The Great Qin Empire---Qin Li

Just as the Wei State Chenliu bell rang for warning, the flag of the general of Zhonggeng Qiangye had appeared more than ten miles west of Chenliu, and the Qin army's vanguard of more than a thousand people had already arrived at the city gates...

The more than ten thousand troops were not sent out in a swarm, but were divided into several parts according to the marching method in "Wei Liaozi", namely, the main army, the follow-up army, the starting army, and the division of soldiers.

In this army, the starting army had more than two hundred people, all of whom were light cavalry scouts. In Heifu's opinion, their attire was exactly the same as the "cavalry figurines" in the Terracotta Warriors and Horses: short armor on the upper body, tight pants on the lower body, long boots on the feet, a round hat on the head, with a buckle on the hat tied under the chin, and a bow and arrow on the back, a typical Hu clothing riding and shooting outfit.

The starting army had to move 20 miles ahead of the main army and was divided into several settlements, three to five miles apart, responsible for exploring the enemy situation ahead.

The Zhuojun was the vanguard infantry, with 2,000 men, all lightly equipped and without armor. Once the Xingjun discovered the enemy and sent information to the rear, the Zhuojun would quickly move forward and cooperate with the Xingjun to defeat it, opening up a smooth path for the main army.

The largest army was located behind the vanguard, with as many as 7,000 men, where the general's flag was located, and there were also garrison soldiers carrying baggage and food, moving slowly.

On both sides of the main army, a thousand "divided soldiers" were arranged to advance in parallel. The divided soldiers were responsible for occupying favorable terrain, chasing the enemy when the battle was won, and protecting the flanks of the main army when they were temporarily stationed.

Wei Liao believed that: "The so-called generals' troops, those within the four wonders will win."

Meaning, if the generals can skillfully command these four parts of the army, make them cooperate with each other, correspond to each other, march and fight, how can they not win?

Think about it, if every march and battle can be arranged so carefully, it will be difficult to see the scene in movies and TV dramas where a sudden sound of a golden bell, countless ambushes on both sides of the road, and the enemy army will be wiped out, unless it is located in a narrow mountain road. The reason why the Qin army was almost invincible is that the excellent marching method eliminated low-level mistakes.

Hei Fu saw Qiang Wei's marching formation, and he nodded secretly and kept these things in mind.

In terms of marching and fighting, he is still a novice on the battlefield. This time, he must watch and learn well in the battle to destroy Wei.

No matter which era, each title and official position has corresponding professional skills. If you think about how to get promoted all day long but don't know how to learn, even if a pie falls from the sky and allows you to rise to a high position suddenly, you will only make a fool of yourself and be punished in office.

But unfortunately, Heifu's "thousand men" did not get the "heel troops" that were the easiest to make merit, but became soldiers guarding the side of the army...

Heifu was not too disappointed. In an army of more than 10,000, it is not easy to win merit unless you are in the direct line of the main general.

He also scolded Dongmen Bao, who was muttering that he might not be able to make any merit this time, and said: "Don't complain, each group will follow orders. Xiao Tao, you have a sharp eye, keep an eye on the bridges and roads on the flanks, Dongmen Bao, take people to drive away all Wei people who try to approach! Even the peasants in the fields must be driven away!"

This is the task of the soldiers. Now they are in the unfamiliar Wei territory, with enemies everywhere, and they have to be vigilant. If there are really brave Wei people who run to the side to watch the fun, they are really looking for death.

Millet and wheat seedlings have grown in the fields beside the paths, and occasionally farmers can be seen working in the fields, but when they saw the Qin army from afar, everyone was stunned for a while, and then they hurried back to the village as if they had seen a ghost.

On the way, the gates of several villages passed by the army were closed tightly. The farmers of Wei State looked at the Qin people trampling through their fields with horror and fear, but no one dared to come out.

The Qin army was not a benevolent and righteous army that claimed to "not harm anyone". Everything was prioritized for marching convenience, and the destruction of the local agricultural economy was not within the consideration of the generals.

There was nothing wrong along the way. Just when they were close to the city of Chenliu, two children playing naked by the stream accidentally entered the alert area of the soldiers while laughing and playing. The two children looked at the group of Qin people in front of them wearing strange armor and wearing strange buns, and they were immediately scared and stood there.

Dongmen Bao had a fierce look on his face, raised his sword and walked towards the two men, but after thinking for a while, he put the sword down, looked fierce, and shouted and drove them away.

"My son will be the same age as them in a few years."

Hei Fu breathed a sigh of relief and said to everyone: "The military is very strict in checking the heads. Even if you kill them, it is not considered beheading. Don't do it to civilians unless necessary."

Everyone agreed. Their trip was relatively smooth. They did not experience bloody battles, and they were not crazy enough to kill anyone they saw.

Overall, the Qin army was relatively calm. Although they had the bad habit of killing prisoners of war for military merits, the "tyrannical Qin" tiger and wolf army rarely massacred cities like the Chu-Han War.

What the King of Qin wanted was conquest and unification, not retaliatory destruction and destruction. The generals of Qin were also able to use strict military laws to restrain the actions of Qin soldiers.

After this episode, the soldiers arrived at the city of Chenliu with the army...

Chenliu is an important county east of Daliang, located on a major transportation route, with a large population of more than 10,000 people. The city is four or five miles in circumference, much larger than the Anlu County of Heifu's family.

The city wall is made of rammed earth, about four feet high, with a gate in the east, west, south and north, and a six-foot-high corner tower on each side of the gate...

It was not until this time that the Qin soldiers who were ready for a big battle were shocked to find that the gates of Chenliu City had been opened long ago, the flag of Wei State was cut off and thrown under the city, and the flag of the Zhuan Army was already flying on the corner tower.

"No way."

Even Heifu was a little shocked. The vanguard of the Zhuan Army was only ten miles ahead of their own side. Could it be that their two thousand people only took an hour to capture the city? Chenliu did not put up an effective resistance?

Didn't they say that there were still three thousand Wei troops in Chenliu City?

With such doubts, the garrison soldiers were asked to enter the city to maintain order and search for the remaining enemies.

When he entered the west gate of Chenliu, Heifu discovered that a battle had taken place inside the city gate. There were more than a hundred corpses lying here and there, with tragic deaths, some killed by crossbows, and some pierced by spears.

"Is it the Wei army?" Ji Ying, who was walking behind Heifu, whispered.

"Look at these people's clothes and weapons, they don't look like Wei soldiers..." Gong Ao continued.

"They are local knights."

Heifu had guessed their identities and couldn't help but sigh that the Wei army stationed in Chenliu actually fled without a fight, but it was the local knights who shed blood to defend their hometown.

Half an hour later, the few remaining enemies in the city were also eliminated. Unfortunately, because there were too many Qin troops and too few young knights who resisted, Hei Fu and his group only got two heads, which did not meet the standard for him, the head of the group, to be promoted to a higher rank for collective merit...

The heads of those who resisted were chopped off and piled up, and the headless bodies were hung high inside the city gate, which looked very scary.

The residents in Chenliu City were driven out of their homes by Qin soldiers and stood trembling at the door, looking at the bodies of their relatives and friends while waiting for the entry ceremony of General Qiang Wei.

Hei Fu also stood at the door with his subordinates, holding spears to maintain order.

He looked around, and among the faces on both sides of the road that were either fearful or hateful, Hei Fu saw a middle-aged man in his forties wearing Confucian clothes. His Confucian hat was worn crookedly, and his lapels were stained with wine stains, which looked out of place.

This man was pointing at the Qin army entering the city, and whispering something in the ear of a young man with a look of resentment...

...

"Hateful! That captain had three thousand soldiers, but he fled without fighting! How hateful!"

Li Shang from Gaoyangli was well-known among the knights of Chenliu. He liked to take the lead in everything and was respected by his peers.

But today, he was stopped by his brother and failed to join the final resistance of the hundreds of young knights and retainers led by the Chenliu magistrate.

At this moment, he stood in the crowd kneeling to welcome the Qin army into the city, looking at the corpses of his former companions and the Qin soldiers who were showing off their power. He couldn't help but feel so angry that he almost couldn't help but want to stab the black-faced Qin official who was wearing armor and looking at them!

"If I hadn't held you back, you would have been one of those headless corpses."

Li Shiqi on the side was dismissive. In his opinion, it was not worth it for these knights to die barefoot and bareheaded.

A real man should follow the example of Zhang Yi and Gongsun Yan, who were afraid of the princes when they were angry and the world was at peace when they lived in peace! Even if he died, he should be like Su Qin, who did something great to shock the princes and died in a blazing manner, making the world look at him! How could he easily sacrifice his precious life for a regime that was doomed to perish?

"Shang, put away your anger."

Li Shiqi patted Li Shang and whispered in his ear: "The magistrate of Chenliu is paid by the king and has the responsibility to defend the land. He can only repay the king of Wei with his death. But Wei has not done us brothers any favors. Why should we die with it? The destruction of Wei is a foregone conclusion. Think about how to survive under the rule of Qin in the future. I heard that Qin doesn't like knights. What are your plans for the future?"

Li Shang was still a little indignant and very dissatisfied with his brother's attitude, so he turned around and said to him: "I also heard that Qin doesn't like Confucian scholars."

Li Shiqi laughed softly.

"Although I am wearing Confucian clothes and look like a Confucian scholar, I am actually learning the art of diplomacy. Of course, in today's world, the Qin State has swept across the Central Plains, and there is no melee among the princes, so the art of diplomacy is no longer useful..."

Li Shiqi inevitably felt a little regretful. It was a pity that he was not born in a world of great contention, with his sharp tongue, eloquence, and ability to make a fuss.

"Yes." Li Shang said sarcastically: "Whether you are a Confucian scholar or a strategist, there is no way out. What are you going to do, brother?"

Li Shiqi looked calm and said lightly: "I heard that when Qu Yuan of Chu committed suicide, a fisherman told him that a saint does not stagnate in things, but can move with the world. The world is turbid, why not stir up the mud and stir up the waves? Everyone is drunk, why not feed on the dregs and drink the soy sauce?"

"I deeply agree with the fisherman's words!"

In this world, the key to survival lies in the word change. Since the situation is like this, then...

Li Shiqi took off the crooked Confucian hat on his head and tore open his clothes, and suddenly became a bohemian and crazy student.

"When the sage king was alive, I was a scholar with great literary talent; when the princes were competing with each other, I was a strategist with great talent; now that Qin has occupied Chenliu, I can no longer be a Confucian scholar or strategist, but I can still drink the wine and imitate the drunkenness of others..."

He laughed: "From now on, I am a Gaoyang drunkard! Li Shiqi should seek to become a minor official in Qin and go along with the secular world!