Heirs of the Seven Swords of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 1994: The Seven Constellations of the Azure Dragon (Forty-one)

In the thirty-seventh year of Emperor Qin Shihuang’s reign, late July.

Another month passed, and the touring convoy, which had been suspended for many days due to rumors that the emperor was seriously ill, had already left Jibei County and entered the neighboring Julu County.

At this time, the convoy arrived at a place full of stories - Dune Palace.

Although it is called the Dune Palace, it is not an imperial palace built by the empire, but an "ancient building".

Of course, it is not a truly ancient building that has existed for a thousand or eight hundred years. It has only been less than a hundred years since its creation.

Shaqiu Palace was a detached palace built by Zhao Yong, the King Wuling of Zhao in the past. A detached palace is a permanent residence built for the king outside the capital, and it can also refer to a temporary residence for the king when he is on tour.

After hundreds of years, this palace has basically decayed and collapsed, and the main remaining structure is a large platform.

However, this earthen platform is quite famous.

Because King Wuling of Zhao was besieged in Shaqiu Palace by people sent by his own son and starved to death.

A great leader of the Zhao family died in the sand dunes in such an absurd way.

What’s even more interesting is that King Wuling of Zhao was named Ying, clan Zhao, and his given name was Yong.

The First Emperor, whose surname was Ying and clan Zhao, was named Zheng.

Therefore, the convoy attracted a lot of attention when it arrived at the Dune Palace ruins.

But in the final analysis, this is just a coincidence, and everyone is just watching it for fun and using it as a topic of conversation.

However, coincidences, when they really happen, often catch everyone off guard and beyond their expectations.

The patrol convoy stopped at the Dune Palace platform for a temporary rest and is expected to continue its journey in two days at the latest.

However, the plan was disrupted because the emperor's condition worsened.

In the center of the convoy, the area where Ying Zheng's carriage was located was surrounded by a large number of imperial guards, which was unusual. The atmosphere was very gloomy.

Outside the carriage, Prime Minister Li Si, who was accompanying the emperor on the tour, was guarding the carriage with the emperor's most trusted eunuch Zhao Gao and the youngest son Hu Hai, the only one Ying Zheng brought with him.

Li Si's face was serious and gloomy, his eyes were downcast, and there was no ripple on his face, making it impossible to tell any emotion.

However, his seemingly motionless gaze was actually quietly sweeping over Hu Hai who was beside Zhao Gao.

Hu Hai was Ying Zheng's youngest and most beloved son.

Ying Zheng's favor for this youngest son was unprecedented among all the other princes. He would even take him with him when he went on tours - a treatment that no other prince had.

If Hu Hai was not still young and not yet twenty years old, this favor alone would be enough to make him a popular candidate for the crown prince.

After all, when it comes down to it, who the throne will be passed on to is just a matter of words from Ying Zheng.

However, even though he was young, Hu Hai had a group of supporters under his command...or it should be said that his teacher Zhao Gao had gathered a group of his supporters under his command.

Although Hu Hai was young, he was already a teenager and would officially become an adult in a few years.

By then, he will truly be qualified to compete for the position of crown prince, and will definitely become a popular candidate.

There are always people willing to invest in advance - mainly because other princes seem to have no investment value, and their hope of becoming the crown prince is not as good as that of the youngest son who is favored by the emperor.

However, Hu Hai himself did not contact any outer court officials, and everything was left to his teacher Zhao Gao to handle.

Li Si was secretly observing the master and disciple pair at this time because of their abnormal behavior.

Although Hu Hai joined the tour because of the emperor's favor, his presence was not strong.

This young prince, who was said to have a lively and even bad temperament, seemed to have changed his personality all of a sudden. Apart from strolling around when the convoy was resting, he never caused any trouble.

Until a month ago, Ying Zheng became seriously ill.

From then on, Hu Hai always stayed by Zhao Gao's side.

Of course, the two had a teacher-student relationship, so it was normal for them to be close to each other, but at this time, it was hard not to think too much when Hu Hai followed Zhao Gao closely.

Due to health problems, Ying Zheng had been recuperating almost all the time during this period. He had to put aside government affairs as much as possible, and his direct communication with officials at all levels was reduced to the extreme. Basically, he didn't see anyone except Prime Minister Li Si.

Whenever he had any instructions, his ideas would be conveyed through a few favored eunuchs such as Zhao Gao.

Therefore, Ying Zheng also restored Zhao Gaozhong's official position as the Minister of Chariots.

Therefore, Zhao Gao had been in frequent contact with officials from various departments during this period, and Hu Hai became familiar with everyone of them.

Although Zhao Gao did not take this opportunity to build relationships for Hu Hai, it was impossible for those officials to stand on Hu Hai's side just because they were familiar with him.

The most this fuss did was to increase Hu Hai's presence in the convoy, but it didn't seem to be of much use...

But at this sensitive moment, Li Si couldn't think too much.

Although he had a lot of cooperation with Zhao Gao in private, he never intended to stand on the side of the eighteenth prince Hu Hai, or he never thought of standing on the side of any prince.

Not only do I not want to, I can't.

Some officials can take sides, even a general like Meng Tian can take sides openly, but he, the prime minister, cannot.

Ying Zheng would not allow him to stand on the side of any prince - if he dared to show the slightest inclination, he would definitely lose his position as the head of all officials immediately.

Meng Tian could choose sides because the military power of the empire was essentially in the hands of Emperor Ying Zheng alone.

He, the general, is part of the army, rather than the army being part of him, the general.

Taking sides is nothing more than a choice based on considerations of interests - for one's own future development and for the expansion and continuation of family interests.

In any case, it does not pose a threat to Ying Zheng - if it could pose a threat, the problem would not be limited to Meng Tian.

So Ying Zheng could allow Meng Tian and Fusu to get closer.

But if Prime Minister Li Si, who is the head of all officials, gets involved with a prince, it is hard to say whether it will lead to some "accidents" beyond Ying Zheng's control.

Although Ying Zheng had always tried his best to concentrate all the power of the empire in his own hands, as a mortal, he really did not have the ability to rule the country alone and had to delegate some of the power to officials.

The prime minister Li Si was the most powerful person after the emperor, and the only one who had the ability to connect all the officials.

To Ying Zheng, Li Si was not a threat, so he could use him with confidence.

But if Li Si intervened in the matter of choosing the crown prince, he would eventually be credited with following the emperor. When the new emperor ascended the throne, he, as the head of all officials, would be in great danger.

Zhao Gao was guarding beside the carriage, seemingly unaware of Li Si's subtle probing gaze. He just stared at the carriage door like a loyal servant.

Hu Hai, who was born with heterochromia, stood aside with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky, his mind wandering to who knows where. The three of them waited for a while, and an old man in his fifties or sixties came out of the carriage.

When they saw someone coming out, Zhao Gao and Li Si immediately surrounded him.

"How is the emperor's health?" Li Si spoke first, asking impatiently.

The old man frowned and replied carefully, trembling, "Master Li, Master Zhao, and His Royal Highness the Eighteenth Prince, His Majesty's condition is getting worse again."

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty is helpless now. I can only use the medicine that Master Nian Duan prepared for Your Majesty in advance to stabilize the situation temporarily, but I'm afraid... it will only be effective temporarily."

The old man, who was also the accompanying imperial physician, spoke in a lower and lower voice, and his head drooped little by little, as if he wished he could shrink into the ground right there.

After hearing these words, Li Si's already gloomy face turned completely black, and he asked with an impatient tone, waving his sleeves:
"Stop talking nonsense. How can the emperor's illness be cured?!"

"This..." The imperial physician's waist was almost bent to 90 degrees, and he replied tremblingly, "I'm afraid we can only ask the Grand Master or Master Nian Duan to come."

In fact, in the imperial physician's opinion, even if Nian Duan or Gu Xun came now, it might not be of any use, but he could only pull these two out to take the blame first.

If he dared to say directly that there was no hope and he could only wait to die, Li Si would definitely kill him first as a sacrifice to the gods.

After receiving such a nonsense answer, Li Si couldn't help but take a deep breath to calm down.

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His skills in cultivating his Qi were not bad, but when it came to Ying Zheng's life and death, even he felt nervous.

Li Si waved his hand, signaling the doctor to leave, and then looked at Zhao Gao:

"Mr. Zhao, has Luowang found the whereabouts of the Imperial Master?"

Zhao Gao shook his head with regret, "In the past year or so, I have not dared to be negligent for a moment, but unfortunately..."

Although it was an expected answer, Li Si was still a little disappointed, and then asked, "Then have you sent someone to contact Master Nian Duan?"

"I will arrange for someone to do it urgently right away." Zhao Gao nodded in reply.

Li Si frowned, "Why didn't you do it in advance? You couldn't think of this problem?"

Li Si rarely spoke so harshly to a favorite of the emperor like Zhao Gao, but now that it involved Ying Zheng's life and death, he could hardly control his temper.

Zhao Gao didn't care and replied helplessly, "Lord Li, don't you know what the emperor's attitude was before? He wouldn't allow it!"

Before, Ying Zheng always believed that if he closed his eyes it would be dark, and he would not allow anyone to even mention the word "illness". Of course, he would not let Zhao Gao go to find Nian Duan - what's more, Nian Duan had already said that he was powerless before Ying Zheng left the capital.

However, Zhao Gao still lied this time - Ying Zheng did not explicitly forbid him to find Nian Duan, but did not actively ask him to do so.

Although even if Zhao Gao had raised this issue, Ying Zheng would most likely have rejected it, but there is still a big difference between not raising it or doing it and the emperor not allowing it.

Li Si naturally didn't care about Zhao Gao's little action at this time, and could only reply in a gloomy tone, "Alas...then you should hurry up."

"Of course." Zhao Gao nodded and immediately left with Hu Hai.

As the two men were leaving, Li Si couldn't help but glance at Hu Hai - Ying Zheng was seriously ill and dying, and Hu Hai, the most beloved youngest son, had not expressed any opinion from the beginning until now, and looked as if he didn't care at all, as if the person who was dying was someone who had nothing to do with him.

Although now is not the time to cry, but... you shouldn't have no reaction, right?

What kind of person is this little prince?
This question flashed through Li Si's mind, and then he quickly put it behind his mind.

Now is not the time to focus on such "small matters", he has to quickly appease the officials accompanying him.

The news that the emperor was seriously ill and dying must not be spread at all now. He had to make sure that no one would notice anything - at least not in the short term.

Neither he nor Zhao Gao mentioned sending Ying Zheng back to Xianyang.

They still had this opportunity when they were in Jibei County, but not now.

Ying Zheng's condition was obviously unable to withstand any more bumps. Until his symptoms improved, the caravan could only temporarily stay at the ruins of the Shaqiu Palace.

In fact, no imperial physician explicitly said that Ying Zheng would die if he moved, but... what if?
Who dares to take this responsibility?

Li Si had no choice but to stop the convoy.

Thinking of King Wuling of Zhao who was buried here decades ago, Li Si always had a bad feeling, as if an invisible haze was covering the sky.

But he had no choice but to take things one step at a time.

………………

At the same time, in the city of Fushi in the northern Shangjun.

Han Fei was having a secret conversation with his generals.

Among them were mainly Chen Ping, Xiao He, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo, Li Shiqi, Sima Shang, Li Zuoche... these were the "newcomers" that Liusha recruited later.

As for the old men in Liusha, there were only Han Fei himself, Wei Zhuang, Mo Ya and a few others.

This is the first time in many years that such a "collective of wise men" scene has occurred, so what they are doing is certainly not a trivial matter.

However, this secret conversation had nothing to do with the shocking changes in the Shaqiu Palace - the news that Ying Zheng was seriously ill and dying had not yet been transmitted.

With the strict blockade by Li Si and Zhao Gao, even if Liusha wanted to get intelligence, it was hard to say how many days they would have to wait.

The reason they are gathered together now is because of Ying Zheng’s first serious illness in Pingyuanjin, Jibei County.

But in terms of results, it doesn't make a difference.

Apart from Gu Xun, who was a cheater, and a few people in the Taoist Yin-Yang School who played with metaphysics, Han Fei was the first person in the world to judge that Ying Zheng's death was not far away.

He paid close attention to all the intelligence about Ying Zheng. When Ying Zheng just started his tour, he learned about Ying Zheng's physical condition from Nian Duan. Nian Duan usually would not disclose the patient's privacy easily, but she did not like Ying Zheng. Han Fei asked in the name of Liusha, so she did not hide it for Gu Xun's sake.

Nian Duan's reply to him at that time was very clear - if Ying Zheng rested and recuperated, he would still have two or three years, and after Gu Xun came back, perhaps this period could be extended, but if he continued to rush around and work hard, he would probably not be able to endure even a year or two.

It has been six or seven months since Ying Zheng went on this tour.

Han Fei would not conclude that Ying Zheng would not live long just because of Nian Duan's words, but it just so happened that the fact that Ying Zheng was seriously ill came to light at this time.

After verification, he found that this was not something directed or acted by Ying Zheng himself, but a proven fact.

With theoretical basis and factual support, it is hard for Han Fei not to suspect that Ying Zheng will not live long.

For this reason, he sent someone to contact Nian Duan again, and the reply he got was that if Ying Zheng's condition worsened again and he was unwilling to recuperate immediately, the situation would probably be very bad.

Out of compassion as a doctor, Nian Duan did not directly say that if Ying Zheng did not accept medical treatment and began intensive recuperation, he would die, but his meaning was very clear.

Han Fei naturally understood and was willing to believe Nian Duan's judgment.

Ying Zheng is about to die, and it is time for the quicksand to move.