Chapter 187: Qin Law Asks About Actions, Not Conscience
Compared with this question, the old general's previous action of lowering the sword seemed particularly respectful.
Gai Nie felt a murderous aura rising beside him and turned his head slightly to glance at Zhang Han.
Meng Ao raised his eyelids slightly, stared at Zhang Han with his eyes like a tiger, and pointed at Zhang Han's nose and cursed him.
"How dare you, a birdman, want to kill me! Come! Take this sword and chop off my head, and ask His Majesty for an official title!"
The old man Meng Ao grabbed the sword that had just been placed on the table and was about to throw it to Zhang Han, grabbing five inches.
The First Emperor pressed down with his hand, pressing the sword back onto the table.
"Meng Gong has made great contributions. No one in Qin can kill Meng Gong."
He comforted Meng Ao in a gentle voice.
The First Emperor touched the sword lying flat on the table, covered with frost, and looked at it carefully.
Seeing that the scabbard of the sword could no longer reflect light and looked very old, the First Emperor felt a little sad.
During the mutiny that year, Meng Ao rode his horse to rescue the emperor, holding this Qin sword in his hand.
At that time, in the eyes of the First Emperor, the Qin sword shone with a sacred brilliance, even more sacred than the Qin King's Sword, the symbol of the Qin Kingdom's power.
Holding the hilt of the sword, the First Emperor exerted a little force and pulled the sword out three inches.
The three-inch cold light was shining brightly, without a trace of rust, and it was still the magic weapon in the memory of the First Emperor.
Gold and jade inside.
The rotten outside.
Just like its owner.
"I will always remember that year when eight thousand soldiers descended from the sky and completely wiped out the villain Lu Buwei. My throne was won by Duke Meng at the cost of his life."
When Meng Ao mobilized troops to show his favor, he did not use the tiger talisman, which was a serious crime under Qin law and the extermination of three generations of the clan.
When Meng Ao broke into the Xianyang Palace at night and asked this question, the First Emperor immediately thought that Meng Ao was seeking credit.
Taking credit is to pave the way for what is to be done next.
Therefore, on the basis of acknowledging that his throne was won by Meng Ao, the First Emperor mentioned the four words "fighting desperately to mobilize troops" in order to remind Meng Ao.
I did not pursue this matter at the beginning. No matter what you say later, if I disagree, you should not pursue it further.
The First Emperor was tolerant and realistic in his thinking.
He thought that Meng Ao would then ask to put on armor and take up sword tonight.
But he was wrong.
The veteran's raising of this question is itself a request.
His answer, in the eyes of the veteran, was the wrong answer.
"Your Majesty is wrong!"
Meng Ao spoke in a voice as loud as a bell, in a decisive tone.
No matter how great your contributions are, you are still a subject. How dare you say that Your Majesty has made a mistake?
Zhang Han's face looked very unhappy, and he showed murderous intent towards Meng Ao without any concealment.
The person involved, Emperor Qin Shi Huang, was contradicted again and again by Meng Ao, but he did not care.
There was a hint of surprise on his face, and his tone was slightly raised.
"Oh? I'd like to hear what you have to say."
Meng Ao grabbed the hilts of the Qin swords that had been pulled out three inches by the First Emperor and pulled hard, pulling out all the Qin swords.
The unsheathed Qin sword shone in the light, the sword light was cold, and the faces of Meng Ao and the First Emperor were reflected on the sword.
Dare to draw the sword in front of Your Majesty, do you want to assassinate Your Majesty?
Zhang Han's eyes were sharp and his hand was on the hilt of the Qin sword at his waist.
As long as the First Emperor gave the order, he could strike down with his sword at any time.
Gai Nie looked at the elderly Meng Ao, and sensed his aura of decay, but he did not care and was quite relaxed.
Regardless of whether Meng Ao was an assassin.
At Meng Ao’s age, he has poor martial arts skills.
As long as he stood here, Meng Ao would have no chance of succeeding in the assassination.
Gai Nie is known as the Sword Saint in the martial arts world, and his sword is very fast.
"I have had this sword for almost ten years, and it is still as sharp as a blade that can cut hair and slash iron like mud. It was given to me by Lord Chang'an. Without this sword, I could not have saved Your Majesty. It was Lord Chang'an who won the throne for Your Majesty."
The First Emperor thought Meng Ao had something shocking to say, but he didn't expect it to be such an ordinary statement.
"Mr. Meng, you don't have to underestimate yourself. With or without this sword, you are still the same Mr. Meng who led 8,000 warriors to save me from danger. Cheng Jiao did help me a lot, but it was Mr. Meng who made the final decision and determined the outcome..."
"Your Majesty, do you really think that I can mobilize 8,000 men with my old face? Your Majesty, do military orders, military discipline, and Qin Law mean bullshit? Without Chang'an Jun, I can mobilize shit!"
Meng Ao interrupted the First Emperor, his eyes widened, his body half-raised, his hair and beard standing on end.
The old general slammed the table, making a crisp, loud sound.
This sound made Zhang Han's face even uglier, and he gripped the sword even harder.
Meng Ao pointed at Zhang Han and cursed: "Why are you staring at me? You don't dare to chop me, so why are you staring at me? Your Majesty, get this bastard out!"
Zhang Han had never led troops outside, fought in a war, or served in the military, so he was not that respectful of Meng Ao.
He was the Minister of the Imperial Household, one of the Nine Ministers, so he had never been treated like this before.
If he had not been in front of the First Emperor, he would have slashed Meng Ao in the face with his sword.
"Zhang Han is waiting outside."
The First Emperor gave the order.
"only."
Zhang Han clasped his hands together and responded.
He looked at Meng Ao with murderous eyes and strode away.
Gai Nie looked at Zhang Han's departing back and lowered his eyes resignedly.
When Zhao Gao was with him, it was Zhao Gao who went out.
When Zhang Han was with him, it was Zhang Han who went out.
He Gai Nie can't go out...
The First Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly.
When Duke Meng mobilized troops, Cheng Jiao seemed to have played a role in it...
"Mong Gong is telling me that this sword can mobilize 8,000 Qin troops?"
"This sword can't, but the tiger talisman that came with the sword can! Only the tiger talisman can mobilize the Qin army!"
"impossible!"
The First Emperor spoke decisively , his voice very quickly and loudly, which showed that he did not believe Meng Ao's words at all.
"The tiger talisman has always been in the possession of Lu Buwei. Where did Cheng Jiao get it from?"
"Where did it come from? Of course it was taken from Lu Buwei!"
"It's getting more and more ridiculous. Lu Buwei is greedy for power and wants to replace Qi like the Tian family did. Why would he give the tiger talisman to Cheng Jiao?"
"Because Lu Buwei never thought of becoming king, he just wanted Chang'an Jun to be king! Your Majesty, don't forget that the two people who supported Chang'an Jun the most were my son Meng Wu and Lu Buwei!"
The First Emperor stood up slowly, staring into Meng Ao's eyes all the while, trying to see if there was a joke in his eyes.
Even though the First Emperor knew very well that Meng Ao was a strict leader of his troops and a strict person, he rarely joked in his daily life.
"After my father passed away, I ascended the throne. However, Lu Buwei used the excuse that the ceremony of crowning had not been performed to make me the regent. He used the tiger seal to approve the memorials, and he had to report everything to the Prime Minister's Office first, and then to me. He treated me as a puppet."
"Who in the court doesn't know that Lü Buwei has evil ambitions? But Lord Meng wants to tell me today that such a villain doesn't want to be king? He only wants Cheng Jiao to be king? Then why doesn't Lü Buwei give the military and political power to Cheng Jiao?"
The First Emperor's tone was not high and his speech was not fast, but this did not mean that his mood had calmed down at this moment.
This is just because he has strong self-control and is suppressing his inner emotions and analyzing things with a relatively calm mind.
Then tell, then question, then wait.
Wait until Meng Ao was speechless because of what he said, or Meng Ao made him speechless.
"Lü Buwei wants to give it, but Chang'an Jun doesn't want it!"
"Why doesn't Cheng Jiao want it?"
"If Chang'an Jun monopolizes the military and political power, then is Qin your Majesty's Qin or Chang'an Jun's Qin? When most of the Qin court supported Chang'an Jun, how could your Majesty sit on the throne?"
"Why can't Cheng Jiao hand over the military and political power to me?"
Veins popped out on Meng Ao's neck.
"Land is acquired through seizure, not given by others. Power and land are the same thing, both must be seized! Han State gave Shangdang, which was conquered by Qin State, to Zhao State, and Zhao State took it."
"King Zhaoxiang was furious, and the Battle of Changping broke out between Qin and Zhao. If King Zhaoxiang had not disapproved, Wu'an Jun would have destroyed Zhao at that time!"
"If Chang'an Jun gives the power that Lü Buwei gave up to Your Majesty, Your Majesty will not be able to protect it by relying on the Queen Mother Zhao's relatives from the Zhao Kingdom!"
The First Emperor was breathing very fast, probably because of the rapid speech he just spoke, which made him very breathless.
Ying Zheng tried to calm himself down as much as possible, following Meng Ao's words and thinking quickly and logically.
The hot-tempered veteran of four dynasties controlled his temper and did not disturb the First Emperor who was standing there with a gloomy expression.
Soon, Ying Zheng raised his head again, and his face returned to its usual calmness.
"What you said doesn't sound wrong, but without evidence, everything is just speculation. Do you have any real evidence to prove your words?"
The First Emperor believed that Lu Buwei had evil ambitions and had always wanted to replace him.
This can be verified by the fact that Lu Buwei treated him as a puppet and refused to hand over the military and political power to him.
But today Meng Ao said that Lu Buwei had no evil ambitions and everything he did was for the sake of winning over Cheng Jiao.
Judging from Meng Ao's words and combined with what Lu Buwei did back then, it does make sense.
But things cannot be concluded with just one reasonable statement, because it is easy to deduce logic from facts.
For example, a father bought a tomato and made his son’s favorite scrambled eggs with tomatoes for lunch. The son thought that his father bought the tomato specially for him.
Wait until mom comes back in the evening.
Tell your son that dad bought tomatoes because mom wanted to eat persimmons mixed with sugar.
Mom didn’t come back because of something, so I made scrambled eggs with tomatoes for you. The tomatoes were actually bought for her.
In the absence of Dad's own confirmation, both of their logics make sense.
This is why Qin law only concerns one’s actions and not one’s heart.
The words, logic, and the behavior of the parties involved all seem perfect, but that doesn't mean they are true.
In the Qin State, where Qin laws regulated every aspect, the Qin people's thinking also had obvious traces of Qin laws, and the same was true for the First Emperor.
Without real evidence today, the First Emperor would not believe what Meng Ao said.
But, Meng Ao does.
The veteran also tried his best to calm himself.
Although Meng Ao has a hot temper and a straightforward personality, he is not stupid.
The Ying Zheng standing in front of him is the king of Qin and the king of the world.
He can't scold him as if he were his own son or grandson.
"After the Battle of Tunliu, a curse was passed down in Xianyang: 'You are like the king's younger brother', and Chang'an Jun was criticized for ten years."
"Mong Gong wants to say that the 50,000-man army was not defeated. Cheng Jiao is plotting to let Guo Kai take power. Cheng Jiao has already told me about this."
"No, what I want to say is that Your Majesty exchanged the city for the Lord of Chang'an. This is a ridiculous act that everyone in the world thinks is ridiculous. Why didn't Lu Buwei stop it?"
"If Cheng Jiao is captured and does not return to Qin, Qin will lose face. It will also bring shame to the whole world. Lü Buwei had no choice but to agree."
"Lü Buwei never cared about these things. Your Majesty has been in Zhao for so many years. If it weren't for Chang'an Jun's strong request, would Lü Buwei have taken Your Majesty back to Qin?"
The First Emperor's eyes froze instantly, and his mind was greatly shocked.
His logic doesn't make sense...
But Meng Ao's logic makes sense.
The First Emperor dryly justified his logic by saying, "Time changes, and people change too."
"What about the 50,000 troops? In the memorials that Your Majesty reviewed, did you mention how the 50,000 troops were defeated and killed? Was it because of flooding, ambushes, or fire attacks?"
"Fifty thousand Qin soldiers were killed without even knowing how they died, and they were just let go. Your Majesty concealed this for the sake of Chang'an Jun and deliberately ignored this matter, so why didn't Lu Buwei pay attention to this matter?"
The First Emperor closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
He had not thought about this matter carefully back then.
Yes, an army of 50,000 is enough to destroy the Kingdom of Han. How could Lu Buwei not take action against such a powerful force?
It turns out that the one that Lu Buwei couldn't stand was just me...
Ying Zheng slowly squatted down, sat up again, and covered his face with his hands to hide his expression from Meng Ao. A mechanical sound flowed out from between his fingers.
"continue."
"That night, the armored men with bronze heads and iron arms, who had fought in countless battles without any injuries, were the first to break up Lü Buwei's army. Your Majesty, have you not heard of the armored men before, and neither have the Queen Mother Zhao's forces."
"The only person who could hide such a force in Xianyang was Lü Buwei, who was in charge of Qin's military and political affairs. The Pijia Gate was the personal army that Lü Buwei trained for Lord Chang'an."
Today, Meng Ao will not stop until he makes something shocking statement.
Time and again, it broke the inherent impression of the First Emperor's memory.
The First Emperor, who had originally felt that nothing could affect him and whose mentality had been stabilized, became emotionally unstable again and his body trembled.
"Lü Buwei had always wanted Chang'an Jun to be king, so when Chang'an Jun asked for the tiger talisman, Lü Buwei still gave it to him even though a mutiny was imminent."
"The Queen Mother of Zhao asked Lü Buwei's confidant Lao Ai to launch a mutiny ahead of time, which made Lü Buwei act hastily. But how hasty could Lü Buwei, who had been in charge of Qin's military and political affairs for more than ten years, be?"
"Before Queen Mother Zhao contacted me and asked me to lead troops into Qinian Palace to rescue her, Lord Chang'an had already sent someone to deliver the sword and the tiger talisman to me. Without the tiger talisman, Meng Ao could mobilize no more than a hundred soldiers."
"What's the point of these people talking about saving the emperor? They are just delivering food to Lu Buwei! Chang'an Jun is determined to make your majesty return to Qin. After your majesty returned to Qin, Chang'an Jun talked to the former king Zhuangxiang and insisted on giving the throne to your majesty."
"Finally, he personally suppressed Lu Buwei, who wanted to coup and help Lord Chang'an ascend to the throne. Every step your majesty took to become king was fought for by Lord Chang'an. Your majesty's throne was won by Lord Chang'an!"
"Your Majesty once wrote to me that if Chang'an Jun rebelled, you could give up the throne! Today, I want to ask you, if someone assassinates Chang'an Jun, how will Your Majesty deal with it?"
The old general said all his words in one breath, picked up the Qin sword, pointed the sword downward, and thrust it hard into the table in front of the First Emperor.
The veteran couldn't suppress his emotions no matter how hard he tried.
When the old general thought of the city defense army saying that Ying Chengjiao was assassinated and almost died tonight, he couldn't stop feeling angry.
"Lord Chang'an nearly died tonight!"
