Ying Fusu

Fusu had no way of knowing what choices Zhao Gao and Li Si—and even his eighteenth brother Huhai—would make.

I don't really care.

In Meng Tian's words: Let them choose whichever they want.

Ultimately, what their choices will affect is only the way Fusu manages to salvage the situation and their respective fates.

The time came to the 37th year of the First Emperor's reign, at noon on the Bingzi day of the seventh month of autumn.

Prince Fusu of Qin and General Meng Tian arrived near the Emperor's residence as promised.

—It is at the foot of a small hill, outside a maple forest near the base of the hill.

Since it was a temporary overnight stop on the "Eastern Tour" route, there were naturally no campsites or walls.

They rode from the sand dunes, slowly approaching the location of the holy carriage, and stopped about three hundred paces away.

Then, turning his head and exchanging a glance with Meng Tian, ​​Fusu took a deep breath and raised a wooden box high above his head.

"Your subject Fusu, the military supervisor and overseeer of the Great Wall construction, requests an audience with His Majesty the First Emperor!"

The high-pitched and resounding shouts echoed continuously across the wilderness.

Before long, several riders sped out from behind Fusu, rushing towards the imperial carriage while repeatedly paying their respects to Fusu.

"The eldest son, Fusu, has returned as summoned and requests an audience with Your Majesty."

...

"The eldest son, Fusu, has returned as summoned and requests an audience with Your Majesty."

...

……

Looking at the black dots that were stirring like ants in the temporary camp of the imperial carriage in the distance, Fusu's face was filled with melancholy.

—This is not the normal procedure for an audience with His Majesty.

Normally, when the Emperor is away from home, if someone wishes to have an audience with him, he should first send someone to inform him that so-and-so wishes to see the Emperor and is waiting for His Majesty's summons at such-and-such place.

Then, the First Emperor would nod and summon him, or reply with a sentence like, "I'm busy, please wait."

When it is time to summon someone, an official should be sent to guide them, check whether they are carrying any weapons, and then bring them to the emperor.

This set of rules was gradually perfected after Qin conquered Han and began unification, and after the First Emperor had countless assassination attempts.

At this moment, Fusu did not follow the rules and directly sent people—and even sent troops—to "pay their respects."

On the surface, this does not align with Fusu's core objective of calming things down, minimizing the impact of the incident.

However, in reality, it was a move that Fusu had no other choice.

"If Zhao Gao and Li Si were to seize this opportunity to send out a guide..."

Fusu's somewhat deliberate explanation pleased Meng Tian, ​​who stroked his beard and nodded with satisfaction.

"No matter how careful we are, the news of His Majesty's death and the traitor's plot will eventually be revealed to those who are with him."

"That's fine too."

"Let the officials and imperial guards who accompany the emperor notice the thief's unusual behavior sooner."

"To avoid any unforeseen complications."

Seeing that his plans had been seen through by Meng Tian in an instant, Fusu couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

Then he raised his head and looked again at the approaching camp of the emperor, which was already somewhat agitated, not far away.

The few riders who rushed out from behind Fusu to "report" seemed to be negotiating with the other party.

Within a few short breaths, more and more people gathered from all parts of the camp, following the direction pointed out by the cavalrymen, and gazed into the distance in the direction where Fusu and Meng Tian were.

"What do you think they will choose?"

Feeling inexplicably nervous, Fusu subconsciously asked a question, trying to shift his attention away from the situation.

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

"Zhao Gao came from humble origins."

"To have achieved past glory was extremely difficult, and involved enduring immense suffering."

"In my humble opinion, Zhao Gao will never submit."

"They will most likely feign surrender before launching a sudden rebellion."

...

"But Li Siyao..."

"Um……"

He studied under Xunzi, but preferred the teachings of Shen Buhai and Shang Yang. He was also obedient to the emperor's orders and would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

"It is possible that they might defect and help the young master quell the chaos, and then use this merit as leverage to seek the young master's forgiveness."

After saying this, Meng Tian sighed again, seemingly lost in thought.

"This old minister even suspects that most of the events here were orchestrated by Zhao Gao."

"And Li Si, perhaps he was misled or coerced."

"After all, Li Si was the Left Chancellor of the current court—a meritorious, important, and veteran official."

"Even if the Second Emperor ascended the throne, it would not be an easy task to demote Li Si."

"As long as he does not oppose the new emperor, Li Si can either become a pillar of the country or retire to his hometown and enjoy wealth and honor."

...

"On the other hand, Zhao Gao was both a courtier of the First Emperor and a tutor to Prince Huhai."

"As long as the second emperor of my Great Qin is not Zhao Gao's student: Prince Huhai, Zhao Gao will never be able to regain his former glory."

Having experienced the hardships of life and the hard-won wealth and honor, they would naturally be more obsessed with the succession of Prince Huhai and the continuation of his glory.

As Meng Tian spoke, Fusu seemed to be deep in thought, nodding repeatedly.

After speaking, he pondered for a moment and then asked again, "In that case, Li Si can be of use to me."

"Zhao Gao is unusable; we should capture him immediately."

Meng Tian shook his head again, about to speak.

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he inexplicably froze for a moment.

Then, he sighed leisurely and said, "Young master, you should make your own decision."

...

"If there are no mistakes today, my lord, you will be the second emperor of our Great Qin."

"At that time, what will require your decision and control will be the lives of countless ordinary people under heaven."

"If even today's events cannot be handled decisively and skillfully by you, then what will become of the ancestral temple and the state in the future..."

"—Young master, please do as you please."

"Although this old minister is useless, he can still watch over the Qin Dynasty for a few more years on behalf of the First Emperor."

"At least for today's events, no matter how far you go, I am confident that I can salvage the situation for you."

"Besides, young master, I have watched you grow up, and you are by no means a reckless or foolish person."

"This old minister believes in the young master."

His words, spoken in a calm tone and which reassured Fusu, inexplicably brought tears to Meng Tian's eyes again.

There was one more thing Meng Tian couldn't say.

—This old minister believes in His Majesty the First Emperor as the successor left for the Qin Dynasty.

Before he could even utter the words, or even before the thought had even crossed his mind and the words "First Emperor" had even crossed his mind, Meng Tian's tear ducts overwhelmed him once again.

The mighty General of Qin, a tough guy who crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, has been acting like a woman these past few days, crying at the drop of a hat...

"Young master."

Before long, knights returned from the direction of the holy carriage.

Fusu looked up at the sound, and Meng Tian subconsciously wiped away the tears on his face.

The knight then bowed and said, "The Imperial Chariot Commander Zhao Gao conveyed His Majesty's oral decree: His Majesty is unwell and it is inconvenient to summon him at the moment."

"Order the General and the Young Master to remain where they are and await further instructions."

As soon as the knight finished speaking, Fusu and Meng Tian exchanged glances.

"It's going to be delayed."

Meng Tian nodded in response, but did not speak.

Then Fusu took a deep breath and looked again in the direction of the imperial carriage.

After a long silence, he said in a deep voice, "Let's go again."

"Your Majesty, there are military matters at the border that require an immediate audience with you."

...

"Also, inform Zhao Gao, the magistrate of the Imperial Carriage Office: Please speak to His Majesty on my behalf, and I will surely reward you handsomely in the future."