The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 178 Qi State, Linzi, Tian Dan,

Linzi is one of the five cities in Central Plains.

A hundred years earlier.

Before the Qin State moved its capital to Xianyang.

Before Yue Yi led the coalition forces of Qin, Zhao, Han, Wei and Yan to attack Qi, Qi was left with only two cities, Jimo and Ju.

There is only one big city in the Central Plains - Linzi.

Ying Chengjiao was born in Xianyang, the first of the five cities in the Central Plains, so he naturally had high vision.

Last year I visited Handan and Ying, two of the five cities in the Central Plains, and I felt they were just so-so and far inferior to Xianyang.

Therefore, he had no expectations for Linzi and thought it was just an ordinary city.

And he still thought so until he stepped down from the carriage and stood in front of the Linzi city gate.

The city wall in front of us, built of rammed earth, is tall but lacks momentum.

There are no city walls in Xianyang.

Looking at the western city wall in front of him, the young man, who unconsciously compared it with Xianyang, was suddenly stunned and realized that he had become arrogant.

He couldn't help but frown.

"Is it because Gongsun Long puts too much pressure on me that I need to find confidence in other ways?" he asked himself.

Yes...his heart gave the answer.

Until now, he has not been completely sure of defeating Gongsun Long.

All I can say is, try it.

And it’s just the two words “try”.

This had already made Kong Bin, the sixth-generation grandson of Confucius, who was traveling with him and was able to represent the Kong family when traveling outside and, like Gongsun Long, was also vying for the title of "Zi" in the world, marvel in person.

Be silent behind the scenes.

Those who have never faced Gongsun Longzi directly cannot understand the horror of his words and arguments.

Kong Bin looked at the person slowly climbing up in the carriage, shaking his head.

The black tiger yawned, showing its sharp teeth, and whispered to itself:

"It's really a newborn calf that's not afraid of tigers."

The black tiger used its hind legs to leap down from the carriage, like a black blanket covering the sky.

It stood on the ground, three feet tall and half a foot long.

Its fur was shiny black under the sunlight, and it looked majestic, and every movement and sound it made brought great oppression to the surroundings.

Zou Yan, the chief academic officer of the Jixia Academy, who had learned of Prince Chengjiao's itinerary long ago, looked nervous and instinctively wanted his soldiers to lead the way.

When they saw that the huge black tiger did not run or jump, it slowly walked to Master Chengjiao and lay down, rubbing its head against Master Chengjiao, making a low "humming" sound.

Zou Yan then felt relieved and his expression relaxed.

Living in the mountains for a long time, he knew a little about the habits of various wild animals. He knew that the "humming" sound of the black tiger meant joy, satisfaction and relaxation.

Zou Yan, who had white hair and a youthful appearance like a fairy, smiled slightly, and was also very happy, satisfied, and relaxed:
"It seems that the seeds Gongming sent have sprouted."

But Zou Yan knew the habits of the black tiger, but the teachers of the Jixia Academy who came with Zou Yan did not know, the students of the Jixia Academy did not know, and the soldiers of Qi sent by the Queen of Qi to welcome Prince Cheng Jiao did not know either.

The "purring" sound of the black tiger is produced by the vibration of the false vocal cords in the throat, which is similar to the thunder in the sky or the sound of a modern car engine and is extremely intimidating.

As a result, the Qi State's originally neat formation was instantly destroyed.

"Ah! Big bug!"

"Someone come quickly!"

"Tiger! It's Tiger!"

"Run! Run quickly!"

There was a lot of shouting and the crowd was in chaos.

Apart from the students of the Jixia Academy, it was the soldiers of Qi State who were shouting the loudest and most violently and causing the most obvious chaos.

Ying Chengjiao stroked the black tiger's neck hair and looked at the chaos that suddenly arose before his eyes. The arrogance that he had just suppressed resurfaced.

[Is this the only army Qi has? No wonder they don't dare to join the coalition.]
[It feels like they can’t even beat Yan State, and are about the same as South Korea.]
[Did Le Yi defeat Qi so badly in this battle?]
Black Tiger seemed to be annoyed by the chaotic noise in front of him, so he opened his mouth wide:

"Roar!"

The roar is loud, has its own resonance, and has obvious vibrato.

The roar of the black tiger completely drowned out the shouting and noise of the Qi people. It was much more powerful and intimidating than the "snoring" before.

"Run!"

"The tiger ate people!"

"Teacher! Run!"

The black tiger's eyes widened and its ears trembled.

Staring at the even more chaotic crowd and listening to the even noisier noises, he felt a little irritated inside and was about to let out a second roar.

Ying Chengjiao was standing on the ground, but he was not as tall as the black tiger who was on all fours.

He stood on tiptoe, stretched out his hand to pat the tiger's mouth, and taught:

"Don't scream!"

The black tiger whined twice with some grievance, lowered its head and arched it twice, glancing ahead with its tiger eyes.

It seemed to be saying, "Master, look, they were the ones who started the quarrel first."

Almost at the same time, an old roar was heard from the carriage pulled by a blue ox:

"Noisy!"

The loudness of this sound is far inferior to that of the black tiger, but its momentum is not weaker at all, and is even stronger.

For a moment, the students of Jixia Academy were still running, escaping, falling, and crawling, completely unaffected by the sound.

The Qi soldiers, who had been as chaotic as the students at Jixia Academy, had apparently calmed down.

Some of their faces turned pale and some turned red.

There is shame, fear, and guilt.

But most of them stopped and stopped running around, and lined up in their original rows.

The look he cast towards the black tiger was filled with a mixture of vigilance and fear.

Ying Chengjiao's eyes narrowed as he looked towards the ox cart.

Compared with horse-drawn carriages, the advantages of ox carts are stability and comfort, while the disadvantages are slowness and uncoolness.

Therefore, most people who ride ox carts are elderly people.

Young people can't afford to lose face.

Prince Chengjiao originally did not care about the ox cart. He just thought that there was a nobleman in Qi State who had a high status but no real power.

There are such people in every nation.

King Zichu of Qin appointed his elder brother Qin Qi as the Chief of the Imperial Clan. Qin Fei, who was originally the Chief of the Imperial Clan, became such a person, appearing on important occasions to demonstrate the respect of the Qin State.

Seeing that the old man in the car could calm the Qi army with just one word, Ying Chengjiao knew that he was wrong.

The old man in the ox cart definitely enjoys great power in Qi State and must be a military man!

A hint of thought flashed across the boy's eyes, but was quickly replaced by confusion.

At present, the king of Qi is King Jian of Qi.

He didn't remember any outstanding military generals in Qi during the reign of King Jian of Qi.

"Line up!" the old voice sounded for the second time.

Almost all the Qi troops were lined up, and those who had escaped into the city gate were also running back.

Ying Chengjiao, who witnessed all this, became even more confused.

Just two sentences and four words brought about a fundamental change in the Qi army, which was originally a loose group.

With such charismatic generals, Qi should not have been defeated by Qin in the end and become the only country to surrender.

The curtain on the ox cart was lifted from the inside, and an old man walked out of the carriage.

Ying Chengjiao collected his thoughts and looked at him.

He saw that the old man was wearing a military helmet and had thick eyebrows and narrow eyes.

There was white beard all over his lips, and three strands of white beard on his chin.

He had a green scarf tied around his neck and a helmet with overlapping square pieces of armor on his body.

There was a sense of great authority and an aura of iron and blood in his glance.

Ying Chengjiao was no stranger to this kind of aura. All the military generals who could serve in the Qin court had this aura.

Ying Chengjiao was absolutely certain that this veteran must have gone through mountains of swords and seas of blood on the battlefield, and was not forced to this position based on his background.

"Zou Jijiu." The old man walked to Zou Yan's side and looked at the young man and the black tiger beside him: "Do you want me to take care of this beast?"

"No need. Thank you, Lord Anping." Zou Yan responded politely.

The old man frowned:

"If this beast is released into the city and something happens..."

Zou Yan understood and immediately replied:
"All of this was borne by Zou Yan."

The old man's brows relaxed, he nodded slightly, and said no more.

He had already given a reminder, and since Zou Jijiu insisted, then so be it. He would not be held responsible afterwards.

Zou Yan then stepped forward with a smile.

The old man took steps almost at the same time as Zou Yan, walking side by side.

"The young master is finally here." Zou Yan smiled and introduced the old man beside him with his arm crossed: "This is the protector of Qi, Lord Anping, Tian Dan."

Ying Chengjiao was shocked.

[Anping Jun Tian Dan? How come he is still alive?]
The young man clasped his fists and said with a little respect:
"But Lord Tian, ​​who defeated the Yan army with his fire bull formation and recovered all seventy cities of Qi in one battle?"

The old man smiled and nodded, his three strands of white beard swaying like water grass, looking a little funny:
"The name of Chang'an Jun has become well-known to me this past year.

“I have a doubt.

"Chang'an Jun has visited all the great countries in the world, why didn't he come to Qi?"

Ying Chengjiao spread his arms, glanced at himself, and said with a puzzled look:
"Could it be that the person standing here is not the Qin State Prince Ying Chengjiao, but someone else?"

Tian Dan laughed out loud, thinking that the boy in front of him was quite interesting, and asked again with deliberate dissatisfaction:
"Why did you come to Qi State last, and put Qi State last?"

The boy smiled and replied:

"When the kid eats, he saves his favorite food for last."

Tian Dan was very satisfied:

"Welcome to Qi, sir."

The boy responded modestly:
"It's an honor, kid."

Zou Yan waited until the conversation between the old man and the young man came to an end before he stepped forward and led Prince Cheng Jiao into the city.

At this time, the sound of the riot was almost gone, and the voices that had been suppressed by the riot began to emerge.

As Ying Chengjiao approached the city, he heard the sound of water splashing in his ears.

Following the sound of water, I looked back.

He saw a river.

The water flows rapidly, with the force being neither too strong nor too weak.

You can tell at first glance that it is a natural river, not man-made.

His eyes were strangely colored and moved sideways.

Seeing the river flowing into the distance, at the end of his sight, the sparkling waves were still visible.

Zou Yan followed Master Cheng Jiao's gaze and looked:

"This river is called Xishui, and it is the moat on the west side."

Ying Chengjiao nodded and praised softly:
"Linzi is an eye-opener for me, as it uses a natural river to protect the city."

Tian Dan smiled and said proudly:

“You can tell that this side of West City is a natural river. You are very knowledgeable, sir.

"Our country is surrounded by walls on all four sides, with Xishui River to the west and Zibo River to the east.

"When the city walls were first built, they were based on the banks of the Xishui River and the Zibo River.

"After the city wall was built, the Zihe River and the Xishui River became two natural moats for Linzi.

"Later, we dug artificial moats outside the south and north walls to connect them with the Zibo River and Xishui River, forming a city surrounded by clear water on all sides.

"A natural river is a much better moat than an artificial one. "A severe drought will not dry it up, and a long rain will not flood it."

Kong Bin, who was walking beside Master Cheng Jiao, raised his eyebrows and said,

“Rivers flow into the sea; water is endless.

"It is true that the drought does not dry up the land, but the rain does not flood the land for a long time... How can this be possible?"

Tian Dan did not respond immediately, but looked at Prince Cheng Jiao.

Who is this person?

Gongzi Chengjiao said with a hint of respect:
"This is the sixth-generation grandson of Confucius, Kong Binzi."

Tian Dan was filled with awe when he heard this:
"It turned out to be Kong Binzi in person, but I didn't recognize him, so that was my fault."

Tian Dan admired Kong Bin not only for his knowledge, but also for the many practical things he had done during his tenure as prime minister of Wei.

Most of the Jixia scholars were theorists.

Kong Bin is not only a theorist, but also a pragmatist.

In this age without the Internet, since information is mostly transmitted through a pair of eyes and a mouth, it is often the case that a person's fame is known throughout the world but no one recognizes him or her in person.

"You are too kind." Kong Bin returned the greeting and asked again: "Please help me solve my doubts."

When Kong Bin was prime minister of the State of Wei, he lived in the Wei capital Daliang.

The moat of Daliang is the Bian River, which was dug artificially.

Because the river channel was dug wide and deep, the water flow of the Bian River is huge, not inferior to that of ordinary rivers.

Kong Bin remembers that the Bian River has a large water storage capacity and will not dry up during droughts.

But when there is a lot of rain, the water level rises sharply.

Once there was a heavy rain that lasted for three days and three nights. The river water overflowed and almost flowed into Daliang City.

This is true for the entire artificial river, the Bian River.

The two natural rivers, Xishui River and Zibo River, should overflow when there is heavy rain.

When Kong Binzi, one of the scholars, asked him about this, Tian Dan felt very proud and explained in detail:

“When our country built Linzi City, we first inspected the terrain.

"Then, based on the natural terrain of high in the south and low in the north, drainage outlets were carefully designed and arranged when the city was built.

"These drainage outlets can discharge natural precipitation and domestic wastewater in the city in a timely manner, and the excess water will all flow into the mountains and forests."

Kong Bin nodded:

"I see."

When Tian Dan saw Kong Bin's indifferent reaction, he thought he didn't believe it.

The veteran who didn't want Kong Bin to think he was boasting coughed lightly and said in a deep voice:

“Linzi has an outer city and a palace city.

“There are three major drainage channels and four drainage outlets in the two cities.

"A drainage channel is located in the center of the palace area in the northwest of the palace city. It is more than 340 feet long, 94 feet wide, and 12 feet deep.

“The second drainage channel is located in the northwest of the outer city. It is 1,217 feet long, 13 feet wide, and 12 feet deep.

“The Third Drainage Canal is located in the northeast of the outer city. It is about 347 meters long and flows eastward into the Zibo River.

“The drainage outlet was built under the city wall, which was 17.4 meters wide, and ran east-west.

"It is eighteen feet long from east to west, thirty feet wide from north to south, and twelve feet deep.

“It is built with giant natural bluestone and is divided into three parts: the water inlet, the waterway and the water outlet.

"Kong Binzi, is this credible?"

Kong Bin really didn't believe it at first, because draining water is not something that can be done just by talking.

After listening to the veteran's detailed introduction, I believed it about 70% now.

It's impossible that these geographical locations and numbers were all lies made up on the spot by the veterans, right?
"Bin has really opened my eyes." Kong Bin said sincerely: "Linzi City is really a masterpiece of Qi people."

Tian Dan then burst into laughter, feeling quite pleased with himself.

He unconsciously glanced at Young Master Chengjiao from the corner of his eye and found that Young Master Chengjiao did not react much, and the sense of pleasure decreased slightly.

Since King Zhaoxiang of Qin and King Min of Qi, Qin and Qi have been regarded as the two hegemonic states in the west and the east.

Now, Qin has become the true overlord.

As for Qi, it seemed that it had been separated from the Central Plains for a long time and no longer had the momentum it once had.

"Young Master." Tian Dan leaned down and called out.

"Mr. Tian, ​​please speak." Ying Chengjiao responded politely.

The veteran pretended to think:
"I heard that the Wei River runs through Xianyang, and it is mighty and stretches for dozens of miles.

“I also heard that in Xianyang today only the palace has a city wall, and the outer city has no city wall.

"I think that if Qin only thinks about protecting the Qin royal family in the palace city and not the people in Xianyang city, it will lose the support of the people.

"Do you understand the people's will, young master?"

Ying Chengjiao nodded:

"I see. Mencius proposed this."

No one in the world understands the people's hearts better than him, even if Mencius were resurrected, he comes for the people's hearts.

There is a strange color on one side of the field.

In Qin, a country full of tigers and wolves, it is really a strange thing that the prince of Qin can understand the people's hearts.

The old man thought about what the young man had done in the past year.

After he became prime minister of Zhao State in the territory of Zhao State, he released the assassin sent by Xinling Jun to kill him because he was grateful for the fact that Xinling Jun had helped Zhao State and Xinling Jun's reputation.

In the State of Yan, he spoke up for justice and directly advised the King of Yan, saying that Le Jian was wronged, and was imprisoned by the King of Yan.

When he arrived in the State of Chu, he angrily denounced Huang Xie, thinking that Huang Xie was a great traitor.

When he arrived in Wei, the students of Dengling suspected his character and wanted to kill him. The next day, he secretly met with the great scholar of Chu Mo, Dengling, and persuaded the students of Dengling with the theory of morality as stone to prove his reputation as a gentleman.

When it came to Han, the five countries united to force Qin to control water and build canals for the sake of the people in Guanzhong.

It would be strange if such a person did not know the people's feelings.

The veteran felt relieved and didn't want to talk any more.

Why should I compete with such a gentleman?
"If you have anything to say, please speak it out." Prince Chengjiao stopped.

I'm listening attentively and waiting patiently, and I won't leave until you say something.

Tian Dan sighed with a hint of regret and said:
“When you return to Qin, I hope you can tell the King of Qin what I said in Linzi.

“I hope Xianyang can build a moat to protect the people of Xianyang and build four city walls to protect the people.

“With the people, there is no country.

"In this way, the title of the first city in the Central Plains will be truly worthy of its reputation."

Prince Chengjiao understood as soon as he heard it that Tian Dan was secretly suppressing Xianyang and the State of Qin.

Tian Dan may not have had much intention.

Because Qin and Qi were too far apart, they could not fight.

Moreover, when the coalition coalition wanted Qin to control the floods, Ying Chengjiao sent people to Qi, but Qi refused to participate.

The veteran probably said this out of vanity.

In private, Ying Chengjiao wouldn't mind being sensible and giving the veteran some face.

but now.

The young man moved his ears and saw out of the corner of his eye that there were people in front, behind, and on all sides of him, most of them were scholars from Jixia Academy.

A Jixia scholar was a person who was able to teach at the Jixia Academy, and almost all of them could be called "Zi".

When Ying Chengjiao came to the Jixia Academy, the first thing he wanted to get was the support of the various philosophers, that is, the support of these Jixia scholars.

[If I agree with Tian Dan, the other scholars will have a worse impression of Qin, which may affect their future service as officials in Qin.]
Thinking of this, the young man looked embarrassed, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

As soon as Zou Yan saw it, he knew that Ying Chengjiao had no good intentions.

This is what a certain rascal looked like when he set a trap for Zou Yan in Ji City.

Zou Zi, who was the chief academic officer of the Jixia Academy and was in charge of the Jixia Academy, looked at the sky and said nothing.

God’s will is not directed against Prince Chengjiao.

Tian Dan smiled encouragingly and said the same words the young man had said before:
"Please speak as much as you can."

"Then just tell the truth, kid." Ying Chengjiao tested cautiously.

"Speak!" the veteran said with great pride.

The young man sighed and said helplessly:
“It’s not that our country doesn’t want to build city walls and moats, it’s because the people don’t want to.

“The people of Xianyang thought that building city walls and moats was of little use.

"They simply don't believe that any country in the world can reach Xianyang.

“Since you can’t hit it, then there’s no need to repair it.

"If it weren't for the royal dignity, our palace wouldn't have walls."

The veteran's face stiffened slightly, and he understood.

The young man was saying, both explicitly and implicitly, that the people of Linzi were afraid and that he was prepared to be beaten in Linzi.

But the old general couldn't refute this, because Linzi had indeed been captured and he had recaptured it personally.

But there is none in Xianyang.

Not to mention capturing it, no one even reached Xianyang.

The scholars from Jixia Academy who had been watching Master Chengjiao nearby and hearing what he said looked surprised and started whispering to each other.

"This boy has a sharp edge."

"Although the student from Dengling is not good at debate, he is still an extraordinary person as he can argue better."

"I'm afraid it can't bear the word 'son'."

"It's over, it's over. Looking at it now, there's nothing surprising."

"No surprise? Brother Shen, how do you view Master Cheng Jiao? Is he the same as us? Don't forget, he is only eight years old."

“Hiss…” The man called Brother Shen took a deep breath and said, “I actually forgot his age! Eight years old… So scary!”

"Zibing has waited for so long, and it was not in vain..."

"If a gentleman has such a mind, he can replace Mozi and become the good of the world."

"When I discuss the faults of the gentleman and the villain, they will become clear to me."

"The students of Dengling have recognized him as a gentleman. Isn't this more reliable than the attitude of the debater?"

"I don't care whether he is a gentleman or a villain. I just want to see him debate with Gongsun Longzi. How sharp is his speech to make Mao Sui lose and commit suicide."

"..."

Some of the voices of the people around him could reach Ying Chengjiao's ears, but most of them could not.

But don't analyze it from the words, just from the looks in the eyes of the scholars.

After a little thought, Ying Chengjiao concluded that he probably had no appeal in the Jixia Academy at the moment.

The Jixia Academy values ​​knowledge and emphasizes character.

As for knowledge, he had almost no knowledge at that time.

Character... Ying Chengjiao pursed his lips. The first thing he did when he arrived at the Jixia Academy was to prove this.

Walking in the corridor of the city gate, he looked left and right and estimated that it was about five meters wide and five meters high.

After coming out of the corridor, he suddenly felt enlightened.

There was a whole road in front of him, which was unknown how long and how wide... He estimated that it was about twenty meters!

Even in Xianyang, there are not many avenues as wide as this!

Moreover, the roads were full of people, more people than those seen in Xianyang. Ying Chengjiao felt like he had traveled back to modern Beijing.

If these people weren't wearing ancient costumes, he would have been a little dazed.

There are too many people, much more than in Xianyang.

Raise your sleeves and they become clouds.

Sweat like rain.

It's realistic, not exaggerated.

Facing the bustling Linzi, formerly the number one city in the world, the young man put away his arrogance.

(End of this chapter)