Wandering Sword Seller's Life in the Qin Dynasty

Upon hearing this, Jingni's face showed obvious surprise, and she subconsciously asked, "Why would you think that?"

In her view, Li Mu's existence had already crossed the line for the Qin state, and the Qin state would never allow such a threat to continue to live.

Xu Qing simply smiled faintly, offering no further explanation: "It's just a guess. After all, the current situation is unpredictable, and no one can be certain of the final outcome."

After a brief conversation, the four of them did not linger and continued along the mountain path.

By this time, they had already left the territory of Qi and entered the land of Yan.

Logically speaking, as Yan's most wanted criminal, the safest course of action for Xu Qing at this moment should be to stay away from Yan's borders. After all, as long as he does not step into Yan's territory, Yan's pursuers will not be able to pose a threat to him. Yan's influence is ultimately limited to its own territory.

But Xu Qing showed no fear whatsoever.

Back then, within the territory of Yan, he was able to escape calmly from the pursuit of thousands of troops; now, many days later, his strength is far greater than before, and he is naturally even less afraid of being captured by Yan.

Along the way, he neither disguised himself nor deliberately concealed his appearance. He simply swaggered across the land of Yan, as if he had completely forgotten his status as a wanted criminal.

Even more surprisingly, they traveled within the territory of Yan for several days without encountering any pursuers, and even rarely saw patrolling Yan troops.

"That makes sense. Qin is currently attacking Zhao with all its might. The outcome of this battle, regardless of victory or defeat, will directly affect the survival of Yan. The entire Yan state is probably focused on the battle at the front. They have no time to care about me, a wanted criminal." After a moment's thought, Xu Qing understood the reason.

In the past, the Qin state had attacked the Zhao state many times. If the Zhao state won, it would be busy dealing with the Qin state's subsequent retaliation and would naturally have no time to pay attention to the Yan state. However, if the Zhao state was defeated, in order to make up for the losses caused by the war, the Zhao state would often turn its spearhead to the neighboring Yan state and restore its national strength by attacking the Yan state and plundering its resources.

"So, does the State of Yan now hope that the State of Zhao will win or lose?" Xu Qing pondered to himself.

Logically speaking, the State of Yan would naturally hope that the State of Zhao would win.

On the one hand, according to past practice, after winning, Zhao would focus all its energy on dealing with Qin and would not attack Yan; on the other hand, Qin's purpose in attacking Zhao this time was not simply to plunder, but to completely destroy Zhao.

Once the Zhao state is destroyed, the Yan state, which originally did not border the Qin state, will be directly exposed to the Qin army. At that time, the Yan state's rule and stability will be in grave danger.

However, reality often falls short of expectations. Although many forces in the world hoped that the State of Zhao could withstand the attack of the State of Qin, the complexity and greed of human nature could easily shatter these beautiful hopes.

Just as the battle between Qin and Zhao was becoming increasingly fierce and the two sides were locked in a stalemate, the Zhao court suddenly made a shocking decision—to change generals on the eve of battle!

King Zhao issued an edict stripping Li Mu of his military power, effectively rendering this renowned general, who had repeatedly defeated the Qin army, idle.

This decision not only surprised everyone, but also plunged the people and soldiers of Zhao into panic.

However, if we look back at history, such things are actually not uncommon.

The most typical example is when the five states attacked Qin. The allied forces were in great shape and were about to break through Hangu Pass, but the King of Wei suddenly stripped Lord Xinling, the commander of the allied forces, of his military power, which led to the failure of the allied attack on Qin.

Since then, although the six states of Shandong have formed alliances several times, they have never been able to pose a substantial threat to Qin.

It was thought that, having learned from the previous lesson, the states of Shandong would be more wary of Qin's counter-espionage scheme.

But no one expected that at the critical moment when Qin attacked Zhao, this strategy would work again, and the results would be more significant than ever before.

"The brilliance of the counter-espionage tactic lies precisely in this," Xu Qing said slowly, gazing at the distant, rolling mountains, his voice tinged with emotion. "Even if you know the other side is using a counter-espionage tactic, when negative emotions like suspicion and prejudice begin to fester and spread in your heart, even if reason tells you it's a trap, you'll eventually be unable to resist stepping into it. What's more, there's always a bit of wishful thinking in people's hearts, always feeling that what they're seeing is the truth, always believing that things will develop according to their expectations."

He paused, a hint of regret in his voice: "Li Mu's defeat was not on the battlefield, but in the hearts of the people. He overestimated King Qian of Zhao's incompetence and underestimated Guo Kai's greed and shamelessness. Especially Guo Kai, he never cared about the survival of Zhao; the only thing he cared about was his own wealth and glory. As long as Qin was willing to give him enough gold and silver and promise him high-ranking positions and titles, he would not hesitate to destroy Li Mu, the last bulwark of Zhao."

Xu Qing and his group did not stop. Their destination was never the State of Yan, but rather to pass through the State of Yan to reach the war-torn State of Zhao.

Along the way, every time they traveled a certain distance, they could hear the latest news about the war between Qin and Zhao from passing merchants or refugees.

At these times, Xu Qing would always act like a mastermind behind the scenes, piecing together these scattered pieces of information and making a precise analysis of the situation. Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, and Jing Ni would always stand quietly to the side, listening attentively to his insights.

Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai were not talkative people to begin with, and even after their emotions returned to normal, they still remained taciturn. Jing Ni, on the other hand, was different from them. Before joining Xu Qing's group in Qi Guo, she was Xu Qing's superior when they last met.

Even after Xu Qing revealed his unfathomable strength and mysterious background, Jing Ni never felt any awe towards him and always treated him as an equal.

Therefore, after listening to Xu Qing's analysis, Jing Ni would occasionally raise different opinions, or even directly refute his views. Sometimes she would also take the initiative to ask questions and explore the reasons behind them.

If it were a narrow-minded person, they might see this as a challenge to their authority, and would inevitably feel unhappy.

Xu Qing, on the other hand, is always happy to listen to other people's opinions, and he will patiently discuss them even if the other person's views are contrary to his own.

"You seem to know Guo Kai exceptionally well?" After hearing Xu Qing's evaluation of Guo Kai, Jing Ni couldn't help but ask, her tone tinged with doubt. Guo Kai was a favorite minister of Zhao and lived in Handan for many years. How could Xu Qing know his true nature so well?

Xu Qing turned his head and looked at Jing Ni frankly, without any concealment: "To be honest, I have dealt with Guo Kai before, and I have some understanding of his character and conduct. It can be said that no one in the world knows Guo Kai's greed and selfishness better than me."

At this point, a meaningful smile appeared on his lips: "One of the important purposes of my trip to Zhao is to settle an old score with Guo Kai. After all, once Zhao is destroyed, even if I want to collect the debt, I won't be able to find him anymore, so I must seize this last opportunity."

Upon hearing this, Jingni's face showed obvious surprise. She had thought that Xu Qing's risky trip to Zhao must be to participate in the Qin-Zhao war or to have some bigger scheme, but she never expected that his purpose was so simple, just to collect a debt from a Zhao court favorite.

Several more days passed, and just as Xu Qing and his group were about to reach the border between Yan and Zhao, Jing Ni suddenly stopped, turned to look at Xu Qing, and said with a hint of a smile in her voice: "You lost!"

Hearing this, Xu Qing shook his head helplessly and said with a wry smile, "I didn't expect you to remember the previous argument so clearly."

“It’s not that I deliberately remembered it, but this incident just proves that even someone as intelligent as you is not without flaws,” Jing Ni said slowly, looking at Xu Qing.

It turned out that just yesterday, they learned the latest news from a merchant from Handan: Li Mu, who had been stripped of his military power by King Zhao Qian, ultimately could not escape his fate of death. He was given poisoned wine by the King of Zhao and died unjustly.

The news of Li Mu's death shocked the world.

Countless people felt sorry for the fate of this famous general and worried about the future of the Zhao state.

For Jing Ni, this news meant that Xu Qing's earlier conjecture that "Li Mu might not die" had ultimately failed.

Chapter 230 The Yi River flows on, a sword flashes coldly.

"Since I lost that guess about Li Mu, what do you want me to do?" Xu Qing asked Jing Ni again.

He acted very magnanimously, appearing to accept defeat willingly, even though he and Jing Ni had never made any bets or promises.

“I don’t need you to do anything,” Jing Ni said calmly. “It’s just that this incident has made me certain of one thing.”

Her beautiful eyes swept over Xu Qing.

"What is it?" Xu Qing asked, puzzled.

“You’re not truly infallible either!” Jing Ni gave her answer.

Xu Qing was speechless. "What are you saying? I'm not an omniscient and omnipotent god, of course I can't be perfect."

There was a reason why he said those things about Li Mu. In the original story, Meng Tian had encountered Li Mu, who had survived, on the grassland.

However, after thinking about it, Xu Qing did not tell Jing Ni these things, since that part of the original story was too far removed from the present.

Soon, the group of four successfully arrived at the border of the Yan Kingdom.

Once you cross the border, you'll be within the territory of the Zhao state.

It was at this time that a small accident occurred.

……

"General!"

Inside the Yan State border army camp.

A scout knelt on one knee and told the commander what he had seen and heard.

"Are you sure you didn't see wrong?" The commander here is named Yan Yi. If Xu Qing were to meet him and learn his name, he would also be impressed.

This is simply because he is also a well-known minor villain in the Yan Kingdom chapter of the original novel.

He was subservient to Yan Chunjun, even kneeling and begging for mercy, but when facing Da Tiechui, he chose to strike with heavy blows.

He was selfish and self-serving, and for the sake of personal grudges, he could watch helplessly as many Yan soldiers died tragically on the front lines.

However, it was precisely this kind of person who held an extremely high position in the Yan army.

This also indirectly confirms that the State of Yan truly lacked any famous generals, and it was justified that it was repeatedly bullied by the State of Zhao.

Yan Yi's decision to lead a large army to guard the border of Yan is related to Qin's attack on Zhao.

In the past, whenever the State of Zhao suffered a defeat at the hands of the State of Qin, it would come to the State of Yan to seek benefits. This time, King Xi of Yan was determined to prevent such a thing from happening, so he sent Yan Yi to the border region as soon as the war broke out.

Perhaps it was because after the death of Lord Yanchun, the Yan army pursued Xu Qing and Da Tiechui with great force but achieved little and suffered heavy casualties, which made King Xi of Yan see the incompetence of the Yan army. He increased the support for the Yan army and raised their pay. Yan Yi's skill in deceiving his superiors and concealing the truth had long been perfected. Taking advantage of the military reforms in Yan, he rose to prominence and became a general whom King Xi of Yan relied heavily on.

Upon arriving at the border, he was extremely arrogant and did not take the so-called Zhao army seriously.

In his view, the fact that the State of Zhao could not defeat the State of Qin and instead invaded the State of Yan was itself an act of incompetence.

They're just a bunch of defeated soldiers. If they really attack, he'll teach them a lesson.

As a result, after being stationed on this border for a long time, the Zhao state did not make the slightest move.

This displeased Yan Yi, who had thought he was about to make a great contribution.

The key issue is that the conflict between Qin and Zhao is not going to end anytime soon, and he doesn't know how long he will have to stay here. He misses the beauties in Ji City.

Unexpectedly, today, the scouts patrolling the border gave him a pleasant surprise.

"Mobilize the troops immediately!"

"We must catch him!"

Yan Yi immediately issued the order.

The information he received from the scouts was the whereabouts of a wanted criminal.

I thought that the only thing to be wary of in this border region was the restless Zhao state, but to my surprise, there was no movement from Zhao. Instead, a wanted criminal appeared openly in this border area.

Yan Yi had also heard of the wanted criminal.

He was incredibly audacious, and on that very day, he assassinated Lord Yanchun within the city of Ji.

You should know that Lord Yanchun is someone even he dares not offend.

However, this person killed the owner of Yanchunjun's mansion.

This skill is truly remarkable; in the martial arts world, he would definitely be considered a top expert.

However, Yan Yi did not like this person, or rather, he equally despised all chivalrous people.

In his view, those so-called heroes were all insubordinates who defied their superiors.

If it weren't for these people who wantonly trample on the rules, he wouldn't have needed to arrange so many guards around him and worry about his safety.

Of course, from another perspective, he should indeed be grateful to that person.

It was precisely because that person managed to escape the Yan Kingdom with ease despite being pursued by numerous imperial guards, and even severely injured Crown Prince Dan, that the King of Yan slightly improved the soldiers' treatment, and he took the opportunity to make a fortune.

Today, however, we have learned of their whereabouts.

Yan Yi's idea was to seize the opportunity to make a great contribution.

He came to this border to make a name for himself. Since he couldn't gain military merit from the Zhao state, it was good to seek merit from another angle.

As for Xu Qing's previous record, it was quite impressive.

Many Imperial Guards failed to capture Xu Qing, and were instead routed by him. In Yan Yi's view, this was all due to the incompetence of the Imperial Guards. Those Imperial Guards had been staying in Ji City for many years and had never gone out to fight. Of course, they were useless.