When I was in Qin Dynasty, I really didn't want to make progress

At the height of Zhao's power, it had only over 400,000 soldiers, but Qin had 600,000 soldiers, and these 600,000 soldiers were able to take time off from work and fight for a long time.

The national strength of Qin was so strong that it was enough to support 600,000 people fighting for two consecutive years, but Zhao could not sustain 400,000 people fighting for a year. This was also an important reason why the Zhao army was defeated in the Battle of Changping that year.

What's more, the current Zhao State is inferior to its heyday. Not to mention, the loss of Jinyang has greatly reduced the national strength of Zhao State. Zhao State started in Jinyang, which is also the old capital of Zhao State and has always been the largest city of Zhao State except Handan.

But Jinyang was lost and now became the base for the Qin army to attack Zhao. Through Jinyang, the Qin army could go north and directly attack the three counties of Dai in the northern border of Zhao, and go east and cross Jingxing Pass and go straight into the heart of Zhao.

It can be said that if Zhao wanted to maintain its offensive capability against Qin, it had to possess Jinyang. Only by possessing Jinyang could the Zhao army threaten Qin's Hedong County at all times and bring the war to the heartland of Qin.

"So the key to everything lies in Jinyang. We must consider how to recapture Jinyang." Queen Dowager Zhao revealed the key in one sentence.

"Jinyang?" Li Mu's eyes narrowed when he heard this. He was in Dai and was most sensitive to the affairs of Jinyang. The Northern Border Army was invincible with Jinyang. Without Jinyang, the Northern Border Army, although still sharp, could not last long. In a war, this was enough to be fatal.

"Queen Mother, Jinyang cannot be conquered in the short term." Guo Kai observed the reactions of the crowd. He didn't know when his former ally had become like this, a woman who was as capable as any man. But he was the one who least wanted to fight a war, especially a war with the Qin State.

He was the prime minister. In the war against Qin, he had no military merit when they won, but he had to clean up the aftermath when they were defeated. It can be said that he got no benefits at all, but instead suffered uninvited consequences.

"I know, but the threat from Qin is imminent, so I have an immature plan. You can listen to it. In order to better deal with Qin's future attacks on our Zhao State, I have decided to divide the country into four major war zones." The Queen Mother Zhao said, and while speaking, she did not forget to glance at Yang Chong.

"War zone?" Everyone except Yang Chong was stunned. This word was still a little unfamiliar to people of this era, but they quickly realized that this word was not obscure and difficult to understand. Its meaning could be understood just from the literal meaning.

"Yes, in fact, we are already implementing this system. The northern border where Dai County, Yunzhong County and other three counties are located is such a war zone. It is led by General Li, and the military of the three counties is integrated." said Queen Zhao.

Li Mu was also surprised when he heard Queen Zhao mention him, and he had a bad guess.

Chapter 218 Junior Master

Li Mu was a very special person in Zhao State. His position was only the governor of Dai County, and he also held the position of general. However, due to the special nature of the three northern counties facing the wolf tribe, the administrative system of the three northern counties was completely at the service of the military. As the highest military leader in the north, he had absolute say there. But now the Queen Mother Zhao said that she wanted to divide Zhao State into four war zones such as the Northern Border Army.

Did Queen Mother Zhao really intend to do this? Or was she just using this as an excuse to take away his power?

In Li Mu's opinion, Queen Dowager Zhao was such a person.

When King Yan of Zhao abolished Zhao Jia's position as crown prince and his biological mother's position as queen, Li Mu was opposed to it. Especially when King Yan of Zhao made Queen Dowager Zhao, who came from a family of prostitutes, as queen, he was even more dissatisfied. These things were no secret in the power circle of Zhao State.

Now that Queen Mother Zhao holds power, how could she not settle the score?

Li Mu did not dare to take a woman's vengeful desire lightly. Throughout history, many people had fallen into the hands of women.

Moreover, Li Mu was well aware that the Queen Mother of Zhao was not a person of high moral character. This was also an important reason why he opposed King Zhao Yan's decision to make her the queen.

Now that Queen Mother Zhao is in power, will she easily let go of him who spoke ill of her in the past?

"Queen Dowager, due to the special nature of the three northern counties, we have to prioritize military affairs." Li Mu said carefully. He didn't know whether Queen Dowager Zhao was going to take action against him, so he could only choose to be cautious.

"I know, but now our Zhao State is at the critical moment of survival. The threat posed by the Qin army to us is even greater than that of the Wolf Tribe. No matter how strong the Wolf Tribe is, they cannot reach Handan. But the Qin army is different. Facing the more powerful Qin army, we should also extend the wartime system of the northern border counties to the hinterland." said the Queen Mother Zhao.

Am I overthinking this? Li Mu thought about it. He really couldn't hear anything unusual in Queen Mother Zhao's words.

Could it be that I really underestimated this queen mother? Li Mu couldn't help but feel a little more confused.

“I plan to set up Yecheng, Anyang and other places south of the Great Wall and Zhangshui as a war zone, with the governor of Yang County taking the position of Junior Master in charge of the military and political affairs of the area. Then I plan to turn the areas west of Taihang Mountain except Handan into a war zone, which will be led by General Hu Hui, and the troops in Handan will be led by General Zhao Cong.” said the Queen Mother Zhao.

"If so, the deployment of the troops can be smoother, and it should be able to play a good role in the future battle against the Qin army." Pang Nuan, who was about to step down, murmured. Among all the people present, he was probably the one with the least desires. He was about to step down and was already old, so he only needed to consider the State of Zhao. As for what others thought of him, it was not important.

In his opinion, the war zone system that the Queen Mother Zhao was talking about at this time could certainly improve the combat effectiveness of the Zhao army, but it would also have many disadvantages. For example, when the State of Jin implemented the Six Lords system, although it made the State of Jin the overlord in a short period of time, it created powerful ministers from all sides, which eventually led to the story of the three families dividing the State of Jin.

It can be said that there are precedents for this.

However, the situation Zhao was facing now was different from that of Jin back then. Zhao was now dwarfed by the attack of the Qin army. The so-called disadvantages of the war zone system might not be exposed until decades later, while the threat from the Qin army was imminent for Zhao. If it could not overcome the current crisis, there might be no future. Therefore, the so-called disadvantages could be ignored for the time being.

"Prime Minister, what is your opinion?" Queen Dowager Zhao asked Guo Kai again. Although the war zone system only involves military affairs, if you want to implement it smoothly, it also needs the cooperation of the Prime Minister's Office. Not to mention anything else, the supply of the army and the installation of ordnance need to be coordinated by the Prime Minister's Office.

"Your Majesty, this is a brilliant idea. I also think it is feasible." Guo Kai said. Of course he agreed.

Although the war zone system strengthened the military power of the generals, it did not affect Guo Kai's power. Especially with the improvement of the status of Yang Chong, Zhao Cong, and Hu Hui, Li Mu's influence in the army was going to decline. On the other hand, Guo Kai was on good terms with Yang Chong and Zhao Cong, and had a very good relationship with Hu Hui.

If the war zone system is implemented, his authority will not be affected and may even be enhanced. He will naturally be happy to see this happen.

"Since you have no objection, then this matter is settled." Queen Mother Zhao gave the final word.

She was intoxicated by the feeling of being able to manipulate a country so easily and change the country with just a few words.

After reaching a consensus on some trivial matters, this small court meeting came to an end, but everyone who left had their own thoughts.

Zhao Cong was pleasantly surprised. He did not expect to be promoted. Pang Nuan was neither sad nor happy. He was about to retire. As for Li Mu? Li Mu felt that he should re-evaluate Queen Mother Zhao.

Queen Mother Zhao gave him a very unusual feeling today. She was actually a woman who was "good at governing the country".

I just hope this isn't an illusion? Li Mu muttered to himself as he left the palace. He couldn't stay in Handan for long. There were some things he had to figure out as soon as possible. Although he was a soldier, it was impossible for someone in his position to be separated from politics. He was first an official of the State of Zhao, and then a general. Only by being a good official first could he better perform his duties as a general.

"Did I do the right thing?" Yang Chong, who was left alone, faced this question from Queen Dowager Zhao.

"The Queen Mother has done a great job. There are so many people in the court, and it is difficult to identify them one by one. The Queen Mother only needs to grasp the core power." As the mastermind behind the scenes, Yang Chong naturally did not hesitate to praise Queen Mother Zhao when faced with her questions.

"Won't people like Li Mu become too powerful to be eliminated?" Queen Mother Zhao still had doubts. Li Mu might be a loyal minister, but he was not necessarily a loyal minister to her.

In the history of Zhao State, even traitors claimed to be loyal ministers, but it is difficult to say who they were loyal to.

In the eyes of Queen Dowager Zhao, Li Mu was such a person. Li Mu should be loyal to the State of Zhao, but not necessarily loyal to her and her son. Such a Li Mu was dangerous to her.

"The money and grain are under the control of the Queen Mother. Li Mu is just a general. What can he do? The soldiers of Zhao obey his orders, of course, because of the prestige accumulated by Li Mu's victory in all the wars, but more importantly, because he has the support of the king. Just like Lu Buwei of Qin, he was so powerful and arrogant in the past, but King Zheng of Qin could dismiss him from his position as prime minister with a decree and let him retire in Luoyi." Yang Chong said to calm the Queen Mother Zhao's uneasy mood.

This is a very insecure woman. She is suspicious because of her powerlessness, and jealous because of her suspicion. It is easy for her to do stupid things out of suspicion.

"What about you? You have the rich salt fields of Jibei County, and now you have obtained the troops from Yecheng and Dong'a. I don't even have the means to check and balance you. Can I trust you completely?" said the Queen Mother Zhao.

She had a feeling that Yang Chong was trustworthy. Of course, this was not because her relationship with Yang Chong had really reached that point, but because she had a feeling that Yang Chong simply looked down on these things of the Zhao State.

In Zhao State, Yang Chong could at most become a powerful official, and even that was difficult. In Zhao State, Yang Chong was an outsider. He could ascend to a high position with his own talents, but he did not have the foundation to become a powerful official.

But it was different in Qi State. In Qi State, Yang Chong really had a chance to seize the throne.

But she felt that this kind of thing was unreliable, so until this moment, Queen Mother Zhao was still a little hesitant, or rather, she was not going to do anything because of this hesitation, but simply wanted to get more guarantees from Yang Chong.

"Trust is not something that can be expressed in words, but must be demonstrated. I believe that in the past few collaborations, I have proven myself to be a partner worthy of the Queen Mother's trust." Yang Chong, who was too lazy to analyze the complicated thoughts of the Queen Mother Zhao, replied directly.

"That's true." Queen Mother Zhao nodded. The two of them were already on the same boat, so it was really unnecessary to talk about trust or not.

……

Since Yang Chong has already obtained everything he wanted in Handan, there is naturally no need for him to stay in Handan any longer. Now the number of households under his jurisdiction has expanded to 100,000. If he wants to transform this force into real combat power, he still has a lot of things to do, and naturally he does not allow himself to waste too much time.

When Yang Chong was packing up and rushing from Handan to Dong'a, Zi Nu from Jibei County had already arrived with her belongings.

As the western capital of Qi State and one of its five capitals, Dong'a City was extremely large. Although it was occupied by Zhao State, Zhao State never gave up its management of Dong'a because Dong'a was an extremely tall city and its prosperity was even greater than that of Ye City.

The most important thing is that there is a palace of the former King of Qi here.

Although this palace has not been renovated and many buildings have been abandoned since Dong'a lost its status as the western capital of Qi, the foundation is still there. After Zi Nu moved her family here, she directly occupied the palace and even recruited craftsmen to renovate the abandoned buildings.

There are not many people in the Yang family, so naturally they don't need so many houses. However, Jibei County has its own administrative system, and the six ministries alone require a lot of official residences. Instead of building new ones, it is better to recycle the waste.

As for whether they would exceed the rules by occupying the palace, it was not within Zi Nu's consideration at all. If there was any problem, Yang Chong would naturally take care of it. As for her? She only needed to rebuild Dong'a's administrative system as quickly as possible to control Yecheng, Anyang and other places.

So when Yang Chong brought Yan Lingji to Dong'a, all he saw was a busy construction site.

"Did Yingge stay in Handan?" Yang Chong, who had just washed off the dust on his face, sat down. Zi Nu had already thrown a book to him.

"Someone is needed over there to contact all parties." Yang Chong opened the book, only to find that this was not a book, but intelligence about the State of Qi.

Jibei County's target has been Qi from the very beginning. It is not an easy task to swallow up such a big country. Knowing yourself and your enemy is the first thing. Although Qi's army is not very useful, the people of Qi are still capable of fighting. As long as someone can organize it, it will still be one of the most powerful armies in the world.

Otherwise, in the future time and space, the King of Western Chu would not be helpless against him.

"Right now we should pay more attention to Linzi." Zi Nu reminded.

"So what you mean is?" Yang Chong asked.

"Send Yingge to Linzi. She is the leader of Night's Shadow. It is most appropriate for her to command Night's Shadow's actions in Qi." Zi Nu said.

"After we complete the training of the soldiers in Yecheng and Dong'a, we will also go to Qi." Yang Chong browsed the information in the book. With the expansion of the territory, it was time to strengthen the cooperation with several schools of thought, especially Confucianism, Mohism, and Military Science.

"The place with the most active agriculture, besides the Huai and Si areas, is Qi State. You must be careful when you go there." Zi Nu said.

You can't write two "田" characters with one stroke. Although the Tian family, a royal family of Qi, and the Tian family, a farming family, have been separated for more than two hundred years, their ties with each other are still very deep. If Yang Chong enters Qi, no one knows what will happen.

At that time, perhaps it would not be just the farmers who took action against Yang Chong.

"The Six Sages of the Nong Family, we will have to fight against them sooner or later. Among the 100,000 disciples of the Nong Family, there are six elite groups, who are also what we need." Yang Chong said.

"Those six old guys are not easy to deal with." Zi Nu said.

The Six Sages of the Farming Family are masters who have been famous for decades. Although they are not grandmasters, their decades of accumulation have made their skills infinitely close to those of grandmasters. In addition, the six people's combined attack technique of formation is enough to defeat a real grandmaster. Yang Chong is not their opponent yet.

"Six pieces of trash who can never break through to the Grandmaster level in their entire lives, can only win by numbers, and they really think they are invincible." Yang Chong sneered.

"If the six of them are useless, I'm afraid there will be few geniuses in the world." Zi Nu did not dare to take it lightly. If the six elders of the Nong family come out together, it will definitely be earth-shattering. There are not many people in the world who can stop them. Although Yang Chong is powerful, he still does not have enough accumulation and is too young.

Although Zi Nu believed that Yang Chong would be almost invincible when he reached middle age, Yang Chong was not a master after all.

"Zi Nu, you forgot one thing." Looking at Zi Nu with a worried look on her face, Yang Chong frowned. Why did his wife look like she wasn't very smart?

"What did I forget?" Zi Nu asked puzzledly.

"We are not from the martial arts world. If the six old men from the farming family come to Dong'a, do I really have to learn from the martial arts people and fight them in battle?" Yang Chong replied.

In this era, no matter how strong a person's martial arts are, there is a limit. Although one's martial arts skills have been cultivated to the level of Donghuang Taiyi and Bei Mingzi, they are already extraordinary and saintly, but they are still human beings. As long as they are human beings, they have their limits and cannot do the things that gods do.

In a world without God, the strongest are still those in power.

If the six old men from the farming family dared to come to Dong'a, Yang Chong would let them see how killing people by force is done.

Chapter 219 The Fifth Martial Art: Sword

It was very hot in Dong'a City in May, and Yang Chong wisely chose to stay at home to escape the heat. Of course, he was resting, but the various affairs in the territory did not stop.

It is the harvest season now. After the harvest, the issue of tax collection will be put on the agenda. After the grain is stored in the warehouse, the military affairs of training the government soldiers will also be put on the agenda.

These are all the things that Yang Chong needs to be busy with in the second half of the year. In addition to these things, there is an even more important thing, which is to build roads and dig canals. Using land and water transportation, with Dong'a City as the center, the canal will connect the various rivers in Jibei County to the east, turning it into a whole and going straight into the sea. To the west, the roads will connect Yecheng, Anyang and other places, and then turn the territory under his current jurisdiction into a whole.

Deep in Yang Chong's heart, he actually had the urge to build large-scale projects. When he stepped into this game, it could be said that his enthusiasm for power was limited. He had seen a wider time and space, and he had no awe at all for the king of this world. Since he did not fear the so-called throne, naturally he would not have much enthusiasm for the so-called power.

If he really likes power, he can choose to lie dormant and wait for the world to be in chaos more than 20 years later. It would not be easy for him to pursue power then, but it would definitely be much easier than joining this game now.

But Yang Chong chose to join the highest power game in the world at this time.

At this point in time, Han and Wei are already on their last legs, Zhao is just a skeleton left, Chu is powerless to turn the tide, and Qin is truly on the rise. It is actually very difficult to compete with it for the world when Qin is at its peak, even if Yang Chong has experience and knowledge far beyond this world, and the possibility of success is not great.

He knew this very well, but even though he knew the world situation was difficult to reverse, Yang Chong still resolutely joined the game.

As for the reason?

In fact, Yang Chong also has a hobby of changing the world. Unlike the King of Qin in Xianyang, King of Qin had no experience to follow for everything he did. He could only try to build his ideal country through constant attempts. There were successful experiences and lessons from failure. Success is certainly desirable, but the cost of failure is too high.

But Yang Chong was different. Compared with King Zheng of Qin, Yang Chong's goal was clearer and he could avoid King Zheng of Qin's failure.

If possible, who wouldn't want the world to be a better place? Deep in Yang Chong's heart, although he regarded the world as a game, he hoped that the game could evolve according to his wishes.

This is a choice made by a man out of maturity, but also out of innocence.

However, large-scale construction projects consume a lot of manpower and resources, and accidents are likely to happen if you are not careful. In this era, if you tell a group of farmers about the benefits of building roads, they may not be able to see it. They will only see that their working hours are getting longer and longer.

"So we have to do it step by step. More haste makes waste." Yang Chong thought and then withdrew his thoughts. A month ago, he had sent out the people who were proficient in water conservancy and geomancy among the six departments of Emperor Yan. If the transportation routes in the territory are to be planned, it will take quite a long time, at least until the government soldiers are formed.

More haste makes waste not only in infrastructure construction, but also in the upbringing of offspring.

Yang Chong's attention gradually shifted to his two children beside him. The two little guys were four years old and had already understood a lot of things. Whether it was learning literature or practicing martial arts, it had to be put on the agenda. Otherwise, even if Yang Chong was willing, some people would not be willing.

"Teaching children is the most troublesome thing, but I have to pay attention to it. Alas, I am still so young, and I have to bear such pressure so early." Yang Chong looked at his two children who were imitating each other, and a look of distress appeared on his brows.

The two little guys have excellent physiques. Yes, both Yang Chong and Niu Shang have outstanding aptitude in martial arts. There is no reason for them to give birth to stupid children. However, what martial arts to teach the little guys requires careful consideration.

Although Niu Shang's martial arts skills are very high, the methods he uses are all killer methods. It is naturally inappropriate to teach such martial arts to children, so this job was thrown to Yang Chong.

Although Yang Chong knows a lot of martial arts, the energy-absorbing technique is too sinister and the Zhou Liuxu technique is full of dangers, so they are not very suitable for him.

"So only Fuxi's Divine Heavenly Ring and the Nine Yin Scriptures are the most suitable. If this is the case, I can completely leave this matter to Nong Yu." Yang Chong had made up his mind while thinking.

"Well, let's do it this way. It's just that Nongyu will have to suffer a lot." Yang Chong said these words with shame, but there was no shame on his face at all.

……

Nanyue was very happy when she saw Yang Chong. Although Yang Chong had taken some time off from his busy schedule during this period, there were many people at home, and even she could not stay with Yang Chong all the time.

This woman, who had just transformed from a young girl into a young woman not long ago, not only did not become more mature as she grew up, but became more innocent, and developed a strong sense of dependence on Yang Chong.

"Can I do it?" When Yang Chong explained his purpose, Nongyu's face turned bitter. She had never taught a child before, so she was naturally nervous, fearing that she would not do well and would not only delay the little one, but also disappoint Yang Chong.

"Of course Nongyu can do it. Not to mention anything else, as long as Nongyu teaches the two little guys according to her own standards and trains them to be as outstanding as Nongyu, it will exceed my expectations." Faced with Nongyu's hesitation, Yang Chong's attitude was very firm. He had full confidence in Nongyu.

"Okay then, but I don't know much. It's okay for me to teach them for a few years. When they grow up a little, I will hire a formal teacher for them." Seeing Yang Chong so persistent, Nong Yu no longer said anything to refuse, but still insisted on her own opinion.

"We'll talk about it later, Nongyu. Have you felt bored during this period?" After Yang Chong had dealt with the issue of his children's education, he finally had the heart to care about his little wife in front of him.