People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

Choosing the path of chaos...

Li Mu returned to his residence, filled with emotion.

……

Ten days later, Cao Ze went to court.

When he learned that the Three Jin states were preparing to destroy Qi, he felt an inexplicable sense of unease.

They really know how to have fun...

Chapter 467 Snatching the Queen

September has arrived, bringing with it clear skies, crisp autumn air, and boundless sunshine.

Xianyang, Zhangtai Palace.

When Ying Zheng delivered the military report about the Three Jin states' attack on Qi, the entire court fell silent.

Everyone had only one thought: Was the Three Jin states really going to clash with the Qin state?

The reason why the three Jin states attacked Qi together was simply to thwart Qin's idea of ​​befriending distant states while attacking nearby ones; otherwise, they would never have gone to such lengths.

Through his crown, Ying Zheng looked down at the civil and military officials in the hall, and a sense of supreme power arose within him.

He said calmly, "The Three Jin states' campaign against Qi was truly painstaking."

"To rebuild the Iron Blood Alliance for this is laughable."

He knew all too well why the Iron Blood Alliance was founded.

If it weren't for the various states' alliance against Qin and their mutual buck-passing, why would they have bothered to establish such a ridiculous iron-fisted alliance?

Lord Changping, as the head of all officials, stepped forward at the opportune moment.

"Your Majesty, the ambitions of the Three Jin states are known to all; we must be on guard."

"Your Majesty, I propose that we immediately dispatch a large army to support the State of Qi and avert the danger of its destruction."

He didn't want to say these things; he wished the Qin state didn't know what the Three Jin states were up to in their attack on Qi.

But he knew very well that the Qin state could not possibly be unaware of the ultimate purpose of the Three Jin states' attack on Qi.

In order to disguise himself as a high-ranking official of the Qin Dynasty, he had no choice but to be loyal and dutiful.

Cao Ze couldn't help but look at Lord Changping, thinking what a loyal and devoted prime minister he was.

Ying Zheng didn't ask Changping Jun any further questions. Instead, he asked Cao Ze, "Imperial Censor, what do you think?"

He had already labeled Changping Jun as a treacherous minister in his mind.

If Lord Changping weren't now the prime minister, and solid evidence was needed to bring him down, he would have already thrown him into prison.

Cao Ze thought to himself, "He's the Imperial Censor, not the Grand Commandant. Why would I call him here..."

However, the Qin state does not currently have a Grand Commandant.

As the highest military commander in the country, holding the title of "Golden Seal and Purple Ribbon" and holding the rank of "Ten Thousand Stones," he was in charge of all military affairs and wielded power even greater than that of the prime minister.

Therefore, the Qin state has not appointed a Grand Commandant for a long time.

At most, when a large number of troops need to be mobilized, the commander-in-chief will be temporarily promoted to Grand General.

It should be noted that the previous Grand Commandant was Bai Qi, who was promoted from Left Assistant to Grand Commandant, and then from Grand Commandant to Grand Master of Works.

If the King of Qin had been any more astute later on, he would never have appointed another person as Grand Commandant.

"Your Majesty, I believe we should not easily aid the State of Qi, lest we be caught in a trap by the Three Jin states."

Cao Ze directly rejected Changping Jun's proposal.

The three Jin states separated Qin and Qi. If the three Jin states had not reconciled in the past, it would have been acceptable. But now that the three Jin states were determined to form an alliance, Qin sent troops from a thousand miles away to support them. As long as Li Mu and Lord Xinling, who were in charge of the army, were not stupid, they would definitely let Qi go first and turn around to destroy the Qin army that had traveled a thousand miles to come.

Ying Zheng nodded in deep agreement, "The Imperial Censor's words make sense."

Lord Changping was slightly annoyed that Cao Ze had so easily rejected his suggestion.

If the King of Qin were to order aid to the State of Qi in resisting the Three Jin states, then he would have a great deal of room for maneuver.

With a simple trick, Qin could lose tens of thousands of soldiers and shatter its hopes of expanding eastward.

Ying Zheng continued, "Minister Cao, what do you think Qin should do in the face of the Three Jins attacking Qi?"

Cao Ze pondered for a moment and said, "In the Battle of Guiling between Qi and Wei, Wei general Pang Juan attacked Zhao's Handan. Qi general Tian Ji adopted Sun Bin's strategy, feigning an attack on Wei's Xiangling and then directly taking the capital Daliang, forcing the Wei army to retreat."

"This is a strategy of besieging Wei to rescue Zhao."

Ying Zheng said, "Should we besiege Wei to rescue Zhao?"

"Does the Imperial Censor mean to send troops to attack the Three Jin states?"

His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

The saying goes, "A single hair can affect the whole body."

Starting a war lightly could have unpredictable consequences.

Just like the Shangdang struggle back then, no one expected it to turn into the Battle of Changping.

This was arguably the most dangerous situation for the Qin state in recent decades, almost jeopardizing the fate of the nation.

Now that the Qin state is on the right track, all that is needed is for the Zheng Guo Canal to be completed and for supplies to be plentiful. With the Qin state's military might and national strength, who in the world would dare to stand in its way?

He had a grand path to follow, and he did not want to take any risks lightly. If he were to jeopardize Qin's hopes of expanding eastward, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

Cao Ze coughed lightly and said, "Although the three Jin states all originated from the same country, they still consider themselves as their own."

"There is no need to attack the three Jin states; we only need to choose one of them."

Ying Zheng understood Cao Ze's meaning.

"Hmm, I want to see if the three Jin states, which have reconciled, can stand by each other."

Ying Zheng smiled faintly and said, "Then I will appoint the Imperial Censor as the military supervisor and send him to Wusui on my behalf. I will order Meng Tian to send troops to Han and take Nanyang first."

The reason why South Korea had remained inactive was simply because it did not want to provoke other countries into forming an alliance.

However, there is no need to continue to tolerate South Korea now.

Cao Ze never expected that Ying Zheng would send him.

On second thought, he realized that Ying Zheng wanted him to gain military merit to pave the way for his position as prime minister; otherwise, he could have sent other trustworthy people to supervise the army.

He sighed softly to himself.

Is this the heart of an emperor?

Trusting subordinates, distrusting subordinates, appointing subordinates, abandoning subordinates...

He didn't actually want to leave Xianyang, after all, he still had some things to do.

But since things had come to this point, he had no choice but to make the trip.

Well, since we're going to attack South Korea, snatching a queen or something shouldn't be a problem, right...?

I wonder how Madam Mingzhu, Madam Hu, and Consort Hu are doing now...

After Cao Ze responded, Wang Jian, who had been silent all along, spoke up: "Your Majesty, this humble general has something to say."

Ying Zheng said, "General Wang, please speak."

Wang Jian said, “Qi is located in the east, bordering the sea. It has few strategic passes, with only the Qi Great Wall to hold off the three Jin states. Moreover, in the last ten years or so, Qi has enjoyed peace for a long time, and its soldiers have long lost the fighting prowess of the past, with few generals and few soldiers. Without external assistance, it is only a matter of time before Qi is breached.”

"Therefore, I dare to propose that we select an elite force from the army, travel light and simply, and rush to the State of Qi day and night to assist them."

"With such a two-pronged approach, the campaign by the three Jin states against Qi will surely end without any success."

Cao Ze sighed inwardly. As expected of a veteran, he was far superior to a newbie like himself who had only recently entered the field. His considerations were much more detailed than Cao Ze's.

Ying Zheng listened and nodded repeatedly.

"General, how many men do you think should be sent?"

Wang Jian said, "At least two thousand men, at most five thousand."

"Qi is rich in resources, so our army does not need to worry too much about logistics."

Gaozheng

Ying Zheng made the decision: "Then let's settle on this."

"Cao Ze was appointed as the military supervisor, urging Meng Tian to attack Nanyang in Han State."

"Zhang Tang is appointed general. Go to the Lantian camp and select four thousand of our Qin's elite troops. We should act quickly and not delay. We will soon head to Qi to block the Three Jin states."

Zhang Tang, who had just passed the age of fifty, stepped forward and said, "This humble general obeys the order."

Ying Zheng said, "I hope General Zhang Tang can achieve great success this time."

Zhang Tang was thrilled, "Yes!"

In the Battle of Yaoshan, because Cheng Jiao's reinforcements failed to arrive, General Meng Ao personally led the troops into battle but was unexpectedly killed, leading to the defeat.

As a deputy general, although he was not punished upon returning to Xianyang, he was no longer given important responsibilities, which was unacceptable to him.

I never expected to have the opportunity to make a contribution today. What a fine King of Qin!

……

On the same day, in Handan, at the Zhao King's Palace.

The Three Jin states have reorganized the Iron Blood Alliance today.

They swore an oath of blood, bound by the iron will of the three Jin states, and exchanged goods and services.

Compared to the Iron Blood Alliance of the past, which was merely a name without substance and engaged in monetary transactions, the Three Jin Iron Blood Alliance is now teeming with talented individuals.

The position of leader of the Iron Blood Alliance was concurrently held by Han Fei, the leader of the Three Jin Alliance.

Among the master advisors were Lord Longyang, Lord Xinling, Gongsun Long, and Lord Mou of Wei…

Half-step Grandmasters include Wei Zhuang and Ya Fei...

As for first-rate and second-rate masters, there are quite a few of them.

Even more noteworthy is the nameless swordsman who has just broken through to the Grandmaster level and is currently residing in Handan.