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

"Or, pfft~"

Empress Dowager Zhao Ji couldn't help but chuckle and said, "You two, you should take a look in the mirror!"

King Zheng of Qin glanced at Bai Qi and saw that his left eye socket was black and his nose was bleeding. He looked as miserable as could be. He finally felt that the anger in his heart had been vented.

But looking at him, he was unharmed, only his back was sore from the fall and he had taken a few punches to the chest. He was thick-skinned and tough, so it was nothing to him in terms of victory.

Little did she know that the anxious Empress Dowager Zhao Ji rushed over, and seeing that he was unharmed, she knew that Bai Qi was capable of handling things, which is why she did not unleash her fury on the spot.

But she still kept a stern face, moved closer to King Zheng of Qin, and brushed the dust off his clothes, saying with concern:

"Zheng'er, how old are you? You're about to become a father. You can't still act like a child!"

"Mother Empress~"

King Zheng of Qin's eyes welled up with tears; his mother hadn't been this close to him in a long time.

He recalled his time in the State of Zhao, when he fought and lost to those Zhao children who had bullied him, and his mother had complained about him in the same way.

From that moment on, he knew that in this life, one can only rely on oneself!

"After you come of age and assume personal rule, you must be even more prudent, lest you become a laughingstock among those old fogies in the outer court."

King Zheng of Qin nodded repeatedly like a little quail.

Bai Qi wanted to laugh, but before he could even raise the corners of his mouth, Zhao Ji's cold phoenix eyes had already swept over him.

"And you, how dare you instigate the King's reckless behavior! If this causes an uproar in the outer court, I'll make you pay!"

Bai Qi bowed his head and nodded.

A short while later.

Seeing that Empress Dowager Zhao Ji was endlessly chatting about family matters with King Zheng of Qin, and that her phoenix eyes kept glancing at him, Bai Qi knew something was wrong and decisively interrupted her with a cupped hand.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the auspicious time for the army to be assembled at Shanglin Garden has arrived. Please move forward and inspect the personal guards."

Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Zhao Ji frowned slightly, but obediently kept quiet.

She was confident in her beauty, but lacked intelligence, and she never interfered in important matters concerning the outer court.

Yes.

Wearing a red, blue, and gold-embroidered phoenix robe, adorned with a gold hairpin and jewels, the majestic and dignified Empress Dowager of Qin quietly withdrew from the public eye.

Bai Qi whispered a few words to Qin Wangzheng, then regained his solemn expression and returned to the front of the stage.

It's just that Bai Qi's face was injured and Qin Wang Zheng's back was covered in mud, so they didn't look very presentable.

But this actually resonated even more with the young soldiers: "Our king is willing to roll around on the same training ground as us!"

Li Si timely handed over the list of 800 regular soldiers from Shanglin Garden, whispering a reminder: "Seven more than expected!"

Bai Qi: "Zhang Han and the other eight are specially recruited and belong to the military intelligence scouts. They do not occupy regular soldier quotas."

Zhen Gang and Qian Sha, among others, follow a style of light, stabbing attacks, which is not suitable for battlefield combat.

Zhang Han was cunning and had a history of misdeeds. Bai Qi only learned afterward that this burly man from Qin was actually only fifteen years old. He had also lied about his age.

As for Cen Ji, he was meticulous, but his physique was weak. He could only be a soldier at best if he joined the army. However, there was a bond of life and death between them, so Bai Qi couldn't very well not find him a future.

Li Si nodded and traced the outline with his brush. "But now, one more person is missing."

King Zheng of Qin looked at Gai Nie, whose white clothes were completely stained black and who remained as valiant as he was being beaten by eight people, and after thinking for a moment, he made the final decision.

"It's truly a waste of talent for Guiguzi's top disciple to be a guard in the Qin King's palace. He should be placed in the Shanglin Garden instead!"

Gai Nie opened his mouth, intending to refuse, but the words stuck in his throat and he tacitly agreed.

Joining the military was originally part of his life plan, and it seems that it hasn't changed anything now.

Bai Qi chuckled inwardly, thinking, 'Now, when Jing Ke attempts to assassinate the King of Qin, you, the chief swordsmanship instructor in charge of the palace guards, won't be able to sit on the fence anymore.'

"Hopefully, King Zheng of Qin will choose someone who is dedicated to their duties as the next head of the royal guard!"

The selection of the royal guards is easier now; Bai Qi really has no say in it.

Holding the list of eight hundred men in his hand, King Zheng of Qin looked at the eight hundred proud warriors standing on the training ground and shouted in a booming voice.

"You are the future of my Great Qin!"

"May Your Majesty live ten thousand years!"

"I hereby promise to grant Bai Qizi's request and to engage in sexual intercourse with you all every ten days."

King Zheng of Qin laughed heartily, and the trace of gloom that had always accompanied him since childhood completely disappeared from his brows.

"The eight military schools of Shanglin will rotate every ten days. I, the ruler, will conduct military drills together with the elite soldiers of my Great Qin!"

On the drill ground, scattered, incredulous murmurs could be heard.

"Does the King intend to train with us?"

"Your Majesty is so esteemed, we..."

"You treat me like a national hero, and I will repay you with the same devotion!"

"The King's personal guards, is this what the King's personal guards are all about?"

Amidst the scattered murmurs, they gradually coalesced into a single sentence.

"I swear to serve my king to the death!"

"I swear to serve my king to the death!"

"I swear to serve my king to the death!"

Bai Qi's eyes welled up with tears, and he thought to himself, "The morale of the army at Shanglin Garden is high."

"When King Zheng of Qin can recite the names and resumes of every single young elite soldier of the eight hundred Shanglin Army warriors, the spirit of the Shanglin Army will be unmatched!"

"Now, all that remains is for the Shanglin Army to be formed, for the young elite soldiers to embody the spirit of the army, before we can march east out of Hangu Pass."

"But before that, we still need to..."

Bai Qi walked up to a young warrior on the training ground, whose cheeks were swollen and red, who was having medicine applied by the physician and whose face was full of resentment. He reached out and pulled him up, asking, "What is it?"

"Are you willing to go back now?"

"I'm not reconciled! But what can I do? A loss is a loss!"

"Who says that if you lose, you can't enter Shanglin Garden?" Bai Qi laughed. "His Majesty is considerate and has set up two auxiliary guards for Shanglin Garden, each with eight hundred men."

"The Left Guards are mostly sons of noble families from the old Qin people. As long as they can bring their own vests, they are all allowed to enter."

"The Right Guards are all from poor families. Bai Qi has already asked the King to grant special permission to use the Imperial Treasury to lend the loyal Right Guards elite soldiers interest-free to purchase high-quality horse armor. They will be returned to the Royal Treasury after the great victory in the campaign against Han."

Someone interjected, "How do the armored cavalry of the left and right auxiliary guards compare to the eight hundred regular soldiers of Shanglin?"

Bai Qi laughed and said, "Standard treatment!"

"Moreover, the eight schools in Shanglin hold monthly examinations, with the capable promoted and the mediocre demoted."

"The last ten students from each school will be sent down to the left and right auxiliary guards for training, and ten more will be recruited from the two auxiliary guards for the same level."

Upon hearing this, a dangerous glint immediately appeared in the eyes of some who had been defeated and beaten by multiple people.

If only I could do it all over again…

Seeing that most people were interested, Bai Qi naturally wanted to increase the stakes. He pointed to the blank signboard of the Eight Captains of Shanglin Garden and said with a smile.

"The king's name shall be inscribed, and the news shall be proclaimed to all nations!"

"Such an honor, given that we are born into this world, if we don't fight for it, wouldn't we regret it for the rest of our lives?!"

The physician, who was applying medicine to another wounded patient, paused, looking at the young man in front of him with a bruised and swollen face, yet still flushed with excitement, and sighed silently.

"Bai Qizi's words are poisonous; no matter how skilled his medical techniques are, he can't save her!"

Someone, breathing heavily, said, "Bai Qizi, is this true? The left and right guards can enter the Shanglin Army!"

"Qin Ruishi seeks to be large and comprehensive, while Shanglin Eight Schools seek to be refined and elite."

Bai Qi seemed to be alluding to something, but he didn't make empty promises. "If you're asking if I can get listed in the Linlu register, I really can't promise that here."

"But Bai Qi rose from humble beginnings as a refugee in the Taihang Mountains and was suddenly rewarded by the emperor for his great favor and promotion from a lowly position. He would never dare to fail him."

"What Bai Qi seeks is only fairness!"

"Bai Qi hereby swears an oath to all of you brothers: if anyone fails to reward merit or utilizes ability, and if any of the eight captains of Shanglin Garden fails to meet the requirements, you may all draw your swords and confront the king. A duel in the arena will determine the truth."

"If even one person is lying, Bai Qi is willing to offer his neck for execution on the spot, and have his body thrown into the Wei River to be eaten by fish and shrimp!"

At this moment, Old Qin, who had a tacit marriage relationship with Bai Qi, finally received a signal from him and began to exert his strength.

"Bai Qizi is trustworthy, let's do it!"

"My family has soldiers and armor, but Old Ma is a bit thin and weak."

"I have a family heirloom bronze heavy crossbow, and a leather spear..."

"Brother, what are you waiting for?"

"We brothers left our hometown with great ambitions. If we couldn't make a fortune in Xianyang, how could we face our elders in Guanzhong?!"

"Damn it. Do you still want to marry my sister? If you don't, I'd like to marry your older sister!"

"Bai Qizi, if I unfortunately die in battle during the campaign against Han, then the money I owe the King..."

"No need to repay! Not only do you not need to repay, but the compensation for those who died in the Battle of Shanglin Garden will be at least three times the regular soldier's salary, and twice the salary for the left and right guards and auxiliary soldiers!"

Bai Qi said firmly, "Even among ordinary people, debts are settled upon death. Your Majesty is not profiting from this."

"To tell you the truth, my brothers, please don't spread this around. The King's treasury is not enough. Even with this, I'll probably have to borrow some from the Queen and the Queen Mother."

"For the sake of the Shanglin Army's success and the great victory in the campaign against Han, Your Majesty has already staked everything."

"Especially that old scoundrel Lü Buwei, he actually dared to coerce the King..."