Chapter 31: The Dilemma

204 BC, July, Xingyang.

Since the defeat of Pengcheng, Liu Ji, the king of Han, has retreated to Xingyang County, Sanchuan County. Although the great general Han Xin achieved a breakthrough victory in the northern battlefield, Liu Ji, the king of Han, was not as happy as he imagined. Liu Ji, the king of Han, was both relieved and worried. Because he was trapped here, he couldn't compete with the overlord Xiang Yu at all, and the situation in the north was not in his hands. He really loves and hates Han Shin - he loves Han Shin's talent and can make great achievements for himself; But he also hates Han Shin's outstanding talent and worries that he can't control Han Shin. In Han Xin's body, Liu Ji, the king of Han, seemed to see the shadow of the overlord Xiang Yu - could it be that he had cultivated another overlord Xiang Yu in the north. For quite a few years, the overlord Xiang Yu also became famous in Zhao Di; And now, the great general Han Xin has also achieved unprecedented success in Zhao Di. Han Xin's prestige is even about to surpass that of Liu Ji, the king of Han, and Liu Ji really doesn't dare to think about it anymore.

Xingyang, belonging to Sanchuan County, is an ancient city and an important strategic city, the so-called battleground for soldiers. This means that the city must have carried too much hardship and sorrow, because there were many wars, deaths, and grievances - in the feudal era, it was not a stable and livable city.

Of course, Liu Ji, the king of Han, didn't like this place either, he thought that he was just a transition here, but he didn't expect to stay for a whole year, and there was no end in sight. Fortunately, there was a famous grain reserve base nearby, which could supply military rations, otherwise the Han army would have surrendered long ago.

This famous grain reserve base is called Aocang, which was the largest granary in the world during the Qin Empire, and hoarded countless grains and grasses by virtue of its extensive water and land transportation. Once during the Yingzheng period, Aocang was the Central Plains support base that supported the Qin army's southern and northern wars and swallowed up the Six Kingdoms. After the unification of the world, most of the taxes paid by the counties in the eastern part of the country were first transported to Xingyang County, Sanchuan County in the central part of the country, and then imported into Xianyang, the capital of the Qin Empire. It is no exaggeration to say that Xingyang is related to the economic lifeline of the Qin Empire and the safety of the world. If Xingyang were to fall, the Qin Empire would lose a huge amount of revenue and would find it difficult to maintain its rule over the eastern region. For this reason, Qin Shi Huang Yingzheng appointed his son-in-law, that is, Li You, the eldest son of Prime Minister Li Si, as the county guard of Sanchuan to guard the lifeblood of the empire. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang of the Shouyi Revolutionary Army had captured this place many times, trying to cut off the economic source of the Qin Empire, but they could not attack it for a long time. After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, the overlord Xiang Yu divided his subordinate Shenyang as the king of Henan and controlled Sanchuan County, but he did not want other forces to get involved in Ao Cang in Xingyang.

At this time, of course, the grain supplied to Aocang could not come from all over the country, mainly from the Guanzhong region, which was its own base. Liu Ji, who has not returned to the customs for a whole year, does not know what the situation is in the rear. He knew in his heart that Prime Minister Xiao He would definitely take care of it well and arrange everything properly. But in the same way, he was both relieved and worried about Xiao He, relieved that Xiao He handled government affairs properly, and worried that his prestige was not enough to control.

What bothered Liu Ji, the king of Han, the most, was that his father and wife were captured by the Chu army, and he didn't know whether he was alive or dead. And the overlord Xiang Yu kept attacking here, concentrating all his firepower here and aiming it here.

Liu Ji, the king of Han, did not have a good time in Xingyang.

【Xiao He】

Although the leader was on a business trip, the diligent Xiao He did not dare to relax, he got up early every day and worked hard in the dark, and handled the rear government affairs in an orderly manner. The life in the Guanzhong area has not been affected by the front front, Prime Minister Xiao He has actively and steadily operated and operated, the people live and work in peace and contentment, and various undertakings are thriving.

Xiao He is really a rare management talent. The most rare thing is that Xiao He has no selfishness, has a high political position, high ideological awareness, and considers the Hanguo Group everywhere. The front line is so fierce, but there has never been a shortage of military rations and soldiers, and it is precisely because Prime Minister Xiao He has taken care of him in the rear, and he has a steady stream of supplies to the front line. The tax system and conscription system in the Guanzhong region are perfect, and it is possible to recruit new soldiers and collect supplies on a regular basis.

On this day, Liu Ji, the king of Han who was fighting far ahead, suddenly sent a messenger back to Guanzhong to comfort Prime Minister Xiao He, saying that the prime minister was in charge of the government and worked hard. Prime Minister Xiao He was very moved, and wanted to reply to the letter to thank King Han.

But things don't seem to be so simple, the political arena is complicated, and what I am most afraid of is the sudden concern of the leadership. Later, after being reminded, Prime Minister Xiao He woke up, and it turned out that Liu Ji, the king of Han, not only wanted to express his concern, but more importantly, he wanted to see Prime Minister Xiao He's loyalty.

At this point, it is clear that a letter will not solve the problem. Prime Minister Xiao He sent all the young men in his family to the front line to join the army, which was the first revolutionary consciousness that a leader should take the lead in implementing, and it was also a way for Prime Minister Xiao He to express his loyalty to Liu Ji, the king of Han. In fact, Prime Minister Xiao He had no thoughts of betrayal at all. If Xiao He wanted to be this leader, he would not have given it to Liu Ji as early as when he was in Peixian. Xiao He has no interest in military affairs, no interest in conquering cities, he is only interested in politics and system building. Xiao He's ideal is to govern the country and secure the country, not to dominate the world.

Seeing Prime Minister Xiao He's loyalty, the anxious heart of Han King Liu Ji was slightly comforted.

【Xiang Yu】

The war has been going on for nearly two years, and the overlord Xiang Yu is also feeling a little tired. There was smoke everywhere, but he didn't seem to be able to solve them one by one. He could no longer pay attention to the rebellion in Qidi, and the recent new unrest in Wei, Zhao, Yan, and other places. I don't know when, the overlord Xiang Yu has become a loner, and the guns of the whole country seem to be aimed at him. And he had to go back and forth, tired of dealing with the war in various places.

Although he considers himself invincible and invincible, he has no way to deal with multiple battlefields across the country at the same time. And now, he already knows for sure that his biggest enemy is Liu Ji, the king of Han. Therefore, he focused all his energy on Xingyang and on Liu Ji, the king of Han. He already clearly felt that the struggle between Chu and Han was the main contradiction.

During this time, the overlord Xiang Yu spent a lot of energy and exhausted all methods, but he was unable to achieve a breakthrough victory. Although he repelled the Han army's defense line many times, he was never able to break through Xingyang City and capture Liu Ji, the king of Han. Especially recently, Han Xin, the general of the Han army, annihilated a large number of elite Chu troops in the north, and the thug Peng Yue repeatedly harassed the rear - this battle, the Chu army fought very hard. Overlord Xiang Yu felt very depressed, he couldn't understand why the Han army could hold on for so long, no one had ever been able to resist the pace of the Chu army, and no one had ever been able to hold out for so long. This may be the longest war since the overlord Xiang Yu raised his army. He didn't know why the rear of the Han army was so powerful and able to send them a steady stream of soldiers and rations.

In terms of dealing with the war, the overlord Xiang Yu is very serious and focused. He conscientiously analyzed the situation on both sides and constantly sent personnel to spy on the enemy's military situation. In the end, he finally found a breakthrough in this war, that is, to cut off the grain route in the rear of the Han army. He already knew that the reason why the Han army was able to continuously deliver military rations to the front line was precisely because they built roads in the rear. As long as this road is cut off, it will definitely be able to cut off the military rations of the Han army. Tens of thousands of Han troops had nothing to eat, and this battle could be won without fighting.

Overlord Xiang Yu changed his combat methods, gave up the strong attack he had always been proud of, and repeatedly sent troops to attack the Han army's Yongdao, which was the weakest but most critical point of the Han army.

It worked. Soon after, the overlord Xiang Yu received a letter of surrender from the city of Xingyang, which was sent by the Han king Liu Ji, requesting the demarcation and rule of the border - the west of Xingyang is Han, and the east of Xingyang is Chu.

Overlord Xiang Yu hesitated. He also felt a little tired, and he couldn't make up his mind for a long time after reading the surrender document.

However, there was a staff officer in the army who resolutely disagreed with this plan, and he was the "second father" of the overlord Xiang Yu - Fan Zeng.

【Fan Zeng】

Fan Zeng always believed that Liu Ji was the most terrible enemy. Maybe he himself can't say why he is targeting Liu Ji, the king of Han, so much. In fact, there is no personal grudge between him and Liu Ji or Han Jun. There are many Han soldiers and even his fellow villagers or friends, who may be able to chat more about their hometown anecdotes and relatives and friends when they sit down for a meal.

However, Fan Zeng didn't have this mind, and sat down to eat and chat with them slowly. Fan Zeng only wanted to defeat Liu Ji, the king of Han, as soon as possible, and he was purely motivated by the interests of the Chu group. His mind is only pretending to be the Chu Guo Group, and he just wants to stabilize the world for the Chu Guo Group. He did not have any selfish and personal feelings towards Han Jun.

Seeing that the overlord Xiang Yu was hesitant, the elderly Fan Zeng was very excited. He had to persuade the overlord Xiang Yu in a resolute tone that he must not let the tiger return to the mountain again. He was very worried that the overlord Xiang Yu would show mercy to Liu Ji's subordinates like he did at the Hongmen banquet last time, so that he would suffer from today's troubles.

Fan Zeng, who was a handful of years, was not in good health, and his emotions were still so excited, his beard was about to stand up, and the soldiers around him felt distressed when they looked at it.

【Liu Ji】

Xingyang, which was cut off from the Yongdao, suddenly became a lonely city, and Liu Ji, the king of Han trapped in the city, was at a loss. Some time ago, the surrender letter thrown at the enemy's Chu army has not seen any response, and I don't know if the other party has received it, and the Chu army seems to have attacked more fiercely.

The top management of the Han army is working hard to find a way out, racking their brains to make suggestions for the group. At this time, a rickety elder made a very heavy suggestion, that is, to divide the descendants of the six kingdoms as kings. His reason is very simple, that is, to follow the Shang and Zhou dynasties during the founding of the country, when Shang Tang destroyed Xia Wei and Zhou Wu destroyed Shang Xuan, they were all descendants of the old kingdom as kings, so they stabilized people's hearts. As long as the King of Han follows their example and divides the descendants of the six countries, you will naturally win the support of the people of the six countries and win the hearts of the people of the world. In this way, everyone in the world will stand on the side of Liu Ji, the king of Han, and when the time comes, Liu Ji, the king of Han, you will be a veritable overlord, and the state of Chu will naturally bow down at the feet of the Han state. (In the past, the soup was cut down, and it was sealed after it.) King Wu was defeated and sealed after the Song Dynasty. Now Qin lost his morality and betrayed his righteousness, invaded the princes' communities, and destroyed the Six Kingdoms, so that there was no place to stand. Your Majesty can restore the six kingdoms in the future, and the whole has been sealed, so its monarchs and ministers and the people will all wear the virtue of Your Majesty, and they will be concubines. Virtue and righteousness have been done, Your Majesty Nanxiang is hegemonic, and Chu will be in power. "Historical Records - The Family of the Marquis")

This old man is the drunken and extremely arrogant Li Shiqi. It should be said that he was indeed a loyal advisor. Since he defected to Liu Ji, the king of Han, he has never slackened, and has sent many envoys to other countries to win allies for the Han army. For example, he sent an envoy to Wei shortly before, and later to Qi. It can be said that Li Shiqi, who has reached retirement age, has not forgotten the original intention of the revolution, and is still doing his best and shining brightly.

On the key issue of dealing with the political system, Li Shiqi, like Fan Zeng, and many other elders of the Six Kingdoms, have an extreme fascination with the feudal system. It should be said that all the old people will have such a mentality. Because they have lived in that kind of political system for most of their lives. In their hearts, they think that is the best system, the best time. The feudal system is a political concept that is deeply rooted in their bones.

This major political issue is no different from the ambition that Fan Zeng proposed to Xiang Liang to be the king of Chu. It can be said that Li Shiqi went further than Fan Zeng, because Fan Zeng only suggested that Xiang Liang establish a king of Chu, but now Li Shiqi suggested that Liu Jili should establish six old kings. Just one King of Chu, the Xiang family can't handle it, and it makes the overlord Xiang Yu anxious. Now that there are six old kings, can Liu Ji, the king of Han, cope with it?

This important suggestion was readily adopted by Liu Ji, the king of Han. On the positive side, Liu Jizhen, the king of Han, was a monarch who was good at listening to the opinions of others. But on the flip side, he was a monarch who didn't have much opinion. It's a paradox, and sometimes it's hard to gauge what you should listen to and what you shouldn't. In fact, Liu Ji, the king of Han, did not have much in-depth research on these major political issues.

Hanwang Liu Ji is a cheerful man of action, doing what he says, and acting resolutely. He didn't think about discussing it with the other staff officers, so he agreed to Li Shiqi's proposal. The seals of the Six Nations were quickly completed and ready to be issued. This is also the difference between him and the overlord Xiang Yu, whenever the marquis is given an official, Xiang Yu will take the seal and look at it, and it seems that he is very reluctant to send it out. Because Xiang Yu was born into a nobility, he knew that these seals represented power, and he cherished these powers. And Liu Ji, the king of the Han Dynasty, as a commoner, has come to this position today, relying on his own efforts and the support of everyone, and the seal is just a formality. Besides, it is not a great thing to be able to use a seal to win the respect of a country.

【Zhang Liang】

However, Zhang Liang did not agree with this plan. It should be said that he resolutely disagrees with and completely rejects this plan.

Although Zhang Liang also persuaded Xiang Yu to divide the descendants of South Korea and always hoped to revive Korea, he firmly disagreed with this decision at this time. Because he knew that this decision was a devastating decision for the Han Kingdom.

At that time, Shang Tang destroyed Xia Wei and Zhou Wu attacked Shang, and they had already achieved an absolute victory, which was enough to control the monarch of the old country. They divided the descendants of the old country just to stabilize people's hearts and reduce the turmoil. And now, the Han king did not achieve an absolute victory and could not completely control the situation. Dividing the descendants of the Six Kingdoms will only cultivate more warlord forces. What's more, now that the people of the whole country have been thrown into the warlord melee, their identities have been disrupted, and their sense of identity with the six royal families is extremely low. It is unknown to what extent the descendants of the Six Nations will be able to rally the people. On the other hand, those who are most likely to return to their homeland are precisely those capable and prestigious elites in the military. If they return to their old masters, it will only lead to the loss of talent in the Han army and the cultivation of hostile elements.

The most terrible thing is that these descendants of the Six Kingdoms have no merits, but they have obtained the land and the people for no reason; On the contrary, those soldiers who fought to the death had nothing. What does this make them think, how can they still work hard for the Hanguo Group. If these lands are divided, what else will the Han King rely on to divide these soldiers. (After the restoration of the Six Kingdoms, after the establishment of Han, Wei, Yan, Zhao, Qi, and Chu, the descendants of the heavens each returned to their masters, from their relatives, and against their old graves, who did Your Majesty and take the world?) "Historical Records - The Family of the Marquis")

It can be said that this sub-sealing plan is 10,000 times worse than Xiang Yu's sub-sealing plan back then. Liu Ji, the king of Han, who was eating, was shocked into a cold sweat when he heard Zhang Liang's words, and even the rice that had just been picked up in his mouth squirted out.

Regarding Zhang Liang's words, Liu Ji, the king of Han, has always been obedient. The seal of the Six Kingdoms that had just been cast was immediately destroyed, and Li Shiqi's plan was completely rejected.

Li Shiqi was scolded by Liu Ji, the king of Han.