless. Now that all the soldiers have been sent, if we lose the battle, my thousand guards will be useless. So just send them all!"

When Lu Meng heard this, a flash of joy flashed across his eyes, and he dissuaded him, "Father, you must not do this. How can you leave your father unprotected?"

Lu Jia sighed, "I am a dying man, and I don't need their protection. Tell me who should be sent to lead the troops?"

Fang Yu glanced at Shi Zecheng, then looked at the proud General Xu, and said to Lu Jia: "Last time it was General Shi, and he had reached a tacit understanding with other countries and won the battle, but General Shi was impatient and made the king unhappy, so he handed over the military power to His Majesty to atone for his sins, and Your Majesty will..."

Shi Zecheng interrupted Fang Yu and said generously: "Master Fang, there is no need to say more. I am willing to accept the punishment. Since the king trusts General Xu, let General Xu lead the troops. Haha, it is also a good opportunity for General Xu to gain experience!"

Lu Jia said happily: "It's rare that Zecheng is willing to admit his mistakes. In fact, I have some idea of ​​your loyalty. Don't worry!" He turned to General Xu and said: "Xu Hu, obey your orders!"

Xu Hu stepped forward and said, "Xu Hu is here!"

"I order you to lead 50,000 soldiers to march north tomorrow to unite with the southern countries to fight against the tyrannical Qin. Go and prepare!"

"Xu Hu has received the order!"

……

When the ministers left the palace, they saw more than ten soldiers pulling the ship into the palace. Seeing Meng Ya sitting on the bow looking unhappy, Lu Meng stepped forward and saluted, saying, "I didn't expect to have the honor of meeting the princess again. When will the princess have time to visit my palace again?"

Meng Ya rolled her eyes and said, "This princess is not in the mood!"

Lu Meng smiled and said, "Princess, if you are in a bad mood, you should go out for a walk to relax."

Meng Ya said: "I advise you not to anger me at this time, and leave quickly, otherwise I will vent my anger on you!"

Lu Meng was really afraid that Princess Mengya would get anxious and release the poisonous insect, so he quickly said, "Since the princess is in a bad mood, let's talk another day!" Then he said goodbye.

Fang Yu glanced at Meng Ya and whispered to Shi Zecheng, "General, don't you think we are doing this too smoothly?"

Shi Zecheng said: "Then what do you think is the problem?"

Fang Yu pondered and said, "I always feel that the king should leave some people to guard the palace."

Seeing that everyone had left, Ishizawa Cheng continued, "Does your Excellency think that we have let the cat out of the bag?"

"That may not be the case, but I can't guess his intention when he did this!"

"What could be his intention? He just wants to add more soldiers. This also fully proves that he has no doubts about us at all. Is your Excellency being too cautious and a little timid?"

Fang Yu said unhappily, "Is the general worried that I will back down?"

"That's not the case. I just think you're overthinking it. Just think about it. There are only those people left in Panyu City that we secretly left behind. Even if he is an old fox, what can he do? Can he send down a divine soldier from the sky?"

Fang Yu smiled and said, "It may not be a divine soldier sent from heaven, but it may be a natural death!"

General Shi smiled and said, "Come on! Get on my carriage, we'll go to the eldest son's palace and discuss it in detail!"

……

(End of this chapter)