Master Kong Zhongni

Chapter 213 Fame Spreads Far and Wide (4K2)

Wu Guo, Gusu, early morning.

Outside the magnificent palace hall, Yan Zi got off the carriage with the help of his servants, and stood respectfully aside, waiting for the summoning of King Wu.

On the one hand, his visit to Wu State was to implement the diplomatic etiquette of sending envoys to each other for interviews every few years, and to express the willingness of Qi State and Wu State to live in harmony.

On the other hand, under the order of the Marquis of Qi, they came to find out what the King of Wu was thinking, to find out the internal situation of Wu, and to see if they had the ambition to go north.

Yan Zi waited outside Wu's palace for a short time.

Then he saw Wu Ge and his servants in rhinoceros armor running back to deliver the order.

The attendant said loudly: "The emperor summons!"

Yan Zi and the envoys from Qi State who came behind him were startled when they heard the words, but soon they understood the meaning hidden in this sentence.

Wu State is bullying Qi State and showing its prestige, but at the same time it is humiliating Yanzi!

Yan Zi's servants were all filled with righteous indignation: "Master! You can return to Qi!"

Unexpectedly, Yanzi didn't change his face when he heard this, he just stared at the branch of the tree, the birds in the sky, and the fish and insects in the river in Gusu City.

Seeing that Yan Zi didn't respond, the palace attendants of Wu State walked down the high stage and came to Yan Zi's side and repeated: "The Son of Heaven summons!"

Hearing this, Yan Zi said in amazement and fear: "I was ordered by the Marquis of Qi to go to Wu, who knew that Yan Ying was so old that he went in the wrong direction, this...how did he come to the emperor's court?
Although it is impolite to ask, but please forgive me for being stupid, I still want to ask you, where can I find the king of Wu? "

When Wu Guo's attendants heard this, their faces turned red, while Qi Guo's envoys put on smiling faces.

They booed: "Please also guide us to find the road to the King of Wu!"

Wu Guo's attendant was ashamed by what they said, so he hurried back to report to King Wu.

King Helu of Wu was sitting in the hall, and he couldn't help feeling embarrassed when he heard the attendant's reply.

He coughed twice, and said loudly: "You go and tell him, just say King Wu please see me."

After hearing this, the attendant hurried back to report.

But Sun Wu, Wu Zixu and others who sat under King Wu were quite helpless.

Wu Zixu got up directly and said to the King of Wu: "Yan Ying has been in office for three dynasties, and he is the pillar of Qi. His eloquence is famous all over the world, and his virtues are well known. Why do you want to humiliate him?"

King Wu blushed and said: "I heard that the Qi army has been defeated, so I want to test the attitude of the Qi people and see if there is a chance to go north to compete with Qi. Now it seems that the losses of the Qi people should be far away. It's not as big as I imagined!"

Wu Zixu advised: "The people in the land of Qi and Lu have different customs and language from our country. Even if you can go north and defeat Qi, you can't occupy their land and use their people.

It's like getting a land full of gravel and gravel, which is of no use to you.

However, the Yue Kingdom in the south has similar habits and customs to our country, and there are not many obstacles in the communication between the people.

If you can occupy the land of Yue State and appease their people, this is equivalent to gaining the power of two Wu States.

Now one state of Wu is enough to compete with the state of Qi. When you have two states of Wu and then move northward, can the people of Qi still block your advance?

What's more, due to years of wars in our country, the people in the country are exhausted, farming and mulberry work cannot be carried out on time, widows and widows who have lost their fathers, sons, and husbands have not been appeased properly, and the large tracts of land obtained in the war have not yet been firmly defended.

At this time, you are thinking of going north to attack Qi, and I implore you, Your Majesty, to carefully consider the pros and cons and make a final decision carefully. "

Hearing this, King Wu looked hesitantly at Sun Wu: "What does Changqing think about this?"

When Sun Wu heard this, he just stood up and replied, "Your Majesty has planned to attack Chu since he succeeded to the throne.

During this period, you recruited talents, trained troops, encouraged the people, and developed internal affairs. It took 11 years and dozens of battles, large and small. Completely crushed.

Now, Qi State and Chu State are also big countries, and if they want to defeat them, it will definitely not be a feat that can be achieved overnight. "

Hearing this, the king of Wu felt a little embarrassed, and he asked: "But you recommended me to read "Wei Liao Zi" earlier. Who? Said Sun Wuzi also.

An immortal general like you can sweep the world as long as you are given [-] soldiers and horses, and there is no one in the world who can match you.

With your commanding army, and adopting your strange strategy, can't we still defeat Qi? "

Sun Wu heard this, but bowed his head humbly and said: "You praised the strategy in "Wei Liao Zi", but have you forgotten it?

The one who wrote "Wei Liao Zi" was Zai Yu, the doctor Tuqiu of the State of Lu!

And this time, it was I, the Zaizi, who led the Lu army to defeat the Qi army's navy and conquer Yangzhou!

Now, Zaizi, my talent is not inferior to mine, but can't the State of Lu conscript an army of 3 people?

With him leading the army, I am afraid that the army led by me will be stopped by him in the territory of Lu State before it reaches Qi State.

At that time, I'm afraid I can only lay down on the sword, face the south and kill myself, in order to repay your kindness! "

Upon hearing this, King Wu hurriedly got up and apologized to Sun Wu.

"The widow understands that before the country has been appeased, the country of Yue has not been conquered, and Zai Zi I is still alive and has not united with the country of Lu, let's not mention the matter of going north to fight for hegemony."

At this time, Yan Zi was also brought into the hall.

After he saluted King Wu, before he got up, he heard King Wu ask him.

"I have heard of your virtuous name for a long time. You were humiliated and came to this wild and remote country of the widow under the order of the Marquis of Qi, and brought the etiquette education of the Central Plains to the widow. This is a gift to me.

Although I have already received the gift, I still want to be cheeky and ask you a few more questions. I wonder if it is convenient for you to answer? "

When Yan Zi heard the words, he only showed a nervous expression, as if he wanted to speak but couldn't.

Seeing this, King Wu asked strangely, "What's wrong with you?"

Yanzi replied: "I'm just a lowly minister from the north, I came to your country from the humble court to ask questions under the order of the king.

Although I am willing to answer your questions, I am worried that my words are not thoughtful and my etiquette is not complete, and I will be ridiculed by the officials below, so I am too afraid to know how to answer. "

When King Wu heard this, he immediately remembered what he had done to humiliate Yan Zi before, and just replied with a sneer.

"You just say it's okay, no matter what you say, the widow forgives you."

Upon hearing this, Yan Zi asked, "Then please ask me."

The king of Wu asked: "Although I have defeated Chu in the west and Yue in the south, under my rule, the territory of Wu has more than doubled.

Now the widow wants to maintain such a grand national prestige for a long time, and use it to command the princes, do you have any suggestions for me? "

When Yan Zi heard this, he just bowed down and said: "First the people, then yourself, so that the people will be willing to obey your orders.

Give benefits first, then punish, so that the scholars will be willing to defend the territory for you.

The strong do not bully the weak, the rich do not bully the humble, and the rich do not be proud of the poor, so that the surrounding countries are willing to serve you.

If you can achieve these three points, is there anyone in the world who does not support you?
If you can't do these three points, then the past of the widow's defeat in Onozawa is still vivid, how can you not learn from it? "

As soon as the King of Wu heard this, he knew that Yan Zi was scolding Marquis Qi on the surface, but in fact he was criticizing him for his arrogance and oppression.

However, what Yanzi said was impeccable, and he even deliberately tricked him to show his "disclaimer" earlier, pardoning him in advance of his innocence.

Therefore, it was not easy for the King of Wu to get angry directly, but he asked instead: "If according to your opinion, as long as Qihou achieves these three points, can he defeat the State of Lu in the Battle of Dayeze?"

Yanzi heard the words and sighed: "If the above three points are achieved, then those who are close to the monarch and those who are distant from him can get the official positions they deserve, so the ministers can be loyal to each other, and the people will not resent the country's politics. So when you kill the enemy, you always strive to be the first.

But now, the widowed monarch cannot give favors, but pays attention to punishment, likes to select talents according to personal likes and dislikes, and cannot arrange suitable official positions for them.

Therefore, the Qi army can't use their lives, and although the leaders Guozi and Gaozi are also brave generals who have experienced battles for a long time, how can their leading talents be compared with our country's Sima Rangju?

If Rangju was in command, even if the failure could not be changed, how could he have such an ending? "

When King Wu heard this, he couldn't help asking: "Do you think that I, the prime minister of Lu, can stand shoulder to shoulder with Sima Rangju of your country?"

Yan Zi thought back to the battle report sent back from the front line that day, and suddenly felt like laughing.

"Even if he is not as good as Rangju, at least he is a handsome talent above Guozi and Gaozi. If not, Gao Zi'an can be his prisoner, why should Guozi avoid his soldiers?"

Hearing the words, King Wu finally corrected his posture and began to recall Yan Zi's words.

"Chang Qing respects him, and Yan Zi also respects him. How can I be this Zai Zi?"

……

When King Helu of Wu was pondering Zaiyu's complex composition, Zaiyu himself had already led his army into the territory of Weiguo under the order of Marquis Lu.

However, he did not come to defend the country this time to fight.

Instead, he was sent to the state of Wei by the order of the Marquis of Lu to sign an alliance with the army of the Jin State and the Marquis of Wei who had to fall back to the Jin State again due to pressure.

Originally, Marquis Lu was ready to go on the road after receiving the notice from Jin State, but who would have thought that Jin State would specifically ask Zai Yu to come.

As for why Zai Yu was sent to sign the covenant instead of Marquis Lu himself, there is also something particular about it.

Firstly, because the state of Jin recognized this young doctor who had been shining brightly recently, he decided to hand over the honor of representing the monarch to make an oath.

The second is to disgust Weihou.

Because from the perspective of etiquette, normally speaking, the monarchs of all countries have to come forward for such a major event as an oath.

It is understandable that the Marquis of Jin did not come to preside over the oath, because it is not uncommon for the Liuqing to preside over the oath on behalf of the Marquis of Jin these years.

However, the State of Lu only sent a doctor to form an alliance with the Marquis of Wei. This was a pure intention to humiliate the State of Wei and punish them for their unsteady positions in Qi and Jin.

However, Marquis Lu is not the Six Ministers of Jin after all, so sending a doctor to form an alliance with Marquis Wei would be too humiliating to him.

In addition, Zaiyu made such great achievements in this battle, so Lu Hou simply did not stop doing two things, and directly promoted Zaiyu from a small pedestrian to a great pedestrian, and by the way, raised his title to match that of a big pedestrian. Go to the doctor.

From bottom to top, it seems that it is only a small step, but it means that Zaiyu is only one step away from Qing, the highest power class in Lu State.

Zaiyu was also very satisfied with the power held by the official position of Da Xingren.

The authority of the Daxingren includes being in charge of the etiquette for welcoming the great guests and guests, arranging envoys to go to various countries to ask questions, and using this to maintain amicable relations with the princes.

Internally, he is responsible for conveying the will of the monarch to the domestic officials and urging them to salute the monarch on time.

In addition, when the vassal states of the Lu State came to the Lu State to pay tribute and worship, they had to go through Zaiyu again, and Zaiyu was responsible for arranging the specific matters of their worship.

May I ask, is there any position that can allow Zai Yu to flex his muscles more than Da Xingren?

With the hat of Da Xingren on his head, his future contacts with the Zhao family and other high-ranking officials' families can be carried out on the table.

And when he did this, not only could others not blame him, but they had to praise him for his hard work.

Moreover, Da Xingren is the direct subordinate of Da Si Kou, and Da Si Kou is one of the ministers of Lu State.

At Jae Yu's age, two more years of experience, if there is some opportunity by the way...

Thinking of this, Zai Yu couldn't help exclaiming: "Mother, if you can't do it, you can join the court soon!"

On the way to Weiguo, Zaiyu was not idle.

Although he repeatedly declined the credit in front of Marquis Lu, he attributed the credit for the Battle of Yangzhou to the hard-fought battles of the Ran and Yan brothers, and attributed the Battle of Dayeze to the wise leadership of Yanghu, Ji Sunsi, and Mengsun Heji, Zilu, Shen Yi, etc. , Gongshan Buxuan and others with great assistance.

But no matter how much he gave, the one that Lu Hou should have given was not left behind, and the face was also given in place.

The office specially dispatched a reporter who had been contributing to the "Ren Pao" for a long time to interview Zai Yu with the army, and planned to publish all records of his deeds and all the big and small events that will happen at the alliance meeting on the Ren Pao.

And the name of this reporter is quite familiar to everyone, his name is Duan Muci.

Zigong glanced at the questions given to him by the office, and was immediately disgusted.

But no matter what, the task assigned to him by the monarch must be completed.

After grumbling for a long time, Zi Gong finally finished the interview with Jae Yu.

A selection of them is roughly as follows.

Question: In the Battle of Onozawa, our army was completely at a disadvantage. May I ask what kind of firm belief supported you at that time and allowed you to win this battle?

Answer: Persevere, not because we are strong enough, but because we have no choice.

Q: Why do you say you have no choice?
Answer: Although the State of Lu is big, we have nowhere to go. After passing through Zhongdu, Qufu is behind us!
Question: During the Battle of Yangzhou, you led the army to climb first, regardless of life and death, and fought hard even if you were surrounded by heavy siege. What made you make this decision?
A: Our husbands from Tuqiu are born to be surrounded!On the battlefield, surrounded by enemies.When you return from victory, there are flowers and singing!
Question: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say to the scholars and gentlemen of the State of Lu?
Answer: The state of Lu is experiencing turmoil, but don't be afraid, cultivate virtue and practice the six arts, we are being favored by the emperor of heaven!
　The monthly pass is like sunshine in July...I dare not look at it more...

　　——Excerpt from "Zaiyu's Diary"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)