Chapter 460: Your Majesty! Ping has another plan!
"Five great cities once stood on this land:
"Zhou's capital is Luoyang, Qin's capital is Xianyang, Qi's capital is Linzi, Zhao's capital is Handan, and the last one is Wei's capital is Daliang.
“In terms of prosperity, Daliang is definitely the best.
"When this city was first built, and during its subsequent maintenance and repair, our Wei State never slacked off. The walls are several feet thick and are indestructible. How can swords and spears in the world break through these three feet of solid stone?
"When the Qin general Wang Ben was approaching the city of Daliang, my uncle, the King of Wei, stroked the city wall and looked down, laughing and saying:
"'I have the mighty city of Daliang, why should I fear the Qin barbarians? I have held out for half a year, but Wang Ben has been unable to take it. It is difficult to maintain the food and supplies, so it will collapse without a fight!'
"In half a month, the Qin army launched three fierce attacks but made no progress.
"Everyone in Wei thought they were safe and sound, and laughed at the fact that the western frontier was a country of small officials who raised horses and knew only brute force. They had never seen a majestic city like Daliang, and the same was true for leopards.
"Three days later, I heard the sound of the river rushing, and the sound was exactly the same as the sound of the waves I heard in the East China Sea.
"I put on my clothes and ran all the way. When I climbed up the city wall, I saw a white line approaching very quickly in the distance. The humid water vapor made my face wet even though it was at least a hundred miles away.
"I saw with my own eyes that the water line outside the city rose little by little, the wilderness turned into an ocean, and the indestructible Daliang, the pride of the Wei State, was like a small island in the boundless flood.
"Countless Qin soldiers and prisoners dug open the Yingkou with their dark hands pulling the knots, and let the river water rush into the Honggou.
"Wang Ben built several stone dams and dug long canals, skillfully blocking or directing the surging floodwaters to Daliang in Wei.
"After being soaked by the river for more than two months, the seemingly indestructible thick city wall finally gave out. Soldiers reported that the rammed earth at the bottom had been soaked by the flood and was extremely fragile, unable to bear the weight of a wall three times its length.
“Every day, from bottom to top, entire walls of beams would peel away and collapse, like the last struggles of a dying man.
"When the waterline was about the same height as the city wall, I saw the Qin army. They were paddling bamboo rafts, approaching Daliang in the surging river, and everyone's eyes were emitting the green light of wild beasts.
"In order to protect the people of Daliang, my uncle followed the ancient ritual . He tied himself up with his bare skin, led a sheep and a piece of straw, and knelt in front of the king's chariot and kowtowed three times. He was extremely humble and regarded himself as a servant of Qin. Our great Wei, which has been thriving for 200 years and once made the world afraid to say a word with its Wuzu, has fallen."
A man with ordinary looks and a dull expression was standing on the top of Daliang City, touching the city wall that was still covered with moisture from several years ago, as if he was telling a story that had nothing to do with him.
He was wearing a silk gown with an open front, a belt inlaid with dark green jade, and a pair of black-soled boots.
His name was Wei Bao, and he was the nephew of Wei Wang Jia, the last king of the Wei State.
Next to him was a scholar dressed in cloth and with a dull face.
Although he was not good-looking, Wei Bao did not dare to underestimate him in the slightest.
Wei Bao only wanted him to go to Qi to contact the Tian brothers, involve them in the anti-Qin affairs, and exchange information.
However, he, together with Zhang Liang and the Tian brothers, caused a meteorite to fall from the sky in Donghai County, a bloody massacre in Lanling County, and a plague that raged for thousands of miles. The Qin army surrounded and suppressed them without sparing a single person, and they lost the support of the people of Qi.
To achieve all this, if we exclude the dozen servants and several carriages needed for travel, Chen Ping only borrowed his name, Wei Bao.
With such ability, even when the Wei Dynasty was at its peak with Li Kui in literature and Wu Qi in military affairs, and the Wei Wu soldiers roaming the world, he would have been able to have a seat at the forefront of the Wei court.
However, such a talented person found Wei Bao privately when he made the decision to rebel against Qin and gathered all the remaining nobles of Wei State, telling him that he could not rebel yet.
Wei Bao looked down from the top of the city wall. He remembered that his uncle looked at Wang Ben in the same way.
"The place where you and I stand is where the Qin army boarded the bamboo raft to climb the city. The King of Qin may be seriously ill and will not live long. At this good opportunity, you told Bao that he should not rebel, and said that if Bao insisted on raising the flag of Wei, you would leave Bao."
A soft sigh.
" How prosperous is Qi State, and how great are the Tian brothers, to make you happy and forget Wei..."
Chen Ping, dressed in plain clothes, lowered his head in fear.
"I will never forget your kindness, Your Excellency. If it weren't for Your Excellency, I would still be distributing meat in the countryside!"
"The King of Qin toured the country eastwards, starting from Han, passing Chu, Qi, and returning from Mount Tai. He did not come to Wei or Zhao, but to Xianyang. The caravan was silent all the way, no one entered the city, no one came out, and no one came into contact with anyone. Zhang Ping and Chen Yu both judged that the King of Qin must have contracted malaria, which was incurable, and that was why there was such a riot. The two wise men said that within a month, the six kingdoms would all recover, and whoever started the rebellion first would have the best luck, so they asked Bao to start the rebellion immediately. But you came to Bao at this moment and asked Bao not to rebel, which made Bao think too much."
"The first to start an uprising will have the upper hand, and it is true that one call will bring about a great trend. However, fortune and disaster are interdependent. The Qin army is still there, with many generals such as Wang Jian, Wang Ben, Li Xin, Meng Tian, etc. We must start an uprising, but not at this moment! Starting an uprising at this moment can not only attract talents from the six countries, but also attract the attention of Qin!"
After hearing Chen Ping's words, Wei Bao was enlightened and broke out in a cold sweat. He had always wanted to rebel against Qin and avenge the destruction of his country, and he only thought about the Qin King's critical illness!
However, they forgot that only the King of Qin was critically ill, not the entire Qin army. The current Qin State still has the power to crush the world!
If it really goes against the grain, then...
Wei Bao didn't dare to think any further. He walked quickly to Chen Ping's side, held Chen Ping's hand, and bowed.
"Sir, you are a man of great talent, but you are like a leopard with no eyes. I have judged you by my own standards. Please forgive me."
How could Chen Ping dare to accept the gift? He took a step forward, bent his knees, and hugged his master's upper body.
"What did Your Majesty do wrong? It was Ping's improper behavior that led Your Majesty to misunderstand. It is fortunate that Your Majesty does not blame Ping."
"I knew you were a loyal man, otherwise I would have stayed in Qi and would not have returned to Wei. I spoke nonsense before because I was worried about losing you. Please don't blame me. Wei is next to Qin. If the Qin army could slaughter Zhao a few months ago, they could slaughter Wei. Your words are really a golden rule. I almost made a big mistake. From now on, I will listen to your words. Starting from this incident, I will not start a rebellion this time. I will follow your words and wait and see what happens!"
Before joining Qi, Chen Ping was just an ordinary retainer under Wei Bao, far inferior to Zhang Er and Chen Yu, the two great sages who were once retainers of Wei Wuji, Lord Xinling.
Now Wei Bao rejected the words of the two sages because of his own opinion. For the first time, Chen Ping felt that they valued him. Being addressed as "Sir" by his master, he felt that all the blood in his body was mobilized, and he bowed his head sincerely!
"Your Majesty! Ping has another plan!"
