Qin Dynasty: Starting with clinging to Zhao Ji's thigh

Ganquan Palace, inner hall.

The polished floor was littered with shards of porcelain, and the rug spread beside the couch was crooked, making the entire inner hall appear somewhat cluttered.

"Who is so blind as to provoke the Empress Dowager into such a rage?"

Ying Jing blinked, glanced at the mess, and then fixed his gaze on Zhao Ji.

At this moment, Zhao Ji's face still held a trace of anger. She stood by the soft couch, her red dress vibrant, her full breasts rising and falling slightly with each breath, glistening and eye-catching.

Upon hearing Ying Jing's voice, Zhao Ji's anger vanished instantly.

A hint of resentment crept onto her face again: "Besides you, you heartless little brat, who else dares to anger me!"

As Zhao Ji spoke, she lunged at Ying Jing with her bare, jade-like feet, the bright red nail polish on her toenails resembling dancing red flames.

"Empress Dowager, watch out for the shards!"

Ying Jing could only hurriedly step forward and stop Zhao Ji.

Although Zhao Ji held an extraordinary position as Empress Dowager, she was ultimately unskilled in martial arts. If she were to accidentally step on a shard of metal on the ground, her flawless feet would be scarred.

"Hmph, you come later and later every day, how can I not be angry? At least you little ungrateful thing still have some place in my heart."

Zhao Ji, who was intercepted by Ying Jing midway, smiled and felt the concern of the benevolent man, so she put away some of her resentment.

As she spoke, she finally turned her gaze to Li Wu on the side.

"What, little Jing'er has grown up and knows how good women are. One embroiderer isn't enough; you want more?"

His words carried a hint of teasing and banter, yet also carried a strange undertone.

"Li Wu pays respects to the Empress Dowager."

Li Wu simply bowed respectfully and said nothing more.

She couldn't quite understand the relationship between Ying Jing and Zhao Ji; something felt off about it.

Regardless of the circumstances, she had no intention of getting involved in the affairs between the current Empress Dowager and the powerful Prince Changxin.

If you accidentally become cannon fodder, you won't even know how you died.

Just because Li Wu doesn't want to participate doesn't mean Zhao Ji will let her off easily.

"Li Wu... what a wonderful name."

Stretching lazily, Zhao Ji unabashedly displayed her graceful figure and then carefully examined Li Wu several times.

"Hmm...she's quite a beauty, she's certainly qualified to be Xiao Jing'er's concubine."

The black cat in Li Wu's arms arched slightly in shock. She gently stroked its fur with her delicate hand to soothe it, and said without changing her expression, "Your Majesty is joking. Lord Changxin is of noble status, how could a mere dancer like Li Wu possibly be worthy of his esteemed position?"

"Lord Changxin?"

Zhao Ji grasped the key point in Li Wu's words and temporarily set aside her concern for the little beauty.

A pair of alluring eyes, seemingly capable of dripping with moisture, turned to Ying Jing beside her.

She didn't say anything, just stared, waiting for someone to take the initiative to explain.

Ying Jing remained calm; he had his own methods for dealing with Zhao Ji.

He placed both hands directly on Zhao Ji's shoulders. The latter seemed to be used to such intimacy and did not resist at all. She naturally followed Ying Jing's lead and sat down on the soft couch to the side.

"I have come here today to report this matter to the Empress Dowager."

"Does Your Majesty still remember the painting that Ri Jing painted for you some time ago?"

Zhao Ji squinted her eyes, enjoying the massage service: "Using coal as a pen, you managed to depict me so vividly with just a few strokes. I will never forget such a miraculous skill."

"But what does this have to do with your being granted a title? Your brother, the king, only cares about state affairs. No matter how wonderful this skill is, it can't increase the country's strength, so he won't reward you for it."

You really can't grasp the key points!

I've been struggling with this feeling that I've given enough hints.

"While the skill of sketching is exquisite, it cannot enhance national strength, so Your Highness will not value it. The paper that supports the painting is the key."

Ying Jing could only explain the situation to Zhao Ji.

When talking to a woman like Zhao Ji, you have to be direct.

If you explain it in a slightly roundabout way, she won't understand it at all.

but……

Zhao Ji's eyes suddenly lit up: "That's it! With Jing'er's amazing skills, he will surely be sought after and loved by the kings and nobles of various countries. The paper will then be able to sell for a high price, increasing the wealth of our Qin state!"

Jing Dashanren suddenly felt a bit mentally exhausted!

Is this woman's beauty truly achieved through intelligence?

Li Wu, who was standing to the side, understood what she was saying.

I had received news of Prince Jing's conferment of the title of Lord Changxin in the Qimeng Garden, but I didn't know the details. Now everything is clear.

If the paper is truly as lightweight and versatile as Lord Changxin described, then Lord Feng is not exaggerating. Moreover, there is another technique that can be mentioned alongside papermaking: printing.

However, being a woman with a brain, Li Wu naturally wouldn't interrupt at such a time.

Hearing Zhao Ji's words, Li Wu couldn't help but slightly twitch the corners of her mouth.

Fortunately, as a professional assassin, Li Wu managed to hold back and didn't burst out laughing!

She never imagined that the Queen Dowager of Qin would be so...naive and innocent!

Li Wu thought for a long time before she could barely come up with a word that wouldn't insult the Empress Dowager and was just right.

"What the Empress Dowager says is very true. Paper can not only support paintings, but also facilitate writing. It will surely cause a sensation among the seven states and greatly increase the wealth of our Qin state. Therefore, I have presented the papermaking technology and printing technology, and I have asked my brother to appoint me as Lord Changxin."

Jing Dashanren did not refute, but simply echoed Zhao Ji's words.

I'm exhausted, I don't want to explain anymore!

Zhao Ji didn't ask any further questions, but frowned slightly and said, "Although this is a great achievement, it is not a military achievement. Will the ministers agree to that?"

Jing Dashanren breathed a long sigh of relief.

Fortunately, although Zhao Ji was politically clueless, she had been regent for many years and was not completely ignorant, so there was no need to waste any more words on her.

"The Prime Minister Lü proposed that Jing be sent as an envoy to the State of Zhao to persuade the King of Zhao to cede territory, thereby gaining military merit."

It was originally Lü Buwei who proposed this idea.

"what?"

Zhao Ji couldn't sit still any longer. She immediately pulled away from Jing Dashanren's hands that were on her fair shoulders, and stared wide-eyed as she asked, "You agreed?"

Jing Dashanren looked utterly helpless: "My brother has confronted the court officials over this matter, how can I back down?"

"What a terrible idea that old bastard Lü Buwei came up with!"

Zhao Ji snorted coldly: "If you want to be granted a title, or even just a fiefdom, you only need to tell me. Why go through all this trouble!"

If I tell you about that great philanthropist, wouldn't that make me a gigolo?

We can't do anything that would damage our image!

Ying Jing placed his hands on Zhao Ji's shoulders again, kneading them vigorously to soothe her.

“My brother has granted me the entire Hanoi as my fiefdom, and has also promised to grant me autonomy after I complete my mission to the State of Zhao.”

"Even if there are some risks, it is worth it, especially since King Zhao is incompetent and this matter is easy."

This time, even Zhao Ji was somewhat shocked.

This was not something her son, who was obsessed with power and had a deep mind, would do.

After a long while, she finally let out a soft sigh.

“Zheng’er and I are not close, not like mother and son, but you two are really like brothers.”

Zhao Ji was well aware that Ying Zheng and Ying Jing had a good relationship, but the extent of their trust was somewhat unexpected.

Apart from having a smaller land area than the feudal states, it was no different from the feudal lords enfeoffed by the Zhou emperor!

Is this... the feeling between men?

“Brother Wang has indeed treated Jing well. In fact, Brother Wang also hopes to get closer to the Empress Dowager, but…”

"Too busy with state affairs!"

Zhao Ji cut to the chase and uttered the last four words, while rolling her eyes: "I've heard that countless times already!"

“If it weren’t for your repeated persuasion, Jing’er, I would have made sure he had no access to any political affairs. I think that would have given him time to come and see me.”

This woman is truly insane, and she really dares to say anything!

Even Ying Jing found the relationship between Ying Zheng and Zhao Ji a major headache.

The two people are completely opposite in every way, from personality to intelligence!

Ying Zheng was calm, composed, and possessed great talent and strategic vision.

Zhao Ji is a typical little woman with a politically clueless personality; she doesn't consider the consequences of her actions.

How could two people like that possibly get along well?

I really don't know why Zhao Ji was able to give birth to a son like Ying Zheng!

“Your Highness has already dedicated your life to the country, so the Empress Dowager should be pleased. Besides, Jing will often come to accompany the Empress Dowager.”

Zheng Ge was being far too good to Ying Jing, to the point that Ying Jing felt somewhat ashamed. It was still necessary for him to say some nice things to Zhao Ji!

Although it's probably not very useful, at least the thought was there!

"You come often?"

Zhao Ji gave a cold laugh, somewhat displeased.

"Now that you have gone to the State of Zhao, who knows when you will be able to return? Even if you do return, you will probably go to your fiefdom in Hanoi. How could you possibly remember me?"

Oh no, this woman is starting to get her brain working!

The tricks that had always worked on Zhao Ji were not quite effective today.

Before Ying Jing could explain further, Zhao Ji suddenly widened her eyes, blinked repeatedly, and a hint of joy appeared in them.

"I've got it! I'll move to Hanoi!"

???

You are the Empress Dowager of Qin!

What kind of nonsense is it to move away from the capital, Xianyang, and go to Hanoi?

Even if you search through all of ancient history, there has never been such a precedent!

"Well, I'm afraid my brother..."

Ying Jing's reasoning was clearly invalid, and Zhao Ji suddenly became quite intelligent: "Your brother has never been close to me. If he knew about this, he would only completely agree with me!"

Lord Changxin was now deep in thought.

Zhao Ji moving to Hanoi... that doesn't seem like a bad idea?

Moving to Hanoi meant that Zhao Ji truly relinquished all political power, completely handing it over to Ying Zheng.

Without the power to govern, Zhao Ji was of little use to Lü Buwei, so he naturally wouldn't harbor any improper thoughts.

With Ying Zheng's abilities, he held most of the power and was able to suppress Lü Buwei.

In this way, the Qin state might have been able to launch its war of unification several years earlier!

Moreover, as the Empress Dowager, even if Zhao Ji did nothing but reside in Hanoi, she would still have an extraordinary impact on the region.

With the people's hearts now at peace, it will be much easier for Ying Jing to completely control Hanoi.

With so many benefits, why don't we... go for it?

Ying Jing suddenly realized that Zhao Ji's idea was feasible!

As for using Zhao Ji's power to seek greater benefits for himself, Jing Dashan never considered that.

Living off a woman is unreliable!

Wouldn't it be better to get the benefits from Zheng Ge in a fair and square manner?

"That's it!"

With a wave of her hand, Zhao Ji seemed to perk up, her charming eyes sparkling with excitement.

After making this important decision, she suddenly looked at Ying Jing with some worry.

"Your journey to Zhao will surely be fraught with difficulties, and I am truly worried about you."

“Since we’re moving to Hanoi and giving full power to Jung-er, then the Nao-wang (a powerful organization) is no longer of any use.”

"I'm handing over to you the list of Luo Wang members and all their contact information that I have."

Ok……

It wasn't for nothing that Zhao Ji hugged those long, white legs of hers!

Jing Dashanren decided to retract his previous statement.

This gigolo is so delicious!