Just last night, when the Confucian scholars thought that four days had passed without the First Emperor imprisoning them, assuming he would let the matter slide, and were congratulating each other on having narrowly escaped death, Qin soldiers led by Wang Ben stormed in. Without ceremony, they bound the scholars and dragged them away, tossing them into a pre-dug deep pit.
Wang Ben watched coldly as the scholars in the pit went from begging for mercy to cursing in rage and back to pleading. He felt not a shred of sympathy; instead, he actively took up a shovel and began filling the pit with soil.
Pah—
What worthless creatures, daring to publicly humiliate His Majesty. You show His Majesty no respect, possess no corresponding talent, and still expect His Majesty to treat you with courtesy? Dream on!
Under a vast blue sky, sunlight poured down, casting shimmering golden waves across the land.
Bathed in the warm sun, the First Emperor’s eyes held a chilling, bone-deep coldness. "Hmm. There’s no need to deliberately conceal it."
Wang Ben was surprised. "But…"
If it wasn’t concealed, and other Confucian scholars found out, the First Emperor’s reputation would only grow darker.
"I wear my emotions on my sleeve; I am not a tolerant or benevolent ruler. They should remember what is appropriate to say and what is not."
Those who speak out of turn… The First Emperor’s lips curled into a faint, icy smile. They must be prepared to pay the price.
Soon after, footsteps approached. Two eunuchs with wrinkled faces, resembling old cabbage leaves, drew near. After receiving permission, they stepped forward, wearing smiles but speaking in voices that sounded as if they were mourning a funeral. "Your Majesty, great joy—"
"The Immortal Master has refined another batch of Immortal Elixir and specially presents it to Your Majesty."
The eunuch held a tray covered with a black cloth, concealing a raised object. With a single glance, Wang Ben recognized it as a small vial, likely containing the so-called Immortal Elixir. The "Immortal Master" referred to by the eunuch was not the Divine Maiden but a group of Fangshi who had long been kept in Xianyang and were brought along on this journey.
The First Emperor’s face lit up with joy. "The Immortal Elixir is ready? Excellent! Reward them generously!"
The eunuch pulled away the black cloth, while the other eunuch, with hands gentler than if cradling a pile of sand, lifted the revealed jade vial. Crossing what was deemed a safe distance, he presented it to the First Emperor.
The Immortal Elixir poured out from within was pure white and perfectly round, seemingly glowing with an ethereal aura under the sunlight.
The First Emperor’s eyes brightened further, and he repeated, "Reward them."
Unlike the First Emperor, Wang Ben’s expression darkened. He almost wanted to step forward, knock over the jade vial, spill out the pills inside, and crush them underfoot.
What "Immortal Masters"? They were nothing but a bunch of deceitful Fangshi who had deluded His Majesty into losing his bearings, turning Xianyang into a cesspool of chaos. If not for His Majesty’s obsessive, almost deranged pursuit of immortality, he would have long drawn his sword and slaughtered every last one of them.
But he dared not advise against it. Anyone who tried would be touching the dragon’s reverse scale—to keep one’s head, it was wiser to stay silent and protect oneself.
Wang Ben lowered his head slightly, concealing the murderous glint in his eyes. Taking advantage of the First Emperor’s focus on the elixir, he softened his footsteps and approached the eunuch, whispering, "Which Immortal Master refined this batch of Immortal Elixir?"
The eunuch replied in a hushed tone, "Immortal Master Xu."
Wang Ben’s mind raced. "Xu Fu?"
The eunuch looked at him in alarm. "Marquis Tongwu, please do not address the Immortal Master by his name directly."
Wang Ben took a deep breath.
Xu Fu was a Fangshi who had entered the palace just two months prior. Though he arrived later than the others, his Immortal Aura appearance and vivid descriptions of the Overseas Immortal Island caught the Emperor’s eye. From then on, his rise was meteoric; he gained immense favor and became the leader among the Fangshi.
Yet, this man is nothing but a fraud!
When His Majesty fell ill, he claimed it was due to evil spirits invading the body, advising against medicine and instead persuading the emperor to consume elixirs and drink talisman water. Whenever something happened in Xianyang, he would calmly remark that the feng shui of the place was unfavorable, urging His Majesty to undertake massive construction projects, draining the treasury coin by coin. Every court official who encountered him gritted their teeth in resentment, but with the emperor's protection, there was nothing they could do.
Seeing that Wang Ben had no further questions, the eunuch bowed to the First Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, Immortal Master Xu reports that there has been progress regarding the three immortal islands overseas and requests Your Majesty to meet with him."
Before the First Emperor could respond, Wang Ben's heart raced, and he shouted sternly, "How audacious! Instead of reporting the situation directly, he dares to summon Your Majesty. This is hardly fitting for the relationship between ruler and subject!"
The eunuch glanced at Wang Ben and replied, "The Immortal Master said he would have come personally to report to Your Majesty, but he is currently tending to the alchemical furnace and cannot leave."
The First Emperor seemed inclined to agree, but to everyone's surprise…
"We have other pressing matters. Since the Immortal Master is occupied, let him report after the next batch of elixirs is completed."
Wang Ben's eyes widened slightly, and the eunuch nearly lost his composure, almost showing disrespect before the First Emperor.
"All of you, withdraw." The First Emperor then looked at Wang Ben, noticing the morning dew still dampening his robes, and his tone softened slightly. "Minister Wang, you may also retire and rest."
"As you command."
Everyone withdrew.
The slowest-moving eunuch caught a glimpse of the First Emperor holding an elixir bottle as he turned and entered the inner chamber, his eyes twitching involuntarily.
What could be in the palace that made His Majesty postpone his long-awaited pursuit of the immortal mountains? Could it be that the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers had urgent matters to report? But that didn't seem right either—before coming here, he had seen Prime Minister Wang leisurely admiring flowers.
Hiss—
Could it be the Divine Maiden…
The eunuch dared not dwell on the thought. As he hurried away, he felt the weight in his sleeve and, gritting his teeth, made his way to the palace designated by the First Emperor for alchemical practices. Once inside, he retrieved a small cloth pouch from his sleeve and placed it on a table crowded with porcelain bottles.
The long-bearded Fangshi, seated cross-legged before the alchemical furnace, turned his head and stared silently at him.
The eunuch smiled bitterly. "Brother Xu, I cannot accept this gold. From now on, do not ask me to inquire about His Majesty's affairs. Let us pretend we never had any connection."
Xu Fu was astonished. "What happened?"
The eunuch shook his head, unwilling to elaborate, and only said, "His Majesty has pressing matters and will not be coming."
"Didn't you tell His Majesty about the immortal mountains…"
"I did. His Majesty said that after you finish refining the elixirs and have free time, you may then request an audience."
The furnace fire cast a red glow on Xu Fu's face, and a sudden sense of panic washed over him. "Did His Majesty say nothing else? Not a single word of reassurance?"
The eunuch shook his head again. "His Majesty only gave that one instruction."
"This shouldn't be. His Majesty has always treated me with courtesy. Unless…" Xu Fu's face turned as pale as a wall coated with plaster. "Unless my elixirs have been exposed…"
"Watch your words!" The eunuch glared at him and then muttered vaguely, "If that were the case, I wouldn't be the one standing here now. Listen to me—resign from His Majesty's service as soon as possible. The sooner you leave, the better, and once you're gone, never return. Don't ask why. We grew up together, decades of friendship, and this is my final piece of advice to you."
The eunuch finished speaking and left, leaving Xu Fu alone to ponder deeply. Unable to come up with anything through mere speculation, Xu Fu called over the apprentice he had taken in and sent him out to gather information—and indeed, the apprentice managed to learn something.
"You're saying that before my elixir was delivered, the State Preceptor went to see His Majesty first?"
Xu Fu stroked his beard, his brow furrowed. "So that's how it is…"
No wonder his fellow countryman had urged him to pack up and leave quickly. While they, the Fangshi, were not qualified to accompany the emperor to Taishan, he didn’t know how the State Preceptor, who called herself the Divine Maiden, had managed to deceive the First Emperor. However, he at least understood the First Emperor’s temperament—he was a man of strong passions, one who "loved to the point of wanting life, hated to the point of wanting death." What was particularly evident was that previously, he had been the one the First Emperor cherished and favored, with the emperor shielding him from the disdain of many officials. But now, judging from how His Majesty had unhesitatingly postponed their meeting for the sake of the State Preceptor, it was clear who held greater importance in the emperor’s heart.
"Leave? The situation isn’t quite that urgent yet," Xu Fu murmured to himself. "We’re all just trying to make a living in this line of work. Perhaps we could collaborate."
Qing Ni entered the First Emperor’s temporary study. While the bedchamber was already a crucial part of the entire palace, the study was even more heavily guarded. Yet, despite the tight security, Qing Ni had previously entered without issue, with the guards at the door not even glancing her way.
On the desk, stacks of bamboo and wooden slips containing official documents were piled high. Qing Ni merely glanced at them before shifting her gaze away.
She communicated with the System through her thoughts: "The First Emperor really trusts me, allowing me into such an important place like his study."
The System did not respond.
"System? Tongtong? Little cutie?"
The System suddenly spoke up: "Yiyi, I’ve figured it out!" The snow weasel leaped from Qing Ni’s arms onto her shoulder, its tone excited. "I know what you’re planning!"
Qing Ni was taken aback. "What? You know?"
"Yes! Aren’t you just capitalizing on Qin Shi Huang’s pursuit of immortality? By pretending to be a Divine Maiden, you become 'immortality' itself. Naturally, he’ll think of you constantly, day and night—how could he not become deeply infatuated?"
"…" Oh, so that’s what you think. Well, never mind then.
The snow weasel pushed off from Qing Ni’s shoulder and leaped onto the low table, pulling over a partially unrolled bamboo slip for her to see. "Yiyi, your plan is halfway to success!"
Qing Ni looked closely. The bamboo slip recorded the mythological story of the Queen Mother of the West and King Mu of Zhou’s grand meeting. Looking further, she also saw "the romantic tale of the Divine Maiden of Mount Wu and King Huai of Chu," as well as "the love story of the goddesses of the Xiang River, Ehuang and Nüying, with Emperor Shun." Of course, the most crucial "story of Xuan Nu of the Nine Heavens imparting knowledge to the Yellow Emperor" was also laid out on the table.
"They say curiosity is the beginning of love. Look, Qin Shi Huang is so curious that he’s delving into the stories of Xuan Nu of the Nine Heavens and her fellow goddesses. Understanding the enemy and oneself—this is a perfect start!"
Seeing the System’s confident analysis, Qing Ni couldn’t bear to tell it the truth.
The idea that curiosity is the beginning of love simply didn’t apply to the First Emperor. Studying the stories of Divine Maidens? That was about studying their preferences, trying to figure out why they might be willing to engage in a fleeting romance with mortals.
Qin Shi Huang never fought a battle unprepared!