In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

Walking on the gravel beach was not comfortable; it made a crunching sound when you stepped on it, but the First Emperor did not care at all.

Finally, he gave a bitter laugh.

"No matter how much time has passed, I still hate this about you, Brother Chao." He stroked the Zhi Xiang in his hand with a complicated expression. "That wretched divination magic!"

Zhi Xiang has been polished to a patina again.

Why did I say "again"?

"You used to like to use this trick to fool me. Now that you're dead, you can still do it. Did I come here to be fooled?" The First Emperor muttered to himself, looking somewhat angry. The maids and the head of the Imperial Carriage Office behind him were all terrified and fell silent. However, the First Emperor himself always had a smile on his lips.

The First Emperor raised his head, looked at the scenery of Taihu Lake, and smiled slightly.

You once said that I should not disturb the lives of those two brothers as human beings, so I will follow your advice.

"Zhao Gao, Meng Yi." The First Emperor turned around and looked at his two ministers.

"I am feeling a little tired..." Just as the First Emperor was speaking, he suddenly saw a sharp glint of light shooting towards him from afar.

The First Emperor smiled indifferently, but Zhao Gao and Meng Yi, who were kneeling on the ground, turned cold.

call--

Zhao Gao sprang up instantly, and without thinking, grabbed an arrow in front of him.

Without saying a word, Meng Yi drew his bow and nocked an arrow, which shot out with a "whoosh" and hit the assassin in the distance.

"Your Majesty, the assassin is dead." Meng Yi and Zhao Gao knelt on one knee and reported together.

"Hmm, I'm a little tired. I'll go rest in the carriage first. As for the assassin, find out who he is." The First Emperor sighed wearily, randomly picked one of the six carriages parked by the roadside, and got in.

He frequently encounters assassination attempts; it's become part of his daily life.

He would find it strange if he hadn't been assassinated in half a month.

Nearly ten years after unifying the country, the First Emperor had faced hundreds of assassination attempts, both large and small, but he always managed to escape unscathed.

Of course, there were also a few more thrilling assassination attempts. The three most memorable assassination attempts for the First Emperor were by Jing Ke, Gao Jianli, and another one that occurred near Bolangsha during his third tour of the country.

At that time, a strongman who had practiced magic was hiding in the bushes by the roadside. When the First Emperor's entourage passed by the bushes, the strongman suddenly stood up, enhanced his body with magic, and threw the iron hammer in his hand, hitting one of the First Emperor's six carriages. If the First Emperor had not taken turns riding in the six carriages, he might have died in that assassination attempt.

The strongman was hacked to death by the guards, but the real mastermind behind the assassination, Zhang Liang, the son of King Daohui of Han, escaped unscathed. He is the only assassin who managed to escape unscathed after assassinating the First Emperor and is still wanted to this day.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, the First Emperor squinted, feeling a little flustered. He sighed and lay back in his chair.

I'll feel better after a nap...

......

When the First Emperor fell asleep, Yin Tong, the governor of Kuaiji Commandery, had already arrived at Xiang’s residence with his men.

However, the Xiang residence was completely empty. Even the various servants and maids had been dismissed, leaving only an empty and desolate courtyard.

He squinted and raised his head.

"Search it and see if there's anything else left inside."

"Yes!"

After giving the order, Yin Tong yawned and walked out.

He had a lot of interaction with Xiang Liang, so he was naturally familiar with Xiang Liang's personality.

There won't be anything crucial left in the Xiang residence.

If you think about it carefully, the so-called "he can be replaced" might even be a scheme by Xiang Liang.

This man looks incredibly honest, like a dutiful patriarch in Wuzhong, but in reality he's a complete madman.

Especially considering he had several such wonderful children, it would be strange for Yin Tong if he did nothing.

With a mocking smile, Yin Tong glanced at the Xiang residence, his mind racing.

The house was quite nice, though; they only took most of the important things, leaving behind the more valuable items...

"Your Excellency, Prefect!" A minor official rushed out of the Xiang residence in a panic, seemingly carrying something in his hand.

"What's wrong? Did you find anything?" Yin Tong stroked his beard and asked in a drawn-out voice.

"This, this is the deed to this house. I found it in a drawer and I think it's quite important..." The clerk bowed and handed the deed to Yin Tong.

"Hmm?" Yin Tong's eyes lit up. He took the property deed and examined it carefully, his eyes narrowing slightly. "It really is a property deed..."

After finishing the deed to the Xiang residence, Yin Tong stroked his beard again and suddenly smiled.

"Hey, come here." He beckoned to the clerk, then made a trumpet shape with his hand, a subtle smile on his face.

The clerk understood and leaned closer to listen.

"Go back to the prefectural governor's office now and have the yamen runner who just took over the case find the person who reported it, then detain him first, and don't make a fuss..." Yin Tong whispered in the clerk's ear.

"Yes, yes, Your Excellency the Prefect." The clerk understood and nodded quickly.

"If you understand, go quickly. There will be a reward if you do a good job." Yin Tong said with a beaming smile.

He watched the clerk hurry away, then looked at the deed to the Xiang family mansion in his hand, chuckled, stuffed the deed into his pocket, crossed his legs, placed his hand on his ankle, and tapped his index finger on it.

"Well... since I've taken the bribe, I have to do something for you, right..."

His smile turned cunning.

"Anyway, we all have the same goal in the end. It won't do me any harm if you stay in the shadows, and what if the other side submits to you?"

He stood up, walked into the Xiang residence, and looked around.

"This house is really nice...it's even more impressive than the one I live in."

Meanwhile, at Kuaiji Mountain, Xiang An and the others had already seen what appeared to be plumes of dust rising from the horizon.

"Lord Xiang Yu..." Yu Meiren covered her chest with her hand, finally letting out a sigh of relief.

"We won't be able to go out much for the next period of time, but I don't know how long it will last," Xiang Bo sighed and shook his head.

------------

Chapter 846 The First Emperor Falls Ill

"Second Brother, is it really a good idea for us to act so early? I feel that it might be a bit risky to start now, and assassination isn't out of the question," Xiang Bo said hesitantly, watching Xiang Liang lead his horse into the village.

"Third brother, you're being far too timid." Xiang Liang walked ahead without turning his head. "Could it be that you were scared out of your wits by Wang Jian's power back then?"

He stopped, turned his head slightly, and waited for Xiang Bo, his imposing aura overwhelming.

"Now that Wang Jian is dead, what are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid. Even if Wang Jian were standing right in front of me, I wouldn't be afraid at all!" Xiang Bo was a little flustered by Xiang Liang's words, and he raised his voice impatiently halfway through his sentence.

Xiang Liang didn't say anything, but turned around and stared intently into Xiang Bo's eyes.

Xiang Yu and Xiang An stood aside and watched coldly, without saying a word.

The scene was extremely quiet.

Two drops of cold sweat trickled down Xiang Bo's face. He swallowed hard and involuntarily took a step back.

Xiang Liang sighed and looked at the other members of the Xiang family gathered there.

"This is our best chance to move from the forefront to the background, bar none!" He stood on a high platform, looking around. "Our Xiang family, our Chu state, harbor boundless hatred for Qin! But we absolutely cannot act rashly!"

"The Qin Dynasty was an iron barrel, and we were the maggots that crawled inside it. I believe everyone is very clear about this!"

"If we act rashly, even with our advantage of flexibility and even with formidable generals like Xiang Yu and Xiang An, victory will still be extremely difficult."

Xiang Yu and Xiang An exchanged a glance, both seeing the awkwardness in each other's eyes.

Although I roughly know that I'm pretty good, being praised in such a public way... I'm still a little uncomfortable.

“There are some things that are inconvenient to do openly.” Xiang Liang sat on a box and patted his leg. “As long as I exist in the public eye, there will definitely be things that are inconvenient to do.”

"But the overt operations over the years have certainly not been entirely useless."

"This is Wuzhong after all, not the center of the old Chu territory. Since we are here, it is no exaggeration to say that we are starting from scratch."

"What I, we, need is prestige. Only by abandoning the prestige of the old Chu can we usher in the birth of the new Chu!"

"And now, I am highly respected in Wuzhong. Even the Prefect Yin Tong has to inform me and consult with me before making important decisions." Xiang Liang raised one hand and clenched it tightly, a smile appearing on his face. "What if someone like me suddenly shows signs of rebellion?"

The many retainers of the Xiang family and the Chu soldiers below looked at each other, somewhat confused about what Xiang Liang wanted to say.

"Some people might be surprised or disgusted, but there's one thing that's in our favor..."

"The world has suffered under the Qin dynasty for too long. Even if some people are content with the status quo, most people harbor some ulterior motives in their hearts."

He looked at everyone and smiled.

"Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many people here, would there?"

A glint flashed in Xiang Liang's eyes.

"In any case, now that the seed has been planted, all I need to do is make my stance clear, and then just wait for it to take root and sprout..."

......

The First Emperor did not stay by Taihu Lake for long; he set off again two days later.

We've had enough of the scenery of Taihu Lake; it's time to go.

The next plan is to cross the river from Jiangcheng to the north, then follow the coastline to Langya County, and after reaching Chengshan at the end of the peninsula, turn west and return.

Time passed slowly, and the First Emperor's journey across the land proceeded steadily according to plan.

Crossing the Yangtze and Huai Rivers, the First Emperor admired the beautiful scenery along the way while receiving a warm welcome from the people lining the streets. He couldn't help but chuckle as he observed the expressions of awe and fear on their faces.

Think whatever you want. What I need to protect is this vast Central Plains. These trivial matters can be left to the people below.

Before we knew it, it was already June.

The First Emperor is currently at Pingyuanjin, about to cross the river to the west.

But while he was on the boat transporting the horse-drawn carriage, he suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

"Uh--"

Clutching his chest tightly, the First Emperor felt an excruciating pain in his magical circuits.

Zhao Gao, the head of the Imperial Carriage Office who was driving the carriage outside, heard the First Emperor's muffled groan and quickly climbed into the carriage.