Chapter 25: Don't be punished by words
Qingji immediately stood up and bowed to Sun Ping and his son with a very humble attitude, saying: "If you two do not agree to Qingji, how can Qingji face the people of Wu, how can he face the dignity of the King of Wu?"
"Qingji is willing to appoint Sun Qing as the Grand Marshal, the Senior Minister, and the Grand Master, and listen to his teachings day and night!"
"Mr. Changqing should be appointed as Junior Sima and Senior Official, to train soldiers and manage military affairs!"
Qingji offered extremely generous treatment.
The State of Wu basically inherited the official system and etiquette of the Zhou Dynasty.
Lead his subordinates and take charge of state affairs to assist the king in pacifying the country!
Sima’s subordinates were called “political officials”.
Including one Grand Sima Qing, two Junior Sima Zhong Daifu, four Military Sima Xia Daifu, eight Chariot Sima Senior Sergeants, sixteen Acting Sima Zhong Sergeants, and thirty-two Brigade Lower Corpors.
The Grand Marshal is naturally the supreme commander of a country's army, equivalent to a general.
The authority involved should not be underestimated.
Qingji is now trying to invite Sun Ping and Sun Wu, father and son, to work for him and serve the State of Wu. This can be said to be a well-intentioned move!
How can we not feel ashamed when such generous conditions are offered?
Sun Ping immediately said in fear and trepidation: "Your Majesty, please don't humiliate my father and me like this!"
"Sun Qing and his son, are you willing to help me?"
Hearing this, Sun Ping and Sun Wu looked at each other and nodded silently.
Qingji finally got two great talents!
However, Sun Ping did not dare to accept the generous treatment offered by Qingji.
joke!
Grand Marshal, Shangqing, and Grand Tutor?
And let King Qingji of Wu treat Sun Ping as a disciple?
Sun Ping is tired of living!
Sun Ping, who is well versed in worldly affairs, is well aware of the principle that when the cunning rabbit dies, the hunting dog is cooked; when the birds are all gone, the good bows are put away.
Now Qingji still needs me, and may treat me with courtesy and dare not eliminate the powerful minister.
And once Qingji gains power and no longer needs them, the disaster of having their property confiscated and their family exterminated will probably come unexpectedly!
Sun Ping had no doubt about this.
Therefore, Sun Ping only asked Qingji to appoint him as the Grand Marshal, and Sun Wu as the Senior Official and General, and he did not dare to ask for too much!
Qingji was also happy to let it go.
After all, it is true that Sun Wu has great talents, but he must not be promoted too high all at once, lest he reach a point where there is nothing more to be done in the future!
As for Sun Ping, he was once a minister of Qi State and had a great reputation. It is unlikely that the court officials would have objected to Qingji's appointment of Sun Ping as the Grand Marshal and in charge of the military power of Wu State.
After nightfall, Qingji discussed "The Art of War" with Sun Ping and his son Sun Wu. They studied together and gained a lot.
After all, Qingji's daily interest is to study the art of war. He may not be as good as Sun Wu, but in terms of actual combat, Sun Wu may not be as good as Qingji!
The next day, Qingji brought Sun Ping and his son back to Wudu.
Just as Qingji announced his appointment of Sun Ping and Sun Wu in the court, he suddenly received bad news.
"Report - Your Majesty, the battle report from Wuyuan!"
A soldier, looking exhausted from the journey, entered the hall, knelt on the steps of the Imperial Pond, and asked a eunuch on the side to hand a bamboo slip to Qingji for him to read.
Wuyuan battle report?
Qingji's heart skipped a beat and he had a bad feeling.
Wuyuan, an important city in the south of Wu State, has now become a battleground for military strategists!
Not long ago, Qingji had just sent Meng Ben to lead 3,000 soldiers and horses to Wuyuan to garrison the city, and ordered them not to go into battle without permission.
You know, Helu only has two or three thousand soldiers at the moment, so it is very easy for Meng Ben to defend Wuyuan City.
Could it be that Wuyuan City has changed hands and Meng Ben was defeated ?
When Qingji opened the battle report, his brows immediately furrowed.
Sure enough, Wuyuan City had fallen and Meng Ben was defeated!
Meng Ben led his army to occupy Wuyuan City first, because Helu was still busy gathering the defeated soldiers, which took time.
But Helu's army still followed closely and approached the city.
In order to deal with the enemy's invasion, Meng Ben not only defended the city, but also sent a part of the army to set up camp thirty miles outside the city and buried deer horns deep inside to form a pincer attack.
There is nothing wrong with this in itself!
This is a common tactic used by military strategists.
It’s a pity that Meng Ben still underestimated Wu Zixu’s strategy!
After nightfall, taking advantage of the fact that Meng Ben's troops were not yet firmly established, Helu's army marched straight in and attacked their camp at night.
Meng Ben hurriedly led his troops to rescue, but unexpectedly at this time, Wu Zixu led another army, disguised as defeated soldiers, and deceived them into entering Wuyuan City!
In the end, Meng Ben could only watch the lost city with grief and anger, but he could do nothing.
"Resign!"
Qingji stood up without saying anything, waved his sleeves and left.
Only a group of ministers and officials were left looking at each other in bewilderment, not knowing how powerful it was!
They could more or less guess in their hearts that the battle on the Wuyuan front had most likely been a defeat.
As for countermeasures, Qingji did not intend to discuss it in the court.
Why?
Because Qingji was still not sure who among the court officials was still secretly colluding with Helu and had evil intentions.
Therefore, Qingji must take precautions before it happens!
After the court was dismissed, Qingji left only Sun Ping and Sun Wu in a side hall waiting for the meeting.
Qingji sat upright on one side and handed the bamboo slips of the Wuyuan battle report in his hand to Sun Ping and his son in front of him.
After reading the contents of the bamboo slips, Sun Ping and Sun Wu couldn't help but look at each other with strange expressions.
"Wuyuan has been lost, and the enemy has regained its strength. What do you think I should do?"
Qingji didn’t figure out a solution on his own!
He asked Sun Ping and his son for advice, just for a solution.
After all, Qingji is now the King of Wu, the ruler of a country. It is impossible for him to do everything by himself and consider things too thoroughly!
Hearing this, Sun Ping and Sun Wu both lowered their heads and began to think.
Sun Wu first asked: "Your Majesty, do you want to be the king of Wu, or to dominate the world?"
"Naturally, it is to dominate the world."
Qingji said in a tone that left no room for doubt: "The grand plan I want to build is comparable to Qi Huan and Jin Wen's unification of the nine states and the restoration of the world!"
"If I have the chance, I will create an unprecedented achievement that will surpass the past and present and surpass the kings of all dynasties!"
"good!"
Sun Wu nodded slightly and said, "In this case, I think that Your Majesty should ignore Wuyuan and focus on governing the country and the army, so that the people can rest and recuperate."
"Ignore Wu Yuan?"
Qingji's expression remained unchanged, but he did not comment on Sun Wu's advice.
Sun Ping, who was standing aside, was furious!
Sun Ping quickly said, "Your Majesty, this was just my unintentional words. Please forgive Sun Wu for his mistake."
"No problem."
Qingji didn't mind much!
"When we, the emperor and his subjects, sit and discuss the truth, you can all express your own opinions, and no one will be punished for what they say."
Sun Ping thought that he would annoy Qingji just because Sun Wu advised Qingji to give up Wuyuan, but obviously he didn't!
Qingji has never been a narrow-minded person, and it is even more impossible for him to punish someone based on his words.
Qingji's abandonment of Wuyuan meant that he would voluntarily give up nearly one-sixth of the cities and lands of the Wu State!
Isn't it a sin to encourage a king to abandon his territory?
If he were an ordinary monarch, Sun Wu would have been dismissed from office and title, or his head and body would have been separated.
