"It's nothing."
"I've already been in the army for half a year. According to the two-year service limit, I only have a year and a half left before I can go home." Zhao Feng smiled, not minding it at all.
The reason Zhao Feng asked Wang Yan was with a bit of playfulness. If he could really return home early, that would be great, but if he couldn't, then so be it.
It's not like he could become a deserter—the punishment for that was severe; he'd be sent off to hard labor.
Wang Yan asked, a bit puzzled, "With your skills, with your strength, you should have been assigned as one of the elite soldiers from the start. Why were you put in the Logistics Army?"
"What skills do I have? I was just forced to it in order to survive." Zhao Feng laughed it off.
Of course.
Back in the recruit camp, Zhao Feng had intentionally hidden his abilities.
Listening to Zhao Feng's response, Wang Yan couldn't help but roll her eyes at him.
If Zhao Feng had maybe killed a few enemies, that could be forced out of him. But he had killed nearly three hundred enemy soldiers and even charged into their formation to kill Bao Yuan—was that really accidental?
"Don't you want to earn merit and make a name for yourself?"
"With your skills, you could definitely reach the very top in the future." Wang Yan couldn't help but ask.
She truly didn't understand what was going on in Zhao Feng's mind.
He clearly had the strength to make his mark, yet had no intention to do so.
Zhao Feng didn't answer.
Instead, he kept eating roasted lamb.
Ever since enlisting, Zhao Feng had rarely eaten meat. Although Qin treated its army well, that was only for the elite soldiers; the Logistics Army's meals barely kept them full.
King Zheng of Qin truly appreciated the elite soldiers who risked their lives for him; as for the Logistics Army, who didn't go into battle, he didn't value them as much.
To put it in modern terms—
The elite soldiers were the regular army, while the logistics troops were just some second-rate units.
After a few bites of meat, Zhao Feng lifted the wine Master Chen had given him and took a nice drink.
Then,
Zhao Feng finally looked at Wang Yan and said, "Compared to earning merit and making a name for myself, I just want to survive."
Wang Yan frowned and said, "As a Qin man, shouldn't you strive to expand our territory for the nation, to be loyal to the king and serve your country?"
At these words,
Zhao Feng just gave a faint smile. "Loyalty to the king and the nation—maybe. If an enemy invades my home, I would pick up a weapon and fight him to the death without hesitation!"
"But expansion of territory, that's just the ambition of the noble class tied to the throne. The bigger the map of Qin, the more the nobilities gain. Expanding the realm brings greater benefits, but for us common people, what does it have to do with us? What do we really get? Just our lives thrown into the fire, ending up as the stepping stones for those at the top to increase their own profits."
"Territory expands, the nobles grin from ear to ear."
"But for eight or nine out of ten ordinary people, all they get in the end is a consolation payment for dying in battle—a new grave at home where their families weep."
"Heh."
These words changed Wang Yan's expression. Everything Zhao Feng said flew in the face of everything she'd been taught since childhood.
Or perhaps,
This was the first time Wang Yan had ever heard an ordinary civilian's perspective.
She wanted to argue, but for the moment couldn't find the words.
After a long while—
"The Qin's expansion of territory is for the world."
"Once the Six States are obliterated, there will be no more war in the world. The people everywhere can live in peace, and once the land is unified, everyone can have a secure life. This is the great wish of generations of Old Qin People—to die for this great cause. Don't you get it?"
After thinking long and hard, Wang Yan stared at Zhao Feng and spoke.
"That's just what those at the top think."
"In the past, Old Qin People fought to the death to have a foundation for survival, to protect their own homes, and of course everyone would fight with their lives at stake."
"Of course."
"The Qin unifying the world, as you said, might end chaos and bring peace."
"But for the common folk, not being sent to die on the battlefield is the best outcome."
"Not everyone wants to chase after glory and wealth; many are just forced into it."
"Like me. I never wanted to join the army; it was just because I reached the age for conscription."
"If I had a choice, I'd fulfill my duty of filial piety first." Zhao Feng smiled faintly, a hint of helplessness in his tone.
If it weren't for his mother to worry about, maybe Zhao Feng wouldn't resist as much, either.
Unifying the world!
In his past life, as someone from later generations, Zhao Feng greatly admired Emperor Qin Shi Huang's unparalleled achievements.
Zhao Feng had profound respect and admiration for Emperor Qin Shi Huang.
Because for future Huaxia, without Emperor Qin Shi Huang's unification, the land would've fractured, with no ethnic fusion or cultural unity.
In short—
The later generations' verdict on Emperor Qin Shi Huang is: a sovereign for the ages, merit for the ages.
But before that, there's another line: for the ages, but a crime in his own era!
Because the common people in this era suffered too much.
The name of the Qin Army—ruthless Qin!
Maybe some of it was slander after the End of Qin. Still, much of it is because the people truly couldn't survive—Qin Army's reputation was made by the people's own cries.
Only by living in this era can you realize how difficult it truly is.
Reborn into this age, becoming someone of Qin, and even drafted into war, Zhao Feng knew well how brutal it was. Lives were truly worthless here. Placing himself here, Zhao Feng dreaded the battlefield.
He had no choice but to be on the battlefield.
Even with his skills, he couldn't be sure of surviving ten thousand charging soldiers. If even he felt that way, how much worse was it for the ordinary soldiers?
This era—
Was far too cruel!
Some people, maybe, refused to remain ordinary and wanted to seek fame, to get ahead among the elites by merit, but that was too hard.
The vast majority were forcefully conscripted and had no choice but to fight.
Hearing Zhao Feng's words—
Wang Yan fell silent again; this time, she really didn't know how to respond.
This brief meeting was barely as long as an incense stick, yet Wang Yan felt a strange, inexplicable feeling fill her heart.
"Looking at the Army Marquis, you must be from a noble family."
"To have the protection of a trusted aide, something only the main general gets, of course you have great ambitions—to win glory for the imperial court, and for your clan."
"And there's nothing wrong with that."
"But for me, and for countless soldiers from ordinary backgrounds, our greatest wish isn't power or rank, but simply to survive, to keep our mothers from shedding tears, and fulfill our duty of filial piety."
"For every general's victory, ten thousand bones are left to rot."
"For a commoner, to not starve, to care for the whole family."
"For a conscripted soldier, to not die on the battlefield."
"That's what I, as a commoner, and maybe countless others think."
"All in all—"
"For a king to want to unite the world, to achieve what no one else has, there's nothing wrong with that."
"For ministers and nobles to expand the realm and win merit for the country, there's nothing wrong with that either."
"But as a commoner, as a soldier, to want to survive, to fulfill filial piety to one's mother—there's nothing wrong with that, too." Zhao Feng smiled, with deep emotion in his words.
Hearing Zhao Feng's words—
Wang Yan's eyes grew more complex, as if she, too, started to understand.
Zhao Feng said nothing more, quietly eating the meat roasting over the campfire.
When he'd eaten his fill—
Zhao Feng slowly stood, looking at Wang Yan with meaning in his gaze.
...