Chapter 18

They believed Ying Su's handling of the matter was appropriate.

At the very least, it was not excessive!

They felt greatly relieved!

Yet at the same time, the atmosphere in the court unconsciously grew more relaxed, far less tense than before!

And as Ying Su looked at the crowd below in the court, a smile appeared on his face!

Indeed, Cai Lun had been assigned, and Zheng He had been assigned as well!

Even Yu Yu Huatian had become his commander of the garrison!

And to be honest, with this person guarding his safety, Ying Su felt completely at ease.

What?

You ask who Yu Yu Huatian is?

You may not have heard this name, but you have certainly heard a line of dialogue:

"What the Eastern Depot cannot handle, I will handle; what the Eastern Depot can handle, I will handle even more. Execute first, report later; the Yellow Springs grant special permission. This is the Western Depot!"

That is correct, it is that effeminate yet domineering eunuch director!

And under the protection of this man, what assassination would he still worry about?

Even for despicable methods such as poisoning, he was completely unafraid!

Because Yu Yu Huatian could handle such matters perfectly!

Ying Su smiled, but at the same time, he addressed the entire court of civil and military officials, asking:

"I have finished speaking on the matters I wished to raise. What about you? Do you have any matters to report?"

He asked, indeed!

Today was his first day ascending the throne; he could not possibly speak every word himself and not allow the court officials to say a single sentence!

That would be far too tyrannical, not good!

Moreover, he still needed to learn the true state of the nation from their mouths!

And after the three matters Ying Su had just handled, the atmosphere in the court had long since become no longer so tense!

Now, hearing Ying Su's inquiry, at that moment, many people began to report:

"Your subject reports to Your Majesty the Emperor: Just as spring has begun this year, the Dang Commandery region has suffered flood disasters; spring planting has been completely submerged by floodwaters. It is now too late to replant; Dang Commandery may yield no grain this year. Your subject requests Your Majesty the Emperor to prepare for disaster relief!"

"Your subject reports to Your Majesty the Emperor: The Xiongnu King wishes to establish trade with our Great Qin; he has already dispatched envoys, who are expected to arrive in our Great Qin within one month!"

"Chen reports to Your Majesty the Emperor..."

At this very moment, a large group of people rushed forward to submit reports.

Ying Su listened each time and nodded each time: "I understand!"

And seeing Ying Su's reaction, for a moment, the atmosphere in the court became even more joyful.

Many people began to ask Ying Su about various matters.

For instance, whether the new emperor's ascension and the general amnesty for the realm that Ying Su had mentioned earlier were true.

Ying Su said: "Of course it is true; for all criminals, their crimes shall be reduced by one degree!"

"All common people shall be exempt from taxes for three years!"

"In the court, all officials of the rank of Physician and above shall all be promoted by one rank; for those who cannot be promoted further, from this day forward, they shall receive double salary!"

He spoke these words aloud again!

At that moment, the entire court of civil and military officials became excited.

And at that moment, everyone became even more joyful.

They asked Ying Su various questions, and Ying Su answered each one!

Even some people had already asked Ying Su about the origins of Cai Lun, Zheng He, and Yu Yu Huatian.

Others even stated that this was inconsistent with the Great Qin system of recommending officials.

The crowd discussed the matter in a murmur; indeed, Ying Su had previously called out three names without any excessive action, and the subsequent reports from the court officials contained not the slightest discord. For a moment, everyone felt very favorable toward Ying Su!

At the very least, as things now appeared, he was a benevolent ruler!

Indeed, if you placed this in the hands of Seeing Ying Zheng, as a subject, if you dared to ask Seeing Ying Zheng so many things in a long-winded manner, Seeing Ying Zheng would long ago have grown impatient.

Yet Ying Su was extremely patient!

However, just as everyone had begun to develop some favorable feelings toward Ying Su, a single sentence from Ying Su silenced everyone.

Even the atmosphere that had just relaxed a bit became tense again in an instant!

"They are my trusted confidants, the people I trust most. Do you have any further doubts?"

Ying Su asked aloud!

In that instant, everyone fell silent as if frozen by cold; everyone could not help but swallow hard!

They could not help but recall once again the bones and crushed flesh of Outside Xianyanggong.

At that moment, everyone could not help but tremble violently!

Ignoring them, Ying Su continued to look at them: "Is there anything else to report?"

He asked aloud, his gaze specifically turning toward several people!

The Great Qin Right Chancellor, Feng Quji!

The Great Qin Left Chancellor, Li Si!

The Great Qin Grand General, Wang Jian!

The Great Qin Grand Commandant, also known as the State Commandant, Wei Liao!

The Great Qin Imperial Censor, Li Tan!

The Great Qin Senior Minister, the Physician Meng Yi!

And there is Chunyu Yue, formerly a scholar of Qi, now the Grand Tutor!

Yes, although the imperial court is full of murmurs, yet... even now, these few familiar figures, holding the highest offices among the Three Excellencies and Nine Ministers, have not uttered a single word!

To this day, they have not spoken a word!

What do they mean?

Do they not recognize me, the Emperor?

Ying Su's gaze turned cold and sinister!

And facing Ying Su's constantly sweeping glances, Feng Quji, the Right Chancellor and head of all officials, could finally hold out no longer; he was the first to bow and say:

"Your subject congratulates Your Majesty the Emperor; at the same time, I wish to report to Your Majesty the Emperor that in a few days, the provisions and pay for the three-month Great Wall construction are due for distribution!"

"And this time, the provisions and pay will be one million cash more than the last time, along with one hundred thousand shi of grain!"

"The reason is that Your Majesty Shi Huang previously, to accelerate the Great Wall's progress, dispatched an additional fifty thousand laborers!"

Building the Great Wall, distributing provisions and pay?

Upon hearing these words, Ying Su was momentarily stunned.

But very quickly, he realized what was happening.

Yes!

Currently in Great Qin, building the Great Wall involves distributing provisions and pay.

Moreover, it is distributed monthly.

And on the imperial court's side, a shipment of provisions and pay is transported to the Great Wall every three months, four times a year!

And this time, just the extra amount alone is one million cash, plus one hundred thousand shi of grain!

So what is the total amount?

Ying Su wanted to know.

But he did not ask Feng Quji; instead, he nodded: "I am aware!"

Having spoken, he turned his gaze toward Li Si.

To be honest, what these people say now is unimportant to him; what matters most is recognition, and reporting implies recognition!

Ying Su understood this principle, and Li Si understood it just as well!

However, no matter how Ying Su looked at Li Si, Li Si kept his head bowed and said nothing!

"Very well!"

Ying Su nodded, silently noted this matter, and then turned his gaze toward Li Tan, Chunyu Yue, Wang Jian, Wei Liao, and others.

And Li Tan, Wang Jian, and Wei Liao, just like Li Si, all kept their heads bowed, pretending not to see Ying Su's gaze, and completely refrained from speaking.

Seeing them thus, Ying Su's eyes gradually grew colder: "None of you speak? Is the reporting finished?"

He inquired, yet no one in the imperial court spoke, because everyone understood that what Ying Su currently demanded was an attitude, especially from the Three Excellencies and Nine Ministers.