October 28, the twelfth year of the reign of King Qin.

Daqin is snowing, but Dachu is raining.

The pouring rain washed out the blood in the corpses, staining the moat red, and forming countless pools of blood exuding strong blood outside the city.

The Zheng army of Chu left the city in the rain, stripped all the usable booty from the layers of corpses, and then threw the broken legs, heads, and stumps into the carriages, which were carried by chariots and horses to the deep pits outside the city.

Cleaning up the battlefield is supposed to be exciting.

But none of the soldiers could laugh.

The generals and courtiers of the Chu State were even more heavy-faced and heavy-eyed.

"It's already the twenty-fourth."

In the south gate tower of the city, the king of Chu stood here, his eyes piercing the rain curtain and looking down at the corpse mountain and sea of blood outside the city, and his tone was heavy:

"Huiji City, Li City, Guangling City...... Thirteen cities and their surrounding villages were attacked by bandits. ”

"Chaocheng and Huiji City have both been attacked three times."

"Today's battle is the fourth time that my city has been attacked!"

"According to the investigators, there are still nearly 100 bandits running rampant in my Great Chu territory."

"Arrogance! Arrogant! The king of Chu angrily smashed his fist on the battlements of the city wall, and shouted coldly: "Lawless!" ”

Zhao Cen and the other courtiers were all silent, and their eyes at the King of Chu were also a little more suspicious and resentful.

Last year, the major clans fully supported the anti-bandit action launched by the king of Chu, and for this reason, they did not hesitate to send troops and food, and even betrayed the bandits they had raised for a long time.

This crackdown on bandits also effectively broke the backbone of the bandits and servants, and made groups of arrogant and domineering bandits who had long and short of righteousness all day abandon their righteousness and betrayed their accomplices, and they were full of ugliness just to find a way to live.

Moreover, the major clans took the opportunity of suppressing the bandits to seize the wealth that many bandits had accumulated for a long time, the land that had been cultivated for several years, and their cherished family members as slaves.

Because of this, the bandits raised by the major clans no longer obeyed their orders, and the resentment of all the bandits and servant troops towards the nobles of Chu State skyrocketed.

At that time, no one cared about the resentment of these people.

If the anti-bandit operation continues, these resentful people will die, and who cares about the resentment of the dead?

If the suppression of bandits continues, the control of the Chu royal family and the major clans over the Chu State will also be further strengthened, and the possibility of the bandits and servant army being able to obtain the Chang'an plough can also be perfectly suppressed.

It's a pity that there is no if!

The bandit army went north halfway and turned into the Northern Expeditionary Army, leaving the country in a mess.

The bandits attracted by the heavy money became the role models of the bandits of all stripes, the expedition gave the bandits courage, and the barren rice jar gave the bandits a decisive victory.

More and more bandits, even if they are not bought, are attacking the city of Chu for profit or revenge!

Today, the chaos within the Chu State has reached the point of being out of control!

However, the major clans simply did not have enough clan soldiers to suppress the turmoil, so they could only sit back and watch the food and the city suffer.

The magnates couldn't help but hesitate, the king of Chu and Zhao Heli attacked Qin, whether it was the Qin State or them, the magnates of the Chu State!

The king of Chu turned his head and asked in a deep voice: "Ladies and gentlemen, why do you teach widows?" ”

Zhao Cen said in a deep voice: "It's just a few bandits, as long as the army arrives, it will be scattered." ”

"The minister's advice, immediately order the army to return to the court!"

Zhao Cen's words represent the voices of many powerful people of the Chu State.

The defeat of Dahongshan caused their sense of expectation for new interests to plummet.

The turmoil among the bandits in the territory has caused their sense of security for their inherent interests to plummet.

Coupled with the suspicion of the King of Chu in their hearts, they only want to withdraw their clan soldiers now and protect their existing interests!

The king of Chu frowned: "The Shangzhu State has seized the land of Jianghan and Han, and even captured Yingcheng, the former capital of my Great Chu, is looking at Danyang from afar, and confronting Qin Chang'anjun." ”

"If we win this battle, then my Great Chu will recapture the two lands of Jianghan and Handan, and even more can recapture my Great Chu ancestral land."

"In this way, the widow has the face to face the ancestors and the ancestors, and the princes can also get a large piece of anointed land for food."

"But if Shangzhu State is ordered to withdraw its troops, it will not only fuel Qin Chang'anjun's arrogance again, but also make Deyingcheng fall into the hands of Qin again, and will let Qin Chang'anjun go down the Yangtze River, and attack Qu Zuoyin's troops back and forth."

"Qu Zuoyin's troops are on the front line of Chencheng to resist the Qin general's Jian department."

"Once Qu Zuoyin's troops withdraw, the Qin army can pass Shouchun from Chencheng and go straight down to Lucheng along the river!"

"Zhao Ling Yin, I intend to sit back and watch the Qin army drive straight in, and once again step on my Great Chu Capital!"

My Great Chu Capital is about to be broken again!!

emmm~ Then it will be broken, anyway, the capital is not my family's food.

Our Dachu has mastered the technology of moving the capital, and it will not take a few years to rectify the new capital, and there is no big problem.

As for Danyang City and Yingcheng?

These two cities are the ancestral lands of the Chu State, and they have a very special significance for the Chu State.

But where is the meaning more important!

Zhao Cen sincerely advised: "King, you must first settle inside when you go outside!" ”

"If we allow bandits and servants to wander and attack in our Great Chu, it will not only cause our Great Chu to lose people's grain and grass, but also make the soldiers abroad panic and worry about the disaster of their hometown."

"The country is unstable, how can I have the strength to fight a fierce war with the outside world!"

The King of Chu aggravated his tone: "King Qin and King Qin Chang'an are both insatiable!" ”

"If I show weakness to Da Chu, Qin Chang'an Jun will definitely not give up!"

"If Qin Chang'anjun leads his army to break through my Great Chu capital again, what do you think Qin Chang'anjun will ask?"

"Force me to cede all the cities north of the Yangtze River to Da Chu!"

"Or force me to cede all the cities north of the Qiantang River!"

The king of Chu reprimanded angrily: "If I retreat again, my Great Chu will retreat into the territory of Baiyue!" ”

"In the face of the Qin army, my Great Chu retreated again and again, and now there is no way to retreat!"

"Only a battle can give me a chance to breathe!"

The ministers had to admit that what the King of Chu said made some sense.

If Ying Chengcheng can really break through the city of Lu, he will definitely take the opportunity to encroach on a large area of Chu territory again.

And those territories that have been encroached upon will inevitably include the food of these nobles.

But protecting interests is not just about fighting.

Compromise is also a good option!

Dazai Qu He stepped forward and arched his hand: "Now Zhao is raising troops to attack Qin, and Zhao is winning one after another on the front line of Taihang Mountain, on the other hand, Qin is young and tired, and the grain and grass are in a hurry." ”

"No matter how ambitious King Qin and Qin Chang'an Jun are, they are also powerless."

"The minister thinks that if my Dachu is willing to exchange some money and grain for peace, Qin Ding will rejoice and withdraw his troops to the north!"

"When my Great Chu calms down the internal troubles and restores the national strength, I can fight with Qin again and regain the lost territory!"

"The minister is willing to be an envoy and lobby the king of Qin to Qin!"

The king of Chu was about to laugh angrily: "Since Qing also knows that the Qin State is young and tired, and the grain and grass are in an emergency, why don't I, Da Chu, take advantage of Qin's weakness and swallow Qin's soil?" ”

"It's about a truce with Qin and give Qin a chance to recuperate!"

"Is it just because of a few bandits and servants in the territory of Dachu!"

From the perspective of the King of Chu, this group of nobles is full of short-sighted people, and they are not enough to scheming!

But from the perspective of the nobles, the king of Chu is standing and talking without backache, and it is not the king of Chu who is damaged and the food is turbulent, and the king of Chu naturally doesn't care about how chaotic the country is!

For a time, the contradiction of interests made it impossible to reach an agreement between the monarchs and ministers of Chu.

But Xiong Xun, who hurriedly climbed the city wall, broke the stalemate.

"King!" Xiong Xun bowed his hand and said in a deep voice: "According to the investigators of our department, ten days ago, the bandit leader Zhuang Qiu Xiao gathered thirteen bandits and raided Chaocheng!" ”

The corners of King Chu's mouth hooked up a few points and was quickly suppressed by him, and his right hand smashed into the battlements of the city wall: "How many times has Chaocheng been attacked?" ”

"Fourth!"

"Order Chaocheng County to order Jingqun to immediately send county soldiers to inspect the surroundings and exterminate the bandits in advance."

"If the city is attacked by the thief army again, the widow will ask him!"

Xiong Xun responded with a calm face: "Your Majesty, Chaocheng has been breached. ”

"Chaocheng County ordered Jingqun and Chaocheng County Lieutenant and County Cheng to die in Chaocheng."

"Now Chaocheng has been seized by bandits, bandits from all sides are hearing the news, and many servants around Chaocheng have killed the people after hearing the news and defected to the Chaocheng bandit army."

"When the waiters under the command of the Supreme Minister sent back this news, the Chaocheng thief army had expanded to more than 30,000 people, and the speed of expansion continued unabated!"

Lang Yin Jinghuan lost his voice in disbelief and asked, "Xiong Houxi, what did you just say?" ”

"The fall of Nest City? Jing Qun died in battle? ”

Xiong Xun bowed his head slightly: "Yes." ”

Jing Huan was like being struck by lightning, and his eyes showed deep sadness: "Brothers! Brothers! ”

"What a cowardly dog thief, dare to take my nest city! Kill my brothers! ”

Chaocheng is one of the main food towns of the Jing family, and the Jing family has invested no less energy in Chaocheng, and even made Jing Qun, a pillar and beam talent from the side lineage, lead 300 soldiers and lead Chaocheng county soldiers to garrison for a long time.

Now, Chaocheng has fallen, which not only means that the Jing clan has been killed and the Jing clan's food has been seized, but also a slap in the face of the Jing clan!

All the Jing clan members also shouted angrily: "It's just a mere thief army, dare to take my Jing clan's food!" ”

"After attacking, you don't leave, but you occupy my nest city as the foundation? Didn't that thief think that my Jing sword was no longer good! ”

"I, Jing, will pay for the debt with blood! Slaughter the bandits! ”

"King! Please order me to transfer back the soldiers of my Jing clan and avenge the hatred of my Jing clan! ”

Looking at the angry and sad Jing clansmen, Zhao Cen and the other courtiers also looked calm.

Even if the bandits roamed the territory of the Chu State, all the nobles still only regarded them as flies that infested their own interests.

Recall the clan soldiers and you can easily shoot them to death!

But today, Chaocheng, a fief belonging to the Jing family, has fallen into the hands of bandits!

This was beyond the expectations of all the nobles, and it made all the nobles have a strong sense of crisis.

Today is the fall of Jing's nest city, but what about tomorrow?

It is difficult to say that the food of all ethnic groups is stable!

The group of bandits who were regarded as flies by the nobles have suddenly turned into fierce tigers and opened their mouths to the nobles!

The problem suddenly became serious.

The nobles no longer wanted to maintain the apparent harmony, and shouted in unison:

"The minister asks the king to withdraw the army and quell the civil strife!"

(End of chapter)