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

The next day was the second day of the Lunar New Year.

According to the customs of Cao Ze's hometown in later generations, those with relatives could visit them, while those without relatives could stay in bed and play games.

Cao Ze didn't have a cell phone, so he could only get up early to feed his donkey brother for amusement.

Looking at the donkey chewing on its fodder, Cao Ze wondered to himself, "Is Uncle Wei planning to stay a homebody forever and never see me again?"

This will put him in a very difficult position. He clearly knows everything, but he has to pretend he doesn't know in front of Zi Nu. It's so tough for him!

He really wanted to see Uncle Wei wearing those golden long johns.

Zi Nu walked in gracefully and elegantly. Seeing Cao Ze staring blankly at the blue donkey, she chuckled and, remembering what Xiao Hongyu had told her last night, exclaimed with delight, "Sir, could it be that you really have a connection with this donkey?"

"Yes," Cao Ze said with a hint of melancholy.

It's possible that Brother Donkey is the ancestor of the donkey that Emperor Taizong of Song, the future god of the chariot in Gaoliang River, capable of traveling two hundred li at night.

Zi Nu's purple eyes flickered slightly. She crossed her arms, tapped her right arm, and chuckled softly, "What kind of fate is this? Have we met before?"

Cao Ze didn't want to expose Jing Ni's existence. He was in the open, while Jing Ni was in the shadows, so that even if something went wrong on his side, there would be a chance to make amends.

"It's hard to say what fate has in store. For example, Miss Zi Nu came over so early in the morning, so she must have something to say."

Zi Nu suppressed her smile and said, "A carrier pigeon has arrived from Handan, and it's related to you."

Cao Ze was slightly taken aback, a little confused.

He lived a very secluded life in Xinzheng, and basically didn't participate in public speaking as a failed art student. People in Handan probably don't even know he's still alive.

Well, it's also possible that Xuan Jian, who escaped, sought refuge with Lü Buwei, only to be exposed by that old bastard Lü Buwei.

"when?"

"Yesterday morning, King Zhao abdicated in favor of Crown Prince Jia."

Cao Ze stared intently into Zi Nu's purple eyes, his gaze conveying only one thought: "Are you sure you're not joking?"

"How could this be? Wasn't Prince Jia sent to Qin as a hostage by the King of Zhao? Knowing Prince Jia's character as I do, how could he do such a thing?"

Zi Nu smiled leisurely and said, "That's why Her Highness Ya Fei launched a palace coup yesterday. I don't know the specifics of how she did it, but she did succeed."

"According to the intelligence report, King Zhao mentioned you in his conversation with Zhao Jia. It seems that because of you, Zhao Jia and Consort Ya launched a palace coup."

Cao Ze was somewhat confused, because of him?

He behaved himself well at Zilan Pavilion, at most embracing a girl while listening to music.

I was playing cards with Mrs. Hu yesterday.

How could Consort Ya possibly launch a palace coup because of him?

Could it be that Consort Ya has eyes that can see a thousand miles, and is spying on him at all times?

Thinking of this, Cao Ze was startled. He suddenly remembered the story of Wu Zetian's rise to power that he had told Hu Ji, and he also seemed to have told Ya Fei the story of Li Erfeng's rise to power.

It originated from Consort Ya asking him how to ensure Zhao Jia's stable ascension to the throne. He then used the backdrop of the hundreds of vassal states during the Spring and Autumn Period to give a humorous answer.

Damn it!

Has the joke become reality?

He knew very well that as long as he learned from Li Erfeng's palace coup, Zhao Jia and Consort Ya would definitely succeed.

From both a legitimate and rational standpoint, Li Mu and Pang Nuan, who command more than half of Zhao's military forces, would absolutely support Zhao Jia.

Not to mention that most of the city guards were Li Mu and Pang Nuan's old subordinates.

Cao Ze suddenly asked, "Are Zhao Qian and Guo Kai dead?"

According to the script, these two should be completely finished by now.

As the queen, she would probably not be killed, but she would be banished to the cold palace and confined to her quarters.

Zi Nu shook her head slightly: "I don't know, but soon the whole world will know."

Palace coups were not uncommon during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, given the sheer number of large and small vassal states, some of which were quite bizarre.

Cao Ze said, "That Miss Zi Nu came here because..."

Zi Nu smiled charmingly: "The weather is nice today. Would you be interested in riding this donkey cart around Xinzheng City with me? I'd like to know how you persuaded Prince Jia and Consort Ya."

"Forehead……"

Cao Ze wanted to say that he had not instigated it at all. He knew very well that Crown Prince Jia, who had not studied in Qin, was kind-hearted and indecisive, and would not do something like killing his own brother, even if Zhao Qian wanted to kill him.

It's estimated that Consort Ya forced Zhao Jia to make a choice, and she's now being infamous...

Damn, nephew, that's not fair!

Why should he, as the uncle, bear the blame while she plays the innocent victim?

No wonder Zi Nu knew about this secret.

It's black, it's fucking black.

They don't even spare the dead... wait, he's not dead yet...

Chapter 256 Lonely Widow

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Brother Donkey, pulling a donkey cart with its head drooping, carried Cao Ze and Zi Nu, wandering aimlessly around Xinzheng City.

Zi Nu sat elegantly inside the car, occasionally peering through the curtains to observe her surroundings, a smile always on her beautiful face.

"Mr. Cao Ze, what do you think of this donkey cart?"

Of course it's fantastic! It cost a fortune, and was handcrafted by the master mechanic Mr. Lü. The quality is top-notch; it's perfect for car sex...

Cao Ze knew he couldn't say any of this, otherwise, with Zi Nu's sharp mind, she would probably have guessed that he had an extraordinary relationship with that sword master.

However, thinking of Old Man Lü, I wonder if he's still in that gathering place. He's the key figure in whether we can find the Dragon Soul Pixiu and make him a Dragon Knight.

“There seem to be traces of mechanical arts…” Cao Ze said in a deep voice, mimicking his second uncle.

Cao Ze imitated Wei Zhuang's tone, which amused Zi Nu.

"You... well, it is indeed made using mechanical techniques, and it was crafted by a master mechanic."

"No wonder this car drives so well. The owner must be very wealthy, handsome, and young and promising."

Zi Nu shook her head slightly, "I don't think so."

"Oh? What do you think, Miss Zi Nu?"

Zi Nu analyzed, "Look, such a nice carriage is paired with such an ordinary donkey, which shows that the owner of the donkey carriage is careless and casual in his behavior, and must be a bit slovenly and unruly in appearance."

"Such a person should be over thirty years old and have rich experience; it's unlikely to be a young person. However, being willing to spend money to make a donkey cart that is not very practical and then casually abandoning it shows that he is indeed very wealthy."

As she analyzed the situation, she thought to herself that she had never heard of such a person in the martial arts world, and that he must be a reclusive master from an unknown place.

Who said it wasn't very practical? Brother Donkey pulled it for nearly ten thousand miles... Cao Ze muttered to himself before saying, "Miss Zi Nu seems to care a lot about the owner of the donkey cart."

Zi Nu smiled slightly, lowered her voice, and said mysteriously, "Didn't you sense the soaring sword intent yesterday?"

Cao Ze blinked. "I sensed it. It's very strong. It must be at least a swordsman at the half-step Grandmaster level."

Zi Nu gently shook her head. "He is a Grandmaster, and must have just broken through."

"Do you know?"

"do not know."

"And this donkey?"

"I just picked it up on a whim..."

"You just casually brought it back?" Cao Ze and Zi Nu stared at each other in disbelief. Good heavens, it really was Uncle Wei who casually brought back the donkey. Was he that brave? Wasn't he afraid of getting stabbed to death?

Cao Ze suddenly realized that Wei Zhuang seemed to really enjoy fighting people he couldn't beat, a practice commonly known as "seeking torture."

And since he was a disciple of Guiguzi and his teacher was Gongsun Yan, plus he was in Xinzheng, he really didn't need to worry about being beaten to death.

Perhaps this is the prestige of prestigious schools.

Zi Nu sighed softly.

She still couldn't figure out what Wei Zhuang was thinking. Knowing that the owner of this donkey was very likely a sword master, he still dared to bring it back. Wasn't he just asking for trouble?

Hmm? She suddenly remembered her analysis earlier. Could it be that Wei Zhuang had figured something out and knew that the sword master wouldn't make a move?

No wonder Wei Zhuang had her drive a donkey cart around Xinzheng City to observe and try to make contact with that swordsman master.

Zi Nu tilted her head slightly to look at Cao Ze, lost in thought, wondering where the owner of the donkey cart was now...

At this moment, Bai Yifei, who was stationed at the South Korean border, received a letter from his cousin, Madam Mingzhu.

"Grandmaster Swordsman..."

Bai Yifei's pale face turned somewhat unpleasant.

For him, such a strong person is a variable, an uncontrollable accident.

After thinking for a long time, he quickly wrote a letter to Madam Mingzhu, asking her to go find the man in the straw raincoat.

As for Madam Mingzhu's subtle inquiries about his mother's situation, he simply ignored them. His mother's situation was top secret, and he would never let Madam Mingzhu know.

……

The next day, having found nothing, Zi Nu went to the backyard again and dragged Cao Ze along to continue their aimless wandering around Xinzheng in a donkey cart.

Cao Ze leisurely rode his donkey, chatting casually with Zi Nu.

He really wanted to tell Zi Nu, "Stop looking, the donkey cart owner is right in front of you, and that swordsman master is his wife..."

But seeing Zi Nu scratching her head and looking puzzled was quite amusing, so he put aside his other thoughts and focused on wandering around with Zi Nu looking for Jing Ni.

Liu Yi paced anxiously back and forth in the mansion.

The servant alighted from the carriage and came in.

Liu Yi asked urgently, "Where is Brother Cao Ze?"

The servant said tremblingly, "Mr. Cao Ze is not at Zilan Pavilion. He has left in a donkey cart."

Liu Yi's face turned fierce: "Where did you go?"