Chapter Fifteen: The Plain and Honest Gentleman

  Zhao was the most powerful state in Shandong during the late Warring States period, and the only one that could rival Qin. It was the axis of the entire Shandong region, with a vast palace complex of over a million rooms, each room intricately carved and decorated to perfection.

  Thousands of palace maids, eunuchs and miscellaneous servants rushed in and out, each with their heads bowed low, not even daring to breathe loudly, as if a storm was approaching.

  That's right, at this moment, the Zhao State palace is experiencing a storm, the largest since the great defeat of Changping, and King Xiaocheng of Zhao has gone mad.

  "Zhao Kuo, you stupid pig, you're dead! I entrusted the 500,000-strong army to you, but you didn't know the terrain of Changping, and recklessly advanced, sacrificing the 500,000 elite troops of Zhao! The 500,000 elite troops!" King Zhao Xiang's hair was disheveled, his crown askew, his eyes bloodshot, like a ferocious ancient beast, he cursed loudly.

  The Battle of Changping was a life-and-death struggle between Qin and Zhao, with both countries mobilizing their entire armies for a decisive battle. If Qin won, Qin would dominate the world, with no one to rival it; if Zhao won, Zhao would become the strongest state in the world, with no one able to resist it.

  Such a great situation, but because Zhao Kuo rashly advanced the army, all 50 million elite troops of Zhao were buried, and from then on, Zhao was no longer a strong enemy of Qin, lost the qualification to compete with Qin for the world, and also lost the great situation of unifying the world. After Zhao King Xiaocheng received the news of the defeat at Changping, he became stupid on the spot.

  This fool has been like this for several days, and only now has he come to his senses, shifting all the blame onto Zhao's head.

  "White Qi, you executioner, you butcher, you have a heart of snake and scorpion! You actually killed all the more than 200,000 surrendered soldiers of Zhao! You are not even as good as a dog or a pig! A dog or a pig would not eat that!" King Xiang of Zhao cursed White Qi after cursing Zhao Kuo.

  The Battle of Changping, Zhao Kuo fell into Bai Qi's trap and rashly went to war. The Qin army took advantage of the favorable geographical conditions in Shangdang to surround the main force of Zhao. After a fierce battle for more than 40 days, the Zhao army was exhausted and had no choice but to surrender.

  If that were all, it would not have made Zhao Xiang Wang so furious. What he could not accept was that Bai Qi had massacred all the more than 200,000 surrendered soldiers.

  This both made Zhao Xiaocheng Wang fearful and also lost his last bit of hope.

  If Zhao Xie did not massacre these more than 200,000 surrendered soldiers, the State of Zhao could have ransomed them back. These were all seasoned veterans who had gone through trials of life and death, and many of whom had followed the great general Zhao Wu Ling Wang in his northern campaign against the three Hu tribes and the defeat of the Xiongnu, if they returned to Zhao, they would be of immense help in rebuilding the military strength of Zhao.

  It was precisely because he saw such a terrible consequence that King Zhao of Qin harbored murderous intentions, wanting to kill all the more than 200,000 Zhao troops. Of course, as the ruler, he could not take personal action and could only hint at Bai Qi, who was not allowed to kill.

  Bai Qi was actually carrying out King Zhao of Qin's orders and taking the blame for him.

  "You, crafty fox, have long been plotting to seize the land of Zhao's Upper Party, yet you pretended to be on good terms with me. I was nearly taken in by your deceit." King Xiaocheng of Zhao scolded Zhao Kuo and Bai Qi, then severely rebuked King Huiwen of Qin.

  The outbreak of the Changping War seemed accidental and unexpected by both Qin and Zhao states, but in fact it was inevitable.

  At that time, the two most powerful warring states in the world were Qin and Zhao. Both countries had ambitious plans to unify the world. To unify the world, they first had to eliminate each other. The state of Qin wanted to destroy Zhao, while Zhao wanted to destroy Qin. Therefore, a life-and-death battle between Qin and Zhao was inevitable.

  The eyes of King Zhao of Qin were far-reaching, he saw this point earlier than King Xiaocheng of Zhao, so he secretly did one thing, first taking the land of Shangdang in the state of Han, then taking down the city of Shangdang in the state of Zhao, controlling the entire Shangdang area, making Qin state have as much advantage as possible in the future decisive battle. Having taken the land of Shangdang, it can press Handan, the great army of Qin sets out from Shangdang, arriving at Handan in one day.

  For this reason, King Zhao of Qin made friends with Zhao and sent a hostage, Qin Yi, to Zhao in order to confuse the state of Zhao.

  Qin Zhao Wang's move deceived everyone in the world, but it didn't deceive one person, and that person was Feng Ting, the Taishou of Hanguo. Feng Ting was the first to discover Qin Zhao Wang's intention, decisively presenting Hanguo to Zhao Guo, analyzing Qin Zhao Wang's intention, Zhao Guo dared not refuse, which led to the Battle of Changping.

  "Win now, old man! Bai Qi is clearly not in the army, yet you let him sneak into the military and harm our great Zhao's 500,000 elite troops!" King Zhao Xiao Cheng's eyes were wide open, with fresh blood flowing out, filled with grief and indignation.

  At the beginning of the Changping War, Bai Qi did not lead his troops into battle, which made Zhao relax its vigilance. King Xiaocheng of Zhao thought that Bai Qi was not in the army, so what was there for Zhao Kuo to fear? Because Zhao Kuo himself admitted that he was no match for Bai Qi, as long as Bai Qi did not lead his troops into battle, what else was there for him to fear?

  When Zhao Kuo was appointed as the Supreme General, King Zhao of Qin ordered Bai Qi to secretly enter the army and strictly sealed off the news. If anyone leaked it, they would be executed along with their entire clan. At that time, only a handful of people knew that Qin had changed its commander-in-chief. After entering the army, Bai Qi did not raise his own flag, and everything remained unchanged. It was not until the final moment when the situation was settled that Bai Qi revealed his flag.

  King Zhao of Chu was shocked and dismayed upon receiving the news, but it was too late to make any difference.

  Concealing the news of Bai Qi's entry into the army was an extremely important reason for the victory of the Qin army.

  As soon as he thought of this matter, King Zhao of Chu felt suffocated and extremely uncomfortable in his heart.

  "Your Highness..." Just then, an old man with white hair and beard hastily walked in.

  This elderly man was about fifty years old, wearing a golden brocade robe, with a jade crown on his head and a jade-inlaid gold ornament at his waist. His whole body exuded an air of luxury, and at a glance, it was clear that he was a person of extremely high status and esteemed position.

  "Zhao Sheng!" Zhao Xie Cheng Wang pounced on the old man like a cat seeing salted fish, his hands grasping the old man's neck like devil's claws, shaking him violently and bellowing loudly enough to shake the mountains: "It was all you! You didn't know people well, wanting me to use that incompetent Zhao Kuo who only knows how to talk on paper to replace Lian Po! You've ruined me! You've brought suffering to Great Zhao! You've killed 500,000 of Great Zhao's elite troops!"

  Zhao Xiao scolded Zhao Kuo, Bai Qi and Qin Shuang Wang severely. Although the scolding was unpleasant to hear, there was a proper form to it. When he saw this old man, it was as if he had seen the murderer of his father, his eyes turned red with rage, and he could have torn the old man apart and eaten him alive.

  He burst into a torrent of abuse, spitting like a waterfall, giving the old man a good free mouthwash.

  The old man only felt wet on his face, but he didn't dare to wipe it off. He had to stand there like a wooden stake, letting Zhao Xiaocheng scold him severely.

  This old man is one of the "Four Noblemen of the Warring States", the Prime Minister of Zhao State, Pingyuan Jun Zhao Sheng!

  The outbreak of the Changping War was largely due to Pingyuan Jun, who played a crucial role in its eruption. Without him, it is possible that the war might not have occurred.

  Feng Ting did not obey the order of King Han, and instead of presenting Upper Sui to Qin, he presented it to Zhao. At that time, Zhao was afraid of the might of the Qin army, and all the ministers advocated for not accepting the land, and King Xiaocheng of Zhao also had no intention of accepting it.

  The Lord of Pingyuan wanted to establish his own achievements, consolidate his position, and solidify his power. He persuaded King Zhaoxiang of Zhao to accept the land, which ultimately led to the outbreak of the Battle of Changping.

  The fact that Zhao Guo suffered a defeat was not wrong. The mistake lay in the fact that Zhao Guo did not make adequate preparations for a life-and-death struggle with Qin Guo. Correspondingly, Qin Guo also did not make adequate preparations for a life-and-death struggle with Zhao Guo, but due to Qin Shi Huang's deep strategy and foresight, he made a pre-emptive move, which was an important reason why Qin Guo won the Battle of Changping.

  At that time, Ping Yuanjun just wanted to make a meritorious achievement and did not think of this point. Although there was a mistake, it was not a big mistake.

  One of his most absurd mistakes was strongly recommending Zhao Kuo as a general, replacing the mature and steady Lian Po, which led to the disastrous defeat at Changping.

  When the news of the great defeat at Changping arrived, Zhao Xiang Wang was furious and wanted to vent his anger on him. Pingyuan Jun dared not show fear, his face turned pale.

  "I'll have your head!" Zhao Xiao Cheng Wang was enraged, swiftly drawing the sword from his waist, with a fierce and sinister intent, ready to behead Ping Yuan Jun on the spot.

  "The great king calms his anger, I have a wonderful plan to present." The flat plain lord was so frightened that he fell to the ground, frantically shouting.