Qin Shi: I only work eight hours

Chapter 370 The King of Chu Dies a Tragic Death

at the same time.

Shouchun, Chu State.

King Chu was on his deathbed.

"My time is almost up! Quickly summon my uncle!"

The King of Chu, dressed in luxurious clothes, said urgently.

Although he was not old, his health had always been poor.

After Lord Chunshen, Huang Xie, died, Li Yuan, who was also the maternal uncle of King Chu Han, seized power, eliminated dissidents, and killed many innocent people.

As a result, the State of Chu gradually declined.

Although Li Huan was the Empress Dowager and the biological mother of King Han of Chu, King Han disliked her.

Even today, he cannot be certain whether he is the son of the late king or Lord Chunshen, Huang Xie.

If he is not the son of the former king, then he has no legitimacy.

This is why he tolerated Li Yuan's elimination of dissidents.

When Li Yuan learned that the king wanted to see him, he frowned slightly.

King Han of Chu was in poor health. Others might not know, but as his uncle, how could he not be aware?

The fact that Xiong Han suddenly wanted to see him at this time most likely meant that he wanted to entrust his son to someone else.

Thinking of this, Li Yuan had someone bring over Xiong You, the younger brother of King Chu Han.

After King Han of Chu ascended the throne, he had no sons, so the throne had to be passed down from brother to brother.

"Uncle, what happened?"

Upon seeing Li Yuan, Xiong asked, still puzzled.

He was similar to the historical figure Fusu, both being weak-willed.

"It's not clear yet."

Li Yuan did not elaborate.

Because he was only guessing.

Before long, Li Yuan and Xiong You met King Han of Chu.

After exchanging pleasantries, King Han of Chu painstakingly wrote an edict appointing Xiong You as his successor, declaring anyone who refused to comply a treason.

Li Yuan then urgently summoned General Xiang Yan back to Shouchun to guard against any unforeseen circumstances.

Although he has killed many people over the years, there are still quite a few people who have opinions about him.

……

Five days later.

King Han of Chu died.

With the support of Xiang Yan and Li Yuan, Xiong You, the younger brother of King Han of Chu, succeeded to the throne.

Empress Dowager Li Yan ruled from behind the curtain.

Li Yan originally did not want to get involved in politics, but Li Yuan said that Xiong You was no more fierce than Xiong, and if she did not help them, they would all be doomed.

Left with no other choice, Li Yan had to act as regent for the Empress Dowager.

In reality, Li Yan knew nothing about politics, so major decisions in the Chu Kingdom were still made by Li Yuan alone.

Fu Chu, the son of King Kaolie of Chu, was very dissatisfied with this, but he chose to endure it.

"My Lord".

"If this continues, our Great Chu will soon become like the states of Han and Zhao!"

"Why don't you take this opportunity to get rid of Li Yuan, Li Huan, Xiong You, and the others?"

His retainers advised him.

"This is a matter of great importance, and we must be fully prepared."

"It is not enough for only the three clans of Qu Jingzhao to agree."

"This matter can only be accomplished if the General stays out of it."

"We've endured this for so many years, what's a few more months?"

Fu Chu's voice was deep and resonant.

He decided to visit Xiang Yan in person in a few days.

Xiang Yan held considerable military power, and his support was crucial.

With Xiang Yan's help, he can take down Li Yuan, Xiong You, and the others by the end of the month!

When news of King Chu Han's death and his brother Xiong You's succession reached Xianyang, Xu Lin was teaching Zhao Ji soft arts.

Although Xu Lin himself doesn't know jujitsu, even if he hasn't eaten pork, he's still seen pigs run.

Soon, Zhao Ji was drenched in sweat.

Seeing this, Xu Lin not only did not tell Zhao Ji to stop, but also told her to speed up.

After everything calmed down, Hongzao gently knocked on the wooden door.

"What's the matter?"

Zhao Ji felt like her waist was about to break.

Xu Lin said that only in this way can he get sick less often in the future.

"The King of Chu has passed away."

Red Dates replied respectfully.

Zhao Ji showed little interest in this, while Xu Lin dressed and left Ganquan Palace.

If nothing unexpected happens, Ying Zheng will summon him to discuss the campaign against Chu.

Sure enough, not long after Xu Lin returned home, a car came to pick him up.

When Xu Lin arrived at the main hall of Xianyang Palace, Wei Liao, Li Si, and the others were deep in thought. "Sir, you've finally arrived."

"I'm sure all of you ministers have heard about the passing of the King of Chu. Now, let's share our opinions."

Ying Zheng had Xu Lin sit to his left.

Because the Warring States period was a time of separate meals, even if you were sitting on the left, there were still several steps between you and the person sitting on the right.

"Your Majesty."

"Your subject is willing to lead troops to attack Chu!"

"After Lord Chunshen's death, the State of Chu suffered a decline in talent and gradually weakened. I only need 200,000 troops to destroy Chu!"

Li Xin was the first to step forward.

Although he is young, he is very brave.

Upon hearing this, Lord Changping, who was sitting to Ying Zheng's right, lowered his head.

With Empress Dowager Huayang dead, his greatest reliance in the State of Chu was himself.

It's a pity that Xiong You had already succeeded to the throne; otherwise, if he had returned to Shouchun, the throne of Chu would most likely have been his.

Although Lord Changping served Qin for many years, he still harbored feelings for the State of Chu.

But unlike the previous Lord Yangquan, he rarely showed it.

Two hundred thousand?

"The State of Chu is vast; could 200,000 really swallow up the entire State of Chu?"

Ying Zheng had doubts about this.

The Qin sword, once drawn, has always been meant to drink human blood. Since the intention is to attack Chu, victory is the only goal.

Losing is something he cannot accept.

"Your Majesty."

"I believe this matter should not be rushed."

"The State of Zhao has just been destroyed and still needs to digest the damage, so the campaign against Chu can be postponed."

Han Fei offered his advice.

He did not believe that now was a good time to attack Chu.

As the saying goes, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse; no matter how weak the State of Chu was, it was still not comparable to the State of Han.

Even the State of Zhao was mostly no match for the State of Chu.

The fact that the King of Chu was incompetent does not mean that the State of Chu was easy to destroy.

Was King Zhao Qian not incompetent?

Even with Xu Lin's assistance and overwhelming military strength, Wang Jian and his son's campaign against Zhao still lasted almost a year.

"I think this is an opportunity."

Changping spoke.

"Oh?"

Ying Zheng was somewhat surprised.

Lord Changping was a prince of Chu. How could he agree to attack Chu first?

"As far as I know, whether it is Xiong Han or Xiong You, they are both short-sighted people."

"As for Li Yuan, let alone comparing him to prime ministers like Shang Yang and Zhang Yi, he is far inferior even to Lü Buwei and Fan Ju."

"Therefore, with Xiong You succeeding to the throne and Li Yuan continuing to hold absolute power, the State of Chu will inevitably be in turmoil and in great chaos. At this time, launching a military campaign against Chu will surely be a decisive victory!"

Changping Jun spoke eloquently.

He planned to use this opportunity to go to the State of Chu, then betray the State of Qin and become the King of Chu.

With the states of Wei, Yan, and Qi still existing, and the addition of Chu, they might not be inferior to Qin.

Did Qin possess powerful mechanical arts?

My Great Chu can seek out the Mohist school's non-aggression mechanical techniques.

Did Qin have the assistance of the Confucian scholar Xunzi?

My Great Chu can go to the Nine Palaces Mountain in the Divine Capital to seek help from the Yin-Yang School!

Xu Lin saw through Changping Jun's thoughts at a glance, but he did not expose him.

"Your Majesty."

"I believe we should deploy troops on the border and force Chu to cede cities."

"After we have fully assimilated the Zhao state, we will then launch an attack on Chu."

Zhang Liang said.

The State of Chu is vast and has a million armored soldiers. It would be best to destroy it last. Destroying it now would only give Wei, Yan, and Qi an opportunity.

Who doesn't understand the principle of starting with the easy and then moving to the difficult?

"I second that proposal!"

Li Si and others followed closely behind.

Xu Lin also agreed.

"Can!"

Ying Zheng nodded.

Then he gave the tiger tally to Meng Ao, because Li Xin was still too young and needed more experience.

……

A month later.

More than 100,000 Qin troops were stationed on the border.

King Xiong You of Chu was forced to cede a city to buy time to deal with those who opposed him from within.

After learning of this, Fu Chu began to spread rumors, saying that Xiong Han and Xiong You were not the sons of the late king, but the sons of Lord Chunshen, and that Li Huan had an affair with Lord Chunshen. Therefore, Li Huan, Li Yuan, Xiong Han, and Xiong You were all unforgivable.

Fu Chu dared to act this way because Xiang Yan had promised not to side with either side. (End of Chapter)