[Various] The Deposed Crown Prince's Survival Story

The assassination attempt did not spoil Ying Zheng's good mood. His journey should have continued, climbing high mountains and platforms throughout the country and erecting stone tablets everywhere to praise the virtues of Qin. Fusu's eyes twitched repeatedly as he watched.

For some reason, Ying Zheng's behavior always reminded Fusu of a planet called Ape Star, where the creatures were relatively docile, not aggressive, and liked to travel and make friends.

However, there is one thing about the creatures on Planet Ape that other aliens find unbearable—the ape people like to scribble graffiti wherever they go. They not only like to write things like "xx was here," but they also like to urinate to show their ownership, just like small animals. If someone with a cleanliness obsession encounters them, they feel like beating them to death.

Ying Zheng is doing pretty much the same thing now. Every time he carves a long string of words on a stone tablet, it boils down to, "I'm awesome! I've been here! Come and lick my boots!"

However, nothing unexpected happened on the rest of the trip; everything was as quiet as a chicken's nest, except for Hu Hai...

"Brother, help me kill someone." One night, Hu Hai found Fu Su, reached out and tugged at his clothes, and said pitifully.

That's how miserable it is for an underage prince. No retainers are willing to serve him, his maternal family is not supportive, and the only person he can command, Zhao Gao, is being held accountable for his past life's events. Therefore, Hu Hai has absolutely no power and can only repeatedly seek help from Fusu.

Fusu was different. He was the only adult prince who could live in the palace, and everyone was trying to find him as a potential crown prince. Every day, countless retainers and followers flocked to him. He also had the power of the former Chu state. Whatever he wanted to do, it would be much more convenient for him than for me.

Murder is one of them.

"Murder?" Fusu tilted his head slightly, frowning as he said, "You had another nightmare?"

Fusu was referring to the previous time when Huhai said he had a nightmare and asked him to help him kill a man named "Xiang Yu".

Although Fusu didn't believe a single word Huhai said, after investigating Xiang Yu's identity and learning that Xiang Yu was just a toddler and, logically, couldn't possibly have any grudge against Huhai, he still came up with an idea to get Xiang Yu into the newly built Xianyang Academy to study.

What a pity! Xiang Yu was brave but lacked fierceness, and he was unwilling to submit to the Qin Dynasty's discipline. When he heard that the eldest son of the Qin Dynasty possessed immense strength, he became competitive and, instead of attending his proper swordsmanship class, insisted on performing a weightlifting demonstration. As a result, he accidentally broke his back, and then...

By now, the grave mounds should be overgrown with weeds, right?

"Whether it's a nightmare or not, you have to help me kill someone." Hu Hai turned his face away, not directly answering Fu Su's question.

This pig is taking advantage of his favor to act recklessly. After all, I'm his younger brother, so it's only right that he spoils me.

"Alright, since you're my brother, tell me first... who do you want to kill? I'll only kill if I can." Fusu didn't like killing innocent people indiscriminately. Before killing Xiang Yu, he not only carefully investigated the man but also gave him several chances. However, Xiang Yu was too stubborn, and reforming him was no better than reforming a pig. Therefore, Fusu cleanly and decisively gave up on him.

Most importantly, this brat is my younger brother, after all. Father Emperor said that the eldest brother is like a father and should love and care for his younger siblings.

I'm a dad now! Haha!

"Don't worry, we can definitely kill him. This man is called Gao Jianli, he's from the Yan state, and he should be working as a bartender in a tavern in Songzi City, Yan state right now. If we can't find him, there's nothing we can do. He plays the zither very well, we can use that to lure him out." Hu Hai said anxiously, and seeing that Fu Su looked unconvinced, he added, "He is a good friend of Jing Ke and is determined to avenge Jing Ke."

Hu Hai thought that after he said that, Fu Su would take the matter seriously, but to his surprise, Fu Su asked with a particularly bewildered expression, "Who is Jing Ke?"

Clutching his chest! Vomiting blood!

Hu Hai suddenly felt sorry for Ying Zheng and Jing Ke.

In his previous life, Jing Ke chased Ying Zheng for half a mile with a small knife, and Ying Zheng and the people of the world remembered this awesome assassin. In this life, as soon as Jing Ke picked up the knife, he turned into a meat patty, a real meat patty. Only a few people knew that his body had been completely embedded in the wall and was finally chiseled out piece by piece. Everyone, including Ying Zheng, only remembered Fusu's astonishing kick.

Poor Jing Ke! Poor Father!

These two arch-enemies both became stepping stones on Fusu's path to becoming incredibly powerful—the key point is that the other guy didn't even take it to heart.

"Jing Ke is the assassin that Yan sent last time," Hu Hai reminded him. Seeing that Fu Su still looked blank, he clutched his chest and added, "He's the one from the Hall of Unification of the Four Seas."

Hu Hai said weakly, “Some people, every time I talk to them, I can’t help but feel sorry for myself.”

After hearing Hu Hai's words, Fu Su slapped his thigh and said with a look of sudden realization, "Oh, you just mentioned that pancake, and I remember now, his friend... that's dangerous. I'll have someone investigate when I get back."

Fusu believed himself to be highly skilled in martial arts, with unparalleled abilities, and that protecting Ying Zheng was a piece of cake. However, he was not an arrogant person who thought he was omnipotent. Rather, he felt that although he was omnipotent, he couldn't overcome the group of useless teammates who dragged him down. What was worse, these useless teammates were led by Ying Zheng.

Just like this time, if I weren't there, wouldn't Ying Zheng be finished?

Therefore, Fusu was more willing to nip hidden threats in the bud than to deliberately conceal them and wait for danger to erupt in order to show off his omnipotence.

Fusu and Huhai, those two mischievous children, were extremely worried about Ying Zheng, but Ying Zheng, as their father, didn't appreciate their good intentions.

He remained feudal and superstitious, and he became increasingly feudal and superstitious.

Although Xu Fu had fallen out of favor, when he arrived in Qi this time, a sorcerer named Lu Sheng came to him to promote his products.

Upon hearing the name Lu Sheng, Hu Hai's face turned completely black.

If Xu Fu's voyage was a one-way trip, then Lu Sheng's voyage was perhaps better off never returning.

In the thirty-second year of Qin Shi Huang's reign, Lu Sheng returned from the sea, bringing back a document called "Lu Tu Shu" for Ying Zheng. This document contained only one sentence: "The one who will destroy Qin is Hu."

This utter nonsense convinced the Emperor to send an army of 300,000 to the north to attack the Xiongnu, leaving the capital Xianyang vulnerable and its defenses weakened. As a result, when the rebel army arrived, no one was willing to come to Xianyang's rescue.

The little pig felt wronged, the little pig was sad, the little pig cried in his heart. The little pig couldn't tell his father that the "Hu" probably... likely... probably refers to Hu the little pig.

Besides saying "The one who will destroy Qin is Hu," Lu Sheng, along with Hou Sheng and others, advised the emperor to "travel incognito to avoid evil spirits. If the evil spirits are avoided, then the true man will arrive." In other words, Ying Zheng should go everywhere secretly, not use his own name, not tell others where he is, and not refer to himself as "朕" (Zhen, the imperial "I"), but as "真真人" (Zhenren, the true man), so as to avoid those evil spirits.

The consequence of this was that the emperor, having been detached from his ministers for many years and unable to listen to the advice of loyal officials, even rarely saw his own sons and princesses. As he approached old age, he was unable to enjoy family life and lived in fear of death every day. The direct result was that his personality became increasingly eccentric and withdrawn.

What's most despicable is that Lu Sheng not only committed a bad deed but also privately mocked his father. Not only did he mock him, but his father also found out. Later, Lu Sheng and Hou Sheng packed their bags and ran away, which enraged the father and caused a conflict between the father and the Confucian school.

The burning of books and burying of scholars alive began from this point; so too did the rise of tyrannical rulers throughout history.

Although Lu Sheng was not as famous as Xu Fu, his destructive power was far greater.

How am I supposed to deal with someone like that? I'm just not smart enough!

Just as Hu Hai was pondering whether he should swallow his pride and ask Fu Su for help, he heard some startling news.

Lu Sheng, Hou Sheng, and Han Zhong, these alchemists who later escaped, actually went to pay their respects to Fusu—no, they should be called groveling before Fusu.

What kind of plot is this? The pacing seems off!

Hu Hai scratched his head, looking pained, and wondered if this had happened in his past life.

Fusu was also puzzled; this rhythm seemed a bit off.

Logically speaking, how could someone as brilliant and capable as me, a science enthusiast, have such a group of... such... um... fans who are so obsessed with science?

Don't be fooled by the fact that "science" and "approaching science" differ by only two words; the difference between the two is enormous! Approaching science is nothing but pseudoscience!

Why are Lu Sheng, Hou Sheng, and Han Zhong suddenly fawning over me? How did pseudoscience come to be accepted as science? Behind all this, is it the distortion of human nature or the decline of morality? Is it an outbreak of evil or a maddening thirst?

Fusu silently took a sip of tea, looked at the three obsequious-smiling sorcerers before him, and said with a smile, "What brings you three here?"

These three people must be plotting something. They usually act like aloof and enlightened masters in front of the Emperor, speaking casually and smiling only when they want. Why are they smiling like dogs in front of me?

Selling smiles for no reason is either a crime or a theft. Let me see what they're up to.

“Young Master, you…” Lu Sheng forced a smile, looked at Fu Su with eager eyes, and said in an unusually solemn and sincere voice, “Do you believe in Amway?”

Ahem! Of course, Lu Sheng didn't say that!

Lu Sheng said, "Please, eldest son, accept me as your disciple."

"Cough cough cough!" Fusu was glad he wasn't drinking tea, otherwise he would have spat it out. "Wait a minute... wait a minute before you say it..." Fusu picked his ear with his little finger without any regard for his image, then washed his ear with tea before pointing at Lu Sheng and saying, "Say that sentence again, say it to me again."

Lu Sheng spoke in an even louder voice than before, enunciating each word clearly: "Please, young master, accept me as your disciple."