The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 168: The magnificent waves of Xianyang

Xinzheng, Han Palace, Xin Palace, and Front Hall.

King Ran of Han was holding a grand court meeting specifically for Prince Chengjiao.

In the hall, King Han saw Master Cheng Jiao for the first time.

He looked at the boy's resolute face, met his clear eyes, and finally looked at the boy's phoenix eyes inherited from his sister, and smiled:
"Yes, it's so similar. What a beautiful baby."

Young Master Chengjiao frowned slightly, looking somewhat displeased, and said seriously:

“The boy would rather be called handsome.

"I always think the word 'beautiful' is more suitable for describing women."

In the pre-Qin period, beauty was a common adjective, so Ying Chengjiao's words were a bit nitpicking.

However, few of the Han officials were angry. They all looked at Prince Chengjiao with great interest, as if they were watching a junior showing off his skills in front of an expert.

Ying Chengjiao made a great reputation in the world for his virtue, his reputation surpassing that of Wei Wuji, the most famous virtuous person before him. Many people in various countries believed that he was a gentleman.

However, the countries do not include South Korea.

Anyone with a little status in Korea doesn't believe that a seven-year-old kid is a gentleman.

No, there are no gentlemen in this world at all.

The so-called gentlemen are all pretending, and are just pretending to be gentlemen in order to seek things.

Korean consensus: Everything in the world is part of a plan.

For example, the young man in front of him was talking back to the king. He must have been instructed by someone, and the person behind the scenes had his own intentions.

Han Wangran was not angry, but laughed even more happily.

He actually stepped down from the throne, then touched Prince Chengjiao's little head and said:
"What a handsome kid."

Ying Chengjiao turned his head, his displeasure becoming more obvious.

He took a step back like an adult and bowed slightly:

"It's very rude of the King of Han to meet in private. Is this how the King of Han usually behaves?"

If the previous one was nitpicking, then this was a scolding.

Han Wangran was unhappy.
The ministers turned their heads and looked at each other, each with a smile in their eyes, looking as if they were enjoying a good show.

Originally, Ying Chengjiao had some changes in his views on South Korea.

His mother's conspiracy and Han Fei's loyalty gave him a slight update on his attitude towards Korea.

With the support of such a group of people, South Korea will not only survive in the short term, but may also have a second spring.

Today, he looked around and saw that all the Korean ministers were sitting on chairs as spectators. Almost no one was angry or annoyed. He felt that his renewal was in vain.

If the king of Zhao was insulted, his ministers would be angry.

But in South Korea, the Korean civil and military officials had no idea that the lord would be humiliated and the minister would die, as if King Han’s scolding had nothing to do with them.

No, it is still related... Ying Chengjiao saw a gleam of gloating in the eyes of several people.

The relationship between the monarch and his subjects is so bad that the life and death of South Korea depends on the mood of the neighboring big country, and its death is not far away.

Ying Chengjiao's face was filled with anger, and he pointed at Han Guowenwu, whose butt seemed to be welded to the chair:

"The king has been accused, but none of you have spoken out. Are you still the ministers of Korea?"

The ministers were very surprised. How could they possibly talk back?

When the king's majesty declines, control will be relaxed and the vacant power will be divided among his ministers.

Han Wangran, who had just felt uncomfortable, now felt better. He felt that Master Chengjiao was full of righteousness!

These ministers should work hard for him as their king!
Prince Chengjiao looked at the King of Han, then at Han Chen, and finally looked up to the sky and cried out:
"Alas! The energy of the rulers and ministers of Han was spent on guarding against conspiracy, so how could they have any spare energy to think about the people?
"Zheng is such a wise man, and his flood control skills are second to none in the world.

"Han handed over the country to Qin and ordered it to help Qin control the floods without considering its own people.

"How can such a country last long?"

The Korean monarch and his ministers, who had always been at odds with each other, reached a consensus for the first time.

They looked at Master Cheng Jiao, with smiles in their eyes that could not be faded.

It turns out that the person behind Master Chengjiao is not here.

Without the guidance of someone behind the scenes, a seven-year-old child is just a seven-year-old child, a seven-year-old child who can only do childish and stupid things!
"My lord, you are a righteous man. I am meeting a saint today!" King Han Ran bowed to Ying Chengjiao.

All the ministers stood up, clasped their hands, and bowed to Prince Chengjiao:

"Sir, we are meeting a saint today!"

The sound roared, as if it would shake the hall into pieces.

"How hypocritical! How hypocritical!" Prince Chengjiao jumped up and cursed: "If you had put a little more thought into the people and the country, Han would not have fallen into the situation it is today! Shen Buhai is the one who strengthened Han, but also the one who destroyed Han!"

Han Wangran held back his laughter.

You little brat, do you really think you are a wise man?

After betraying Qin twice in a row, how dare you interfere in South Korea’s national policy?
There were a few laughs from among the Korean ministers, which seemed to be there and not there.

Without Shen Buhai, Han would not have been known as Jinghan. Shen Buhai's status in Han was like Shang Yang's in Qin.

It is extremely stupid to say that Shen Buhai was the one who destroyed Han.

That’s right, can a person who can unite five countries to harm his own country be considered smart?
East Sea Palace.

Han Fei was writing "Han Feizi" when his brush suddenly broke into two pieces.

Han Fei was stunned, staring at the broken end of the brush in a daze.

[A pen is a symbol of one’s will and will. If it is broken without reason, it is a bad omen…]
As soon as he thought of this, he no longer had the mood to write.

He walked out of the palace, as graceful as an immortal, surrounded by flowers, looking towards the front hall of Xin Palace with a sad face.

He is concerned about his motherland.

When an immortal has worldly thoughts and descends to the mortal world, he is considered a banished immortal.

He came to the world for the sake of his motherland, but his king was wary of him.

The king said that he had a lot of free time and didn't know how to share the government affairs, but in fact he didn't allow him to participate in major court meetings or minor council meetings.

Han Fei recommended many of his fellow apprentices to the king, the most prominent of whom was his fellow apprentice Li Si, who was recommended no less than ten times.

So far, Han Wangran has not accepted any of them.

Peach Blossom Palace.

Ji Yaoyao laughed so brightly that tears flowed from her eyes.

That pair of pretty faces stained with sad tears is so beautiful.

"South Korea." She laughed and cried, then cried and laughed: "It's too late to save it."

Once upon a time, she also wanted to be the person who turned the tide, and she did it.

With one plan, he led Qin and Zhao to fight against each other, and married himself to protect the safety of Han.

Unfortunately, she is not a man.

Unfortunately, the former king did not believe her.

Unfortunately, the people trained by a mediocre king are also mediocre kings.

Country, state and home.

If you can’t protect the country, then protect your home.

Wherever her son is, that is Ji Yaoyao's home.

She washed, drew her eyebrows, and dressed up, becoming even more beautiful than when she married into the Qin Kingdom.

She is the mother of Prince Chengjiao.

When she went to Qin, she accompanied Master Cheng Jiao.

Qin State, Xianyang, Prime Minister's Palace.

Lu Buwei was in the middle of the situation and still did what a prime minister should do, as if nothing had happened.

While reviewing the memorial and presenting it to the king, he seemed to have thrown the words "flood control" out of his mind.

The change in Queen Dowager Huayang's stance and the Chu faction's stance did not help, just as Lu Buwei and Queen Dowager Huayang had said.

Lu Buwei opened a scroll of memorials, and his eyes were reflected in the blank spaces on the bamboo slips and the tiny punctuation marks.

A smile appeared on his lips:
“Benevolence is the kingly way.

"The world should be like this!"

An hour later, Gan Luo, the chief secretary of the prime minister, saw Lü Buwei off to a carriage with four horses and accompanied him to the palace.

The little boy said worriedly in the carriage:

"Mr. Xiangbang, I..."

"In private, just address him casually and don't mention his official title." Lu Buwei said casually.

The little boy looked up and responded weakly, "Yes." He couldn't understand why his master had so many requirements for a title.

He had been criticized before for not being worthy of his lord's title.

Although he was only six years old and smart enough to be aware of the struggles in the court, he was unable to understand the meaning of a change in title.

If one holds an official position, it means that he is in the government and is a minister of Qin.

Gan Luo was not qualified for the position. He was a member of Lu Buwei's team and served his own interests first and then the public.

The little boy swallowed his saliva and said:
"My Lord, who are we going to see?"

"Queen Mother."

"Doesn't Queen Mother Huayang agree with the Lord?"

"Empress Dowager Xia."

After hearing the master's answer, the boy was stunned for a moment, then suddenly reacted.

There was more than one queen mother in the Qin State.

The Qin Prince Chu was able to ascend the throne smoothly because of the status he had obtained thanks to Queen Dowager Xia.

A high carriage drawn by four horses, with four horses and sixteen hooves.

The tapping sounds were dense and urgent, like urgent drum beats.

Lu Buwei closed his eyes and rested, as he didn't have much time left.

Before Master Chengjiao returns, he wants to unite all the forces that can be united.

Every bit of strength he gained would reduce the burden on Master Chengjiao.

Central Palace, Summer Palace.

The Summer Palace was the secluded residence of Empress Dowager Xia, far away from the Ganquan Palace in the center, located in a corner of the Central Palace.

After becoming the empress dowager, Queen Dowager Xia still had a very low sense of presence, just like before she became the empress dowager.

Apart from showing up in front of the late king's coffin to support Prince Chu of Qin, there was almost no other major movement afterwards.

As a result, few people in Qin remember that there were two queen dowagers in Qin.

Others may not remember, but Prince Chu of Qin does.

After ascending the throne, he finally no longer had to worry about displeasing Queen Dowager Huayang and not daring to visit his biological mother.

No matter how busy the government affairs were in a week, as long as he was in Xianyang, Prince Chu of Qin would visit Queen Mother Xia at least three times.

The five-horse royal carriage drove into the Summer Palace, and Prince Chu of Qin arrived.

He had just visited Empress Dowager Xia yesterday, and the Summer Palace was not on his itinerary today.

He came here because Queen Mother Xia invited him.

Queen Mother Xia rarely invited him, and this was the second time.

When he was in the carriage of the Five Horse King, Prince Qin's face was still a little unhappy. He already knew what his mother was going to say to him.

The attendant Ying Bai reported that the Prime Minister's carriage had left the Summer Palace half an hour ago.

When the carriage officer lifted the curtain and Prince Qin Wangchu walked out of the carriage, his expression was the same as usual.

He walked into the main palace of the Xia Palace, walked up to Queen Mother Xia with a smile, bowed and greeted her.

Queen Mother Xia helped her son up.

She looked much younger than Queen Mother Huayang, and her former beauty could still be seen between her eyebrows and eyes.

She pulled Qin Wang Zichu to sit down, opened her mouth, and closed it again.

He looked uneasy and seemed hesitant to speak.

She has never had much say, doesn't know how to argue, and doesn't dare to ask questions. Saying one more word might bring disaster.

When the previous king was alive, she had been in a state of semi-confinement.

The previous king favored many beauties, and she was just one of them. She was no different from the other beauties.

In the eyes of the previous king, they were all playthings.

If it pleases you, you can have some fun with it. If it displeases you, you can punish it. In the most serious case, you can kill it.

Ageing and fading beauty were things that displeased the former king.

The only one who had not lost the favor of the previous king, Queen Mother Huayang, was old. Prince Chu of Qin felt a little sad.

This woman, whom Jin Gui dared not say much even though she was the empress dowager, was his biological mother, the mother who gave birth to him after ten months of pregnancy.

When he was not king, he did not dare to fulfill his filial piety and missed his mother but could not see her.

Now that he is the king, he can see his mother anytime and show his filial piety to his heart's content.

He had great power, but he could not change his mother's cautious nature.

This was Empress Dowager Xia's habit for decades, and the reason she was able to live for decades.

Qin Wang Zichu held his mother's hand a little harder and said softly:
"Mom, my son is here.

"If you have anything to say, just say it."

Queen Mother Xia lowered her head, like a child who had made a mistake, if you didn't look at her head full of white hair.

She mustered up her courage and whispered:
"Yi Ren, when you weren't here to see me, it was Cheng Jiao who took care of me. Could you please stop making things difficult for Cheng Jiao?"

King Qin Zichu felt bitter.

The name "Yiren" has been forgotten, and now only Queen Mother Xia still remembers it.

"Mother, I didn't make things difficult for Cheng Jiao." He explained with a smile, "It's just that this child is a little naive and doesn't think about some issues very well. I just can't listen to him."

The white hair trembled up and down, covering the face of Queen Mother Xia:

"I, I'm just saying..."

The queen mother never advised Prince Chu of Qin again and rarely spoke to him.

It was Qin Wang Zichu who spoke, and she would respond once or twice, but her words were mostly just fragments.

She looked like she didn't know how to talk to her son.

Qin Wang Zichu had tears in his eyes, and they began to flow as he spoke.

He didn't know how to talk to his mother in a way that would make her happy.

He could get his mother out of the confinement palace, but he could not get her out of the prison in his heart.

He lowered his head slightly, trying his best not to tremble and worry his mother, and wiped his tears with his sleeve.

As soon as he raised his sleeve, a not-so-rough, somewhat old finger brushed across his eyes.

He looked up and finally saw his mother's face again.

Queen Mother Xia looked worried, with pity in her eyes:

"Don't cry, stranger. Mother won't say anything."

There is an open space outside the Guanzheng Qinxue Hall.

Ying Zheng was practicing martial arts, and there were several children around him practicing with him.

The martial arts teacher who taught these children was stern, his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, and he kept scolding them:

"Li Xin! Stand still! If I see you bend your knees again, I will break your legs!"

"Meng Tian! The gun is crooked!"

"Meng Yi! Are you imitating your brother? Hold on tight!"

"Xiong Qi! Put away your Chu-style behavior! Who can you beat here? You have nothing to lose!"

"Xiong Wen! You said your brother didn't say anything about you, right? Who are you looking down upon? If you don't want to practice, get out!"

"Ying Zheng! You are the crown prince of Qin, not an actor! You learn sword skills to kill people, not to entertain people! Your sword is so soft, are you flirting?"

The six children didn't dare to talk back as they were used to being scolded.

Li Xin, Meng Tian, ​​Meng Yi, Xiong Wen, and Xiong Qi glanced at the prince from time to time, and they were all a little confused.

The prince's swordsmanship was indeed a little poor today. Could it be that he was just called by the prime minister and scolded?
night.

The streets of Xianyang were almost deserted except for the patrolling soldiers.

Xianyang was under curfew. If you walked on the street at this time without an ID, you would be killed as a thief.

The moonlight shines, and it is cold and quiet.

At some point, a carriage pulled by two horses cut through the night, the sound of hooves breaking the silence, and stopped in front of the prime minister's mansion.

The driver respectfully lifted the curtain and led a graceful figure out of the carriage.

The moonlight is cold, and the beautiful figure’s face is even colder than the moonlight.

The driver stepped forward and knocked on the door of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

He first slapped Lao Ai, who had opened the door with a curse, and then raised his head and said proudly:

"Master Chang Shi greets the Prime Minister. Please go out to greet him!"

Lao Ai suppressed his anger, covered his face, and glanced at Ying Bai who was standing outside.

In an instant, he became even angrier.

In Zhao State, there was no woman he could not play with.

He took a deep look at Ying Bai's pretty face and remembered Ying Bai in his heart.

He asked the guards in the courtyard to guard the gate, turned around to report to the prime minister, and after he was out of sight of the door, he spat fiercely:
"See my bird and make you cry!"

Soon, Prime Minister Lu Buwei put on his clothes and walked to the door slowly.

He stood inside the Prime Minister's Mansion, and Ying Bai stood outside the Prime Minister's Mansion. The two looked at each other, and neither of them had any intention of taking the next step.

Ying Bai exhaled lightly, his gaze became much colder, and he locked onto Lu Buwei's face, which was as thin as the king's:

"Have you had enough trouble?"

Lu Buwei shook his head:

"not enough."

"You shouldn't have looked for Queen Mother Xia. You know that Queen Mother Xia doesn't care about government affairs."

"How did the king ascend the throne when Queen Mother Xia was not in charge of government?"

"How dare you!" Ying Bai shouted, "How dare you overstep your bounds and talk about the king!"

Lu Buwei looked at Ying Bai calmly and said calmly:
"You are a regular attendant, and you came to visit me late at night. It is truly an act of usurpation for me, the Prime Minister, to go out and greet me."

Ying Bai's face flashed with anger and he was about to speak again.

Lu Buwei spoke quickly, before Ying Bai could say:
"roll."

Ying Bai's eyes widened, with more surprise than anger.

Since the Qin Prince Chu ascended the throne, no one who knew her identity had dared to be so disrespectful to her.

She stared at Lu Buwei without saying a word.

I was about to speak just now but was interrupted, so this time I don’t know what to say for a moment.

There was finally a hint of coldness in Lu Buwei's words.

This Prime Minister, who had overwhelmed the Chu clique in the court in just a few months and was the most powerful person besides the King of Qin, spoke clearly, which touched Ying Bai's heart:
“Find your seat.

“Anyone can do what you can do.

“What I can do, only I can do.

"If you come to me alone again without the king's permission, I will kill you."

Before he finished speaking, he turned and left, completely ignoring the long-serving attendant Ying Bai who had a livid face.

The driver was even angrier than Ying Bai.

When the master is inconvenient, it is the time for the servant to show his loyalty.

The driver raised his whip, pointed at Lu Buwei's back, and shouted:
"How dare you disrespect the Lord Chamberlain!"

He shouted and felt satisfied, ready to collect the reward later.

Just as the joy was rising, a voice came into my ears:
"kill."

This seemed to be the voice of the Prime Minister... As soon as this thought flashed through the driver's mind, the moonlight reflected by the sharp blade filled his eyes.

Qin's sword was unsheathed, stained with blood, and the driver was dead.

Lao Ai stepped on the driver's face, twisted his toes and rubbed it hard.

The revenge for being slapped in the face was taken back within the first night.

Lao Ai spat with a grim smile, looking at the attendant Ying Bai provocatively, feeling that spitting in front of someone rather than behind his back felt much more satisfying.

Ying Bai glared at Lu Buwei's back, his body shaking with anger.

She clenched her fists and wanted to die here to protect the king. She was really not afraid of death.

She stood for a moment, turned around silently, and drove the carriage away from the prime minister's mansion.

Fortunately, this carriage has two horses and she can still control it.

She couldn't die, at least not now.

She came here tonight on a private basis, and the king was unaware of it.

She wanted to tell the king about Lu Buwei's arrogant face and let the king know what kind of person Lu Buwei was!

The king is above all else.

Inside the door, Lu Buwei heard the sound of horse hooves fading away, suddenly stopped, and suddenly smiled.

I have to say, it feels so good to rely on your important status to kill people without saying anything.

The last time in front of Bai Qi, he understood Fan Ju.

This time in front of Ying Bai, he understood Bai Qi.

He walked back to the door and watched Lao Ai, who had been recruited to Xianyang for his meritorious service in Zhao State, trample the driver to a bloody pulp, and spit at him again and again.

Lao Ai, who was concentrating on abusing the corpse, was completely unaware of Lu Buwei's arrival. He had never suffered such injustice in Zhao State and he had to vent it out completely.

When he had finished venting his anger, he looked back and saw his master was right behind him.

He was startled, then relaxed, smiled and raised his hands:
"I'm sorry to make you laugh, my lord."

He didn't think anything was wrong.

The master had killed the man, and he just stepped on the corpse a few times and spat a few times. What's the big deal?
Lü Buwei looked at this majestic retainer, and a cold look reappeared in his eyes:

“I have told you that Qin is different from Zhao, and Xianyang is different from Handan.

"Here, you have to be patient. It seems you didn't remember that."

Lao Ai didn't know what he had done wrong, he just knew that his master was angry, so he just apologized.

He knelt down with a plop and said sincerely:

"It's Lao Ai's fault. Please forgive me this time, my lord."

Lu Buwei looked down at Lao Ai and shook his head:

"Go back to Handan. I will leave all matters concerning the Handan Chamber of Commerce to you."

He has no way of using people like this.

Being so ostentatious in Xianyang and not knowing how to be patient will sooner or later bring him into trouble.

Only then did Lao Ai realize the seriousness of the problem and was horrified.

He had finally arrived in Xianyang, so how could he be willing to go back?

My good brother Zhao Di is about to take the position of Nine Ministers, which is thousands of times stronger than the Lu's Chamber of Commerce!
How can business be compared with politics?

"My Lord!" Lao Ai kowtowed repeatedly, tears streaming down his face. "Please consider that Lao Ai has followed my Lord for thirteen years! Please give Lao Ai another chance! Please give Lao Ai another chance!"

Under normal circumstances, Lu Buwei would have driven Lao Ai away.

But now is the time for him to employ people, and it would be best if the people he employs are more loyal to him than to Qin.

The three words "thirteen years" moved Lu Buwei and made him decide to give Lao Ai another chance.

He stepped out of the gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion and gently kicked the driver's body:
“It’s hard to undo what’s spilled.

“If you can take back what you did, then stay here for now.

"Lick the traces clean before dawn."

Young Master Chengjiao's return day is approaching, and he has little time left and no time to train anyone. This is the fastest way of testing he thought of on the spur of the moment.

If you can endure such a huge humiliation, you will be able to endure smaller humiliations in the future.

After Lu Buwei left, Lao Ai curled up next to the driver's corpse.

go?
Or...stay.

That night, a wild dog appeared outside the Prime Minister's Mansion, sticking out its tongue and licking the dead body.

Eat blood, saliva, and mud into your stomach.

Eight days later, Prince Chengjiao, wearing the seals of five countries, passed through Hangu Pass and went as a envoy to Qin.

　6k, and another 2k, continue tomorrow

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(End of this chapter)