Chapter 119: Situation and calculation [two in one]
In June of the 27th year of Wei Hongde, the armies of Wei Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo, Yan King Zhao Jiang, Chengling King Zhao Shen, Anping Marquis Zhao Tan and others successively captured South Korea's "Panwu", "Cixian", "Linzhang" and so on.
Land, push the front to the "Fushui" area.
Crossing the Fu River means you have truly entered the Gyeonggi region of Handan, the royal capital of Korea.
Fortunately, the Wei-Korean War was different from the Chu-Lu War and the Chu-Qi War. Because the Wei State had a Crown Prince who treated civilians leniently, no matter before or now, even if the armies of Wei and South Korea were fighting life and death on the border, for
It has little impact on the civilians of the two countries. At least the soldiers of Wei will not kill, set fire, rape, and loot like the soldiers of Chu.
In addition, in the second half of the war, Han Wangran secretly instructed the general Bao Yuan to release the water. Therefore, the battle was a little dull until the last moment.
But having said that, the Wei army has now pushed the battle line to the Handan City area. Even if it is just a pretense, the Korean army must make a real counterattack here. Otherwise, if it is sent out of the royal capital for no reason, it will inevitably be looked down upon by the people of the world.
Because of this, Zhao Hongrun, after learning about the battle situation of his own army, also led his Shangshui Army to move closer to Handan in late June. As for the Yanling Army, they continued to stay in Julu. He still did not completely give up attacking Qi.
After all, although Qi and Lu have temporarily blocked Chu's attack, even Zhao Hongrun himself cannot judge what the three-way war between Qi, Lu, and Chu will turn into.
The actions against Wei's merchant navy could not be hidden from South Korea's eyes and ears. However, the few South Korean troops stationed in this area had no intention of actively provoking this army. After all, Han Wangran had already hinted at these generals leading the troops.
In early July, Zhao Hongrun led his army to "Kuiqiu" and formed a line with the Wei army stationed in "Panwu", "Cixian", "Linzhang", "Yecheng" and other places, surrounding Handan like a crescent moon.
, and the Korean side transferred several armies from the original Hanoi battlefield and the original Julu battlefield back to the vicinity of Handan, and set up arrays here, as if they were going to have a final decisive battle with the Wei army here.
Of course, this may only be superficial.
After leading his army to Cuiqiu, Zhao Hongrun first went to the military camp of Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo. He had something to explain to the latter.
To Zhao Hongrun's surprise, he met "Zhao Ran", the chief concubine of Qin, in the military camp of Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang.
When meeting Zhao Hongrun, Zhao Ran was full of emotion and said with a wry smile: "Your Highness, it's really not easy to meet you."
Zhao Hongrun didn't understand why, and it wasn't until Zhao Ran opened his mouth to explain that he suddenly realized.
It turned out that in order to negotiate with the Wei State to "share Korea equally", Zhao Ran, the chief concubine of the Qin State, had to travel a long distance this time.
He first arrived at Daliang, the royal capital of the Wei State, and met with Zhao Hongrun's concubine, Qin Shaojun, who was also the declared crown prince of the Qin State. Under Qin Shaojun's introduction, Zhao Ran met the King of Wei, Zhao Si, and presented his credentials. On the one hand, he represented the King of Qin on his behalf.
In return for the goodwill relations between Qin and Wei, on the one hand, he proposed that "Qin and Wei divide Korea equally."
If it had been twenty or thirty years ago, the ambitious King Zhao Si of Wei at that time would certainly not have refused such a good opportunity to open up new territories for the country. However, the current King of Wei Zhao Si, who is over fifty years old, is half dead.
Most of the power in his hands was transferred to the prince Zhao Run, and his only hope was to guard the last post for his son.
Therefore, without knowing his son Zhao Run's true intentions towards South Korea, Wei King Zhao Si certainly would not make the decision rashly. He implicitly hinted to Zhao Ran that he would have to negotiate with Zhao Hongrun personally on this matter.
This made Zhao Ran both happy and worried.
Fortunately, Zhao Hongrun, the son-in-law of the Qin State, really took charge of the power of the Wei State, and was destined to inherit the throne in due course. In this way, the relationship between Qin and Wei became more and more stable, although he had never been in the Qin State.
It’s not a country that likes hugging, but if there is a thigh named the Overlord of the Central Plains for them to hug, it doesn’t hurt to give them a hug, right?
After all, if Qin had researched the craftsmanship and technology taught to Qin by the State of Wei, it would have taken at least several decades of work. How could it be as convenient as it is now to get ready-made products directly from the State of Wei?
What's worrying is, God knows where that Wei Gongzi Run is now?
After thinking about it, Zhao Ran finally rejected the kindness of Wei King Zhao Si and did not stay in Daliang. He asked the Wei State for the protection of a group of guards, and then under the protection of these guards, headed towards Ningyang.
When he first went there, Zhao Hongrun was in Ningyang of the State of Lu.
But what I didn't expect was that when Zhao Ran arrived in Ningyang before last winter, the person who greeted him was not Zhao Hongrun, but Xiang Mo, the general of Chu State.
After some understanding, Chu general Xiang Mo smiled and said to Zhao Ran: Wei Gongzi Run had led his army to the north two months ago.
Zhao Ran had no choice but to lead his team north again. As a result, after arriving in the territory of Weiguo, when he was preparing to cross the river to Hebei, he was hindered by the giant Korean deer guarding Yanfu. At that time, Han general Yanfu wanted to cut off the merchant water under Zhao Hongrun's command.
The two armies in Yanling personally led the fleet to block the river in the entire area.
In this way, Zhao Ran, the great concubine of Qin State, had no choice but to live in a remote village of Wei State.
Fortunately, the Wei Kingdom was also an ally. After learning that Zhao Ran, the chief concubine of the Qin Kingdom, was in the Wei Kingdom, he invited Zhao Ran to live in the city, and on the other hand, he sent people to Hebei.
Inquire for information.
But unfortunately, there are not many troops in Weiguo. Moreover, they are attacking Dongjun of Qi during this period. There is no way to help Zhao Ran break through the blockade of Han general Julu guarding Yanxi. To put it bluntly, in fact, they can't defeat it.
It cannot be denied that although the Korean general Julu Shou Yanju is far less famous among the "Top Ten Heroes of Beiyuan" than Li Mu, Le Yi, and Ma She, in fact, this man once general Wei Guo in a water battle.
In the Hedong Shou, Lintao Lord Wei Ji was playing around in circles. Although this was due to Lintao Lord Wei Ji not being good at water battles, it was enough to prove that Julu Shou Yanju was a general who was good at fighting with both wisdom and courage.
Not to mention, the Julu guarding Yanfu is also the old enemy of Qi general Tian Ao, Tian Wu and his son. How can they be kind to the people?
With nothing to do, Zhao Ran once considered returning to Daliang. Unexpectedly, after the spring of this year, things suddenly took a turn for the better: Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang in the Wei State, and Zhao Jiang, the king of Yan, suddenly stepped up their counterattack against South Korea and fought hard.
Han generals Bao Yuan and Jin Bo retreated steadily.
At that time, Zhao Ran heard the news on his way back to Daliang, and quickly went to Hanoi, following the troops of Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo and Yan King Zhao Jiang. In this way, after several months, he finally
I met Zhao Hongrun, the Crown Prince of Wei.
"...It's really not easy."
During the banquet that day, when Zhao Ran slowly told all the details about his journey, all the generals at the table suppressed their laughter and glanced at the Crown Prince Zhao Hongrun intentionally or unintentionally.
Think about it, looking at all the countries in the Central Plains, which country's prince is as willful as their Crown Prince? So wanton and reckless?
I went deep into the heart of the enemy's country alone and cut off contact with the mainland for several months. Oh my god, since you are the prince, I ask you to stay in Daliang!
Among these resentful eyes was the King of Southern Liang, Zhao Yuanzuo.
This is no wonder. After all, when the two generals Bao Yuan and Jin Bo in Han deliberately released the news to the Wei State that "Wei Gongzi Run defeated Guantao and defeated Julu" in an attempt to cause panic and chaos in the Wei State, in fact,
Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, saw through the purpose of these two Korean generals at a glance.
However, Zhao Hongrun's prestige in Wei's court and public was so high that a mere rumor plunged the entire Liang County into chaos, and even the court was paralyzed for a time. Fortunately, King Zhao Si of Wei came forward in time to wake everyone up.
.
It has to be said that during these days, Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, was extremely aggrieved. He obviously had his own strategic arrangements, but just because of this rumor, all his strategic arrangements were ruined, and it made him even have to talk bitterly.
I went to comfort the people in Nanyan and Jujube areas and told them that all this was a Korean conspiracy. You should not follow others' words and listen to rumors.
But what made him feel sad was that the people in Liang County didn't believe his words at all. Some people even secretly said that he had evil intentions. What's more, a few well-informed Wei people even reported that he had been there.
During the "First Battle of Northern Xinjiang between Wei and Han", the old story about how Zhao Hongrun was trapped in Shangdang County and refused to save him caused Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Southern Liang, to bear a lot of infamy for no reason.
And all of this must be attributed to this wanton Prince of the East Palace!
In addition to being resentful, Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, also felt a little happy in his heart, because he could judge from the reaction of the Daliang court that after this incident, it was almost impossible for Zhao Hongrun to step out of Daliang again in his life. Those ministers in the court would definitely
This prince will no longer be tolerated.
Perhaps because he felt countless strange looks, Zhao Hongrun laughed guiltily.
After all, at this time, he had also learned that because he had lost contact with the mainland for several months, there had been chaos in Daliang. If there was turmoil and civil strife in the Wei State, then he would have to bear all the responsibilities without hesitation.
.
After the banquet, Zhao Hongrun invited Zhao Ran, the chief concubine of Qin State, to his small tent.
Of course he could guess Zhao Ran's purpose of traveling all the way to Wei State and working tirelessly to find him since then. It just so happened that he also had some plans in his mind.
"Thank you, Mrs. Que."
After Zhao Que served the tea, Zhao Ran first handed over his hand as a thank you, and then he turned to Zhao Hongrun and said, "Your Highness, what do you think of the current war situation?"
In fact, Zhao Hongrun knew Zhao Ran's purpose very well, and he also intended to let Qin take over the war with South Korea, but of course he couldn't say these things directly, otherwise he would inevitably be suspected of scheming against Qin.
"The current battle situation...is generally acceptable."
Nodding, Zhao Hongrun held the tea cup and said: "This war has been going on for almost a year now. It cannot be denied that South Korea is indeed very powerful. Even if our two families join forces, they cannot defeat it... I heard
In the Xihe area, Li Mu's army has not been defeated so far?"
"Well... that Li Mu is indeed a bit tricky." Zhao Ran nodded with an awkward expression.
In fact, there was no need for him to feel embarrassed, because in the Xihe War Zone, it was not just his Qin army that was helpless against Li Mu. In fact, there were also generals such as Shao Hu, Sima An, and Wei Ji from Wei who were stationed there.
, are all outstanding generals of the Wei State, but these generals, as well as the Qin State's Wuxinhou Gongsunqi, Changxinhou Wangjian, Yangquanjun Yingbo, etc., were all blocked by Li Mu's army outside Yanmen County. Although
To say that the battle was like this, half of it was due to the fact that the Korean army under Li Mu occupied an absolutely advantageous location and blocked the Qin and Wei armies with a series of majestic passes. But it is also enough to prove that Li Mu is indeed one of the few handsome men in the world.
, with the power of one person, he was able to resist many commanders and generals of Qin and Wei Dynasties.
"Fortunately, His Highness Run has opened up the situation..." Gan smiled and complimented Zhao Hongrun, and Zhao Ran tried in a low voice: "According to Zhao's knowledge, His Highness Run seems to be in the Julu area, and is related to Han Wangran, who has recently regained power in South Korea.
We met, I don’t know... what we talked about, can you tell me a little bit about it?”
Zhao Hongrun said with a smile: "What's the harm?... As Master Zhao Ran guessed, what else can Han Ran say? It's nothing more than coercion and inducement, hoping to force Wei Wei to end this war."
After hearing this, Zhao Ran's expression changed slightly, he stroked his beard and said with a smile: "This is really... so ridiculous! Who is His Highness Run? How could he change his mind just because of his few words?" As he said, he shook his head.
Shaking his head, he said as if talking to himself: "South Korea has provoked your country's power several times, and has torn up the armistice agreement again and again. It seems that such an unjust country, if it were our country, Great Qin, would fight to the death!"
"...This old boy."
Zhao Hongrun glanced at Zhao Ran calmly, then nodded and said: "Yes! What Mr. Zhao Ran said is absolutely true. South Korea has repeatedly provoked Wei Wei and tore up the agreement. Naturally, I want to teach him a profound lesson! ...
When I captured Handan, I returned the city out of concern for the friendship between the two countries, but this time... Huh! I have decided to make Handan the city of Wei Dynasty for generations to come!"
"well!"
Zhao Ran said a few good words in his heart and waited for Zhao Hongrun's next words. Unexpectedly, after the latter said these words, he actually picked up the tea cup and took a sip, as if he had no more words to say.
Seeing this, Zhao Ran asked tentatively: "Your Highness Run, what happens after this?"
"What's after this?"
"What Zhao means is, what happened to His Highness Run after he captured Handan?" At this point, he licked his lips and asked cautiously: "Is this the end of your country?"
"Well..." Zhao Hongrun pondered for a while, then frowned and said, "I haven't thought about it yet."
"How do you say this?" Zhao Ran asked in confusion.
Zhao Hongrun frowned and said: "Actually, I don't want to fight this battle. Over the years, we, the Wei Dynasty, have had constant wars. Although we have recovered some land one after another, and even opened up some new lands, in fact,
The national strength of our Great Wei has not been increased because of this. Just like in the Hexi and Hetao areas, those lands are just there, almost the same as when they did not belong to our Great Wei... In contrast, due to successive years, the land is just there.
In the war, the treasury and granaries of Wei Dynasty are becoming increasingly empty. In my opinion, this country's strength is not advancing but retreating... If the threat from South Korea is not too great, I am not inclined to this war. After all, I am not inclined to this war.
The king is not a military man."
"Hmm." Zhao Ran nodded slightly.
After all, what Zhao Hongrun said is also true. There have been more wars in the Wei State in the past ten years than in all the wars in the Wei State in the past ten years and in the past few decades. The scale of the wars is also larger, and the most talked about
The "Battle of Shangdang between Wei and Han" that people like to talk about, in fact, the Wei State only dispatched tens of thousands of troops at that time, but in the past ten years, the State of Wei has frequently dispatched hundreds of thousands of troops, including three "Battles of Northern Frontiers of Wei and Han", "Five Directions Expedition"
"Battle of Wei", "Battle of Hexi", "Battle of Hetao", and this time "Battle of Wei and Qin against Korea", when did the Wei State not have an army of three to four hundred thousand at every turn?
Even Zhao Ran felt that it was thanks to Wei King Zhao Si's hard work for twenty years that he laid a solid foundation of national strength for his son Zhao Run. Otherwise, as Wei had been going to war frequently in the past ten years, the national strength might have collapsed long ago.
"Your Highness Run means that after capturing Handan and teaching the Koreans a lesson, His Highness Run will accept South Korea's peace proposal?" Zhao Ran asked with a frown.
"It depends on the situation." Zhao Hongrun shrugged and said: "If South Korea still refuses to recognize my status as the Great Wei, then I, the Great Wei, will accompany me to the end!"
"...Han Wangran has met with you in person, how could he still refuse to recognize your status in Wei?"
Zhao Ran glanced at Zhao Hongrun and muttered secretly in his heart.
Based on his judgment of Zhao Hongrun's words, he felt that this time the Wei State might just be satisfied with forcing South Korea to recognize its status, or as the Wei Gongzi in front of him said, it was content with capturing Handan, the capital of South Korea, and giving South Korea
A profound lesson for man.
To be honest, this is not in the interests of Qin.
In this melee between the Central Plains countries, which side has gained the most so far?
Of course it’s Wei!
South Korea, which competed with Wei for the hegemony of the Central Plains, was defeated. The tough-talking former overlord Qi is still trembling under Chu's offensive. It is no exaggeration to say that Wei has completely achieved their strategic goals.
.
But what did Qin gain in this war?
Nothing!
The Qin State's army is still blocked outside Yanmen County by the famous Korean general Li Mu. It can be said that it has done nothing. Of course, in fact, this is not the case. At least Zhao Ran feels that as long as the Wei State can continue this war
In the war, the two countries Qin and Wei were at least 70% sure of destroying South Korea and dividing this huge Central Plains country equally.
But the problem is that Wei has achieved their strategic goal and seems to be preparing to stop, which makes Qin very embarrassed: after finally catching an opportunity for a melee between the Central Plains countries, Qin has not had time to take action.
Force, this battle is over?
But in view of what Zhao Hongrun said just now, Zhao Ran really can't find any loopholes. After all, what the former said is indeed true: if the land that was conquered is not used, what is the difference between not using the land?
After pondering for a long time, Zhao Ran asked hesitantly: "Your Highness Run, could it be that you..." After a slight hesitation, he simply stated what he really thought in his heart: "Could it be that you really haven't..."
Have you ever considered destroying South Korea and completely eradicating this hidden danger? Zhao heard that letting the tiger return to the mountain will cause endless troubles. Decades ago, South Korea defeated your country in Shangdang, and then competed with Qi for a time, so that your country could take time to recuperate and finally
Defeat South Korea today and wipe away the shame of the past. It will serve as a lesson for others and a lesson for others. If Your Highness appeases South Korea this time, over time, South Korea may rise again and become a serious problem for your country..."
Hearing Zhao Ran's words, Zhao Hongrun couldn't help but think of Han Wangran.
He knew very well that as long as the King of Han is here, Korea's future prosperity is inevitable, but the problem is that it will take at least five years to destroy Korea, and Wei is not yet strong enough to survive even if the war lasts for five years.
The key is how well you can secure your position as the overlord of the Central Plains!
On the contrary, if the Wei State gives up when things get better this time and focuses on developing its own national strength, then no country in the Central Plains will ever be able to catch up with Wei State, let alone try to replace Wei State's status.
Thinking in the long run, this is a wise move.
After pondering for a moment, Zhao Hongrun revealed some of his thoughts: "What Mr. Zhao Ran said is absolutely true. South Korea ignored me, the Great Wei, so that we, the Great Wei, have the opportunity to turn around today. Of course, I understand the truth. But South Korea has a vast territory.
, it is not possible to overthrow it overnight. I am ashamed to say that our Wei Dynasty currently only has the power to "defeat Han", but does not have the ability to "destroy Han"..." At this point, he glanced at Zhao Ran and continued:
"I understand Zhao Ran's difficulties, and as the son-in-law of the Qin State, I naturally hope that the Qin State will become strong. So, even if Handan is captured and South Korea is forced to surrender to the Wei Dynasty, I will not do it for the time being.
Signing a peace agreement with South Korea, and providing your country with some armaments and food assistance, what do you think, Lord Zhao Ran?"
Although Zhao Hongrun said it very cryptically, Zhao Ran could still understand the deep meaning of his words: We, Wei State, have no way to send troops for the time being, otherwise our national power will collapse, but if your Qin State insists on continuing to attack South Korea, I will
Wei can provide material assistance.
"this……"
Looking at Zhao Hongrun with a smile on his face, Zhao Ran, the chief concubine of Qin State, fell into deep thought.
It has to be said that as the chief concubine of the Qin State, Zhao Ran could certainly guess Zhao Hongrun's intentions. The Wei State was temporarily unable to continue to conquer South Korea, but this did not prevent him from using the power of the Qin State to continue to weaken South Korea.
Even from a malicious point of view, if the Qin State is able to defeat South Korea's effective force in the future, there is no guarantee that the Wei State will not come out to intercept Hu.
But the problem is that Zhao Ran is really unwilling to let go and end the war like this: Your Wei State has achieved its goal, but our Qin State has not gained anything yet!
Accepting this proposal would be equivalent to using the power of the Qin State to eliminate the threat of South Korea for the Wei State; but if you don't accept it, the Qin State will achieve nothing by sending troops this time, and Zhao Ran is unwilling to accept it.
In this case, it's no wonder that Zhao Ran is so confused.
Seeing the hesitation on Zhao Ran's face, Zhao Hongrun chuckled and said: "Master Zhao Ran, there is no need to make a decision in a hurry. You might as well think about it for a few days or send someone to discuss it with Xianyang."
Zhao Ran nodded, stood up and left.
Seeing Zhao Ran walk out of the small tent, Zongwei Chief Lu Mu asked curiously: "Your Highness, do you think the Qin State is willing to take over the war with South Korea?"
Zhao Hongrun smiled and said: "I don't know whether they are willing to do so, but I know that they will accept it in the end... This battle will only consume the country's strength and gain little benefit. How could Qin accept it?"
At this moment, Yang Yu, the general under the command of Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, hurriedly walked out of the tent. He cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, the envoy from Handan sent a letter of war written by Han Wangran himself. The last general sent by the prince sent you to invite your highness.
Discuss with the Commander-in-Chief."
"War letter?"
Zhao Hongrun was stunned for a moment, with a hint of confusion in his eyes, and he didn't understand what Han Wangran meant.
Could it be that because it was the last battle, Han Ran hoped that each other would act more realistically so that he could explain it to the people of the country?