My Imperial Advisor is ChatGPT

Lantian Camp, on the outskirts of Xianyang.

If the glass walls and flush toilets of Xianyang gave the Romans a shock to their lives, then this military camp before them gave them a chill to their souls.

There is no wind today, and the banners are hanging low.

The Roman envoy, Valerius, stood on the reviewing stand, still holding his ever-present folding fan (though he fanned it awkwardly). Beside him, the Qin general, Wang Ben, was sizing up this distinguished guest from the West with the eyes of someone eyeing prey.

"Marcus," Valerius lowered his voice and asked in Latin, "these Qin men look...not short, but not as robust as us Romans. Their muscles aren't as defined as our gladiators'. If they were arrayed on the plains, I bet the Roman legions' short swords and heavy javelins would teach them a lesson."

Marcus stood to the side, his lips twitching. As a former victim who had been lifted up like a chicken by Xiang Yu, he was embarrassed by this blind confidence.

"Your Excellency, please put your sunglasses on properly later," Marcus whispered a reminder, "so you don't drop your chin and hit your foot."

"Hmph." Valerius scoffed.

On the viewing platform not far away, Ying Zheng was observing this scene through a monocular telescope.

[Your Majesty, you see, this is a classic case of judging a book by its cover. The Romans thought muscles determined everything, but they will soon realize that technique is the true power.]

Little G's voice echoed in Ying Zheng's mind.

"Little G, what do you think their reaction will be after watching today's presentation?"

Shock, fear, and then despair. Your Majesty, what you are about to display is not just ordinary weaponry, but the gap between two eras. The Romans were still using bronze daggers and leather shields, while you already possessed gunpowder, steel armor, and stirrups.

"Then let them have a good look."

Just then, Wang Ben raised the command flag in his hand.

"Wind! Wind! Wind!"

The roar of tens of thousands of Qin soldiers was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, instantly causing Valerius's folding fan to tremble.

On the training ground, Qin crossbowmen in three square formations stood in neat rows. They did not stand and shoot as the Romans had expected, but instead adopted the famous "three-stage firing" tactic—the front row lying down, the middle row kneeling, and the back row standing.

"shoot!"

Bang bang bang bang——!

That wasn't the sound of a bowstring; it was the music of Death playing his harp.

The sky instantly darkened. Thousands of crossbow bolts traced parabolic arcs through the air, whistling mournfully as they covered the straw doll formation three hundred paces ahead.

Before Valerius could even blink, the first volley of arrows had already fallen.

Then came the second wave, the third wave...

The rain of arrows was relentless, without a moment's respite. The front rank fired and immediately reloaded, the rear ranks filling in, a smooth, flowing process.

In the short time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, the scarecrow field had turned into a hedgehog forest. Each scarecrow was pierced by at least ten arrows, all of which had pierced through the double-layered cowhide armor worn by the scarecrows.

Valerius took off his sunglasses, rubbed his eyes, and looked pale.

"Three hundred paces...penetrating leather armor? And it was continuous fire?"

He mentally simulated what would happen if the Romans stood there in their proud Testudo formation. The Roman shields were indeed sturdy, but could they withstand such a barrage of attacks? Even if the shields held, what about the gaps? What about the legs?

"This is just the appetizer," Marcus whispered in his ear. "Elder, look over there."

The earth began to tremble.

On the distant horizon, a black torrent appeared.

That was the heavy cavalry of the Qin Dynasty—the "Iron Pagoda".

Unlike the light cavalry familiar to the Romans (primarily used for reconnaissance and harassment), these Qin cavalrymen, both rider and horse, were clad in heavy, cold-forged steel armor. The horses wore ferocious masks, and the riders carried lances a full ten feet long.

Most importantly, their feet were on that magical artifact called "stirrup," making them as stable as Mount Tai.

"charge--!"

With a horn sound, five hundred heavy cavalrymen began to accelerate.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

That was the sound of steel colliding with the earth. The charge of five hundred riders created the momentum of a thousand troops collapsing.

As they approached the simulated enemy position (a row of thick wooden planks), the knights did not slow down. Instead, they clenched their horses' bellies and, using the power of the stirrups, channeled all their kinetic energy into their lances.

"Snap! Snap!"

The three-inch-thick hardwood planks crumbled instantly like paper before the charge of the heavy cavalry. Wood chips flew everywhere, like a blizzard.

The charging cavalry did not stop, but drew their ring-pommel swords (made of Qin steel) from their waists at high speed, and used the momentum of their horses to slash at the dummies on both sides.

A flash of light, and the dummy was decapitated. The cut was as smooth as a mirror.

Valerius slumped completely into his chair.

He was trembling.

As a veteran of the Gallo-Gaul Wars, he knew all too well what this meant. The Roman legion's short swords were like toothpicks poking elephants at these steel behemoths.

"Marcus..." Valerius's voice was hoarse, "If...if we encounter this kind of cavalry..."

"The survival rate is zero." Marcus pulled out a small notebook he always carried with him and showed a set of data he had already calculated. "The Roman phalanx's defenses would be breached in an instant. Our javelins can only be thrown twenty paces, and at that distance, we would already be trampled into mincemeat."

Wang Ben walked over, patted Valerius on the shoulder, and smiled kindly.

"Your Excellency, how do the elite warriors of my Great Qin compare to your country's gladiators? Would you like to arrange a friendly match?"

"No, no, no!" Valerius shook his head vigorously. "We came with peace and friendship! Fighting and killing will only damage harmony! Damage harmony!"

---

Inside Xianyang City, at the Daqin Academy of Sciences.

If the military camp demonstrates the power of physical destruction, then this place demonstrates the deterrent power of "magic".

Wang Jianguo led the delegation members to the communications center.

"Please look," Wang Jianguo said, pointing to a brass telegraph machine, "this is the Qin Dynasty's 'eyes that can see a thousand miles and ears that can hear the wind.'"

He picked up the button and pressed it a few times.

"Tick-tock—tick-tock—tick-tock—"

"What are you doing?" Valerius asked curiously.

"I'm sending a signal to Mount Li, fifty li away," Wang Jianguo explained, "to tell them the delegation has arrived."

"Fifty li?" Valerius's eyes widened. "How is that possible?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the receiver started clicking, and a strip of paper slowly emerged.

Wang Jianguo picked up the paper strip and translated it using the codebook: "The reply from the other side: 'Received, welcome to the delegation.'"

Valerius was completely dumbfounded.

Fifty li is a distance that would take a fast horse an hour to cover. Yet this thing completed communication in the blink of an eye?

[Your Majesty, the telegraph was like a miracle to the Romans. In their understanding, information could only be transmitted by people. They couldn't comprehend how electricity could travel thousands of miles in an instant.]

Little G spoke in Ying Zheng's mind.

"The best deterrent is to make them unable to understand." Ying Zheng, observing the shocked expressions of the delegation members through his monocular telescope, said, "I want the Romans to understand that the power Qin possesses is beyond their comprehension."

Next, Wang Jianguo led them to the biological laboratory.

"Gentlemen, please take a look at this." He took out a microscope and put a drop of water on a slide.

"This is..." Valerius leaned over to take a look.

A second later, he screamed and jumped away as if he had been bitten by a snake.

"There are monsters in the water... there are monsters in the water!" Valerius exclaimed, his face ashen. "Those things are swimming! They're fighting!"

"Those are microorganisms," Wang Jianguo calmly explained. "A single drop of seemingly clean water contains thousands upon thousands of these tiny lives. That's why we Qin people drink boiled water—only boiling can kill them."

"Mr. Wang, are you saying that there are these... monsters in the water we drink?" Valerius asked, trembling.

"Yes. Not just in the water, but in the air, on your hands, on your food, everywhere." Wang Jianguo took out another glass slide. "This was scraped off the edge of the plate you were eating from."

Valerius glanced at it and almost vomited.

He recalled his old habit of drinking raw water directly in Rome, and immediately felt his stomach churning.

In the chemistry lab, Zhao Gao was wearing a specially made robe today, embroidered with Bagua symbols and molecular formulas (designed by Wang Jianguo), and holding a glass rod in his hand, standing in front of the lab table.

"Esteemed guests who have traveled from afar, take a good look," Zhao Gao said, pointing with his delicate fingers to a basin of clear water before him. "This is the sacred water of the Great Qin."

He used a glass rod to pick up a little white powder (ammonium nitrate), dropped it into the water, and stirred it gently.

"Knot!"

With a soft shout from Zhao Gao, the basin of water instantly froze solid in full view of everyone! The cold air spread out, even cracking the walls of the basin.

"Oh! A miracle!" exclaimed the members of the Roman mission. In the days before refrigerators, turning water into ice in the summer was something only a god could do.

"It's not over yet."

Zhao Gao smugly took out several spray bottles and sprayed them at the flame of the alcohol lamp in front of him.

"Red!" The spray bottle contained a strontium salt solution, and the flames instantly turned scarlet.

"Green!" The spray bottle contained a copper salt solution, and the flame turned an eerie green.

"Purple!" The spray bottle contained a potassium salt solution, and the flame turned a noble purple.

The multicolored flames leaped and danced under Zhao Gao's command, as if they had come to life.

"This is the 'elemental magic' of the Great Qin," Zhao Gao said in a charlatan's tone. "All things have a spirit, and I can command the colors of the elements."

Valerius stared in disbelief. He grabbed Marcus's sleeve: "He...he's a great magician? Roman priests only know how to kill sheep and look at their livers, but he can control the color of fire!"

Marcus suppressed a laugh: "Yes, he is the Grand Mage 'Zhao, Lord of the Elements, Gao.' But in Qin, this is considered a scientific phenomenon called 'flame reaction.'"

"Science? No, this is magic!" Valerius's eyes were filled with awe. "This country is terrifying. Their soldiers are made of steel, their priests can manipulate fire and ice, and they can even see monsters in the water!"

Finally, Wang Jianguo led them on a tour of the printing workshop.

"Please look," Wang Jianguo said, pointing to rows of neatly arranged movable clay type, "this is the printing technology of the Qin Dynasty. With it, a book could be reproduced thousands of times in just a few days."

He personally demonstrated by arranging the movable type into the four characters "Great Qin Forever", applying ink, and gently pressing it onto the paper.

In an instant, a clear printed image was created.

"This…" Valerius's eyes widened. "In Rome, copying a book takes months! How could you reproduce it in such a short time?"

"Yes," Wang Jianguo nodded, "and we also have 'newspapers'."

He took out a copy of the "Daqin Daily," which was covered with dense news articles and GG (a popular internet slang term for internet slang).

"This kind of 'newspaper' was published daily, telling everyone the latest news. Merchants could check prices, officials could read government orders, and ordinary people could read stories."

Valerius was looking at the newspaper when he suddenly realized something, and his expression changed.

"If...if you use this to spread rumors, or...to promote your power..."

"That's beyond our control," Wang Jianguo smiled. "Technology itself isn't good or bad; it's all about how you use it."

[Your Majesty, the Romans have not yet fully grasped the power of printing and newspapers. But their intuition is correct—the speed at which information spreads will determine the fate of an empire.]

Little G spoke in Ying Zheng's mind.

"Then I will ensure that the news of Great Qin spreads throughout the entire world."

---

That evening, at the negotiating table of the Honglu Temple (Ministry of Foreign Affairs).

After a day of mental torture, Valerius's psychological defenses had completely collapsed. Now, all he wanted was to quickly sign a treaty in exchange for the Qin Dynasty not sending those steel monsters to "visit" Rome.

[Your Majesty, the time is ripe. After today's demonstration, the Romans have completely lost their confidence. They now only want peace and dare not propose any further conditions.]

Little G analyzed.

Across the negotiating table sat Liu Bang, the business representative of the Qin Dynasty.

Liu Bang twirled two iron walnuts in his hand, smiling like a kind old farmer.

"Lord Valhalla, let's speak frankly," Liu Bang said, pushing a list towards him. "You Romans produce olive oil and wine, which are quite good; we can have some. But we want this even more."

He pointed to two items on the list: **gold** and **labor (slaves)**.

"Gold?" Valerius hesitated. "Rome didn't have much gold..."

"Then let's trade people," Liu Bang chuckled. "I heard you've captured a lot of Gauls and Germans? Those barbarians are strong and healthy; keeping them with you will only lead to rebellion. Why not sell them to us? Qin is currently building railways and mining, and we're short-handed."

"This..." Valerius hesitated, "But we want silk, we want porcelain, and we want that glass mirror that can reflect our images..."

"Yes, yes, we have them all." Liu Bang waved his hand. "As long as you transport the slaves to Alexandria, our Qin merchant ships (which are still under construction) will come to pick them up. One strong laborer for a bolt of silk; ten for a mirror. No deception, young or old!"

[Alert: Unequal trade by Liu Bang has been detected.]

[Analysis: Rome's export of labor would lead to its hollowing out, while the influx of luxury goods from the Qin Dynasty would cause Roman nobles to indulge in pleasure, accelerating its economic collapse.]

[Conclusion: Rome will become the perfect dumping ground for Qin's goods and a source of resources. This is a classic case of overwhelming force.]

Little G's voice carried a hint of excitement.

"Really?" Valerius's eyes lit up. In his view, slaves were worthless consumables, while silk and mirrors were hard currency!

"make a deal!"

The two shook hands amiably.

Ying Zheng sat behind the screen, listening to Xiao G's analysis, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

He looked at Valerius, who was drinking and exchanging toasts with Liu Bang, and saw him as a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered.

"Little G, isn't doing this a bit too... harsh?"

[Your Majesty, this is the essence of a trade war. On the surface, it appears to be a win-win situation, but in reality, it's one side plundering the other's resources.]

In my time, history was replete with such examples. For instance, Britain traded opium for Chinese silver, and the United States used dollars to acquire global resources. Trade, sometimes, is more brutal than war.

"Then I will conquer the world through trade."

[Correct. Conquering with guns and cannons will provoke resistance; conquering with trade will make people willingly submit. This is the power of 'soft power'.]

---

Late at night, at the State Guesthouse.

Valerius wrote down the details of the second day in his diary, titled "The Mission to the East".

However, the handwriting in this diary is very messy, and it is clear that the writer's hand was shaking.

"The Era of Titus... no, let's use the Qin Calendar. Today, I witnessed true power."

"Their arrows could block out the sun, their cavalry could shatter the earth. Their soldiers wore armor of steel, and their weapons were forged from fine steel, sharp enough to cut through stone."

*Even more terrifying is that their 'magicians' can manipulate ice and fire at will, transmit messages fifty miles away in an instant, see monsters in the water, and replicate thousands of books in a matter of days.*

"In comparison, our proud legion is like a bunch of children with sticks. Our priests only know how to kill sheep and look at the liver, while their 'scientists' possess true divine power."

"But the good news is: they seem to really enjoy doing business! That official named Liu Bang is very friendly (though his smile is a bit like a fox's), and he's willing to trade our useless barbarian slaves for precious silk!"

"Thank you, Jupiter! Thank you, all the gods! I feel like I've gotten a great deal! When I bring these silks back to Rome, those noblewomen will fight over them! I will become the richest man in Rome!"

After finishing writing, he closed his diary and had a sweet dream.

In his dream, he was wearing a silk robe, standing in the center of the Roman Senate, receiving cheers from thousands.

Unbeknownst to him, in the room next door, Marcus was writing another report for Ying Zheng:

*"Your Majesty, the fish has taken the bait. The Romans' obsession with silk and porcelain is beyond imagination. Just as Teacher G predicted, luxury goods will become a poison that corrodes the Roman spirit. In less than ten years, Rome's gold will be depleted, its youth will become weak, and Great Qin will become the world's creditor without firing a single shot."*

"All the technology displayed today has completely shattered their confidence. They now only feel awe towards the Qin Dynasty, lacking the courage to resist. This is the psychological advantage brought about by the technological gap."

On the terrace of Xianyang Palace, Ying Zheng was gazing at the starry sky.

"Little G, do you think the Romans could have learned these technologies if they had understood their principles?"

Yes, but it will take time. Your Majesty, technology can be learned, but the advantages of a system are difficult to replicate.

Moreover, even if they learn it, you'll already have newer technology. This is 'technology iteration'—always staying one step ahead.

"Then I will ensure that Great Qin will forever remain one step ahead of the world."

[Indeed, Your Majesty. This is your mission—to make Qin the beacon of the world, so that all civilizations may look up to Qin's brilliance.]

Ying Zheng smiled.

He knew that today's demonstration had laid a solid foundation for the future of the Qin Dynasty.