When the news of victory came back, countless people poured into the streets, cheering, jumping for joy, hugging each other, and crying with joy.
"Go to the front line and win the battle!"
"Swear to destroy Qin! Avenge my father and brother!"
When Li Mu received an urgent call from King Zhao and returned to the capital in triumph, what he saw was this scene.
"General! Morale is available!"
Sima Shang sat upright on the tall horse, watching everyone spontaneously pushing their children into the army, stroking his beard and smiling.
Li Mu nodded expressionlessly.
"After such a great victory, the king will not change his generals."
Sima Shang thought that Li Mu was worried and that the traitors in the court were confusing King Zhao again, so he comforted him.
"It's not a big victory, so it doesn't matter if you change the general."
Li Mu's eyes flashed and he said silently.
Just as Gai Nie had judged, after Wang Jian's reinforcements arrived, the two sides fought a fierce battle. After each suffered losses, Li Mu led his troops to retreat.
The main force of the Qin army was narrowly saved, but in just one day, it suffered as many as 70,000 casualties!
This is undoubtedly a victory.
But in Li Mu's view, it was not a glorious victory.
Because the victory of this battle was at the cost of the scrapping of the barbican city in Tunliu, the drastic reduction of defensive power, and the abandonment of this important area that military strategists must fight for. Soldiers are also deceitful, and their cunning schemes can no longer be used. With Wang Jian taking over,
The Qin army would never give him another chance to take advantage of him.
What's more, the Qin people's counterattack also caused 20,000 casualties to the Zhao army. The fact that they could do this under such one-sided suppression proves that there is really a huge gap between the Zhao army and the Qin army.
Therefore, Li Mu didn't particularly care about changing generals. He just gave up when things were good and it was time for peace talks.
By using victory to force peace, not only would Qin have no chance of gaining Zhao's city, but it could also force Qin to cede land. Even if it failed, it would also boost the country's morale and let the Zhao people know that the Qin people were by no means invincible.
"Who can be sent as envoy to Qin?"
What Li Mu is thinking about now is the envoys.
In the past, Lin Xiangru returned the jade to Zhao intact, which can be said to be the highest achievement of an envoy. To this day, He's jade is still in the collection of the Zhao Palace. Unfortunately, Lin Xiangru is dead. I want a minister who is both wise and brave, and can be calm in the face of danger to envoy Qin to fight for the best interests of Zhao.
It's really not easy.
There are also treacherous people like Guo Kai Hancang who are causing chaos and obstructing them in every possible way, so we have to be on guard...
"My dear! Let me wait for you!"
However, what Li Mu did not expect was that as soon as he entered the imperial city, he saw King Zhao leading civil and military officials from a distance, waiting at the entrance of the palace, and took the initiative to greet him.
"King!"
The generals were flattered and hurriedly knelt down to salute, saying loudly: "I have fulfilled my mission!"
"Hahahaha! Okay! Okay!"
King Zhao laughed, stepped forward in person, helped Li Mu up, and patted him on the shoulder: "I only know what a general is capable of now. It's not too late. If the king and his ministers know each other well, we will definitely make Zhao prosperous!"
"King!"
Li Mu was excited and bowed again.
You will be out there, and your life will be compromised. This sentence may seem majestic, but it actually reveals a lot of helplessness.
What general doesn't want to gain the king's confidence?
Take Li Mu, for example. When he used to guard the border against the Xiongnu, he adopted defensive tactics. The previous generation of King Zhao sent him back to scold him and replaced him with others. As a result, those replacement generals were defeated by the Huns. As a result, there was no way for farming and grazing on the border. King Zhao had no choice but to
Later, Li Mu was asked to take charge, and later he was able to defeat the Huns.
Historically, when Li Mu was in danger and was ordered to do so, the Zhao State had nothing to do. Even so, he ended up with the tragic end of being killed. What he longed for most in his life was probably the king's trust.
Now, trust comes.
Li Muhu's eyes lit up and he was full of excitement.
At this time, Guo Kai also stepped forward, bowed and saluted: "I have offended many people in the past, I hope the general will forgive me!"
Li Mu nodded slightly.
"My eyes, ears, and bones are all sent to you by your Majesty. This time it is Guo Kai who strongly recommended me. It shows that you are all loyal to Zhao, and I am very relieved!"
King Zhao laughed again, as happy as a child: "Let's go, let's go to the banquet with the others!"
At the celebration banquet, everyone was beaming with joy.
Although the military looked down upon Guo Kai's attitude of being respectful in front and in defense behind, but since this man had taken advantage of the situation and turned to support Li Mu, there was no need to really confront him. Even Li Mu had a drink with Guo Kai to clear up the past feud.
The silk and bamboo were played together, the wine was flowing, and when the atmosphere of the banquet reached its peak, King Zhao looked at Li Mu, who had become the center of attention: "Li Mu raises soldiers, and he will be conquered in battle. I now name him Lord Wu'an. What do you think, dear ministers?"
As soon as these words came out, the place fell silent.
The Wu'an person, who rules the world with martial arts and maintains prestige and peace, first came from the Western Zhou Dynasty. To be able to obtain this title is the highest honor for a general, and his name is destined to remain in history.
But the key is that every Zhao person will remember a person's name
Bai Qi!
He is also Lord Wu An!
At this time, King Zhao named Li Mu the Lord of Wu'an. Is it a simple reward, or does it have a deeper meaning?
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Li Mu's face changed slightly, and he felt uneasy, so he came to thank him.
"My dear..."
King Zhao waited, but did not wait until Li Mu vowed to destroy Qin. He felt a little dissatisfied and said proactively: "You have nothing to say?"
Li Mu was silent for a moment and said slowly: "Your Majesty's love and expectations, Mu will always bear them in mind!"
"Okay! My dear, I am a practical person, I will make it clear!"
King Zhao suddenly stood up, holding the wine bottle, and raised it from afar: "In the battle of Changping in the past, all the men of our Zhao country were killed and injured, so we could only use bribes and cowardly actions to break promises and protect the country. This tone, I have been holding this hatred in my heart until this battle, but it is not enough, it is far from enough, Wu'an Lord Li Mu takes the order!"
"I'm here!"
Li Mu half-knelt.
"I, Zhao, have 200,000 soldiers. All of them will be handed over to your command to advance westward and destroy Qin. Do you have the confidence to do so?"
King Zhao looked at him with fiery eyes.
As soon as this statement came out, the generals including Sima Shang were also overjoyed. The king finally identified the loyal and the traitor, and granted full power to the general.
Okay! That’s great!
"Your Majesty! I have no confidence!"
However, the next moment, when Li Mu's answer came out, everyone was stunned.
"What did you say?"
King Zhao couldn't even believe his ears.
"Your Majesty, in the battle of Changping, our Zhao country suffered too heavy losses. In just twenty years, it is not enough to recover its strength and destroy Qin."
Li Mu knew that what he said would cause catastrophe, but he had to uncover the bloody scars at this time of national celebration.
The current state of Zhao is like a man who has just recovered from a serious illness. He takes up arms and fights. He is already reluctant to fight to the death with Qin? That is like hanging an old man, and he is tired of living!
Not to mention that the Qin State had Wang Jian who was not under him, even if they were all capable generals like Changping Jun and Chang Wenjun, the Qin State's 500,000 troops alone would not be able to win the Zhao State.
No matter how good the generals are in using their troops, they can't change the country's power!
Swallowing an elephant with a snake will lead to your own destruction!
"Jun Wu An, you don't have to be too modest. I'll ask you again, do you have the confidence to wash away the shame and avenge the country of Zhao?"
But King Zhao couldn't listen at all. He gritted his teeth and spoke every word authentically.
Turning over is like turning over a book.
The warm and warm smile just now disappeared, replaced by thunderous anger.
"Dare to ask Mr. Wu An!"
Guo Kai even asked: "This time there is civil strife in Qin and the incompatibility between the emperor and the state. Even our Zhao state cannot seize the opportunity to defeat it. If the Qin state's cavalry comes back in the future, how should we deal with it?"
Li Mu opened his mouth, speechless.
This is true.
If the peace talks are held this time, when the civil strife in Qin has ceased, and the King of Qin is in control, and after several years of cultivation and recovery, will Zhao be able to resist the next invasion?
cannot!
After Zhao's defeat at Changping, it would take more than two generations, that is, about forty years, to truly recover. But by that time, Qin would inevitably become stronger.
So if we continue to wait, we may drink poison to quench our thirst, start a war immediately, or make cakes to satisfy our hunger, but there will be no good end...
Where to go?
Just when Li Mu was hesitating, Guo Kai added the final blow: "Your Majesty, if Lord Wu An is not confident, I recommend General Le Cheng!"
"In that case..."
King Zhao showed disappointment in his eyes.
"Your Majesty! I have confidence!"
As a last resort, Li Mu finally agreed. It was just four words, and each word seemed to be of great significance.
"good!"
King Zhao was satisfied, drank the wine, and said passionately: "I am in Handan, waiting for the news of the army's triumphant return!"
Li Mu silently returned to the table, determined in his heart: "Even if I am accused by thousands of people and become a sinner, I must lose the next battle. Zhao Guo must not continue to go crazy in the joy of victory!"
…
…
"A rare visitor! I wonder why the young master is here?"
In Xianyang Prime Minister's Mansion, Lu Buwei introduced Gu Cheng into the hall. The guests and hosts sat down and chatted happily. It was as if the disciple had switched sides and the Queen Mother had switched sides. It had never happened.
"There are two things coming here."
Gu Cheng smiled: "The Prime Minister should know that now Zhao has raised an army of 200,000 and handed it over to Wu'an Lord Li Mu to attack the land west of Hexi."
"Destroy yourself!"
Lu Buwei sneered: "King Zhao was dazzled by the victory. No matter how amazing Li Mu is, how can he defeat my army of 500,000?"
"Of course."
Gu Cheng nodded: "But I would like to ask the Prime Minister to write a letter to let General Wang Jian pretend to be defeated and let Li Mu continue to win."
Lu Buwei was stunned for a moment, then stood up suddenly: "Young master, do you want to take advantage of this to destroy Zhao?"
Everyone wanted to unify, but no one, including King Yingzheng of Qin, was prepared to destroy the Zhao Kingdom in this battle. It only ended with the life and death of Cheng Xi. They never expected that this person wanted more than the king and the prime minister.
!
"And Yan State!"
Gu Cheng's face was calm: "The unification of the Qin Dynasty has been completed. The difference lies in whether we will destroy the six countries non-stop, or whether we will go north and then south, step by step. I want to choose the latter. What does the Prime Minister think?"
In the original history, it only took less than ten years for the Qin State to overthrow the six kingdoms. It was indeed majestic and domineering, but the consequences were endless.
Therefore, Gu Cheng's plan is to first unify the north and completely digest the land of Yan and Zhao. After ten years, he will then move from north to south to destroy Wei and Chu. In this way, only after the world is unified can long-term peace and stability be achieved!
"This kid is really..."
Lu Buwei was silent for a moment, suppressing the fear in his heart: "Then what is the second thing that Young Master is here for?"
"The two young masters of the Prime Minister have already evacuated Xianyang under the protection of the net, right?"
Gu Cheng turned his gaze to the outside of the hall, looking at the Prime Minister's Office, which seemed unchanged but actually much more deserted: "Can Zhao Gao be trusted?"
"you!"
Lu Buwei suddenly changed color and stood up like a tiger.
"Zhao Gao is not my person, but he is not yours either."
Gu Cheng's indifferent words made Lu Buwei spin, and he squeezed out two words from between his teeth: "Your Majesty?"
"If you don't want to retreat bravely, once you fail, you will inevitably be wiped out."
Gu Chengdao: "Should I commit suicide by taking poison and die silently, or should I live a turbulent life and take it from beginning to end? I ask the Prime Minister to make a choice. This is the second thing I am here to do."