Chapter 6: Learning Skills Part 2

  Fu Su nodded solemnly, firmly remembering the old man's words of wisdom in his heart. Suddenly, Fu Su thought of a question and asked the old man: "Master, isn't it already not possible to use iron to make weapons? Why does our Great Qin still use bronze to make weapons? Isn't this inferior to the six nations of Guandong that use iron to make weapons?"

  The old man nodded in approval and said, "You've brought up a very good point, and you're skilled at finding big principles from small, unintentional things! Although various countries can now use iron to manufacture weapons, the extraction and smelting of iron are still quite difficult, and its strength and toughness are not enough. Therefore, although the six nations of Guandong have adopted some iron weapons, bronze weapons are still the mainstay in their armies. In terms of manufacturing bronze weapons, Qin has the most excellent swordsmiths among the seven nations, and the quality of their bronze weapons is the best in the world. That's why Qin hasn't adopted iron weapons with immature craftsmanship but instead uses advanced and mature bronze weapons. The reason Qin has been invincible in battle for the past hundred years is that its weapons are more advanced than those of the six nations of Guandong! However, as for why Qin swords and other bronze weapons surpass those of the six nations of Guandong by a large margin, you'll have to find out the secret yourself by going to the armory. As an outsider, I'm not allowed to enter such a sensitive military area!"

  Fu Su suddenly enlightened, finally understanding why the Qin army could dominate the world with bronze weapons. He had always wondered why the Qin army used outdated bronze weapons to fight against the iron weapons of the six nations in Guandong, but now he finally understood that the truth was: Qin was using bronze weapons that had reached the pinnacle of craftsmanship to counter the immature iron weapons and inferior bronze weapons of the various countries in Guandong.

  The old man pointed to the bronze long sword in his hand and said, "Fu Su, look, what's different about this long sword in my hand compared to ordinary bronze swords?" Fu Su took a glance and immediately sensed the abnormality of the long sword held by the old man. He asked curiously, "Ancestor, I seem to have heard that the bronze swords cast by the six nations of Guandong are generally not more than two feet six inches (about sixty centimeters) in length. The famous 'Yue Wang Gou Jian Sword' is only less than two feet five inches! But I see that the bronze long sword you're using now is almost four feet (about ninety centimeters) long, which seems to clearly exceed the range of lengths that ordinary bronze sword craftsmanship can achieve. What's going on?"

  The old man laughed and said, "As the saying goes, 'one inch longer is one part stronger.' In close combat, a longer sword naturally has an advantage over a shorter one, making it easier to stab the opponent! The Qin army was able to dominate the battlefield by using these extended bronze swords. However, only the state of Qin can manufacture such extended bronze swords, which shows how advanced their weaponry is! But as for why the Qin people were able to bring out the full potential of their bronze weapons, that's not something I can know. You'll have to find the answer yourself in the future!" Fu Su nodded with a shocked expression, secretly amazed: Qin, this great dynasty, how many more astonishing secrets are hidden in the long river of history?!

  The old man looked at Fu Su, who was in a daze, and suddenly smiled: "Alright, Fu Su, you should now have a deeper understanding of the sword. Next, I will teach you the way of the sword. There are many types of swordsmanship, but there are two that are suitable for emperors: one is the 'Sword of the Hegemon', its swordsmanship is strong and fierce, pressing forward with an intimidating aura, relying on brute force to subdue others; the other is the 'Sword of the King', its swordsmanship is majestic and powerful, opening up a vast space, awe-inspiring and unmatched, relying on moral integrity to subdue others! Which one do you want to learn?"

  Fu Su's mind was dizzy: "Mother, there are so many choices for swordsmanship!" He couldn't help but play a trick, laughing and saying: "Ancestor Grandfather, what kind of swordsmanship did my father king and Butcher Dog elder learn?" The old man smiled and said: "Your father king is hot-tempered, just like your great-grandfather, he learned the 'Sword of the Overlord', while 'Butcher Dog' is a wandering knight from the streets, naturally learning the 'Knight's Sword' that roams among the people!"

  Fu Su thought for a moment: "As the eldest son of a king, I naturally cannot learn those street ruffians' good bravery and swordsmanship, nor do I want to learn my father's 'Hegemon Sword'. So there is only one choice left - 'King's Sword'!" Thinking of this, Fu Su said: "Ancestor, Father's temperament is too harsh, so he chose the 'Hegemon Sword'. But I worry that Father's hegemony is too heavy-handed, and wants to use the King's Way to make up for it. So I want to learn the 'King's Sword'!"

  The old man was overjoyed in his heart, but actually, with the wisdom of an old man, asking Fu Su to choose a swordsmanship was just testing Fu Su's future way of governing the country. As for the actual strength and weakness of Qin State, the old man had already seen it with wise eyes: With the prosperity and unification of the six states under the great Qin, there would naturally be no problem, it would be a matter of course. However, what Qin has been practicing is to govern the country by 'Hegemony', while governing a vassal state with 'Hegemony' is still possible, but if you use 'Hegemony' to govern the entire world, Qin will inevitably exhaust its strength and perish in a short time!

  The old man couldn't bear to see the people reunified only to fall into war again, and he was doing his best to help them get through this crisis. Unfortunately, Qin Wang Zheng's habits were already set, and the old man had no power to change fate. Now hearing that Fusu was advocating for ruling the country with "kingly way", he couldn't help but feel great joy, saying: "The people of the world have found their master, there is hope!"

  The old man composed himself, adjusted his clothes and solemnly said to Fu Su: "Fu Su, the 'King's Sword' has thirty-six sword moves, I will demonstrate them all at once, you must watch carefully!" Fu Su hastily opened his eyes wide and stared at the old man as he danced with his sword.

  The old man pointed his sword at the sky, exhaling impurities and inhaling clarity. Suddenly, he let out a loud shout: "Wang Zhe Sword, with majestic momentum, conquer with virtue, subdue with might..." As he recited the sword mantra, he danced with the long sword in hand.

  In an instant, the sword wind rose from the bamboo forest, and countless bamboo leaves were blown down by the sword wind, falling from the sky and drifting down. The old man's agile figure flashed faster and faster, gradually wrapped in a ball of green light, and countless fallen leaves were stirred up by the sword wind, scattering everywhere with the sword energy! The elegant bamboo forest, the white-haired old man, and the unparalleled swordsmanship formed a beautiful and majestic picture. If someone could paint this scene now, it would definitely be an immortal masterpiece.

  When the old man finished his 36th Road Sword Dance, Fu Su, who had been pressed to almost kneel down by the majestic "Wang Zhe Sword Dance", finally came back to his senses after a long time. Fu Su, who had just learned some ancient sword techniques, couldn't help but say foolishly: "Good... good sword dance! Good sword dance!" Suddenly, he jumped up and shouted: "Ancestor Grandfather, this sword dance is too great, I want to learn it, hurry up and teach me!"

  The old man, after all, was nearly a hundred years old. His body was still good, but after finishing a set of sword moves, he couldn't help but breathe slightly heavily. After catching his breath for a few moments, wiping the sweat from his forehead, he smiled and said: "How's that? What do you think of Grandmaster's dance?"

  Fu Su thought for a moment and said seriously, "Ancestor Grandfather, I think the 'King's Sword' is mainly about using momentum to overwhelm the enemy and gain victory. Just now when Ancestor Grandfather was dancing with his sword, I was so scared that I almost knelt down!"

  The old man smiled and said, "Fu Su, in fact, no matter what kind of swordsmanship is used in the world, it must first be done with 'heart'. If you can't use your 'heart' to practice swordsmanship, then you can't truly grasp the essence of the sword. And the 'King's Sword' is just as you said, most importantly, it has an aura, especially a majestic and powerful king's aura. Only if you can truly cultivate the people with virtue, take the safety of the world as your own responsibility, then your 'King's Sword' will be invincible!"

  Fu Su knew that the old man was using the sword to educate him, so he respectfully said: "Thank you, Master Grandfather, for your teachings. I will remember them in my heart!" The old man laughed happily and then carefully taught Fu Su the thirty-six routes of swordsmanship!

  In this way, Fu Su, who was completely infatuated with the "King's Sword", practiced crazily every day with a refreshed spirit. His progress was indeed rapid, and the "Old Man of Zhong Yin" couldn't help but mutter to himself: "Hmmm! It seems that this child Fu Su is indeed a 'Kingly Talent', my judgment wasn't wrong after all!"

  Just as Fusu was obsessed with swordsmanship and hadn't seen Wang Xia for many days, Zong Zheng brought the king's order to Fusu, instructing him to start learning the Xingming doctrine. Fusu had no choice but to spend half a day every day studying the Xingming technique under Zhao Gao.

  Zhao Gao, with a history of multiple versions, some even believe that Zhao Gao was not a eunuch at all! However, one thing is certain: Zhao Gao was a very cunning person. Growing up alongside the Qin king from a young age, Zhao Gao experienced the coldness and deception of being a poor and lowly person in society. In order to survive better, he deeply understood the Qin king's personality traits and used the most obedient and sincere attitude to cater to the Qin king's every move and word. However, he also managed to do things just right, without lacking anything, thus gaining the Qin king's favor! What's even more frightening is that, due to the Qin dynasty ruling by law, in order to get close to the center of national power, Zhao Gao squeezed out a large amount of time from his meager rest periods every day to thoroughly read all the Qin laws with a "head hung on the beam, awl piercing bone" spirit. He became the expert most familiar with Qin law, making it impossible for the Qin king Ying Zheng to leave him behind! From various signs, it can be seen that Zhao Gao's heart was deeply cunning!

  Although Fu Su hated Zhao Gao, this little man was gnashing his teeth, but he had already learned to hide his emotions under the guidance of the old man and the bloody palace struggle. So on the surface, Fu Su still showed respect for Zhao Gao as a mentor. Although in his heart, Fu Su was secretly calculating how to learn from Zhao Gao's penal techniques and how to make him taste his own poisonous punishments!

  In this way, a year passed, and Fu Su, who had an extremely strong ability to learn, not only mastered the criminal law techniques that Zhao Gao possessed, but also made some progress in "Wang Zhe Jian" (the King's Sword), and even three or five sturdy men were no longer a match for the young Fu Su!

  On this day, Fu Su had just arrived at the 'Zhong Yin Old Man's' small residence in the fields to go out and practice sword with the old man when the old man stopped him. This year, the old man's complexion has changed a lot, becoming very old, obviously his lifespan is nearing its end, but every day the old man's spirit is still very good, obviously Fu Su's existence brought him great comfort!

  The old man calmly said to Fu Su: "Fu Su, in the past six years, you have learned a lot from me. Now, I don't have anything else to teach you. If you want to make further progress, it's up to your own efforts. From tomorrow on, you don't need to come here anymore. Go and do what you want!" Fu Su heard this and burst into loud sobs: "For so many years, I have been deeply grateful for the old master's kindness! In the future, I will surely remember your teachings and practice the King's Way in the world. Don't worry, grandfather, I will definitely come to visit you often!"

  The old man shook his head and said, "No need to, child. The days of the ancestors are already numbered, and I just want to quietly complete this last leg of my life's journey. You being able to save the people from water and fire is already the greatest filial piety for Grandfather. You must remember: in order for the people to no longer suffer from war after unification, you must overcome all difficulties and obtain the throne. Only then will the ancestors smile in the underworld!"

  Fu Su cried out in tears: "Master, rest assured, I swear to heaven that I will definitely do it. Take care, Master!" Fu Su heavily knocked his head three times on the ground as a farewell gesture and bid farewell!

  Before leaving, Fu Su silently looked at the small courtyard that had been quiet for many years, still so serene and fragrant. But from now on, he would never be able to listen to the old man's teachings again, thinking of this made Fu Su's heart extremely sad!

  This chapter contains key points of Qin knowledge:

  Fu Su's wife was Wang Jian's beloved daughter, Wang Xia (according to unofficial history)

  Second, the bronze weapons used by the Qin state were the most advanced among the seven states. The Qin army was a well-equipped elite force, rather than what people generally thought of as an army that relied on barbarism and bravery to fight battles. (Source: official history and collected historical materials)

  Third, the length puzzle of bronze swords: except for Qin, the six countries generally can only make bronze swords within 60 cm. The 'Sword of King Goujian of Yue' is only 55.6 cm long, while the Qin people can make bronze swords over 90 cm long through special craftsmanship and exquisite manufacturing technology!