Chapter 653 Wu Rui’s purpose: scheming against each other!

Chapter 653 Wu Rui’s purpose: scheming against each other!

As long as Huaxian was captured successfully, Wu Rui planned to attack Kuaiji with great fanfare, so as to exert some pressure on Han Xin's army from the side. However, while doing so, he also needed to ensure that the fighting between Han Xin and Wei Bao reached a certain level.

Although the alliance of princes had been reached, less than one-tenth of the food, war horses and other supplies promised to Wu Rui had been in his hands. The food and grass Wei Bao gave Wu Rui were all old rice, which could go bad and moldy if not stored carefully. As for the horses provided by Xiang Yu, most of them were not qualified to be called war horses, but were just ordinary horses used to pull goods.

Wu Rui knew very well that it was good enough for the other party to give these supplies, but this also reflected a key problem from the side, that is, Xiang Yu and Wei Bao were planning to let him and Gao Yao fight to the death and suffer losses on both sides, so that they could take the opportunity to annex him.

Since he knew it, Wu Rui naturally couldn't do nothing. Now it was his turn to let Wei Bao and Han Xin fight to the death, and to weaken Wei Bao's strength to the maximum extent. In this way, after repelling Gao Yao, Wei Bao would be unable to do anything to him. This was in Wu Rui's interest.

At the same time when Wu Rui was stationed, the news flew back to the Prime Minister's Mansion like wings. At this time, Gao Yao was leisurely playing with his children and enjoying the family happiness.

In terms of entertainment activities, Gao Yao was very creative and directly brought out mahjong. The production process of mahjong is actually nothing special. It is nothing more than finding some wood that is not easy to rot, carefully carving different patterns on it, and then applying a layer of wax, and it is done. Its production cost is low, but it is quite entertaining. Now it has become a toy loved by everyone in the southern border, from high-ranking officials to ordinary people.

Of course, everything has its rules, and mahjong is no exception. Gao Yao knew this very well, so he set some restrictions for mahjong. First, the bet must not exceed one or two silver coins. This is an iron rule that no one can violate. Once someone is found to have violated it, he will be severely punished and will never be tolerated. Gao Yao understood that although it is inevitable to win or lose in mahjong, once the win or loss is too big, it will inevitably lead to some people specializing in gambling activities, which is not what he wants to see.

At this moment, Gao Yao was sitting around the mahjong table with Xiao He, Li Zhao and Li You, who had just been promoted by him, playing mahjong happily. Li You was the son of Li Si, who later surrendered to Gao Yao and gradually gained Gao Yao's appreciation.

The original Li You in this world was obsessed with Xiaoyue, and he even went against his own father. However, because of Gao Yao, Li You had never met Xiaoyue, so naturally there was no emotion between them, and naturally there were no such things. Basically, everything was going on according to the situation of Li You in the original history.

As the son of Li Si, who was second only to the emperor of Qin, Li You was in a very high position. He not only enjoyed wealth and splendor that ordinary people could not hope to have, but also shouldered important responsibilities and missions.

Li You served as an official and general during the Qin Dynasty. His high position and great power attracted much attention. As the eldest son of Prime Minister Li Si, he attracted much attention and expectations. His marriage to a princess from the Qin royal family further enhanced his status and position.

Being appointed as the governor of Sanchuan County was a position of great strategic significance. Sanchuan County was located on a major transportation route and was a battleground for military strategists. Its importance was self-evident. Li You's ability to take on this position was sufficient to prove his ability and the trust Qin Shihuang had in him.

In the original history, the trajectory of fate is often unexpected. After the uprising of Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, the country fell into turmoil and chaos. Wu Guang and others led the rebels to attack the Qin State in the west. Li You was ordered to resist Wu Guang's attack on Xingyang. Although he fought bravely and successfully resisted Wu Guang's attack, other rebels poured into Hangu Pass like a tide, and the situation of the Qin Empire became increasingly critical.

Faced with such a grim situation, Prime Minister Li Si naturally became the target of public criticism. Qin II Hu Hai was extremely dissatisfied with his performance and condemned him many times. The imperial physician Zhao Gao took the opportunity to slander Li Si in front of Qin II, further exacerbating Li Si's predicament. In the end, Li Si was imprisoned by Qin II and suffered cruel punishment.

In July of the second year of the reign of Qin II, Li Si and his middle son were all convicted and executed, and their entire clans were exterminated. This tragic ending was not only a personal tragedy for Li Si, but also a tragedy for the entire Qin Empire. The once glorious Qin Empire eventually went down the path of destruction amid internal and external difficulties.

Li You escaped this disaster because he was stationed outside. However, in August, Li You fought with Liu Bang and Xiang Yu in Yongqiu, and was eventually killed by Cao Shen, a general under Liu Bang.

Due to Gao Yao's influence, Li You's situation also changed dramatically. Hu Hai's premature death and Fusu's accession to the throne both indicated that Li Si would lose power. Facing this situation, Li Si was not unprepared, and he had already begun to make careful plans.

First, he wisely decided to disperse his power and abdicate to avoid unnecessary trouble. At the same time, he also moved his family safely according to the pre-planned transfer to ensure their safety.

As a loyal minister of the Qin Dynasty, Li You's loyalty to the Qin Dynasty was unquestionable. After all, he was deeply favored by the emperor and had deep feelings for the Qin court. However, Fusu's move to enfeoff the kings was difficult for most of the Qin officials to accept.

Although there were still many disasters in the world at that time, and the remnants of the six kingdoms were also secretly ready to make a move, the foundation of the Qin Dynasty was still strong. With 300,000 northern troops, more than 200,000 southern troops, plus 200,000 central troops, and soldiers loyal to the Qin court from all over the country, the Qin Dynasty actually had at least a million troops available for deployment.

As long as Fusu did not take direct action against Gao Yao, Gao Yao would not easily support Prince Gao. After all, Gao Yao was not a reckless person. He was well aware of the complexity of the situation and the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan behind it. In fact, it all came down to the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan being too confident at the time. On the one hand, he wanted to solve his own troubles, and on the other hand, he wanted history to return to the right track. He bit off more than he could chew, which led to the final result.

This act of enfeoffment undoubtedly lowered the Qin court officials' favorability towards Fusu to a freezing point, and also lost Li You's loyalty. After all, Sanchuan County had been directly enfeoffed, and he, the governor of Sanchuan County, was naturally of no use. Coupled with his disappointment in the court, Li You finally decided to defect to Gaoyao after hearing Li Si's letter.