Chapter 479 Let’s Talk Behind the Scenes
Late at night, in the palace.

Cheng Jiao and Ying Zheng sat opposite each other.

He looked at the two people beside Ying Zheng from time to time.

One of them was Gai Nie, and he was not surprised at all.

But the other person was a complete surprise to him.

Unexpectedly, the disappeared brother-in-law suddenly "appeared" in the Xianyang Palace and became Zhengge's close attendant.

Cheng Jiao sighed in his heart, what a guy! He secretly wondered whether Brother Wei Zhuang had been influenced by Uncle Gai Nie.

Wei Zhuang watched Cheng Jiao sizing him up with a calm gaze.

If he had not been tricked by Cheng Jiao and imprisoned by Lord Longyang for some time, he would have come to Xianyang long ago to help Qin destroy the six kingdoms.

He found his way. Although his goal was different from his senior’s, it was the same at least in the early stages.

After Qin conquered the six kingdoms, he assisted the remnants of the six kingdoms to overthrow Qin and put an end to the damn Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period, which had been in constant conflict for eight hundred years.

To this end, he had a deeper consideration, which was to save the life of Han Fei who was about to enter Qin.

Despite Cheng Jiao's promise, he didn't quite trust this man, even though he was Zi Nu's lover.

With this thought, Wei Zhuang looked at his senior brother, and his heart became very peaceful, as if he had returned to Guigu again and studied with his senior brother. However, such days are gone forever, and this time they are destined to part again.

Gai Nie felt Wei Zhuang's gaze and looked over subconsciously, only to see that Wei Zhuang had turned his head away.

He recalled that many days ago, Xiaozhuang came to Xianyang, found him, and said that he wanted to help the Qin State.

Gai Nie felt very strange about the request of his junior fellow apprentice, but he did not say anything. He introduced him to the King of Qin, and then became the King of Qin's close attendant together with him.

When he saw the Guigu token on Wei Zhuang's finger, Gai Nie secretly guessed that it seemed that his teacher had listened to his advice and passed the position of Guigu to Xiao Zhuang.

Xiaozhuang has become the new Guiguzi, and must have given up the idea of ​​competing and fighting with him.

Ying Zheng drank a cup of strong tea and said, "You're back, that's good."

Cheng Jiao smiled and said, "I'm back. Your coronation day is coming up soon. Are you waiting impatiently?"

Ying Zheng snorted, "You said you would take down Lu Buwei before I was crowned, but now there is only one month left and you have just returned."

Cheng Jiao said calmly: "Don't worry, brother. I wonder how much control you have over the forces under Lu Buwei?"

When Ying Zheng heard Cheng Jiao asking about this, a look of displeasure appeared on his face.

"Not much. Lu Buwei has many years of experience in the court, and his power is complicated. Even I can't sort it out in a short time. So far, the progress is only halfway. And..."

Ying Zheng paused for a moment and expressed his suspicions: "Changping Jun doesn't seem to be as active as before. These days, there have been many good opportunities to strike Lu Buwei in the court, but he turned a blind eye to them. Instead, he occasionally helped me. Although on the surface he is still doing it for my good, my intuition tells me that something is wrong."

Cheng Jiao pondered for a moment. In the palace of the King of Chu, when Queen Li Huan was enjoying herself with him, she mentioned that the King of Chu had secretly sent an envoy to deliver a secret letter to Changping Jun. It was this secret letter that made Li Huan eager to kill the King of Chu to prevent him from welcoming Changping Jun back to Chu.

"Brother Wang, let's put this matter aside for now. Let's first deal with the matter of Lu Buwei, and then see if Changping Jun has any ulterior motives."

Ying Zheng sighed and said, "That's fine. What's your plan?"

He also didn't want to doubt Changping Jun. After all, there were not many people in the court who were qualified to be the prime minister.

"It's still the same as before. My brother, at dawn, summon Lü Buwei in the name of the queen mother. I will help the queen mother and make Lü Buwei surrender."

Ying Zheng frowned slightly: "Is it really okay to take such a risk? What if I fail to intimidate Lu Buwei? Do I really have to kill Lu Buwei on the spot?"

Cheng Jiao smiled faintly and said, "Don't worry, my brother. I have my own way."

Among the Yin-Yang longevity methods he practiced, there was a strange technique called soul-stealing technique, which was similar to the Yin-Yang technique of the Yin-Yang School, but more exquisite.

Although it has little effect on cultivators, it can be used against ordinary people like Lu Buwei, even if the ordinary people have extremely strong wills, to make them tell all the secrets. But in this way, Lu Buwei will be dead.

In order to complete the destruction of the six kingdoms within three years, and also out of consideration for Niang Rong, he did not intend to use such extreme means right away.

"Haha, good. I will summon Lü Buwei to go to Yong Palace tomorrow. If my mother's words are useless, you can take action."

Ying Zheng immediately made a decision that even if he killed Lu Buwei directly at this moment, although it would cause unrest, he could still afford the losses. At worst, he would continue to deal with official documents all night long in the future.

……

The next morning.

Cheng Jiao and Ying Zheng came to Yong Palace together.

At this time, Zhao Ji, dressed in elegant and gorgeous clothes, was leaning on the couch, reading a book comfortably.

In the distance, the four sword slaves, plus their eldest brother Zhao Gao, were writing furiously, copying something.

When Cheng Jiao and Ying Zheng came in, Zhao Ji was still immersed in the book, holding the latest produced and decorated paper book in her hand.

Cheng Jiao came over curiously, "Old Zhao, what are you copying?"

Zhao Gao made a bitter face, arranged a pile of scrolls in front of him, slowly stood up, and saluted Cheng Jiao and Ying Zheng with the four sword slaves.

"Changan Jun..."

Before Zhao Gao could complain, Zhao Ji, who was reading comfortably, saw Cheng Jiao come in and her eyes suddenly brightened.

"Cheng Jiao, you are here, come here quickly!"

Zhao Ji immediately put down the book in her hand and greeted him enthusiastically.

Ying Zheng chuckled: "Are you surprised?"

Cheng Jiao felt a little guilty and asked, "What happened to the Queen Mother?"

Ying Zheng glanced at Zhao Gao who was bowing behind him and said, "Zhao Gao, talk to Cheng Jiao."

Zhao Gao looked at Zhao Ji who was staying at the bed, and said hurriedly: "The Queen Mother had nothing to do, so she went to visit the academy built by Chang'an Jun. She accidentally saw the "Zhu Xian" being prepared for printing in the academy's paper mill. She was fascinated by it and has been reading it for seven or eight days in a row. She also asked me to copy it with pen and ink all night long."

"Uh... Zhu Xian?" Cheng Jiao blinked. What the hell?

Ying Zheng said with a smile: "It is a book jointly produced by the women in your mansion. Now, with the support of the paper mill you built in the academy, and the printing technology developed by Gongshujia and Mojia, it is ready to be sold in your name."

Cheng Jiao's mouth twitched slightly. He didn't expect it to be published so soon.

Zhao Ji ran over without caring about her image, grabbed Cheng Jiao with one hand, and said, "Tell me quickly, is this book finished? I have collected eight volumes and asked Concubine Yan, but she said it would take some time. Can you hurry them up and write it quickly?"

Ying Zheng felt somewhat helpless. It was just a story written by a miscellaneous novelist. Was it really necessary to be like this?
Zhao Ji had urged him enough these days, and it would be difficult for him to issue an order directly if Cheng Jiao didn't come back.

Cheng Jiao could only say "hmm" twice as a response.

He didn't forget the important business today.

"Queen Mother, I came here today with my brother to discuss an important matter, regarding... Zhu Xian. I'll send someone to deliver it to you when I have time."

Although Zhao Ji had been contracted by him privately, she was still his nominal mother after all, so he had to give her the face she deserved.

Zhao Ji realized that her son was still there, so she suppressed her restlessness and asked with a smile, "What's the matter?"

Ying Zheng glanced at Zhao Gao and said, "You go out, no one is allowed to approach here." Zhao Gao was so happy that he almost cried, and quickly retreated with his four younger brothers.

When he came outside the hall, he rubbed his wrists which he used for embroidery. He had been copying Zhu Xian with a brush for many days and his wrists were almost worn out.

However, after reading a part of Zhu Xian, he had a vague epiphany, and his cultivation improved again. If his soul power could be transformed once, he would be able to steadily step into the Half-Step Heavenly Man Realm.

Seeing that there was no one around, Ying Zheng simply explained his purpose.

"Mother, I have ordered someone to summon Lü Buwei here. Cheng Jiao will first threaten Lü Buwei, and you will try to persuade him."

Ying Zheng sighed, "I am about to be crowned, but Lu Buwei still controls the court and is too powerful to be removed. It is not right to kill him, nor is it right to keep him. If we can resolve this peacefully, it will be a blessing for the Qin State."

Zhao Ji immediately nodded and agreed: "I understand."

Although she had been forced to read the books in the past few months without understanding them, she had also learned a lot. She could see at a glance that Cheng Jiao used both kindness and force, with the black cop and the white cop playing the same role.

Ying Zheng breathed a sigh of relief. It went much more smoothly than he had expected. He was worried that his mother would be embarrassed.

Cheng Jiao seemed to understand his mother better than he did. Perhaps this is what they call a bystander sees more clearly.

Zhao Ji glanced at Cheng Jiao with a smile, with a hint of complacency in her eyes, as if she wanted to get some praise.

Cheng Jiao coughed lightly and said, "The Queen Mother is very righteous, and I admire you."

Zhao Ji laughed even more happily. What if he had signed a contract with her? At least on the surface, he still had to acknowledge her as his mother and flatter her.

As for what’s behind… let’s talk about what’s behind.

……

Coming out of the Prime Minister's Mansion and sitting in the carriage, Lu Buwei had a somewhat gloomy expression on his face.

The driver was an old slave with a broken arm.

"Prime Minister Lu, the young lady is back. I'm afraid Cheng Jiao has already arrived in Xianyang."

The old slave said with some concern.

These days, he tried to find an opportunity to escape from Xianyang. However, he found that outside the Xiangguo Mansion, not only was he being watched by unknown top masters, but also by many royal guards who were following him in the name of patrolling and protecting the Xiangguo Mansion.

This old servant knew very well what this meant. At least the palace was completely under the control of Ying Zheng, and the people planted by the Prime Minister were transferred or thrown into jail for various reasons.

Lü Buwei snorted coldly, "Not only has he arrived in Xianyang, he must be waiting for me in the palace."

Late last night, Meng Niang, who returned with Niang Rong, has now become a genuine master of the Heavenly Man Realm. With one move, all the masters in her mansion fell to the ground, poisoned.

If Meng Niang had not had the intention to kill, everyone in the Prime Minister's Mansion would have been wiped out.

He was sure that Cheng Jiao was demonstrating to him.

That's fine. He has seen all kinds of storms and the worst that can happen is death.

But what he didn't expect was that his only daughter Niangrong had unknowingly leaned towards Cheng Jiao, and asked him to stop fighting among the infighting. She kept mentioning Cheng Jiao in her words. He felt that Niangrong must have been deceived by Cheng Jiao.

When he thought of this, Lu Buwei felt annoyed.

Soon after, the carriage arrived outside the palace.

The old servant helped Lü Buwei get off the carriage and whispered, "Master Xiangguo, may I go in with you?"

Lu Buwei refused and said, "No need. If Cheng Jiao and the King of Qin really wanted to kill me, I would have died a few months ago. The fact that I am still alive today shows that some of my back-up plans have worked. As long as these back-up plans are not exposed, I will not die!"

He is under a lot of pressure now and is under the life and death threat of Cheng Jiao at all times.

It is known that Cheng Jiao is a celestial being, and Meng Niang, who came to his house under the pretext of taking care of Niang Rong, is also a celestial being.

For the first time, he felt a faint sense of despair that there was no way to go up to heaven and no door to enter the earth.

Ganquan Palace.

Zhao Gao, who had received the order, saw Lu Buwei coming in alone and went to greet him.

"Mr. Xiangguo."

Zhao Gao looked at the somewhat depressed Lu Buwei with a faint smile, and he couldn't hide the pride on his face.

Last year, Lu Buwei was still full of arrogance. His words and expressions showed that he looked down on him. He even wanted to take away the power of Luowang from him.

As a result, in less than a year, Lü Buwei's life or death was in danger. While Zhao Gao was feeling proud, he was also secretly frightened by Cheng Jiao's methods.

Not only did it make the Queen Mother on good terms with him, but it also kept Lu Buwei from raising his head.

Coupled with his terrifying strength at the level of Heaven and Man, Zhao Gao's throat became dry. If he offended Cheng Jiao, he might really become a eunuch.

Lu Buwei looked at Zhao Gao calmly. He was not surprised to see a villain like Zhao Gao succeed.

"Where is the Queen Mother?"

Zhao Gao chuckled and said, "In the back garden, enjoy the flowers and drink tea with the king and Chang'an Jun. I will take the prime minister there right away."

"Haha, then I'll have to trouble the Minister of the Imperial Chariot Office, Lord Zhao."

Lu Buwei said calmly, and it was impossible to tell whether he was happy or angry.

But Zhao Gao was very happy to hear that. Although the rank of Zhongchefu Ling was low, he was still an official of a certain rank. Especially since he was next to the king and could meet with the King of Qin at any time, his influence was no less than that of some high-ranking officials.

Coming to the back garden, plum blossoms and roses are in bloom, bringing some warm colors to the cold weather in late February.

Ying Zheng said, "Today, my mother, Queen Chengjiao and I are here to enjoy the flowers. As my father-in-law, I have specially invited you to accompany us. Do you mind?"

Cheng Jiao and Lu Buwei could both hear that Ying Zheng's voice was a little unstable when he said the five words "former sub-father".

Lu Buwei put on a stereotypical smile and said, "The king has given the order. As a subject, I shall obey."

Ying Zheng said softly, "Since you obey the king's orders so carefully, why do you still have to make things difficult for me in the court?"

Lü Buwei remained calm and said, "Governing a country involves a lot. Although Your Majesty has many good ideas, they may turn into bad things when put into practice. As a minister, I cannot wait until Your Majesty makes a mistake before making amends."

Cheng Jiao laughed in silence: "Master Xiangguo, do you mean that a good warrior does not have to have great achievements, but can see through the smallest details and prevent them from happening?"

Lü Buwei looked at Cheng Jiao in surprise, and then said, "Yes, it seems that Chang'an Jun has studied Sun Tzu's Art of War very well."

Ying Zheng said slowly: "To see victory is no more than what everyone knows, which is not the best of the good; to win and be praised by the world is not the best of the good. Cheng Jiao, it seems that I was right to follow the advice of the Prime Minister and let you participate in the Battle of Yaoshan for training. The royal family needs a general who can lead troops in battle."

Cheng Jiao grinned. He was just talking nonsense to adapt to the atmosphere. Judging from what Zheng Ge meant, did he want him to lead troops to fight in the future?

I had been admiring the flowers and reminiscing about Zhao Ji from the Zhu Xian world, but when I saw Cheng Jiao, Ying Zheng and Lu Buwei, they were talking in a confusing and messy way, which made me very upset.

He immediately said, "Lü Buwei, in a month, it will be the time for Zheng'er to be crowned. You told me that you would give up your power after Zheng'er was crowned. Now, in front of me, you should give Zheng'er an explanation!"

The politician's smile on Lu Buwei's face froze, and the atmosphere became as cold as the weather in late February.

(End of this chapter)