Chapter 38 Forgetting Grass

The Han people value friendship, and their friends are one of the five friends. The Romans also value friendship, even above family affection. The Romans may not recognize their son, and may not leave property for their son in their wills, but they attach great importance to their friends, and it is common to give part of the inheritance to their friends. Of course, this refers to those real friends, not the kind of friends who call for friends in name, but actually use each other and are ready to attack each other at any time.

Momia looked at Alexander's eyes seriously, sighed silently, and was a little worried. It can be seen from Alexander's eyes that he seems to have regarded Sun Shao as the kind of friend who can entrust the aftercare. It is undeniable that Sun Shao is a very righteous person - at least on the surface - many people are willing to associate with him, but Alexander may have forgotten a problem. Sun Shao is first the king of Yue, and then he may be a friend. They first use each other's political opponents before they can talk about friendship, and there is usually no real friendship between political opponents.

"Alexander..."

Alexander seemed to know what Momia was trying to say. He raised a finger and stood in front of Momia's full lips: "Mother, I know how to measure. I won't forget that I am the emperor of Rome, and he is the king of Yue, but I want to be his friend. At least before defeating the Sassanians, I will treat him as a real one. "Friends."

"Alas--" Momia sighed silently and nodded, but the sadness in her eyes did not dissipate. Instead, it was a little more complicated. She lowered her head, avoided Alexander's inquiring eyes, and forced a forced smile: "Alexander, you have grown up."

Alexander's mouth flashed with a smear of complazing smile, but he didn't pay attention to the complex emotions in Momia's eyes. He let go of Momia, walked to the tall window, opened his arms, and seemed to embrace the vast empire with the blue sky, full of pride.

"Mother, do you think I've grown up?"

Momia frowned, the smile on her face stiffened, and soon returned to a faint smile: "Alexander, of course you have grown up. In this four-nation negotiation, your response has been handled very well, and I am very satisfied. I just want to remind you that Aldahir is not a person who is easy to be manipulated. He will definitely launch an attack at the right time. As long as you can resist his attack, the alliance of the four kings will be able to really succeed. At that time, you will be a real Roman emperor.

Alexander stagnated for a moment, slowly turned around, staring at Momia's delicate face with a calm smile on his face: "Mother, when do you think Aldahir will attack?"

... Taixi closed the city.

Aldahir stood in front of the large map with his hands behind his back, motionless like a stone sculpture. Shapur and several brothers stood under the steps, holding their breath, and looking up at Aldahir's tall back.

"Shapur, when do you think it's good to launch an attack?" Ardahir suddenly lifted his slt, turned around and glanced at his sons, and finally put his eyes on Shapur. Shapur is his most valued son, and he is already a self-evident successor. No matter what other sons think, they can only swallow their anger in the face of Shapur's ability and record.

"If we just deal with Guishuang, we can conquer them at any time. If we deal with Rome, we also have enough initiative. It's up to us to decide when to launch an attack. The weak Romans can't take the initiative except for defense." Shapur frowned and rubbed his thick beard under his jaw, and the worry in his eyes did not hide: "It's just now that I don't think it's a good time, and we're not sure we'll win."

"The brave and fearless Shapur also has a timid time?" Alpha sneered and glanced at Shapur with his eyes. He was also the most bravest of Ardahir's sons. He had outstanding achievements and had always been dissatisfied with Shapur's status. He felt that his father Aldahir was biased and intended to give Shapur more opportunities to make contributions, while suppressing others, especially his Alpha.

Aldahir glanced at him and quietly withdrew his eyes and looked at Shapur.

Shapur smiled and said, "It's not that I'm timid, but I don't think it's possible to win."

Alpha said with a little sneer, "Did you feel confident of winning the war before? However, we fought against the Romans twice in a row, and we both won first and then lost. Did you only calculate the beginning, but didn't expect the end?

Shapur shook his head and still looked calm: "War is a very complicated thing. If you can win, you may not win. If you can win, you may lose, and you may not necessarily lose. But in general, if there is a major problem that is not solved before the start of the war, start the war in a hurry. Rely relying on the victory on Ahura's blessing, but I don't try to think about it. I think this is an adventure, an abuse of Alahu's power, and disrespect for Ahura.

Alpha opened his mouth, speechless, blushed and lowered his head.

"Why do you think you can't win? Is it because of the shortage of weapons? Aldahir asked quietly. "

"No." Shapur shook his head, "Our weapons are not in short supply to that point, but I'm worried about the King of Yue. He is thousands of miles away from the country and sits in Aksum in person. Is it really because he is greedy for Aksum's coffee? In order to protect their business, he sent two fleets and won the Arabs. In fact, nearly half of the money he earned from Rome or Sassanid was spent on these two items. The actual income did not increase compared with before. On the contrary, it may be a little less. So what did he do? I think he is uniting Rome, Guishuang and the Arabs to deal with us Sassan. With the help of the Vietnamese people, whether it is Rome, Guishuang or the Arabs, their strength has increased, but we, Sassan, have encountered a lot of trouble. If we let this situation develop, Sassan will inevitably weaken. In the end, there is no power to compete with him. We can only accept his exploitation, just like Rome now. It's the same as Guishuang.

"So, do you think we should launch an attack as soon as possible?" Aldahir interrupted.

"Yes, but there is another problem." Shapur nodded solemnly: "In general, the earlier we launch an attack, the better it will be for us, but from another perspective, it is not a good time to launch an attack now. The Four-Nation Alliance has just been completed, and many people do not want war. If we, Sassan, launch an attack first, we will definitely be surrounded by others, and those people will turn their backs on us. Although we Sassanids are brave and good at fighting, it is by no means wise to be outnumbered. Therefore, it is not one to launch an attack in a hurry. That's a good idea."

"Do you have any good ideas?" Aldahir glanced at his sons with a smile. Those people looked different, but they shook their heads coincidentally. They were a little confused by Shapur's words. They wanted to fight, but they couldn't. Should they fight or not? Ardahir finally put his eyes on Shapur's face, but Shapur smiled: "Then make something happen and let others attack us first, and then we will fight back. As long as we stabilize the other two for a while, we can defeat one calmly."

Ardahir laughed and said, "Who should I choose first?"

"Precious frost!" Shapur said without thinking, "Guishuang is the weakest and easiest to defeat, and if you defeat Guishuang, you can get iron and alleviate the crisis of weapons. Our whole army attacked. If the Romans were uneasy, it would give us an excuse.

"What about Yue?" Alpha's inexplicable problem.

Shapur waved his hand and said disdainfully, "There are only sailors in Yue. They can only support Rome and Guishuang in terms of materials. It is impossible for them to send troops to participate in the war in person. If they dare to go ashore to participate in the war, it would be great. We can just defeat them on the shore, so as not to bother to fight with them. A decisive battle at sea. What we have to do is to defeat the Guishuang people and solve our worries before they react. At the same time, we also give a warning to those who think that they have a backer when they have a relationship with the State of Yue. On land, it is still the world of our Sassanian iron horse. Let him put away his heart here.

Ardahir nodded with satisfaction and said after a moment, "It is said that in addition to the State of Yue, there are also His Majesty the Emperor, as well as the State of Wei, the State of Wu and the State of Shu. We should also send people to see what the State of Han looks like. Only when you know him can you win a hundred battles.

"Father is wise." Shapur replied..

... Wu Guodu City Jianye, Lieutenant Colonel Lv Yifu.

Lv Yi stroked the short beard under his jaw neatly. There was some suspicion on his thin face and a little worried. From time to time, he glanced at a brocade box on the case. There were some flowers with branches in the brocade box. Although the flowers had dried up, they could still see the gorgeous beauty of the fresh life.

"Is this the forgetful grass? Does it mean that its beauty can relieve people's worries? Lv Yi stroked his beard and looked warily at the businessman with a professional smile in front of him. He didn't know why the businessman suddenly came to the door, but he had to say that if the forgetful grass in front of him was really effective, it would be his chance for Lv Yi to make a fortune.

Sun Quan has been having a headache recently.

After Sun Xie has died, many people think that Sun Deng will return to the sight of Sun Quan's choice to succeed to the throne. After all, in addition to Sun Deng, Sun Quan's eldest son, Sun He, is only 12 years old now, and his grandson Deng An'an quietly burns porcelain in Yuzhang. Except for the last month, after asking An Shu, he basically does not ask about political affairs. Sun Quan He wanted to abolish his position as prince, and he couldn't find any excuse. However, Lv Yi understood that as long as Sun Quan had a possibility, he would not let Sun Deng come to Jianye to continue to be his successor. It was difficult for Sun Quan to believe that Sun Deng would not be concerned about this experience. He did not want Sun Deng to repay everything now after he succeeded to the throne. More importantly, although Sun Quan often has some minor problems now, he believes that he can definitely live for another ten or twenty years and have enough time to choose another successor, without pinning his hope on Sun Deng.

However, this is only Sun Quan's own plan. The ministers are not very clear that Sun Quan is 44 years old this year. According to his current normal life expectancy, he has stepped into old age, and compared with his brothers, he has a long life. Tai Zhongdeng is 27 years old, and he is about to be born. It is obviously not suitable for him to burn porcelain in Yuzhang all the time. In addition, the death of Sun Jue last time, when many people slandered Sun Deng, Sun Quan announced that he had never doubted Sun Deng, so many people felt that Sun Quan was waiting for Sun Deng to come back. They Constant temptation made it difficult for Sun Quan to decide. For a moment, he couldn't figure out how many people were invited, and how many people really thought so. It was not easy to make a decision.

Lv Yi knows this very well. He accompanies Sun Quan every day and knows that Sun Quan has a headache for this, and from his own point of view, he has no good impression on his grandson Deng - Sun Deng trusts those scholars with profound knowledge and family backgrounds, and does not value capable officials like him. If Sun Deng is a successor Your Majesty, you can be sure that Lv Yi's official career has come to this end.

On the other hand, Sun He's mother, Mrs. Wang, asked people to greet him many times and asked him to say a few good words in front of Sun Quan. Of course, once Sun He succeeds the throne, she will definitely make a promise. Lv Yi knew that Mrs. Wang had no backing in the palace. Although she had a relationship with Zhuge Jin and his son, Zhuge Ke was a close concubine of Tais and grandson Deng and did not have a good impression on Sun He. Therefore, although Sun He was the oldest prince after Sun Deng, he had little hope, especially after Sun Ba's birth, Sun Quan was against Sun Ba. It obviously showed a good impression, which made Mrs. Wang feel more hopeless.

Lv Yi knows that taking the opportunity to help Sun He at this time is much more useful than helping Sun Quan after he really shows his intention to establish Sun He as the crown prince, because he has been paying attention to how to make Sun He get Sun Quan's favor. At present, Sun Quan is often annoyed because he is worried about the prince. If he can be happy, then It's a great achievement.

The forgetful grass in front of us may be an opportunity.

Lv Yi has been an official for many years, and he is engaged in confidential matters. He is cautious and will not trust anyone easily, let alone a businessman easily. He looked at the businessman carefully, hoping to judge the truth of what he said from his words and manners.

The businessman saw Lv Yi's hesitation. He smiled, stood up, and pulled the box in front of him: "This forgetful grass is a rare thing. It is expensive, and it is not something that ordinary people can enjoy. I have heard for a long time that the adults are knowledgeable and rich, so I rushed to offer it to the adults. If you have any doubts, I can give you three days to think about it. After three days, if you still can't decide, I have to find another buyer. To tell you the truth, there are actually people who want to buy these forgetful grass, but the price has not been negotiated for a while, so there is no deal.

Lv Yi smiled and said, "Such a box of grass is sold for 20 gold. I don't think many people will buy it in Jianye."

"Hey hey, my lord, this is a rare thing in Rome. It is mentioned in the poems of the great poet Homer. It is a sacred thing that can only be enjoyed by the gods. How can it be represented by just 20 gold?" The businessman smiled calmly, put away the brocade box, arched his hand, and walked away.

Lv Yi sat for a moment, got up and returned to the study, pulled out a letter of Homer's Epic from the bookshelf, and carefully turned it over. Sure enough, he found the content of Wangyoucao in it. There is also a note below, detailing the form and role of Wangyoucao, which is exactly what the businessman said. Similar. Lv Yi gently closed the book, frowned and said to himself, "Since it's such a wonderful thing, why has His Royal Highness Yue never mentioned it and let someone bring it to me a little? Is it so rare that His Royal Highness Yue doesn't know it?" After thinking for a moment, he got up and took out a few volumes of the New Mountain and Sea Sutra. He turned to the Roman part and looked through it one by one, but he couldn't find the content of the forgetful grass. He couldn't help laughing.

"His Royal Highness is busy with state affairs, and this knowledge is getting more and more sparse."

After two days, Lv Yi sent someone to find the merchant. After several bargainings, he finally bought half a box of Wangyou grass at the price of eight gold. Then he transferred these Wang to Mrs. Mrs. Wang took it with half-heartedly, and then cooked a pot of soup according to the recipe attached to the merchant and added some Wangyou grass. I tasted it first, and I really thought it was delicious. Drinking it made people feel more energetic. Then I was overjoyed and sent it to Sun Quan in person. At first, Sun Quan was a little reluctant. Later, he couldn't resist Mrs. Wang's insistence, so he reluctantly took a sip or two. After tasting it, he was also attracted by the deliciousness of the soup. He praised Mrs. Wang in front of the first time, which made Mrs. Wang almost burst into tears.

Mrs. Wang was very grateful to Lv Yi. She specially asked someone to send 50 gold to Lv Yi and asked him to buy some more. Lv Yi was also a little overjoyed. He also tried the forgetful grass that he had left behind privately, and also felt that it was extremely delicious, so he really believed the businessman's words. However, when he found the merchant again, the merchant shook his head and said that he only brought these this time, because the source is mysterious. These forgetful grass can't be bought on the market at all. Whether you can buy it or not depends on luck, and the price is uncertain. If you want it again, you must pay the full deposit in advance. If the opportunity is good, you may be able to buy another one. Some.

Lv Yi was a little suspicious, so he had to pay ten gold first, and then sent the forgetful grass he had left behind to Mrs. Wang. He told her that there was only so much now. The next batch of goods would not be available until at least half a year later. Let her use it leisurely and don't use them up all at once.

After Mrs. Wang learned about it, she was more careful. She hid these forgetful grass in the most secret place. She didn't even let Sun He know. She didn't make soup for Sun Quan in a few days. However, what she didn't expect was that Sun Quan was soon fascinated by the soup and praised her good craftsmanship. She let her make soup every now and then, and sometimes even rushed to her palace to drink it. This made her happy and stressed at the same time. The consumption speed of Wangyou grass greatly exceeded her expectations, but it was over in three months.

Sun Quan drank this soup with forgetful grass, and he always felt that it was not delicious to drink other soups. Seeing that Mrs. Wang had not had that kind of delicious soup made twice in a row, he was a little angry and never came to Mrs. Wang's palace again. Mrs. Wang was as anxious as an ant on a hot pot. He could only urge Lv Yi to find some more such forgetful in any case. Worried about grass.

Lv Yi had no choice but to visit in person. Only in this search did he know how precious the forgetful grass is. The forgetful grass is a sacred product enjoyed by the nobles of Rome and Sassanian. It not only has a divine effect, but also extremely beautiful, but it is very rare. People who have the forgetful grass do not want to pass on the seeds of the forgetful grass, so many people only Hearing its name, it may not be seen, including many businessmen. In the past two years, this forgetful grass has been even more rare. According to rumors, a mysterious businessman has wrapped up the origin of forgetful grass. In order to let him monopolize the market, he used all kinds of means to destroy several other places with forgetful grass. This person's ability and cruel means are so fierce, which is simply unbelievable.

Lv Yi listened, and he was even more anxious, but he was helpless. Seeing that a good thing was about to be ruined, he beat his chest and hated that he didn't buy all those forgetful grass at that time. For a little profit, he let go of a big opportunity.

Just when Lv Yi was on fire, the businessman appeared again. He put the remaining half box of forgetful grass in front of Lv Yi, offering 20 gold. Lv Yi knew that he had been slaughtered by him, so he had to bear the pain. Fortunately, Mrs. Wang would give him more money in the end. If Sun He set up a prince, he would have no idea what his benefits would be.

There is a saying that if you want to hold a man's heart, you must first pull his stomach, which is an ancient and modern example. With this half box of forgetful grass, Mrs. Wang successfully pulled back Sun Quan's heart. In just half a year, she became the most favored woman in the palace. Not only was Queen Xu, who had not favored for a long time, not in her eyes, but even Mrs. Bu, who had been favored by Sun Quan, could only bow down.

The ministers are all smen. Every time they saw Mrs. Wang sitting next to Sun Quan for a banquet, they were a little surprised. The second time, they understood the meaning. Many people changed the wind one after another. Some approached Mrs. Wang, and some began to pay attention to Sun He, who was only 12 years old. Mrs. Wang not only took back the purchase of forgetful grass. The investment also made a lot of money, which can be said to be a double harvest of fame and fortune.

As she became more and more favored in front of Sun Quan, Mrs. Wang's ambition quickly expanded. She began to act coquettishly in front of Sun Quan, hinting that Sun Quan added her son Sun He, and even hoped that Sun Quan would make Sun He the crown prince. At the beginning, Sun Quan was still a little sober and reprimanded Mrs. Wang, which was very cold. She didn't wait for a few days, but before Mrs. Wang came to plead guilty, he himself became irritable. He was either restless or tasteless. The imperial doctor's order could not find any problems. He made several prescriptions to calm the gods, but he didn't see it well. It was not until he drank the soup sent by Mrs. Wang again that he magically recovered his spirits.

Mrs. Wang, who was originally a little trembling, saw this result and immediately knew that she had the upper hand in the contest with Sun Quan. She knew that Sun Quan could not live without the soup she had made. On the one hand, she carefully apologized to Sun Quan and used more hidden methods to realize her wishes. On the other hand, she would forget more and more. Things are hidden and impenetrable.

Under Mrs. Wang's gentle attack, Sun Quan's attitude slowly changed. Zhuge Ke saw it in his eyes and was anxious in his heart. In desperation, he rushed to Yuzhang in person and told Sun Deng about Sun Quan's changes in the past few months. Sun Deng was silent for a long time, and finally laughed miserably: "Won Xun, do I really have no way to go?"

(to be continued)