People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

Duanmu Rong slightly opened her mouth, just about to say that she would stay in Feixue Pavilion with Liji for a while, but when she thought of her teacher's increasingly thin body, she fell silent.

She wanted to spend as much time as possible with her teacher before she passed away.

……

Xianyang City, the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Lu Buwei's study was filled with nearly a thousand scrolls of books of various sizes.

"Cao Ze's two books, 'On the Six States' and 'Feudalism, Centralization, and Productivity,' were compiled into the chapters of the Military Strategists and the Legalists."

After reading through Cao Ze's work, Lü Buwei, though displeased, still gave the order.

"Yes, Prime Minister Lü."

Li Si responded calmly.

After several months, he had gained Lü Buwei's appreciation.

"Um……"

Just as Lü Buwei was about to dismiss Li Si, he seemed to realize something.

Thinking of the popular novels "Journey to the West" and "Dream of the Red Chamber" in Xianyang, he also read some of them and found them to be first-rate masterpieces.

In particular, "Dream of the Red Chamber" has greatly benefited him by revealing profound truths through small details.

I don't know what the author was thinking, but he mainly focused on love and romance without deeply analyzing national affairs. However, his few strokes of the pen were very insightful.

"In my 'Lüshi Chunqiu,' I haven't recorded any novelists yet. Please add Cao Ze's 'Journey to the West' and the anonymous 'Dream of the Red Chamber,' and I will write a summary."

“These next few days, you will lead them to select some parts and add them to the ‘Lüshi Chunqiu’.”

Li Si replied respectfully, "Yes."

When he looked at the bamboo slips inscribed with "Dream of the Red Chamber," a strange light flashed in his eyes.

Like "Journey to the West", "Dream of the Red Chamber" originated from Handan and is said to have first appeared in Feixue Pavilion.

He couldn't help but suspect that the book was likely written privately by Cao Ze.

"You may leave now. Once it is compiled next month, I will personally review it."

"Yes."

Li Si left the study.

Old Master Zheng spoke up, "Prime Minister Lü, do you really intend to spend a thousand taels of gold for that?"

Lü Buwei nodded slightly. "Time waits for no one. There are less than two years until Your Majesty assumes full power. I need to spread the Lüshi Chunqiu throughout the Qin state."

"Only in this way can we gain widespread acceptance as soon as possible."

At this point, Lü Buwei let out a slow sigh.

He didn't know if those officials could see the hidden meaning behind his book.

The king ruled by doing nothing, and all officials performed their respective duties.

This meant that the Qin state was not solely controlled by one person.

A voice sounded outside the study door, "Your Excellency, Luo Wangyan requests an audience."

Lu Buwei paused slightly, as he also wanted to test Yan Ri.

"Let him in."

After a short while, Yan Ri walked in.

He remained unchanged, wearing a black iron mask and Qin armor.

"Your Excellency, what is your decision?"

Yan Ri asked the question directly, getting straight to the point.

Lu Buwei's face was somber as he slowly said, "Are you speaking to me as Luo Wangyan Ri, or as the royal prince Ying Lao?"

Yan Ri paused slightly. "What's the difference? I am Ying Lao, and I am also Yan Ri!"

Lü Buwei stroked the bamboo slips in his hands.

"There's a big difference. If you're like a net covering the sun, then there's no need to discuss some things."

Yan Ri's cold eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

Lu Buwei said meaningfully, "Before you were injured, you were searching for clues about the Seven Mansions of the Azure Dragon, weren't you?"

"Humph!"

Yan Ri snorted coldly, knowing that his actions would be difficult to hide from Lü Buwei, who was in charge of intelligence on the 'Cheerful Spirits' network.

This is why he has always wanted to maintain control of the entire Luowang organization.

Lu Buwei put down the scroll in his hand and said calmly, "Ying Lao, I know why you are seeking the Seven Constellations of the Azure Dragon."

"You should know very well that as long as I am alive and as long as the King of Qin is alive, you have no chance."

Enraged that Lü Buwei had exposed her thoughts, Yan Ri retorted, "Are you threatening me?"

As someone who colluded with Lü Buwei in the past, he knew countless of Lü Buwei's shady dealings.

When Lord Anguo observed a year of mourning, he unexpectedly died just three days after ascending the throne as King of Qin. This was inextricably linked to Lü Buwei.

He was personally involved!

This one thing alone, once exposed, would be enough to give Lü Buwei, who now wields immense power, a major headache.

"No, no, no, I never threaten anyone. I am simply stating a fact."

As the sun's heat subsided, he, who knew Lü Buwei quite well, realized that Lü Buwei seemed to have ulterior motives.

"What do you want to do?"

Lü Buwei calmly said, "I will make you Ying Lao, not Yan Ri."

Yan Ri's heart skipped a beat. "What does that mean?"

Lü Buwei stood up and paced around the study a few times.

"You are the grandson of King Zhaoxiang, the son of the former Crown Prince Dao, and a former general of Qin who has earned many military merits. If you were to advance further, such as being granted the title of Marquis of Changxin, it would be within your reach. Am I right?"

Yan Ri coldly said, "Have you forgotten why the Strange Man made me take charge of the Luo Wang assassins back then?"

Lu Buwei paused in front of Yan Ri and said with a faint smile, "That's why I said you should only be Ying Lao, not Yan Ri."

Ying Yiren had always been wary of Ying Lao. After all, if the Crown Prince had not died of illness and everything had gone smoothly, the previous King of Qin would have been the military-meritorious Ying Lao, not Yiren, and there would be no Ying Zheng as we know him today.

Therefore, when Ying Yiren became King of Qin, before he died of illness, he directly issued an edict appointing Ying Lao to take charge of the Luo Wang assassins, to act as a shadow in the darkness, and to handle the dirty work.

As the regent, he naturally kept Ying Lao under control, treating him only as Yan Ri, rather than as the former prince of the Qin royal family and a well-known general of Qin.

Yan Ri clenched his fist so tightly it cracked. "Lu Buwei, you have quite the nerve!"

Lü Buwei said calmly, "You're not exactly a coward either."

"Incidentally, you contacted more than twenty important officials in Xianyang, including the Grand Secretary Si, the Commandant of the Guards Jie, the Assistant Commandant Jie, and the Grand Master of the Palace Qi, all under the guise of a member of the imperial clan. If it weren't for my old friendship, do you really think you could have gotten away with it?"

A chill ran through Yan Ri's body. He had done all these things in secret by himself. How did Lü Buwei know?

Did someone tip them off? Who was it?

He glanced at the figures of Neishi Si, Zhongdafu Ling Qi, and others, but still couldn't identify who they were.

Yan Ri snorted, "Remembering the past? You're just afraid I'll die with you, aren't you!"

Lü Buwei remained noncommittal; after what happened back then, no one was truly innocent.

Palace coups are fraught with unpredictability; anyone who tries to remain pure and untainted by the corruption will be the first to be eliminated.

The atmosphere in the study became subdued.

Old Master Zheng kept his attention on Yan Ri, lest Yan Ri suddenly turn against Prime Minister Lü.

After a long while, Yan Ri slowly removed the black iron mask from his face, revealing a handsome face.

What do you want me to do?

Lü Buwei's fingers moved, gently tapping the desk.

"Currently, the court is divided into three factions. One faction is led by me and Empress Dowager Zhao Ji, another by Lord Changping and Empress Dowager Huayang, and the third by Lord Chang'an Chengjiao and Empress Dowager Xia Ji."

"Now that Empress Dowager Xia Ji is seriously ill, she may not live past this year. At that time, I will persuade Lord Changping to find a way to eliminate Cheng Jiao's faction."

Yan Ri frowned, knowing it was another dirty job.

"This doesn't seem to concern me."

Lü Buwei said calmly, "But this is related to me."

When he realized he had to oppose Ying Zheng, he now had two choices.

They could either cut off Ying Zheng's supporters and promote their own.

They could either eliminate Ying Zheng and install Ying Laoshang as the new King of Qin.

The former option is more feasible, but it has hidden dangers. After all, he is much older than Ying Zheng, and what if he dies...

The latter is highly impractical, unless Ying Zheng makes a foolish mistake and leaves the palace and Xianyang, but how could that be possible...?

Of course, he has another option.

It is also the most worry-free and effortless option.

They sat and waited for their doom, power shifted, and their lives were left to Ying Zheng.

This was the choice he found hardest to accept.

He decided to operate on two fronts.

They supported their own people, waiting for an opportunity to replace the King of Qin.

And Yan Ri was the best candidate he had chosen.

Yan Ri stared intently at Lü Buwei.

"If I am able to rise to the position, the Prime Minister will surely be credited with the greatest merit."

Lü Buwei said indifferently, "What merit? I don't understand."