I started on a deserted island and encountered Ying Zheng, who insisted I was an immortal.

May we all live long and share the beauty of the moon, even though we are thousands of miles apart.

Meng Yi swayed, as if struck in the chest by an invisible force.

He staggered back a step, his lips moving but no sound came out.

As a high-ranking official of the Qin Dynasty, he considered himself knowledgeable about both ancient and modern times, but these two lines of poetry seemed to have fallen from the sky, leaving him dizzy and disoriented.

The first sentence is so powerful, and the second sentence is so gentle.

This is not poetry; it is clearly a sentiment etched into one's bones, a longing flowing in one's blood.

Ying Zheng stood still, the sea breeze ruffling his clothes, but he remained motionless.

He didn't understand poetry, but he understood people's hearts.

A person who can say such things must have a wealth of knowledge and experience hidden in their heart.

This is by no means an ordinary recluse.

"Sir, are you also longing for your homeland?" Ying Zheng's voice broke the silence of the night.

Zhang Ying snapped out of her reverie and glanced back at them.

"Yes, I miss home."

He brushed the sand off his bottom and stood up.

"It's a pity that you drama queens can't help."

Ying Zheng ignored his taunts and instead took a step forward.

"If one day, you can help me... help us escape this predicament and return to our homeland."

"I, in the name of the King of Qin, swear that I will use all the power of the world to find your family."

His words carried the weight of a monarch's promise.

Wang Ben and Meng Yi were both shocked.

What an honor it is to receive such a promise from His Majesty.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ying was taken aback at first, then burst out laughing as if she had heard the funniest joke of the year.

"Big brother, are you getting too into character again?"

"Do I need you to find my family? Once I fix the communication equipment, one phone call and the government will send a rescue team. Don't you know what modern society is like?"

Zhang Ying looked at Ying Zheng with an expression as if he were an idiot.

"Instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourselves."

"However..." Zhang Gang changed the subject, stroking his chin, "the three of you aren't entirely useless."

He scanned the three men, as if assessing the value of the goods.

"I've tried three times to build a boat to leave this godforsaken place, and I've failed every time."

"Either the wood wasn't sturdy enough, or there was a problem with the hull design; it capsized after only a short distance out to sea."

"I've also observed the ocean currents here. For several months each year, they flow in one direction. As long as the ship is big and stable enough, it can drift to the mainland with the current."

A calculating smile appeared on Zhang Ying's face.

"Now that I have three more free laborers, I might be able to meet my KPIs ahead of schedule."

Wang Ben was completely confused: "What... what's this 'love of babbling'?"

"It's just performance targets." Zhang Ying waved her hand impatiently. "You wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you."

"In short, starting tomorrow, your task is to help me build ships."

"Come on, let me show you your lodgings."

Zhang Ying led the three of them toward another cave next to the wooden house.

The cave entrance was dark and smelled damp and earthy.

Zhang Ying lit a torch and threw it in.

The firelight illuminated the scene inside the cave.

It was a grotto much smaller than the wooden hut where Zhang Ying lived, filled with all sorts of odds and ends, a few bundles of dry grass, and several tattered sheepskins that smelled of fish and mutton.

This is what is called "living place".

"Here you'll sleep from now on," Zhang Ying said, pointing to the pile of weeds and sheepskins. "Make do with it; it's better than sleeping on the beach."

Wang Ben's anger finally erupted upon seeing this scene.

"I am the Marquis of Great Qin! How dare you force us to live in such a wretched place?!"

Throughout his military career, even on the most arduous marches, his camp was a hundred times better than this cave.

This is an utter disgrace.

Zhang Ying picked at her ear.

"Stay if you want, or get out if you don't."

"If you think this place is not good enough, you can go and stay in a five-star ocean-view penthouse. Just turn right when you go out, and you can swim in the ocean as you please."

Ying Zheng pulled back Wang Ben, who was about to go berserk.

He glanced at the extremely rudimentary "bed," then at Zhang Ying's matter-of-fact face, and suddenly gave a bitter smile.

"Very good."

He calmly uttered two words and was the first to enter the cave.

Meng Yi and Wang Ben were both stunned.

His Majesty... actually accepted it?

Late at night.

Three moons hung high in the sky, their cool light streaming in through the cave entrance.

Ying Zheng lay on the only "bed" made of a few planks of wood and sheepskin.

Wang Ben and Meng Yi could only sit on the ground, arms crossed, leaning against the cold stone wall.

Wang Ben was filled with resentment. He would rather fight on the battlefield all night than suffer this humiliation.

Meng Yi tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

He shifted his body, moved closer to Ying Zheng's bedside, and lowered his voice.

"His Majesty."

"Hmm," Ying Zheng responded with his eyes closed.

"I believe this man... this man possesses extraordinary talent." Meng Yi's voice carried a hint of excitement.

"I have never heard of those two lines of poetry before. Their profound meaning is beyond the reach of ordinary people."

"And then there's the flax paper, the seawater rice, the potatoes that yield 5,000 jin per mu..."

"Any one of these things, if it reaches back to our Great Qin, would be enough to change the fate of the nation and bring blessings for thousands of generations!"

"I dare to guess that the secrets he holds are far more than this."

Wang Ben listened from the side. Although he didn't fully understand, he grasped Meng Yi's meaning.

That young man named Zhang Ying is indeed very strange.

Ying Zheng slowly opened his eyes. The cave was dark, and his expression was not visible.

"I understand what you mean."

His voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable weight.

"If that 'paper' could be implemented in the Qin Dynasty, what a magnificent era our Qin's literary affairs would usher in!"

"Government orders were effectively communicated, and the constraints of cumbersome bamboo slips and expensive silk were no longer in place."

"Scholars throughout the land are all welcome to write books and establish doctrines. Our Great Qin will truly be the first to educate all people."

"And the grain..."

Ying Zheng paused for a moment.

"If the granaries of my Great Qin are overflowing with grain, and every soldier is well-fed, then what are the Xiongnu in the north and the Baiyue in the south worth?"

"The iron cavalry of my Great Qin will crush every inch of this land that refuses to submit."

The cave was deathly silent.

Meng Yi and Wang Ben even held their breath.

They could sense the immense ambition hidden beneath His Majesty's calm words.

All they ever wanted to do was return to the Qin Dynasty.

But now, Ying Zheng is thinking about how to turn everything on this island into the Qin Dynasty.

"Sir..." Ying Zheng murmured to himself, as if speaking to Meng Yi, or perhaps to himself.

"He is not an immortal."

"He is more useful to the Qin Dynasty than any immortal."

"Such great talent must not be allowed to wander overseas."