When Zhao Hongrun hosted a banquet for his uncle Zhao Yuanli, the sixth prince, Zhao Yuanxi, the emperor of the Wei Dynasty, rarely handled government affairs in Chuigong Hall, but summoned Zongzheng Zhao Yuanyan of the clan.
In the inner hall of Chui Gong Hall, Emperor Wei and Prince Yan were sitting face to face. Next to them, only the great eunuch Tong Xian was bowing down to serve him. Those little eunuchs were all sent away by Tong Xian at the suggestion of Emperor Wei.
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The two brothers sat across from each other and drank half a cup of tea. At this time, Emperor Wei took the lead and asked: "Did the elders of the clan know about the news that I sent someone to deliver to the clan mansion last night?"
The clan elders in the mouth of Emperor Wei are the clan elders, that is, the elders of the Zhao clan with the surname Ji. Even Emperor Wei and Zhao Yuanyan have to respectfully call them uncle, or even uncles. They have a transcendent status.
Even though it is Zhao Yuanyan who is in charge of all the affairs of the clan now, when it comes to important matters like this, it has to be decided by the elders of the clan.
"Brother Chen has informed all the clan elders. Currently, the clan elders are still discussing this matter." Zhao Yuanyan frowned slightly and said solemnly: "After all, this matter...it is a big deal."
After that, he touched the outer wall of the tea cup a few times, couldn't help but frown and asked: "Is the news reliable?"
Emperor Wei looked at his second brother with a strange look, and said with a smile: "That was what Lao Liu saw with his own eyes."
"Having said that..." Zhao Yuanyan exhaled slowly, shook his head slightly and said: "Lao Liu is frivolous and cynical. It is really difficult for me to completely trust him..."
Emperor Wei shook his head, reached for the teapot and refilled some tea for the second brother, and said calmly: "Such an important matter, Lao Liu will definitely not talk nonsense."
"Hmm." Zhao Yuanyan seemed to be convinced. He raised his glass and took a sip of tea. He then looked at Emperor Wei and asked calmly: "What are your Majesty's plans?"
Emperor Wei seemed to be smiling but not smiling, and his attitude was hard to figure out.
Next to him, the great eunuch Tong Xian felt that the atmosphere in the palace was gradually becoming too heavy for him to bear. He hurriedly walked over and said with a smile: "Old servant, go and bring a pot of tea for your majesty and the prince."
In fact, there was at least half of the tea in the pot, but neither Emperor Wei nor Zhao Yuanyan had any intention of stopping it. The former put down the teapot. The latter nodded slightly.
Obviously, their conversation did not want others to hear it, even Tong Xian, the eunuch who was trusted by Emperor Wei.
Tong Xian left in a hurry.
At this time, Emperor Wei said calmly: "The Yin Rong will not take advantage of the road. If you want to forcefully pass through Sanchuan County, you will inevitably have a grudge with the Yin Rong... It is not wise to start a war with hundreds of thousands of Yin Rong at this time.
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"In fact, it is not only Sanchuan County that has to be crossed, but also the Qinling Mountains..." Zhao Yuanyan paused, frowned and said: "The people in the Qinling Mountains may not be as enthusiastic as when my ancestors of the Zhao family moved eastward hundreds of years ago.
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"Why not? Aren't the Qin people the ones who attacked Longxi?" Emperor Wei said calmly.
The people of Qin and Qinling they mentioned were the clans living in the area near Qinling, a clan with the Ying surname that was no less ancient than the Ji surname.
According to the documents preserved in the clan, the Ji and Zhao clan received help from the Ying surname when they moved eastward. In fact, a small number of Ji and Zhao clan members chose to stay in the Qinling Mountains, together with the Ying surname.
Intermarriage between one clan is a symbol of friendship between two clans.
However, that was a friendship hundreds of years ago.
More than a hundred years ago, as the Wei State conquered the Liang State and the Zheng State, the country's development focus moved closer to the Central Plains with a mild climate and fertile land. A branch of the Xirong Army came from the northwest of Hedong (non-Wei State territory)
Moved south to Sanchuan. After a series of conflicts with the Wei State, the Wei State lost access to the west. Whether it was the Ji Wei clan in Longxi or the Ying clan in the Qinling Mountains, there was almost no access to the west.
connect.
Regarding the war with Yin Rong, there are not many documents recorded in the Zongfu. Therefore, many people speculate that the Wei State was competing with South Korea for the Shangdang at that time and had no time to care about its own back, so that Yin Rong took advantage of it.
South Korea is different from small countries such as Liang and Zheng. As Wei gradually became stronger, South Korea also became more powerful. It is said that the two countries fought for more than sixty years, and finally broke out during the period of Zhao Hongrun's grandfather, about fifty or sixty years ago.
The Battle of Shangdang between Wei and Han shocked the world.
In that battle, thousands of tanks and hundreds of thousands of troops were invested in an attempt to defeat the Wei State of South Korea in one go. However, they were beaten to a pulp by South Korean cavalry, and almost all of the more than 100,000 troops were wiped out.
After this battle, Wei State's vitality was severely damaged. Not only was it unable to compete with South Korea for Shangdang County, but it was also unable to drive away the Yin Rong in Sanchuan County. In desperation, Wei State built a pass in Chenggao to prevent the Yin Rong.
Rong took advantage of the situation and had to hand over most of the land in Sanchuan County to Yin Rong.
If the defeat of Fangling etched the hatred of the Ba people in the history of the Wei people, then the defeat of Shangdang represented the Wei people's awe of the Koreans. After all, in the battle of Shangdang, the Koreans were upright on the battlefield.
The Wei people were defeated and had nothing to say when they were defeated. Unlike the Ba people, when the Wei people moved eastward, instead of helping them like the Ying clan in the Qinling Mountains, they took advantage of the situation and robbed them.
The Wei people's respect for the Koreans is the same as the Chu State's respect for the Qi State, especially King Xi of Qi.
Even after decades, the Wei State has gradually recovered its vitality, but when facing South Korea, it is inevitable that there will be some confusion.
No, South Korea just sent a few cavalry troops to wander around Shanyang County a while ago. Not only Hongjiang, the king of Yan in Shanyang, and Wei Mu, the general of Nanyan, were immediately ready to fight, and they immediately received the news.
Passing it to Daliang made Emperor Wei feel depressed.
To be honest, Emperor Wei did not agree with sending troops to support Longxi at this time.
In fact, Zhao Yuanyan also disagreed.
Even though he repeatedly warned Zhao Hongrun to care about his fellow clansmen, in the end, the so-called clansmen here refer to the Zhao clan with the surname Ji.
The Wei family with the Ji surname far away in Longxi is, to be honest, too far away from the contemporary Wei people.
If the Wei State becomes strong, it would be okay to help the Wei family's former "big brother", but the problem is that the Wei State is currently between South Korea and the Chu State, and it can only gain a foothold in the Central Plains by alliance with the Qi State.
There was little spare energy to support the Wei family in distant Longxi.
But the problem is that the Ji Zhao family cannot stand idly by and watch the Ji Wei family in Longxi being destroyed by foreigners. After all, the two are from the same branch. If the Wei country sits idly by and ignores it, the national prestige will inevitably be affected.
"Persuading the Wei family to move to our great Wei Dynasty?"
Zhao Yuanyan gradually understood the considerations in Emperor Wei's mind, but this seemingly good strategy actually had many hidden dangers.
As Zhao Hongrun also thought, by moving the Ji Wei family in Longxi to the Wei State, giving up the barren land in Longxi, and handing it over to the Qiang and Qin people, this might allow these two foreigners to compete against the Ji Wei family.
Open one side.
But after the Ji Wei family moved to the Wei State, how would the status of the Zhao family and the Wei family be arranged?
You must know that the Zhao family is separated from the Wei family and is a branch. However, the Zhao family is also the ruling royal family of Wei.
If the imperial power of the Wei State is transferred to the Wei family, the Zhao family will definitely refuse; and if the Wei family is subordinated to the Zhao family, even if the Wei family will not have any ideas within three to five years, when they take root in the Wei State,
There is bound to be some dissatisfaction in the heart: Your Zhao family is obviously just a branch of my Wei family, why do you want us to be subordinate to you?
When this conflict became increasingly acute, the civil strife between the Mi and Qu clans of Chu State served as a warning.
Emperor Wei and Zhao Yuanyan looked at each other, as if they could see the helplessness in each other's eyes.
Some unpleasant words can only be kept in mind. For the sake of the overall situation, no matter how difficult the situation on Wei's side is, they can only send reinforcements unless they want to leave a disgraceful mark in Wei's history.
"Recall Yuan Zuo to Daliang."
After pondering for a while, Zhao Yuanyan suggested.
After hearing this, Emperor Wei's expression changed slightly.
The Yuanzuo mentioned by Zhao Yuanyan is the younger brother of Zhao Yuanyan and the third brother of Emperor Wei. Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, is the only prince among his brothers who was externally named king by Emperor Wei.
Nanliang, where is that place?
It is the junction of Yingshui County and Sanchuan County, and it is also part of the current border of Wei State. It is also surrounded by Yinrong, Chu State, and the city walls from Yangzhai to Fenxing Fortress. It is a stretch of land that connects the capitals of Yinrong and Chu State.
The land is too lazy to capture and is sparsely populated. You can imagine what the situation is like in this land.
Therefore, to put it bluntly, Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, was just exiled by Emperor Wei, and he had no title as king.
"You mean, let Yuan Zuo lead the troops to Longxi?" Emperor Wei looked at Zhao Yuanyan with an incomprehensible expression.
Zhao Yuanyan's face remained unchanged and he said seriously: "Your Majesty also knows in his heart that Yuan Zuo is a genius in leading and using troops. The reason why Your Majesty exiled him to Nanliang is because he was reluctant to kill him." At this point, he looked up.
To the Emperor of Wei, he sighed slightly and said: "Your Majesty, it has been seventeen years since you ascended the throne, and Yuan Zuo has also been exiled in Nanliang for seventeen years...Now that my children and nephews have gradually grown up, the scene where the brothers once fought against each other
, it’s time to come to an end.”
Emperor Wei was silent and thoughtful after hearing this. It was obvious that he was very afraid of his third brother Zhao Yuanzuo.
Seeing this, Zhao Yuanyan persuaded in a low voice: "If your Majesty is willing to reuse Yuan Zuo, no matter whether it is Xiong Hao, the Lord of Runan, or Xiong Tuo, the Lord of Yangcheng a while ago, there is nothing to fear!"
Emperor Wei was silent, closing his eyes and meditating for a long time, and then asked quietly: "What...has he been doing these years?"
Zhao Yuanyan's tense expression relaxed slightly after hearing this, and he sighed: "As far as Brother Chen knows, Yuan Zuo has been studying in Nanliang these years. In addition to reading and studying the art of war, he only grows some vegetables and fruits, and keeps to himself.
This has been the case for seven years."
Having said this, Zhao Yuanyan paused and solemnly emphasized: "If it is really unavoidable to start a war with the Yinrong, or even the Qin people and the Qiang people, your majesty will use Yuan Zuo. He alone is worth one hundred thousand
Elite soldiers!"
After thinking for a short moment, Emperor Wei opened his eyes and nodded slowly: "In that case, let's call him back to Daliang!"