Meng Yi was shocked.
Meng Ao's reaction was beyond his imagination.
It was past Chou time, which was past two in the morning.
It was too urgent to go to Xianyang Palace to find the First Emperor at this time.
"Grandfather, Grandfather."
Meng Yi grabbed Meng Ao's arm and urged him urgently, "It's getting too late."
The old general pulled out his arm, his face full of anger, and he cursed loudly while putting on his clothes.
"What the hell, I always attacked at night when I was fighting. I should have left you on the battlefield for a few more years. You are not as good as that bastard Zhao Kuo in the Battle of Changping!"
"Father, Your Majesty should go to bed. Please wait till dawn."
"The urgent military information has arrived, but the commander-in-chief has fallen asleep. Can we report it to him tomorrow? Speed ​​is of the essence in war, and we cannot wait!"
Meng Yi was helpless.
Knowing that he could not stop his father, he could only ask his servants to prepare the carriage and horses, and then he followed Meng Ao into the palace to meet the First Emperor.
This means that Meng Yi was the internal historian in charge of Xianyang affairs, and all the city defense troops were under his jurisdiction.
If only someone else were to change.
Even for prime ministers Li Si and Wang Wan, it would be troublesome to go out in a high-profile manner during curfew.
A servant brought Meng Ao's armor, which was covered with dense scars from weapons, showing that it had been used in many battles.
"Father, if you want to enter the palace, you can enter the palace. Is it possible that you don't need to wear this armor?"
Meng Yi persuaded.
Armor is something that people wear on the battlefield. Entering the palace and seeing the First Emperor wearing armor was disrespectful to him.
Although I haven't worn armor for a long time.
But Meng Ao didn't feel strange at all when he put it on. He put it on very skillfully. It seemed like it had become muscle memory.
He grabbed the Qin sword hanging on the wall and put it on his waist. Meng Ao, extremely angry, glared at Meng Yi fiercely.
"I will wear this to see His Majesty. You are too fussy, don't follow me into the palace!"
You don’t have many things to do when you are old, but you have a lot of things to do.
I won't follow you into the palace. What if you call His Majesty a birdman?
Meng Yi believed that his grandfather would definitely do such a thing, and Meng Ao got angry and cursed everyone.
Meng Yi just didn't respond, but didn't dare to say anything more.
Seeing that Meng Yi stopped nagging, Meng Ao stopped yelling and scolding, and remained angry.
Wearing armor and holding a sword.
He walked out of the house with a slight stagger.
This momentum is still the same as the one on the battlefield back then.
But this body is not the same body that was on the battlefield back then.
"You three, follow me into the palace!"
Meng Yi selected three city defense soldiers and followed Meng Ao out of the house.
This night.
Xianyang City under curfew.
Several horse-drawn carriages were galloping on the road, and the rumbling sound drowned out the night and broke the silence of the curfew.
Residents on several streets heard the clatter of horse hooves hitting the ground.
There was a night curfew and the sound of galloping horses in Xianyang city was considered an extremely urgent matter.
Most people didn't care what big thing had happened. They just felt that the noise of horses' hooves and carriages was extremely noisy and disturbed their sleep.
No matter what happens, it has nothing to do with them.
But if they don’t sleep well, they will not have energy the next day and cannot complete their tasks at work, and they will not live well.
Xianyang Palace, crouching in the night.
If it weren't for the burning torches on the palace walls, this huge palace would look like a sleeping monster just by looking at its outline.
The blue bricks on the Xianyang city wall are very new, with only traces of wind and rain, but no signs of being cut by knives or axes.
Since Qin Xiaogong moved the capital to Xianyang and built such a huge palace in Xianyang, the Xianyang Palace has never experienced the baptism of war.
Although the walls of the Xianyang Palace were very thick, thicker than the walls of Xianyang City, they had never been destroyed by weapons such as hooks and long spears.
Since Xianyang became the capital of Qin State.
No war could reach Xianyang City or the Xianyang Palace.
Over the course of more than a hundred years, successive Qin kings continued to repair and expand the Xianyang Palace.
The walls of the Xianyang Palace continued to expand outward, become thicker and longer.
Although the current Xianyang Palace has not been tested by war, it can be said to be the safest palace complex in the world.
And today.
The suspected test of war is here.
On the palace wall, the official on duty holding a long spear heard the sound of galloping war horses.
It's curfew now, where does the sound of horse racing come from?
They thought they had been on duty for too long and had hallucinations and had heard it wrong, so they looked at their colleagues on duty nearby.
The doubts in their colleagues' eyes were the same as their own.
The two doubts mixed together turned into caution and vigilance.
Hold the long spear tightly in your hand.
The officials all turned their attention to the spacious road in the center of Xianyang Street.
As the sound of horse hooves grew louder and louder, the officials knew that the visitors were getting closer and closer to the Xianyang Palace.
On the walls of Xianyang Palace, the highest-ranking official was a Shanglang.
Shanglang clung to the city wall, staring at the dark road.
"Take out those bows and arrows and obey my orders later."
"only."
A young official will go and fetch the bow and arrow.
When the officials on the city wall heard what Shanglang said, none of them looked worried, but instead all of them looked happy.
Having a war to fight means having military achievements.
Having military merit means being promoted to a higher position.
The officials who served as the Qin's imperial guards were not like the imperial guards of a certain dynasty in later generations, who were all just for show.
Only the elite Qin soldiers who performed well on the battlefield were qualified to become palace guards and protect their king.
When it comes to fighting, these young officials are not afraid at all.
As the officials put down their spears and picked up bows and arrows, the frequency of the horses' hooves hitting the ground gradually decreased.
The night beneath the palace wall was stirred up, like a spoon spinning in black sesame paste.
Shanglang knew that these uninvited guests had arrived.
According to Qin law, Shanglang could give the order to shoot arrows now.
No matter who it is, anyone who dares to break into the Xianyang Palace at night will be killed without mercy.
"Draw your bow and draw your arrow!"
"only!"
All the eunuchs on this palace wall responded in unison.
Clank, clank, clank~
The bowstrings were quickly tightened, making the sound of a full bow.
All the eunuchs had their bows drawn like full moons, and the sharp arrows on their longbows flashed coldly in the moonlight, ready to pierce the night and pierce flesh at any time.
"Who are you under the city? Don't you know this is Xianyang Palace? Are you seeking death?"
Shang Lang shouted.
The sound drowned out the sound of horse hooves which had not yet completely subsided, and was loud enough for the people below the palace wall to hear clearly.
"It's me! Meng Ao!"
An old and heavy voice came from the bottom of the city.
The voice was not harsh, but it was authoritative.
Is it Lord Meng?
The voice seemed to be from Mr. Meng.
How could Lord Meng come here at night?
Shanglang, who was waiting for a response from the city, hid behind the palace wall without showing a single bit of himself outside.
He thought about it for a moment, picked up the torch from the torch stand, and threw it out of the palace wall along the battlement.
Without torches to illuminate, Shanglang couldn't see the appearance of the people under the palace wall by the moonlight alone, and could only see their outlines.
Soon, someone picked up the torch.
Shanglang found a shield and held it in his hand. He stood on the parapet, covering his eyes and looking down at the city.
Where the fire was leaping.
It was Meng Ao, who was wearing armor and had a furious look on his face.
Shanglang grinned, with most of the vigilance in his eyes gone. He threw the shield behind him and clasped his hands together.
"Greetings, Lord Meng."
"I want to see His Majesty."
"Please forgive me, I dare not open the palace gate without your Majesty's order."
"Then why are you still talking nonsense to me? Why don't you go back and pass on the message!"
"Yes, yes, boy, I'll send someone to report it right away!"
Shanglang smiled apologetically, turned around and called a random official.
"Go and report this to Doctor Zhang."
"only."
Xialang took the order and left quickly.
"Put away your bows and arrows."
"only."
After hearing the conversation between their superior and Meng Ao, these officials had expressions of reluctance and joy on their faces.
The reluctance is because the merits that were obtained were lost, while the joy is because the idol has been overshadowed.
They all responded.
They put down their bows and arrows, picked up their spears again, and stood on the battlements of the city wall, so that they could see Meng Ao and Meng Ao could see them.
"Please wait a moment, there will be a reply soon."
Shang Lang first occupied a battlement and stuck his head out to talk to Meng Ao who was below the city.
"Mr. Meng, do you still remember Li Jun? That was my father. When my father taught me the art of war, he said that this was how Mr. Meng taught me. My father always said that Mr. Meng was brave and unstoppable, and that conquering a city was like water. I grew up listening to Mr. Meng's deeds."
Meng Ao held a torch and cursed at Shang Lang.
"Asshole! When on duty, none of you stand behind cover, and you want your cock to be exposed. Is this how Li Jun taught you to lead troops? I don't have such a jerk under my command!"
He lost face in front of Meng Ao.
Shanglang looked embarrassed. He turned back in anger and cursed at the officials on duty in a low voice.
"Get back behind the city wall! Aren't you afraid of being shot to death by arrows standing on the battlements? You are a bunch of idiots!"
"only."
"only."
"only."
“…”
The officials responded with great reluctance, varying degrees of competence, and moved step by step to their original duty posts.
Shang Lang continued to stick his head out and flattered, "It's not that you are incompetent in leading the troops. They just want to see the true face of Lord Meng."
"Look at your ass! I'm not a woman's ass! What's there to see? If the soldiers I led were the same as you bunch of bastards, we would have been pierced by Zhao Kuo in the Battle of Changping! If you dare to stick your bird head out again, I'll chop it off when I get in!"
Shanglang smiled awkwardly, retracted his head, and shouted at the top of his voice.
"Don't be angry, Mr. Meng. If you keep getting angry, your father will tear you to pieces."
"It's best to tear it apart! If a man doesn't go to the battlefield, what's the point of hanging around in the palace? What the hell is Li Jun doing!"
“…”
Half of the Qin army is from the Meng family, and this is not empty talk.
Meng Ao had led troops in battle since the reign of King Zhaoxiang of Qin.
The war also continued during the reign of King Xiaowen of Qin and King Zhuangxiang of Qin.
Finally, during the reign of Emperor Qin Shihuang, Meng Ao still fought for several years.
Over the past few decades, Meng Ao himself didn't know how many soldiers he had led.
Most of them are already dead, having died on the battlefields of the Seven Kingdoms.
But the very few who survived were all the backbone of the Qin army.
General Li Jun is one of them.
And there are many people like Li Jun.
Zhangtai Palace.
Doctor-in-Chief Zhang Han, wearing a black armor with two skull decorations on it, strode to the front of Zhangtai Palace, where he was stopped by the officials outside the palace.
“Stop!”
Zhang Han stopped as he was told and asked in a deep voice, "Where is Gai Nie?"
A eunuch knocked lightly on the gate of Zhangtai Palace. A eunuch half-opened the gate and looked at the eunuch inquiringly.
"Doctor Zhang ordered to look for Mr. Gai."
"promise."
The eunuch closed the door.
Soon, the gate of Zhangtai Palace opened again.
Gai Nie, dressed in white, came out and looked at Zhang Han without saying a word, with a cold and hard face , and questioning with his eyes.
Zhang Han was unhappy.
You treat me as an ordinary official, your subordinate, right? How could Your Majesty choose him to replace Zhao Gao when he is so arrogant?
In the past, when Zhao Gao was handling matters related to seals and decrees, he had never treated Zhang Han like this, and was always very serious.
If he had been treated so lightly at other times, Zhang Han would definitely have competed with Gai Nie at this moment.
But now, Zhang Han doesn't have the time or energy to compete with Gai Nie.
Across the long spears of the two eunuchs, Zhang Han asked in a deep voice, "Is your Majesty asleep?"
Gai Nie nodded.
You don't even want to say a word to me, Zhang Han? What a big air! It's as if I'm reporting to you!
Zhang Han suppressed his anger and continued, "Meng Gong is outside the palace wall and wants to see Your Majesty. When will Your Majesty wake up?"
If it were Zhao Gao, he would understand the implication of Zhang Han's words at this time. Zhang Han was asking Zhao Gao to wake up His Majesty.
The purpose of saying this is that if a minister wants to pay a visit, he has to wait until the First Emperor wakes up before being received.
If you just say Meng Ao is coming, you go and wake up His Majesty.
That is when the ministers came to pay their respects, and the First Emperor was woken up and received the ministers.
Don't underestimate the act of taking off your pants to fart.
Living in the capital is very difficult.
When visiting the palace, be cautious.
It is these seemingly unnecessary little things that are the key to a person standing out.
This was true in the ancient officialdom and it is also true in the modern workplace.
"I will wake up at Chenshi."
Gai Nie told the truth in a cold and hard tone. He was not a man who mixed in official circles.
Zhang Han finally heard Gai Nie's reply, but he would rather Gai Nie did not reply to him, so he turned around and went back to call the First Emperor.
He looked at Gai Nie who was standing there, motionless, his eyes full of confusion.
???
Am I really asking you this?
I have been with His Majesty for so long, I don’t know when His Majesty will wake up?
Go in and wake up His Majesty!
This boy knows nothing, is stubborn and conceited, and is far inferior to Zhao Gao. How did Your Majesty choose him?
Gai Nie's eyes were also full of confusion.
"Anything else?"
It's okay, why don't you leave?
Zhang Han looked at Gai Nie carefully. He suspected that Gai Nie was not ignorant, but was deliberately making things difficult for him.
After taking a look at Gai Nie's confused eyes, he felt that it shouldn't be the case.
Even if they wanted to make things difficult for me, Zhang Han, they would not choose this kind of thing to do to me. This would only cause great trouble to Your Majesty.
Helpless, Zhang Han had to speak out his thoughts in anger.
"Please wake up His Majesty. This matter requires His Majesty's decision."
"promise."
Wouldn't it be better to wake His Majesty and tell him directly?
Finally, after looking at Zhang Han in confusion, Gai Nie closed the door and went to touch the First Emperor.
soon.
Through the door, the First Emperor, wide awake, spoke with a powerful and generous voice that reached Zhang Han's ears.
"Bring Mr. Meng in."
"only!"
Zhang Han responded loudly and ran towards the gate of Xianyang Palace as fast as he could.
He did not stop or answer a single command along the way.
Because there was no team of palace guards who could see Zhang Han running so fast.
Inside Zhangtai Palace.
The First Emperor washed his face with cold water.
The cold water cooled the Emperor's face, completely dispelling any remaining warmth and sleepiness from his body.
The First Emperor reviewed memorials until late at night and was woken up before he had even gone to bed for an hour.
If an ordinary person were woken up in such circumstances, he would definitely be in a bad mood.
The First Emperor also had it.
When he washed his face with cold water, he increased the force and scooped up several handfuls of water to splash on his face. This was his way of venting.
A palace maid who was specially responsible for changing clothes for the First Emperor came forward, but the First Emperor waved his hand to indicate that she didn't need it.
Picking up his clothes, the First Emperor quickly got dressed.
It is true that having the palace maids dress the Emperor makes him look better, but it is a waste of time.
Therefore, except for times like the morning court, the First Emperor was unwilling to let the palace maids come forward.
The First Emperor could never have dreamed that in the future there would be an emperor who would not even know how to put on clothes without the palace maids and eunuchs.
"Go and fetch a stone memorial."
The First Emperor ordered two eunuchs.
"only."
Of the two eunuchs, only the younger one quickly returned to the First Emperor.
Another older eunuch was an old man who had served the First Emperor for a long time.
He lowered his head, clasped his hands, and anxiously advised: "Your Majesty has already reviewed one memorial, and you cannot review it again. Your Majesty, please take care of your body!"
"Shut up! It will take at least an incense stick of time for Lord Meng to arrive. Am I just going to sit there and wait? Bring me the memorial quickly."
The Xianyang Palace is very large.
It takes more than twenty minutes for an ordinary person to run from the gate of Xianyang Palace to Zhangtai Palace, which is about a quarter of an hour plus half a cup of tea.
The officials patrolled at night and had to give secret codes and commands from time to time when walking in the Xianyang Palace, which delayed the process even longer.
Meng Ao definitely could not be taken with Zhang Han on the flight, so the First Emperor said that Meng Ao would arrive in an incense stick of time, which was a total of half an hour.
The older eunuch knelt on one knee, with a hint of crying in his voice.
"Your Majesty has become ill due to overwork. Doctor Xia has repeatedly advised Your Majesty to rest more. Your Majesty still sleeps less than I do every day. If this continues, Your Majesty will not recover even if he takes more medicine."
"If you want to go, go ahead. Forget it, you."
The First Emperor randomly pointed to another eunuch and planned to ask this eunuch to follow the young eunuch to move the memorials.
"Your Majesty, I will go."
Seeing that the First Emperor had made up his mind, the older eunuch could only wipe away his tears and follow the younger eunuch to move the memorial.
As the First Emperor sat down at the table, Gai Nie walked up to him, and the First Emperor looked up in confusion.
"Your Majesty, please extend your hand."
"What?"
"Pulse diagnosis."
"Besides swordsmanship, you can also treat illnesses?"
"Medicine and martial arts are inseparable."
The First Emperor stretched out his hand in confusion. Gai Nie put his fingers together and placed the second joints of his two fingers on the First Emperor's wrist.
The First Emperor looked at the sword finger on his wrist and said with amusement, "Are you also taking the pulse?"
Doctors place the tips of three fingers on the wrist to feel the strength of the pulse of several veins and diagnose illnesses.
The First Emperor had never seen a pulse diagnosis method like the one used by Gai Nie.
Gai Nie really doesn't know how to treat a disease.
If you ask him to feel the pulsation of his veins, he can definitely feel it, but he can't tell what disease the pulsation causes.
But the saying that medicine and martial arts are inseparable is not empty talk.
Those who are highly skilled in martial arts have all their eight extraordinary meridians opened up so that their internal energy can flow freely.
Such a strong person can use his internal force to explore the bodies of others.
For example, Gai Nie could use sword energy to check whether there was any blood stasis in the body of the First Emperor.
If the shoulder blade is blocked, it may be frozen shoulder.
Gai Nie concentrated on feeling the sword energy and did not respond to the Emperor's teasing.
When his two fingers left the First Emperor's wrist, he took a deep look at the First Emperor's chest.
"Your Majesty has congestion in the lungs and heart. If this continues, Your Majesty will not live more than twenty years."
The First Emperor calmly withdrew his hand and smiled: "You didn't lie to me. You can really see something. You, Xia Wuqie, only said two years more. He said I only have eighteen years to live."
Before Gai Nie could say something else, two eunuchs came in carrying a stone memorial.
The First Emperor waved his hand to stop Gai Nie from speaking any further and pointed at the memorial, asking Gai Nie to take it.
Gai Nie said nothing more, but silently took the memorial and flipped through it.
The First Emperor was somewhat surprised by Gai Nie's obedience.
He raised his eyes to glance at Gai Nie, but it was difficult to see what Gai Nie was thinking through his expressionless face.
After one stick of incense.
The old general put on armor and held a sword and came to the gate of Zhangtai Palace.
The gate of Zhangtai Palace was wide open. The First Emperor walked out of the palace, held Meng Ao's arm, and personally welcomed Meng Ao in.
He did not let Meng Ao take off his armor.
The sword of Meng Ao has not been collected yet.
"Gai Nie, Zhang Han stay, the rest of you go out."
As far as the First Emperor could remember, Meng Ao had been idle at home and had not worn armor since the Qinian Palace Incident ten years ago.
So the first thing I saw today was Meng Ao wearing armor and holding the Qin sword in his hand.
The First Emperor knew that Meng Ao's entry into the palace this time must be for something very important.
Wearing armor and holding a sword.
Just to kill people.
Who was he going to kill that required him to break into the Xianyang Palace at night?
The First Emperor was feeling gloomy and had a foreboding feeling in his heart.
Therefore, the first thing he did when he brought Meng Ao into Zhangtai Palace was to send his attendants away.
The First Emperor looked serious and solemn.
He asked Meng Ao to sit in front of him, with a table piled with memorials between them.
"What is the purpose of Lord Meng's visit to the palace tonight?"
Meng Ao glanced at the memorials on the table and the inkstone that had not dried yet, and the anger on his face faded a lot.
The old general took off the sword from his waist and placed it on the table.
The sword with its scabbard fell on the table with a dull sound.
Although Meng Ao did not deliberately replay it this time, he did not deliberately let it go.
No matter how he placed it, the act of placing the sword in front of the First Emperor was disrespectful in itself.
The First Emperor's expression did not change and he did not speak. He was waiting for Meng Ao to speak.
"Your Majesty, have you forgotten who fought for your throne?"