Qin Dynasty: Starting with clinging to Zhao Ji's thigh

The six kingdoms were destroyed, the world was unified, and peace was ushered in!

This is a great ideal, but putting it into practice is by no means a simple matter; thorough preparations must be made beforehand.

Inside Zhangtai Palace, a map covering the seven kingdoms and even the Baiyue region has been fully unfolded.

However, the three of them were looking at different places at this moment.

Ying Jing and Gai Nie were both focused on the state of Han, while Ying Zheng was concerned with the state of Zhao.

"It seems that Third Brother shares the same view as Gai Nie."

Ying Zheng was not annoyed.

He had always disliked the State of Zhao because of his childhood experiences, and the previous attack on the State of Zhao was interrupted by the rebellion of Cheng Jiao, which forced him to stop.

Therefore, he always longed to destroy Zhao and avenge himself as soon as possible.

But these personal emotions are nothing compared to that magnificent cause.

As long as the final outcome remains the same, it makes no difference to Ying Zheng whether he attacks Zhao or Han first.

"The State of Zhao and the State of Qin have a long-standing blood feud, and with Li Mu in command, a direct attack will not be easy."

"Among the seven states, Han is the weakest. It would not be too difficult for Qin to destroy it, which would allow Qin to retain more strength to deal with Zhao and Wei."

Ying Jing spoke calmly: "The only thing we need to worry about is that once the war of annihilation begins, the other countries may send troops to aid South Korea, and South Korea's final counterattack will also bring us losses."

Ying Zheng agreed with Ying Jing's statement: "If we are to attack Han, does Third Brother have any plans?"

Ying Jing pondered for a moment: "According to what my brother said in his earlier letter, the Zheng Guo Canal was a plan devised by King Heng Hui of Han to weaken Qin in the past."

Ying Zheng's face remained calm, but he did not show any anger: "That's right, the State of Zheng has already admitted it."

"The plan to exhaust Qin was real, but the effectiveness of the Zheng Guo Canal was also real."

Ying Jing, on the contrary, smiled and said, "Although the Zheng Guo Canal is extremely expensive, once completed, it will irrigate 40,000 hectares of farmland in Guanzhong. It is a feat that will last for generations. Brother, you don't need to worry about it."

Ying Zheng remained calm: "The Zheng Guo Canal is expected to be completed in another two years. At that time, our Great Qin will have no worries about its eastward expansion."

"Two more years?"

Ying Jing's heart stirred slightly.

He suddenly bowed deeply and said, “Although the Zheng Guo Canal is beneficial to Qin, Zheng Guo’s intention to weaken Qin is also genuine. These people from the six states east of the mountains always think of their homeland and do not wholeheartedly serve Qin. I beg you, my brother, to issue an order to expel these foreign ministers from the six states east of the mountains.”

Upon hearing Ying Jing's words, Gai Nie, who was standing nearby, could no longer hold back.

He shifted slightly, as if he had something to say.

But in this situation, Gai Nie felt it was a bit inappropriate, so his fair and handsome face turned bright red.

Ying Zheng frowned, knowing that Ying Jing had not finished speaking.

"I did have this intention, but remembering what my third brother said in the past, that the people of the six states will eventually become subjects of Qin, I did not make a decision. I suppose my third brother has a plan in mind."

Ying Jing bowed again: "The people of Zheng are from Han. The plan to exhaust Qin was also devised by Han and has nothing to do with other countries. Your Majesty, I urge you to withdraw the order to expel us. I am willing to go to Han and ask King An of Han to offer up the land of Nanyang as an apology."

Gai Nie finally calmed down, and his gaze towards Ying Jing held a hint of admiration.

Gai Nie longed to see the world unified and the people no longer suffering so much, but he did not like war.

Jangshin-gun's move undoubtedly put him in a dangerous position in exchange for the possibility of peacefully annexing Korea!

Ying Zheng's eyes lit up and his face lit up with joy.

"Third brother's plan is brilliant!"

"However, it will not be easy to get South Korea to cede Nanyang."

The State of Han had long been surrounded by the State of Qin on three sides, leaving little territory for the state.

If we lose Nanyang as well, what use will Xinzheng be?

Even if King Han An were incompetent, he would never agree to cede Nanyang.

Ying Jing was naturally well aware of this, and he gave Ying Zheng a deep look: "Brother, Cheng Jiao has the blood of the Han royal family, and the place where he rebelled was Tunliu."

"Cheng Jiao, Tunliu..."

Ying Zheng remained silent, gently tapping his hand on the table as if deep in thought.

Cheng Jiao's rebellion was caused by a combination of factors.

The death of Empress Dowager Xia left the Han faction without its backer, causing it to decline completely. The purge of the Han faction by Ying Zheng, the Chu faction, and even Lü Buwei made Cheng Jiao feel deeply uneasy.

Furthermore... it was the rumor that threatened Ying Zheng's position that gave Cheng Jiao hope, as well as Fan Yuqi's encouragement from the sidelines.

There may be other deeper factors, but none of them could possibly be related to South Korea.

But the truth doesn't matter.

Tunliu is the former territory of Korea, and Cheng Jiao also has the blood of the Korean royal family flowing in her veins. It is not impossible to forcibly link Cheng Jiao's rebellion with Korea.

Ultimately, this is just another excuse, like the strategy of weakening the Qin dynasty, only perhaps with a more compelling reason.

"If my third brother is confident, I can help him."

Ying Zheng eventually agreed.

War always results in death, and if he could take South Korea at the lowest possible cost, he had no reason to refuse.

Before actually annexing South Korea, use these two reasons to cut off pieces of flesh from South Korea.

Even if we cannot force King Han An to surrender Nanyang, we must make him pay a sufficient price.

The more costs South Korea pays now, the weaker it will become.

By the time troops were actually dispatched, the Zheng Guo Canal was already nearly completed.

The weaker the enemy, the stronger I become!

When Qin finally conquered Han, the price it had to pay was negligible.

The best strategy is to subdue the enemy without fighting; winning hearts and minds is superior to attacking cities.

Since the goal is to conquer the world, one must be cautious.

"But everything must be done with your safety as the top priority, Third Brother."

Ying Zheng added another sentence.

"Your Majesty, you can rest assured. Given the weakness of the state of Han, I will be in no danger."

Ying Jing was genuinely not worried.

He himself was no ordinary person who was weak and helpless, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that his subordinates were full of experts.

To take him down, we would need a large army to suppress him.

But does South Korea have the guts to do that?

Ying Zheng nodded. Unless King Han An had gone mad, there was no need to worry about Ying Jing's safety.

"By the way, if Third Brother sees Han Fei, please give him a meeting on my behalf. If he is indeed a man of great talent, you can invite him to Qin."

Indeed, Ying Zheng's true love was Han Fei.

Han Fei, the greatest synthesizer of Legalism, was highly praised by Ying Zheng, who even lavished praise on him in his letters to Ying Jing.

As for the philosophy of mind that Ying Jing pieced together, the fact that he didn't directly restrict its dissemination or criticize it was already out of consideration for Ying Jing and the final supplementary content.

"Brother Wang, please rest assured. Given the current situation in Han, it is not difficult to send Han Fei to Qin as a hostage."

The invitation was Ying Zheng's idea.

Ying Jing's approach was much simpler and more direct.