Qin Official

The dirty air, the cold temperature, and the sound of footsteps coming from outside the heavy wooden door of the cell finally stopped outside.

Meng Tian understood that his long period of restraint was finally coming to an end.

As the door bolt turned, the door of Yunyang Prison suddenly opened with a "click".

Meng Tian leaned against the damp wall. He tried to stand up, but his once strong legs and feet were numb from lying on the straw for a long time. They were also tired from rheumatism and were extremely sore. He had to bend down, rub his muscles and bones, and straighten his appearance.

The famous General Meng cannot stagger to the execution ground. He must still maintain his majesty and solemnity when the dagger is stabbed.

There were about five people coming indistinctly, all of them lit torches, and the flames shone on their faces. Meng Tian raised his hands to cover his face. After he got used to the light, he could see their appearance clearly: they were all fully armed soldiers, with representatives of "" wrapped around their arms. The rebels "were wearing red or white cloth strips, wearing fine armor, and their swords hung neatly on their waists. They were all as silent as a stone.

The leader was a thin military officer with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks.

"as I expected."

Meng Tian guessed their identities and smiled sadly.

"Previously, there were jailers outside to congratulate them, saying that Marquis Wu Zhong had broken through Wuguan and entered Xianyang, and my two brothers would be released soon. My brother Meng Yi also said with great expectation that in this way, we can welcome Prince Fusu back to the court. For the emperor..."

"But I said, otherwise, the day when Hei Fu takes Xianyang will probably be the day when my brother dies."

"Now it seems that I guessed it right."

"General Meng is a smart man. I was also present during the Xianyang Incident two years ago. Thanks to General Meng's release of a corner of the city defense, Ji Ying and Marquis Wu Zhong's wife and son were able to leave safely."

Ji Ying raised his hand to Meng Tian: "But we have a proverb in Anlu: Foolish people do stupid things, and they do it again and again, just like a dog that turns around and eats its vomit. General Meng and his brothers had already given up on the young master Fusu once. We place our hope in the amnesty of Hu Hai and Zhao Gao, but how can we expect that after Marquis Wu Zhong and the southern soldiers shed blood and sweat and conquered Guanzhong, they can still enjoy the results?"

Meng Tian smiled and said: "After all, Hei Fu is still afraid of me."

Ji Ying said: "Meng has been a general for generations and has a great reputation. A general is like a tiger in a cage. Once he is released, who will not be afraid?"

"There are no two days in the sky, there are no two masters in a family, and there cannot be two commanders of equal prestige in the army."

"There are many soldiers from Shangjun who have surrendered. Most of them are General Meng's former troops. With General Meng's order, their power will be doubled. One day, the king will sweep the six countries eastward. If the two brothers are here, it will be a hidden danger!"

"There can be no more hidden dangers in Guanzhong! That's why we are here to send General Meng on his way!"

Meng Tian sneered: "Excuse, isn't Heifu afraid that Meng's loyalty to the Qin Dynasty and the country will become an obstacle to his seeking power and usurping the throne?"

Ji Ying reminded him: "The general has put the cart before the horse. If there are no monarchs, the Qin Dynasty will be destroyed. If there are no monarchs, the country will be destroyed."

"General Meng had the opportunity to do the same thing, but when he gave up, he completely lost the opportunity. If you want to regret it, just regret the decision you made that day!"

Ji Ying lowered his body and placed a bottle of poisonous wine in front of Meng Tian: "But the general will not disgrace him. Your brother has committed suicide. General, please don't make things difficult for us, and don't worry about what happened after your death. The Meng family will be in good hands." Placement.”

"My brother, I have brought trouble to you because of my brother..."

Meng Tian sighed, moved his rheumatism-stricken body, and picked up the bottle of poisonous wine. He knew that even if he didn't drink the poison, there would be daggers and ropes next.

I have been fighting for half my life, but I don't want to die in such a dirty and cramped place.

After looking at the pottery vase for a long time, Meng Tian Fangchang sighed and said: "Tian's crime is worthy of death. Starting from Lintao's Liaodong, there are more than 10,000 miles of moats. There must be endless ground veins in it? This is Tian's crime... "

After saying this, he drank the poisonous wine in one gulp, sat down on the straw again, and waited for death to come. When Ji Ying bowed and was about to leave, he opened his eyes again and asked a question.

"If Fu Su was still alive, would Hei Fu be so plausible and kill him in the name of bringing peace to the world?"

…

"Okay, no need to wipe it."

The clothes were not as good as the old ones. Hei Fu was used to wearing old clothes, but his favorite piece of underwear had an eye-catching oil stain on the skirt and cuffs of his clothes at some point, and he couldn't wipe it off.

The two orderlies who were responsible for taking care of his daily life were exhausted and kept their promises, but Hei Fu didn't care and didn't change into new clothes. He put on his outer clothes and went out. He also smiled and comforted the two of them:

"nothing."

"There will only be more dirt in the future."

Even if you cover it up, if you can deceive others, can you deceive your own conscience? "Know what is white, guard what is black..." Hei Fu shook his head, threw away his distracting thoughts, and walked out of the porch.

Today is July 6th, the weather is fine, and Xianyang has returned to its usual stability. The Northern Expeditionary Army has proved that they still have order and rarely harm the people. After the scene of Marquis Wu Zhong entering the city with his children in his arms was publicized yesterday, The Xianyang people also gradually let down their guard. Some village elders brought cattle, sheep, wine and food to the sergeants, but Heifu refused, saying: "There are many grains in the warehouse, but it is not lacking. I don't want to waste money on people." The Xianyang people were happy again. Finally I feel at ease.

What makes them even more reassured is that it is said that the old prime minister Li Si, who was once forced by Zhao Gao to run away to Feiqiu, will also be welcomed back to Xianyang by Wu Zhonghou today.

Li Si's decades of political experience allowed him to play the role of a rock of strength whether among the people or in the court. However, in the army, he had little say.

The car parked in front of Heifu's mansion. Heifu greeted him with a smile and greeted his old friends as juniors.

"I'm relieved that the old prime minister is still safe. Hei Fu and the people of Xianyang are all looking forward to it, waiting for the old prime minister to come back to take charge of the overall situation..."

Li Si was older than he had been a few years ago. He no longer had the authority he once had as a powerful minister. He kept his posture very low. After being helped by Hei Fu to get out of the car tremblingly, he quickly took a step back, cupped his hands and said:

"I am very old and do not have many days left to live. I am unable to control Zhao Gao and cannot stop the false emperor from doing the wrong thing. I am really ashamed. On the contrary, it is Marquis Wu Zhong who put an end to the chaos and protected the people. He is the real minister of the country..."

"The old prime minister notified me of the puppet army's deployment, and together with the imperial censors and other officials, they held high the flag of righteousness and attracted Zhao Gao's gang members in Feiqiu. Only then could we break through Lantian and enter Xianyang, which would also be a great service to the country."

Hei Fu was no longer as humble as a pawn in front of Zhangtai Palace. He joined hands with Li Si and entered the hall. After the two sat opposite each other, he suddenly sighed:

"I originally wanted to send someone to bring General Meng Tian back from Yunyang Prison, and the three of them discussed the matter of setting up a king and driving out the enemy together. Unfortunately, the soldiers left a step too late, and the Meng brothers were actually killed by Zhao Gao!"

"Meng Tian and Meng Yi were killed?"

Li Si looked shocked, but was not surprised in his heart. He said instead: "Zhao Gao had a grudge against Meng Yi and had wanted to kill him for a long time. However, due to Meng's fame and lack of evidence, he had not been able to succeed. Now he is really taking advantage of the opportunity. The situation was chaotic and someone was sent to assassinate him. It was a pity that the Meng family was killed. He had accumulated merit and credit to the Third Emperor of Qin..."

As he spoke, he observed Heifu's emotions, but there was really no emotion, anger, sorrow, or joy in that black face.

"I have properly collected his body and asked people to release the Meng clan who were detained in various places."

Heifu straightened up and said:

"Now the situation is critical. Barbarians are raging on the frontier, the Chu people have captured Xihe, and there are even more traitorous remnants who are stubbornly resisting. Before establishing the ruler of the country, Da Qin urgently needs an extraordinary system to allow the smooth flow of government orders to deal with the situation of internal and external difficulties!"

Li Si nodded and agreed with Heifu's view: "We must first fight against foreign enemies before we can resolve internal affairs. How does Marquis Wu Zhong want to govern?"

"The current situation is quite similar to six hundred years ago."

Heifu stood up and threw out his bait:

"In the past, King Li of the Zhou Dynasty was tyrannical. The people of the country attacked him and attacked King Li. King Li fled to pigeons, so the country had no owner and the throne was empty."

"For the next fourteen years, Zhao Bohu and Zhou Dinggong were in charge of the administration, and they were named 'Gonghe'! The two complemented each other and improved the government. The legacy of Fawen, Wu, Cheng, and Kang, the princes were restored to the Zhou Dynasty."

He turned around, pointed at himself, and then pointed at Li Si: "The military situation is very hot right now. In order to make the government orders justified, why not do what we did in the past when Zhou Zhao was in charge of the republic? You are the Duke of Zhou and in charge of the government. I am the Duke of Zhao and I am in charge of the army." , how about you and I supporting the Qin State together?"

"Zhou Zhaogonghe..." Li Si pondered Heifu's words, but what came to mind was the news of the death of the Meng brothers...

"The Meng brothers may have been killed by Zhao Gao."

"But it's more likely that Heifu sent someone to remove..."

"He informed me of this matter neither sooner nor later, before discussing the 'extraordinary measures' with me. What did he intend to do?"

Li Si understood that this was a warning, a reminder, and it was telling Li Si a fact that he and his junior brother Han Fei had already understood:

"Things that are in the four directions must be in the center; if the saint holds the key, the four directions will follow suit."

"It is because the saint is the pastor of the world!"

Hundreds of years of conquests since the Spring and Autumn Period have made the rulers understand one thing: the only way to become a great power is to centralize power, especially for the supreme ruler. Power cannot be shared. The same is true for imperial power, and the same is true for governing.

In this land called China, only centralization and unification can achieve anything!

Heifu has won the war, but he still needs to gain power in a legitimate way. The Montessori brothers are a stumbling block on his way to power. The victims, what about Li Si?

Looking at Hei Fu's suggestive eyes, Li Si understood that Hei Fu's "Zhou Zhao Republic" was probably not his original intention.

So the old hamster took advantage of his ability to read a lot, coughed lightly and said:

"Marquis Wu Zhong, as far as I know, Zhou Zhaogonghe is probably not a true history, but a fallacy."

"The real truth is..."

Li Si made a decision, looked up at Hei Fu, and said with a smile: "

"At that time, above the Second Duke of Zhou Zhao, there was also a Gong Bo and Gan Zheng, who took charge of the emperor's affairs!"