The Six Arts of the Gentleman in the Bright Moon of Qin Dynasty

Chapter 1039 The Damned World [Subscribe*Monthly Ticket Request]

"Be bold!"

Before Wu Rui could continue speaking, and before Ying Zheng could open his mouth, the senior officials of the Qin Dynasty started to scold him.

"Originally Rui was just skeptical, but now looking at the reactions of the adults, it is clear that Rui guessed right!"

Wu Rui sighed. Actually, he didn't have to say it, but after all, those were the lives of 500,000 soldiers.

An army of 500,000 has become a problem that the Qin Dynasty cannot get rid of.

When Qin attacked Yan, its 30,000-strong vanguard army was annihilated in one battle at Yangcheng by Yan's Great Wall garrison corps. However, generals such as Wang Jian and Wang Ben were not punished at all. From then on, Wu Rui guessed that Qin was going to take action against the remaining troops of the six countries.

The demise of the State of Yan overshadowed the fact that 30,000 elite troops from the six states were annihilated, or rather, the fame of the Great Wall Garrison Corps obscured this fact.

Qin's impatience to march south was not in Qin's interest in any way, but it was terrifying when you think about it carefully.

The Qin State did not care about the lives of these people at all. They just wanted to make good use of them and let these soldiers make meritorious contributions while serving their sentences. It would not be a pity if they died, and if they were alive they could also help the Qin State to conquer a vast territory.

The reason why the old and veteran generals of Qin were unwilling to lead the troops to the south was because doing so would hurt people's feelings. They wanted to protect their reputation and were unwilling to do it, so they found various excuses to shirk their responsibilities.

Otherwise, it would never have been the turn of Tu Ju, Zhao Tuo and others to serve as the commander of an army of 500,000.

Especially when he saw that although Fusu was arranged in the southern expedition army, he was independent outside the army, Wu Rui became more certain of his guess.

"Since you already know it, why do you say it out loud?" Ying Zheng waved his hand, signaling everyone not to pretend, and instead looked at Wu Rui with a sigh.

There are some things you can do but you can’t say them.

It's not good for anyone if the relationship is broken up.

There are so many smart people in Qin State, why does no one say anything? They are just pretending to be ignorant even though they know the truth.

We can't keep the 500,000-strong army, but we dare not release it either. What else can we do except use it as consumables?

In the Battle of Changping, Bai Qi killed 300,000 Zhao soldiers who surrendered. Did Bai Qi really want to kill them?
No, it’s because the war had reached that point where 300,000 people eating the horse’s chaff could directly kill a prince.

What's more, after three years of fighting, both Qin and Zhao could no longer hold on.

Therefore, even if Bai Qi released the 300,000 surrendered soldiers, Zhao State could not afford to support them, let alone who would dare to release them?
The situation of these 500,000 troops is now almost the same as that of the Zhao army at Changping.

The Qin State could afford it, but why would it want to support such a large number of disloyal soldiers?
Therefore, the southern expedition became the only destination for these 500,000 troops.

"Sir, you have been evaluated by Emperor Xuanwu as a talent who can assist the king. So, may I ask, sir, how should my Great Qin deal with these 500,000 troops?" Ying Zheng asked again.

Wu Rui also fell silent. Although he was talented, who among the three dukes and nine ministers of Qin was not a genius who emerged from millions of outstanding people?

These people couldn't think of a better solution, so how could he think of a better solution?

To die on the battlefield became the fate of these 500,000 soldiers. Even if they did not march south, they would have to march north.

However, a Northern Expedition was obviously impossible. Qin could not go to war with Bingzhou, nor did it have any reason to go to war. Once the war started, the 500,000-strong army would probably be completely wiped out by Bingzhou, without a single one left alive.

In comparison, the southern expedition to the Baiyue was actually their best destination. At least in this way, most of them could survive.

"Damn this world!" Wu Rui cursed.

It is easy to let these people go back, but those who are familiar with the composition of the army know that they cannot be released!

The army of this era is not the army of the era of the military service system or the recruitment system.

In this era, brothers fight together to protect the tiger, and fathers and sons fight together in battle.

Therefore, almost every battalion of these 500,000 troops were relatives from the same place. Once released, these soldiers who had undergone military training and had high military literacy would not be willing to go back to farming, but would become a factor of local unrest.

It’s like when Xiang Yu was defeated, why didn’t he want to cross the Wujiang River, return to Jiangdong, and regroup?

Because the Jiangdong young men he brought with him were not only his soldiers, but also his relatives.

Crossing the Wujiang River is not difficult, but the difficult part is how should he face the people of Jiangdong?
As long as someone asks the Overlord:
"King Xiang, where is my husband (father, son)?"

Xiang Yu could not free himself from self-blame.

Therefore, what killed Xiang Yu was not the army that besieged him, nor the Wujiang River, but the self-blame for the death of his relatives and friends.

Apart from committing suicide, Xiang Yu had no other choice.

"At least, we should give them a chance!" Wu Rui still wanted to save as many innocent lives as possible.

"The Southern Expedition is the last mercy that the Qin Dynasty shows them!" Ying Zheng shook his head.

The southern expedition was the last respect that the Qin State gave them, otherwise the battlefield they would go to would be Bingzhou.

"Your Majesty..." Wu Rui was silent. He couldn't think of a better way.

If these people return, their future will be to be suppressed and beheaded by the Qin army as traitors, and their fellow villagers will be implicated.

The southern expedition was the last respect that Qin gave them.

This is also the awareness that a soldier should have when he becomes a winner and loses everything.

Returning home wrapped in their horse's hide was indeed the last dignity the Qin State gave them.

At least they died on the road to expanding territory and will be remembered in history books, rather than being labeled as rebels and traitors, implicating their fellow villagers and being labeled on the pillar of shame in history.

Fusu was also shocked by the bloody and cruel methods used by Ying Zheng and the three dukes and nine ministers.

If Wu Rui hadn't spoken up, he really wouldn't have thought that there was such a reason behind the southern expedition.

But Fusu, like Wu Rui, wanted to speak but couldn't say anything.

As the crown prince of Qin, he knew that what Ying Zheng and his men did was right, but it was still too cruel for an army of 500,000.

"The only thing you can do is to make this victory beautiful and reduce more casualties!" Ying Zheng continued.

The reason why the army heading south chose Tu Ju as its main general was because they all knew that Tu Ju had a violent character and could easily act brutally, thus provoking resistance from the Baiyue people and depleting the 500,000-strong army to the greatest extent possible.

When Tu Ju was defeated, the Baiyue were also shocked by Qin's bloody tactics. At that time, if Qin replaced the general with a gentler one, it would be easier for the Baiyue to return to their cause.

Wu Rui finally understood the horror of the methods of a huge empire.

The lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers are nothing more than numbers in the eyes of these people, cold numbers.

But he could not think of any way out of the impasse. If he allowed these people to return to their hometowns, it would not just be 500,000 people who would die, but 500,000 families and millions of people.

"If it were my adoptive father, what would he do?" Fusu suddenly spoke at an inappropriate time.

"Shut up!" As soon as Fusu opened his mouth, Xiong Qi immediately scolded him.

This is saying that Ying Zheng is not as good as Yan Yan, and that the entire Qin State is not as good as Bingzhou. As a prince, such words are absolutely not allowed to be said.

Sure enough, as soon as Fusu opened his mouth, Ying Zheng's face immediately turned gloomy.

(End of this chapter)