Xu Fu knew that regardless of whether there were fairy islands overseas, he had to answer yes.
Because this way he can survive.
He even accompanied the First Emperor on his eastward tour, looking for opportunities to escape.
After recovering from the shock, Xu Fu wiped the non-existent sweat in his heart, spoke a little, and then replied sincerely: "Your Majesty, there are indeed fairy islands overseas!"
"oh?"
Ying Zheng's eyes lit up: "Where is the Immortal Island?"
"East!"
"The East? Aren't there several desert islands in the East? I heard it's called a Japanese island. There are many wild monkeys on it and it's also rich in silver mines."
"Ah? This"
Xu Fu almost forgot that the First Emperor had a world map in his hand, and the fairy island he mentioned was probably the so-called Japanese island.
If I were to tell the truth, it would probably be gone.
After a slight hesitation, Xu Fu quickly said: "Your Majesty, you have misunderstood. The East that I mentioned is not the East of the ordinary world, but the East of the fairy world. This fairy island exists in the fairy world!"
"Is the fairy island existing in the fairy world?"
Ying Zheng was stunned for a moment, then showed a look of surprise, and raised his hand to Xu Fu: "Tell me more details."
"promise."
Xu Fu carefully promised and said respectfully: "There are immortal islands in the eastern sea, and there are real immortals on the islands. One is called Penglai, the second is called Abbot, and the third is called Yingzhou;
The fairy island is full of fairy spirit all year round. There are caves opened by the immortals and fruit trees planted by the immortals. The immortals can travel thousands of miles in an instant with their swords, travel across the sea in the morning, and see the sky at dusk. "
"Is this true?"
Ying Zheng's eyes lit up.
Although Zhao Hao had told him openly and secretly that immortality was unrealistic, but in his current position, he seemed to have no pursuit other than immortality.
Even if he could dominate the world, it would still be in vain if he didn't have enough lifespan.
Therefore, the fairy island in the fairy world naturally became the only sustenance of his dream of immortality.
Seemingly seeing through Ying Zheng's heart, Xu Fu replied calmly:
"Seeing is believing, hearing is believing. I dare not deceive Your Majesty. I just had the honor to visit a fairy island during those years when I was looking for immortals and medicine. That fairy island was like spring all year round, with extraordinary flowers and plants, and countless rare and exotic animals. It is worthy of being called "the fairy island". The magical world."
"On the fairy island, everyone is young forever. They can't tell the difference between old and young. They are not afraid of cold and heat. They drink fine wine and jade liquid and eat fairy fruits and delicacies."
"It is said that there is a sweet spring in the mountain called the 'Fountain of Youth'. Drinking it can make a person's appearance unchanged, eliminate all diseases, and live forever."
"this"
Ying Zheng's eyes widened with disbelief on his face.
Xu Fu's words were true and orderly. It would be difficult to speak in such detail without seeing it with one's own eyes.
Moreover, it's not like a make-up lie.
This made Ying Zheng a little confused.
"Your Majesty, I sincerely care about Your Majesty. Although I am not good at studying and the elixir I refined cannot help Your Majesty live forever, there are real immortals and elixirs in the world. As long as Your Majesty takes the elixirs, you will be able to live forever!"
"You are right. I also believe that there are immortals and elixirs in the world. Get up. I don't mean to blame you."
Ying Zheng said, waving to Xu Fu who was kneeling on the ground.
Xu Fu, who had been feeling chills down his spine and breaking out in cold sweat just now, secretly breathed a sigh of relief, wiped his forehead, bowed his waist and lowered his body, and slowly got up.
Ying Zheng put his hands behind his back and asked calmly: "Since you have been to the fairy island, why didn't you find the fairy medicine?"
"Back to Your Majesty, I accidentally entered the Fairy Island and picked a lot of fairy fruits. I wanted to present them to Your Majesty. Unfortunately, there was a water demon on the way and stole the fairy fruits."
"Water demon? What is a water demon?"
"The water demon is a big fish and a dragon!"
"All the old gentleman's fairy fruits were snatched away by the giant dragon fish?" Ying Zheng asked in surprise.
"Exactly."
Xu Fu recounted his heroic fight against the giant dragon fish, and finally said: "Thankfully, I swallowed a piece of fairy fruit when I was in danger, so I saved my life and returned to Xianyang to serve His Majesty."
"Oh? Did you swallow the fairy fruit? Does it have any miraculous effects?"
"Your Majesty, after I swallowed the fairy fruit, I had a connection with the fairy island. As long as I get rid of the big dragon fish, I can find the fairy island and get the elixir of immortality for your majesty!"
"Okay! I decided to ask for the elixir!"
Ying Zheng took the case and said decisively: "For this eastward patrol, I will send you three large ships, loaded with powerful crossbows to kill the giant dragon fish, and escort the old gentleman to the fairy island!"
"Your Majesty has made it clear that this veteran should sacrifice his own life and open up a path to immortality for Your Majesty!"
Xu Fu cupped his hands in a serious manner.
"That's very good. After two days, the old gentleman will follow me on my eastward tour!"
"Your Majesty, wait!"
"Huh? What else can you do, old gentleman?"
"Reply to Your Majesty."
Xu Fu said calmly: "Although the veteran can sense the fairy island, it is the time of the spring tide, the waves are fierce and unstoppable, and the fleet cannot cross the sea. Therefore, the veteran has more than he can do;
If your majesty thinks it's okay, I will lead the way even though I have the belly of a fairy. "
"Then, when is the best time to visit the Fairy Island?"
“Winter and summer, when the tide is slow.”
"Okay, then we will visit a few more counties and wait until the best time to go to sea to visit the immortals!"
Ying Zheng waved his sleeves and looked very excited.
Xu Fu glanced at him and then said hesitantly: "Your Majesty, there is something I don't know whether to talk about or not."
"Hahaha--!"
Ying Zheng laughed loudly and looked at Xu Fu with a teasing look on his face; "The old gentleman is a person who has taken the immortal fruit. It is not an exaggeration to think of him as an 'immortal master' in the world. Why do you behave like this? If you have anything to say, just say it!"
Hearing this, Xu Fu thought secretly, couldn't help but bite his teeth, and said quickly:
"Your Majesty, there are many immortals on the Immortal Island, but very few servants. If you want the immortals to give you the elixir, I'm afraid you will have to select hundreds of boys and girls to serve you in order to get what you want."
"Hundreds of boys and girls serving you?"
Ying Zheng suppressed his laughter and frowned: "Why so many?"
Xu Fu still replied calmly:
"Back to Your Majesty, the old minister just now said that there are many immortals on the Immortal Island, but very few servants. Hundreds of people are assigned to each immortal, but in fact they are not many."
"I see."
Upon hearing this, Ying Zheng nodded suddenly.
Xu Fu comforted himself and said:
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, the Immortal Island has the rules of the Immortal Island. These boys and girls will not be allowed to stay on the Immortal Island for a long time. When their service period is over, the Immortal will let them leave. By then, they will all learn the Immortal's magical skills to help Your Majesty. It’s effortless to expand territory.”
"oh?"
Ying Zheng's eyes narrowed and he murmured to himself: "If everyone learns the magical skills of immortals, wouldn't they become immortal soldiers and generals?"
"If immortal soldiers and immortal generals help each other, why worry about the unification of the nine continents? The world is uncertain?"
"Hahaha! Not bad!"
Ying Zheng laughed again, then waved his hand and said decisively: "That's right!"
"Your Majesty will live for ten thousand years, and the Qin Dynasty will live for ten thousand years!"
Xu Fu was ecstatic when he heard that Ying Zheng granted his request.
At this time, Ying Zheng stopped his smile and said seriously: "You must keep this matter strictly confidential!"
"Your Majesty, don't worry, I know this."
Xu Fu responded respectfully and was about to exit the study.
At this moment, Ying Zheng seemed to remember something again and shouted: "Wait a minute!"
"ah?"
Xu Fu trembled and was so frightened that he almost flew away. He turned around quickly and said in a trembling voice:
"Your Majesty, do you have any other instructions?"
"What are you afraid of? I won't eat you!"
Ying Zheng's eyes widened and he said with some displeasure: "I ask you, can science lead to immortality?"
"science?"
Xu Fu was stunned for a moment and said in confusion: "What is science?"
"This is the method of immortality, do you know it?"
"this"
Xu Fu hesitated, then shook his head: "I have never heard of this method, so I can't tell whether it can help people live forever!"
"Um?"
Ying Zheng felt great regret and wondered whether Zhao Hao was telling the truth or Xu Fu was telling the truth.
In terms of trust level, he believed in Zhao Hao more. After all, Zhao Hao cured his disease.
But to say that Xu Fu cannot be trusted is not entirely true.
After all, if you haven't seen it with your own eyes, how can you remember it as a treasure?
After a moment of silence, Ying Zheng waved his hand and said, "Okay, it's okay. You can go down."
"promise."
Xu Fu accepted the promise and retreated, fearing that Ying Zheng would stop him again, he left the study in three steps at a time.
After he left, Ying Zheng narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Zhao Gao, who was silent at the side.
"How credible do you think Xu Fu's words are?"
"Back to Your Majesty, this old slave thinks that he should not dare to deceive Your Majesty."
"Why?"
Ying Zheng asked calmly.
Zhao Gao bowed and replied: "Your Majesty has been extraordinarily merciful regarding the poisonous elixir. If we can't find the elixir again, there will be only death. This is his last chance."
"good!"
Ying Zheng glanced at Zhao Gao with admiration, nodded slightly, and started working on the public case again until the red sunset turned to the west.
at the same time.
Xu Fu breathed a long sigh of relief after leaving the study. His robes were soaked with sweat, and he murmured to himself: "The First Emperor should not be deceived. It is too dangerous here. We must leave as soon as possible."
"No matter what, as long as I go out to sea, I will never come back!"
Looking back at the majestic palace in the distance, Xu Fu wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with lingering fear.
On the other side, Qidian Bookstore.
When shopkeeper Chen saw Zhao Hao personally coming to inspect the bookstore, he immediately greeted him enthusiastically.
"Oh, sir, you are here."
Then he quickly ordered to the boy behind him: "Hurry and prepare some good green tea!"
The so-called green tea is tea made from fresh tea leaves.
It is very different from the tea that people in the Qin Dynasty usually drank.
People in the Qin Dynasty drank tea by boiling powdered tea leaves with various spices, while green tea was drunk by soaking it in boiling water.
It is very similar to the way of drinking tea in later generations.
Originally, there was no green tea in the Qin Dynasty. Zhao Hao, through Ba Qing's relationship, obtained fresh tea leaves from Shu and gave them to Liuheju for frying.
As a result, Liuheju has another sky-high price drink.
Although I don’t know how shopkeeper Chen got it, I guess he spent a lot of money.
Zhao Hao nodded with satisfaction, then looked around the bookstore and asked calmly: "How are the book sales going?"
"The supply exceeds the demand! The supply exceeds the demand!"
Shopkeeper Chen said happily: "Young master, you don't know. In today's Xianyang City, there may be people who don't know about Qidian Bookstore, but there is absolutely no one who doesn't know about "The Legend of the Condor Heroes"!"
"oh?"
Zhao Hao raised his eyebrows and was about to answer the conversation. At this moment, several young people walked into the bookstore, looked at shopkeeper Chen and said, "Seller, has the follow-up to "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" been released?"
"not yet."
Shopkeeper Chen shook his head with a smile, stood up and said with relief: "When the follow-up to "Legend of the Condor Heroes" comes out, I will notify you of the sales as soon as possible. Customers just have to go back and wait patiently!"
"How dare you write about it when your damn days are so short? You are simply not a son of a man!"
"That's right, don't let me catch him! Otherwise, he will be locked up in the woodshed. If he doesn't write a hundred chapters, he won't be given food!"
"Brother, you are really kind. If I meet him, I will tie him behind the desk and won't let him leave until I finish writing!"
After all the complaints, the last few people said in unison: "Shameless old thief, his old age is unknown!"
Shopkeeper Chen: "."
Zhao Hao: "."
The two looked at each other, both speechless.
After a long while, Shopkeeper Chen raised his hand in embarrassment and said:
"Why don't you, Master, follow me into the inner room to avoid being offended by outsiders and affecting your mood?"
"Well"
Zhao Hao's mouth twitched, and he waved his hands helplessly: "Let's go, let's go."
It's not that I'm afraid that the movie won't affect my mood. Since the book is selling so well, my mood won't get any worse. The main reason is that I'm afraid that it will affect my own safety.
After all, ancient readers are different from modern readers. Modern readers can only scold you a few times, but ancient readers might actually hold a knife to your neck.
For example, Du Fu, a famous update expert in history, was quite crazy in order to update his idol Li Bai's poems.
It shows how honest the ancients were.
Although it is unlikely that this group of young people would do such a thing, they still have to guard against it.
What if one of them happens to be mentally ill, or have an illegitimate meal or something?
Inner hall.
Zhao Hao sat on a chair and put a stack of manuscripts on the table: "This is the manuscript for next month. You can print and distribute it. I will be very busy recently. I can't rush to make money."
"Sir, this is the recent profit of the bookstore. Take a look."
Shopkeeper Chen took out the account book from the box and handed it to Zhao Hao.
Zhao Hao took the account book, glanced at it roughly, and couldn't help but asked in surprise: "Why are there so many?"
"It only sells for ten and a half taels, how can it be worthy of the master's good book? Don't worry, sir, even if it costs fifty and a half taels, the supply will still exceed the demand!"
Shopkeeper Chen said with a smile:
"In addition, other bookstores are also selling Young Master's books. Just from the profit share, we can make hundreds of gold every month!"
"this"
After hearing this, Zhao Hao was slightly startled, and then as if he remembered something, he asked: "The imperial court's 'Book Banning Order' has been promulgated a long time ago. Have you checked the bookstore?"
"Yes, but they heard it was the young master's bookstore and left again."
"Did you tell them?"
"No, it's their own people, coming in front and back."
Shopkeeper Chen shook his head, and then looked at Zhao Hao worriedly.
Zhao Hao thought for a moment, then waved his hands with a smile: "Don't worry, it's okay."
After saying that, he took out another stack of paper from his arms and handed it to Shopkeeper Chen:
"This is a new manuscript I wrote. You print a few hundred copies and sell them individually in bookstores. If any officials come to find you, please notify me immediately."
"Barnyard officer?"
"The reason why the family is flowing out is because of the barnyard officials. Talking in the streets and alleys, the Taoism is created by those who listen to the nonsense!"
"I see, I understand."
Shopkeeper Chen nodded suddenly, and then took the manuscript from Zhao Hao's hand.
I saw four big characters written on it at the beginning: "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".
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(End of chapter)
