The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 366: The work of the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty, two of the three Chu clans were killed
The morning meeting was over and the night was deep.

Mi Chen's carriage did not return to the mansion. Instead, it was driven by a driver and passed through Zhangtai Street and stopped in front of the gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Mi Chen was the Lord of Yangquan, and the rank of a Lord was the highest among his subjects, so the carriage he rode in was pulled by four horses.

The four good horses seemed to sense their master's complicated mood today. They stood straight with all four hooves on the ground and made almost no sound.

The carriage stopped for a short while before two other carriages with four horses drove by.
Come, the left and right ministers are back.

The two carriages that came later stopped ten steps away from Mi Chen's carriage. Xiong Wen and Xiong Qi got off one after another and walked to Mi Chen's carriage.

"Uncle, let's go inside and talk." Xiong Wen bowed to the car window.

He only said one sentence and waited quietly without saying anything extra.

Today, the court was held all day, and Mi Chen also read out the new law, his voice was hoarse. In this state, he was still waiting in front of the Prime Minister's Mansion. There must be something wrong, something big.

"I am a court guest, not the prime minister. I am not worthy to enter the prime minister's residence." A hoarse voice came from the carriage.

Xiong Wen lowered his eyes, reached out and tugged at his brother's sleeve, stopping him from retorting.

Ever since they became prime ministers, they claimed to have replaced Queen Dowager Huayang as the leader of the Chu faction. They did not take Mi Chen, the original core of the Chu faction, seriously in both big and small matters, unlike their respectful attitude when Queen Dowager Huayang was still around.

It was understandable that Mi Chen was resentful and said a few sarcastic words to them.

Perhaps because he didn't hear the harsh response, the hoarse voice was much softer when it sounded again:
“You, Shixiong, carry the royal blood of our Chu State. Sooner or later, the future will be yours.

“Don’t be too hasty.

"If the Lord of Chang'an had not taken care of this matter, no one would know whether your two brothers were among those whose limbs were chopped off at the gate."

At the court meeting today, when Xiong Wen spoke up to rescue Lin Sheng, Chang'an Jun directly pointed out the word "treason".

Xiong Wencai didn't continue speaking, he made one mistake after another.

If Chang An Jun had not pointed out these two words, but had used the trick to guide Xiong Wen to continue speaking...

The person involved, Xiong Wen, swallowed and felt a little cold.

"The future has not yet arrived." The old guest's voice was firm: "Return home."

The driver drove the carriage away from the Prime Minister's Mansion and returned to the Dianke Mansion.

The two real owners of the Prime Minister's Mansion stood outside the door, and their faces did not look good under the light of the torches in front of the door.

The copper bells under the eaves rang in the wind. Xiong Qi, who had never had a chance to speak, exuded a chilly aura:
"What does he mean? Is he blaming us brothers? Aren't we strengthening the Chu clan? Did we do something wrong?"

Xiong Wen placed his hand on his brother's right shoulder and pressed down hard:

"Brother, stop it."

"Brother, you are scared."

"Yes, I'm afraid. We have already gotten enough. Being greedy will not end well. If we continue like this, Yangquan Jun will not stand with us."

"Brother, listen to his harsh words. We are both surnamed Mi and we are both Chu people. If he doesn't stand with us, who else can he stand with?"

"Mr. Chang'an."

"...Are you joking, brother?"

"You know very well that I am not joking. When the Queen Mother was alive, the one who helped the most was not you or me, but Chang'an Jun. After the Queen Mother died, Chang'an Jun protected us several times. Brother, Lao Dianke is already standing behind Chang'an Jun. We..."

"I, Xiong Qi, will never be inferior to others." Xiong Qi said this with absolute certainty.

Xiong Wen let out a long sigh and made up his mind not to let his brother cause any more trouble.

In the Qin State, the right was respected, and the right prime minister was half as noble as the left prime minister.

As long as the Prime Minister's Office no longer rebels against Chang'an Jun, no one will notice that the Chu faction has been split into two.

[I will go visit Lord Huayang tomorrow.] Xiong Wen thought, and entered the mansion first.

The Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Justice are the three basic bases of the Chu faction.

The Dianke Mansion had already separated from the Chu faction with the position of the old Dianke Mi Chen, so the Tingwei Mansion could not be lost at all costs.

The next day.

After the morning roll call, Xiong Wen and Xiong Qi went to the Supreme Court to pay a visit to the old Supreme Court Justice Huayang Bufei.

The old Chief Justice was not there, and they were received by Chief Justice Li Si, who also had a hoarse voice.

Hearing Li Si's hoarse voice, which was similar to Mi Chen's last night, Xiong Wen had a bad premonition, and Xiong Qi felt uncomfortable all over.

"Where is the Chief Justice?" Xiong Qi questioned Chief Justice Li Si, who had hurried over, in the courtyard of the Chief Justice's Mansion. His voice was so loud that the officials in the offices around the courtyard could hear it.

Li Si, who had been walking hurriedly and shouting "Greetings" from afar, rolled his eyes, slowed down his pace, and said nothing.

He walked slowly in front of the two ministers, lowered and raised his eyelids, and looked at Xiong Qi as if he was examining a criminal.

"How dare you!" Xiong Qi's eyes widened.

These days, Li Si has been acting like a boss in front of him, doing whatever he is told to do. Today he is so bold!

[Idiot!] Li Si sneered and folded his hands:
"This government is busy with official business and has many secrets. No outsiders are allowed to stay for long."

Under the eyes and ears of the people in the courtyard and the government offices around it, Li Si bent down slightly and stretched out his arm towards the two ministers coming:
"Master Zuo Xiang, please come in."

Xiong Qi was furious, but after looking around he managed to swallow his anger.

He wasn't really stupid, he just couldn't accept Li Si's transformation for a while. Yesterday he was a servant, but today he stepped on his face and was attacked. Who could get used to this?
Xiong Wen can get used to it.

From the moment Huayang Bufei came to greet him, Xiong Wen prepared for the worst.

The Right Prime Minister, who was not classified as an "idle person", smiled before speaking and clasped his hands:
"Excuse me, Li Tingwei Zheng, is Tingwei here?"

If someone shows me respect, I will at least show respect. Li Si also smiled:
"The Lord Tingwei is unwell and will not be here today."

"Thank you." Xiong Wen took his brother and left the Tingwei Mansion to go to Huayang Bufei's home to look for him.

After the two ministers left, Li Si's smile disappeared.

He strode back to the main hall of the Supreme Court and ordered all officials of the Supreme Court with a salary of 500 stones and above to gather there.

After a while, when everyone was gathered, Li Si gave the order:
"The Supreme Court conducted self-inspections from top to bottom based on the new law.

"See who is just sitting there doing nothing and who is doing their job.

"The capable ones rise, the mediocre ones fall!"

An official from the Tingweifu who recently joined raised an objection:
“Shouldn’t the new law be implemented after ten days or so?

Li Si nodded, smiling:

“Master Mi is right.

"Then before the new law comes into effect, please rest at home, Lord Mi.

"Please, Master Mi.

"Run faster, and you can see the backs of both of you."

The official surnamed Mi's face turned pale and blue:
"Li Si! You are abusing public power for personal gain! The king has just issued an order strictly prohibiting violations of the law, and you, as a court official, dare to break the law! You..."

"What nonsense!" Li Si shouted, interrupting the official's words, his hoarse voice like a night owl: "Come here! Get him out of the Supreme Court!"

Two guards came in and carried the official away. The official struggled and kept shouting.

"You are a birdman who can't even enter the court, but you are well-informed. Go and report me to the king!" Li Si angrily smashed a porcelain cup. The porcelain cup fell into the crowd, and the fragments splashed under people's feet. Many people were frightened by this sudden thing, but no one moved.

"Who else wants to take a break? Stand up!" Li Si glanced at his officials.

No one answered.

After taking two deep breaths, Li Si snorted coldly:
"Don't think that this court judge is having a mad attack.

"Or maybe he's just a new official and wants to show off his power in front of you. I, Li Si, don't have the time for that!"

He raised his finger and pointed at everyone:
"Today is my first day in power, Li Si, and I will make things clear with you.

“The new law will not come into effect today, but twelve days from now.

"The new law will be implemented in twelve days. Who will be the regulator? It will be you!"

Finger pointing back at itself:

“It’s me, Li Si!
"Our Tingweifu is the government office that enforces the new law and is responsible for auditing officials!
“If we don’t take the lead in conducting our own inspections, leaving time and wiggle room, and really wait until the new law is implemented to conduct inspections together with other government agencies, where will other government agencies find the manpower to conduct the inspections?

"I failed to do what I should do, and the king blamed me and wanted to behead me, Li Si. I will behead you first!
"Did you understand everything?"

Everyone breathed in cold air and nodded repeatedly.

If Lord Tingwei hadn't mentioned it, they would never have thought of this.

Auditing other government officials is the duty of the officials of the Supreme Court.

Inadequate auditing is dereliction of duty.

According to the new law, the lightest punishment for dereliction of duty is dismissal from office, while slightly more serious punishment is imprisonment.

"This is the first time, and the last time." Li Si said gloomily, "Next time, no matter whether you understand my orders or not, you must execute them one by one. If you have any doubts, talk to me after you've done the job. Understand?"

Everyone nodded hurriedly and said “I understand, I understand”.

No matter whether these people are sincere or not, at least they all appear to be sensible, and that’s enough.

Li Si nodded in satisfaction at the current situation and waved his hand for everyone to get back to work.

After everyone had left, Li Tingwei was gently picking up a square seal from the largest sunken wooden table, his heart and hands trembling.

This is the seal of the Supreme Court.

When it was time to report for duty, the old Chief Justice Huayang Bufei arrived and personally placed the seal symbolizing the highest power of the Chief Justice's Office in his hand. He said that he was old and often forgetful, so he would resign from his post to the king and recommend Li Si as Chief Justice.

An hour later, a eunuch, accompanied by six officials, walked into the Supreme Court and brought the royal order - King Zheng of Qin appointed Li Si as Supreme Court.

The word "正" (正) in the name of Tingwei Zheng (廷尉正) above his head was gone, but Li Si, who had been prepared for this, was still overjoyed.

He became one of the Nine Ministers of Qin and one of the top officials of the Qin State.

King Zheng of Qin fulfilled his promise to use him, and Chang'an Jun fulfilled his further promise to him.

Li Si, the newly appointed official, took drastic measures, took out the evidence of illegal activities of Chu officials that he had collected in recent days, expelled a large number of Chu officials, and replaced them with descendants of Xun's family.

The old Chief Justice has left and a new Chief Justice has taken over.

Before the day when the new law was implemented, the Supreme Court had completed the transformation from the Mi and Huayang clans to the Li clan.

The speed is so fast that anyone who is paying attention is caught off guard.

Xiong Wen and Xiong Qier went to look for Huayang Bufei, but found nothing at Huayang Bufei's mansion.

They were waiting at Huayang Bufei's residence, but before Huayang Bufei arrived, they first received the officials who came looking for them.

The official brought a piece of news - Li Si became the new Chief Justice.

Xiong Wen and Xiong Qi's faces suddenly turned ugly.

Following the Diankefu, the Tingweifu was also separated from the Chu faction, and its separation was more thorough than that of the Diankefu.

"Your Majesty, what a good trick." Xiong Wen smiled bitterly: "Use you and me to attack the old Qin nobles, and then divide my Chu clan into three without bloodshed. No, it is divided into two. The court judge is no longer under our control."

"Is this the way the king acts?" Xiong Qi asked gloomily, "Doesn't the king always regard this as a despicable method? The king has said more than once that when he kills someone, he wants the person to die clearly. Am I remembering it wrong?"

Xiong Wen's thoughts turned, and his pupils dilated:

"You mean..."

"Lord Chang'an." The two brothers said in unison.

“Who else but Ying Hualong could be so sinister and treacherous!” Xiong Qi gritted his teeth, his face full of resentment: “He’s called a gentleman, but he’s actually a villain!”

Xiong Wen was also angry, but more frightened.

He thought back to the various events that had occurred during this period and suddenly realized that Chang'an Jun had reminded them more than once, but they had never listened.

Under such circumstances, Chang'an Jun was still able to reduce the Chu clique, the newborn Qin behemoth, to a force that was only slightly larger than the other Qin forces.

If Chang'an Jun is determined to target the Chu faction, what will be the fate of the Chu faction?
"Empress Dowager..." Xiong Wen said in a hoarse voice, "You really have a long-term vision."

Xiong Wen, who had always been critical of Queen Dowager Huayang's almost unreserved care for Chang'an Jun, no longer had any complaints.

[Xiao Huang has good taste.] The Right Prime Minister looked at the maid in Huayang Bufei's house and felt touched and sad.

The Supreme Court was no longer in Huayang Bufei's hands, so the two brothers did not wait for Huayang Bufei any longer and returned to the Prime Minister's Mansion.

The new law is about to be implemented, and all Chu officials in the Prime Minister's Office must comply with the new law from the day it comes into effect.

The Prime Minister's Mansion is their last stronghold and must not be lost. They have a lot of things to do.

Not long after the two ministers left, the aging Huayang Bufei came back, sitting in a four-horse carriage that was different from other carriages - a black bird was engraved on the body of the carriage. This was the carriage of Qin's crown prince Ying Chengjiao.

The carriage stopped.

Hu jumped off the carriage first, and Ying Chengjiao jumped off later.

Ying Chengjiao stood beside the carriage, stretched out his hand, and carefully helped Huayang Bufei down from the carriage, then held Huayang Bufei's arm and led him into the mansion.

The housekeeper of the mansion stepped forward to greet him, stretched out his hand, and pretended to take the master from Ying Chengjiao.

Ying Chengjiao blocked it with one hand and shook his head to refuse.

Huayang Bufei's old eyes were cloudy, as if he saw nothing, and he followed Ying Chengjiao.

The two entered the inner room.

Huayang Bufei, who had resigned from his official position, took off Ying Chengjiao's shoes and socks and leaned against the wall. The cold touch stimulated the old man's eyes to regain some clarity.

Ying Chengjiao picked up a pillow:
"Uncle, this is soft and comfortable to use as a cushion behind your back."

The old man smiled bitterly and raised his body slightly:
"It's the same tone of coaxing a child again... Am I confused again? This disease is really getting more and more frequent."

"Uncle is not sick. The boy was just joking with him." Ying Chengjiao placed a pillow behind the old man.

The old man rubbed his brows and said to the housekeeper standing not far from the door:
"You look like you want to say something but hesitate. If you have something to say, tell me now while I am still awake."

The butler looked at Ying Chengjiao who had his back to him.

The old man sighed:

"I am now a useless person, what else can I hide from Lord Chang'an?"

(End of this chapter)