Speaking of Di Xin's deeds, Qing Ni's mood was inevitably affected.
"How laughable that Di Xin appointed commoners and slaves as officials, yet in the end, it was they who betrayed him on the battlefield."
In a slave society, yet wanting to liberate slaves—Di Xin was truly an out-and-out madman. Slave owners could not understand him, and most of the slaves he liberated would not understand him either. Just like the women's liberation movement, many brainwashed women believed it was a form of "persecution" against them. What a sorrowful ignorance. Di Xin lost his kingdom and his life under such circumstances, where even those he sought to liberate failed to comprehend him.
A complex expression flickered in Qing Ni's eyes as she lifted her cup and absentmindedly took a sip of the liquid.
At this moment, it was the snow weasel's turn to show a complex expression in its eyes.
Host, do you remember why you shifted the topic from the Human Emperor to King Zhou of Shang?
Qing Ni didn't recall at first, so she lowered her head and took another sip…
Wait, what was she drinking?!
Qing Ni stared blankly at the wine cup in her hand. The candlelight flickered, resembling solidified amber in the cup. Her tongue had already protested as if tasting sour vinegar, and only now did her brain belatedly receive the message. In an instant, the sourness flooded her mouth, and Qing Ni's lips trembled almost imperceptibly.
Damn it, all that talk with Qin Shi Huang was for nothing.
She had shifted the topic from the Human Emperor to Di Xin precisely to "forget" about drinking in a plausible way! The wine of the Qin Dynasty was as sour as vinegar, and she had no desire to drink it at all!
The next second, Qing Ni stiffened almost imperceptibly.
She… couldn't handle alcohol very well. Even the wine of the Qin Dynasty would likely take effect after a few minutes.
No, she couldn't get drunk! What if she accidentally said something she shouldn't and revealed that she wasn't actually an immortal…
Qing Ni calmly set down her cup and spoke even more calmly, "System, exchange for a pot of strong liquor."
The System perked up excitedly. "What, are we going for drunken debauchery? Great, I—"
The System paused, then declared righteously, "I am the Favored Concubine System, not the Taobao System. According to the rules, I can't give it to you. We must abide by the law!"
Before saying that, shouldn't you delete the line in the search bar that says "How to smuggle items from different System Shops"?
Qing Ni raised her jade cup, using it to slightly shield herself, and elegantly rolled her eyes. Then, she opened the System Shop and searched for a while. "System, get me a potent aphrodisiac."
"This, this, this—isn't this too intense!"
The System said this while swiftly placing the order.
"Exchange successful! Potent aphrodisiac, 198 Points per pill. Dissolves instantly upon contact with wine, leaving no trace of tampering. Moreover, it guarantees the user will possess the abilities of a novel's male protagonist—capable of going all night, seven times in one night. Oh my, this is so embarrassing, I'm almost too shy to say it."
The snow weasel covered its face with its two front paws, its amber round eyes curving into crescents.
The item had already been placed in a slot in the System Inventory. Qing Ni wasn't in a hurry to take it out. Instead, she called out first, "Your Majesty."
The First Emperor placed the jade cup filled with wine back on the table, slightly turning his head. A pair of dark eyes gazed at Qing Ni, as if giving her his full, undivided attention. "What guidance do you have for me, Master?"
"No guidance, but I do have a cup of fine wine."
In the Qin dynasty, seating arrangements followed a one-person-one-table system. The First Emperor's table was set some distance from hers. Qing Ni gracefully rose and walked over, kneeling beside his table. In her hand appeared a bottle, crystal clear as if carved and polished from a single piece of crystal, revealing the transparent liquid within.
The System stared blankly at that bottle of Erguotou.
Wait, where did this come from—Suddenly, a memory flashed in its mind. The System quickly pulled up the marketplace and saw the sales page for potent aphrodisiacs. At the very bottom of the product description was a line in parentheses (Includes complimentary strong liquor: Erguotou X2).
"…"
So… it wasn't the aphrodisiac. What a pity…
The liquid poured into the jade cup, its rich aroma of alcohol flowing freely through the air.
"Fine wine!" The First Emperor had never smelled such strong liquor before. Just a slight sniff left him slightly dizzy. "Could this be the Jade Nectar?"
"Your Majesty, please." The Divine Maiden slightly raised her hand, offering a gentle smile, but did not answer the First Emperor's question.
The First Emperor was already convinced this was Celestial Wine from the heavens, assuming the Divine Maiden's silence was tacit agreement. After she poured him a cup of wine and returned to her own table, he finally raised the cup.
The character for Qin (秦) derives from "grain" (禾) and the simplified form of "pestle" (舂). The Guanzhong region, where Qin was located, was one of the earliest agricultural areas, abundant in grain, which fostered a strong culture of drinking. The Qin people loved wine, especially strong liquor. The First Emperor, merely smelling the aroma of this Celestial Wine, felt slightly intoxicated even before taking a sip.
The wine was clear and pure. As the kneeling First Emperor gazed into the reflection in the wine, he could clearly see his own eyes, filled with a faint smile, the pupils distinctly visible.
The First Emperor was cautious, not overconfident. Unlike his usual boldness of downing half a cup in one gulp, he took only a small sip to avoid getting drunk and embarrassing himself in front of the Divine Maiden. Even so, it felt as if he had swallowed a ball of fire. The spicy flavor rushed violently from his mouth down his esophagus, igniting a burning pain in his chest and abdomen.
"Excellent!"
This must indeed be Jade Nectar—perhaps drinking it could even grant immortality. At this thought, the First Emperor's gaze upon the wine grew even more fervent. Only through sheer restraint did he refrain from taking another sip in front of the Divine Maiden.
Qing Ni paused for a moment before remembering that "excellent" (cai) in the Qin language meant "very good."" She pursed her lips into a smile, trying hard to suppress the excitement in her eyes that did not belong to a Divine Maiden.
She emptied the wine from the jade cup, poured herself a cup of Erguotou, cunningly filling only a small portion. Before the First Emperor could notice, she stored the remaining large bottle back into the System Space. Lifting the cup, she pretended to take a sip. "Today, sharing a drink with the Human Emperor…"
As soon as the words left her mouth, the Divine Maiden paused, her brows furrowing almost imperceptibly as she stopped speaking.
According to the earlier narrative, as a Divine Maiden, she should have addressed him as the Son of Heaven.
Once or twice could be dismissed as slips of the tongue, but a third time…
The First Emperor's slender fingers gripped the waist of the jade cup. He lowered his gaze slightly and probed, "Earlier, you addressed Zheng as the Human Emperor…"
—There must be a reason for this.
He took the bait.
Qing Ni did not answer immediately—that would seem too casual, too frivolous, too unlike a Divine Maiden.
She deliberately paused for several breaths, speaking slower than before. "Very well." Her gaze shifted from the desolate moonlight to the First Emperor's seemingly tense body, meeting his eyes. "Since you have heard it, it means you are fated to know. It is no harm to tell you."
"Because…"
The Divine Maiden smiled faintly.
"You are worthy of the title of Human Emperor."
The aroma of wine wafted faintly, candlelight flickered like fireflies. Listening to the Divine Maiden's voice, as sweet as fine wine and precious nectar, the First Emperor felt somewhat intoxicated even before taking his second sip.
Four days prior, the curses of the Confucian scholars still echoed in his ears, like monstrous beasts lurking in the darkness, leaving him irritable. Now, the Divine Maiden's words, "You are worthy of the position of Human Emperor," fell like sweet rain from heaven, instantly dispelling the fire in his heart.
—Of course, those Confucian scholars still needed to be punished. Otherwise, wouldn't they all think he was as mild-tempered as clay, to be cursed at will?
And the Divine Maiden's narration continued.
"Since Ji Fa pledged humanity's submission to Heaven on behalf of the people, enfeoffing the feudal lords, the Central Plains were divided, scattering the fortune of humanity. Yet you, Your Majesty, conquered the other states one by one, reuniting the fragmented Central Plains into a single whole, much like in the ancient times under the Yellow Emperor's rule, gathering the fortune of humanity upon yourself. Ordinary people cannot see it, but gods and spirits can perceive the immense fortune surrounding you. Thus, when I first saw you, for a moment I thought it was the era when the Human Emperor still ruled the world with an iron hand, and I was so startled that I misspoke."
Hearing this stirring account, the First Emperor lowered his gaze to conceal the turbulent waves in his eyes, raised his cup, and drank it all in one gulp, burying his emotions within the wine.
That bottle of erguotou had been deliberately left on the First Emperor's table by Qing Ni. Now, after draining his cup, the emperor picked up the bottle and began pouring and drinking on his own.
The stirred emperor poured cup after cup of erguotou, unaware that the Divine Maiden, watching his incessant drinking, had eyes shining with startling intensity.
Qing Ni's heart beat faster than usual, silently wishing: Quick! Drink a few more cups! If the First Emperor passed out before she got drunk, she would be safe!
The snow weasel's eyes were equally bright, clinging to the edge of the table, its system data storage space frantically flooded with "1"s and "0"s.
Drunken indiscretion, drunken indiscretion, drunken indiscretion—
It understood! Yiyi was going for drunken indiscretion! A spring dream leaving no trace—what a brilliant idea!
It was just a pity she hadn't used aphrodisiacs…
The First Emperor drank several cups of erguotou in succession. This strong liquor was truly stimulating for him, and the scenery in his vision began to blur and double.
As he raised a hand to massage his temple, the First Emperor suddenly heard a crisp, shattering sound.
An assassination attempt?
With ample experience, the First Emperor immediately gripped his sword hilt and sharply looked up, his gaze piercing.
There was no assassin. The surroundings were empty, with no third person in sight.
Only fragments of a jade cup lay on the ground, along with a small patch of matting darker than the rest, soaked with liquid.
The First Emperor sensed something and stared intently at the immortal. The young maiden leaned her elbow on the table, propping her head with one hand, her face flushed with an unnatural redness.
Was the Divine Maiden unable to hold her liquor?
The First Emperor rose, intending to call someone to assist the Divine Maiden to the inner chamber for rest. However, having drunk too much himself, his head spun, and he stumbled back onto the mat. The noise caught the attention of the person across from him.
"Who are you?"
The Divine Maiden's voice, infused with wine, no longer carried its earlier cool detachment. Instead, it finally matched the youthful charm her face suggested.
"Why am I here?"
"Me? I am… Zhen…" The First Emperor's mind was also somewhat muddled. "Zhen is the First Emperor. You are Zhen's teacher. We are drinking…"
After a slight pause, he rubbed his temple and said, "…wine."
The ferret's eyes were filled with "Hurry up! Get on with it! Qin Shi Huang, are you even a man?" It even scurried into a corner itself, leaving ample space for them.
"Wine?" Qing Ni suddenly understood. "You—"
"You're drunk!"
The First Emperor looked at her dazed, intoxicated state. "Sir, you're drunk too."
Qing Ni declared firmly, "I'm not drunk! You're the one who's drunk!"
This was the First Emperor's first time communicating with a drunkard, an experience that felt quite novel to him. He simply leaned against the wall, his chest vibrating as he let out two chuckles. "If Sir isn't drunk, do you still remember what we were discussing earlier?"
The Divine Maiden fell silent for a moment—whether she was thinking or not was unclear—then she spoke incoherently: "What? What what? I'll test… test you! What is father's father?"
The First Emperor was also drunk, thoroughly so, and began talking to himself. "We were discussing Haotian Shangdi, and…" And what else was it?
"Haotian…?" Qing Ni murmured vaguely, and as an idea popped into her mind, she proudly presented it: "Haotian, I know! He's Dao Ancestor Hongjun's attendant boy!"
The First Emperor's pupils dilated sharply in shock.
Haotian Shangdi was merely Dao Ancestor Hongjun's attendant boy? What kind of figure was Dao Ancestor Hongjun, to have a deity serve him tea and water?
But alcohol had dulled his senses, and the First Emperor was no longer alert enough. Faced with such a secret—one he shouldn't have heard and could very well get him struck by lightning—his rationality briefly wrestled with the alcohol for control of his mind. Under the relentless waves of intoxication, it soon surrendered and collapsed in defeat.
"Dao Ancestor? Who is Dao Ancestor?"
"Dao Ancestor? What Dao Ancestor?"
The Divine Maiden seemed confused, forcing the First Emperor to remind her: "Hongjun Dao…"
"Red Army!" The girl's expression grew excited. "Socialism is good!"
"Socialism?" The First Emperor tilted his head slightly, his cheeks flushed with a tipsy redness.
What… was this all about? Could "socialism" refer to Hongjun?
"Socialism is good!"
The girl enunciated clearly: "I am the successor of socialism!"
"Successor" (班) here means position.
Though it was the First Emperor's first time hearing the term "successor," he immediately grasped its meaning—
Xuan Nu of the Nine Heavens was actually Dao Ancestor Hongjun's disciple! And she would one day succeed him as Dao Ancestor!