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

A gentle night breeze was blowing.

A young man with a resolute and handsome face was patrolling the camp with two soldiers in black armor.

"Commander, the roster of soldiers has been checked today. Please take a look."

A soldier handed over a scroll of military affairs, which Meng Tian took and opened.

He looked very quickly and very carefully.

"Why was a small team of scouts imprisoned today?"

The soldier bowed and clasped his hands, saying, "They said they violated military discipline."

Meng Tian pressed for details, asking, "What military law was violated? Why was it violated? Were there any special circumstances? Who gave the order?"

Scouts are not like ordinary soldiers; they are the eyes and ears of the army and are all filled by elite troops. Even if some violate military law, there won't be many, let alone an entire squad violating it. They will only be imprisoned and will not be punished in any other way.

Given his many years of military service, there must be something wrong here.

Qin and Han may go to war, and at this moment, he cannot afford to be careless.

"This... I don't know."

Meng Tian walked to the soldiers' side. "A small squad of scouts has been imprisoned. The cause and effect are so vague that even the person who gave the order doesn't know. Could it be that this is an act of favoritism and revenge against comrades, and they are afraid of being found out?"

The soldiers remained silent.

Meng Tian paused for a moment, then said, "Come with me."

"Yes."

Meng Tian arrived at the watchtower of the main camp.

The sentry, who was yawning and feeling a bit sleepy, suddenly snapped to attention, nervously clasped his hands, and said, "Commander."

Meng Tian said coldly, "Did you see a scout team leave the camp for patrol at the hour of Yin today?"

"...Yes, I have seen it. They leave the camp at 3:45 AM and return at 3:45 AM."

"Back to camp so early? Is something unusual?"

"When they returned to camp, they brought back a caravan of about twenty people."

"You didn't verify their identities?"

"At the time, the scout squad leader said that these people had special identities and ordered his subordinates not to make a fuss. According to my observation, the leader was carrying a staff and seemed to be an envoy returning to the country."

"Special status? If he is truly an envoy, what makes his status special?"

"This... everything I said is true, I dare not lie."

"Humph!"

Meng Tian said no more, turned and left, leaving only his lingering voice behind.

“Neglecting duty will result in twenty strokes of the military rod, to be punished at a later date.”

The guard, with a mournful face, replied, "Yes..."

Meng Tian walked down from the watchtower, clenched his fist, and said, "There must be something fishy about this."

"Sir, then we..."

Meng Tian raised his arm and said, "Don't make a sound. Watch how I find them."

"Yes!"

Inside the side tent, Ying Zheng, who had already finished writing a letter to his mother, fell into a long silence.

Suddenly, he swept all the writing brushes, ink, letters, silks, and tokens on the long table onto the ground.

The sudden change startled the people in the tent.

Gai Nie picked up the items on the ground one by one and re-sorted them on the long table.

Ying Zheng had his back to Cao Ze and the others, and his voice was low.

"The letter is written, but I don't know what to do..."

"My mother, the Empress Dowager; my uncle, the Prime Minister; and all the civil and military officials—to whom should I send this letter?"

A subtle expression appeared on Cao Ze's face.

The letter was clearly addressed to Empress Dowager Zhao Ji, yet the author claimed not to know who it was intended for.

It seems that Ying Zheng was not unaware of the past affair between Lü Buwei and Zhao Ji, but chose to turn a blind eye, and even tacitly approved it because of his mother.

The entertainment industry is really messy~

This was his biggest takeaway.

Gai Nie, Cao Ze, and Li Si exchanged a few glances and then tacitly withdrew from the tent.

Outside the tent, Zhao Cheng, who had been staking out the area, immediately stood up when he saw Cao Ze and the others come out.

"Mr. Cao Ze, would it be convenient for us to sit over there for a chat?"

Cao Ze looked at Zhao Cheng, who had an ordinary appearance but lacked the effeminate air of Zhao Gao.

He thought to himself, "Indeed, environment shapes talent."

"it is good."

Upon arriving at a quiet place, Cao Ze asked, "Brother Zhao, is something the matter?"

Zhao Cheng put on a fawning smile and said, "Mr. Cao Ze, as you know, my brother was deceived by Lü Buwei. I hope you won't take it to heart and will put in a good word for my brother with the King."

He could see that Cao Ze had already gained Ying Zheng's trust and was very likely to rise to a high position in the future.

Cao Ze chuckled and said, "You want me to not take it to heart, and you want me to put in a good word for you with the King? Brother Zhao, isn't that asking for too much?"

Zhao Cheng immediately said, "Sir, please tell me what you want. Our Zhao family does have some influence in Xianyang."

Cao Ze narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a smile, "What if I wanted the Six Sword Slaves?"

Zhao Cheng smiled wryly and said, "Brother Cao is joking. The master of the Six Sword Slaves is the Empress Dowager, and you are only managing them on her behalf. Even if my brother and I wanted to give them to you, we couldn't."

Cao Ze smiled faintly and said, "Is there really no other way?"

“This…” Zhao Cheng hesitated, “If I say no, you certainly won’t believe me. But this matter needs your decision, brother. I can convey the message on behalf of Brother Cao.”

Cao Ze waved his hand and said with a strange smile, "No need, I'll talk to your brother when I have time."

"I agree to what you asked for."

"As for these sword slaves... we'll talk about that later."

Zhao Cheng said gratefully, "Thank you, sir."

……

Chapter 363 Deception

The night was enchanting, with the bright moon hanging high in the sky. The moonlight shone down, as gentle as ripples on water, making the vast world seem as if it were draped in a thin, silvery veil.

With a sword at his waist, Meng Tian strode towards the main tent of the central army.

Wang Yi, who had just left the camp, wanted to find Li Si for a late-night chat.

"What are you all doing in such a hurry?"

Wang Yi's voice was full of vigor and contained the imposing presence of a great general.

Meng Tian looked slightly surprised. Usually at this time, Wang Yi would be in his tent, either handling military affairs, reading military books, or resting with his eyes closed, rarely coming out. This was why he went straight to the central command tent.

"Greetings, General!"

Meng Tian stood with his hands clasped in front of him: "Tonight, while checking the roster, I discovered that a small team of scouts has been inexplicably detained and no one is allowed to contact them. I have come here to investigate."

A hint of appreciation flickered in Wang Yi's tiger-like eyes beneath his white eyebrows.

As expected of a son of a general, this grandson of General Meng Ao has even more potential than his son, Meng Wu.

pity……

Wang Yi, with one hand behind his back, turned and paced back and forth, saying in a calm and indifferent voice, "I already know about this matter, and I also find it strange. However, I have already sent people to investigate, so you don't need to worry about it. After inspecting and checking the various tents, you should rest early. If Qin and Han go to war in the future, we will need young men like you to serve as vanguard generals."

Meng Tian couldn't help but step forward. "General, they have been detained for no apparent reason. There are many suspicious points here. I just questioned the sentries at the watchtower and learned that when the scouts returned to camp, they brought back a suspicious group of men, who were not recorded in the register."

"As the commander in charge of patrols in the camp, I must investigate this thoroughly."

Wang Yi gave a faint "hmm," and said, "As the commander of the camp, you did a good job."

He paused, then said, "Come into my tent with me."

Meng Tian was surprised and suspicious, thinking to himself that there must be something strange about this place.

Only Wang Yi and Meng Tian were in the main tent, which was exceptionally brightly lit by the candlelight.

"Now that things have come to this point, I will not hide anything from you."

Wang Yi walked to Meng Tian's side and said slowly, "Today, those who returned to camp with the scouts were the envoy Li Si and his party who represented Qin on their mission to Han."

Meng Tian frowned. "Although Lord Li Si is an envoy, he cannot treat military rules as a joke, can he?"

Wang Yi, with his hands behind his back, said, "Li Si was on a mission to the State of Han when he unexpectedly received a confidential report. He then traveled day and night from Xinzheng in Han, detouring through Wusui to return to Xianyang."

He turned and calmly looked at Meng Tian, ​​"If the spies from the six states find out, it could be detrimental to Qin. Do you understand?"

Meng Tian still had some doubts, but as a centurion and camp commander, he knew the rules of the camp and could only suppress his desire to find out the truth.

"Yes, I understand."

"Hmm." Wang Yi pondered, "You are skilled in both literature and martial arts, and exceptionally intelligent and brave. It is indeed not suitable for you to manage such trivial matters as patrolling the camp. It is a waste of your talents."

"Make preparations, and I will arrange for you to be transferred to the frontier to fight the enemy. Accumulate military merits and do not tarnish the reputation of your Meng family."

“…Yes, General.” Meng Tian did not refuse. He had long wanted to go to the front line, but General Wang Yi hoped that he could familiarize himself with military operations and not rush to fight and make merit.

Now my wish has finally come true.

After Wang Yi and Meng Tian left, they lingered briefly before Wang Yi went out again at night and sent his personal guards to invite Li Si to see him.

Under the moonlight.

After Zhao Gao's younger brother Zhao Cheng left, Li Si came over.