Chapter 001: The Celebration of Departure

  Wu State's capital, above the Great River, heavenly winds are majestic and powerful.

  The young master Qing stood proudly at the bow of the boat, his hair blown back by the wind, but between his eyebrows was a radiant and spirited expression.

  His great army had just captured Guangyi, and with one battle, his success was like breaking bamboo. At this moment, he was advancing through the night, preparing to give a head-on blow to Gongzi Guang, now the King of Wu, Fuchai.

  Qī Jì, eighteen years old, had the courage of ten thousand men, known as the number one brave warrior of Wu State. He was the son of King Gōu Jiǎo of Wu. Crown Prince Guāng (Hé Lǔ) plotted to usurp the throne and his retainer Wú Zǐ Xū recruited an assassin Zhòng Jī, who hid a sword in a fish belly and assassinated King Gōu Jiǎo of Wu.

  At that time, Qing Ji was fighting in a distant place with the state of Chu. After receiving the news that his father had been killed and Gongzi Guang had usurped the throne, the whole army collapsed instantly, and all the horses were silent. Qing Ji knew that things could not be done, so he made a decisive decision, led his trusted followers to break through the siege, and retreated to the state of Wei. In Ai City, Wei State, he recruited soldiers and bought horses, formed alliances with neighboring states, and vowed to avenge his father's death.

  Qing Ji's bravery is renowned throughout the world, not only famous among the vassals and states, but also having extremely high prestige within Wu State. One day, Wu State's mountains and rivers will ultimately be unstable. Qing Ji has been sharpening his sword in Wei State, and King Helü of Wu has been living with a knife hanging over his head, always nervous and on edge. Now, he has finally returned to take revenge.

  Qing stood proudly at the bow of the boat, the soldiers on both sides shouting low and uniform slogans, rowing in unison, the river water making a "plop-plop" sound.

  Next to Qingji stood a short, armless man with a short spear in his hand. His right sleeve was blown empty by the wind. He pointed at the river and said: "Young Master's prestige is mighty, Gongzi will have a sleepless night tonight. This time when we return to Wu State, we'll kill him thoroughly."

  Qing Xi held a wine jug in one hand, took a big gulp, wiped his mouth and said in a low voice: "Want to leave, the chief culprit can be executed, but the door of killing cannot be opened. Once the achievement is made, the key is to stabilize the people's hearts."

  Yao Li, the one-armed dwarf, was about to leave when a pufferfish in the river suddenly leaped out of the water, making a loud splashing sound before falling back into the river, creating a splash of waves. Yao Li jumped up onto the boat's side and laughed loudly: "Young master, the fish is flying high, this is an auspicious sign!"

  Qing Xi smiled faintly, he didn't believe in those illusory auspicious signs. A great man standing between heaven and earth, everything must be achieved by one's own hands. Auspicious signs? Can auspicious signs drive the Emperor off his throne? Can auspicious signs help Qing Xi avenge his father's death?

  As he looked back, behind him were hundreds of warships, majestic and powerful. The armored warriors stood solemnly in rows on the ships, their Wu hooks and Wu halberds gleaming coldly in the moonlight, while the ferocious ghost faces and fangs on the shields seemed to be snarling.

  Qing Xi's mouth corners couldn't help but reveal a satisfied smile: "Good omens are not enough to be happy, I want revenge and restoration of my country, relying on them, they are the hundred-battle elite soldiers trained by me!"

  As Qing Ji turned around to look back, Yao Li, who was standing on the ship's side with a spear, suddenly kicked his legs and took advantage of the strong wind on the river to pounce on Qing Ji. The short spear in his hand had pierced through his chest in an instant.

  "Ah!" Qing Jin let out a loud cry, stumbled backward two steps, and the wine jug shattered on the deck with a loud crash. The wine was immediately stained red by fresh blood.

  Qing Ji suddenly turned around, the spear's sharp blade protruding from his back, blood gushing out near the armor, and the generals and soldiers beside him were all stunned for a moment.

  Qing Ji glared at Yao Li, suddenly stretched out his hand to grab him. Yao Li was only a few inches taller than the dwarf, and in front of Qing Ji, the number one hero of Wu State who stood at eight feet tall, he had no power to resist. With a stretch of his long arm, Qing Ji grabbed Yao Li and held him upside down by the ankle, dunking him into the Yangtze River.

  "Whoosh", the little head emerged from the icy river water, having been dunked three times. The river water made him cough repeatedly, his face turned pale, hair disheveled, and his short stature looked pitiful, like a small demon. Yet he showed no fear, instead letting out a loud burst of laughter.

  He shook his wrist and threw him to the bow, slowly retreating two steps, and fell back onto the deck with a thud, panting as he watched him leave. After this series of movements, the bloodstain on his chest grew thicker.

  They rushed up on both sides, held onto Qing Ji, and cried out in alarm: "Young Master!"

  Qing Ji suddenly burst out laughing: "Under the heavens, there is actually such a brave warrior, who dares to come and assassinate me. I never thought that Ji Guang would send a cripple like you as an assassin!"

  The guards rushed forward, "clanging" several times, and several Wu hooks were crossed and pressed against his neck, the blade tightly attached to his slender neck, and with just one cut, they could cut off his head. Yan Li was fearless, and a hint of calm joy appeared on his face instead.

  Qing Ji said: "Forget it, don't make things difficult for him, this man is also a hero of the world."

  He smiled and sighed: "Want to leave, you are not my enemy of one combination, but now I die in your hands, it is really an unexpected thing."

  He smiled quietly, his cheeks twitching slightly: "I had thought of it long ago. I cut off one arm and lost the lives of my entire family. If that still can't convince you, if you want my life, then even heaven will not tolerate it."

  Qing Xi smiled wryly and nodded, "Not bad, you cut off an arm, and let Ji Guang kill your parents, wife and children, using such a desperate trick to make me believe you?"

  At this point, he suddenly glared at him with a stern expression and shouted: "But I have no grudges against you, you are willing to sacrifice your parents, wife and children just to make a name for yourself. If I were to be compared to you, even beasts would be ashamed to be in the same group as you!"

  Qing Yi's anger was intimidating, and he had to hold onto his determination to die. He couldn't help but change color in fright. Since he had defected to Qing Yi, this was the first time he had seen him reveal such an aura of authority, treating him like a brother all along.

  Qing Jin finished speaking, looked at him with disdain, and said to his tearful personal soldier: "Don't kill him, let him go, and let him seek fame. No matter what, it's better to be... a man of Han. Today... one good man has already died."

  Qing Ji finished speaking, knelt down and got up, grasped the halberd handle with both hands, let out a loud roar, and pulled it outwards with force. A bellyful of hot blood suddenly spurted out.

  Qing Ji threw the short spear forward, and it inserted into the ship's side with a "thud" sound. He knelt down like a tiger and muttered: "My father died under Zhu Zhi's fish intestine sword, today I Qing Ji seek revenge in vain, but again die under Mozi's spear... The villain gets his way, huh? Could it be... this is the fate of my father and son..."

  Qing Ji's voice grew fainter and fainter, his head slightly lowered, and he remained motionless, having already breathed his last.

  Fell in battle before achieving success, a hero's tears overflow!

  "Prince!" The generals knelt before Qing Ji, tears streaming down their faces. The rest of the ships had already learned that their commander had been assassinated. Qing Ji treated his subordinates with kindness and favor, and all three armies were overcome with grief. Even the great river seemed to lose its color.

  Finally, Qing Ji died, and the strong gaze that had been propping him up suddenly dimmed. The soldiers around him had always carried out his orders without hesitation, and even though he was dead, they did not dare to disobey. The sharp Wu hook on Wang Li's neck had already been removed, and all the soldiers turned to Qing Ji's corpse with tears in their eyes, bowing down. He stood there like a wooden stake, no one looking at him again.

  In ancient times, wandering heroes took life and death lightly, valued honor over wealth, and sought to leave a lasting name for eternity. This is how anti-terrorism expert Han Feizi evaluated them. Now that they have finally achieved their goal, they can't help but feel lost and bewildered.

  He laughed loudly three times, looked up at the sky and said: "I took advantage of Qing Ji's trust, asked King Wu to kill my parents, wife and children, burn their bodies and scatter their ashes. This is unfilial. Having already taken advantage of Qing Ji's trust, he was reused by him, but he usurped the throne, which is unrighteous. Now that the great cause has been achieved, what need is there for this unfilial and unrighteous person to live in the world?"

  Yan Lidi raised his only left arm and chopped it off with a short spear stuck in the side of the boat. With a loud "pu" sound, his only left arm was severed, and blood gushed out wildly. Yan Lidi let out a loud cry, and his body followed suit, plunging forward. He violently shook his head, and his throat was slit open by the sharp spearhead. Instantly, he stopped breathing, his body knelt to the ground, and his head softly rested on the spear.

  Gao Jie's subordinates surrounded him, weeping uncontrollably. For a moment, no one noticed that the dying man was also so heroic. Zhuan Zhu stabbed King Liao, sacrificing only himself to leave his name for eternity. Gao Jie stabbed Ying Qi, but in order to gain his trust, he asked the king of Wu to kill his entire family, making it even more tragic. Unfortunately, such a brutal act is too shameful for historians to mention, and Gao Jie's name can never surpass that of Zhuan Zhu.

  At this time, a warning bell sounded from the small boat in front, and someone shouted: "Wu Guo Zhu's fleet has arrived, Wu Guo Zhu's fleet has arrived."

  Jing Lin, the deputy general of Qing Ji, wiped away his tears with one hand and shouted loudly: "Don't panic, pass on the order, retreat quickly!"

  Qing Ji was the soul of the three armies. With Qing Ji's death, the army's morale has already been greatly disrupted and they cannot fight anymore. Moreover, with the death of this former Wu king's third prince, they have also lost the significance of fighting against Wu kingdom. If they were to proceed further, it would be nothing but a suicidal act for the entire army.

  The mighty army of Qingyi was forced to retreat, hundreds of warships followed the order and turned around, the formation that had been set up was in great disorder, and it was even more difficult to maneuver because they were now going against the current.

  The vanguard warships had already engaged in battle with the Wu army's naval forces, while the rear warships were struggling to turn around in the river waters. Without Xing Ye's command, this isolated army no longer had any will to fight, and the front lines collapsed at the slightest touch. Just as Xing Ye's naval forces had finally managed to turn around and sail upstream for a short distance, news arrived from the front that King Helü of Wu had sent warships to block their way.

  Under the night sky, arrows and stars flew, on the Yangtze River, the sound of killing shook the heavens, the Qingyi army fought separately, the boat was filled with fresh blood that flowed straight to the bottom of the boots.

  Seeing the situation was hopeless, Jinglin carried Qingji's body into the cabin, knocked his head three times and said with tears: "Fire, burn the boat."

  Deputy General Lü had an arrow with feathers on his shoulder, holding a torch that he had seized in his hand, and rushed into the cabin, shouting loudly: "Deputy General Jing, why are you burning the boat?"

  Jinglin raised his head with tears in his eyes and said hoarsely, "The young master is already dead, do you want his corpse to be further humiliated by Jigang?"

  Lü Qiān was momentarily speechless, the sounds of slaughter ringing in his ears. However, they all knew that once Qing Ji died, their army's demise would not be far behind.

  Lü Qian slowly walked over, knelt down on one knee in front of Qing Ji, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly gritted his teeth and said: "Burn the ships!"

  He was just about to turn around and ignite the warship when he suddenly felt that Qing Ji's body seemed to have moved.

  Lü Qiān was greatly startled and hastily brought the torch closer, but Qìng Jìn's expression remained unchanged, without any movement. He thought he must have been seeing things, when suddenly he heard Qìng Jìn softly groaning again. Lü Qiān's body shook violently as he disbelievingly shouted: "Young Master? Young Master isn't dead, Young Master is still alive!"

  "What?!" Jinglin cried out in a startled voice and scrambled over.

  "The young master is not dead! The young master is indeed still alive!" Jinglin stuck to Qingji's chest and listened, suddenly shouting loudly.

  Lv Qian held up the torch and saw Qing Ji's lips moving, as if he was trying to say something, so he quickly leaned in to listen closely, only to hear Qing Ji say in a weak voice: "What the hell is this dream?"

  Lv Qian was stunned for a moment, and the young master's tone was strange, his words were even stranger, and he didn't understand what he was saying at all.

  But as long as Qing Ji Gongzi is alive, they have hope. Lv Qian was too busy to care about what Qing Ji Gongzi was saying at this time, and he just pulled his throat and shouted loudly: "Abandon the ship, abandon the ship, quickly go ashore, and borrow a road from Lu State to return to Wei."

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  PS: Li Guanyu: It is said that at the time, this word had two ways of expression, "hāi" and "nuò". In modern language, "hāi" means "yes", obeying orders, with a meaning similar to "Yes, Sir". "Nuò" means "alright, okay", with a lighter tone of response. There are many different opinions, but no more authoritative judgment.

  In the "Guoyu" written by Zuo Qiuming in the Spring and Autumn period, the word "nuò" is mentioned many times, but the character "hāi" is not seen. I think it's unnecessary to carefully study those things, including when people at that time cheered and only said one word: "Cǎi~~", here I don't need to have the characters in the play also applaud and shout "Cǎi~~~~".

  In "The Legend of Qin", there are still firecrackers, but it's still "The Legend of Qin"; in "The Eagle Shooting Heroes", Qiu Qianzhi is still eating peanuts from the Ming Dynasty, and Huang Rong is still humming a Yuan dynasty tune, but it's still "The Eagle Shooting Heroes". There's no need to scrutinize every detail, no matter how much research you do or how many years of effort you put in, it's impossible to write something that perfectly captures the original flavor and completely conforms to the language, clothing, and behavior of the time. If it were completely faithful, nobody would read it anyway. In my humble opinion, as long as the story is well-told and doesn't contain any words that are obviously out of place in ancient times, making people feel awkward or giving them a sense of antiquity, then that's good enough. What do you gentlemen think?

  The audience erupted into cheers:

  "Promise!"

  "Hi!"

  "Color~~~~"