Chapter 120 Striving to be Filial Sons and Virtuous Grandsons 32
Liu Bang continued looking, and huh? He seemed to see Li Si's name as well.
So this is actually a grudge list, right? It's 'Qin's' grudge list. So the fact that this list suddenly appeared here means...
Liu Bang thought about how few soldiers he had under his command, and then about the people on the list. Was he capable of dealing with them? Was he qualified? He wasn't qualified.
After analyzing so much, Liu Bang became even more curious about Xiang Yu and Sima Yi, whose names he seemed to have heard of but had never heard of before. What made these two people worthy of being ranked alongside Zhao Gao and Huhai, and even higher than Li Si?
----
The next day, the King of Chu invited Liu Bang to discuss the matter. It was during this pre-battle meeting that Liu Bang astutely realized why Sima Yi had been placed on the list of enemies.
From the King of Chu, Liu Bang learned that the Qin general Zhang Han's subordinate, the Qin general sent to attack them, was named Sima Yi.
He might still have some doubts after hearing this, but he understood when he heard that this person massacred the city after conquering Xiang County.
Now I understand why, even though Sima Yi was a Qin general, the Qin people still disliked him.
Liu Bang realized that 'Qin' deeply abhorred the act of massacring cities, because even if this side rebelled, the spirit connected to this place was still 'Qin'.
As the person most closely associated with 'Qin' in his imagination, Liu Bang knew very well that there was no other national spirit to be born except for 'Qin'.
Therefore, in Qin's eyes, even the land of Chu, which had established itself as a state, was still her territory. It was only natural that Sima Yi would be hated for slaughtering her children on her territory.
Hmm, could it be that Xiang Yu's name on the list is also because of the massacre of a city...?
So he silently crossed out the idea of massacring the city as a means of intimidation in his mind. Although it was a method that might be very useful if used occasionally, he had to consider the risks and benefits. Compared with the help from 'Qin', the convenience gained from this method was nothing.
Therefore, Liu Bang decided to strive to be a filial son and virtuous grandson, starting from now on!
From this day forward, Liu Bang will be the most filial son.
Everyone in the world is his family. (jpg)
Seeing Liu Bang's thoughtful expression, Zhu Qing'ai, who was secretly observing, felt relieved. The purpose of creating this grudge list and ranking Sima Yi so highly was to imply to Liu Bang that he should behave himself and not cause trouble. If all else failed, she would be there to remind him.
She can accept internal strife, but she absolutely cannot allow the slaughter of her own people.
This is one of the reasons she chose Liu Bang. If Liu Bang was simply because he possessed the cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness of an emperor, using whatever means were convenient and being ruthless just to make an example of someone, then Xiang Yu was a habitual massacrer.
They fought their way through, until they were trapped in the land of Qi and lost the world.
He deserved to lose to Liu Bang.
Even Bai Qi only killed surrendered soldiers; there were no records of massacring entire cities before the Qin Dynasty. The history of the end of the Qin Dynasty made her feel completely overwhelmed.
Xiang Yu truly set a precedent in history. Trying to reason with someone who seems to have some psychological issues is out of the question; she'd rather face the shameless Liu Bang.
At least Liu Bang, no matter what he thought in his heart, always managed to put on a good show on the surface.
At this moment, she always hated herself for not having the abilities of the previous world. If she were in the next world, she could destroy spaceships with a wave of her hand, and here she could quell the war with a wave of her hand as well.
Unfortunately, she was too weak; she was too weak in this world.
The slight peculiarity she possessed was thanks to the concepts she gained in the previous world. Her last attempt to send a dream to Xiang Yu to stop him from massacring the city failed; he simply wouldn't listen, which caused her to become extremely irritable.
Even Wei Sheng Jiu Shi Jiu received this grudge list, and in the private chat channel, she even joked that she wanted to capture Xiang Yu and tear him to pieces. Why set a precedent like this?
Image of pinching the philtrum.
----
After discussion, the final decision was that Ning Jun and Liu Bang would lead the army westward to meet Sima Yi.
Liu Bang had only heard of Ning Jun but did not know him personally, though he was always good at getting along with people.
During their march together, he and Ning Jun became acquainted in less than half a day. They weren't exactly sworn brothers, but they seemed to be just friends on the surface.
The two sides first met in the west of Xiao County. Ning Jun discovered that, for some reason, Liu Bang seemed to know where the Qin army was, even though their scouts were the same people. How did Liu Bang know the news first?
Liu Bang, now with the full map unlocked, felt this was amazing, which further solidified his decision to be a 'filial' good son.
Ning Jun found it very strange, but Liu Bang did not slack off during battles; he was also seriously fighting the enemy, unlike a spy on the other side.
Ning Jun: Cosmic Cat Head Sublimation JPG
I understand now; Liu Bang was incredibly insightful.
After imagining all this, Ning Jun's gaze towards Liu Bang changed. Although they had temporarily retreated after the first close-quarters battle, if Liu Bang maintained this level of skill, then winning this battle with fewer troops was not impossible.
Unbeknownst to him, Ning Jun was more willing to listen to Liu Bang's opinions before making decisions. Having experienced this hidden benefit, Liu Bang could roughly guess what the other party was thinking.
He doesn't think cheating is unfair; he just thinks that being able to use cheats is his own skill.
After discussing with Ning Jun, they led their troops to temporarily retreat to Liu County. After replenishing their troops and supplies, they attacked the Qin army again. However, this time the battle did not take place west of Xiao County; instead, they attacked Dang County.
It was the county named after Mangdang Mountain. He first gathered his forces and hid in Mangdang Mountain. Dang County was a place he was quite familiar with. With the help of perspective and the full map, and with some preparation, they fought very smoothly and won against overwhelming odds, taking Dang County in just two days.
After this battle, more than 6,000 soldiers from Dang County surrendered, and with the soldiers they brought with them, their forces numbered around 10,000.
Ning Jun also had high praise for Liu Bang, with whom he worked, saying that Liu Bang's ability to lead troops was comparable to that of a famous general.
----
In March, Liu Bang successively captured Xiayi and Fangyu, and then the news of Chen Sheng's death was confirmed. The once peaceful place seemed to be stirring up undercurrents.
Empress Lü had personally led troops to quell several disturbances in the conquered territories. She wrote to Liu Bang, informing him of the situation and saying that the matter of establishing a new King of Chu was imminent. The previous King of Chu was merely a nobleman of Chu. If it was to stabilize the people's hearts, it would be best to choose a descendant of the Chu royal family.
At this time, Liu Bang was under the command of Xiang Liang. When he received Lü Zhi's letter, he was a little surprised. The letter was not written on bamboo slips or silk, which was more convenient to use. After turning over another page of the letter, he found that it was a new prototype created by a young man named Wei Sheng Jiu Shi Jiu. There were not many in stock. A stack of blank letter paper was also sent with the letter.
He looked at the letter in his hand, turning it over and over, reluctant to put it down, and didn't seem to care much about the matter of establishing the King of Chu.
He could tell that the establishment of the King of Chu was a recent event. According to his observation, there should be a Chu royal family member in Xiang Liang's lineage, but he didn't know whether they were just members of the royal family or direct descendants.
Two days later, Xiang Liang recalled all his generals and installed Xiong Xin, the grandson of King Huai of Chu during the Warring States period, as King Huai of Chu in Xue County.
It's a little strange that they used the same title as King Huai of Chu, but you get used to it, and you can see the expectations behind it...
During the day, Liu Bang, along with Ying Bu, Lü Chen, and others, participated in the enthronement of King Huai of Chu. At night, when he returned to his room, he immediately closed the doors and windows, and before closing them, he would cautiously observe his surroundings. Only when no one was around would he hide in a corner of the room.
First, they offered a simple tribute, and then they whispered and gently called out "ancestors".
Originally, Liu Bang didn't have much hope, but he thought that since it was such a big deal to support King Huai of Chu, Qin should be nearby, and maybe he could meet him.
When Liu Bang discovered that 'Qin' had actually appeared, he was overjoyed. However, seeing bloodstains on 'Qin's' clothes, he hesitated and did not say anything about King Huai of Chu.
He began by expressing his gratitude to Qin for the useful portable map, showering Qin with flattery. Seeing that Qin's expression had improved considerably, he lowered his voice and asked with concern, "Has Xiang Liang and the others' support for King Huai of Chu had any impact on you?"
While showing 'concern,' he couldn't help but steal glances at the patterns on 'Qin's' clothes, especially the blood-stained designs.
After observing it several times, he realized that the abstract patterns were maps of Qin territory reduced in size, belonging to the popular abstract style of painting. Only Guo Ling could create such a map that was so accurate to reality.
There's fighting everywhere, but her dress was indeed stained with blood. There were only two large clumps, but quite a few scattered small bloodstains.
He pondered for a moment and found that it matched the answer in his mind.
“If something really happens, another spirit will come to kill you. How can you sit here peacefully as a spy?” 'Qin' glared at Liu Bang, looking very displeased.
Normally she would kneel down and chat with people calmly, but now she just stands there looking down at Liu Bang kneeling in front of the offerings.
Compared to today, Liu Bang now felt that Qin's attitude in the past was already very good. Even if it was bad, it was because Qin was unworthy of it, not because of Qin.
Liu Bang chuckled awkwardly. What kind of spy could be as good as him? He was just a little too ambitious, but he was still a filial son. What bad intentions could a filial son have?
"I'm so glad you're alright. I was worried that establishing King Huai of Chu might have a negative impact on you..."
Normally, the conversation would end here, but today 'Qin' showed no mercy, immediately launching into a sarcastic remark: "What, if it has any repercussions, are you willing to assassinate King Huai of Chu for me?"
Liu Bang: That's impossible.
Of course, there's no need to say anything that would make people unhappy. Liu Bang expressed his loyalty, saying, "For you, I am willing to go through fire and water without hesitation. You are my lifelong faith!"
Although he spoke with great passion, he still spoke cautiously in a whisper, the kind of whisper that wouldn't be heard if you were a couple of steps away, but 'Qin' could hear him anyway.
“But,” Qin nodded, and this “but” was indeed late but it arrived, just to see what kind of nonsense Liu Bang could spout. Liu Bang looked serious, “But I know in my heart that this is no different from trying to stop boiling water by adding more water. It looks convenient and quick, but it is actually useless and cannot solve the problem at its root.”
“Even if we kill this King Huai of Chu, there will be another King Huai of Chu. Even if the royal family is gone, there will still be the nobles of Chu, so assassination is not an option.”
"At times like these, it is up to you to conquer the world!"
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