During the Warring States Period, killing was nothing.
For example, even if the Warring States princes like Ying Xiaozheng's cousin had never fought in battle, it was common for them to beat a few slaves to death when they were in a bad mood. As for age, children started to be naughty when they were five or six years old. It was normal for people of their status to hurt a few lives when they were naughty. Therefore, Ying Xiaozheng's killing should not have caused fear in the hearts of the people.
What they were afraid of was that the contrast between Ying Xiaozheng before and after the killing was too great, and that he was too calm when he was killing.
Ying Xiaozheng didn't give them much time to think.
Whenever he killed someone, his guards would ride back at full speed to report.
When Ying Xiaozheng was on his way back, Qin Wangzhu and Zichu had already rushed in the direction of Ying Xiaozheng, and the two soon met.
However, King Qin Zhu did not stop hunting.
This was the first time he held a large-scale hunting ceremony, and it was also the first "new ritual" ceremony of the Qin State after Xunzi accepted the Qin ritual. If the ceremony was terminated, it would be a great blow to the prestige of King Zhu of Qin.
When Qin Wangzhu was on the road, he already knew the whole story.
Some of his grandchildren went to play with their peer Ying Xiaozheng and played a little joke, asking the servants to pretend to be assassins to scare Ying Xiaozheng. However, Ying Xiaozheng was not frightened, and calmly shot the "assassin" to death.
However, since the assassin is dead, it is difficult to tell whether this was a real assassination.
Because you can say that he was a servant disguised as an assassin, or you could say that he was someone who took this opportunity to really assassinate, after all, he really pounced towards Ying Xiaozheng fiercely.
There is no evidence since the person is dead. What happens next depends on the King of Qin himself and the game between the two sides.
Qin Wangzhu's heart sank and his face looked very ugly.
Zichu was fine. After hearing that it might not be a real assassin, his panicked expression calmed down. He even comforted Qin Wangzhu, saying that the child was ignorant.
The two of them had already learned the identities of the dozen or so descendants of the King of Qin. The descendants of the King of Qin who came to pester Ying Xiaozheng were all "children" under the age of fifteen who had not yet married. They usually fought cocks and walked dogs in Xianyang City, and were all famous playboys.
Although the Qin Law imposed many restrictions on commoners and ordinary nobles, the great nobles and royal family members could still indulge in entertainment, especially in their respective fiefdoms.
"A prince of Qin without military merit is equivalent to being a commoner." In fact, after the implementation, they just don't have a title, or in other words, they are not enfeoffed. But the king of Qin is a human being, and he is quite good to his descendants, giving them enough fiefdoms and salaries. If a prince of Qin reaches adulthood, he basically has an official position.
These descendants of the Qin King were people who could do such ridiculous things. But after listening to the list of this group of people, Qin Wangzhu said lightly: "Too deliberate."
Zichu smiled bitterly. He did not stand up for Zheng'er, nor did he speak for his nephews.
Ying Xiaozheng saw the King of Qin's procession from afar, waved his whip and hit the horse's butt, then sped over and stopped under the King of Qin's team.
"Father, Zheng'er is fine. I'm sorry to have worried you." Ying Xiaozheng dismounted and saluted. "It was just an accident. Please continue hunting."
Seeing that Ying Xiaozheng showed no fear, Qin Wangzhu's gloomy face turned brighter: "I'm glad you're okay."
His gaze swept over the other grandchildren whose bodies were as pale as earth behind Ying Xiaozheng.
These people are also his grandchildren, so they dared to play pranks on Ying Xiaozheng.
Qin Wangzhu felt a deep disappointment in his heart.
Although he knew that Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng were the most promising among his children and grandchildren and were the most suitable to inherit the throne of King Qin, they were his blood after all, so he did have expectations for his other descendants.
Although they could not become the King of Qin, they could be granted the title of King by military merit and assist the government at home. Many members of the Qin royal family served as generals and ministers in the Qin court.
Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng had a solid position and no one could compete with them, which also made them not afraid of other brothers and cousins. Qin Wangzhu believed that if his other descendants had talents, Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng would not be stingy with a high position.
King Zhu of Qin warned his sons about this, telling them that now was the critical moment for Qin to unify the world, and that they should work together as brothers and not give the six countries any opportunity to take advantage.
Less than a year after he ascended the throne, he did many things to consolidate the positions of Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng, making others understand that they had no chance of competing for the throne of Qin.
But the human heart...
"Zheng'er, what do you think should be done?" Qin Wangzhu said gently.
He believed that Ying Xiaozheng should already know the ins and outs of this matter.
The cousins behind Ying Xiaozheng were worried.
Ying Xiaozheng did not deliberately put on a stern face. Instead, he looked calm and relaxed, as if he was not the one who encountered the "assassination" and faced the difficulty.
"I believe my cousin may really want to play a joke on me, but the person who instigated them may not be the same." Ying Xiaozheng said, "First, if there is a scandal in the first hunting ceremony after my grandfather ascended the throne, it will affect the prestige of the King of Qin and the Qin State. Second, using assassination as a joke to make the guards careless, what if the person who came is a real assassin, or the person who accepted the 'joke' order is really someone with ulterior motives?"
Ying Xiaozheng paused for a moment, waiting for the sound of horses' hooves clattering on the ground behind him before continuing, "But if this matter is investigated, it would mean that the brothers have turned against each other, and if it is not, it would be an exaggeration, which would bring discredit to Grandfather. And it would be even more inappropriate to interrupt the hunt before investigating. Since there are no serious consequences, kill the servant who instigated my cousin and the guard who neglected his duty, and let this matter go."
"Anyway, whether you fail to advise your master or fail to uphold your duty, you deserve to die."
Ying Xiaozheng spoke indifferently, and lightly decided the fate of dozens of lives.
Among the dozens of people he wanted to kill, there was even Meng Tian, who had just become his personal guard, took the initiative to get close to him and informed him of the problem in advance.
Ying Xiaozheng knew that Meng Tian was the son of his uncle Meng Wu, and that Meng Tian was close to him, but he did not mention forgiving Meng Tian alone.
Meng Tian clenched his hands around the reins, cold sweat forming on his palms and back.
The fact that Ying Xiaozheng calmly shot the "assassin" just now had already chilled his heart. Ying Xiaozheng's cold words at this moment made him realize more deeply what kind of person he was going to serve.
He was not worried that he would be killed by the King of Qin.
In this case, he not only reminded Gongzi Zheng of the "joke", but also stayed by Gongzi Zheng's side all the time, which was not considered dereliction of duty. Moreover, his status was different from that of a family servant or ordinary guard, so at most he was punished and dismissed.
The fear and uneasiness in his heart were only directed at Ying Xiaozheng himself.
"Since Zheng'er has said so, let's give him a small punishment and a big warning and let this matter go." Qin Wangzhu said, "Zichu, do you have any suggestions?"
Zichu said respectfully, "Father, Zheng'er and my nephews were frightened. Let them return home early to have a good rest. Let's say that a servant was fighting for merit and caused chaos, and almost hurt the nephews. They were punished for their poor protection."
Qin Wangzhu nodded: "You have thought it through very carefully."
Ying Xiaozheng immediately said: "I'm not scared! I'm going to hunt rabbits!"
Qin Wangzhu was stunned and said helplessly: "You have hunted a human today. Why would you hunt a rabbit with such a big prey?"
Ying Xiaozheng regained his childish expression and said to Qin Wangzhu coquettishly: "Grandfather, my uncle laughed at me for not being able to hunt rabbits. I promised him that I would be able to hunt rabbits. If I fail, he will definitely laugh at me."
Qin Wangzhu laughed and said, "I will pack a cart of rabbits for you and say that you hunted them."
Ying Xiaozheng pouted and said, "Father will definitely tell uncle the truth."
King Qin Zhu looked at Zichu.
Zichu coughed dryly and smiled, "It's not good to lie. Since Zheng'er is still interested in hunting, let's go. Hunting rabbits is easier than hunting assassins."
Qin Wangzhu smiled dotingly and sighed, "Okay, go ahead. Meng Tian, you stay with Zheng'er. If you encounter an assassin this time, don't let Zheng'er do it himself."
When they met Qin Wangzhu, everyone had already dismounted. Meng Tian immediately knelt down and said, "Yes!"
Qin Wangzhu called ten people from behind to replace the guards behind Ying Xiaozheng, then glanced at the five guards he had previously assigned to Ying Xiaozheng who were limp on the ground, and suppressed his anger: "Zichu, you should let Zhu Xiang raise some powerful servants. The master of my guards is not Zheng'er, so it seems that they are not very dedicated."
Zichu sighed and said, "Zhu Xiang is not very good at teaching servants. He is always too lenient with them. It is too difficult for him to train a group of servants who will die for their master. His guards have always been raised by friends and he borrows them for use."
Qin Wangzhu sighed and said, "Yes, the guards in his house were all sent by the king, father and me."
Ying Xiaozheng couldn't help but interrupt, "Grandfather, Father, you should arrange my personal guards, right? Especially Father, I'm your son!"
Zichu was stunned for a moment, then put his hand to his mouth and coughed: "Of course you are my son."
Qin Wangzhu was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
Zichu also laughed awkwardly: "I will select a strong guard for you immediately."
Ying Xiaozheng sneered: "Haha!"
Although their laughter was different, the three generations of grandfather and grandson were all laughing together.
The three of them were laughing, and behind Ying Xiaozheng, including his cousin, everyone knelt on the ground and trembled. Qin Wangzhu did not let them stand up. Some people were already incontinent because of the fear of impending death.
After Meng Tian received the order, King Qin Zhu asked him to stand up.
He could see the Qin King and his two grandchildren smiling, and he could also see people kneeling on the ground waiting for death.
The scene was so bizarre and divisive that he dared not even breathe.
Ying Xiaozheng led Meng Tian and the ten newly arranged guards and was finally able to go hunting rabbits to shut his uncle up.
King Zhu of Qin and Zichu brought the princes back to the big tent to deal with today's affairs.
Some were killed, some were exiled, some were whipped, some were dismissed... the treatments varied.
Then, King Zhu of Qin killed all the servants who had accompanied the dozen princes to the Forbidden Garden, regardless of whether they were present or not, whether they were men or women, and whether they had anything to do with the incident or not.
Each prince had at least ten slaves around him, and with this killing, more than a hundred heads fell to the ground.
No one around the King of Qin dared to persuade him, and no one wanted to persuade him.
Even Xunzi watched all this coldly, and watched the servants around Wang Sun being killed indifferently. He felt that it was a good thing that Ying Xiaozheng and Zhu Xiang had learned well and were kind enough not to pursue the matter further.
When other people in the hunting ground learned about this, they couldn't help but praise Gongzi Zheng for being not only calm and decisive, but also kind.
As for Zichu's brothers, they could only praise Prince Zheng verbally, and then prepare two generous gifts, one for the Crown Prince and the other for Lord Changping.
After Zhu Xiang learned about this, he was silent for a while, then he sighed softly.
Zichu was weak, not to mention whether Ying Xiaozheng would die young. Looking at the life span of King Zhaoxiang of Qin, some people were speculating whether Zichu would live longer than King Zhu of Qin. So people didn't care much about his status as the crown prince.
Zhu Xiang knew that Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng would definitely become the King of Qin, but others did not know. So it was normal for them to provoke Zichu and Ying Xiaozheng. Everyone wanted the throne of the King of Qin. Zichu, as a hostage who left Qin early, could win the position of the crown prince. Why didn't other princes of Qin who had lived with King Zhu of Qin for decades dare to think about it
The relationship between them and Qin Wangzhu is much deeper than that between Zichu and Qin Wangzhu.
Even though Qin Wangzhu was very partial to Ying Xiaozheng, he was not bad to his other grandchildren. So these dozen immature grandchildren of Qin were joking with Ying Xiaozheng. If Ying Xiaozheng did not directly shoot the "assassin" and take the initiative in speaking, the matter would probably have been handled as a joke.
But Zhu Xiang still sighed when he saw that Zheng'er could kill people calmly at this age and decide the outcome of more than a hundred lives with a nonchalant attitude.
As expected, it’s Ying Zheng.
He didn't know whether he should sigh that he didn't change the First Emperor's temperament, or be thankful.
If he was uncomfortable, Zhu Xiang would naturally feel uncomfortable when he learned that more than a hundred innocent lives were killed. But he would not show it, and when Zheng'er came back, he would praise Zheng'er for doing a good job.
Many things done by the people around him did not conform to his values, even Xue Ji, his bedmate, and his close friends Lin Zhi, Cai Ze, Xia Tong, and his teacher Xunzi.
But Zhu Xiang was not only strict with himself but lenient with others, his three views only applied to himself. He also knew that others were right and he was wrong. It was himself who was out of tune with this era, so he had better not influence other people's judgment.
Even when there is a serious conflict between the three views, Zhu Xiang will only work hard on his own and will not blame others for not giving in.
"I hope Zheng'er will be less murderous." Zhu Xiang rubbed his hair and said to himself, "This time... it's not bad?"
For the future First Emperor, this can only be considered a minor punishment, right
However, the current minor punishments and severe warnings are also related to the fact that Zheng'er himself does not have enough power.
Zhu Xiang shook his head, said something to Xue Ji who was cursing those who scared Zheng'er, and went to the Forbidden Garden to pick up Ying Xiaozheng.
Ying Xiaozheng may not need it, but this is the first time that his Zheng'er was forced to kill someone, so he should at least appear in front of Zheng'er and comfort the frightened child.
King Qin Zhu was not surprised that Zhu Xiang came over immediately after receiving the news, and he directly let Zhu Xiang live in Zichu's tent.
"Don't worry, Zheng'er is fine. He went out to hunt rabbits early this morning." Qin Wangzhu comforted.
The hunting lasted for three days, but King Zhu of Qin had originally planned to let Ying Xiaozheng go home the next day.
Ying Xiaozheng is preparing to go south, so it is normal for him to go home early.
But now that this has happened, King Zhu of Qin listened to Ying Xiaozheng's request and asked Ying Xiaozheng to stay until the last moment of the hunting to shut up some people.
Lin Zhi said, "But Zheng'er's reason for not coming back is not only this. Didn't he promise to hunt rabbits for you? He didn't hunt any rabbits yesterday."
Zichu held his forehead with his hand: "I think Zheng'er might not be because of the rabbit. He is not that naive."
Zhu Xiang said seriously, "Based on my understanding of Zheng'er, the real reason might really be because of the rabbit. Zheng'er has a very strong desire to win. He promised me that he would hunt the rabbit and would not compromise until the last moment."
Lin Zhi asked, "Who does this resemble?"
Zhu Xiang said: "It's definitely not like Xia Tong, because no matter how hard Xia Tong tried, he couldn't hunt a rabbit."
Cai Ze: “…” He sighed silently. If these three people get together, will this happen
Zichu was furious: "Who said I can't hunt rabbits? I know how to hunt!"
Lin Zhi said, "I don't believe it."
Zhu Xiang said: "I don't believe it either."
Lin Zhi said, "Your Majesty, don't you know that when the prince was in Handan, Xue Ji asked him to help catch chickens but he was pecked by the chickens."
Zhu Xiang said: "His fighting ability is not as good as a big rooster."
Zichu was so angry that he was about to draw his sword: "Zhu Xiang, are you here to care about Zheng'er, or are you here to fight me?"
Zhu Xiang showed a puzzled look: "Ah? Why am I picking a fight with you when I tell you the truth?"
Qin Wangzhu suppressed his laughter and smiled to smooth things over: "Zi Chu, what is there to be angry about? If you know your shortcomings, make up for them. When the mourning period is over, I will choose a master for you and you can study martial arts well."
Zichu said aggrievedly: "Yes."
Qin Wangzhu said, "Zhu Xiang, Lin Qing, the two of you should stop teasing Zichu."
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
Zhu Xiang said: "I didn't, I just told the truth."
Cai Ze couldn't help it: "Shut up! Who doesn't know you and Lin Li? You two did it on purpose!"
Zichu showed a look of gratitude.
He thought that when he became the King of Qin, the position of Prime Minister would still belong to Cai Ze.
Besides Cai Ze, who else could be the prime minister? Could it be the bastard Zhu Xiang or Lin Zhi
"Are you going to look for Zheng'er, or are you staying here and waiting for him to come back?" Qin Wangzhu asked after he had laughed enough.
Zhu Xiang said, "The Imperial Garden is so big that it's easy to miss him if we look everywhere. I'll wait for him here and make some food to reward him. Your Majesty, make an exception today and let Zheng'er eat something good. Don't let him eat dry food."
Qin Wangzhu laughed: "Okay, do as you please."
Zhu Xiang rubbed his hands in anticipation: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will cook a lot of delicious vegetarian food! It's a pity that Xunzi left early and couldn't eat the food I cooked."
Qin Wangzhu smiled and said, "Then I will wait for you."
Zhu Xiang invited all his friends to cook with him for the King of Qin and Ying Xiaozheng.
Zichu was dragged away by Zhu Xiang and Lin Zhi, and he said as he walked: "Do you still remember that I am the crown prince? I should stay by the side of the king!"
Lin Zhi said: "I am still the Prime Minister."
Zhu Xiang asked, "What did I, Lord Changping, say?"
Zichu said: "My status as the crown prince is much higher than yours!"
Cai Ze held his forehead with his hand and sighed continuously behind the three people.
Qin Wangzhu endured for a long time, and finally couldn't help laughing after the three people left: "This is really... Hahahaha, I'm happy when Zhu Xiang comes. Meng Qing, you don't have to worry, your grandson will be safe when Zhu Xiang comes."
Meng Ao said with a straight face: "I'm not worried. If he is killed because of poor guards, he deserves to die!"
Meng Ao also followed King Zhu of Qin to hunt. When he learned that Meng Tian was involved in the "assassination", his heart almost stopped.
He was not worried about Meng Tian being killed, but the Meng family had waited for so many years, and finally the King of Qin agreed to let Meng Tian follow Prince Zheng. However, problems arose on the first day Meng Tian became Prince Zheng's attendant.
Not to mention whether the King of Qin would still trust Meng Tian, just based on the relationship between the Meng family and Zhu Xiang, Meng Ao felt a little guilty towards Zhu Xiang.
If Meng Wu were here, he would probably have asked to let Meng Tian hone his skills for a few more years, and would not have met Zhu Xiang and Prince Zheng without saying a word.
Meng Tian, you are an idiot! You actually let Gongzi Zheng do it himself! You should do it yourself at this time! What's the big deal about offending the prince? You are Gongzi Zheng's attendant, you should only obey Gongzi Zheng!
Meng Ao found that his grandson was still too young.
He had become Gongzi Zheng's follower, and from now on he would rise and fall with Gongzi Zheng, and there was no room for him to switch to someone else. So from now on, he should do his best and only recognize Gongzi Zheng as his master.
Meng Ao was a little worried that if Meng Tian followed Prince Zheng south, Prince Zheng might dislike him because of his immaturity.
Meng Ao repeatedly asked King Zhu of Qin to punish Meng Tian and let him hone his skills for a while, but King Zhu of Qin just smiled and assured him that Meng Tian was not bad and Zheng'er liked him very much.
Meng Ao was full of disbelief.
Gongzi Zheng is too complicated a person, and even at such a young age, he cannot see through him. How can I say that I like Meng Tian
When Ying Xiaozheng returned empty-handed today, his face fell when he saw his smiling uncle.
Zhu Xiang immediately pinched the soft flesh on Ying Xiaozheng's cheek and pulled it away: "When your uncle heard that you were assassinated, he came to look for you in a hurry, and you still give your uncle a cold shoulder? Huh?"
Ying Xiaozheng muttered: "Thank you, uncle. Zheng'er is fine."
Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "Zheng'er is fine, he just didn't hunt any rabbits, right?"
Ying Xiaozheng: “…”
I knew my uncle would say this! Angry!
Damn rabbits, where have you been? Why don't you let my arrows fall!
Ying Xiaozheng saw many rabbits, but the rabbits ran very fast and he didn't catch any.
Why do rabbits run so fast? Why are rabbits so small? Assassins are easy to hunt, but rabbits are really hard to hunt!
"It's okay. There's still one day left. Uncle will wait for you to hunt rabbits." Zhu Xiang pulled Ying Xiaozheng into his arms and hugged him gently. "Thank you for your hard work."
Ying Xiaozheng listened to his uncle's rapid heartbeat and hugged his uncle's back. For some reason, he suddenly felt a little aggrieved: "Well, it's so hard. Those people are so annoying! Bullying Zheng'er!"
Zhu Xiang said: "Zheng'er has done a great job, the rest is left to the elders."
He loosened his arms and rubbed Ying Xiaozheng's head with a smile.
Ying Xiaozheng smiled with his eyebrows curved like a crescent moon: "Yeah!"
(End of this chapter)