Chapter 205: Falsehood and Reality (2) [Two in One]
"King?"
Seeing that Han Wangran seemed to be in a daze, the Prime Minister opened his mouth and called out softly.
Han Wangran came back to his senses, frowning slightly and thinking.
At first he didn't care, but the words of Wei Qing Ma Kuo made him have some doubts about Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi: Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, planned to kill Li Chu and tie Yuanyi soldiers to his rebellion. I always feel that it is a bit beyond the level of Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi.
Either Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, has been hiding his secrets all these years, or there are clever advisers advising him.
The doubtful point is that if it is the latter, the counselor's methods are quite powerful. Why does such a powerful person not go to other people, but to go to Yuanyi Hou Hanpu, who has already lost his big backer and is being conquered by Jicheng? Who is targeted?—What is the purpose of this counselor?
"hiss--"
Han Wangran breathed lightly, and his intense thinking made his head begin to hurt again, as if acupuncture was stabbing him.
"Just wait and see what happens." He said in a deep voice, "Tell Sima Tao that he must defend Xia Quyang no matter what method he uses..."
Xiaquyang is located on the main road connecting Handan County and Daijun. Even if Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, occupied Jingjing Pass and cut off this main road, Jicheng can still pass through Xiaquyang, take Daijun, and go to Yanmen County - just This road is far less convenient than going to Yanmen County via Jingjing Pass.
But if Quyang is lost, South Korea will be in trouble. If the Qin State intensifies its offensive against Yanmen County, Jicheng will not be able to support Yanmen County as soon as possible. Compared with Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, this scabies This disease is a big problem.
"...As for Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, ask Sima Tao to try to stabilize him. After the spring of next year, Jicheng will send troops to conquer..." At this point, Han Wangran paused and asked the prime minister: " Where is Qin Kai now?"
"The trade routes are still being repaired in the northern regions outside the country." The prime minister replied openly.
The overseas northern land he refers to refers to the overseas land in the north of Shanggu and Yuyang counties. Since South Korea started trade with the foreign peoples on the northern plateau last year, South Korea has begun to repair roads outside the country. After all, the Wei State The rise has taught the Central Plains countries a truth: if you want to be rich, build roads first.
"Hmm." Han Wangran nodded and said: "The palace sent a message to Qin Kai, asking Qin Kai to make preparations for sending troops, and after the next spring... to attack Yuanyi." After a pause, he deliberately warned: "Other than that Outside, we sent someone to keep an eye on Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, and make inquiries to see what his intentions were. As for the rest... don't try to scare the snake."
"Snatching the grass and alerting the snake?"
The prime minister glanced at Han Wangran with open eyes and doubts, confused as to why the monarch suddenly said such a sentence. However, seeing Han Wangran rubbing his forehead with his hands and showing a tired look, he hesitated for a moment and did not ask any more questions. .
Under the instruction of Han Wangran, the Jicheng court quickly expressed its dissatisfaction with Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi. However, it has not yet nailed him to death in the name of a "traitor". It only ordered Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, to immediately disband his army and hand it over to the next generation. Sima Tao of Quyang immediately went to Jicheng - on the surface, it seemed that he was willing to give Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, a chance to reform.
But a few days later, when Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, learned of the incident, he dismissed it.
Disband your troops and head to Jicheng?
Can this be returned?
Could it be that the officials in Jicheng were treating him like a fool?
Afterwards, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, sneered and told Zhang Qigong and Bei Gongyu about the incident, treating it purely as a joke.
However, Zhang Qigong couldn't laugh.
"Unexpectedly..." Zhang Qigong said to Bei Gongyu: "Jicheng only ordered in the name of his court..."
Bei Gongyu also frowned and nodded.
It is undeniable that they were just fishing with bait to see if Jicheng would issue a royal order against Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi. Of course, they did not expect Han Wangran and the ministers of Jicheng to be stupid enough to let Han Wangran hesitate.
They risked their plan of cheating death to issue the royal order. They just expected Jicheng to "pretend" on Han Wangran's order to issue the royal order.
Regardless of whether it was a 'pretend', as long as Jicheng's efforts to conquer Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, they could roughly estimate whether Han Wangran's death was true or false.
But what they didn't expect was that Jicheng did not act in Han Wangran's name as they thought.
"It seems that our strength is not strong enough." Bei Gongyu said to Zhang Qigong.
Zhang Qigong nodded, turned to Yuanyi Marquis Han Pu and said, "I wonder how the Lord and Marquis have arranged the rumors?"
Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, said respectfully: "I have asked people to let him out."
The rumors they mentioned were rumors that slandered Han Wangran.
This rumor, written by the poisonous man Zhang Qigong himself, is naturally very vicious. When the rumor was published, he compared the situation in South Korea before and after Han Wangran came to power. Generally speaking, it means that before Han Wangran came to power, South Korea was peaceful and peaceful, and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment. But waiting for Han Wangran
After taking power personally, South Korea's economy and the living conditions of the domestic people plummeted. From this perspective, he slandered King Han as an ignorant and ignorant king.
It has to be said that when it comes to confusing right and wrong, Zhang Qigong, a disciple of Legalism, is also an expert at it.
It is undeniable that the basis he proposed is actually true, but the question is, is the reason why South Korea's national power has plummeted over the years really because of Han Wangran?
Isn’t it because Kang Gong Han Hu and Li Hou Han Wu attacked Wei several times but were defeated? What does it have to do with Han Wangran? When Han Wangran took over Korea, Korea was already in such a mess.
However, Zhang Qigong deliberately ignored this point and guided public opinion to attack Han Wangran, forcing the label of "foolish king" on Han Wangran's head to facilitate Yuanyi Hou Han Pu's subsequent plan to "establish a new king."
As the saying goes, the people follow the clouds. When Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, sent his confidants to try their best to discredit Han Wangran, the Korean people in Yuanyi and Yi'an greatly changed their view of Han Wangran.
Even Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, did not expect that it would go so smoothly.
However, Zhang Qigong and Bei Gongyu were not surprised by this.
Because they knew very well that after South Korea was defeated in recent wars with Wei, the Korean court naturally increased taxes in order to pay the high compensation to Wei. In addition, some nobles also wanted to compensate for the losses of their families in the war.
losses and secretly increased exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes, which made the Korean people resentful.
The so-called popular support is actually this: if you make the people live a good life, the people will support you; if you make it difficult for the people to live, the people will scold you, and even if you cannot live, the people will take risks and start rebellion.
In recent years, South Korea has passed on the two major losses of "reparations to Wei" and "compensation for war losses" to the domestic people, which has caused great resentment among the people in the country.
Why was Han Wangran forced to declare war on Wei this year in the hope of diverting domestic conflicts?
Is it really just because of the economic war between the merchants of Wei and South Korea?
Of course it’s impossible!
Can an economic war in just half a year really defeat a country? Can it destroy the country's local economy?
In fact, the war between the merchants of Wei and South Korea was just the last straw that broke the camel's back in South Korea - the people of South Korea were already in great difficulty before, and this economic war further increased the difficulty of survival of the South Korean people.
The difficulty forced Han Wangran to declare war on Wei.
Because if he does not declare war on Wei and divert domestic conflicts, the desperate people in the country are likely to riot.
This is the most fundamental reason.
Precisely because they had all kinds of resentment towards the country and the royal family, when people sent by Yuanyi Hou Hanpu spread rumors to slander Han Wangran, the Korean people in the area around Yuanyi and Yi'an would of course accept this concept: they these children
The people are starving to death, so what is the king who governs this country if he is not a foolish king?
How could these ignorant people know that this matter had nothing to do with Han Wangran.
In addition to slandering Han Wangran, at the suggestion of Zhang Qigong, Yuanyi Hou Hanpu also did not forget to win over the people. Under the current Korean national conditions, the best way to win over the people is to give the local people a way to survive. Simply put, it is to release grain.
Recruit strong men.
Opening granaries and releasing grain corresponded to the old, young, women and children, allowing Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, to earn a good reputation, which was convenient for him to come forward to slander Han Wangran.
As for the conquest of young men, on the surface it was to give those young people a way to make a living, but in fact, it was Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, in order to expand the army. After all, if you think about it, you know that when the next spring comes, Jicheng will definitely send them to conquer.
Soldiers and horses, before this, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, must become stronger as soon as possible. Only in this way can he be valuable in Zhang Qigong's eyes.
It has to be said that the time period when Zhang Qigong and Yuanyi Hou Hanpu decided to cause trouble was very good. It happened that Jicheng was temporarily unable to send troops to attack due to the weather, but Yuanyi Hou Hanpu was able to recruit those soldiers during this winter.
Local people who were short of food at home enlisted in the army.
No, by the end of the year, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, had recruited 8,000 new soldiers, increasing the number of troops under his command to nearly 30,000.
However, even so, the Korean people in Yuanyi and Yi'an still praised Hanpu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, and gave a thumbs up to praise him as a king who really loves his people like his own son. This made Hanpu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, famous.
.
The only problem is that Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, spent a lot of money on this.
But it didn't matter, because Zhang Qigong had already sent someone to contact Shangdang County on the other side of the Taihang Mountains, and asked Jiang Bi of Shangdang County to secretly transport the grain and grass to the mountain, and then the confidants under Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, would go and receive it.
If anyone asks, just say that this batch of grain comes from the secret granary built by Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, in the Taihang Mountains earlier. Unless it is a spy sent from Jicheng, who has the time to confirm whether what Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, says is true?
For the local people and the soldiers under Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, it was enough as long as they had enough food to fill their bellies.
Precisely because of the secret funding from Shangdang County of Wei State, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, expanded his army aggressively. Instead of falling into a situation of food shortage, it attracted more and more refugees to seek refuge. This shocked Sima Tao of Xiaquyang: Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, where did he get so much food?
During this period, the messenger sent by Jicheng notified Jicheng of the news in Yuanyi and Yi'an in detail, and presented it to Han Wangran's bedside.
After carefully reading the information, Han Wangran rubbed his aching forehead tiredly, and said to Ma Kuo, the minister of Wei who was standing beside him: "Unfortunately, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, has been betrayed by others. I am afraid that he has secretly defected to Wei. "
Hearing this, Wei Qing Ma Kuo was shocked.
Han Wangran then explained: "Do you still remember what Han Pu said when he killed Li Chu? He said that he was forced to have no choice but to attack Jicheng to get rid of this foolish king and avenge his uncle Han Hu. ...But look at what he has been doing these past two months? He is consolidating his defenses... He is determined to get rid of this foolish king, but what he does is actually defend the city he has occupied."
"This alone does not prove that Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, secretly defected to Wei, right?"
"That's right." Han Wangran nodded and said softly: "This alone cannot prove that Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, secretly defected to the Wei State. What really made us suspicious was his seemingly endless but unexplainable batch of people. The grain of origin... It is said that several granaries were secretly built in the Taihang Mountains. This kind of lie can only deceive a three-year-old child. If I am not mistaken, those grains of unknown origin are most likely from Wei on the other side of the Taihang Mountains. Guoshangdang County..."
Having said this, he narrowed his eyes and murmured: "It can be seen from this that in the matter of instigating rebellion against Yuanyi Marquis Han Pu, Wei State may have sent a great minister, and this Wei minister was in his dynasty. He has a very high status in the army, higher than Shangdang Shou Jiang Bi, so he can instruct Shangdang Shou Jiang Bi to cooperate with his actions and secretly escort grain and grass to Han Pu..."
After listening to Han Wangran's analysis of the matter, Wei Qing Ma Kuo was filled with admiration and couldn't help but ask: "Your Majesty, do you mean that the rebellion of Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, was instigated by the State of Wei behind his back? I don't understand... Since Wei Guoce rebelled against Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi. Why not ask Han Pu to defect at the critical moment, or cooperate with the Wei army on the border to launch a two-sided attack against Wu'an, Bairen, and Julu? Wouldn't this be better? Why did he deliberately call Han Pu the Marquis of Yuanyi? Exposed?"
"Because Wei's appetite is greater."
Han Wangran glanced at Ma Kuo and said in a deep voice: "If I am not mistaken, Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi, was a stone deliberately thrown by the State of Wei to test the road conditions ahead, just to see the reaction of Jicheng. From this It is inferred whether the news of his death that I deliberately asked others to spread is true or false... To ask for directions by throwing stones, huh, it is a very clever method, isn't it?"
Ma Kuo hesitated to speak. After hesitating a few times, he frowned and said, "How should Jicheng deal with this?"
Han Wangran thought for a while and said calmly: "The person who guided Yuanyi Hou Han Pu behind his back...maybe that minister of the Wei State. He is not simple and is very good at winning people's hearts..." At this point, he suddenly thought of One person asked: "Where is that person?"
Ma Kuo hesitated for a moment, then said cautiously: "Marquis Li?...We've almost arrived at Yuyang County."
Han Wangran was silent for a moment and said: "When he arrives in Jicheng, you personally welcome him into the palace to see me."
"……yes."
After a while, after Ma Kuo retreated, Han Wangran picked up the pieces of information on the quilt and murmured: "No matter who you are, I will never let you succeed..."
After saying that, his expression changed slightly and he suddenly covered his mouth with his hand.
Immediately, a series of violent coughs resounded throughout the palace.
Two days later in the morning, Lihou Hanwu's car slowly drove into Jicheng.
In the carriage, Lihou Hanwu was sitting upright with a serious look on his face, as if he was thinking about some important issue.
His serious expression deterred his wives, concubines, and children from disturbing him.
Suddenly, the carriage slowly stopped.
Sensing this, Lihou Hanwu opened his eyes and asked the groom who was driving him and the guards outside to protect him.
These grooms and guards were all personally selected by Julu Governor Yan Kui after he fled to Julu City that day. Although Yan Kui kept saying that he was sent to Jicheng to help him seize the throne, Li Hou Han Wu did not believe it at all. .
If Yan Kuei really wants to help him seize the throne, then where are his Yan Kuei people at this moment? Where are his troops?
He was betrayed by Yan Kui, his former confidant and favorite general.
In other words, Yan Kui used the news of Han Wangran's death to lure him back to China - in fact, in the view of Lihou Han Wu, the news of the death of his adopted brother Han Wangran was most likely false.
But even after guessing these things, Li Hou Han Wu still did not act rashly. Firstly, the guards who followed him to Jicheng this time were all Julu Shouyan's confidants. Secondly, he also wanted to meet his sworn brother Han Wangran. , ask him personally: What do you want to do?
"Marquis Li, Wei Qing Ma Kuo has come to greet you personally." The guard outside the car said to Han Wu, Marquis Li.
"Ma Kuo? Is he the son of Ma She, the guardian of Shanggu? That young boy actually got into the high position of Wei Qing..."
Li Hou Han Wu hummed without meaning.
After a while, someone raised the curtain of the carriage. Immediately, Wei Qing Ma Kuo clasped his fists towards Han Wu, the Marquis of Li in the carriage, and bowed respectfully: "Marquis Li."
"..." Li Hou Han Wu looked Ma Kuo up and down and nodded slightly.
Seeing that Marquis Li Han Wu looked cold, Ma Kuo didn't care and said with a smile: "Congratulations Marquis Li for returning home. The general has prepared wine to welcome Marquis Li."
"..." Li Hou Han Wu stared at the smile on Ma Kuo's face.
Although he had been in Wei for a long time, he also knew that Ma Kuo was now a close minister of his younger brother Han Wangran. Since Ma Kuo came to greet him with a smile on his face, it was obvious that his sworn brother Han Wangran was not dead at all.
"good!"
Li Hou Han Wu responded very simply, which surprised even Ma Kuo. He secretly muttered: Could it be that he saw something?
It has to be said that Ma Kuo underestimated Lihou Hanwu. As a powerful official who competed with Kang Gong and Han Hu for power, how could Lihou Hanwu's vision be inferior to that of the city government?
After giving some instructions to his wife and children in the carriage, Li Hou Han Wu simply got out of the carriage and signaled Ma Kuo to take him immediately to the so-called reception feast.
On the way, Li Hou Han Wu sat on his horse and asked calmly: "Did he ask you to come?"
Ma Kuo opened his mouth and smiled a little reluctantly: "I don't know what Marquis Li said..."
"snort."
Marquis Han Wu said nothing more and waited until Ma Kuo led him to a remote gate of the palace. Then he glanced at Ma Kuo with a bit of ridicule, which made Ma Kuo very embarrassed.
Under the leadership of Ma Kuo, Li Hou Han Wu came to the palace where Han Wangran was resting and walked in.
It has to be said that Han Wu was in a very complicated mood at this time - more of which were disappointment and anger.
He thought that he had treated his sworn brother Han Ran well and had always protected him. However, this brother stabbed him so hard in the end that he became a worthless hostage in the eyes of the Wei people.
The anger in his heart forced him to walk faster and faster. He wanted to rush to his adopted brother Han Ran immediately, grab the latter's clothes and ask: Why are you doing this to me?!
But when he stepped into the inner hall, he suddenly froze because he saw his brother Han Ran lying on a couch.
That look immediately triggered Han Wu's memory: his father, King Jian of Han, was lying on the couch like this before his death.
He walked to the bed and looked at his brother's haggard face in disbelief. For a moment, the anger in his heart completely disappeared.
"Brother, I'm sorry." Han Wangran said with a smile on the couch.
That smile and that gentle tone were just like when King Han Jian told the young Han Wu that he would be fine...
"You...how did you become like this?" Lihou Hanwu asked, with a bit of heartache in his tone, which made him feel a little incredible.
At this time, Ma Kuo had brought a stool, and Li Hou Han Wu was not polite. He sat on the stool and looked at his brother, looking at the haggard face of his younger brother, who was only in his thirties.
"It's just a minor illness." Han Wangran coughed twice, then looked at Lihou Han Wu apologetically, and said: "Sister-in-law, don't blame me. If I had redeemed you and returned to my country, I might not have been able to regain the royal power..."
"..." Li Hou Han Wu's lips moved a few times.
In fact, he was resentful about this, but looking at Han Wangran who looked like this at the moment, he couldn't hate him at all. After staring at his brother with a complicated expression for a while, he sighed sadly: "That's it, go over there. Just let it pass."
After that, he changed the subject and asked: "You didn't just ask Yan Kui to trick me back home by falsely reporting his death, right? Why did you falsely report his death? Is it because of Wei?"
Han Wangran nodded and said: "I managed to contact Qi and Chu to fight against Wei. Originally, I planned to attract Wei's troops and create opportunities for Chu to attack South Korea. I never thought that Zhao Run saw through... ...Therefore, I hoped to make Wei Guo take the bait by falsely reporting the news of his death. Unexpectedly, Wei Guo was too cautious..."
With that said, Han Wangran told Lihou Han Wu everything about Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi.
After all, Li Hou Han Wu was a powerful minister who had been in a high position for a long time, so his vision was naturally different. Of course, he could also see the conspiracy behind the actions of Yuanyi Hou Han Pu, and he immediately frowned.
At this time, I heard Han Wangran say seriously: "Brother, I couldn't forgive you for what happened back then, but now, the country, as well as the ancestors and the country, need you to come forward to take charge of the overall situation again... It is not convenient for me to come forward this time. , Now in the country, only you, my sworn brother, can thwart Wei Guo's conspiracy, cough cough cough, otherwise, otherwise, our country, Korea, may be in danger of collapse this time..."
Having said this, he looked at Lihou Han Wu and continued: "After this national crisis is over, I am willing to return the throne to my sworn brother."
"..."
Even though Han Wu, Marquis of Li, had been an unnoticed hostage in Wei for several years, his state of mind had been tempered and calm, and he was moved after hearing these words.
However, what surprised even him was that he had no thoughts about the throne at all at this moment. Instead, his mood fell heavily to the ground and felt uncomfortable because of Han Wangran's words.
"Are you...dying?"
His lips trembled slightly.
Immediately, after seeing Han Wangran's silence, his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.