Chapter 38: The Wu-Yue Alliance
Yun Chang thought that what Lu Ming said made sense.
War is a matter of great importance to a country and must never be acted upon lightly!
Once the State of Yue launched an attack on Helu and the Wu army marched south to interfere, the consequences would be disastrous.
At the very least, the Yue people will indeed be used as a gun by Qingji, and may suffer considerable losses as a result!
"Then I will not form an alliance with the Kingdom of Wu and will not accept the four southern cities that King Qingji of Wu has ceded to me?"
Yunchang was very hesitant.
"That's not the case."
Lu Ming shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, how can you not take advantage of this opportunity that is delivered to your door? What I am worried about is the sinister intentions of the Wu people."
"A letter of alliance alone may not be enough to restrain the Wu Kingdom!"
"Why does the Grand Secretary teach me?"
Yun Chang had no choice but to ask Lu Ming for advice.
Lu Ming just groaned for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty, I heard that Princess Ji Kou has reached the age of marriage and is still waiting to be married?"
"good……"
Yun Chang nodded slightly, then reacted immediately and asked with a surprised look on his face: "Grand Minister of Justice, are you asking me to marry Ji Kou to the State of Wu?"
"Exactly."
Seeing Yunchang hesitate to speak, Lu Ming decisively lowered his hand and said, "Your Majesty, please understand! Since ancient times, the role of an alliance is far less than that of marriage. Marriage is a very clever political means."
"I heard that King Qingji of Wu is only a young man and has not yet married."
"Princess Ji Kou can marry into the Kingdom of Wu and become the Queen. Your Majesty can also dispatch spies to support us at any time and closely monitor the actions of the Kingdom of Wu!"
"color!"
After learning about the benefits of the marriage with the State of Wu, Yun Chang's eyes lit up and he cheered loudly.
You know, Ji Kou is Yun Chang's jewel in the palm, his only daughter .
Yun Chang doted on Ji Kou since she was a child. When she grew up, she became even more charming and attractive, a rare beauty in the Kingdom of Yue!
As the saying goes, rare goods are valuable.
Before Ji Kou came of age, Yun Chang was already planning what kind of husband he should find for her!
Now it seems that it is the right time for Ji Kou to marry into the State of Wu and become the queen of Qingji.
At least, this does not disgrace Ji Kou's status as a princess, and it can also promote an alliance between Wu and Yue!
After nightfall, Yunchang and the ministers warmly entertained the Wu envoy Bo Yun in the main hall.
After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Yun Chang told Bo Huan about the marriage between Wu and Yue!
It would be fine if Ji Kou was just married to Wu as a concubine, but she was the queen, the lady of the country, so Bo Yun could not make the decision. However, it was not easy to refuse the kindness of King Yunchang of Yue.
Therefore, Bo Yan could only decline again and again, saying that he would send someone back to the country to report to Qingji.
If Qingji agrees, the marriage between Wu and Yue can be accomplished!
…
At this time, Qingji, who was far away in Wudu, did not know that he was about to be involved in a political marriage that was very popular in this era.
Qingji was leading a group of Wu's ministers and officials to welcome Ji Zha, who had returned from his mission to Chu, as well as two Wu princes, Yan Yu and Zhu Yong, and more than a thousand ragged soldiers behind them, at the city gate.
It is worth mentioning that Yan Yu and Zhu Yong were both brothers of King Liao of Wu and uncles of Qingji!
That year, King Liao of Wu took advantage of the death of King Ping of Chu and the domestic turmoil to launch an attack on Chu.
The two men led their troops to besiege Qianyi of Chu, but failed to capture it after a long siege. Suddenly, they heard news from home that Prince Guang (Helü) had sent Zhuan Zhu to assassinate King Liao of Wu and had already killed the king and usurped the throne.
Yan Yu and Zhu Yong were horrified and wanted to lead their troops to retreat, but their retreat had been cut off by the Chu army.
In desperation, the two could only flee to Xu State and Zhongwu State respectively to seek asylum!
This is because they knew that given Helu's character, he would never let them go, so they temporarily settled down and waited for the opportunity to act.
When they heard that Qingji had fled to Wei State, recruited soldiers and horses, accumulated strength, and prepared to attack Helu to avenge his father, Yan Yu and Zhu Yong wanted to defect to Wei State, but were obstructed by the Chu people and could not go.
It was not until Qingji defeated Helu and became the king of Wu, and sent Ji Zha to Chu to ask Chu to release the people, that they were able to return to their motherland.
Even the soldiers who fled with him felt extremely sad!
You know, Xu and Zhongwu were both vassals of Chu. If Chu insisted on not releasing their people, what could they do?
Fortunately, Ji Zha had enough face, and the two countries of Wu and Chu had already signed an alliance and reconciled, so the people of Chu did not make things difficult for them.
"Old minister Ji Zha (Zhu Yong, Yan Yu) pays respect to His Majesty! Long live His Majesty!"
"No need to be so polite!"
After Qingji got off the carriage, he immediately stepped forward, held Ji Zha's hands, and said with a look of concern: "Uncle, you have been traveling all the way, and you are very tired. Please get on the royal carriage, and I will personally drive the horse for you!"
"Your Majesty, how dare this old minister..."
"Uncle, please!"
Without further ado, Qingji invited Ji Zha to get on his own carriage.
Afterwards, he turned his gaze to Yan Yu and Zhu Yong, feeling deeply moved.
"My two uncles, I haven't seen you for many years. I wonder how you are doing?"
Hearing this, Yan Yu and Zhu Yong were suddenly moved by the scene and said with tears in their eyes: "Thank you for your concern! If it weren't for you, I'm afraid we would never be able to return to Wu in this lifetime and would die in a foreign land!"
"Although it's good in Xu State, and the Lord of Xu treats me with courtesy, I always want to return to my hometown and avenge the late king!"
After saying this, Yan Yu and Zhu Yong, two tall and strong men, couldn't help but shed tears and hugged each other and cried!
"My two uncles, I will kill Ji Guang sooner or later to avenge my father. I have already set up a banquet in the hall. Please go back and wash up, and you can join us in the evening."
"Thank you, my king!"
Qingji then stood at the front of the carriage again, holding the handrails, facing more than a thousand pale-faced Wu soldiers, and sighed in his heart.
These soldiers did not have complete armor on them. They were all unkempt, slovenly, and ragged, looking more like refugees.
However, they were indeed the Wu army, the soldiers who followed Yan Yu and Zhu Yong into the battle of Chu!
Although he was in such a miserable state, Qingji still did not show any sign of dejection on his face.
After Prince Guang sent Zhuan Zhu to assassinate King Liao of Wu, Yan Yu fled to the State of Xu and Zhu Yong fled to the State of Zhongwu.
Although both countries were vassal states of Chu, they had old ties with Wu, especially the Lord of Xu, who was the brother-in-law of King Liao of Wu!
Under this kind of marriage relationship, Xu Jun had no choice but to protect Yu.
However, Yan Yu lived a comfortable life in Xu State, but the soldiers who fled with him suffered!
After all, Xu was a small country, and it couldn't even sustain its own several thousand soldiers and horses , so how could it support so many Wu troops?
Therefore, after entering the State of Xu, some of them settled down, while others fled and their whereabouts are unknown.
Now, there are only more than a thousand people returning to Wu State, and most of the soldiers are missing.
But Qingji was still satisfied!
It is precisely because the State of Wu has this kind of cohesion that it can continue to strive for self-improvement!
At this moment, the soldiers who returned to their motherland could not help but burst into tears.
"My dear soldiers, my soldiers from the Great Wu! It's time for you to go home!"
Qingji waved his hand and said loudly: "Pass the imperial edict. All soldiers returning home will be rewarded with two pieces of linen and one stone of rice!"
"I will give you two or three more jars of fine wine and ten deer as a reward! Tonight, you must not return home until you are drunk!"
Upon hearing this, all the soldiers knelt down in gratitude and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Long live the king, long live the king, long live the king!"
Qingji instantly won the hearts of these soldiers.
After returning to Wu, they finally had their cake and eat it too!
