While Meng Wu racked his brains over how to begin writing,
A Qin military courier galloped into the city along the road outside Xianyang, making straight for Xianyang Palace. A bamboo tube containing a report on the Qin army's capture of the Mountain Pass was sealed to his chest.
Though the Mountain Pass was a place of treacherous terrain, the Qin army had set out with a hundred thousand men. Taking it was all but certain.
So the report was not sent in haste. It first passed through the Sanchuan Commandery governor's review, after which the military achievements were compiled into a register and sent on to Xianyang. It went through layer upon layer of verification, and only now had it arrived.
Passing through Sima Gate, the courier entered Xianyang Palace. He swung down from his horse, walked beneath the covered gallery of the Office of the Receptionist, and handed over the report.
"The Fang City Pass has been retaken! A report from Meng Wu!"
The Chief of Receptionists verified the report, then carried it and hurried toward the rear hall of Zhangtai Palace.
The rear hall of Zhangtai Palace was utterly silent.
Twelve bronze pillars stood tall and imposing. In a bronze censer, aloeswood incense sent up wisps of blue smoke.
Ying Zheng sat before the dais, his back straight as a sword. He wore no ceremonial crown, only a black robe embroidered with a dark, mysterious bird pattern along its hems, making his face seem all the more imposing.
He was only a little over thirty, with a hooked nose like an eagle's beak and long eyes like a frozen pool. He looked exceptionally valiant and extraordinary.
Frowning, he studied the memorial in his hands, attending to important affairs.
Since executing Lao Ai and banishing Lu Buwei, he had finally taken complete control of Qin's affairs of state.
Zheng Guo was building a great canal, stabilizing farming in Guanzhong and ensuring ample grain reserves.
With renowned generals like Wang Jian and Meng Wu at his disposal, Ying Zheng had begun attacking Zhao several years ago, hoping to wash away the humiliation he had suffered there.
Who would have thought that he would suffer defeat after defeat?
At last, he realized that the time was not yet right to destroy Zhao.
So he planned to destroy Han first, clearing a path to the east, then use Han territory as a springboard to seize Zhao and avenge his past humiliation.
Yet Han, which had always bowed its head and submitted to Qin, had suddenly changed its ways and begun resisting stubbornly. It even dared to defy Qin.
This infuriated Ying Zheng, and he ordered Meng Wu to launch a fierce assault on Nanyang.
"Report—"
"The Fang City Pass has been retaken! A report from Meng Wu."
The Chief of Receptionists approached from below, holding the report. His voice echoed through the hall.
Ying Zheng's expression relaxed. "Bring it here."
Zhao Gao hurried down from the dais, took the report, and presented it to Ying Zheng.
Ying Zheng opened it and read a few lines. A smile immediately appeared on his face.
"As a general, Meng Wu truly never fails."
"The enemy had ten thousand elite troops, heavily guarding the Fang City Pass. Yet our army lost fewer than two thousand men taking such a treacherous stronghold. We opened the gates to Nanyang without so much as breaking a sweat."
"Truly the work of a renowned general!"
A military report first recorded the general circumstances of a campaign, such as its location and date, the enemy's troop strength, the units engaged, and the number of heads taken.
It would then highlight the soldiers who had taken the most heads, as well as those who had made special contributions, such as being first over the walls, breaching a city, or capturing a general.
"Hm? The greatest achievement in this battle went to a newly enlisted Squad Leader?"
"First over the walls, and he slew... two hundred and twenty-seven men? He even captured an enemy general alive?"
Ying Zheng stared in surprise.
He thought he had misread it. Only after checking twice did he confirm the number.
"This man is so valiant, yet he's only a Squad Leader?"
He immediately turned to the section detailing individual military achievements.
One look made him freeze.
It read:
"...A commoner of Huaiyang Village, Yang City County; Zhao Cheng, Squad Leader of the Assault Cavalry Battalion. First over the walls on the Southern Foothills of Fang City; took two hundred and twenty-seven heads, led his men in killing five hundred and forty enemy soldiers, killed a deputy general, and captured the commander alive..."
"Yang City County..."
"Zhao Cheng..."
At the name, Ying Zheng furrowed his brow. His frown deepened as long-buried memories began to assail him.
Ying Zheng shook his head. The character Cheng was a fine one, and there were plenty of people with that name. There was no need to think too much of it.
But why was he from that place?
As he pondered this, his deep gaze fell upon the silk letter from Meng Wu.
After a moment, he waved Zhao Gao away.
Zhao Gao said nothing. He bowed and left.
Ying Zheng sat with his head bowed in silence, lost in thought. The vast hall was utterly still, not a sound to be heard.
After a long while, Ying Zheng finally opened Meng Wu's letter.
"To His Majesty the King: Your servant Meng Wu bows his head and dares to report on matters at the frontier.
"Your servant has recently found a young god of war. This child is named Zhao Cheng, sixteen years of age, and peerless in courage.
"In the battle at the Fang City Pass, this child distinguished himself brilliantly. He led two hundred Assault Cavalry Elite in a fierce climb up the Southern Foothills of Fang City. The enemy had two thousand elite garrison troops, entrenched in the high ground.
"Zhao Cheng led the charge himself, climbing the cliffs. In close combat, he took two hundred and twenty-seven heads, seized their pass, and raised a banner as a marker. He held out desperately until our reinforcements surrounded the enemy...
"When the enemy attempted to break out, Zhao Cheng plunged alone into their ranks, charging through their defenses and cutting down their best fighters, then captured their general alive. Thus, our army took the pass without so much as breaking a sweat.
"Truly, this is the makings of a god of war—a general whose ferocity can match ten thousand men...
"More extraordinary still: this child is valiant in appearance, and there is a certain resemblance between his features and Your Majesty's.
"I have heard physiognomists say that those of noble birth often bear marks bestowed by Heaven. Zhao Cheng was born with such an appearance, and possesses the valor of ten thousand men besides. Perhaps Heaven has granted him to Qin...
"Your servant Meng Wu bows twice. Written in the first month of winter, the seventeenth year of King Zheng of Qin."
When he came to the words "sixteen years of age," Ying Zheng's eyes narrowed.
When he read, "this child is valiant in appearance, and there is a certain resemblance between his features and Your Majesty's," his long eyes flashed like cold lightning. He suddenly slapped the desk and sprang to his feet.
A heavy thud rang through the hall!
"That bold commoner woman!!"
He stood behind the desk, breathing heavily. A moment later, he began pacing back and forth.
He muttered without pause.
"Zhao Cheng, Zhao Cheng... sixteen years old."
"Yang City County, Huaiyang Village... I remember that village."
His father had only just died then, and he had not been on the throne long. He was too young to govern in his own right.
Within Qin, the chancellor wielded power and the harem meddled in state affairs. Beyond its borders, the Six States circled like wolves, threatening an alliance against Qin. The kingdom was beset by troubles both within and without.
By then, he had already learned to endure and lie low. Faced with Lu Buwei's monopoly on power and Empress Dowager Zhao's favor toward Lao Ai, he pretended not to notice. He never opposed their decisions, but quietly laid his plans and waited for their conflict to intensify.
At the same time, he was systematically studying Qin Law, military affairs, and economics.
He personally inspected the state treasury and irrigation works, and traveled throughout the land to observe the people's lives and test what he had learned.
But that was where the trouble began. That year, he had toured Sanchuan Commandery, which had only been established a few years earlier, to learn how Qin could improve people's livelihoods after seizing enemy cities.
Assassins sent by the Six States had attacked him. Gravely wounded, he was separated from his guards and ended up outside Yang City County, where a commoner woman rescued him and secretly took him into her home.
While he recovered, the woman secretly fell for him. As Ying Zheng was the ruler and could not reveal his identity, he had only given her a jade ring he wore close to his person, as thanks.
Who could have guessed that the bold woman would mistake that for a sign that he returned her feelings, and take advantage of his injuries and inability to move, making the uncooked rice into a finished meal!
At this thought, Ying Zheng closed his eyes tightly. He did not much want to remember what came next.
The woman was not particularly beautiful, but she had a warm face and a kind heart. She was considerate and gentle, only a little too bold.
He had been only fourteen or fifteen at the time, and his circumstances had been dire. He was grateful for her care; he could not say he had felt nothing for her. But there was a gulf between the royal clan and a commoner woman, and he could not acknowledge her.
If their relationship were discovered, his internal enemies could use it against him, jeopardizing his position.
Fortunately, the woman had never tried to use what happened to gain anything. She had kept it secret, and said nothing even when Wang Jian and the others found Ying Zheng.
Ying Zheng could make her no promises and offer her no reward. He had left her only the character Cheng, then departed.
The matter had remained buried all these years. Ying Zheng had not thought of it in a long time, though now and then he dreamed of the woman's face.
But Meng Wu's report today was like a sharp sword, slicing open memories long sealed away. Recollections surged back like floodwaters, filling Ying Zheng with emotion.
"Zhao Cheng, Zhao Cheng..."
He picked up the silk letter once more and read it again.
Now, his feelings were exceedingly complicated.
In a sense, this was his eldest son. But Qin Law drew a strict distinction between legitimate and illegitimate heirs, and the royal clan and nobility still held great sway over the question of succession.
There were many factors involved, and the matter was exceedingly complicated.
So even now, he could not acknowledge Zhao Cheng and bring him back into the royal clan. Doing so might well bring disaster upon the boy.
But fortunately, this child was extraordinarily brave, with the valor to face ten thousand enemies. He had already begun to distinguish himself in the army.
After reading the letter once more, a faint smile touched Ying Zheng's lips.
He read it again, and his brows lifted slightly. Pride flashed in his eyes.
"Sixteen years old, yet his archery and horsemanship are already superb. First over the walls, breaching the stronghold and slaying more than two hundred enemies, then capturing their commander alive..."
He suddenly burst into laughter, his booming mirth shaking the very heavens.
"Hahahaha..."
"Meng Wu was right. This child is just like me!"
Before you continue