Chapter 283: Meeting and Decisive Battle [Two in One]
"This is the Ganlu Palace. I, the monarch of the Wei Dynasty, am waiting for three of you in the palace right now. Please!"
Outside the Ganlu Hall, Chu Heng turned sideways and said to Han Wangran's wife Zhou, as well as the brothers Han Ji and Han Fei.
"Mother, Queen Mother..."
Han Fei, who was only seven or eight years old, huddled anxiously next to his mother Zhou. He was obviously very afraid of Chu Heng, a strong man who was more than nine feet tall, but his brother Han Ji, who was once a twelve or thirteen-year-old
The elder brother, who had been a Korean monarch at that age, was looking into the Manna Hall with a fearful expression.
After all, how many years older Han Ji was than his younger brother Han Fei: compared to General Chu Heng, the Wei monarch Zhao Run who was waiting for their mother and son in the palace at the moment was the one who should be feared the most.
"Don't worry, Ji'er, Fei'er, your mother is here..."
Mrs. Zhou comforted her two sons, but in fact even she was frightened.
Although her husband Han Ran was often heard lamenting when he was alive that he and Wei Wang Zhao Run were not born at the right time and were destined to never become true confidants. However, the Zhou family had never met Wei Wang Zhao Run in person and did not know his personality and preferences, so of course she was unsure.
Following the big man Chu Heng, Mrs. Zhou held the hands of her two sons. The mother and son walked into the palace with some trepidation and walked towards the study of Wei King Zhao Run.
After arriving at Wei Wang Zhao Run's study, Zhou's mother and son saw a man wearing a purple brocade robe standing by the window with his hands behind his back.
"Then...could it be Zhao Run, the monarch of the Wei Dynasty?"
Zhou mother and son secretly guessed.
At this time, Chu Heng clasped his fists and said, "Your Majesty, I have invited Zhou's mother and son here."
After hearing this, Wei King Zhao Run, who was still feeling sorry for Han General Li Mu, turned his head and looked at Zhou, mother and son.
Seeing this, Mrs. Zhou was shocked and quickly bowed her head and said, "My wife who lost her husband has met His Majesty the King of Wei."
At the same time, she lightly patted her eldest son Han Ji with her right hand. The latter then remembered his mother's instructions in recent days and quickly bowed his hands and said: "Han Ji, pay homage to His Majesty the King of Wei."
"hehe."
Of course, Zhao Run could see that the Zhou family, mother and son were terrified at this moment, and waved his hands to comfort him: "Zhang Qigong is good at making decisions. He brought you and others to our Daliang by force, and made you, mother and son go through the hardships of traveling and traveling. I have already reprimanded you.
He's here." After that, he motioned for Zhou, mother and son to sit down in a seat next to them.
"Thank you, His Majesty King Wei."
Mrs. Zhou and her eldest son Han Ji saluted respectively.
I have to say that they were surprised: they originally thought that Wei Wang Zhao Run was a very domineering monarch, but they did not expect that he would be so amiable and without any airs.
At this time, Zhao Run was also sitting on the other side of the banquet, and ordered the imperial guards in the palace to bring tea, dried fruits, and cakes to the mother and son to fill their bellies for the time being.
Zhou and her eldest son Han Ji did not dare to offend the Wei monarch's kindness. Although they had no appetite because of their worries, they still managed to eat a piece of pastry. However, Han Fei, who was young and ignorant, saw those delicious pastries and fruits.
After doing it, he seemed to have forgotten his fear of the two strangers Zhao Run and Chu Heng for a moment. He grabbed a handful of dried fruits with his little hands and ate them to his heart's content. Mr. Zhou frowned frequently, but he didn't dare to eat them.
Now he scolded the young son.
Zhao Run didn't care about this, after all, he had always been carefree with his children, except the prince Zhao Wei who was a little stricter.
After looking at the brothers Han Ji and Han Fei with a smile, Zhao Run turned his attention to the Zhou family and asked, "What are the Xian family's next plans?"
Zhou was shocked and quickly bowed her head and begged: "His Majesty the King of Wei has the final say in everything. This bitch just wants my son to save his life."
Hearing his mother's words, the eldest son Han Ji looked at Zhao Run nervously. Being smart, he immediately guessed that the "my son" his mother said did not actually refer to their brothers in general, but to him alone, because he had once
He is the orthodox monarch of Korea.
Why did Zhang Qigong try to kill them? Is it not to kill them all and completely cut off the orthodox roots of the Korean royal family to avoid future troubles?
Under the nervous and expectant looks of Zhou and Han Ji, Zhao Run nodded and said: "It's best if the Xian family thinks so... I have known Han Ran for more than ten years, and our friendship is not shallow, so some imaginary
If my love is fake, I won't tell you at all." After saying this, he looked at Zhou's mother and son and said solemnly: "As long as I, Zhao, are still here, your mother and son can enjoy all the glory in Luoyang without any shortage.
.”
Zhou blinked her eyes, obviously understanding what Zhao Run meant: It is impossible to let you go back to South Korea, but I can let you enjoy all the glory and wealth like a great noble in the capital of my Kingdom of Wei.
.
I have to say that this is the best treatment for Zhou, mother and son.
Thinking of this, Mrs. Zhou quickly leaned over and thanked her: "Bitch, thank you, His Majesty the King of Wei, for your great kindness."
However, Han Ji asked in a low voice with some suspicion: "Seriously? His Majesty the King of Wei is really willing to let go of his mother, brother, and me? Will he not regret it?"
"Ji'er?" Mrs. Zhou quickly scolded in a low voice.
Zhao Run waved his hand towards Mr. Zhou and said to Han Ji with a smile: "Why are you so suspicious at such a young age?" When he said this, his heart moved and he asked: "You know, in fact, I am facing the minister Zhang Qigong, because he is so suspicious.
Why do you want to hunt down your mother and your son?"
Han Ji nodded and replied: "Just because the boy inherited the throne from his father, he is the orthodox member of the Korean royal family."
"Very smart."
Zhao Run praised a few words, then said with a smile: "Zhang Qing is worried about you, so he wants to kill you all to avoid future troubles, but I am not afraid of you, a junior... Haha, even if your father Han Ran is still alive.
I'm not afraid of it, let alone a junior like you."
"But even so, His Majesty the King of Wei still wants to force my mother and son to stay in the Kingdom of Wei..." Han Ji said in a low voice.
Hearing these vaguely sarcastic words, Mrs. Zhou looked shocked and scolded without caring about her manners, "Ji'er, how dare you speak to His Majesty the King of Wei like this? Why don't you accuse me quickly?"
Seeing Han Ji's frightened expression, Zhao Run smiled and comforted Mr. Zhou and said, "Xian family, please be patient."
After saying that, he turned to look at Han Ji and asked with a smile: "Boy, do you think I have some scruples to keep you, mother and son, in my great Wei?"
Han Ji's lips moved slightly, but he didn't say anything, probably because his mother was staring at him at the moment.
Seeing this, Zhao Run thought to himself and said: "I believe that when you and your mother came to our country, you also heard the news that the coalition forces of various countries were invading our country. This is because there are many countries in the Central Plains, each with their own interests.
Therefore, conquests continue... In view of this, I want to end the war with war and wipe out all the countries. In other words, South Korea is a country that I, the Wei Dynasty, will definitely annex in the future..." said
Here, he looked at Han Ji and said with a smile: "You can believe it, if I let the three of you, mother and son, return to South Korea, you three will definitely die. Either in the hands of the Wei people or in the hands of the Koreans. But if
If you mother and son stay in our great Wei Dynasty and stay in the royal capital of Luoyang, I can protect you, mother and son, and make you live in peace for the rest of your life... Do you understand, kid?"
"..." Han Ji was speechless by Zhao Run. He didn't know whether the latter's words were true or false.
But Zhou understood that what the King of Wei in front of him was indeed telling the truth.
At the same time, she couldn't help but sigh in her heart. It turned out that her husband Han Ran once said that he had a close friendship with King Zhao Run of Wei, which was actually not a lie.
Thinking of this, she hinted to her eldest son Han Ji: "The Marquis of Yuanyi, Han Pu, is also a Korean."
Han Ji finally came to his senses and quickly confessed to Zhao Run.
Of course, Zhao Run was not as knowledgeable as the younger generation. Hearing this, he smiled and said, "You met your father and we got along quite well. Since he played a trick before he died and asked me to take care of you mother and son, I naturally will not ignore his last wishes."
My last wish... I cannot grant you the position of Lord Han, but the title of prince does not matter. As long as the three of you, mother and son, stay safe, I can ensure that you will enjoy peace and harmony in our Wei Dynasty for the rest of your life, and even benefit future generations."
"Why don't you thank His Majesty the King of Wei?" Zhou was so surprised that he could see the blue sky after clearing the clouds.
Seeing his mother's urging, Han Ji did not dare to disobey, so he raised his hands and thanked her: "Thank you, Your Majesty the King of Wei."
Zhao Run waved his hand and said with a smile: "Your father and I have known each other for many years, and he is a few years older than me... Well, you can call me uncle in the future. Your Majesty does not need to be long, but His Majesty is short."
Under the hint of surprise on his mother Zhou's face, Han Ji hesitated for a moment, and finally shouted: "Uncle, uncle."
Zhao Run smiled slightly and said: "My uncle's children are about the same age as you, so I think we can have some common words...Han Ji."
"My, my nephew is here." Han Ji was still a little uncomfortable.
"If Uncle Wei asks you to put aside Korea and let go of your grudges at this moment, I believe it is a bit difficult, so I will not force you. In the future, you might as well see it with your own eyes and think carefully about whether you have the opportunity to avenge your father and country.
.If you feel that revenge is futile
Hope, then, you might as well think about my uncle’s advice today. I believe this is also your father’s wish... live a good life and have children. I think you are quite smart, but smartness does not mean wisdom. What is a wise man? Just look.
Those who understand the general situation must remember, remember.”
Han Ji nodded in understanding.
Perhaps at this time, he was still secretly stunned that the Wei Majesty in front of him actually did not stop him from avenging his father and country. Although he had not thought about it that way, the Zhou family beside him could understand clearly.
I know that these are the words from the heart of the Wei Jun in front of me.
Perhaps because they had received the promise from King Zhao Run of Wei that they no longer had any worries about their lives, Zhou and Han Ji put their worries aside and slowly ate the pastries - maybe they were really hungry.
At this time, Zhao Run asked about Han Ran's situation before his death.
Zhou didn't dare to hide it, so she told Zhao Run everything about her husband Han Ran's death, which made Zhao Run sigh.
He couldn't help but sigh: "The world is too small to accommodate Han Ran and me..."
After hearing this, Han Ji asked cautiously: "Uncle, are you and my father really close friends?"
Zhao Run smiled slightly and asked, "Why do you ask that?"
Han Ji hesitated for a moment and said, "When my father was alive, I often heard him in pain and scolding my uncle..."
"Ha ha ha ha."
Zhao Run laughed loudly, and then said nonchalantly: "As an uncle, I sometimes scold your father, but this is nothing."
"But I heard people say that my father is a foolish king and cannot be compared with my uncle..." Han Ji said with a complicated expression.
Zhao Run immediately put away his smile, and after thinking for a while, he said seriously: "Han Ji, I can't believe what I heard. Your father is undoubtedly a wise king, and he is the most difficult opponent I have encountered so far...
I thought that no one in the world could stop me, the Wei Dynasty, but my father secretly contacted Qi and Chu, and even harmed the interests of his own country to promote the "Three Kingdoms Alliance of Han, Qi, and Chu". He set off a great trend and forced me to conquer it personally, which was dangerous.
These countries fell... If a person like this is not enough to be called a wise king, how many people in this world have this qualification?... It was not your father who caused the decline of Korea, but Han Hu,
The war between Han and Wu was caused by the greedy and selfish nobles in South Korea who controlled the lifeline of the country. The reason why I was able to defeat your father was just because I took control of the country earlier than he did, for a full ten years.
Do you understand the gap?"
"Uh-huh."
Han Ji nodded vigorously.
Seeing this, Zhao Run smiled and said, "Okay, let's go have a meal together."
On that day, Wei Wang Zhao Run had dinner with the Zhou family, Han Ji, and Han Fei brothers. On the one hand, he naturally wanted to get closer to Han Ran's two sons. After all, in Zhao Run's view, since Han Ran had brought his two sons
If you entrust it to him, he will naturally take good care of it; on the other hand, it will also send a message to the ministers of Wei State: Zhou, mother and son, must not act rashly!
After waiting for the meal, Zhao Run ordered people to temporarily place the Zhou family, mother and son in Prince Yi's Mansion in Daliang City, which was also the former residence of his sixth uncle Zhao Yuanli. He also sent someone to take care of them so that they would not be short of daily necessities.
Zhou, mother and son left the palace with great gratitude.
The next day, Jie Ziyu heard about this, so he took his attendant Zhang Qigong, who looked numb, to the palace to ask for an audience with King Zhao Run of Wei.
After the ceremony of the emperor and his ministers, Jie Ziziu asked with a smile: "I heard that your Majesty will temporarily place the Zhou family, mother and son, in Prince Yi's Mansion?"
Zhao Run glanced at Zhang Qigong next to Jie Ziyu, who seemed to be mourning nothing more than his death, and said lightly, holding back a smile: "It is true." After that, he told Jie Ziyu about Han Ran leaving the letter, and immediately sighed with emotion.
Said: "I really can't bear Han Ran's entrustment on his deathbed. As long as the Zhou family, mother and son, stay safe in the future, I will allow them to be rich and noble for the rest of their lives. This is worthy of me and Han Ran getting to know each other."
"Your Majesty is merciful."
Jie Zigui cupped his hands and said with a smile: "I suggest that your Majesty accept Han Ji as his adopted son..."
"That's not necessary."
Zhao Run immediately interrupted Jie Ziyu.
How could he not see through Jie Zizi's thoughts? Jie Ziu simply wanted to use Han Ji's identity as the "legendary Korean royal family" to help Wei Guo annex South Korea more smoothly, but Zhao Run did not want to take advantage of Han Ji——
You must know that he took in Zhou, mother and son because of his friendship with Han Ran. He did not want to get any benefits involved in this matter.
Seeing that the monarch in front of him had made up his mind, Jie Ziu could only swallow his advice and changed his words: "Listen to what Chu Shuli Chu said, your majesty is ready to fight a decisive battle with the coalition forces of other countries?"
"Hmm."
Zhao Run nodded and said slowly: "Originally, I wanted to continue to ignore the coalition forces of various countries and wait for them to collapse, but bad news came from Hexi and Hedong..."
"Is it the army of Qin?" Jie Ziyu asked solemnly.
"Well." Zhao Run nodded, walked around the hall with his hands behind his back, and said in a deep voice: "This time the Qin State used troops against our great Wei Dynasty, they really didn't care about the alliance at all... According to Sima An and Wei
According to Ji's estimate in the battle report, this time the Qin army attacks Hexi, the army in Hedong is probably no less than 200,000. Although my brother Zhao Xuan has led the Northern Army to return to Hedong, I am still a little uneasy...
…”
"Your Majesty thinks that the two generals Sima An and Wei Ji, as well as the troops under His Royal Highness King Huan, are not enough to stop the Qin army?" Jie Zigui asked with a frown.
Because according to his estimation, the troops of Sima An, Wei Ji and Zhao Xuan were no less than 150,000, which may not be able to stop the Qin army.
However, Zhao Run shook his head and said: "The key is not in Hexi or Hedong, but in Sanchuan... I have transferred all the soldiers in Sanchuan County, and the Jiejiao cavalry and Sichuanluo cavalry have all been transferred to Daliang.
At this time, Sanchuan was extremely empty... If Qin was in Hexi,
, the Hedong area suffered setbacks, so they may not change their minds and march into Sanchuan, forcing Sima An and Wei Ji to mobilize troops to support..." At this point, he shook his head and concluded: "In short, Daliang should defeat Qin quickly.
Otherwise, something might happen."
Jie Ziyu nodded after hearing this, and immediately sighed: "These days, the coalition forces of various countries have been forcing our army to fight decisively with them. They are very eager to fight. This must be because Qi State has been attacked by Zhao Jiang and other generals.
As a result, it is difficult for the coalition forces of all the countries to have the same mind... If Qin had not invaded, we, the Wei Dynasty, could have just sat back and watched it collapse, and then sent out troops to cover it up... But now, we can only comply with the wishes of the coalition forces."
"Following the wishes of the coalition of nations?" Zhao Run smiled inexplicably, shook his head and said, "Not necessarily."
Having said this, he slowly walked to the window, looked at the scenery outside the window, and said lightly: "Of course the coalition forces of various countries want to make a last-ditch struggle before they are about to collapse, but unfortunately the outcome is already doomed!"
Having said this, he chuckled and said: "Although we cannot just wait for it to collapse, it would be a good thing if we could defeat the coalition forces of various countries with our own hands."
"Your Majesty is wise."
Jie Ziguo and Zhang Qigong looked at each other and bowed their hands.
At the same time, on the side of the coalition forces of various countries, Chu Shuijun was holding the third meeting of generals since the beginning of spring.
Just as Jie Ziu speculated, the coalition forces of various countries are indeed on the verge of collapse at this moment.
The cause of this incident was naturally because after the defeat of Korea, Qi became the next target of attack by the Wei State's East Route Army.
In October last year, after Korea surrendered, Wei generals Zhou Kui, Cai Qinhu, Li Huo, Chen Si and others led the Huling navy to return to Qi's waters.
Since there were still more than 100,000 Qi troops led by the fierce general Tian Wu in Qi State at that time, the Huling Wei army was not able to hit Linzi, the capital of Qi State, in one go as they expected, but was instead defeated.
Tian Wu's army blocked the Jishui River.
But even this was enough to frighten Qi State.
At that time, King Lu Bai of Qi summoned his ministers, and Tian Tao, the Prime Minister on the right, exclaimed: "The Huling navy of Wei State has left and returned. Could it be that South Korea has been defeated?"
In his opinion, only when South Korea has been defeated will the Huling navy attack Qi again with its entire army.
And what does this mean?
This means that the Hanoi army of King Yan Zhaojiang, the Wei Wu army of Shaohu, and the anti-rebellion army of Pang Huan will all invade his Qi state in the near future!
After realizing this, Qi State immediately entered a state of high alert.
In mid-November, when Zhang Qigong took Zhou's mother and son to Jishui by boat, he deliberately paid attention to the situation in Qi.
Although the armies of Zhao Jiang, Pang Huan, Han Pu and others had not yet approached Qi State at that time, the atmosphere of approaching generals still made the whole country of Qi fearful and uneasy.
Different from the last time, the Qi State was attacked by the Huling Navy of Wei State. In fact, strictly speaking, there was not much danger. After all, the advantage of the Huling Navy lies in their warships. But if these Wei soldiers go up
After reaching the shore, there were only 40,000 to 50,000 Wei soldiers. If Tian Dan and Tian Wu had more than 200,000 troops at that time, could they still be unable to defeat this mere 40,000 to 50,000 Wei soldiers?
But this time, due to the defeat of South Korea, the Wei soldiers led by Zhao Jiang, Pang Huan and others were released from the Wei-Korean war. This caused the Wei army to attack Qi to suddenly increase to two to three hundred thousand.
the point.
No matter how brave Tian Wu was, it would be difficult for him to stop two or three times the number of Wei soldiers with hundreds of thousands of troops - those were Wei soldiers. It was not unusual for a Wei soldier to challenge two Qi soldiers alone.
Fortunately, it was approaching winter and Qi had a whole winter to prepare. Otherwise, Qi's situation might have been even worse.
After investigation, Qi State regretfully learned that South Korea was indeed defeated by Wei State.
In addition, Qi State also found some information: the good news is that Wei Wujun, the general of Wei General Shaohu, did not appear in the team that attacked Qi State for some unknown reason; the bad news is that before Wei Jun attacked him
Qi's army included more than 100,000 Korean troops under the command of Han Pu, the Marquis of Yuanyi.
In other words, what Qi State is about to face is the coalition of Wei and South Korea!
To be honest, apart from the increase or decrease in military strength, the most important thing is the impact - the "Wei Army" attacking his Qi State is completely different in political sense from the "Wei-Korean Allied Forces" attacking his Qi State.
This means that Qi State will bear the hostility of Wei and Han at the same time. This is undoubtedly the worst situation!
In this terrible situation, Linzi immediately sent people to deliver the bad news to the coalition forces of various countries and to the hands of his Qi general Tian Dan.
Of course, King Lu Bai of Qi did not directly withdraw troops from Tian Dan and return reinforcements. After all, he was also a discerning and knowledgeable monarch. He just asked Tian Dan to make his own decision - if he really couldn't capture Daliang and defeat Wei
, then Tian Dan might as well lead the army back to the country to relieve the crisis in his country.
It has to be said that in fact, King Lu Bai of Qi also understood very well that if he missed this opportunity to severely damage the Wei State, then not only his Qi State, but all the countries in the Central Plains would be suppressed by the Wei State in the future.
However, it was this letter from King Lu Bai of Qi that put the coalition forces of various countries into a dilemma.