Upon hearing the wicked husband's words, Ying Zheng, Meng Can, and the others were all taken aback, and the area in front of Zhangtai Palace fell silent.
"The best defense... is offense?" Ying Zheng squinted, seemingly pondering the deeper meaning behind his wicked husband's words.
"I would like to hear your detailed explanation, Grand Commandant."
The wicked man coughed lightly, straightened his back, and replied loudly, "Your Majesty wishes to build the Great Wall to defend against the barbarians' southward advance. However, no matter how high or long the Great Wall is, it can never reach the height of heaven and earth, and it can still be breached."
"Instead of spending large sums of money on such a lengthy project, it would be better to invest it in military equipment, forging, and logistics. At the very least, we could raise the soldiers' wages..."
He paused slightly at this point, then said, "Now that we have a vast amount of money to support us, how can we only think about retreating instead of taking a step forward? War is a matter of great importance to the state. If we do not seize their strength and break their edge, it will be difficult to ensure long-term peace on the border."
Ying Zheng put one hand behind his back and nodded thoughtfully: "I naturally understand the principle of 'offense is defense,' but although my Great Qin is now richer, I am not entirely sure whether it can last long..."
He paused slightly, then continued, "If we are to build the Great Wall, we can simply guard the existing borders. Even if Qin becomes weak in the future, or if a foolish ruler emerges, at least we will have a barrier to defend ourselves."
The wicked man wasn't flustered at all; instead, he smiled and said, "If you're a thief for a thousand days, how can you guard against thieves for a thousand days? If our generation suffers a little, won't future generations be more comfortable?"
Meng Can couldn't help but interject, "Aren't Your Majesty and Grand Commandant being a little too cautious? Right now they're begging our Great Qin like dogs. Do they really think they'll dare to cut off their own source of income and offend our Great Qin in the future?"
"That's exactly what I wanted to remind Your Majesty!" The wicked man sneered, glancing sideways at the outside of Zhangtai Palace. "They are currently unable to resist our sugar, wine, and other material goods, and will only become more dependent on them in the future. But once someone harbors any disloyalty and stirs things up behind our backs... it will ruin our source of wealth."
He turned to Ying Zheng with a determined look in his eyes, "If Your Majesty desires peace overseas, you must take advantage of the current abundance of wealth and the strength of the army to completely defeat the barbarian tribes on the border and further expand our territory!"
"The grasslands pose the greatest threat, so let's uproot them and turn them into pastures for our Qin state to graze our horses and sheep!"
"At that time, firstly, we won't need to build an endless Great Wall to defend against them, and secondly, we can set up trade routes and checkpoints in the newly occupied territories, which will allow us to collect taxes from more barbarians to the west and north—why not?"
"However..." the wicked man suddenly changed his tone, "this is only a temporary measure. We still need to take it upon ourselves to make the whole world Qin territory!"
Ying Zheng remained silent, looking up at the long shadow cast on the palace eaves, and sighed, "After six generations of effort, all for the sake of conquering the six kingdoms in the east..."
"Your child is truly disdainful and has failed your ancestors!"
"The unification of the six kingdoms has not yet been accomplished, and it has already become a matter of the four seas and the world..."
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to his wicked husband and said helplessly, "My predecessors of Qin worked tirelessly day and night, overcoming all difficulties, in order to conquer the six kingdoms in the east. Only now have I managed to destroy four kingdoms, and there are still two kingdoms left to conquer."
"You're already proposing the unification of the world... My descendants... they'll be exhausted!"
Seeing Ying Zheng's slightly troubled expression, the wicked man smiled gently and continued to bow, saying, "Your Majesty, the idea of unifying the four seas sounds like it's a distant dream, but in reality, it's only a matter of ten or eight years."
He changed the subject, his voice unconsciously rising: "Your Majesty, the unification of the world has been a gradual process. From the time Shang Yang enacted the laws, Qin embarked on a development path different from other states: stationing troops on the borders, enriching the people, and enforcing strict laws."
"Now that everything is laid and we have more money than we can hold, all that's missing is to fight and kill people. How much time can that take?"
"Just look at this, every single military general in this hall is a man capable of wreaking havoc."
"Besides, if you don't spend the money, it's not really money anymore. The money that is spent is just accompanying you in another way."
Ying Zheng pondered for a moment, then looked up at his wicked husband and sighed, "Since childhood, I have known that our ancestors have painstakingly worked to completely conquer the six states and no longer be bound by the feudal lords. But if we let future generations bear the expansionist ideal of 'all within and beyond the four seas,' this burden is too heavy."
"Pah! What's so heavy about this?" Meng Can interjected, looking like he was saying, "Look how easygoing I am." "Your Majesty, don't listen to the Grand Commandant's threats. We have more gold and silver than ever before. If we really want to send troops to attack, it will only take two or three years at most. Plus, with taxes and slave labor along the way, we can easily clear the way with a little money."
"Meng Can, don't give me that!" Ying Zheng glanced at him and retorted without any politeness, "Your little schemes are all about money. You have no idea how hard and tiring it is to govern the world. You may be rich, but are you going to work me to death?"
Meng Can blushed and was about to argue when Ying Zheng waved his hand, signaling him to shut up.
Ying Zheng lowered his eyelids slightly, as if deep in thought. After a moment, he suddenly chuckled softly: "To conquer the six kingdoms, I am not yet twenty years old. I have plenty of time ahead... It would be quite boring without some rivals!"
"The whole world, inside and outside the borders, is Qin territory... I'd like to take a look!"
He turned his head and looked at the already dark sky outside Zhangtai Palace. His voice was low and slow but powerful: "You wicked man, I will remember your words about 'offense as defense.' When we have pacified the six kingdoms, that will be the day when our Great Qin truly shines overseas."
Upon hearing this, the wicked man's expression brightened slightly. "That makes things much easier. To spare Your Majesty some worry, you don't need to concern yourself with the war. Leave it all to me!"
The moment he finished speaking, countless eager gazes fell upon Ying Zheng—from all the military generals in the court. If Ying Zheng agreed, their opportunity would arrive.
"I am very pleased that the Grand Commandant has such a wish!" Ying Zheng coughed lightly, looked at the wicked husband again, and nodded heavily. "The Grand Commandant is a pillar of our Qin state, skilled in both literature and martial arts. I should certainly grant his request."
In that instant, the generals almost couldn't contain their excitement and wanted to cheer.
Once Ying Zheng relents, won't he just let his wicked husband do as he pleases from now on?
They no longer needed to worry about insufficient fighting, lack of opportunities to rise in the war, or being confined to Xianyang to wait for death. Fighting across the world, both domestically and internationally, their numbers were simply too few to be of sufficient use.
Such a 'golden age' is enough to stir one's heart; it is truly a great age for military generals!
The wicked man clasped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty. I propose the establishment of a Privy Council, responsible for managing all military secrets and matters, serving as the supreme military command. This streamlined and unified structure will ensure the smooth flow of military orders..."
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