The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 242 Killing like crazy
Lu Buwei placed his hand on the tiger talisman and pressed it hard.

Her body was close to Meng Ao. If a young girl did this action, it would be extremely ambiguous.

Lu Buwei whispered in the old general's ear:
"The war can be fought outside the Great Wall or inside the Great Wall.

"Your Majesty can't hold out much longer."

Meng Ao tilted his head slightly and looked at Prime Minister Qin, whose face was as thin as the King of Qin, with some shock in his eyes.

Lu Buwei was the prince's assistant appointed by the king.

In order to establish Lu Buwei's authority, the king did not hesitate to use all the Qin generals as a target.

Wang’s grace is so great that it is no exaggeration to say that he is treated like a national hero.

In the end, this great man whispered in Meng Ao's ear: Your Majesty, you can't hold on for much longer.

What a traitorous and powerful official!

The veteran lowered his head slightly and nodded twice:

"I know it."

The Lantian camp seemed very empty, with only 30,000 people left.

Of the remaining soldiers who had just followed Duke Bie to fight, a small half returned to their hometowns, while the majority went to Guanzhong to control floods.

Meng Ao led away 10,000 men, leaving only 20,000 men in the Lantian camp.

Twenty thousand standing troops are more than enough for South Korea.

For the Qin State, it was not enough, far from enough.

When Meng Ao rode his horse and led his troops eastward, he was thinking about one thing.

If all 30,000 people were under his control, could he defeat the coalition forces of five nations?

The veteran got the answer as his horse lurched forward.

Can't beat it.

Not to mention him, even if Wu An Jun was reborn he wouldn't be able to defeat him.

Thirty thousand people pacified the world, that was during the Yanhuang period.

So, when the king gave him ten thousand men, did he really let him die?
If you really want to kill him, wouldn't it be better to capture him and behead him in Xianyang like they did to Bie Gong?

The Qin army killed an innocent man, and the main general was held accountable. So what's wrong with adding a deputy general to the list of those held accountable?
Qin governs the country by law, and the laws come from the king's mouth.

No matter how the Qin law is written, isn't it just a matter of the king's upper and lower lips?
"Someone come here!" The veteran reined in his horse and stopped suddenly.

He anxiously asked his personal soldiers to bring brushes and bamboo slips.

The old general sat astride his horse and quickly wrote a memorial on bamboo slips.

"An urgent report from eight hundred miles away!" The old general threw the bamboo slips at the soldier who had just been called over: "Don't go through the prime minister! Present it directly to the king!"

The soldiers took the order and rode away at full speed.

Leading 10,000 Qin troops to continue the march, the old general was full of anxiety.

He didn't know if he was right, but he had made his choice.

It is impossible for 10,000 Qin troops to defeat the coalition forces of five countries.

If you don't want to die, there are actually many solutions besides defending Hangu Pass and waiting for the King of Qin to die first.

The most intense.

Open the gate of Hangu Pass and let the coalition forces of five countries enter.

When the Qin Dynasty was destroyed, Meng Ao was the greatest contributor.

Slightly milder.

He defected to another country, just like Gan Mao, the prime minister of Qin.

Given Meng Ao's military achievements, every country would treat him with courtesy.

He became a high-ranking official among the various states and had a high status, so the Qin State did not dare to kill his entire Meng family.

It is a tradition for the King of Qin to be mean and ungrateful, and the veteran generals are well aware of it.

But since the capital was moved to Xianyang, except for King Xiaowen of Qin, has there been a single mediocre Qin monarch in history?
Although the current king is seriously ill, he is still in his prime and his mind is clear. It is impossible for him to do such a flawed thing.

Before the army reached Hangu Pass, a new royal decree arrived:

【Defend Hangu Pass firmly.】

Meng Ao let out a sigh and regained his spirit.

If we just want to defend Hangu Pass, then ten thousand people will be enough.

The old general looked up and saw that the sky was still the same sky, but he felt that the sky had become much better.

The face of Bai Qi, Marquis of Wu'an, appeared in the sky, and only the veteran generals could see it.

Meng Ao squinted his dim old eyes and murmured:
"As a general, you cannot only think about the war and not think about the king's affairs."

This is the truth that Meng Ao, who had served as Wu'an Jun's deputy general several times, realized after Wu'an Jun's death.

Many famous generals of the Qin State died in the Qin State.

Hangu Pass.

Meng Ao and Meng Wu, father and son meet.

Father and son go into battle.

On the top of the city wall, the father and son looked at the soldiers filling the road in front of the pass without any fear.

So far, Hangu Pass has only been breached once by Qi general Kuang Zhang.

As long as you don't leave the country, what does it matter how many people are outside the country?
Lian Po, the old general of Zhao State, shouted and challenged the father and son to a fight for three consecutive days at Hangu Pass, but the father and son ignored him.

Three days later, the coalition forces of the five nations assaulted a Qin woman in front of Hangu Pass. The Qin woman's screams of pain made the Hangu defenders on the city wall of Hangu Pass red-eyed. They put down their defenses and asked for battle as soon as possible.

The Qin State adopted the principle of proximity in its garrison defense.

Half of the defenders of Hangu Pass lived in Qin territory outside the pass.

The Qin women who were raped on the battlefield were their mothers, sisters-in-law, wives, and sisters...

Meng Ao asked his son Meng Wu to appease the defenders of Hangu, but he still gave orders and refused to go into battle.

Soon, not only the defenders of Hangu, but also 10,000 Qin soldiers from the Lantian camp came to ask for a fight.

Meng Ao still ignored it and refused to fight.

Three days later, the land in front of Hangu Pass was dyed red with Qin blood.

The coalition forces killed people, and those who were killed were the able-bodied men of Qin State in the land outside the Great Wall.

The Qin army plundered the land of Zhao and Han, abused Zhao women and Han women, and killed Zhao men and Han men.

In front of Hangu Pass, the coalition forces of five countries returned to the Qin army everything they had done to them.

The Qin army could not bear it, but had to endure it.

The main general Meng Ao refused to go into battle, and the deputy generals Meng Wu and Qin Qi obeyed the main general's orders completely.

In front of Hangu Pass, the sky is getting redder and redder, and it seems that it will continue to be red.

Qin Qi, who was inexplicably appointed as deputy general, would always appear on the city wall at night.

Looking at the dark city, it seemed as if I could see the Qin women crying for help and the Qin men having their heads chopped off.

He didn't dare look at that scene during the day.

"Qin Zichu, is this why you asked me to join the battle? Is this what you wanted me to see?" Qin Qi's eyes were slightly swollen, his fists were clenched, and his knuckles were white: "I saw it, and then what? Let the Qin people suffer humiliation, is this what you, Qin Zichu, are capable of? Huh?!"

Xianyang.

The assassination case of Xiangbang has been closed.

The person who ordered the killing was not a Qin general, but a member of the Qin royal family.

The Caotan execution ground that had killed the meritorious general Youtian was used again, and this time the target was a member of the Qin royal family.

"Qin Yiren! You will not die well! You are unworthy of being a human being!"

"I didn't kill anyone! Why would I kill Lu Buwei? You checked the wrong number!"

"Qin Yiren! Zhao Gou! Bastard!"

"Qin Yiren, you want to sever my Great Qin bloodline! I want to find the Zongzheng! I want to enter the ancestral temple!"

"..."

Curses, pleas for mercy, screams... were heard all the time.

With the sound of a sharp knife breaking through the air, everything fell silent.

Instead, there were cheers from the people.

The royal family of Qin who violated Qin laws should also be executed.

Gan Luo, who was chosen by Lu Buwei to supervise the execution again, felt his heart almost jump out of his chest.

His lord first killed the chief military general, Duke Biao, and then killed members of the royal family.

It is so cruel, as if Shang Yang is reborn. This is going to follow Shang Yang's old path!
When Duke Xiao of Qin was alive, Shang Jun had the support of Duke Xiao of Qin in his actions, and he would carry out his orders immediately without any hesitation.

After the death of Duke Xiao of Qin, Shang Yang, who had offended the Qin nobles, was executed by the new king and his body was torn into pieces by five oxen.

Isn’t the path taken by his lord Lu Buwei exactly the same as that of Shang Yang?

The king is going to die now. Oh, and his master has also offended the prince! The prince who is about to become king!
The boy's face was pale and he looked dazed.

He seemed to see five cows on the Caotan execution ground.

Ropes were tied to the bodies of five cows, and the other ends of the ropes were tied to a person's head and limbs.

Five cows pulled in five directions and a man was torn into five pieces alive.

The head fell to the ground and rolled to his feet.

He looked down and saw his lord, Lu Buwei.

On this day, except for Weiyang Jun Qin Qi, Prince Chu of Qin lost all his brothers.

Prince Chu of Qin went crazy with killing.

The Qin generals who escaped the disaster felt chilled.

If the butcher's knife can fall on his brother's neck, it can fall on their necks.

The bloody facts made them realize that the Qin State was different from before.

The Qin State, which placed military merit above all else, no longer had nearly unlimited tolerance for these Qin generals.

The military merit they deserve will not be deducted in any way.

But if you dare to take military merits that you don't deserve, you will be put to death, and you cannot kill innocent people to claim credit.

They can continue to roar in the court and call the civil officials birdmen.

But if you really treat civil officials as birds and kill them, and send assassins, you will still die.

Prince Zheng of Qin watched all this and wanted to stop it, but he was powerless.

He didn't need his father to pave the way for him.

He was able to subdue Duke Bie and also compete with his father's brothers.

But King Qin Wang Chu felt that he could not do that, so the Wei River remained red for five days.

The old court judge Huayang Bufei, who was in charge of the case, was so frightened that he fell ill and asked for his resignation from the king.

King Qin's Prince Chu refused.

The Queen Mother Huayang went to visit and asked for leave on behalf of her brother.

Prince Chu of Qin still refused.

"Please ask your Majesty to look after the State of Qin again." Prince Chu of Qin said respectfully.

Queen Dowager Huayang had a complicated expression.

She didn't expect that Prince Chu of Qin would actually consolidate her power.

It was not until Prince Chu of Qin was about to die that Queen Dowager Huayang clearly felt the gap.

She was very proud and wanted to gain more power, wishing she could hold all the power in her own hands.

Her son was not.

Her son had the courage to bow his head and was willing to give up power - for the sake of the Qin State.

There are two groups of foreign relatives in the Qin court today.

One is the Chu branch of Queen Dowager Huayang, and the other is the Zhao branch of Queen Ji.

Under the control of Qin Prince Chu.

The Chu faction remains glorious, and the Zhao faction is thriving.

In the second year of the reign of King Qin, August, sixth day.

Dissent arose among the coalition forces of five nations that attacked Qin in the name of punishing its tyranny.

A day ago, the State of Qin gave the reason for its previous war - the five countries had not given Qin the grain that they promised to give the year before last and the year before, which resulted in the inability to carry out water conservancy projects in Guanzhong, so the State of Qin had to get it on its own.

Before the war starts, this kind of talk is just bullshit and is of no use.

I can kill you directly, do I need to consider what you say?

But now, the battle is at a stalemate.

The coalition forces of the Five Nations attacked Hangu Pass seventeen times, but apart from losing more than 2,700 soldiers, they made no progress.

At times like this, reasons come in handy.

My Qin State is not a tyrannical State. I attacked Zhao and Han for a reason.

It was you five nations that refused to give me the food that you had promised to give me, so I had to go and get it myself.

The food I took back was originally mine, how could it be leaked?

It is a fact that the five countries only gave grain to Qin in the first year of flood control, and did not give any grain in the following two years.

Thus, Qin's originally unjust war turned into a righteous war.

The five nations replied.

Do not believe.

Qin returned again.

The purpose of fighting is to expand territory, but did our country occupy the cities of Zhao and Han? Did we take the food that belonged to us and then return? The facts are here.

The five countries, who originally didn't know why Qin suddenly retreated, were suddenly awakened.

Oh, so that's what happened... Hey, that's not right. Then you also killed men and abused women. How do you explain that?
The Qin State hung the embalmed head of Bian Gong on the city wall of Hangu Pass.

All of this was done by Duke Biao on his own initiative and had nothing to do with the State of Qin.

Duke Biao was famous not only in the State of Qin, but also throughout the world.

The State of Qin beheaded Duke Bie and gave an explanation to the five kingdoms, which no one in the five kingdoms could have imagined.

Killing their own famous generals because they killed other people, this... is the Qin State sick?
Aren't those reasons for attacking just for show? Are they that important?

You have Hangu Pass, it's not like you can't win, why did you kill your own famous general? Are you serious?

The death of Duke Bi became the last straw that broke the camel's back, and the State of Yan was the first to give up.

The State of Yan, which had originally not wanted to fight, became even more unwilling.

If we conquer Qin, Zhao, Han, and Chu, which are close to Qin, will eat us. What does it have to do with Yan? If you want to fight, you can return the land that Zhao has taken from our border. Didn't we agree to use it temporarily?

Of course Zhao would not return it.

I got it by my own ability, why should I return it?
The reason why Zhao returned the lost land in the Central Plains to Yan was that since Zhao had to return to help resist Qin, it could not keep the land of Yan.

But the border is different.

The city of Yan State was built solidly and tall, and Zhao General Li Mu managed it very well, so Zhao State was almost completely occupied.

If Zhao is asked to return the favor now, what will happen?

Due to disagreements between Zhao and Yan, Lian Po, the leader of the Five-Nation Coalition, became the leader of the Four-Nation Coalition.

Yan general Ju Xin showed no respect to his old colleague Lian Po and refused to obey Lian Po's military orders.

If Wei and Chu had not shown any sign of leaving, Ju Xin would have led the Yan army back.

After regaining all the lost territories, South Korea, which had suffered the most casualties recently, wanted to leave second, but it didn't say anything.

South Korea secretly provoked the three countries of Yan, Chu and Wei.

It deepened Yan's determination to leave and gave Chu and Wei more reasons to want to leave.

To Yan:

You, the Yan State, will not gain anything this time, so it’s time to go home.

The State of Zhao also occupied your land.

If you stay here, aren't you just making things easier for your enemies?
To Chu and Wei:

Lian Po always sent people from Zhao when challenging others to a battle, and when attacking a city, he sent people from Han, Chu, Wei and Yan.

Look at how many people from Zhao died, and then look at how many of us died.

I really don’t know whether Zhao is attacking Qin or weakening our four countries.

After hearing this, the states of Chu and Wei found out that indeed more soldiers of their own states had died than those of Zhao, so they went to Lian Po to demand an explanation.

This made the veteran general Lian Po very angry.

In order to destroy Qin and avoid internal strife, he took great pains to be fair and impartial among the five-nation coalition.

Whether it is challenging a battle or attacking a city, the burden shared by the five-nation coalition forces is almost the same, and there will never be any deliberate loss of soldiers from the four countries.

The same thing, why did people from Zhao die less and people from the other four countries died more? The reason is very simple.

The people of Zhao are good at fighting.

The veteran pointed out the reason on the spot, and then proposed:
Don't just look at the comparison of casualties between Zhao and the four countries. If you look at the casualties of all five countries, the truth will be revealed.

It can be seen that the Han people suffered the highest number of casualties, twice as much as the Yan people, the second highest group.

The veteran breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the crisis had been resolved.

However, how can things be so simple?
Sometimes, facts cannot speak louder than words.

The four countries were all very angry and felt greatly insulted.

I can be weak, but you can't say that!
(End of this chapter)