Deer Terrace Completed, Daji Plans to Deceive the Emperor

Even though Bi Gan remonstrated in every possible way and risked his life to stop him, he ultimately failed to shake Di Xin's resolve.

Di Xin had been bewitched by Daji. Disregarding the depleted state coffers and the suffering of the people, he issued an edict demanding rushed construction, utterly ignoring the cost in manpower and resources.

Under such wanton extravagance, forced conscription, and brutal exactions, Deer Terrace—which had originally been expected to take another year to complete—was declared finished in a mere month.

Yet behind this so-called "miraculous speed" lay a horrifying price.

The manpower and resources consumed were five times the original budget;

During that month, countless laborers were driven beyond their limits. Some died of exhaustion, some of starvation. More than ten thousand commoners died on the construction site alone. Outside Morning Song, corpses lay strewn across the land, and cries of misery filled the air. The sight was too terrible to bear. The people cursed without end, yet dared not speak their anger aloud.

The moment Deer Terrace was completed, Di Xin impatiently took Daji up to its highest platform.

Deer Terrace towered into the clouds, its carved beams and painted rafters resplendent. Golden bricks paved the ground, while jade-like towers rose all around. Its extravagance had been carried to the utmost extreme, every detail proclaiming boundless waste.

Standing atop the high platform, Di Xin looked down upon the splendor of the entire city of Morning Song. The pride and satisfaction in his heart overflowed from his expression. The corners of his mouth kept lifting, his eyes brimming with ostentation and intoxication.

"Look, my beauty." Di Xin wrapped an arm around Daji's slender waist, his tone smug.

"Isn't the Deer Terrace I built for you even more magnificent than you imagined? From here, the whole of