On the great palace hall.
The golden rain had stopped.
That golden dragon which had pierced through heaven and earth had already transformed into countless specks of light, merging into every inch of Great Qin’s land.
Yet the sacred, sovereign pressure it carried did not dissipate. Instead, it settled deeper into the world.
Ying Zheng sat upon the dragon throne.
He did not speak, yet the newly born, ocean-deep aura of the Human Emperor already made the surrounding space feel almost stagnant.
Below the steps.
Li Si, Wang Jian, Meng Yi…
All the civil and military ministers of Great Qin stood straight as spears.
They could feel the surging power within their bodies.
That was the blessing of national fate.
A miracle bestowed by His Majesty.
At that moment, a golden-armored guard hurried in from outside the hall and knelt on one knee.
“Reporting to Your Majesty.”
“The envoys of the Western Regions are kneeling outside the hall, refusing to rise.”
There was an uncontrollable tone of excitement—and contempt—in the guard’s voice.
“The prince of Dayuan has already smashed his forehead open; blood is flowing across the ground.”
Ying Zheng showed no reaction.
He did not even glance outside.
As if those so-called princes and court mages were nothing more than slightly noisier ants beneath the steps.
Ying Ziye sat on the stairway, pulling out a handful of sunflower seeds from his robe.
Crack.
The crisp sound was especially sharp in the silent hall.
He swung his little legs and muttered indistinctly,
“So noisy.”
“Kick them out.”
The words had barely fallen.
A filthy figure suddenly stumbled and crawled into the hall.
It was the prince of Dayuan.
His luxurious robes had been torn into strips, soaked in mud and blood.
There was not a trace of princely dignity left.
“Don’t!”
“Don’t drive me away!”
He did not even dare stand, crawling on hands and knees all the way into the center of the hall.
Facing the direction of the dragon throne, he began to slam his head frantically.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
His forehead struck the now jade-like floor tiles with dull, heavy sounds.
“Your Majesty! Great Emperor of Heaven!”
The Dayuan prince wept uncontrollably, his voice hoarse.
“I was blind! I am a beast! I should not have offended the heavenly authority!”
While crying and shouting, he pulled a yellowed sheepskin map from his chest.
He held it high above his head.
“This is the complete map of my Dayuan Kingdom! All cities, mines, and pastures are marked on it!”
“I don’t want it anymore! I offer everything to Your Majesty!”
“I won’t go back either! I am willing to become a citizen of Great Qin! Even if I have to clean the imperial warhorses’ stables, I will do it willingly!”
He wailed loudly.
“Please! Please let me stay! Wuuu…”
“I just… I just want to drink a sip of Xianyang well water every day!”
At these words.
The Western Region envoys kneeling outside the hall began to stir.
This shameless bastard!
He actually got ahead of them!
Ying Zheng still did not look at him.
He only turned his gaze calmly toward Li Si.
Li Si immediately understood.
He stepped forward.
From his sleeve, he drew out a roll of black bamboo slips.
Snap!
The bamboo slips unfolded with a sharp sound like a whip.
“By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees.”
Li Si’s voice was not loud, but it landed heavily in every heart present.
“From this day forth, Great Qin abolishes all alliance treaties.”
He swept his gaze across the trembling figures outside the hall, his expression utterly emotionless.
“All nations under heaven have only two paths to choose.”
He paused slightly, then enunciated each word.
“Become slaves.”
His voice suddenly rose, filled with chilling coldness.
“Or become ghosts!”
Slave! Or ghost!
Those four words fell like four towering mountains, crushing down upon them.
Outside the hall, all the Western Region envoys turned deathly pale.
Despair.
Bone-deep despair.
Even the qualification to remain allies had been stripped away.
And at that moment—
Ying Ziye’s slightly childish voice rang out lazily.
“Even becoming slaves has a threshold.”
He spat out a sunflower seed kernel, flicking it straight onto the face of the Dayuan prince.
“If you want to stay, you can.”
“Bring something in exchange.”
Ying Ziye stood up and clapped the sunflower seed husks off his hands.
He walked to the entrance of the hall and looked at the group of envoys outside, whose faces had turned ashen.
It was as if he were looking at a herd of lambs awaiting slaughter.
“Did you see that rice just now?”
He raised a finger.
“To get one jin of Dragon Fang Rice, bring a gold mine in exchange.”
He raised a second finger.
“You want to bathe in our well water to prolong your life?”
“Fine. Exchange it with one hundred thousand able-bodied young men from your country.”
Ying Ziye grinned, revealing two rows of small white teeth.
“As for turning your countries into lands of blessed cultivation like ours…”
“Then offer all your land, all your mines, and all your people.”
“And your royal families may come to Xianyang to serve as gatekeepers.”
“Of course—you’ll need to pass an assessment first.”
The entire hall fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone had expected these envoys to be enraged, to resist.
But—
The next second.
“I exchange!”
The envoy of Qiuci was the first to react. He crawled forward in desperation.
“Your Majesty! Ninth Prince! Our Qiuci Kingdom is willing to offer half our population—two hundred thousand people! We only ask to exchange for a drop of divine water!”
“Our Loulan has jade mines! The finest in the Western Regions! We offer them all! We are also willing to present our sacred maiden to warm His Majesty’s bed!”
The Loulan court mage had gone mad as well, shouting at the top of his lungs.
“Move aside! Our Yuezhi Kingdom offers ten iron mines! We only ask for a bowl of Dragon Fang rice soup!”
“Our Wusun Kingdom wants nothing! We only beg to become Great Qin’s horse herders! Please accept us!”
They had gone mad.
Completely mad.
They were like starving dogs who had seen food, scrambling forward in frenzy.
Pushing, cursing, fighting.
Competing over who could “sell out their country” more completely, whose offer was more tempting.
The scene was more chaotic than a marketplace.
The civil and military officials of Great Qin watched as these envoys—who moments ago still called themselves nobles—now fought bloody battles just for the chance to become slaves.
Their expressions shifted from shock, to contempt, and finally to deep pride.
This was Great Qin.
This was the majesty of His Majesty!
General Wang Jian stood to the side, watching the chaos, and let out a heavy sigh.
He stepped forward and cupped his hands toward Ying Zheng, his face full of genuine frustration.
“Your Majesty.”
The old general’s voice carried a tone of grievance.
“This… what are we supposed to do now?”
“They’re all scrambling to surrender. With this old minister’s strength and this treasured blade of mine—how am I supposed to earn military merit by conquering nations in the future?”
“My fists are itching!”
Behind him, Wang Ben, Meng Tian, and the other generals all nodded in agreement.
Yes.
There were no wars left to fight.
What joy was left in life?
Hearing such absurdly “luxurious complaints,” the Western Region envoys still rolling on the ground cried even harder.
These Qin people were demons!
At that moment—
Ying Zheng finally spoke.
“Granted.”
One word.
Soft in tone.
Yet it descended like a divine decree of creation, instantly suppressing all noise.
The entire world fell silent.
Everyone turned toward that figure.
Ying Zheng rose from the dragon throne and stepped forward.
He looked down at the “kings” and “court mages” prostrated beneath him.
“You barbarians, offering land and tribute—this pleases me.”
His voice was calm, yet carried an innate imperial authority.
“From today onward, you shall not be my ministers, nor my slaves.”
The envoys froze.
Then, their eyes erupted with wild joy.
Could it be—
“Instead, you shall be tributary states paying taxes to Great Qin.”
Taxes?
“I permit you to engage in trade.”
Ying Zheng swept his sleeve.
“Pass down my decree.”
“Outside Xianyang City, construct a ‘Ten-Thousand Nations Quarter’.”
“All foreigners shall reside there. None are permitted to enter Xianyang proper.”
“Let this be a display of heavenly grace.”
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