Qin Official

"I never thought that I could still see the Three Gorges before it was submerged!"

In mid-April, Heifu stood on a mountaintop twenty miles west of Yiling County. He was blown by the soaring river wind. He felt a little dazed and a little lucky. At the same time, he began to feel that this trip to the county with the county guard was still a good one. Somewhat rewarding.

He was so ignorant that he didn't know that this section of the Three Gorges was not flooded in later generations...

"Seven hundred miles from the Three Gorges, there are mountains on both sides, with no gaps, heavy rocks and peaks, hiding the sky and blocking out the sun. At midnight, there is no sun or moon in the pavilion"... If I remember correctly, this is how it is described in the text, And Heifu couldn't find any more suitable words to describe the scenery he saw in front of him.

The top of the mountain where Heifu is located is called "Xiling Gorge Mouth", which is the end point of Xiling Gorge, one of the Three Gorges. The 700-mile-long Three Gorges' mountains and the dangerous shoals of the vast river end here. From here to the east, the mountains on both sides turn into hills, and the swirling and turbulent river gradually becomes a flat stream.

So the local people said: The water reaches here and the hills are formed, so it is named "Yiling".

Yiling County is located one hundred and fifty miles west of Zhijiang County, and it is the second stop of the county guard's trip.

In Yiling, Commander Ye first checked the winter wheat grown locally and saw how the harvest was after using the compost retting method. The yield was also increased by about 30%. The county governor was very satisfied, and then went on to check the implementation of Shuidi in the county.

Yiling is high in the west and low in the east. There are many rapid streams, which is a good place for implementing water dams. In addition, the county's population is only more than 20,000, so setting up more water dams can just make up for the lack of manpower.

This time the county guard didn't let Hei Fu go with him, so Hei Fu felt relaxed. After spending a day checking the local military registration and confirming the recruitment regulations, the official business was done. Seeing that the county guard was still wandering around the countryside, he felt itchy and couldn't bear it. In the name of going to the entrance of Xiling Gorge to inspect the waterways and pavilions and stations, he asked several local officials to act as guides and take him on a one-day trip to Xiling Gorge.

Time was limited, so this trip could only be a quick trip. After taking a look at the scenery of Xiling Gorge, Heifu had to return in a hurry. It was not until the afternoon that he returned to Yiling County.

Yiling County is very small, less than half of Anlu County. Most of the buildings are spread out along the river. At the gentle bend of the river, there is a dock. At this time, several ships from Bashu are moored. .

He went to Bai Di in the morning and arrived at Jiangling in the evening. During the journey, he traveled a thousand and two hundred miles.

Having said that, these days, it is dangerous to leave the Three Gorges from Bashu and enter Nanjun. After all, the Three Gorges is densely covered with dangerous shoals. If you are not an experienced boatman, it is easy to have an accident. Having just experienced a frightening seven-to-eight hundred-mile voyage, the crew members of these Bashu ships urgently needed a break and a sip of local rice wine to calm their nerves.

On his way back to the county temple, Heifu passed by the dock and happened to see the governor of the county, Teng Changshi, sitting here with several entourages, as if waiting for someone.

The chief historian's name was Lu Dang. When he saw Hei Fu, Lu Dang took the initiative to stand up and bow his hands to him. The chief history official was a five-hundred-stone official.

"Can Zuo Bing Cao Shi see the scenery of Xiling Gorge?"

After coming out of Zhijiang, Lu Dang suddenly became enthusiastic towards Hei Fu.

Hei Fu did not dare to neglect: "I saw it, and it is indeed well-deserved."

Lu Dang smiled and said: "Actually, Xiling Gorge is not the most beautiful and dangerous. The last time the county governor visited the county, he took us all the way to the west, to Zigui, passed Wu Gorge, and then to Wu County to have a glimpse of Qutang Gorge. These are strange mountains and rivers, unique in the world!"

Heifu smiled and said, "I wonder if I will be lucky enough to see this wonderful scene this time."

"I'm afraid not."

Lu Dang revealed: "The county governor only went as far west as Yiling. The day after tomorrow, he will take a boat down the east side of the river, either to Yidao or back to Jiangling to rest, and then take the waterway directly to Jingling and Zhouzhou. The mausoleum, and then it was the turn of Anlu County, the hometown of Zuo Bing Cao Shi..."

"I still want to return home more than the wonderful sights."

Heifu said: "When we get to Anlu, I will lead the way for the county governor and the chief historian."

The two of them were silent for a moment, and then Lu Dang pointed at the Yiling city and talked about the military affairs that Heifu was interested in.

"Cao Shi, the Zuo Bing, must have also seen that from Badi to the east of the Three Gorges, there are mountains and mountains. Until here, the water gradually leveled off and the mountains gradually eased. Therefore, Yiling was the west gate of Jianghan. At that time, the Chu State built a city here. Management, and even set up this place as the Tomb of the Western Kings. It is said that many Chu kings and ministers are buried in these mountains..."

Hei Fu nodded: "Two years ago, when I was the pavilion chief in Anlu County, I arrested a group of tomb thieves. The leader of the thieves had robbed Chu tombs in Yiling."

"I remember that case too."

Lu Dang said: "But the tombs of the Chu kings built on the outskirts of the city were burned by Lord Wu An and General Sima Cuo more than fifty years ago."

It turns out that more than fifty years ago, the Qin State attacked Chu and first captured the land of Shangyong and Hanbei, and then divided the army into two groups. One group was more familiar to Hei Fu. Bai Qi, Lord of Wu'an, led tens of thousands of soldiers to attack Yan. The city was penetrated alone. The reason why the King of Chu at that time was unable to mobilize enough troops to resist Bai Qi was because another army of the Qin State, led by Sima Cuo, set out from Bashu and advanced eastward with a navy, attracting the main force of the Chu army...

Lu Dang said: "I heard that General Sima Cuo led 30,000 people from Bashu at that time, with dozens of large ships and hundreds of small boats. They started from Wenshan and floated down the river. From Bajun City to Jiangzhou, to Chu Yingdu, That is to say, Jiangling today is more than 1,300 miles away. Although there are many miles, the current is so fast that it can travel more than 300 miles in a day without any effort from horses and oxen."

"The army set out from Bajun City and arrived at the defending pass on the western border of Chu State within two days. Once the defending pass was defeated, Wu County and Zigui to the east surrendered without a fight, and Qianzhong and Wu County of Chu State were all returned to Qin The country, Yiling cannot be defended anymore."

"At that time, Lord Wu'an broke through Yan City and passed through Jingmen to Yiling to meet General Sima Cuo. With the food from Bashu, he feasted the soldiers who had defeated the Chu Kingdom and burned Yiling to intimidate the King of Chu. After that The navy also invaded eastward and reached Jingling. When the sound of golden drums was heard in the palace of Lantai, King Xiang of Chu was indeed frightened and fled eastward, abandoning Ying with his royal family members."

Speaking of this, Lu Dang couldn't help but laugh at King Chu Xiang's cowardice and incompetence. The Wushan goddess who had fascinated King Chu Xiang was lost to the powerful crossbows of the Qin army, but he could only look west in a hurry.

Heifu immediately felt that the history of the Chu State during the Warring States Period was somewhat similar to the later Song Dynasty. Perhaps in the eyes of Xiang Yan, Dou Ran, Zhong Lizhen and others, the humiliation of Yan Ying was probably the same as the Jingkang War in the eyes of the Song people. It's almost a shame.

At the same time, Hei Fu couldn't help but admire Sima Cuo, and said: "I heard that General Sima Cuo had already advocated the attack on Bashu during the reign of King Huiwen. If Qin occupied Bashu, it could threaten the state of Chu with its power upstream. It was really far-sighted! "

Although this general was born unlucky, his reputation was overshadowed by the brilliant achievements of his younger brother Bai Qi. But if Bai Qi is better than tactics and military strength, then Sima Cuo is better than strategy. Whether he advocates the annexation of Bashu or sends troops from Bashu to attack Chu, it shows that he has a unique vision.

If Bashu was not the land of Qin, Hei Fu only felt that he would not be able to sleep well overnight in Jiangling City.

"Therefore, Yiling is the key point of the country, and if it is lost, it will not only damage a city, but the whole county will be worried."

Lu Dang still looked worried. Heifu knew that as the chief historian, he was responsible for checking for omissions for the county governor. He had emphasized the importance of Yiling several times, so there must be reasons for his worries.

So Heifu pretended to be relaxed and said: "Bashu is now a county of Qin. Although I have heard that there have been several rebellions by the princes of Shu, but since Li Bing Commandery took over the rule, the place is peaceful and has water conservancy and irrigation. Every year, excess grain is shipped out, and Yiling is well equipped with weapons. Is Chang Shi worrying too much?"

"Although external troubles are minor, there are many internal worries..."

Lu Dangyang stopped here, he really had something on his mind.

Before Heifu could ask a question, the clerk next to him who had been looking at the river suddenly shouted: "Chang Shi, the boat is coming!"

Heifu and Lu Dang looked up the river together, and saw a large wooden boat with a deep draft slowly sailing out from the mouth of Xiling Gorge in the distance. The oarsmen rowed desperately in the opposite direction, causing the boat to gradually slow down, and finally stopped in the river. When we turned the corner and reached the Yiling Pier, the sailors on the ship let out a burst of cheers.

Heifu saw that Lu Dang was waiting for someone! That person should be on this boat.

"What kind of person can make the governor of Nanjun come and wait for him in person?" Heifu couldn't help but become curious.

At this time, he also saw clearly that the large wooden boat was painted with a pattern of a white tiger, and the crew members who came off the boat also had different hairstyles and clothes. Most of them had animal skins wrapped around their waists and their upper bodies were naked. Barbarians have their hair either bunned or shaved, leaving only a handful on the top of their heads...

When they got closer, Heifu also saw the willow leaf-shaped swords hanging on the waists of these people.

The identity of this group of people was immediately revealed: Ba people!

This is an ancient tribe. In addition to Ba County, there are also many Ba people in Yidao, Yiling, Jigui and Wu counties in the west of Nanjun. Heifu occasionally saw a few of them in Jiangling City. The Ba people were brave and often served as loyal warriors, looking after the homes and courtyards of the local wealthy elders.

However, walking towards this side, surrounded by a group of Ba people and stars holding the moon, was a young man dressed like a Qin man. Look, he is about the same age as Heifu, but he is already wearing a single crown, as if he has the title of doctor!

Could it be that this is the person Lu Dang is waiting for?

Heifu's question was soon revealed. Lu Dang explained to him in a low voice: "This man's name is Ba Zhong, and he is the son of Ba Widow Qing. At noon today, he sent a boat to tell me that he had something important to see. Sheriff, so the Sheriff asked me to wait for him here..."

While talking, the young man seemed to understand the etiquette of Qin very well, and bowed to Lu Dang and Hei Fu from a distance.

"I am a barbarian, how dare I trouble my superiors to wait?"

Lu Dang immediately raised his hands to the young man and returned the salute: "This is the order of the county governor. You are also a senior official personally appointed by the king, so it should be like this."

"The son of Widow Qing?"

Hei Fu also came to his senses at this time, looked at the young man, and suddenly realized why this boy was so valued.

"It turns out he is the son of the largest mine owner in Qin!"