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

"Crash..."

Like a mermaid leaping out of the water, Yan Lingji jumped out of the bathtub to Cao Ze's astonishment and put on a silk robe in the blink of an eye.

"I'm on my period, so I can't stay with you. Go find Li Wu Jing Ni. Goodbye and sweet dreams."

Yan Lingji chuckled and left with a smile, seemingly quite pleased with herself for successfully tricking Cao Ze.

Cao Ze stared at the misty, slender figure leaving the bathroom, speechless as he looked up at the sky.

He ate Ji all day long, but he never expected to be stood up by Ji.

Cao Ze slapped the water's surface, splashing up waves.

He took a deep breath and washed his face.

Woman, just you wait. Next time, if we don't use the Three Passes against you, we'll go and hang out with Zhao Gao!

……

The next day, it was broad daylight.

Cao Ze slowly woke up alone in the big bed.

Jingni was cultivating, and Liwu was in seclusion, leaving him alone in his empty room, which was his only solace.

After he finished practicing the Eight Pieces of Brocade in the courtyard, unsurprisingly, that damned eunuch came again.

"Mr. Cao Ze..."

Zhao Gao hesitated and said, "Something has happened to the Empress Dowager."

Cao Ze, who had been calm, was suddenly stunned. As the Queen Dowager of Qin, Zhao Ji was one of the most honored people in Qin. What could possibly happen to her?

Cao Ze's expression immediately changed slightly. Could it be that Lao Ai had been discovered to have brought two children to Xianyang?

He asked Zhao Gao gravely, "What happened to the Empress Dowager?"

Zhao Gao glanced around with a wicked look in his eyes, then lowered his voice and said, "You'll know when the master arrives; it's not convenient for us to say."

Faced with Zhao Gao's cryptic behavior, Cao Ze really wanted to draw his Zhanlu sword and cut him down.

But considering the potentially critical situation, Cao Ze patiently said, "Okay."

Cao Ze and Zhao Gao were both skilled fighters, and before long, they entered the spacious and grand Ganquan Palace.

"Brother Zhao, can you speak now?"

Cao Ze couldn't help but ask again.

Zhao Gao remained unchanged, saying, "The Empress Dowager ordered me to bring the gentleman into the palace, and forbade me from speaking too much."

The Empress Dowager's illness was a confidential matter. According to palace rules, only imperial physicians or officials could inform her after seeing her, depending on the situation. Having been in Ganquan Palace for many years, he would not have made such a basic mistake; otherwise, he would have been assassinated long ago.

Ok?

Good heavens, could it be that Lao Ai bribed Zhao Gao, and that Zhao Gao betrayed him and was setting a trap for him?

Cao Ze looked at the effeminate and sinister Zhao Gao with suspicion for a moment, and after thinking about it, he realized that this did not seem to be Zhao Gao's usual style.

However, there are some things that should not be ignored.

He wouldn't gamble with a woman's conscience or a eunuch's morality.

"Brother Zhao, if you don't explain yourself clearly, I won't go in."

Cao Ze feigned displeasure and made a move to leave.

Zhao Gao panicked and said, "Sir, please don't! Are you afraid that I will harm you? The Empress Dowager has been so kind to you, how could I dare to harm you?"

With his ability to read people's expressions, he could tell that Cao Ze was somewhat worried.

This puzzled him; in his view, Cao Ze had absolutely no reason to worry.

After all, this is Ganquan Palace, not Zhangtai Palace, and certainly not the Prime Minister's residence.

To put it bluntly, even if something were to happen to him at Ganquan Palace, Cao Ze would probably be fine.

As Zhao Ji's close attendant, he was well aware of how high Zhao Ji's status was in the Qin state.

Apart from Empress Dowager Huayang, who could slightly suppress Zhao Ji, no one else, not even herself, dared to displease her.

Not to mention that Empress Dowager Huayang is now very old and hardly cares about politics. She spends her days in seclusion in the palace, enjoying her remaining years. Zhao Ji can be said to be the true mistress of the harem.

Cao Ze narrowed his eyes slightly. "Brother Zhao, it's not that I'm worried you'll harm me, but your actions make me wonder. Could it be that you're hiding something from the Empress Dowager, or from me?"

It would be a miracle if he could trust a dead eunuch, especially one like Zhao Gao who is recorded in history books.

He wouldn't be so confident as to see through Zhao Gao; who knows if he was just pretending?

Zhao Gao was on the verge of tears. Everything was fine before, but today, just because of some palace taboos—that inner court officials must not reveal secrets of the inner palace to outer court officials, otherwise they would be executed—why did Cao Ze act as if he were facing a great enemy? This guy is too cautious, isn't he?

No wonder he was able to win over the Empress Dowager...

“Mr. Cao Ze, please don’t make things difficult for me. I’m just following the rules of the palace. There are some things that can’t be said outside. We need to talk about them when we get there.”

Zhao Gao said, "If you don't trust me, you can go see the Empress Dowager yourself, and I won't go."

Cao Ze frowned slightly. Was he overthinking things?

Seeing that Cao Ze did not move, Zhao Gao hesitated for a moment.

He hadn't considered that Cao Ze wouldn't go, so he didn't think much of it.

Now, as he considered the consequences of Cao Ze not intervening and his own actions in revealing the Empress Dowager's secrets, he suddenly realized that the former seemed to have a more serious fate. At least the latter wouldn't put his life in danger, but offending Cao Ze and the Empress Dowager meant that the future looked bleak...

Zhao Gao finally had no choice but to compromise, saying, "Sir, I will tell you, but you cannot tell anyone else, otherwise I will be punished with caning."

Cao Ze's expression turned serious. "Brother Zhao, rest assured, I'm always a person who keeps my mouth shut."

Zhao Gao paused for a moment. He had no choice but to gamble on Cao Ze's conscience.

He said, "The Empress Dowager is ill and has instructed me to bring you to the palace."

Cao Ze was slightly taken aback, not expecting this reason.

He asked in surprise, "I am neither an imperial physician nor a doctor. Why does the Empress Dowager need me if she is ill?"

Zhao Gao coughed lightly and shook his head: "I don't know either. The Empress Dowager gave the order, how dare I ask any more questions?"

Cao Ze pondered for a moment, and perhaps he was being too paranoid.

He pondered for a moment. If Lao Ai really knew him and wanted to harm him, he could escape the first day but not the fifteenth. It would be better to confront him directly.

If Lao Ai doesn't know him yet, and he hesitates and shrinks back, wouldn't all his previous efforts be in vain?

It wasn't easy for him to max out Zhao Ji's favorability. He was just short of finding an opportunity to transform Zhao Ji into his shape, making her a tool for controlling Lao Ai and sending Lü Buwei to his death, a contracted beast.

"Haha, please forgive me, Brother Zhao. I was just worried about the Empress Dowager."

Zhao Gao took a deep breath. What could he do? He could only forgive Cao Ze.

But why is he so annoying...?

Cao Ze remained fully vigilant as he entered the bedchamber with Zhao Gao.

He found nothing special around him except for the palace servants who were all show and no substance, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

He followed behind Zhao Gao, pondered for a moment, and decided that he could not delay any longer.

The persona of an honest and upright man has been used up to the point that Zhao Ji's favorability has been maxed out. It's time to transform into Prime Minister Cao, who possesses the spirit of the Jian'an era and the legacy of Wei Wu, to whip and conquer Zhao Ji and make her conform to his shape.

Cao Ze followed Zhao Gao into the inner room, and he was certain that this was not Zhao Ji's sleeping quarters.

Compared to Zhao Ji's usual simple bedroom, he felt that this inner room was more in line with Zhao Ji's previous pursuit of a luxurious style.

Inside stood a red lacquered screen, inlaid with patterns of fish, insects, flowers, and birds using jade and pearls. At each of the two corners hung a string of lotus pearl lanterns, the lamps themselves carved from white jade. When the light shone, the entire screen was incredibly magnificent.

Zhao Gao respectfully said through the screen, "Your Majesty, Mr. Cao Ze has arrived."

Soon, a seductive voice came from behind the screen: "Is that you, sir?"

Following palace etiquette, Cao Ze announced from outside the screen, "Your Majesty, I have arrived."

Mei Yu, behind the screen, became delighted. "Zhao Gao, you go out. Master, come here."

Zhao Gao did not hesitate; on the contrary, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't care what Cao Ze and the Empress Dowager were doing. As long as Cao Ze didn't get the Empress Dowager pregnant, he would just pretend he didn't see it and knew nothing about it.

After Zhao Gao heard this, he very considerately closed the door for Cao Ze and Zhao Ji, left the inner room, and sent the Six Sword Slaves to keep watch at the palace gate, while he guarded the gate outside the palace to prevent any accidents from happening.

Cao Ze paused for a moment, then walked from outside the screen to inside it.

The ground was covered with a carpet, the velvet in Zhao Ji's favorite bright red, like tall grass, almost covering Cao Ze's feet.

Only then did Cao Ze notice that the dim lighting in the room had an indescribable, alluring hue that stirred up desires in people's hearts, reflecting a large peony flower in the center of the carpet.

Cao Ze was subconsciously drawn to the bright red peony. The peony was surrounded by dense and lush petals, like red clouds and brocade, extremely beautiful and mesmerizing.

So fragrant...

Cao Ze took a deep sniff and noticed the tall bronze incense burner in the corner. Despite the hot summer, precious spices were still burning inside, filling the air with a wonderful fragrance. This made him feel a little restless, and his desire for something gradually intensified.

If Cao Ze still can't figure out what Zhao Ji is up to, he might as well ask Zhao Gao to be his colleague right now.

Zhao Ji walked barefoot on the bright red carpet, revealing a pair of exquisite, jade-like feet. She walked gracefully to Cao Ze's side, her waist swaying like a soft willow branch, captivating all who beheld her.

Cao Ze remained motionless, adhering strictly to his identity as an honest and upright person.

He knew Zhao Ji wanted to do something to him; otherwise, she wouldn't have gone to all this trouble to lure him here and set up the room in such an intimate way.

"Sir, sir, I am ill, I am very ill..."

Zhao Ji placed her delicate hand on Cao Ze's shoulder, her eyes filled with allure, and murmured softly.

"What's wrong with you? I think your drain is clogged..." Cao Ze thought to himself.

"Why doesn't Your Majesty summon the imperial physician instead of having me come? I know nothing about medicine. Your Majesty should have the imperial physician come to avoid delaying the treatment."

Cao Ze said in a very serious tone.

Zhao Ji chuckled. She liked Cao Ze's honest nature; it would be even better if he knew how to cherish women.

"No one in the world can cure my illness. Even if the head of a medical school came, it would be of no use. Only you, sir, can cure me, and only you can cure me."

Cao Ze feigned confusion, "What illness has the Empress Dowager contracted that requires my medical attention?"

Zhao Ji circled around Cao Ze, looking him over, and became more and more satisfied with him.