“Host, I must remind you: suicide does not count.”
Just as he was yearning for a bright future, the system poured a bucket of cold water over Ying Qingye, extinguishing every last spark of hope.
“What do you mean? Didn’t you say I could go back as long as I died?”
“You scumbag, you’re going back on your word!”
Ying Qingye was furious.
“Host, don’t even think about exploiting any bugs. Let me tell you—suicide doesn’t count, hiring a hitman to kill yourself doesn’t count, and manufacturing your own ‘accidents’ doesn’t count either.”
Ying Qingye was left utterly speechless.
He had assumed he could just slit his own throat, but who would have thought there were so many rules to dying?
While Ying Qingye was arguing with the system, Ying Zheng caught his attention once more.
“Qingye, why haven’t you started writing yet?”
Ying Zheng furrowed his brows, staring intently at him.
Ying Qingye snapped back to reality, and upon seeing Ying Zheng, his eyes lit up.
They always said Ying Zheng was a tyrant—ruthless with levies and taxes, treating human lives like dirt. Today, he’d put that to the test and see if the historical accounts were actually true.
“Uh… Imperial Father, I’m in no rush. Let them write first.”
Ying Qingye put on a confident, composed expression.
Ying Zheng’s frown deepened, but seeing Ying Qingye’s unbothered demeanor, he didn’t say anything further. He decided to let him be; the results would speak for themselves soon enough.
Time slowly ticked away.
Everyone else was writing furiously, desperate to leave a good impression on Ying Zheng. As everyone knew, Great Qin still hadn’t appointed a crown prince!
Once enough time had passed, Ying Qingye finally picked up his brush and began drafting rapidly across the bamboo slips.
“Time’s up!”
As the final stick of incense burned down, an inner court eunuch shouted the announcement, prompting everyone to lay down their brushes.
Ying Qingye glanced around at his brothers. Some looked relaxed, some quite confident, while others appeared helpless and anxious.
As for Ying Qingye himself, he looked entirely at ease.
“Fusu, start with you. Read it aloud!”
Ying Zheng sat squarely upon the dragon throne, looking toward Fusu. As the eldest son, it was only natural for him to go first.
“Understood!”
“Imperial Father, what this child has written is a strategy for governing the state!”
“Our Great Qin has unified the six states, and now that the empire is newly settled, we should emulate the institutions of antiquity and restore the feudal system…”
Fusu began to read aloud from his bamboo slips, completely oblivious to Ying Zheng’s darkening expression.
Emulate the ancient system? Restore the feudal investiture?
Was he saying that his ten years spent unifying the six kingdoms had just been some kind of joke?!
Conquer the land, only to carve it back up and hand it out again? Or give it all right back?
If that was the case, why on earth had Great Qin gone to such grueling lengths to conquer the six states in the first place? They might as well have just stayed home and lied flat! Where was the need to rely on the accumulated might of six generations of ancestors?
This essay clearly did not align with Ying Zheng’s ambitions.
“Stop. Next!”
Ying Zheng cut Fusu off mid-sentence.
“Imperial Father, this child…”
Fusu tried to say something more, but a single cold glare from Ying Zheng forced him to back down.
“Gao, step forward!”
“Yes, Imperial Father!”
Prince Gao responded respectfully, then calmly and steadily read his essay. It mostly detailed his personal reflections and insights from his studies over the years.
After Prince Gao finished, Ying Zheng nodded. Next came Jianglüo, whose essay suggested refining and improving the laws of Great Qin.
…
“Qingye, it’s your turn!”
Ying Zheng looked at Ying Qingye with a trace of anticipation. Everyone else had finished reading their works, and the only reason Ying Zheng had saved Ying Qingye for last was to see what he had come up with. After all, his earlier look of absolute confidence had piqued the emperor’s curiosity.
“Yes, Imperial Father!”
“Imperial Father, what this child has written is a poem!”
“A piece, a piece, and yet another piece,”
“Two pieces, three pieces, four or five pieces.”
“Six pieces, seven pieces, eight or nine pieces,”
“Flying into the reed catkins, they vanish without a trace.”
Pfft—
Nearby court ladies and eunuchs hurriedly clamped their hands over their mouths, terrified of laughing out loud.
As for the imperial princes, they couldn’t hold it back at all—several burst out laughing on the spot.
Ying Zheng’s face turned pitch black as he stared daggers at Ying Qingye.
“Is this the poem you wrote?”
What a total letdown!
“That’s right!”
“Isn’t it wonderful, Imperial Father?”
Ying Qingye looked at Ying Zheng with a smug expression.
That’s right! Get angry! Hurry up and get mad—lose face in front of all these people! In a fit of rage, Ying Zheng will definitely order my execution, and then I can finally go back!
Ying Qingye was beaming with joy on the inside.
“How did I end up with such a brainless son? He’s as foolish as a stupid dog and a dumb pig!”
“Guards, drag him outside and give him thirty floggings!”
With a wave of a large hand, two imperial guards immediately stepped into the grand hall and moved to grab Ying Qingye by the arms.
“Wait!” Ying Qingye shouted out in a hurry.
The guards froze in their tracks, leaving Ying Qingye feeling rather helpless.
Why isn’t this going the way I planned?
Didn’t everyone say the First Emperor was a tyrant? Didn’t they say he didn’t care about human lives?
With a stunt like this, I’ve basically slapped him right across the face in public—why is he only hitting my backside?!
It seemed even historical rumors couldn’t be trusted; Sima Qian must have just made stuff up.
“What else do you have to say?”
Ying Zheng glared fiercely at Ying Qingye.
“Imperial Father, if you don’t like this poem, this child can write another one. I guarantee it’ll be much better than the last.”
Seeing Ying Qingye’s unwavering gaze, Ying Zheng decided to give him one more chance. He waved his hand at the guards, who promptly released Ying Qingye and stepped back.
“Qingye, I will give you one more chance.”
“If you fail to write something proper this time, I certainly won’t spare you.”
Upon hearing this, Ying Qingye’s heart swelled with absolute ecstasy. This is exactly what I wanted you to say!
“A piece, two pieces, three, and four pieces,”
“Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten pieces.”
“A thousand, ten thousand, countless pieces,”
“Flying into the plum blossoms, they vanish without a trace.”
Pfft—
Though everyone tried their hardest to restrain themselves, a few people still burst out laughing.
Ying Zheng: (￣Д￣)ﾉ
Smack!
Ying Zheng slammed his palm down hard onto the dragon desk.
“Guards! Drag him out and execute him!”
“How dare he toy with me!”
Ying Zheng’s furious roar echoed through the entire palace.
“Imperial Father, please calm your anger!”
“My fifth brother didn’t mean it like that! I beg you, Imperial Father, please spare him!”
Fusu hurriedly dropped to his knees, pleading for mercy.
“Fifth brother, kneel down quickly!”
Fusu shot frantic glances at Ying Qingye.
Good grief! Even though he knew Ying Qingye could be a bit frivolous at times, the boy had always behaved properly in front of Ying Zheng. Which of his nerves had snapped today? How dare he play games with Ying Zheng like this?!
You’re incredible, my good brother! You must really have a death wish!
What Fusu didn’t know was that Ying Qingye did have a death wish. If suicide weren’t prohibited, he would have slit his own throat right on the spot. Pushing Ying Zheng to execute him was the only option left—a desperate measure for a desperate situation.
“Fifth brother, beg the Imperial Father for forgiveness right now!”
Fusu kept urging him on, but Ying Qingye remained completely unmoved. Not only was he unbothered, but he also wore a look of eager anticipation.
As Ying Zheng watched Ying Qingye’s expectant gaze, his mind suddenly cleared.
Why does this brat look so excited? Could it be that he’s doing this on purpose? But why on earth would he want to seek his own death?
Ying Zheng stared at him in utter puzzlement.
“Imperial Father, Fifth Brother… he must have woken up way too early today and hasn’t fully woken up yet.”
“Please, Imperial Father, forgive him! He is your own flesh and blood!”
“Even a fierce tiger won’t eat its own cubs, Imperial Father!”
Fusu continued pleading without pause.
“Your Majesty, the Fifth Prince is still young. Writing such a piece must be the fault of the tutor responsible for his education.”
Standing to the side, Zhao Gao bowed respectfully toward Ying Zheng and chimed in.