Daqin: A buff of incredible comprehension

The moonlight was like water, it was late at night and dozens of people were riding horses among the mountains and forests.

"Master Chen, we only have more than twenty people."

"If there are too many hidden people, it might be difficult to deal with them." The captain suggested carefully.

"Are you worried that too many people will know about this?" Lord Chen said sternly, "You will be held responsible for the loss of the plowshare!"

Wu Chang was shocked: "I understand!"

Shi Gu stepped forward and said that a group of thief chief Lai Tou's followers had indeed settled here and had recruited seventy or eighty people. However, Lord Chen said impatiently:

"A mob is no match for them." Shi Gu quickly shut up. Lord Chen waved his hand, asking Shi Gu to lead the way, and the group continued deeper into the valley.

Sure enough, before long, the air was thick with the scent of campfires, and the faint sound of wild laughter could be heard. "Rabbit's lair is just ahead," Shi Gu whispered. In a secluded area, dozens of people gathered around a campfire, eating meat and keeping warm. A man in a dog-skin hat was giving a loud speech, and everyone in the audience nodded.

This is where you come from, insidious, cunning and vicious, but at this moment the team in the forest has quietly surrounded them, preparing to launch a surprise attack.

The mountains were quiet, the night was deepening, and Li Yan, feeling a little nervous, slowly approached the clearing. Taking a few deep breaths, he managed to calm himself down.

"Cough cough."

"Brother Zhou, how are you?"

After a few heavy coughs and a familiar smile, Li Yan walked towards the campfire in the valley. The people living in the mountains and forests immediately became alert and stood up from the warm fire in a panic.

"Why are you panicking?"

"Don't worry, it's Li Yan!"

Zhou Hu's face was filled with displeasure, but he finally managed to calm the situation down. After a long look, the villagers finally recognized Li Yan.

"Li Yan, weren't you arrested?"

Zhou Hu looked at him with suspicion and glanced around vigilantly.

"What can a few little soldiers do to me?"

Li Yan acted calm and stood aside. Zhou Hu saw that he was still wearing the clothes of a prisoner and sneered disdainfully: "I didn't expect you to dare to come back."

The next second, his expression turned serious. "You didn't attract the government officials, did you?"

Li Yan looked around at the familiar faces and walked to the fire, rubbing his hands to warm himself. "Is it worth it to cross mountains and rivers in the middle of the night to capture a prisoner like me?"

Zhou Hu thought about it and agreed that what he said made sense. "Brother Li Yan, you're finally back." People came forward and handed him a hot kudzu root. Although the conditions in the mountains were difficult, Li Yan occasionally got a lot of good things by scaring passers-by, so many people here were willing to trade with him.

"Thank you." Li Yan peeled off the charred skin of the kudzu root and observed every part while eating.

In a corner at the edge, a woman holding a child seemed to deliberately avoid his gaze. He understood all this. In such a wild and mountainous place, matchmaking wasn't necessary; whoever brought more food would be the one to stay with her. Perhaps she had already found someone else during this time.

"Brother Li Yan, you've arrived at a great time." Zhou Hu said excitedly, "I'm planning to accomplish something big today. Are you willing to help?"

A hand slapped Li Yan's shoulder heavily, and Zhou Hu's face turned red.

"What's the big deal?" Li Yan asked casually in a bad mood.

Zhou Hu shouted, "Fellow elders, Xianyang City is just around the corner! Do you know how the nobles there live? Their white flour buns and clear sake are laid out on the tables!" He then lifted the vines and branches that were covering the workshop's iron plow. These stolen farm tools immediately attracted a crowd of onlookers.

"Look!" Zhou Hu paced around the fire, holding an iron plow. "We're starving in the mountains, with no place to farm. Can you guys get used to living like this?"

Holding the iron plow high, he loudly announced that he was ready to rise up in rebellion. Li Yan sensed a dangerous atmosphere.

"Are you going to rebel?" Li Yan asked in surprise.

"Yes!" Zhou Hu excitedly took out two repaired gun heads and said, "If you join me, I will make you a general."

Looking at the gun tip, Li Yan was terrified and took a step back.

"General Shi? What's wrong with you?"

Li Yan stammered, "That's not what I meant...but I really..." Zhou Hu glared at him and pressed on.

At this critical moment, a deep and powerful voice suddenly rang out from the dark mountain path: "Because he is just a chess piece of my master."

The Qin army commander appeared under the protection of two guards and sneered. At this time, the bandit camp was dead silent.

"grown ups!"

"It has nothing to do with Zhou Hu. I am loyal to the court!"

When the mountain people saw the officers and soldiers breaking out of the encirclement, they fled in all directions, leaving behind chaos.

"Is this Zhou Hu who wants to rebel?"

The Qin general taunted, "Do you agree to call this warrior the 'chief rebel'?"

"Hahaha."

The laughter was deafening. Zhou Hu's face turned pale, his leg badly injured, and he fell to the ground. That night, the forest returned to silence.

Deep red blood soaked through his clothes and spread down his calves, soon making the soles of his shoes sticky and difficult to walk in. With a sharp smile, Qin Wu leaned over and picked up the fallen weapon.

"I gave you a few hundred farm tools and two spears, and you dared to proclaim yourself emperor on the edge of the capital."

"If he becomes truly powerful in the future, I wonder how many more things he will do that defy the will of Heaven. I dare not even imagine."

"Song Hu, what a talent."

History is filled with bizarre stories, widely circulated online, including those about self-proclaimed "emperors" being apprehended by the police. In 1980, the blind man Wang Xing, claiming to be the "Great Immortal of White Mountain," scammed people in the Dabie Mountains and ultimately ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor. Due to poor transportation and a lack of information, he wasn't apprehended by police until ten years later.

In 1990, another Li Fu held a ceremony in a small village, proclaiming himself the "Emperor of Shuntian Kingdom." Due to lack of funds, he had originally planned to build a grand palace, but ultimately only constructed three tiled houses to hold the ceremony. He was soon discovered by the local police and subdued by several officers.

Zhu Qiang established the Jade Emperor Kingdom in the same year. After becoming the "emperor", he committed evil and acted arbitrarily within a few days until he was reported by the public and finally caught by the law and executed by firing squad.

If these stories were not accompanied by solid news photos and factual evidence, no one would dare to believe that someone would dare to do this in the 20th century. At this moment, a similar scene was happening on the land of the Qin Dynasty.

Qin Wu looked at Song Hu lying on the ground with a complicated expression and shook his head. "I've painstakingly accumulated a vast arsenal of weapons, and even in this remote area, I dare not easily rebel. Yet, even the Overlord has to honor you as a hero."

Song Hu collapsed to the ground, and with his last bit of strength, he said, "The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. I'm unlucky today, so you can do whatever you want with me."

Qin Wu sneered, "What if he's killed or sliced? The law requires the five punishments and the extermination of his entire clan." Then he turned and ordered, "Take this man away and keep him under strict guard."

Then he shouted to someone nearby, "Sun Gang, go inform the people in the cave. Don't force them to make smoked bacon."

Sun Gang hurried into the pitch-black cave. A moment later, a fierce argument erupted. Then, dejected figures filed out. They were shackled and chained, and hurried out by the guards.

Daylight gradually dawned. After a busy night, and having finished their work, the troops arrived at the Xianyang checkpoint. The soldiers guarding the city looked at this unusual scene in amazement.

Lord Chen recognized Qin Wu and hurried forward to pay his respects, shouting, "Mr. Chen!" No one dared to stop him.

At this time, Zhao Chong arrived on horseback and asked, "Where did Chen Fuling go last night? His Highness asked me to look for him everywhere."

"Nothing. I just happened to meet and capture a group of rebels around Xianyang on the way. Logically, I should be rewarded for my merits, right?" He said with a smile.

"Are they really traitors? They look like civilians..."

Qin Wu pulled the cloth from Song Hu's mouth and said, "Did you hear that? He admitted it himself."

When Zhao Chong heard that, he immediately realized the seriousness of the problem and hurriedly took him to report to His Majesty.

Entering the palace, Qin Wu recounted the entire incident in detail. "I accidentally robbed a criminal, I'm sorry." This made Zhao Chong laugh and cry. This was clearly a case of banditry, but it was turned into a treason, and it was successfully solved. He couldn't help but admire Qin Wu's ability and luck. This is what is called distinguishing merits from demerits!

** Chapter 37: Conquering the Xiongnu? This is a great undertaking **

After arresting Song Hu and the others, Zhao Chong immediately accompanied Qin Wu to an audience with the emperor. This incident was unheard of, but it was the first time it had occurred within the empire, so it had to be reported as soon as possible.

Along the way, Qin Wu encountered various looks from the officials who had just finished their meeting, but he remained calm. When he arrived at the imperial study, he found that Crown Prince Fusu and other ministers were waiting there for a meeting.

** CONQUEST ON THE FRONTIER **

 Chapter 338: Good advice is more important than Mount Tai

A profound silence permeated the hall. The others knelt quietly on the carpet, but Lin Ming, summoned alone, stood respectfully with his head bowed. The atmosphere was oppressive to the extreme.

"Your Excellency is back."

The ministers beside the emperor greeted him warmly.

"Where did you go last night? I couldn't find you anywhere."

Xu Ping asked with concern as soon as he saw Lin Ming. At this moment, Qin Shi Huang's eyes also shifted over, signaling Lin Ming to leave first.

"Your Majesty, I investigated a case of treason last night and have handed over the main culprit and his accomplices to Heishuitai for punishment." Lin Ming reported respectfully.

"I will report this specifically to His Majesty."

The First Emperor was slightly stunned and felt a little surprised.

Isn't it the mission of the Blackwater Station to hunt down the rebels? Why does Zhao seem to be unaware of this?

Ying Zheng tapped the table. "Ridiculous!"

He thought this was too strange, and wanted to be angry but had no way to vent it. To argue with such a person would only make him look petty.

Meng Yi couldn't help but say: "If there is no severe punishment, there will probably be endless imitators in the future. This will damage the imperial prestige!" The First Emperor agreed casually.

"What do you think, Excellency?"

Facing this suggestion, Lin Ming slowly replied, "Such a treatment would be too severe and would only increase the burden on the court. Furthermore, if such rumors were to spread, it would be detrimental to the image of the Qin State."

Qin Shi Huang pondered for a moment and said, "Minister Chen's suggestion is quite sound. Let's do it this way."