People in the Qin Dynasty sought good fortune and avoided misfortune.

Chapter 348, An Ancestor

"Clang~"

After pushing open the palace door, Lao Ai, looking panicked, rushed into the palace, grabbed his robes, and knelt directly in front of Zhao Ji.

"Empress Dowager, save me! Empress Dowager, save me!"

Lao Ai bowed his head and shouted in a panic.

Zhao Ji, who was chatting and laughing with the palace maids, was startled and stared in astonishment at Lao Ai kneeling on the ground, her eyes full of doubt.

Zhao Ji waved to the others, and the palace maids bowed and left. Only after the palace doors closed did they ask...
"What's wrong? What happened that made you so afraid?"

"Your Majesty, save me! Lord Weiyang wants to kill me!"

Lao Ai looked up and recounted what had happened in a panicked tone. However, because it was he who provoked the fight, the story was twisted to say that Lord Weiyang had spoken rudely first.

Upon learning the whole story, Zhao Ji was first taken aback, then stood up angrily, pointing at Lao Ai and saying...
"How dare you assault Lord Weiyang? He is a respected elder of the imperial clan!"
"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. However, it was he who insulted me first. He can insult me, but he cannot speak ill of you, so I took action."

Lao Ai was not afraid at all because of Zhao Ji's accusations. Instead, he looked up at Zhao Ji pitifully with tears welling up in his eyes.

It was only after he injured Lord Weiyang that he realized he had gotten himself into serious trouble.

Zhao Ji looked at Lao Ai, who was begging for mercy, with a face full of anger. The anger in her beautiful eyes, with red eyelids, seemed to be materializing. She knew that Lao Ai had become increasingly arrogant and domineering since he was made a marquis, but the people he had provoked before were just some minor figures who were not a big deal.

But this time, Lao Ai offended the Lord of Weiyang. Although she and Lü Buwei controlled the court and the Qin royal family was in decline, Qin was still the Qin of the Ying clan. Even she and Lü Buwei dared not openly offend the royal family.

"Why did you have to provoke him first? Lord Weiyang is the late king's elder brother. He has made great contributions to the Qin state. He earned his title through his military achievements. Offending him is equivalent to offending the entire royal family. I cannot protect you."

Zhao Ji pointed at Lao Ai and angrily rebuked him, her outstretched fingers trembling with anger.

Lao Ai looked at Zhao Ji, who seemed to have no intention of acknowledging his presence, and a hint of resentment flashed in his eyes. He now held great power, and it would be a great loss if he were to die because he had attacked Lord Weiyang.

Seeing Zhao Ji's anger, Lao Ai gritted his teeth slightly, raised his hand and slapped himself across the face, the clear sound of the slaps ringing out continuously.

"Clap clap~"

While vigorously fanning himself, Lao Ai said to Zhao Ji...
"Your Majesty, it is my fault that I am useless and that I should not have attacked Lord Weiyang. I know I cannot escape this calamity. In order not to implicate Your Majesty, please hand me over."

"This servant has failed the Empress Dowager's trust. I am not afraid of dying. I only hope that the Empress Dowager will not be angry or harm her health because of this servant."

"From now on, I will no longer be able to serve you. Please take good care of your health and don't..."

The sound of slaps rose and fell, and Lao Ai's face quickly became red and swollen. Tears streamed down his face as he spoke tender words in a trembling voice.

In order to get Zhao Ji to save him, Lao Ai didn't care about his dignity at all. For someone like him who had worked his way up from the bottom, dignity was far less important than his life.

When Zhao Ji saw Lao Ai weeping bitterly, her anger instantly dissipated. She was reluctant to hand Lao Ai over.

In this lonely and desolate palace, even her son, who had shared hardships with her, had become a stranger, frightening her. The only one who could stay by her side was Lao Ai.

Lao Ai not only gave her physical pleasure, but also warmed her heart that had been broken by Lü Buwei and Ying Yiren.

Back then, Lü Buwei and Ying Yiren treated her like merchandise, tossing her around and causing her and Ying Zheng to suffer endless humiliation in the State of Zhao.

After finally returning to her country, Zhao Ji thought her life would finally settle down, but she never expected that Ying Yiren had already married a woman from Chu and was deeply in love with her, while she had long been forgotten.

After Ying Yiren's death, Lü Buwei rekindled his old relationship with her for the sake of power, but she didn't care. After all, she never had much desire for power; she only wanted a man who could understand and care for her.

However, just when she thought she could spend her life with Lü Buwei, she never expected that Lü Buwei would abandon her to Lao Ai. She was extremely angry about this; she was the Queen Dowager of Qin, the mother of the King of Qin, no longer the merchant's daughter Zhao Ji.

But after spending time with Lao Ai, she realized that he was sincere towards her and not a cold-blooded and ambitious man like Lü Buwei or Ying Yiren. Gradually, she also genuinely fell in love with Lao Ai, this man who had her in his heart.

"Oh well, come with me to see the King. I hope he will spare your life." Zhao Ji knelt down in front of Lao Ai and tenderly stroked his swollen face.

The appearance of Lao Ai brought her life back to life, both in her body and soul. She couldn't bear to watch Lao Ai die; otherwise, how would she spend the rest of her life? Besides, she and Lao Ai had two children in Yongcheng.

If Lao Ai were to die, how would she face her two children? She didn't want to go through the experience of raising her children alone again, even though she was now the Empress Dowager and no longer dared to humiliate her.

But that kind of life reminded her of her days in Handan, a life that was worse than death, like hell.

She absolutely does not want to experience or recall that kind of life again, so Lao Ai cannot die.

Looking into Zhao Ji's beautiful eyes filled with tenderness, Lao Ai paid no attention to her affection; his heart was filled with excitement that she had agreed to save him.

"Your Majesty, I knew you wouldn't watch me die. Don't worry, after this I will definitely keep a low profile and never cause trouble again!" Lao Ai said excitedly, holding Zhao Ji's hand. "Don't worry, you'll be fine with me here."

Zhao Ji held Lao Ai's hand, her voice soft but her gaze exceptionally firm.

"Let's go, come with me to see the King."

Zhao Ji helped Lao Ai up and said.

"promise."

Lao Ai bowed respectfully to Zhao Ji, but his eyes were full of disdain. So what if he hit a respected elder of the royal family? With Zhao Ji around, nothing would happen to him!
Just as Zhao Ji was taking Lao Ai to find Ying Zheng, the Ying clan members had already gathered at Zhangtai Palace and, after being informed, found Ying Zheng.

"Your Majesty, Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai, has injured Lord Weiyang, who remains unconscious to this day! How dare a eunuch lay a hand on a member of the royal family, even drawing his sword! This is an insult to the Qin royal family and to Your Majesty! I implore Your Majesty to execute Lao Ai to set things right."

"Your Majesty, Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai, has gathered a crowd to beat Lord Weiyang. Our Qin law stipulates that touching iron is a crime. If Lao Ai is not executed, how can Qin law convince the people!"

"Your Majesty, Lao Ai has always been arrogant and domineering, repeatedly violating Qin law and falsely accusing loyal officials. If he is not severely punished, what will become of the reputation of our Qin court?!"

"Your Majesty."

Twenty or thirty members of the Qin royal family stood in the main hall, their expressions furious, gritting their teeth as they accused Lao Ai of wrongdoing before Ying Zheng.

The affairs between Lao Ai and Zhao Ji had long been objectionable to the members of the royal family, but due to a lack of evidence and the fact that Lü Buwei controlled the court, they dared not speak out rashly.

Now that we've finally caught Lao Ai red-handed, we're determined to get rid of this villain who brought shame upon the late king and the Qin royal family.

Looking at the agitated and furious relatives, Ying Zheng felt a hint of confusion in his eyes. He had been busy with government affairs and arranging for Xu Qing to teach military doctors, and had no idea what was happening outside.

However, from the commotion, he could make out the gist of it: it seemed that Lao Ai had beaten Lord Weiyang, which had angered the members of the royal family, who then came to file a complaint.

"Silence! What kind of behavior is this, making such a racket?" Ying Zheng said in a deep voice, looking at the noisy crowd.

The twenty or thirty people who saw Ying Zheng's indifferent expression all shut up, the noise gradually subsided, and the hall returned to calm.

Seeing that the clansmen had quieted down but were still angry, Ying Zheng's expression softened, and he asked...

"Who can tell me what exactly happened? What exactly happened between Lord Weiyang and Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai?"

The members of the Ying clan looked at the person at the very front, the one who, apart from Lord Weiyang, could represent the Qin royal family, Lord Jingyang.

"Your Majesty, half an hour ago, Lord Weiyang encountered Lao Ai on his journey," Lord Jingyang stepped forward and bowed to Ying Zheng.

After Lord Jingyang's explanation, Ying Zheng understood the cause and effect of the matter. His originally calm expression turned somber, and a hint of anger flashed in his eyes.

Lord Weiyang was a respected elder of the royal family and his uncle. He made outstanding contributions to the Qin state and was a staunch supporter of him at the beginning of his reign.

Lao Ai slapped Lord Weiyang, which was tantamount to slapping the face of the Qin royal family and Lao Ai himself. He absolutely could not be let off lightly.

"Rest assured, my lords, Lord Weiyang has rendered outstanding service to our Great Qin. Now that he has been injured by Lao Ai without cause, I will not let him off! I will definitely seek justice for Lord Weiyang." Ying Zheng clenched his fists and said with a look of anger.

Seeing the enraged Ying Zheng, the Qin royal family members became even more indignant and shouted in unison.

"Your Majesty is wise! Lao Ai must be severely punished, or the Qin royal family and the Qin law will lose all face!"

"Where is Lao Ai now?!" Ying Zheng asked.

“Your Majesty, Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai, was summoned to the palace by the Empress Dowager and should be with her now,” a eunuch said in a deep voice.

"Immediately send men to the Empress Dowager's palace to arrest Lao Ai and bring him to me!" Ying Zheng said in a deep voice.

"The king is wise."

Lord Jingyang and the others bowed again, their eyes filled with more affection and excitement as they looked at Ying Zheng.

After Ying Zheng ascended the throne, he allowed Zhao Ji and Lü Buwei to control the government, which made them, members of the royal family, suffer from exclusion. In addition, after a series of events, their relationship with Ying Zheng became increasingly distant.

Seeing Ying Zheng so angry about Weiyang Jun being beaten, and sending people to the Empress Dowager's palace to arrest him, shows that he still values ​​the members of their clan.

After all, they are the real family, sharing the same surname and the blood of the same ancestor.

(End of this chapter)