Qin Official

A river of Jishui separated the Qin official army from the rebellious "bandits" of the Qi people. To the south of the Jishui River, the Qin army set up camp. To the north of the Jishui River, the Qi people's camp seemed a bit chaotic. There is no discipline.

In one corner, there were dozens of light knights from Le'an County. The battle was about to begin. They did not show any nervousness on their faces. Instead, they continued to heckle a knight who was being surrounded by others.

"Le Bian, I heard that you killed a Qin soldier and got a reward?"

The young hero Le Bian, who was surrounded by everyone, was about thirty years old and was wearing an ordinary brown suit. He was very happy at this moment. He held up a bag of money, weighed it in his hand, and showed it to everyone. They envied him. He looked up and said:

"That's natural! On the orders of the Prime Minister and General, Nai Gong crossed the river to explore the enemy's situation. He was discovered by a Qin sentry. Before he could warn him, he raised his sword and killed him. Since he didn't have time to cut off his head, he took off his armor. Returning with a hat is proof!"

He raised the Qin soldier's hat high in his hand for everyone to see, and his pride was palpable.

Someone on the sidelines questioned: "Le Bian, I have known you for so many years and know that you are good at water and very familiar with Jishui, but when it comes to your swordsmanship..."

The young man who exposed Le Bian smiled and waved his hands with a contemptuous look on his face, indicating that his swordsmanship was not worth mentioning, so he did not believe Le Bian could kill the enemy.

The ranger wanted to show off his face, and Le Bian immediately blushed and defended himself repeatedly, saying that he didn't like to show off before, but when he got into battle, he realized that he was really powerful. In the end, he even boasted:

"Seven years ago, I joined the army as a martial artist. If the king hadn't surrendered before the battle started, I would have killed the Qin army without leaving any trace behind!"

The turning point of Le Bian's fate did indeed happen seven years ago. Before that, he had been a knight-errant, following the local county knights and township knights in Le'an. Who would he work as a diner for a few days today, and where would he go for a few meals tomorrow? Eat and drink, work as a knight all day long, and make money by fighting hard. Although he was not wealthy, he was free. At least in his own opinion, he was better than those farmers who dug food in the fields and traders who were busy making a living.

The Qi State was different from the other six countries. The country was prosperous. Whenever there was a war, in addition to recruiting soldiers from the five capitals, Qi State also used money to recruit light knights from various places to join the army. It can be regarded as the earliest mercenary army in China. Therefore, the status of the light knight is not low, a bit like the low-level samurai and ronin in Japan in later generations.

But since the fall of Qi, everything has been completely different. A Qin official dressed in black came with a few people to take office. These officials spoke words that Le Bian could not understand. Notices with the Chinese character Qin began to be posted in front of the county temple - even though the Chinese character Qin had the same character, Le Bian still saw it. He didn't understand, but that didn't stop him from spitting on everyone and everything from Qin behind his back. The black clothes of the Qin officials, the crooked buns on the Qin people's heads, the Qin people's thick and thick accents, and the word Qin written on the object called "paper" all made him displeased.

Le Bian hated Qin because Qin's laws made him lose his job.

Everywhere Qin officials went, they were most keen to attack the knights who "violated the ban with force." The light knights who used to be respected by others became people who were not allowed by the law, and their swords were all taken away. It is said that twelve golden men were cast in Xianyang.

Therefore, Le Bian could only find another way to make a living, and go to Jishui to punt boats for people.

However, after a fight with a guest at the ferry over a disagreement, Le Bian was arrested and imprisoned for "private fighting". In Qi, he was fined a lot of money by Qin officials for a trivial matter that was not a big deal in Qi. Because he could not afford the repayment, he had to do hard labor for the government for three months. He went to the beach to cut firewood and boil salt. When he came back, he was so sunburned that he had no job to punt the boat.

Lebian had no land, no skills, and could not be an official. He could only be a mediocre person, doing part-time labor for others. If you cut the wheat, you will cut the wheat, and if you pound the rice, you will pound the rice, but it will not last long, so you can only eat a small amount of food.

Even after several years of such hardship, the originally strong body became thin. When people heard that the county guard in Jiaodong had killed the Tian family in Yeyi and distributed the Tian family's land to Yongbao and farm laborers, Le Bian Not moved at all.

He said contemptuously: "Even if I die, I won't dig in the fields for food."

This was Le Bian's pride in calling himself a "scholar". He didn't know how many generations ago his ancestors were also minor aristocrats and were rich.

Countless times, Le Bian missed the still existing life in Qi State. Everything in Qi State was so beautiful back then. He played Cuju and Liubo, watched people play drums, harps and shengs. It was so happy. During the New Year and festivals, he even had the opportunity to drink and eat. Meat.

But today's life is depressing and boring, wealth has been taken away by officials, and the entire society, no matter which class, is more miserable than in the past.

Not only the light knights had a hard time, but also the merchants were targeted. The farmers' taxes were also several times heavier. The Confucian scholars also hung their heads and could no longer enter or leave the government.

Like Le Bian, many people hate Qin and miss the past life, but don't know how to change everything. They can only muddle along helplessly and get by.

But the opportunity finally came. First, Emperor Qin was assassinated. Although he sent people to deliver oral messages, saying that he and the world were fine, some people whispered that this was a lie. The emperor was actually dead. In order to calm people's hearts, he A false edict was issued.

"It's like Duke Huan of Qi. He is obviously dead, but people outside don't know!"

Soon, another news came! The Tian brothers in Di County rebelled by killing officials!

After hearing about this, Le Bian gave the three Tian brothers a thumbs up. They were indeed the county knights who were famous in Qi many years ago!

Then the news spread in the county, and everyone didn't believe it at first, but people from Di County were right: they said that the new King of Qi had put on a purple robe, set up a banner, and attracted heroes from all over the country. . Sun Tiandu, the descendant of Anping who was entrenched in the overseas islands, also came back with his boat-like sails covering the sea. The "40,000 troops" brought out by Yongmen Sima all had white helmets and white armor: this was to show their filial piety for the King of Qi. , I want to avenge him!

The government called this a "rebellion", but in the eyes of the knights, it was clear that Qi was about to be restored, and Le Bian and others became more interested in taking advantage of this opportunity to return to their past lives.

When the soldiers and horses of Di County and Qiancheng arrived at Le'an City, the Qin Dynasty magistrate wanted to summon everyone in the county to resist, but Le Bian and some light knights who were fed up with Qin's rule rushed into the county temple. killed. Everyone opened the city gate to welcome the Tian brothers, and finally they were all received under "You Sima" Tian Rong.

The new King of Qi is the younger brother of the old King of Qi who was kidnapped and starved to death by the Qin people. He is wearing a purple robe and is a bit bloated. Le Bian only saw it from a distance.

Because Tian Dan was the mastermind of this restoration, he became the "prime minister". His younger brothers Tian Rong and Tian Heng were the left and right Sima respectively. Tian Du, the great-grandson of Lord Anping, became a "general".

Tian Dan wanted to use the reputation of Anping Lord Tian Dan to call on the Qi people to join the battle to expel the Qin people and regain the Qi Kingdom!

Just like that, Le Bian could pick up the sword again, hold his head high, bulge his belly, and enjoy the looks of respect and fear from ordinary Guizhou officials.

He didn't know how big Qin was, nor how many people actually rebelled. He only knew that Le Bian could walk sideways in Le'an County, and there were no complicated Qin laws to restrain him...

It was like the mountains pressing on me collapsed in vain, and my shoulders felt light.

But before they had time to enjoy it, they were dragged to Jishui by "Xiangbang".

The Qin army is coming!

Le Bian is good at water and was sent to investigate the enemy's situation last night. Regardless of whether he really killed the Qin soldiers and took the armor, Le Bian was promoted to the commander of the village by Tian Rong's order. According to the past rules of the Qi State, Le Bian was also given two taels of gold in public. This was to boost morale before the war... …

The next night after ordering Le Bian and others to cross the river to investigate the Qin army, Tian Dan ordered a thousand men to cross the Jishui River, but they were defeated and returned...

…

On the south bank of Jishui River, Linzi County Weilou Kang laughed heartily as he watched the "group of bandits" who tried to cross the Jishui River to attack, but were defeated and returned.

In the past half month, rebellion has swept across the entire north bank of Jishui. Zhutian, light knights, bandits, and groups suppressed by the Qin government have united to kill Qin officials and seize the city to rebel. Because the incident happened suddenly, Linzi County was in a hurry and only had time to gather 5,000 county soldiers to defend the area south of Jishui and garrison troops in Duchang County.

The rebellion of the Tian brothers was planned for a long time. All the party members responded to the attack in the neighboring counties, and they were captured without much effort. Soon they gathered hundreds of chariots, hundreds of riders, and tens of thousands of soldiers. Now they gathered in the north of Jishui, which can be considered a huge force.

However, judging from their uneven clothes and various weapons, Linzi County Lieutenant felt that no matter how many people there were, they were still a mob.

It can be seen from the fact that the Qi people hurriedly crossed the water to attack the Qin army's main formation that the commander did not know the art of war and marching, and he was really fighting indiscriminately. As a result, a group of people sent over was attacked head-on by the Qin army!

The soldiers of the Qin army lined up at the water's edge. Following Lou Kang's command, they kept shooting arrows into the water. The Qi people did not have many crossbows, and they were immediately shot. Everyone fell on their backs and screamed in agony. Although there were ships to cover them. , but still suffered heavy losses. The Qin army fired crossbows continuously on the shore and shot arrows into the water. Those who were hit screamed and screamed. It was a one-sided massacre.

The water was now full of corpses. Hundreds of Qi people had a taste of it and quickly retreated, saying that they would not go into the water anymore. The Qi people who were still clamoring on the shore were all mute at this moment. After a while, they again After an attack failed, they actually started to scatter, turned around and retreated!

"The thieves were repulsed!"

Seeing that he was so vulnerable, Linzi County Lieutenant's brain became hot and he actually issued an order to cross Jishui and continue the pursuit!

An army commander was suspicious and said to the county captain: "The Qi people are acting like this. They will collapse at the first touch. They also cover the north bank with thick smoke. There may be a trick."

"I've been fighting for more than a day or two. Can't you tell if it's deceitful or not?"

Lou Kang's face suddenly became unhappy. He was indeed not young. He was over fifty. As Wang Ben's veteran general, Lou Kang had fought many battles. He had participated in all three battles between Zhao Yanchu and Zhao Yanchu. Although he has no great achievements, he has accumulated small achievements and has reached where he is today.

Among Qin's many opponents, the one Lou Kang despised the most was Qi, which was as weak as Han Yan, but at least he took up arms and resisted the Qin army. Only the wealthy Qi State was a softie and surrendered without a fight, which made many Qin generals look down upon the Qi people.

So Lou Kang said: "The world has long agreed that the martial arts of Qi are not as good as the soldiers of Wei, and the soldiers of Wei are not as good as the warriors of Qin."

"When the State of Qi was still there, the martial arts warriors were vulnerable. When they encountered a small enemy, they could be used by luck, but when they encountered a strong enemy, they were instantly dispersed. What's more, now that the State of Qi has been destroyed? Although this group of rabble-rousers have gained courage, they are still vulnerable. hit!"

After making up his mind, County Wei Lou Kang immediately asked people to set up a pontoon bridge and crossed the water to chase the bandits...

Not only was he confident in the military, Lou Kang knew very well that if Linzi could put down the rebellion with its own strength, Emperor Qin Shi Huang's punishment for them might be lighter afterwards...

…

At the same time, on the north bank of Jishui, under a hillock obscured by thick smoke from the fields, the real large force of the Qi army was waiting for battle. However, there was no order, especially the rangers, who were not standing and sitting. There is no sitting posture, it is a mess.

Le Bian was even discussing the sound ahead with his companion.

"Failed?"

"Say it's a fake defeat and lure the Qin army to cross the water to attack."

"I'm afraid it's not really a defeat."

The knights were all talking about the orders that had just been announced by the "Xiangbang" and the left and right commanders. They said that sending people across the water to fake defeat was to lure the Qin army over, so don't be suspicious.

But seeing the sound of killing a few miles ahead, and not knowing what the truth was, some of the young heroes became really timid.

Even the commander of the village, Le Bian, couldn't help but swallow his saliva, his hands holding the sword were sweaty.

Although he had fought bravely and fiercely, this was the first time in many years that Le Bian had stood in a battle formation.

Regardless of whether it is a false defeat or a real defeat, there will definitely be a fight soon. He had been to the other side and observed the Qin army up close. This Qin army came from Linzi and numbered five thousand. Although there were only a thousand elite Guanzhong troops, the rest were composed of garrison troops from various counties, which were replaced every year. .

Because the Qi land has been at peace for a long time, the training has been relaxed, but the airs are still there. They are stationed on the opposite bank in darkness. Although the number is only half of the Qi people, they seem to be more than the Qi people because they are solemn and orderly. When marching, The spear in his hand was like a forest shimmering with cold light.

Le Bian looked back at his own side. The rebels were composed of several parts: the overseas bandits brought by Tian Heng and Tian Du were the main force, and the retainers of the Tian Dan family, plus light knights from all over the country, were on the left and right wings respectively.

No matter where they were, people in Qi were wearing all kinds of clothes, holding various weapons, and some were even holding wooden sticks. Their clothes were ragged and their order was not very neat.

There were some farmers and merchants behind who helped transport the baggage, with timid faces. They hated the rule of the Qin Dynasty, but they did not dare to resist. Some even took the lead and refused to participate. Unless they were forced to help transport the luggage with spears, this group of people still wanted to escape at any time.

"Cowardly people."

Although he was scolding these farmers and merchants who were just like idlers, Xia Shi Le Bian was still a little frightened in his heart.

There were also many young knights nearby who showed timidity and hesitated. What they had to face was no longer the unlucky Qin officials who were surrounded by Qi people with only a few people around them, but the unlucky Qin officials who had defeated all the invincible enemies in the world in the past hundred years. Qin army!

The Qin army is synonymous with being undefeated! Those Qin officials and Qin soldiers in black robes have ruled Qi for too long. The young knights and righteous men are hiding everywhere like mice, and even formed a conditioned reflex to run away when they see them...

But now, they are required to bravely face the powerful bows and crossbows with simple weapons.

Just thinking about the power of those Qin people's equipment made even Le Bian, who liked to brag, stop talking about it.

"Le Bian, didn't you say you wanted to kill Qin's army without leaving any trace behind?" Someone next to him couldn't help but talk at this time.

Le Bian curled his lips and said nothing. He was indeed bragging. He picked up that armor when he was riding in a patrolling Qin soldier to relieve himself...

"Tell me, can we win this time?" The people of Qi were brave enough to fight with their thorns, but some people also asked uncertainly.

Le Bian frowned. Although he was a little scared, it was not good to demoralize others and destroy his prestige. When he was about to say something, a car suddenly drove up to the front of the army, and it was "Xiangbang" Tian Dan.

"Second and third sons, listen to what Dan has to say!"

Although Tian Dan has become the "Xiangbang", he still likes to wear a smart outfit so that he can blend in with the rangers.

He knew that the real battle was coming next, and he had to say something before the battle to reassure everyone.

So Tian Dan asked a dozen strong men to pass the message for him in front of the army, saying loudly:

"In the past few days, whenever we conquer the city, the Qin officials who are about to be killed often curse, saying that we are a rabble, with mantis arms like chariots, and they are angry and use their arms like ruts, not knowing that they are not qualified..."

This metaphor is very vivid. The mantis is very small and fragile, but the wheel is hard and fast. Once it hits, it will be crushed into powder. The rangers looked at each other with some frustration in their eyes. Although it was refreshing to become the master in the past half month, But regret comes later.

"But I admire Mantis!"

Just when morale was low, Tian Dan suddenly raised his voice: "Back then, when Duke Zhuang of Qi was out hunting, there was a small green insect blocking the road. He raised his arms high and was about to fight its wheels. So Duke Zhuang of Qi asked the driver :'What kind of bug is this?'"

"The charioteer said to him: This insect is called a praying mantis. It has a strong nature. It knows how to advance but not to stop. It does not know its strength and underestimates the enemy. Then Duke Zhuang of Qi said: If a man is like a mantis, he must be the most brave warrior in the world!' So he Move the car out of the way of the praying mantis!”

This story is simple and easy to understand, and it is native to Qi State. The knights were stunned when they heard this story. How would a majestic king give way to a little insect?

"Why can the mantis make the duke give way? It's because of his bravery!"

Tian Dan drew out his sword, raised it high, and pointed it at the Qin army that had gradually crossed from the south bank to the north bank of Jishui River. He also knew that in a real fight, even though his side had doubled in number, he still would not be able to take advantage. They can only take advantage of Qin General's disdain for them to lure them across the water and attack them halfway across the river.

Coupled with his arrangements, there may be a 50% chance of winning...

It depends on today whether this great cause of restoration will be aborted after a few flutters of wings, or whether it can be like the saying of the Tian family, the phoenix flies and sings in harmony!

So he roared: "Although we are small, we have sickles in our hands. We cannot sit still and wait for death like cicadas. What's more, if there are a thousand or ten thousand praying mantises, why can't we stop a rotten car?" What?"

Tian Dan's younger brother Tian Heng also stood up and encouraged loudly: "Yes, if we fight, we may die. If we run away, we may survive for a while. But if we stay, we can regain the glory of Qi. In the old days of freedom, knights did not need to hide in Tibet, merchants did not need to be despised, and farmers did not need to pay more than half of the rent. We must let the people of Qin know that it is easy to take our lives, but if you want to enslave the people of Qi and destroy all the Qin people, Tian, ​​it’s harder than climbing to heaven!”

The Tian brothers knew what these people who followed them wanted. For a moment, their long-cooled blood seemed to be ignited. They longed for chivalry and loyalty most in their lives. Le Pian's forehead felt hot. He also raised his sword and talked to the people around him. Loudly echoed:

"In this battle, we know how to advance but not how to stop. After this battle, we will be brave for the world!"

When the forwards of the Qin army stepped onto the land on the north bank of Jishui, what they saw was tens of thousands of Qi people waving their weapons, as if ten thousand mantises were shaking their arm blades and rushing towards them!