Monday, May 2, 2011

The first emperor: Chapter three " the family secret"

The first challenge for Ying Zheng's reign is over and the lesson has been learned. Ruthless control is the standard treatment of all, including his own family. Now Ying Zheng is expected to add his prime minister and his own mother to his long list of victims. Lu Buwei is under the sentence of death for failing to protect his king, but they had a special secret bond (Lu Buwei is his father). Lu Buwei is a rich merchant. He befriended the prince of the Chin State during the latter years of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770-256 B.C.).


The merchant's lovely wife Zhao Ji had just gotten pregnant, so he arranged for the prince to meet and fall in love with her. She became the prince's concubine, and then gave birth to Lu Buwei's child in 259 B.C. The baby was born in Hanan, and was named Ying Zheng. The prince believed that the baby was his own.Ying Zheng became king of the Chin state in 246 B.C.
 Both parents are spared, Lu Buwei was vanished after the Lao Ai incident, but did not lose all his influence in Chin. However, he lived in constant fear of execution by the mercurial young king. In 235 B.C., Lu committed suicide by drinking poison. The queen dowager Zhao Ji spent the rest of her days under house arrest.

The scholar Li Si will be the new power behind the throne, perfecting a totalitarian ideology ready to imposed in an unified China. By 227bc the Chin state swallowed three of the independent states of China(Han,Wei,Zhao) . Like a silk worm devouring a leaf. Panic spread ahead from the advancing war machine. The state of Yen is next in the firing line and they know they were powerless to resist. A diplomatic mission was sent to the kings court, it's aim is to halt the advancing bang wagon on it's tract.

 They bring peace offering to the king Ying Zheng. The first is the map of Chin's conquest to flattered the king. The second gift is the head of the renegade Chin's general returned as the sign that Yen would not harbor Chin's enemies.  But the men carrying them (Jing Ke and QinWuyang) are not diplomats but a professional assassins and neither expected to return from the mission alive.

Qin Wuyang first tried to present the map case gift, but trembled in fear and moved no farther towards the king. Jing Ke continued to advance toward the king, while explaining that his partner "has never set eyes on the Son of heaven", which is why he is trembling. Jing Ke had to present both gifts by himself.While unrolling the map, a dagger was revealed. The king drew back, stood on his feet, but struggled to draw the sword to defend himself.At the time other palace officials were not allowed to carry weapons. Jing Ke pursued the king, attempting to stab him, but missed. King Zheng drew out his sword and cut Jing Ke's thigh. Jing Ke then threw the dagger, but missed again. Suffering eight wounds from the king's sword, Jing Ke realized his attempt had failed. Both Jing Ke and Qin Wuyang would be killed afterwards. Ying zheng new security system had failed, the greart conqueror, the invincible king was inches from death.

From now on paranoia grew on Ying Zheng's mind, for the rest of his reign, images of death hunt on his dreams. It is not the act of dying he feared, but the realization that he is filling the spirit world with the souls of those he sacrifices. Souls  who will soon as he is dead seek terrible revenge. There is only one thing that can protects him in the next world a spirit army. the Terracotta army.....click here to continue

No comments:

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here