Chu State, Yingdu.

The King of Chu sat on the top of the head with a serious expression: "You are all the envoys on both sides of the four countries' attack on Qi. Let's discuss what exactly should be done today."

On both sides of the lower head of the King of Chu sat several important officials of the Chu State, from honor to inferiority, namely the Lingyin Xiong Zilan, the left Yin Jingcui, the upper pillar Zhaoju, the Grand Sima Zhaochang, and Mo Ao Qu Yuan.

Lingyin Xiong Zilan is the younger brother of a compatriot of the King of Chu. She has a very similar face to the King of Chu, but she shows a bit of youthful spirit. Hearing this, he immediately said: "King, I think the Great Chu should actively participate in this battle to seek an opportunity to revive!"

The King of Chu nodded in agreement with Xiong Zilan's suggestion.

Since the previous generation of kings, King Huai of Chu destroyed the Yue Kingdom, forcing the princes of Yue to rush to southeast China and the coast of Lingnan, the territory of Chu has not been expanded for a long time.

If this is the case, it would be fine. But over the years, Chu State was repeatedly defeated when facing Qin and Qi and other major powers, and also lost large areas of land such as Huaibei, Nanyang, Wancheng, Eastern Hanzhong, and Qianzhong.

Originally, the territory of Chu was the highest among all countries, but now it is not only surpassed by Qin, but it is about to catch up with Zhao.

As for the population, there is no need to mention. The state of Chu is located in the south, but it is originally vast and sparsely populated, and cannot be compared with the princes of the Central Plains. In the past few years, it lost Nanyang County, which is the most populous, which is simply worse.

In general, in one sentence, Chu State is now losing too much blood and urgently needs to replenish blood.

How to make up for it? Then you must have to seize land and population from other countries.

The ministers of Chu who were present naturally had no objection to this.

Now that the four-nation alliance is arguing Qi, the two sides are launching a fierce battle. As the only neutral country among the seven major warring countries, how can it be reasonable to not take the opportunity to gain some benefits?

If you want to join the war, it is inevitable to choose one of them.

Which side should I join?

At this point, the ministers of Chu State had different differences.

Although Xiong Zilan, the chief magistrate of Chu, was young, always very bold in speaking. He said without hesitation: "King, I think the world has been suffering for a long time! Qi took away our Great Chu Huaibei land, and now it is time to take this opportunity to unite Zhao Qin and other countries to destroy Qi and restore Huaibei land in one fell swoop. Such a great Chu will be strong just around the corner!"

After Xiong Zilan finished speaking, the ministers looked different.

Zuo Yin Jingcui wanted to speak but stopped. Zhaoju and Grand Sima Zhao often looked at each other without saying a word.

The political structure of the Chu State has been that the royal family (royal family) have been ruled by the three major families of Zhaojingqu and Qu, and the other four people present happened to be from the three major families of Zhaojingqu.

Xiong Zilan is the youngest brother of the King of Chu, and is undoubtedly the person who is most trusted by the King of Chu. In fact, these three old ministers knew very well in their hearts that rather than saying that Xiong Zilan's words were his own idea, it would be better to say that the King of Chu used Xiong Zilan's mouth to say what he wanted to say.

Since that's the case, who dares to object easily?

Even if you have to object, you can't be considered a leader.

But if they are not good, some people will do it.

The first person to object is the only one left - Qu Yuan.

Qu Yuan is a very bold person.

During the reign of King Huai of Chu, Qu Yuan once served as the Left Yin of Chu (i.e. Deputy Prime Minister), and carried out reforms with the support of King Huai of Chu, trying to follow what Wu Qi did in Chu, eliminate the ills of Chu and make Chu become stronger.

However, most of the disadvantages of the Chu State were related to the three major families of Zhaojing and Qu who had been in charge of the government for many years. Qu Yuan's reform inevitably touched the interests of the three major families. Needless to say, the Jing family and the Zhao family were, even Qu Yuan's own Qu family stood opposite Qu Yuan.

With such a powerful opposition, and Qu Yuan's ability was far inferior to Wu Qi, Qu Yuan's reform only put forward a slogan, and after doing a few trivial things, he ended in vain. He himself was dismissed from Zuo Yin and forced to work at home.

Until King Huai of Chu died, because the Qu family leader Qu Gai was defeated in the war with Qin, the successor Qu Tong soon died of old age. The Qu family, who had no one in the clan, had to push Qu Yuan out again.

So Qu Yuan was appointed again and became Mo Ao of Chu, who was in charge of the royal family and participated in the political discussion.

Although he encountered such setbacks, Qu Yuan still remained unchanged in his original intentions. His whole personality was still so straightforward. He would give advice if he didn't like it.

At this moment, Qu Yuan said directly: "Ling Yin's words seem to make some sense, but in fact they are not good for the long-term use of the Great Chu."

Xiong Zilan frowned immediately and looked at Qu Yuan with dissatisfaction: "What does Mo Ao mean? You might as well tell me clearly."

Qu Yuan talked jokingly: "The king, the emperor, Qi State is the overlord, but it is also an ally of the Great Chu, and the threat to the Great Chu is not very great. On the contrary, Qin State not only seized the Great Chu Hanzhong, Qianzhong, and Nanyang, but also threatened the Great Chu Yandu and Yingdu. This is the life-and-death enemy that Great Chu really needs to pay attention to! If Qi State is defeated by Qin State, then Qin State's arrogance will become even more rampant, and the threat to the Great Chu will become even more serious! At that time, if one does not investigate, the two capitals of Yan and Ying will fall into the hands of the Qin people, it will not be empty talk!"

Qu Yuan's words were very intense. After saying this, all the Chu kings and ministers present were moved.

It sounds quite reasonable.

But it did not convince Ling Yin Xiong Zilan.

Xiong Zilan raised her eyebrows and immediately retorted: "Mo Ao's words are wrong! For our Great Chu, whether it is Qin or Qi, it is an enemy. Qin has indeed taken away a lot of land in our Great Chu, but Qi has also taken away the Huaibei land of Great Chu in conjunction with the four-nation coalition forces. Now if we stand on the side of Qi and fight against the four-nation coalition forces, let alone whether we can win, even if Qi really wins, what benefits can the Great Chu get? On the contrary, if we stand on the side of the coalition forces, Qi will definitely be defeated, and Great Chu will definitely be able to retake Huaibei. Isn't that good?"

Qu Yuan said seriously: "Ling Yin, whether Huaibei can be recaptured is irrelevant to the overall situation. But if Qin continues to be strong and Yan and Ying are surrounded or even broken, it will be a matter that will truly affect the fate of the Great Chu State! How could Ling Yin's vision be so short-sighted?"

Xiong Zilan was furious by Qu Yuan's criticism and shouted: "Qu Yuan, don't talk nonsense here. Yandu is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians guarding him. Even if Qin's army is full of power, there is no way to attack! The Qin people cannot pass Yandu, so why should they attack Yingdu and threaten the fate of the Great Chu? Besides, now regaining Huaibei to enhance the power of the Great Chu, isn't it better than standing on the side of Qi and fighting with the four countries head-on? If you fight with the four countries, Qi will protect the three counties of Song after a hard battle. What else can the Great Chu get except for losing troops and losing generals?"

Qu Yuan said: "Since the Great Chu can protect Qi, when the Great Chu sends troops to restore Nanyang next time, Qi will naturally send troops to help!"

Xiong Zilan snorted and said, "Instead of relying on Qi's future help, it is better to take back Huaibei now and hold the land in the hands of Da Chu!"

The two had arguing for a while.

The King of Chu coughed and said, "Okay, okay, don't make any noise!"

Looking at Xiong Zilan and Qu Yuan, the King of Chu also had some headaches.

Why do you have a good discussion on state affairs?

After stopping the two of them from quarrel, the King of Chu turned his attention to the other three important officials: "You all talk about what kind of solution!"

The King of Chu had already ordered the generals, so naturally the other three could no longer remain indifferent.

Zuo Yin Jingcui hesitated for a moment and said, "King, I think... what Mo Ao said makes sense. Qin is coming in a fierce manner, and the Qin army in Nanyang is close at hand, while Huaibei is thousands of miles away from Yingdu. Whether it can be recaptured is not very meaningful. It is better to sell Qi State. If you go to war with Qin State in the future, you can get a big help."

Jing Cui, who had gray hair on her hair, had a calm eyes when she spoke, exuded a sense of firmness.

Jing Cui was a general of Chu. He had already served as the Shangzhu Kingdom when King Huai of Chu. He participated in many major wars between Qin and Chu, and he had always hated Qin.

After hearing Jing Cui's words, Xiong Zilan's face turned cold and she glanced at Zhao Ju and Zhao Chang who had not spoken yet.

Zhao Ju hesitated for a moment and said, "The old minister thinks that although Qin took over Nanyang County, Yandu is an important town that the Great Chu has managed for hundreds of years and is under heavy control. The tentative attack of the Qin people last year has proved that Qin did not have any good solutions to Yandu. For the sake of the present, it is better to assist the princes of the four countries to take over Qi and restore Huaibei."

Another important minister of the Zhao clan, Zhao Chang, naturally stood on the same position as his family member Zhao Ju, and both supported the attack on Qi.

The votes became three to two, and the faction of the Qi army was dominant.

Seeing this, Jing Cui couldn't help but sneer slightly.

Among the three major families of Zhaojingqu, there is also a sequence of order.

For example, the Qu family where Qu Yuan is always at the bottom of the three major families, and they are the kind of character who can only call Liu Liuliu from behind if the two big brothers decide what decision they make.

The Zhao family and the Jing family are different. These two families are basically on the same side. Sometimes the Zhao family serves as the imperial court, and sometimes the Jing family serves as the imperial court. The two families are in turn and they each control the government for decades.

Therefore, the competition between Zhao and Jing is very fierce.

Zhao Ju Zhaochang's remarks were mostly not for the sake of family and country interests, but just wanted to argue with Jing Cui.

But this is what makes Jing Cui helpless.

With the help of the two brothers Zhao Ju Zhao Chang, Yin Xiong Zilan immediately became tough and looked at Qu Yuan and Jing Cui with his chest straightened. He looked at him with sarcasm in his eyes.

At this moment, the King of Chu, who was sitting in the upper head, also coughed and made the final decision.

"What the emperor said is the idea of ​​planning the country. Huaibei is very important. If I can take it but not take it, wouldn't it make the world laugh? Let's do this, Zhaochang Grand Sima, I will give you 100,000 troops, and you can go to Xuzhou."

Qu Yuan was anxious when he heard this: "King..."
Chapter completed!