The Deepest Affection in Qin's Time

The states of Zhao and Chu suffered losses of up to 60,000.

If it weren't for Lü Buwei, who was guarding Hangu Pass, risking his life to leave the pass and personally leading a large army to break through the feigned attack of the Yan-Qi allied forces, and joining forces with the Qin army rushing to the western border of Qin, forcing the Han-Wei allied forces in Yin Jin to withdraw.

It is likely that the Zhao and Chu armies will fight to the death and capture King Ying Zheng of Qin, who is in Zuicheng.

Instead of failing at the last minute, they retreated urgently to avoid total annihilation and preserve their strength.

However, although its strategic objectives were not fully achieved, it still caused considerable losses to the Qin state, which was unable to expand eastward and continue its conquests for at least two years.

After reading the battle report in Sancho, Cao Yuan spent a long time calculating and came up with a lot of information.

Without a doubt, the Qin state was very courageous.

This can be seen from the fact that the monarch would take to the battlefield to fight during times of national crisis.

As for Lü Buwei, who is in charge of this operation, he will surely be in a terrible predicament.

It's unlikely that the Net of Heaven would relentlessly pursue them at this time.

"Do you want to go?"

Li Wu lifted the carriage curtain and said to Cao Yuan inside the carriage, "The weather has been bad these past few days, and it may snow heavily again. If we want to leave, we need to hurry on our way and find a place to stay."

“Qin suffered heavy losses in this war, and Lü Buwei is too busy to deal with himself. Luo Wang will certainly not have the strength to look for us.” Cao Yuan thought for a moment and said, “Let’s cultivate here first, and set off after the snow season is over and spring arrives.”

After he finished speaking, he got off the carriage.

He originally thought he would be able to reach South Korea in three or four months at most.

But he did not expect that the roads during the Warring States period, especially in winter, would be so treacherous.

Heavy snow often blocks mountains and roads, reducing travel time by more than half compared to traveling from Qi to Yan.

Because they needed to avoid the eyes and ears of the police, they only traveled less than a third of the distance in nearly two months.

Most of the time was wasted battling the heavy snow and the snowy ground.

This left him feeling helpless.

Even if one becomes a half-step Grandmaster, one still feels insignificant in the face of the power of nature.

Instead of wasting time fighting against nature, we should stop and use that time to strengthen ourselves.

For example, he could use the medicinal liquid that Li Wu had refined for him to cultivate immunity to all poisons.

In 240 BC, the beginning.

Cao Yuan was in seclusion in Sangqiu, Zhao State, practicing cultivation.

Queen Dowager Xia Ji of Qin died of illness.

Upon receiving this news, Lü Buwei immediately set his sights on the Han faction represented by Empress Dowager Xia Ji.

Even if the Qin state's losses this time were not due to his poor command, as the commander-in-chief, he cannot escape blame.

Therefore, he suffered a great deal of losses due to the combined suppression of Changping Jun of the Chu faction and Chang'an Jun Chengjiao of the Han faction, which weakened his prestige in the court and among the people.

Of course, this was done with the tacit approval of King Ying Zheng of Qin.

He even gained a great deal of prestige because of his initiative to personally lead the army during the national crisis.

How could Lü Buwei possibly resist this?

He absolutely did not want to hand over the power he had painstakingly accumulated over most of his life to a young Qin king who had not yet come of age.

If the young King of Qin disagrees with him on political matters, how can he recreate the great achievements of his ancestors Lü Shang and Jiang Ziya in assisting the Zhou king to unify the country?

How can we make the Lü clan great again?

and so……

"Fan Yuqi, have you remembered what I said?"

Lu Buwei stared coldly at Fan Yuqi with a sullen face.

Fan Yuqi knelt down and said, "This humble general will remember!"

His entire family was under Lü Buwei's surveillance, and he dared not disobey.

Moreover, Lü Buwei had leverage over him.

Either one of them would be enough to bring him to his doom.

“Very good. After spring arrives, I will report to the King of Qin and, under the pretext of retaliating against Zhao, order Meng Ao to lead an army to attack Zhao.”

"In this alliance, Qin suffered heavy losses, leaving it with more soldiers than generals. Lord Chang'an, Cheng Jiao, will certainly not let this opportunity to seize military power slip by and will actively participate. Therefore, the rest is up to you."

"Yes."

Fan Yuqi is under a lot of pressure.

If he were to incite Chang'an Jun to rebel or frame him for rebellion, he would likely face dire consequences, regardless of whether the rebellion succeeds or fails.

But he had no other choice.

They could only obey Lü Buwei for the time being and seek the help of Lord Changping when the opportunity arose, hoping to get through this ordeal smoothly.

……

In February, after the snow clears and the sun shines, all things revive.

Because ancient calendars were based on the lunar calendar, most of the snow had already disappeared by February.

Cao Yuan and his party set off again, intending to head straight for Handan, then travel through Wei to enter Han.

While Cao Yuan was on his way, the war between Qin and Zhao broke out again. Qin general Meng Ao and Zhao general Pang Nuan each led an army of 60,000 to fight a major battle at Yaoshan.

After some maneuvering, Lü Buwei quietly appointed the spirited Cheng Jiao and Fan Yuqi as the main generals of the reinforcements, leading troops to Tunliu to support Yaoshan.

Just over a month later, on the way to Tunliu to seek reinforcements, Meng Ao sent his envoy Zhang Tang, while Cheng Jiao, who was stationed at Tunliu, issued a proclamation that shocked Qin and made the other six states laugh—

Proclamation against the King of Qin

"Lord Chang'an, Chengjiao, hereby proclaims to all his subjects, both within and outside the capital: In accordance with the principles of succession, the legitimate heir is supreme… The current King Zheng is not the heir of the late King, but the son of Lü Buwei. He first seduced the late King with a pregnant concubine; then, with a child born out of wedlock, he inherited the bloodline…"

Unsurprisingly, King Ying Zheng of Qin was furious.

He directly dispatched Wang Jian, Zhang Tang, and Wang Ben with an army of 100,000 to suppress Cheng Jiao's rebellion.

Meanwhile, Lu Buwei, who held power in the court, was furious, never expecting Fan Yuqi to do such a thing.

But when he saw Lord Changping step forward to protect Fan Yuqi, how could he not know what had happened? It was truly a case of misfortunes never coming singly, and he could only swallow his pride.

If it weren't for the compensation from the Korean faction, he would have really vomited blood.

Chengjiao, who was in Tunliu, was completely bewildered when he saw Wang Jian's large army.

He clearly issued a proclamation against Lü Buwei, so how did it become a proclamation against his elder brother?

Even if he secretly harbors ambitions for the throne, he wouldn't be so blatant about it!

Before the antlers could surrender, Fan Yuqi directly commanded the battle, stirring up trouble.

"Fan Yuqi has ruined me!!!"

Cheng Jiao was so angry he almost vomited blood. Under the cover of night, he immediately fled to the State of Zhao.

Fan Yuqi, who was guarding the city, only discovered that Cheng Jiao had escaped after dawn. Thinking of Lü Buwei's orders and Changping Jun's arrangements, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and find Luo Wang to inform Lü Buwei.

Lü Buwei immediately ordered Yan Ri and Xuan Jian, who were preparing to hunt down the traitor Jing Ni, to drop everything and pursue Cheng Jiao without leaving any survivors.

Perhaps it was fate.

In April, when the grass grows and the orioles fly.

On this cool, peaceful summer night, when even death is no longer frightening.

Cao Yuan, Cheng Jiao, and Xuan Jian, who had been pursuing them, unexpectedly met dozens of miles away from Handan.

Chapter 73 Is this even possible?

The crescent moon hung in the sky like a hook, and the mountains and forests rippled like waves in the night wind.

Cao Yuan stood on the donkey cart, looking at Cheng Jiao who looked exhausted and disheveled, and chuckled.

"Hey, isn't this Lord Chang'an, Cheng Jiao? Why are you being chased like a dog? It's true, enemies always meet, haha."

He still remembered Cheng Jiao's insults towards Xiao Mengjiang.

Cheng Jiao lay on the ground, staring blankly at the person standing on the donkey cart, the hope in his eyes gradually turning into despair.

He never expected to see Cao Yuan, who had humiliated him in Linzi, Qi State, here.

"boom!"

A tall, upright man dressed in blue clothes and wearing a blue headband descended from the sky and landed on the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Cao Yuan glanced at the man who had chased after them.

He recognized him at a glance as Xuan Jian of the Luo Wang organization.

In the original novel, Cheng Jiao was killed by Xuan Jian.

Xuan Jian's black hair was casually tied up, giving him a dashing and unrestrained air. However, his aura was somewhat deep and dark, even carrying a hint of evil, showing no trace of the charisma he once possessed, revered as a swordsman by various masters in the martial arts world.

"Target...Wei Yong..."

Xuan Jian let out a low roar, like a wild beast, like a pure killing machine.

Cao Yuan waved his hand.

"Your target is him, not me. I'm leaving now."

Cheng Jiao's lips trembled as he pleaded, "Mr. Cao Yuan, please save me..."

He knew that Cao Yuan had a very powerful and beautiful woman by his side, who was probably no weaker than Xuan Jian, who was chasing him.

As long as Cao Yuan is willing to take action, he will definitely be able to enter Handan. Once he enters Handan, with the promise of a fiefdom from King Zhao Qian, he will be safe.

Cao Yuan scoffed, "Save you? Young Master Chengjiao, look at the nonsense you're spouting! I've already done more than enough by not kicking you when you're down."

After saying this, Cao Yuan cracked his whip and spurred his donkey away.

Although he was confident he could kill Xuan Jian.

But how ridiculous must he be to go up against a killing machine controlled by Yan Ri just to save Cheng Jiao?