Chapter 148 Sweet Talk
After Zhao defeated Qin, the whole country celebrated and the King of Zhao held a three-day banquet to entertain his ministers.
The lights in the palace were as bright as day, and the sounds of stringed instruments were endless.
The ministers toasted each other, laughed and celebrated the great victory together. Maids on both sides held wine jugs and served them wine and food.
When Li Mu appeared in armor, the surroundings suddenly fell silent.
The guards hurriedly stopped him, "General, please put down your weapons."
Li Mu took off the dagger from his waist and stepped into the hall. The smell of alcohol and the ubiquitous scent of powder made him frown.
Zhao Wangqian was drunken and leaning on the throne with his head propped up. Seeing Li Mu coming, his eyes lit up and he said, "My meritorious minister has arrived. Why don't you quickly give him a seat?"
In order to show his appreciation for Li Mu, King Zhao placed Li Mu's position on par with that of prime minister.
Li Mu sat on the left, and Prime Minister Guo Kai sat on the right.
King Zhao Qian said with a smile, "Li Qing has been defending the border against the Xiongnu for many years and rarely comes to this palace. Today, he must not return until he is drunk."
He raised his glass, and Li Mu stood up to drink with King Zhao. His posture was respectful, but his expression remained serious.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Li Qing's talent is comparable to Wu An's. It would be a shame to let you be a mere general. How about I confer the title of Wu An Jun on you today?"
Guo Kai echoed, "General Li is a brave warrior with extraordinary talent and wisdom. If he can't be the Marquis of Wu'an, then who else in this world can be?"
King Zhao laughed heartily.
All the ministers congratulated him.
Li Mu couldn't laugh.
Wu'an Jun was indeed the pinnacle of military generals, but the former Wu'an Jun, the famous Qin general Bai Qi, was given a sword by the Qin King to commit suicide because he repeatedly disobeyed the orders of King Zhaoxiang of Qin. The name Wu'an Jun still made millions of children in their Zhao State cry every night.
Is this title given to him a reward or a warning?
Li Mu had his doubts, but he still had to bow his head and thank the king for his grace.
Upon seeing this, King Qian of Zhao sneered and stopped looking at him. He raised his hand and asked someone to replace the dancers.
Guo Kai shook the wine glass in his hand, his eyes fell on Li Mu, his eyes flashing with brilliance. What if he resisted the Qin army? If he displeased King Zhao, even if Li Mu conquered Qin, he would still be just a chess piece in the hands of the king that could be discarded at any time.
Guo Kai stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, today the whole nation is celebrating. I dare to offer this small gift to congratulate Your Majesty and the State of Zhao."
Zhao Wangqian raised his eyebrows, "Oh, my dear, what did you bring?"
Guo Kai raised his hands and clapped them together. Rows of maids, holding all kinds of exquisite porcelain, lined up in front of King Zhao and his ministers.
"This is jade porcelain I bought from Qin. Its texture is like jade, and its sound is like a chime. One piece is worth a thousand pieces of gold."
When he heard that it was something from Qin, King Qian of Zhao frowned. No matter how good the thing was, it belonged to someone else.
Seeing this, Guo Kai smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I have also found a Qin man. He knows how to make this porcelain and is willing to serve my State of Zhao. I have brought him here today. Would Your Majesty like to meet him?"
Although King Qian of Zhao indulged in pleasure, he was not a stupid person. As soon as the war between Qin and Zhao ended, the Qin people came to visit him, and he had to doubt their intentions.
"Why did he come to Zhao State for no reason?"
Guo Kai explained with a smile, "A slave always wants to climb the ladder! In Qin, he will be nothing more than a eunuch his whole life, but if he is favored by the king, he will be able to obtain a high position and generous salary without any difficulty."
"Eunuch?" King Zhao Qian became interested.
Guo Kai explained, "He was originally a eunuch serving the King of Qin. The King was blind and didn't recognize his talents. He also offended the King's favorite, Lü Le, and was exiled to Yongcheng. Now he spends his days reselling goods to make a living. When he heard the news that Zhao had defeated Qin, he rushed to join you."
King Qian of Zhao laughed heartily. What could be more joyful than his men voluntarily coming to join him after he defeated the enemy?
Zhao Wangqian said in a deep voice: "Let him in!"
Gao Sheng waited at the palace gate for a long time. Even though he was well prepared, his heart still beat faster when he had to face King Zhao.
Guo Kai was the prime minister of Zhao State, second only to the emperor and above everyone else. He only wanted money, so it was easy to satisfy him. However, King Zhao was the monarch of Zhao State after all, so he might not be so easy to deal with.
Gao Sheng paced back and forth nervously. The eunuch found it funny. This Qin man was really as cowardly as a mouse. He could not help but raise his chin slightly with disdain in his eyes.
"Xuan Gaosheng comes to the audience."
"Xuan Gaosheng comes to see the emperor—"
Gao Sheng straightened his robes, and the moment he stepped into the palace, his originally straight back suddenly hunched down, and his face was full of uneasiness.
His cautious look obviously pleased King Zhao, and the doubts in his heart disappeared.
"I am Gaosheng, the humble one, and I am here to meet the king!" Gaosheng knelt on the ground, kowtowed and shouted.
King Qian of Zhao said with satisfaction, "Get up! You originally sold porcelain for Qin, and now you're bringing this porcelain-making method to my country, Zhao. Aren't you afraid of the King of Qin's blame?"
"Zhao has already defeated Qin, so why should we fear the King of Qin? I came to Zhao because I believe the Zhao army is more valiant than the Qin army. Furthermore, the Qin army has been badly defeated, suffering countless casualties, and their commander has fled. The Qin army is so weak that it has no chance of making a comeback within five years. In those five years, I believe Zhao will become even more powerful than Qin."
"Ha ha ha ha!"
“Hahahahahahaha!”
The King of Zhao laughed loudly, and all his ministers laughed loudly.
Only Li Mu stared at Gao Sheng, never taking his eyes off him, with a gloomy expression on his face. This man was speaking sweet words, and no one knew what his intention was.
Others may look down on the Qin army, but as the commander of the Zhao army, he knows best how powerful the Qin army is. If the Zhao army fights directly with the Qin army, Zhao will not be able to stop it.
Gao Sheng noticed Li Mu's gaze and smiled at him.
King Qian of Zhao was indeed very confident in himself. He believed that his intelligence was superior to that of his son Ying Zheng. When Ying Zheng was in Zhao, he was not even worthy of carrying his shoes. So what if he became the King of Qin? He was destined to lose to him, Zhao Qian.
Unfortunately, King Huiwen of Zhao left behind a mess, with less than 300,000 Zhao soldiers left. Otherwise, today would not be just a celebration of defeating the Qin invaders, but a celebration of taking over the Qin land.
"You are quite interesting. Come forward and let me take a closer look." King Zhao waved his hand.
Gaosheng got up from the ground and walked forward with his back bent.
"You have a good appearance, but being a eunuch is a waste of your talent. Since you are under the Prime Minister, you will be a guest official of the State of Zhao. If you have made any contributions, you will be rewarded and given a seat at the table."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Gao Sheng was overjoyed and knelt in thanks, but he didn't get up immediately. Instead, he continued, "Your Majesty, the King of Qin relies on this porcelain to exchange for the world's treasures to raise his army and forge swords. If Your Majesty trusts me, I can also use this porcelain to exchange for tens of millions of taels of gold for you."
Guo Kai echoed, "Since Qin has Qin porcelain, then my Zhao might as well have Zhao porcelain. Then Your Majesty will not only defeat Qin on the battlefield, but also surpass it in trade."
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