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

Cao Ze casually replied, "No need, my donkey cart is pretty good, it can last for thousands of miles."

Zhao Gao gave a wry smile, "These donkey carts are everywhere in the marketplace, how can we..."

Cao Ze narrowed his eyes slightly, "What is the value of Lord Zhao's carriage?"

Zhao Gao could tell that Cao Ze's tone had changed. He said casually, "For transportation within the palace, it doesn't need to be anything fancy, just fifty gold coins. In my opinion, only a carriage like this is worthy of you, sir."

In the end, Zhao Gao skillfully flattered Cao Ze.

Cao Ze chuckled and said, "Only fifty gold coins... Brother Zhao, do you know how much my donkey cart is worth?"

Zhao Gao looked at Cao Ze's donkey cart. Apart from being larger and well-made, there was nothing particularly special about it.

"...Two gold medals?"

Zhao Gao hesitated before speaking.

In the marketplace, even the best donkey is worth at most one gold coin, and with this decent carriage, it's worth at most two gold coins, no more than that.

Cao Ze chuckled and said, "You're wrong. I spent a hundred gold coins to have a master mechanic from outside the Great Wall personally craft it."

"A hundred gold pieces? A master mechanic?"

Zhao Gao was shocked.

He found it hard to imagine that a master mechanic would come out and build a donkey cart.

In the entire city of Xianyang, no, in the entire Qin state, there was only one master mechanic.

Gongshu Chou, the head of the Gongshu family, is currently in the Qin state's armory.

Aside from Gongshu Chou, the only known master of mechanisms in the entire martial arts world, as far as he knew, was the late Master Lu of the Mohist school, now the Six-Fingered Black Knight, the leader of the Mohist school.

Such a person would never build a donkey cart just for money.

"What, Brother Zhao, you don't believe me? Then come up and take a look."

Cao Ze raised his whip and pointed at the carriage.

Zhao Gao was somewhat embarrassed and laughed, "I trust you, sir, so I won't go up."

He didn't think Cao Ze was lying to him; there was no need for it.

Cao Ze said nonchalantly, "Then Brother Zhao, hurry up and ride to Ganquan Palace, lest the Empress Dowager wait impatiently."

To be honest, if Zhao Ji weren't Ying Zheng's mother, he would find her very appealing and wouldn't mind having sex with her multiple times.

But given the current situation, he had no choice but to appease Zhao Ji and prevent her from causing any major incidents.

Upon arriving at Ganquan Palace, before Cao Ze could even dismount, Zhao Gao called out, "Sir, you need not dismount. The Empress Dowager has said that you may now travel directly within the palace grounds."

After listening, Cao Ze didn't mince words.

Ganquan Palace was neither particularly large nor small, covering nearly a million square meters, making it considerably larger than the Forbidden City that followed.

The reason for this is that the level of construction and government systems in the Warring States period was far inferior to that of the Ming Dynasty.

Many of the main halls need to be repaired every eight to ten years, or they are abandoned and rebuilt elsewhere.

Moreover, not only are many places inside the palace empty, but each building also has a large character prominently displayed.

As a result, the distance between the palaces was quite far, and the roads and squares were very spacious, easily accommodating tens of thousands of soldiers.

Cao Ze drove the donkey cart all the way to the front of the palace, and Zhao Gao took the initiative to help Cao Ze settle the donkey cart.

Seeing Cao Ze enter the sleeping quarters, he subconsciously leaned closer to the carriage to take a look.

It wasn't that he didn't believe Cao Ze's carriage was made by a master mechanic; he just wanted to see what a carriage made by a master mechanic was like.

The materials used in the carriage were nothing special; the interior was simply covered with carpet, and it looked ordinary and unremarkable.

But with his keen eyesight, he naturally noticed the unusual features inside the carriage. Like the mechanical beast he had seen at the Gongshu family's place, it had unique mechanical patterns, and its level of mechanical design was far superior to that of his own carriage.

Before Zhao Gao could see clearly, the donkey brayed at him.

Zhao Gao fanned himself repeatedly and muttered, "filthy things."

It was only because this was Cao Ze's donkey that he sent it to the Mo family's stronghold in Xianyang. If it were any other donkey, he would have delivered it to the Mo family's stronghold long ago.

I heard that the Mo family's inn has developed a new dish called donkey meat sandwich, which is made with donkey meat.

Inside the bedchamber, Cao Ze easily found his way to the place where he was supposed to talk to Zhao Ji.

Just like last time, there was a bright red carpet and an ambiguous lighting atmosphere.

It's just that without that alluring incense, it lacks a bit of romance.

This is Cao Ze's opinion.

"Is that you, sir?"

Hearing the commotion, Zhao Ji couldn't help but ask.

Cao Ze, standing behind the screen, said respectfully, "It is your subject."

Zhao Ji came out impatiently and, upon seeing Cao Ze, exclaimed happily, "Sir, you've finally arrived!"

"Are you satisfied with the official position I have arranged for you, sir?"

"……satisfy."

"I'm glad you're satisfied," Zhao Ji smiled, her moist phoenix eyes crinkling. She linked her jade-like arms with Cao Ze's, her breath sweet as orchids, and said, "Let's not talk about this now, come in quickly."

Cao Ze knew it was time to clock in and get to his daily work.

……

Chapter 401 Increase the Dosage

In the richly decorated and exquisitely furnished interior, two illusory figures tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

After a long while, all sounds fell silent.

Zhao Ji was satisfied, her body glistening with fragrant sweat.

A faint fragrance, tinged with the scent of a woman's sweat, drifted into Cao Ze's nostrils.

Cao Ze didn't know what the legendary ten most famous treasures were, nor did he know if Zhao Ji's fragrant, sweaty physique could be ranked among them.

But it doesn't matter, he's really comfortable now.

Zhao Ji rested one hand on Cao Ze's chest, her eyes glistening with tears as she looked at the handsome and dashing Cao Ze, while her other hand couldn't help but caress the strong pectoral muscles on Cao Ze's chest.

Just like the martial spirit of the Warring States period, women often preferred tall, strong, and masculine men.

If the brothers of later generations came to the Warring States period, they would definitely be looked down upon by women for being useless; a man should act like a man.

Cao Ze was already tall, even a little taller than his brother-in-law Han Fei. In addition, his frequent travels to various countries in the Seven Kingdoms had changed his previous demeanor, giving him the true nature of a valiant and unyielding man...

"My lord is so wonderful, how could I bear to be without him by my side in the future..."

Zhao Ji felt both satisfied and sorrowful.

She longed to return to her youthful days of sixteen, to spend every day with Cao Ze.

No queen or empress dowager could compare to a moment of pleasure with Cao Ze.

Cao Ze didn't even need to think straight; dealing with Zhao Ji was a piece of cake for him.

"Your Majesty need not worry. I am already a scholar in the palace and will be able to see Your Majesty regularly."

"Hehe..." Zhao Ji laughed charmingly.

Cao Ze said he was worried that his daily visits to Ganquan Palace would cause trouble, so she naturally couldn't let Cao Ze be bothered and delay their love.

Therefore, she personally went to Zheng'er to ask Cao Ze for a position so that he could stay in her palace and diligently help her.

"Sir, have you finished those pills? Would you like some more from me?"

Cao Ze's heart skipped a beat. "I've finished eating it. The Empress Dowager's medicine is really good. Where did it come from?"

He hadn't had much hope.

Since ancient times, this thing has either been useless or it has depleted the body's vital energy.

Many emperors in history died from eating meatballs, and various urban legends about it still exist today.

But not long ago, he saw the bottles of pills that Zhao Ji had given him. Since he was going to challenge Yan Lingji and Li Wu at night, he simply took one.

That night, the Overlord Spear was wielded with incredible skill and power.

Of course, that's not important. What's important is that he discovered the elixir truly nourished his body. Keep in mind, his physique was already quite strong.

No wonder Zhao Ji said this medicine has the effect of strengthening the body.

Considering that this was neither modern nor historical, he took note.

As Zhao Ji put on her close-fitting, light red silk bodice, she said, "The Yin-Yang School has sent quite a few to the palace, and Zheng'er sent me some."

"The medicine is on the wooden shelf in the next room. I will personally get the medicine for you, sir."

She excitedly put on a reddish-brown coat that was as thin as a cicada's wing.

It wasn't fastened properly; it was loosely half-open, and that's how it got off the bed.

A patch of snow-white skin was revealed.

Zhao Ji walked barefoot on the carpet to the next room to get the medicine.

Cao Zegang stretched lazily, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw two fair and slender legs swinging towards him.

His gaze shifted slightly downwards, landing on Zhao Ji's delicate jade feet, her toes round and round like jade beads, and the red nail polish on her toenails, against the warm and ambiguous hues of the room, exuded an alluring and bewitching charm.

"Hehe, sir, please take this."

"Oh, by the way, this medicine cannot be taken too often, one pill every three days, sir, please remember that."

Cao Ze looked at Zhao Ji, whose flowers were in full bloom; a woman who had been moistened with water had a unique radiance.

"I will not forget what the Empress Dowager said."

Zhao Ji smiled with satisfaction. She glanced at the sky; it was almost dusk.

Thinking that Cao Ze always took the initiative to resign, she felt both reluctant and melancholy.

Zhao Ji couldn't help but speak up, "It's getting late, sir, you should leave the palace."