Teasing the First Dragon at the Start

Her biological mother wanted to kill her, her adoptive father Lü Buwei wanted to use her as a puppet, her younger brother wanted to conspire with the court to rebel, and even her childhood best friend sent assassins to kill her.

The familial and friendly affection that ordinary people have is something she can never hope to have.

She thought she would be alone on the throne for the rest of her life, but now she has met someone with whom she can completely let down her guard and entrust her heart and soul.

In fact, she trusted Bai Su more than she trusted her two daughters.

The reason is quite simple...

Since ancient times, the imperial family has been ruthless. Once they sit on the dragon throne, the first thing they consider is always the country and its people. Personal feelings and emotions have to take a backseat to power.

Even if the person he's facing is his own daughter, it's the same.

Bai Su had absolutely no interest in the dragon throne she was sitting on.

There's nothing to worry about with such an unambitious and easily satisfied lecher.

Zhengjie lifted a strand of hair between her brows with her slender jade hand, revealing her fair and slender collarbone. She glanced at Bai Su with her phoenix eyes and said, "You want to dig a canal. Such a huge project will probably take a long time."

Bai Su embraced Zheng Jie in his arms, holding her slender waist and gently stroking her protruding belly. Zheng Jie's fair neck arched slightly, but she did not stop him at all, letting her lover do as he pleased.

He said with a smile, "This is not a short-sighted strategy, but a long-term strategy that may take ten or even several decades to fully implement."

"If we are too hasty, we may do more harm than good and place too heavy a burden on the people. The situation in Chu, which has finally been stabilized, may fall into chaos again."

"So we can take it slow. After quelling the rebellion in Chu, we can use the work-for-relief method to stabilize the situation among the people and encourage them to help us with the construction."

"This project is like Yu the Great's flood control; its effects won't be immediately apparent, but once it's truly completed, the advantages of the canal will gradually become clear. It will allow goods from the south to be sold in the north, and grain from the north to be harvested in the south. It might even encourage large numbers of people from the north to migrate south and cultivate the land there..."

"At that time, the prosperity of the Central Plains will surpass all previous dynasties, and even the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors will be amazed."

Sister Zheng smiled warmly, feeling Bai Su's gentle caressing hand. Her phoenix eyes were full of tenderness. She knew clearly that Bai Su was originally a free spirit.

Normally, this man would have preferred to slack off and live a life of leisure, but now Bai Su has done so much, all for her.

Looking at Bai Su, who was constantly thinking about whether there were any flaws in the policy, she couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

After hesitating for a long time, she suddenly spoke, "Come here..."

Bai Su was taken aback and subconsciously turned her head: "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"

Zhengjie stared intently at Bai Su's face with her phoenix eyes. To his surprise, her fair hands gently cupped his face, and she slowly brought her face closer, her thin red lips lightly touching his forehead.

"No, don't, you're too tired..."

Bai Su smiled as she looked at Zheng Jie, who was gazing at her with tenderness. She reached out and put her arm around Zheng Jie's waist, a surge of heroic spirit welling up inside her.

.......

.......

Inside a side room.

Xiang Yu's beautiful brows furrowed tightly, as if he were having a nightmare, and his eyelids twitched incessantly.

At that moment, a series of images flashed through her mind.

On the battlefield, where blood was everywhere and smoke billowed everywhere.

Surrounded by guards, the young girl retreated to the rear. The last thing she saw when she looked up was her grandfather, defeated on the battlefield and powerless to defend the Chu Kingdom, despairingly raising his sword to the sky and committing suicide.

In the pouring rain, amidst the icy waters, the State of Chu perished, her grandfather died in battle, and she, having lost everything, sat blankly under an ancient tree, letting the rain stream down her face, utterly at a loss for what to do.

A girl in a red dress held a bamboo umbrella to shield her from the rain and asked her name and why she was getting wet. The girl smiled and stretched out her fair hand, saying that her name was Yu Ji.

Years later, the two grew up together in Jiangdong.

Yu Ji sat gracefully on the long corridor, gently playing the zither, while she practiced her Overlord Spear in the courtyard, learning military strategy and strengthening her body day after day. Everything was so beautiful.

She coughed lightly, deliberately trying to attract Yu Ji's attention.

Then, suppressing her nervousness, she rubbed her nose and said that after she overthrew the Great Xia and restored the Chu Kingdom, she would take Yu Ji, who had never left Jiangdong since childhood and longed for the outside world, to see the prosperous capital of Chu.

Yu Ji was taken aback for a moment, then smiled sweetly, hooked her fingers with hers, and nodded.

But when she became the great general of Chu and commanded the three armies to launch a northern expedition, Yu Ji seemed to have forgotten their childhood promise and left her.

She stood at the camp gate, staring blankly as she stretched out her hand, watching Yu Ji's receding figure.

On the battlefield that followed, she gritted her teeth and vowed to take back everything, but the war became increasingly unfavorable.

Despite possessing the ferocity to shake mountains and rivers, her pride and power seemed to be gradually exhausted when facing an endless enemy army, and she could no longer wield the Overlord Spear.

He could only watch helplessly as wave after wave of enemy soldiers, wielding spears, charged toward him.

"Whoo~"

Xiang Yu suddenly opened her eyes and sat up abruptly from the bed, only to find herself lying on a soft, large bed with her body wrapped in layers of white cloth, clearly indicating that someone had bandaged her wounds.

What... what's going on?

I remember being surrounded on the battlefield, and now I suddenly find myself in a strange room. Could it be... that I am already dead?

"Ah, Yu'er, you're awake!"

A surprised female voice came from beside her ear, and then a woman's pretty face appeared in her sight.

This is a stunningly beautiful woman in a red dress, with a bright and captivating appearance, dignified and elegant. Who else could she be but Yu Ji?

Looking at Yu Ji so close to him, Xiang Yu was momentarily stunned, and said in disbelief, "Yu... Yu Ji, what are you doing here..."

Yu Ji was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Yu'er, are you still half asleep?"

As she spoke, she gently placed the chicken soup she had brought on the table, walked over slowly, raised her snow-white wrist, and placed her warm, jade-like hand on Xiang Yu's forehead. After feeling that there was no abnormality in the temperature, she slowly breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiang Yu was still in a daze when she asked blankly, "Yu Ji, wasn't I fighting a decisive battle with the Xia army? How did I suddenly end up here? What is going on...?"

Yu Ji bit her lip lightly and said, "Yu'er, the war between Xia and Chu is over. You...you lost. After the war, Lord Bai took you back to Xianyang..."

Xiang Yu was stunned for a moment, and a series of images flashed through her mind before she finally realized what was happening.

Oh right, I remember now, I lost, I lost to Bai Su.

She glanced around the room and sneered, "So, Bai Su wants to emulate the Xia army of the past and imprison me in Xianyang to torture me forever?"

Yu Ji hurriedly said, "Yu'er, you have misunderstood the master. He never thought that way. The reason he brought you to Xianyang was to let you see different scenery."

"Moreover, the master also said that no matter whether you think it through in the future or not, he will let you leave after a year. The master paid a great price to save your life. Yu'er, you must not say such things about the master."

Xiang Yu frowned slightly and couldn't help but say, "You keep talking about 'adult' over and over again. Is he the only person in your heart right now?"

A blush rose on Yu Ji's fair face. She bit her lip lightly with her pearly teeth and hesitated for a long time before whispering, "Indeed, my heart is already imprinted with your image. I... I am now your woman."

Xiang Yu was stunned and looked up in disbelief.

She was so excited to have just reunited with Yu Ji that she didn't notice any other details. Now, upon closer inspection, she realized that Yu Ji was quite different from how she remembered her.

Before me stood Yu Ji, dressed in a long red dress, her jet-black hair styled in a high bun, adorned with a simple hairpin. She had long eyebrows, curved eyelashes, a delicate nose, and luscious, red lips.

The girlish innocence faded, replaced by a captivating charm. She seemed like a flower carefully watered with sweet dew, her smooth, milky skin glowing in the candlelight, her slender figure exuding a delicate and alluring beauty.

Xiang Yu looked at Yu Ji, who had become even more beautiful and mature, and his lips parted slightly as if he wanted to say something. However, the words seemed to dry up and he couldn't speak for a long time.

Obviously...

The two, who were childhood sweethearts and grew up together, can never go back to that innocent past.

Chapter 365 A Mountain Range Viewed Horizontally, a Peak Viewed From the Side

Looking at Yu Ji, who was both familiar and unfamiliar to him, Xiang Yu remained silent for a long time.

She couldn't quite describe the feeling in her heart; she just felt a sense of bewilderment. The divine strength that used to allow her to easily lift a thousand-pound cauldron now seemed to make even raising her hand difficult.

Looking at Xiang Yu's appearance, Yu Ji couldn't help but feel a sense of worry. After all, Xiang Yu's injuries had not yet healed, and being so worried would not be good for his health.

After hesitating for a long time, she said, "Yu'er, everything is in the past. Don't be so fixated on the past, on that impossible obsession, okay?"

Xiang Yu slowly clenched her slender jade hand, and after a long silence, she said, "What are you saying? I don't understand."

Yu Ji lightly bit her red lips and said, "Between Xia and Chu, Chu has already been defeated. Now, King Huai of Chu and his forces are constantly fleeing, and it's only a matter of time before they are wiped out."

"Lord Bai once said that the most precious resource in the world is people. He would never do something as foolish as massacring a city to vent his anger. Instead, he would find a way to govern the people of Chu, lead the local Chu people to dig canals, cultivate fertile land, and improve people's livelihoods."

“Under the rule of the adults, the people of Chu will not be forced into corvée labor, so…”

She slowly raised her head, her gaze fixed on Xiang Yu before her, and comforted him, "Yu'er, don't be so focused on overthrowing the Great Xia anymore. The Lord values ​​your talent highly, and if you are willing to help him, he will definitely..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiang Yu interrupted him: "I would rather die here than serve Bai Su."

Yu Ji's expression turned complicated: "Yu'er."

Xiang Yu rolled over and lay down on the bed, his back to Yu Ji, and said without turning his head, "You can go now, I'm a little tired."

Yu Ji also knew that with so many things happening right now, Xiang Yu's mind must be in complete turmoil, and he needed some time to calm down.

After a moment's hesitation, she said, "That's fine then. Remember to drink the soup. I'll come see you again tomorrow."

Xiang Yu remained lying on the bed, motionless, as if he were asleep.

Only after Yu Ji closed the door and the footsteps faded into the distance did she slowly open her eyes, her face filled with complex emotions.

.......

.......

By the time Bai Su returned from the palace, it was already late at night.

Yu Ji thoughtfully boiled water and brewed a pot of hot tea.

A bathtub has already been placed inside the room.

After finishing her tea, Bai Su, dressed in Yu Ji's attire, entered the bathtub.

The bathtub was exceptionally spacious; two or three people could sit in it, but it felt a bit empty for one person to soak in it.

This wasn't the first time Yu Ji had served Bai Su, so she was used to the scene. She skillfully put away Bai Su's clothes and prepared to get a new one.

She suddenly smelled a faint fragrance, and subconsciously brought the clothes to her nose, sniffing them gently. A hint of hesitation appeared in her dark eyes.

After spending several months together, she had become very familiar with Bai Su's scent and knew that it couldn't possibly be Bai Su's.

It was somewhat like a woman's fragrance, but after returning to Xianyang, Bai Su didn't even go to her residence before going directly to the palace to meet the emperor. The only woman she might have come into contact with seemed to be...

Her delicate hand trembled slightly, and she immediately dared not think any further.

Such royal secrets were not something a commoner like her had the right to discuss.