PFC Chapter 480 The Panicked Nobles of Six Nations 3
Chapter 480 The Panicked Nobles of Six Nations 3
As dusk settled over Daliang City, the stench of the Yellow River seeped into the palace along with the twilight. King Wei sat in the main hall, clutching a secret report tightly in his hand, his fingers trembling uncontrollably with tension.
The writing on the secret report was somewhat blurry in the dim light, but the line "Thunderous roar strikes the wall three hundred meters away" pierced Wei Wang's eyes like a bolt of lightning. Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead, gradually soaking the parchment and blurring the edges of the words.
Before Wei Wang Jia's eyes began to appear the black banners fluttering in the wind atop Xianyang city, as if those banners were waving right before him, and he himself was the lonely figure trapped within the city. His breathing became rapid, mingling with the bitter steam rising from the half-cooled medicinal soup on the table, making him feel suffocated.
"Your Majesty, it's time for your meal." The old eunuch's voice echoed in the empty hall, as if it came from another world. King Wei Jia suddenly raised his head, his gaze somewhat unfocused, before finally fixing on the old eunuch after a long while.
The old eunuch's figure was somewhat blurry in the dim light, yet King Wei Jia could clearly see the worry on his face. He suddenly felt like a forgotten person, alone and helpless.
King Wei's gaze slowly shifted to the bronze mirror on the table. The face reflected in the mirror sent a shiver down his spine. He saw a stranger to himself, his temples graying, his eyes sunken so deep they seemed capable of holding the waters of the Bian River. His skin had lost its former luster, becoming dull and lifeless, as if time had drained all its vitality from it.
Suddenly, King Jia of Wei grabbed a jade cup from the table and hurled it with all his might. The cup traced an arc in the air before crashing into the dragon-carved pillar with a sharp cracking sound. The sound was like a thunderclap, startling the sparrows on the beams into a flurry of flight, and the entire hall trembled from the sudden noise.
"Salt and iron mining rights! Three years!" King Wei was struck by lightning. His body trembled violently, and he staggered to his feet, grabbing the table for support. His fingers gripped the edge of the table tightly, his nails digging deep into the lacquer, as if he wanted to tear the hard wood apart.
King Wei Jia's face turned deathly pale, cold sweat beading on his forehead. His eyes widened, and he repeated incredulously, "The people of Hexi have bled themselves dry in the mines, only to receive iron from the Qin Dynasty to forge deadly weapons!"
Countless images flashed through his mind: the people toiling in the mines, their faces sallow and their bodies emaciated, yet still desperately digging for salt and iron. And now, this hard-earned salt and iron was to be used by the Qin Dynasty to manufacture weapons to slaughter them. This filled King Wei with a pang of heartache and rage.
Memory, like a sharp blade, mercilessly ripped open the scars in his heart. King Wei imagined that day when he personally escorted Wei Ji to Qin. At that time, the young crown prince, dressed in a plain white robe, stood quietly beneath Hangu Pass, the afterglow of the setting sun casting a long shadow that seemed to melt into the land of Qin.
Just then, Prime Minister Wei Ziyuan hurriedly stepped into the palace. His dark court robes were covered in dust, clearly indicating that he had rushed all the way from the council hall. When he saw the mess on the floor and the jade cup that King Wei had pretended to smash, he was stunned.
Wei Ziyuan stared at the shards scattered on the ground, a metallic taste rising in his throat. He knew that all of this was the result of his decision. It was he who, against all odds, had gambled the lifeline of the Wei state and the future of the crown prince under the pretext of "learning from the barbarians to control the barbarians."
"Your Majesty, please calm down!" Wei Ziyuan hurriedly knelt down and picked up the shards from the ground, but the sharp porcelain shards mercilessly cut his palm, and blood immediately gushed out.
"The Crown Prince is studying diligently at the Great Qin Academy. He wrote the other day saying that he has already grasped the essence..." Wei Ziyuan endured the pain in his palm and tried to explain.
"See through it?!" King Jia of Wei suddenly interrupted him, bursting into wild laughter, his laughter tinged with sobs. "To create the Heaven-Shaking Thunder in less than half a year, Qin's 'seeing through' means to see through all six states!"
Enraged, he grabbed the secret report from the desk and slammed it across Wei Ziyuan's face. "The returning envoy said that the flames spewed from those iron lumps could burn through three layers of city walls! Is Ji'er in Xianyang studying or being a hostage?!"
Wei Ziyuan was stunned by this sudden turn of events. He opened his mouth, but found himself unable to utter a single word for a long time.
In fact, Wei Ziyuan's original plan was to send Prince Ji of Wei to Qin to study. Even if he could only learn 40-50% of what he learned, he would still be able to help Wei and change the current situation of Wei. In order to achieve the goal of Prince Ji studying in Qin, Wei Ziyuan went to great lengths to persuade King Jia of Wei to agree to even the most demanding requirements from Qin.
Just as Wei Ziyuan had predicted, Prince Ji of Wei successfully entered the Great Qin Academy of Qin and began his studies. The curriculum of the Great Qin Academy was indeed unique, quite different from the traditional education of Wei, but it was all very practical. Moreover, Wei Ji demonstrated an amazing learning ability; he quickly adapted to and mastered this new knowledge, and even expressed in his letter that he had gained a great deal.
Everything seemed to be going in a positive direction. King Jia of Wei and Prince Yuan of Wei had high hopes for Wei Ji's studies in Qin, hoping he would bring back advanced knowledge and ideas to inject new vitality into the development of Wei. However, reality dealt them a heavy blow.
The speed of Qin's development far exceeded their expectations. Not only in the economy, but even the Qin army, already renowned for its bravery and skill in battle, now possessed a weapon that Wei Ziyuan and King Jia of Wei had never heard of or seen before—the Heaven-Shaking Thunder. The immense power of this new weapon instilled deep fear in the Wei state.
Faced with such a vast disparity, both Wei Ziyuan and King Jia of Wei were dumbfounded. Their meticulously planned scheme now seemed utterly meaningless. Wei Ji would spend five years studying at the Great Qin Academy, and during those five years, what earth-shattering changes would occur in Qin? Could Wei survive such fierce competition?
King Jia of Wei dared not think any further. He felt a sharp pain in his heart, as if the whole world was collapsing in an instant. He closed his eyes in agony, trying to escape this cruel reality.
A sudden rumble of thunder echoed outside the palace, and large raindrops pounded on the glazed tiles. Wei Ziyuan gazed at the hunched back of the King of Wei, recalling the spirited young monarch of twenty years ago. Back then, they rode their horses along the Yellow River, vowing to recreate the glory of the Wei elite infantry. Now, the deafening roar of thunder was about to crush all their ambitions.