Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 115, Section 114: The Cicada's Cry as the Owl Rises
Qin Shi remained silent for a long time, unsure of what to say.

The choice Your Majesty made is truly that of a great king!

Disliking his own child, he believed it was because the women in the harem were of poor quality and dragged him down, so he simply abandoned the child.

After all, he had time to deal with state affairs and didn't have time to get entangled in this!

So she should thank the king for putting down the broken jade and calling herself a bright pearl?
Even with modern eugenics, it's not guaranteed that a person will be born outstanding. Putting aside his genes, how can someone be so confident in raising a child without teaching him properly?

She knows her own body; she's healthier than ever before. And this good health supports her high energy levels, allowing her to safely give birth.

Now she has ample manpower, energy, money, and time, possessing all the necessary elements for survival and raising children. Given this environment, she neither resists nor can resist having children.

However, that doesn't mean she can only have children.

If that's the case, we need to focus more on research and development, expand our territory, and improve people's livelihoods!

It would be great if Your Majesty were so busy you wouldn't even have time to put your feet on the ground!
At the same time, for me, the fewer people in the harem, the simpler it is to manage them, which is great!

She looked up at Ji Heng and felt that such a king was truly rare, so she smiled sincerely: "Your Majesty works tirelessly for the country, is diligent and frugal, and even puts aside matters of the harem. You are truly a wise ruler of our time."

She looked at him with delight: "It is my good fortune to have met Your Majesty."

Qin Qing was overjoyed.

Ji Heng picked up the cloud-patterned cup and slowly sipped the tea, his lips slightly relaxing.

……

At the same time, Qin Meiren Jiang Di slowly threw down six moves at Wenchan Palace.

Their king was actually quite generous. The Xianyang Palace had more than three hundred interconnected chambers, and a woman like her, with children and a title, naturally deserved her own small palace.

Because there was a towering tree outside the palace, the cicadas chirped quite loudly in the summer, but she was neither favored nor liked any peace and quiet, so she actually preferred the noise.

Therefore, after giving birth to a princess two years ago, she earnestly requested the king to change the palace name to Wenchan.

Even in the scorching heat of July, the cicadas by the window still chirped noisily, as if they were about to exhaust their last bit of life.

Qin Meiren Jiang Di threw six bamboo sticks on the mat. After being processed, one side of the bamboo sticks was milky white and the other side was bluish-black.

At this moment, all five roots turned white.

"If the five white pieces are played, the owl piece will appear, and the king will suppress it with overwhelming force, resulting in a complete loss."

She was playing a game against herself, which was precisely what gave her opponent a opening.

The maidservant, who had accompanied Princess Chan to play, entered and saw that Consort Qin had slowly put away the game. She couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Why did you stop, Consort Qin?"

Qin Meiren slowly spoke: "My opponent has made a decisive move, and I have already lost the whole game. There's no need for further action."

The maid asked in confusion, "What rival could there be? Isn't the beauty herself the rival?"

Qin Meiren slowly shook her head, then looked at her fair and slender daughter, frowned and touched her face: "Achan, were you happy today?"

Princess Chan nodded: "I'm happy, Ruo helped me catch a dragonfly. Isn't Mother happy?"

Although she is young, she speaks clearly and is very clever.

Qin Meiren looked at her, and then sighed, "Mother took a gamble today, but unfortunately, she lost."

Princess Chan asked, bewildered, "Did Mother lose the game?"

But Consort Qin did not answer. Instead, she looked at the palace maid Ruo beside her and said, "Take the princess back to the inner palace."

Beside her, a maid looked at her nervously: "My lady, Madam Jiang and you have always had a distant relationship, why are you..." But Lady Qin said calmly: "Back then, my father secretly informed my great-uncle, which led the king to quickly eliminate the remnants of the late king's faction. As a result, my great-uncle was also executed."

Such acts of juniors accusing their elders of disobedience, if occurring among ordinary people, are called "non-official accusations," and the government will not accept them at all.

But the person he secretly reported was the King of Qin, and it concerned important matters of state. The King severely punished him with ten strokes of the cane, but he still accepted the punishment.

My aunt was raised by my great-uncle, and from then on she regarded her own family as enemies.

Although she didn't understand the separation, she clearly no longer regarded them as family, and at the same time looked down on herself, feeling that her painstaking plan to become a beauty in the Qin palace was just a shortcut.

But Qin Meiren did not regret it.

My aunt only had eyes for my great-uncle, and that's why she was resentful. But if my father hadn't secretly informed on us that day, would the Jiang family have even had a chance to survive?
It's just a matter of each side having its own stance.

Yesterday, her aunt Jiang Lu hurriedly entered the palace to deliver this message, with a very confident smile on her face. Therefore, Consort Qin knew that the message must be true, but the other party did not wish her well.

But it's okay.

For the king to make such a decision so soon after their first meeting, the other party must be a man of great foresight and profound wisdom.

But now...

She saw a eunuch coming to deliver a message from afar, and without the eunuch saying anything more, she and her maidservants bowed and worshipped.

"By order of the King, Consort Qin has been found to have been improper in her conduct and conduct, and is hereby demoted to the rank of Eighth Consort."

The eunuch faithfully relayed the king's brief instructions, and upon looking at Consort Qin, her expression turned ashen for a moment. Clearly, being demoted two ranks meant a significant drop in her treatment.

But this is a royal decree.

She had no choice but to bow and accept the order: "Qin Ba Zi, I accept the order."

Then he couldn't help but smile bitterly: As expected, the most special and powerful of the six pieces was the Owl, and the whole game was lost.

She had even planned it out: she would send Prince Qian to test the waters, and if the other party didn't investigate, he would suffer a lot at the prince's hands.

If the other party notices, she can use this opportunity to test their methods.

Unexpectedly, this noblewoman, who first stayed at Lanchi and then moved to Xianyang Palace, didn't even bother playing chess, and simply had the king overturn the chessboard.

While she accepted her fate with resignation, she also harbored deep doubts:
Given the king's temperament, how can we possibly win his favor and protection?

She frowned deeply; surely she couldn't be a woman like Madam Chu, with a face like a lotus flower but a heart like a hundred weeds!
But upon further reflection, since the king was so protective of the other party, it only made my aunt's words more trustworthy.

She secretly conveyed royal secrets; now... will she also be demoted?
Qin Meiren gave a wry smile: "Send a message back to the Jiang family, telling them not to hold any grudges and to behave themselves and speak properly. As long as the noble lady of Xianyang Palace gives any instructions, just do your best to carry them out."

Then he instructed his attendants: "Open the storeroom, select gold, pearls, jade, and silk, and then send someone to the Southern Palace to request an audience with the King of Qin, so that the Eighth Prince may apologize."

The maid hesitated, recalling the ambiguous words spoken by the beauty to Prince Qian during their detour to the martial arts arena earlier that day, and tears welled up in her eyes as well.

"Why is my beauty doing this to herself?"

Qin Meiren, however, remained calm: "What's with all this talk about 'why bother'? Since I'm in the King's palace, I can't just live like an unknown beauty forever, can I? What will become of my Achan then?"

"It's just that I was really inconsiderate."

She stood up, turned her head to listen quietly to the noisy cicadas chirping outside the window, and then smiled and said, "The camphor trees in summer have a pleasant fragrance. I wonder if the noble lady of Xianyang Palace likes it? Go and pick another handful."

I've been writing all afternoon!! My writing speed has completely dropped, sob sob...

There were camphor trees in the Qin Dynasty.

I love Qin Meiren so much. Every time I write about these interesting female characters, their faces and expressions come to mind.