Ji Fa hurriedly opened the door of the small courtyard and went straight to the north room.
Li Ping'an still heard the noise and was distracted from the performance of the Tianting Song and Dance Troupe. At the risk of being misunderstood by a group of Chang'e's that he didn't like this dance, he allowed this active mind to return to Ji Dan's body.
As expected, Ji Fa came here for the [Food Raising Order] issued by Emperor Xin.
Ji Fa sat behind the low table in the room, frowning at Ji Dan who was slowly making tea, and whispered: "How are we going to do this?"
"How did the other princes react?"
"It's a long journey. I don't know how the princes will react. Your Majesty only gives us a three-month deadline!"
Ji Fa said quickly:
"This season's millet has just been harvested, and the king's order to us, Xiqi, is to take almost 60% of the total amount we can harvest!
"As a result, our sergeants will be hungry every day, not to mention going out for battle, even if they are training in the military camp!"
Li Pingan raised his eyebrows slightly.
Di Xin's move was quite clever, the only drawback was that he was too impatient.
If this method is changed to boiling frogs in warm water and asking the princes to donate grain and grass every two years, many princes will be brought down by this method after ten years.
As for the name of each collection of grain and grass, you can find it at will.
"Fourth, what should we do?"
"Pay it forward," Li Ping'an said. "If you don't hand it over, do you still have to wait for the king to call?"
"Ah?" Ji Fa frowned and thought.
He stood up holding his knees and walked back and forth in the hut.
Li Ping'an sipped tea slowly and asked: "What did brother say?"
Ji Fa scolded: "Brother... Alas! Brother, he said that he must obey the king's order! Obey the king's order, obey the king's order. Once these grains and grass are handed over, will our soldiers be hungry next? How can we fight when we are hungry! Over there with the Qiang people
What if I call you!"
"Do you have a letter from father?"
"No letter yet."
"What's the hurry? I'll wait for the letter."
Li Pingan smiled and said:
"Second brother, let me teach you a trick. This one is relatively simple.
"Now Chaoge City has sent an envoy. Please report that the grain warehouse in the city is empty. The grain that has just been harvested has not been stored yet. It will take two months to collect it from various places. Later, the sufficient amount will be sent to the court.
Song.
"Then……"
"And then?"
"Then, wait and see if it rains. He can't keep it from raining for two months, right? If it rains once, it can be said that our millet was soaked in the rain while drying and was infected by mold. It will take two more
Yue continues to collect grain and grass, and this batch of spoiled grain and grass needs to be exchanged with the people."
Ji Fa blinked and vaguely realized something.
"Fourth brother, what do you mean..."
"Delay," Li Ping'an said with a smile, "it depends on the situation. If the eight hundred princes pay four hundred, then we will also pay. But if the eight hundred princes pay two hundred, then why should we join in the fun? This matter is really causing trouble.
We are also justified.”
"What's the point?"
"Second brother, practice martial arts less and think more!"
Li Pingan said helplessly:
"The share of grain and grass sent by the king to the princes in the four directions is different. Many princes not only contribute grain and grass, but also send troops, horses or slaves.
"Dong Bohou wants the most, followed by us, then Nan Bohou, and Bei Bohou is just interested.
"This is to worry not about scarcity but about inequality.
"The king just wants to support his direct lineage, suppress the various princes, and see if he can force one or two rebels. If he can force a moderately important prince to rebel, then he can set out with a large army, break down the city and plunder, and also serve as a source of great merchants.
Increase your energy."
He spoke for a moment, and then thought of his subsequent plan for the war in heaven.
It seems that, in terms of nature, it is also a robbery...
As if he had taken a reassurance, Ji Fa walked forward with a smile and sat opposite Li Ping'an.
"Okay, let's just put it off and I'll go find my brother to have a fight later!"
"Huh?" Li Ping'an wondered, "Are you still going to quarrel?"
"Forget it," Ji Fa sighed, "I have quarreled with my eldest brother many times. My eldest brother seems to be possessed by an evil spirit. He only thinks about how powerful Dashang is. Dashang is our benefactor, but we Zhou people are standing here, relying on
What we rely on is the military formation, we rely on the taming of animals, and we rely on the bravery of these men inside and outside Xiqi City! What did Dashang give us?"
Ji Fa's eyes were a little more determined.
He said slowly:
"On the contrary, when we followed the advice of the Great Shang envoy and moved from the northwest to the foot of Qishan Mountain, the Shang State did not give us a cart of food, but only gave us a title and used us to contain the tribes in the west.
"Then what?
"We catch and send sheep to the great merchants. We have to pay taxes every three years. If we have treasures, we have to give priority to the merchant country.
"My grandfather still died tragically at the hands of the previous Shang King! After such great achievements, my grandfather returned eastward with a hundred thousand men from Xiqi City and fought in all directions. In the end, only how many people came back? Less than six thousand! Just like that, my grandfather is still
He died, having his heart and liver ripped out by the king he was loyal to.
"Just because we are getting stronger?
"Does so many people in Xiqi City die for a mere imperial suspicion?
"Why should he!"
Li Pingan nodded slowly: "Second brother, don't get excited. I'm talking about the quarrel between you and the eldest brother. The second brother is becoming more and more mature now."
"Hey, I'm just not afraid of them anymore. I'm getting older."
Ji Fa pondered slightly:
"I'm a little confused now, whether the elder brother wants to go here or towards Chaoge City.
"Fourth brother, you have many ideas. If it doesn't work, go and persuade the elder brother.
"Businessmen don't have any true feelings for us. They just want us to be like dogs. They will step on us if we stand up for a moment. Soft bones are useless."
"I won't try to persuade you," Li Ping'an said. "There may be many spies from the King of Shang around my eldest brother. My second brother, don't talk to them. Secretly contact the ministers and talk to them. Whenever something big happens,
I’ll just go to your place to discuss it and ignore my eldest brother.”
Ji Fa asked: "Is this appropriate?"
"What's inappropriate," Li Ping'an said, "Sometimes, don't think about brotherhood. Now you two have the responsibility of the Zhou people on your shoulders. Father's stay in Chaoge City is basically equivalent to semi-house arrest."
Ji Fa thought for a while and nodded vigorously: "Okay, that's it. I'll use the procrastination method to go to some ministers to discuss it first... Fourth child, why don't you go and persuade the eldest brother? He is our eldest brother after all.
"
"I won't go. I feel very comfortable now."
——Refer to the Heavenly Palace to watch singing and dancing.
Li Ping'an smiled and waved his hand: "Go and do your work. I still want to read, so go, go, go."
Ji Fa suddenly felt helpless to complain.
He sighed and left dejectedly, thinking about what to do next.
Because before Ji Chang left Xiqi City, he entrusted all the military and political affairs of Xiqi City to Ji Fa. With this relationship, the officials still respected Ji Fa more.
Moreover, the resonance between the officials of the Zhou Kingdom and Ji Fa was stronger.
Most of these courtiers were nobles of the Zhou Kingdom. They had followed the Ji family to fight all the way. Their hostility towards the merchants and their hatred towards the King of Shang was not weak.
"Went to watch the singing and dancing."
…
When Ji Kao came to see Li Pingan, it was already three months after Di Xin issued the order.
In the past three months, the overall situation in the Shang Kingdom has been highlighted by a messy character.
When the tribes of Dongyi heard that Emperor Xin was about to attack again, half of them were gearing up to avenge their shame, and the other half were dodging backwards, ready to bow before the merchant's banner.
The Jiang family of Dongbohou paid the full amount of grain and grass and sent out soldiers and guards, but put forward a condition that the grain and grass soldiers and guards would be sent when the king's soldiers and horses arrived in Dongyi land.
Their reason is that they are tired from traveling back and forth, and their food and grass are prone to natural disasters.
Xibo Houji's family announced that they would pay for grain and grass, but due to heavy rain during the process of raising grain and grass, all the millet and grain were ruined, so more time was needed to collect grain and grass again.
Bei Bohou was the most happy, and he handed over all of them, but it didn't have much impact on them anyway, and he handed over the least.
But E Chongyu, the Marquis of Nanbo in the south... refused to hand it over.
This matter naturally aroused Emperor Xin's dissatisfaction, and he issued an edict to reprimand Nanbohou. He himself was placed under house arrest by Emperor Xin in Chaoge City.
The whole Chaoge City was filled with storms and storms.
As long as the princes from all directions turned over grain and grass and sent slaves, all the small princes would follow suit.
Di Xin's move was also quite clever. The grain and grass that the small princes had to pay was not that much. In fact, Emperor Xin also deliberately asked the princes from all directions to go to their younger brothers to collect grain and grass slaves, thus intensifying the various factions.
Conflicts between princes and uncles.
But Di Xin obviously misjudged the 'strength' of the Jiang family and the Ji family.
However, since Nan Bohou was a good target for shooting, Di Xin would not mind and steadily promoted his plan.
He wanted to kill Nan Bohou and frighten all the princes;
We should also follow the ancient practice of Shang Dynasty and give Nanbohou a quick and thorough "deconstruction" to strengthen the deterrent effect.
When Ji Kao came to find Li Pingan, Chaoge City was in such a precarious moment.
Because it is a long way from Xiqi to Chaoge, even if there is a strange beast eagle, the news is unlikely to spread so fast, so everyone in Xiqi City does not know the news of Nan Bohou's death.
Ji Kao sat behind the low table with a haggard expression, lowered his head and drank two cups of tea, still not knowing how to speak.
Li Ping'an was lying on the chair, couldn't help but put down the slips, yawned, and asked: "Brother, if nothing happens, I still have to rest here, I'm a little tired."
"Fourth," Ji Kao whispered, "I really don't know what to do."
"Oh? What's the matter and I don't know what to do?"
"The king ordered us to pay for grain and grass, but we haven't handed over a single load of grain until now!"
"If you don't hand it over, you won't hand it over," Li Ping'an said with a smile, "Isn't this great? Does the king have any intention of sending troops? Our food is still useful and can feed more people."
Ji Kao said anxiously: "My father is in Chaoge City!"
"Didn't brother read the letter from father?"
"I saw it, and my father said... the heavy rain is good..."
"Then with your intelligence, big brother, you don't understand what these four words mean?"
Li Pingan said with a smile:
"My father values the people of the Zhou Kingdom more seriously than himself. The foundation of the Zhou Kingdom was earned through generations of hard work.
"If I hand over the food and grass according to Big Brother's wishes, what should I do next?
"Today I will pay one hundred thousand, and tomorrow I will pay one hundred thousand, and then I will have to sleep overnight, and then the King of Shang's envoy will arrive again... Brother, this is using the blood of our Zhou people to feed the merchant's horse."
"this……"
Ji Kao's Adam's apple trembled a few times:
"But that is the king after all! The merchant's ancestors and gods are protecting him."
"Gods? I know a few of them too."
Li Pingan smiled and said:
"Look, if the ancestors of the merchants are really protecting me, then I will curse a few words, Shangtang is just like this, what happened to me? What happened to the sky?"
"Don't do this! Don't do this!"
Ji Kao shivered a few times, his eyes full of horror.
Li Ping'an secretly sighed in his heart... This Boyi exam is considered useless. He has reached middle age and has not awakened, but has sunk into ruin.
"Let's have tea."
Ji Kao responded, slightly lost in thought over the tea, and suddenly smiled: "Fourth brother, why have you never gotten married?"
"I have wives in the God Realm, or three of them," Li Ping'an curled his lips slightly.
"Don't say such crazy things!"
Ji Kao sighed:
"I don't know why this is the case. The ministers have met with me less and less recently. They keep going to the military camp and to Lao Er's place.
"I'm not jealous of your second brother. He's good at leading armies, and his military formations are like that of a famous general. He rarely fails in foreign campaigns. He is indeed a better successor than me.
"It's just... Is there anything you can't discuss with me? Where am I missing? I'm also from Zhou, and I'm the eldest son! We are all from the same mother! Me!"
Ji Kao's eyes were a little red and his lips were moving.
Li Ping'an looked at Ji Kao calmly and said warmly: "Brother, you are too tired. It's time to take a proper rest."
Ji Kao was stunned for a moment.
He asked in a low voice: "All brothers turn to the second brother, do you do the same to the fourth brother?"
"You and I are brothers for life, so I give you this advice."
Li Pingan said:
"You have been scared out of your wits by Di Xin. He treats you like a plaything. Di Xin is now planning to attack the princes from all over the world. He will kill them all as a warning and then select some rebels to conquer.
"We in Zhou will not become rebels, not because Emperor Xin is kind, but because we are strong enough and the Qiang tribes are strong enough.
"What Emperor Xin is afraid of is our alliance with the Qiang people. If he and we both lose, they will be taken advantage of by the Jiang family of the East.
"How did Xia lose the world? Businessmen know best.
"So brother, it's good to wake up from the dream in Chaoge City, calm yourself down, play the piano, play chess, and read every day."
Ji Kao slowly sat back, his eyes a little stunned.
After a while, he smiled bitterly and said: "I understand, it turns out that I am too cowardly, I am too cowardly..."
Ji Kao closed his eyes and sighed, stood up and cupped his hands to Li Ping'an, then turned and left.
His back was dejected and full of endless frustration.
Li Ping'an just shook his head.
Who can be blamed for Ji Kao's changes? Blame him for being the eldest son, so he was dragged to Chaoge City? Blame Emperor Xin's intimidation for turning into a shadow, making Ji Kao a defeatist? Or should we blame the Zhou people?
Are you inconsiderate of the first heir to Xibohou?
Blame God.
Li Pingan sighed.
This kind of touch has been difficult to transform into insights.
This is what cultivation is like. If a bottle of water represents the Great Perfection and Transcendence, then as long as you fill it to ninety-five percent, you will be considered to have reached the top of the mountain. If you fill it to ninety-five percent, you will be considered a great leader. If you fill it to ninety-eight percent, that will be awesome.
, it is only half a step away from transcendence.
But the further you get to the back, the harder it is to fill it up.
Li Ping'an stretched, and his main body was immersed in the way of heaven.
He felt that his current soul was like a monster, extending out dense tentacles and touching every avenue, thinking and thinking, looking for infinite secrets.
While he was enjoying himself in heaven, Li Ping'an didn't forget to take a few glances at Chaoge City.
The storm is rising there.
The butcher knife that Di Xin raised was about to fall.
Before falling, Di Xin used a damaging move.
Nanbohou E Chongyu resisted the king's order and intended to unite with the Nanman to rebel. He was punished three months later.
By the way, Emperor Xin sent people to spread the news in various places, saying that "Emperor Xin could not bear to kill Nanbohou and intended to spare Nanbohou", and then sent people to announce which princes had won Dixin's praise for interceding for Nanbohou.
He said that this little prince was a wise and virtuous man.
Then Di Xin was waiting in the palace.
Whoever comes to intercede for Nan Bohou, he will write down the name, and later...