Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 343

So Zhou Wen, who had lost his right arm and only had two or three years left to live, took back some of his hatred on the Second Emperor Hu Hai without any hesitation.

In his early years, he had no interest in revenge, because the farm family was under great threat at that time. As a child of Dazeshan, Zhou Wen devoted all his energy to protecting the farm family.

Now that the Farmer Clan is about to establish a new empire under Lu Wei's leadership, they no longer need his protection. Therefore, the dying Zhou Wen no longer needs to consider any external affairs and can focus on avenging himself in this final stage.

When he abolished the dantian, he saw Hu Hai's subconscious resentment in his eyes, raised his hand and slapped him to the ground.

Zhen Gangwuchen turned a blind eye to this, and Yan Le did not think he needed to clash with Lord Zhao Gao's Six Swordsmen of the Net because of a dying deposed emperor, so he also ignored it.

Zhou Wen also knew when to stop, and Hu Hai was just a puppet; there was a real culprit behind the scenes.

Seeing that he was no longer able to resist, Yan Le stepped forward and announced Hu Hai's crimes again, looking at him coldly before the subsequent conversation began.

Seeing that Hu Hai still wanted to live, Yan Le was furious. This opportunity to be arrogant towards the emperor of the Qin Empire only came once. He shouted angrily, "The sword in my hand represents the will of the people. If you are willing to save face for yourself, you should know what to do."

"Otherwise, Your Majesty, please don't blame me for being disrespectful!"

Everything happened too fast. Just two hours ago, Hu Hai, with his golden and blue heterochromatic eyes, was watching the ministers scream in the East Market of Xianyang. Now, he can only face the cold glint of a sword.

Without giving him any time to think, Yan Le raised his sword and took another step forward. Hu Hai, in despair, stood up, drew the 'Heavenly Question' sword that originally belonged to his father, and used this supreme sword, ranked number one in the sword manual, to commit suicide...

Thus, the last son of the First Emperor was killed by Huhai himself, who single-handedly wiped out the entire bloodline of the First Emperor.

Yan Le stepped forward, cut off his head, and put it into a wooden box that had been prepared in advance. The six sword slaves took the head to the court along with the imperial seal. Yan Le was then to take over the Xianyang Imperial Guard.

After being forced to witness the executions at the East Market, the officials were not given the chance to go home. Instead, they were taken hostage by a net and brought back to the main hall of Xianyang Palace.

Zhao Gao stood on the highest step, remaining silent, but the wicked smile on his face made everyone feel increasingly uneasy.

Time passed slowly, and darkness gradually fell, but no ministers would step forward to ask Zhao Gao the reason. The last group of ministers who could not tolerate the current atmosphere in the court had already been executed earlier.

Not all those who remain are afraid of death, but they certainly don't want to die meaninglessly at such a time.

Zhao Gao was very satisfied with the court he had trained: this was how the other assassins in the Luo Wang organization treated him!

Now, he has replicated this in the imperial court, turning the entire Qin state into a net under his absolute power, where no one will dare to question him.

This was a level of 'prestige' that even the First Emperor of Qin had never possessed. Although Ying Zheng could not change his decrees after they were issued, there were many suggestions from Li Si, Fusu, and others to revise them before they were issued.

Now, seeing the silent ministers, Zhao Gao estimated that the time was almost up. He coughed twice to attract everyone's attention, and then spoke in a effeminate tone:

"Gentlemen, the Qi army has already entered the pass, and the Great Wall Legion is blocking them. It is expected that General Wang Li will be victorious after his return, but we must settle the matter at its source."

"The reason why this once mighty empire has fallen to this state is precisely because you, Zhao Gao, took Huhai back to Xianyang from Sanghai!"

Everyone knew the truth, even Zhao Gao himself understood this: he could control the ministers' mouths, but he couldn't control their hearts.

But it doesn't matter, as long as I can control my mouth, that's enough.

"The people of the world are suffering and filled with resentment, and their anger is directed at His Majesty the Second Emperor. Today, you have all witnessed His Majesty's cruelty. As the Prime Minister, I cannot help but worry about this."

"If we cannot quell the people's anger, even if we wipe out the State of Qi, there will be other rebels from the States of Zhao and Chu."

“The Book of Changes says: ‘If one’s virtue is not commensurate with one’s position, calamity will surely follow; if one’s virtue is meager but one’s position is high, if one’s wisdom is small but one’s schemes are grand, if one’s strength is weak but one’s responsibilities are heavy, one will rarely escape disaster.’” As soon as Zhao Gao uttered these words, the ministers instantly realized what he was about to do, and they were all shocked. But Prime Minister Zhao ignored them and continued:

"Your Majesty has been on the throne for a year since last year, which is equivalent to the three years of Taijia's reign. I wish to do what Yi Yin did, to depose him and temporarily assume the position. What do you all think?"

Just then, the new Six Sword Slaves, led by Wu Chen, returned, carrying a wooden box and the imperial seal.

He presented the imperial seal to Zhao Gao, slammed the wooden box into the center of the assembled officials, and his disheveled hair rolled several times. The effect was like a thunderbolt striking everyone's hearts, instantly creating a very heavy atmosphere in the court...

Yi Yin didn't just cut off Tai Jia's head.

How long do you intend to keep accepting these things on my behalf, Zhao Gao...?

Shusun Tong was surprised beyond words, but he quickly put aside his own concerns: no matter how arrogant Zhao Gao was, what could he do when His Highness the Prince of Qi's army came to the city gates?

Although Ziying did not approve of Huhai, his heart was still breaking... The First Emperor's bloodline was extinguished, and the Qin Dynasty had fallen...

The ministers' attitudes were roughly divided into two categories, much like those of Shusun Tong and Ziying, and the result of these two categories was that they all bowed their heads and remained silent.

If speaking will get you killed, then let's express our opposition to Zhao Gao in this way.

However, Zhao Gao was already close to madness. Seeing the court in such a state, he insisted on saying, "Since no one objects, then it's settled."

"Young Master Ziying, as the representative of the imperial family, I will be acting as the emperor in a ceremony to be held in five days. How about you preside over it?"

Chapter 439 The Abdication Ceremony

"Young Master Ziying, you don't want to let Zhao Gao destroy the empire like this, do you?"

The tempting words of the two people before him stirred Ziying's heart. His lips twitched a few times, and he couldn't resist the opportunity, blurting out:

"I lowered myself to serve Zhao Gao in order to find an opportunity to assassinate him... But given your status, why would you do the same?"

Zhen Gang and Duan Shui, the new Six Sword Slaves of Luo Wang, were actually the vanguard against Zhao Gao, which was truly unexpected for him.

Faced with this question, Wu Chen and Zhou Wen chuckled. Wu Chen confidently spoke up, saying, "Young Master Ziying, there's no need to test us any further. We two discovered your hatred for the traitor Zhao at the execution ground today. Considering your consistent willingness to serve him, it's easy to see the big plan you're planning."

“If we were sent by Zhao to test your attitude, there would be no need for such trouble... As you know, the Luo Wang's style is always to arrest people first and then interrogate them.”

These words highlighted an incident at the execution ground, causing Ziying to feel a lingering fear: he realized that the atmosphere of the execution ground had caused his acting to falter...

Fortunately, based on what the other party said, it was clear that Zhen Gang and Duan Shui of the Six Sword Slaves also had murderous intent towards Zhao Gao. It was truly a blessing from heaven: with members of the Six Sword Slaves as allies, the assassination of Zhao Gao would be twice as effective!

"However, as allies who are about to form an alliance, we will also make our intentions clear to you, my lord." Wu Chen continued before finishing his sentence:

“What you don’t know, my lord, is that we two have just returned from Hangu Pass and have a deep understanding of the strength of the Qi army. The Great Wall Legion is not as powerful as Zhao’s words suggest. Most importantly, because they returned in batches, there are now less than 100,000 Great Wall Legion troops in Guanzhong, and probably no more than 50,000 on the front lines. Such strength is no match for the Qi army.”

"According to our estimates, the Great Wall Legion at the front has most likely been defeated by now, and the Qi army will be able to reach Xianyang in no more than half a month. You should understand what this means, my lord."

"The Qin state has fallen..." Ziying painfully stated this obvious truth.

"Indeed, the empire is on the verge of collapse. Even though we have deep feelings for the empire, we should still consider our options... If Prince Ziying is willing to take control of Xianyang with our help after killing Zhao Gao and surrender to His Highness the King of Qi, there is still a chance to preserve the Ying bloodline. Otherwise..."

Given the way the two generations of Qin emperors with the surname Ying treated the people, the name of the tyrannical Qin had long been "famous throughout the world." Even if the new empire slaughtered the entire Ying family, it would not be regarded as a heinous crime, but would instead be applauded.

Surrendering to the new empire might not guarantee Ziying's survival; it depended on the intentions of the Prince of Qi. However, it was certain that if he resisted, he would be increasing the risk of his clan's extermination.

“I understand this matter as well…” Ziying’s eyes flickered, and he lowered his head slightly: “The most urgent task is to kill Zhao Gao first.”

Judging from his behavior, he still hesitated somewhat about handing over the empire's foundation, which is understandable, but ultimately not rational enough.

But it doesn't matter. After Zhao Gao dies, Ziying will no longer be able to do things recklessly. The more he hesitates, the more his value will be demonstrated!

With something on his mind, Wu Chen smiled and led Zhou Wen away.

To take action against Zhao Gao, the two still have a lot to do, such as gaining an understanding of the inner workings of the Luo Wang organization.

This was dangerous, but Zhao Gao, who had become the prime minister and was about to become the fake emperor, had too many things to do. He was not that capable, and with his energy scattered, his original complete control over the Luowang inevitably had loopholes that Wu Chen and Zhou Wen were able to exploit.

...

Time passed quickly, and soon it was the eve of Zhao Gao's ceremony to replace the emperor.

In the past few days, Zhao Gao sent his younger brother Zhao Cheng to take charge of the net and closely monitor the entire Xianyang to ensure that no one was colluding with each other.

However, right under the noses of the Luo Wang organization, a plan to assassinate Zhao Gao at the grand ceremony had already been formed.

Lord Zhao was unaware that he had been cursing Wang Li all day.

When news reached him that the first batch of reinforcements from the Great Wall Legion outside Hangu Pass had been annihilated by the Qi army, Lu Wei was already able to establish a firm foothold in Guanzhong, and it would be useless to send troops to stop them any further.

This is all Wang Li's fault for retreating too slowly and even taking the initiative to attack the Qi army in the north. What use are a few minor victories?

The elite forces, such as the battle-hardened armored soldiers and the Anbei Garrison Army, were left in Shangjun, and only ordinary soldiers were sent back to Guanzhong, so they could not overwhelm the Qi army in terms of combat strength!

"Send someone to order Wang Li to immediately abandon the enemy and return to Guanzhong, otherwise I...I will cut off his supplies!"

"As ordered."

Having given the most crucial instructions, Zhao Gao slept in the Xianyang Palace that very night without any worries.

With the Qi army moving freely, why couldn't he sleep in a palace?

The next day, the ceremony began before dawn with the lighting of lanterns and preparations. The assassins of the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) took off their black uniforms and changed into a set of hastily made imperial guard armor to monitor the palace servants.

The soft armor was a temporary modification of the Shadow Guard uniform; although hastily made, it was still more presentable than the Luo Wang assassin's uniform.

The Xianyang Imperial Guards are now in Yan Le's hands, and the Luo Wang (a military organization) is in Zhao Cheng's hands. Zhao Gao has an absolute military advantage and doesn't think anything unexpected will happen today.

Even if those ministers wanted to take action, they had to think it through: if they really killed him, would the Imperial Guards and the Net of Heaven go berserk?

"Give the imperial seal to Ziying. No matter what, he must hand over the power of the Ying family to me today."

Reluctantly, Zhao Gao had the assassins from the Luo Wang organization take the Imperial Seal, inscribed with "By the Mandate of Heaven, May Your Reign Be Long and Prosperous," to the ancestral temple. Under the protection of the Six Sword Slaves, Zhao Gao temporarily left the palace through a side gate.

He'll come back through the main entrance in a proper and aboveboard manner later!

As dawn breaks, the faint light of day shines through the glazed tile roof of the palace, illuminating the golden buildings and imbuing them with a sacred aura.

The palace gates slowly opened, and civil and military officials, dressed in their finest attire, filed in one after another. They were solemn and steady in their steps, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

The fake emperor had said that anyone who misbehaved today would be immediately dragged down and executed: no one doubted Zhao Gao's ruthlessness.

Just like the assassins of Luo Wang, although they may change their clothes, they can never change their hearts.

In the main hall of the palace, Ziying, dressed in ancestral temple robes, stood with a calm gaze. Behind him was a majestic throne adorned with noble ornaments, its purpose self-evident.

Shusun Tong stood to one side. As a Confucian master, he had designed today's abdication ceremony. Since abdication was a very rare event, and there was only one protagonist in this abdication, many systems had to be redesigned by Shusun Tong.

As a grand melody resounded, Zhao Gao, dressed in a dragon robe, walked step by step in silk, surrounded by a ceremonial team led by Liu Jiannu. The fake emperor's usually scarlet and arrogant long hair was neatly tied back today, and the twelve-tassel crown of the emperor on his head partially concealed his gloomy and pale face.

It is clear that Zhao Gao's attire today is an intentional imitation of the First Emperor Ying Zheng, but this is truly laughable to the ministers.

The honor guard stopped in front of the steps, leaving Zhao Gao alone to continue forward with his six sword slaves.

In Shusun Tong's view, the ceremony went smoothly, and no ritual was wrong. Although the presence of the Six Sword Slaves was a bit of a glaring flaw, when Zhen Gang, the leader of the Six Sword Slaves, suddenly came and demanded that the ceremony be designed in this way, he did not refuse because he did not want to disobey Zhao Gao's orders.

When dealing with superiors, Confucian scholars can only be tough on gentlemen, but must yield to petty people. This is not because they are afraid of losing their lives, but because Confucian scholars do not want to risk their integrity by running into the blade of someone like Zhao Gao, since it is ultimately futile.

'The victor's kingdom is now lost; I wonder when His Highness Prince Qi will arrive.'

Having completed the task of "thinking three times a day about the Qi King's army," Shusun Tong took out the abdication edict and read it aloud. At the same time, Prince Ziying should have knelt down and presented the imperial seal to the fake emperor. Then Zhao Gao raised the imperial seal to receive the congratulations of the officials.

But just as Zhao Gao reached for the imperial seal, Zhen Gang and Duan Shui, two of the Six Sword Slaves, drew their swords with lightning speed...

One man stabbed the unsuspecting Zhao Gao, while another stabbed the other members of the Six Sword Slaves...

Chapter 440 The Death of Zhao Gao

Zhao Gao's martial arts skills were not weak, and his internal energy, nurtured with the support of the Luo Wang's financial resources, was also at a world-class level. Judging from his configuration alone, he was no less than any of the previous Six Sword Slaves.

However, lacking real life-or-death battle experience over the years, and with his mind completely focused on the jade seal in front of him, he never expected to be attacked by his own six sword slaves!