At the same time, Xiang Yu also made tremendous progress.
[The Mongol Empire, having been made king by Qin Shi Huang, remained loyal to him.]
He fortified the frontier, demonstrating unyielding resolve, while Xiang Yu remained unable to breakthrough after prolonged sieges.
[Ultimately, Xiang Yu chose to send someone to seek an agreement with Mong Yuan, promising to 'reign in name' by leaving the land intact.]
[As long as Mong Yuan lets the Chu troops pass, Xiang Yu promised to leave this place for Mong Yuan and let him reign here.]
Mong Yuan did not believe.
[He had heard of Xiang Yu's deeds, where even the king within his territory could be deposed. How much more could an outsider like himself be affected?"]
[Without the agreement, Xiang Yu dispatched Geng Jun, accompanied by day and night, to cross the Sanhu River and fight against the Qin troops.]
[Mong Yuan sent troops to defend the river, but due to the influence of the plague, the number of troops on the front was insufficient.]
[Xiang Yu led his troops to decisively defeat the Qin army on the muddy river.]
[Mong Yuan sent someone to meet Xiang Yu with the intention of reaching a protocol.]
[Xiang Yu summoned his military officers to discuss:]
["Although our achievements are commendable, we can follow up for victory and take the city directly. However, we are running low on food supplies."]
['Better to accept Mong Yuan's surrender request']
[Xiang Yu never actually consulted with his military officers in camp; it was just a formality.]
["Most of the time, it was him making the final decision. ]
["The military officers said, "Good"."]
[Xiang Yu and Mong Yuan established an agreement at the site of Yanyu South, Yuan Xu.]
[The main contents of the alliance are that Xiang Yu will not launch any further attacks, grant Mong Yuan a life and confer him the title of 'King of Chu'.]
[With the alliance in place, Mong Yuan shed tears when meeting Xiang Yu, recounting the affairs of Zhao Gao.]
[Since the Prime Minister had left to tour the realm, the court was in disarray!"]
["The Emperor is advanced in years. We, the officials of the court, have not received an edict from the Emperor for some time!"]
["Zhao Gao lacks the ability to govern the state, he merely makes haphazard arrangements, and everyone dislikes him very much."]
["But originally, there was still the Li Prime Minister in the court to suppress Zhao Gao. With the Li Prime Minister present, the state's edicts would not be too chaotic."]
["We all know that the realm of the Great Qin is about to be lost. Perhaps both the Li Prime Minister and the Emperor have realized this as well?"]
["Both of the founders of the Great Qin knew that fate had not smiled upon them. That is why Li Prime Minister had to leave, and perhaps this was something that the Zhao daughter had seen long ago."]
["I hope that if General Xiang reaches the capital, he gives the Li Prime Minister a proper burial."]
[Xiang Yu said nothing, neither agreeing nor opposing.]
[Xiang Yu established Zhang Han as the King of Yong, and placed him in the Chu army.]
[Xiang Yu appointed the head historian Xin as the General of the vanguard, leading the Qin troops.]
[Continuing to march westward]
[At this moment, the warlords of Shandong are still engaged in civil war, while Xiang Yu and Liu Bang's armies are rapidly advancing, having already occupied the eastern land of the Qin Dynasty.]
[The soldiers of the feudatories who had served in Qin territory before, were often treated inhumanly by Qin officials.]
[These low-ranking soldiers held deep resentment against the Qin Dynasty. Now that they had the chance to ride roughshod over the Qin officials, they naturally would not let it pass.]
[After the Qin army surrendered to the feudatories, the officials and soldiers of the feudatories exploited their victory to enslave them, slighting and insulting the officials and soldiers of the Qin Dynasty.]
[The officials and soldiers felt wronged.]
[The Qin officials and soldiers often discussed in private, "General Mong Yuan and others deceived us into surrendering to the feudal lords; it's so despicable! He should be crucified by five horses!"
["He even surrendered to the feudal lords without asking us, leaving us in a difficult situation."]
["If we can enter the pass and destroy the Qin Dynasty, it would be good; if not, the feudatories will enslave us to the east, and the Qin Dynasty will surely kill our parents and wives."]
["And then there's that Xiang Yu, who doesn't even know where he came from. Can someone like him lead an army?" ]
["He is obstinate and self-centered, even worse than Zhao Gao! Let alone the Li Prime Minister."]
[They were very lightly considering Xiang Yu's orders, thinking he was shortsighted and better to believe in Han Gong.]
[Many also chose to flee from Xiang Yu's army and join Liu Bang's, who treated them with respect.]
[The person responsible for managing these officials heard these rumors and reported them to Xiang Yu.]
[Xiang Yu summoned Qing Bu and Geng Jun to consult, saying, "There are many Qin officials and soldiers. They are unwilling in their hearts. If they do not follow orders after we enter the pass, it will certainly be dangerous. I think we should deal with this problem."]
[Qing Bu agreed readily and proposed three solutions.]
["Report to the General, I have three strategies to calm the hearts of the Qin soldiers."]
["The first is to soothe them with words, explicitly showing their achievements, promising them titles and rewards, to inspire their determination."]
["We can give them titles like we did for Mong Yuan, but not as high. Just like the Qin Dynasty's merit system for military titles, we can give them other titles to make them work for us."]
["At the same time, we can also imitate the story of the Prime Minister Li Si of the Qin Dynasty, opening the granaries to win people's hearts."]
[Xiang Yu, upon hearing this, furrowed his brows, shook his head, and said:]
["Consuming too much, wasting too broadly, not good."]
[Qing Bu continued:]
["Good Your Highness, then I have my second strategy."]
["We can divide and rule them, investigate the main culprits, eliminate them secretly, and thus stop the source of chaos."]
["We will divide them to stir up their internal conflicts."]
[Xiang Yu shook his head again, "Dividing them might affect our own interests!"]
[Qing Bu smiled, knowing that the first two strategies would not be approved by Xiang Yu. He said with a smile:]
["That's not a problem, General. I have a third strategy, and I'm sure you'll like it."]
["Thirdly, if the previous strategies are not effective, we should resort to strict laws and severe punishment to deter others, behead the ringleaders, and thus uphold military discipline."]
["We can learn from the Qin Dynasty, and enforce strict laws and severe punishment for high-pressure rule."]
[Xiang Yu laughed and said:]
["Is it really necessary for such trouble? Do we still need to fight?"]
["What if we just set fire to them or bury them in a pit? Wouldn't that be better?"
[Qing Bu was taken aback, not sure what Xiang Yu was talking about, but he quickly understood:]
["General, do not do so! It would be against the heavens!"]
[Xiang Yu did not listen.]
[So the Chu army launched a night attack, and killed over 200,000 Qin soldiers in a pit south of Xin'an City.]
[Meanwhile, Li Si's tour of the nine regions had come to an end.]
[He had established dispensaries in all places across the nine regions where the power of the Great Qin could reach, thus controlling the epidemic to a certain extent.]
[He also opened granaries and distributed grain to the people, bringing them peace of mind.]
[Unfortunately, at this moment, the Great Qin was already on the brink of collapse.]
[There are still two months until this year's harvest.]
[The Great Qin cannot last for two months.]
[Given the current situation, Liu Bang had already advanced his troops to the pass of Hungei.]
[If Hungei Pass falls, there will be no chance for the Great Qin to turn the tide regardless of what happens.]
