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

Chapter 531, Lao Ai's Betrayal

"On this auspicious day and month, with the addition of a cloth cap, you will begin your coming-of-age ceremony, casting aside your childish ways. May you follow your virtuous path, enjoy longevity and good fortune, and be blessed with great happiness!"

As the words of the Grand Master of Ceremonies rang out, the royal elders began to crown Ying Zheng.

Everyone salutes.

"On this auspicious day and month, adorned with two leather caps, you are here to display your attire and show respect for your dignity. May you cultivate virtuous character, live a long and healthy life, and forever enjoy the blessings of the Hu!"

Everyone bows again.

"Finally crowned with the black crown, displaying the glory of the former king, receiving the auspicious blessings of Heaven, the divinely ordained ruler, bringing blessings upon the nine provinces for a thousand autumns and ten thousand years, as boundless as Heaven!"

As the final crown was placed on him, Ying Zheng slowly rose to his feet, exuding an imperial aura that was stronger and more imposing than ever before, commanding respect from all.

"Congratulations to my king! With crown and sword at your side, may Heaven bless my king and may the Great Qin Dynasty last ten thousand years!" shouted the Grand Master of Ceremonies.

"Long live the King! Long live the Qin Dynasty!"

Xu Qing led his ministers in shouting loudly.

Just when the royal family and officials thought the coming-of-age ceremony had come to a happy ending, the tightly closed palace doors were suddenly violently pushed open, and a general rushed into the ancestral temple.

"Your Majesty, Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai, has betrayed us and is now leading several thousand rebel soldiers toward the Qinian Palace!"

The general in charge of the security of Qinian Palace shouted in panic.

A glint flashed in the eyes of Ying Zheng, Gai Nie, and Xu Qing. They were not surprised by the news; everything was under their control.

However, compared to the three who already knew about Lao Ai's plan, the remaining elders of the royal family and the court officials were shocked by the news, and their faces showed expressions of shock.

"What?! Ying Qian, what did you say?"

The Grand Master stepped forward and asked with a grave expression.

"Your Majesty, Grand Master of Ceremonies, Marquis Changxin, Lao Ai, has betrayed us," Ying Qian said again.

After receiving a definite answer, the Grand Master of Ceremonies and the assembled officials' expressions darkened. Their gazes first fell on Zhao Ji, who was standing silently to the side with her head bowed, and then on Ying Zheng.

"Your Majesty, Lao Ai has rebelled, and the Qinian Palace is sparsely guarded. Please take refuge for the time being and wait for reinforcements to arrive."

The Grand Master bowed to Ying Zheng and said.

"Your Majesty, please set aside your strength for now and await the arrival of reinforcements."

The elders of the imperial clan and the assembled officials all bowed and said.

Now that Ying Zheng has completed his coronation, he is the true King of Qin, and there can be absolutely no mistakes.

Ying Zheng glanced around at his assembled ministers, his expression calm, showing no fear or worry about Lao Ai's betrayal. He spoke indifferently.

“I am not afraid of Lao Ai. Ying Qian, close the palace gates immediately and gather the soldiers here.”

"Zhang Han, Ren Xiao, you two take over from Ying Qian and distribute the weapons you brought."

Everyone was stunned when they heard Ying Zheng's words. What had they just heard?
The weapons they brought? When did they bring weapons?

Just as everyone was puzzled, two “iron men” wearing black bronze armor, with beast masks on their faces, holding short swords in one hand and crossbows hanging at their waists, and armed to the teeth walked in.

However, the people present were all shrewd and quickly figured it out. They had been wondering why Ying Zheng had brought more than a dozen carriages with him when he came to Yongcheng, and why these carriages were strictly protected by soldiers.

Now everything is clear.

"Yes, sir," Zhang Han and Ren Xiao said, bowing.

Xu Qing looked the two fully armed men up and down, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. Zhang Han and Ren Xiao were both very famous people in history.

In the original novel, the former was the commander of the Shadow Guard, the intelligence organization under Ying Zheng, and one of Ying Zheng's most trusted confidants.

During the reign of Qin Er Shi, he was a famous general who saved the Qin state from disaster. He led the prisoners of Lishan to quell the Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang uprising. Later, he defeated the Qi and Wei allied forces, marched north and defeated the Zhao army, captured the Zhao capital Handan, and besieged the King of Zhao in Julu City.

However, he eventually encountered the humanoid nuclear weapon Xiang Yu, and was defeated by him and another small humanoid nuclear weapon Ying Bu at Julu. In the end, he was tricked by Zhao Gao and was defeated and captured again at Zhangshui, and then he surrendered.

As for Ren Xiao, although he was not as famous as Zhang Han, he was also a famous general who led hundreds of thousands of troops to conquer the Baiyue in the south.

"I never expected that Zhang Han and Ren Xiao were both originally guards of Ying Zheng. No wonder Ying Zheng trusted them so much," Xu Qing thought to himself.

"After the weapons are distributed, Ying Qian, you and the army will follow Ren Xiao's command," Ying Zheng continued.

"promise."

Ying Qian answered without the slightest hesitation, as if he were not handing over military power.

Although Ying Zheng's previous actions caused him to lose the trust of the Ying clan, as long as Ying Zheng was still a member of the Ying clan, he would always be the King of Qin to whom the Ying clan served.

Zhang Han and Ren Xiao left with Ying Qian to gather the soldiers and distribute weapons.

Seeing Ying Zheng calmly directing the rebellion, the ministers understood that Ying Zheng had long anticipated this, or even been waiting for Lao Ai to launch the rebellion so that he could eliminate Lao Ai and others who opposed his personal rule.

Immediately, the ministers couldn't help but shudder, their gazes towards Ying Zheng filled with awe, while at the same time they felt fortunate.

Fortunately, they didn't get involved with Lao Ai, otherwise, after this betrayal, their entire family and even their nine generations of relatives would have lost their lives.

"Your Majesty, we beg you to allow us to join the war."

A dozen or so young members of the royal family stepped forward, cupped their hands in greeting to Ying Zheng, and said...

Ying Zheng looked at the dozen or so young members of the royal family, his gaze slightly moved, a slight smile playing on his lips, and nodded.
"If you want to go, go find Ying Qian."

It is said that the Ying clan is getting worse with each generation, and now there are only some empty talkers and incompetent playboys. However, their spirit has not been worn down by their stable and wealthy life, and their loyalty to the King of Qin has not wavered.

Talent doesn't need to be outstanding for these members of the royal family, but having the courage to fight and the loyalty to the King of Qin is enough. "Yes."

After bowing to the elders of the clan, a dozen or so disciples of the clan took off their loose ceremonial robes and turned to find Ying Qian without hesitation, preparing to participate in the next defensive battle.

"Sir, please take your ministers and leave now."

Ying Zheng nodded slightly to Xu Qing, then looked at Zhao Ji, who was standing there in a daze, and said calmly.

"promise."

Xu Qing looked at the assembled officials and gestured for them to proceed.

"Gentlemen, please follow me to rest elsewhere for a while, and come to pay your respects to the King again after the rebellion is quelled."

"promise."

The ministers were not stupid; they knew that Ying Zheng was going to deal with Zhao Ji's matter. So, after bowing to Ying Zheng, they followed Xu Qing to hide elsewhere.

As the Grand Master was leaving, he glanced at Ying Zheng and Zhao Ji, then walked to Ying Zheng's side and whispered...

"Your Majesty, of all virtues, filial piety is the most important. Although the Qin state does not govern the country based on filial piety, the monarch is selfless and cannot be stigmatized."

“Uncle, I know what I’m doing,” Ying Zheng said.

Seeing this, the Grand Master of Ceremonies said nothing more and turned to leave with the others.

After the courtiers left, Ying Zheng's cold expression softened, and he looked at Zhao Ji with a complex gaze, saying...
"Mother, please sit down and have a chat with me, in front of the former rulers of Qin, in front of the late King."

Zhao Ji's expression was uncertain, and her gaze towards Ying Zheng was extremely complicated. The current situation had far exceeded her expectations. She did not expect that Ying Zheng, who seemed to be unprepared, had actually seen through everything.

It's too late to say anything now. The moment she handed the imperial edict transferring military power in the Lishan camp to Lao Ai, she had no way out.

"it is good."

After taking a deep breath, Zhao Ji forced a smile and said...

. . . . . . . . .

Outside Qinian Palace, Lao Ai, with more than two thousand retainers and servants, had already rushed to the palace gate.

Seeing the tightly closed gate and the undefended walls, Lao Ai stopped in his tracks, and his retainers followed suit.

“My lord, something’s not right. We’ve come here with such fanfare, there should be guards at the palace gates.” A retainer approached Lao Ai and said with a grave expression.

Lao Ai remained silent, and his gaze toward Qinian Palace grew serious, a hint of hesitation flickering in his eyes.

The retainer's words made sense. The fact that there were no guards at the palace gate was indeed unusual. Even if Qinian Palace had few guards, the most important palace gate should still have someone on guard.

"Then what do you suggest we do? Should we break in from somewhere else?" Lao Ai asked hesitantly.

Just as Lao Ai finished speaking, the tightly closed palace gates suddenly opened from the inside.

"Be on guard!"

Lao Ai immediately shouted as if facing a formidable enemy, and dodged to the side, cautiously looking towards the palace gate.

Seeing this, the other retainers also scrambled to find places to hide, raising their weapons and watching warily as the person slowly walked out of the palace gate.

A man dressed in Qin army armor, with a white mask on his face, and seven or eight other people dressed similarly walked out of the Qinian Palace.

Lao Ai looked at the newcomer, and only after seeing the Sun-Covering Sword at the other's waist did he breathe a sigh of relief and step forward again.

“Don’t worry, they’re one of our own,” Lao Ai said.

Seeing this, the group of retainers gathered around Lao Ai again, but still watched Yan Ri warily as he approached.

"Yanri, what's the situation at Qinian Palace?" Lao Ai asked anxiously before Yanri could even bow.

"In reply to Marquis Changxin, this is a deliberate feint by Xu Qing. There are only two or three hundred guards in Qinian Palace, which is not enough to guard the palace gate. So Xu Qing set up a feint to buy time."

"That is precisely why I was able to open the city gates so easily."

Ying Yu cupped his hands and said.

"Hahaha, it is indeed the heavens that are helping me. Xu Qing is so clever, yet he foresaw that I had already planted my own people in the Qinian Palace."

Upon hearing Ying Yu's words, Lao Ai's face lit up with joy, and he burst into laughter.

In an instant, Lao Ai was filled with the pleasure of winning against Xu Qing, which made him feel extremely happy.

"My lord, you must not be careless," a retainer cautiously reminded him.

"No need for further words, this opportunity is fleeting and will not come again."

Lao Ai was filled with excitement at having defeated Xu Qing and eagerness for his imminent success, and he couldn't listen to his retainers' advice. He still had great faith in the infiltration capabilities of Yan Ri and the Luo Wang assassins.

Moreover, morale is high at the beginning, but it will decline at the second and be exhausted at the third. If he hesitates any longer, it will have a great impact on the morale of the people behind him.

"Whoever follows me into the Qinian Palace, deposes King Zheng of Qin, and establishes a new ruler, and captures King Zheng of Qin alive, will be rewarded with ten thousand households!"

Lao Ai raised his long sword and shouted loudly.

Upon hearing of Lao Ai's reward, the eyes of his retainers gleamed instantly, and they brandished their swords, shouting loudly.
"kill!"

Without further hesitation, Lao Ai led more than two thousand people toward Qinian Palace, his eyes filled with urgency.

The throne, the throne, this lord has arrived!
Ying Yu looked at the impatient Lao Ai, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. He cursed Lao Ai inwardly as an idiot, and then Lao Ai rushed into Qinian Palace.

(End of this chapter)