General Teng collected the money and captured the dignitaries of the state of Han. After finishing his preparations, he was ready to return to the imperial court.
However, at this moment, Lin Tian found him, hesitating to speak.
"What is it, young Lin? Do you have something to tell me? Or do you need me to request a merit for you before the King?"
"Don't worry! Your merit this time is undeniable. Becoming a true general is a certainty!"
"Tsk tsk, a general in his teens, no matter where he goes, he brings glory to his ancestors."
As he spoke, General Teng couldn't help but laugh.
It was as if he had already put himself in Lin Tian's shoes, a young man with great achievements.
Thinking about it, it was truly wonderful, especially the possibility of attracting the attention of countless Chang'e from the moon, a feeling that General Teng himself had never experienced in his youth.
This made a hint of envy appear in General Teng's eyes.
However, Lin Tian was not thinking about these things. His ambition was greater.
"General Teng, I do have a request, but it is not about requesting merit!"
"Instead, I wish to request General Teng's permission to take the Right Vanguard Battalion to Sishui!"
"Sishui? What are you going to Sishui with your troops for?"
"Our Great Qin is destined to unify the Central Plains and eternally pacify the world! Therefore, I want to go to Sishui to find the lost Yuzhou Ding!"
At this time, most people in Great Qin knew that one of the Nine Cauldrons had fallen into Sishui.
However, as some time had passed and the currents in Sishui were swift, no one had yet determined where in Sishui the Yuzhou Ding had fallen.
But Lin Tian knew that in more than ten years, Ying Zheng would spend great effort searching for the whereabouts of the Yuzhou Ding.
And in Pengcheng, Sishui, the Yuzhou Ding was found.
However, during the salvage process, a strange incident occurred. It was said that a divine dragon bit off the rope, and the Yuzhou Ding fell back into the water and disappeared.
What Lin Tian wanted to do now was to take the Right Vanguard Battalion, salvage the Yuzhou Ding, and gain even greater merit.
Only in this way would he have the opportunity to participate in the next conquest of Zhao and other states.
Otherwise, he might be assigned to other places along with General Teng.
General Teng clearly sensed Lin Tian's intention and looked at him deeply.
"It seems your ambition is indeed great! However, countless people have searched for the whereabouts of the Nine Cauldrons. Do you really have the confidence to find and salvage the Yuzhou Ding?"
"I have a plan in my heart for this matter. I hope the General will fulfill my request!"
"Very well! I grant your request, but regardless of the outcome, you must arrive at Xianyang fifteen days from now!"
"Yes!"
General Teng's answer made Lin Tian breathe a sigh of relief.
Then, he led the Right Vanguard Battalion and headed straight for Pengcheng in Sishui.
However, upon arriving at Pengcheng, Lin Tian found that Pengcheng was not small, and determining the location of the Yuzhou Ding was not a simple matter.
"Find some soldiers who are good swimmers and have them search!"
"Inquire with the soldiers of Pengcheng to see if there are any legends of dragons in this area!"
"Additionally, invite those in Pengcheng who are skilled in water to search for the Yuzhou Ding with us. Anyone who finds it will be rewarded with a hundred gold!"
"Yes!"
Lin Tian issued these orders, naturally, to find the Yuzhou Ding faster.
Many people did not look favorably upon such actions.
This was because, before Lin Tian, many people had gone to Sishui to search for the Nine Cauldrons.
However, none of them had found the whereabouts of the Nine Cauldrons.
Fortunately, Lin Tian had pinpointed Pengcheng, and with the generous rewards, his search efforts yielded remarkable results.
On the third day, someone found traces of the Yuzhou Ding in Pengcheng, an area with legends of dragons.
As soon as this news broke, it instantly attracted the attention of a large number of people.
"Found it? They really found it??"
"Found it! Someone saw it underwater!"
"I never thought that the Yuzhou Ding, which we in Sishui searched for so long without success, was found by them in just three days!"
"Since the Yuzhou Ding has been found, does it mean that all Nine Cauldrons will belong to our Great Qin, and our Great Qin will unify the world!"
"There is indeed such a saying, but the Yuzhou Ding might not be easy to salvage!"
Salvaging was no simple task, especially with sharp rocks at the bottom of the river, which further increased the difficulty.
Moreover, when Lin Tian went down to inspect the Yuzhou Ding, he found that it was pressed down by several huge rocks, which made Lin Tian's salvage work even more complicated.
When others learned of this situation, they also became pessimistic.
"With so many huge rocks pressing it down, how can they lift the Yuzhou Ding!!"
"Yes! Those huge rocks are too difficult to handle, large and heavy, and underwater. This salvage work is not simple."
"It is said that the smallest of those huge rocks is as big as a cow, and the largest is as big as two rooms. With so many rocks pressing it down, without tens of thousands of people, it's unlikely they can lift this Yuzhou Ding!"
All these factors combined made people pessimistic about Lin Tian's attempt to salvage the Yuzhou Ding.
Many among them believed that Lin Tian's salvage would surely fail.
For this reason, many reported this news, hoping that the King would send more people to salvage the Yuzhou Ding, instead of letting Lin Tian and his few thousand men make a fuss here.
After all, the symbolic significance of the Yuzhou Ding was too great.
However, none of this affected Lin Tian.
After deciding to salvage, he began looking for strong ropes and also had them forge labor-saving pulleys.
The giant rocks pressing down the Yuzhou Ding were indeed enormous. With only their five thousand men, the operational space was limited.
If not careful, the Yuzhou Ding could fall back into Sishui again.
If that were to happen, finding the Yuzhou Ding again would be extremely difficult.
Therefore, Lin Tian needed to create labor-saving pulleys to ensure everything was foolproof.
Lin Tian's labor-saving pulleys needed to be not only large enough and have sufficient load-bearing capacity, but also ensure that they would not slip off the rope.
Thus, it would take some time to manufacture them.
Fortunately, the principle was simple, and as soon as Lin Tian explained it, the artisans knew what to do.
In just three days, Lin Tian had everything ready.
Then, he announced to everyone that they were preparing to salvage the Yuzhou Ding.
As soon as these words were spoken, a large number of civilians and officials came to watch.
"They are actually going to salvage it. Should we stop them and wait for the King to send a large army before formally salvaging?"
"Stop them? They are the frontline army. The news that came a few days ago was that the state of Han was destroyed, and the first to enter Xinzheng, the capital of Han, was General Lin Tian. What can you use to stop them, and what right do you have to stop them?"
"Then, we will just watch like this?"
"No, we must pray, pray that General Lin Tian can salvage the Yuzhou Ding!"
"Of course, if they fail to salvage it and the Yuzhou Ding is washed away by the water, we will ask General Lin to come to Xianyang to atone!"
Salvaging the Yuzhou Ding was an event of great significance. When Lin Tian announced that he would salvage the Yuzhou Ding today, some people voluntarily set up an altar and offered sacrifices to heaven.
Even though many civilians could not help directly, it did not affect their devout sacrifices.
Even Lin Tian followed this procedure before officially beginning the salvage.
...