The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 267 Hero
Xiang Liang is dead.

The whereabouts of Xiang Bo, Xiang Yu, and Xiang Zhuang are unknown.

As Gongzi Gao listened to Zhang Ping's report, he wrote a document to be sent to Xianyang, along with Huan Chu and everyone else connected to Xiang Liang.

According to Zhang Ping's account, the night of capturing Xiang Liang went smoothly. Because the county magistrate was taken into custody in advance and the surrounding villages were not alerted, Xiang Liang and his nephews were still asleep when the Qin army arrived.

However, the other side was indeed quite alert. A few barks startled them, and three of them fled, leaving only Xiang Liang behind.

After listening to Zhang Ping's account, Gongzi Gao put down his pen and waited for the ink on the paper to dry.

"Report!" The man who arrived was Zhang Ping's adjutant. He bowed and said, "Reporting to the young master, we have examined the heads of the old nobles in various places, and they are indeed Xiang Liang's."

Seeing that the ink on the paper had dried, Gao rolled it up, put it in a bamboo tube, put on the stopper, and sealed it with wax. He then instructed, "Alright, send this document to Xianyang as well."

"Yes."

According to Qu Su, Xiang Liang only cared about himself. He knew that as long as he lived, the Xiang family would never have peace, and the Qin army would keep chasing them.

If four people are crossing the river by boat, the boat will not go fast, and someone will need to stay behind to cover the rear.

The place where Xiang Liang and his nephews lived was indeed very good; if anything unusual happened, they could cross the river and leave at any time.

Gao also wondered how many anxious nights he and his nephews had spent, and how many people they had suspected while hiding in fear and trepidation.

Even now, Xiang Liang dares to kill Huan Chu, who has been with them on the run for many years.

This action was likely triggered by Xiang Liang's extreme tension and the arrival of Qu Su.

Now, when Gao writes history books, he often puts himself in their shoes and thinks about how he would feel if he were in their situation.

Just like last night, Xiang Liang faced a dilemma: crossing the river and escaping was their only option.

If four people sit together, the boat will definitely not row fast, and the Qin army behind will catch up quickly.

At this time, someone is needed to cover the rear; this person could be Xiang Yu or Xiang Bo.

But Xiang Liang must have known in his heart that the Qin army had captured him for so many years, and as long as he, Xiang Liang, lived, their Xiang clan would never have peace.

The Qin army wanted Xiang Liang, the ringleader of the anti-Qin rebellion, and the murderer of the Qin scholar Han Zhong.

Therefore, he stayed behind to cover the rear for Xiang Bo and Xiang Yu.

If Xiang Liang's suicide to cover the retreat was to make Xiang Yu remember his hatred for Qin, then even if Xiang Liang's death was somewhat worthwhile, it was for his own sake.

Even after his death, Xiang Liang was still thinking about his grand plan to overthrow the Qin Dynasty.

Of course, these are all just speculations. He sat high in the camp protected by the Qin army and wrote about Xiang Liang's fate, but he didn't write about Xiang Yu in the history books.

The last person in Chu who wanted to rebel against Qin died, and the history of Chu was thus completed.

Gao put the scroll away, tied it with a rope, and had it sent to Xianyang to be given to his elder brother.

After finishing these tasks, Gao breathed a sigh of relief.

It started snowing in Jiangdong as well. Gongzi Gao walked along the riverbank, watching the snowflakes fall on the river surface, with Qu Su beside him.

Qu Su said, "Young master, you have quite the methods. This Xiang Liang killed so many of our former Chu people; he deserved this fate..."

Gao didn't listen to a word he said.

Qu Su spoke for a long time, but seeing that the young master was ignoring him, he stopped talking.

Zhang Ping hurried over, bowed, and said, "Young master, the new magistrate of Wu County has arrived."

Gao then stopped in his tracks. "Is everything arranged?"

"Reporting to Young Master, the newly appointed magistrate of Wu County was arranged by Xu Fu, the magistrate of Langya County, and the Prime Minister's Office has already approved it." Zhang Ping looked around again, and the house where Xiang Liang and his nephew had lived had been demolished. Apart from some gold that was found, the rest had been burned.

Zhang Ping said, "Our men still haven't found Xiang Yu."

Gao Dao said, "That's enough."

Sometimes, Prince Gao and Prince Fusu had the same love for the people, but they lacked Prince Fusu's decisiveness and were less decisive in handling certain matters.

Gongzi Gao still left some room for maneuver in dealing with the Xiang family, and did not completely exterminate them.

After Zhang Ping's investigation, it was found that many things were indeed unrelated to Xiang Yu.

Fortunately, Xiang Yu did not clash with the Qin army that night. If Xiang Yu had killed the Qin soldiers, things would have gotten out of control.

Gao said, "When General Wang Jian captured the capital of Chu, he did not exterminate Xiang Yan and the later Chu nobles. Now we will leave them a way out. If they dare to plot against Qin again, it will not be too late to kill them."

"Yes."

Zhang Ping ordered the generals around him to carry out the task.

Prince Gao's composure and confidence stemmed from the stability behind him. With a powerful Qin court and a strong Qin army behind him, he naturally had no fear of those who wanted to rebel against Qin.

After dealing with Xiang Liang's matter, Gao stayed in Jiangdong for some time.

After that, Gao went to Kuaiji County and stayed there for a month before going to Zhongyangli.

In Zhongyangli today, there is no longer Master Jing, but a new volunteer teacher has arrived, whom Gao does not know.

When Prince Gao, escorted by the Qin army, arrived at Sishui Pavilion, Liu Ji, as the pavilion chief, was the first to lead the villagers out to greet him.

Upon seeing Liu Ji again, he laughed and said, "It's been a long time."

Liu Ji bowed and said, "Greetings, young master."

Gao looked around and sighed, "It's been a year since I last saw you. I've heard that you, Liu Ji, are a hero in this area. Merchants, officials, and scholars in Chu all give you some face. Even the magistrate of Pei County has to give you some respect."

Liu Ji bowed and said, "I am but a village head, and I am still a village head now." Gao said to him, "You have indeed governed this place quite well."

"You flatter me, sir."

Have you thought about a promotion?

"I...I dare not..."

Seeing that Liu Ji both refused and hesitated, Gao asked again, "If the Prime Minister's office were to promote you, would you be willing?"

"Your subject will certainly live up to your expectations."

"it is good."

After saying this, Gongzi Gao left Sishui Pavilion.

A month later, when the Prime Minister's decree arrived, Liu Ji was promoted to magistrate of Pei County because of his meritorious governance of Sishui Pavilion, which was made possible by the advice of Prince Gao.

It seemed that the magistrate of Pei County had sensed something was amiss and had packed his bags well in advance, welcoming Liu Ji and his family into the county government.

The old magistrate was as polite as he could to Liu Ji.

Liu Ji, who was once destitute, is now the magistrate of Pei County and has a large county government office to live in. How can this not be enviable?

Of course, some people were jealous because of this. For example, Yong Chi, who had always disliked Liu Ji, gritted his teeth with jealousy when he saw Liu Ji walking triumphantly into the county government.

Six months later, Prince Gao was still traveling in the Chu region when he came to Pengcheng once again.

Young Master Gao, who was eating rice in Pengcheng, was listening to Zhang Ping's story.

Zhang Ping said, "After Liu Ji took office as the magistrate of Pei County, he was well supported by the people of the county, and they called him the Duke of Pei."

Gao said, "Liu Ji, the Duke of Pei, is quite a nice-sounding title."

"Young Master, calling him the Duke of Pei is how famous scholars and prominent families were addressed in the Chu region in the past."

In the present day, a heroic magistrate has emerged in the Chu region. This magistrate is very righteous and has gained considerable fame in the Chu region.

Zhang Ping added, "However, something else has happened recently."

"What's the matter?"

A few days ago, when Liu Ji, the Duke of Pei, opened the gate of the county government, he saw several people tied up and left outside. Upon closer inspection, Liu Ji discovered that these people were a gang of bandits from Chu who had been wanted for many years.

After Liu Ji arrested these people and brought them to the county government for interrogation, it turned out that they were hiding in a village in the southeast of Pei County.

That night, they were robbing a house when a young man stumbled upon them.

The young man was incredibly strong; he single-handedly defeated more than ten bandits, tied them up, and dumped them outside the Pei County government building overnight.

The bandits said that the person who beat them and brought them to the county government claimed to be Xiang Ji.

"Xiang Ji?"

"This subordinate has already sent someone to inquire. He is incredibly strong and claims to be Xiang Ji. He is most likely Xiang Yu. This morning, someone brought news that in the six months since Xiang Liang's death, a man named Xiang Ji has been traveling around the Chu region. He is a chivalrous figure in people's eyes."

Gao thought he knew the Xiang family uncles and nephews well enough. Xiang Yu was a man who did not like to read. Although he was incredibly strong, because of Xiang Liang's affair, he could not join the army or become an official. He had no farmland and no home.

It wouldn't be bad for someone to be a chivalrous hero in the outside world, but Gao also knew that with his elder brother's temperament, he probably didn't like the rise of chivalrous heroes among the common people.

Gao didn't want to cause trouble for a chivalrous person, and besides, Xiang Yu, now free of burdens, was even harder to capture than Xiang Liang.

"Fine, let him be. From now on, Xiang Yu will be a chivalrous hero of Jiangdong."

"Yes."

This land of Chu gained a hero, Liu Bang, and a chivalrous hero, Xiang Yu.

Gongzi Gao felt that the past two years in Chu had been quite worthwhile. After packing up his books, he instructed, "Let's go to Langya County."

Zhang Ping asked, "After going to Langya County, will you return to Xianyang?"

Gao frowned and said, "Du Shuichang has been in the Northeast for years. After I go to Langya County, I will go to the Northeast to see Du Shuichang. Besides, Huan Chu has been escorted to Xianyang. The Prime Minister's punishment has been issued. He is exiled to build the Great Wall for ten years. I need to inform Fan Zeng."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will immediately assemble the troops and head to Langya County."

Prince Gao left Pengcheng.

At this time in Pei County, Liu Ji was a very shrewd man, and with his reputation in Pei County, it wouldn't be too difficult for him to find Xiang Yu.

It was raining heavily in Pei County that day. Liu Ji, along with Fan Kuai and several of his brothers, found a man in a thatched hut who was wiping a sword.

The area had already been surrounded by county soldiers.

Liu Ji looked at the other party and said, "Everyone says that you, Xiang Ji, are very skilled. I'm afraid my militia and county soldiers can't stop you."

"Lord Pei! I've long admired you."

"Xiang Ji is indeed a fine man."

……

Liu Ying stood outside the thatched hut, wanting to see what Xiang Yu looked like inside, but was grabbed and lifted up by Fan Kuai, who was guarding outside.

"Let me go," Liu Ying struggled.

Fan Kuai lifted Liu Ying up as if she were a small animal and said, "You mustn't ruin your elder brother's good deed."

(End of this chapter)