Martial Arts Master: The Lin Family Sword God, who swept through the Five Mountains and Four Sects

As soon as they stepped through the palace gates, Lin Tian followed Gai Nie straight into the depths of the inner palace. Before long, they stopped in front of an elegant hall. This was where Ying Zheng held private banquets, and even Lü Buwei, who once held immense power in the court, was never allowed to set foot here.

Today, however, he, as the Imperial Preceptor, has made an exception and entered.

Inside the hall, candlelight flickered, and Ying Zheng sat in the main seat, looking relaxed; on the other side, a thin gauze screen, embroidered with lotus patterns, stood quietly, and Zhao Ji was behind it.

Lin Tian glanced at her and chuckled inwardly: Last time, he only caught a glimpse of her slender, jade-like hand behind the curtain, her skin as smooth as snow. How could she possibly be an ugly woman who couldn't be seen in public? Yet she hides whenever she sees someone, behind the curtain, behind the screen, behind the gauze... Is she really afraid that people will see her face clearly?

"The Imperial Advisor has arrived, please take a seat." Ying Zheng smiled warmly and hurriedly called for palace servants to serve tea and set the table. "Today, the Empress Dowager was hosting a banquet, and I have come here to keep you company."

As soon as Lin Tian sat down, a clear, cold voice drifted from behind the screen, unhurried and deliberate: "The Grand Preceptor's presence in court today was awe-inspiring. The silence of the envoys from the six kingdoms is understandable; but the corpse of a former official lies beneath the steps, his blood still wet—though I am a woman, uninvolved in politics, I cannot help but ask: Considering merits and demerits, was this too arbitrary? Was this too reckless in your actions?"

Sure enough, before the wine was even poured, the knife was already drawn.

Lin Tian felt a sense of relief and peace of mind—he had anticipated that the king had ill intentions, and the breath he had been holding on all the way was finally released. Looking up again, he saw that Ying Zheng on the throne had a slightly stiff face, a forced smile on his lips, but his eyes were like those of a cat whose tail had been stepped on, full of aggrieved pleading.

It seems that Empress Dowager Zhao Ji had probably deceived her beloved son. Before Lin Tian entered the room, she said a completely different thing to Ying Zheng.

Lin Tian knew exactly what was going on, but he just smiled and let the palace maid fill his cup with scalding hot Qin wine. He then got up and walked to the screen.

He glimpsed Zhao Ji sitting at a table behind the screen through the thin veil, steadily raised his wine cup, and offered a distant toast to that elegant figure.

He then tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp, saying loudly, "This wine is a strong distilled liquor brewed by the people of Qin. I offer this Qin wine to the Empress Dowager to honor your status as the King's birth mother, and also to show respect on my behalf, so as not to give anyone cause for criticism."

Before he could finish speaking, his gaze darkened, and his tone suddenly hardened: "But some things must be said today—even if it's offensive, it must be stated to your face: Doesn't the Empress Dowager think that this harem is too narrow to accommodate both the emperor and the emperor, and that your meddling is too far-reaching and too deep?"

"Outrageous! How dare you, Imperial Advisor!" Zhao Ji slammed her hand on the table, her voice as cold as a double-edged sword. "I am Zheng'er's own mother!"

"Ha... The mother of a nation, instead of thinking about the stability of the country and the integrity of the officials, stirs up trouble every day like an old woman dredging up old grievances!" Lin Tian's lips curled slightly, but there was no smile in his eyes. "Has the Empress Dowager heard? The foundation of the Great Qin is as rotten as a piece of wood about to collapse, and the armies of the six states are sharpening their swords. If we don't first eliminate the internal strife, how can I free up my hands to sweep away the external threats? And you—you actually dare to criticize me?"

Before Zhao Ji could speak, his voice boomed like thunder: "I stood up despite the condemnation of thousands, and that was only right! Has the Empress Dowager even listened to a single word of what the people are saying? The voices of the people are like a surging tide, and you, hiding deep within the Jiaofang Palace, probably can't even hear the waves, can you? If you can't hear the people's voices, how can you be the Empress Dowager? And by what right do you reprimand me!"

Ying Zheng, seated at the head of the table, froze instantly, his pupils shrinking as he stared intently at the upright figure before the screen. He never expected that Lin Tian would dare to speak so venomously and barbedly right under the Empress Dowager's nose, practically pointing a finger at her and cursing her to her face.

Even more astonishingly, in front of the Qin monarch, right in front of Ying Zheng, she uttered the words "old woman" with such precision and ruthlessness.

Ying Zheng's temple throbbed, and he hurriedly rose from his seat, grabbing Lin Tian's sleeve and whispering, "Grand Preceptor, those words... went too far!"

He knew his mother all too well—as proud as a phoenix, now being stripped of her scales and feathers in public like this, her inner shirt was already soaked with cold sweat.

Lin Tian glanced at Ying Zheng sideways and said indifferently, "What kind of empress dowager clings to the throne and refuses to step down? Could it be that you, the king, don't want to sit on the throne anymore? Since we've torn off the mask today, I'll be the one to put on the black face!"

Ying Zheng's body stiffened, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. He released his grip and whispered, "Sir, I only beg you... not to harm my mother." He then shouted sharply, "Everyone, stand back! Only the Imperial Preceptor and the Empress Dowager remain here!"

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Lin Tian nodded.

Ying Zheng turned and left, dismissing all the palace servants and personally closing the palace doors.

From beginning to end, the figure behind the screen did not utter a single word. Even as Lin Tian's words were like needles piercing her, she kept her lips tightly shut and remained as still as a dry well.

After the footsteps faded into the distance and the palace doors were bolted, a laugh suddenly rang out from behind the screen.

The laughter was dry and trembling, shrouded in an overwhelming sense of sorrow. The more he laughed, the colder and hoarser he became, like the crisp sound of ice cracking, shattering himself in the process.

Behind the screen, Zhao Ji sat as before. Lin Tian, ​​after hearing the laughter, sighed softly, "Your Majesty, today's events were purely by chance. What I did was merely my duty; I hope you will understand."

If Zhao Ji hadn't probed and pressed him relentlessly, Lin Tian would never have willingly stepped into this murky water—he was gambling, gambling on whether Ying Zheng truly possessed the ruthless ambition to conquer the world.

He won his gamble. Ying Zheng had also been waiting for this day, but he hesitated to act, perhaps because he dared not, perhaps because he could not bear to, or perhaps... he still lacked a sword to push him forward.

Zhao Ji's voice drifted out, hoarse and tinged with pain: "Zheng'er... just like his father... just like him..."

Imperial families are not known for their fickle affections; this has always been the case.

Lin Tian had no intention of taking her life—she was the Empress Dowager, the birth mother of Ying Zheng, and the person Ying Zheng had specifically entrusted to her before his death.

The sword flashed and then disappeared from his sleeve, its light gleaming softly. His voice was neither loud nor soft, yet every word was clear: "There is one thing I humbly request the Empress Dowager to grant: please issue an imperial edict abolishing the position of regent established by the late king; and make it clear to the world that the Empress Dowager will no longer interfere in politics. This will completely return power to Your Majesty—and you can then enjoy the rest of your life in peace."

The figure behind the screen slowly rose. Through the hazy veil, Lin Tian saw Zhao Ji raise her hand and remove the heavy phoenix crown from her head. One by one, the gold hairpins were pulled out, and her meticulously styled hair bun suddenly came loose, her black hair cascading down her shoulders like a waterfall.

Zhao Ji ripped off her phoenix robe embroidered with gold and inlaid with jade. Then she removed the bracelets from her wrists, the thumb rings on her fingers, and the red gold hairpins from her earlobes, one by one, and gently placed them on the rosewood table in front of her, making a soft, tinkling sound.

Lin Tian's heart tightened, his throat moved slightly, he closed his eyes, turned to the side with his back to the screen, and said in a low voice with a barely perceptible tremor: "Empress Dowager, please reconsider. You are still the mother of the Great Qin."

"Ha... the Imperial Advisor's words sound like he's coaxing a child."

A soft laugh came from behind the screen, but her tone was as cold as autumn water: "Zheng'er is the king, the most ancestral monarch in Qin's history. Even as the Queen Mother, I cannot stop his hand from ruling the world. This banquet tonight was arranged by him himself—it seems he has been waiting for this moment for a long time."

What? Ying Zheng proposed it himself?

Lin Tian froze, the cause and effect flashing through his mind like lightning, and suddenly clenched his fist—So that's how it is!

The art of ruling over emperors is indeed becoming more and more sophisticated!

Recalling Ying Zheng's parting words, "I trouble the Imperial Advisor to take care of the Empress Dowager," now sounded like a knife's edge wrapped in honey.

He and the Empress Dowager had always maintained a facade of harmony but were actually at odds. Why would she personally send Gai Nie to invite him today? And how could he have foreseen that the Empress Dowager would resort to drastic measures?

—He had it all planned out! He knew he was strong-willed and unwilling to back down, and he knew he couldn't stand seeing others being forced...

Lin Tian felt a slight heaviness in his chest, and gave a silent, bitter smile: He truly lived up to his reputation as the First Emperor who unified the six kingdoms and pacified the eight wastelands. He had ultimately underestimated him.