The Qin Dynasty entered the game with love.

But considering the promises he had made to Ying Zheng, if his words and actions didn't match, it would all end in nothing. So, he steeled himself and wrote: "Cheng Jiao must commit suicide to atone for his sins."

With just eight simple characters, Ying Ji initially struggled to write on bamboo slips because she was unfamiliar with the writing style of Qin seal script, which was indeed difficult to write. It took her the time it takes to burn an incense stick before she finally placed the bamboo slip with the short eight characters on a carrier pigeon and let it fly away freely.

Ying Ji stared blankly at the figure struggling to fly away outside the window until it disappeared from sight. Finally, she looked at her hands with a dejected expression, hugged herself, and fell into a deep sleep.

But she didn't know that the moment she turned around, the carrier pigeon was intercepted, and the fresh, hot secret letter arrived on Ying Zheng's desk first.

Seeing the secret letter intercepted by You Shi (who possesses the ability to communicate with birds and beasts), Ying Zheng's impression of Ying Ji improved considerably, but he was also afraid that Ying Ji had deliberately let him see it, so he sent the letter out first.

He was thinking about all the recent events involving Ying Ji, and it seemed... she really had changed from being in charge of the Empress Dowager. Could there really be something strange about Ganquan Palace?

"At midnight, call back at 1 AM."

The black-clad man, swift as a shadow and moving like the wind, knelt before Ying Zheng: "Yes."

Before half an incense stick's time had passed, at midnight, a person completely shrouded in a cloak appeared beside him, obscuring his face and speaking in an androgynous voice: "At 1 AM, I pay my respects to Your Majesty."

Ying Zheng did not raise his eyes, but simply instructed: "Has there been any unusual activity at Ganquan Palace recently?"

At the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), he knelt on the ground, not daring to speak. Suddenly, Ying Zheng's eyes sharpened, and he ordered Zhao Gao and Zi Shi to leave.

At the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), he approached Ying Zheng and slowly uttered: "The Empress Dowager and Miao Du have had an affair and are pregnant with two children."

Ying Zheng's veins bulged, his eyes were bloodshot, and his only thought was to kill Zhao Ji and the adulterous Miao Du. He picked up the Qin King's sword and stormed toward the Zheng Palace.

This sight startled the palace servants passing by, who dared not approach.

Upon arriving at Ganquan Palace, Ying Zheng arranged for the palace servants around him to be knocked unconscious at the hour of Chou (1-3 AM). This was because Zhao Ji knew that what she had done was extremely disgraceful, so there were very few maids around, leaving only a few loyal servants who knew the truth to light the lamps and guard the gate.

As Ying Zheng approached the bedroom, he could still hear his mother's sweet and coquettish voice.

"Oh dear~ you're so naughty, come and listen to my heartbeat, it's all about you~~"

"Haha, then I'll have to offer some comfort."

The utterly disgusting sound made Ying Zheng feel nauseous. He was like a raging lion, his eyes filled with nothing but anger, his teeth grinding together as if he wanted to skin and tear apart the two people who were currently making love.

He pushed open the door with one hand, holding the Qin King's sword in the other, and stepped into the tent.

At this moment, Zhao Ji was only wearing a thin veil, and Miao Du, dressed in the black official robes of the Marquis of Changxin, was holding Zhao Ji's waist and kissing her.

Upon suddenly seeing Ying Zheng, he turned pale with fright, but then calmly got up and dressed.

Zhao Ji hurriedly put on a robe, and looking at the furious Ying Zheng, she could only put on a fawning smile and say to him, "Ah Zheng, Ah Zheng, why are you here? It's chilly outside, be careful not to catch a cold."

Ying Zheng stared at Zhao Ji with bloodshot eyes, making her feel uneasy. Suddenly, he burst into laughter: "Hahaha, Mother is still concerned about me."

Haha, I'm so concerned about this guy, even his bed.

"You shameless wretch, you slut! No wonder my sister wanted to slap you. You shameless thing, you should have your face shaved off and become a prostitute!"

Zhao Ji felt even more humiliated by the insults. Her face changed from initial panic to gloom: "Ying Zheng, you came to Ganquan Palace with your sword just to force me to my death? You want to kill your mother!"

Ying Zheng had gone mad. He raised the Qin sword in his hand and pointed it at Zhao Ji's throat: "You harlot, you deserve to die! Who gave you permission to betray the late king?"

Seeing this, Miao Du immediately used his belt to pull the sword tip away and shield Zhao Ji behind him: "What is the King of Qin trying to do? He wants to kill his own mother and be despised by the whole world! Get out of here now!"

Ying Zheng, being young and impetuous, could not withstand the provocation and directly swung his hand to kill Miao.

When Miao Du saw the sword coming at him, he hurriedly used his hand to block it, and blood immediately seeped from his palm.

Zhao Ji then came to her senses, stepped forward to Ying Zheng, and slapped him across the face: "You dog, you're trying to force me to my death! If you want to kill Miao Du, kill me first!"

Ying Zheng was jolted awake by the sudden palm strike. Looking at the two adulterous people in front of him, he laughed loudly, "Hahahaha, hahahaha! Men, surround Ganquan Palace for me! No one is allowed to come out!"

Zhao Gao, accompanied by the royal guards, surrounded Ganquan Palace. No one was allowed to escape. Every palace servant, regardless of their status, was imprisoned and interrogated separately.

As the sky gradually brightened, Ying Zheng felt bitter, gloomy, and helpless.

Zhao Gao stayed up all night investigating the palace servants' confessions, and Ying Zheng also stayed up all night, feeling alarmed as he looked at the newly produced long list of confessions.

He parted his lips slightly, only to find his throat dry: "Marquis Changxin, Marquis Changxin, with numerous disciples, and the Great Zheng Palace, the temporary palace built for Empress Dowager Zhao, harbors tens of thousands of shi of gold and silver, and also..."

Upon reading this passage, Ying Zheng gripped it tightly, causing the bamboo slip to break: "She is pregnant with two sons, Miao Rui and Miao Ming."

"Zhao Gao, bring these two bastards to me." After saying this, he finally couldn't hold back any longer and vomited blood and fainted.

Zhao Gao hurriedly ordered Ying Zheng to be sent to Xianyang Palace to recuperate. He then had a physician examine Ying Zheng, but unfortunately, the medicine could not be taken. Zhao Gao was like a headless fly. Thinking of his previous actions, he dared not seek help from anyone else. He hardened his heart and went to Yongning Palace.

Upon receiving the news, Ying Ji disregarded everything else and urged Yuan Tiangang to deal with Cheng Jiao as soon as possible and return quickly.

Upon arriving at Xianyang Palace, Ying Ji saw the man who had been full of energy just a few days ago lying on the bed, his face deathly pale. Seeing this, Ying Ji felt as if her heart was about to stop, and tears streamed down her face.

Her lips trembled, opening and closing, but she couldn't utter a single word. Hearing Zhao Gao say that he couldn't feed her the medicine, Ying Ji felt even more dizzy. This... this meant she was starting to lose her will to live.

Ying Ji bit herself, the pain in her tongue bringing her back to her senses. She quickly whispered in Ying Zheng's ear, "Ah Zheng, Ah Zheng, it's me, your older sister. Ah Zheng, don't be afraid, your older sister is here."

Let's drink the medicine first, okay?

Think about how you got to this point. You wanted to unify the six kingdoms, remember? If you were to rashly seek death just because of Zhao Ji, would you want to bring down the Qin Dynasty?

Ying Ji asked the physician to bring the medicine over, and tried a sip herself. It was so bitter it made her tongue numb. "Tuanzi, is the medicine poisonous?"

618 quickly checked Ying Ji's body: [Host, there's no poison. A check shows it's safe to drink; it's a tonic to replenish qi and blood.]

Ying Ji then fed the warm medicine to Ying Zheng. It seemed that what she had said earlier really worked, as all the medicine went into his stomach.

Zhao Gao, standing to the side, wept with joy. As a mere eunuch, he knew that without his master, his life would be over. He looked at Ying Ji with eyes full of gratitude.

Even after settling Ying Zheng in, he was still worried and had no choice but to continue staying with him.