Chapter 26: One Old, One Young

A successful general will always count up their past opponents, then bring up the opponents' shortcomings to discuss them once more, and finally summarize all sorts of experiences.

The Grand General saying those things just now... was mostly the situation described above.

But thinking about it again, it doesn't seem quite right; Qi Wei Wang should still be a full generation ahead of Grand General Wang Jian, and Sun Bin has been dead for how many years now.

In the blink of an eye, a vast array of thoughts flashed through Fusu's mind, and then he stepped forward to support the old man, saying: "Grand General, please rest first."

Wang Jian waved his hand and said: "This old subject has yet to pay his respects to the Prince."

"No need for such formalities."

"This old subject must still pay his respects."

The old man and the young man deferred to each other for quite a while, and finally, under the gaze of the crowd, the Grand General and the Prince paid their respects together.

The Old Qin Army all around watched this scene with smiles on their faces.

Zhang Han heard the sounds of discussion all around.

"Our Prince has grown this tall already?"

"My grandson is also this tall..."

"Look at this Prince, his hands and feet have grown so well; at a glance, he is a good lad who can practice killing in the army."

Everyone's words were simple and friendly; Zhang Han heard them, but he still stood solemnly, not daring to smile.

But looking again at the scene before him of Prince Fusu and Grand General Wang Jian standing together, the old man and the young man supporting each other, it was indeed a heart-warming sight.

After all, the Grand General has returned, and the hearts of the civil and military officials in the court should be at ease.

The Grand General who performed such a great service has returned, so it is normal to have a bit of airs, and there is even Prince Fusu here to welcome him.

Now, people see the humble and polite Prince Fusu, and feel that it is only right for the Prince to welcome the Grand General back; how is this not a beautiful story?

Prince Fusu personally welcoming the Grand General into the pass is such a wonderful thing.

The Old Qin Army of Great Qin, seeing this scene, also felt at ease.

Wang Jian, supported by the Prince, his gray beard moving with the wind, whispered: "Prince, if this old man's grandson is unwilling to go to the north..."

"Grand General, rest assured, even if I have to tie him up, I will send him to the north."

Wang Jian nodded heavily, sighed, and said: "The Prince is much more promising than this old man's children."

Fusu gave an awkward smile and said: "You flatter me."

"This old man is not joking." Wang Jian's tone emphasized a bit, and one hand quietly pointed to Wang Bi behind him, saying: "This old man has watched people for a lifetime and fought battles for a lifetime, from the State of Zhao to the State of Chu; in this life, what kind of people have I not seen? Only the Prince... will surely be extraordinary in the future."

Fusu felt that the Grand General's words had an underlying meaning, and the underlying meaning was entrusting his entire family to him.

Listening again, he felt that this Grand General was just coaxing a child to be happy.

Wang Jian grabbed the Prince's hand and added: "This old man will go pack up now and return to Xianyang with the Prince."

Fusu stood where he was and watched Grand General Wang Jian walk back with long strides.

These long strides were truly vigorous, not at all like a candle flickering in the wind.

Afterwards, Wang Bi also followed with hurried steps.

In the center of the main camp, there was a prisoner cart, and on the cart was a middle-aged man; this man's clothes were tattered, his expression was manic, and he was laughing foolishly.

Zhang Han explained: "Prince, this person is the King of Chu."

Only now, seeing the captured King of Chu before him, did Fusu feel that the war of Great Qin destroying the Six States had truly ended.

Fusu said: "How will the Emperor deal with him?"

Zhang Han faced the Prince, cupped his hands in salute, and said: "The Emperor has issued an edict to treat the captured kings of the Six States kindly, but..."

Hearing this, Fusu nodded and said: "If it is difficult, then there is no need to say it."

Zhang Han stepped back and stood straight to the side.

The First Emperor had indeed said to treat the kings of the Six States kindly; Fusu knew these things. Back then, Great Qin treated the King of Han kindly and gave him a place to live, but the King of Han took advantage of the Great War between Qin and Chu to launch a rebellion in Xinzheng.

Afterwards, under the fury of the First Emperor and the ministers of Qin, the last King of Han, Han An, was killed.

And after Great Qin conquered the Qi State, King Tian Jian of Qi did not die under the blades of the Qin Army, but was starved to death. In fact, he could have avoided being starved to death, but no people of Qi were willing to help their King of Qi; perhaps the people of the Qi State also hated the King of Qi.

And there is this King of Chu before him; Fusu felt that war between states is not only a competition of military strength, but also a competition of who can hold on longer and who can outlast the other.

When Fuchu was on the throne, the State of Chu was in a stage of internal chaos and external instability.

As for the Yan State, sigh...

The night wind blew, stirring up a patch of yellow sand before Hangu Pass.

Fusu recalled a saying of Han Fei: "When a tree breaks, it must be because of wood-boring insects; when a wall collapses, it must be because of cracks."

In other words, one could also say: even the best mason cannot repair a wall that is about to collapse.

Fusu stood where he was and said to Zhang Han at his side: "It turns out that bringing the Grand General back is actually quite easy."

Zhang Han remained silent, standing solemnly.

After a moment of hesitation, Fusu raised his head and added: "Originally... it should have been quite easy, too."

Thinking of the many Old Qin Army soldiers in the camp before him, and the journey back to Xianyang, Fusu ordered: "Please, General Zhang Han, go ahead first and prepare provisions at the various key points on the way back to Xianyang."

"This subordinate accepts the order." Zhang Han mounted his horse, signaled to a team of Hundred-man Commanders, and headed toward the upper reaches of the Yellow River.

The sky was gradually turning to night, the bright moon hung high, and the night sky was dotted with stars; after the Grain Rain, there were even more stars in the night sky.

Having nothing to do, Fusu sat under the city gate of Hangu Pass, stewing tonight's meal.

Tian An brought over mutton, as well as asparagus and wild fruits.

When eating and music are placed in the same setting, then eating can also become a very artistic and high-class affair; if there were the sound of music, or perhaps a group of beauties dancing before one's eyes, it would be even better.

However, under Hangu Pass, let alone the sound of music, where would one find beauties?

Fusu cut the asparagus, placed it into an earthenware pot, layered the sliced mutton on top, and set it on the stove to cook.

Tian An placed the pulled dough pieces into a bowl, then wiped his hands, added some wood to the stove, and opened the air vent at the bottom of the stove, so the fire in the stove grew larger and larger.

This stove was one the Prince had helped repair; it was easy to carry and easy to use.

Tian An saw steam rising from the gaps in the pot lid and, with a face full of smiles, went back to pulling noodles.

Before long, the fragrance from the pot wafted out; Fusu lifted the lid and saw the mutton tumbling along with the broth.

"What fragrant meat."

Hearing the Grand General's words, Fusu hurriedly put the lid back on, set down the ladle, and asked, "Has the Grand General finished his meal?"

"This old man..."

Halfway through his sentence, Wang Jian looked at the earthenware pot and said with a serious expression, "It is a pity; the Prince took Li Si as his teacher. It is a pity that this old man fought too slowly back then."

"Why do you say that?"

"Back then, if this subordinate had gone to fight the Chu a bit earlier, perhaps I could have captured Xunzi alive and brought him to Xianyang to instruct the Prince."

Caught up in the excitement of the conversation, Fusu took the pot of mutton off the heat, letting the Grand General eat while he spoke.

Wang Jian was still chewing the piping-hot mutton in his mouth.

Fusu asked, "Has the Grand General met Xunzi before?"

"This subordinate cannot even remember when the last time I saw Xunzi was."

Seeing that the noodles were cooked, Fusu scooped some up and placed them into the Grand General's bowl.

Wang Jian finished the mutton in the pot, then ate the noodles mixed with the remaining broth in one go.

After eating, the old gentleman let out a comfortable breath and sighed, "This pot of yours, Prince, is worth ten thousand gold."

Tian An diligently continued pulling the noodles.

Fusu listened to Great General Wang Jian talk about the wars of the past.

An old man and a young man sat below Hangu Pass, one willing to listen and one willing to speak.

Regarding the deeds of conquering the world back then, Great General Wang Jian could speak for three days and three nights without stopping.

Under the escort of Wang Bi and Zhang Han, Fusu and the Grand General rode in the same carriage, listening to the Grand General talk about the past all along the way.

When they arrived at Hangu Pass, the troop only had one thousand Iron Cavalry; now that they were going to Xianyang, the scale of the troop had expanded to six thousand men.

Aside from the one thousand Iron Cavalry still providing escort, there were also five thousand Old Qin Army soldiers.

Six thousand men was no small number; with six thousand troops moving together, the fear was that they would exhaust the food supply of every place they reached.

Which village or county could withstand the consumption of six thousand men?

Zhang Han was a very capable man; he traveled day and night to various places to coordinate grain, and after the army had marched for a day, he had already prepared the encampment site and provisions for the day in advance.

Right now, Zhang Han should be arranging the provisions for tomorrow.

Wang Jian said, "Were these all arranged by the Prince?"

Fusu explained, "I had General Zhang Han handle it; I have a habit that I hope the Grand General will forgive."

"What habit does the Prince have?"

"Always thinking about tomorrow's matters today, and thinking about summer's matters in spring."

Wang Jian stroked his beard, smiled, and nodded, "That is a good thing."

Fusu asked, "Is Xiang Yan very formidable?"

"This old man had an army of six hundred thousand; no matter how formidable he, Xiang Yan, might be, could he withstand an army of six hundred thousand?"

Having said this, Wang Jian laughed heartily, "Hahaha!"

Fusu nodded in realization; the process of Qin destroying the Chu was extremely tortuous. As for what the process was really like, and what the enemies and opponents were like, only these Old Qin Army soldiers and Wang Jian knew; the old gentleman had put it simply.

The journey back was clearly much smoother than the journey there.

After Grain Rain, the climate in Guanzhong warmed up significantly, and one would break into a slight sweat after being in the sun for too long.

The Grand General and Prince Fusu walked the whole way, talked the whole way, and ate the whole way.

Along the route, the Old Qin Army soldiers dispersed one by one, most of them returning to their own homes.

They were about to reach Xianyang and had arrived near Shangyan Mountain.

The prisoner carriage carrying the Chu King was steady within the troop, and Fusu asked in a low voice, "Were there no Chu people who came to intercept the prisoners?"

Wang Jian shook his head and said, "No."

"Why?"

"The Chu people themselves do not think much of this Chu King; who would come to save him?"

"Fusu has been enlightened."

As he spoke, Fusu was still surprised; so it was like that...

Wang Jian added, "The Prince need not be overly modest; everyone knows about those messy affairs of the Chu."

After Chunshen Jun of the Chu, the powerful official Li Yuan and Chu You Wang were indeed not good people; their internal affairs had already rotted, and everyone wanted to gain more, and everyone wanted power.

Wang Jian said, "Prince, the Chu originally had a chance, haha... This old man was certain that their Chu King lacked the mettle to kill the powerful officials, and also lacked the mettle to make decisions on state affairs."

"Indeed..."

Fusu nodded incessantly; compared to the Qin, where it was truly a matter of killing if one decided to kill—even when toppling Lv Buwei, there was no hesitation at all. When it came time to kill Lv Buwei, the Imperial Father at most struggled internally for a moment and tactfully sent a letter.

Afterwards, without the need for executioners, Lv Buwei committed suicide himself.

Therefore, for a monarch on the throne, mettle and decisiveness are very important.

"A lesson from the past; Fusu has learned it. Thank you for your instruction, Grand General."

"Hahaha!" Wang Jian laughed even more heartily; he admired this Prince more the more he looked at him—though still young, he was already so wise and humble.

The troop rested temporarily at Shangyan Mountain, and Fusu had to go into the village to handle some matters.

Wang Bi stood guard by his old father's side; for some reason tonight, the old father seemed to be dreaming, and he was smiling even in his sleep.

The next day, Xianyang City was visible in the distance; before dawn had broken, the troop was to set off for Xianyang.

Wang Jian woke up early and asked, "Has the Prince arranged everything?"

"Everything here is well; please mount your horse, Grand General!"

"Bi'er, bring me my armor!"

The Grand General, who had originally been wearing simple cloth robes, put on his battle armor once more, and he looked as if he had grown ten years younger.

Yet the Grand General was truly aged, and he needed Wang Bi to support him before he could mount his warhorse.

Tian An led a horse over and bowed, saying, "Prince, the horses are ready."

This horse was pitch-black all over, and it even had a slight sheen reflecting in the sunlight.

The warhorse looked tall and powerful; Fusu grabbed the reins and vaulted onto the horse.

The horse merely stamped its hooves impatiently a couple of times before settling down.

Fusu patted the horse's neck; this warhorse had been trained, so it was exceptionally docile.

Zhang Han said in a clear voice, "The Prince is all prepared."

Fusu faced the direction of Xianyang, then looked back toward the east; the morning sun had not yet risen, and if they set off at this hour and the journey went smoothly, they could reach Xianyang before noon.

"Let's go, to Xianyang."

Zhang Han called out to Wang Bi in front, "The Prince has given the order: set out, to Xianyang!"

This was the final stretch of the road to Xianyang; the procession moved very quietly, and travelers on the straight road gave way one after another. The closer they got to Xianyang, the more officials and troops appeared along the way, maintaining order on the road.

They were only a few miles from Xianyang City; the horses stopped running, and under Wang Bi's command, they let the warhorses walk slowly, because there were simply too many people lining both sides of the road to watch.

Fusu looked back once more at the Chu king in the prisoner carriage.

The Chu king Fuchu; the name Fuchu means to carry firewood on one's back, perhaps given with the hope that this Chu king would be able to shoulder the burden of the state.

Fusu confirmed it once more; indeed, no Chu had come to rescue the prisoner along the way.

Just as he was thinking this, another person stood by the side of the road, holding up a Bamboo Slip and saying, "Prince, a letter from the Prime Minister."

Tian An took the Bamboo Slip and handed it to Fusu.

Wang Jian, riding his horse to the side, asked, "Is there some matter?"

After reading it, Fusu put away the Bamboo Slip and replied, "Some Confucian Scholar says I have been too harsh to the servants at Shangyan Mountain."

"Where did this Confucian Scholar come from? Daring to discuss the Prince's servants."

"Grand General, there is no need to be angry; the teacher has already helped me clear up the misunderstanding."

Fusu put the Bamboo Slip away again.

Wang Jian laughed, "That is very good."

The group dismounted and removed their armor before Xianyang City, and then an Attendant stood on the city wall and loudly read out the First Emperor's decree.

After the decree was finished, Prime Minister Li Si walked to the city gate, grabbed Wang Jian's hand in a few strides, and said excitedly, "The Great General has returned, and His Majesty's heart can finally be at ease."

(End of chapter)