Chapter 190: What kind of joke is that guy playing?
"Your Majesty came to visit late at night..."
"Mother, can you please speak properly?"
The First Emperor sat on a chair in the center of the palace, his hands on his knees, looking very tired.
Zhao Ji looked at the First Emperor's slightly haggard face because he was woken up in the middle of the night, and a trace of heartache flashed in her eyes.
He stopped talking, poured a cup of tea, folded it two or three times between two teacups, and handed it to the First Emperor.
The First Emperor took the teacup and drank it all.
The warm tea went down the esophagus into the Emperor's stomach, giving him a sense of warmth.
"Mother, do you still remember? Handan is cold in winter. Mother and I can practice martial arts to keep warm during the day. But when we fall asleep, the coldness penetrates into our bones.
“Even if the thatched hut was covered with three layers of mud, it couldn’t keep out all the cold. At that time, all we wanted was a sip of hot water to keep out the cold.
"Now, mother and I can drink hot tea anytime and anywhere. The house we live in is no longer a thatched hut, but the best palace in the world. Mother, are you satisfied?"
Zhao Ji took off the Phoenix Coronet and placed it on the table. She twisted her neck and smiled, "I am content with everything else, but this Phoenix Coronet is too heavy and very tiring to wear. I told Lu'er to find a carpenter to make a wooden Phoenix Coronet and apply a layer of gold powder on the surface, so that it can be lighter.
"It's a pity that Lu'er is gone, so this thing can't be done. A few days ago, Han Ji snatched the Phoenix Coronet away, and my mother was secretly happy, because she finally didn't have to carry this thing. Unexpectedly, she returned it a few days later, saying that she had had enough fun. Can this Phoenix Coronet be worn enough, and will there be a day when you can play with it enough?"
The First Emperor stood up and rubbed Zhao Ji's neck, just like he did when they were children in Handan, Zhao State.
Zhao Ji closed her eyes, her face was full of kindness without any trace of coquettishness.
The conversation between the two seems to have nothing to do with today's events, but in fact every sentence is related.
The First Emperor did not want to fall out with his biological mother, so he did not explain everything when he first met her.
Comparing the living environment and living conditions in the past and present, ask Zhao Ji if she is satisfied.
Zhao Ji understood what her son meant and replied that she was generally content, meaning that she was very satisfied now.
But then the conversation changed.
She first talked about the incident of "asking Lu'er to make a wooden crown and Lu'er being killed", telling the First Emperor that she could not coexist with Ying Chengjiao.
She also talked about the incident of "Han Ji seizing the Phoenix Crown" and told the First Emperor why she could not coexist with Ying Chengjiao - Ying Chengjiao had the intention of rebellion.
Ying Zheng sighed deeply.
He knew that he had no choice but to lay everything out.
While continuing to loosen Zhao Ji's neck to relieve the stiffness, he asked, "Mother, did you send the Yue girl to assassinate Cheng Jiao?"
Zhao Ji felt very comfortable being massaged, and her face showed comfort.
"Yes."
Ying Zheng smiled bitterly and said, "Mother gave a straightforward answer. I was afraid that she would deny it, so I brought three witnesses."
"If I can't tell the truth to my Zheng'er, who else can I tell it to?"
Zhao Ji grabbed Ying Zheng's hands, which were massaging her neck, and placed them on her shoulders.
"Your shoulders are a little sore, try harder. Mother is a martial artist, and she's not as weak as your father."
Ying Zheng then put in a little more effort.
"My mother raised me in Handan alone, taught me to read, write, and martial arts. Because of me, my mother, a daughter of the Zhao family, could only live in a thatched cottage with me, hiding her identity, and was slandered and humiliated by the scum of the city foxes and community rats.
"It was because of me that my mother let go of her hatred for my father and sent me back to Qin. After sending me back to Qin, my mother originally planned to return to Zhao immediately and never see my father again. But seeing that my father only favored Cheng Jiao, my mother was worried that I would be wronged, so she had to stay in Qin."
A look of reminiscence emerged on Zhao Ji's face, and as her son spoke, it seemed as if she was reliving what happened that year.
"At that time, everyone in Qin supported Cheng Jiao, and my mother refused to give in. In order for me to become the crown prince, my mother had been in contact with Zhao. She constantly introduced Zhao's forces into Qin, and in order to protect my safety, she arranged for Zhao Gao, who was highly skilled in martial arts, to protect me personally.
"Later, I took over the Qin State and became the King of Qin, but I was a puppet controlled by Lu Buwei. In order to free me from Lu Buwei's control, my mother risked her own reputation and used her charm to seduce Lu Buwei's confidant Lao Ai, asking Lu Buwei to hastily launch a mutiny.
"My mother had contacted Duke Meng in advance and waited for the opportunity to tire himself out. He led his troops to annihilate Lü Buwei's men, allowing me to finally become the true king of Qin. At that time, there were still many forces supporting Cheng Jiao. My mother made a bet with Cheng Jiao to secure my throne for me and imprisoned herself in Yongdi.
"I often think that if I hadn't been there, my mother would have lived a much happier life. All the suffering and worries my mother has endured are because of me. Mother, you love me so much, can you agree to one request of mine and stop thinking about killing Cheng Jiao, please?"
Ying Zheng did not ask his biological mother not to be afraid of his younger brother, because this was impossible.
Anyone who has experienced the period when Ying Chengjiao was called Master Chengjiao would either be impressed or fearful.
Ying Zheng just wanted his biological mother to stop thinking about killing his brother.
It doesn't matter if the two of them have a conflict. He always quarrels with Ying Chengjiao. As long as they don't fight to the death, it's fine.
Zhao Ji didn't say anything. She looked very happy and seemed immersed in Ying Zheng's massage. She didn't hear .
Keeping silent means agreeing.
It doesn't mean that you don't want to assassinate Ying Chengjiao.
Instead, he acknowledged his previous attitude towards Ying Chengjiao and they were irreconcilable.
The First Emperor took a deep breath.
"Mother, Meng Ao just came to the palace to look for me and told me many things I didn't know..."
Ying Zheng told Zhao Ji all the truth that Meng Ao had told her.
"Without Cheng Jiao, I would not have used '朕' as my own name, and I would not have been able to become the king of the world. Cheng Jiao treated me just like my mother treated me, so why did you always think that Cheng Jiao would rebel? If Cheng Jiao wanted to rebel, wouldn't he have done it long ago?"
"Mother is actually not sure whether Ying Chengjiao will rebel."
Zhao Ji opened her eyes, patted Ying Zheng's hands, and signaled Ying Zheng that it was okay.
She pulled Ying Zheng to sit on the chair in front of her, just like she was teaching her own son when he was a child.
Zhao Ji touched Ying Zheng's head and smiled peacefully.
"In fact, mother is more inclined to believe that Ying Chengjiao will not rebel. Just as you said, if he wanted to rebel, he would have done it long ago."
The First Emperor's face was full of confusion.
After entering this room, the First Emperor let down his guard, stopped concealing anything, stopped trying to maintain his imperial dignity, and even stopped calling himself "I".
At this moment, he was like a child seeking knowledge, and asked with a puzzled look on his face : "Then why is mother..."
"Because he is so strong, my Zheng'er has no idea how strong he is."
Zhao Ji's hand touched Ying Zheng's face and she slapped him twice in disrespect.
Ying Zheng was not angry, but his already confused face became even more puzzled.
Ying Zheng did not expect Zhao Ji to say such a thing, and he did not expect that Zhao Ji would still say such a thing after Meng Ao told him the truth of that year.
Ying Zheng grabbed his mother's hand and placed it in his own palm.
"Are you worried that Cheng Jiao will rebel and I will not be able to resist? Mother, I am strong now. I am no longer the Zhao Zheng who was insulted in Handan. I am the first emperor who unified the world and ruled the four seas.
"As long as I am here, the world will not be in turmoil. Mother, you don't have to worry about me anymore. Just live for yourself in the future. Even if Cheng Jiao rebels, I can suppress him!"
Zhao Ji took the old sword from Ying Zheng's waist.
This was Meng Ao's sword, which was stuck on the desk in Zhangtai Palace. He was afraid afterwards and did not take it away.
"What an exaggeration."
"Mother..."
Snap~
Zhao Ji drew out the sword in her hand, and the blade shone brightly.
The sword shines like autumn water, leaving no trace upon closer inspection.
"That day at the gate of Xianyang, Ying Chengjiao cut my Great Qin standard long spear with one sword, and there was not even a sound of metal when the two met. Zheng'er, tell me what this means."
Ying Zheng looked at the long sword that Zhao Ji had placed horizontally on the table in front of him and said, "This means that Cheng Jiao's sword is extremely sharp, and its blade is much harder than those produced by the inner court."
“Yes and no.”
Zhao Ji flicked the sword with her fingers, and the sword made a clear sound.
"This means that with equal military strength, you will never be a match for Ying Chengjiao. The reason why Qin was able to unify the world was largely due to its weapons.
"Now your weapons are outdated. If Ying Chengjiao rebels, what can you use to fight him? Your weapon is like wood under this sword. Suppress him? What right do you have to suppress him?"
Snap~
Zhao Ji put the sword back into the scabbard.
Since Meng Ao has already entered the palace and told Ying Zheng a lot, there are some things she has to say.
"Zhao State's Li Mu is now in Chang'an Junfu, did you know that?"
Ying Zheng looked shocked.
"How did mother know?"
"You actually knew about this? Your spies were able to infiltrate even the Chang'an Palace? Mother really underestimated Zheng'er."
A trace of embarrassment appeared on the Emperor's face, and he said, "No, Cheng Jiao leaked it to Zhao Gao on purpose, and Zhao Gao told Zheng'er."
Zhao Gao knew about this, why didn’t he tell me?
Zhao Ji's vigilance towards Zhao Gao increased, and she asked, "Then do you know why Li Mu became that young man's retainer?"
"Li Mu said that he didn't dare to fight with Cheng Jiao, I thought that was an exaggeration. I asked Li Mu if he dared to fight with Bai Qi, Li Mu said that he only regretted that he was born too late. No matter how good Cheng Jiao was at leading troops, how could he compare with Bai Qi?"
A sneer appeared on Zhao Ji's lips.
"That's not an exaggeration. Not to mention Bai Qi, even if Sun Wu, Wu Qi , Sun Bin and other great military masters were reborn, they wouldn't be able to defeat Ying Chengjiao if they were combined!"
Ying Zheng stepped forward and grabbed Zhao Ji's face. Zhao Ji looked unfriendly, but allowed her son to touch her chin.
After Ying Zheng retracted his hand, he said with a dark face, "You actually suspect that your mother is someone else pretending to be you?"
Ying Zheng laughed foolishly.
He really thought that Zhao Ji was not real, but a secret guard wearing a human skin mask.
After confirming that Zhao Ji was real, Ying Zheng was shocked beyond words. He realized belatedly and said in horror: "My mother, what you said before was not an exaggeration ? How could Cheng Jiao have such a deep understanding of the art of war?"
"That fellow had no knowledge of military tactics at all, but he used his strange and lewd skills to the extreme. Li Mu was good at flying troops. One is that the cavalry he led came and went as fast as the wind. The other is that the cavalry he led could ambush in places with flat terrain that were not conducive to hiding. When launching an attack, the enemy would not know where they came from. Those frightened Xiongnu would say that Li Mu's cavalry came flying.
" What is the reason for the flying soldiers? The superb horsemanship. The horsemanship of all Li Mu's troops is not inferior to that of the Xiongnu elite. With this cavalry, Li Mu can deal with the Xiongnu in the grasslands by using the Xiongnu's looting method, making the Xiongnu complain bitterly.
"And the saddle, stirrup, and horseshoe invented by that bastard can make a soldier who has trained for three months as skilled as Li Mu's cavalry. After six months of training, his riding skills can be as skilled as Li Mu's personal soldiers. The bastard has horseshoes, stirrups, and saddles at his feet, and in his hands he holds a Qin sword that can cut through the Zhao army's spears like grass. Next to him stands Lian Po, who is famous for his courage among the princes.
"Behind him, there was a chariot wrapped in cowhide. No one knew what was inside. According to the bastard, it was a siege weapon that could knock down the city walls and gates and enter the city directly. Li Mu believed it, and was subdued by the bastard and brought to the State of Qin."
The First Emperor: ...
He could still understand what Zhao Ji said before.
He could understand each word of the following words, but he couldn't understand them when they were put together.
What is a saddle?
What is a stirrup?
What is a horseshoe?
Can these three items allow a cavalryman who has trained for three months to be on par with Li Mu's cavalryman?
What a joke!
A cavalry formed in three months? Or an absolutely elite force? Then what is the point of training my cavalry in horsemanship?
There are also siege weapons that can knock down city walls and gates.
Isn't this a joke? A famous general like Li Mu actually believed it?
If such an object really exists, then what is the point of building a high city wall?
