The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 304: Action under the cover of night, Yingzi is a stone for now, good show
Zhao Gao pretended to be afraid at first, but this time he was really scared.

The supreme royal power was like a towering mountain, pressing him so hard that he couldn't breathe.

His teeth were chattering and he couldn't speak.

He recalled his parents' voices and appearances, trying to use hatred to dispel the fear in his heart.

The effect is minimal.

He is a fox who relies on the power of a tiger to bully others. He is so powerful and proud in front of others because he is a confidant of King Zheng of Qin. However, he is very afraid in front of a real tiger.

"Go on!" Another fierce shout came down, and Zhao Gao seemed to have received a command from the gods.

Everything that prevented him from speaking was pierced by the Heavenly Constitution, and he suddenly regained the ability to speak, speaking fluently and clearly:

"It is said that when the Queen Mother Zhao came to the late king's side, she was already two months pregnant, but she did not show her pregnancy. The king was born after the Queen Mother Zhao had been pregnant for twelve months.

"The previous king knew this but did not say it explicitly. The fact that you are asking Your Majesty to call Prime Minister Lu "Second Father" is a clear proof. Since ancient times, has there ever been a king who recognized his subject as his father?

"The reason why the late king passed the throne to you before his death was all due to Prime Minister Lu.

"The previous king actually wanted to abdicate to Prime Minister Lu, but he was afraid that the officials and the people would not agree, and the country would be in chaos. So he gave up and passed the throne to the king."

After saying all that Prime Minister Lu had told him to do in one breath, Zhao Gao lay on the ground and took deep breaths, nearly suffocating to death.

Sweat beads gathered from his forehead and slid down his face, which was as pale as a dead man. If it weren't for the thick official uniform, his back would have been soaked.

for a long time.

Zhao Gao's knees and forehead were sore from kneeling, and his center of gravity kept shifting back and forth.

There was not even a breath of wind in the closed hall, yet the eunuchs and palace maids inside were shivering as if they were frozen.

"Has Cheng Jiao not been found yet?" King Zheng of Qin suddenly asked in a flat tone.

"Your Majesty, not yet." Zhao Gao supported himself on the ground with his numb hands to reduce the load on his knees and forehead.

"Then go look for it quickly!"

"only!"

When Zhao Gao stood up, he nearly fell. His legs were numb and swollen, and he felt sore and painful when he moved.

He limped to the temple door and opened it.

The wind came in, and the extremely depressing atmosphere leaked out.

Zhao Gao walked out, closed the door gently, staggered two steps, and fell on the pillar supporting the palace in front of the door. He hugged the pillar and slowly slid down like a puddle of mud.

In the palace.

[This is to build momentum and justify the usurpation of the throne!] Qin Wangzheng silently repeated the word "endurance" in his heart, and his fists clenched in his sleeves made a continuous "creaking" sound.

The mourning period for Bai Ma had not yet passed, and the ministers were still waiting for Queen Dowager Zhao to go to Yongcheng.

At this time, he could not touch Lu Buwei, even though Lu Buwei's intentions were known to everyone.

When he killed Lu Buwei, there must have been a large number of his ministers who suspected that he had spread the rumor himself just to find a reason to kill Lu Buwei.

People care more about their own interests.

Lu Buwei was the chief of the civil officials and a minister.

The death of Lu Buwei would damage the interests of all the ministers, just as the death of Bai Ma would require an explanation to the old Qin nobles.

King Zheng of Qin, who had just ascended the throne, did not have the prestige of his father, King Zhuangxiang of Qin, and was unable to calm the chaotic people's hearts after killing Lu Buwei.

He is the future.

The future has not yet arrived.

In order to kill Lü Buwei, who had made outstanding contributions to the Qin State, without causing disloyalty to his subjects, there must be an absolutely unforgivable reason.

rebellion.

If Lu Buwei really rebelled.

It doesn't count if it's to create momentum for rebellion.

"Cheng Jiao must not know about this, otherwise he will definitely confront Lü Buwei. Counting the days, he should go to Qi to get married." Qin Wangzheng sighed: "Naive brother, there are few people like you who don't care about power. Where have you been all day?"

The East Palace is where the Qin royal mausoleum is located.

Six generations of Qin kings are buried here: Duke Xiao of Qin, King Huiwen of Qin, King Wu of Qin, King Zhaoxiang of Qin, King Xiaowen of Qin, and King Zhuangxiang of Qin.

The night is quiet and deep, and a place like a mausoleum is even quieter and deeper, making people feel uneasy and scared.

Darkness and death are fears that are engraved in human genes.

The entrance to the tomb of King Xiaowen of Qin.

A small figure walked out of the darkness, like a little ghost walking from the underworld to the human world.

There was dust on the kid's forehead, tear marks on his face, and his body was covered in dust.

There were two people guarding the entrance.

One of them was dressed in white clothes as white as snow and had a sword on his waist; the other one was holding a torch and had a slightly hunched back.

"Young Master." The hunchback took half a step forward.

The firelight illuminated his middle-aged face, which was trying hard to suppress his excitement, and his head of white hair looked like frost and snow.

"Mr. Han." Ying Chengjiao's voice was a little hoarse: "If I had known that you were still alive and had been guarding my grandfather's tomb, I would have come earlier."

"It's not too late. It's not too late now." The hunchback raised his sleeve to wipe his tears and said with a blushing face, "Sir, please don't laugh at Ming. I don't know how many years it has been since I left the battlefield. You have become pretentious."

The branches swayed in the night wind.

The jackdaw quacked and held on to the branch with its claws tightly, refusing to fly.

The middle-aged hunchback with white hair was none other than Qin Xiaowen Wang’s personal charioteer, Han Ming, the former commander of the Qin State’s chariot department.

"Sir, are you leaving now?" Han Ming asked reluctantly.

Ying Chengjiao lowered his head, afraid that telling the truth would hurt Duke Han.

But facing Han Ming, who had been silently guarding his grandfather's tomb for five years like a living dead, he could not lie and had to tell him the truth.

"I want... to go see my father again." Young Master Cheng Jiao found it difficult to speak, but finally he spoke.

Han Ming's expression changed slightly.

He was a witness to the military rebellion of King Zhuangxiang of Qin, and saw with his own eyes King Zhuangxiang of Qin, who was still the crown prince, entering the Xianyang Palace with a sword in his hand.

The night wind whistled with strange sounds, as if King Xiaowen of Qin was roaring and getting angry underground.

The torch flickered, swallowing up a few of Han Ming's flying white hairs.

The boy's self-blaming face came into Han Ming's eyes, covering up the anger in Han Ming's eyes.

Han Ming took a deep breath, slowed down his speech, and forced a smile:
"Can I accompany you, young master?"

King Xiaowen of Qin was his king, and he was angry that his king died because of the crown prince.

King Xiaowen of Qin was the grandfather of Prince Chengjiao, and the person he loved most in his life was Prince Chengjiao.

How sad would his son be if his grandfather died because of his father?
The Wang family’s family affection has always been so cruel.

But isn't it a bit too cruel for a boy of seven or eight years old, for a prince who had never killed anyone in the palace, and for a boy who was playing mahjong with his grandfather just two days ago?

Han Ming raised the hand that was not holding the torch, hesitated, tentatively, slowly reached forward, touched Master Chengjiao's head, and stroked it gently.

"It's all over, sir." The living dead who had not yet let go of his grief smiled with relief.

He can't get out, but his master must get out.

Prince Chengjiao was his king's favorite and only favorite grandson. If his king were still alive in heaven, he would surely be sad to see Prince Chengjiao in this state.

He held Prince Chengjiao's hand and walked towards the tomb of his enemy, King Zhuangxiang of Qin.

"My lord, it was the king who took the initiative to die, and it actually had nothing to do with the crown prince..." Han Ming said as he walked.

The heart was bleeding, but also healing. The Sword Saint in white followed the two silently, his hand never leaving the hilt of the sword.

Since entering the Qin Royal Mausoleum, Gai Nie has felt the danger coming from all directions, just like when he broke into the prime minister's residence in Yongcheng on New Year's Eve, but the feeling was even stronger than that time.

The danger comes from the houses at the entrance of each royal tomb, and each house means at least one tomb keeper.

These tomb keepers passed down their duties from father to son, and from son to grandson, guarding the king's tomb from generation to generation.

The compacted loess road surface is usually still dusty.

Fortunately, it was cold today and the ground was frozen, so there was no dust flying when we walked.

Han Ming led Prince Cheng Jiao to the entrance of the mausoleum of King Zhuangxiang of Qin and pointed at the unfinished mausoleum and said:

"The prince's mausoleum has not been built yet. There are many mechanisms inside, and I don't know them very well. Sir, it is not appropriate to go down tonight. You can go in tomorrow daytime when all the craftsmen arrive."

When saying this, Han Ming, who hated King Zhuangxiang of Qin, couldn't help but reveal a hint of admiration.

The reason why King Zhuangxiang of Qin's mausoleum was not completed was that his reign was short, less than five years.

But this is not the most important reason. King Zhuangxiang of Qin’s reign was not as short as his father’s.

King Xiaowen of Qin was in power for only a few months, but he summoned skilled craftsmen to work day and night. In addition, King Xiaowen of Qin often came to inspect the construction, so wasn't the royal mausoleum completed before his death?
The most important reason is the second one. King Zhuangxiang of Qin transferred most of the manpower for building his own royal mausoleum to Guanzhong to control floods.

Han Ming didn't know how many times he had driven King Xiaowen of Qin to the Eastern Palace, but he had never seen King Zhuangxiang of Qin come once.

In Han Ming's eyes, King Zhuangxiang of Qin, who killed his father and the king, was not a good prince, but a good King of Qin.

For the sake of Qin, he would not hesitate to suffer an uneasy death.

From the perspective of a Qin official, Han Ming had no fault to offer to King Zhuangxiang of Qin.

“Daytime, I may not have daytime anymore…” Young Master Cheng Jiao recited softly.

Han Ming's eyes were stern, and his words were filled with hatred for King Zhuangxiang of Qin that he had suppressed for a long time but could not express in front of Prince Chengjiao:

"Who dares to harm the young master?"

Han Ming, who had been imprisoned here by Qin Zichu, had no idea what major events had happened outside. He didn't know that Cheng Jiao, the most arrogant prince of the Qin State, had been assassinated wave after wave by the Qin generals who originally loved him.

I don’t know that the once spoiled young man traveled all over the countries and became a virtuous gentleman, called a son.

For Han Ming, who has been sweeping the tombs and kneeling to worship the king every day for five years.

Time still stands still at five years ago when Master Cheng Jiao was so arrogant and domineering that no one dared to touch him.

Gongzi Chengjiao grabbed Han Ming's hand and raised it high:
"Can Lord Han still hold the Qin sword with this hand?"

The torch is shaking, it is the hand holding the torch that is shaking, it is the owner of the hand, Han Ming, that is shaking.

"Yes!" He cried with a smile: "Thank you, sir, for making Ming feel that he is still alive and useful."

On that night five years ago, the prince had hired him with a large sum of money, wanting to promote him and give him a higher rank. He also wanted to buy horse bones for a thousand gold coins, so that all those who were loyal to King Xiaowen of Qin would know that Qin Zichu would not settle accounts with his old ministers.

Han Ming cursed and screamed, "You patricidal beast, if you don't kill me, I will kill you! I will kill you with my life!"
He was the Minister of Chariots of King Xiaowen of Qin.

The Minister of Chariots was a low-ranking official with a low salary, but he was a close confidant of King Xiaowen of Qin.

A confidant relies on others for survival.

When a person dies, his confidants also die.

He failed to protect his king and failed to die before his king.

The king was dead, and the murderer who killed the king was also dead, so he considered himself a dead man.

Being able to meet Master Chengjiao and obey his orders was a luxury he had never thought of.

Han Ming held a torch to light the way ahead for Prince Chengjiao. He wanted to protect the prince on behalf of his king, and his king would definitely be happy.

After the death of Prince Chu of Qin, Han Ming, who had still not stepped out of the Eastern Palace, followed his king's most beloved son Cheng Jiao out of the Eastern Palace.

He touched the hilt of the Qin sword at his waist unfamiliarly, his white hair moving in the wind.

He did not ask who the young master wanted to kill, nor did he ask why.

His king said so.

As long as Prince Chengjiao does not rebel, his orders are equivalent to royal orders.

When the king gives an order, we must execute it immediately!
A man walked into the light of the torch held by Han Ming. He was dressed as a carpenter and had an ordinary appearance, but with obvious features of a Chu person.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Deng Lingxue asked seriously, "Are you sure this will really help the great plan? Is your heart really not for yourself, but for the people of the world?"

Han Ming raised his eyebrows, very displeased.

Ask, ask, ask, what the hell are you asking!

Ying Chengjiao raised his tear-stained face, expressionless, and nodded mechanically:

"I know this is immoral and very difficult for the giant."

“Morality…” Deng Lingxue said bitterly: “Morality is a non-existent stone.”

"Since this is a difficult situation, you can lead the people out of the city and return to Chu now."

"Please don't forget your original intention, otherwise I, the disciple of Mo School, will definitely kill you."

"Thank you, great man."

"To work for the greater good, we should learn from Xie Yingzi. Yingzi, for now, should learn from the stone in your heart."

Han Ming led Master Cheng Jiao forward with a very unhappy look on his face, and Deng Lingxue followed behind him.

The torches stretched forward, illuminating more and more carpenters and blacksmiths...

They were covered in sawdust and iron ash, and there was fanaticism in everyone's eyes.

They stood to the left and right, dividing the road.

Let Master Chengjiao walk through, and then follow behind him.

Before he had walked five steps, Han Ming raised his eyebrows:
"Workroom order?"

Xiang Lifu nodded as a greeting.

He watched Master Chengjiao walk by, and then silently walked into the growing crowd behind Master Chengjiao, like a drop of water into the sea.

Fifty steps west of the huge crowd, Ji Yaoyao pointed at the burning torches:

"Brother, how about this play?"

Those phoenix eyes were piercing into the sea, dancing and laughing.

"Good show." Han Fei spoke each word with his eyes shining.

Chu Mo and Qin Mo acted together in Qin State, which attached great importance to laws, and in Xianyang, the capital of Qin State, where laws were the strictest.

Han Fei didn't know what these people were going to do, but he knew it would be a grand event.

People who study Mohism are called Mohists.

In the eyes of many people, Mohists are all crazy.

Han Fei did not think that all Mohists were crazy, he thought that all the Mohists who appeared tonight were crazy!
Ink blends into the night.

Under the cover of night, the city of Xianyang, which was under curfew, was very quiet, like a dozing beast.

The shouts of the night watchmen and the sounds of patrolling guards from the Neishi Palace helped the people of Xianyang sleep peacefully.

Tonight's patrolling soldiers encountered many craftsmen, some of whom had the Queen Mother's seal.

The guards were puzzled.

Why is the Queen Mother looking for these people from the workshop so late at night?
But the recent news in Xianyang made them not want to get involved, so as long as there was proof, they would release everyone.

The Bai family's mansion is a huge one, covering a large area within the Third Ring Road.

Not all of the Bai family members live here, but a large portion of them do...

(End of this chapter)