Chapter 88: Persuading (Part 1)

  When I came out of Li Mu's house, it was almost dusk.

  Before leaving the plateau, Li Yinghong, a young adult woman, fell into a deep sleep under the gentle care of the plateau. The plateau's heart was also filled with warmth and sweetness. Having been here for less than half a year, so many things had happened, and he already possessed two stunningly beautiful girls. It also gave him a lot to worry about, because from now on, he was no longer alone.

  As he walked, Gao Yuan also returned to his own mansion, only to see that the courtyard was already filled with vehicles. Although Gao Yuan had announced that those who wanted to leave could do so on their own, in reality, only four people had left, while everyone else was willing to stay and follow Gao Yuan together.

  Of course, not everyone who stayed was willing to follow Gao Yuan. There were also a considerable number of people who had nowhere else to go. In this era, the vast majority of families served the master's household for their entire lives, and once they left the master, they would be without relatives or friends, making it very difficult to survive. Moreover, most people also had a herd mentality, seeing that many people were willing to follow Gao Yuan, so they just followed suit and stayed behind. As for what would happen in the future, they could only resign themselves to fate.

  Having walked through the courtyard, Geng Zhong had already come to greet him and said: "Sir, there is a guest who has arrived, and he has been waiting for you for over an hour."

  Gao Yuan was stunned, thinking that he had quite a few guests in the past few days. Yesterday it was Shen Chen, so who would it be today? Suddenly, he thought of Gong Sunlong and Zhong Lijiu visiting Li Mu's mansion to persuade him to support Zhao Jia as the King of Zhao. Would they also send someone to persuade himself? So he asked: "Who is the visitor?"

  "It's just Mr. and Miss Chun Yu Bo."

  Gao Yuan was also surprised and said: "It's them."

  Since meeting at the Zhao Jia government office, Chunyu Bo and his daughter have been living in Handan City. In these two months, they have attended over a hundred gatherings, exchanging academic ideas with scholars from Handan. Chunyu father and daughter have fully demonstrated their extensive knowledge of various subjects, able to communicate fluently with scholars from any school of thought, with profound insights that have caused quite a stir in Handan City.

  Of course, there were a few gatherings where Gaoyuan was also invited, but during this period, Gaoyuan was busy training soldiers and pushed away all the invitations, so he didn't meet with the father-daughter pair again. How could they come to visit him at this time? Could it be that they were also here to persuade Zhao Jia on his behalf? But Gaoyuan thought about it and felt that this possibility wasn't very big. If Zhao Jia could invite these two people, he should have asked them to persuade Li Mu instead of himself.

  But thinking of Chun Yu Zhong Xiu's stunning looks, although he had just pushed down Li Ying Hong, Gao Yuan still couldn't help but feel a little excited, no matter what the father and daughter's intentions were, but to see this stunning beauty again was not bad either.

  So Gao Yuan immediately changed his clothes and hastily came to the main hall. As expected, Chun Yu's father and daughter were both sitting in the main hall, Chun Yu Bo was wearing a magnificent crown and belt, with an air of elegance and refinement, while Chun Yu Zhong Xiu remained gentle and elegant, as if she were a fairy.

  Kougen returned, and Junyu Bo and Junyu Zhongxiu immediately stood up. Kougen hurriedly paid his respects, saying: "I've kept Mr. Junyu and Miss Junyu waiting for a long time, it's really my fault."

  Sun Wubao returned the courtesy, smiling: "No, no, sir. You are busy with many things, how can it be your fault? It is our father and daughter's fault for coming suddenly without prior notice to inform you, so please forgive us."

  "Ah, how dare I, how dare I? Honorable guests like Mr. Chunyu and Miss Chunyu are people I wouldn't even dare invite, and yet you've both graciously condescended to visit my humble abode, truly bringing glory to this lowly residence."

  After the exchange of pleasantries, they sat down again. The family also brought out fine wine. It was only then that Gao Yuan asked: "The current situation doesn't need me to explain, Mr. Sun and Miss Sun should also know. I wonder what brings you two here at this time?"

  Sun Bo nodded and said: "If I'm guessing correctly, sir, you want to follow Wu Anjun together, leave Handan, retreat to Dai Prefecture, and govern autonomously."

  Gao Yuan nodded, since Chun Yu Bo had already seen through it, there was no need to hide it from him anymore. After all, they would be leaving tomorrow. He said, "That's right, we'll leave tomorrow. If Mr. and Ms. Chun Yu arrive a day later, I'm afraid I will miss the opportunity to meet you both."

  Chunyu Bo nodded and said, "This time, Wu Anjun had the opportunity to enter the palace and kill Guo Kai, thereby manipulating Zhao Wang and monopolizing the power of the court. However, Wu Anjun would rather leave Handan than do something that goes against his loyalty as a minister. It seems that Wu Anjun's loyalty to Zhao is indeed genuine."

  Gao Yuan naturally knew that with Jun Wenyu's talent, it was clear that Li Mu staying in Handan, whether it was to support Zhao Wangqian or help Zhao Jia ascend to the throne, neither was the best choice. Retreating to Dai Commandery would be the most ideal outcome. However, Gao Yuan didn't say anything, only smiling faintly and saying: "When the time comes, I welcome Mr. Jun Wenyu and Miss Jun Wenyu to visit Dai Commandery as guests. Wu Anjun and I will definitely go out of our way to greet your arrival."

  At this time, Jun Yu Bo also put away his smile and said: "The last time I was in Gongzi Jia's mansion, I said that the Qin army would attack Zhao within three to five years. In fact, it wasn't correct. In my opinion, after the New Year, the Qin army will launch a large-scale attack on the Zhao army. This time, the military strength deployed by Qin will be the strongest since the Battle of Changping, far surpassing the battles of Fei and Fanwu. The commander-in-chief is Wang Jian, a famous general of Qin, who is well-versed in military strategy and has always been steady and stable in his deployment of troops. He is known as the best general material after Bai Qi, with abilities that far surpass those of Huan Chu. Although Wu An Jun has long been experienced in battle and uses his troops like a god, he should not be underestimated."

  Gao Yuan nodded, and Chun Yu Bo deliberately emphasized Wang Jian's steady and stable use of troops. In fact, he had a point to make, because Li Mu's military tactics were always known for being unpredictable and clever. The best way to deal with Li Mu's style was to adopt Wang Jian's steady and stable approach, advancing step by step, and relying on the vast national strength of Qin to gradually wear down Li Mu's forces.

  "Even if Zhao could unite now, with the military prowess of Wu Anjun and the bravery of the Zhao army, taking advantage of the geographical advantages, it would not be impossible to fight against Qin. However, the current King of Zhao is foolish and incompetent, trusting in treacherous ministers, and has forced Wu Anjun away, dispersing our strength. Even if Wu Anjun were Lü Shang reborn or Sunzi reincarnated, I fear he could hardly turn the tide."

  The plateau fell silent for a moment, and in his heart he was thinking quickly, what did this father and daughter mean by saying these words to himself? They were so keen on highlighting the shortcomings of Zhao Guo, which should be paving the way for their goal, but it didn't seem like they were speaking as guests for Zhao Jia. So why had they come to see him? Therefore, he said: "What you two have said is indeed reasonable, so according to your views, what should Wu An Jun do?"

  Sun Wukong chuckled and said, "Why doesn't the Grand Lord ask himself what he should do?"

  Gao Yuan's eyes narrowed and he said, "Does it make a difference?" In his heart, he thought what this meant. Could it be that he wanted to drive a wedge between himself and Li Mu?

  Sun Bo smiled and said: "Of course there is a difference, because this time my daughter and I came especially for the adults, not for Wu Anjun."

  Gao Yuan was also puzzled and asked: "Did you come for me?"

  Chunyu Zhong's face lit up with a smile and said, "That's right. Before we came to Zhao, when we left Qin, the King of Qin entrusted my father and me that if this trip to Zhao could meet you, he would like us to bring a message to you. If you are willing to defect to Qin, the King of Qin will welcome you with courtesy as a guest."

  The etiquette for guests is the highest courtesy in this era that a monarch shows to his ministers, indicating that the monarch regards his ministers as his own guests rather than subordinates.

  The rites of hospitality were originally used to welcome the first ruler of the State of Song, Duke Wu of Song. Duke Wu was a remnant minister of the Shang Dynasty and the brother of King Zhou of Shang. Due to King Zhou's misrule, Duke Wu fled to the Zhou Dynasty and surrendered to King Wu of Zhou. After King Wu defeated King Zhou, when enfeoffing his nobles, he enfeoffed Duke Wu as a first-class duke, giving him control over the State of Song, governing the remnants of the Shang people, following the rule of the Zhou Dynasty, and naming him Duke Wu of Song. In contrast, Jiang Taigong, who assisted King Wu in defeating King Zhou, was only enfeoffed as a second-class marquis with the state of Qi, while the Duke of Zhou, who assisted King Cheng in governing the country, was also only enfeoffed as a second-class marquis with the state of Lu. Therefore, the treatment received by Duke Wu of Song was quite high.

  After Weizi returned to the state, he was diligent in government affairs and comforted the remaining people of the Yin Dynasty. He eventually made the Yin people gradually eliminate their resentment towards the Zhou Dynasty and obey the rule of the Zhou Dynasty. Therefore, the Zhou Dynasty highly respected Song Weiyou, calling him "Guest of the royal family, with the country's body, forever without exhaustion". The Zhou Dynasty treated Weizi as a guest of the royal house, not as a subordinate. Every time Weizi visited the Zhou emperor, the royal family would send armored soldiers to clear the road, known as "guest etiquette".

  Later, the guest ritual was also used to reward meritorious officials who had made great contributions to the Zhou royal house. In the hundreds of years of Zhou dynasty history, fewer than ten people had received this honor. After entering the Warring States period, however, rituals collapsed and music became debased, with various regional lords emulating the Zhou in bestowing guest ritual on their own meritorious officials as a way of showing respect to their subordinates. Of course, those who were able to receive such treatment were also famous ministers who had made great contributions to their respective countries or renowned scholars recognized throughout the land. Thus, when the Qin king wanted to welcome Gao Yuan with guest ritual, it showed just how highly he valued him.

  Gao Yuan couldn't help but feel a little surprised, saying: "Even if I have some small reputation now, it's not worth King Qin Zheng's attention, unless it's about Wu An Jun, then it's almost reasonable."

  Jun Yu Zhong smiled faintly and said, "What the King of Qin thinks is not something we father and daughter can know, but the original words were spoken to you, sir. We just happened to overhear them. Perhaps it's because you are a general with a noble fate. Of course, if General Wu An also wants to surrender to the state of Qin, I think the King of Qin won't treat him poorly either."

  The plateau sank again for half a moment and said: "So, are you two this time representing the King of Qin to make a statement?"

  "Sir, now the world is in turmoil, with no day without war and no moment without soldiers. The people of the world are suffering every day, and the common folk are laboring every day. Why? It's because the feudal lords are vying for power, and the wars won't stop. In my humble opinion, only when the world is unified under one rule can we eliminate war, allow the people to live in peace and prosperity, and restore the prosperous era of old."