Chapter Seventy-Six: Women Serve Their Mission
Zhang Han occupied Hangu Pass, rested the team, and due to the lack of soldiers, he reorganized tens of thousands of captured rebels and made them serve the Qin State. Most of these people are strong men who serve the Qin State, as long as they have something to eat, they will not be able to divide Qin Ye Chuye, so they all became soldiers of the Qin State. One of the captives was named Han Rong, who was different. Someone denounced him as the commander of the rebels, Jin Dun. Zhang Han sent someone to arrest him. It turned out that this person was also drunk, and when the Qin army attacked, he also fled in the middle of the team, came to the edge of Weishui, and was captured by the Qin army. Because he was a Qin general and Wang Ao's deputy general, Zhang Han felt that it was inappropriate to kill him, so he sent him to Xianyang in a prisoner car for the imperial court to deal with.
On this day, when the second emperor heard about the golden shield, he asked what to do. Zhao Gao said: "Such a repeated villain should be beheaded!" Li Si said: "I heard that he used to be Wang Ao's deputy general, and he was very good at leading troops, but because of the defeat, he was held hostage by traitors and had to surrender to them." Now that the country is employing people, generals are very scarce, and he should be allowed to make meritorious contributions. The second was also grateful to General Wang Ben in his heart, and when he heard that he was Wang Ao's lieutenant, he said: "Then let's stay, but what position should he hold?" Li Si said: "At present, there is no one in charge of the lieutenant army, let him take charge temporarily, if he is not competent, it is not too late to replace someone else." The second agreed. In the reported roster, Jin Dun has been renamed Han Rong, and since then he has been called a new name.
Zhao Gao saw that the second emperor was obedient to Li Siyan, and he was very unhappy, so he said: "Cheng is so concerned about others, he never asks Li You how his military exploits are!" Now that Shandong is making such a fierce scene, I'm afraid that a Zhang Han is incompetent? This sentence aroused the second emperor's heart again, so he said to Li Si: "Cheng recommended Li You to serve as the county guard of Sanchuan in the past year, but the Chu people are so rampant and rampant in Sanchuan, but the thieves do not harm Li You, what is the reason for this?" Li Sicheng replied with trepidation: "The minister must find out the truth and report this matter to His Majesty truthfully!" The second said: "Okay, you find a reliable person as soon as possible, I will send him to Xingyang to see what is the situation in Li You?" Lees agreed.
When Li Si returned home, he was very frightened, thinking that he had sent messengers many times, but none of them could reach Xingyang. Li You's recent situation is also unknown, so he is very worried. On that day he sat in his house and sighed. At this time, a person walked in, and this person was Li You's wife's maid Xiaojun. Seeing that Li Si was very bored, Xiao Jun stepped forward and asked, "Why are you so troubled?" Li Si said: "I am thinking about Li You, so I am troubled. Xiaojun said: "I heard that the thieves have something to do with him, is this true?" Li Si said: "That's nonsense, you can't believe it." But there are some things I don't know, so I'm very anxious. Xiaojun said, "Why don't you send someone to investigate?" Li Si said: "There are a lot of people sent, but none of them can reach Xingyang City. Alas! It's all for nothing, you're still busy with your go! Jun went back to his house.
It turned out that this one was called Xiaojun, and it was the maid who married from the palace when the first emperor married the eldest princess, and she didn't have a surname, so she followed the princess's surname Ying, so she was also called Ying Xiaojun. When the princess was alive, she often treated her as her own sister, and the two had a good relationship. At that time, Xiaojun was still young, and now she has grown into a beautiful and dignified girl, and because she is from the royal family, the Li family is very polite to her, and Li Si also treats her as her own daughter. Since the second emperor ascended the throne, the princess was framed and killed by Zhao Gao because she was aggrieved for her brothers, so Xiaojun also knew that Zhao Gao was a big villain. According to the customs of the time, a woman who accompanied her in marriage could be promoted to a concubine. Now that the princess is gone, Xiaojun wants to be Li You's wife. But Li You is away all the year round, and Xiaojun can't see him, so he has a strong feeling of missing him, so he often likes to inquire about Li You. Sometimes she cares about Li You more than anyone in the family, and now when she hears that the prime minister is anxious because of Li You's matter, it arouses her heart again. Ying Xiaojun doesn't know what happened to Li You, whether he is good or bad, dead or alive, and really wants to see him. But as a daughter, how can he know Li You's situation, how can she know what Prime Minister Li is worried about now? After thinking about it, she thought of a person, this person was the princess's sister-in-law Li Can, Li You's sister. This is really: if you don't know your aunt's eating nature, let your sister-in-law taste it first.
So Xiaojun came to Li Can. Li Can has been in bad spirits because of the loss of her husband. However, there are indeed many princes and ministers who come to the door to ask for marriage, but their sons are not in Li Can's favor, so Li Can is very worried about this, so he is still single. When Xiaojun saw Li Can, he asked her how she was doing recently. Li Can said: "There is something in my heart, I don't think about tea and dinner, how can my body be good?" Xiaojun knew about her sadness, so she said that her father was also having tea and dinner today, and he sighed for a long time. Li Can said with a smile: "My father often taught the king to govern the country through magic, not to talk about accommodation and benevolence, to worship the law and to hate Confucianism, this method has changed the essence of human nature, how can he not be annoyed?" Xiaojun said: "My father is in a high position, and he probably can't help himself. Li Can asked strangely, "Why did you suddenly talk about your father?" Xiaojun told his father what he was worried about Li You. Li Can said: "The affairs of the DPRK and China are all the affairs of the men, we are just women, don't care so much?" Xiaojun said: "My father must be worried about the country and the people, and he is our pillar, once there is a good one, we will also suffer from water, and our female stream should not be depressed, so it will hurt your body as a young lady, it will not be worth it." Now we might as well ask my father if there is anything we can do to help, and we can do it. Li Can was originally very dissatisfied with his father's approach, but at this moment, he heard that it was about his brother, and he thought that he was bored all day, so he agreed to Xiaojun's request.
Li Si was thinking about it, and when he saw his two daughters coming, he asked what was the matter. Li Can said: "The safety of my brother is related to the blessing and misfortune of our Li family, I heard that my father has been troubled since he went to court, and I don't know what is going on?" Li Si said: "My daughter's family, why are you asking this?" You'd better go back and do your business, right? Li Can said very unhappily: "What can I do?" Is it a feast for a dead husband? I've done a good job! Li Si was speechless in one sentence, he knew that his daughter was very bitter in his heart, so he had to tell how Zhao Gao framed Li You, and said that the emperor asked him to find a person who could do things and had the courage to send an envoy to Shandong as soon as possible, but he never found a suitable candidate.
At this time, Xiaojun spoke, she said: "If the Prime Minister asks me to go, I will definitely complete the task!" When Li Si heard this, he smiled bitterly and said: "The envoys sent are all tall and clever people who can speak well, and they can't complete the task, you?" Hey, a girl! Li Can said: "That maybe, Lin Xiangru of Zhao State in the past came to our country, and he can still return to Zhao completely, and live up to his mission, not to mention that now he is the angel of my Great Qin State, and he wants to send an envoy to the small state of Yuer, what is so difficult about this?" Li Si smiled and said: "Chu people rebelled, hundreds of thousands of rebels almost hit Xianyang a few days ago, thanks to General Zhang Han's battle in the water, the rebels were driven away, and now the place east of Hangu Pass is still in the hands of the rebels." Xiaojun asked, "Why didn't the imperial court send an envoy directly?" Li Si sighed: "The road in Shandong has been blocked by the rebels, and it is impossible to reach it!" Li Can said: "In ancient times, even if the two countries exchanged troops, they did not block the normal exchange of envoys. Xiaojun said: "That's right, if I serve as an envoy, I will scold those traitors when I see them!" Li Si said: "You don't know the situation, there are many envoys sent by the imperial court, who were either killed, or fled back in fear, and they can't get beyond the place under the jurisdiction of the rebels!" Ying Xiaojun said: "I'm not afraid of savages, you still recommend the two of us to the emperor, right?" Li Si got up and walked into the back hall, almost laughing.
The two came out and came to Li Can's residence, Xiaojun thought that now the emperor suspected that Li You and the thieves in Shandong were not innocent, but she didn't believe it in her heart, but it was indeed true that the thieves broke into the pass, so she said to Li Can: "Miss Li, as women, we can't share our father's worries, and we can't see our families, it's really unproductive!" Li Can said: "Isn't it? How many men have sacrificed their lives for the country, and we have survived until we grow old in obscurity, which is really boring! Xiaojun said: "I want to go to Shandong, and I can't manage the affairs of the court, so I want to see my brother, but the prime minister doesn't recommend me, and I can't help it?" Li Can smiled: "You have such a big courage? Why do you have to go to Shandong? Xiaojun said shyly: "It's not that I'm worried about your brother!" Li Can saw that Xiaojun liked the eldest brother very much, so he smiled and said: "If you really have this idea and courage, I will help you, and we will really go to Shandong together!" When Xiaojun heard this, he was very happy, so he asked, "Why are you helping me?" Are you telling the truth? Li Can said: "Not for anything else, just for your true feelings, for you to be my sister-in-law early!" But the mission to Shandong is not a joke, it is to risk your life, you have to think about it? Xiaojun said: "I have already thought about it, you said, 'Lin Xiangru, why don't we learn from that Lin Xiangru'?" Li Can smiled and said: "Lin is similar, and he will return to Zhao." Alright then, let's do it together for the men, and let the tall ministers lose their faces! Hahaha! Xiaojun sincerely asked Li Can what to do. Li Can said: "Do you know the story of 'Mu Ji saving Jin Jun'? Jun said he didn't know. Li Can said: "There used to be a former king's wife named Mu Ji, and she kidnapped the king's child...... she told this story to Xiaojun, and then the two of them combined.
They took advantage of Li Si's ascension to the court, and coaxed one of their father's favorite grandsons, Li You's youngest son, to play in an idle small attic in their house, and then demolished the floor slabs, and then used a long pole to light a fire from the outside. The two of them also made their clothes very messy, and their hair was scattered, pretending to be crazy. The servant was frightened and hurried to report to the prime minister. They came to the gate of Xianyang Palace and explained the situation to the guards. The guards saw that there was an accident at the home of Prime Minister Li Cheng, the No. 2 person in the Great Qin State, and hurriedly entered the palace to report. Li Si was discussing matters with the second emperor, and when he heard that someone had kidnapped his grandson and was going to set himself on fire, he was shocked and hurriedly said goodbye to the second emperor, so he ran home. When the second saw that someone dared to kidnap his nephew, he immediately sent someone to find out.
The two came to Li Si's house and saw that there was a fire in the attic, and everyone in Li's house was pouring water to put out the fire. When Lees came downstairs, he heard the child's cry, and shouted upstairs, "You two crazy women, why is this? Xiaojun controlled the child in the back, Li Can came to the front, and said loudly: "My father never listened to me, and I didn't know how to persuade the emperor, now that so many things have happened in the country, you can't think of a solution, someone falsely accuses your brother, and you can't stop it, and Xiaojun wants to go to Shandong, but you don't look down on her, all because we are women!" Now the two of us are going to Shandong together, and if you don't recommend us to the emperor, we will die here!" Li Si was shocked: "Hurry up, I'll go and recommend the two aunts and grandmothers to the emperor!" I will definitely let you go to Shandong! Li Can said, "What if my father repents? At this time, the official standing next to him said: "I am sent by His Majesty, and I also recommend you two, you should come down quickly!" Li Can and Xiaojun saw that the officials of the imperial court were also there, and they thought that the matter would be done, so they cooperated with the rescuers, and jumped from the back window to the grass pile below with the child in their arms, and got out of danger.
When everyone put out the fire, Li Si saw the two daughters who were blackened by smoke, and he was so angry that he couldn't speak. I had no choice but to come to the palace and tell the second what had happened. When the second heard that there was such a fierce woman, he was not angry at all, and admired their actions, so he immediately summoned Li Can and Ying Xiaojun. When the two heard that the emperor had summoned them, they were very happy, so they quickly washed their faces and put on beautiful clothes, and restored their former brilliance and beauty, and came to the palace to listen to the mission. When the Second saw them, he said with great admiration: "You two are the strongest women I have ever seen! How can you complete this mission, let's talk about it first? Li Can said: "Your Majesty, if we are edicted, we will be angels of the kingdom, and it is justifiable to send an envoy to Shandong." If those traitorous and rebellious rebels dare to obstruct us, we will teach them words and make them feel guilty. Rest assured, Your Majesty, we will be able to complete the task! He said, "What if a thief is in trouble for you, and there is no one to help you?" Xiaojun said categorically: "We would rather commit suicide than succumb to the thief's obscenity!" The second said loudly, and said, "I heard that the first emperor rewarded Mrs. Qing, if you two can complete the task, I will also reward you!" Li Can said: "Your Majesty, there are many strong women in the world, but you haven't discovered it yet." Now we are doing our best to complete the task, not to be in the limelight, but to admire that there are so many men who are defending the land of the country with their lives, and we are only on a mission, what is there to praise? Besides, we won't necessarily die, so rest assured, Your Majesty! The second said: "Now that Hangu Pass has just been recovered, Shandong is still under the control of traitors, how can you go to Xingyang?" Ying Xiaojun preemptively said: "We are under your edict, the edict of Emperor Daqin, how dare those chaotic ministers and thieves obstruct the angels of the kingdom?" Li Can said: "We impress them with words and reasoning, and we will definitely complete the task." Seeing the bold words of the two, the second was very encouraged, so he immediately appointed the two as special envoys of the Great Qin State and sent them to Shandong.
When Li Can and Ying Xiaojun left Xianyang Palace, they changed into the clothes of female officials, and then walked towards Hangu Pass. Zhang Han and other generals were puzzled when they heard that the imperial court had sent two female envoys, so they came to Guanshang to inspect them in person. I saw the two female envoys dressed brightly and drove out of the gate in an extraordinary car, and everyone looked at them with envy. The two went out of the customs and came to Caoyangyi. When the soldiers of the rebel army heard that an envoy from the Qin State had passed by, they reported it to Zhou Wen. Zhou Wen then led a group of soldiers to the front of the pass, and scolded loudly: "The war between Chu and Qin is imminent, you are bold, you dare to think of the envoys, quickly take it for me!" Li Can said sternly: "The one in front is General Zhou Wen?" I heard that you worked under the famous Chun Shenjun and Xiang Yan, and you can be regarded as a person who has seen the world. Have you ever heard of the saying that 'the two countries will not kill the envoys when they exchange troops', we, as the envoys of the country, the family of General Li You, are now going to Xingyang to inspect the war situation in an open and honest manner. If you have read the book of war, you should know this kind of etiquette, and besides, if you rebel and lose the battle, what face do you have to shake your majesty in front of us? Ying Xiaojun also said: "That is, if you have the ability, you will compete with General Zhang Han and block the two envoys, what kind of ability is it?" Open the gates and let us pass! As soon as Zhou Wen heard the words of the two, he was ashamed and embarrassed, thinking that the hundreds of thousands of troops he led had been defeated, but today he was embarrassed by the two women, which would definitely make the heroes of the world laugh, so he said: "The Qin State has such loyal heroines, which is indeed admirable." Release! Li Can and Ying Xiaojun drove past Caoyang City. The soldiers of the rebel army still watched them cross the city with admiration.
The two came to Xingyang City, and when they saw the false king's army besieging the city, Ying Xiaojun stepped forward and shouted: "We are the envoys of Qin, quickly give way, we want to enter the city!" When the rebels saw that they were two women, they couldn't straighten up when they smiled, so someone hurried to report. When the false king heard that two female envoys had come, he went out of the camp to inspect them. When he came to the camp, he saw that the two female envoys were really beautiful and outstanding. He said: "You women, don't hold your children at home, but you come here to shout, what kind of system do you become?" Li Can said angrily: "The two of us were ordered by the emperor to send an envoy to Xingyang in an upright manner, why do you fanatics want to stop it?" The fake king said: "Chu and Qin are fighting a war, how can they communicate casually?" Who are you? Recruited from the truth? Li Can said loudly: "My name is Li Can, the daughter of Li Si, the prime minister of Qin, and the sister of General Li You." Today, I came to the edict, one is to inspect Xingyang, and the other is to visit my brother, only for family affairs, not for anything else, let us enter the city! Ying Xiaojun also said righteously: "My name is Ying Xiaojun, and I am the wife of General Li." Now some people falsely accuse General Li You of secretly collaborating with the enemy and conniving at you Chu people to cross Xingyang City to attack Xianyang. I was ordered to come here today to confirm whether my husband collaborated with the enemy? Did he deliberately not fight with you? Get out of the way! Li Can saw that Xiaojun said that he was his brother's wife, so he whispered: "Why have you become a sister-in-law?" Xiaojun could only smile lightly: "Then what should I say?" The false king listened to the words of the two, and also ordered to be reassured. Military advisor Chai Jing said: "We can't let them into the city, if there is any conspiracy, we will suffer a big loss!" The fake king said: "In order to confirm Li You's innocence, they dared to go deep into the tiger's den with a weak body, they are really heroes among women, Li You has such a sister and wife, it is really a blessing for a lifetime!" We men are fighting for heaven and earth, so why can't we get along with his family? General Zhou in front of him let them over, he must have been afraid that they would be embarrassed and laughed at by the world, how could we have a small belly? Then he shouted, "Let me go!" When the rebels heard the false king's order, they hula and made way of the way. So they ordered the coachman to go into the city on horseback. The soldiers of the rebel army also watched with amazement, admiration, and envy as they entered the city.
Li You was in the city, and when he heard that Xiaomei and Xiaojun were coming, he was shocked and hurriedly came out to greet him. When he saw the two of them, he happily asked, "Why are you two here?" The two of them told the truth about their father's concern and the emperor's send. Li You was very excited, he saw that Xiaojun had grown into a delicate and mature girl, and he liked it very much, so he invited the two into the mansion. Li Can and Xiaojun told Li You some gossip in the court. Li You was very angry when he heard this, and said: "This is the villain's words, I, Li You, am upright, the county guard of the Qin State, the eldest son of Prime Minister Li Cheng, loyal to the country, how can I have the slightest neglect and distraction!" So he told them about the battle in the city. It turned out that there were not many defenders in the city, but the food was very sufficient, and the soldiers continued to fight under the encouragement of Li You and Qiang Yuan, and everyone held the city to the death, and the Chu army just couldn't capture it. Li Can also told Li You that Zhang Han had recovered Hangu Pass, and he would hit Xingyang in a few days, so please don't worry. When Li You and Qiang Yuan heard that Zhou Wen's rebels had already entered Hangu Pass, they were shocked in their hearts, so they said: "The army of Qin is in the north, if there is another army here, why be afraid of Wu Guang." Now that Zhang Han has recovered Hangu Pass, as long as he attacks Xingyang, he will definitely be able to join forces with the outside and annihilate Wu Guangbu in one fell swoop. Rest assured that the Emperor and the Prime Minister will surely fail. He also asked two envoys to go up to the city and inspect it. The two came to the city to watch, only to see the volunteers crowded, surrounding the city to the ground, and they admired General Li You even more. The two of them saw that the Qin army had suffered heavy casualties, and many sergeants were fighting with their wounds wrapped, and their feelings were even more sad. After the inspection, he fully knew the real situation in the city, and then said goodbye to Li You with tears.
After Li Can and Xiaojun left the city, their mood was difficult to calm down, and the two were really emotional, so they galloped and returned to Xianyang to report. The second heard about the true situation in Xingyang, and saw that the two really did not fail in their mission, so he rewarded them generously and named them 'Mrs. Anguo'. The two went home happily.
The next day, the second emperor said to the ministers: "Li You stuck to Xingyang, with a very small number of Qin troops dragged Wu Guang hundreds of thousands of rebels, the battle was very difficult, Li You is really a model of my Great Qin State, a rare good general!" What should you do now? Li Si said: "Changshi Sima Xin and Du Wei Dong Fei are very talented in military affairs, now let the two of them transfer a team of soldiers and horses from all over Guanzhong as soon as possible, and then send them to Hangu Pass, Zhang Han will definitely be able to open up the road to Sanchuan, and the siege of Xingyang will be solved!" The second emperor agreed very much, so he immediately sent an edict and dispatched troops and horses to aid Zhang Han. The ministers shouted long live.