The Great Qin Empire---Qin Li

On the way north to Huaiyang, Ji Ying tilted his head to look at the huge harem of the Chu State, the concubines and maids, who were caught in the middle of the two Qin armies. Looking at their slender waists, he couldn't help swallowing his saliva.

"It would be great if I could take one home."

These concubines and maids in the Chu Palace did not have to do farm work. Whether it was maintenance or appearance, they were certainly much better than the Anlu women they usually saw. They were also quiet and beautiful, which made people excited.

"You wish."

Hei Fu laughed and scolded: "These Chu Palace women are all going to fill the palace of the great king. You can watch them along the way. If anyone dares to touch them, I will have to hold your heads and go to General Wang to apologize!"

Wang Jian had issued a death order. If anyone dared to rape them on the way, although the other party was a Chu person, they would still be dealt with according to Qin law. The rapist would be sentenced to death! Therefore, Heifu and other military officers kept a close watch on their men. He knew very well that the men who had been away from home for more than half a year would be very agitated after seeing so many beautiful women.

Along the way, several incidents had occurred in other troops. Some Qin soldiers took advantage of the women in the Chu palace to go to the toilet or take shelter from the rain and tried to commit misconduct, which caused a commotion. Now their heads have been chopped off by the military judge and hung on the flag...

"Captain, I dare to ask a question."

Ji Ying asked cautiously: "There are at least more than a thousand concubines and palace maids. The king... can the king enjoy them all?"

"You dare to talk too much!"

Heifu glared at him fiercely and raised his hand to hit him. Ji Ying was so timid that he dared not say anything more.

At this time, Mu, who was carrying the flag for Heifu, said inappropriately: "These women have thin arms and legs, are not easy to give birth, and can't do farm work. What's the use of them?"

"What do you know, you foolish man! If you take such women home, would you be willing to let them work in the fields?"

Ji Ying took out the anger he received from Heifu on Mu, scolded him, and then followed Heifu's order to pass on the order.

"The commander has ordered, slow down and wait for the captives to catch up!"

Their team was very long, and there was no end in sight on the road, and there were also many captives detained by the long Qin army.

Since receiving the order from the King of Qin, Wang Jian did not dare to neglect it. He immediately handed the tiger talisman to his deputy general Meng Wu, and he and Feng Wuji, with the King of Chu Fu Chu, the queen, the royal family, and important officials, went to Huaiyang with light luggage.

Li You and two other captains from Guanzhong who had made more contributions were ordered to escort thousands of concubines, palace maids, eunuchs, entertainers, craftsmen, and all kinds of ritual vessels, treasures, maps, books, carriages, crowns, etc., and walked slowly.

Carrying so many people, and walking, these concubines and palace maids were used to a good life. Now they were walking long distances, wind and rain, hunger and cold. From time to time, some people could not bear the hardship and cried to the sky, but were stopped by scolding. When it was time to eat, the Qin army let them eat the same food as the soldiers. These women who usually had fine clothes and delicious food stared at each other, unwilling to eat these coarse foods.

However, after a few days, they were so hungry that they had to eat millet rice with their hands after walking for days.

You can imagine how slow the speed was. It was more than 500 miles from Shouchun to Huaiyang. They set out in early May. Half a month had passed, and they had only traveled two-thirds of the way. Heifu calculated the time and found that it would be June when he arrived.

Fortunately, Li You told Heifu that the King of Qin had not actually arrived in Huaiyang.

"The King asked Feng Jun to come first to announce the edict after he learned that Xiang Yan's army was defeated and that the situation of Chu was over. The King is still inspecting Dang County and should arrive at the same time as us."

Heifu understood that the King of Qin might have prepared two edicts to encourage the soldiers if Wang Jian did not break Yingdu. If Yingdu has been conquered, let Wang Jian take the captives and some meritorious soldiers to Huaiyang. First, it is to reward meritorious service and show off military power. Second, it is also to take back Wang Jian's military power. After all, this veteran has successively destroyed three kingdoms. His merits are too high and his prestige is too great...

Finally, at the end of May, they arrived at Xiang County, with a hundred miles left, but those weak concubines and palace maids of the Chu State could no longer walk. They were no longer as delicate as they were at the beginning, but a little embarrassed.

So Li You and the other three captains decided to change from land to water, using the Honggou that leads directly to Huaiyang, put these thousands of people on the boat, and let more than 10,000 boatmen pull the boat - these boatmen turned out to be young and strong Chu people captured in the war.

Just when the palace maids were slowly boarding the boat, Hei Fu heard a shocking news from some "Northern Army" captains who were also going to Huaiyang.

"Xia Xiang surrendered!"

From Hei Fu to Li You, almost everyone who participated in the decisive battle of Qinnan found it unbelievable.

The tragic Chu song "National Mourning" seemed to still linger in my ears. Xiang Yan fought back bravely and finally chose to commit suicide rather than let his head fall into the hands of the Qin people. In the eyes of the Qin people, the Xiang family had a blood feud with Qin and was the most die-hard resistance faction. So no matter who surrendered to Qin, it couldn't be the Xiang family...

"It's true. It was Xiang Liang, the second son of Xiang Yan, who surrendered."

The captain from the Northern Army said: "Last month, Xiang Rong, the eldest son of Xiang Yan, led some dead soldiers to the south, and Xiang Liang led most of the Xia Xiang family members to accept the surrender!"

...

"Why are the two sons of the Xiang family so different!"

At the end of May, in the suburbs of Juchao, which had become the base camp of the remnants of the Chu State, two small nobles of the Chu State who fled from Huaibei were also discussing this matter next to a small pavilion and a wine shop. They believed that Xiang Liang surrendered to Qin because he was cowardly, while Xiang Rong took up the responsibility and fled to Huainan, forming the last resistance force with Changping Jun. Therefore, everyone despised Xiang Liang and admired Xiang Rong, and even thought that it would not take long for Xiang Rong and Changping Jun to recover Shouchun and Huaibei, and then they must punish this coward severely!

An old fisherman sitting next to them, combing the fishing net, smelling of fish, raised his head, and after listening, he laughed.

"I went to Xiaxiang several years ago and met Xiang Liang. Although he did not lead troops and serve in the military like his father and brother, he often socialized with heroes from Huaibei, Donghai, and Jiangdong. He was good at planning, thoughtful, and courageous, and was definitely not a coward as you said."

When the two saw that it was only an old fisherman who answered the call, they waved their hands to drive him away and said, "What do you know about family and national affairs? Go catch your loaches!"

The fisherman shook his head and sighed, "Those who eat meat are vulgar and cannot plan for the long term. No wonder the State of Chu is declining day by day."

He took off his hat, and saw that although he was in his fifties, he was energetic and had an extraordinary appearance. When the locals in the tavern saw him, they came over to salute him and called him "Mr. Fan".

The two young nobles realized that this was a local wise man. They did not dare to underestimate him and left the table to ask questions.

Fan Jun smiled and said, "Three hundred years ago, Wu She of Chu was murdered by the treacherous minister Fei Wuji and imprisoned by King Ping of Chu. Wu She had two sons, Wu Shang and Wu Yuan, both of whom were virtuous. If they were not killed, they would be a worry for Chu, so King Ping of Chu sent Fei Wuji to recruit them. Wu Shang was a kind person. Although he knew that he would die if he went to the disaster, he still went for the sake of his reputation of being kind and filial, and ended up dying with his father. Wu Yuan was a tough person who could endure humiliation. When Wu Shang was captured, he resolutely fled to Wu, carrying the reputation of being unfilial and taking revenge. This is the person who can really accomplish great things..."

"Although the current situation of the two sons of the Xiang family is slightly different, the essence is the same. The Chu army has been wiped out in Huaibei, and the last bit of reinforcements were also ambushed and annihilated by the Qin army outside Shouchun City. Xiang Rong has only a few hundred followers, and Changping Jun can only use 10,000 soldiers. The situation of Chu is over, and it is only a matter of time before Huainan and Jiangdong are captured by Qin."

"Raising troops to fight against the tyrannical Qin at this time would indeed win praise from the public, but it would be difficult to defeat them in the end, and would also lead to the complete destruction of the Xiang family. So Xiang Liang accepted the Qin's surrender with his clansmen in order to preserve his clan."

"I heard that Qin did not slaughter people when it conquered Shouchun, which shows that it wanted to annex Chu and consolidate it. What else could make the Chu people feel at ease and obedient than to pardon the Xiang family? In this way, Xiang Rong fulfilled his promise to Chu, and Xiang Liang lived and endured humiliation, and also retained the hope of revenge in the future. The choice of the two sons of the Xiang family is comparable to that of Wu She's two sons. In my opinion, Xiang Liang is the one who can accomplish great things in the end!"

The more he talked, the lower his voice became. Finally, he just murmured and sighed: "It's just that Wu Zixu still has Wu to rely on, but now Qin has wiped out the princes, and Yan, Dai, and Qi are all scared. Xiang Liang must live in Qin and endure the infamy silently. If Xiang wants to take revenge, it will be ten times or a hundred times more difficult than Wu Zixu!"

...

At the same time, Hei Fu has also arrived in Huaiyang. After taking a day off and bathing to wash off the dust of the journey, he waited outside Huaiyang City with tens of thousands of Qin troops, waiting for the arrival of Qin Wang Zheng...

When he was leaving the camp to gather, Hei Fu suddenly thought that this was the first time he had seen Qin Shihuang.

"It is said that in history, Liu Xiang and Xiang Yu said something secretly when they saw the emperor's carriage..."

"I came much earlier than them. What thoughts will I have when I meet the king of Qin?"