Ying Fusu

In the time that followed, Fusu recounted this "dream" to Li Si in great detail.

—From the time Hu Hai, the second emperor, ascended the throne, Zhao Gao seized power;

Li Si was framed by Zhao Gao and executed by being cut in half at the waist.

—From the first year of the Second Emperor's reign, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang launched the uprising in Dazexiang;

When Zhang Han, the Minister of the Imperial Household, led his army to quell the rebellion, he was unstoppable in his advance, but he encountered the determined Hegemon at Julu and failed in his attempt.

—From Zhao Gao poisoning the Second Emperor Huhai and installing the Third Emperor Ziying;

When Ziying, the third son of Xiang Yu, surrendered to Liu Bang at Lantian, he was ultimately cut in half at the waist by Xiang Yu and abandoned in Xianyang City...

Each and every incident, so specific it seemed as if Fusu had personally experienced and witnessed them, completely unsettled Li Si's mind.

Ultimately, this led to a conclusion that left Li Si utterly despairing.

"This dream..."

"This dream..."

...

With two soft murmurs, Li Si's voice was hoarse, like that of an old man nearing death.

His usually bright and spirited eyes, which seemed to hold the power of the universe, were now completely dimmed.

"Phew~"

...

"Your Highness's dream is so real that it feels like a lifetime ago to me."

"I wanted to argue my point, but I found that everything that happened in this dream was impossible to refute."

After a long period of stunned silence, Li Si finally managed to bring his mind back from the depths of his mind.

After a moment of silence, he couldn't help but smile bitterly and sigh.

"Prince Huhai is not yet of age. If he were to be established as emperor, the country would be in turmoil due to the young age of the ruler, and power would fall into the hands of powerful ministers."

"Given Zhao Gao's cunning, he was indeed capable of calling a deer a horse and seizing control of the court."

"As for me, it is indeed difficult for Zhao Gao to tolerate me..."

...

"The First Emperor had grand ambitions and a desire to unify the world, but he was also eager for quick success and short-sighted actions."

"—Last year, those remnants of the former six kingdoms even staged a 'heavenly stone fall' incident."

"They also inscribed the words 'After the First Emperor died, the land was divided' on the 'Heavenly Stone'?"

"Oh……"

"In that case, the day the Second Emperor ascends the throne and the court becomes turbulent will be the day this 'prophecy' comes true."

...

"Oh, and that line too."

"—The Second Emperor, Huhai, was tyrannical and should not have been enthroned. The rightful heir should be Prince Fusu?"

"This part of the dream is the most realistic..."

While describing the "dream" to Li Si, Fusu's mind was also drawn to that period of history.

Only now did I manage to regain my senses.

Following Li Si's lead, he sighed and said, "Prime Minister Li and Zhao Gao have overlooked one thing."

"—The ancestral temple establishes an heir based on the legitimate wife or the eldest son."

"Since the late emperor did not establish an empress and had no legitimate son, it is appropriate to establish the eldest son of a concubine."

"No matter how beautifully Li Xiang and Zhao Gao embellished the 'Sand Dune Incident,' the people of the world would always have a layer of doubt about the Second Emperor Hu Hai."

"This is because Hu Hai was neither the legitimate heir nor the eldest son."

"Even in terms of 'virtuousness,' no one in the world can think of a reason why the First Emperor deposed the eldest son in favor of the younger and ordered the death of Prince Fusu."

...

"If the Second Emperor Huhai is wise, then so be it."

"Once Hu Hai becomes incompetent, it will be tantamount to giving the remnants of the six former states a reason to raise an army and rebel."

"—The Second Emperor, Huhai, should not have been enthroned; the rightful heir was Prince Fusu."

At this point, Fusu recalled Li Si's calm and collected demeanor as he repeatedly said, "Prince Huhai may not be any worse than you."

He couldn't help but sneer again, saying, "Prime Minister Li is right."

"The reason why the eldest son, Fusu, should be established may really lie in the word 'eldest'."

"But it is precisely this single word 'long' that is enough to allow my Great Qin to suppress the nation's destiny for another thirty years."

"This single word 'long' is enough to force those remnants of the six kingdoms to stage a second 'heavenly stone fall' drama."

"And inscribed on the Heavenly Stone: The Second Emperor died, and the land was divided..."

...

As soon as Fusu finished speaking, a long silence fell over the tent.

As time went by, Li Si's face gradually showed signs of struggle.

"On this point, young master, you may be mistaken."

"The reason why the remnants of the six states rebelled and the people of the world followed them was ultimately because they were suffering from their own livelihoods and had no choice but to rebel."

Even if Prince Fusu were to ascend the throne, some people would still say: "The Second Emperor Fusu was too weak and should not be enthroned. The right person to be enthroned is Prince So-and-so."

"This is nothing more than the rhetoric of the remnants of the six former states, used to deceive and mislead the people in order to restore their kingdoms."

"It has little to do with whether the second emperor was Fusu or Huhai."

Seeing that Li Si was still being stubborn, Fusu did not hesitate and simply waved his hand with a light laugh.

His expression was calm and composed, and his eyes were full of confidence and composure.

Things will get better eventually.

"The eldest son, Fusu, is still better than the eighteenth son, Huhai, who is young, inexperienced, cruel, and incompetent, and is controlled by powerful ministers."

"Prince Fusu, it's certainly more legitimate to name him that."

"And always manages to do something for the people before they suffer unbearably and the officials force them to rebel."

...

"Even if Prince Fusu were to ascend the throne, would the empire still rebel?"

"The Second Emperor Fusu, who ascended the throne at the age of thirty and held great power, would have a greater chance to quell the rebellion."

"Even if it is beyond our power, if we can truly allow the remnants of the former six states to restore their ancestral temples, we can at least preserve the 'Qin State'."

"Instead of having their lives taken by the likes of Zhao Gao, and then having some incompetent brother or nephew surrender to Liu Bang outside Xianyang?"

After saying this, Fusu smiled coldly and raised an eyebrow at Li Si.

"Prime Minister Li, can you offer any further rebuttal?"

After he finished speaking, Li Si sat there stunned and speechless.

Only at this moment did Li Si finally realize that he seemed to have really been wrong.

All of Li Si's talk of acting in the name of the Qin Dynasty and the ancestral temples and state was nothing but wishful thinking.

Fusu was right.

The Second Emperor Fusu was probably not much better off.

But ultimately, he was better than the Second Emperor Huhai.

No matter how much Fusu the Second Emperor loved Confucianism, or how much he "brought chaos to the state," he was ultimately no worse than Huhai the Second Emperor, who single-handedly destroyed the Qin Dynasty in that dream.

There is no worse possibility for the future of the Qin Dynasty than the dream scenario of it dying after only two generations.

Fusu was right...

"minister……"

"I may have been wrong..."

...

This one sentence almost exhausted all of Li Si's strength.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Li Si felt as if his spine had been instantly ripped from his body, his shoulders slumping down ashen-faced.

Only now did Qin Chancellor Li Si's pride in "for the Great Qin" finally crumble under Fusu's words.

The last pillar of support in his heart crumbled instantly when Li Si admitted his mistake.

"What Li Xiang should hand over to me is more than just the Imperial Seal of the State."

At the head of the table, Fusu uttered a question in a cool tone, causing Li Si's spine to bend even more.

"Prince Huhai has been captured by me and handed over to Minister Meng Yi for safekeeping."

Fusu nodded slightly.

"And Zhao Gao."

But Li Si shook his head and sighed, "Forgive this old minister for taking the liberty of making this decision—it's best not to let Zhao Gao participate in this play."

Upon hearing this, Fusu vaguely understood something, but hesitated and ultimately did not ask any further questions.

After another long period of silence, Li Si, like a walking corpse, struggled to get up from his seat.

As if his whole body were stuck in a quagmire, he bowed to Fusu with extremely slow movements.

Then he turned around, took a very difficult step, and walked towards the outside of the tent.

Behind him, the calm, unwavering tone of Prince Fusu rang out, as if he were speaking casually.

"Three days later, the imperial carriage will depart, escorting the coffin back to Xianyang."

"The imperial guards, officials, and ministers all wore mourning clothes, and mourning was carried out along the entire route."

...

"I trouble you, Prime Minister Li, to take care of all matters."