“Your Da Mu knows medicine?” Ying Zheng asked Ziying in a low voice.
Ziying’s face showed pride. “Da Mu knows so many things! Mere medical skills are nothing special!”
Ying Zheng recalled the paper he had seen in Xianyang Palace.
Could this entity that had taken over his mother’s body be a thousand-year-old monster that had mastered numerous skills?
Ying Zheng became interested. He wanted to know just how many surprises this person could bring him! He was indeed a tyrant, but he also had an appreciation for talent. If this person truly had abilities, sparing her life wouldn’t be unacceptable.
Even if she were one of the gods, demons, ghosts, or monsters, what did it matter as long as she could be useful to him?
“What kind of look is that? Da Mu is mine!” Ziying complained, slapping Ying Zheng’s arm.
Ying Zheng had no patience at all and simply released the child.
Hah, this ungrateful brat.
He pinched the child’s cheek and threatened, “Do you think just because you call her Da Mu, she’s really your Da Mu?”
Not to mention this woman’s mysterious origins, even if the real Empress Dowager Zhao were here, Ziying shouldn’t address her as Da Mu but should respectfully call her Empress Dowager like other officials.
Ziying’s little face flushed red with anger. He headbutted Ying Zheng and shouted, “You’re lying! She is my Da Mu, she is my Da Mu, you big bully!”
Ying Zheng pressed down on the child’s head with one hand, keeping him fixed in place. The little one, with his short arms and legs, unable to fight back, started wailing at the top of his lungs.
Ying Zheng suddenly felt a chill down his spine. Before he could react, he was slapped on the back of his head, leaving him somewhat dazed.
Zhao Yuanxi took the child from his hands and said irritably, “I asked you to look after the child, how could you bully him?Ziying threw himself aggrievedly into Da Mu’s arms, tears falling in large drops. “Da Mu, he’s bad!”
Zhao Yuanxi asked him what happened.
But Ziying refused to answer.
He actually felt that what the bad guy said was right, but he didn’t want to admit this truth. If Da Mu wasn’t really his Da Mu, then he couldn’t stay with her anymore.
Thinking of this, Ziying cried even harder.
Seeing this, Zhao Yuanxi could only turn to ask Ying Zheng.
Ying Zheng crossed his arms, his eyes cold as he stared at Ziying and sneered, “I was just telling the truth! Ziying shouldn’t call you Da Mu in the first place. The Empress Dowager of Qin State—”
Zhao Yuanxi rolled her eyes at him. “You’re such a grown man, why bother arguing with a child? Let Ziying call me whatever he wants. I am his paternal grandmother—by blood relation, he should call me Da Mu. As for this Empress Dowager identity, outside of Yongcheng, who would still recognize me as Empress Dowager anyway?”
If not for the lack of precedent for deposing an empress dowager, Zhao Yuanxi felt that Zhao Ji’s position as empress dowager would have been lost long ago.
She herself didn’t care about this empress dowager status, so why would she care what others called her?
“That still doesn’t mean we can ignore propriety and hierarchy,” Ying Zheng insisted firmly.
“Since you want to talk about propriety and hierarchy, fine! First kowtow to me, then we can discuss matters of status and wealth!” Zhao Yuanxi was growing impatient. Her child—what right did an outsider have to criticize?
Ying Zheng became angry. Since he had become King of Qin, when had anyone ever talked back to him like this? Killing intent gradually arose in his heart.
Zhao Yuanxi keenly sensed the change in his aura and her heart sank.
No way! No way! Is he getting angry already? So young, yet with such a hot temper!
She gave a light cough and spoke warmly with an approachable tone, “Hierarchy and status are for outsiders—why be so formal among family? If you’re willing, you could call me aunt! I’d much prefer hearing Zheng’er call me mother!”
Hearing this creature still stubbornly trying to become his mother, Ying Zheng laughed in exasperation.
Fine—why bother debating moral principles with a monster?
He snorted softly and turned his head away.
Seeing him puff up like a blowfish, Zhao Yuanxi couldn’t help but find it amusing. Though his temper was poor, he was surprisingly easy to placate.
“Alright, enough sulking! Come here—I have another favor to ask!” Zhao Yuanxi beckoned to him. “Since Zheng’er sent you to check on me, he must trust you deeply. Take these medical formulas back to him. You’ve heard their effects clearly—no need for me to explain how to use them, right?”
Scientific knowledge must be applied to practical life to realize its full value.
Where were life-saving methods most needed? The military, of course.
“With these, more soldiers of Great Qin will survive,” Zhao Yuanxi said with a genuine smile.
Ying Zheng’s tightly pressed lips relaxed as he gazed at her with mixed emotions. “What do you want the King to grant you?”
For methods that could save countless soldiers, Ying Zheng felt he could fulfill some of her requests.
Except for becoming his mother, of course!
Zhao Yuanxi gently wiped the tears from Ziying’s tear-streaked face. “What I want… the King cannot give.”
“What in this world could the King possibly be unable to provide?” Ying Zheng frowned.
“There are many things he cannot do!” Zhao Yuanxi chuckled. “Never mind. If he truly wishes to reward me, just have him send me more people.”
“Is that all you want?”
Ying Zheng disliked her underestimating him. The Six Kingdoms would soon be his—anything she desired, he could eventually give her.
Zhao Yuanxi actually wanted to ask for more, but she wasn’t the true contributor. Seeking rewards was Yu Physician’s matter. If she overstepped, it would create difficulties for him.
“This is enough for me. The one who truly deserves reward is Yu Jiao. Moreover, while the medicine is effective, the treatment methods are equally important. Yu Physician is willing to accompany the army and teach these wound-treatment techniques to military doctors.”
Ying Zheng couldn’t understand this person. Why would she do all this without seeking personal gain?
Apart from having paper sold to nobles, Ying Zheng realized with surprise that none of her actions seemed self-serving.
Even without lifting a finger, as the Empress Dowager, she could have lived in wealth and comfort here in Yongcheng.
What was her true purpose?
Ying Zheng asked directly.
Zhao Yuanxi blinked. “My purpose? You really want to know?”
Ying Zheng nodded.
“Then it’s this: to ensure all people under heaven are well-fed, clothed, and living in stability!”
……
……
Silence fell around them. Even Zhao Yuanxi felt her words sounded unrealistic. She cleared her throat lightly, “Don’t look at me like that—it’s embarrassing. Can’t a person have dreams?”
“Her Majesty’s benevolence is a blessing to all people!” Yu Jiao was the first to react, exclaiming repeatedly.
He had thought his medical work was a great merit that would bring him fame, but compared to the Empress Dowager’s ideals, his ambitions seemed far too narrow.
Ying Zheng’s brow furrowed even deeper. As the ruler of Qin State, he naturally valued his subjects, but that was to maintain the state’s governance. Without the Qianshou, who would farm for him? Without soldiers, who would conquer lands for him?
Yet now someone stood before him, claiming to have no other purpose but to ensure all people under heaven could live well.
Ying Zheng was perplexed. Could such a person truly exist in this world?