I am not a seventh-generation descendant of Lord Wu'an from the Qin Dynasty.

King Zheng of Qin has left.

He was going to the ancestral temple in Yongcheng to pay homage to his ancestors and complete the final step in his coming-of-age ceremony.

Following them were Queen Xiong Fengli of Qin, as well as a group of Qin royal family members, nobles, and civil and military officials.

This was a celebration for the older generation of Qin nobles.

Bai Qi stayed behind, along with Marquis Wenxin, Lü Buwei.

The two of them, one in front of the other, stood back on the high platform.

The soldiers and civilians of Qin, who had just finished drinking the wine that bestowed the title of Qin King, saw Bai Qi holding the Qin Wu'an Jun longsword in one hand and raising the golden token of Shanglin School Director in the other.

"The King decrees: The new ruler has come of age, but is young and lacks virtue. He shall establish the Shanglin Garden to oversee military affairs."

"Bai Qi is seven years old. He has been granted the temporary post of Inspector of Military Affairs of Shanglin Garden by the grace of Lord Wu'an."

After a brief silence, the Lishan camp erupted into an even louder uproar.

"Shanglinyuan School? What's that?"

"He's the Chief of Military Affairs at Shanglin Garden; I guess he's forming a new army!"

"Don't we already have the Qin elite troops? Is this the intention of the Royal Iron Eagle elite troops?"

"I don't know, let's see what he says!"

"Bai Qizi, an old man from Qin, is trustworthy!"

The news of the King of Qin's coronation had already drawn a massive crowd to the Lishan camp, numbering no less than 200,000.

It was a sea of ​​people, with drums and gongs resounding everywhere... As far as the eye could see, there was a throng of people.

Bai Qi took a deep breath, walked up to a young Qin soldier on duty nearby, and shouted loudly.

"Soldier, tell Bai Qi your name."

The Qin soldier paused for a moment, then shouted, "Qin squad leader, Hei Fu!"

"Tell Bai Qi, do you want to be a general?"

"I want to!" Hei Fu scratched his head, then shook his head violently. "No, I wouldn't dare!"

"Speak louder, tell everyone."

"Blackie wants to be a general, but he doesn't dare!"

"Why wouldn't you dare?"

Hei Fu suddenly noticed the piercing gaze behind him, opened his mouth, his face turning bright red, but he didn't say anything.

"Okay, if you don't dare to say it, then I will."

Bai Qi raised his arm high and waved it forcefully, saying, "Because becoming a general is a game for generations of dukes, marquises, generals, and nobles, not the right of Qin soldiers."

"It's been over a hundred years since Shang Yang's reforms in Qin. Has anyone in Qin risen from a common soldier to the rank of general? No, not a single one!"

"It's been over a hundred years. Was it that they didn't train hard enough? Did they not fight hard enough? Or were they not fighting desperately enough on the battlefield?"

Bai Qi's voice was hoarse, carrying a certain driving force that evoked empathy among the lower-ranking soldiers.

"Bai Qi is telling you, neither is true!"

Lu Buwei's face stiffened, and his eyes widened. He felt that Bai Qi was not trying to inspect military affairs, but rather to try to reform the military law of Qin.

"That madman!"

Lü Buwei took a half step forward with his left foot, frowned for a moment, and then silently withdrew.

He thought to himself, "I'm about to retire, so whether Bai Qi lives or dies doesn't really concern me!"

"Then?" Blackie's eyes reddened. "Then, what else could it be?"

"That's a good question," Bai Qi said, patting his shoulder.

"You lack an opportunity to learn military strategy alongside those princes and nobles."

"You need a military platform where you can compete fairly with everyone!"

"The Shanglin Garden Military Affairs Office is the place where you are provided with systematic training in military affairs."

"Before you went in, you were all illiterate soldiers who knew nothing but how to chop off heads."

"Once inside, Shanglin Garden will invite military strategists from the seven kingdoms to teach you military texts, drill military formations, and simulate battles..."

"That sounds nice, but it's just a way to trick people into going to the battlefield to save their lives." A middle-aged man dressed in Korean silk brocade stood up from below the viewing platform.

"A general? Who believes a peasant can become a general? Qin is a barbarian land; what great family would come here?!"

"If they don't want to come, then take them back!"

Bai Qi's words awakened the Qin soldiers, including Hei Fu, who had been bowing their heads in silence.

Bai Qi stood in the light, pointing at the pale-faced Korean man, and angrily rebuked him.

"Koreans, next spring, my Qin dynasty, with its fierce and powerful forces, will be attacking you, Korea!"

"When that time comes, we will seize your Han people, occupy your territory, take your Han women, and dominate your Han soldiers. What will you do then?"

The Korean man pointed at Bai Qi, his fingertips trembling, his legs shaking like leaves: "You, you... Qin will not tolerate a young child like you spouting nonsense about military affairs."

Before Bai Qi could even glance at him, Lü Buwei sighed inwardly, strode forward, and pointed at him.

"Next spring, Qin will attack Han!"

The military deterrent power of the Prime Minister of Qin was clearly incomparable to that of a mere child bearing the title of the descendant of Lord Wu'an.

The middle-aged Korean man, played by the Black Ice Platform assassin, immediately froze, turned pale, and then feigned unconsciousness.

The nearby Korean servants immediately helped him up and hurriedly fled.

The Qin people were enraged and shouted in unison, "Next spring, Qin will attack Han!"

"You rob Koreans, seize their land, take their women, and plunder their warriors—what will you do about it?!"

The sound of ten thousand people speaking was deafening.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bai Qi raised his arms and shouted, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"

Hei Fu, his voice hoarse, shouted, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"

Two hundred thousand Qin soldiers shouted, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"

Bai Qi raised his arm again, shouting, "Shanglin Academy School, for the nation's badminton team!"

The Qin people shouted in unison, "Shanglin Garden School, the Imperial Guards of the Nation!"

Bai Qitu revealed his true colors, declaring, "The King's personal guards are the nation's henchmen!"

The people of Qin were in an uproar, shouting, "The King's personal guards are the nation's claws and teeth!"

Meng Tian and Wang Wei were both shirtless, each holding a large pillar, which they erected on either side with a thud.

The inscription on the left pillar reads, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"

The inscription on the right-hand pillar reads "The King's personal guard, the claws and teeth of the nation."

Bai Qi stood in the center, raised his arms, and shouted, "Shanglin Garden School, the seedlings of generals and ministers!"

The Qin people's passion was completely ignited: "Shanglin Garden School, the seed of generals and ministers!"

Bai Qi walked up to Hei Fu, whose face was flushed, and patted him on the shoulder.

"A soldier who doesn't want to be a general isn't a good soldier! Bai Qi is waiting for you at Shanglin Garden!"

Hei Fu nodded vigorously, "Mmm~!"

Meng Tian and Wang Wei, along with the thousand generals and hundreds of soldiers who had been entertained at the Shanglin Garden that day, all raised their arms high.

"Shanglinyuan School, applicants please come!"

"Sixteen in the first semester, twenty-four in the second semester!"

"Wearing triple armor, a heavy helmet, a sharp sword at the waist, a long spear on the shoulder, a broadsword and a fine iron dagger at the waist, a cowhide shield in hand, carrying a crossbow with a draw weight of twelve shi (approximately 330 kg) and fifty crossbow bolts, and carrying three days' worth of military rations (80 jin)."

"Travel swiftly from Lishan to Yongcheng within three days, a distance of 360 li. This journey is open to all, regardless of whether they are soldiers, civilians, slaves, or nobles. Anyone with the courage is welcome to participate."

Qin Tieying's elite-level selection criteria instantly deterred the group of apprehensive soldiers.

But what it sparked was an even greater frenzy.

With such stringent selection criteria, the number of applicants must be small, and the spots are even more precious.

Sure enough, Meng Tian then shouted, "Eight hundred names are limited; brave warriors, come forth!"

Wang Wei followed closely behind, saying, "Eight hundred regular soldiers competed for three days, and the decisive battle against the squad leader and platoon leader was won in a month."

Relying on their shared identity as fellow Qin natives, Li Xin defiantly raised his head and said.

"In March, we traversed the mountains and rivers of Qin, drawing military maps for each region... and evaluated the garrison commanders and generals according to their merits!"

Bai Qi made the final decision: "Six months from now, Bai Qi is willing to await the challenge of eight generals at the Xianyang camp. The victor will be promoted to the position of Principal of the Shanglin Procuratorate!"

"When the King himself arrives, he will bestow upon them a waist plaque inscribed with 'Eight Colonels of Shanglin, Loyal Tigers of the Imperial Guards'!"

Every word Bai Qi uttered stirred up a huge wave of excitement in the hearts of the Qin people.

Especially the last sentence.

The King himself came and bestowed upon them waist tokens inscribed with "Eight Colonels of Shanglin, Loyal Tigers of the Imperial Guards"!

Just imagining such a scene is a peak of glory that ordinary people could never achieve in their entire lives.

In an instant, countless people's eyes welled up with tears.

Those who meet the requirements but are over the age limit resort to cursing and swearing, while those who do not meet the requirements but are of the right age grit their teeth and endure it.

Those arrogant individuals who consider themselves the greatest of men are eager to get started.

"I'll do it!"

Count me in!

……