Chinese animation: Starting with Bad Guys

Meanwhile, military geniuses selected through the imperial examination system, which Qin Chuan strongly advocated for, such as Han Xin, Xiang Shaoyu, Long Ju, Ji Bu, and Ying Bu, rapidly rose to prominence in actual combat, becoming the sharpest blades on the empire's weapon.

The imperial army, with the twelve golden men as its core vanguard and offensive force, supplemented by a million-strong army that was well-equipped, well-trained, and of high morale, swept through everything in its path.

In the east, the Mauryan Empire's proud war elephant legion was reduced to charred remains by the flaming boulders hurled by the twelve golden men and the volley of arrows fired by thousands of crossbows, and the dark Qin banners were quickly planted on the Ganges Plain.

The Hellenistic phalanx of the Seleucid Empire crumbled under the trampling of the bronze giants and the barrage of crossbow bolts from the Qin army, and Antioch fell.

Before the Ptolemaic Egyptian Nile fleet even reached the coast, it was mostly sunk by giant "featherless arrows" fired from the arms of the golden statues, and Alexandria was declared to have changed hands under the empire's combined land and sea offensive.

Finally, the empire turned its attention to the Roman Republic in the west.

On the banks of the Tiber, the iron cavalry and golden men of the empire clashed violently with the Roman legionary formations that Rome was so proud of.

The twelve golden men, like moving mountains, easily tore through the Romans' tight shield wall defenses. Their giant fists smashed down, sending flesh and blood flying, and their flames burned away all resistance.

Even the tactics of Roman generals Fabius and Scipio appeared pale and powerless in the face of absolute power and technological superiority.

Capua and Syracuse fell one after another, and finally, Rome, the symbol of the republican spirit, trembled and bowed its head to the heavy footsteps of the Twelve Golden Men.

The Senate's scepter was broken and replaced with the banners of the Qin Dynasty.

From the shores of the East China Sea to the British Isles, from the Siberian ice fields to the edge of the Sahara Desert, "wherever the sun and moon shine and wherever rivers flow," all belonged to the Qin Empire.

An unprecedentedly vast empire was born amidst bloodshed and flames.

However, the completion of the conquest was only the beginning. How to truly integrate such a vast and culturally diverse territory, eliminate barriers, and establish identity will be a much longer and more arduous undertaking than war itself.

Shortly after the imperial army triumphantly marched westward and seized control of the Roman Republic, news of their victory reached Xianyang. However, a seemingly insignificant event, yet capable of disturbing the very core of the empire, occurred in Dongjun, the empire's homeland.

A burning meteorite streaked across the sky and crashed into the fields of Dongjun.

On the meteorite, four ancient and striking seal characters are clearly engraved: “The one who will destroy Qin is Hu”!

The news caused a stir in both the government and the public.

However, unlike the panic that might have been triggered in history, the people of Qin today are bathed in the supreme glory of the empire conquering the world and dominating the seas.

The public generally scoffed at the "prophecy" on the meteorite.

"Hu? What barbarian dares to destroy my Great Qin?"

"Wherever the sun and moon shine, it is all the territory of Great Qin. Where is the barbarian? It must be a deceitful trick by petty villains!"

"His Majesty and His Majesty are awe-inspiring, Prince Fusu is benevolent and virtuous, and the empire is at its zenith. How could a broken stone possibly curse it?"

The people were discussing it, but most of them had absolute confidence in the empire's strength and regarded the "prophecy" as nonsense.

But one person felt a chilling cold and a deep-seated fear in the face of these four words.

He was none other than Prince Huhai.

Over the years, he had been plotting to overthrow his kind and virtuous elder brother Fusu, and coveting the position of crown prince, which had not yet been formally established.

The four characters “the one who will destroy Qin is Hu” were like a sharp sword, piercing his deepest secrets and fears.

He almost immediately associated the character "Hu" with his own name, "Hu Hai".

"Father...is this a warning to me? Or...a sign from Heaven?"

A tremendous panic gripped Hu Hai.

He had no time to think, nor did he care to fathom the emperor's intentions. He practically tumbled and crawled towards Zhangtai Palace. He wanted to apologize to his father, express his true feelings, and sever ties with the emperor!

Inside the Zhangtai Palace, the candlelight flickered, but the atmosphere was completely different from the somber mood Hu Hai had imagined.

The First Emperor Ying Zheng was not enraged by the meteorite incident; instead, he was having a drink with Qin Chuan.

On the table were a few simple dishes and a pot of warm wine.

With their long-cherished wish fulfilled, the world unified, and all the princes subdued, the two men, who stood at the pinnacle of power and influence, now shed their usual majesty and enjoyed a rare moment of tranquility between brothers and confidants.

"This wine is a toast to Brother Zheng, and also to this unprecedented great achievement."

Qin Chuan raised his glass, his eyes reflecting a clarity born of experience.

Ying Zheng also raised his cup and drank it all in one gulp. The sharp edge in his deep eyes had diminished, replaced by a sense of感慨 and 让然 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of deep emotion and relief).

"Without my brother Chuan, I might have been confined to a corner of the Central Plains for the rest of my life, and would never have been able to see the vastness of this world."

He put down his wine glass, his gaze fixed intently on Qin Chuan. The question that had been weighing on his heart for years finally came out at this moment: "Brother Chuan... are you still my... mentally challenged younger brother?"

The hall fell silent for a moment, with only the crackling of the candlelight.

Upon hearing this, Qin Chuan smiled slightly, a smile that was open and honest yet carried a subtle hint of nostalgia.

"Brother Zheng, of course I am."

He didn't explain much, but simply raised his hand, his fingertips shimmering with a soft light that contained the principles of Yin and Yang.

He gently touched Ying Zheng's brow.

In an instant, a torrent of memories belonging to a time and space flooded into Ying Zheng's mind:

The Sand Dune Palace Coup: A forged imperial edict ordered the death of Fusu; Huhai ascended the throne; Zhao Gao pointed at a deer and called it a horse; Chen Sheng and Wu Guang raised the banner of rebellion; Xiang Yu burned his boats and destroyed his cauldrons; Liu Bang entered Xianyang...

The Qin Empire collapsed amidst endless tyranny, incompetence, and war, lasting only two generations!

That was a cold and cruel historical trajectory where Qin Chuan did not exist.

The scene abruptly ended.

Ying Zheng's body trembled almost imperceptibly, and his hand holding the wine cup froze in mid-air. After a long while, he slowly put it down.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, all the doubts and confusion in his eyes had vanished, replaced by an almost compassionate understanding and a sense of relief tinged with lingering fear.

"I see... I... understand."

His voice was low, containing complex emotions that were difficult to describe, and finally turned into a long sigh:

"Fate... in the end, it was through Brother Chuan that fate was defied and changed."

Inside the hall, they drank together in a relaxed manner, but outside, the scene was quite different.

Hu Hai had been kneeling on the cold palace steps for a long time. His initial panic was gradually replaced by the chill of the autumn night and the stinging pain in his knees, which added a touch of grievance and resentment.

Just as he was feeling uneasy, the palace doors finally opened.

It was not a waiter who stepped out, but the First Emperor Ying Zheng, whose face was ashen.

In his hand, he was holding a tough leather whip!

"Father...Father Emperor..."

When Hu Hai saw the whip, he was terrified and was about to beg for mercy.

Ying Zheng's pent-up anger, mixed with the lingering fear of the tragic future he had just witnessed and his disgust for his good-for-nothing son's underhanded tricks, erupted instantly!

He had not been angry for a long time, but now he was like a dragon whose scales had been touched. The leather whip in his hand whistled through the air and lashed Hu Hai's back mercilessly!

"what--!"

Hu Hai let out a shrill scream as his magnificent brocade robe was instantly torn apart, his skin ripped open.

"I am not dead yet! How dare you covet the throne?! 'The one who will destroy Qin is Hu'? What a fine 'The one who will destroy Qin is Hu'! Today I will smash your 'Hu' to pieces and see how you will 'destroy Qin' then!"

Ying Zheng roared, and the whip fell like raindrops, each lash containing the thunderous rage of an emperor.

Hu Hai was beaten so badly that he rolled on the ground, wailing and crying, his tears flowing freely, completely losing his gentlemanly demeanor.

None of the palace guards dared to offer any advice, and the palace maids and eunuchs were trembling with fear, prostrating themselves on the ground.

Just as Hu Hai was about to faint, a figure suddenly rushed over and tightly protected him!

With a sharp crack, the whip lashed heavily across the man's shoulder and back.

"Fusu?!" Ying Zheng recognized the person and roared, "Get out of the way! Today I will kill this scourge!"

Fusu endured the burning pain in his back, raised his head, his face pale but his gaze resolute:

"Father, please calm your anger! Even if my brother Hai has a thousand faults, he is still your flesh and blood, a prince of the Great Qin! The words about the meteorite are nothing but empty talk. How can you punish a prince so severely because of a mere prophecy? As the eldest brother, I have failed to advise my brother Hai, and I am also derelict in my duty! If Father wishes to punish someone, please punish me!"

He held tightly to protect the trembling Hu Hai beneath him, his tone earnest and resolute.

Ying Zheng looked at the whip marks on Fusu's back that were quickly bleeding, and then at the sincere brotherly affection and sense of responsibility in his eyes. In the end, the raised whip did not fall again.

His anger was largely extinguished by the sudden obstruction and the eldest son's sense of responsibility.

He snorted coldly, threw the whip to the ground, pointed it at Fusu and Huhai, and said in an icy voice:

"Fusu! Take this good-for-nothing away! Confine him to his quarters for three months to reflect on his mistakes! If he harbors any further delusions, don't blame me for disregarding our father-son bond!"

Having said that, he turned around, flicked his sleeves, and strode back into the hall, the heavy doors slamming shut behind him.

Despite the pain, Fusu, with the help of his attendants, helped the almost paralyzed Huhai to his feet.

Hu Hai looked at the whip mark on Fu Su's back, a mark that had torn his skin and left flesh to rip open, and his eyes were filled with an extremely complex mix of emotions: the fear of surviving a calamity, resentment towards Fu Su, and perhaps... even a trace of extremely faint guilt that he himself had not noticed.

This scene was recorded with the utmost care by the attending historian in the vast and ancient history books of the empire:

"When the Emperor saw the inscription 'The one who will destroy Qin is Hu,' he was furious. Hai was afraid and begged for forgiveness at Zhangtai. The Emperor and Jun drank inside, and Hai knelt below the steps. The Emperor came out and whipped Hai severely. The eldest prince Fusu shielded Hai with his body, and the Emperor stopped whipping Fusu's back. Hai was confined to his feet for three months. This event is recorded in the Annals of Qin."

These few words have become an important footnote for later generations to understand the secrets of the Qin Dynasty court and the changes in the power structure.

The wheels of empire continue to turn; the great achievements of conquest are accomplished, and the chapter of governance has just begun.

Chapter 85 Qin's Time Temporarily Ended

The night was as dark as ink, and the black carriage rolled through the quiet streets of Xianyang, leaving the palace.

Inside the carriage, Qin Chuan closed his eyes to rest, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the area between his eyebrows.

Deep within his consciousness, the mark from the "God of Chinese Animation" radiated a warm and profound light.

"The trial is complete."

He understood.

The Qin Dynasty unified the world, intimidating all the other states. The mystery of the Seven Mansions of the Azure Dragon was solved, the power of the God of War was properly guided, Fusu's benevolence was demonstrated, and Huhai's potential threat was nipped in the bud...

The grand tapestry of the Qin's Moon world was completely rewritten in his hands, creating an unprecedentedly glorious chapter.

It's time to leave.

With a slight thought, one can communicate with the supreme being in the unseen realm.

A moment later, a grand yet gentle will resounded in his mind: