The Qin Empire founded in 221 BC was the inevitable result of a long and complex historical process, marking a new development step in Chinese history with the establishment of a strong centralized monarchy and empire.
According to the Records of the Grand Historian, the war of invasion and the miserable situation of the Qin army in Viet land lasted "more than 10 years". According to the Chinese chronicles, Qin Shi Huang died in 210 BC, Qin Er Shi succeeded to the throne for a short time, and had to order a ceasefire in Viet land in 208 BC. So the war of invasion of the Qin army could have started in 218 BC (the 29th year of Qin Shi Huang since Qin Ying Zheng ascended the throne in 246 BC). The Records of the Grand Historian also recorded: "[The Qin Dynasty] established three districts of Guilin, Nanhai and Xiang, and sent exiles to live among the Vietnamese for 13 years". The Qin Dynasty died in 206 BC. The year of the army's departure in 218 BC also fits the above 13-year period (218-206 BC). Also according to the Records of the Grand Historian, the Qin Dynasty established three districts in 214 BC.

According to Hoai Nam Tu, the 500,000 Qin troops were divided into 5 armies:
- The first army was stationed at Dam Thanh Pass.
- The second army was stationed at Cuu Nghi Pass.
- The third army was stationed at Phien Nung.
- The fourth army guarded the Nam Da region.
- The fifth army was stationed at Du Can River.
The fifth army was stationed in Yugan (Fujian) and the fourth army was stationed in Nanye (Jiangxi) and was the force that attacked Dongyue (south of Zhejiang) and Minyue (Fujian). After occupying this land, the Qin Dynasty established Minzhong district.
The third army was stationed in Panyu (Guangzhou) in the territory of the Nam Viet group (Guangdong). This army followed the road from Truong Sa, crossed Ngu Linh to Guangdong. The fourth and fifth armies may also have advanced to Panyu, joined up with the third army. The Qin army occupied Nam Viet land, established Nam Hai district.

The second army was stationed at Jiu Yi Pass in northeastern Guangxi bordering Hunan.
The first army was stationed at Dam Thanh Pass, a pass in Thuy An land on Viet Thanh mountain in Ngu Linh, on the road from Hunan to northeastern Guangxi.
The first and second armies entered Guangxi, the territory of the Western Au (or Au Viet) group. The Qin army's grain transport boats all went upstream on the Xiang River, which originates from Ngu Linh and flows into Dongting Lake. But when they reached the source of the Xiang River, there was no waterway to transfer to the Ly River, or Que River, and enter the interior of Guangxi. Therefore, Tu Thu ordered Giam Loc to "take soldiers to dig a canal to clear the grain route" (Hoai Nam Tu). That was Linh Cu or Hung An canal connecting the Xiang River with the Ly River, which still exists today. Loc was originally a Vietnamese and held the position of imperial historian of the Qin Dynasty. Loc was knowledgeable about the terrain of the Ling Nam region and was good at rivers, so Tu Thu assigned him to be in charge of transporting food and opening Linh Cu to clear the waterway from the Xiang River to the Ly River.
During the 3 years (218-215 BC) since the start of the campaign, the Qin army had to dig canals and deal with the fighting of the Viet people, so "for three years they did not take off their armor or unsling their crossbows" (Hoai Nam Tu). After that, thanks to Linh Cu, the Qin army followed the Ly River (Que River) to enter the Tay Giang basin, the territory of the Western Au people. The Qin army killed a Western Au chieftain, Dich Hu Tong, but met fierce resistance from the Vietnamese people.
In 214 BC, the Qin Dynasty occupied the land of Luc Luong, establishing three districts: Nam Hai, Que Lam and Tuong. Nam Hai was the region of Guangdong (captured by the third army). Que Lam was the northern and eastern region of Guangxi. Where was Tuong district? This is a matter related to the invasion of the Qin army and the resistance of the Tay Au-Lac Viet people, of the Van Lang-Au Lac people.
Dai Viet Su Luoc does not record the invasion of the Qin army, but only records Trieu Da's invasion of An Duong Vuong's Au Lac country.

First of all, Tuong district could not be Nhat Nam district, and even more so could not cover the three districts of Giao Chi, Cuu Chan and Nhat Nam of the Han dynasty.
The oldest document recording Tuong district of the Qin Dynasty as Nhat Nam district of the Han Dynasty is a footnote in the Book of Former Han when writing about Nhat Nam district of the Han Dynasty: "Nhat Nam district - Tuong district of the Qin Dynasty in the past...". Later historical and geographical works of China and ours all followed this, annotating or recording the location of Tuong district as corresponding to Nhat Nam district, or to be more reasonable, including Giao Chi and Cuu Chan.
But the Book of Former Han, the Annals section about Emperor Zhao of Han (87-74 BC) clearly states: "In the 5th year of the Yuanfeng reign (76 BC), the Xiang district was abolished and the land was divided into two districts: Yulin and Xiangkha". Yulin district was the Guangxi region. Xiangkha district was located to the west of Yulin district and included part of Guizhou. So the location of Xiang district was western Guangxi and part of southern Guizhou. The headquarters of Xiang district, according to the Maoling book cited in the commentary of the Book of Former Han, was Linchen in the west of Nanning, in Xinyang county, Guangxi province.
According to the research results of H. Maspéro, in the oldest Chinese documents about Tuong district, there are only 5 passages talking about the location of that district, 4 passages - including 1 passage in Mau Lang Thu, 2 passages in Son Hai Kinh and 1 passage in Tien Han Thu - all confirm that Tuong district is in Southern China, only the footnote of Tien Han Thu places Tuong district in Nhat Nam district of Han dynasty. The confusion between Tuong district and Nhat Nam district may be because Tuong district is a southern district of Qin empire, and Nhat Nam district is also a southern district of Han empire and among the 5 districts of Nhat Nam district, Tuong Lam district is in the extreme south.
Furthermore, after the Qin Dynasty established the three districts of Nanhai, Guilin, and Xiang, and after Zhao Tuo occupied those three districts to establish a separate state, the Au Lac country still existed as an independent country. Therefore, according to the Records of the Grand Historian, after the death of Empress Gao (in 180 BC), Zhao Tuo took over the Au Lac country. Xiang district could not include Giao Chi district, Cuu Chan district which was the territory of the Au Lac country, nor could it be Nhat Nam district in the south of the Au Lac country.

In 214 BC, when establishing Guilin and Xiang districts, the Qin army entered the Xijiang basin and basically occupied this area. On the momentum of victory, with a convenient waterway for transporting food, of course the Qin army did not stop there. From Xijiang, the Qin army could follow the Zuojiang and Qiqiong rivers to enter the northern and northeastern regions of our country. The Western Au and Lac Viet people rose up to fight against the Qin invaders. History books do not record this resistance, but the legend of Ly Ong Trong somewhat reflects the clash between the Qin dynasty and An Duong Vuong.
Linh Nam Chich Quai recorded the story of Ly Ong Trong as follows: "At the end of the Hung King's reign, there was a man in Thuy Huong commune, Tu Liem district, Giao Chi land, whose family name was Ly and whose name was Than. He was born very big, 2 truong 3 thuoc tall, arrogant, and often killed people, deserving death, but Hung King could not bear to kill him. During the reign of An Duong Vuong, Qin Thuy Hoang wanted to send troops to attack our country. An Duong Vuong then sent Ly Than to pay tribute to the Qin Dynasty."
Thuc Phan was originally a leader of the Western Europeans in the northern area of Van Lang at that time, including a part of southern Guangxi, with the center being Cao Bang. After a Western European chieftain, Dich Hu Tong, was sacrificed, Thuc Phan and many other Western European and Lac Viet leaders continued to organize the fight against the Qin army.
Faced with the initial strength of the Qin army, "the Vietnamese all went into the forest, lived with the animals, and no one wanted to be captured by the Qin army" (Hoai Nam Tu), "the Vietnamese fled" (Historical Records). That was not a flight out of fear or defeat, but on the contrary, it was a way of fighting the enemy. The Vietnamese retreated into the forest to avoid the initial strength of the Qin army, not wanting to fight a big battle, not organizing a decisive battle when they did not have an advantage. Meanwhile, "they together appointed talented people as generals to fight the Qin army at night" (Hoai Nam Tu). Obviously, this was a resilient, intelligent and organized fight. The Vietnamese knew how to rely on the social structure of their existing villages and tribes, knew how to take advantage of the mountainous terrain to persevere in a long-term fight, attacking small, sneaking, and attacking at night to wear down the enemy's troops and destroy the enemy's source of food. It can be said that this was a fading form of guerrilla warfare.
The Vietnamese people's ingenious and persistent resistance made the Qin army "run out of food and supplies" and "stationed in useless land, unable to advance or retreat" (Historical Records). The enemy army was increasingly forced into a tense, dangerous situation that was almost hopeless: "Men wore armor, women had to carry loads, and life was unbearable. People hanged themselves on trees along the road. The dead looked at each other" (Historical Records).
At that time, the Vietnamese gathered their forces and organized a large-scale attack to destroy the enemy's forces and crush the Qin invasion. As a result, the Vietnamese "greatly defeated the Qin army and killed Do Thu. [The Qin army] had hundreds of thousands of corpses and blood flowing" (Hoai Nam Tu). In 208 BC, the Qin dynasty had to withdraw its troops.
The Qin Dynasty's invasion of the Bai Viet lasted for 10 years (218-208 BC). Many groups of Vietnamese people participated in the resistance war against the Qin, contributing to the destruction of the Qin army. The resistance war against the Qin by our people, by the Tay Au and Lac Viet people in the Van Lang - Au Lac country at that time, lasted about 5 or 6 years, from about 214 BC to 208 BC.
The resistance against the Qin was the first historical confrontation between our people and a Great Han empire in China. It was the resistance of a small country against the great invasion of a powerful and brutal empire in the East.

Faced with that fierce challenge, our people demonstrated their determination to fight to protect their independent, free lives and their own way of life, daring to resist and successfully resist the invading forces of a great empire.
Our people's resistance against the Qin army achieved a glorious victory. The Qin army was heavily annihilated, "defeated", driven out of our country and had to retreat to hold the three districts that had been established in the north of our country. Many groups of Vietnamese participated in the fight against the Qin army, but only our people's resistance to defend the country achieved complete victory. That was the resounding victory of our people's long struggle against the invasion of the Great Han empire in the North.

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