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

Chapter 1216 Departure [Please Subscribe * Please Vote for Monthly Tickets]

Gai Nie opened the sword box, and a golden longsword lay quietly inside. The sword was not inscribed with the clerical script commonly used today, but with the two characters "定秦" (Ding Qin) in the small seal script of the Qin state. Judging from the handwriting, it was clear that it was written by Li Si.

The Dingqin Sword was forged by the First Emperor, who gathered the world's best swordsmiths and used copper from the northern region. The sword is three feet and six inches long and was forged in the third year of the Ding Si reign of the First Emperor, which was thirty-seven years in the reign.

What few people know is that there were not one, but two swords, both of which were personally inscribed with the two characters "Ding Qin" in small seal script by Li Si. One was the Afang Sword and the other was the Guantai Sword.

With the advent of the Dingqin Sword, it replaced the "Tianwen" Sword and became the number one sword in the world.

It's not just because of the craftsmanship of the Dingqin Sword, but also because it was Ying Zheng's personal sword, representing the majesty of the Qin Dynasty.

Gai Nie simply didn't expect that Ying Zheng would gift him such an important "Supporting Qin" sword.

"The Epang Sword is with me, and this one is the Guantai!" Ying Zheng explained the name of the sword.

Gai Nie knew that after the Ding Qin Sword was created, the A Fang Ding Qin Sword replaced the Tian Wen Sword as Ying Zheng's sword. As for the whereabouts of the Guantai Ding Qin Sword, few people knew, and they were not even aware that there were two Ding Qin Swords.

As Ying Zheng's personal sword, the sword itself also represented the emperor's personal presence, and he could even mobilize the Qin army to punish tyrannical rulers and treacherous officials.

Gai Nie immediately wanted to refuse, because this was not just a sword, but also represented responsibility.

"Originally, I intended to give Tianwen to you, and this sword to Zhang Han and Hei Bai Xuan Jian..." Ying Zheng continued before Gai Nie could refuse.

Gai Nie retracted his refusal, holding the sword box with a gossipy curiosity, wondering how it would eventually end up in his hands.

"That scoundrel Hei Bai Xuan Jian refused, and instead took Tian Wen, saying that he would die before me and that he couldn't use the Ding Qin Sword anyway." Ying Zheng laughed as he spoke, clearly amused by Hei Bai Xuan Jian's words.

"As for Zhang Han, he did want to get this sword, but he was beaten up by Hei Bai Xuan Jian. He said he still wanted to use this sword to suppress him. Dream on, anything is possible in dreams."

Gai Nie opened his mouth, also shocked by Hei Bai Xuan Jian's actions. But upon closer reflection, it did seem to fit Hei Bai Xuan Jian's personality.

The Dingqin Sword, a national treasure, is not something an ordinary person would dare to possess.

Hei Bai Xuan Jian is a reckless non-stick pan; he would never dare to handle such a heavy weapon.

"Therefore, the only person I can trust and entrust with this task is you, sir!" Ying Zheng bowed solemnly, earnestly requesting Gai Nie to accept the task.

Although the Dingqin Sword is a national treasure of the Qin state, it is not something that just anyone can wield to command the ministers and the army. Ying Zheng believed that if the Qin state really needed this sword to maintain order in the court in the future, Gai Nie would find someone who could make good use of it.

Gai Nie took a deep breath, solemnly took the golden sword out of the sword box, and returned the greeting, thus showing his attitude.

"Thank you, sir!" Ying Zheng breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't want to use this sword one day, but he couldn't live without it; it was a kind of insurance for the future of the Qin state.

Gai Nie did not linger any longer. He left the Qin Palace alone and disappeared into the streets of Xianyang.

"Have someone keep an eye on him. Mr. Gai Nie has protected me for many years and has offended quite a few people in the martial arts world!" Ying Zheng said in a low voice as he watched Gai Nie's departing figure.

“There aren’t many people in this world who can kill him, and most of those few have some history with him!” Hei Bai Xuan Jian said with a smile.

Ying Zheng thought about it and realized that it was indeed true.

There are very few people who can defeat Gai Nie, and those few all know Gai Nie and won't attack him.

"Now that you have left, my safety will be your responsibility!" Ying Zheng said with a smile.

Hei Bai Xuan Jian's face immediately fell. With Gai Nie around, they didn't need to worry much about Ying Zheng's safety, and the experts from the Luo Wang and Ying Mi Wei could be sent out to do other tasks. Now that Gai Nie had left, it meant that they would have to recall some of their experts, using numbers instead of quality to ensure Ying Zheng's safety.

Especially now that Ying Zheng loves to travel around and tour everywhere, the pressure on his security is increasing dramatically.

"If Your Majesty is reluctant, may I send someone to 'invite' the gentleman back?" Hei Bai Xuan Jian emphasized the word "invite".

Ying Zheng rolled his eyes at him. "Is that an invitation?"
"Alright, stop causing trouble. I am always protected by a large army when I go out. If anyone gets close to me, you won't be the only one who dies!"

Hei Bai Xuan Jian shrugged dejectedly.

An incognito visit?

That's nonsense. Apart from someone like Yan Yan, which emperor would dare to run around alone?

Believe it or not, the moment you step out of the palace, news will spread that the late king has passed away and the crown prince has succeeded to the throne.

Therefore, when Ying Zheng went on tours, he was always escorted by at least 30,000 troops.

Even at the very least, important officials from the court would follow.

"What do you think of the military reduction in Bingzhou?" Ying Zheng turned to Hei Bai Xuan Jian and asked. After all, Hei Bai Xuan Jian and Yan Yan were quite familiar with each other. This large-scale military reduction without any warning caught the Qin state off guard.

At least until there is concrete intelligence indicating that the soldiers of Bingzhou have laid down their arms and returned to their fields, the armies in Beidi and Shangjun cannot withdraw.

"If the Bingzhou court were to argue and deliberate for a long time before deciding on the troop reduction, Your Majesty would have to worry that Bingzhou was using this to lull our Great Qin into a false sense of security while preparing for a major operation. But with this sudden decision, Your Majesty need not worry; it is definitely the work of the Xuanwu Emperor!"

"Only such a sudden, impulsive decision is something that Emperor Xuanwu would do!"

Hei Bai Xuan Jian smiled and shrugged.

"Indeed!" Ying Zheng thought for a moment and agreed with Hei Bai Xuan Jian's statement.

Yan Yan's unconventionality is universally acknowledged. In fact, without An Qisheng, Ying Zheng doesn't know how Bingzhou could keep up with Yan Yan's pace.

They said they would develop the Hetao region, and they did so; they said they would develop the area north of the Daling River, and they did so.

It appeared suddenly without any prior warning.

In other words, it was An Qisheng. Anyone else would have dragged Bingzhou down and ruined it long ago.

"With peace reigning throughout the land, it seems I can now embark on a southern tour!" Ying Zheng suddenly thought.

He was tired of touring the east, and because of Bingzhou, he dared not go too far or too far south, so that he could be ready to return to Xianyang at any time to take charge of the overall situation.

Now that the army in Bingzhou has been reduced, it means there is no war in the north, and he can now make a southern tour.

"..." Hei Bai Xuan Jian stumbled. How could he have forgotten that Ying Zheng liked to travel?

The eastern tour was alright, as the states that visited were all defeated and subdued by Qin. But the southern tour was different. The Chu region was misled by the Duke of Chu into coming up with a slogan like "Even if Chu has only three households left, it will surely be Chu that destroys Qin." In recent years, the Chu region has also been the place with the most rebellions.

Even with Fusu in charge of Chu, rebellions still occurred from time to time.

If Ying Zheng were to make a southern tour, who knows if anyone would risk everything to cause a major incident?

(End of this chapter)