Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 340

Xiaomeng lightly flicked the Qiuli whisk in her arms, sitting upright as she spread the influence of Taoism to His Highness Prince Qi.

Sang Haizhong's experience completely bound the Taoist Tianzong to the Qi Kingdom's chariot. Afterwards, Xiaomeng returned to Tianzong with Xueji, but soon after, she returned to the Qi army with several Tianzong elders.

In the past, the world was dominated by Qin, and Mount Taiyi was also in Qin, so Taoism supported the Qin state. Now that the Qin state is about to fall, coupled with personal factors, Xiaomeng made the decision to abandon the old and embrace the new without any obstacles.

The fact that Master Beimingzi, who holds a high position within Taoism, did not emerge from seclusion and show himself was an implicit acceptance of Xiaomeng's decision.

In addition to the Heavenly Sect, Xiaomeng also received support from the Human Sect this time.

Before this, the gate of the Human Sect had been controlled by a small group of Qin soldiers. When the First Emperor was alive, this small elite force was enough to intimidate the vast Human Sect and force them to close their doors for cultivation. But now, Xiaomeng personally killed the Qin captain, and the remaining Qin soldiers could only scatter and flee.

Xianyang had no energy left to deal with the Daoist school. Even though Zhao Gao noticed the Daoist threat as soon as he returned to Xianyang, he did not send anyone to suppress or eliminate them.

Firstly, Taoism lacked the ability to play a decisive role in this war. Secondly, people always need to leave themselves a way out.

When the Qin state was powerful, the Luowang (a powerful network of intelligence) acted with impunity. Now that the Qin state is weak, it needs to avoid offending those rivals it shouldn't have offended.

Xiaomeng's provocative actions were ignored by the empire, leaving only the unfortunate souls of the Qin soldiers to drift back to their homeland.

The Human Sect was very excited when they learned of the changes in the outside world: although Xiaoyaozi was a cloak in disguise, his worldly philosophy before his exposure was the common belief of most people in the Human Sect.

Under this philosophy, the more the disciples of the Human Sect witnessed of the world, the deeper their anti-Qin sentiments became.

In addition, this year should have been the time for the Taoist Heaven and Man Sword Competition, but the remaining contemporary elders of the Human Sect are far behind Xiaomeng in strength, and the next generation of disciples are even less capable: Xiao He and Chen Ping are also members of the Taoist Human Sect, but they were very low-key when they were studying, and left early after completing their studies, so they are not well-known.

Helplessly admitting defeat, and knowing that Tianzong intended to support Qi, Renzong temporarily cooperated with Tianzong, with Xiaomeng as their representative to negotiate with Qi on behalf of the entire Taoist community.

The main road to Hangu Pass had become a battlefield, making it inaccessible to ordinary people. Therefore, these Taoist masters took a wilderness route that involved traversing mountains and valleys.

The influence of Taoism was mainly in its doctrines. Among the small landowners and nobles, as well as some scattered officials, there was some agreement with the Taoist ideas. Therefore, after the establishment of the new empire, the existence of Taoism could help the court stabilize local forces, and that was when they could play their role.

Nowadays, the nominal support from Taoism serves more as proof that "those who follow the Tao receive much help."

But for Taoism, this was a good opportunity to infiltrate its influence into the new empire.

Each of the various schools of thought had its own wisdom, so Lu Wei took the time to listen to them appropriately, as a way of showing that he valued them to a certain extent.

"'Compassion' means benevolence and righteousness. Only with a broad mind and concern for all people can one move forward bravely."

“‘Frugality’ means humility and restraint, which allows one to embrace all things and attract talented people.”

"'Not daring to be the first in the world' means not daring to put personal interests above the interests of the people. Only by valuing the voices of the people can we grow."

Xiaomeng remained indifferent and continued slowly, "Qin abandoned compassion and courage, abandoned frugality and generosity, abandoned hindrance and sought the lead; therefore, he died!"

"I hope you can learn from the lessons of Qin and keep the three treasures in mind, so that you can build a truly great empire."

She has a unique personality and is one of the few people who did not change her way of addressing Lu Wei as His Highness Prince Qi despite his change in status.

"I have learned a lot." Mr. Lu finished the Taoist course with a serious expression. He privately believed that he could not be truly selfless, but in order to achieve success, he had always pretended to be kind, frugal, and not daring to be the first in the world.

Now that victory is imminent, these measures must still be implemented on the surface. In the past, the empire that replaced Qin used Taoism as its governing strategy in the early stages, which was indeed reasonable.

To be honest, Lu Wei had no experience in governing a country; his experience in managing a farming household was mostly about putting the right people in the right places.

Even though he has a strong ability to review data, he rarely obtains data personally except when he was the head of Luqiu Pavilion in his early days.

However, it's not too late to start formally learning how to govern an empire now.

After leaving Xiaomeng's room to allow her to meditate, Lu Wei led his personal guards to the front line at Hangu Pass.

Looking at the demoralized Qin army's defenses, the Qi army, despite having attacked for less than ten days, was already frequently able to get close to the top of the city walls.

It seems that as long as we climb up and block one round of Qin army attacks, they will lose their fighting spirit and scatter and flee, and this pass will be breached.

Zhao Gao's plan to withdraw the Great Wall army was not in time. Losing Hangu Pass meant that even if the 300,000-strong army that had broken through the wolf tribe were all withdrawn to Guanzhong, it would be of little significance.

Having made a judgment on the facts, Lu Wei went to the front-line command tent to boost the morale of the soldiers: His Highness the King of Qi's gaze stirred up the Qi army once again, and the defending Qin people suffered greatly.

That evening, while studying Confucian principles of governance with Zhang Liang, news arrived that Hangu Pass was practically doomed to fall ahead of schedule:

The convicts of Lishan have revolted and are advancing towards Hangu Pass from within!

Chapter 433 The Catastrophe of Guanzhong

Zhao Yi began to prepare for the surrender. Although he occasionally dared to peek out from the city wall these past few days, he mostly stayed in his room doing nothing.

When news of the uprising of 700,000 convicts at Mount Li arrived, he felt relieved: such a large-scale uprising would have been difficult to suppress even if the First Emperor had urgently mobilized troops from Guanzhong during his lifetime, let alone the current Second Emperor, who was an incompetent monarch.

When Zhao Yi heard that the criminals from Lishan had even declared their intention to attack Hangu Pass and welcome the King of Qi into the pass, he was even more pleased: "If there is a reason for this, why would we need to wait for you to do it?"

He tied a sharp sword to his waist to bolster his prestige, and ordered his personal guards to summon the high-ranking generals of Hangu Pass to discuss surrendering to Qi... and how to resolve the current crisis.

'The promised reinforcements from the Great Wall army have been slow to arrive, and even though I am a renowned general of Zhao, I have no troops at my disposal!'

Wu Chen and Zhou Wen fought bravely against the enemy on the city wall. They even slept on the city wall these past few days, which shows their extraordinary loyalty to the empire.

Both men were skilled martial artists, wielding renowned swords like Zhengan and Duanshui, but faced with the seemingly endless, surging Qi army, their inner strength simply couldn't sustain them.

Moreover, the Qi army also included Jianghu figures such as Gai Nie and Da Siming. They were not the main attackers, but they specifically targeted the brave soldiers in the Qin army, carrying out targeted killings, which forced Wu Chen and Zhou Wen to be careful to avoid them.

It was under these circumstances that they both became convinced that the other had a problem!

'The Qin state has fallen to such a state, yet this man is still fighting to the death for it; he must harbor treacherous intentions!'

Neither Wu Chen nor Zhou Wen believed that the other party was a good person. Even if the two had a grudge against the peasants, they could have simply changed their names and gone into hiding. Why would they be so foolish as to go to such lengths for another country?

One was from the former Zhao state, and the other from the former Qi state. They were both involved in the assassin business and had been cooperating for many years. They knew each other inside and out and were well aware of each other's intentions.

After learning of the Lishan Uprising, and when the summons from Zhao Yi, the nominal commander, arrived, Wu Chen and Zhou Wen exchanged a glance, ignored the messenger, and directly led their trusted confidants, whom they had cultivated at Hangu Pass, westward, tacitly returning to Xianyang together.

Zhao Yi is about to surrender; his value has come to an end. But the military officer Zhou Wen still wants to fight for even greater merit...

There may be things in the world for which people are willing to give their lives, but for the common soldiers of Hangu Pass, it would never be the current tyrannical Qin Dynasty.

Zhao Yi's suggestion to surrender when attacked from both sides was met with no opposition, especially in the absence of Wu Chen and Zhou Wen, the two assassins from the Luo Wang organization. Zhao Yi himself bravely and fearlessly descended the city wall in a simple gondola to express his intention to surrender to the Qi army.

Ying Bu was somewhat annoyed, but he had no choice but to send someone to escort him to the rear to meet His Highness Prince Qi.

When they met again after more than ten years, Zhao Yi was filled with emotion.

Thinking back to their first meeting, the other party insisted on personally visiting his residence to request an audience. At that time, Zhao Yi initially refused, intending to send the person away with a bag of coins. Now, however, he had to kowtow to him with the respect due to a defeated general.

"The defeated general begs for forgiveness from Your Majesty."

In the main hall, after Zhao Yi finished bowing, Lu Wei said with a smile, "Given our relationship, there's no need for such formalities."

After saying that, he gestured for Dian Qing to help the man up: Zhao Yi's strong body trembled slightly as he walked on the ground, and he looked like a chick in front of Dian Qing, looking rather disheveled.

“We have been friends for many years. Our meeting on the battlefield is merely a consequence of the tyrannical Qin dynasty. Since you are willing to surrender now, why don’t you go to Linzi to rest first? I know you dislike the battlefield.”

Linzi was a true rear base, with a comfortable environment. Zhao Yi, who was over fifty, had a bright idea in his eyes and almost wanted to agree immediately, but before he could finish speaking, his words changed:

“How dare this sinner speak of rest? I am willing to serve as Your Majesty’s stable boy and escort Your Majesty into Xianyang.”

“You are a member of the Zhao royal family, how can you be a slave? I am not Ying Zheng.”

With a slight smile and a shake of his head, Lu Wei's actions caused the generals standing on both sides of the hall to burst into laughter, filling the air with a joyful atmosphere. It was unclear whether this laughter was directed at Ying Zheng, who had been brought out, or at Zhao Yi below the hall.

"Very well, you will be Zhang Er's military commander. He is also from Zhao, so you can get along well with him."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The surrender of Hangu Pass proceeded as expected. Under Zhao Yi's leadership, Lu Wei successfully entered the pass and accepted this magnificent city that had once withstood the combined forces of six states several times. The entire process took no more than a month.

With the Zhu family left to guard this place, the Qi army officially set foot on the land of Guanzhong. Next step: Xianyang!

While things went smoothly on this side, the Lishan uprising army led by Tian Guang, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi suffered heavy setbacks.

Within three hours of announcing the uprising, tens of thousands of rebels had fled, with the fierce convicts almost openly breaking away from the ranks and escaping into the wilderness.

After three days of marching, the 700,000 convicts had dwindled to less than 200,000. Most of these laborers, who came from impoverished backgrounds, did not want to get involved in this mess and immediately sought their own way out after escaping from the Lishan Mausoleum.

As Tian Guang, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi had predicted, this army was unreliable to begin with. Its large numbers only served to bolster morale. Asking them to start a rebellion with their tools from Mount Li was asking too much, as most of the laborers didn't even understand what a rebellion was.

If the first question is about 'rebellion,' they will immediately turn pale with fright.

However, given the sheer number of people, even if more people leave, what remains is still a powerful force.

But the next day, the blows came one after another. This scattered and disorganized force encountered the Great Wall army, which was hastily retreating from Shangjun back to Guanzhong to reinforce Hangu Pass...

Although the vanguard of this Great Wall army was small, numbering only 50,000, it still easily defeated an army of convicts several times larger. After the battle, Tian Guang was left with only 5,000 Qin soldiers guarding him and less than 50,000 convicts from Lishan.

This is because the Great Wall Legion was in a hurry to support Hangu Pass and did not pursue them too much.

Even so, Tian Guang, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi could no longer proceed to Hangu Pass as planned: their food supplies had been lost with the disbandment of most of the convict army, and there were also Great Wall legions ahead, so they had no choice but to turn back to Guanzhong to seize the granaries.

The 700,000-strong army that set out should not have been so fragile. However, the composition of the army meant that it would take at least six months to establish discipline and combat effectiveness for this temporary rebel force.

This is the only outcome of a hasty and immediate march.

But Tian Guang didn't have six months; he could only achieve his goal at a huge cost.

Over 600,000 vicious and desperate refugees are roaming around Guanzhong, and Qin's grassroots rule in Guanzhong is about to face a major problem!

The remaining 50,000 men could also serve as a guerrilla force to deter county towns with fewer county soldiers.

Anyway, none of these people were from the farming family, so Tian Guang wouldn't feel bad even if the whole army was wiped out!

Gripping the sword tightly in his hand, the former leader of the peasant clan cruelly thought:

'I've come to bring you misery, but when Lu arrives, he'll make it up to you!'

Chapter 434 Once is Enough

After passing the treacherous Hangu Pass, the vast Guanzhong Plain unfolded before Lu Wei.

Behind him stood a well-organized and elite 100,000-strong Qi army, and beside him were renowned ministers and fierce generals such as Zhang Liang, Xiao He, Chen Ping, Zhang Er, Ying Bu, and Dian Qing. Ahead, the river led directly to Xianyang. These achievements inevitably filled His Highness the King of Qi with a sense of pride and self-satisfaction.

From a deserter in Zhao Jun to the steward and acting head of Luqiu Pavilion, the general manager and head of Gonggong Hall, the leader of the Farmer's Knight, and the King of Qi, his relentless climb is about to reach its end, and he will stand at the pinnacle of power.

If you want to make further progress, you'd have to follow Qin Shi Huang's example and seek immortality.

According to Donghuang's words before his death, immortals and immortal mountains do exist. The boxes of the Seven Constellations of the Azure Dragon and the Illusionary Sound Treasure Box are also in Lu Wei's hands. The Yin-Yang School, which has the deepest research on seeking immortality, has become his accomplice. In terms of the conditions for seeking immortality, Lu Wei is much better than Ying Zheng.

However, after the establishment of the new empire, the primary task will certainly be to recuperate, eliminate problems, and accumulate national strength.

With Lu Wei's authority, internal enemies can be easily manipulated.

Externally, the northern wolf tribes suffered a recent defeat, with even Touman Chanyu being killed by Wang Li. They will be unable to invade the south for the next twenty years.

According to the information sent by Li Mu, Zhao Tuo in the south would not pose a threat: Zhao Tuo did not defend Yue to the death, and the fact that the 100,000 Qin troops took the initiative to attack, whatever their purpose, would make the situation develop in a positive direction.

Ying Zheng died several years earlier than in the original timeline, and he quickly took control of the world situation, preventing it from deteriorating to the point of collapse. Lu only needs ten years to create an unprecedented golden age.