Chapter 178: Various Intentions

The night was hazy.

Zhao Gao left Zhangtai Palace.

Seeing Ying Zheng stood within Zhangtai Palace, his expression dark enough to drip water.

There was no other reason; it was simply because the matter Zhao Gao reported was truly too shocking.

Lao Ai was actually a fake eunuch!

And his mother, in recent years, had often been unwell, frequently traveling between Yongcheng and Xianyang—not because she was truly unwell, but because she and Lao Ai had an illicit affair, which led to her secretly conceiving and giving birth to two sons for Lao Ai.

If it were only this, it might be manageable.

In private, Lao Ai even called himself his "fake father." Recently, upon learning that he was about to go to Yongcheng for the capping ceremony, Lao Ai had secretly gathered troops and horses, intending to... rebel and support those two bastards as the new King of Qin.

Whether it was the defilement of the palace or the intent to rebel, this deeply provoked Seeing Ying Zheng, filling him with rage.

However, all of this was merely Zhao Gao's one-sided story; Seeing Ying Zheng still held a skeptical attitude as to whether it was true.

Furthermore, Zhao Gao was the Empress Dowager's confidant; that he would choose to report Lao Ai and expose the affair between him and the Empress Dowager also surprised Seeing Ying Zheng.

But Seeing Ying Zheng ultimately made up his mind.

As he had not yet held the capping ceremony to assume personal rule, all major state affairs were decided by Chancellor Lu Buwei, but Seeing Ying Zheng still had people he could rely on.

That was the power of the Chu State maternal relatives.

Qin and Chu had intermarried for generations, and the Chu maternal relatives possessed a great deal of power in the State of Qin.

The former Empress Dowager Huayang was from the State of Chu.

Seeing Ying Zheng's father, King Zhuangxiang, was able to succeed to the throne precisely because of the efforts of Empress Dowager Huayang.

"It seems I must pay a visit to my grandmother!"

Utilizing the power of the Chu maternal relatives was a decision Seeing Ying Zheng had made, though this was not his only contingency.

On this day, Gai Nie quietly left Xianyang; he prepared to send a letter to Wang Yi.

When King Zhuangxiang passed away, Wang Yi, Biao Gong, and Meng Ao were the three Generals who jointly managed major military affairs. Now, Meng Ao was dead, Biao Gong was critically ill, and the only one still sound was Wang Yi.

In the beginning, Seeing Ying Zheng had not considered Wang Yi as his own contingency.

This was mainly because the old General Wang did not think much of him.

But after the meeting at the Wu Sui border, Seeing Ying Zheng had an unexpected gain.

Currently, although he still had not held the capping ceremony to assume personal rule, he was not as powerless as imagined.

While Seeing Ying Zheng was actively preparing for the capping ceremony.

Within the residence of Marquis of Wenxin, Lu Buwei.

Lu Buwei finally made up his mind.

He handed a letter to the person before him: "Send this letter to Yongcheng and deliver it to the Marquis of Changxin. He should know what to do!"

"Yes!"

The man took the letter and withdrew.

Lu Buwei looked at the lamp before him, his eyes flickering, and finally, they showed nothing but coldness.

Power is a poison; once consumed, it is difficult to quit.

Although he had agreed to the capping ceremony for the King of Qin due to the pressure of public opinion, whether the capping could be successful would depend on this King of Qin's fate.

If his fate was bad, he could not blame others.

Although his relationship with Lao Ai was not very good, Lao Ai had once been under his command, originating from the Luo Wang organization he controlled. Even after leaving Luo Wang, Lao Ai had developed some inappropriate ambitions.

But because of their past relationship, he did not mind using Lao Ai as a blade once more to carry out a "borrowed knife to kill" scheme.

As for whether Lao Ai would agree and do as requested in his letter?

Lu Buwei believed the other party would agree.

The relationship between Lao Ai and Empress Dowager Zhao Ji appeared secret, but he controlled Luo Wang; there were very few things in this world that could be hidden from him.

"A mere lowly slave, daring to call himself the 'fake father' of the King of Qin—it truly makes one a laughingstock!"

"However, you can only blame yourself for being too bold and reckless. Since you have done this, do not blame me for using it to coerce you!"

Having an illicit affair with Empress Dowager Zhao Ji to bear children, and calling himself the King of Qin's fake father—no matter which one, these were heaven-defying crimes. If Lao Ai did not want these charges to be made public, he would have to obey his request and obediently eliminate the King of Qin in Yongcheng.

In the letter, Lu Buwei promised Lao Ai that as long as he helped eliminate the King of Qin, he would help him conceal this matter and grant him wealth and status.

Of course, that was what he said; whether he would actually do so after the deed was done was obviously impossible.

After all, regicide requires a scapegoat.

Since Lao Ai had developed ambitions and intended to break free from his control, he did not mind eliminating Lao Ai.

This letter, sent by Lu Buwei's hand, was quickly delivered to Yongcheng.

The main reason was that Yongcheng was not truly far from Xianyang.

It was only a little over a hundred li; with a fast horse and a whip, one could arrive in half a day.

That Marquis of Wenxin Lu Buwei, who was at odds with him, would send him a letter caused Lao Ai a moment of surprise. When he opened the letter and saw the content clearly, his expression changed instantly.

"Lu Buwei!!"

He had never expected that his greatest secret would be discovered by Lu Buwei.

The other party was even using this to coerce him.

"You have quite a good plan, don't you? Do you want to use me as a blade?"

Lao Ai pondered slightly and understood Lu Buwei's intention.

"Earlier, after finally catching an excellent opportunity, I failed repeatedly, so you have finally lost your patience, haven't you?" Lao Ai understood clearly why Lu Buwei would send this letter.

It was nothing more than the fact that earlier, Lu Buwei had sent Xuan Jian to assassinate Seeing Ying Zheng, which failed, and he had hinted for Wang Yi to make a move on Seeing Ying Zheng, both of which ended in failure.

Seeing Ying Zheng successfully returned to Xianyang, and he could no longer find such a good opportunity.

Facing Seeing Ying Zheng's upcoming capping ceremony, he did not want to return power to Seeing Ying Zheng, so he had to kill Seeing Ying Zheng before the capping ceremony and the assumption of personal rule.

As for why Lao Ai knew so much about the assassination attempts, it was because he was one of the participants himself. To be precise, the third attempt, stemming from the assassination by Duan Shui, was directed by him, specifically to frame Lu Buwei.

If it could succeed, that would naturally be for the best; that way, Lu Buwei would be the one to take the blame. Regrettably, it failed.

"After the deed is done, help me hide my secret and promise me glory and wealth—it sounds nice, but I already have glory and wealth, and I don't need your charity..."

"However, since you have already sent this letter, I will grant your wish and kill Seeing Ying Zheng! Once Seeing Ying Zheng is dead, the next one will be you!" ===== CHAPTER 180 =====