Chapter 462: Victory Song to Stir the Troops

In the midwinter month of the thirtieth year of Qin Shi Huang (the eleventh month of the lunar calendar), on the northern outskirts of Xianyang, the flat and open Fengzheng Plain saw tens of thousands of laborers swarm in at the break of dawn. The previous night's snow had only just stopped when, urged on by shouting officials, they cleared the ground, then busily set about building an altar and erecting banners, working in a flurry of activity.

"So cold…"

Liu Ji couldn't help shivering; his hands gripping the broom were frozen bright red. Though it snowed every year back in their Pei County, perhaps it was psychological, but winters away from home always felt especially bitter.

Unable to sweep any longer, he tossed the broom aside and huddled behind a tree. Gazing south, he could see, several li away, the hazy outlines of the Xianyang palace halls…

"I really wish I could go shelter from the wind by those palace walls."

Liu Ji's good brother Lu Wan leaned beside him, gazing enviously at the Xianyang palace. Though they were commoners living lives as worthless as weeds, ever since returning to the Guanzhong region from beyond the northern frontier, they had been thrilled to live not far from the Xianyang palace and especially loved to gossip about the emperor:

How vast were the emperor's chambers, how many consorts did he have, what did he eat every day? Was it exotic delicacies, or beef that ordinary people never got to taste? All of this was constantly on their lips.

Though, they could not get even half a step closer to that place.

Liu Ji's fellow villager, the cattle-keeper Zhou Xie, also came over and licked his chapped lips, saying, "If the emperor swept snow, he'd surely use a golden broom."

Lu Wan found this amusing. "How ignorant. The emperor has hundreds of thousands of servants; why would he need to sweep snow himself? In this weather, he's surely in a charcoal-heated warm room, drinking mutton stew, warming some fine wine, being kept warm by his consorts… But Brother Ji, how much firewood and charcoal do you think it takes to heat such an enormous palace?"

Liu Ji rolled his eyes. "The biggest house I've ever lived in was the residence of the great hero Zhang of Waihuang. Inside Xianyang palace, there are thousands upon thousands of courtyards and chambers like that; how could I possibly know?"

"Still, do you think we might get to see the emperor's carriage later?"

Lu Wan was still very excited. The reason they had to clear this plain was that a military ceremony, the 'Triumphant Return and Army Review' for the northern expedition army, was to be held here today, and it was said that Qin Shi Huang would personally attend!

The crowd began chattering again, full of curiosity. Was the emperor truly, as the legends said, two zhang tall, with auspicious clouds above his head as he passed? What would his carriage be like? Was it really pulled by eight dragons?

Just as the Pei County conscripts were chatting happily, the overseer's whip lashed over.

"You bunch of relocated convicts from the eastern lands, how dare you slack off?"

The whip's tip struck their frozen-stiff winter clothes painfully. Liu Ji and the others could only hurriedly rise and continue sweeping. After the overseer left, Lu Wan couldn't help but curse a few times.

"We thought we could go straight back to Pei County after the war. Who knew they'd keep us here to continue hard labor, building bridges and roads in the freezing snow and rain? Do these Qin people really treat us like convict-slaves?"

"Enough. Don't let your loose tongue bring disaster on the whole work crew through collective punishment."

Liu Ji also didn't want to do this grueling work, but as a village head, he knew that if they committed a crime in the Guanzhong heartland, only utter ruin awaited them all.

"Zhou Bo stayed behind on the northern frontier. Even wearing wool, he's definitely colder than us! So say less, finish the work quickly, and then we can squat on the sidelines and watch the excitement!"

The men agreed and sped up. By the time the sun had fully risen, the snow across the entire Fengzheng Plain had been cleared. But Liu Ji and the others never got the chance to see the imperial carriage arrive. Thousands of fully armed soldiers filed in, establishing a security cordon within a ten-li radius, and without any explanation, drove all the laborers out.

After the area was cleared, the nobles of Xianyang City escorted the emperor's carriage to its arrival, and the main participants of this army review ceremony—the soldiers of Shang, Yunzhong, Beidi, and Longxi Commanderies—also entered the field one after another…

…

"When the army has vanquished the foe, officials report the victory to the mountains, rivers, and ancestral temples. When the army returns, it encamps outside the capital, and the ceremony of the triumphant return and army review is performed…"

This was the army review ceremony passed down from antiquity, a rite of triumphant return, an honor that only an army that had won a great victory was qualified to enjoy. However, after Qin Shi Huang took personal rule, Xianyang held it almost every year. Neishi Teng's destruction of Han and Wang Ben's destruction of Wei had both been celebrated with army reviews in the eastern suburbs. Wang Jian held the most, having destroyed Yan, Zhao, and Chu, each time with immense grandeur.

But this army review was different; it was held specifically for the soldiers who had secured the borders, expanded the realm, and defeated the Hu barbarians, hence it was set on Xianyang's northern outskirts.

After the sun had climbed high, the armored soldiers from each commandery stood in neat, orderly square formations across the plain, over a dozen in total. Every man had a jaw like a swallow's and a head like a tiger's, robust and strong. The archers wore crimson uniforms, drew powerful bows and crossbows, with quivers slung at their waists. The dark black battle flags, the standard-issue armor, the sharp swords and halberds—all glittered with dazzling brilliance under the midday sun.

"Their ranks are quite solemn and orderly, even more spirited than the Capital Guard."

Among the accompanying officials, a Confucian scholar in his thirties clicked his tongue in wonder. His name was Fu Sheng, a man of Qi, a newly recruited Erudite seeing such a spectacle for the first time.

"After all, they are a battle-hardened army that has fought beyond the northern frontier! They inherently possess a murderous aura, and the soldiers participating in this army review ceremony have been carefully selected, so naturally they are extraordinary."

Heifu's old acquaintance, the Lu Confucian Shusun Tong, was unsurprised. These ancient military rites were one area where Qin Shi Huang found use for Confucian scholars, and he had been involved in organizing them, familiar with every procedure. He said to Fu Sheng:

"Just watch carefully; the real excitement is yet to come. According to custom, each army must teach its soldiers a victory song, to be sung loudly before His Majesty to boost military prestige. Then comes the presentation of captives and severed heads, after which the generals follow His Majesty into the city for the drinking ceremony and grand rewards."

Victory music is the music of presenting achievements, a tradition that became popular starting in the Spring and Autumn period. Back then, Duke Wen of Jin defeated Chu at Chengpu, held an army review, and entered Jin to victory music. At that time, not only would musicians play victory music, but instructors would also teach the soldiers to sing victory songs.

Although it was merely going through the motions, tens of thousands of people singing victory songs in unison was a truly spectacular sight.

Fu Sheng nodded, feeling a sense of anticipation. He glanced again into the distance, where Qin Shi Huang's imperial carriage had already been seated below the altar, accompanied by the Chancellor, the Commandant of Justice, the Imperial Secretary, the old general Wang Jian, and others, all waiting for the soldiers to report their victory and play the victory music.

The first to come up were the Shang Commandery troops, but without Feng Jie, who had lost a battle. A defeated general was not qualified to participate in the army review ceremony, so there was only the white-haired old general Qiang Hui, who had lost his former vigor.

"The war chariots rumble, rumble and thunder, like a mighty thunderclap. Illustrious and faithful is Fang Shu, who campaigned against the Xianyun, and the Man and Jing tribes came to fear his might!"

The victory song sung by the Shang Commandery troops was 'Plucking the White Millet' from the Lesser Odes.

After listening, Shusun Tong laughed and said, "This victory song is deeply meaningful. General Qiang is not versed in poetry and literature; it certainly wasn't his idea, but rather the work of the Commandant of Justice, who oversees the Shang Commandery troops. Fu Sheng, can you interpret it?"

Fu Sheng was also learned and replied, "This poem speaks of the Zhou King Xuan's minister and great general Fang Shu, who conducted military exercises and army reviews to overawe the Jing barbarians. It is fitting. But Old General Qiang, with over a hundred thousand troops, only took five hundred heads and subdued the Loufan—two minor achievements—yet was still promoted by His Majesty to the rank of Four-Horse Chariot Grandee. It is somewhat awkward."

"However, the poem first mentions the Xianyun, then the Man and Jing. Although General Qiang achieved no great merit in the campaign against the Xiongnu, he contributed greatly to the destruction of Chu back then. The Commandant of Justice is truly thoughtful. Moreover, the poem's line, 'Fang Shu, the elder statesman, can fulfill his grand strategies,' I believe, is a clear indication of his intention to retire."

"His Majesty favors using new men…"

Shusun Tong nodded. In this northern expedition, the old generals had little achievement, while the new men shone brilliantly. Since the emperor had also given him a graceful exit, aside from retiring and yielding to the worthy, Qiang Hui had no other choice.

Next came the Yunzhong troops under Meng Tian. What they sang was a very familiar piece, 'Bringing Out the Chariots.'

"The king commanded Nan Zhong, to go and build a city in that direction. The chariots came out in great numbers, the banners with their emblems fluttered. The Son of Heaven commanded me, to build that city in the northern region!"

Fu Sheng was somewhat puzzled. "This General Meng, though he took a thousand heads, seized tens of thousands of livestock, and captured the entire Beijia region, rekindling the beacon fires on the Zhao Great Wall, is it not a bit excessive to compare himself to Nan Zhong?"

Shusun Tong shook his head. "You are unaware that when His Majesty toured the north, he personally said, 'Meng Tian, can you be my Nan Zhong?' Meng Tian having his soldiers use this as their victory song means he has fulfilled his promise to His Majesty. This newly established Shuofang Commandery was essentially conquered by the Yunzhong troops. Now that Shuofang City has truly been built, even without great merit, there is hard work. Furthermore, the Meng brothers forgot their family for the state's sake. For such a general, the emperor will not be stingy with rewards."

When the Meng brothers, one as commander-in-chief and the other as army supervisor, went beyond the frontier, their father Meng Wu was gravely ill and passed away just last month. The Meng brothers did not even get to see their father one last time…

"So, the true message Meng Tian wanted to convey by choosing this poem is: 'Do we not yearn to return? We fear this written command!'"

Fu Sheng had broadened his knowledge. "I originally thought Qin generals were all military men from west of the pass, coarse and ignorant of rites. I didn't expect them to be better than I thought."

"General Qiang had the Commandant of Justice Li as his army supervisor. Although the Meng clan is a military family, they also migrated from east of the pass and are skilled in both letters and martial arts. Meng Tian even invented a new type of writing brush. Is it any wonder he knows some poetry and literature?"

Shusun Tong chuckled darkly. "However, the next are the Beidi and Longxi troops. The two generals, Wei and Li, one is an old Qin veteran who dislikes poetry, and the other is of lowly birth and ignorant of rites. For the hurdle of singing the victory song, they can probably only rely on the Prince Army Supervisor to find a solution."

As they spoke, the Beidi and Longxi armies made their entrance together. The first to appear were the Longxi and Beidi cavalry, wearing helmets adorned with fluttering red tassels and brightly colored feathers. They wore dark black soft leather armor, draped in crimson battle robes, and carried seven-chi-long cavalry lances, wore black-scabbarded swords, and some were also equipped with bows and crossbows.

All the men rode fine horses, six and a half chi at the shoulder, handsome and majestic. And for today's occasion, they were specially outfitted with leather horse armor painted with tiger stripes, looking very uniform and imposing—this item had been used by the Jin army back in the Battle of Chengpu.

Shortly after came the infantry escorting the Xiongnu captives, with the war chariots of the two generals, Li Xin and Heifu, clustered in the center.

The ones who appeared last were often the main characters of the battle. Who had greater or lesser merit was naturally clear from the emperor's rank promotions. Qin Shi Huang also believed that in this battle, both Longxi and Beidi had achieved great merit, having fought a bloody battle together against the Xiongnu Chanyu and driven the enemy out together. Therefore, they should be combined into one army to jointly participate in the army review ceremony.

Just as the two armies stood in position, snowflakes began to drift down from the sky again, fluttering and swirling, landing on their armor, swords, bows and arrows, warhorses, and the soldiers' noses…

But the military ceremony would not be delayed by this light snow. Unlike the archaic poems of the Shang and Yunzhong troops, the Beidi and Longxi armies, following Heifu's instructions, loudly sang a tune that was simple and novel!

It not only boosted the morale of the three armies and made the emperor's eyes light up, but even the uninvolved Confucian scholars felt their scalps tingle from the impact of this song!

"The moon is dark, the wild geese fly high; the Chanyu flees under the night sky. We'd give chase with our light cavalry, but heavy snow has covered our bows and blades!"

PS: From *The Rites of Zhou, Offices of Spring, Music Master*: "Whenever the army makes a grand offering, he teaches the victory songs and leads the singing."

Better not raise a boy if he's born, but nurse a girl with dried meat. Have you not seen beneath the Long Wall, how the dead bones prop each other up? — A folk song from the time of Qin Shi Huang

(End of chapter)