Qin Shi: I went astray in the Heavenly Sect

Chapter 26 The Xiongnu raid the border, war

The afternoon sun, carrying a hint of languor, shone on the mottled city walls of Daicheng.

Xiaomeng gazed at the city walls bearing the marks of war before her, her brows furrowing involuntarily: "Is this Daicheng?"

Chen Xiuyuan's gaze swept over the potholes in the city wall, and his voice lowered slightly.

"Yes, but it's much more dilapidated than it was two years ago."

Seeing the long queue ahead, Chen Xiuyuan thought for a moment, then pulled the little girl to the back of the line.

"Wow, so many people!"

Xiaomeng looked at the long queue in front of her, feeling listless and exhausted.

Waiting is always boring, and with Xiaomeng's current temperament, the waiting time becomes somewhat agonizing.

"It seems that relations between the two countries are not very good right now."

Chen Xiuyuan narrowed his eyes slightly and sighed softly to himself.

The last time I came to Daicheng, the checks at the city gates weren't as strict as they are now.

Time seemed to pass for a long time. One by one, the people in front of him entered the city without being stopped. Watching from a distance, Chen Xiuyuan felt a strange feeling. Were there no spies at all? The soldiers in Daicheng did not seem to be checking very strictly.

When it was their turn, Chen Xiuyuan realized that queuing to enter the city wasn't for inspection, but for payment.

"Each person shall receive two knife coins. Once inside the city, fighting is strictly prohibited. Violators will be punished according to the laws of the Great Zhao."

"TOLL?"

Xiaomeng frowned, somewhat taken aback. Even the weakest of the six kingdoms, South Korea, had never heard of charging for entry into the city.

Chen Xiuyuan glanced at the wooden box next to the table, which was almost full of coins.

He had taken some knife coins with him when he left Sanyang Village, but he hadn't used them much during his escape. He never expected they would come in handy here today.

When I left the village, I originally intended to use it to make a living, but I didn't end up using it. Now that I've returned to settle the score, or rather, to avenge the villagers of Sanyang Village, I've just happened to use it.

Every bite and drink in between filled Chen Xiuyuan with endless emotions; it truly was a cycle of cause and effect, and retribution was inevitable.

How do you have knife coins?

After entering the city, Xiaomeng asked in surprise.

"I thought you'd ask, why didn't they break through?"

Seemingly familiar with Xiaomeng's personality, Chen Xiuyuan replied with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Xiaomeng raised an eyebrow and gave a soft snort.

"Then will you attack?"

Chen Xiuyuan smiled and answered crisply.

"will not."

Xiaomeng felt like she had been tricked again, and her little fists clenched involuntarily. She suddenly felt that the little brat next to her was so hateful that she wanted to rush up and bite him.

Of course, the main problem is that I can't beat him, otherwise I could at least beat him up.

"here it is??"

Following the route he remembered, Chen Xiuyuan brought Xiaomeng to Xiaolin's uncle's house. However, seeing the empty courtyard, he couldn't help but frown.

“They are the other two survivors from our village, but it seems they have already left, and have been gone for quite some time.”

Xiaomeng glanced at the cobwebs covering the area under the gate, her eyes filled with complex emotions. Leaving was the best option, but there was another possibility: Chen Xiuyuan's two fellow villagers might already be dead.

She gently squeezed Chen Xiuyuan's hand to comfort him. "There seem to be people here, let's go ask them!"

Xiaomeng casually glanced at the house next door and noticed that the door was still open, so she made a suggestion.

"Young man, are you asking about Boss Xu?"

"Their family moved away a year ago. I heard they went to Handan City. Daicheng has been quite unstable these past two years, with frequent clashes between the two countries. Thanks to General Li Mu, Daicheng has gradually become stable."

Xiaolin's uncle's neighbor was named Ji Dong, a very talkative person. Before Chen Xiuyuan could ask any more questions, he told her everything he knew in one breath.

At this point, Ji Dong shook his head again, a hint of melancholy on his face.

"I heard that the Xiongnu were raiding the northern border again the other day. His Majesty transferred General Li Mu away. Now that General Li Mu is no longer in Daicheng, I'm afraid those wolf cubs from Qin will start to make trouble again."

Chen Xiuyuan knew that the northern borders of the Qin and Zhao states bordered the Xiongnu, but he never expected that the Xiongnu's raid on the border would happen at this particular time.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Chen Xiuyuan took Xiaomeng and bid farewell to Ji Dong.

"Hey, where do we go next?"

Xiaomeng had heard Chen Xiuyuan's plans before, and now that Li Mu had left, his plans had naturally fallen through.

As for Qin's actions such as bribing bandits and massacring villages, the details were definitely not something ordinary people could know. Most ordinary people might know that Qin was behind these things, but they would have no way of knowing who was in charge.

"Let's rest for the night, and then we'll go to Sanyang Village tomorrow."

It seems that because of Li Mu's departure, many people in the city have already planned to evacuate with their families. Although people say it is hard to leave one's old home, when faced with life and death, people still have to make plans in advance.

A horse-drawn carriage passed by on the street. The horse was a pony, and the carriage was the kind without a canopy, very simple. The driver was a man, and there was a woman and two children in the carriage. The woman was coaxing the two children, and when she had a moment, she would look at her husband, her eyes filled with a sense of bewilderment.

Chen Xiuyuan and Xiaomeng have already seen four or five cases like this.

"Senior brother."

Suddenly, Xiaomeng called out.

Chen Xiuyuan nodded.

"Hmm, what's wrong?"

Why do you think wars exist in the world?

Chen Xiuyuan paused, his expression becoming somewhat complicated.

"There are many kinds of wars, but most wars nowadays are caused by the dissatisfaction of those in power in a country. Once they get one, they want two; once they get two, they want three; once they get three, they want more."

"For ordinary people, these wars that could easily cost them their lives are nothing more than a game played by those in power!"

Xiaomeng frowned.

"game?"

For her, Chen Xiuyuan's answer was something she had never considered.

"For those in power, after a war, most of them just talk, while civil and military officials, eager to make a name for themselves, drive soldiers to conquer cities and seize territories."

"For those people, war is just a word, nothing to them, so most people in power can't understand the thoughts of the people at the bottom of society."

"As for the invaded party, it needs to protect its throne and its interests, and thus the war began to take shape."

"As time goes on, this kind of battle may eventually turn into a blood feud. Many people may not know why they are fighting, they only know that the other party is their enemy."

"In the course of a war, the beneficiaries are never ordinary people, but the ones who suffer are always the ordinary masses, the masses of humanity."

Xiaomeng stood aside, speechless for a long time, because before she joined the Heavenly Sect, she was just one of the masses, one of the millions of people, as Chen Xiuyuan had described her.

(End of this chapter)