Qin Dynasty: Who offended my frail and sickly minister?

Zhao held the reply in his hand, read it three times, and then three more times, but he couldn't utter a word.

The deputy envoy cautiously asked, "Doctor, what... what should we do?"

Zhao did not answer, but looked up at the window with a blank and resentful gaze.

So, after going through a long and complicated process, preparing two generous gifts, and feeling the pinch twice, he still ended up going to the Zhou residence.

They clearly have their own residences, so why are they staying at the Zhou residence? Don't you Qin officials know how to avoid suspicion?!

What else can we do? Just wait!

We've prepared two gifts, and the funds we brought are almost gone. Should we switch to someone else? Who knows if the new target will accept them or if we can cater to their preferences?

And didn't the reply say, "Just a short stay, just a short stay, it shouldn't be long... right?"

Thus began the long wait for the Zhao envoy.

On the first day, he stared in the direction of the Zhou residence, thinking: Perhaps Li Tingwei will return to the residence tomorrow.

The next day, he was still staring in that direction, thinking: Maybe the day after tomorrow...

Day three, day four...

Zhao's envoy went from being full of hope to being utterly despondent, and from being utterly despondent to becoming numb and indifferent.

He only had three things to do each day: get up early to check the gate of the Zhou family mansion, go to check the gate of the Zhou family mansion in the afternoon, and take one last look at the gate of the Zhou family mansion before going to bed.

Just as Zhao Shi was beginning to suspect that Li Si was planning to retire in the Zhou family mansion and inherit Zhou Wenqing's pile of rare treasures, he gritted his teeth and prepared to put together the third big gift, this time targeting Lord Changping.

The gift list was already halfway done when suddenly, a piece of news struck the building like a bolt from the blue—

Zhou Neishi has arrived at the court!

Zhao's hand trembled, and the tip of his pen drew a long ink mark on the gift list.

"...Have they entered the court?"

He slowly raised his head and looked at the person who brought the news, his eyes filled with indescribable complexity.

Wasn't it said that he was so angered by the Han envoy that he vomited three liters of blood on the spot, then his head was smashed by a table, and finally he was trampled twice by their horses as they fled, with one hoof kick sending him flying, and only Physician Lü was barely keeping him alive? How did he end up in court?

"Yes, Doctor, I saw it with my own eyes this morning. Zhou Neishi rode in a strange wheeled carriage and went to Zhangtai Palace!"

Zhao's envoy lowered his head, looking at the half-written gift list in his hand, pieced together from the previous two gifts, which he was preparing to send to Lord Changping, and fell into deep thought.

Could this Qin minister be deliberately messing with him?

"Then, doctor..." the deputy envoy asked tentatively, "Should we still see Lord Changping?"

The Zhao envoy did not answer. He simply stood up, walked to the window, opened it, and looked in the direction of the Zhao state.

A cool breeze blew in through the window, and he suddenly realized that the wind in Xianyang was much colder than that in Zhao.

The waters of the Qin state run far too deep.

He wants to go back to China!

Then the Yan envoy on the other side spat in response...

A glob of phlegm shot through the air; if he hadn't closed the window quickly, it probably would have spit in his face!

The deputy envoy stood there dumbfounded, his mouth agape enough to fit an egg.

"D-Doctor..."

Zhao's face turned from white to red, from red to green, and finally as black as the bottom of a pot.

"Prepare the gifts! Rewrite the gift list and put everything together for me. I'm going to the Zhou residence!"

"But doctor, Zhou Neishi doesn't seem to be fully recovered yet, we..."

"As long as he's still breathing, I refuse to believe that all those truckloads of gold won't be enough to break down his door!"

Zhao said fiercely, his eyes almost spitting fire.

He grabbed the half-written gift list from the table, tore it into pieces, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it twice. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought he was stepping on the Yan envoy's face.

Zhao, panting heavily, a desperate glint in his eyes, ordered, "Bring out everything you've got under your belt, leave nothing behind! I refuse to believe we can't pry open the Zhou residence's gates!"

Another day passed. The carriage was ready, the gift boxes were loaded, and it was getting late but the time was just right. Envoy Zhao stood at the entrance of the guesthouse and glanced back at the tightly closed window across the way.

That old scoundrel Ju Wu is probably hiding behind the window, chuckling to himself right now.

He sneered, spat fiercely in the direction of the window, then turned, got into the car, and drove away without looking back.

Inside the carriage, Zhao Shi sat upright, his gaze as firm as iron. He held the newly compiled gift list in his arms; this was his last gamble, all his possessions staked.

The State of Yan, the envoy of Yan, I swear to destroy them!

------

The inner courtyard of the Zhou residence remained bustling.

The nephews and nieces had already carefully put away their gifts, not revealing a single one. They simply held their respective wooden boxes, reluctant to let anyone else touch them.

Zhou Wenqing leaned back in his rocking chair, squinting in the sun, looking serene and content. He sipped his tea, glancing sideways with amusement as he watched the spectacle unfold.

Over there, the two old generals were arguing back and forth, debating who was the last to close the study door, because...

Fusu and Azhu stood aside, looking at them with resentful expressions.

When everyone entered the study just now, the two of them hesitated for a moment—the teacher said it was a gift, but judging from his expression, it seemed that he had something to talk to the generals about. Should they follow him?

Hesitating for just a moment, he slowed down and by the time he came to his senses, the study door had already slammed shut, effectively locking them both out.

Fusu: "..."

Ah Zhu: "..."

The two exchanged a glance, looking at each other in bewilderment, unsure whether to go forward or retreat. In the end, they could only return to the courtyard to wait, feeling dejected.

And so we waited, and now we're here.

Looking at the group of "nephews" who were grinning from ear to ear while holding their babies, and then at the two old generals arguing heatedly, Fusu silently took out his notebook and made a note.

Li Yi was originally leaning against the courtyard wall with his arms crossed, watching the farce unfold in the courtyard in a daze, while also paying attention to the surrounding movements, keeping his mind to himself and pretending that he didn't exist.

At this moment, a guard hurried over, carrying an exceptionally thick visiting card.

Li Yi walked out of the courtyard gate without making a sound. The guard immediately leaned close to his ear and whispered a few words.

His brow furrowed instantly as he took the stack of visiting cards and casually opened them—

Good guy.

The long, inward curl drooped down with a "whoosh," almost dragging directly to the ground.

Li Yi was startled and hurriedly raised the visiting card, then frantically turned it back. His lips twitched, and his expression was complicated.

"Tell them to wait, I'll go tell the master." Li Yi finished speaking and turned to leave, but suddenly stopped in his tracks: "By the way...did they come in through the back door?"

"Yes." The guard nodded. "They went around in circles, coming from a side alley, not through the main entrance."

Li Yi nodded slightly.

It seems she has some sense of propriety and knows to avoid being noticed. Otherwise, if she had accidentally ruined the gentleman's reputation, she would have been kicked out immediately.

"Okay, you can go back now." Li Yi waved his hand and turned to walk into the courtyard.

The guards, feeling as if they had been granted a pardon, ran away in a flash.

Li Yi walked into the courtyard, still clutching the ridiculously thick visiting card in his hand. He quickly walked to the rocking chair, bent down, and lowered his voice:

"gentlemen."

Zhou Wenqing lazily opened one eye: "Hmm?"

Li Yi handed over the stack of visiting cards, his expression subtle:

"Envoy Zhao has arrived, bringing a visiting card and a very thick gift list."

"Envoy Zhao?" Zhou Wenqing raised an eyebrow and sat up slightly.

"Why are you here? Brother Gu'an and Mr. Wei Liao, haven't you dealt with them yet?"

"What Zhao envoy?"

The two generals stopped arguing and looked at Zhou Wenqing.