When Sun Bin and Zhong Li Chun returned to Qi, Tian Ji was overjoyed and organized a feast for Sun Bin. We all drank and talked about how much we missed each other. Someone brought up the matter of Zou Ji framing Tian Ji and Sun Bin and everyone was furious. Qin Gu said, “There's another one hiding behind Zou Ji, Gongsun Yue, more sinister than him!”

  Sun Bin froze and asked, “When did Gongsun Yue come?”

  Qin Gu said, “He came before you guys left for Chu and became Zou Ji's protégé, I only learned after you guys left that it was his idea to create something out of nothing and frame you and General Tian.”

  Zhong Li Chun was furious, and leapt to his feet to indicate that he would go to Gongsun Yue to settle the score and get rid of this despicable villain. Tian and the generals present also stood up and wanted to follow Zhong Li Chun to find Gongsun Yue.

  Sun Bin stopped them all and said “You can't kill Gongsun Yue, Gongsun Yue is now Zou Ji's man, if you kill Gongsun Yue, Zou Ji will use this as a leverage to kill your whole family. Confucius has a saying, a little impatience is a big plan, I don't want you guys to show off your courage.”

  “I don't have a family or a job, I'm not afraid of being decapitated by the whole family, I'll go by myself.” Zhong Li Chun finished and crossed out of the house alone.

  Tian Guo and the generals rushed to catch up with Zhong Li Chun and stopped in front of her.

  Tian Guo advised, “Miss Zhong Li, Mr. Sun's words are never wrong, it's better to go back.”

  Zhong Li Chun drew her sword, “If you don't get out of the way, I'm going to do it.”

  Tian Guo was unmoved and said, “We don't dare to disobey Mr. Sun's orders, you can't let you go even if you kill us.”

  Sun Bin and Tian Ji chased after him, Sun Bin said to Zhong Li Chun, “Miss Zhong Li, you mustn't be capricious, not to mention that you can't kill Gongsun Yue, even if you do, it's not only you that Zou Ji is going to arrest, but it'll also involve the many generals under General Tian.”

  “Then I'll kill Zou Ji too!”

  “Nonsense! If we kill Zou Ji, the Great King will be even less likely to spare us.”

  “Let's go and leave Qi!”

  “You and I are unattached, but what about General Tian and his family?”

  Zhong Li Chun was speechless.

  Tian Ji also spoke up, “Miss Zhong Li, sooner or later we have to get rid of Gongsun Yue, but we can't do it brute force, brute force often goes against our wishes.”

  Zhong Li Chun was silent for a moment and asked, “Has his wife come yet?”

  “It is said to have come as well.”

  “I'll go find his wife.”

  “We should do things in a dignified manner, we can't take it out on his wife.” Tian Ji hastened to stop it.

  “I won't, his madam is my sister.”

  Zhong Li Chun's words were hard to believe for a while, Sun Bin told everyone that Gongsun Yue's wife was indeed Zhong Li Chun's sister, and the only real sister. At the same time, Sun Bin told Zhong Li Chun not to get emotional if she sees Gongsun Yue.

  At Gongs Yueun's residence in Zoufu, Zhong Li Qiu was sitting alone on a mat in the house, concentrating on sewing a child's dress. Hearing someone knocking on the door, thinking that it was a maidservant who came to serve, she still lowered her head and answered, “Come in.”

  Zhong Li Chun gently pushed the door and walked in, walking step by step in front of Zhong Li Qiu. Zhong Li Qiu, who was sewing with her head down, did not pay attention to the visitor and asked, “What is it?” Zhong Li Chun was already in tears and had mixed feelings for a moment, remaining silent and quietly looking at her sister. Zhong Li Qiu seemed to sense something and raised her head, unable to help but freeze.

  Time seemed to freeze, the two sisters just looked at each other in silence.

  “Sister, you can come ......,” Zhong Li Qiu hugged her longed for sister and cried bitterly.

  Zhong Li Chun looked lovingly at her sobbing sister, gently wiping the tears from her sister's face, and couldn't help but weep as well.

  Sisters cried enough, the two years of their respective experiences to tell the story. When Zhong Li Qiu learned that Zou Ji caused Sun Bin to be uprooted and nearly died, she said angrily, “I didn't think that Zou Xiang Guo was such a person! When Gongsun Yue comes back, I'll tell him to leave the Xiangguo Mansion.”

  Just then Gongsun Yue returned. And learned of Zhong Li Chun's arrival from the gatekeeper, pondering.

  Gongsun Yue pushed the door and saw Zhong Li Chun with a joyful look on his face, “Sister, why are you here?”

  “Why, aren't you welcome?” Zhong Li Chun said indifferently.

  “No, it was unexpected. Zhong Li Qiu often mentions you to me, we were all looking forward to you coming.” Gongsun Yue laughed and ordered Zhong Li Qiu to go prepare the lunch. When Zhong Li Qiu stood up, her body looked awkward, Gongsun Yue hurriedly made her sit back down, patted his head, and said to Zhong Li Chun, “Look at my memory, Zhong Li Qiu has already had it, and I'm still bothering her ...... I'll personally prepare the meal for you.”

  After Gongsun Yue left, only then did Zhong Li Chun notice the small clothes that Zhong Li Qiu had just sewn, she let out a long sigh and said, “You really shouldn't have this child ......”

  Zhong Li Qiu was puzzled and asked Zhong Li Chun what she meant by this.

  Zhong Li Chun was afraid of his sister's sadness, and could not talk about Gongsun Yue again, so he changed his mind and laughed at himself and said, “Hey, I mean, you have a child, but I ......”.

  Zhong Li Qiu “hee hee” smiled, “You can marry Mr. Sun, in the future, you can not only protect him, but also for him to have children.”

  Zhong Li Chun was about to explain to her sister about her and Sun Bin when Gongsun Yue walked into the house again. Zhong Li Chun got up to leave, Zhong Li Qiu pulled Zhong Li Chun back, “Sister, don't go, I still have a lot to say ......”

  “Yes,” Gongsun Yue also persuaded from the side, ”You sisters have been separated for so long, there are a lot of things to say, eat dinner and stay here, you sisters have a good time catching up.”

  Zhong Li Chun ignored Gongsun Yue and said softly to Zhong Li Qiu, “Sister, take care of your body. I have things to do, I'll come back to see you later.”

  Before going out, Zhong Li Chun warned Gongsun Yue again, “Gongsun Yue, I heard that Zou Ji is obedient to you, you tell him that if he secretly poisoned Mr. Sun again, I will never spare him, as well as you!”

  After Zhong Li Chun left, Zhong Li Qiu advised Gongsun Yue to leave the Xiangguo Mansion and stop working for Zou Ji. Gongsun Yue explained to her that if he hadn't begged for Sun Bin's favor, Sun Bin would have been killed by the Sage. Although Zhong Li Qiu believed Gongsun Yue's lie, she still wanted to move out of the Xiangguo Mansion.

  The Shihuang Dafu of Chu returned to Chu capital from the valley on the border of Chu and Wei alone and reported to the King of Chu about Sun Bin's abduction. The King of Chu was furious and ordered Shihuang Dafu to go to Wei immediately to ask Pang Juan for someone and if Pang Juan didn't hand over Sun Bin, he would persuade Qi and Zhao to jointly invade Wei.

  Dr. Shi Huang came to Wei and asked Pang Juan for Sun Bin. Pang Juan angrily said to Shihuang Daifu: “Shihuang Daifu, Sun Bin is still in your hands! Don't think I'll believe your bullshit just because you ask me for someone!”

  “Marshal Pang, you can't deny it,” Shi Huang Dafu looked like he was crying, ”I saw Sun Bin being robbed by your people with my own eyes, the one in charge was a woman, everyone else called her Miss Spring.”

  “Bullshit!” Pang Juan was on fire and slammed the table, “If you don't tell the truth, I'll kill you!”

  Pang Juan and Shi Huang Dafu were in the middle of a fight when a secret letter from Gongsun Yue was sent from Qi, telling Pang Juan that Sun Bin had returned to Qi. Pang Juan was furious and cursed Sun Bin, and Shihuang Dafu realized that he had fallen for Sun Bin's trick.

  Pang Juan personally came to Chu and explained to the King of Chu that Sun Bin had fled back to Qi. The King of Chu was furious: “Sun Bin is running to the sky, I will chase him back!” He said to Pang Juan, who was sitting on the side: “Marshal Pang, what's your good idea?”

  “My foreign minister remembers that in order for Sun Bin to copy the Art of War, the Great King specially gave Sun Bin a case for jewelry to put bamboo slips in, I don't know if this case is around today?”

  “Not anymore, Sun Bin took the case away.”

  “The king can use this chest as an excuse to send Shi Huang Daifu on a mission to Qi, saying that Sun Bin has stolen the king's rare jewels, and demand Sun Bin and the jewels from the king of Qi.”

  “There are only bamboo slips in that chest; there are no rare jewels.”

  “Bamboo slips, jewels, only one word difference, Zou Ji, the Prime Minister of Qi, hates Sun Bin to the bone, the Great King can order Shi Huang Dafu to lobby Zou Ji, so that Zou Ji will point to the slips as jewels.”

  Dr. Shi Huang came to Qi and called on Zou Ji before he went to see King Wei of Qi. He falsely accused Sun Bin of stealing the King of Chu's jewels and asked King Qi Wei to send someone to ask Sun Bin for the jewels.

  King Qi Wei didn't believe that Sun Bin was a cock-and-bull thief and said, “The King of Chu has always treated his treasures like his life, and sent heavy troops to guard them, so it's impossible for Sun Bin to take the treasures away.”

  Dr. Shi Huang said, “Sun Bin is a trickster, there's nothing he can't do. The box that held the jewels is still in his hands.”

  King Qi Wei ordered the palace guard to ask Sun Bin for the chest and return it to Shi Huang Dafu. The palace guard came back from Sun Bin's residence and said to King Qi Wei, “Mr. Sun said that the King of Chu gave him bamboo slips, not jewels.”

  “Such a fine chest is dedicated to holding rare jewelry, how could it possibly hold bamboo slips that aren't worth a few dollars?” Shihuang Dafu sneered before advancing to King Qi Wei, “Your Majesty, my king is asking for Your Majesty's permission to allow Sun Bin to take the stolen jewels and travel to Chu to thank my king for his crimes.”

  King Qi Wei said indifferently, “If Sun Bin really took the King of Chu's treasures, just let him return them to you, why do you have to ask him to travel to Chu to thank you for his crime?”

  Shihuang Daifu responded, “Your Majesty, if someone has stolen the King's treasures, as the king of a large country, is it possible that the King's face can be recovered just by asking for the treasures back?”

  Zou Ji, who hadn't said anything, said from the sidelines, “Your Majesty, what Dr. Shi Huang said is not without reason.”

  King Qi Wei ignored Zou Ji and went straight to Shi Huang Dafu, “That's just your side of the story, not to mention Sun Bin may not take the King of Chu's treasures.”

  “The king is trying to harbor Sun Bin, right?” Shi Huang Dafu sneered.

  “I'm not harboring.” King Qi Wei frowned and said impatiently, “Shi Huang Dafu, I can't oblige you without proof.”

  “Your Majesty, isn't this chest evidence?”

  “A chest is a chest, and jewelry is jewelry.”

  “Your Majesty, my king said that if you are unwilling to hand over Sun Bin, I will have to join forces with Marshal Pang of Wei to bring in troops to demand Sun Bin.” Shi Huang Dafu threatened.

  “You're threatening me?”

  “I don't dare, it's really because Sun Bin is too detestable!”

  King Qi Wei was very disgusted with Shi Huang Dafu and whisked his sleeve, “Shi Huang Dafu, I don't want to see you again!”

  “Your Majesty, don't put Your Majesty's country in danger for the sake of a Sun Bin ...... Please think twice.”

  After Shihuang Dafu left the palace, Zou Ji said to King Qi Wei, “Shihuang Dafu is right, don't trap our Qi country in danger because of a Sun Bin ...... Not to mention that Sun Bin did take the King of Chu's treasure chest.”

  “I don't believe that there would be jewelry in the chest.”

  “I don't believe it either, it's an excuse for the King of Chu to want someone. If Sun Bin is loyal to the king, even if there is a great danger, the king should bear it for him, but Sun Bin isn't, why don't you just go with the flow and give the king of Chu a face, and turn Tian Ji's and other people's dissatisfaction into hatred towards the king of Chu, wouldn't that be a two for one deal?”

  “I can't even protect a Sun Bin, what will the people of the country think of me?”

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “It's not that the Great King can't protect Sun Bin, it's that Sun Bin doesn't deserve the Great King's protection. Has the Great King forgotten that he and Tian Ji asked a soothsayer to find out their fortune? If Sun Bin stays in Qi, it's not difficult for Tian Ji to replace the Great King; if Sun Bin leaves Qi, Tian Ji will be alone.”

  King Wei of Qi thought for a moment and made a decision, “Well, for the sake of my country, I have to wrong him once.”

  When Zhong Li Chun heard that King Wei of Qi was going to hand Sun Bin over to Chu, he said angrily, “This is clearly wronging Mr. Sun, how can the Great King believe it? General Tian, let's go and meet the Great King to seek justice for Mr. Sun!”

  Tian Ji said to Zhong Li Chun, “It's useless to explain, I have talked my head off in front of the Great King, but the Great King still insisted that Mr. Sun go to Chu to ask for forgiveness ......”

  Qin Gu is also both angry and puzzled at the same time, “The Great King is also too confused, why doesn't he trust his own people, but trusts Dr. Shi Huang instead!”

  Tian Ji pondered for a moment and sighed, “We can't rely on the Great King anymore, we can only rely on ourselves.” He said to Sun Bin, who was silent at the side, “Mr. Sun, I am a close friend of Dr. Shen in Country of Han, you take my letter and quietly leave Qi and go to Country of Han to look for Dr. Shen, he will surely take you in, and you'll have a great career in Country of Han.”

  Sun Bin disagreed and said, “If the King of Chu can't see me, he'll go out with Pang Juan to threaten the King, and the King will succumb to the pressure to ask you for someone, what will you do?”

  The crowd was silent.

  Zhong Li Chun said anxiously from the sidelines, “If there's really no way out, I'll just barge into the palace and kill this dim king!”

  Sun Bin stopped it, “Miss Zhong Li, don't talk nonsense!”

  Zhong Li Chun said indignantly, “I'm not talking nonsense, if I can say it, I can do it!”

  Sun Bin wanted to stop again, “When will you change this temper?”

  Zhong Li Chun said “I can't change it in this life!”

  Sun Bin couldn't hold it down and snapped, “If you don't change you'll leave, don't ruin our big event!”

  “You ...... will leave if you leave!”

  Said Zhong Li Chun turned around and left. Tian Ji quickly stopped her, “Miss Zhong Li, don't gamble, Mr. Sun is in a bad mood, don't take his words to heart.”

  “His mood is not good, my mood is good? ...... I'm all for him ...... Why is he always wronged, I ...... I can't swallow this tone of breath ...... “Zhong Li Chun felt aggrieved and shed tears as she spoke.

  Tian Ji comforted her and said, “Miss Zhong Li, don't cry, we will think of a way.”

  “What can be done? If you want him to go, he just won't go, willingly going to his death, there's nothing anyone can do ......”

  “I have a way.” Qin Gu, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up.

  “Quickly say, what solution?” Zhong Li Chun urged.

  “Promise the king that Mr. Sun will go to Chu.”

  “Bullshit solution, it's better than no solution at all!” Zhong Li Chun was greatly disappointed.

  Qin Gu said unhurriedly, “Listen to me finish ...... Chu is the way to Country of Han, let Mr. Sun take the general's treasured jewels to Chu, I and Miss Zhong Li also go, after arriving at the territory of the State of Chu, I will look for a person to take the place of Mr. Sun, so that Miss Zhong Li protects Mr. Sun and quietly travels to Country of Han, and we will also have a steal the beam once.”

  Sun Bin shook his head, “No, a fake is a fake after all, how will you explain when you meet the King of Chu?”

  “The King of Chu regards treasures as if they were his life, so if I offer them to him, won't I account for them.”

  “The King of Chu wants my Art of War, and The Art of War of Sun Tzu is more precious than treasures.”

  “It depends on how it's said. Last time, in order to get the Art of War, I caused the King of Chu to lose his troops and generals, if Mr. Chu goes to Chu again, Pang Juan won't stop yet, and General Tian Ji will also hold a grudge against the King of Chu because of this, and Mr. Chu refuses to give him the real Art of War, so why don't you do a favor, accept the precious treasure, and leave it at that. I think the King of Chu will be convinced by my three-inch tongue.”

  Tian Ji opened his mouth and asked, “What about Dr. Shi Huang, he's been following you guys, if he sees it's a fake, it'll be hard for Mr. Sun to escape from Chu ......”

  Sun Bin mused, “It's not hard to fool Shi Huang Dafu, I'm worried about whether the king ...... will pursue the general when he finds out.”

  Tian Ji said confidently, “No, when I met the Great King, I heard the Great King's words, the Great King also had no choice, if Mr. Sun disappeared in Chu, the Great King will never pursue.”

  Qin Gu also asked Sun Bin to relax, “Mr. Sun, trust me, it will work.”

  While Zhong Li Chun and the others were planning how to help Sun Bin leave Qi, Zhong Li Qiu and Gongsun Yue left the Xiangguo Mansion and stayed in their new home. Zhong Li Qiu asked Gongsun Yue to go and invite Zhong Li Chun to come and have a look at her new home and secondly, to have Zhong Li Chun name her unborn child.

  Gongsun Yue sat down next to Zhong Li Qiu and said with a smile, “I've already thought of a name, it's Gongsun Qiu, my surname, plus your first name, how about it?”

  Zhong Li Qiu shook her head and said, “I don't like autumn, autumn is too sad ......” She thought for a moment and said, “In my opinion, it is good to call Gongsun Chun, everything grows in the spring, and it predicts that our child will grow fast. ”

  Gongsun Yue disagreed and said, “This is not your sister's child, how can we call him spring?”

  Zhong Li Qiu said, “In our parents' names, there is neither spring nor autumn, isn't it the same to take the words spring and autumn as our names?”

  Zhong Li Qiu's words inspired Gongsun Yue, who brightened up, “How about calling Gongsun Spring and Autumn? More than a hundred years ago, a man named Kong Fu Zi cultivated a compendium called Spring and Autumn, that compendium kept track of all the world's major events, if our child is called Spring and Autumn, he will definitely be able to do great things when he grows up.”

  Zhong Li Qiu readily agreed, and she asked Gongsun Yue to tell Zhong Li Chun the child's name.

  Gongsun Yue went to look for Zhong Li Chun and learned that the man had already left. Tian Ji asked King Wei of Qi for 5,000 men to escort Sun Bin to the border of Qi and Chu and then said goodbye to Sun Bin, Zhong Li Chun and Qin Gu one by one. Sun Bin's caravan drove into the land of Chu, and Dr. Shi Huang was in the group, he and Qin Gu rode in the same car.

  There were a few bladed Han men riding fast horses coming up from behind their car. They stopped their horses in front of Zhong Li Chun's car, whispered a few words to him, and then beat their horses to the front.

  Seeing the secretive behavior of these men, Dr. Shi Huang asked Qin Gu what those men were doing. Qin Gu didn't answer directly, and said to Shi Huang Dafu, “Shi Huang Dafu, I want to stay in Chu, can you recommend me to the King of Chu?”

  Dr. Shi Huang asked him why he wanted to stay in Chu.

  Qin Gu sighed and said, “Sun Bin has done so much for Qi, and the King of Qi knows full well that Sun Bin was wrongly accused, yet he handed Sun Bin over because he was afraid of Chu ...... Hey, it's a bleak prospect to be a strategist in Qi... ... “Qin Gu glanced at the Shi Huang Daifu seems to be moved, and said: ”Shi Huang Daifu, if the king of Chu is not willing to reuse me, I do your door how?”

  Dr. Shi Huang laughed: “Wouldn't that be too much for you?”

  Qin Gu complimented: “Shi Huang Dafu only came to Qi, with just one mouth, he scared the King of Qi and had to hand over Sun Bin, it's really a rare talent in the world, in the future, he will be the prime minister of Chu, if I become your disciple, not only will I have endless honor and wealth, but also I will be able to learn the skills, and grow my knowledge, wouldn't it be great?”

  Dr. Shi Huang looked at Qin Gu for a few moments, came closer and asked, “Do you really want to be my disciple?”

  “That's for sure.”

  “Tell me the truth, what exactly were those horseback riders doing just now? Why are they always following us?”

  Qin Gu looked at Zhong Li Chun in the car in front of him and said in a low voice, “Zhong Li Chun is keeping an eye on me, I'll tell you when we get to the post station.”

  As night fell, the caravan entered a post station, where Qin Gu and Dr. Shi Huang shared a room. Qin Gu said to Shi Huang Daifu: “Zhong Li Chun has bought a lot of daredevils in Chu, the last time they saved Sun Bin, it was them, and they were the ones who followed us just now. They intend to kill you on the way and then escape into the deep forest ......”

  Once he remembered what happened last time when Sun Bin escaped, Shihuang Dafu was scared to death, he was busy asking Qin Gu, “What are they planning to do to you?”

  Qin Gu sighed: “Forcing me to escape into the deep mountains ...... To be honest, this is one of the reasons why I intend to defect to you, I'm used to eating mountain delicacies and sea food, how can I live in the deep mountains and dense forests?”

  “Do you have a plan to get rid of them?” Dr. Shi Huang asked again.

  Qin Gu shook his head.

  Shi Huang Dafu raised his face and said, “In times of danger, if you can't come up with a plan, what's the use of having a protégé like you?”

  Qin Gu frowned, thought for a while, and said, “The plan is to come up with one, but if I can't get it right, I won't have a life ......”

  “Speak up, we can figure it out together.”

  Qin Gu pondered and said, “Fang, I thought of Da Yu, Da Yu's father ruled the water by plugging, the result did not work, was killed by Da Shun; Da Yu ruled the water by dredging, the result is not only cured the water, but also inherited the throne of Da Shun. Dr. Shi Huang you are like Great Yu, Sun Bin and Zhong Li Chun are like water, and it's a scourge water, you can't use blockage on them, you should use dredging, let them go.”

  “Letting Sun Bin go, how can I explain to the Great King?”

  Qin Gu sighed and said, “It would be better if there was a fake Sun Bin ......” He pretended to remember something and said to Shi Huang Dafu, “Shi Huang Dafu, there is a person under my command who has a body shape very similar to Sun Bin, can we turn him in ......” He looked at Shi Huang Dafu who was looking down and shook his head again and said: ”No, a fake is a fake, the King of Chu knows Sun Bin, we can't hide it from him. It seems like you're only going to die, and I'm only going to be accompanied by the deep mountains and dense forests.”

  Shihuang Daifu spoke up at this time, “My king likes treasures, I can use your treasures to deliver the goods.”

  Qin Gu thought that this idea could be a good one to try.

  As dawn broke, Shi Huang Dafu and Qin Gu rode in a carriage with fake Sun Bin and continued traveling towards the capital of Chu.

  Sun Bin and Zhong Li Chun, on the other hand, turned off the road to Country of Han, escorted by the group of hans. Zhong Li Chun asked Sun Bin worriedly, “Do you think Mr.Qin will be able to turn the danger around?”

  “Hard to say.” Sun Bin was no less worried.

  Zhong Li Chun said, “You should listen to me, kill Dr. Shi Huang and we'll go together. Mr. Sun, it's not too late to go back.”

  Sun Bin shook his head, “No, Shi Huang Dafu is an emissary from Chu, kill the emissary and Qi and Chu will surely fight each other, that way Pang Juan will reap the benefits.”

  “If, they kill Mr.Qin, you and I will regret it for the rest of our lives ......”

  Sun Bin looked up to the sky and said, “Alas, may the heavens bless Mr.Qin.”

  Note: “Stealing a beam for a pillar” is the twenty-fifth of the Thirty-six Stratagems, also known as “Stealing the sky for the sun”, its original meaning refers to the secret use of stratagems, to replace the real with the fake, to achieve their own goals. Pang Juan “Stealing a beam for a pillar”, falsely accusing Sun Bin of taking away the King of Chu's jewelry. Qin Gu “stole the beam and replaced it with a pillar” to get Sun Bin out of danger. To know how Qin Gu dealt with the King of Han and how Sun Bin gained a foothold in Country of Han, please read the next installment: “Borrow a Road to Conquer Guo”.