Chapter 38: Your Majesty, how many more times are you going to pretend?
Zhangtai Palace.
"Today, the Tingwei prison was filled with people for no reason. After careful questioning, I found out that it was caused by the defense forces of the Mengneishi city..."
Li Si was reporting on what happened in the Supreme Court in the afternoon, but his mind was spinning rapidly.
How can we ignore Gai Nie and put all the blame on Ying Chengjiao?
He came here to show his loyalty and to become prime minister.
Things that would offend people, especially those that were close to the First Emperor, should be avoided if possible.
Before Li Si came in, the First Emperor was in a bad mood.
Now, after hearing what Li Si said, or when he told Li Si that he didn't need to report again tomorrow, the First Emperor became a little impatient.
The First Emperor unbuttoned the top button of his crown, loosened his collar, and felt that his breathing became much smoother.
He did not interrupt Li Si, and continued to listen patiently to Li Si's travel notes of the Supreme Court.
"…I returned home indignantly, intending to change my clothes and come back to discuss matters with Your Majesty once I was properly dressed. While I was changing my clothes, my junior fellow apprentice Zhang Cang, with whom I had not interacted for a long time, came to visit me."
The First Emperor had an impression of Zhang Cang.
He remembered that Zhang Cang was Han Fei and Li Si's junior fellow, a plump, fair-skinned and tender fat man.
But compared with the two great masters Han Fei and Li Si, Zhang Cang is really mediocre and not outstanding at all.
Han Fei and Li Si could influence their own decisions and determine the strategies between countries, but Zhang Cang was not even qualified to enter the Qin court.
He also had expectations for Zhang Cang. According to the saying that birds of a feather flock together, Zhang Cang, who hung out with Han Fei and Li Si, should not be an incompetent person.
However, after summoning Zhang Cang alone and talking with him for an hour, he found that Zhang Cang's ideology was neither Legalism nor Confucianism, but Taoism.
The immortals aim to become immortals, focus on health preservation and practice, study the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, and hope to achieve immortality.
The First Emperor unified the country this year and turned 30. When he summoned Zhang Cang, he was still a promising young man in his twenties with lofty ambitions.
Cultivate immortality and maintain health?
Immortality?
I want to be the first person in the world to unify China!
Go somewhere cooler!
So the First Emperor casually assigned Zhang Cang a minor official position as an imperial censor.
He no longer cared about Zhang Cang, who was from the same school as his idol Han Fei and the capable minister Li Si.
When Emperor Qin Shi Huang heard Li Si mention that he had not had any contact with Zhang Cang for a long time, his impatience faded a little and he became a little more gentle.
"It is my fault that you two have ended up in this situation."
After hearing what the First Emperor said, Li Si was secretly delighted and shook his head.
But on his stern face, his eyes and brows were filled with disappointment that he tried hard to hide but could not.
He pretended to be indifferent and said, "This matter has nothing to do with Your Majesty."
After saying this, a very subtle but deep sadness emerged from the deepest part of Li Si's heart.
The image of a young man who stuttered but stood emerged. He was his brilliant senior brother, Han Fei, who was given the name "Zi" at a young age.
"Master, Master, Junior Brother, Fei, Fei is already dead, dead, you, you still, still, still won't let go, let Fei go?"
"Si can use his brother's death to gain His Majesty's sympathy, which is much more profitable than business. Senior brother can help Si, and he should be very happy."
Following Li Si's response, the young man standing tall showed disappointment on his face and his figure disappeared.
Li Si felt a sense of emptiness, which was exactly the same feeling he had in the afternoon when Zhang Cang pulled his hand away and left him.
"Han Fei's death... Gai Nie, you go out and guard outside the door." The First Emperor did not want Gai Nie to hear this secret that only he and Li Si knew.
"only."
Gai Nie took the order, dressed in white, walked past Li Si, opened the palace door and stood outside the palace.
Standing outside the palace gate, one could also hear normal conversations inside the palace. The First Emperor waved to Li Si.
" No need to stand there, come closer and sit in front of me. This is the second time I have asked you to sit down, you must not refuse. I remember that you were so arrogant when you wrote the "Remonstrance against Expelling Foreigners". When did you become as cautious as Zhao Gao?"
"Yes." Li Si suppressed his inner ecstasy and said respectfully.
He said so much, but still couldn't figure out how to put the blame on Ying Chengjiao without saying anything about Gai Nie's right or wrong .
Li Si didn't know that the actual controller of the secret guards was Ying Chengjiao, not Gai Nie.
In his opinion, if there was no Gai Nie, Ying Chengjiao, who was lingering in the tower, would not pose any threat to Ying Zheng at all.
He racked his brains to no avail and was ready to offend Gai Nie.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, Ying Zheng actually sent Gai Nie away and asked him to talk nearby.
God is really helping me!
At this moment, Li Si's heart was filled with ecstasy, and the thin but strong sadness was squeezed away and disappeared.
"His Majesty."
Li Si was sitting in front of Ying Zheng, lowering his head and whispering, "I am so anxious today because of your Majesty's life and death! Mr. Gai, the leader of the secret guards, was once a retainer of Lord Chang'an. The secret guards may have been infiltrated long ago! Lord Chang'an has not attended court for several years, but today he is acting out of character. This must be a sign that the infiltration is complete and they are planning to assassinate your Majesty!"
"Mr. Gai was standing behind Your Majesty just now. I looked around and didn't dare to say anything. I was very nervous, fearing that Your Majesty might make a mistake. Mr. Gai might be Chang'an Jun's man!"
I have been waiting outside the palace for such a long time, risking offending His Majesty's confidants, and His Majesty has developed a close affection for me because of my senior brother's matter.
The First Emperor had a blank expression on his face as he glanced at him from the corner of his eye.
Li Si thought to himself: The emperor cannot let his subjects know what he is thinking. On the surface, His Majesty will be calm and won't say much to me. But His Majesty must be deeply moved at this moment and will praise me highly. That's enough!
With a "pop" sound.
Li Si had a stern face and was thinking about something beautiful.
There was a sudden numbness, pain and heat on the left side of my face, a bloody smell in my mouth, and my head tilted to the right, causing pain in my neck.
His body leaned to the right, and in order to maintain his balance, he naturally supported the soft couch with his right hand, so he did not fall in front of the First Emperor.
Li Si looked up in confusion.
The First Emperor, who had just been sighing and feeling apologetic towards himself, now had a look of anger on his face.
how so?
This is not right!
Your Majesty, you can appear calm and composed, and you can praise me, but you should not slap me!
"Cheng Jiao is my brother! He will never kill me."
Ying Zheng slapped Li Si in anger, causing half of his face to swell up and blood to seep from the corner of his mouth.
Li Si wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve. His mind was in turmoil and he suddenly realized something.
I understand. Your Majesty wants to take action against Ying Chengjiao. This is to let me continue to make suggestions! It seems that I, Li Si, am lucky and have hit the mark unexpectedly.
Gai Nie entered the palace, probably under the instruction of Ying Chengjiao, to assassinate His Majesty and usurp the throne, but now he has been subdued by His Majesty.
His Majesty learned from Gai Nie that Ying Chengjiao was planning to harm him, so he decided to strike first.
However, Qin law judges by deeds rather than intentions. If you take action without any reason, it will make Your Majesty appear mean and ungrateful, and have no brotherly love.
My arrival gave His Majesty the reason to testify against Ying Chengjiao. A high-ranking official as a witness was enough.
Your Majesty slapped me and said that Ying Chengjiao was his biological brother. Firstly, it was to preserve the brotherhood, and secondly, it showed that he was a man who valued affection.
Next, I will continue to testify against Ying Chengjiao and prove that he has the intention of rebellion. Then, Your Majesty will act as if he believes in Ying Chengjiao, but has no choice but to take action against him under my repeated advice.
After the matter is accomplished, whether Ying Chengjiao is killed or imprisoned, your Majesty's reputation will not be greatly affected.
And I, Li Si, will use this incident to further gain a foothold in Your Majesty's heart.
If I can make further progress in your Majesty's heart, then the day when I can make further progress in my official position won't be too far away!
One step higher than Shangqing is Prime Minister.
When Li Si thought of this, he immediately put on a loyal and fearless look, and said with a breath of blood: "Your Majesty! Painters can draw the appearance of a dragon and a tiger, but they cannot draw the bones of a dragon or a tiger. You can see Chang'an Jun's behavior and Chang'an Jun's face, but you cannot see Chang'an Jun's heart. What I said is true. Chang'an Jun really wants to rebel!"
“Bang!”
Li Si's right face suddenly felt an intense numbness, pain and heat, the bloody smell in his mouth became stronger, and his head turned to the left so hard that his neck seemed to be pulled off.
Before he could even support himself on the couch with his left hand, his body had already fallen to the left side - the slap he received this time was even heavier than the previous one!
"I said so."
The First Emperor spoke each word with great seriousness, "Cheng Jiao is my brother! He will never kill me!"
Li Si looked at Ying Zheng's angry face and felt that it was so real that he could not see any flaws. It was much more realistic than his previous disguise.
Li Si was lying on the ground. When he used his sleeve to wipe the blood from the right corner of his mouth, he found that his right teeth were shaking. It turned out that the slap had loosened his teeth.
Li Si endured the severe pain of his swollen cheeks and felt very melancholy.
Your Majesty, how many more times are you going to pretend?
