Ying Fusu

That day and night, the Fushi camp was brightly lit.

The soldiers, who had already settled down to rest in their barracks, began to work in an orderly manner under the orders of their respective officers.

On the command platform on one side of the training ground, Meng Tian and Fu Su, teacher and student, stood side by side, taking in most of the Fushi camp.

Watching the soldiers in the camp load boxes of supplies onto the wagons—making final preparations before the army's departure—a sense of relief, as if they had survived a calamity, welled up in both of their eyes.

"May God bless the Great Qin!"

...

"If it weren't for the young master receiving the secret report in advance and making plans ahead of time, things would probably not have turned out well today."

"Once Zhao Gao and Li Si's plan succeeds, they will gain control of the 300,000 troops on the border..."

"Hey."

"Aren't you afraid of being laughed at by the young master?"

"—This old minister, after all, has been through many battles and seen many storms."

"But just thinking about this matter makes my heart pound; I dare not even delve deeper into it..."

Mixed with self-deprecation and lighthearted remarks, Meng Tian's tone still betrayed lingering fear.

Meanwhile, Fusu, standing beside Meng Tian, ​​raised an eyebrow with a half-smile upon hearing this, glancing sideways at Meng Tian.

"The teacher is actually worried about eighteen?"

"Perhaps it is because you have been stationed on the frontier for many years and have been away from the central government in Xianyang for a long time, that you are unaware of many affairs of the court?"

"—In Xianyang, whether in the imperial court or on the streets, many people say: Prince Huhai is gentle, kind, respectful, and a true gentleman."

"Thinking about it, it wouldn't be too bad if the Eighteenth Prince really ascended the throne?"

His words, which were clearly sarcastic, made Meng Tian shake his head and smile wryly.

After a moment, he sighed softly, "Although it is a thousand miles away from Xianyang, this old minister is not entirely unaware of these matters."

"However, what kind of person or what kind of character Prince Huhai is is of no importance to our Great Qin."

"Whether gentle and respectful or arrogant and domineering;"

"In the end, he is merely the eighteenth prince of my Great Qin, not the eldest prince."

...

"What truly makes this old minister afraid to think too deeply are Zhao Gao and Li Si."

"—Zhao Gao resided in the palace, holding the imperial seal and the imperial edict, and could draft imperial edicts and decrees."

"Li Si also served as the Left Chancellor, wielding power in the court."

"If these two collude, let alone Prince Huhai—even if the prince were to ascend the throne, I fear he would lose power to treacherous officials."

"Moreover, Prince Huhai is neither the eldest son nor the legitimate heir; he has no foundation, no support, and no righteous cause..."

"If he were to ascend the throne, the country would be unstable due to its young ruler, and treacherous ministers would seize power..."

At this point, Meng Tian paused in his speech.

Slowly turning to the side, Meng Tian saw Fu Su looking at him quietly with a meaningful smile. Only then did he realize what was happening and quickly chuckled awkwardly.

"Uh...cough cough..."

"This old minister did not mean that..."

Seeing Meng Tian's awkward and embarrassed appearance, Fu Su couldn't help but find it amusing.

Fusu understood: the pillar and stabilizing force of the Qin Empire always subconsciously puts "Qin" first.

When something bad happens, Meng Tian's first thought is not how this will affect him or the people around him;

Rather, it's about what impact it will have on the Qin Dynasty and the world.

—Just like right now.

Zhao Gao and Li Si forged an imperial edict, using the name of the First Emperor and his influence, to order the execution of Meng Tian and Fusu.

As one of the parties involved, Meng Tian still doesn't realize that he almost got "forced to commit suicide"!

His mind was filled with thoughts of "how great Qin is," and he didn't even care about himself, let alone Fusu.

...

"Teacher, you're right."

After a long moment of bewilderment, Fusu finally suppressed his smile and solemnly nodded to Meng Tian.

"My teacher and I are both here; if we die, we die."

"However, the Great Qin must not be overthrown and fall into ruin because of our deaths."

...

"At eighteen, one may become a wise ruler, or one may become a foolish one."

"But people like Zhao Gao and Li Si will inevitably cause the ancestral temples and state that our ancestors painstakingly established to be tarnished."

These words earned Meng Tian's nod of approval.

Fusu knew in his heart that these words were just said in a nice way.

—It's more than just 'covered in dust'!

They all died after only two generations!

Before the First Emperor's body was even cold, the once glorious Qin Dynasty was reduced to the mere "Qin State" within a few short years.

In the end, even the Qin state was gone.

Nowadays, Prince Huhai, who is known in the public as "gentle, kind and respectful," has become the undisputed ruler of the Qin Empire who brought about its downfall.

If it weren't for the emergence of a powerful figure in later generations, such as Emperor Gaozong of Tang and Qin Er Shi (Hu Hai), he might not have been any better than Jie of Xia or Zhou of Shang.

As for Meng Tian...

"Isn't this precisely why our teacher enjoys the late emperor's trust?"

"Wasn't it precisely because you, Teacher, always put Qin first and foremost in everything that the late Emperor trusted you so much?"

These words were Fusu's heartfelt praise for Meng Tian.

But Meng Tian's gaze darkened in response, and his once straight back visibly hunched over slightly.

"The late emperor..."

...

"Yes~"

"He is already the late emperor..."

"No, Your Majesty..."

The previously lighthearted atmosphere sank again after Meng Tian's murmur.

Beside him, Fusu, still draped in mourning clothes, felt inexplicably uneasy.

It took Meng Tian a long time to recover from his grief.

The thoughts that had scattered to the heavens were once again drawn back to the Fushi camp where they were.

"In the past two years, young master, you have indeed made great progress."

"I'm afraid no one else could have done as well as you, young master."

Words, though calm, still tinged with sadness, came from Meng Tian's mouth, prompting Fusu to force a smile.

Desiring to lighten the mood, I replied in as relaxed a tone as possible, "Fortunately, it was a close call."

"It's good that there's a teacher there to support us?"

But Meng Tian took a deep breath and slowly shook his head.

"When I first learned of the matter of Zhao Gao and Li Si forging the imperial edict from you, my lord, I was actually most worried about you."

"This old minister is worried that the young master will be misled by the messenger and mistakenly believe that it is truly the late emperor's decree."

"In a moment of despair, he truly decided to obey the imperial decree and hang himself..."

Upon hearing this, Fusu's smile froze, and a string of crows flew through his mind.

You have a really good eye for people.

The person in history actually did just that...

"Perhaps a great teacher produces a great student?"

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Fusu finally forced a laugh and glossed over the topic.

Meng Tian simply shook his head and smiled, saying nothing more.

"Are three thousand cavalry really enough?"

Upon hearing Fusu's question, Meng Tian nodded calmly.

That's enough.

"The reason why conspiracies and intrigues cannot be brought into the open is because they cannot be exposed to the light of day."

"Once it sees the light of day, it can no longer be effective."

"The key to success or failure lies in whether my teacher and I, Zhao Gao and Li Si, obeyed the imperial edict and hanged ourselves."

"As long as the two of us—or even as long as you, my lord—are able to appear alive outside the Sand Dune Palace, the villains' schemes will all fail."

After saying this, Meng Tian remained silent for a moment, then, as if remembering something, he subconsciously began to lecture Fusu, as usual.

"Therefore, the old minister would always say to the prince: Your Majesty should prioritize the grand and just cause over intrigue and trickery."

"This is because the overwhelming trend is irrelevant to whether the enemy can see through it or not—even if they can see through it, they have no way to deal with it. Like a mountain collapsing or the sea pouring down, they can only endure it."

"But when it comes to plotting and scheming, one must pray that the enemy doesn't see through it and is sure to be foolish enough to fall for it."

"The best warriors achieve little without making a name for themselves; this is the principle at play."

Why is that?

"If we attack with several times the number of troops in a grand manner, and make no mistakes, we will surely win..."