DLERB -Chapter 173 The Eight-Year-Old Supreme Commander Shocks the World? The Old Generals: “We Are Willing to Serve as His Vanguard!”

Li Si lay stiff on the cold stone floor, eyes shut, completely unconscious.

Li Si

Qin Shi Huang didn’t even spare him a glance.

To him, the man lying on the ground was not the Chancellor of Great Qin—just an obstacle in the way.

His gaze remained fixed on his eight-year-old son.

Within that gaze burned fire, steel, and an ambition vast enough to melt the entire world.

“Guards.”

Qin Shi Huang’s voice was calm, yet carried absolute authority.

Two armored guards stepped from the shadows outside the hall and knelt on one knee.

“Bring me the Marshal’s Golden Seal.”

The guards obeyed immediately without hesitation.

Qin Shi Huang

Ying Ziye stood where he was.

The small child faced the emperor who ruled all under heaven, yet there was no excitement, no nervousness, no fear on his face.

He simply watched calmly.

As if what he was about to receive was not command over an army, but merely an ordinary toy.

…

Xianyang Palace, Qilin Hall.

The officials stood in ordered ranks.

Then an imperial decree—one capable of overturning all of Great Qin—was read aloud across the entire court by a palace eunuch with a shrill voice.

“…The Ninth Prince, Ying Ziye, is hereby appointed Grand Marshal of the Western Expedition, commander of the dual armies, tasked with expanding the empire’s borders. Generals Wang Jian and Meng Tian are appointed deputy commanders to assist the Marshal…”

The moment the decree ended, everyone in the hall thought they had misheard.

An elderly official with white hair and beard staggered forward trembling.

It was Kong Fu, the court academic overseer.

Kong Fu

“Your Majesty!”

His voice sounded as though someone were strangling him.

“The Ninth Prince… is only eight years old! An eight-year-old commanding the armies? This… this is absurd!”

“Never before in history! Completely unheard of!”

“I beg Your Majesty to reconsider and withdraw this decree!”

The instant he spoke, it was like lighting a powder keg.

“I second the motion!”

“Your Majesty! Matters of state and war cannot be handled so recklessly!”

“To make the empire’s two greatest military gods serve as deputies to a mere child? Once this decree spreads, the army will descend into chaos! The entire realm will be shaken!”

The civil officials—especially the Confucian faction—dropped to their knees one after another.

They cried and protested as though the end of Great Qin had arrived.

Qin Shi Huang sat upon the throne, expressionless as he looked at the kneeling crowd below.

He said nothing.

Then—

“Who says the army will fall into chaos?”

A voice like thunder exploded through the hall.

The veteran general Wang Jian stepped forward.

His weathered face held no disbelief or ridicule.

Only an overwhelming battle spirit, barely restrained and ready to erupt.

Wang Jian

“I have witnessed the Ninth Prince’s talents with my own eyes!”

“In the past, the prince presented potatoes and corn, saving the people of Great Qin from hunger!”

“And now, the prince has devised a heaven-shaking strategy to win eternal lands for our empire!”

Wang Jian turned around, his tiger-like eyes sweeping across the kneeling scholars.

“You rotten Confucians only know how to quote ancient texts. Have any of you ever added a single grain of rice to Qin’s stores? Have any of you expanded Qin’s borders by even an inch?”

“The Ninth Prince is only eight, yet his achievements surpass the entire court!”

“If he is not worthy of being Marshal, then who is?”

The moment he finished—

“This general, Meng Tian, agrees as well!”

Meng Tian strode forward, armor clanking loudly.

Meng Tian

“The Ninth Prince’s wisdom surpasses ours a hundredfold!”

“In the battle upon the grasslands, the prince strategized from afar and secured victory thousands of miles away, beating the Xiongnu so badly they still dare not ride south again!”

“What does age matter before such military genius?”

Meng Tian clasped his fists heavily toward the throne.

“Your Majesty is wise!”

“This general is willing to serve as the Ninth Prince’s vanguard! Through mountains of blades and seas of fire, I shall never retreat!”

“This general is willing to serve as the Ninth Prince’s vanguard!”

Wang Jian’s roar was even louder than Meng Tian’s.

The two towering pillars of Great Qin’s military had spoken together.

The kneeling civil officials instantly fell silent.

All their arguments suddenly seemed pale and powerless before the empire’s legendary generals.

The atmosphere in the hall became incredibly strange.

The civil officials looked ashen.

The military officers’ eyes gleamed with excitement.

They were already itching for battle.

Just as tensions reached their peak—

“Report!”

A long cry echoed from outside the hall.

A dust-covered messenger carrying a red command flag rushed into the palace.

“Urgent report from the Eastern Sea!”

The messenger dropped to one knee and raised a sealed letter high above his head.

“A fast dispatch from the Eldest Prince, Fusu!”

Fusu

A eunuch took the letter and presented it to Qin Shi Huang.

The emperor opened it and glanced through it once.

For the first time, a smile appeared upon his calm face.

He casually handed the letter to the eunuch.

“Read it.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

The eunuch cleared his throat and loudly began reading:

“Reporting to Father Emperor: To the east of the Eastern Sea, your son has used the methods bestowed by Ninth Brother. The newly refined equipment has been completed. The silver mines are now being worked day and night without rest. Production has already doubled compared to before!”

“Boom!”

Those words struck like another bolt of heavenly thunder.

Doubled again?

The Eastern Sea silver mines had already been producing enough silver to sustain the entire empire.

And now the output had doubled once more?

What kind of scale was that?!

“The letter also says—” the eunuch’s voice trembled with excitement.

“The silver now produced by the mines is enough to support Great Qin’s dual expeditionary armies for ten years without concern for military expenses!”

Ten years!

Unlimited military funding!

Several ministers who had intended to argue that the imperial treasury was empty forcibly swallowed their words.

Their faces flushed red with frustration.

Again—it was the Ninth Prince!

Another impossible achievement had been added to his already heaven-defying record!

From that moment onward, no one in the great hall dared utter another objection.

Oppose him?

With what?

Their heads?

…

The news spread out of Xianyang Palace.

Within half an hour, the entire capital had heard it.

The Ninth Prince had been appointed supreme commander to conquer the world!

The whole of Xianyang erupted into chaos.

Wang Jian’s grandson, the young general Wang Li, had been polishing his spear in his residence.

The instant he heard the news—

“Clang!”

The spear fell from his hands onto the ground.

The next moment, he rushed out of the manor like a madman, not even bothering to properly fasten his armor before leaping onto his horse.

“Hyah!”

He galloped wildly straight toward the Ninth Prince’s residence.

At the mansion gates—

Wang Li jumped from his horse and stormed into Ying Ziye’s courtyard.

At that moment, Ying Ziye was holding the Marshal’s Golden Seal and stamping it playfully into the mud.

One golden marshal seal after another appeared upon the dirt.

“Thud!”

Wang Li dropped heavily to his knees before him.

He raised his head, and his young, reckless face was filled with fanatical admiration.

Wang Li

“Your Highness!”

His voice shook with excitement.

“This general, Wang Li, requests permission to serve as vanguard!”

“Whether by land or by sea!”

“Please grant this general ten thousand troops!”

Wang Li slammed his forehead against the ground with a heavy bang.

“I swear!”

“I will be the first to plant Great Qin’s Black Water Dragon Banner atop the walls of Rome!”

“If I fail, I shall offer my head in apology!”

…

Night.

Dark as ink.

Inside Zhangtai Palace, the lamps still blazed brightly.

Before the massive world sand-table stood only two people.

Qin Shi Huang and Ying Ziye.

Father and son spoke not a word.

They simply gazed silently at the map representing the entire world.

After a long while—

Qin Shi Huang slowly drew the Tianwen Sword from his waist.

The ancient blade radiated a sharpness capable of severing heaven and earth.

He did not hand the sword directly to Ying Ziye.

Instead, he walked to the sand-table.

With his free hand, he picked up a small wooden model representing a Roman warship.

Then—

He raised the Tianwen Sword.

And with one casual stroke across the tiny ship—

“Crack.”

The wooden vessel split cleanly into two halves.

Tianwen Sword

Qin Shi Huang sheathed the sword once more.

Then, with solemn care, he placed the imperial blade—the symbol of Great Qin’s supreme authority—into Ying Ziye’s small hands.

The sword was heavy.

The child needed both hands just to barely hold it steady.

“This journey…”

Qin Shi Huang finally spoke, his voice low and powerful.

“The road ahead is long. It may take ten years. Perhaps twenty before success is achieved.”

He looked at his son.

Within those restored youthful eyes was a level of trust and expectation unlike ever before.

“I…”

“Will remain in Xianyang.”

“And wait for your victorious return.”

Qin Shi Huang extended his hand and pressed it heavily upon Ying Ziye’s shoulder.

“Go.”

“Go and tell this world…”

“…who the true ruler under heaven is.”