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

Chapter 524, Questions That Don't Need Answers
With the departure of Lao Ai and Zhao Ji, Xianyang City returned to complete peace. Everyone went about their lives as usual, as if the power struggle in Qin had ended. In such peaceful days, a month passed in the blink of an eye.

Xianyang, the residence of Lord Zhaoming.

"Whoo~"

Xu Qing reached out and threw off the blanket, panting heavily.

"Isn't this enough?"

Yan Lingji poked her little head out from Xu Qing's arms, hooked one arm around Xu Qing's neck, and wore a teasing smile on her pretty face.

"You'd better wait until tonight if you dare."

Xu Qing pursed his lips, looking helpless, and reached out to pinch Yan Lingji's rosy cheeks, kneading them a couple of times.

I don't know what that little vixen Yan Lingji is up to. She kept saying things like "the day's plan starts in the morning" and "we shouldn't waste the morning time," and then dragged him on a five-kilometer weighted, oxygen-resistance-impeded run.

Although Xu Qing was very confident in herself, she was still human after all, and she couldn't survive in a long-term oxygen-deprived environment.

"So what if I say it now? You're not convinced?"

Yan Lingji crossed her arms and hugged Xu Qing's neck, speaking with seductive eyes.

Seeing Yan Lingji's provocation, Xu Qing's anger flared up, and he glared at Yan Lingji, saying fiercely...

"Okay, okay~ I hope you won't beg for mercy later~"

When Yan Lingji saw that Xu Qing was serious, a hint of guilt flashed in her beautiful eyes. Just as she was about to say something, her eyes suddenly widened, a look of pain flashed across her small face, and her red lips parted.

Xu Qing stood up straight, and the blanket draped behind her slipped down a bit, getting stuck at her lower back, where her two little feet could be vaguely seen clinging to the blanket.

"I was wrong~ Master, please forgive me~"

Yan Lingji looked at Xu Qing pitifully, her long eyelashes trembling, her small face showing some anxiety, as if she could cry at any moment, and said in a trembling voice.

The little hand that was hooked around Xu Qing's neck also let go, and tightly gripped the quilt, twisting it into a spiral.

"Now you know you're afraid?"

Yan Lingji's pretty face flushed red. She didn't expect that Xu Qing, that bastard, would say such things. What kind of bullshit Central Plains lord is he? How could she, Yan Lingji, possibly submit to him?
Immediately, Yan Lingji bit her red lips tightly, seemingly unwilling to give in, her small face full of stubbornness.

"Humph~"

Yan Lingji snorted, gripped the blankets with both hands, and turned her head away.

Oh dear, the little devil is getting stubborn.

"Is it good or bad!?"

Xu Qing grinned wickedly. Today, he was determined to show Yan Lingji the power of the Central Plains Master. He snorted softly.

Yan Lingji bit her red lips, remaining silent for a long time. However, faced with Master Xu's powerful bow and crossbow, she couldn't resist with just the stubbornness inherent in the Baiyue people. Her small hands, which were gripping the bedding, loosened, and she instead hugged Xu Qing, pressing her face against his chest, pleading for mercy.

"They were wrong."

"Now you know you were wrong? I'm asking you, is that right or wrong?"

"You rascal, I can't do it!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Yan Lingji nestled in Xu Qing's arms, her eyes misty and her expression unfocused.

After a long while, the blankets that Xu Qing was pressed against fell off.

Yan Lingji lay limply in Xu Qing's arms, resting her head on his shoulder. Her face was flushed, her eyes were unfocused, and she had no strength left in her body. Her whole body was sore and numb. She breathed softly, exhaling breaths of fragrant orchids onto Xu Qing's neck.

"What a bad person!"

Yan Lingji slightly raised her head and glared at Xu Qing, her lips moving slightly as she spoke weakly.

"If a man is not bad, a woman will not love him."

Xu Qing admitted that he was not a good person. Just as Xu Qing was about to say something more, there was a knock on the door.

"Your Majesty, someone from the palace has come. The King requests your presence in the palace."

A maid stood outside the door and called out through the crack in the door.

Xu Qing's smile faded slightly. He gently placed Yan Lingji on the pillow, stood up, lifted the curtain, and spoke to the outside.
Did they say what it was about?

“No,” the maid said.

Xu Qing nodded thoughtfully. Ying Zheng had probably summoned him suddenly because of the coming-of-age ceremony, which was now only three days away.

For the past month, Xianyang seemed calm and peaceful. The royal family no longer targeted Lao Ai, and Lao Ai's retainers and Zhao's foreign relatives kept a low profile, no longer actively causing trouble. Lü Buwei remained secluded, and the Qin King's faction, led by him, did not continue to consolidate power.

However, beneath the calm surface, various forces were already stirring up trouble, ready to unleash a storm at any moment.

"Only three days left, it's time to close the net." Xu Qing turned to look at Yan Lingji, only to see that the little vixen had already slipped into the bedding while he was distracted, wrapping herself up tightly like a silkworm wrapped in silk.

Yan Lingji nodded slightly to Xu Qing, indicating that he should go ahead and that she was fine here.

"Alright, have someone wait for me. I'll be at the palace shortly." Xu Qing said to the outside without saying anything more.

"promise."

The maidservant bowed slightly and walked outside to reply to the King of Qin's envoy.

Inside the room, Xu Qing began to dress by himself. Soon he was dressed, draped a black cloak over his shoulders, and prepared to go out to the palace.

"Aren't you going to get up again today? How can you skip breakfast every day?"

As he was leaving, Xu Qing looked at Yan Lingji, whose head was the only part of her body peeking out from the bed, and said with a hint of helplessness.

"I won't get up, I won't eat. You should leave now, the king is waiting for you."

Yan Lingji opened her eyes, glanced at Xu Qing, said something casually, then closed her eyes, turned her head away, and prepared to continue catching up on her sleep.

Xu Qing could only sigh helplessly. Yan Lingji was, after all, a southerner and was not used to the climate in Guanzhong. She was unwilling to get out of bed when it got cold and would rather stay in bed than get up.

But it doesn't matter, if I don't want to get up, I don't have to get up.

"I'm leaving. Take care of yourself."

After Xu Qing finished speaking, she left the room and walked outside, stepping on the snow on the ground.

After leaving home, Xu Qing boarded a carriage and headed towards Zhangtai Palace.

About half an hour later, Xu Qing arrived at Zhangtai Palace and, led by Zhao Gao, entered the hall where Ying Zheng was located.

Upon entering the hall, Xu Qing immediately saw Ying Zheng standing by the window, dressed in white casual clothes, calmly looking outside, while Gai Nie stood silently guarding Xu Qing with his sword in hand.

"Your subject Xu Qing pays respects to Your Majesty."

Xu Qing bowed to Ying Zheng.

"Sir, there are three more days. After three days, everything will return to normal."

Ying Zheng didn't look at Xu Qing, but continued to gaze at the layered palaces outside the window, his expression somewhat complicated as he spoke.

Although Ying Zheng had made all the preparations and knew that Lao Ai would lead a group of people to rebel on the day of his coming-of-age ceremony three days later, as the day drew closer, Ying Zheng's heart was still somewhat complicated. It was as if he was holding his breath, which made him somewhat irritable.

This complex feeling wasn't about Lao Ai or those involved in the rebellion—for whom Ying Zheng only regretted not killing them sooner—but rather about Zhao Ji's involvement.

"I always thought that I would be disheartened after one disappointment after another, but now that today has come, I am still a little shaken."

Ying Zheng spoke to himself, his words filled with undisguised disappointment and melancholy.

Gai Nie glanced at Ying Zheng, then at Xu Qing, and finally looked away, lost in thought while holding his sword.

He was not good with words and did not know how to comfort Ying Zheng. Moreover, as a subject, it was inappropriate for him to discuss the king's family affairs in private.

Xu Qing didn't have the same concerns as Gai Nie. He and Ying Zheng were ruler and subject, but more than that, they were friends and like-minded partners. Although this relationship couldn't be frequently flaunted or used for preaching, there were certain things that only he could say when necessary.

"Your Majesty, the Tao Te Ching says, 'Use things without being used by them.' Problems arise in this world every moment, and a person's life is also a constant process of facing, thinking about, and ultimately finding ways to solve problems."

"People are fixated on an answer because they are not careful, so they need an answer to gain the approval of others and thus gain confidence."

"But the great cycle changes, and every question has a different answer for each person, which is a flawless statement."

"Therefore, some questions do not need answers, nor do they have answers. Your Majesty only needs to understand what we need to do next: to be worthy of ourselves, worthy of the people of Qin, worthy of the former rulers of Qin, worthy of the soldiers who fought and bled for Qin's unification of the world, and worthy of the officials who worked diligently for the prosperity of Qin. That is enough."

"As for the answer to the question? Sometimes it doesn't matter, and it has nothing to do with right or wrong. As long as you have a clear conscience, wrong is right, and if you have a guilty conscience, right is wrong."

Xu Qing looked at Ying Zheng and slowly explained.

Xu Qing couldn't explain Zhao Ji's affair with Lao Ai to Ying Zheng. He couldn't very well say that Zhao Ji was a fool who couldn't control her desires, could he? She kept Lao Ai as a male concubine because she couldn't bear the loneliness of the palace, but because of her stupidity, she ended up being played by Lao Ai.

These words would break Ying Zheng's defenses, no matter how magnanimous and trusting he was.

The Queen Dowager of Qin could have male favorites, but she could not be played by them. This was a matter of Qin's prestige, the honor and disgrace of the Qin royal family, and even more so, Ying Zheng's own prestige.

This was a major mental hurdle, testing Ying Zheng's psychological qualities and resilience.

"No answer is needed?"

Ying Zheng looked at the eaves of Zhilan Palace with a complicated expression. As he looked at the eaves that reflected the dazzling white light under the sunlight, his gaze gradually hardened.

He is the King of Qin, bearing the entrustment of the previous rulers of Qin and the future of millions of Qin people. He has never belonged to himself, nor should he waste time on these "irrelevant" issues.

What he needs to do is smoothly ascend to the throne and assume power. Once he has swept across the land and unified the world, will the answers to these questions still matter?
That's naturally unimportant.

(End of this chapter)