The road to Nanzhou is always like this, long, long, bumpy and smooth by turns.
Li Ping'an sat in the frame of his exotic beast and swayed toward Chaoge City.
The convoy of the three brothers was very long, and at the front was Ji Kao's gorgeous bicycle frame, with many treasures hanging inside and outside the frame.
In the center is Jifa's frame, which was modified from a tank and is designed to be strong and durable.
Li Pingan’s bike frame is just... ordinary.
They were on their way to Chaoge City. After traveling for thirty-five days, they were already very close to Chaoge City.
Along the way, Li Ping'an saw a lot of scenery, appreciated many Fang Country's customs and customs, and also saw the cultural diversity of Nanzhou.
Because of the isolation between Fang countries, primitive tribes, slave Fang countries, and relatively fair collegial fortresses can coexist here...
Just, it's amazing.
Of course, he still let Ji Dan sleep most of the time, while he watched singing and dancing in the heaven, listened to ditties, accompanied the three ladies, and lived the life of a fairy.
There may not be such an opportunity for a long time to come.
At present, Li Ping'an is equivalent to a short vacation - although the main soul is not idle and has been enlightening.
The convoy slowly drove into a camp area for preparation.
There were Zhou generals in advance, riding shuttle horses, bringing with them a small group of soldiers and horses and Zhou's documents, making preparations in advance along the way.
Every world is gradually evolving. When humans and nature adapt to each other, their own 'rules' and styles will be born.
Observing these is also a kind of joy in practicing Taoism.
There was still more than half a day's journey from Chaoge City, and the convoy began to set up camp. Ji Dan also had an independent camp.
Li Ping'an still followed the old rules, had dinner in the tent, yawned, and began to prepare for sleep.
Even if the flower-like maids Ji Fa arranged for him were dangling in front of him in cool thin silk skirts, he had no intention of moving.
——After watching too many Chang'e's, I really can't arouse any interest.
However, Ji Fa has begun to worry whether his fourth brother has any hidden diseases, which is completely inconsistent with their Ji family's philosophy of "raising more children".
Before Li Ping'an could take his mind off, the conversation of the maids could be heard outside the tent.
"Is the Fourth Young Master asleep?"
"I just had a meal, so I probably haven't slept yet."
"That's great... The eldest young master would like to invite the fourth young master to come over and discuss some important matters."
"Hey, okay, I'll call the Fourth Young Master."
Li Pingan frowned slightly.
He really wanted to pretend to be asleep and didn't want to have too much interaction with Ji Kao, but his thoughts changed slightly and he decided to go over and have a look.
He is about to arrive at Chaoge City. If Ji Kao is willing to give up his yearning for Emperor Xin, it is not impossible to save him...
He sat up, his eyes clear and energetic, and he took his robe and put it on himself.
After the maid reported it, he said, "I also have something to do and want to see my brother," and rushed to Ji Kao's camp.
Ji Kao was dressed in casual clothes, accompanied by several beauties.
When he saw Ji Dan, Ji Kao immediately greeted him with a smile, ordered two low tables to be put together, and motioned for Ji Dan to sit down face to face with him. They would have delicious food and beautiful women in their company, just like a big businessman or aristocrat.
Ji Kao said warmly: "Fourth, we are about to arrive at Chaoge City. What are your plans?"
"Intend?"
Li Ping'an didn't refuse the fragrant girl next to him to bring food and wine, but he just didn't pick up the wine bottle.
He said slowly: "Brother, what exactly are you referring to?"
"That is, how to rescue father," Ji Kao sighed, "Now two of the four great uncles have been lost, and the Jiang family is regarded as a thorn in the king's side and a thorn in the flesh. Our Ji family can only take this opportunity to offer treasures to the king.
, I hope I can make the king happy and forgive my father."
Li Pingan groaned for a few times: "Brother, are you serious?"
"How come you're not serious?" Ji Kao was a little puzzled.
"There are some deeper things here," Li Ping'an said seriously, "For example, what will it take for the king to let Zhou go?"
Ji Kao was startled for a moment.
Li Ping'an sighed: "Brother, you should have this answer. You are a smart person, but you just pretend not to be smart sometimes."
Ji Kao frowned and said nothing.
Li Ping'an said calmly: "You all go down."
The beauties looked at each other, stood up and left, retreating behind the screens on both sides.
Ji Kao lowered his head and held his forehead. He found that his fourth brother's eyes suddenly became a little sharp, and he was afraid to look at Ji Dan.
Li Ping'an picked up the chopsticks, took a piece of barbecue, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and said slowly:
"Brother really considers that I am young and frail, so the medicine I use is really not too much."
Ji Kao frowned and asked, "What do you mean, Fourth?"
"Aren't the herbs used in these dishes that can make you unconscious?" Li Ping'an said with a smile, "There are also some seasonings mixed in the wine... I think about it, it should be a small fruit, outside Xiqi City
There are many of them on the mountains to the east. If you eat them, you will fall asleep."
Ji Kao's Adam's apple trembled.
Li Ping'an sighed: "Second brother must have fallen asleep and was just carried back to his tent."
"Fourth, don't talk nonsense," Ji Kao said in a deep voice, "What am I doing for?"
"Picture...shows loyalty."
Li Ping'an continued to eat food in a leisurely manner, explaining slowly:
"Beside you is a twenty-six or seven-year-old Mei Ji. She is a businessman. She is an informant arranged by Wang Shu Bigan and is also the mouthpiece to deliver news.
"You especially like to play some more interesting games with her, such as soaking her chest with wine, for example, letting her hit your back with a riding crop. You should still have some scars on your back now, right?
"Brother, you are twisted."
A little cold sweat broke out on Ji Kao's forehead.
He looked at Li Pingan with horror.
These, these are his secrets, only he and that Meiji know, why...
"Fourth brother, are you kidding me?"
"People are doing it, God is watching," Li Ping'an pointed to the sky above, "I didn't know this until I took the first bite of your food, but after eating it, I felt something was not right, so I asked
For God's sake."
——Refers to his main spirit.
"Oh my God?" Ji Kao sneered, "Stop talking nonsense. Gods all favor merchants. Otherwise, how could they be the overlords of the world?"
"If you use your logic, then God has no obvious preference now."
Li Pingan said seriously:
"Gods are biased towards order, etiquette, civilization and advancement, and I mean ideological advancement.
"And I don't understand it. Even though I have tried so hard to explain that there will be no interference from gods here, and there are no gods in Nanzhou anymore, neither you nor they believe it?"
Ji Kao whispered: "Because it's just you talking! It's just you and your father talking."
"So, you admitted to drugging me?" Li Ping'an looked a little more playful, "I actually lied to you. I took detoxifying herbs before coming here."
Ji Kao was startled for a moment.
He smiled bitterly and said: "Fourth brother, you are really, you are too smart."
"Actually, I am an ordinary person, but I can get a lot more information than you. You are in the game, so it is normal for you to get stuck here."
Li Pingan poured a glass of wine for Ji Kao.
Ji Kao didn't dare to drink.
Li Ping'an asked: "The next exchange between us is very important, very important to you... Brother, you are afraid of Di Xin, right?"
Ji Kao was silent.
Li Ping'an said: "Suppose, if my father dies, and my second brother and I are sacrificed to Emperor Xin by you, you can get the position of Xibohou. It's logical, right?"
Jikao's Adam's apple was bobbing up and down, and he whispered: "Fourth brother, you..."
"It's now, and there are dozens of soldiers you prepared outside the tent. Are you still unwilling to confess to me, a person who has no power to restrain a chicken?"
"Heh," Ji Kao laughed sadly.
He looked up at Li Ping'an, as if his face had changed, becoming a little more gloomy and a little more determined.
Ji Kao whispered: "Then let me ask you, is our Zhou Kingdom a rival to Dashang?"
Not necessarily... Li Ping'an really wanted to say that.
But he couldn't, because he said this from the standpoint of a 'known result'. For Ji Chang, Ji Kao and Ji Fa, they were all under tremendous pressure at the moment, but they were facing this situation individually.
Choices during times of stress are different.
Ji Chang asked the gods;
Ji Fa trains his troops and horses.
And Ji Kao...
"Yes, I want to choose one of you or the second child to take to Chaoge City overnight."
Ji Kao looked to one side and said calmly:
"I am the eldest son, and I think more than you all. I have been in Chaoge City for so many years, and I have been watching their cruelty. Their cruelty and insensitivity cannot be described.
"Have you ever heard the screams of human beings being gouged?
"Do you know what the merchant's favorite sacrifice is? It's the leader, that is, the nobles of various tribes and countries. The higher the status, the more qualified they are to become the servants of the merchant's ancestors, and they will be sent to the sky through sacrifices.
"The place where the protons live is very close to the street where people and animals are slaughtered...very close...
“Didn’t my grandfather get blisters like this?
"The king is afraid of us, isn't it because we are too strong? Behind the merchants' backs, we conquered Yu and conquered seven or eight small countries. They are all our Ji family members. We can unite together when necessary.
"Your Majesty just wants to ensure that we are loyal to the Great Shang. Then, we can enjoy the position of Xibohou. Among the Great Shang, one person is inferior to ten thousand people. Isn't this good? Isn't this wrong?"
Li Ping'an looked at Ji Kao: "So, brother, you gave in to Di Xin."
"It's not that I gave in," Ji Kao sighed, "I'm just doing the right thing."
"It's what you think is right."
"Yes, I think it is the right thing to do," Ji Kao smiled bitterly, "What will happen if we continue to fight against Dashang? Dongbohou is dead, Nanbohou has been killed, Jizhou Suhu is not a combination of merchants and soldiers at all.
Are our enemies going to let the Shang army come to attack us?"
Li Pingan was silent.
Ji Kao sighed: "I didn't give in, I just saw the situation clearly. It's impossible to keep Zhou Guo safe by fighting them."
Li Ping'an asked: "Then, cut off one of your arms, abolish your martial arts, and ask the king to let the Zhou people go?"
Ji Kao was silent.
Li Ping'an sighed: "Brother, if you were the king of Shang, would it be as simple as cutting off one of Zhou's arms after Zhou had seriously threatened him?"
Ji Kao didn't know how to answer.
Li Ping'an continued: "The reason why the Zhou Kingdom is as strong as it is now is actually because the Zhou people were willing to endure hardships. They spent hundreds of years cultivating fertile land in Xiqi, herding sheep and horses, and breeding exotic animals.
Produce heirs.”
"Without the initial support of the great merchants, how could the Zhou state be established?"
"The initial support from the Great Shang did not provide soldiers, horses, food and grass. They only sent people to ask the ancestors of the Zhou people to move over from the Qiang territory and ennoble them as princes."
Li Pingan said quickly:
"Then the Zhou Dynasty people guarded the border for the great merchants, captured people and animals, worked conscientiously for hundreds of years, and paid tribute regularly every three years.
"Who owes whom here?"
"But this world belongs to businessmen!"
"This world belongs to the human race!" Li Pingan's eyes remained calm, "Whoever respects every human race more, who cares more about fairness and justice, and whoever can push the world to develop in a better direction, God will help.
"
"Oh, what you said is more pleasant than anything else. Eight hundred princes surrendered to the Great Shang. Isn't this the destiny of the Great Shang?"
"I suddenly don't want to argue with you anymore."
Li Pingan shook his head:
"You have become deeply ingrained in what you think. Not only you, but also your father..."
Ji Kao smiled bitterly and said: "No matter what, I have no room to look back after what happened tonight. Come on!"
The sound of armor clashing sounded outside the tent.
More than a dozen guards swarmed in and stared at Li Pingan.
Li Ping'an looked at Ji Kao.
Ji Kao closed his eyes and said nothing.
The guards seem to be rushing forward!
Boom——
Suddenly there was a muffled sound of thunder on the tent!
The guards suddenly screamed and covered their ears, falling to the ground crying in pain.
Ji Kao was completely stunned.
Li Pingan shook his head, picked up a glass of wine, drank it in one gulp, looked at Ji Kao and said slowly:
"Brother, you are a surrender faction and have nothing to do with me. But if you want to use me and my second brother as sacrifices in exchange for you becoming Xibohou in the future, then I will not agree.
"I'll take the second brother away and go back to Xiqi.
"No, don't you really believe that I have a good relationship with the gods?"
Ji Kao was stunned.
Li Ping'an raised his hand and snapped his fingers, and a beam of golden light suddenly shone above the tent.
Beams of golden light lit up throughout the Zhou people's camp, and the magical thing was that only Ji Kao could see these golden lights.
Ji Fa, Zhou Chen, and the beauties, attendants, and bodyguards brought by Ji Fa were all rising slowly in the golden light at this moment, as was Li Ping'an.
And above Li Ping'an's head, there was a fat middle-aged man in a big red robe standing with his hands behind his back. Under his feet was an auspicious cloud, and behind him were masses of light. The light and shadow illuminated Ji Fa's face.
The person who came was naturally Li Dazhi, who was called over temporarily by Li Ping'an.
Letting others come over to do this kind of thing would be detrimental to the wisdom of the Tao Master.
Li Dazhi cleared his throat, his voice was like thunder, making Ji Kao tremble all over.
"I am a god in the heavens, and I am here to protect the Son of God. You are so ignorant that you actually try to harm the Son of God. The thought of it makes you laugh."
Li Dazhi waved his hand, gathered all the golden lights, and turned around on the clouds to return to Xiqi.
Ji Kao was stunned for a moment, then suddenly stood up and rushed out in the direction where Li Dazhi left. Staring at Li Dazhi's back and looking at the golden light around Li Dazhi, his lips trembled and he shouted: "God! God!"
"
In the eyes of the beauties and guards around him, Ji Kao was just looking crazy at the sky in front of him.
It's deserted here, where is anyone?
Ji Kao sat helplessly on the ground, his eyes glazed over.