Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 336

“This…” Xiang Yu was slightly embarrassed. Under the watchful eyes of his companions, he raised his fist and coughed twice: “I’m using this example to teach you the first lesson after you leave the academy: don’t easily trust other people’s directions.”

"But the path is clearly correct..."

"The 'other person' I'm referring to is myself!"

Xiang Yu chuckled and shook his shoulder, knocking Tianming off his armrest, causing the latter to stumble and nearly fall.

"Hey, what are you doing!"

"This is the second lesson: Don't easily trust others to rely on."

Xiang Yu laughed and joked, then ignored his companions and headed towards the city gate.

According to the old man I met on the road, soldiers are sent to the front lines at the beginning of each month. It's only the middle of the month now, so joining the Qi army early and making a good impression might allow them to depart immediately next month!

"Well, you dare to treat your boss like this?"

Tianming steadied Yuanhong behind him and chased after him with a menacing grin.

As the two approached the city gate, their expressions turned serious upon seeing the impeccably armored guards: these were the identities they were about to be given...

"Yue'er, what's wrong?"

Princess Qi, Lu He, also went out on a 'private visit' today.

Having been confined in Daze Mountain for over a decade, she is now finally free to descend the mountain. She is delighted by the world's prosperity and is curious about everything, even though Licheng is not a large city.

But it's okay, because thanks to Lu Wei's efforts, she doesn't have much time left to be 'naive'~

Accompanying the princess were two attendants, one of whom was none other than Gao Yue, who had returned from Xiaoshengxianzhuang.

The girl arrived in Licheng earlier than the lost Tianming Shaoyu. Under the arrangement of her mother Yan Yun, she got the opportunity to get close to Lu He.

"I met two good friends; they probably never expected to see me here."

Gao Yue's gaze swept across a street of vendors, accurately fixing on the unsuspecting Tianming and Xiang Yu as they passed by.

"Oh?" Lu He smiled gently. "Then why not give them a surprise?"

"No, Your Highness."

Another attendant suddenly spoke up: "It is not appropriate for you to meet outsiders at this time, given your status... Moreover, Yue'er's two friends have special destinies, and in my opinion, it is best not to disturb their activities."

Xu Fu is only seven years old, but he acts like a little adult, giving instructions to Lu He and Gao Yue, who are older than him, with a stern face.

As a disciple personally accepted by the former Donghuang, Xu Fu met Donghuang very few times and only received the most basic instruction. Later, his teacher died...

After the new leader of the Yin-Yang School, the Moon Goddess, accepted her as a disciple and guided her on the focus of Yin-Yang arts, Xu Fu's unparalleled talent began to emerge. She easily surpassed her 'good-for-nothing father' and became a candidate for the future protector of the Yin-Yang School.

She was a playmate whom Lu He obtained through a request for an identity, but the Snow Maiden, who doted on her daughter, also granted her special jurisdiction.

The only skill Xu Wang had ever learned, the art of observing qi, reached a leap forward with Xu Fu. After several demonstrations, Lu He and Gao Yue completely believed her words.

Now that Xu Fu had said so, the two girls did not mention summoning Tianming and Xiang Yu again: since they had other opportunities, they could not ruin them now.

Completely unaware that they had been thoroughly scrutinized by the geniuses of the Yin-Yang School, Tianming and Xiang Yu were not so foolish as to get lost in the city. The two successfully found the government office, applied to join the Qi army, and were taken back to the military camp outside the city for training.

With their physical abilities, they handled the training with ease and quickly gained the appreciation of the Qi army officers: as a martial arts sect, the Farmer's Clan had many experts within it, and there were quite a few martial arts experts who came to Licheng to join the Qi army after the restoration of Qi against Qin. Therefore, the two were quickly promoted to squad leaders and went to the Northern Route Army with the army at the beginning of next month.

It was a pity that he couldn't go to the central route personally led by the King of Qi, but as long as he could fight the Qin army, Xiang Yu had no objections.

The commander of the Northern Route Army was said to be a young general who had only joined the peasant faction two years before the uprising. Because of his outstanding talent, he was chosen by His Highness Prince Qi to lead an army. This inspired many martial arts heroes who felt they were not being given the opportunity to emulate him.

'Han Xin, huh...' This is also why Xiang Yu came to the Qi army; here he had a chance to revive the Xiang clan. Otherwise, if it were his homeland, Chu, starting from scratch would be extremely difficult: 'He can be overthrown and replaced!'

Han Xin was unaware that his location had been spotted by a lowly soldier named Xiang Yu, who was currently setting up his army formation against Wang Li.

Wang Li's Great Wall army returned victorious, but the good news was that the enemy was in a hurry to return to Guanzhong and seemed unwilling to fight the Qi army in Yan.

Han Xin could not possibly miss such an opportunity: stopping his enemy from doing what he was doing would certainly benefit him.

Therefore, he took the initiative and made it appear as if he was about to lead his army into Taiyuan County. As expected, Wang Li, who was in Shang County, could not resist and led his battle-hardened armored soldiers and Anbei garrison troops to attack him.

These two elite forces together numbered 80,000 soldiers. Although they were outnumbered compared to the 100,000 troops selected by Han Xin, they were well-equipped and, most importantly, had a large number of Qin cavalry.

Farmers can hide soldiers, but they cannot easily hide horses. The lack of cavalry after raising an army is indeed a major problem.

Moreover, although the Great Wall army was orderly returning to Guanzhong via the Hetao region, the Qin troops that had not yet withdrawn from Shangjun could still come to support Wang Li at any time. Han Xin estimated that the Qin troops that could come to support him could still number around 100,000.

In other words, he had to be prepared to withstand the 180,000-strong Great Wall Army at any time.

Of course, if things get to that point, regardless of the outcome of the battle, Wang Li's retreat plan will be delayed for several more months. By then, Prince Qi might have already led his army into Guanzhong, and Han Xin will still be able to achieve great merit in containing the enemy.

But if we could swallow Wang Li, wouldn't the credit be even greater?

Chapter 426 Star Soul Zhang Liang

"It's truly astonishing to hear that Little Sage Manor is supporting His Highness Prince Qi with all its might and without any room for retreat."

Inside Xingyang City, Xinghun was playing chess with Zhang Liang in front of him.

Although this left protector of the Yin-Yang School has now shed his Yin-Yang School uniform and changed into plain clothes, his identity is now merely that of an ordinary subject of the King of Qi, but the strange patterns on his face and his pale skin still easily attract attention.

Confucius said, “Governing with virtue is like the North Star, which remains in its place while all the other stars revolve around it.” His Highness Prince Qi is of high virtue and great talent, wholeheartedly serving the people and not indulging in personal desires. I, Xiaoshengxianzhuang, deeply admire him and am willing to follow his example. It is not surprising at all.

Zhang Liang calmly met Xinghun's gaze, who still looked like a young man, and said with a slight smile, "Isn't the Yin-Yang School the same?"

"The Yin-Yang School does indeed support His Highness Prince Qi, but that doesn't represent my personal stance, just as the support for Xiaoshengxianzhuang wasn't Zifang's sole reason, right?"

After completing his training in the Yin-Yang Arts of Cleansing Hatred, Xinghun's feelings for the Yin-Yang School had become almost nonexistent. From the beginning, he only regarded the Yin-Yang School as his last resort. Now that he had other options, abandoning his previous choice would not be a psychological burden for Xinghun.

There are many reasons why the Yin-Yang School would support Lu Wei, but his own support for Lu Wei is another matter.

The reason Xinghun spoke so frankly was because he believed Zhang Liang felt the same way...

"Zifang is a direct descendant of the Zhang family, who served as prime minister of Han for five generations. I wonder if he will persuade His Highness the King of Qi to reinstate the state of Han after the world is at peace?"

Xinghun's question directly addresses Zhang Liang's innermost thoughts.

“Throughout history, monarchs have been inherently lonely. They not only have to guard against the people, but also against their ministers, harems, and children.” In response to the question, Zhang Liang said without hesitation, “My identity is naturally associated with the old state of Han, and there are even traces of my early efforts to restore the country. It’s not surprising that you have such a question.”

"But now, although the outcome of some things is still uncertain, only His Highness Prince Qi can make the choice. If I am not foolish, I will not go against His Highness Prince Qi's wishes... just like when Ying Zheng was alive, no one could go against his decision."

"The majesty of an emperor cannot be ignored."

Linking Lu Wei with Ying Zheng is an inappropriate comparison, especially at this time: Ying Zheng is universally recognized as a tyrant with no redeeming qualities, and anyone who dares to praise him is going against the will of the people.

However, Xinghun and Zhang Liang had their own purposes for chatting today, and sincerity was a condition for each other, so it didn't cause any problems.

“Since the time of Yao and Shun, the power of the ruler of the world has always been in a trend of continuous centralization. Right now, you and I can still evaluate the King of Qi, but a thousand years from now, I'm afraid everyone will have to kneel and wait for the emperor’s decree.” Xinghun sighed, following Zhang Liang’s thoughts.

By this time, both of them understood each other's meaning, and they had established a shallow but not fragile alliance.

The current political landscape is one of Qi's inevitable annexation of Qin. Although Qi's current favorable situation is entirely due to a surprise attack, a major defeat at Hangu Pass could potentially wipe it all out. But who can blame them when the Qin emperor in Guanzhong is Huhai and the real power is held by Zhao Gao?

In the past, Li Mu of Zhao was powerful, but it was Zhao Qian and Guo Kai who enjoyed themselves in Handan. Therefore, no one in Qin doubted the inevitable outcome of destroying Zhao. Even after many defeats in the attacks on Zhao since 236 BC, no one questioned Ying Zheng's decision. This is very similar to the current situation of Qin.

The wheel of fortune has turned around and fallen on the Qin state itself; this is truly a lesson worth heeding.

After the unification of Qi, more problems will arise. Xinghun and Zhang Liang are currently only military advisors in the Qi army. They need to cooperate to compete for the right to speak within Qi.

His Highness Prince Qi is very rational. He can make those conventional decisions himself, but he still delegates a great deal of authority to his subordinates.

After all, for Lu Wei, leading the army into Guanzhong and destroying Qin as the King of Qi was enough to take 80% of the credit in this chaotic world. If he were to do everything personally, not only would his share of the credit increase, but the opportunities for his subordinates at all levels to make contributions would also disappear, which was absolutely unacceptable.

If those below him are not given opportunities for promotion, their resentment will inevitably be directed at him, the King of Qi.

Therefore, focusing on the major achievements while letting go of the minor ones is a balance that Lu Wei is deliberately maintaining. He cannot take all the credit for himself and must actively distribute it.

But how to divide it is also a problem. Lu Wei hopes that those who can set aside their backgrounds and stand on the side of the 'emperor' in their personal capacity will receive more.

So after giving a few hints, Xinghun and Zhang Liang got together.

These two will become a pair of clean gloves for Lu among his ministers outside the peasant family. Of course, as a reward, Lu will also give them what they want at the appropriate time.

...

Hu Hai continued to indulge in pleasures in the deep palace, and his desires, nurtured by the power he wielded, became even more rampant.

On this day, he ordered another batch of laborers to be conscripted from the six provinces of Kanto to build him a new hot spring palace.

The area outside Hangu Pass had long been Qi territory. Even if the order was issued and obeyed by the counties still under the jurisdiction of Qin officials, it would be impossible to send people into Guanzhong. Therefore, in order to ensure that his plan was not exposed in advance, Zhao Gao secretly changed the scope of recruitment to the old Qin people in Guanzhong.

The people of Qin suffered no less than those of the six states of Shandong, but they had grown accustomed to it over the decades. However, Hu Hai's actions this time were unbearable for them: the oppression that the people of Qin had been under for so long had kept them on edge.

Since Shang Yang's reforms, the empire had carefully maintained this balance, preventing it from exceeding its limits and extracting maximum labor value from it. However, with Hu Hai's arrival, this balance was completely severed.

When Li Si received this news, he immediately sensed something was wrong: firstly, the decree was being issued without his approval as prime minister; secondly, it seemed they were truly about to mess things up...

Furthermore, the lack of updates from Sanchuan County at least indicates that the Qin scouts outside Hangu Pass have gone blind. If we consider the worst-case scenario, perhaps his eldest son, Li You, is already...

"Make way! I need to see His Majesty!"

Li Si displayed a rare display of integrity after the death of the First Emperor: personal interests aside, if the Qin state were to collapse completely, he might go from being a "prime minister for all ages" to a cautionary tale in history!

I must salvage my reputation!

The best solution Li Si could think of was similar to Zhao Gao's idea: first, use Hangu Pass to defend Guanzhong, then appropriately relax punishments, reduce extravagant construction, and govern the internal affairs well before launching a large-scale attack.

With his abilities, obtaining such power would at least prevent the situation from getting worse.

"Your Excellency, His Majesty is currently holding a banquet in the palace and is not receiving any foreign officials."

However, Yan Le, the captain of the palace guards, with a stern face and an air of righteous indignation, prevented Li Si from barging in to request an audience.

The position and power of the prime minister came from the imperial power. If Hu Hai did not summon him, Li Si could not possibly squeeze through the strong soldiers.

Seeing Yan Leli's attitude of drawing his sword halfway, the Prime Minister clenched his fists and finally yielded, following his heart: he would go back to write a memorial to Hu Hai.

Just like the "Memorial on Expelling Foreign Guests" from more than 20 years ago!

Li Si was very confident in his literary talent.

But soon after he returned to his residence, a massive Qin army surrounded the Prime Minister's mansion...

Zhao Gao was about to close in on him.

Chapter 427 The Lishan Plan

After Li Si was arrested and imprisoned, the jailers tortured him without explanation.

When Li Si was young, he dared to barge into Lü Buwei's carriage and recommend himself when he first left Xiaoshengxianzhuang, which shows that he was not lacking in courage.

Everyone has their youthful vigor. When the aging prime minister faced the empire's torture, his delicate body and mind could write excellent articles and handle the affairs of the world well, but he could not withstand the torture.