The Six Arts of the Gentleman in the Bright Moon of Qin Dynasty

Chapter 935 Cao Shen's Choice [Subscribe*Monthly Ticket Request]

As for why they deployed troops on their own without reporting to the royal city, this is understandable.

If Wang Cheng knew what Cao Shen did, he would definitely refuse. Even if Wang Cheng had this concern, he would not agree to Cao Shen's doing so before completely breaking off relations with the State of Qin.

Now Cao Shen has mobilized troops privately. If Qin State investigates, Wang Cheng can say that he was unaware of it and that it was done by his chief officer himself. At that time, all he needs to do is to transfer Cao Shen away from Hetao and send him back to Wang Cheng without any trouble.

Wang Cheng’s order belongs to the diplomatic relations between the two countries, and Bingzhou has no reason to argue. However, if it is Cao Shen’s own behavior, it has nothing to do with Wang Cheng.

This is just like when Han offered Shangdang to Qin, but there was a secret instruction for Feng Ting to give Shangdang to Zhao, which triggered the Battle of Changping.

Even if Qin State pursues the matter, Bingzhou can shirk the responsibility by saying that the general is away from home and cannot obey the king's orders.

"You don't have to explain to me. I know nothing. But you should figure out how to explain it to Prime Minister Gongsun. Maybe you can even experience the greetings of a top warrior!" Yan Yan said with a smile.

Even if he knew that Cao Shen had secretly taken over the Qin territory thirty miles south of Hetao, he pretended not to know.

"Ah?" Cao Shen was shocked.

Before doing this, he had already thought that Wang Cheng would pretend to know nothing.

But he overlooked one point. The Foreign Minister's Office was in charge of Bingzhou's diplomacy. If Gongsun Linglong was not notified, then if Qin State suddenly brought up the issue of diplomacy, it would catch Gongsun Linglong off guard and greatly affect the diplomatic work.

Cao Shen didn’t think too much about this. As for the greetings from the top warriors, what was the situation?
"Gongsun Xiang's husband, the Confucian sage Zhuang Er, Mr. Yan Lu has also come to Bingzhou!" Zhao Gao reminded Cao Shen in a low voice.

Cao Shen instantly broke out in a cold sweat, there are many warriors in the world, including the young generation, but leaving aside the likes of Yan Yan, the next ones are Jing Ke, Fu Nian and Yan Lu.

Even some masters of the older generation may not be able to match this group of people.

"Master Yan Lu wouldn't come all the way to Hetao to cause trouble for me, right?"

"Remove the word 'not'. Master Yan Lu is now accompanying Prime Minister Gongsun to Xianyang. If Xianyang accuses you of occupying the area south of Hetao without authorization at this time, how long do you think it will take to get from Xianyang to Hetao?" The others also looked at Cao Shen with a smile.

It was not necessary to beat Cao Shen to death, but he was bound to teach him a small lesson.

Especially since they are reunited after a short separation, you have prepared such a place for them. As a husband, Yan Lu has stayed in Xiao Shengxian Manor for so many years without caring about anything. Now that he is here, he naturally wants to find an opportunity to show his usefulness.

What Cao Shen did was like giving a pillow to someone who was sleepy. Who knows, Yan Lu might have secretly given him a thumbs up in his heart, and then attacked him more harshly.

"As a fellow Confucian, rest assured, Jingbo, Mr. Zilu will not lecture you publicly!" Yan Yan was also interested in watching the fun.

"It won't be made public, so he will do it secretly!" Cao Shen laughed stiffly, trying to find joy in the midst of suffering.

Originally, he had not considered the Foreign Minister's Mansion. Even if he was reminded, he believed that with Gongsun Linglong's intelligence, she would be able to guess why he did not notify the royal city or report it.

But he never expected Yan Lu to come.

"I and all the nobles will remember your sacrifice for Bingzhou. Go with peace of mind!" Yan Yan said jokingly while laughing.

Everyone was holding back their laughter, and only Cao Shen felt hurt.

He stayed in Hetao for a few more days, mainly to inquire who would take over the position of Hetao general manager after Cao Shen left Hetao.

Hetao has been built and Cao Shen's mission has been completed. It is time to transfer back to the royal city.

"Dugu Longcheng!" Cao Shen directly recommended Dugu Yanzhi's elder brother, who was the current patriarch of the Dugu tribe, one of the three major tribes of the Xiongnu Tuxie King's tribe.

"?" Yan Yan looked at Cao Shen in surprise. Dugu Yanzhi was the emperor's concubine, and her father and brother were both in the Bingzhou army with a large number of troops under their command. If Dugu Longcheng took over as the chief military and political officer of Hetao... it would not be impossible.

But generally speaking, important officials in the court would subconsciously avoid getting too close to the families of the in-laws. For a person like Cao Shen, who had a promising future and was also the designated successor to An Qisheng as the next prime minister of Bingzhou, this behavior could easily be misunderstood by the court.

"Do you know what your recommendation means?" Yan Yan asked solemnly.

He knew that Cao Shen was truly concerned about Bingzhou, but Wang Cheng didn't think so.

Cao Shen's recommendation was successful. Once he returned to the royal city, everyone would subconsciously classify him as part of Dugu's political group.

"I know!" Cao Shen nodded.

He thought about it and realized that the largest force in the court was the Taoist Huang-Lao school headed by An Qisheng, and behind the Taoism was Shao Siming.

The other is the Zhao State power group, headed by Li Ren, Luo Bing and others, who control the National Guard Office, and Yan Yan is directly behind them.

Then there is the Confucian group, backed by Yan Lingji, now also called Tan Tai Ling.

He came from a humble background and had no one to back him up, so he had to return to the royal city to gain a foothold. The weakest Dugu clan was his choice.

Even if other families accept him, he will not become the leader.

Yan Yan looked at Cao Shen deeply. He was going to ruin a good hand of cards himself.

It has the shadow of the unpopular poet Li Shangyin.

He could have gone straight back to the royal city, gotten help from Confucianism, and become the next generation of Confucian leader in Bingzhou, but now he was having an ambiguous relationship with Dugu.

When he returns to the royal city, he will be in a dilemma.

Both sides will doubt his position.

However, Yan Yan didn’t think about explaining to him. Let go of the desire to help others and respect the fate of others.

No one party can dominate the court, especially Confucianism is really not suitable for Bingzhou. If Confucianism becomes the head of Bingzhou's administration, it may not be a good thing for Bingzhou.

"Then let Dugu Longcheng take over the position of the military and political chief of Hetao!" Yan Yan circled Dugu Longcheng's name on the recommendation letter.

Zhao Gao could see through it, but he didn't remind him. Young people always have to be beaten before they grow up.

Only when Cao Shen was really ostracized in the royal city and he extended a helping hand, could he truly gain Cao Shen's gratitude.

"Next, Zhao Qingjia will lead the touring group to inspect the counties according to the established route!" After letting Cao Shen leave, Yan Yan said to Zhao Gao.

Patrol + Zhao Gao, this buff is a bit scary, Yan Yan has to be on guard.

So he must never let Zhao Gao stay by his side.

Just like in history, the entire Qin State probably would not have thought that Ying Zheng would suddenly die of illness during a tour.

Although Yan Yan was confident that he could live for a long time, he was still afraid.

"Here!" Zhao Gao nodded.

This had been planned in advance. He would lead the inspection team to continue inspecting the counties, while Yan Yan would act alone with his wives and concubines to truly start traveling.

Otherwise, Yan Yan would still have to continue handling official business in various places, which would go against the original intention of arranging this tour.

(End of this chapter)