Chapter 8: The Prince and the Grandmaster Play Chess Qin Lei Bribes the Righteous

  The Ministry of Internal Affairs in Qi sent a battalion of Jinwu Guards to be stationed outside the residence of the hostages after Qin Lei was assassinated, and every half hour, patrolling soldiers would check on Qin Lei's condition.

  Qin Lei initially indeed planned to arm himself and escape from prison, even repeatedly rehearsing with Tieying. He estimated that as long as he recovered 70% of his strength, relying on years of special warfare experience, the hope of escaping this dilapidated prison was still quite large.

  After a deep conversation with Shen Luo, Qin Lei dispelled this idea: not that he couldn't, but that it was not worth doing. Shen Luo clearly told Qin Lei that according to reliable information, the reason for Qin Guo's dispatch of troops this time was to welcome back the hostage prince. If he were to disappear without a word, Qin Guo's plan would inevitably be affected: if the hostage prince had escaped, what would be the point of welcoming him back?

  So the Qin state needs him to be imprisoned, like a princess caught by an evil demon, waiting for the prince to rescue. Although Qin Lei did not have such self-awareness, he also could not ignore the feelings of the military, and the identity of the fifth son of the Qin emperor meant too much, it was something that Qin Lei could not abandon as long as he was still living in this world.

  ~~~~~~~

  It was also during that conversation that Shen Luo told Qin Lei that he had to personally persuade someone for the plan to proceed smoothly.

  He was a monk with a square head and big ears, smiling face, named Zhishan.

  Two people sat in a small pavilion, with a chessboard on the table. At this time, the black side's dragon had been heavily surrounded by white pieces and was about to be eliminated.

  The great monk Zhao patted his round belly and smiled at Qin Lei, saying: "Donor, you're being too calculating. Don't you know that taking a step back gives you a broad horizon, and enduring for a moment brings calm seas and gentle breezes."

  Qin Lei twirled the black chess piece in his hand, smiling indifferently: "A few insignificant pawns, beaten is just being beaten. As a master who inherited the robe of Master Hui Neng, can't even handle this small matter?"

  "If it were someone else, Master would have beaten him and that's the end of it. But my secular nephew is not so easily beaten."

  Qin Lei gently tossed the chess piece and caught it, chuckling: "Who would have thought that the illustrious National Master's nephew would end up as a gate guard at my humble residence?" He really hadn't expected that the soldier he had kicked unconscious that day was actually the National Master's nephew.

  Zishan sneered and said, "This young master of ours is indeed a bit reckless. He has a good job but doesn't do it, instead he hangs out with those lazy soldiers every day. Suffering a bit isn't all bad."

  Qin Lei perceived a hint of relaxation in his tone, and nodded to Tieying who was waiting behind him. Tieying pulled out a thin gift receipt from his pocket and handed it to Zhishan, saying sincerely: "Ever since I found out that I accidentally injured the young master, I have been feeling uneasy. Several times I wanted to come to your doorstep to apologize, but unfortunately... Ah, this is for the young master to buy some millet and eggs to nourish his body."

  Zishan smiled as he took the gift list, opened it and looked at it, his mouth involuntarily agape. 500,000 taels! To think that 50 taels of silver could let a moderately well-off family live comfortably for a year. What about chicken eggs? It seemed like Qi Guo didn't have that many chicken eggs.

  Qin Lei took advantage of the situation and said, "If I return to my country smoothly, since the journey is long, I will naturally travel light. Please, Master, take care of some of my worthless paintings."

  "Since the donor has entrusted me, I, a poor monk, will take on this heavy responsibility."

  Qin Lei smiled and stood up, throwing the chess piece onto the board, and clasped his hands together in a gesture of respect, saying: "Then I'll have to trouble Master."

  After that, he sent it to Zhi Shan and left. On the chessboard, a piece was casually thrown down by Qin Lei, and the situation suddenly turned upside down. The black chess piece miraculously came back to life, and there was no longer any danger of being killed by the big dragon. However, Zhi Shan was blocked from view by Qin Lei and didn't see it, while Tie Ying who saw it didn't understand chess.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~

  After that day, Qin Lei never saw the guest again, but from time to time he instructed Tieying to do some inexplicable things: such as sending Shen Luo some strange weapon designs and weird clothing designs; going to the market to buy all sorts of strange things, like needles and threads, Sichuan pepper and star anise. He had a faint feeling that something martial was still going on below - collecting sulfur, saltpeter and charcoal wouldn't really be for making firecrackers, would it? Although in Tieying's understanding, these things could only be used to make firecrackers.

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  When Iron Eagle saw Qin Lei put on the strange clothes sent by Shen Luo and skillfully tied those weapons on him, he finally believed that His Highness must have had an extraordinary encounter during his previous daze.

  Soon after Zhishan left, Qin Lei had Tiejing announce to the outside world that Master Zhishan of Baoguo Temple had cured his 'madness'.

  Half a month later, on a noon, the gatekeeper, Qi Bing, respectfully handed an invitation to Tie Ying.

  Qin Lei was having lunch, today's main dish is braised deer hooves. The chef from Qi State did a good job, pairing the deer hooves with peanuts, dried chili peppers, chopped chili peppers, red bell peppers, ginger, scallions, red oil, bay leaves, star anise, salt and black pepper, cooking it until the meat was tender and the color was bright and vibrant, the sauce thick and flavorful. Everyone from the troops who came out loved this dish.

  Qin Lei put down the gnawed-clean bone, wiped his hand carelessly with a handkerchief, took over the invitation card, glanced at it, and handed it back to Tie Ying: "It seems that this Uncle Shen is in trouble, and in just a few days, he has alarmed the highest official of the Qi State."

  Iron Eagle furrowed his brow as he took over the invitation card that Qin Lei had handled with greasy hands, and upon opening it, saw that inside the gift paper was written in beautiful regular script: "Respectfully presented to Sir Stop War: I am delighted to have obtained a grandson on June 6th at Si time, and respectfully invite you to bestow your presence. Old Crane presents his respects."

  The iron eagle blazed with anger, tightly grasping the invitation and saying: "This Officer is a scoundrel, how dare he humiliate people like this."

  Qin Lei picked up the tea cup, swirled it around in his mouth and said indifferently: "It's just an invitation to dinner, so I'll go." In fact, he didn't quite understand the content of the invitation card, and could only guess roughly.

  The iron eagle suddenly remembered that the palace had forgotten many things, and explained with a hateful tone: "Your Highness is unaware, this Stop War Duke was conferred upon you by the Emperor of Qi when you first arrived in Qi, wrapped in swaddling clothes. Firstly, as Your Highness's honor, taking on the position of duke is a mockery that our Great Qin is one level lower than Qi; secondly, the title 'Stop War' is a mockery that our Great Qin is incompetent and can only rely on women and children to avoid war." The more he spoke, the angrier he became, slapping his palm onto the table, causing bowls and plates to shake, and soup splashing everywhere.

  As the training unfolded, Qin Lei's movements became increasingly agile, and with a light flick of his wrist, not a single drop splashed out. Qin Lei was somewhat satisfied with his own skills, so he crossed his legs on the chair, leaned against the backrest, and savored Iron Unity Leader's rare lengthy speech.

  Tie Ying's anger did not diminish, waving the invitation that had been crumpled into a ball, he said in a loud voice: "Therefore, our Great Qin strongly protests! The state of Qi has never used this title before. Who would have thought that today, that old scoundrel Shangguan Yunhe would actually write it on paper with such arrogance? It's truly unbearable! Moreover, sending someone to deliver the invitation is already a sign of contempt! Your Highness, you can't go!"

  Qin Lei stretched out his hand to smooth out the crumpled invitation, tugging at it several times in an attempt to flatten it out. After a few tries with no success, he tossed it aside and asked, "What's the reputation of this Official Shang like on normal days?"

  Tie Xuan thought for a moment and said, "This Shangguan old man has always been known for his wisdom, courtesy to scholars, kindness, respectfulness, and frugality, and is called the model of the world." He didn't distort Shangguan's image due to his anger just now.

  Qin Lei stood up and stretched his arms, saying: "A person with such a reputation would cherish their feathers the most, would they do something as lowly as this?"

  Tie Ying also found it strange and said: "It's a bit unusual."

  "Something unusual must be a demon! This is Old Master Shang trying to test us." Qin Lei said thoughtfully.

  "Where shall we go?" Tiejing asked.

  "Go, and go with joy!" Qin Lei said resolutely.

  "But this invitation..." Tiejing glanced at the miserable-looking invitation on the table.

  "Can I come without an invitation?" Qin Lei asked weakly.

  "No way, it will be rejected outright." Iron Eagle said firmly.

  "Then trouble you to restore it to its original state." Qin Lei laughed and went to take a nap.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~

  Before going to see the Prime Minister of Qi, Qin Lei met with Shen Luo first, carefully inquiring about the various nobles and officials of Qi, and then asked about the progress of things, and had a plan in mind.

  August 8th noon arrived quickly, Tieying clumsily helped Qin Lei put on the Qi Guo noble attire. The intricate dress was obviously not something that a rough-handed man like Tieying could handle, he couldn't remember whether to fasten the front or hang the tassels first, and didn't understand where each piece of jade should be hung. If Shen Luo hadn't arrived, the Fifth Prince's first banquet would have been ruined due to an absurd reason. Shen Luo not only helped Qin Lei adjust his clothes but also applied a layer of powder on his face and painted his eyes.

  Shen Luo didn't accompany Qin Lei to the banquet, he wanted to see a more noble person.

  The Chancellor's invitation was indeed extraordinary, and the Golden Guard surrounding the Imperial Censor's mansion did not block his carriage this time. Instead, they dispatched half a battalion of soldiers to escort Qin Chuan on his way up.

  At the beginning of summer, at noon, places without tree shade were already a bit sweltering. On the slowly moving carriage, Qin Lei, wrapped in layers of intricate formal attire, had already begun to sweat. He wondered what material Shen Luoyong used, as the powder on his face was apparently water-resistant, and thought it would be very marketable in the 21st century. Seeing Tieying's efforts to stifle a smile across from him, Qin Lei snorted, "Go ahead and laugh if you want, after all, this time is just for people to laugh at." His calm tone couldn't hide his suppressed frustration.

  In the midst of Tieying's stifled laughter, they arrived at the Prime Minister's residence.