2.1 Royal Family (5)

Arriving at the manor of the chancellor, Dong Li Hua followed Ying Zheng behind while a eunuch stood beside him as the large manor gate opened. A man in his late thirties welcomed them, wearing a sable hat and a robe with crane embroideries that signifies his status as a civil official. It is the Regent Prime Minister of Qin, Lü Buwei.

"Its an honor Your Majesty came." he smiled lightly, leading them into the manor when he sets his eyes on Dong Li Hua. She is curiously looking around, comparing it to Yecheng Palace and was impressed the royal family lived more extravagantly with better architectures. Marquid Wenxin Estate is not that poorly built since Lü Buwei is a successful merchant once and has a lot of wealth but still, his manor is not on the same level as the imperial residences.

"Uncle Lü, you are Lord Father's main supporter and its Zhen's pleasure to come over by old ties." Ying Zheng answered after noticing Lü Buwei staring at his personal maid for a long time. It cant be blamed since Dong Li Hua is trult enchanting, can be on par with his Lady Mother who can be one of the most beautiful women within the seven states. Specially that her eye color symbolizes the pure green jade, a treasure that showcases wealth and power.

"I have a humble dinner banquet for Your Majesty. There is a guest arriving here too that is quite impressive." Lü Buwei hid his inner thoughts. Dong Li Hua's green jade eyes disturbed him, knowing she is a foreign woman but her youthful beauty can cause a country's downfall. Nevertheless, her innocent visage and slime figure can arouse forbidden thoughts.

Dong Li Hua is unaware of this as she walked behind them. She looked up to see the tranquil starry sky when she thought of her family, missing them again. When no one was looking, she took out a piece of candy from her cloak's sleeve pocket. Since she was a child, consuming sweet can alleviate her grievances.

Upon entering the dining room, there is another man waiting for them. Dong Li Hua was busy looking around to examine every antique treasures when she heard a familiar deep voice.

"Greetings Your Majesty."

Just as Dong Li Hua sets her eyes on the man bowing before Ying Zheng, he lifted his head when the young boy king responded. Dong Li Hua met a pair of dark somber eyes that made her feel astounded. Isn't... Isn't this her older brother? What is Dong Chun Wu doing here?! Holding a folded fan, the 'Dong Chun Wu' before her looked like a scholar. Surely with his feminine visage, 'Dong Chun Wu' must have enchanted hundreds of ladies since his features were the ancient era's current trend.

"Oh. You are?" Ying Zheng took initiative to ask. He seemed to know this young man but cant recall where or when.

"Answering Your Majesty, this humble scholar is surnamed Li with the given name Si."

"Li Si? So, you are the new scholar within the court. No wonder Zhen is a bit familiar with you." he is satisfied with Li Si's performance. Considering their gap of age, Li Si is not arrogant in the slightest. At court, civil and military officials are haughty around him but Li Si id not likely so.

As the three of them sat, waiting for the dinner to arrive, they chatted for a bit which opened up Dong Li Hua's view. She is like watching the real history from the old books without mixtures of fake information for criticizing Qin Dynasty. Aside from that, Dong Li Hua would secretly peek at Li Si. He resembles her older brother from all hairs on his head to his toenails! A hundred and ten percent of similarity indeed. She is actually amazed at how far Li Si's insights were despite his age of seventeen

"In reality, Qin is extremely powerful but unifying the whole warring states is impossible if all the other states form an alliance to go against Qin." Li Si casually explained after Lü Buwei probed his understanding.

"Then what does Qin needs to do?" Ying Zheng too noticed how fluent and clever Li Si is thus, he wanted to see how far Li Si can go.

"Before annihilating them, one must weaken their source or base. In every dynasty that rose, there were smart scholars who arises then aid countless rulers or outsmart them." Li Si faintly smiled but underneath such calm and gentle gaze is a hidden dark idea.

"What shall be done?" Lü Buwei asked, trying to get an inkling to what Li Si is explaining.

"Assassination." Ying Zheng thought, silently glancing at Dong Li Hua to read her thoughts. For days of sticking around her, he knew she id easy to read. Since she is smart enough to understand everything in one glance. However, what he saw is unexpected. She is lightly raising her head while her eccentric gree lush eyes stared at Li Si, a mix of tenderness and amazement from her very gaze.

"Assassinate important scholars from every states. Scholars are easier to remove or even ministers at court. Its even better if we were to discard scholars who wished to be a tactician and follow the path of military officials. They are greater threats but we cant forget about civil officials too. That way, the ruler will have a hard time not having enough wise people under his control." Li Si answered Lü Buwei's question with confidence.

"What about generals?" Ying Zheng suddenly added. "They are far more important since they manipulate formations and battle tactics during war. Qin State lost at the Battle of Handan during my infancy because they have capable generals."

"King Zheng is right. However, like Your Majesty said, generals are more important. The greater their uses are, the harder they were likely to fall. Even if we were to send assassins to kill them, its near impossible to accomplish this mission." Li Si finally impressed the young boy.

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