Chapter 541: If Wei cannot rule the world, why should it make way for Qi?
"Rejecting entry into the city, what on earth is this Wei Ju thinking! Doesn't he know that only the State of Qi can save him now?"
Tian Dan, who was protected by a group of personal guards, had a dark face and roared in a low voice.
Upon learning that the Qin army had broken through Linji, the King of Qi immediately led an army in person, with 5,000 cavalrymen, to assist the State of Wei overnight.
We had to sleep in the open air along the way and the hardship was beyond words.
He finally arrived in Daliang, but was refused entry into the city. He came here to save the life of King Wei!
The hot face pressed against the cold butt, and the stress and fatigue from speeding all the way burst out at the same time.
There were red bloodshot circles under his eyes. I don't know if it was because he was more angry or more tired. It was scary.
The envoy to Daliang knelt on the ground, saying nothing, silently enduring the wrath of the King of Qi.
This matter has something to do with him.
As an envoy from Qi meeting the King of Wei, he simply conveyed the message that "The King of Qi has arrived, please open the city gates", without any self-expression.
But as a person passing through, it is impossible for him to be completely separated from this matter.
By the same token, this matter would not have much to do with him, so he was not afraid, because his king was Tian Dan.
In such a situation, ordinary people would have lost their minds and started yelling, but his king knew to lower his voice to avoid bringing disaster.
Since the establishment of Qi, no matter how bad the incident was, the king always dealt with the matter objectively. He never took his anger out on others or blamed them, and never acted impulsively. Instead, he covered for his ministers many times.
King Tian Dan of Qi was deeply loved and trusted by his subjects.
"How can Wei Ju say that!"
After venting his anger in moderation, Tian Dan then remembered that he had not asked for the reason yet. He exploded the moment he learned that he was not allowed to enter the city.
"The King of Wei said, 'Your Majesty, if you want to save someone, save one country. It is better not to save one person.' I will allow Your Majesty to enter the city and follow Your Majesty to Qi. If the King of Qin learns of this, he will be furious and will vent his anger on the people of Daliang.
"The King of Wei is the King of Wei. He guards the land of Wei and protects the people of Wei. Now most of the land of Wei has been taken by Qin. It is no longer possible to guard it, and we can no longer protect the people of Wei."
Tian Dan looked at the majestic city in the distance and his teeth chattered.
"He, Wei Ju, is a man of integrity and righteousness! It makes me, Tian Dan, look like a ruthless person! No wonder the State of Wei was destroyed. With such a king, how could the country not collapse? Go again! If the King of Wei wants to die for his country, he can bring a son back to see me!"
The messenger left in response, his steps hurried, his whip waving to create an illusion.
The Qin army is already a hundred miles away. Time is running out and we cannot waste a moment.
"As long as there is one person from the Wei royal family alive, the Wei Kingdom will have a chance to recover!"
Tian Dan recalled the information he had obtained.
The weapon that could carry people up into the sky, the wooden kite that could fly across the sky... He clenched his fists.
"Without unity, there is no life!"
It was completely impossible for Qi to rescue Wei from the Qin army of more than 200,000, especially while fighting away from home.
The distance is too far, and a large number of troops have to travel a long distance, which consumes a lot of food and horses. Even if they arrive, they will be sent to eat. Without two or three times the number of troops, don't think about fighting the Qin army head-on. The Qin army has no opponent on the front battlefield.
Now the war on Qi's home front is in full swing. They are facing the Qin's god of war, Wang Jian, Marquis of Wucheng, and Wei Liao, the former state commander, and their military strength is also stretched to the limit.
The entire Qi State only had 40,000 to 50,000 combat-capable soldiers. Where did the 400,000 to 500,000 troops come from to provide support? If there were 400,000 to 500,000 soldiers, Tian Dan would have already wiped out Wang Jian and Wei Liao, the two old men.
It is impossible to rely on Qi alone, but if Chu, Zhang Chu and Zhao unite together, and the four countries share the same hatred and come together to help Wei, then Wei still has hope of being saved.
Only four countries are counted, not because Tian Dan looks down on other countries, but because there are no more.
Excluding the new force Zhang Chu, although the six kingdoms were revived, the only four real combat capable ones were the old four kingdoms of Chu, Qi, Zhao and Wei.
Han Di has never been lost and has always been controlled by the Baijia. If Ying Chengjiao hadn't been holding it back, the Baijia would have let Zhang Chu next to them know why the flowers are so red earlier!
Yan State, with a generous people's style similar to Zhao State, is located in a border county. Wang Ben, the Marquis of Tongwu, ploughed the land before early spring. The Qin swords of the 10,000 northeastern border troops turned from outside to inside, and killed all the Yan nobles according to the instructions of the court. The Yan people in the bitter cold land are very fierce, while the Yan nobles in the bitter cold land are not fierce at all.
The border state of Yan was destroyed before it could rise again, and the noise was so small that the Donghu outside the Great Wall did not even notice that the unreasonable and bloodthirsty Qin general on the opposite side had made a trip.
But Tian Dan never thought about the four countries saving Wei.
Tian Dan got the news that Wei needed help from Chu's agents, and also got the news that Chu would not help Wei to attack Zhang Chu.
When Chu and Zhang Chu were at war, the four countries went directly to the two countries.
Zhao and Qi alone could not defeat the 200,000-strong Qin army.
After the Battle of Changping, the five-nation coalition was the only way to force Qin to avoid the battle.
Even with this, they could only wander around outside Hangu Pass and never get inside the pass once.
Since Wei could not be saved, they could only settle for the next best thing: saving the King of Wei and saving his people and land.
Five thousand elite cavalrymen are the main force of Qi State.
Among these five thousand people, three thousand were cavalrymen maintained by the three brothers of the Tian family over the years, and two thousand were newly recruited.
Having veterans lead new recruits is the fastest way to help them adapt to the battlefield, and this was learned from the Qin State.
"How long will it take for the Qin army to reach Daliang?"
Zhang Liang, who had a pretty face like a woman, stood behind Tian Dan and asked the soldier beside him who was responsible for finding out the situation.
The soldier bowed slightly and responded in a low voice.
"At the current speed of the Qin army, it will take another five hours."
Zhang Liang turned his head and glanced into the distance. In five hours at most, the Qin army would appear there.
"Zifang is also impatient? This is rare."
Tian Dan smiled, as if his anger just now was all pretended.
"Don't be nervous. We have plenty of time. With General Han leading the troops, we will have more than enough time to retreat safely if we fail to attack."
Han Xin, who was also under the protection of the personal guards, responded with a smile, affirming the words of the King of Qi.
He doesn't like to put himself down.
He has this ability, why deny it? If he is given the same number of troops as the Qin army, he will dare to turn around and eat up the main force of the Qin army!
As early as when he first met the King of Qi, he uttered a bold statement.
"As long as I am Han Xin, all the other generals can serve as my deputy!"
This time, the 5,000 elite cavalrymen penetrated deep into Wei territory without being discovered by the Qin army. In addition to their high combat quality, Han Xin's command played an indispensable role.
The young general seemed to know the Qin army's route of movement and was able to dodge, bypass and avoid them every time. At the closest time, the cold black armor was less than ten miles away from them.
They were now in a forest, with few old trees sprouting, and it was not possible to completely block the outside view. They needed the cover provided by the Qi soldiers under Han Xin's command to hide for a short time.
"Seven Killers, Greedy Wolf."
Tian Dan patted Han Xin's shoulder, his eyes full of joy.
"Gan Xing said that throughout history, there has never been a person like you who has two destinies. No one can be your opponent on the battlefield. You, the Han Xin, are much better than the Han Xin that Zifang found. Without you, how could my Qi State resist Wang Jian and Wei Liao?"
Han Xin opened his eyes wide.
"Your Majesty has already said this. With or without Han Xin, Qi will be safe. Wang Jian and Teacher are like water without roots, and a skilled cook cannot cook without rice. You are in Qi, but you cannot recruit soldiers. All you have learned in your life is the art of slaying dragons. A trapped beast will still fight."
The king and his minister chatted for a while, and when they came to a halt and were silent, Zhang Liang spoke.
"If the King of Qi doesn't like my King, my country, Han, will surrender to another country."
The face, which was no longer so pale that it looked sick, was full of seriousness.
There were two Han Xins in history.
One was a famous military genius, who was named King of Qi and later demoted to Marquis of Huaiyin. He rose from Xiao He and died under Xiao He, leaving a significant mark in history books.
Under the halo of this military genius, the figure of another Han Xin was completely obscured. He was Han Xin, a descendant of the Korean royal family, also known as Han Wangxin.
At this time, the King of Han was just a title, representing the restoration of the State of Han. He had no territory of his own, as the land of Han was occupied by hundreds of families.
Han Wangxin lived in Qi and gave Zhang Liang full support. With Zhang Liang's help, Han and Qi became allies.
"Zifang, please don't blame me. I said the wrong thing. Han and Qi have been friends for generations. Both of them have the sword of Qin hanging over their heads. Who can look down on whom? Now that Qin is so powerful, Qi and Han will live if they unite, but will die if they separate."
It seemed that he had touched upon the pain point, and Tian Dan looked worried.
"I thought the death of Ying Zheng was a sign of the end of Qin, but Ying Chengjiao suddenly appeared out of nowhere and took control of power in less than half a year. There was no unrest in Guanzhong. It's really strange."
Zhang Liang's throat was itchy. When he heard the name and knew that the person was very close, he couldn't help but want to cough. It seemed that his old illness was about to relapse.
He tried to hold back his cough, but couldn't help it in the end, he covered his mouth with his hands and started coughing violently. His frowning brows and tears filled his eyes, which made me feel pity.
"What's wrong? Is it because you're not used to the local climate? Or is it because of your old illness?"
The King of Qi looked so concerned that it couldn't be more genuine. He even wished he was the one who was sick.
The State of Qi, which is caught in a war with Wang Jian, can do without Han Xin, but cannot do without Zhang Liang.
Before Zhang Liang came to join them, the Tian family was also growing and becoming stronger. The three thousand followers each performed their duties, and they began to develop secretly in the far-away Qi State, advancing steadily step by step.
After Zhang Liang surrendered, the development of the Tian family went from being on the run to flying.
The development direction planned by Zhang Liang allowed the Tian family to shift from a one-way development of accumulating food and weapons like a mouse hoarding grain, to a diversified development of gathering public opinion, visiting wise men in the wild, and building momentum and reputation.
Zhang Liang made great contributions to the transformation of the Tian family from a family hiding in Di County to the royal family of Qi State. The Qi State, which had not experienced war, had more than just the royal descendants of the three brothers of the Tian family of Di County.
It was because he had seen how powerful Zhang Liang was that King Tian Dan of Qi had no problem with Han Wangxin being on equal footing with himself. Without Zhang Liang, Tian Dan would have only used Han Wangxin as a puppet and a tool to rally the Han people.
If he could save King Ju of Wei this time, he would do the same thing: provide him with good food and drink, advertise it to the world, and wait for the people of Wei to surrender.
"Hasn't the King of Qi always been curious about why Liang joined Qi?"
He took his hand away and looked at it, but saw no blood.
He clenched his fists expressionlessly and turned to look behind him again.
"It is thanks to the current King of Qin."
The King of Qi sighed softly, as if he had unloaded a burden that had been carrying for a long time, and then smiled brightly.
"I have known about it for a long time. The Korean military incident was so serious that it was impossible for me not to know about it. I just wanted Zifang to say it himself so that he could resolve his worries.
"The State of Wei, with all its might, was powerless against the King of Qin and was defeated miserably, leaving only Daliang. It was normal for Zifang to be defeated by him in his situation. Military power is the only way to win."
Zhang Liang had a blank expression on his face, and his pretty face began to turn pale at a slow speed that was imperceptible to others.
"To seize it by military force is only superficial."
The King of Qi's heart beat faster, as if he was about to touch Zhang Liang's secret. However, he still had a smile on his face. He raised his hand and gently grabbed it, placing the fist in front of Zhang Liang.
"Oh? Is there a story behind this?"
Zhang Liang gently pried open the palm of the King of Qi's hand, and in front of the King of Qi and Han Xin who leaned over, he wrote on the palm of the King of Qi's hand, talking as he wrote.
“The human heart.”
Just wipe it with your palm and treat it as changing a piece of paper.
"public opinion."
The King of Qi raised his eyebrows. He knew these two words, but he didn't know what Zhang Liang meant by writing them down.
Han Xin listened carefully. His teacher Wei Liao had mentioned the three words "Ying Chengjiao" in front of him more than once.
"He used only the two words 'people's heart' and 'public opinion' to take away Han from Liang. Liang learned from them and applied them to Qi."
Zhang Liang spoke so calmly , but Tian Dan felt as if a bolt of lightning shot up from his coccyx, electrifying his entire body. Every part of his body felt numb, and he suddenly became alert.
Zhang Liang held the King of Qi's trembling hand tightly.
"Compared with the current King of Qin's governance and management of people, his leadership of the army in battles is nothing!"
The sound of horse hooves can be heard, and the envoy from his second mission to the State of Wei returns, alone.
"The King of Wei doesn't want to!"
Tian Dan put his hands behind his back. His face looked calm when he turned back, but his hands behind his back were trembling.
"Why?"
"King of Wei, King of Wei, King of Wei said..."
The messenger stammered, unable to speak, and knelt on the ground, trembling, with his head bowed much lower than usual.
Tian Dan stood up, brushed the dust off the messenger's sleeves and legs, and said gently:
"As long as it is what the King of Wei said, you can say it. If you are so frightened that you dare not speak out, it is my fault."
The messenger's eyes were red and his face was filled with shame, for he was ashamed for not trusting his king.
"'The King of Wei said:
"'Wei cannot rule the world, so why should it make wedding clothes for Qi? The King of Qin seized Wei's land without hurting the people of Wei, while the King of Qi buried the plague corpses at the bottom of Lanling County and slaughtered his people.
"'The King of Qin is better than the King of Qi as the ruler of the world. The wedding dress of Wei State shall be given to Qin State, and not a single piece of cloth shall be left behind.'"
He spoke very quickly, and his face was full of hatred when he finished speaking, angry that his king had been framed.
"Hahahaha, it's nothing, don't take it to heart. Wei Qi is thousands of miles away from me, so what's so strange about Wei Ju not knowing me? It's nothing serious!"
Tian Dan laughed heartily, his mouth opened wide but his laughter was very small.
"My country Qi has come a long way to help, but the King of Wei has judged others with his own mean mind. Die..."
The messenger was furious and his voice was out of control. The King of Qi smiled and put his index finger to his lips.
The messenger understood immediately and dropped the tone by an octave.
“…Not a pity!”
Zhang Liang coughed lightly.
"In this case, we should return to Qi as soon as possible and not stay here for a moment."
