The news that the Zhao army sent troops to take over half of the land captured by the Qiuci Kingdom and asked the Qiuci Kingdom to continue to participate in the war immediately made many people furious after the messengers sent back to the royal capital.

"You must no longer agree to join forces with the Zhao army, what is this? They are clearly using us as their tools. Before the original coalition forces, there were words first, and the territory of Yanqi accounted for half of each. But what about now? When we tried it, they didn't even refuse. Right Xiangguo Bai Yi said angrily in the main hall.

"They are clearly ignoring their previous promises and treating our country as a pioneer. Your Majesty, the land that the soldiers fought with blood and sweat was occupied by the Zhao army, and we ...... wait."

"Lord Bai, this is not occupied by Zhao Jun, it is our congratulatory gift...... Li Shu on the side of the congratulatory ...... interrupted Bai Yi's angry speech.

"Congratulatory gifts? Could it be that Lord Li really thinks this is a congratulatory gift? In one of our temptations, King Zhao didn't even have the slightest intention of refusing. What does this mean? It shows that what King Yanqi said is true, this Zhao army is by no means as simple as simply restoring a capital protection mansion. If this continues, I am afraid that in the future, I am afraid that our country of Guizi will still exist or not, or two words. Bai Yi's beard flashed, and he retorted angrily.

Li Shu sneered: "It was you who proposed it yourself to be tempted, but the meat buns beat the dog and never returned, who can blame it?" After all, no one doesn't like what is given away for free. In addition, we now occupy a quarter of this land, which is beyond our expectations, which is unprecedented. Are we not satisfied? ”

"That's it! Don't argue about this, the more important issue now is to send troops to Gaochangguo. Do you think we should send troops or not? King Khali of Qiuzi interrupted the argument of his important ministers with a deep face.

Bai Yi immediately replied: "Of course you can't send troops!" This Gaochang country is not in contact with us, and there is no grudge, why do we send troops to attack? Moreover, the soldiers have been fighting hard for nearly half a year, and it is time to rest. The land we occupy also needs to be settled. So at this moment, there is no way to send troops. ”

"In addition, dealing with the newly occupied territory requires not only manpower, but also money, food and materials, where can we provide what the army needs for the expedition? This Gaochang Kingdom has surrendered to King Zhao, why was it attacked by King Zhao? We also expressed our submission to the king of Zhao, but he did not immediately accept our intention to become a vassal state of the Zhao army, but insisted on the immediate northern expedition, what does this mean? ”

"Even the surrendered Gaochang Kingdom will be destroyed by it, so what about us? Could it be the next Gao Changguo? This Zhao Army, the root is to completely control the countries of the Western Regions is true, how many of the more than ten countries around this Yanqi Kingdom have enmity with Zhao Jun? But how? Wasn't it wiped out by the Zhao army? Think, Your Majesty! ”

King Khali of Qiuzi suddenly hesitated, Bai Yi's words hit his heart. It's easy to say anything, but you must not become the king of destroying the country, nor can you become the king of Yanqi, Bai Yan, who will destroy the country and die. Although there is now a new king in the Yanqi Kingdom, Khali knows very well that this new king is only seven or eight years old, and the other members of the royal family have all died in civil strife. And the ministers in the capital are also dead. In other words, the power of the Yanqi Kingdom has been controlled by Commander Zhao, and this new king is just an ornament that does not know the world.

The Qiuci State can submit to the Zhao army and become a vassal state of the Han court, but in the case of the Yanqi Kingdom, it is absolutely impossible. Therefore, Bai Yi's words made Han Li's face suddenly solemn.

"Your Majesty, don't listen to his nonsense! Who is the king of Gaochang? Don't we know? Relying on his backs on the Turks, he acted recklessly and plundered countries. Although we didn't want to pick him up, many of our merchants who went east to Liangzhou were killed by this Gaochang country. As soon as Li Shu saw that King Hanli's face was constantly changing, he knew that this king's mind began to change towards Bai Yi.

"Moreover, when we joined forces with the Zhao army to defeat Yanqi, Yanqi was invincible and sent troops to ask for help from the surrounding countries. It was also under this circumstance that the Zhao army, in order to avoid new troubles, exterminated the surrounding countries. Presumably, for these things, the front-line army has also received the advice of King Zhao, and they have done the same, even if they destroy the small countries in the hands of our army, there are three or five. Lord Bai, am I right? ”

Bai Yi's face was ugly, he snorted coldly and did not answer.

Li Shu smiled indifferently, and continued: "And this Gao Changguo is especially the worst, and he is ready to lead the army south directly. If it weren't for the internal problems of the Turkic people he relied on, I am afraid that at this moment we and the Zhao army would face a great war between Yanqi, Gaochangguo and the Turks. The current attack on Gaochang is also to reduce this unstable factor, and the minister thinks that we should send troops. ”

The reason why Li Shu persuaded the troops so much, in addition to the news that Li Yan brought back and the gold and silver added to his family, he knew better that the gap between the Guizi Kingdom and the Zhao army. This time the two armies united, he sent many people to be guides for the Zhao army, and he knew very well that the combat power of the Zhao army, especially the powerful weapons in the hands of the Zhao army, was far from being comparable to the Qiuzi country. In addition, he also had a certain understanding of King Zhao, the lord of the Zhao army, and realized that this young male lord had made up his mind about the land of the Western Regions, and it was by no means something that a turtle country could resist.

Since he couldn't reverse the fate of the Guizi Kingdom, he Li Shu naturally had to think about himself. Think about the ministers in Yanqi, how many of them can survive? Aren't the last people who are close to Zhao Jun all the people who are close to Zhao Jun?

"Li Shu, you are betraying the country! Let the soldiers of the Qiuci Kingdom go to fight for the Zhao army and bury the corpses on the battlefield, in the end, when the Zhao army attacks, what will my Qiuci Kingdom take to resist? Bai Yi pointed at Li Shu with trembling fingers and roared angrily.

"You Li Shu is from my Qiuzi country, why have you been speaking for Zhao Jun? Well? Who are you loyal to? ”

Li Shuxin sneered, his face remained unchanged, and he said coldly: "Lord Bai, what do you mean by this?" I'm doing this, isn't that for the sake of my country? ”

Bai Yi said with disdain: "For the sake of the Turtle Country? For the sake of the Qiuzi Kingdom, the soldiers should not be allowed to fight for the Zhao army! Zhao Jun's current ambitions, don't you know? Although this time it was an attack on Yanqi State, more than a dozen small countries around it had all been wiped out by the Zhao army. And the Yanqi Kingdom, which has also begun to be controlled by Zhao Jun, is not the so-called suzerainty at all, he is trying to annex this land in the Western Regions. As the left minister of my Qiuzi country, you shouldn't say anything about sending troops. ”

Li Shu said in a deep voice: "According to Lord Bai's meaning, our Qiuzi Kingdom can compete with Zhao Jun now?" Can the Zhao army be defeated? Compared to the Yanqi Kingdom, how much stronger are we than them? When we were hostile to Yanqi, how many times were we victorious? But the result? Now, in just three months, the Zhao army has taken half of the territory of Yanqi and wiped out seventy percent of Yanqi's troops. Although our country of Qiuzi is also involved in this battle, you all know very well that our role in this battle is not great. ”

"Could it be that Lord Bai thinks that our Qiuzi Kingdom can withstand the attack of the Zhao army? Can resist the attack of the Zhao army and the Gaochang coalition army? Now, Zhao Jun's meaning is obvious, to avenge the preparation of Gaochangguo to send troops when he attacked Yanqi in the past, and we will not support it, then Zhao Jun may order Gaochangguo to send troops to attack us. We all know very well what a person the king of Gaochang is, under the coercion of Zhao's army, before the Turks can withdraw from the internal strife, he will definitely send troops to the south to attack us in order to protect himself. ”

"King Zhao also said that if we don't send troops this time, he will not help Gaochang Kingdom attack us in the future. Then, that is, if we don't send troops, Gao Changguo will definitely go south to attack us. And we have a big victory over Yanqi this time, why did the Gaochang Congress go south? Will you do it with us at this time? Aren't you afraid of Zhao Jun on one side? This can only show that Gao Changguo's southward movement must be supported by Zhao Jun. ”

"Colleagues, the current situation is very clear, either we send troops and Gaochang will be destroyed. Or, if we don't send troops, we will be destroyed! Ladies and gentlemen, do you want to destroy the country and die? Or send troops? Li Shu's cold voice echoed in the main hall, making the face of the Minister of Culture and Military Affairs of the Qiuzi Kingdom change.

Even the king of Qiuzi Kingdom, Han Li, was pale, and now he has a deep understanding of Zhao Jun. It can be said that in the Western Regions, he Qiuci is the most aware of the strength of the Zhao army, after all, the guides of the Zhao army's army are all provided by the Qiuci country, and he also has a deep understanding of some of the situation of the Zhao army. And in order to deter the Qiuzi Kingdom, Zhao Jun also deliberately revealed the strength of Zhao Jun.

In the past, if he still had the confidence to fight with Zhao Jun, now, he has no confidence in the fixed point. Li Shu's words exposed the weakness of the country at once. Yes, that's right, either do what Zhao Jun wants, or just wait for the destruction of the country.

At this moment, even Bai Yi was speechless. Although he was very clear about Zhao Jun's purpose, the current situation was even more dangerous. Zhao Jun just used ironclad facts to tell them that they must do what Zhao Jun wants.

After a while, Bai Yi said unwillingly: "According to Lord Li's intentions, we can only follow Zhao Jun's intentions step by step, destroy Gaochang Kingdom first, and then wait for the increasingly powerful Zhao Army to destroy us again?" Without the containment of Gaochang Kingdom, only one of us, in the northern part of the Western Regions, has not been annexed by the Zhao army, do you think we can keep it? ”

Li Shu said in a deep voice: "Whether I can keep it like this, I'm not sure." However, I think that the Zhao army will not directly mobilize troops and will not destroy our country. Think about it, my Qiuzi Kingdom sent troops to assist the Zhao army to destroy Yanqi, and also assisted it to destroy Gaochang Kingdom. No matter which way, we are all allies of the Zhao army, and the Zhao army has no excuse to attack us. If he sends troops to attack us, he is afraid that the southern countries of the Western Regions will resist the Zhao army in a group. After all, even if they take refuge in Zhao Jun, it will not end well, do you think they will still have hope for Zhao Jun? ”

"On the contrary, the Zhao army attacked Yanqi and Qiuzi Kingdom, and there were full reasons. In particular, the Gaochang State colluded with the Turks to plunder the merchants of other countries and extort other small countries, and there were many people who were dissatisfied with the Gaochang State. Now that we are cooperating with the Zhao army to destroy it, the Zhao army cannot attack us in order to set an example for other countries. Your Majesty, no matter what, the most important thing is to preserve the Kingdom of Guizi. We are contributing, how can Zhao Jun have an excuse to do something to us? In the Western Regions, there are especially the southern and western regions, and there are many other countries. If Zhao Jun didn't want the other countries to take revenge on him, he wouldn't attack us unless he could destroy the other countries first. ”

When Li Shu said this, many people immediately felt reasonable. However, Bai Yi still said: "What Lord Li said is reasonable, but there is a problem that needs to be solved. What does Zhao Jun want me to do in the country of Qiuzi? Simply to become a vassal of Zhao Jun, or do you want me to make the country of Qiuzi the same as Yanqi, kill the royal family, kill the ministers, support the puppets, and then annex it. ”

Li Shu said lightly: "Lord Bai, I, Li Shu, am the prime minister of the Qiuzi country, not the Zhao Jun minister, how can I be clear about this matter?" However, according to the reply of the envoy we sent, there will be no change in my royal family of Qiuzi. Of course, my Qiuzi Kingdom will also become a vassal of Zhao Jun. As for the situation to the west, after pacifying the Gaochang Kingdom and stabilizing the north, King Zhao will send someone to tell the west. ”

Bai Yi smiled bitterly and said hatefully: "What a Zhao army, perhaps, it should not have been united with the Zhao army to attack Yanqi, but should have united Yanqi, Gaochang and the surrounding small countries to fight against the Zhao army." ”

Regarding Bai Yi's words, Li Shu and other officials shook their heads and sneered. Not to mention anything else, it is difficult for the Qiuci Kingdom and the Yanqi Kingdom to unite, let alone unite other countries. Without vital interests, who will fight to the death with the Zhao army? has vital interests, but he can't beat Zhao Jun. This kind of union is simply wishful thinking.

Seeing that there was no argument below, Han Lixin sighed secretly, so he had to speak: "That's it, then send troops!" The national strength is weakened, so what can be done! ”

Xizhou Prefecture, centered on the capital of Yanqi Wang, includes Xinfu County, including four newly built cities around it. Of course, Xizhou City is also the royal capital of Yanqi Kingdom. However, in all written language, it will be named after the city of Xizhou.

In addition, the entire Yanqi country was combined into three prefectures and fifteen counties. They could not be compared with the prefectures and counties of the Central Plains, but with the establishment of the prefecture and county system, the Zhao army began to establish a rule in this area similar to that of the Zhao region. And the king will also become a prince who does not lead the people and does not rule the people.

"Congratulations to my lord, the news has come back from the Qiuci Kingdom, and the Qiuci Kingdom has agreed to send troops." In Xizhou City, in the temporary residence of King Zhao, Situ Liang said with a laugh.

Zhao Xun couldn't help but smile on his face, "The first step of the problem has been solved, as long as this Qiuci country sends troops, the goal of gradually weakening the Qiuci country has been achieved." ”

Situ Liang said with a little pity: "If it weren't for the fact that this Qiuzi country cooperated with us to send troops to recruit the Yanqi country, we would have to worry about the influence, and we didn't need to act like this, and directly led the army to destroy it." ”

Zhao Xun said with a smile: "It is good to destroy it, it is good to annex it slowly, and it is also good to annex it slowly." With the help of the Guizi country, we were able to operate and soon have many fewer casualties and logistical pressures. In addition, the fact that the Turtle Kingdom is sending troops with us can also give them a better idea of our strength. In the future, to solve the problem of Qiuzi Country, there is no need to use troops again, just need to press step by step. ”

"By the way, what's going on with the Turks? It's been three or four months since they started to prepare, and it's time for them to start fighting. ”

Situ Liang said with a smile: "Judging from the intelligence of the Military Affairs Department, the three Turkic tribes in the east have all sent troops to the west. Just as we had feared, the three khans and some of the tribal leaders were reluctant to go on an expedition. However, we passed down a secret order in each ministry to choose the tribe that fought bravely, as the Khan of the Western Three Tribes, and immediately many of those tribes began to be lively. ”

"And the lord also has a military order, to deal with the tribal leaders and khans of the fighting tribes strictly, and even replace them. It also caused a storm within some tribes that were reluctant to fight. In order not to let his position be given up by him, in order not to let himself die in vain, the tribal leaders of these khans had to send troops. ”

In mid-April, under the order of the Inspector of our Zhao Army, the Eastern Turkic tribes were divided into three groups and assembled, with a total of 150,000 troops, and the troops marched westward in three directions. The western Turks have already received the news that we have secretly spread, although most of them do not care, but there are still many eastern tribes who are on guard, however, some of the eastern Turkic tribes are equipped with armor and equipment that our Zhao army replaced, and there are also our Zhao army unified and coordinated, once they enter the west, they will destroy more than ten large and small tribes in a row. This led the Western Turkic tribes to begin to assemble against the enemy. “

"Now, on the whole, the Western Turkic tribes are at a disadvantage. However, if the eastern tribes want to defeat the western tribes, it will not be possible to do it in a short time. However, in the end, the Western Turks will be defeated by the East. ”

"My lord, are you really going to canonize the leaders of the three eastern tribes as the khans of the three western tribes? Although this battle can weaken them from each other, but doesn't this amount to strengthening the Eastern Turkic tribes? If they unite, will it be a greater threat to us? ”

Zhao Xun said in a deep voice: "The east invades the west, even if the west is defeated, it cannot be destroyed. Then, these three khans will rule over the western tribes. Do you think they can command the western tribes? Can the western tribes tolerate their former enemies on their heads? ”

Situ Liang's eyes lit up and said, "The intention of the lord is to prepare to provoke them to fight again?" ”

Zhao asked: "What you were worried about before is not unreasonable, this western khan can only be served by the western tribe, not by the leader of the eastern tribe, not afraid of 10,000, just in case." Therefore, it is necessary not only to let them fight among themselves, but to let the western tribes get rid of the three khans that are on their heads. ”

"In this way, not only can things start up again, but we can also intervene at any time." Situ Liang continued.

Zhao Xun smiled: "That's right, that's it." ”