Ying Fusu

As an imperial palace, the Sand Dune Platform was originally surrounded by military camps.

Some time ago, the emperor stayed in the dunes for several days, and the imperial guards accompanying him also set up a separate camp.

The existing camp saved the two thousand elite cavalrymen who followed Meng Tian and Fusu from the Fushi camp a lot of effort.

Once inside the camp and the horses were settled, most of the soldiers simply sat down on the spot, back to back with their comrades, to rest.

Today is the 37th year of the First Emperor's reign, the 12th day of the 7th month of autumn.

Since setting off on the eighth day of the seventh month (Xinwei day), the army traversed more than 1,400 li in just over four or five days, arriving at the Sand Dune Platform from the Fushi Camp.

On average, they walk more than 300 li (150 kilometers) every day.

Aside from spending the night and taking short breaks every two hours, they were almost always traveling on horseback.

Three thousand elite cavalry, one rider and two horses, set off from the Fushi camp;

Now, only these two thousand people and two thousand horses have successfully reached the sand dunes.

—Most of the horses died from exhaustion.

Each person ran away and killed at least one horse.

The unfortunate fellow whose two horses both died was left on the road to watch over the dead and wounded horses.

Finally arriving at their destination, the soldiers were so exhausted that they didn't even have the strength to drink water or eat a hot meal.

They sat back to back on the ground like this—even when they went back to the barracks to lie down and rest, they had to recover some strength first.

Meanwhile, Meng Tian and his student Fusu stood at the edge, watching the officers and soldiers setting up sentry posts outside the camp while they whispered to each other.

"What the teacher means is..."

"Um……"

"To maintain a facade of peace and avoid tearing down the facade?"

Seeing that Fusu understood his meaning, Meng Tian smiled and his gaze towards Fusu revealed an undisguised appreciation.

He then took over the conversation and continued speaking for Fusu.

"In all things under heaven, if the name is not correct, then the words will not be proper."

"Military and national affairs are of paramount importance; the slightest misstep can lead to catastrophic disaster."

"So, what is the purpose of your visit, my lord—to lead troops close to the Emperor's throne, and what is your 'name' for this? This concerns how the people of the world will view the Second Emperor of our Great Qin in the future."

"Young master, you must be careful!"

...

As soon as Meng Tian finished speaking, Fusu nodded slowly, as if he had understood something.

He immediately cupped his hands, a slightly self-deprecating smile on his face, and bowed slightly.

"Student, I have learned something."

"The teacher's earnest intention to protect the student was almost misunderstood..."

Before he could finish speaking, Meng Tian shook his head slightly, put his hands behind his back, gazed into the distance, and let out a leisurely sigh.

"Sigh~"

"I'm ashamed to admit it."

"As the young master's teacher, he has never, in any matter, simply planned for the young master's benefit."

"Even this time, it is the same."

These inexplicable words caused Fusu to once again show a puzzled expression.

Then Meng Tian gave a bitter smile, and then his expression suddenly turned serious.

Those eyes, fixed on the dune palace, were once again veiled with a layer of mist.

"If you haven't deceived this old minister, then His Majesty... has indeed passed away..."

"Phew~~~"

...

"If His Majesty has indeed passed away, then our Great Qin is already in imminent danger."

"The country has neither a crown prince nor an empress dowager."

"The emperor has died in exile, the right prime minister is far away in Xianyang, and the left prime minister has already joined the rebels."

"If you have made even the slightest mistake in this matter, young master, then in the future..."

At this point, Meng Tian's gaze, which had been fixed on the direction of the sand dunes, finally welled up with tears before he looked back at the military camp beneath his feet.

A moment later, Meng Tian raised his hand to wipe away his tears and turned to look at Fusu.

"All these plans and schemes, this old minister, are not for your personal benefit."

"It is because our Great Qin must never have a second emperor who is suspected of staging a coup, or even murdering the First Emperor to usurp the throne."

"Of all the weapons in the world, the most effective one is the talk of the people and the rumors circulating in the streets."

"Public opinion is a fearsome thing..."

...

"His Majesty has passed away suddenly. The young master is neither the crown prince nor has he received a will to pass on the throne. Moreover, he has been away from the central government of Xianyang for a long time and has no support or foundation."

"Our Great Qin has only recently unified the world, so the kings and nobles of the six states are all eyeing it covetously, just waiting for our Great Qin to fall into chaos."

"It seems there is nothing in the world more tragic than the late emperor's death in the field, the heir to the throne leading troops there—a succession that was unclear and ambiguous, followed by the execution of the Left Chancellor who accompanied the emperor and the late emperor's inner court officials..."

"Phew~~~"

"In the entire world, there is no disturbance that would excite those hidden thieves more than this..."

...

……

After Meng Tian finished speaking, the teacher and student remained silent for a long time, neither of them saying anything more.

Meng Tian was somewhat disappointed.

Even though they knew that the First Emperor's carriage was no longer in Shaqiu;

Even knowing that the First Emperor was no longer alive;

At this moment, looking at the palace situated on the sand dune platform not far away, Meng Tian still seemed to see that face appear before his eyes.

The moment that face appeared, tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

Fusu, however, remained deeply immersed in Meng Tian's words, unable to extricate himself from them for a long time.

Five days earlier, when he received the forged imperial edict and officially decided to lead his troops to Shaqiu, Fusu proposed that the army should wear mourning clothes and rush to the funeral.

In other words, they made a public spectacle of Zhao Gao and Li Si forging an imperial edict, clearly exposing it to the world.

In this way, Fusu's actions—especially his decision to lead troops there—can be understood to the greatest extent possible.

However, at that time, Meng Tian subtly dissuaded Fusu without explaining why.

In retrospect, it seems that Meng Tian had already seen through everything and planned everything back then.

"It absolutely cannot be 'refusing to obey a forged imperial edict.'"

"It would be best if it were not to rush to the funeral in accordance with the will of the deceased."

"The only explanation is that he came at the emperor's summons and happened to arrive just in time for the late emperor's passing?"

A soft whisper pulled Meng Tian's thoughts back to the present moment.

It took him quite a while to calm himself down before he finally nodded slightly.

"By not being killed by that forged imperial edict and successfully approaching the Emperor, my lord, you are already in an invincible position."

"The most important thing right now is to keep the situation under control as much as possible."

"Unless absolutely necessary, it is best for you not to rush to punish even Zhao Gao and Li Si."

"We'll discuss everything once we get back to Xianyang."

...

"And there's also Prince Huhai."

"We should emulate the story of Empress Dowager Huayang from that time."

"You can place them under house arrest or imprison them, but you must never kill them."

"Family scandals shouldn't be aired in public."

"Moreover, it's a national disgrace..."

Upon hearing this, Fusu pondered for a long time before finally nodding in complete agreement.

Meng Tian was right.

From the moment the First Emperor died, the only thing that could kill Fusu and allow Huhai to ascend the throne was the so-called "First Emperor's Edict".

Having escaped that calamity, Fusu was now in an invincible position.

"I wonder what that person in history was thinking."

"With 300,000 border troops at his disposal, and being the eldest son of the First Emperor, he lacked neither military power nor righteousness."

"And then a forged imperial edict was issued..."

...

"A male supporting character in a female-oriented novel intruding into historical events?"

After pondering for a while without finding a solution, Fusu could only shake his head to clear his mind of the jumbled thoughts.

After a moment's thought, he asked the question again.

"How exactly do we do it?"

"Should we temporarily encamp at the sand dunes and send someone to request an audience?"

Meng Tian shook his head slightly. Although his face was still full of sorrow, his tone revealed an unintentional confidence.

"Young master, please calm down."

"Please calm down..."