Qin Dynasty: Becoming a peerless master through the Golden Light Mantra

During the second coalition against Qin, the states of Qi, Han, and Wei broke through Hangu Pass and advanced directly towards Xianyang.

However, the State of Qi at that time did not intend to destroy the State of Qin.

Qi's goal was to weaken Qin and, incidentally, to vent the anger of Lord Mengchang, Tian Wen, who had fled back to Qi from Qin.

If the Qin state were destroyed, not only would the three Jin states grow stronger, but the Chu state would also have no rivals in the west.

The State of Qi will be the one in trouble then.

Therefore, destroying the Qin state would be a thankless task for the Qi state.

After a moment, Wei Zhuang, who was the first to come to his senses, commented: "Your idea is very good, but if you ignore Yan and Qi, Qin will take advantage of them, and then the four-nation coalition will be attacked from both sides."

Wei Zhuang's words also jolted the other three out of their reverie, reminding them of what Han Che had said.

"Brother Wei Zhuang's concerns are reasonable."

However, this is precisely where we are engaging in a power struggle with the Qin state.

We will openly try our best to get the two countries to join the alliance. Qin's intention is definitely to do everything possible to prevent the two countries from joining the alliance, thereby weakening the alliance's strength, rather than allowing the two countries to form an alliance to attack us from behind.

Moreover, the states of Yan and Qi would certainly be happy to see us weaken Qin.

Wei Zhuang caught the key phrase in Han Che's words: "Your alliance against Qin this time wasn't aimed at destroying the Qin state?"

"Of course not. The Qin state still has its necessity to exist. My purpose this time is to help the Qin state lose weight."

At this point, Han Che took out a map from his pocket and opened it on the wooden table in front of him.

"Please take a look, everyone."

Upon hearing this, everyone turned their attention to the map in front of them.

"The Qin state now occupies a large territory, including Bashu, Hanzhong, Guanzhong, Hexi, Hedong, Henan, Taiyuan, Shangdang, Luoyang, and Dongjun."

Zhang Liang exclaimed, "The Qin state has such a vast territory!"

The easternmost part of Dongjun has reached Mount Tai.

"The Qin state did indeed have a large territory, but these territories were scattered in various places."

Due to limitations in transportation and other factors, the Qin state found it difficult to integrate the forces of these regions.

Therefore, Qin's power was mainly concentrated in the Guanzhong region, and other areas were not a concern.

A similar example is the State of Chu, whose current territory is in no way inferior to that of the State of Qin.

However, the mountains and rivers divided the State of Chu into several parts.

If the Chu royal family hadn't been able to suppress the three families of Qu, Jing, and Zhao, the history of Jin would have been repeated in Chu.

Following Han Che's words, everyone turned their attention to the State of Chu.

The situation in the State of Chu was indeed as Han Che had described.

The land of Chu is covered with mountains, rivers, and lakes, with the Yangtze River flowing through it.

After observing the State of Chu, everyone turned their attention back to the State of Qin.

The topic of this discussion is the Qin state.

We can deal with the Chu issue later.

Then, Zhang Liang asked, "How does the Eleventh Prince plan to help the Qin state lose weight?"

"Hanoi and Shangdang are both South Korean territory, so naturally they should belong to South Korea."

Although Shangdang is poor, Hanoi is a great place.

It's not just fertile land; it's paradise on earth, a true land of abundance.

This land alone is enough to support at least a million lives.

In the previous Battle of Changping between Qin and Zhao, Qin relied on levying grain from Henan to help its hundreds of thousands of troops overcome the difficulties.

Therefore, as long as Hanoi is governed well, it can easily support tens of thousands of troops.

"Hedong and Dongjun were also former territories of Wei, and should also be returned to Wei."

Based on this, Taiyuan and Hexi were given to the Zhao state, while the Chu state was given the Bashu region, which they had always wanted.

As he finished speaking, Han Che revealed a mysterious smile.

The land of Bashu was a huge bombshell for the State of Chu.

The internal divisions within Chu are already severe; the addition of the naturally isolated Bashu region will only worsen the situation.

Of course, this is from the perspective of God he brought from the future, which is hard for others to see.

Especially for the State of Chu itself, self-interest blinded them.

However, the State of Chu was a potential enemy of the State of Han.

If the state of Han wants to expand, it can only do so by targeting the states of Qin and Chu, while maintaining the alliance of the three Jin states.

"Eleventh Brother's method of dividing things is fine."

Han Fei nodded slightly.

"Not only did each state obtain the territory it desired, but each state also maintained its borders with the territory left behind by Qin, continuing to encircle Qin."

However, should Luoyang remain with the Qin state?

Luoyang was once the territory of the Zhou emperor. After the Qin state marched east out of Hangu Pass and destroyed the Zhou dynasty, Luoyang fell into the hands of the Qin state.

"Luoyang naturally belongs to Han. Han is of the Ji clan and the Han family, descendants of King Wu. We are qualified to govern Luoyang in place of the Zhou emperor. Moreover, Luoyang is surrounded by Han territory, and only Han can govern it well."

"In other words, the greatest benefit for the State of Han would be from this joint attack on Qin."

Luoyang and Hanoi are the best of the places mentioned above.

Other places are much larger than these two, but they have smaller populations and are more difficult to govern.

In contrast, South Korea can easily manage these three regions.

Seeing the worry in Han Fei's heart, Han Che said, "Ninth Brother, we are in charge of this situation, so we should naturally maximize our own interests."

Moreover, the stakes involved are not so easy to discern.

The more valuable things Han gained from Qin, the more Qin would resent Han.

Wei Zhuang then interjected, "I see. So your approach is to weaken Qin, not to destroy it."

"That's right. It's important for Han to keep Qin alive. This is called nurturing Qin to enhance its own importance."

"To nurture Qin and thus enhance one's own importance—how brilliant!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Liang clapped his hands in praise.

"As long as the Qin state exists, the states east of the Hangu Pass will remain vigilant against it, and the growth of the Han state will be acceptable to them."

Han Fei stared at the map in front of him in silence.

All of this seems wonderful.

But all of this is predicated on South Korea winning this gamble on its national destiny.

With the natural defenses of Xiaohan Pass, it was extremely difficult to defeat the Qin state.

Although they could attack Qin from other places, logistical support from those other locations would be a problem.

The most important thing for an army on the march is logistical support.

Therefore, the Xiaohan Ancient Road was the best route for the states east of the Hangu Pass to attack the Qin state.

Hangu Pass is an important pass that guards the ancient Xiaohan Road.

Zi Nu, who had been watching the conversation from the sidelines, noticed Han Fei's unusual behavior and said, "It seems that Ninth Young Master has something to say."

Her words also drew Han Che and the others' attention to Han Fei.

Upon hearing this, Han Fei spoke up, revealing his thoughts: "Eleventh brother, your plan to form an alliance to attack Qin is excellent, but it will not be easy for the allied forces to defeat Qin."

If the attack on Qin fails, the national strength of Han will be wasted.

South Korea probably can't afford to wait any longer.

"What if I'm confident I can take Hangu Pass?"

Although Han Che's voice was not loud, it resounded like thunder in their ears.