A year ago, Wu Guang resolutely revolted against the violent Qin in Chen County. At that time, he never imagined that one day, he would turn into a Qin official holding a whip and scolding the prisoners not to move rashly...
This is a huge camp, stretching to the south of Lishan Mountain, with no end as far as the eye can see. Chen Ying and Wu Guang, who were sent by Heifu, led 20,000 Northern Expedition soldiers, which were only enough to block the gate of the camp.
Wu Guang heard that there were 700,000 prisoners in Guanzhong at its peak. The towering mausoleum of Mount Li in the distance, the countless burial pits at the feet, and the palaces and temples that were more luxurious and magnificent than living palaces. After they were consolidated, there were almost no traces of them.
The grassy road and these major projects were built brick by brick by the prisoners over the past ten years.
As a result, countless people were killed.
Most of the first batch of prisoners were exhausted to death. Even those who survived were not like humans or ghosts. Their skin was tanned and peeled by the scorching sun, and their hands were covered with calluses and bruises.
The young man's upper body was naked, and it was covered with whip marks like snakes and insects...
And these prisoners, do they really have serious crimes? I'm afraid not.
Wu Guang was well aware of the cruelty of Qin's laws. Many poor people were fined for making minor mistakes but were unable to pay. They were punished as prisoners and had to travel thousands of miles to do hard labor. Some people were even more unlucky. Their neighbors committed crimes and they themselves did not report them.
, was considered to be harboring criminals, was implicated, and was shackled inexplicably.
In the land of Qin, this kind of thing happens all the time, not to mention in the land of the Six Kingdoms, which is not very familiar with the laws of Qin. The number of people who accidentally fall into this trap is countless.
Now, these people stood with their eyes wide open behind the wooden fence of the camp, looking coldly at the Northern Expeditionary Army who came to "siege" them. The two sides had been facing off for half an hour, and verbal conflicts continued to break out.
"Back off!"
Wu Guang Shao raised his hand again, cracked his whip, and asked his soldiers to use their long spears to push back hundreds of prisoners who wanted to escape over the wooden wall of the camp.
Those people retreated into the wall, but looking at that, they still didn't give up, and countless people were eager to try.
The looks in these people's eyes made Wu Guang seem to have returned to that stormy night when he grabbed the sword and killed the two Qin officials who were escorting them to the front line.
That is the desire for freedom.
That is unwillingness to fate.
That is a roar against tyranny!
"Did I look at those two Qin Lieutenants in the same way back then?"
Wu Guang couldn't stand it anymore, so he rode up to Chen Ying and asked for instructions:
"Captain Chen, it is not a long-term solution to continue like this. Although the prisoners have been scattered around, Sima Xin reported that there are 170,000 people here, but our army only has 20,000 people. It is still early for the sun to set.
They can also rely on weapons and crossbows to intimidate them for a while. Once night falls, if this group of people rushes out violently, it may be difficult to stop them..."
Chen Ying nodded: "One hundred and seventy thousand prisoners who have accumulated grievances for many years are running rampant in Guanzhong, which is famous for its wealth, many men go to the front line, and are captured by our army. Only old, weak, women and children are left at home. It is impossible to think about it with your feet.
You know what they will do!"
Sima Xin, who was burdened by Heifu. He was originally an order from Xianyang but became a prisoner. He suffered a lot in the camp. His hair fell out and his legs were spread wider and looser than before. Sima Xin said: "The captain's words are very true.
But what we need to worry about most right now is not the prisoners of the Six Nations, but the prisoners!"
The so-called "relaxation soldiers" are prisoners of punishment.
After Shang Yang's Reform, the Qin State began to implement a universal military service system, requiring all men of appropriate age to
Healthy men and qualified personnel were required to serve, and even prisoners were conscripted into the army.
There is a stipulation in the "Qin Code": "Anyone who wants to return to the second level of nobility to avoid having his biological parents become a concubine, and a person who has his subordinates beheaded to become a public servant, and who wants to return to the public service without having his old wife to be a concubine, allow it, so as not to think that he will be a concubine.
Those who are common people, workers, ministers, and people who are beheaded to avoid being killed are all ordered to be workers."
In short, by pardoning the condemned prisoners and allowing them to join the army and perform meritorious service, they can gain freedom. In addition to exempting them from prisoner status, it also benefits their parents and wives. These prisoners are called "relaxed prisoners".
"Previously, there was a shortage of manpower in Guanzhong, so Hu Hai ordered people to pardon the prisoners in Qin and make them prisoners, and assisted the puppet army in transporting grain to Lantian. Half of these people were captured, and the rest were here. There were about 70,000 people.
There is an orderly fighting force, and the criminals from the Six Nations are gathering at the door to spy, but the others are inside, tearing down the camp and secretly connecting with each other. If the criminals from the Six Nations are the vanguard and rush out all at once, the consequences will be disastrous!"
In short, this is a pot of boiling water that will boil at any time.
Sima Xin took the initiative to ask for orders to go into the camp to negotiate with the prisoners, so that they could calm down and ensure that the Northern Expeditionary Army would deal with the prisoners properly. However, Sima Xin was kicked out not long after he entered.
"We don't trust this person, we don't trust Qin officials!"
The prisoners pushed Sima Xin out. Their patience had been exhausted. The impulsive people were about to take the lead and run away. There were only 20,000 people on the opposite side, and they were scattered at several camp gates, but there were more than 100,000 prisoners.
The crowd pushed down the fence and ran out in a swarm. There was always a chance to escape...
Chen Ying, Wu Guang and the others were in danger of losing their lives. How could they be allowed to escape easily? The Northern Expedition military officer began to load his crossbow and kept pointing his spear forward. A bloody conflict was about to break out. Once the blood was seen, the conflict would probably be complete.
It's impossible to calm down without tens of thousands of people dying!
But at this time, a military chariot drove up and crossed the camp!
Under the banner of the monarch with two dragons crisscrossing each other, there is a mighty armor and a crown, with a long sword hanging on his waist, a black face solemn, and he shouted:
"You can't trust others, how can you trust me!?"
…
The general suddenly arrived, and the soldiers behind him with flags and spears held high, and there were tens of thousands of reinforcements at once, made the prisoners stop and did not dare to move rashly.
"Marquis Wu Zhong has arrived!" Wu Guang and his soldiers from the Northern Expedition cheered loudly. The prisoners in the camp looked at each other and thought to themselves:
"Is he Marquis Wu Zhong?"
Even the prisoners have heard about this rebel leader for a long time, and they also have strange legends:
"Wuzhu said he was transformed by a black dog demon with a dog head and human body. Why do I think he still has a human head..."
"Perhaps we have to wait until night to reveal our true form..."
"Didn't he say that Heifu had three heads and six arms, could breathe fire from his mouth, shake the mountain with a stomp of his foot, and cause Wuguan to collapse?"
The things in Wuguan were so mysterious that Heifu had been demonized. Seeing that the prisoners were frightened by his "prestige" and did not dare to act rashly. They only whispered and the noise was endless, so Heifu asked people to speak loudly for him.
Message:
"I am Heifu! Marquis Wuzhong of the Great Qin Dynasty, Marshal of the Northern Expeditionary Army!"
"Do you know why I came to Lishan today?"
The prisoners shook their heads in confusion, and Hei Fu continued:
"The Qin Dynasty has laws. Those who are guilty are either prisoners or banished to the garrison."
"The prisoners went to Guanzhong to work hard, but you should know that being banished to the garrison is more miserable than you. The First Emperor made various attempts to gratify the deceased and adopt a son-in-law. The Jia people took over the land of Luliang and made it Guilin, Xiangjun, and Nanhai.
, to banish the garrison. However, the heat in the south made the banishment and garrison unsuitable for the water and soil, and it was also attacked by the Yue people, resulting in tens of thousands of casualties and casualties. During festivals, it is not impossible not to look north to the Five Ridges and sigh..."
"it's me!"
Hei Fu patted his chest: "I am the one who raised the troops and took the tens of thousands of people who were exiled from Lingnan to return to their homeland in the Central Plains. There is no need to leave their corpses at the border fortress!"
"And today, I came to Lishan for the same thing!"
"I will forgive you!"
The next words made the prisoners sound like they were dreaming. It was something they had been looking forward to for many years but could not even imagine. Emperor Qin Shi Huang's pardon and mercy would only be given to his close minister Zhao Gao, and would not be given to them.
Ants.
After all, Zhao Gao only has one minister who can do things safely and speak nicely, and the prisoners are just numbers. After one group dies, there will be another group.
But the current situation in Guanzhong is complicated, and Heifu, who may be attacked from both sides if he is not careful, does not miss any opportunity to turn enemies into friends...
"The members of Lishan, no matter what crimes they were detained for in the past, will be exempted from their crimes!"
"You are the people of Qin who are the executioners. If you are willing to join the Northern Expeditionary Army and your wives and parents are servants of the government, you will be pardoned! You can be resettled in the Shanglin Garden. If you have made great achievements in quelling the Dongfang group of bandits, you can be sent to the Shanglin Garden.
Establish household registrations and grant land and houses!"
"Cangtou, the prisoner in Guandong, also listened to this. If you are willing to serve as a civilian husband for the Northern Expeditionary Army, after the world is settled, you can each return to your home and be granted land and houses in the local area!"
There was another round of discussion, with some excited and some skeptical. After a long time, someone finally asked loudly: "Is it possible that Marquis Wu Zhong deceived us, and will he keep his promise?"
Wu Guang immediately appeared and gave his own explanation:
"Second and Third Son, I am Wu Guang from Yangxia!"
"A year ago, I was also a garrison soldier. When the heavy rain failed and I was whipped again, I had no choice but to kill two lieutenants and raise the army. I went to Nantou to Marquis Wuzhong. Marquis Wuzhong said, if I can draw 3,000 people from Chen County and serve as a vanguard
, captured Runan, and made me the captain, and now Wu Guang has become the captain!"
"Wu Guang testifies that Marquis Wu Zhong's promise is worth ten thousand gold!"
The soldiers of the Northern Expedition all shouted in unison: "We also testify that the promise of the king is worth ten thousand gold!"
After a moment of silence, the camp door opened, and a prisoner walked out with his shackles held high.
"Marquis Wu Zhong, I have committed a capital crime, can you release me?"
Most people are just shackles, not many are qualified to wear shackles, it is obviously a serious crime.
Heifu looked at this man and saw that he was in his forties, wearing a green turban on his head, and his upper body was bare. His body was covered with scars left by whips, as if he had countless centipedes crawling on him.
"What's your name?"
The Cangtou prisoner said: "This villain, Lu Qing, is from Donghai County."
"What crime was committed?"
Lu Qing spoke bluntly, looking at Wu Guangdao:
"Like him, kill people, kill Qin officials!"
Heifu frowned: "How long have you served?"
"Three years."
Heifu made a serious face: "Kneel down!"
Lu Qing stood upright with no intention of kneeling, until more than 20,000 Northern Expeditionary troops shouted: "Kneel down!" Then he knelt down on one knee, but his head was still held high, and his eyes were still dissatisfied, and he sneered.
:
"Wu Zhonghou doesn't want to pardon me, but wants to behead me on the spot?"
Hei Fu didn't answer, he just said: "Put the shackles on the railing of the carriage."
Lu Qing did as he was told this time. Heifu didn't say a word. He just took the iron ax handed over by the guard, raised it high, and slashed it down!
There was a clang, fire flew everywhere, and the copper shackles on Lu Qing's hands broke.
Looking at his free hands, Lu Qing was a little surprised.
"I forgive you!"
Heifu raised his ax high and looked at the more than 100,000 prisoners who crowded to the railing and watched this scene:
"You will be punished with 700,000 prisoners, raised in Tuli Mountain, and several years of hard labor. Your crime has been fully paid for!"
"From today on, all prisoners in Lishan will be free!"
