Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 346

He was framed by Tian Zhong and his martial arts skills were crippled for the first time.

He joined the Luo Wang organization, infiltrated Xiang Jun's army, and plotted a mutiny to kill Xiang Dong.

He returned to his farmhouse and cooperated with Lu Wei to 'kill' his grandfather, Zhou He.

He became the imposter Tian Meng and killed Situ Wanli.

He deliberately allowed himself to be exposed, disfigured, and have his arm severed, and his martial arts skills were crippled for the second time.

He was caught in the trap again, risked his life to regain Zhao Gao's favor, traveled to the north to kill Maodun among the wolf tribe, and helped Wang Li defeat the main force of the wolf tribe.

Return to Xianyang and kill Zhao Gao.

Each of these experiences was a thrilling and exciting adventure...if you exclude the psychological pressure of carrying out the mission.

After enduring more than twenty years, he was finally freed, but his life was also coming to an end.

Faced with Zhou Wen's utmost respect, Lu Wei remained unmoved and did not feign any leniency to tell him "there's no need for such formalities." He simply remarked, "The Zhou family has treated me very well. Elder Zhou He and you are both important contributors to my success today."

Zhou Wen remained solemn and did not respond.

"Very well, you must be tired." Seeing this, Lu Wei shook his head and sighed: "In that case, I will accept you back as a disciple of the Farmer's Clan as the leader of the Farmer's Clan, and allow you to return to Daze Mountain and enter the Tomb of the Six Sages."

That place is a sacred place for farmers, and it will also be Zhou Wen's only spiritual haven when he is physically and mentally exhausted.

For him, there would be no greater comfort than gold, silver, jewels, or official titles and honors.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The muscles on Zhou Wen's face, where the wounds were gruesome, twitched slightly. He bowed with one hand, and his tone became noticeably more elevated: regaining his status as a disciple of the Farmer's Clan, no longer being a traitor, and being able to enter the Tomb of the Six Sages where his grandfather was still alive—this was indeed the reward he wanted most!

“However…” Lu Wei suddenly changed the subject: “Before returning to Daze Mountain, you have one last thing to do for me.”

The change in address signifies that Lu Wei has shifted his identity when speaking to Zhou Wen: previously he was the leader of a peasant family, now "I" am the King of Qi.

"As Duan Shui, one of the Six Sword Slaves, no one is more suitable than you to end the Luo Wang organization."

"Yes!" Zhou Wen was not surprised to receive the mission again. Even if Lu Wei hadn't said it, he would have done it before leaving: "Wu Chen is the leader of the Six Sword Slaves, Zhen Gang. To deal with the Luo Wang, we must start with him."

"Oh? Tell me about your plans."

Lu Wei touched the patterns on the armrests of the dragon throne, truly feeling the texture, and responded calmly.

Given his current status, dealing with the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) wouldn't be too difficult, but he would have to consider the consequences: he wouldn't act rashly against enemies who had already surrendered to him without them having committed any wrongdoing.

“Wu Chen was a loyalist to the tyrannical Qin Dynasty. The reason he surrendered to the king was to find an opportunity to assassinate him. He conspired with me for this purpose.”

Zhou Wen carefully crafted a reason for Wu Chen, word by word, and slowly said, "I was unwilling to continue to be an accomplice to the wicked, so at the most critical moment I stopped Wu Chen's plan and personally cut off his head to present to Your Majesty as proof of my loyalty."

"So that's how it is! This thief truly harbors wolfish ambitions!"

Lu Wei nodded as if he had just realized something: "Summon Wu Chen here."

His Highness Prince Qi's last words were addressed to Xinghun, who was guarding the gate: "Some of the darkest conspiracies are not suitable for those 'upright' ministers to hear. There aren't many under my command who are willing to do dirty work without any scruples."

"Yes, sir." Xinghun left with a smile, his eerie smile devoid of any warmth.

"I recall that my first meeting with Wu Chen was almost twenty-two years ago. Time flies, it's truly poignant."

After another insincere remark, Wu Chen, carrying the Zhen Gang Sword, arrived shortly afterward.

When he saw that Zhou Wen had already arrived first and was kneeling on the ground, his worries instantly dissipated: In terms of offending the peasant family, this guy was much more serious than him. If even he was fine, then he would be even less likely to be in trouble!

With that thought in mind, he quickly stepped forward and knelt down: "This servant greets Your Majesty."

The instant Wu Chen knelt down, Zhou Wen suddenly sprang up and drew his sword to strike.

The former was startled and wanted to abandon one arm to avoid raising his hand to block and roll to dodge, but a powerful internal energy locked on him from above, making the hair on the back of his neck tremble.

In that one moment, Wu Chen lost his only chance to dodge.

Thud, a head hit the ground...

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"Wu Chen attempted to assassinate the King of Qi, but I have already beheaded him. From now on, the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) will be under my command!"

Standing before the three still-shaken sword slaves, Zhou Wen held up a severed head and shouted fiercely.

Even for the ruthless assassins of the Luo Wang organization, the frequent changes of their superiors these days seemed a bit too much...

"Yes..."

But if even Zhao Gao, who had been in charge of the Luo Wang organization for twenty years, could be killed, then the killing of Wu Chen doesn't seem so unacceptable.

By breaking down this organization little by little, starting from the highest level of the network, the impact will be minimized.

"Three months. After three months of consolidating power and handing it over to Lu Wei, I can return to Daze Mountain!"

Zhou Wen felt the passion of his youth rekindle in his heart, and his complexion actually improved.

After receiving the representatives of the Luo Wang organization, His Highness the King of Qi summoned Sima Xin and Dong Yi, who had surrendered to the State of Qi as convicts from Mount Li.

Although the uprising of the convicts at Mount Li quickly disintegrated due to the inherent nature of their organization, they remained the final straw that forced the surrender of Hangu Pass.

Tian Guang endured years of hardship as a slave in Lishan, all for the sake of this one strike.

However, on their way to Hangu Pass, they were defeated by the Great Wall army and had to turn west. After plundering several counties, they were quickly surrounded and captured by the county troops. The vulnerability of the convicts to the regular army became more apparent, and they were forced to continue fleeing westward, thus missing the opportunity to make early contact with the Qi army.

It wasn't until the Qi army entered Xianyang that Sima Xin and Dong Yi were able to pay their respects to His Highness the King of Qi.

"Tian Guang left early?" Lu Wei's emotionless question made the two former Qin generals lower their heads even further.

"Yes, Old Tian headed east outside Xianyang City..."

Chapter 445 Claiming to be an Orphan and a Widow

As the former leader of the Farmer's Clan, Tian Guang's official information in the Farmer's Clan has always been that he was missing, and only the Sixth Hall Master tacitly acknowledged his death, but no one actually saw his body.

Therefore, unlike Zhou Wen, Tian Guang is able to reappear in public.

However, he did not, and chose to turn around and leave before entering Xianyang.

According to Sima Xin and Dong Yi, Tian Guang didn't take anything with him, but Lu Wei knew that he had at least taken the Shu Lou sword.

What choice will Tian Guang make next...? In fact, Lu Wei already knew perfectly well what to do when Sang Hai asked for the weapon.

This former leader of the knights will never return...

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As Tian Guang jumped into the deep pool in the mountains, feeling the embrace of the water, many things would unconsciously come to mind.

He learned martial arts in a farmhouse when he was young.

In his youth, he roamed the martial world and earned many chivalrous reputations.

He became the leader of the peasant chivalrous family before the age of thirty, and his prestige was in no way inferior to that of the young Lu Xiaozi.

Then he befriended Changping Jun and received his financial assistance.

By the time he was fifty, the number of disciples of the Farmer School had doubled since he took over, and their sphere of influence had expanded from the Daze Mountain area to Han, Zhao, Wei, Chu, and Yan. Except for Guanzhong, the entire world was covered by the mountain paths traversed by the Farmer School disciples.

Later, he found the most suitable successor to lead the farming family to its peak.

Such a life can be described as extremely fulfilling. Among all the chivalrous leaders in the history of the agricultural family, apart from the ancestor Shennong, he felt that he was no less than any other generation.

Suddenly opening his eyes, he leaped back out of the water, squatted on the bank, and gazed at his aged face reflected in the deep pool. Tian Guang chuckled, then assessed himself, saying that he still possessed a chivalrous spirit: "After washing up, you can still see your extraordinary temperament!"

He casually tied his translucent white hair behind his head with a strip of cloth, drew his sword to trim his thick, sword-like eyebrows, circulated his inner energy to evaporate the water droplets on his body, dressed, and set off eastward again.

There was a slight pain in his chest, which was the aftereffect of the poor circulation of internal energy. Although Tian Guang had not been injured frequently during his decades of wandering the martial arts world, he could not eliminate the accumulation of hidden ailments.

In his old age, especially ten years ago when he was stabbed by Zhou Wen while cooperating with Xiaoyaozi to fake his death, the sword wound had almost cost him his life, and now the pain was starting to return.

“Ah He said back then that he was too old to act with young people. Now, isn’t that what I’m doing too? I’m acting for even longer than him.”

After walking several kilometers, he decided to stop and heal his wounds, since he still had a long way to go and couldn't let his injury delay him for too long.

During his recovery, he reminisced about his friends from his youth, and a smile never left his lips.

Crossing mountains and valleys is to bypass the Qi army at Hangu Pass. Guanzhong is currently under martial law, and leaving the pass through the checkpoints in a legitimate way is very troublesome. Tian Guang's solo journey will actually be much faster.

Along the way, he also encountered several bandits committing crimes: although these bandits would certainly be eliminated by the Qi army after establishing a new ruling order, since he had already encountered them, he would not hesitate to kill them one by one, thus reducing a little burden on the newly established empire.

After leaving Guanzhong, Tian Guang immediately traveled south along the river and drifted downstream until he arrived at his destination: Guangling City.

This is the last capital of the old Chu state, the site of the decisive battle between Qin and Chu, and the place where Xiong Qi, the last king of Chu and Lord Changping, committed suicide.

Now, it is under the jurisdiction of the State of Qi, and because it is far from the war, everything in Guangling City is fine. The people can live a peaceful life without the torment of harsh punishments and endless corvée labor tormenting their bodies and minds. The laughter of children roams the streets and alleys.

Outside the south gate of Guangling City, there was even a tomb of the King of Chu erected by the people of Chu after the uprising in the two counties, but Tian Guang preferred to call it the tomb of Lord Changping: although it was a title bestowed by the Qin people, it was also the title of Xiong Qi that Tian Guang was more familiar with.

Xiong Qi died for his country in the final moments of his life, and his reputation still remains among many people in the Chu region.

However, only a city brick splattered with blood from Xiong Qi's suicide was buried in the tomb. Xiong Qi's body had fallen into the hands of the Qin army, and given his status as a traitor, the fate of his body was predictable; it was impossible for it to be found again.

Finding that blood-stained brick was already the limit.

As the bright moon rose, winter spread to the south and snow began to fall. Tian Guang nimbly arrived at the tomb of Lord Changping. Looking at the simple tombstone, he seemed to see Lord Changping himself again.

"I owe you so much, and I've never been able to repay you."

Blinking, Tian Guang sat down on the ground and began to talk to himself in front of the grave in the dead of night: "If it weren't for you supporting the Farmer's Family with your connections and money, I wouldn't have been able to expand the Farmer's Family to the six kingdoms of Shandong so quickly. Then Luqiu Pavilion wouldn't have been able to accept Lu boy as a disciple, and naturally the Farmer's Family wouldn't have achieved its current historical achievements."

"From a moral standpoint, the Farmer's Clan owes you a lot, but I am selfish and have always tried my best to prevent the Farmer's Clan headquarters from getting too involved in your plans. So if we're being honest, the only one who owes you is me, and the rest has nothing to do with the Farmer's Clan."

“You want to use the peasants, but I will not allow it. If the peasants had joined the anti-Qin movement back then, the Daze Mountain would probably be full of graves now. In terms of the actual outcome, I have won in this respect.”

"I had a reputation for chivalry back then, which is why you trusted me. I spared no effort to help you with my own strength, but in the end I couldn't bear it anymore and could only disappear and fake my death to get rid of it. This must have disappointed you, after all, Chu was facing an offensive from Qin at that time, which was exactly when you needed help the most..."

"You must see me as a free-range retainer, and I don't object to that. Given your kindness, according to the rules of the martial world, I should indeed swear to be your retainer to the death."

"And now, you're dead, but I'm still alive..."

At this point, Tian Guang drew the Shulou sword he had obtained from Lu Wei: "This sword was once stained with the blood of Wu Zixu, who helped Wu become a hegemon, and Wen Zhong, who helped Yue become a hegemon. It is an ominous sword."

"I am not as loyal and righteous as Wu Zixu and Wen Zhong, yet I still greedily chose this sword... Using it to repay your kindness is my last choice!"

With the sword held to his neck, his face was solemn: "I told myself that I would give you an explanation after everything was over. The chivalrous Tian Guang will never break his promise a second time. Now, I hope you will accept it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Tian Guang forcefully wiped away the blood with his right hand, and drops of blood gushed out onto Changping Jun's tombstone, resembling blood-red plum blossoms against the white snow...

The old man, who had lived a remarkable life, collapsed on this snowy night, making amends for the knight-errant's broken promise.

This compensation served no purpose for the deceased Changping Jun, but for him, he could finally rest in peace...

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