Chapter 52: Alliance to Conquer Chu
For four hundred years, whenever the State of Luo sent envoys to the southern countries, it proved that the State of Chu was once again threatening the royal family and the Central Plains.
Among the various states in the Xia Dynasty, the most powerful ones, such as Jin, Luo, Qi, Wei, and Song, were all great countries granted fiefdoms by King Wu and King Su. They were either clan relatives of the Ji clan, relatives of the Jiang clan, or nobles of the previous dynasty. When the country was just founded, they were all dukes and marquises with high titles.
It is normal that you cannot compare with these people. After all, the resources you start with and your closeness to the royal family are different.
But the State of Chu just happened to emerge!
When my predecessor was granted the title, he was only a viscount.
The granted land was only fifty miles in area, and it was in a place like Han River where there were savages everywhere. When things got tough, they even had to steal sacrificial supplies from neighboring countries.
As a result, they managed to fight their way out of such a difficult situation and became a major country of great influence. This is so admirable.
Since the time of Luo Su, successive Luo kings have attached great importance to the State of Chu, and Luo Xiu was naturally the same.
Therefore, although the State of Chu has not yet revealed its intention to march into the Central Plains, Luo Xiu has already begun to plan a trap for the State of Chu.
Luo Xiu sent three waves of envoys to the states of Chu, Ying and Wu respectively.
The envoys from Ying and Wu were both official missions, while the envoy from Chu was sent in Luo Xiu's personal capacity. They were not on diplomatic missions, but simply to visit elders.
Needless to say, Ying State is an ally of Luo State, and it is indispensable for the encirclement and interception of Chu State. Wu State is a new vassal that Luo Xiu has paid attention to.
Huaiyi was defeated so badly and suffered great losses in strength, and was then severely beaten by the other states, among which Chu and Wu benefited the most.
When Luo Xiu was preparing to connect the princes, he noticed the existence of the State of Wu, which was like a knife that could stab directly into the heart of the State of Chu.
Therefore, Luo Xiu planned to support Qi in the Central Plains, and then contact the princes in Wu and Yue. If Chu really planned to attack from Cai and Chen, he would join forces with Wu and Yue to teach Chu a severe lesson.
This set of combos is worthy of the power struggle attribute of 90. His level of governing the country is average, but he is very good at forming alliances and maintaining a balance.
The person in charge who went to the State of Chu was an elegant middle-aged man. He was not ordinary, as he was the son of the previous Marquis of Luo and the younger brother of Luo Xiu. However, because he was born out of wedlock, he could not be given the surname Luo.
Because his mother was from the State of Chen, he took Chen as his surname.
Although he is not a direct descendant of the Luo Kingdom royal family, as one of Luo Xiu's most trusted people, Chen Chen holds a pivotal position in the Luo Kingdom.
This time, Luo Xiu sent him to the State of Chu, one to celebrate the birthday of his elder, and the other to take a look at the situation in the State of Chu and find out their strength.
Accompanying them was also a direct descendant of the third generation of the Luo family. The reason why Luo Xi was not sent was mainly because Chu had a criminal record. If he was detained again, they really didn't know what to do.
The distance from Zhaocheng to Yingdu is several thousand miles. The reason why people traveled such a long distance to celebrate the birthday was mainly because this elder was special.
His surname is Luo, and his given name is Yu. He is the undisputed direct descendant of the Luo family!
If all the royal family members in Luo State were suddenly wiped out, then this person would be able to inherit the position of the head of the Luo family.
At a time when all the elders in Luo State have passed away, this person is the most senior person in the Luo family.
They were the lineage of Luo Yan who served in the State of Chu back then.
Now, nearly a hundred years have passed, and only this long-lived old man remains of the Luo clan.
After his death, this branch of the Chu State could no longer worship King Su.
The Luo family of Chu was very prosperous. Although they were not in Luo State, they could still provide some luck points for Ji Zhao, so Ji Zhao paid them some attention and even used luck points to bless them with the blessings of their ancestors.
Ever since Luo Yan entered Chu, the Luo family of Chu has always been the top wealthy family in Chu.
Facts have proved that the trust that the King of Chu and the Marquis of Chu later placed in the Luo family was correct.
In recent years, the territory of Chu has more than doubled. Most of the Hanyang princesses who once blocked Chu from moving north have now submitted to Chu and become its dependencies.
The two largest Hanyang vassal states, Shen and Sui, had been surrounded by Chu, especially Sui, which was completely surrounded by Chu and its vassal states.
If it weren't for Ying State's long-term support, I'm afraid it would have not been able to hold on and become a vassal state of Chu.
Now standing in the way of the State of Chu are the States of Shen, Sui, Ying, Zheng and Chen. Among them, the truly reliable ones are Ying and Zheng, and these are also the ones that Luo Xiu needs to fight for.
Once the State of Chu integrates these princes, advances into the Central Plains, and leaves through the State of Cai, the State of Chen will be vulnerable, and the State of Song has always been weak and will certainly not be able to stop it. Then the State of Luo will have to face the Chu army head-on.
Yingdu.
Upon learning that Luo State was going to send someone, the shrewd Luo Yu immediately knew what Luo Xiu was going to do, so he asked his grandsons to carry him to the Palace of King Chu.
At that time, King Xi ceded the State of Tang to the State of Chu, so the State of Chu did not pursue the matter of Crown Prince Dao and accepted the official statement of the Zhou royal family.
From then on, Chu called itself "king" internally and "marquis" when communicating with other states, switching between the two identities quite flexibly.
Luo Yu had served as Prime Minister of Chu for more than 20 years and enjoyed great prestige. Entering the palace was like going home. His face, covered with age spots, had no expression at all and he looked so majestic and calm that it was frightening.
The current Queen Mother of Chu is the legitimate daughter of the Luo family, and the current King of Chu is Luo Yu's nephew, who grew up under Luo Yu's guidance.
"Uncle, you are old and in poor health. You should rest more."
When the King of Chu saw that his uncle, whom he had always been somewhat afraid of, had come to the palace in person, he asked hurriedly, "What is this important matter that would trouble you to come here?"
Luo Yu was indeed very old, and now he didn't care about almost anything. Even the setbacks in the war and the heavy losses of soldiers and generals in the past few years did not allow him to say a word.
Luo Yu lay on the couch and said in a deep voice: "Lord, do you know that the Lord of Luo State sent someone to celebrate my birthday?"
The King of Chu nodded and said, "Of course we will notify you when a large number of troops enter the country. You are the elder of the Luo family, so it is normal for the Marquis of Luo to send someone to congratulate you on your birthday."
"normal?"
A hint of sneer appeared on Luo Yu's lips. He was a descendant of the Luo family. Didn't he know what kind of people the Luo family heads of all generations were?
On the surface, it can be said that the State of Chu had made great efforts, but as soon as the State of Chu dared to move north, countless princes would immediately unite to block it!
Fighting the barbarians is fine.
To revitalize the Chinese nation, yes.
Want to emulate the predecessor Xiong Dun and conquer the Central Plains? Sure, just step over Luo's corpse!
"If it was before, it would be normal, but haven't you heard about the unusual movements of the princes in the Central Plains these days?"
"Are you talking about the Duke of Qi holding a meeting in Cangyi?"
The King of Chu thought about it and thought that this was the only thing worth paying attention to. "I heard that there were only eight princes present, which is not as many as the princes who came when I ascended the throne."
When the King of Chu ascended the throne, there were more vassal states than when the Emperor of Zhou ascended the throne, which shows the power of Chu.
"My Lord, do not be so dismissive!"
Luo Yu solemnly reminded: "Those princes are almost all of the Ji surname. They surrendered because the royal family and the princes of the Central Plains could not preserve their land.
If the Central Plains were strong, they would not be as obedient as they are now.
The Duke of Qi summoned the princes in the name of the emperor, and the State of Luo supported this action, which proved that the princes in the Central Plains had begun to integrate.
In the future, it will surely become the overlord of Central Plains, and its status will not be inferior to that of Chu in the south. If Chu wants to go north to dominate, it will have to face the entire Central Plains.
My Lord, do you think Chu can defeat the entire Central Plains?"
Hearing what Luo Yu said, the King of Chu was shocked. Although he was confident, he knew in his heart that it was impossible for the State of Chu to compete with the entire Central Plains.
"Uncle, what should we do then?" He asked with a cold light flashing in his eyes. Since those Hanyang princesses are unreliable, it is better to do it once and for all and eliminate the trouble once and for all!
Once this thought arose, he could not stop it at all. As soon as Luo Yu saw the King of Chu's expression, he knew what he was thinking.
He said angrily, "What? You want to kill them? The concubines were not obedient to the Marquis of Qi. If you take action, everyone will be in danger. The ruler and ministers of Qi will probably laugh at you every day."
"Uncle, I dare not." Luo Yu was angry. The King of Chu knew that he had thought too simply and said embarrassedly.
"Come closer to my ear."
Hearing Luo Yu's thoughts, the light in King Chu's eyes became brighter and brighter.
Ji Zhao looked at this scene and couldn't help but sigh. People's hearts are really fickle, and the Luo family is no exception.
When Luo Yan first entered the Chu State, he was able to coordinate the relationship between the Chu State and the princes of the Central Plains. That was also the honeymoon period between the princes of the Central Plains and the Chu State.
By Luo Yu's generation, they had completely put Chu State first. By the next generation, they had completely become nobles of Chu State, and only a little relationship remained with the Luo family.
Let’s not talk about the issue of changing the surname. Even if he didn’t, as a true legitimate descendant, when Luo Yu saw that his three legitimate sons did not have red dots between their eyebrows, he knew that his sons had lost the attention of King Su.
He found it a little hard to accept, but there was no way he would betray his own family name.
He could only try his best to strengthen the State of Chu while not harming the Zhou royal family and the State of Luo. Anyway, by the time the State of Chu had the strength to move north, he would most likely have died, and his affairs after his death would not be his responsibility.
…
Chu was strong, but it was not allowed to enter the Central Plains for 400 years. Why?
Duke Mu established five states along the Han River, Duke Wen established four Ji states in Hanyang, and Duke Ming united four states with the surname Ji, all of which were using the many weak to control the one strong.
The school of diplomacy began from this time. ——"Book of Han·Yiwenzhi"
I really like the State of Chu, from their culture of the Supreme God Taiyi, especially the Chuci.
Since you like him so much, then beat him up a bit. After all, it was a common practice for overlords in the Spring and Autumn Period to hold alliances to repel foreign invaders and beat the State of Chu.
(End of this chapter)
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