I don’t know how long the depressing atmosphere lasted.
The First Emperor did not issue any more orders, and no one dared to move, until Ying Chengjiao walked in through the door in his whitish prisoner uniform.
He glanced at the situation in the hall, and his gaze lingered for a moment on the pile of bamboo slips swept to the ground.
He said in a deep voice: "Everyone get out."
Except for Gai Nie, who responded and turned to leave.
Zhao Gao, Li Si, the Chief Justice, the jailer and others all stood still.
Ever since Ying Chengjiao entered the Emperor's fold, the First Emperor's eyes have always been on Ying Chengjiao.
"Everyone get out."
The orders issued by the First Emperor were exactly the same as what Ying Chengjiao said.
"only."
Everyone responded respectfully, and quickly went out, suppressing their rapidly beating hearts and half holding their breath.
“Woo woo woo~ woo woo~”
The bound Right Supervisor of the Supreme Court struggled hard, indicating that there was still a living person here.
He didn't want to stay there, because hearing some of the words might lead to his death.
But none of the people who were busy fleeing cared about him. It would rather my fellow Taoist die than let him die.
The Right Supervisor of the Supreme Court had a look of despair on his face.
Ying Chengjiao came over and said unkindly, "I heard that you tipped off Gan Luo when I arrested him?"
The Right Censor of the Supreme Court kept glancing at the First Emperor with his peripheral vision, waiting for him to speak.
Ying Chengjiao slapped the Right Supervisor of the Imperial Court on the face and cursed, "I'm talking to you, why are you looking around?"
Your Majesty, you have been so indulgent towards this brat... He should not have died.
“Woo woo woo~”
When the Right Supervisor of the Imperial Court learned of the First Emperor's attitude, he began to whimper and kept looking downward, indicating that there was a cloth in his mouth and he could not speak.
Ying Chengjiao slapped him again.
"Bullshit! Just looking at you makes me upset! Go away!"
He grabbed the Right Censor of the Supreme Court by the back of his collar and threw him out through the door.
The First Emperor waited until Ying Chengjiao finished everything, and there were only two of them left in the room.
He stood up while holding the table and asked, "Do you know how many officials Meng Xibai has in Qin?"
Ying Chengjiao said innocently, "Is my brother angry? I am just following the Qin law."
"It is because you act in accordance with Qin's laws that I am meeting you."
The First Emperor grabbed a roll of bamboo slips and smashed it at Ying Chengjiao's feet, pointing at the bamboo slips on the ground.
He roared: "Do you know that if this incident is not handled properly, Xianyang will be in chaos! Guanzhong will be in chaos! The whole world will be in chaos!"
Ying Chengjiao said with a guilty conscience: "No, well, do I have such a great influence?"
"You bastard!"
The First Emperor was furious and shouted loudly, when suddenly he heard outside the door a roar like mountains and seas rising up suddenly.
The lyrics sung were exactly the Qin Feng song "Wu Yi" from the Book of Songs!
The anger in the First Emperor's eyes grew even more intense as he stared at Ying Chengjiao.
How dare you, a brat, to stir up confrontation between the military merit family and the aristocratic family!
Ying Chengjiao hurriedly shook his head and waved his hands.
"Brother, I didn't ask anyone to sing "Without Clothes". This has nothing to do with me!"
…
The old general Meng Ao wrapped himself in clothes and walked into the gate of the National Guard Mansion with his head lowered.
Wherever he passed, all the officials of the Imperial Guard Office bowed to him and showed the utmost respect to this veteran general who had fought for the Qin Dynasty in all directions.
Several officers who had fought in the Meng family army actively greeted the old man and wanted to help him walk.
This is not because they are flattering, but because they heard that the old man was seriously ill some time ago, and even the imperial physician Xia Wuqi said that it was difficult to cure.
Today, although the old man's steps are still steady and not shaky, he walks very slowly and takes a breath after each step. They are afraid that the old man's condition will worsen and he will fall to the ground.
The old man didn't appreciate it at all.
People advised him to take care of himself and wear more clothes, but he said that even if you die, you will not die.
When I stepped forward to lend him a hand and serve as his walking stick, he scolded me, saying, "You have nothing to do?" His Majesty gave you salaries so that you can do things, not serve me!
Those who were scolded just smiled and dared not to talk back. They followed the old man closely, fearing that something might happen to him.
A few official duties mean nothing, and a few days of imprisonment is no big deal. The most important thing is that Mr. Meng is healthy!
Wang Xi heard a lot of noise in front of him and walked out of the back hall with a frown.
He walked out of the hall, stood on the three-story bluestone steps, and watched everyone doing nothing.
While being scolded by Meng Ao, they continued to surround Meng Ao with a gloomy face.
"You're all full of energy, nothing to do? Get ready for push-ups, 500 each."
There was no need for everyone to look back; they knew it was Wang Xi just by listening to his voice. That thunder-like voice was unique to this military leader.
Everyone wailed, unable to cry.
The three words "push-ups" are recently the three words that all officials of the National Guard hate the most.
Whenever something doesn't go Mr. Wang's way, he'll be ready to do push-ups.
I don't know where the old general heard about this movement, but he pushed himself up, bent over, and straightened his body. Almost all the muscles in the body were exercised and it was very tiring.
If I were younger, five hundred wouldn't be a big deal, but it's been years since I switched to clerical work.
The original muscles have long since turned into lumps and swellings, how can I still do so much?
But even though the group of men shouted and howled, no one actually said the number was too high, or asked Wang Xi to reduce it.
One by one, they lay down obediently and started doing push-ups, secretly thanking their lucky that the prince did not set a time limit this time.
"Keep your back straight and your body in a straight line! Why are you being lazy?"
Meng Ao walked while cursing, and after taking two steps he lightly kicked an official in the arm.
"Stick your butt up! I've never seen a push-up where the butt lands first in my life!"
The man immediately stuck his butt out, raised his head and asked with a smile, "Mr. Meng also knows push-ups? Is this a military training method from decades ago? Mr. Meng, is this how the prince trained in the past?"
Meng Ao glared at the man and stepped on his back, knocking him to the ground.
"You still have the leisure to talk nonsense, but you have to do the heavy work!"
The stepped on man gritted his teeth and tried his best to stand up.
"Mr. Meng's kick is not as powerful as before. Mr. Meng, please take care of yourself."
Meng Ao cursed the old man for being too talkative, quickened his pace, and followed Wang Xi, who came out to greet him, into the back hall.
After these two old generals with the longest service and greatest achievements in the Qin State left, none of the officials in the front hall of the State Guards' Office stood up.
Even if I'm sweating and my arms are shaking.
Still bowing to the ground, standing up straight, all in a very methodical manner.
"If you are sick, go find the imperial physician! This is the Imperial Guards' Office, not a military camp! What right do you have to punish officials?"
As soon as he entered the back hall, Meng Ao closed the door and roared at Wang Qi.
There is no rule of corporal punishment in the Guowei Mansion. No matter which government agency , superior officials do not have the power to punish subordinates in this way.
Wang Xi said calmly: "Are you feeling sorry for him? Is there a child from the Meng family in the courtyard?"
Meng Ao suppressed his anger and whispered, "Bullshit! Nai Gong is saying that you will be attacked if you set up punishments privately. Aren't you exposing your weaknesses to those people?"
"You keep yelling at me every day, and you even dare to scold His Majesty. If anything goes wrong, it will be you, old man, who will get into trouble first."
"You know nothing. The more vulgar the public is, the safer it is. It is a private virtue for a public to curse others, and it does not involve power. You, a birdman, set up punishments privately and punish officials. This is against the rules. His Majesty can punish you for this alone!"
Bang!
Wang Xi slapped the seal of the state commander in his friend's hand, pointed at himself and said, "If Your Majesty wanted to kill me, he could have done it long ago."
The commander of the Qin State was Ying Chengjiao, not Wang Xi.
The biggest violation of the rules was that Wang Xi appeared in the National Guard's Mansion, holding the National Guard's seal and exercising the National Guard's power.
Meng Ao held the seal of the national commander and looked at it for a long time, not knowing what to say.
They all say that I, Meng Ao, have the worst temper. Compared to a birdman like you, how can I have any temper at all...
Wang Xi opened a large wooden cabinet as tall as a person against the wall and took out a brown wine jar.
"Want to drink?"
When Meng Ao saw this, his brows furrowed.
"You dare to drink alcohol during the time of Yingmao?"
Yingmao is the time to go to work.
Alcohol was prohibited among the people of Qin. Although people with titles were allowed to drink at home, it was absolutely forbidden for them to drink during working hours, as it was against Qin law.
Wang Xi held the wine jar in one hand and pointed at the Chinese seal in Meng Ao's hand with the other to remind his old friend.
He asked impatiently, " Do you want to drink?"
In my current situation, should I, Wang Xi, still care about violating a Qin law?
Meng Ao was silent for a moment, threw the seal to Wang Xi and cursed him as a birdman.
"I will die with you! Drink!"
The fragrant smell of wine drifted from the back hall to the front yard. The officials, who were soaked all over, sniffed hard and laughed out loud.
"The prince is drinking again."
"Bullshit, that's water!"
"Haha, yes, yes, water that can make people drunk!"
“…”
In the back hall, the two veterans who had fought side by side since their youth did not use wine bottles, wine bowls, or wine glasses.
Instead, they carried a jar of wine and drank it, taking a sip at a time, and no one spoke.
When the jar of wine was almost empty, Wang Xi shook it vigorously and poured the last three or two drops of wine into his mouth.
"We've finished our drink, let's go."
Meng Ao shook the empty wine jar to make sure there was no wine left, and muttered that you must have hidden some wine, so he quickly took it out and went to get some wine from the wooden cabinet where Wang Xi had just taken the wine.
Wang Xi grabbed his old friend's arm, which was so thin that there was not even a pound of flesh on it, and snorted coldly, saying, "I'll drink this jar of wine with you, old man today. If you want wine, go find it yourself. Xi has not enough to drink yet."
There was no wine to sell among the people of Qin.
Meng Ao leaned forward and held Wang Xi's hand with his skinny hand that looked like a mummy.
"Naigong didn't drink enough."
"If you haven't had enough, go home and drink."
"You go back with Naigong to drink."
"Zhi is the national commander, should you be idle like yourself?"
"What a lieutenant! When will His Majesty appoint you as lieutenant?" Meng Ao pointed at Wang Zhi's nose with a mocking look on his face and said, "Are you worthy of being a lieutenant? How can you be a lieutenant?"
Wang Xi stroked the national commander's seal and said calmly, "The general pays homage to me."
Meng Ao grabbed Wang Xi by the collar and said coldly, "Bird, your majesty has the final say in the Qin State. Your majesty said you are the national lieutenant, so you are the national lieutenant. Are you going to tell Nai Gong that you don't recognize your majesty?"
"I recognize your majesty."
When Meng Ao heard this, there was no change in his expression, no sign of joy, and he remained as cold as iron.
Based on his understanding of his old friend, there will definitely be more to say.
Sure enough, Wang Qi saw that Meng Ao was not moved at all and sighed with regret.
“It’s hard to deceive.”
The veteran, who had originally withdrawn from the matter, grinned when Ying Chengjiao brought him back to the Qin stage to perform.
"I recognize your majesty, and I recognize the general even more."
Meng Ao took a deep breath and placed his hands on Wang Xi's shoulders.
"Let's go with you. Let's go drink with you. You haven't had enough to drink."
His hand slid down and pulled Wang Xi's hand outward. The old man tried his best but still failed to pull it out.
The old man looked back angrily.
"You birdman, don't you understand what people say?!"
Wang Xi chuckled and shook his head.
"No, I'll drink with you in the next life."
"What nonsense are you talking about! What about your next life..."
"Meng Ao."
The old general's voice, which was like the rumble of low thunder, softened for the first time and he called Meng Ao by his full name.
"I have never been as smart as you, but I have lived for decades longer, so I am not so confused about this. Shang Jun is dead, Wu An Jun is dead, and Chang An Jun is also in danger this time.
"Those useless people can't go to the battlefield, can't make any military achievements, can't kill the enemy, but they are very good at killing their own people. Whether Chang'an Jun lives or dies depends on your majesty."
"Chang'an Jun will not die." Meng Ao said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty once wrote to me personally, saying that if Chang'an Jun rebels, Your Majesty will give up the throne. You, a birdman, don't have to follow me back to the palace. Just stay here and wait for this matter to be settled..."
As Meng Ao was speaking, a punch suddenly came at his face.
The old man reacted quickly, shut his mouth and retreated in one go.
The old man was incredulous and asked, "You bird man, are you going to fight me?"
Wang Xi's attack missed, so he didn't stand up, but just sat upright with his fist retracted.
"If it is really as you said, why do you come here to seek revenge? Let's not talk about whether your words are credible. If your words are true, Qin Xiaogong said to Shangjun, 'You are like the green mountains, and I am like the pine and cypress.'
"King Zhaoxiang of Qin said to Wu'an Jun, 'The great cause cannot be accomplished without you, the Qin State can do without Yingji but not without Wu'an Jun.' Old man, you tell me yourself, can you believe the words of the King of Qin? You have a home, go back."
Meng Ao remained silent.
If he had not broken into the palace that night, he would have believed in the First Emperor's promise without a doubt.
But he got into it, so he came today to take his old friend away, saving as many as possible.
Wang Zhi saw that Meng Ao did not move, so he stood up and stretched his muscles, and said with a smile: "You are no match for Zhi now. Zhi knocked out the Wu'an Jun of the Great Qin Dynasty in the past, and today he knocked out Meng Gong of the Great Qin Dynasty. Zhi has a great record in battle."
Before the old general could finish his words, he shot out like an arrow from a bow, and in a moment he was behind Meng Ao, whose body had not yet recovered.
A knife swung swiftly in the wind and stopped behind Meng Ao's neck.
"Why not hide?"
Wang Xi asked curiously.
Although Meng Ao is in a very bad condition now, he will definitely not be captured by him as soon as they meet. He can at least block three or two moves.
"Listen to Ao's advice and follow him."
Meng Ao knew he was no match for Wang Qi, so he gave up fighting back just to say one more word. After decades of life and death friendship, Meng Ao could even judge that Wang Qi would give him a chance to speak.
Looking back, Meng Ao ignored the knife hanging in the air and stared into Wang Xi's eyes.
"I haven't had enough drinks with you, a birdman."
Bang~
The knife fell and Meng Ao fainted.
Wang Xi caught his old friend's limp body with half of his arm and with a little effort he lifted him up horizontally. He was much lighter than he had imagined.
Wang Xi weighed it over and said with a smile, "You old fellow should live well and eat back Xi's share of meat."
Putting his old friend on the bed, Wang Xi thought to himself, "You've never been a national lieutenant in your life, right? It's a good thing for you, old man, to have a taste of being a national lieutenant."
While taking off his old friend's shoes and socks, he covered him with the woolen quilt that he had washed half a month ago.
He sat beside the bed, looking at his sleeping old friend, and couldn't help laughing when he thought about how Bai Qi, the Marquis of Wu'an, was also pulled back to Xianyang from Changping in a sleeping state.
"When King Zhaoxiang of Qin met Wu'an Jun, Zhi listened to you and did not accompany Wu'an Jun, so Wu'an Jun died. When the general went to Tunliu, Zhi listened to you and did not accompany the general, so the general became a disgrace to the Qin State. This time, Zhi will not listen to you."
The old general took off his clothes, revealing his aged body covered with old wounds, crisscrossed with scars, and even a puncture wound on his heart that would never heal.
First put on your underwear.
Then put on armor!
Then take the sword!
"Sixth son!"
The old general shouted loudly, his voice like thunder in the sky, which made the officials who were doing push-ups in the front hall mutter that the prince had a very loud voice and lie on the ground rubbing their ears.
They couldn't stand up until they finished their push-ups. This was the rule set by Wang Xi.
"master."
The old soldier, who had followed the veteran for more than ten years and had been taking care of the old man's daily life, had participated in the battle to destroy Zhao and fought to the city of Handan, quickly pushed the door open and entered.
Armed with weapons and wielding sharp weapons.
The old face is bright.
"You are nothing! Are you worthy of wearing armor with Nai Gong? Take good care of this old fellow Meng Ao!"
When Wang Xi saw the old soldier's uniform, his face darkened and he started to peel off his armor while cursing.
The old soldier did not resist and just laughed.
I haven’t heard the master scolding people for a long time, so cool!
"I will go even if I am naked."
Wang Xi glared and raised his hand.
"Even if the master knocked me out, I would still speak up for the general when I woke up."
Wang Zhi stopped moving.
"You don't understand anything. You are dying in vain."
The old soldier adjusted his armor.
"I don't understand much. I just know that I have never lost a battle under the general, my food and wages have never been cut off, and my military achievements have never been bad. The general said this is justice, and I think justice is very good. I don't care whether the general wants to destroy Zhao or the aristocratic family. To me, it doesn't matter."
The old soldier, his armor fully adjusted, stood proudly, as if he was about to charge into battle, risking his life.
He shouted, "General, you have done so much for Qin. You have contributed to the conquest of all the six kingdoms. Why should you die? Those birdmen who can't even wield a Qin sword have done nothing and they deserve to die for opposing you!"
Wang Xi was silent for a moment.
"Let the old man sleep by himself, and we will go to die."
"only!"
The old soldier responded and patted the Qin sword at his waist.
He laughed and said, "Master, how can two people go to the battlefield? The old brothers who have no family are waiting for you to gather at home."
Wang Xi laughed and scolded, "You are a bunch of birdmen, get out of here!"
"only!"
Veteran general Wang Xi and the sixth son of veteran soldier.
Walk out of the back hall and through the front yard.
The officials who were sweating profusely and had not yet finished their push-ups were all from the military.
Seeing two men in armor passing by, one of whom was Wang Xi, he was immediately shocked.
The prince is wearing armor and holding a sword!
Something bad is going to happen! Something terrible is going to happen!
A crowd of people stood up and surrounded Wang Xi, not letting him leave, and asked him what he wanted to do.
Wang Xi swept his eyes across the faces of the crowd and shouted, "You've done 500 push-ups? Get down! Military orders are as strong as a mountain, but you take their mother's words as bullshit? After following that Wei Niao who doesn't know the real battlefield for so long, all of you can only hold a pen but not a sword?"
A person's mind was racing and his brain was reacting very quickly.
"Prince, is this Lord Chang'an..."
Bang~
Before he could finish his words, Wang Qi slapped him hard in the face.
Wang Xi said coldly: "Your son is five years old, lie down! Push-ups!"
The man struggled for a moment, bent his knees, raised his body, and straightened his back.
All the officials of the Imperial Guards' Office remained silent, and Wang Xi kicked the nearest person.
"Push-ups ready!"
The one closest leans over.
Let’s mention the next most recent one.
"Push-ups ready!"
The next closest person should squat slowly.
"Push-ups ready!"
"Push-ups ready!"
"Push-ups ready!"
“…”
Wang Xi would kick any official who stood still, and if they refused to lie down, he would kick them again.
In the Qin State where only military achievements matter, veterans with outstanding merits are qualified to kick any one of them.
Until all the officials of the National Guard Office were lying on the ground, supporting their bodies with their elbows, with their backs straight.
body and mind.
Always have to be straight.
"Five hundred. You are not allowed to start until you finish. After you finish, I will give you another five thousand. Do you understand?"
Wang Xi roared.
"only!"
Everyone shouted with their eyes closed.
They finally understood why Wang Xi did not set a time limit for the push-ups this time.
"Naigong is gone. It feels pretty good to work with you guys, hahahaha!"
Wang Xi, who was not a lieutenant but exercised the power of a lieutenant, laughed loudly towards the sky and went out, with only an old soldier accompanying him.
There was dead silence in the Guowei Mansion, except for the sound of whistling.
It was the sound of the wind as everyone did standard push-ups, as well as the sound of their heavy breathing.
A group of soldiers who were transferred from the military to civilian positions, their blood is still hot and they find it difficult to burst out.
Living in this world, there are not so many things that go as we wish, and there are many things we are helpless about.