I don't want to tear off the mask of civility like this!
But how dare you laugh and joke in front of me today, and show such disdain for Li Lin! I hate you! I hate that I didn't get rid of you sooner, which led to Li Lin being poisoned to death by you!
Just you wait, you'll be laughing for a while, but your laughter won't last long.
And you, Ying Lin, you call yourself a veteran of three dynasties, so you think you're something special?
I'll make you regret this!
Anger flashed across the First Emperor's face. Despite his usual leniency towards the misdeeds of these members of the imperial clan, it was only because they hadn't crossed his line. Now, however, they had.
Then there will only be one outcome: death!
When the First Emperor killed someone, he never cared about their identity or background.
He's old now and not as decisive as he was when he was young.
If it were when he was young...
He dared to kill the Empress Dowager. If it weren't for killing more than a hundred ministers who pleaded for her, which calmed his anger, the Empress Dowager would probably have died at his hands.
"Today I intend to add a few more conditions to the previous edict of posthumous conferment. Please listen and see if it is appropriate!"
The First Emperor paused, composed himself, and then said calmly, "I intend to bestow upon Li Lin the title of King of Chu, with the title 'Chu,' and have the princesses of the six kingdoms buried with him. I will also have a golden and wooden coffin specially made for him. What do you all think?"
[Pfft! My God, what is Your Majesty doing? I'm just dead, aren't I? You want to posthumously grant me the title of King of Chu? This is outrageous! When has the Qin Dynasty ever bestowed a title upon a king? And, to have the princesses of the six kingdoms buried with me? Seriously? This is too cruel! As for the golden coffin, my goodness, Your Majesty, are you afraid I'll find peace after death? Won't tomb robbers be eyeing my coffin all the time?]
Suddenly, right after the First Emperor finished speaking his thoughts...
Li Lin's voice suddenly echoed in my mind.
He was immediately delighted, a slight smile playing on his lips, his mind already racing with thoughts: How come I can hear that brat's voice again? Could it be that after that brat died, his soul floated beside me, watching me?
no!
He died such a tragic death that I'm afraid I'll feel guilty for the rest of my life. If I don't make amends to him and satisfy him, what if he stays by my side every day from now on?
I don't want this kid watching me while I'm exploring the secluded Peach Garden with my beloved concubines; that would be awkward.
If I were to release the arrow when it was already on the bowstring, and this kid suddenly let out a sigh, wouldn't I be bursting with pent-up frustration?
"Your Majesty, your posthumous conferment is far too generous. Even the rewards bestowed upon Bai Qi, the God of War of Qin, were never this substantial, let alone considering that Li Lin has not made any outstanding contributions in the past month or so!"
"Yes, Your Majesty, this reward is indeed a bit too generous. But then again, we all felt that the previously proposed reward was somewhat inappropriate. What right does Li Lin have to be made a marquis?"
"Yes, yes, what Imperial Censor Zhang said makes some sense!"
"Of course! Who am I, Zhang San? I'm the head of the Censorate. How could my words be without some merit?"
......
Just as this group of people were expressing their disagreement.
The First Emperor spoke up, a hint of guilt on his face, as he looked at the empty space in the hall and said slowly, "Li Lin, you must still be dissatisfied with the rewards I have bestowed upon you, right? How about this, I will elevate your rank and posthumously confer upon you the title of 'King of Qin'?"
[What?! They want to posthumously confer the title of Prince of Qin on a dead man like me? If Li Shimin finds out, won't he go crazy and cough up blood? Such a high-ranking title as Prince of Qin, how could I, Li Shimin, possibly bear it? Sigh, has His Majesty lost his mind because of my death? Why is he spouting such nonsense?]
Hey!
That brat! I offered you such sincere praise in posthumous honors, yet you insulted me in return. Fine, fine, you're dead now, so I won't hold it against you.
"Your Majesty, this is outrageous!"
"Yes, King Qin, how can you grant titles so arbitrarily!"
"Your Majesty, what's wrong with you today? You can't just appoint the Prince of Qin to any position!"
"Your Majesty, although my younger brother has made some contributions, I'm afraid he is not up to the task of becoming the King of Qin!"
At this moment, even Li Lin's adopted brother, Li Xin, couldn't help but speak up to dissuade him.
After all, everyone knows the great achievements of the previous Qin kings.
As for Li Lin's reward from the King of Qin?
Who the hell would recognize that?
Doesn't this diminish the prestige of the King of Qin?
That man called the King of Qin is a treacherous minister like Li Lin.
If even one bad example occurs, future generations will not believe that the King of Qin was a powerful figure who could become king.
Just like after Emperor Renzong of Song performed the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai.
Emperors like the Ming Taizu and Ming Shizu did not perform the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, but the emperors before them, such as Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang, and Emperor Taizu of Song, were qualified to do so.
But you, Emperor Renzong of Song, did not make any outstanding contributions to the Chinese nation. If you were to perform the Fengshan ceremony, it would be tantamount to lowering your prestige.
If Zhu Yuanzhang went again, it would make him look too low-class.
Therefore, the ministers tried their best to dissuade him, and even Ying Lin and Tai Shiteng joined in. They had originally planned to just go through the motions and have a laugh, but they didn't expect His Majesty to become more and more outrageous.
The fact that they were going to bestow the title of "Prince of Qin" upon Li Lin was completely unexpected.
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