Wearing Through the Years, Grinding Away Eternity
Everyone nodded in agreement upon hearing this.
Wen Zhong Grand Tutor Wen a veteran official who served three emperors.
He also enjoyed extremely high prestige among the officials of Chaoge.
Ye Xuan was slightly stunned.
Why did these ministers all support a defensive counter-attacking strategy?
Why didn't Chaoge send troops ahead of time?
Wouldn't it have been better for Chaoge to send troops ahead of time and destroy Xiqi?
After all, Xiqi has already announced its rebellion to the world, so why wait for Xiqi to send troops?
Lu Chuan couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.
He then asked directly:
"Since Marquis Ji Chang of the West has announced to the world that he will launch a military campaign against the Great Shang after the autumn harvest, which clearly shows his rebellious intentions, why don't my many ministers suggest that I send troops ahead of schedule?"
Upon hearing Su Changkong's words, all the ministers smiled slightly.
Then Uncle Wang Bi Gan said:
"Your Majesty, this battle is not the same as the previous one. In the past, whether it was the Eastern Yi Clan, the North Sea Seventy-Two Feudal Lords, or Su Hu of Jizhou, they were all far inferior to the Great Shang and Your Majesty."
They are barbarians. As the saying goes, those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts. Therefore, there is no need to apply military tactics to them; we can simply send troops to suppress them.
"However, Marquis Ji Chang of the West, is different. He is the ruler of Xiqi, one of the most powerful feudal lords in the world, with a noble status. He is also a descendant of the Yellow Emperor, so naturally we should treat him with courtesy and fight him openly and fairly."
Is there such a thing as fighting openly and fairly against the enemy?
Is there such a thing as a war of rites?
What is meant by "war of rites"?
This time, Huang Feihu was the first to reply:
"Your Majesty, it's no wonder you don't understand the art of war. Since your ascension to the throne, the targets of your campaigns, such as the Seventy-Two Feudal Lords, the Eastern Yi Clan, or Su Hu of Jizhou, are all small, isolated border regions and foreign tribes. There's no need to treat them with courtesy; simply send a large army to their borders and use your supreme power to completely suppress them."
"However, the battles between the legitimate rulers of the world are different. They involve the future development of the Human Clan and the future succession of the Human Emperor, and must be treated with utmost care."
"Wars between the great feudal lords are super wars where the victor is king and the loser is a bandit, and must be fought with courtesy."
In other words, it was a war between feudal lords. The two sides would notify each other in advance and make preparations. When the time came, the two armies would set out and fight, with one attacking and the other defending. If the attacking side won, it would continue to attack; if the defending side won, it would switch from defense to offense. The two sides should fight as gentlemen.
"If you have the means, use them to your heart's content. As long as you can break through, you can turn defense into offense. If the defending side becomes weak, you can raise the 'no-war' sign. As long as you raise the 'no-war' sign, you can stop the enemy from attacking for a month."
"The two sides fought back and forth, which was considered a matter of courtesy. Only in this way could the people of the world be convinced, and only then could the victor become king."
Upon hearing these words, Ye Xuan was immediately stunned.
Is there really such a saying?
Isn't this just playing house?
Although it sounds respectable, it's nothing more than playing house.
The two sides traded attacks and defenses, sometimes attacking, sometimes retreating, and sometimes attacking.
Is it all for the sake of gaining the trust of the people?
If one resorts to underhanded tactics, even if one defeats the opponent, one may still fail to gain the approval of the people and lose their credibility.
He saw that His Human Emperor was somewhat stunned.
The ministers below immediately spoke up.
"Your Human Emperor, that fellow has already issued an edict, declaring that he will send troops to punish him."
"So this means that Xiqi has already issued an edict, and now they are waiting for us to respond!"
"All we need to do is block their first wave of attacks at Sishui Pass, thwart their momentum, and prevent them from advancing an inch. Then, this first step will be our victory."
"At that time, we can launch a counterattack, sweeping in unimpeded. In this way, we can stand firm both morally and logically, and the people of the world will be convinced!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Xuan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
This is war.
This is a war involving millions or even tens of millions of people.
It would be no exaggeration to call it a bloody and brutal conflict.
But they insisted on using some orthodox methods, which shows how utterly corrupt people were in ancient times.
The essence of war lies in using intrigue and deception to achieve maximum success with minimal cost; this is the true nature of war, the art of war.
Ye Xuan had even prepared a decapitation strike, so wouldn't that be a significant advantage?
If the opponent is no match for you, you can simply raise the white flag (no war).
Blocking the opponent from attacking for a month? Isn't that just absurd?
How much food and resources would be wasted if we couldn't attack for a month? How many variables would that introduce? Isn't that just idiotic?
This way of fighting seems rather unreliable no matter how you look at it.
Seemingly noticing the Human Emperor's dark expression, one of the ministers spoke up.
"Your Human Emperor need not worry. If Xiqi rebels, we will simply meet the challenge head-on."
"Now that our Shang Kingdom is powerful and prosperous, how can we fear Xiqi?"
All the ministers nodded in agreement, and Ye Xuan couldn't help but let out a wry smile upon seeing this situation.
It seems that these ordinary people have quite a few limitations.
Now that Xiqi has the support of all the gods and Buddhas, how can it be underestimated?
Ye Xuan immediately began to consult the expert on more matters concerning the war.
Meanwhile, the entire nation of Xiqi was in mourning.
The Holy Lord's eldest son died in Chaoge, and everyone was deeply saddened.
At the suggestion of the Grand Master San Yisheng, Xiqi even built an unprecedented Spirit Terrace.
This Spirit Terrace is used to commemorate Bo Yikao.
The Spirit Terrace was finally completed in the last few days.
The Marquis of the West decided to go to Spirit Terrace to pay homage to Bo Yikao.
At the same time, a divination should be performed on the Spirit Terrace to see whether the uprising in Xiqi will succeed or not.
Then, accompanied by the crowd, they proceeded in a grand procession to the Spirit Terrace.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ziya had already arrived at the banks of the Wei River, not far from Xiqi City.
The environment here is elegant, with beautiful mountains and clear waters.
Jiang Ziya was overjoyed to see this place, so he built several thatched huts there and settled down.
With nothing to do on ordinary days, he spent his time fishing on the banks of the Wei River.
Every now and then, one could catch a few koi carp from the banks of the Wei River, and sell them at the market to earn some money for drinks.
They managed to get by, albeit barely.
Sometimes when I didn't feel like fishing, I would cultivate a vegetable garden near my thatched hut, grow some vegetables, and raise some chickens and ducks. Surprisingly, I found myself living a very happy life.
But after living like this for a while, he began to miss his wife in Chaoge.
After he got married in Chaoge, Lady Ma took extremely good care of him.
Unfortunately, in order to complete his teacher's assignment, he ultimately had to reluctantly divorce Lady Ma.
If Lady Ma could come here with him, I believe she would be able to live a good life for a while.
At this moment, Jiang Ziya, who was fishing, sat on a huge rock and couldn't help but shake his head.
It seems his state of mind is still not entirely at peace.
He picked up the gourd at his waist, took a sip, and then looked at the long river in front of him.
Before me flowed an endless river, seemingly enduring countless ages and weathering away the passage of time.
He's been stuck here for six or seven years now.
The person we're waiting for should be arriving soon, right?
He couldn't stand waiting any longer.