The next morning at dawn, Li Haimo held Xiao Meng's hand as they stood at the gates of Taiyi Mountain, bidding farewell to the guests one by one.
As the Yin-Yang Clan passed, Eastern Sovereign cast a lingering, appraising glance at Xiao Meng, then shifted her envious gaze to Li Haimo. Moon Goddess gave her a subtle nudge, and only then did the group from the Yin-Yang Clan depart Taiyi Mountain.
"See how they envy you!" Li Haimo teased, giving her soft palm a gentle squeeze with a smile.
"It's something they could never have," Xiao Meng replied, her own smile warm and knowing.
With the final guests seen off, Li Haimo led Xiao Meng and the Daoist disciples in preparations to seal the mountain and close the sects—a measure announced to the Seven States and the Hundred Schools after the Heavenly Mandate at Guan Miao Terrace. The Daoists would withdraw from the world: neither Heavenly nor Human Sects would show their inner disciples in the江湖 again, save for the Outer Affairs lineage.
"Grandmaster Wu Chen Zi, hold a moment!" A crisp voice rang out from the mountain path. A youth in white strode forward, his gaze sharp as an eagle's and fierce as a wolf's, trailed by a young man who was clearly his guard.
"Greetings, Your Majesty, King of Qin." Li Haimo spotted the exceptional longsword at the youth's waist—the Tianwen, ranked first in the sword manual—and immediately knew him: King Ying Zheng of Qin.
"Greetings, Your Majesty, King of Qin." Xiao Meng caught on swiftly, offering a Daoist salute.
"No need for such formalities, Grandmasters. Forgive me for not attending in person last night to offer my congratulations—though the splendor of that evening's display is etched in my memory for life," Ying Zheng said with a smile.
"This way, please. Master Gai Nie as well." Li Haimo stepped back half a pace to walk abreast with Ying Zheng, while Xiao Meng fell in behind him, aligning with Gai Nie.
"Does Your Majesty fear no whispers from the outside world, arriving at our mountain with such fanfare?" Li Haimo asked lightly.
"The Daoists are sealing the mountain now—what's left to worry about?" Ying Zheng replied, his tone equally lighthearted.
In the grand hall, disciples served clear tea. Li Haimo and Xiao Meng took the central seats of honor, with Ying Zheng and Gai Nie seated opposite.
"What brings Your Majesty to our humble peak today?" Li Haimo inquired.
"To seek clarity and answers!" Ying Zheng declared.
"Clarity on what?" Li Haimo pressed.
"Why the Daoists have chosen me. As I understand it, Lord Chang'an Chengjiao came here in person as well—and among the Seven States' kings, none wields less true power than I," Ying Zheng said.
"It is not that the Daoists chose Your Majesty, but that the realm's myriad common folk did. Our school pursues purity and non-action, shunning the dust of the mortal world—and we refuse to let the people suffer in its churn," Li Haimo replied.
"What do you mean by that?" This was the first time Ying Zheng had heard such words.
"The grand tide of the world: what is divided long must unite, and what unites long must divide. Since the Eastern Zhou's fall, over three centuries have passed in the Warring States' strife—strong realms rising and clashing. Now the lords stand divided into seven, yet the momentum toward merger grows clear. The people, weary of endless war, yearn for unity. Among the Seven States, only Qin holds the strength to consume the other six. Thus, it is not the Daoists who chose you, but the common folk themselves—as well as the lingering legacy of Qin's six generations since King Xiaowen," Li Haimo explained.
"You chose Qin?" Ying Zheng said. The King of Qin and the State of Qin were not one and the same.
"Yes—Your Majesty and Qin alike. Only under Your Majesty's rule is it truly Qin, the Qin worthy of our Daoist school's choice," Li Haimo affirmed earnestly.
"You doubt Lord Chang'an Chengjiao? He is renowned for his wisdom, backed by Empress Dowager Xuan's favor," Ying Zheng continued.
"Qin will always be a Qin of the Qin people. Be it Empress Dowager Xuan or Lord Chang'an Chengjiao, the scent of Chu clings too heavily to them. The old aristocratic clans and the generals hold their peace only because they await the day Your Majesty assumes personal rule," Li Haimo stated with certainty.
"But I fear they may not grant me the chance to see that day," Ying Zheng confessed.
"To claim the Nine Cauldrons is to bear their weight. If even surviving to personal rule proves beyond you, then even if our Daoists placed you upon the throne, it would avail nothing," Li Haimo said.
"To claim the Nine Cauldrons is to bear their weight." Ying Zheng's eyes lit with sudden fire, brimming with resolve. "I shall remember those words. My deepest thanks for your guidance, Grandmaster."
Li Haimo nodded approvingly at the young king. At such an age, to already possess the bearing of an emperor—truly worthy of the ages' greatest sovereign.
"My second query: since the Daoists have chosen me and Qin, why seal the mountain and withdraw?" Ying Zheng asked.
"As Qin marches eastward, it faces not only the Six Eastern States but the Hundred Schools as well. Our Daoist school is no weakling, yet we cannot single-handedly defy all the schools' grandmasters. Sealing the mountain serves to deter them from rash intervention," Li Haimo replied.
"My third: how to rid ourselves of Lü Buwei?" Ying Zheng pressed.
Li Haimo was mildly surprised. He hadn't expected Ying Zheng to harbor suspicions toward Lü Buwei so soon—he'd assumed the question would concern Chengjiao.
"Two paths: first, I strike personally—a single, fatal blow. Second: feign frailty, gather strength in the shadows, then deliver that fatal strike," Li Haimo outlined.
"How to feign frailty?" Ying Zheng probed.
"That depends on whether Your Majesty can endure it. Treat him as a father in name, then sow discord between him and Empress Dowager Zhao to erode his power. Seize control of the armies, align with the old clans, and topple his faction in one stroke—ensuring Qin's stability and the reserves to press eastward," Li Haimo advised.
"This..." Ying Zheng hesitated. To call Lü Buwei "father"—how could he stomach such a thing?
"Lü Buwei's influence is entrenched; a direct clash invites the feudal lords to exploit the chaos. And should I slay him, Your Majesty could not fully command Qin's forces—yielding no gain for the eastern campaigns," Li Haimo added.
"Above all, Your Majesty is young; time is your ally. Neither Empress Dowager Xuan nor Lü Buwei can outlast its inexorable flow," he concluded.
"I understand. My deepest thanks for your instruction." Ying Zheng bowed as a disciple would.
Li Haimo accepted the gesture with equanimity. Then: "I have one matter on which I must ask Your Majesty's pledge."
"What is it?" Ying Zheng asked, committing to nothing.
"Once the realm is unified, grant the common people a decade of respite and renewal," Li Haimo said. He knew well why Ying Zheng would later impose such vast corvées—but strides too bold risked calamity. The First Emperor of Qin had erred thus, as had Emperor Yang of Sui. Their ends were the same: dynasties crumbling in a mere two generations.
"Why say this? Upon unification, I shall proclaim a great amnesty, return the soldiers to the plow, and let the land heal. Do you believe I would impose tyrannical levies?" Ying Zheng asked, puzzled.
Li Haimo smiled without reply, countering with a question: "In Your Majesty's eyes, what are the realm's common folk?"
Ying Zheng fell silent, stunned. No one had ever posed such to him. They taught only that he was Qin's king, destined to rule All-Under-Heaven. No one had ever explained what the common folk truly were.
"Please, Grandmaster—enlighten me," Ying Zheng said, lowering his proud gaze.
"Master Gai Nie, what do you say the common folk are?" Li Haimo turned instead to Gai Nie.
Gai Nie furrowed his brow. He'd never pondered it either.
"And so it is: not only Your Majesty, but Master Gai Nie too—along with every lord, king, scholar, and noble under heaven—none have considered what the common folk truly are. To you, they are granaries, to be taxed for grain. Reservoirs of soldiers, to be fed into the fray. You've forgotten they are your subjects—living, breathing souls. I urge Your Majesty to spend one month each year among the people: walk their paths, see their lives, live as they do. That will teach more than all my words combined," Li Haimo urged.
"My deepest thanks for your wisdom. I (Gai Nie) am enlightened." Ying Zheng and Gai Nie rose together in salute.
In truth, Li Haimo longed to quote "Water can carry the boat, yet also overturn it"—but on second thought, he realized Ying Zheng didn't merely overlook this truth; deep down, the very notion of the common folk as people didn't exist in his world. Speaking of "the people exalted, the ruler humbled" or the water's dual nature would stir no ripples. Only once he grasped the concept of "the people" would the rest follow naturally, unbidden.
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