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

So annoying!

Cao Ze coughed lightly and said, "I'm going out for a bit. You wait here for me. I'll buy you some oranges when I get back."

He had no doubt that, given Tian Mitian's shameless moans last night, unless Yan Fei was deaf, she couldn't possibly have been fooled.

Great!

Yanfei watched helplessly as Cao Ze led a dozen or so Qin soldiers away.

I almost ground my teeth to powder.

I'm even angrier!

Damn junior sister!

It's all your fault!

If other senior female students saw you, they would definitely beat you down and hang you on a tree to swing on!

When Cao Ze arrived at the government office, Li Si was already waiting for him.

"My lord, Zheng Guo will be back at the yamen in a little while."

Cao Ze gave a faint "hmm" and said, "Find me a room, I'm going to sleep for a while."

Tian Mi was really energetic; he was up all night and needed to catch up on his beauty sleep.

Seeing Cao Ze's somewhat excessive indulgence, Li Si couldn't help but feel worried.

With so many women around Cao Ze, if he doesn't know how to control himself and ends up dying on a woman's belly, Cao Ze will become a laughing stock, and he will become a laughing stock too.

Li Si didn't know how to bring it up, so he could only arrange a room for Cao Ze in the yamen.

After he left, he thought to himself, since Cao Ze is so fond of beautiful women, if he could find one or two to present to Cao Ze, wouldn't he be able to be given important positions, get rid of his suffering sooner, and put his knowledge to use in the court?

But the women around Cao Ze are all stunningly beautiful; where am I supposed to find such beauties...?

Li Si was somewhat troubled. He had finally found a path, only to discover that it was difficult to follow. This was a bitter pill to swallow...

Hmm? Li Si's eyes lit up; it seemed there was such a stunning woman.

He couldn't help but rub his hands together.

If Cao Ze could marry the daughter of Lord Changping, wouldn't he be able to rise to prominence overnight?

but……

Li Si fell into deep thought again.

A prime minister and an imperial censor—if their families were to form a marriage alliance, wouldn't that be a sensitive matter? If he were the King of Qin, he would certainly be wary…

The brightness in Li Si's eyes gradually dimmed.

What a sin!

If only Cao Ze were just a nobleman...

Before long, a short while had passed.

Zheng Guo arrived at the government office surrounded by dozens of Qin soldiers.

Li Si ran and walked to the back office to call Cao Ze.

"My lord, the people of Zheng have returned."

Cao Ze rolled over and yawned.

He pushed open the door and casually tested Li Si, saying, "Have you figured out what reason to use to lock up Zheng Guo first?"

Li Si said, "I've already thought it through."

"Zheng Guo is involved in the Qian family's disaster relief case, so it's not a problem to detain him for a while."

Cao Ze narrowed his eyes and said, "How about we send Zheng Guo to Xianyang to be held in custody?"

Li Si was taken aback and said in confusion, "Zheng Guo was a key figure in the construction of the Zheng Guo Canal. If he is away for too long, the construction of the Zheng Guo Canal will definitely be affected, and then the king will blame him..."

Throughout the Qin state, even the Prime Minister, Lord Changping, would not risk halting the Zheng Guo Canal project by taking action against Zheng Guo, unless a concrete crime was found against Zheng Guo, such as colluding with foreign powers.

Cao Ze said, "It won't have any impact; someone will help us."

Li Si suddenly realized, "Those farmers?"

What puzzled him was the true meaning behind Cao Ze's actions.

Was it a secret conspiracy with Lord Changping to steal the credit for the completion of the Zheng Guo Canal, or something else...?

Chapter 454 Conflicts, Sabotage, and the Life's Little Secretary

"Snapped!"

Cao Ze slammed his gavel and demanded, "Who is there in the hall?!"

He glanced at the Qin soldiers with swords at their sides and sighed inwardly, realizing that the lack of "majesty..." really created a sense of emptiness.

Fortunately, I had Li Si, my advisor, by my side; otherwise, the sense of immersion would have been too poor.

Zheng Guo was tall and strong, with a square face that gave him a very upright appearance.

He said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "This humble citizen, Zheng Guo, greets Your Excellency, the Imperial Censor."

Cao Ze became interested and asked, "Zheng Guo, do you know why I'm investigating you today?"

Zheng Guo honestly replied, "It is said that someone said I have dealings with the Qian family of Jingyang."

Cao Ze asked, "Is it true?"

Zheng Guodao: "Yes and no."

"Due to the drought in Guanzhong, there was a shortage of money and food in various places, which led to a lack of food for the laborers working on the river canals. The common people had no choice but to go to the Qian family, hoping to borrow some money and food to get through the crisis."

Cao Ze neither confirmed nor denied it, saying, "So you mean there has been some contact?"

"……Yes."

Do you know what crime the Qian family committed?

The state of Zheng remained silent.

Cao Ze suddenly shouted, "This is a heinous crime involving the confiscation of property and the extermination of the entire clan! Anyone connected to this must die!"

The sudden change startled everyone in the hall.

Meng Wu, in particular, stared at Cao Ze in astonishment.

Could it be that Cao Ze had some grudge against the State of Zheng?

Zheng Guo remained silent for a long time, then looked up at Cao Ze and said, "This humble subject has nothing to say, but will leave it to Cao Ze to decide."

A commotion broke out outside the hall as a group of laborers who had followed Zheng Guo back to Jingyang began to protest on Zheng Guo's behalf.

Cao Ze gave Li Si a wink.

Li Si immediately shouted, "Anyone who dares to make a sound again will be considered an accomplice!"

Zheng Guo anxiously addressed the laborers outside the hall: "Gentlemen, do not worry! I believe the magistrate will deliver justice!"

He didn't believe the second half of the sentence in his heart, but in order not to implicate innocent people, he had no choice but to say it against his will.

"Snapped!"

Cao Ze patted the gavel again.

"Silence!"

"Zheng Guo, you are of great importance in this case. Starting today, you will return to Xianyang with me to confront the Qian family in court. Do you have any objections?"

Zheng Guowei sighed and said, "This humble subject has no objection; I leave the decision to you, sir."

Meng Wu was shocked to hear this. Zheng Guo went to Xianyang. Even if he was released without incident, the round trip would take at least ten days to half a month, or even several months. Wouldn't that mean the Zheng Guo Canal would have to be shut down?

Delaying the construction of the Zheng Guo Canal, which is crucial to the fate of the nation, is not a major crime, but it is definitely a serious flaw in an official's conduct.

Considering that Cao Ze was a good friend of Meng Tian, ​​he couldn't help but step forward to advise him: "Nephew, why not investigate Zheng State in Jingyang? That way, it won't delay the construction of the canal. What do you think?"

He emphasized the words "repair the canal" to remind Cao Ze.

Cao Ze smiled and said, "Uncle Meng, don't worry. It's just a matter of Zheng Guo going through the formalities in Xianyang. If there's nothing wrong, he'll be back in Jingyang soon. It won't take long."

He knew in his heart that as long as Zheng Guo arrived in Xianyang, Lord Changping would help him find ways to keep Zheng Guo there until the peasants replaced Zheng Guo.

Meng Wu hesitated for a moment, but seeing that Cao Ze had made up his mind, he sighed and said, "Fine, do as you please."

As a military captain, he was not supposed to interfere with Cao Ze's handling of the case, and he had already violated military discipline just now.

"Snapped!"

Cao Ze slammed the gavel again; it's quite addictive to slam it so often.

"Retire!"

……

Outside Jingyang City.

Cao Ze did not stay in Jingyang and declined Meng Wu's offer to stay.

"Uncle Meng, I've noticed that quite a few foreigners have come to Jingyang recently. Keep an eye on them."

Cao Ze offered a pointed reminder.

Meng Wu was slightly taken aback. "Foreigners? Another spy?"

Jingyang had already been taken over by the military. He thought back for a while but couldn't recall how many foreigners had entered...

Ok?

Meng Wu suddenly remembered that yesterday a farmer had come to him with a letter from Lord Changping, asking him to arrange a place to settle the farmer.

Could Cao Ze be referring to these farmers?

Meng Wu replied calmly, "Alright, I'll keep an eye on it."

Cao Ze raised his whip. "Let's go, Uncle Meng. Come to Xianyang for a drink sometime."

Meng Wu smiled as he bid farewell to Cao Ze, but a sense of unease crept into his heart.