People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

Huang Xie said, "General, there is no need to sigh and worry. Even if Qi does not join the alliance, the three Jin states, Yan, and our Chu state are enough."

Pang Nuan shook his head and said, "Without Qin, Qi could be destroyed; without Qi, Qin could not be destroyed. I only regret that I missed the opportunity to destroy Qin."

Huang Xie was surprised: "What do you mean, General? I am all ears and would like to hear the details."

"Qi was the farthest from Qin, yet it was close to the other five states. The result of the other states attacking Qin was either that Qin instigated them to attack each other's rear, or that the Qin army retreated to Hangu Pass and was subsequently defeated one by one by the Qin army."

"With Qi taking the lead, and since the four states of Yan, Zhao, Wei, and Chu all border Qi, Qi can coordinate among the states and strike at those that retreat in the face of battle, thus ensuring that the states in the alliance are of one mind."

"This is why, during the second coalition against Qin, after Qi allied with three other states to attack Qin, the five states were able to break through Hangu Pass."

"Qi's advantage lies not in its powerful army, but in its geographical location and its ability to coordinate various parties."

"This is why I said that without Qin, Qi could be destroyed, but without Qi, Qin could not be destroyed. The strategy of befriending distant states and attacking nearby ones proposed by my fellow disciple is truly incisive."

Huang Xie paused for a moment, then said, "Fan Ju was indeed a renowned prime minister, deeply inheriting the true teachings of Guiguzi."

Upon closer examination, the reason why the alliances of the various states never achieved complete success was due to their lack of unity. Therefore, the formation of the Iron Blood Alliance was of little use.

Each country has its own calculations and concerns. No one wants to suffer losses, yet everyone wants to gain benefits. At the slightest setback, they scatter like birds and beasts, making themselves a laughing stock.

Qi, situated in the rear of the five states, possessed a superior geographical location, making it the ideal choice to oversee the alliance of the states.

Unfortunately, the states were short-sighted and only cared about their immediate interests. In addition, Su Qin's death led to the fall of Qi, which greatly increased its power after conquering Song and threatening Zhao, Wei, and other states. This gave Qin an opportunity to form an alliance and start the Five States' attack on Qi, completely severing the possibility of Qi forming an alliance with the other states.

This leads to the king's policy of "serving Qin cautiously and maintaining good relations with the other states," which preserved the state of Qi and prevented it from falling into ruin.

However, "caution" is genuine, while "trust" is false.

In fact, besides the State of Qi, there was another person who was able to maintain the alliance of various states against Qin.

He was none other than Lord Xinling, Wei Wuji, who was one of the Four Lords, renowned among the feudal lords, and who promoted the previous alliance.

In the fourth alliance, he decisively defeated Qin general Meng Ao at the Yellow River, and pursued the enemy until he reached Hangu Pass, preventing the Qin army from venturing out of Hangu Pass. This made Lord Xinling's name resound throughout the states.

Unfortunately, he was distrusted by the King of Wei, who had once trusted him.

Even if all the states knew that it was Qin's scheme to sow discord, it was of no use.

Ultimately, human nature is unpredictable, and Lord Xinling had a history of stealing the tally to rescue Zhao.

Therefore, the King of Wei stripped Lord Xinling of his seal of office, removing him from the stage of the seven kingdoms, causing Lord Xinling to become depressed and live a dissolute life.

If it weren't for the death of the previous King of Wei and the fact that the new King of Wei had just ascended the throne and urgently needed a war to consolidate his position, it would have been difficult for Lord Xinling to persuade the King of Wei to join the alliance.

It can only be said that it was a matter of timing and fate, and that Heaven was helping the Qin state.

"If Qi does not join the alliance, is the old general confident in defeating Qin?"

Pang Nuan's voice was firm: "I am confident! The Qin army has occupied too much new territory, its forces are scattered, and morale is low. It will be easy to defeat them one by one. Defeating Qin will not be difficult."

"If the five nations can unite as one, I am confident that we can win this battle and march on Xianyang!"

Lord Chunshen, Huang Xie, bowed solemnly to Pang Nuan and said, "General, I entrust this to you!"

Chapter 19 The kind sister

The grasslands, the royal court of the wolf clan.

In an inner chamber of the royal palace, Hu Ji and her sister Manyu were plotting.

"Sister, we can't let Cao Ze leave!"

On Hu Ji's slightly alluring face, she was very serious: "My father's death has added to the internal strife, and there are no skilled warriors in the royal court. After the snow melts next year, other tribes that know of my father's death will surely harbor rebellious intentions, and the Left Wise King may even make a comeback!"

Manyu said in a low voice, "I have thought about this. But if he doesn't leave, your position as queen may be in name only."

The woman bit her lip and said, "It won't take too long. Just give him a year or two to give us time to prepare!"

Manyu said, "What can we do to keep him here? The woman beside him is terrifying."

Hu Ji went all out, "Use me!"

Manyu was stunned, frowned as she looked at Hu Ji, and said seriously, "You are the Wolf King, you can't do this."

“I’ll take care of everything, so you don’t need to worry about next year. When Cao Ze was guarding the city, I secretly memorized all his actions. After careful consideration, I think I’m no worse than him, and defending the capital will not be a problem.”

"Moreover, when I sought his advice, I gained a lot of inspiration, which is enough to help you win people's hearts."

Manyu finished speaking in one breath, and seeing Hu Ji's hesitant look, she said, "You are my sister and also the Wolf King. You cannot easily degrade yourself. If anyone is to try to keep him, it should be the older sister who tries."

The woman was deeply moved, and the secret meeting came to an end.

But after her sister left, the often suspicious Hu Ji became distrustful.

The elder sister offered herself up; could it be that she has ulterior motives and wants to seize the throne?

This thought terrified Hu Ji.

She had heard the story of Zhen Huan from Cao Ze, and the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

She paced around the room and quickly made up her mind. To prevent any accidents, she decided it was best to take matters into her own hands, and she needed to do it as soon as possible.

……

Inside the cabin, the lights were quite bright, with a yellowish glow that added to the warmth and coziness.

After dinner, Jingni began listening to Cao Ze tell stories of Journey to the West and provide explanations, as was her daily routine.

After many days of practice, and through Cao Ze's explanation, she has come to understand that if she wants to break through to the Grandmaster level, she needs to cultivate her mind.

This is called enlightenment in Taoism, self-cultivation in Confucianism, and sudden enlightenment in the martial arts world.

The method Cao Ze taught her, which involved controlling the simultaneous rise of the five energies in her chest, was a cultivation method that could help her cultivate her mind and allow her to intuitively perceive whether she had met the conditions for breaking through to the level of a grandmaster.

At the same time, she also understood why those prestigious academic institutions were able to produce so many masters.

She had previously focused on techniques, superficial skills.

But what they cultivate is the Tao, and what they understand is the essence.

She progresses quickly in the early stages, but easily hits a plateau later on.

Those who cultivate the Tao progress slowly in the early stages, but once they establish their foundation and attain enlightenment, their cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds, allowing them to go very far.

Like the legendary Confucius and Lao Tzu, they never deliberately cultivated themselves, but naturally became masters of their generation.

In short, one focuses on enhancing destructive power, while the other focuses on enhancing one's spiritual realm.

Just as Cao Ze finished explaining to Jing Ni how Zhu Bajie understood "ability" and "inability" in the story of "Sanzang never forgets his roots and the four sages test his Zen mind," there was a knock on the door.

Jingni said softly, "It's a Hu woman."

Cao Ze frowned slightly.

He's a bit overwhelmed by the Hu woman's approach now.

Especially if you come to him at an unusual time, it's basically never a good thing.

Cao Ze opened the door of the small house and invited the Hu woman, who was in the freezing cold, inside.

"What brings Your Majesty here so late at night?"

Today, after suppressing the rebellion of the Left Chancellor, he supported Hu Ji to directly ascend to the throne.

The wolf tribe didn't have as many rules and procedures as the Central Plains. They simply announced Hu Ji as the new queen, and the officials approved it, and that was it, like playing house. No wonder the wolf kings changed so frequently.

Hu Ji glanced at Jing Ni, who was kneeling quietly inside the house, and knew that this was a true nemesis.

She wasn't sure about the true relationship between Jing Ni and Cao Ze, but she knew that Jing Ni listened to Cao Ze.

"Sir, I have something I'd like to discuss with you privately. Would it be convenient for us to meet at my place to discuss it?"

Seeing that Hu Ji was acting so seriously, Cao Ze secretly became suspicious.

His relationship with Hu Ji can now be described as mutually beneficial, a classic case of win-win cooperation and lose-lose situation.

"it is good."

However, he always adhered to the principle of being cautious, so he still carefully brought Lady Jingni along.

When Hu Ji saw that Cao Ze had brought Jing Ni with him, she thought for a moment and said nothing, so as not to make Cao Ze wary and suspicious of her.

We arrived at the Hu Ji's palace.

Hu Ji left Jing Ni in the palace.

Cao Ze nodded to Jing Ni.

There are no wolf guards here, only some palace maids. As long as Hu Ji isn't out of her mind, she won't do anything rash.

Jing Ni remained silent; she and Cao Ze had long ago reached an understanding.

Holding the Jingni Sword, he stood in the empty hall, watching Cao Ze and Hu Ji walk into the hall.

When Cao Ze and Hu Ji entered the inner chamber of the palace, even though he knew Hu Ji wouldn't do anything rash, he didn't expect her to be so open-minded.

As soon as the door closed, Hu Ji took off the cloak she was wearing, turned around and hugged Cao Ze, who was still in shock. With her eyes full of affection and her breath sweet as orchids, she said, "Sir, I'm so scared. Can you stay with me?"

Because of Hu Ji's magnanimity, Cao Ze felt a little stifled.

But he said something strange: "You came here to discuss this with me?"

Hu Ji left Cao Ze on her own initiative, laughing and chuckling as her clothes gradually disappeared from her body.

She placed her delicate hand on Cao Ze's shoulder and said coquettishly, "Sir, do you still remember what I said back then?"

With a beautiful woman by his side, Cao Ze casually put his arm around Hu Ji's soft waist, thought for a moment, and then asked, "What are you saying?"

Hu Ji brought her small mouth close to Cao Ze's ear, breathing heavily, and said in an ambiguous tone, "That day, I told you, sir, that as long as you do a good job, I can accompany you too~"

Cao Ze suddenly remembered, but he had never paid attention to it. He had eaten countless such pie-in-the-sky treats.

"Is that so? Your Majesty truly keeps your word."

Cao Ze and Hu Ji came to the bedside and praised him verbally.

But he pondered the Hu woman's intentions.

This happened on the night of a palace coup, and the Hu woman was so eager to offer herself to him. It would be strange if there wasn't something going on here.

In order to figure out what Hu Ji wanted to do, Cao Ze decided to play along.

The saying goes, "Practice makes perfect!" And he's a man determined to be a playboy!

It's a good opportunity to practice on the Hu women.