Qin Official

In late September, when the letters home from Qin Bing of Yangchengnan County were loaded onto the carriage and slowly headed south, more than a hundred miles away in Huaiyang (Chen Ying), Changping Lord Xiong Qi also received a letter from the south. letter……

Opening the plain silk book, the delicate and slender Chu-style bird and insect body came into view, but after only scanning it twice, Xiong Qi crumpled it into a ball! Keep it in the palm of your hand and never want to open it again.

There is no doubt that although he was born in Xianyang and grew up in Qinchuan, the Bird and Insect Seal script of Chu State was the first writing he learned as a child...

Xiong Qi's father was King Kaolie of Chu. In the twenty-seventh year of King Qingxiang of Chu (272 BC), Chu State sued for peace from Qin State. King Chu Kaolie, who was still the prince at the time, was sent to Xianyang as a hostage. That’s ten years. During this period, King Kaolie of Chu also married the daughter of King Zhao of Qin and gave birth to Xiong Qi.

Xiong Qi, who has the blood of the royal family of the Chu Kingdom, grew up in Xianyang City like this. He wore Qin clothes since he was a child, and learned to speak Qin opera. He was no different from ordinary Qin grandsons. Only in the dead of night would his father personally teach him some Chu characters and tell him not to forget his homeland.

Xiong Qi still remembers that when he was young and ignorant, he foolishly asked his father: "Isn't Qin my homeland?"

His father beat him hard with thorns, letting him know what thorns are and what Chu is!

Jingchu, in Xiong Qi's first memory, was synonymous with pain. Until now, every time he mentioned this word, he would feel a burst of pain from his soul.

There is no doubt that this letter was sent from the enemy territory of Chu State.

"Who is delivering the message?" Xiong Qi looked at his subordinate Chen Ta. Xiong Qi was now the governor of the newly established "Chen County" in Qin State, but although there were many of his subordinates, only Chen Ta and dozens of others were the ones who A dead soldier he could entrust with his life.

Chen Ta said: "It was an old man in ragged clothes. He only handed over this piece of silk writing, saying that it was a home letter from the king and he must be delivered..."

"Letter from home?" Xiong Qi's expression became more solemn.

He walked to the attic of the palace, held the silk book in his hand, and looked at the late autumn scenery outside in silence for a long time.

Chen Ying used to be the capital of the Chu Kingdom after it moved eastward, and this was the palace of the Chu Kingdom in the past. It stands to reason that he would have had the opportunity to grow up here, but fate had a huge impact on Xiong Qi when he was eight years old. joke...

That year (263 BC), his grandfather, King Qingxiang of Chu, was seriously ill, but the State of Qin kept his prince and did not want to release him. Xiong Qi's father conspired with Huang Xie, but died and returned to Chu State to become the King of Chu. However, Xiong Qi's mother and son were left in Qin State and became detainees with embarrassing status.

From then on, Xiong Qi was ordered by his mother not to learn Chu characters anymore, but to use Qin seal script instead. Even, only when he went to An Guojun's Mansion to meet Mrs. Huayang, he had the opportunity to put on the misty and spacious Chu clothes and eat sweet oranges from the south.

At that time, there was also a grandson of King An of Qin named "Yiren" who was wearing Chu clothes and going in and out of An Guojun's house. He was an unpopular son of An Guojun. He was later adopted by Mrs. Huayang and changed his name to "Zi Chu". It means the son of Mrs. Huayang from Chu...

Xiong Qi, the real son of the Chu Kingdom, stared dumbfoundedly at the businessman named Lu Buwei who directed all this. It was from this man that he knew what Machiavellian politics was.

That year was the year when Qin besieged Handan, and he was only 14 years old.

After another ten years, the throne of the King of Qin changed, and it was finally Zichu's turn to be king. However, his life was short-lived and he died within a few years of taking the throne. Zi Chu's son, the young man who had been detained in Handan for several years after Zi Chu fled from Zhao, became the new King of Qin.

That year, Xiong Qi was 24 years old and Qin Wangzheng was 13 years old, so he had to be called cousin.

Because Qin Wangzheng was young, the Queen Mother Huayang, as a grandmother, began to listen to the affairs of the three queens, the Queen Mother Xia and the Queen Mother Zhao. For a time, since the death of Queen Mother Xuan, the Chu family relatives who had been dormant in Qin for a long time ushered in spring again. As the backbone of the new generation among the relatives of the Chu family, Xiong Qi was also entrusted with important tasks in the Qin court. As the King of Qin gradually grew up, Xiong Qi became his most trustworthy relative and uncle, and the most powerful promoter of the Qin King's pro-government.

It is true that Qin and Chu were enemies of each other. King Huai of Chu died after Qin, and they even forged a bloody feud. However, the two countries' official families were also related by marriage for 400 years and 18 generations. The relationship between them was so confusing and complicated that it was not just a matter of words. Being able to distinguish between "friend and foe".

Another nine years passed (238 BC). During the turmoil when Lao Ai sent troops to attack the Qinian Palace, Xiong Qi led his troops to defeat Lao Ai's party and put down the rebellion. This outstanding meritorious service earned him the title "Changping Jun". That year, he was 33 years old.

In the same year, bad news came from the Chu State. Xiong Qi's father, King Kaolie of Chu, also passed away. After Xiong Qi obtained the permission of the King of Qin, he came to mourn on behalf of the Qin State.

In Shouchun, the new capital of Chu State, he saw the coffin of his father, who had been away for more than 20 years, and three strange brothers...

Xiong Han, Xiong You, Xiong Fuchu.

Xiong Han and Xiong You were born from the same mother. The two of them stared at Xiong Qi with wary eyes, fearing that he was appointed by the Qin State to come back to seize the throne. After all, he was the eldest brother among the four brothers.

However, Xiong Fuchu was smiling all over his face and kept calling him "brother, brother" when they met. At that time, Xiong Qi thought he was a filial brother. Until a few years ago, news spread that Fuchu killed Xiong You and proclaimed himself king. Later, Xiong Qicai lamented that he didn't know people well.

That's right, the current King of Chu is carrying the cud, and this is Xiong Qi's last "family" in the Chu Kingdom. Therefore, this family letter must be sent by someone from the King of Chu!

"When the Qin army is approaching, you finally think of me as your eldest brother? You also wrote those words in the silk book. What does this mean?"

"In addition to the silk book, I also sent this." Chen Ta knew the master's temperament. After Xiong Qi finished thinking, he placed the small basket of fruits in front of him.

Xiong Qi took a look and saw that it was a whole basket of citrus.

Yes, it is late autumn in September, which is the time when oranges are ripe. This is a specialty of Chu State.

But when Xiong Qi peeled one of them open, he didn't see the yellow-orange orange segments, nor could he smell the rich sweet-sour aroma.

Under the thick orange peel, there are only hard tangerine fruits.

Xiong Qi's face twitched a few times and he opened the white silk book that he had crumpled into a ball again.

The above is a piece of Qu Yuan's "Ode to Orange", which was their father's favorite song during his lifetime, and Xiong Qi once recited it word for word.

"It's a pity that you, the younger generation, were born too late to see Qu Zi's charm." Xiong Qi still remembered his father's sigh and regret, so he memorized it very hard, and he could chant the above sentence without even looking at the silk book. .

"The Queen is a beautiful tree, and the oranges are blooming.

He refused to move after being ordered to live in the southern country...

It's so solid that it's hard to move, but it's even more determined.

The green leaves are in full bloom, which is a joy to see. "

After reciting for a while, Xiong Qi shook his head and sighed.

"My brother, Bear Chu, you are a smart man. You are questioning me. Is Xiong Qi a Chu Ju who was born in the south and never changed his ambitions? Or is Xiong Qi a Qin who has changed completely after moving to the north? orange?"

Xiong Qi didn't give an answer. He just sighed, "I'm not Boyi, why should I be regarded as your image?" Then he personally put the silk book into the brazier and burned it clean, and asked Chen Ta to bury the basket of bitter orange trees. .

He himself put on an official uniform of the Qin State with an expressionless face at the fiddle of the maids, took off any ornaments and crowns that might have "Jingchu" colors, and changed it into a regular Qin style. , to show his firm position. Then he went out and got on an Anchai, left the palace, and drove to the Qin Army's camp outside Chenying City...

Today is the day when the Qin army's chief general Li Xin and his deputy Meng Tian arrive with their army. As the governor of Chen County and the chief officer in charge of logistics for the battle between Qin and Chu, Xiong Qi must go to greet them. The three of them discuss the plan to destroy Chu. Policy.

Li Xin and Meng Tian did not avoid Xiong Qi because he was the brother of the King of Chu. Since the last time he successfully persuaded Chen Ying to surrender, Xiong Qi had successfully made Qin Wangzheng dispel his doubts and believed that he had made a choice between Qin and Chu. .

Xiong Qi closed his eyes and meditated on the swaying car, but at some point, there was a mixed green and yellow fruit in his wide sleeves, quietly holding it in the palm of his hand.

Is this an orange? Or Citrus aurantium?

No one knows until you peel off the peel and find out...