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

"I ceded territory not out of fear of Qin, but out of benevolence."

The King of Zhao spoke in a grand and eloquent manner, but no matter how eloquently he spoke, it could not change the fact that he had spoken.

He had already agreed to cede territory.

At this point, Lord Changxin's mission to the State of Zhao can be considered essentially complete.

Without losing a single soldier or engaging in war, the State of Zhao was forced to cede territory to Qin.

As for the matter of Prince Jia going to Qin as a hostage, the King of Zhao did not mention it, which clearly indicated that he did not want to agree.

In the face of national interests, a hostage is a trivial matter.

He believed that since the cession of territory had already been agreed upon, the Qin envoy would not care about such a small matter.

King Zhao didn't particularly like Zhao Jia, but he also felt somewhat guilty.

After all, he was his own son. Not only was he unjustly stripped of his title as crown prince, but he was also sent to be a hostage, which was too tragic.

Ying Jing indeed did not mention it again.

He has already achieved what he needed to achieve, and it's not his place to worry about Zhao Jia's situation.

This was not unexpected by Jing Dashan.

Seeing that he did not continue speaking, the queen became somewhat anxious.

"Your Majesty, there is also the matter of Prince Jia going to Qin as a hostage. What is your opinion on this?"

The Empress Dowager was truly anxious.

Upon hearing this, King Zhao frowned slightly.

Although King Zhao favored Queen Chang, perhaps the king wasn't truly a fool.

He was actually quite aware of the subtle conflicts between Zhao Jia and Zhao Qian.

The Queen's eagerness to send Zhao Jia to Qin as a hostage inevitably displeased King Yan of Zhao.

"This matter..."

"Your Majesty, I have important matters to report."

King Yan of Zhao hadn't even finished speaking, he had only just begun.

At this crucial moment, Guo Kai stepped forward.

He truly deserves to be called a great philanthropist whom even the most virtuous people like Jing Dashan admire; he always manages to appear at the most crucial moments.

"I must impeach Prince Jia for secretly arranging a marriage with a dancer, but then reneging on the agreement and setting fire to Feixue Pavilion in an attempt to silence him."

At this moment, Guo Dashanren exuded righteousness, standing tall and straight with his head held high.

Given his appearance, no one could possibly call him a treacherous official.

Unfortunately, despite his deep concern for the world, Guo, the philanthropist, was forced by circumstances to do some bad things.

Frame and slander the loyal and virtuous.

If you think about it carefully, he hasn't done many good deeds in the imperial court that he can be ashamed of.

But this time is different.

Guo, the great philanthropist, has a clear conscience!

Zhao Jia really did what he said; this is not a frame-up or slander.

Standing in this position, he finally did a good deed, seeking justice for the innocent dancer, even at the cost of confronting a prince of the country.

I have a clear conscience!

Compared to Guo Kai's upright and righteous demeanor, Zhao Jia seemed somewhat guilty.

He lowered his head, and his face was somewhat pale.

However, upon hearing Guo Kai's impeachment, he immediately stood up.

“Father, Jia was drunk and made a mistake, but he did have a private marriage agreement. However, the burning of Feixue Pavilion was definitely not done by your son. Please investigate thoroughly, Father.”

Zhao Jia was not entirely stupid. Both Changxin Jun and Zhao Qian had signed the marriage certificate, and it was unclear whether it had been burned. It would be inappropriate to deny it outright.

It's good that you're certain he wasn't the one who set the fire.

They sent assassins to do it; there's absolutely no way to find any evidence!

He had already secretly investigated and uncovered quite a bit of the scandalous affair behind the scenes.

He should be patient a little longer. Once everything is investigated and the evidence is conclusive, he will be the ultimate victor.

Guo Kai and Zhao Jia each had their own version of events, but King Yan of Zhao had already understood what they meant.

Even if a king is incompetent, he still has some merit.

What Guo Kai said is probably true.

However, Zhao Jia was certain that no evidence of the burning of Feixue Pavilion had been left behind.

If that's the case, then it's simple.

Such a shameful act, especially in front of the Qin envoy, naturally had to be covered up.

"Minister Guo, you impeached Gongzi Jia for burning down Feixue Pavilion. Do you have any evidence?"

King Zhao Yan remained calm and spoke in a low voice.

Poor Guo, the philanthropist, is always caught red-handed when he does something bad, but today, when he finally manages to do a good deed, it seems to be going to be difficult.

"Your Majesty, this matter is witnessed by Lord Changxin of Qin and Prince Qian, and the marriage certificate bears their signatures."

Today, having finally seen Zhao Jia again, Xue Ji's hatred had long been hard to contain.

"The marriage certificate is with me; Your Majesty may take a look."

Zhao Qian also chimed in at the opportune moment: "Father, I and Lord Changxin were both present when my brother made this marriage agreement, and we are willing to bear witness to it."

However, King Zhao Yan simply waved his hand casually: "No need. I believe this marriage certificate is genuine. What I'm asking now is about the burning of Feixue Pavilion. Do you have any evidence?"

Anyone with eyes can see that this is actually the same thing.

However, King Yan of Zhao divided the matter into two parts.

Clearly, he was unwilling to make this scandal public.

King Zhao Yan may seem incompetent on ordinary days, but if he is unwilling, he really cannot touch Zhao Jia with the evidence he has now.

Yukihime looked sorrowful, and her expression was somewhat crazed.

"Zhao Jia, you have the guts to do it, but you're too afraid to admit it?"

The evidence was insufficient, but Yuki refused to give up and insisted on a face-to-face confrontation.

Zhao Jia, on the contrary, was no longer afraid and calmed down completely.

"Xue Ji, what are you talking about? I really don't know what happened with the fire at Fei Xue Pavilion."

"I have already drawn up a marriage contract, and I don't mind your status as a dancer. I am willing to betroth you to my wife with all the proper rites and formalities. So why would I make a move against Feixue Pavilion?"

"I believe that you, Yukihime, were only temporarily blinded by hatred, which is why you were used by villains to frame me."

"Don't worry, Xueji, I can overlook this. As long as you're willing, the marriage certificate will still be valid. I can also ask my father to be our witness."

At this point, Zhao Jia no longer cared about marriage certificates.

In the past few days, he has become completely certain that the scandal involving the Empress Dowager is true!

As long as we can get through today, investigate thoroughly, obtain evidence, and eliminate the Queen and Zhao Qian, what does it matter if we marry a dancer?

Moreover, Zhao Jia has now come to realize that burning down Feixue Pavilion was far too impulsive.

I'm getting a bit too fixated on this.

She's just a dancer; any excuse can be used to divorce her.

And no one could stand up for her.

Zhao Jia seemed genuinely sincere at this moment.

This convinced many of Zhao Jia's supporters, since Zhao Jia had always presented a perfect image.

"Hypocritical, disgusting!"

Yukihime's expression was icy.

Compared to Changxin Jun's "uprightness and integrity," Zhao Jia's various sweet words only disgusted her.

She was filled with hatred, but at this moment she was completely helpless against Zhao Jia.

Confronting such a shameless person face-to-face is utterly useless and will only disgust you.

"Alright, since there's no evidence, let's leave it at that."

Seemingly convinced that there would be no further reversal, King Yan of Zhao finally spoke, a faint smile appearing on his face.

But at this time...

"I have proof."

Lord Changxin suddenly said.

The smile that had just appeared on King Zhao Yan's face froze instantly.

If you have evidence, you should have said so earlier!

It wasn't that Ying Jing wanted to delay on purpose; he wanted to see if Guo Kai and the Empress Dowager had made any preparations.

If possible, he didn't want to use his own preparations.

The spies who have been lying in wait for many years are becoming fewer and fewer.

pity……

Those two teammates are terrible!

Ying Jing himself has to do it.

"Your Majesty, I have here Prince Jia's order to mobilize the assassins, along with his seal and jade pendant."

“Furthermore, if Your Majesty requires, I can even have the bodyguards kept by Prince Jia come here to testify.”

Should we have the suicide squad testify?

This sounds a bit outrageous no matter how you look at it.

But Zhao Jia was now sweating profusely again.

He recognized that the warrant was real, the seal was real, and the jade pendant was real!

But how did these things end up in the hands of Lord Changxin?

King Yan of Zhao, somewhat impatient, ordered three pieces of evidence to be presented.

The seal and jade pendant were specially made for the royal family and are indeed genuine.

And the letter...

It was indeed Gongzi Jia's handwriting.

"Where are the warriors the Qin envoy spoke of who would die for their country?"

King Yan of Zhao had already given up hope. If these important things could fall into the hands of others, then the assassins were probably real.

"Just wait outside, Your Majesty, give the order."

After Ying Jing finished speaking, he immediately closed his eyes.

Soon, a man dressed in black and wearing a mask was brought into the hall.

"How could it be you?"

There was no need to say anything more. Upon seeing this person, Zhao Jia immediately lost his previous composure and his face showed despair.

This was his most trusted subordinate, the one who had once shielded him from a sword, yet he betrayed him?

"A net that can penetrate anywhere in the world."

Ying Jing remained indifferent and did not speak, but Zhao Jia could clearly hear his voice.

"Unfortunately, the assassin you trust most is also an assassin of the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven)."

"That night, it was he who provided the information that you wanted to burn down Feixue Pavilion, allowing me to arrive in time."

"It was because of him that Xue Ji was able to escape with her life and wait for me to rescue her."

"It's because of him... that your command token, seal, and jade pendant have appeared here with me. You will lose everything."

Zhao Jia could no longer maintain his composure, and glared at Ying Jing with a somewhat ferocious expression.

However, Ying Jing didn't give him another second glance.

"So you've finally revealed your true colors?"

Yukihime sneered, a hint of pleasure in her eyes, and even more so in her heart.

King Zhao was biased, and she had almost given up hope, but Lord Changxin still managed to do it!

The assassins in the hall not only testified about the Feixue Pavilion incident, but also revealed almost all of Zhao Jia's secrets.

Zhao Jia didn't argue, knowing that it was pointless to try and refute it.

With things having come to this point, King Yan of Zhao had nothing more to say.

That's so useless!

Although he disliked the fact that Prince Jia kept assassins, he could understand it.

But even the assassins he himself had raised could betray him.

Such a useless son, if we can't save him, then so be it!

“Your Highness Jia’s conduct is improper. You will be sent to Qin as a hostage from this day forward. This will be considered your way of making amends for your sins.”

"Although you have made a meritorious report, since you are a suicide squad member..."

Before King Zhao Yan could finish speaking, the black-clad assassin had already fallen to the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

As assassins, they naturally have their own way of dying.

"Enough. Minister Guo, draft the documents and hand them over to me and the Qin envoy for signature and seal within one day. I am exhausted today, so you may all leave."

The fire at Feixue Pavilion killed more than a dozen dancers. Now, after all this effort and the loss of a hidden agent of the Luowang organization, all they've managed to do is send Zhao Jia to Qin as a hostage.

Ying Jing was naturally...

There's nothing to complain about.

Who can blame him when he's a prince of the country?

As for the saying that "if a prince breaks the law, he shall be punished the same as a commoner," although both Shang Yang and Han Fei highly praised this idea.

However, this approach might not even work in the Qin state, which placed great emphasis on the rule of law.

It was enough to get Zhao Jia into Qin.

That's Lord Changxin's territory; he can do whatever he wants there from now on.