Chapter 293: Diplomatic Mission to Qin
He asked tentatively, "What does this have to do with me?"
Although he was a Wei person, he had no idea of reviving Wei, nor did he have any intention of helping Qin attack Wei.
"Sir, you are eloquent. I would like to ask you to serve as an envoy for the State of Qin and persuade the King of Wei to open the city gates and surrender."
Li Shiqi refused without hesitation, "Although I have some eloquence, it is impossible for me to convince the King of Wei."
Although the King of Wei has no achievements now, he is a resolute man and will never surrender. Sending an envoy to him would simply be sending a head to the King of Wei.
"I know this is difficult, but please don't refuse so quickly, sir."
Zhao Yuanxi said slowly, "The King of Wei is holding his ground because he's convinced he can withstand Qin's encirclement. But what if I say they'll only face certain death if they hold on?"
She then unfolded a map of the Qin-Wei border, spread it on the rattan chair where Li Shiqi had just been lying, and pointed at the land of Zhao and Han. "Now that Qin has conquered both Zhao and Han, only Wei remains of the former Jin. Yan has temporarily retreated to Liaodong and is no longer able to confront Qin. Qi stopped interfering in the affairs of other states long ago and will certainly not send troops to support Wei. As for Chu—General Wang Jian is guarding the Qin-Chu border. If Chu dares to come, Qin will kill them. Now Wei is struggling alone and will not receive any reinforcements from other countries."
"The King of Wei has an army of 400,000 men, but they are all currently being held hostage in Dangyin. Suxukou has also been occupied by our Qin army, leaving Daliang as a mere isolated city."
"Even though Daliang City has tens of thousands of defenders, it will certainly not be able to withstand the siege of our Qin army."
Li Shiqi was a little dissatisfied. "The wall of Daliang is more than 20 zhang high and 20 zhang wide at the base. There is also a 20 zhang wide moat around it. Even if the Qin army doubled its strength, they would not be able to take Daliang City."
"Really?" Zhao Yuanxi smiled. "Sir, do you still remember how General Bai Qi of Qin captured Yancheng of Chu? Attacking Yancheng with water requires building dams and digging canals, but flooding Daliang only requires partially diverting the river. Right now, it's flood season on the Yellow River, and the water is plentiful. If we divert the Yellow River water into Daliang, do you think Daliang can still hold out?"
The city wall of Daliang could stop the Qin army, but it could not stop the flood. Moreover, the city wall was made of rammed earth structure, and the most feared thing was being soaked in water. Once soaked in water for a long time, it would inevitably collapse.
When Li Shiqi thought of this possibility, his face turned grim.
The reason why Queen Mother Zhao could speak of this plan so openly was because this was a dead end, a dead end for Daliang City.
Unless Wei could eliminate the 150,000 Qin troops outside Daliang City, it could only watch the Yellow River water pour into the city. But if Wei really had a way to defeat the Qin army, it would not choose to retreat into the city and confront the Qin army.
Zhao Yuanxi sighed, "When soldiers from two countries clash, casualties are common, but the civilians in this city are ultimately innocent. Therefore, I implore you to speak on behalf of our Qin State and persuade the King of Wei."
"What if I don't agree?" Li Shiqi spoke slowly. It was not that he was not confident in himself, but he knew the character of the King of Wei very well. Going on a diplomatic mission to Wei on behalf of Qin would most likely mean death.
"If you don't agree, then I won't force you. Someone else will do it. Whether it succeeds or not, that's up to fate."
Li Shiqi frowned and rubbed his hands unconsciously. He was hesitating.
Is it really worth taking such a big risk for Qin? If the Qin-Wei negotiations fail, then hundreds of thousands of people in Daliang City will have nothing to do but wait for death.
Seeing this, Zhao Yuanxi was actually somewhat happy. As long as he hesitated, the matter could still be discussed.
"Why did the Queen Mother entrust this matter to me?" He did not think that Qin State had no one who could send an envoy.
"Sir, you are a Wei citizen, not an official of our Qin. This is your advantage. Moreover, I believe in your ability. Even if I cannot convince the King of Wei, I will find a way to escape unscathed."
"You, Queen Mother, have given me a real challenge!"
"Sir, you boast of your great talent. Isn't this a challenge to you? If you can convince the King of Wei, then you will be the Zhang Yi of Qin, and you will surely be known throughout the world."
Li Shiqi's heart was beating like a drum. There were many talented people in the world, but very few had the opportunity to display their talents. Now that he had such an opportunity, he was actually afraid!
He couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Your Majesty, what you said is very reasonable. In life, all we want is to achieve success and fame. If I succeed, my name will be passed down through the ages. If I fail, then my life will not be in vain."
"Sir, you are such a straightforward person!"
Zhao Yuanxi knew that she was not mistaken.
"Since you have agreed, sir, we can open the box and see what's inside."
Li Shiqi's curiosity was piqued. He opened the wooden box and found several round balls inside. "What are these?"
"This is the black gunpowder I developed. I hope it can give you some bargaining chips." Zhao Yuanxi detonated another one according to the previous test.
Li Shiqi's ears buzzed as he stared at the rubble on the ground. He stood there in a daze for a moment. After a long moment, he muttered, "The Qin State has this thing. Can't it break through Daliang City?"
Zhao Yuanxi smiled helplessly and said, "Although this thing is powerful, it has no destructive power against rammed earth walls. It can only target cracked rocks, causing them to collapse from the inside."
Unless there is TNT explosives, it would take at least several tons of black powder and targeted blasting to blow up the city wall.
If they had the time to drill under the city wall and bury several tons of explosives, they could have directly attacked the city wall. Moreover, the power of black gunpowder was limited. Even if a hole was blown out, the Wei army would be able to find a way to block it.
"Although this thing can't be used to attack a city, it's good enough to scare people!"
"You want me to use this to scare the King of Wei?"
"Tell the King of Wei that if he refuses to surrender, this thing can reduce his Daliang city to ruins and change the course of the Yellow River in just a few days."
Li Shiqi stared at the thing in his hand and had to admit that what the Queen Mother said was really feasible. This thing could not blow down the city wall, but it was enough to be thrown into the city to blow up the soldiers on the wall. The noise was also enough to keep the King of Wei awake.
"I understand. I will definitely convince the King of Wei!" The Queen Mother gave him this thing, and his chances of convincing the King of Wei increased a bit. If he still failed and the King of Wei wanted to kill him, then he could use this thing to blow up the King of Wei's palace.
Zhao Yuanxi bowed deeply to him and said, "Then I'll leave everything to you, sir!"
"I will definitely live up to the Queen Mother's trust."
"Before I leave, the king wants to see you again. If you are ready, how about you come with me to the palace to meet him?"
Since he was sent as an envoy to the State of Qin, there was no reason why he should not even meet the King of Qin.
Li Shiqi concealed his excitement at the moment and said, "I would like to go with the Queen Mother."
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