Under the hazy moonlight, the Divine Maiden’s skin was like ice and jade, and in the mind of the First Emperor Zheng, a line from Zhuangzi’s “Free and Easy Wandering” arose—
On the distant mountain of Gushe, there dwells a divine being, with skin like ice and snow, graceful as a maiden.
Now it seems that the divine being Zhuangzi glimpsed on Mount Gushe might have been Xuan Nu of the Nine Heavens.
The First Emperor Zheng almost meticulously examined every inch of the Divine Maiden’s cascading black hair—no white strands, skin as smooth and white as mutton fat, without a single wrinkle.
And the Divine Maiden had existed from the time of the Yellow Emperor to the present, a span of two thousand five hundred years. Over two millennia, yet not a single wrinkle. Moreover, the Divine Maiden’s existence predated even the reign of the Yellow Emperor.
—Immortality.
He lowered his eyelids slightly and said, “Esteemed one. Zheng has come uninvited, having noticed that you barely touched your chopsticks at the banquet. Could it be that the dishes did not suit your taste?”
A strange thought flashed through Qing Ni’s mind: What would happen if she said “yes”?
Unfortunately, the Divine Maiden’s aura of dignity had to be maintained.
“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. The dishes are exquisite, but I have long practiced fasting and should not indulge in the desires of the palate. A taste is sufficient.”
The First Emperor felt at ease. “So that is the case. Zheng is relieved.”
As for why she did not mention her fasting earlier and allowed others to prepare the banquet… let’s not joke about it. It’s like preparing a state banquet—who attends solely for the food?
The First Emperor then asked, “In that case, may the State Preceptor partake in wine?”
Are you referring to wine as sour as vinegar or low-alcohol wine as bland as plain water?
Qing Ni maintained her composure and continued to smile. “A small amount is acceptable.”
“Attendants,” the First Emperor called out, and a graceful, fragrant maidservant entered, setting out a wine jug and cloud-patterned jade cups with tall stems, pouring a cup for each of them.
As introduced by the First Emperor, this was the finest wine in all of Great Qin.
Qing Ni stared at the amber-hued wine swirling in the cup, the curve of her lips frozen on her face, her teeth already seeming to ache with sourness.
This is bad… oh, I don’t have any—
This is utterly disastrous.
Mr. Lu Xun was right: one must not be overly reserved or polite; one must learn to refuse.
Qing Ni had learned her lesson…
“If there is something, Your Majesty, please speak directly. As the Great Qin State Preceptor, I am in this position to fulfill its duties and resolve Your Majesty’s worries.”
Change the subject.
It turns out that as long as the topic shifts to something the other party is interested in, they will instantly forget the previous topic.
For example… “State Preceptor, you have repeatedly referred to me as the Human Emperor. May I ask what this ‘Human Emperor’… means?”
The First Emperor now completely forgot about the wine cup before him.
The Human Emperor…
Qing Ni’s eyes no longer ached, and her teeth no longer felt sour. This was a move she had planned from the start, waiting for the First Emperor to ask!
Your Majesty, let me tell you a tale!
In the eyes of the First Emperor Zheng, the Divine Maiden, upon hearing his question, showed a hint of distraction on her face, as if reminiscing. “It was my oversight, not realizing I had let it slip. Since it has been spoken, I shall tell you.”
The window paper filtered the moonlight, casting a hazy glow, and the Divine Maiden’s smile seemed tinged with sorrow.
…Perhaps some ancient secret? After this thought popped into his mind, the First Emperor grew even more attentive, afraid to miss a single word.
“The Human Emperor is the common ruler of humanity. The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors can all be called Human Emperors. In ancient times, the Human Emperor and the Heavenly Emperor held equal status. The Heavenly Emperor could not command the Human Emperor, and the Human Emperor could ignore the Heavenly Emperor…”
The First Emperor’s eyes widened slightly. “Is that truly so?”
In ancient times, the Son of Heaven… the Human Emperor could actually stand on equal footing with the Heavenly Emperor?
Of course, it was false. Qing Ni thought to herself, this was just modern internet novels making things up—stories like how King Zhou of Shang was the last Human Emperor who defied the Mandate of Heaven, or how the Zhou Son of Heaven was a traitor to humanity, selling the human race to the Heavenly Emperor. All of it was fabricated to stir up readers' righteous indignation.
Simply praising King Zhou of Shang would have been enough. To say that after him there were no more Human Emperors—from another perspective, does that mean all the Shang kings before him properly held the position of Human Emperor?
Utter nonsense. From the folk song "The Mysterious Bird of Heaven descended and gave birth to Shang," one could already tell whether the earlier Shang kings believed in Heaven or not.
But that didn't stop her from using this to deceive Qin Shi Huang.
After all, she had asked the System—among the three thousand worlds, there were no deities from Chinese mythology, at most there were cultivation realms.
"Naturally," Qing Ni showed no trace of abnormality. "It's a pity…"
"Nowadays, there is only the Son of Heaven, and no longer the Human Emperor."
The First Emperor's fingers gripping the cup suddenly tightened. "Why is that so?"
"Because the Shang fell and the Zhou rose! And King Zhou of Shang—also known as King Zhou of Yin by later generations—was actually a benevolent and sage ruler whom the world failed to understand."
"King Zhou? Benevolent? He cursed Heaven, insulted spirits, abandoned the elders, slaughtered children, cut open pregnant women's bellies, and used the roasting torture to torment innocent people. How could that be considered benevolent?"
The First Emperor thought that, in that case, he could also call himself benevolent and kind. After all, according to Qin law, only the guilty could be punished. Human lives were precious—how could they be casually wasted through punishment?
The Divine Maiden gently shook her head. "I care not how you record the Shang kings. I only know that King Zhou of Shang neglected sacrifices because the Yin dynasty practiced live sacrifices, and he abolished human sacrifice for the sake of the Yin-Shang population."
The First Emperor's gaze slowly changed as he judged from an emperor's perspective. "That is an achievement!"
"Abolishing live sacrifices and loving the people as one's own children—indeed, he was a benevolent and sage ruler."
Qing Ni smiled and asked, "Are you praising yourself in a roundabout way?"
"Hmm?"
"In your imperial mausoleum, you have no intention of using live humans for burial—only terracotta figurines."
—Unfortunately, later, Qin Er Shi Hu Hai created 188 burial pits and sealed the craftsmen inside the imperial mausoleum as sacrifices to prevent the secrets from being leaked. And then, all these misdeeds were pinned on Qin Shi Huang, becoming another mark on his record as a tyrant.
The First Emperor's eyes flickered.
The imperial mausoleum was still under construction, and he had not told anyone about using terracotta figurines to replace live human sacrifices—not even Li Si, who was responsible for overseeing the tomb's construction, thought the large pits inside were meant for burying live humans.
Is this what it means to be an immortal? Able to see the future with a single thought?
"I do indeed intend to replace human sacrifices with terracotta figurines. Sir, you even know this? Could it be that immortals truly know the past five hundred years and the future five hundred years?"
The Divine Maiden smiled and shook her head, whether in denial or simply unwilling to say.
She continued using the tone unique to immortals, her voice light and slow. "Does Your Majesty still wish to hear about the Human Emperor?"
The First Emperor raised his cup in a gesture of "please," his thin lips pressed against the rim as he drank a little wine.
What was said earlier was the true history unearthed by archaeology. Next, Qing Ni would begin fabricating her tale.
"In ancient times, the rulers of the Celestial Court were not limited to a single reign. Due to the immortality of the gods, the change of the Celestial Emperor inevitably came with war. The most recent Celestial Emperor was Haotian Shangdi, who assumed the throne. At that time, countless heavenly deities perished in battle, and the Celestial Court was left with a scarcity of divine talent. Haotian Shangdi established the Register of Deities, intending to summon virtuous talents from the mortal realm to be inscribed upon it. However, these virtuous talents were loyal to their sovereign—specifically, Emperor Xin—and naturally unwilling to ascend the register and pledge allegiance to another ruler."
The First Emperor's eyes gleamed with satisfaction. "Loyal ministers who love their country are worthy of great responsibility." He then asked, "Could it be that Haotian Shangdi forcibly conscripted the virtuous talents of the mortal realm, causing the King of Yin to become discontent, leading to conflict between them and ultimately the fall of Shang and the rise of Zhou?"
The Divine Maiden gently shook her head. "The Human Emperor stands on equal footing with the Celestial Emperor. Why would the Celestial Emperor risk easily antagonizing the Human Emperor over such a matter? Originally, this affair would have passed without incident. However, Emperor Xin was betrayed."
These words struck a nerve with the monarch. After a silence lasting four or five breaths, the First Emperor, as if suppressing his anger, spoke in a low voice, "Betrayed?"
"Emperor Xin betrayed his own class." Qing Ni recalled the charges against Emperor Xin listed by King Wu of Zhou, Ji Fa, in the "Oath of Muye" from the Book of Documents, and said, "He did not employ his noble relatives but instead appointed fugitive officials and slaves as officers…"
The First Emperor understood immediately. "That was a mistake."
Qing Ni looked deeply at the First Emperor. "Yes. At that time, in the eyes of the nobles and relatives he suppressed, it was indeed a mistake."
"By not employing noble relatives and appointing slaves, coupled with Emperor Xin's abolition of human sacrifice, which harmed the interests of the old nobility, the nobles had long grown estranged from him. The Celestial Emperor had also long harbored grievances against Emperor Xin over matters of sacrifice. King Wen of Zhou seized this rare opportunity to advise the Celestial Emperor that if he were to seize the Shang dynasty, he would voluntarily demote himself to 'Son of Heaven,' abandoning the title of 'Human Emperor,' and would persuade capable ministers to sign the Register of Deities to fill the vacancies in the Celestial Court."
"Thus, the phoenix cried at Mount Qi, signaling that the Mandate of Heaven rested with Zhou. Moreover…"
As Qing Ni spoke, she pondered: Wasn't the late Shang period the beginning of an ice age?
"Haotian Shangdi caused the climate to turn cold, and because of this, beasts fled from Yinxu. The people of Shang believed that the king's disrespect toward the gods had brought about this disaster, and their voices were filled with lamentation."
"The Zhou dynasty promised the Shang nobles that they would restore human sacrifice and appoint the old nobility. As a result, even Emperor Xin's own elder brother, Weizi, defected to the Zhou dynasty. They sold all intelligence regarding the insufficient strength of the Shang army to the Zhou people, forcing Emperor Xin to hastily organize slaves and prisoners of war to face the enemy. He suffered a great defeat at Muye."
"After his defeat, Emperor Xin perhaps saw through some truths. He laughed heartily and said, 'Heaven has doomed me; it is not the fault of battle.' Unwilling to let his corpse be desecrated by King Wu of Zhou, he resolutely set himself on fire at the Deer Terrace."
The First Emperor: "…"
How could you know so clearly what he said before his self-immolation? Were you hiding behind a pillar at the Deer Terrace eavesdropping?
Oh, wait, your identity is Xuan Nu of the Nine Heavens. Never mind—as a deity, you could easily divine such details. It’s perfectly normal.
The Divine Maiden sighed. "The Son of Heaven of Zhou took the place of humanity in submitting as a subject. From then on, there was only the Son of Heaven, and no longer the Human Emperor."
The First Emperor was visibly moved. "Emperor Xin was a heroic ruler of his generation, yet he met such a tragic end. It is truly sorrowful."
He raised his wine cup and poured a stream of wine onto the floor.
"A toast—"
"To the Human Emperor of Shang, Emperor Xin."
Qing Ni gazed at this scene, unsurprised.
The Qin royal family were originally descendants of E Lai, a loyal minister to Emperor Xin. Now, hearing that the emperor their ancestors served was not a tyrant but a wise ruler born at the wrong time, even the First Emperor could not help but feel stirred.
This was precisely why she deliberately chose the topic of "Human Emperor." Moreover, by mentioning both "Human Emperor" and "Haotian Shangdi," and speaking as if she had witnessed it firsthand, the First Emperor would surely become even more convinced of her identity as an immortal.
Plan successful!