"Your Majesty, Miss Zhao Zhi requests an audience." A maid reported.
"Please." Sei Itō said lightly.
The maid accepted the order and left the palace. Then, Zhao Zhi, who was dressed in black, walked into the hall.
"Greetings, Your Majesty." Zhao Zhi walked to the center of the hall and bowed.
"Instructor Zhao, please rise. With our relationship, Instructor Zhao doesn't need to be so formal." Sei Itō smiled.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness. But now is not the time. Etiquette cannot be abolished." Zhao Zhi stood up and smiled.
"Forget it. As you wish." Sei Itō shook his head slightly and said softly, "May I know why Instructor Zhao has come to see me?"
"There is a secret report to be presented to Your Majesty." Zhao Zhi said seriously.
"Oh?" Sei Itō raised his eyebrows.
"It's news from my sister. She said that Qi agreed to Wei's request and is willing to send 400,000 soldiers to attack Zhao together with Wei." Zhao Zhi said.
"Shan Rou is in Qi?" Sei Itō frowned.
Zhao Zhi, who had learned from Shan Lan, was not surprised that Sei Itō knew her sister's name and could even guess where she was. She only thought that Sei Itō had special information channels and nodded to confirm his guess.
"To assassinate Tian Dan?" Sei Itō continued.
"Yes." Zhao Zhi was slightly surprised and admitted straightforwardly.
"Let her go back to Zhao. Tian Dan is not that easy to kill. If you want to personally kill Tian Dan for revenge, I can promise that when Qi is defeated, I will hand Tian Dan over to you sisters. You sisters can deal with him as you see fit. "Sei Itō said softly.
Zhao Zhi was slightly stunned when he heard this. He looked deeply at Ito Sei. She asked softly, "Your Majesty, why are you so good to us sisters?"
"Because this king has taken a fancy to you sisters' beauty and wants to take you into this king's harem." Ito Sei didn't hide it. He answered directly.
"Your Majesty, are you serious?" Zhao Zhi's eyes flashed and asked again.
"Of course. You have an independent personality, you have a mind of your own, and you are also a first-class beauty. Although Lan is not as good as you, her temperament is gentle and her nature is like flowing water. On the other hand, she was soft, strong, independent, and had a firm will. In addition, she had a common life as an assassin. On the contrary, it has a unique beauty that this prince likes very much. "Sei Itō said with a smile.
After a short pause, he continued, "Besides, you've been wandering for many years. It's time for you to find a place to settle down."
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty." Zhao Zhi lowered his head and smiled.
Which woman doesn't love heroes and famous scholars? Zhao Zhi was no exception. Back when Sei Itō established Julu Academy, Zhao Zhi had a good impression of him. On top of that, she also knew that Sei Itō was her benefactor — he had helped her kill Zhao Mu, the enemy who had harmed her family — so she couldn't help but have some feelings for him. Although it wasn't to the point of love, it was definitely not a problem for her to have feelings for him.
Afterwards, he had saved Shan Lan and governed the State of Zhao, causing the State of Zhao to change. This caused Zhao Zhi's feelings for Sei Itō to become even stronger. The only thing she lacked was an opportunity to completely turn this feeling into love.
"I will explain this matter to my elder sister, but with my elder sister's temperament, she may not accept Your Majesty's proposal." Zhao Zhi continued.
"No matter, I'll do my best. Just leave it to fate. If she doesn't agree, this prince won't force it. After all, a melon forcefully picked is not sweet. However, I don't know if Zhi is willing to accept my proposal and enter the palace with your elder sister Lan as a wife? "Sei Itō said with a light smile.
"This … please allow Zhi to consider it." Zhao Zhi hesitated for a moment before replying.
"That's right. Suddenly bringing up such a major matter that will decide your life is too rushed for you. It's normal for you to be confused for a while. It's fine, go back and consider it carefully. As long as you give this prince an accurate answer in the end, it's fine. "Sei Itō said with great understanding.
"No matter what the result is, Zhi will definitely give Your Majesty an answer." Zhao Zhi said with a firm tone.
"I know." Sei Itō's voice was filled with trust.
Hearing this, Zhao Zhi deeply looked at Sei Itō, who was looking at her with a gentle gaze, and bowed slightly before slowly leaving the hall.
… …
Three days later, Sei Itō received all of the information that the State of Zhao had spread throughout the world.
The three countries of Qi, Wei, and Han had decided to jointly send out a million troops to suppress the powerful Zhao!
Qi and Wei had sent out four hundred thousand troops each. Due to the drought and the fact that Han was weak, they would only send out two hundred thousand troops. In addition to this normal military intelligence, there was another piece of news that piqued Sei Itō's interest. It was that the Gongshu family, who were originally in the State of Chu, would go north to the State of Wei and help them build mechanisms to resist Sei Itō's Zhao army's strange mechanical carriages.
At the same time, Qi Mo was also willing to help the State of Qi at Tian Dan's request.
"Interesting, the two families that were originally hostile have actually become a family because of my intrusion," Ito Sei, who moved his finger and burned the information in his hand into ashes, chuckled.
However, Sei Itō didn't care about this. Not to mention how long it would take to build the mechanisms, even at this time, unless the three countries of Qi, Wei, and Han truly didn't care about their countries, they wouldn't start a war during the busy autumn harvest season. Therefore, it would take at least a month for them to attack. Moreover, it wouldn't be too long either. Otherwise, when winter came, there would be no need for Sei Itō to attack as the three countries' allied forces would be frozen by the biting cold wind of winter.
Therefore, if the four countries really wanted to start a war, it would have to wait until next year's spring harvest season. It would only be possible in April or May.
The reality was just as Sei Itō expected. The following month's busy autumn harvest season was exceptionally calm. The six countries of Qi, Chu, Qin, Zhao, Wei, and Han were all busy harvesting grain. None of them started a war with their neighbors.
Then, after the autumn harvest, it was the last month before winter that they could start a war, October.
However, probably because they still hadn't built enough mechanisms to resist Sei Itō's strange mechanical carriages, the three countries of Qi, Wei, and Han were still as calm as before. Other than the three countries' famous generals and ministers becoming more frequent, there were no other changes.
However, at this time. Sei Itō didn't want to wait any longer.
Yes, the military wars during the Warring States Period were all affected by the weather and the season. There were many factors that needed to be considered before starting a war. Even the two countries of Qi and Chu, where sacrificial ceremonies were popular, had to consider the opinions of the sacrificial masters. Only when they chose an auspicious day could they start a war. However, the key was that Sei Itō's army didn't need to consider these things at all. Not to mention those soldiers who were equipped with Xuan Qi armor, under the protection of Xuan Qi, they didn't need to fear the cold. Even if the roads were blocked by heavy snow, they could still pass through the Xuan Qi formation. There were also airships to solve the problem. There was no need to worry about the army not being able to reach the enemy's city.
Therefore, after October, Sei Itō didn't wait for the armies of Qi, Wei, and Han. He decisively mobilized the army. He summoned 500,000 soldiers from the Rubik's Cube world and divided them into two groups. They were to enter Qi and Wei from the eastern part of the country of Zhong Shan, and the areas of Wei and Qu Yang to attack Qi and Wei.
However, they didn't expect Zhao to act in such an unconventional manner. Furthermore, they didn't expect Zhao to be able to gather another 500,000 soldiers in addition to the 100,000 soldiers scattered throughout Yan Zhao to suppress Quan Jing. Qi and Wei immediately panicked. They hastily gathered their armies that had just finished their farming season and met Sei Itō's army head-on.
The result was needless to say. They were still unable to resist the Xuan Qi formation's heaven-defying attacks. Qi and Wei's armies quickly collapsed. Sei Itō's army chased them into the borders of the two countries. In just a short month, they had reached the center of the two countries and were about to reach the capital.
However, at this time, the first snow of 251 BC suddenly fell.
It was snowing heavily. Like floating cotton, they floated down from the sky one by one. When it touched the ground, it quickly melted.
Although Sei Itō's army could forcefully march in this kind of weather, their efficiency would decrease. Therefore, the commanders didn't force it and ordered them to set up camp in the newly conquered city.
As a result, Qi and Wei's armies finally had a chance to catch their breaths. The two emperors didn't dare to hesitate. They hurriedly gathered more soldiers into the capital and prepared for the fierce battle that could come at any time.
A few days later, the snow stopped. A white light enveloped everything. Under the sunlight, it reflected the white light, dazzling everyone.
"Everyone, listen to my orders. Remove your eyepieces." The commander shouted.
"Clang!"
Then, with a neat sound, a brown rectangular crystal suddenly shot out from the helmet of all the soldiers. It was like a pair of sunglasses that blocked the eyes of all the soldiers.
The crystal was naturally a material made with a special process, and its use was to prevent snow blindness.
This was because if a person stared at the snow for a long time, they would suffer from astigmatism, dizziness, or even blindness. It would greatly affect their battle prowess. It could be said that this was one of the main reasons why the ancient armies couldn't fight in winter.
But now, Sei Itō's army was naturally unaffected.
"Mechanical chariots, clear the snow." The commander shouted again.
Immediately, the army split up and opened up a path. Then, several strange wooden carts that were five meters tall and two meters wide were pushed out by the soldiers and sent to the front of the city gate. The carts were about five meters tall and two meters wide. The carts seemed to be decorative but not decorative at the same time.
Then, a light cracking sound could be heard. A black cannon with a diameter of one meter and the same strange pattern on its surface suddenly shot out from a square crack on the chariot.
The strange pattern on the cannon barrel and the mechanical chariot glowed faintly. It was invisible and traceless. An unknown wind immediately blew around the mechanical chariot and grew stronger. Then, green and white balls of light appeared in front of the cannon barrel.
Just like that, seven or eight seconds passed. Suddenly, there was a light whoosh and all the balls of light immediately turned into a stream of light and shot forward.
Like a blade of air splitting water, a crescent-shaped crack appeared on the ground and revealed the muddy yellow official road below.
"Get on your horses and move out!" The commander who saw the road being cleared immediately ordered.
"Swoosh!"
The entire army got on their horses and the chariots. Under the commander's lead, they stepped on the muddy official road and rushed towards the capital of Qi and Wei — Linzi and Daliang.
"Clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter …"
The intense sound of horse hooves reverberated in the air, bringing up mud and staining the white snow on both sides black.
Just like how they did not expect the Kingdom of Zhao to send out their troops in the winter and have such a strange army of five hundred thousand, the people of Qi and Wei also did not expect them to be able to clear the snow-covered road and rush to the city gates so easily. Hence, when they saw the Kingdom of Zhao's army, the defending troops of the two countries were dumbfounded as they looked at the murderous gods that had suddenly rushed to the city gates.
However, while they were dumbfounded, Sei Itō's army was not. They immediately got into formation and moved the mechanical chariots to the front of the formation. Then, they began to attack the city with wind bombs.
The results were the same. Half a day later, the cities of Daliang and Linzi were breached. The army broke into the cities and sealed the royal families of Qi and Wei in the palaces in the cities.
After that, the army split up. Other than leaving a portion of the army to guard the city and the capital, the rest began to take over the two countries.
At this point, after the Kingdom of Yan, the Kingdom of Qi and Kingdom of Wei of the Seven Kingdoms of the Warring States Period were also destroyed.
However, Sei Itō's army did not stop here. After receiving another hundred thousand reinforcements from the Kingdom of Zhao, the army that was originally in the Kingdom of Wei immediately split off and set off toward the neighboring Kingdom of Korea.
After all, apart from Qi and Wei, Korea had also participated in the original plan to attack Kingdom of Zhao.
Compared to the powerful Kingdom of Qi and Kingdom of Wei, Korea, which had just suffered a great calamity, did not perform well. It did not take much effort for the army to reach the capital of Korea, break through the city walls, and capture the royal family of Korea in one fell swoop.
Just like that, less than a month after the destruction of Qi and Wei, 250 BC, Korea was also destroyed after Kingdom of Yan, Qi, and Kingdom of Wei. Of the Seven Kingdoms of the Warring States Period, only Chu, Qin, and Great Zhao were left.
…
"Where is your sister?" Ito Sei looked at Zhao Zhi who was summoned by him and asked.
"Your Majesty, are you asking the obvious?" Zhao Zhi rolled his eyes at Sei Itō and asked.
"I'm just confirming." Sei Itō smiled.
"Men, bring Tian Dan here." Sei Itō raised his head and shouted towards the outside of the palace.
Not long after, an old man with disheveled hair was brought in by two Kingdom of Zhao soldiers. Although he looked like he had been eroded by wealth, his former glory could not be hidden.
"Plop!" The two soldiers pressed Tian Dan to the ground.
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