Parallel world, Da Qin, Xianyang Palace.
In the vermilion hall, all the officials were silent.
In the past noisy court meetings, no one dared to speak first today.
On the high platform, a man wears a gold bead crown and a purple gold and black robe.
His eyebrows are as sharp as a knife, and his eyes are sharp and can cut into people's hearts.
Holding the bamboo slip in his hand, he threw it heavily in front of the courtiers.
"Snapped!"
"An entire army of 500,000 people was defeated by tens of thousands of miscellaneous soldiers."
"The main general died in battle and the deputy general was captured."
"What a shame!"
"In the five hundred years since the founding of the Qin Dynasty, we have never suffered such a defeat in the face of powerful enemies from the six kingdoms!"
"I defeated a few Nanbarbarians and ended up destroying hundreds of thousands of troops. You guys are talking!"
The ministers were trembling, and no one dared to step forward to answer.
Seeing Ying Zheng on the stage getting more and more angry, his eyes filled with murderous intent, and he could hardly hold it back.
Wang Wan, who was at the forefront, had no choice but to step forward.
As the chief of a hundred officials, he assisted the emperor in handling the government affairs of the country. Regardless of whether he was responsible for the mistake or not, he had to shoulder the responsibility.
"Your Majesty, the reason for the half-million-strong army is not that it lacks combat power, but that it is due to an unfamiliar route and complex terrain that makes it difficult to transport food and grass. The army collapsed due to lack of food. I will bear the blame for this because I did not make proper arrangements for the follow-up!"
"Your Majesty, please punish me!"
After saying this, Wang Wan kowtowed to the ground.
Ying Zheng ignored Wang Wan and instead scanned the ministers with his sharp eyes like an eagle.
"Why, half a million soldiers are fighting bloody battles at the front, but the rear cannot even supply food and grass. Is it really just the prime minister who is to blame?"
As soon as these words came out, the Grain Officer, who was originally worried among the officials, finally couldn't bear the pressure and stood up tremblingly.
"I am guilty! I failed to realize that due to my negligence, I failed to realize that the land of Baiyue has been rainy and difficult for many years, so the food and grass have never been delivered!"
"Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"
Ying Zheng looked at the grain official who finally stood up and narrowed his eyes slightly.
A smile actually appeared on the cold face.
"Oh? Secretary Liang said that he was guilty of negligence. What do you think?"
The ministers looked at each other in confusion, not knowing how to respond to the uncertain First Emperor.
At this time, Zhao Gao, who was beside Ying Zheng, suddenly took a step forward.
"Your Majesty!"
"I received the news that the large amount of food raised could be sent to the army as planned, but I was detained in Changsha County for two days without any reason before setting off to Lingnan."
"It was precisely because of the two days of delay that we encountered continuous rainy days. The roads were muddy and the grain trucks were unable to cross the mountains. As a result, the army collapsed without food for five days!"
Two sentences were like bombs thrown into the crowd.
All the ministers in the court were in chaos.
You know, the Qin State was on war all the year round, and its emphasis on military rations could be said to be the highest in the world at that time.
Since Qin Xiaogong, food and grass have been the most important red line of the Qin Dynasty.
No country understands the importance of food and grass better than they do, and no one has ever dared to tamper with military rations.
At this moment, Zhao Gao's words are obviously saying that someone is using military rations for personal gain!
And this led to the defeat of Qin's 500,000-strong army.
This is not just a crime of beheading, but even the execution of the nine clans will not be able to appease it.
Wang Wan, who was kneeling on the ground, broke into a cold sweat.
He only knew that this junior had some talents and was of his own Confucian school, so he arranged a position as a grain officer for him, but he did not expect that he would be so greedy and dare to misappropriate military rations.
If it is true, the eternal emperor on the stage will definitely turn his butcher knife inward without hesitation. Everyone in Xianyang City, Changsha County, and everyone who has the slightest connection with this matter will die!
Sure enough, the next moment, Ying Zheng on the high platform withdrew his smile.
"Secretary Liang likes food so much? It seems he is an honest man. He doesn't have enough to eat on weekdays and wants to take the opportunity to eat more!"
Looking at the expressionless Ying Zheng, the grain officer began to tremble all over and kept looking at Wang Wan at the front, hoping to ask the prime minister to save his life.
But before everyone could react, Ying Zheng said coldly.
"Then I will fulfill Treasurer Liang's wish, and the nine tribes will be fed! I will bury the 500,000 soldiers of Great Qin with me!"
After saying this, before the grain officer could cry out in fear, the imperial guards outside the door went straight into the court hall and dragged him down.
Wang Wan, who lowered his head, froze in place.
Giving you fullness does not mean that you are full, but that you are fed dirt, mixed with water, and kept filling until you are exhausted!
After dealing with the culprit, Ying Zheng still did not let Wang Wan stand up and continued.
"The southern expedition to Baiyue has already failed, and the Xiongnu in the north are still eyeing us. If the people of the world know that our Qin soldiers were defeated in Baiyue because of corrupt officials, there may be some trouble."
"I don't want everyone to know about this and make it too big a fuss."
The trembling ministers felt better after hearing this.
It seems that His Majesty still has concerns and does not want to kill too many people and only kill the culprit to shock the officials.
The ministers who had an interest in the matter breathed a sigh of relief.
"Li Si! I will leave this matter to you to conduct a thorough investigation in secret. All those involved in this matter will be executed on the spot and reported to the list afterward!"
The ministers were stunned, so if you don't make a fuss, do you mean to kill them directly?
Before the ministers could react, a man with firm eyes stepped forward, took a step past Wang Wan and saluted respectfully.
"I obey my order, and I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly and find out the culprit, so as to comfort our officers and people of Great Qin!"
"Plop! Plop!" Several courtiers who had a close relationship with the grain officials immediately collapsed to the ground uncontrollably.
Wang Wan on the side suddenly felt despair. He knew that his official career had come to an end. As for whether he could end well, it depended on whether His Majesty would leave a way out for him to serve the Qin Dynasty for half his life.
After killing the grain official, Ying Zheng was still angry and had no intention of going to court.
He waved his hand and asked Zhao Gao to pick up the bamboo slips and then leave.
Zhao Gao respectfully handed back the bamboo slips. Seeing that Ying Zheng was about to dismiss the courtiers, he hurriedly whispered.
"Your Majesty! There are Yuezhi envoys waiting outside the palace. They have been waiting for more than half a month!"
Ying Zheng didn't want to pay attention to it at first, but he thought about the prosperity of the Huns in the north.
Now the Yueshi are attracting firepower. Once the Yueshi are destroyed, the Xiongnu will definitely turn their attention to Da Qin.
At that time, it will be attacked from both sides by the enemy. Although Da Qin is not afraid, there is no need to suffer that loss.
But he really didn't want to see the faces of these ministers now, and he couldn't help but want to chop them if he looked at them for a second longer.
"Let's all disperse! Go down and think carefully about how to pacify Baiyue, and present it to me tomorrow!"
The ministers saluted and dispersed outside the door.
"Call them up!"
Zhao Gao took a step back and shouted loudly after hearing this.
"Xuan! The envoy of the Yuezhi is here to see you!"
At this time, five or six people wearing strange clothes outside the hall looked at the grain officer who was being controlled by five strong men from the forbidden army not far away and forced to swallow soil, with fear in their eyes.
It is said that the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty conquered the six kingdoms and was a rare and talented overlord. However, he also had a cruel personality and would kill courtiers and common people at the slightest disagreement.
Now it turns out that it is exactly what the rumors said.
Fortunately, a few of them spent a lot of money to find out about the First Emperor's preferences before coming.
Following the call, the six people stepped into the majestic hall.
"Yue Zhi Brondo, meet the First Emperor!"
Ying Zheng nodded and was about to say something when he heard the envoy continue.
"Young Master Fusu is as gentle as jade, full of benevolence, respects his teachers, and loves his people. He has indeed inherited many of His Majesty's merits!"
As soon as these words came out, the courtiers who had already left suddenly stopped their retreat and turned to look at Ying Zheng.
That expression seems to say it depends on how you answer it.
At this moment, even the corners of Ying Zheng's eyes couldn't help but twitch, but he still said with a smile.
"Did the messenger hear anything before he came?"
Blond looked at Ying Zheng's originally stern face and smiled, thinking that the strategy he bought had taken effect.
An emperor like Qin Shihuang has been tired of hearing praises for him for a long time.
At this time, you have to flatter him from another aspect.
That is to praise his son. Only from a father's perspective can he feel happy.
With a good impression, let Da Qin send troops to support before continuing the conversation.
"Whenever foreign ministers come to the city to rest, they will surely hear the people's praise of Mr. Fusu."
"Young Master is only a teenager, but his reputation for benevolence has already spread throughout the world..."
Ying Zheng's eyelids twitched wildly.
The courtiers suppressed their laughter.
"Did the envoy go to a place called Qu Pavilion?"
Blond was stunned. The place where he bought the news was indeed called Qu Ge.
There are all kinds of weird gadgets sold there, and I heard that the boss behind it is very powerful, and he has quite a reputation even in the palace.
That's why they chose to go there and spend a lot of money to find out about Ying Zheng's preferences.
Now that I was seen through, I was a little embarrassed for a moment and was speechless.
Ying Zheng had no choice but not to embarrass himself in court.
"That's all, I just have a family dinner later, Zhao Gao, please accompany the envoy to attend!"
Then he looked at the courtiers standing in the palace watching the play.
"What? All my dear friends also want to attend my family banquet?"
As soon as these words came out, all the ministers immediately dispersed, fearing that they would be dragged away to drink with them if they walked too slowly.
After being scolded all day, who would want to be dragged out to socialize after finally getting off work?
At this moment, a eunuch from the apse came hurriedly.
He looked at the envoys on the side and hesitated to speak to Ying Zheng.
Ying Zheng frowned.
"What's the secret? Tell me!"
"Oh no, Your Majesty, the young master beat the Taifu again. This time the beating caused blood all over the floor. The Taifu no longer wants to work and is clamoring to go home and farm!"
