Wandering Sword Seller's Life in the Qin Dynasty

He first wrote on the wooden tablet, "Han Fei secretly communicated with the envoy of Han," then paused and added, "secretly conveyed the deployment of Qin's military forces," which was the crime of "colluding with the enemy" that the King of Qin hated most.

Then, recalling Han Fei's strong advice to the King of Qin in court to "attack Zhao and Chu first and postpone the attack on Han", he added, "By using the pretext of 'preserving Han', he actually intends to 'exhaust Qin' and drag down the Great Qin."

After writing it, he read it three times, but it still wasn't "conclusive" enough. So he found two fragments with old Korean seals and glued them to the corner of the wooden tablet to create the illusion of a "private correspondence".

To make the play more realistic, Li Si even specially found two minor officials who had been refuted by Han Fei.

Han Fei discussed Legalism with many people in the Qin state, but not everyone was convinced of his authority.

There were also some people who disliked Han Fei and even harbored resentment towards him.

Han Fei discovered that some minor officials were abusing their power for personal gain.

If it were Qin officials who discovered it, that would be fine.

As a result, Han Fei, a Korean, refuted them.

This made them very unhappy.

Li Si invited the two men to his home. After dismissing his attendants, he first offered them high-ranking positions and generous salaries. Seeing their hesitation, he then coldly produced the "evidence" he had prepared beforehand. It was evidence he had collected of these people's abuse of power and corruption, including two letters exchanged with merchants from other countries.

"Either follow me, testify against Han Fei, and you will rise to prominence in the future; or take this letter to the Court of Justice to confess your crimes."

The Qin laws were harsh; if one were to be punished by the Court of Justice, the consequences would certainly not be good.

Under duress and bribery, the two minor officials trembled with fear and immediately agreed.

Meanwhile, Changping Jun was also busy.

He secretly ordered people to spread the news that "Han Fei was secretly colluding with the State of Han" on the streets of Xianyang. He also deliberately mentioned in the court that "the State of Han has been making frequent unusual moves recently," which aroused a lot of discussion among the officials. After the public opinion had fermented enough, Li Si presented the wooden tablet with "conclusive evidence" to Ying Zheng in the morning court.

When Ying Zheng unfolded the wooden tablet, his fingertips still carried the chill of the morning air, but the further he read, the more somber his expression became.

When he saw the line "Secretly conveying the Qin state's troop deployment," he slammed the wooden tablet onto the table with a dull thud, startling all the civil and military officials in the hall into kneeling and kowtowing.

"What a Han Fei!" Ying Zheng's voice was filled with anger, tinged with the chilling rage of gritted teeth. "I respect his talent and have treated him well, yet he secretly colludes with the enemy and plots against Qin!"

Li Si knelt at the front, his head bowed low, but a barely perceptible smile lingered at the corner of his mouth.

He spoke at the opportune moment, his voice filled with remorse: "Your Majesty, I have long suspected Han Fei of something amiss, and have tried to persuade him to no avail. Now that the evidence is conclusive, I beg Your Majesty to punish him severely as a warning to others!"

Lord Changping also stood up, his tone seemingly fair but actually adding fuel to the fire: "Your Majesty, Han Fei, as a member of the royal family of Han, ultimately has his heart set on his homeland. Keeping him in Xianyang may cause further trouble. It would be better to imprison him in the imperial prison and thoroughly investigate this matter."

Blinded by rage and swayed by the two men's coordinated words, Ying Zheng slammed his fist on the table and declared, "Issue my decree: imprison Han Fei in the Imperial Prison of the Court of Justice, place him under strict guard, and punish him according to the law after the matter is thoroughly investigated!"

When the imperial decree was issued, Han Fei was at his residence continuing to ponder how to save Han. Originally, he wanted to persuade Ying Zheng through a memorial in court, but Li Si stepped forward, making Ying Zheng hesitate again.

Han Fei knew that after their meeting and conversation that day, he and Li Si had completely parted ways and were now enemies.

However, he was not afraid. In the past, he had many rivals in Korea, such as Ji Wuye and Bai Yifei, but in the end, they all became skeletons in a tomb.

In the Qin state, he has now barely managed to establish a foothold. The laws of Qin are more severe and stricter than those of Han.

In this level playing field, he was confident that he had no rivals.

Han Fei was still looking for other ways to persuade Ying Zheng, hoping to give Han a chance to survive.

Unfortunately, Han Fei ultimately underestimated some things. The law is just, but people's hearts are base. No matter how ruthless the law is, it can never withstand the even colder hearts of others.

With a loud bang!

Han Fei's door was kicked open, and immediately the guards from the Court of Justice broke in. The cold chains clattered around his wrists, and the rust on the chains grazed his skin, leaving a glaring red mark.

Han Fei seemed somewhat taken aback by this scene.

Why are you arresting me?

He didn't struggle, but asked in a deep voice, wanting an explanation.

The head guard remained expressionless, coldly stating, "By order of the King, Han Fei has been found guilty of treason and has been imprisoned in the Imperial Prison awaiting trial!"

"Treason and collusion with the enemy?" Han Fei was stunned, then smiled bitterly.

Is it possible that the Qin court simply cannot tolerate a "Korean" like him?

However, he unusually did not refute the reason given by the guard.

Simply because he did have many ulterior motives.

Some things cannot withstand scrutiny.

In his heart, Han was the most important, and Qin was not important. For the sake of Han, he truly did not care about the interests of Qin.

……

The Yunyang Prison where Han Fei was imprisoned was located in Yunyang County, north of Xianyang, about fifty or sixty kilometers away from Xianyang, which was not far.

It was cold and damp here, the walls were covered with moss, and the air was filled with the smell of rust and mildew. The cell door was a heavy iron door with thick iron bars welded on it. Through the iron bars, you could see the narrow courtyard outside, which contained only a small patch of sky, gray and hazy, like a dirty cloth.

Han Fei sat on the cold straw, his back against the wall.

He thought of Shang Yang, the man who single-handedly created the Qin laws, who ultimately died under the very laws he created and was even torn apart by chariots after his death. It is said that Shang Yang was once imprisoned in this very jail.

Now, he is also imprisoned in this prison, not knowing what fate awaits him.

He began to analyze his situation. In the court, each piece of so-called evidence was like a rope, binding him tightly. Even though he knew that some of the evidence was fabricated, the forger seemed to have grasped his desire to preserve the Han dynasty, making it difficult for him to refute it even though he knew it was fake.

This is a completely open and aboveboard conspiracy.

It was precisely because conspiracies were easy to unravel while open schemes were difficult to break that Han Fei knew that it would be as difficult as ascending to heaven for him to escape punishment.

Just as he was deep in thought, footsteps came from outside the cell, growing closer and closer until they finally stopped in front of his cell.

He looked up and saw a familiar figure—Li Si.

Li Si was dressed in a dark court robe with jade ornaments at his waist, which was out of place in the dilapidated prison.

He stood outside the iron bars, looking at Han Fei with a complicated expression. "Senior brother is quite magnanimous. Even in this situation, you remain calm. Do you really think you can get out?"

Han Fei looked at him calmly, his voice without a trace of emotion: "The innocent are innocent. If I am truly innocent, I believe that the laws of Qin will give me justice."

"Is that what you think, senior brother?" Li Si's lips curled into a strange smile. He leaned down, close to the iron bars, and lowered his voice, "Even at this point, you still believe in the so-called law. But senior brother, don't forget that you are a Han Chinese. When you harbor thoughts of protecting Han while harming the interests of Qin, the laws of Qin will not offer you any protection."

Han Fei remained silent, knowing that Li Si was telling the truth.

In the legal system of Qin, "loyalty to the ruler" was paramount, but his "loyalty" was never to Ying Zheng or to Qin, but to Han.

From the moment he stepped into Xianyang, his fate was sealed.

"Junior brother, do you have any wine?" Han Fei suddenly asked, his voice tinged with weariness.

He was a seasoned alcoholic. Even in the toughest times in South Korea, he would always find a way to get a bottle of alcohol. But since he was imprisoned here, he hadn't had a drink at all. Now, he suddenly had a craving for it.

Li Si shook his head, his tone tinged with helplessness: "Those who come to visit the prisoners here are forbidden from bringing anything. That is to prevent anyone from intending to harm the prisoners here."

Upon hearing this, Han Fei sighed softly, a look of utter boredom appearing on his face.

He leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and stopped talking.

Li Si looked at him, remained silent for a moment, and then suddenly asked, "Senior brother, do you regret it? If you had given up on Han from the beginning, you probably wouldn't have ended up like this. With your talent, you would definitely have been highly valued in Qin, and you might even have been able to assist the King in unifying the world and leaving your name in history."

Han Fei opened his eyes and looked at Li Si with a firm gaze: "I have no regrets. Han is my home, my country. I was born a Han, and I will die a Han. Even if I am shattered to pieces, I will never abandon Han."

“I understand.” Li Si sighed, a hint of regret on his face. “Originally, I wanted to try to help my senior brother and see if I could help you get off the hook, but now, there’s no need for that anymore.”

"Will you really help me get away with this?" Han Fei looked at Li Si, a cold smile on his lips. "Isn't my current predicament your doing, Junior Brother? All that so-called evidence, all those people who accused me, and all the rumors circulating in Xianyang—weren't they all meticulously planned by you?"

Li Si's face instantly turned ugly; he hadn't expected Han Fei to expose him so directly.

He opened his mouth as if to explain, but in the end he said nothing and simply turned and left.

Watching Li Si's departing figure, Han Fei gently closed his eyes.

As fellow disciples, we've ultimately come to this.

After an unknown amount of time, footsteps could be heard again outside the cell.

This time, the footsteps were very light, like a cat's, silently approaching the cell.

Han Fei looked up and saw a woman in a purple dress—Yan Fei, the Eastern Lord of the Yin-Yang School.

Yan Fei stood outside the iron railing, her figure graceful and her temperament aloof.

She looked at Han Fei with no sympathy or mockery in her eyes, only calmness.

"Are you here to kick someone when they're down too?" Han Fei's sneer remained. He knew that the Yin Yang School had intricate connections with the Qin State, and Yan Fei's arrival at this time was probably not for anything good.

"I'm here to give you a way out." Yan Fei's voice was soft, but it carried an undeniable power. "Now, in all the world, only our Yin Yang School can save you. As long as you are willing to join us, I can take you away from here immediately and ensure your life is safe."

Upon hearing this, Han Fei couldn't help but laugh, his laughter tinged with self-mockery: "The Yin-Yang School is indeed merciful, bringing me hope when I was at my lowest point."

Yan Fei said calmly, "You are a very talented person. It would be a real pity if you died like this. But you must also understand that this is your only chance. If you miss it, you will only be able to wait for death to come to you in this prison."

Han Fei looked at Yan Fei, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes.

If he could, he certainly wouldn't want to die.

However, is the Yin-Yang School really a good choice?

Just as Han Fei was pondering, his voice rang out again.

What's your decision?

"Know that you only get one chance."

……

One month later, in Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi.

Xu Qing sat in his study, holding an urgent report from the Qin state.

Sunlight streamed through the window lattice, falling on the urgent report and revealing the words "Han Fei died in Yunyang Prison".

"Han Fei is dead." Xu Qing sighed softly, his voice full of emotion.

He and Han Fei had traveled together and could be considered friends, and he had even promised to give Han Fei a sword.

Unfortunately, this project was never completed.

When he went to South Korea for the second time, he didn't even get to meet Han Fei.

He knew beforehand that Han Fei had entered Qin as an envoy, and he felt that Han Fei was likely to meet with bad luck.

Unexpectedly, Han Fei ultimately met his doom, just like his fate in history.

"If I were in Qin, perhaps I could have helped you," Xu Qing murmured to himself, then shook his head.

"Pity!"