Chapter 21 Qin 21
Ying Ji did not speak, but carefully looked at the person who was bowing respectfully in front of him.
The man before him had white hair and a face full of wrinkles. His eldest son had already passed away before him. Ying Ji suddenly wondered how many years his second son would actually reign after he passed the throne to him.
It's true that he lived a long life, but in this era, people who live as long as him are actually an anomaly.
He vaguely sensed that his time was up in the next few days, and while he was still lucid, he needed to make arrangements for what was to come.
Although he felt that his son would not be on the throne for many more years, it was not realistic to skip the crown prince and pass the throne to his grandson at this time, so Ying Ji did not think about doing anything outrageous before he died.
Instead, he asked Yingzhu in a casual tone, "Whom do you plan to appoint as crown prince after you ascend the throne?"
Ying Zhu didn't know what his father was testing. He simply knelt down properly, crawled a few steps to Ying Ji's bedside, looked up at Ying Ji with sincere eyes and urgent tone: "Father, may your reign last forever. I dare not have such presumptuous thoughts."
Ying Ji: "..."
"I know my own body. You can say whatever you want, and I will listen as I please. Today, there is only father and son in this bedchamber, not ruler and subject."
Yingzhu: ...If you dare to listen so casually, then I dare not say so casually either...
"I think..." Ying Zhu hesitated, wanting to speak but not daring to express his opinion. Ying Ji said that there was only father and son, not ruler and subject, but he dared not really think so. He could not completely ignore Ying Ji's words, so he had to change his address back to "Father" to match his father's and show that they were close. "I am ignorant, please enlighten me, Father."
Ying Ji nodded. He didn't want to say anything unpleasant, knowing that his youngest son was extremely cautious, even with the throne beckoning him... He was still so careful and prudent.
“I heard that your wife has adopted Zichu as her heir.”
Ying Ji remained calm, and Ying Zhu couldn't discern anything from him either.
Ying Zhu's thoughts raced through his mind, but he couldn't figure out why his father had suddenly brought this up. He lowered his head and answered truthfully, "Yes, Hua Yang had no children of her own, and she took Zi Chu as her heir because they got along well."
Ying Ji remembered that Ying Zhu had more than twenty sons, but he had little impression of most of them. There were too many for him to remember. He could only vaguely remember Zi Chu because he had been a hostage in Zhao and was also the father of Zheng'er.
Never mind, that's not the point. Ying Ji felt a headache coming on. His son and grandson were destined to have short lifespans, as it was said that Qin had sealed their fate.
His hopes rested on his great-grandson, whom he had practically raised himself. He didn't mince words with Ying Zhu about Ying Zichu's affairs and asked directly, "Do you know that he has a son in the State of Zhao?"
Ying Zhu knew, of course, but he didn't know why Ying Ji was asking this. He felt that his father was becoming more and more difficult to understand.
"I know, but Zichu had no choice back then..." Yingzhu spoke up to defend Ying Zichu, mainly because if he didn't, he might be the one scolded later.
Ying Ji waved his hand impatiently. Why was his son not on the same wavelength as him? He interrupted him: "I'm not here to punish you. Your son is good and worthy of being the crown prince. After I go there, you must bring back his son in Qin."
"The arrangements have already been made; all you need to do is pick them up."
"Furthermore, after my death, I will send a large force to guard the lands of Taishu Jiu. Chaos can occur anywhere else in Xianyang, but it absolutely cannot happen there."
Ying Zhu was taken aback. The troop mobilization was inevitable, but his father seemed to care more about his great-grandson in Zhao.
"Yes, I will remember this."
Ying Ji waved his hand to dismiss the man, then called out to Ying Zhu as he was about to leave: "Wait, have Zi Chu come to see me first thing tomorrow morning."
"Yes." Ying Zhu waited for a while, and when he realized that his father had nothing to say, he quietly withdrew.
Ying Ji sat alone on the bed. He had thought he wouldn't make it through the day, but now he couldn't let go of his worries and felt that he could hold on for another day.
****
The next day
Ying Zichu entered the palace with trepidation to meet his elderly grandfather.
Before coming, he discussed with Lü Buwei, trying to guess what his elderly grandfather was thinking and why he had been summoned to the palace.
But no matter how much he guessed, he couldn't figure out that his grandfather had summoned him for his son who was far away in the State of Zhao.
As Ying Ji spoke slowly and steadily, Ying Zichu also recalled the little dumpling in his memory that was gradually fading away.
When he left, his son with Zhao Ji was only a little over two years old...
"Yesterday your father said that he would make you the crown prince after he ascends the throne. What do you think?" Ying Ji asked in a calm voice with a serious expression, looking quite serious.
Ying Zichu reacted the same way as Ying Zhu; he knelt down with a thud, determined not to let his gaze be higher than his grandfather's.
Ying Zichu bowed deeply: "Your grandson dares not harbor any unwarranted thoughts..."
Ying Ji scoffed: "If you truly had no ulterior motives, why would you have had Lü Buwei arrange for Lady Huayang to adopt you as her heir?"
"..."
Ying Zichu could not offer any explanation; he could only lower his head and remain silent.
His grandfather knew all this; the old man, though old, was not senile.
“I know you have another child in Xianyang, but Zheng’er must be brought back,” Ying Ji coughed twice, propped himself up and stepped down from his high seat to stand next to Ying Zichu. “You must make Zhao Ji your principal wife and Zheng’er the crown prince.”
Ying Zichu couldn't help but look up in surprise at his grandfather's expression, then quickly lowered his head again.
Did his father really suggest that he be made crown prince?
Although this was what he had hoped for and he had put in a lot of effort for it, he was still somewhat bewildered after learning the result, because these were the words of his grandfather, not his father, and his grandfather had even ordered him to make Zheng'er the crown prince...
He himself isn't even the crown prince yet, how strange...
"You don't want to?"
"Grandson wouldn't dare, grandson will certainly follow grandfather's instructions." Ying Zichu quickly spoke up, how could he possibly disagree with such a good thing?
Ying Ji took two steps, turned his back to Ying Zichu, and stood with his hands behind his back: "Don't even think about fooling me. If you break your promise, your throne will be illegitimate!"
Ying Zichu is not the eldest among Ying Zhu's many sons, nor is he the biological son of the principal wife. Apart from his experience as a hostage in Zhao, he has virtually no political capital. It would be easy for Ying Ji to control him; even if he were dead, he could still be controlled by the imperial edict.
"Your grandson wouldn't dare!"
Ying Ji raised his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose and sighed, "...Time was still too short..."
He had only given Zheng'er a few dozen lessons when he saw that his youngest son and grandson were also dying young, and he was very anxious.
"Fine, you may come with me to court."
Ying Zichu was pleasantly surprised to hear this. Being able to go to court with his grandfather was certainly a form of political capital.
****
During the court session, Ying Ji was somewhat absent-minded for the first time. He was thinking about who to give the imperial edict to, and his gaze unconsciously drifted to the roof beam.
After thinking it over, he made a decision: since no one could prove the authenticity of the will, he would place it on the roof beam in the Hall of State Affairs in public.
After the ministers had finished discussing the important matters, he beckoned someone to come in, handed a box to an attendant in front of all the ministers, and ordered, "Place this box on the roof beam."
"only."
The head servant quickly took the box, and the remaining servants brought in tools from outside the hall. The box was placed on the roof beam in front of everyone.
At this moment, Ying Ji called out to Ying Zichu: "Zichu, cough cough, if there are any uncertain major events in the future, have someone take down the box and look at its contents."
Ying Zichu certainly didn't think this was some kind of secret plan left to him by his grandfather; he was being threatened.
He... was indeed threatened. He quickly bowed and thanked the emperor, but he was also somewhat surprised and uncertain. So, did his son have some special qualities that even he, as the father, did not know about?
"Let's call it a day..." Ying Ji said, then staggered and slumped into his seat, coughing and coughing.
"Quickly, summon the physician!"
When Ying Ji collapsed, chaos erupted in the palace. At this opportune moment, Ying Zhu stepped forward to take charge, dismissing the ministers and leaving only a few high-ranking officials to wait in the palace.
Ying Ji was carried onto the imperial carriage by his attendants and moved to his bedchamber. Knowing that he was not going to survive, Ying Ji raised his hand to dismiss everyone.
The bedchamber was empty; even the few servants who had been attending to him had been driven out.
Only at this moment could he openly call out "Mother" to the air without it seeming strange.
"Mother……"
The moment the word 'mother' was uttered, 'Qin' appeared, as if waiting to see him off on his final journey.
Why don't you let them in?
Ying Ji forced a smile: "No need. They may not be truly grieving. What good will it do to just watch?"
Even when he died without his wife, children, or grandchildren by his side, he had no regrets. He forced himself to stay alive and dismissed everyone, wanting only to ask his motherland one thing.
“Zhao once said that I was the one you resented… about Lord Wu’an…”
"Why do you think that?" 'Qin's' voice was still gentle, and to Ying Ji, it even gave him an urge to fall asleep to the gentle voice of his motherland.
“After all, he has made many contributions to Qin. I was being too petty,” Ying Ji said tentatively.
“You have lived your whole life for me, how can I resent you? But you should save this apology for Lord Wu’an.”
"That's good...that's good..." Ying Ji's cloudy eyes flashed with excitement, and he said with a strong voice as if he were having a final burst of energy before death, "I've arranged everything afterward. The edict on the beam of the main hall is the last thing I left for Zheng'er. Mother...I don't know what to leave you...cough cough..."
“You’ve done very well. There’s no need to worry anymore,” Qin said, gently holding Ying Ji’s hand. “Someone will take over your responsibilities in the future. Go to sleep… when you wake up, you might see a prosperous and glorious world again.”
"..."
Qin watched as Ying Ji slowly closed his eyes, his wrist falling limply to his side, and he fell into a deep sleep forever.
She looked at the person on the bed with a feeling of unease, and saw a milky white halo that was barely visible to the naked eye flash for a moment. She blinked and looked slightly puzzled.
Ordinary Qin people would return to their hometowns after death. She had become accustomed to accepting those weights as light as feathers into her bones and blood, so she was both sad and calm. But Ying Ji seemed different. Suddenly, spatial fluctuations appeared around him.
****
As for Qin, she didn't understand; as for the system, Zhu Qing'ai didn't understand either. But considering that she could transmigrate, perhaps Ying Ji had some kind of extraordinary encounter. As long as she kept up the act in front of others and didn't mess things up, that was fine.
A note from the author:
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The Ying Ji in the bonus story is actually this Ying Ji (if I can write it).
By the way, Chapter 23 should be the one that goes live, which is the chapter after next. I will be posting 10,000 words a day on the day it goes live! But the update will be delayed from noon to midnight orz.
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