Chapter Eighteen: Being an Emperor is Truly a Good Occupation

  "Take Chen County?" Chen Yu and others were shocked.

  "Brother, Chen County's city walls are high and strong, far surpassing those of a small county. The Qin army has heavily garrisoned this place, with many soldiers and generals, and they have large stores of grain to support them. If our army's attack is repelled, it will greatly affect the morale of our troops. And if the Qin army takes advantage of the situation and launches a counterattack, our army will be in danger. Please think carefully, brother." Chen Yu advised.

  Inside the hall, many generals had been worried about attacking Chen County, a strong city. Now hearing Chen Yu's words, they all nodded in agreement.

  Zhang Er raised his hand and the crowd of generals in the great hall immediately fell silent. "Chen County is indeed a strong city with plenty of grain, but the brutal Qin has already lost the hearts of the people. Moreover, Chen County was originally the old capital of Chu State, and there are many remnants of the Chu royal family. If our army can launch an attack on it, then the remnants inside the city will surely rise up in response. At that time, with internal and external attacks, Chen County will be broken."

  "If our army can capture Chen County, we will not only gain a strong city, but also immediately obtain a large amount of grain and fodder from the Qin official warehouse in Chen County. This way, we can recruit more soldiers and greatly increase our strength. Moreover, capturing the old capital of Chu State will surely make the remnants of the six states look up to us, and there will be more remnants of the six states rising up to respond to us. All the heroes of the world will come to join us, and by then, our great cause will have succeeded. Even if the Qin dynasty sends troops to attack us, what can they do to us?"

  Zhang Er let out a breath and said everything he had been thinking about for several days, then quietly waited for the reaction of the crowd in the hall.

  After listening to Zhang Er's words, the crowd in the hall immediately burst into a flurry of discussion. Immediately, someone stood up and responded, firmly supporting the decision to attack Chen County. Obviously, Zhang Er's words had moved everyone deeply.

  Zhang Er's reaction to everyone was also within expectations, and he calmly picked up the wine jug and took a sip.

  Before long, the murmurs in the hall gradually subsided. Chen Yu stood up and bowed his head, saying: "Elder brother has a broad vision, we are far from comparable."

  "Haha, so all of you brothers have agreed to occupy Chen County?" Zhang Er helped Chen Yu up and smiled.

  "We obey the commander's orders!" Chen Yu and other generals said in unison.

  "All right, today we will reward the whole army with a rest for one night, and tomorrow the whole army will set out to attack Chen County." Zhang Er stood up and loudly commanded.

  "Ah!"

  …………

  Until the sky was about to darken, the map in the great hall could hardly be seen clearly. Hu Hai squeezed out all the memories in his mind and finally couldn't think of anything useful before collapsing onto the imperial throne.

  As soon as he sat down, Hu Hai discovered that the light in the grand hall had become extremely dim. He looked up to see that it was already dark outside the window, and then heard a rumbling "gurgling" sound coming from his own stomach. Hu Hai was taken aback and couldn't help but laugh, only then remembering that he hadn't eaten anything since returning to Xianyang that morning and leaving the grand hall.

  "Why don't these eunuchs know to bring me some food, Hu Hai cursed in hatred. He obviously forgot that it was he himself who ordered everyone not to disturb him."

  Hu Hai cursed with his mouth, but when he saw the thick stack of brocade on the imperial case filled with messy symbols, he smiled again. These things that he had painstakingly thought out inch by inch, almost digging out his brains, were after all his greatest reliance in this chaotic world to establish himself.

  Huhai withdrew his gaze, feeling unbearable hunger and thirst. He got up to open the door but had only taken a couple of steps when he felt dizzy and his vision went black. His foot slipped and he just managed to let out a mournful cry before falling heavily to the ground with a loud thud.

  The eunuchs and palace maids waiting outside the hall heard the miserable cries inside, hastily pushed open the door of the hall, only to find that Hu Hai was lying on the ground, humming. A group of palace maids and eunuchs were frightened with pale faces, knelt down on the ground, constantly kowtowing and begging for mercy.

  Huhai saw himself lying on the ground in a miserable state, with no one coming to help him up. One by one, they kept kowtowing and begging for mercy. He couldn't help but feel both angry and amused, and hummed: "Alright, first help me up."

  A large group of eunuchs and palace maids, who had been frightened out of their wits and were only able to kowtow and beg for mercy, finally came to their senses. They hastily helped Hu Hai onto the throne and got him settled in. Looking at the eunuchs and palace maids, who were still shaking with fear, Hu Hai smiled and said: "It's all right, I won't blame you. Now go light some lamps and bring me something to eat." As he spoke, Hu Hai remembered that Wang Yi and others were still in the side hall, so he added: "Also send some food to Wang Yi and others in the side hall, and have them come see me after they've finished eating."

  "Yes!" A large group of eunuchs and palace maids, as if they had been granted a great amnesty, hastily kowtowed to thank the emperor, leaving behind two small palace maids to attend to Hu Hai's side, before quickly disappearing like fleeing birds.

  When leaving, the two palace maids of Hu Hai just lowered their heads and trembled slightly. Looking at them made Hu Hai feel very bored, and suddenly he thought of Lv Zhu and Cui Niang, if Lv Zhu were here now, she would definitely be giving him a massage, thinking of this, he no longer paid attention to the two maids and began to examine the grand hall where he had stayed for a day.

  At this time, the main hall was already filled with lanterns, bright as daylight. The main hall was tens of feet high, with carved beams and painted rafters, everywhere inlaid with gold and silver, looking extremely luxurious. After a while, Hu Hai asked casually: "What is this main hall called?"

  The sudden loud noise frightened the two palace maids who were attending to him, and they fell to their knees, knocking their heads on the ground repeatedly, saying: "Your Majesty spare our lives, Your Majesty spare our lives!"

  The two men's strong reactions startled Hu Hai, and he thought to himself: "Am I really so fond of killing people?" It seems that the troubles were caused by his previous life. Hu Hai said helplessly: "I didn't say I wanted to kill you, I was asking what this great hall is called."

  When Huhai heard that he was not going to kill the two of them, their emotions suddenly calmed down. The palace maid on the left hurriedly replied: "Your Majesty, this hall is called Xianyang Palace."

  "Oh, the Xianyang Palace. What about the Epang Palace?" Hu Hai asked after a moment of thought, he was very curious about this legendary Epang Palace, unfortunately, nothing was left behind by later generations, it was all burned down by that loser Xiang Yu. Now that he had come to this Great Qin, he definitely wanted to pay his respects."

  Although puzzled by Hu Hai's inexplicable question, the palace maid on the left replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, Epang Palace is located in the South Bank of Wei River in the Upper Forest Park, which is still far from Xianyang Palace."

  Hu Hai nodded and didn't say another word. In his heart, however, he had made up his mind that once his own life was secure, he would definitely go take a good look at this legendary palace that would be passed down for thousands of years.

  Soon, a group of palace maids and eunuchs arrived at Xianyang Palace, paid their respects to Hu Hai, and began to set up on their own. Hu Hai saw more than ten strong and sturdy eunuchs struggling to carry a long, exquisitely decorated strip table under the command of an elderly eunuch, placing it in the center of the main hall.

  Then many palace maids divided their work clearly, some laid out the tablecloth, others arranged bowls, plates and chopsticks. After all these were arranged, another group of palace maids entered one by one, holding trays in a line, placing dish after dish of exquisitely crafted cuisine on the long tables.

  It wasn't until now that Huhai finally understood what these people were doing. Was this the dinner they had prepared for themselves? Damn it, did the emperor have to go through so much trouble just to eat a simple meal? Could he even finish eating all of this himself? Just looking at these dishes, they really didn't taste bad at all.

  Huhai couldn't help but swallow his saliva at the sight of the exquisite dishes on the table. At this moment, a palace maid came to Huhai's side and bowed: "Your Majesty, please have your meal."

  "Oh, okay, okay." Hu Hai stared at the full table of dishes with wide eyes, swallowing his saliva and responding hastily.

  Huhai sat at the table with a dazed expression, looking at the dozens of exquisitely made dishes and hesitated for a moment before saying: "This... are all these for me to eat alone?"

  "Does Your Majesty need to bestow a banquet on any noble? I'll have the dishes withdrawn and remade." An elderly palace maid who was waiting in attendance spoke up.

  At the mention of re-doing it, Hu Hai hastily waved his hand and said: "Oh, oh, no need, no need, I'm just asking, I'm just asking."

  This meal can be said to be the most delicious one that Hu Hai has ever had since he was born, and before that, on the march, perhaps due to limited conditions, he didn't feel much about eating well. Only when he returned to the palace did he realize that this food was really not ordinary comfort.

  As soon as Hu Hai glanced at a dish, the palace maid standing beside him would immediately pick up her chopsticks and serve it to him. Each dish was not only exquisitely made but also tasted so good that Hu Hai almost swallowed his tongue. Although he didn't even know what the dish was called.

  After eating and drinking to his heart's content, Hu Hai leaned back in the imperial throne and rinsed his mouth with tea water brought by the palace maid. He picked up a piece of some unknown sweet treat and, despite his already bloated stomach, happily put it into his mouth, muttering as he chewed: "Being an emperor is truly a great profession!"

  But if I could come back with Yun, it would be perfect.