The large beams and towering city walls have long been stained red with blood, and the air is filled with a strong smell of blood. Broken swords, guns, swords and halberds have sunk into the city bricks, and corpses are strewn under the city walls.
The soldiers looked indifferent, with no expression on their faces. Like programmed robots, they silently removed the corpses of their comrades, brought water to clean the stains on the city wall, and brought cement to repair the damaged walls.
The evening wind whimpered, and the setting sun stretched the silhouettes of the soldiers very long...
They have long been numb to death.
The comrade who was still chatting and laughing yesterday has fallen down today, and there is no time to be sad, because he may be the one who dies tomorrow.
The King of Wei climbed to the top of the city to boost morale and brought cooked food to the soldiers, all of which were rice or corn.
Enough.
The princess also came, picked up the spoon, and personally served the soldiers rice.
Seeing King Wei and the princess, the soldiers' eyes became more colorful.
"How is the situation?" King Wei summoned several ministers. When the Qin army attacked the city, the ministers would not let him get close to the city wall. Only when the war was over could he climb the city wall to express condolences to the soldiers.
"The Qin army's attack is becoming more and more fierce. It seems that they will not give up until they break the beam." Zhang Yan said worriedly.
Although the Qin State had attacked Daliang City many times in the past, the Wei State usually gave in and ceded a few cities, and the Qin State retreated. It has never been so fierce and continuous as it is now.
After all, Daliang City is not that easy to capture. If the Qin army suffered heavy losses during the siege, it is likely that other countries would take advantage of it.
This time Wei had promised to surrender to Qin and was willing to cede territory, but Qin still did not withdraw its troops and insisted on rejecting its previous conditions.
"How long can we hold on?" King Wei asked silently after a long time.
"Although the Qin army is powerful, we have a favorable location and the soldiers are very determined to resist the Qin army. The Qin army will not be able to attack it for a while. But... the general is worried about the Qin army using water attacks. It is spring now.
At the end of summer and the beginning of summer, the rainy season is coming soon, and by then..." Zhang Yan said with great worry.
The so-called water attack refers to the water that breaks through Xingze and floods the beams.
This is no longer a secret, almost the whole world knows about Daliang's weakness.
During the Changping War, Qin State took advantage of Wei State's heart and told Wei State that as long as it did not support Zhao State, it would give Yuan Yong to Wei State after the war.
Yuan Yong is next to Xingze.
Unless the Wei State moved its capital, flooding the beams would be an unsolvable conspiracy for the Wei State. Even if they knew that the Qin army might do this, they could only wait for death.
"How likely is it?" King Wei couldn't sit still after hearing this.
"If Qin's purpose is to destroy Wei, the possibility is close to 100%." Zhang Yan said it very directly.
If you want to destroy Wei State, flooding the beams is the simplest and most effective way.
Unless Qin doesn't want to destroy Wei.
"Probably not. If Qin annexes Wei, its power will be irresistible. Zhao, Qi and Chu will not sit back and watch Qin grow. Besides, Zhao has promised to send troops to support Wei." King Wei muttered.
He murmured, hoping to eliminate the fear in his heart.
But he found it didn't work.
Thinking that the whole beam was about to be swept away by the flood, King Wei became panicked.
"Your Majesty, the envoy from the State of Qin wants to see you." At this time, Xu Wan came over and reported.
King Wei was thinking about the flood when he suddenly heard a sound and was startled. When he saw it was Xu Wan, he relaxed and said, "Messenger from Qin? Let him come."
"What is King Wei thinking about?" Qin envoy said with a smile and cupped his hands.
"Except for going to Xianyang to pay homage to the King of Qin and to announce the severance of contact with the State of Zhao, everyone else can agree." Seeing the envoy of Qin, King Wei's already bad mood became even worse, and his face was so gloomy that he almost shed tears.
He could agree to surrender to Qin, but he would never go to Xianyang to die. It was even less possible for him to break up with Zhao and give Zhao an excuse to attack Wei.
"In this case, King Wei is just waiting to become the king of the country." The envoy of Qin glanced at King Wei, turned around and left without any long words of persuasion, "Foreign ministers, take your leave."
"Your Majesty, if you agree to Qin's conditions, you can at least keep the country of Wei. If we wait for the Qin army to break through Daliang... it will be too late." Xu Wan said sadly.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, as long as the general is here, the Qin army will not be able to break through Daliang." Jin Bi said solemnly.
Because other countries refused to support Wei, Jin Bi's Daliang army was forced to withdraw to Daliang from Hedong. After all, if Hedong is gone, they can fight back. If Daliang is gone, Wei will be destroyed.
"Zhao has promised to send troops to support us. We only need to hold on for another month or two." Zhou? said.
"It's true that Zhao promised support, but what's the use of Lord Xinling alone? Can he alone defeat the Qin army? Zhao Jun said it was cutting off the Qin army's retreat. Who knows if he secretly formed an alliance with the Qin army?
, even if there is no alliance with Qin, do you dare to guarantee that Zhao does not deliberately let Wei and Qin consume their strength?"
"At that time, even if our Wei State defeats the Qin State, the country will be filled with mourning and desolation. If any country attacks, our Wei State will not be able to resist it. Instead of doing this, it is better to end the war as soon as possible and preserve the national strength of our Wei State. Minister
After a lot of hard work, I hope your Majesty will learn from it." Xu Wan said sincerely.
The King of Wei sighed. Xu Wan's words spoke to his heart. The State of Zhao was not a good person. He had no favorable impression of the State of Zhao. To be precise, he had no favorable impression of any other country. He was just forced to do so due to the disparity in strength.
I just want to have a conflict with the State of Zhao.
"Your Majesty, I am willing to go to Qin with you. If Qin is unfavorable to you, I will die in front of you." Xu Wan said, patting her chest.
"Then you go die now." At this time, Wei Wuji appeared out of nowhere, strode up to Xu Wan, and cut off Xu Wan's head with a "poof" sword, and blood spurted out more than one meter high.
His head rolled to the feet of King Wei, his eyes widened, and his pupils were filled with disbelief, as if he couldn't believe how Wei Wuji dared to kill him.
"You..." King Wei suddenly turned pale with fright.
We haven't seen each other for such a long time. King Wei was originally a little happy to see Wei Wuji, but he didn't expect that Wei Wuji would do such a thing after meeting him.
"Brother Wang, there is no need to thank my brother. It's just a matter of getting rid of a treacherous minister. It's all part of the job." Wei Wuji said, clasping his fists.
"Last time you left the Kingdom of Wei, you killed my Prime Minister. This time you returned to the Kingdom of Wei and killed my Situ again. You...you are simply..." King Wei pointed at Wei Wuji angrily.
"If you don't kill such a traitor now in an attempt to put the king in danger, then when will you wait?" Wei Wuji said proudly.
Zhou? looked at Wei Wuji with admiration. He had long wanted to kill Xu Wan, but he just didn't have the courage.
"Someone, please send Situ's body back so that it can be buried alive." King Wei sighed and ordered helplessly.
Wei Wuji was his biological brother. Although he was dissatisfied with the other party's killing of Xu Wan, it was impossible for Wei Wuji to be buried with Xu Wan. Even if he agreed, Zhao Guo would not agree.
Wei Wuji was not only his younger brother, but also the Prime Minister of Zhao State. The reason why Zhao State supported Wei State this time was all because of Wei Wuji.
To put it bluntly, Wei Wuji's reputation with King Zhao is greater than that of King Wei.
If he dares to kill Wei Wuji, Zhao's army will not have to set out yet.
"My brother, I saw someone was preparing to leave the city just now. Judging from his clothes, it seems that he is from the Qin state?" Wei Wuji asked.
"It's an envoy sent by the State of Qin." Zhou? said.
"What are you doing here?"
"Still the same conditions as before." Zhou? sighed.
"Brother Wang, don't worry for now. The city defense will be left to me next. Please give the order, Brother Wang, to summon all the soldiers in the army to discuss the matter." Wei Wuji clasped his fists and said.
"I will leave the beam to my wise brother." At this critical moment, King Wei still had great trust in Wei Wuji.
"How many troops are there in the city?" Wei Wuji asked.
"There are 28,000 elite soldiers, including 8,000 Wei soldiers and 20,000 Daliang troops. There are also more than 40,000 strong men, totaling about 70,000." Jin Bi said.
The current Wei soldiers are not military souls, and there is no limit on the number of soldiers. However, the Wei State has not lowered the selection standards, so the number is not very large.
"There are still so many people!" Wei Wuji's eyes lit up. He thought that Daliang was already in danger, but he didn't expect that he still had the strength to fight. "How much food and grass are there in the city?"
"Don't worry about food and grass. You can last even for a year." King Wei said. The land in Wei was already fertile. Coupled with the promotion of agricultural tools such as curved plows and waterwheels, food production increased greatly. Food and grass had already piled up in Daliang City.
If the Qin army had not been too fast and Wei had not had time to transfer grain from the surrounding cities, there would have been no problem in a few more years.
"It's just that I'm worried that the Qin army will attack Xingze and flood the beams." King Wei said worriedly.
"Don't worry, the Zhao army will head to Xingyang soon. By then, the Qin army will know that even if they break the dike and Xingze, they can't break through the beam, they will withdraw." Wei Wuji said.
"I hope so."
…
Xianyang.
Qin Wangji was lying on the rocking chair, and the two maids had their legs hanging down on the left and right.
After a winter, the elderly King of Qin looked older and older, his beard and hair were completely dyed white by the years, and his face was covered with wrinkles, like the bark of an old pine tree. Only his eyes were still full of energy, showing a heart-stopping majesty from time to time.
.
"The rocking chair from the State of Zhao is very comfortable." Qin Wangji waved his hand and motioned for the two maids to step back.
"I heard that King Zhao likes to have fun. These things came from the palace of King Zhao. It is said that King Zhao also arranged some chefs to study how to make delicious dishes." Fan Ju sat on another chair, but
He didn't dare to lie down casually like Qin Wangji.
"The minister of the State of Zhao did not dissuade the King of Zhao? That Lin Xiangru dared to contradict me, and even Chulong, I heard that he was also an outspoken minister." Qin Wangji said.
"This...I don't know. Maybe King Zhao was young and ambitious, and he ignored the advice of his ministers." Fan Ju said.
"No. Yong Rui came back to report that King Zhao is quite wise in the country and the people of the country love him very much. Moreover, Zhao's business is prosperous and the farmland outside the city is well maintained and not deserted. The scholars in the academy are very impressed by it.
There are also many compliments... Tell me, how did he do it?" Qin Wangji said doubtfully.
How could one person do so many things? Moreover, there was news before that King Zhao went away to play and ignored the government affairs for more than half a year.
If I were in Qin State, it would be okay if I ignored the government affairs for most of half a year...
After all, it’s not like it’s never happened before.
"I... don't know." Fan Ju lowered his head.
"I can still suppress the State of Zhao barely while I am alive. But I am worried that when my children and grandchildren come to the throne, the State of Qin will not be Zhao's opponent. I want to do more for the State of Qin while I am alive." Qin Wangji sighed.
.
"Don't worry, your Majesty, the prince and the prince are both smart people and have the ability to recognize people. Under their leadership, Qin will definitely be able to compete with Zhao." Fan Ju said.
"Are you trying to compete... Haha." Qin Wangji smiled faintly, "Is there any news from the front line?"
"Not yet." Fan Ju shook his head.
"I didn't expect Wei Yu to be able to persist for such a long time. Everyone underestimates him." Qin Wangji said.
"Your Majesty, we are hurrying thousands of miles away. The State of Zhao is sending troops to support Han and Wei." At this time, Qin Liu walked over quickly.
"The State of Zhao has sent troops? Didn't Yongrui say that the State of Zhao has rejected South Korea and the State of Wei's request for help?" Qin Wangji frowned and sat upright.
"Yong Rui did report like this after he came back, and there was no sign of Zhao Guo sending troops in the next month. Now that he suddenly sent troops, I'm afraid something happened in the middle." Fan Ju guessed.
It's a pity that almost all of Qin's informants in Zhao have been pulled out, and the rest are some that can't be brought to the surface. General information is fine, but slightly more confidential information may not be accessible.
"No matter what happens, it is not good news for our country, Qin." Qin Wangji lay down again, looked at the sky, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.
Qin had been preparing for this war for several years.
As long as Zhao does not send troops to support, Qin is 80% sure of splitting the three Jins, and even drawing Wei and South Korea into the Qin camp. For this reason, Qin Wangji specially sent Yongrui as an envoy to Zhao to ensure the success of the plan.
Unexpectedly, an accident occurred.
At this time, there were only two options in front of the Qin State. One was to retreat. All previous efforts were in vain, and the domestic conservatives began to jump up and down. The second option was to continue attacking, but it was very likely that they would not be the opponents of the Three Jin Dynasties.
"Can the Prime Minister have a way to defeat the three Jins?" Qin Wangji asked.
When Fan Ju heard this, he knew that Qin Wangji was planning to fight to the death.
Immediately he understood Qin Wangji’s plan.
He was already old and could not organize another large-scale battle in his lifetime. He wanted to use his last chance to pave a way for his children and grandchildren.
If it succeeds, Qin will be invincible in the world.
If you fail, it is better to die with all the guilt and give your children and grandchildren a warning than to let them try and make mistakes.
"Even if our Qin country can defeat the three Jins, I'm afraid it will be a narrow victory. We don't have the extra power to create a channel between the three Jins. Unless... we can unite the three kingdoms of Yan, Qi and Chu, but it will be more difficult." Fan Ju thought for a moment and said.
Among the three kingdoms of Yan, Qi and Chu, the only country that has good relations with Qin is Yan, but Yan is too weak. Until now, there are still 200,000 strong men left in Zhao. Even if they really respond to Qin, they will not be able to provide much strength.
.
As for the two kingdoms of Qi and Chu, they were both pulled down by the Qin State at their peak, and they have not yet recovered their former strength. They hate Qin to the core.
It is very difficult to convince both countries.
"Even if it is difficult, try it." Qin Wangji made up his mind. This was his last chance. "Immediately select people to send envoys to the Three Kingdoms. If you can persuade the Three Kingdoms to send troops, you will be promoted to three levels and will be rewarded with five hundred gold."