Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 19 19. Alchemist Mao Sheng
"Your Majesty." Zhou Ju bowed slightly.

Ji Heng glanced at him, and Zhou Ju immediately approached and whispered, "Qin Qing said that cinnabar and lead are both extremely poisonous. If used for dyeing, and worn close to the skin, it may shorten lifespan and reduce reproduction."

"Red and white are especially bad."

Ji Heng's eyebrows twitched.

He slowly sat up straight, then stared at the guest Cao Dan, who was wearing a bright red belt and speaking nonstop, and gave his feedback after the other's passionate speech ended:

"Oh?"

Cao Dan was even more excited.

Don't get me wrong, he had no intention of harming the King of Qin, he really thought the elixir was wonderful.

Seeing that the king was interested, he immediately said, "Your Majesty, Mao Sheng is waiting outside the palace."

"Xuan."

The eunuchs passed on the message. Soon, someone appeared outside the hall, dressed in a snow-white silk gown with wide sleeves. Even in the scorching summer heat, he exuded an air of celestial elegance.

Zhou Ju's cheek twitched for a moment, and he looked at the other person in white clothes and remained silent.

The Taoist priest did not notice the King of Qin's expression. He had a long, flowing white beard, and his hair was neatly combed, a mixture of black and white, and his demeanor was extremely detached.

At this moment, his back was straight, he only bowed slightly, and said in a slow and firm voice: "Alchemist Mao Sheng, I greet the king."

Zhou Ju secretly observed the King of Qin's expression and saw that he was tapping the lacquer table with his index finger. So he said, "Mr. Mao, since you are meeting the king, why don't you bow?"

Mao Sheng raised his head and said proudly, "I am an outsider, serving the gods. It's not that I don't bow before you, Your Majesty, but it's simply that Your Majesty has not yet attained enlightenment."

Zhou Ju raised his eyelids to look at him, thinking: Even Qin Qing, who brought the magic medicine to save the king's life, although he is not familiar with etiquette, still looks sincere when meeting the king.

And now, an incompetent alchemist who refines cinnabar poison pills and wears a lead-white poisonous robe dares to proudly call himself "a hermit"? And even slanders the king for not having attained enlightenment?
Hey!
Such thick dough!
The next moment, the King of Qin looked up at him and said, "Mr. Mao, since you serve the immortals, can the immortals give you any medicine?"

His voice was deep, his expression hidden in the deeper hall, and it was impossible to tell whether he was happy or not. "I love General Yan Yun, but he is now seriously ill and in great pain. I have sought medical advice from all over the world."

"If you have a miracle drug, why don't you present it to General Yan? It will also help me relieve my depression."

Mao Sheng remained calm, bowing his head slightly once more. He clasped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, it's not that I'm unwilling to share your worries. I've heard of the General's affairs even from as far away as Yiqu. It's simply that the General has been too merciless, and his serious illness is not something I can cure, but rather a punishment from heaven."

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room fell silent.

The heart of the guest Cao Dan tightened. Without saying a word, he stood up from his heels and knelt down to pay homage.

He said nothing, but in his heart he cursed Mao Sheng a thousand times.

No matter how good a god is, if the king wants to chop off his head, can a god help him reattach it?
How dare this Taoist priest Mao Sheng say such a thing?!
Everyone knows that General Yan Yun is the military god of the Qin Dynasty. He conquered the six kingdoms and made great military achievements for the Qin Dynasty!

Moreover, he once taught the king how to ride, shoot, and fight, so he is a person whom the king trusts the most!
On the high platform, Ji Heng slowly said: "Heaven's punishment..."

He suddenly chuckled with an ambiguous tone, "Since Mr. Mao has such perseverance, I should reward him."

"Zhou Ju, open the treasury and reward Mao Sheng with red and white clothing, cinnabar, lead, white gold and silver utensils, and order him to offer a pill of the divine elixir every seven days."

After a pause, he continued, "Never mind. I am still in my prime, so I don't need to use this elixir for now. I will just give it to Mr. Mao to take—Mr. Mao!"

Mao Sheng, who was still in a daze below, heard the King of Qin calling out and immediately responded, "Mao Sheng is here!"

Then, the King of Qin, who was known to the survivors of the six kingdoms for his cruelty and tyranny, actually treated him with great courtesy:

"I hope you live long, for thousands and thousands of years, to serve the heavens for my Great Qin!"

Everyone in the hall had a changing expression, but no one said a word. Only the Imperial Household Officer Cao Dan was bewildered, now kneeling on the ground, unsure of what had gone wrong. Even the ministers who accompanied him day and night couldn't figure out the King of Qin's likes and dislikes. Mao Sheng was bewildered, feeling both confident and anxious.
Let's not even talk about whether he could refine one pill in seven days, just the efficacy...

He bowed and agreed, feeling extremely confused at the moment.

But when he left the hall, the Imperial Household Officer Cao Dan just raised his head with joy when he heard the cold voice of the King of Qin from above:

"Cao Dan, the Minister of the Imperial Household, failed to distinguish between loyalty and treachery and presented a traitor to the emperor. He was dragged away and given 20 strokes of the cane. He was then stripped of his position as Minister of the Imperial Household and demoted to a traveler."

Cao Dan looked up instantly, his expression disheveled, embarrassed and confused.

From a royal guest to a traveler, from a diplomatic official to an envoy temporarily dispatched by the court...why?
Why?

The guards went up to the hall in silence. The sound of weapons clashing was dull and majestic. Cao Dan was dragged away in a panic, and his expression became even more bleak.

The rest of the ministers probably knew that the King of Qin was in a bad mood today. The Chief Censor pondered for a moment and quickly took his leave.

As soon as the three dukes left, the nine ministers also took their leave. Soon, only the King of Qin was left in the entire Zhangtai Palace.

The Zhou giant tensed up, and sure enough, the next moment, the King of Qin threw the jade cup to the ground, and then cursed:

"Where is the imperial physician's order?"

He stood up, his face thick with rage. "Since cinnabar and lead are so toxic, why has the imperial physician said nothing? Zhou Ju, have someone strictly guard Mao Sheng, and have the imperial physician see him every day! I want to see if his elixir can last for thousands of years!"

Zhou Ju bowed and agreed.

After the King of Qin said this, his anger quickly dissipated. He quickly calmed down and ordered: "Go to the prison and bring two groups of death row prisoners. One group will be dressed in white and take lead, and the other group will be dressed in red and take cinnabar."

His expression was stern, and his eyes were even more sinister. "Let's go with Mao Sheng. I want to personally test whether what Qin Qing said is credible."

Zhou Ju agreed again.

Then he hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, Juguan Qinqing is considerate and kind. She trusts Your Majesty's favor and favor towards her, and she has no defenses against all the servants."

"She often has surprising things to say, and relying on servants to relay her messages might not be enough. How about granting her special privileges so that she can present her remarks directly to the king?"

Ji Heng was silent for a moment, then asked, "How did she say that cinnabar and lead were extremely poisonous?"

Zhou Ju then told the story in detail, without missing a single detail.

Ji Heng pondered for a moment, then nodded: "I agree."

"Also, send her a message: if she needs anything, all items in the Xianyang Palace, except for the soldiers' armor, can be used."

Zhou Ju nodded: "Yes."

Then he looked at the King of Qin, his expression gradually relaxing: "Your Majesty, now...why don't you change your clothes first?"

In addition to black, the king also loves purple, red, white and blue!
Now, she is also wearing a white silk undergarment.

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Huangmen is the name of an official office and also a nickname for eunuchs. It was first established during the Qin Dynasty. There were positions such as Huangmen Ling and Huangmen Shilang, who were primarily responsible for various palace affairs, such as serving the emperor and conveying imperial edicts. This evolved during the Han Dynasty, with Huangmen becoming a nickname for eunuchs.

Lingyu (ling yu) refers to a prison deep within. It's also known as Xianyang Prison, or the Tianlao (Heavenly Prison) in later times.

[One team: a small group of five people]

I got up at six, and I've been busy, trying to squeeze in whatever time I can. I'm exhausted today...

(End of this chapter)