Wandering Sword Seller's Life in the Qin Dynasty

Would Huang Xie abandon him? Li Yuan had no doubt!

Therefore, even if one does not seek to initiate an attack, it is essential to be fully prepared.

It was common knowledge that the King of Chu was gravely ill, and the fate of Wu Qi in Chu was still fresh in everyone's mind. Huang Xie held immense power in the court? With the King's death, his fate would likely be even worse than Wu Qi's. Although the new king was born to the Queen, once the Queen's affair with Huang Xie became known to the world… who could predict how the situation would unfold?

Li Yuan was completely different from Huang Xie. While Huang Xie might have been content with power, Li Yuan, as a merchant who had risen from the bottom of the Zhao state, was far more greedy and ambitious.

He wants the power he has now!

He wanted even greater power!

When necessary, he would not hesitate to commit treasonous acts to protect that earth-shattering secret.

Through his sister Li Yan's secret letter, he confirmed that the King of Chu's health... was nearing its end.

This news is related to the Xuanpu Sword.

Li Yuan had presented this sword to Huang Xie, but Huang Xie secretly embezzled it and did not present it to the King of Chu. Outsiders were unaware of this matter, but how could it be kept from Li Yuan? So he cleverly used Li Yan to "inadvertently" reveal it to the King of Chu.

Upon hearing this, the King of Chu was filled with shock and anger, and immediately became extremely anxious.

Because of his poor health, he was unable to govern and was sidelined for many years, enduring Huang Xie's autocracy. All he sought was a sliver of hope, but unexpectedly, this hope was ruthlessly extinguished by the magistrate he relied on most.

What are Huang Xie's intentions? Does he perhaps wish for my hasty death?

In his anger and frustration, the King of Chu's condition suddenly worsened...

This also made Li Yuan feel a sense of urgency.

However, he didn't panic.

After all, we've been preparing for many years, and we've done almost everything we needed to.

Now, everything is ready.

The assassins, whom Li Yuan had been training for years, were already sharpening their knives. His younger sister, Li Yan, lived deep within the palace and could serve as an inside agent. Taking advantage of her position, Li Yuan had even planted spies within the palace. Now, he had acquired two more powerful weapons: "Lie Xing" and "Bo Qiang."

Favorable timing, advantageous location, and harmonious relationships...

Looking at the sword box, now empty after the assassins took the sword, Li Yuan's eyes gleamed with ambition and a barely perceptible tremor.

Once the new emperor ascends the throne, Li Yuan will surely reach the pinnacle of power.

Several more days passed.

That night.

Above Shouchun City, the dull, mountain-like tolling of a funeral bell tore through the sky without warning.

The shockwaves reverberated throughout the entire capital city.

Immediately afterwards, a mournful and drawn-out announcement came from the direction of the palace gate:

"—The King has fallen!!!"

……

The crimson dawn pierced through the clouds, but could not dispel the heavy, leaden pressure that weighed down the city of Shouchun.

On the new day, no one discussed famous swords anymore, and few cared about anything else.

Last night, the death knell that tore through the sky announced the passing of the King of Chu. At that moment, all the admiration, covetousness, and clamor surrounding the famous sword evaporated like morning dew meeting the sun.

The monstrous waves of royal succession instantly swallowed up all the ripples and foams that had nothing to do with it.

The death of the King of Chu was a bolt from the blue for ordinary people, but for the imperial court, it was nothing more than a foreseeable end.

That frail body on the sickbed was like a candle flickering in the wind, only waiting to be extinguished.

It was precisely because of this that, amidst the shock and fear, the preparations for the funeral took on an unusual and chillingly orderly manner.

Ling Yin Huang Xie, dressed in plain hemp clothing, could not hide the weariness of his busy life among his hair and beard. His figure hurriedly moved among the palaces with their white banners and curtains, as if driven by an invisible whip. The heavy burden of the nation's mourning weighed heavily on his shoulders.

Funeral regulations, the number of sacrificial offerings, notifications to feudal lords... countless intricate and detailed matters all required his personal approval.

He led a group of important officials of the Chu state on a long and arduous journey. Amidst the mournful white mourning clothes, his figure stood out conspicuously, yet also appeared exceptionally lonely.

Despite his exhaustion, a barely perceptible burning passion lurked deep in his eyes. The King of Chu, who had long been disloyal, was finally dead. Only when a new ruler ascended the throne would Huang Xie once again firmly grasp the reins of power and truly continue the glory of his authority.

However, this fervent vision must first give way to the grand and glorious funeral that is before us.

Because he devoted all his attention to the solemn and complex "rites" of the outer court, the "power" of life and death in the inner court quietly fell away, like a slipped jade ring.

Deep within the palace, the curtains cast shadows.

Queen Li Yan, the newly widowed Empress, is using grief as a veil to silently mobilize troops with iron will.

In just a few days, the royal guards, like pieces on a chessboard, were moved and replaced by an invisible hand. Loyal veterans and soldiers were transferred away from the palace fortress under the guise of "guarding the coffin" and "patrolling the mausoleum." Meanwhile, the assassins and their trusted henchmen secretly raised by Li Yuan, like a poisonous underground river, quietly seeped into every crevice of the palace.

In the shadows of the corridor corner, behind the deep doorway of the thorny gate, and even within the pale white curtains hanging low in the mourning hall... the murderous intent was carefully concealed beneath the solemn and dignified funeral rites, like a poisoned jade hairpin, its cold light concealed, quietly awaiting the prey that was destined to step into the trap.

Chapter 106: It began with the sword, and it ended with the sword!

"Brother, what... what exactly happened?"

"What kind of year is this?!"

"Why did these once majestic and powerful monarchs die one after another?"

Inside the Qianlong Hall, due to the recent death of the King of Chu, the gates were temporarily closed, and business was also made way for the mourning period.

Although it resulted in a loss of income, there was nothing that could be done.

Situ Wanli didn't seem to mind too much.

After all, Li Yuan had secretly purchased two famous swords for a price far exceeding his bottom line, which made him a fortune.

Right now, he's merely expressing some sentiments as an observer.

Back in South Korea, when the King of Han suddenly passed away, the whole country was in turmoil. At that time, they had also quietly swallowed up the vast wealth of Jade Tiger, and to avoid trouble, they had no choice but to hastily leave South Korea.

Unexpectedly, not long after they settled in the State of Chu, the King of Chu passed away.

Situ Wanli couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that this group of people are some kind of harbinger of disaster? Wherever they go, will the king of that country die?

But he quickly dismissed the thought and chuckled to himself.

What a coincidence!

Moreover, they had not offended any powerful figures in the State of Chu.

The death of the King of Chu could not possibly implicate them.

"The death of the King of Han may have been an accident, but the death of the King of Chu..." Xu Qing's voice was calm, but there was an indescribable subtlety in his tone, "because he was already exhausted and his time was up."

He paused, then changed the subject, his tone carrying a sense of anticipation: "If nothing unexpected happens, the Chu court is likely to descend into chaos."

"Surely not?" Situ Wanli looked surprised and shook his head repeatedly. "Isn't everything normal right now? Prime Minister Huang Xie has handled the King of Chu's funeral in an orderly manner. Besides, Chu is not like Han back then. The crown prince is safe and sound. Once the grand funeral is over and the new king ascends the throne, what trouble could possibly arise?"

He has a different opinion on this.

Xu Qing remained silent and said nothing more.

……

Time flies, and half a month has passed since the death of the King of Chu.

The coffin of the King of Chu is still enshrined in the palace and has not yet been buried.

The king's funeral was naturally extremely complicated. In addition to the worship and condolences of his own subjects, he also had to wait for envoys from other countries to come and pay their respects. Only when everything was in place could he be buried peacefully.

The good news is that after many days of hard work, Magistrate Huang Xie was finally able to catch his breath.

He finally had some free time and personally went to the palace to pay tribute to the deceased monarch.

Even in his final years, when the alliance against Qin failed and the King of Chu blamed him for everything, resentment grew and he repeatedly tried to strip him of his power. However, he took advantage of the King of Chu's serious illness to turn the tables and sideline him... The two had long since become estranged.

But setting aside the grudges of those last few years, he and the King of Chu once shared a deep friendship.

After all, it was he who personally traveled to the Qin state to escort the King of Chu back to his country and inherit the throne.

The deep friendship and mutual support they had forged in their early years resurfaced in Huang Xie's heart with the passing of the monarch.

Huang Xie sat upright in the carriage and slowly drove to the majestic palace gate.

Looking at the towering gate, for some reason, he suddenly remembered the advice that a retainer named "Zhu Ying" had once given him.

Like Lord Xinling and other nobles, Lord Chunshen Huang Xie also kept a large number of retainers for his own use.

Li Yuan was once one of his retainers, and is now the most successful of his retainers.

After Li Yuan became the brother-in-law of the King of Chu, Zhu Ying advised Huang Xie to be wary of him. When the King of Chu was seriously ill and about to die, Zhu Ying once again advised him, asserting that Li Yuan harbored treacherous intentions and intended to harm him.

However, Huang Xie was busy with the affairs of the royal funeral and was exhausted. He had no time to pay attention to Zhu Ying's incessant chatter. He impatiently waved his sleeve and scolded, "Li Yuan is a coward by nature. He always obeys my orders. How dare he disobey me in the slightest? You are overthinking it!"

His trust in Li Yuan was deeply ingrained, and he dismissed Zhu Ying's concerns as mere alarmism.

Unexpectedly, Zhu Ying disappeared without a trace afterward, fleeing Shouchun in a panic, as if a great disaster was about to befall her.

This action only made Huang Xie despise him even more, concluding that he was nothing more than a cowardly, incompetent, and timid person.

At this moment, Huang Xie's thoughts remained unchanged; he firmly believed that Li Yuan had neither the courage nor the ability to lay a hand on him.

So he straightened his clothes, raised his head and strode forward, ready to enter the palace.

According to regulations, the palace guards asked him to remove his sword.

This rule was a bloody lesson learned by the Chu state. In the past, many nobles openly murdered Wu Qi in front of the royal spirit tablet and even desecrated the king's corpse. Since then, no one is allowed to carry weapons when entering the palace.

Huang Xie was naturally unwilling, as he had already deeply experienced the many wonders brought by the Xuanpu Sword in recent days.

But the rules are as solid as mountains, and even the current prime minister could not openly defy them. He could only reluctantly take off the Xuanpu sword and hand it to the guards at the gate.

"Keep a close watch on this sword!" Huang Xie shouted sternly. "If anything goes wrong, you will be held responsible!"

Then, accompanied by several personal guards, he entered the familiar forbidden area of ​​the royal palace.

Huang Xie could describe the palace paths in detail even with his eyes closed, having traversed them countless times.

He was even extremely familiar with the queen, who lived deep within the palace walls—a familiarity perhaps even greater than that with the King of Chu…

He led his guards along the palace road with practiced ease.

Before long, they arrived at the south gate of the inner city of the royal city, which was also known as the "Thorn Gate".

Having entered and exited this gate countless times, Huang Xie was already used to it.