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

As dawn broke, the sound of drums echoed from the imperial palace in Zhangtai, Weinan.

Hundreds of officials, dressed in black robes, entered the palace in an orderly and hierarchical manner.

They stood with their hands at their sides as they approached the steps of the main hall.

Zhangtai Palace and Zhangtai Hall, since the time of King Huiwen of Qin, have been the place where successive rulers presided over the administration of state affairs and held court.

Its palace is located on a five-tiered platform, each tier being over ten feet high. From below, the massive palace appears as if dark clouds are obscuring the sun.

Cheng Jiao, holding a jade tablet, stood in front of the officials.

He looked at the red steps beneath his feet, their color as deep as water, symbolizing the water element of the Great Qin Dynasty.

Since Donghuang Taiyi, the leader of the Yin-Yang School, presented the "Theory of the Five Elements and Their Cycles" last year, many buildings in the Qin Palace have been painted black to illustrate that the royal family's virtue matches the Mandate of Heaven, preparing for the conquest of the six states and the unification of the world.

A moment later, the drums sounded again.

Upon hearing the announcement, the officials stepped onto the platform, which was six zhang high and nearly twenty zhang long.

The height of an eight-story building in a modern residential complex would be difficult for most modern people to climb in one breath without breaking a sweat.

All the officials of Qin, whether civil or military, walked with vigor and agility. Even the old officials with white hair showed no signs of decline.

During the Warring States period, those with strong martial spirit and poor physical health rarely rose to high positions.

Cheng Jiao ascended the steps in one breath and arrived in front of the palace.

He looked up at the large plaque above him that read "Zhangtai Hall," his expression solemn.

Today's court assembly is a grand assembly that is rarely seen in months.

In order to carry out Brother Cao's plan, Brother Wang specifically informed all officials in Xianyang who were qualified to enter the palace that a grand court assembly would be held today to discuss the future development of the Qin state.

As more and more officials arrived at the palace, under the watchful eyes of the palace attendants in charge of ceremonies, they all took off their shoes, leaving only cloth socks. Even Lord Changping did the same.

As the drumbeats grew increasingly rapid, civil and military officials, carrying their official tablets, hurried into the spacious hall.

The courtiers flocked to him, but one man walked slowly and steadily into the hall with his head held high.

All the palace servants in charge of supervising the etiquette of the officials turned a blind eye.

Cheng Jiao glanced at the composed Lü Buwei, then slowly looked away.

He did not hasten his arrival at court, wore a sword and shoes in the palace, and did not use his name when receiving audiences.

The only person who could enjoy such privileges at the Qin state's grand court assembly was Lü Buwei, who had served three emperors, was now the prime minister of Qin, the head of all schools of thought in the world, was revered as "Uncle" by the King of Qin, and was the famous prime minister who thwarted the alliance of five states.

Lü Buwei kept his eyes straight ahead.

With one hand resting on his heavy, ancient ceremonial sword, he passed by Chengjiao Changpingjun and others, and entered the main hall first.

The palace eunuchs were already waiting inside, and when the officials entered the hall, they led them to their seats.

Lü Buwei walked straight to the front of the officials, while Cheng Jiao and Lord Changping, even though they were nobles and their status was no less than his, were still ranked one rank below him.

As the most powerful person in Qin in fact, having been rooted in Qin for decades, his position in the Qin court was no joke.

It can be said that if Cheng Jiao were not a brother of the King of Qin, and if Lady Han were still alive, and if he did not have the honorary status of Lord Chang'an, it would not have been much more difficult for Lü Buwei to crush Cheng Jiao than to suppress an ordinary official.

This isn't arrogance; it's simply the truth.

Accompanied by Gai Nie, Ying Zheng, with one hand on the extra-long royal sword befitting his status, walked step by step to the throne and slowly sat down.

Through his crown, he scanned Lü Buwei, Cheng Jiao, and the others below the steps.

"It is now June, the middle of the year. I, Your Majesty..."

Ying Zheng spoke slowly and authoritatively, beginning with a series of opening remarks, before finally concluding, "I have summoned you all here today to discuss the court's expenses for the next six months."

Upon hearing this, the court fell silent, and many officials subconsciously looked at Lü Buwei, the head of all officials.

July's heat fades, September brings the distribution of clothing.

According to past customary practice, the expenses of the court for the second half of the year would usually be arranged in July when the summer heat was gradually fading.

The King of Qin's sudden advance in this matter is clearly not without reason.

However, this did not prevent the civil and military officials from showing their anticipation.

How well I fare in the second half of the year depends on how much I can gain from this court meeting.

Where is the Minister of Agriculture?

As one of the Nine Ministers, the Grand Historian Si stepped forward, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect, and said, "Your subject is here."

Compared to the Nine Ministers of later generations, whose titles were merely honorary, the Nine Ministers of Qin in the present day were all figures who held real power.

Ying Zheng asked slowly, "How much grain, goods, and wealth does the Taiyi Palace currently possess?"

The Minister of Agriculture was in charge of grain and taxes, while the Taiyi Hall was the place where the national treasury stored its wealth.

"Your Majesty, this year..."

The thick-browed, large-eyed Secretary Si succinctly recounted the wealth of the Fang family's treasury.

He was originally the Inner Historian, in charge of laws and regulations and drafting documents. His rank was lower than that of the Nine Ministers, but his power was greater.

However, after Lü Buwei gained immense power, most of the power in his hands was taken away by Lü Buwei, leaving him with almost no real authority despite holding the title.

After submitting his memorial to the late king, Lü Buwei somehow learned of it and, through a series of maneuvers, promoted him in name only but demoted him in reality.

Although he was ranked among the Nine Ministers and became the Minister in charge of finances, he only had the ability to supervise and had no power to allocate resources. It was a position of high status and prestige.

Because he had once served as the Inner Historian, he was commonly referred to as "Inner Historian Si" rather than "Inner Historian Si in charge of grain".

After listening to the report from the Inner Historian Si, Ying Zheng shook his head slightly: "Too little."

The Imperial Secretary was taken aback and asked, puzzled, "Your Majesty, what is missing?"

Ying Zheng said calmly, "The amount of money is too little."

Neishi Si subconsciously looked at Lü Buwei. Could it be that this old devil had caused him trouble again?

He immediately retorted, "Your Majesty, I haven't touched a single penny of the wealth in the Fang family's treasury this year. The amounts are all verifiable. If Your Majesty doesn't believe me, I'll have someone bring out the account books right now."

Ying Zheng raised his hand and said, "You misunderstand. I am not questioning you."

"The reason I say that the money is little is because there are many people who need it, while the wealth is limited."

"But my Great Qin cannot do without spending money. I hope you understand my worries."

Neishi Si breathed a slight sigh of relief; he was genuinely afraid that Lü Buwei would target him.

In the Qin state today, apart from Lord Changping who can hold his own against Lü Buwei, others, even if they hold the position of one of the Nine Ministers, are useless.

Before he could express his understanding to Ying Zheng, he was already dead.

Cheng Jiao, who was standing to the side, smiled slightly and stepped forward, saying, "Your Majesty, do not worry. I have a way to relieve Your Majesty's worries."

In formal settings, there are only rulers and subjects, not brothers.

Cheng Jiao would naturally not make a basic mistake that would give Lü Buwei an opening.

The atmosphere inside the main hall was quite eerie.

Lu Buwei, who had been calm and collected all along, glanced at Cheng Jiao briefly before closing his eyes again.

Changping-jun, on the other hand, looked at Chengjiao with great anticipation.

During this period, he used the pretext of visiting Empress Dowager Huayang in the palace to have a lot of contact with Ying Zheng.

He could vaguely sense that Ying Zheng seemed to be secretly plotting against Lü Buwei.

Only someone like him, who had dealt with Lü Buwei for many years, could know that Lü Buwei's ability to govern the country was simply terrifying.

One of the reasons he stayed in Qin instead of sneaking back to Chu was that he wanted to try to join forces with Ying Zheng to get rid of Lü Buwei, so that Qin would lose a pillar and gradually weaken Qin.

If he were to return to Chu, seize power, and form an alliance with the four states, the chances of him destroying Qin would be even greater.

Ying Zheng smiled slightly; the grand court assembly he had arranged in advance was all for this moment.

While the grand court assembly was being held at Zhangtai Palace, Cao Ze had been at Ganquan Palace for some time.

At this moment, Cao Ze was looking at the cross-dressing master Zhao Gao with a strange expression.

"Brother Zhao, your outfit... is quite unique..."

Since Zhao Gao began practicing the Heavenly Sunflower Manual, he has always had a feminine appearance and his face is always pale.

Even if Cao Ze saw through his disguise, he didn't show any signs of weakness.

"The Empress Dowager wants palace maids to perform Dream of the Red Chamber today, so naturally we must cooperate."

Zhao Gao said without batting an eye.

Cao Ze suddenly realized.

Theatrical performances were quite fashionable in this era, and there were many opera fans like Madam Hu. As a result, various countries had actors and performers singing operas.

Compared to the fantasy novel "Journey to the West", "Dream of the Red Chamber" is undoubtedly more suitable for the stage.

However, compared to the actors in the opera troupe performing on stage, Zhao Ji was much more unrestrained, and very capriciously used Ganquan Palace as a stage, making all the palace servants perform plays.

As the captain of the eunuch team, Zhao Gao naturally had to take the lead and face the difficulties head-on.

This led to the Warring States period-style "Dream of the Red Chamber" theme park that Cao Ze envisioned.

"Hehe, Mr. Cao Ze has finally found some free time and taken the initiative to come to my place?"

Zhao Ji, dressed in a magnificent phoenix robe, walked over with a smile.

However, the mockery and dissatisfaction in his tone were impossible to conceal.

These days, Cao Ze often used the excuse of sharing the king's burdens to leave Zhao Ji's place late at night and leave early in the morning.

Cao Ze, with a serious expression, bowed and said, "Greetings, Empress Dowager."

"No need for formalities," Zhao Ji said, too lazy to argue with Cao Ze.

There's plenty of time in the future; she refused to believe that Cao Ze could escape her grasp.

"Zhao Gao, are the men ready?"

Zhao Gao, with flowers in his hair and pink rouge on his face, said in a high-pitched laugh, "Empress Dowager, everything is arranged and we are just waiting for you."

Zhao Ji turned her head to look at Cao Ze and smiled charmingly: "Since you're here, sir, then come with me to the Grand View Garden to watch a play."

"It is the Empress Dowager."