"Ouch, ouch, ouch..."

The loud crow of the rooster broke the silence of the night, and also evoked the radiant sun.

When the first ray of sunshine in the morning fell on the earth, Sun Qi, the Prime Minister of Wei, who had woken up early, put down the letter in his hand.

Looking up at the outside of the tent and looking at the already bright sky, Gongsun Qi said quietly, "It's time."

Gongsun Qi slowly stood up from the desk and put on a set of red dark clothes. Gongsun Qi tidied every detail seriously and carefully.

A moment later, when Gongsun Qi slowly walked out of the tent, a carriage had been waiting for him for a long time.

Just as Gongsun Qi was getting on the carriage, a call from behind made him stop.

"Xiangguo."

Turning around to look at the person who came, Wei General Pang Juan, wearing armor and a long sword hanging from his waist, stood in front of him.

Facing Gongsun Qi's gaze, Pang Juan's face was full of worry at this moment.

"Prime Minister, have you ever heard about the old events in Mendi?"

When Gongsun Qi heard Pang Juan's question, a smile immediately appeared on his face?

"General, do you think I will be the Song Xianggong back then?"

The old story of Mendi refers to the Meng League that took place between the Song and Chu states.

After the death of Duke Huan of Qi Xiaobai, the state of Qi suffered a great loss due to the competition between the princes, and lost its status as the hegemon of the Central Plains.

The Song State, as a principality entrusted by the Zhou royal family in the early Zhou Dynasty, had relatively strong national power.

It was with the help of Song Xianggong that Prince Zhao of Qi State was able to return to Qi State and become the new monarch of Qi State.

After assisting Duke Xiao of Qi to ascend the throne, Duke Xiang of Song Dynasty gradually became ambitious. He wanted to become the second overlord of the Central Plains after Duke Huan of Qi.

For this reason, Song Xianggong summoned the princes of the Chu State to form an alliance in Yu, hoping to establish the Song State's hegemony.

What Song Xianggong wanted to hold was a dress party, but not all the participating princes came with good intentions.

King Chu Cheng, who had no martial ethics, was carrying followers on the surface, but secretly they were soldiers wearing armor.

When Song Xianggong showed his intention to dominate, King Chu Cheng immediately led his troops to attack.

Not only were all the ritual vessels used by the alliance moved back to Chu, but even Song Xianggong was captured by him.

What is interesting is that Song Xianggong became a prisoner of the Chu State, and decades later in another time and space, King Huai of Chu also became a prisoner of the Qin State during the alliance.

It can be described as a wonderful "coincidence".

Bringing his gaze back to the present, Pang Juan immediately bowed to Gongsun Qi's gaze.

"The general will not dare."

"It's just that the Chu people have always been cunning, and the general is afraid that they will be detrimental to the Prime Minister's country."

Gongsun Qi didn't take Pang Juan's worries too seriously, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Don't worry, General, he Zhao Xixie is not King Cheng of Chu, and I am not Duke Xiang of Song."

"The reason why Song Xianggong invited the Chu State to form an alliance back then was because he wanted to use the Chu State's national power to strengthen his own prestige. In the final analysis, the Song State's national power was not enough to deter the Chu State."

"If it were the Qi State during the reign of Duke Huan of Qi, or the later powerful Jin State, how could the Chu State dare to do such a thing?"

Gongsun Qi saw through the nature of Song Xianggong's capture at a glance, and a strong look of confidence immediately appeared on his face.

"Today our state of Wei is as powerful as the state of Jin back then. If Zhao Xixie really dares to do what he did back then, then our state of Wei can use our righteousness to call on all the princes in the world to attack the state of Chu."

"It's a good deal to trade one of me, Gongsun Qi, for the state of Chu. It's a great deal!"

"Hahaha……"

The cheerful smile resounded throughout the camp, and Pang Juan, who was standing aside, couldn't help but be impressed by Gongsun Qi's courage.

After a few breaths, before Pang Juan could say anything more, Gongsun Qi appeared in his ears with solemn instructions.

"General, you stay in the camp and pay attention to the movements of Chu State."

"If I fail to return, there is no need to try to rescue me. I will immediately send elite cavalry to Anyi."

"At that time, it will be the best time for us, the State of Wei, to lead the coalition of princes to attack the State of Chu."

Gongsun Qi's words immediately made Pang Juan feel the heavy weight on his shoulders.

With an extremely serious expression on his face, Pang Juan gave Gongsun Qi a military salute.

"The last general Pang Juan will be sent to the prime minister's country."

"Okay, I'll go too."

With a loud shout, Gongsun Qi quickly boarded the carriage.

"drive……"

Accompanied by the driver's loud sound of urging the horse, the carriage slowly drove out of the Wei army camp.

…

On the bank of the Lishui River, silently watching the turbulent river water beside him, Yin Zhaoxi, the commander of the State of Chu, waited for the arrival of today's distinguished guest.

"Your Majesty, here you go."

A call from Zhao Yang beside him brought Zhao Xixie's thoughts back to reality, and he subconsciously looked into the distance.

Soon after, when the horse pulling the cart stopped, Gongsun Qi, dressed in red, appeared in front of Zhao Xixie.

"I've met Ling Yin."

"I've met Prime Minister Wei."

After meeting old friends after a long separation, the two quickly came to each other.

Looking at Gongsun Qi who came alone, Zhao Xixie had a look of surprise on his face.

"Xiang Wei came here alone, aren't you afraid that I will force you to stay in Chu State?"

"Since Ling Yin only invited me in the silk letter, I should come alone."

Zhao Xixie's threatening words had no effect on Gongsun Qi. On the contrary, his face was full of calmness.

"What's more, does Ling Yin really dare to risk the disapproval of the world and put the Chu country in danger because of me, Gongsun Qi?"

Gongsun Qi's words were also full of threats, but they made Zhao Xixie on the opposite side freeze.

If Gongsun Qi could really be kept in Chu, Zhao Xixie would not hesitate at all.

In fact, over the years, Gongsun Qi assisted the current Wei Marquis Wei Feng and achieved too many achievements.

At first, he was entrusted with important responsibilities by Wei Feng, who had just succeeded to the throne, and Gongsun Qi shone brightly on the Korean battlefield.

In the subsequent Battle of Hexi, Gongsun Qi almost defeated Qin in one battle and was no longer able to advance eastwards.

This time in Wei's attack on Qin, although Gongsun Qi did not appear on the main battlefield of the attack on Qin, he blocked tens of thousands of Chu troops south of Daliang.

It is no exaggeration to say that as the prime minister, Gongsun Qi's prestige in the Wei court has even surpassed that of his predecessor, Gongshu Cuo, and is directly catching up with Li Kui, the good prime minister at the time of Wei Wenhou.

But did Zhao Xixie really dare to do harm to Gongsun Qi? To be honest, he didn't dare.

Just as Gongsun Qi said, facing the powerful Wei State, Zhao Xixie did not dare to gamble with the fate of the Chu State.

Although the Wei State today is not the Qi State back then, Zhao Xixie can still see its reputation as the overlord when it rises to the top and attracts many responders.

He did not want his country of Chu to once again suffer the plight of the allied forces of the princes pressing down on the territory.

Realizing that he had lost before the two had a formal conversation, Zhao Xixie couldn't help but feel a touch of bitterness on his face.

But just for an instant, a kind smile reappeared on Zhao Xixie's face.

"Wei Xiang was joking. We'll meet Lishui for a while today, but it's just an old friend catching up."

While using words to dissipate the tense atmosphere between the two, Zhao Xixie extended his right hand to invite: "Xiang Wei, please take a seat quickly."

Is it really just a joke?

At least Zhao Xixie knew very well that if today's Wei State was like the Song State in the past, I'm afraid the Chu State's Ling Yin opposite would definitely not hesitate.

But since the other party said he was joking, let's just treat him as joking today.

A smile also appeared on his face, and Gongsun Qi also extended his right hand, "Your Majesty, please."
Chapter completed!