Chapter 43: Fated Encounter

  At the gate of the Zhao family mansion, Zhao Xiong and his brother Zhao Lie bid farewell to Lü Buwei.

  "Goodbye, Mr. Lü!"

  "Mr. Lü is walking slowly!" The two brothers spoke in a respectful tone.

  "Tomorrow, Lü Buwei will host a banquet at the Hu Feng wine house and invite esteemed guests to attend. He smiled all over his face, staring straight at the Zhao residence, but didn't see any sign of Zhao Ji, saying: 'I must invite Miss Zhao to honor us with her presence.'"

  "Definitely, definitely!" Zhao Lie hastily replied, his smile piling layer upon layer on his face, as if Lü Buwei was his ancestor.

  Zhao Xiong was somewhat dissatisfied, but Zhao Lie had already agreed and it would be impolite to refuse, so he could only say: "Then I'll trouble you, sir."

  "Enough, enough." Lü Buwei waved his hand, his tone relaxed, yet with an undercurrent of intimidation and temptation: "The Lü clan's business is renowned throughout the land, few can match it. Not many people can enter my eyes, so don't let this opportunity slip away, Xian Kunzhong! Farewell!" He got into his carriage and left.

  "Goodbye, sir!" Zhao Lie waved his hand repeatedly, as if he was seeing off an old ancestor.

  "Hmm!"

  Zhao Xiong was somewhat dissatisfied, and Lü Buwei's last sentence used both intimidation and temptation. The meaning was that if they went against Lü Buwei's wishes, they would have to face the wrath of the Lü clan's business empire. If they followed Lü Buwei's words, it would be a great opportunity to make a name for themselves throughout the land.

  Ximen Old Man hurried back to the Hu Feng Wine House and invited Lü Buwei to enter his residence, smiling and asking: "Master, is it satisfactory?"

  "Is it to your liking? No, no, no... too much to my liking!" Lü Buwei shook his head violently, overjoyed, his mouth couldn't close, laughing extremely happily, saying: "If I hadn't seen Zhao Ji, I wouldn't have known that the world had such a beautiful woman! She's truly a heavenly person! This Zhao Ji, no matter what, I must take her as my wife."

  Lü Buwei's eyes gleamed with a fierce light, and Zhao Ji's voice, appearance, and smile floated in his mind, making him somewhat infatuated.

  "I'm hosting a banquet for the Zhao family tomorrow, and Lady Zhao will definitely be there. You must pay extra attention to this, the banquet must be grand and solemn, showing off the style of our Lu's merchant house." Lü Buwei said with a burst of enthusiasm, then rushed to tell Old Master Ximen.

  "Don't worry, master. I will definitely handle it well." Ximen Old Master knew that Lü Buwei had a change of heart, and if something went wrong in this matter, he would have to bear the brunt of Lü Buwei's anger, so how could he dare to be careless?

  Lü Buwei took two steps, raised an eyebrow, and said with some regret: "Zhao Ji is indifferent to me. I must let her know that marrying Lü Buwei is the wisest decision. I want to let her know that besides being good at business, I also have talent, insight, and extraordinary vision."

  Today, Zhao Ji hastily met with Lü Buwei, being cold and distant, turning around to leave, making Lü Buwei extremely worried.

  "Master, what should we do?" asked Xi Men Lao Die hastily.

  "Hmm." Lü Buwei pondered and said: "Tomorrow, set up a wine banquet at the debate platform. I want to engage in a battle of wits with the scholars."

  Ximen Old Man was shocked and hastily reminded: "Master, it's not allowed! Scholars discuss war, Zhang Zhang is eloquent, absolutely no mercy, if the master encounters a few poisonous tongues, wouldn't that be asking for trouble?"

  During the Warring States period, the fashion of debating was prevalent. Scholars would gather together, one would present a theory and the other would refute it. They would not show any mercy until their opponent was left speechless.

  "It doesn't matter." Lü Buwei didn't put his heart at ease, and smiled: "Some people say that the most valuable thing in the world is integrity, some people say it's power, some people say it's talent. All these are nonsense. The most valuable thing in the world is gold. As long as you have enough gold, what can't be bought?"

  This statement is somewhat exaggerated, but it's a fact - he almost bought the entire state of Qin.

  "You arrange it, and tomorrow let me monopolize the turtle's head. I will reward Scholar Shi with ten taels of gold. Whoever helps me the most will be rewarded with a hundred taels of gold." Lü Buwei was wealthy and powerful, and he deeply understood the power of money.

  "Master, I'm a bit curious, how will you establish your argument?" Ximen Lao's curiosity was piqued.

  "People say that merchants pursue profits, but I will take the meaning of being a merchant." Lü Buwei slightly hesitated before throwing out a proposition that was diametrically opposed to the conventional notion of "merchants pursuing profits".

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  The next day after dawn, Qin Yiren got out of bed, washed up and had breakfast. He told Meng Zhao to get ready as they were going out.

  "Where are you going, young master?" Meng Zhao asked curiously.

  "Go to Hu Feng wine shop." Qin Yiren thought for a moment and replied impulsively.

  "What about Hu Feng Wine House?" Meng Zhao's face darkened for a moment, then he was overjoyed and said: "In the past, Master often went to Hu Feng Wine House to debate with scholars and had a great reputation. Now that Master has escaped his difficulties, it's time to go."

  During the Warring States period, debating and arguing became a popular trend. Wherever there were scholars, there would be debates. Every decent inn or tavern would set up a debate platform for scholars to engage in discussions.

  As the largest wine house in Handan, Hu Feng Wine House, its debate platform is also famous in Shandong Province. All scholars who come to Handan consider it an honor to go to Hu Feng Wine House and participate in debates.

  Qin Yiren decided to go to Hu Feng wine house today, one is to discuss the war, and the other is to think about how to plan for Qin State.

  Debating is a shortcut to fame, if one debate makes a name, it must be famous all over the world, becoming a celebrity, those who associate with him are either rich or noble. Qin Yi Ren wants to return to the State of Qin and ascend to the throne of the King of Qin, this trend is bound to happen.

  Recovering the connection with Qin State is a must, and Qin Yiren doesn't want to leave an impression of "begging for gold" on King Zhao of Qin. It's extremely important to come up with an extraordinary plan that stands out from the rest. However, completing this task is too difficult. Fortunately, there's the Debate Platform, where scholars and bookworms gather, maybe I can get some inspiration there.

  Hu Feng Wine House is located in the south of the city, it's the largest wine house in Handan. It has three major features: Firstly, it covers a vast area of over 1,000 mu. Secondly, this place is full of Hu people, with green grasslands, golden poplar trees, tents scattered all over, and smoke curling up from cooking stoves. The blonde-haired and blue-eyed Hu women herd white sheep that flow like clouds, guests can taste the fun of wildness at any time, or take the herding Hu women into the big tent for a night of indulgence. Thirdly, there is a golden yurt modeled after the Xiongnu Khan's palace, which is extremely luxurious and serves as a place for people to indulge in pleasure.

  Qin Yiren had just dismounted his horse when a well-trained barbarian servant girl floated over like the wind, her face full of smiles, introducing the characteristics of Hu Feng Wine House: "Young master, the Huguan girls at Hu Feng Wine House are as white as the snow on Yin Mountain, as tender as the grass in Taihai, as gentle as sheep that allow you to trample them, and their milk is like a warm spring..."

  Zhao State, due to Zhao Wuling Wang's promotion of "Hu Fu Riding Shooting", caused the Hu wind to flourish greatly, becoming a scene in Handan. At that time, there was a proverb "Hu wine, Hu woman, where is the Hu bottom, vast Hu Fang, hot wind blowing" describing the prosperity of Handan Hu wind.

  "I'm here for a debate, take me to the debating platform." Qin Yi Ren didn't come to have fun, he had important business.

  "It's really fortunate that you've arrived, young master. Today, we're about to hold a debate here in the yurt of the Khan. However, you mustn't show off too much, or not only will you fail to get the reward of ten taels of gold, but you'll also offend a power that can't be resisted."

  "Who is it?" Qin Yiren was slightly surprised.

  "The Lu family's shopkeeper, Lu Dapang." The Hu servant girl hastily replied, "Whoever helps him the most will receive a reward of one hundred taels of gold."

  "Lü Buwei?" Qin Yiren's eyes suddenly widened, and the sharp light in his eyes burst out. It was indeed a case of "enemies meeting on a narrow road".

  The Xiongnu were a northern nomadic people who gave the Huaxia a headache at that time, and they were well-known. The single yurt of the Hufeng wine shop was decorated with golden tents and eagles, with a strong barbarian flavor, extremely luxurious, and decorated with gold and jade.

  "That's...such a beauty!" Qin Yiren was immediately drawn in by the sight of an exquisite young girl as soon as he stepped into the pavilion.