Chapter 13: The "Good Deeds" of Hu Hai and Zhao Gao Through the Years (Part Two)

Li Nian knew he had to keep pouring oil on the fire regarding Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si. After today’s revelations, there was no turning back; he could never again be associated with the likes of Huhai. Since they were destined to be enemies, he might as well make his assault on their reputations thorough.

Li Nian continued, "After Your Majesty passed away, in order to seize the throne, Prince Huhai and his cohorts did not immediately transport the imperial remains back to Xianyang. Instead, they waited."

Ying Zheng interjected, "They were waiting for word from Fusu and Meng Tian?"

Li Nian nodded. "Exactly. Without confirmation of Prince Fusu and General Meng Tian’s fates, they dared not act recklessly. After all, General Meng Tian commanded an army of three hundred thousand. Had their forged decree failed to eliminate them, and they had instead marched on the capital, the conspirators would have needed the imperial remains as a shield to justify their actions."

If these events were truly to come to pass, Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si all deserved to die for daring to use his corpse in such a manner.

"Only after receiving confirmation that Prince Fusu and General Meng Tian were dead did Prince Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si order the convoy to travel day and night back to Xianyang. But by then, several days had passed since Your Majesty’s passing, and the imperial remains..."

Li Nian left the sentence unfinished, but Ying Zheng and Meng Yi understood his implication. The body had been left for days in the heat of the seventh lunar month; it must have already begun to rot and reek.

"To prevent news of Your Majesty’s passing from spreading, the convoy dared not take the shortcut back to Xianyang. Instead, they maintained the pretense of an ongoing imperial inspection tour, taking a circuitous route. To mask the stench, Prince Huhai and Chancellor Li Si came up with a clever scheme: they purchased large quantities of salted fish to carry in the carts. If anyone caught the scent, they would claim the weather was hot and the fish had spoiled."

Ying Zheng’s expression darkened further. If this were truly history, they had treated him as nothing more than rotting fish? He, the supreme ruler of Great Qin, was equated with seafood?

Li Nian continued, fanning the flames: "Under such circumstances, Prince Huhai returned to Xianyang and successfully ascended the throne. But having secured the position through such means, he was deeply insecure, constantly fearing that someone would expose his crimes and seize the throne from him. And who in the world would be most likely to do that?"

Even Meng Yi felt a chill in his heart. This man was truly daring to speak so openly. It went without saying—it was, of course, the Prince’s own brothers.

Ying Zheng’s face grew increasingly grim. He had already guessed what his "dear son" Huhai would do next, but he could not have imagined that his son was even more savage than he anticipated.

"Naturally, it was Prince Huhai’s own brothers and sisters—Your Majesty’s other children."

"Consequently, Prince Huhai began a slaughter. Historical records indicate that Your Majesty had over twenty sons and ten daughters. Prince Huhai executed twelve of them in one fell swoop. The records state: 'Twelve princes were executed in the marketplace of Xianyang, ten princesses were torn limb from limb in Du, their wealth was confiscated by the state, and those implicated were countless.'"

"Three of the princes, including Prince Jianglü, were forced to commit suicide, while six other princes were executed in Du County. When Prince Gao saw his siblings being murdered one after another, he was terrified. He wanted to flee but feared for his family, so he voluntarily petitioned to be buried with Your Majesty."

"Prince Huhai was delighted. After Prince Gao followed Your Majesty in death, Huhai rewarded him with one hundred thousand coins. The records state: 'Huhai approved his request and granted him one hundred thousand coins for his burial.'"

Hearing this, Ying Zheng could no longer contain himself. "That beast! To harm his own kin so cruelly—he will surely meet a wretched end!"

Ying Zheng knew exactly what "torn limb from limb" meant; it was a brutal execution by dismemberment. That Huhai would inflict such a fate upon his own brothers and sisters was nothing short of monstrous.

Li Nian replied, "Your Majesty is correct. Prince Huhai indeed met a wretched end; he was forced to commit suicide by Zhao Gao and his son-in-law, Yan Le."

At the thought of his ten daughters being torn apart, Ying Zheng’s rage surged. "Too merciful for him! For his crimes, he should have suffered the same dismemberment!"

If he had proof that Huhai would commit such acts, he would ensure the wretch suffered the same fate. After all, when he dealt with the children of Lao Ai, he had only had them dashed to death.

Li Nian continued, "As for Prince Huhai being forced to take his own life, that is another story. But regarding the Chief of the Carriage Office who helped him secure the throne, his power and status in Great Qin rose rapidly. During this time, a curious incident occurred, leaving behind an idiom for future generations."

"At the time, Zhao Gao’s power was absolute. One day, while the ministers were paying homage to Prince Huhai, Zhao Gao led in a deer and, pointing to it, said to the Prince, 'This is a thousand-league horse; I have brought it as a special tribute for Your Majesty.'"

Was this a curious incident? It sounded more like a disgrace.

Ying Zheng scoffed, "No matter how stupid or wicked Huhai was, he could at least distinguish a horse from a deer."

Li Nian replied, "Your Majesty is right. Prince Huhai could tell the difference. Seeing that it was clearly a deer yet being told by Zhao Gao it was a horse, he laughed and asked if Zhao Gao was mistaken, as it was obviously a deer. However, Zhao Gao ignored him and instead turned to the ministers, demanding they declare whether it was a deer or a horse."

Ying Zheng’s eyelids twitched. He slammed his hand against the desk and barked, "Calling a deer a horse! What a brazen display!"

Whether it was a horse or a deer was irrelevant; this was clearly Zhao Gao flaunting his power, showing no regard for Huhai’s imperial dignity.

"Some ministers, fearing Zhao Gao’s power yet unwilling to tell a lie, remained silent. Others, hoping to curry favor with Zhao Gao, insisted the deer was a horse. Still others spoke the truth, pointing out that it was indeed a deer, not a horse."

"For those who spoke the truth, Zhao Gao kept a tally. He later framed them with various charges, having them expelled from the court or executed. Your Majesty has already named the idiom derived from this event: 'Calling a deer a horse!'"

Ying Zheng asked, "What of Li Si? If Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si all conspired to alter the decree, what became of him?"

"By the time of the 'calling a deer a horse' incident, Chancellor Li had already been executed by the 'five punishments' and his entire clan exterminated!"

Ying Zheng fell silent, realizing this must have been the handiwork of Huhai and Zhao Gao. He then asked, "Huhai is a fool, and Zhao Gao is arrogant. With those two in charge, I fear my Great Qin did not fare well?"

This question silenced Li Nian.

Seeing Li Nian’s hesitation, Ying Zheng urged, "I have said you may speak freely. I will not punish you for your words!"

Only then did Li Nian slowly speak: "Your Majesty’s intuition is correct. Great Qin perished in the second generation!"

Ying Zheng could no longer remain seated. He rose from his throne, his face filled with disbelief. He could accept that Great Qin would eventually fall, but he had envisioned it lasting for centuries. Now, Li Nian was telling him that his dynasty fell in the second generation. What did that mean? If the first generation was him, the second was Huhai. Did that mean his vast empire had vanished under Huhai—in just a few decades?

No, perhaps not even decades. Ying Zheng recalled the years mentioned in Li Nian's words; it was highly probable his Great Qin had collapsed in little more than a decade.