401: Replica of "Qin Wuyang"

The First Emperor suddenly rose, “Lin Yue, come with me for a walk.”

“Understood!” Lin Yue quickly bowed and stepped aside.

But as The First Emperor stood up, Lin Yue’s eyes suddenly widened!

Previously, when Lin Yue saw The First Emperor, he was always seated. Now that he stood up, Lin Yue was surprised to find that The First Emperor’s figure was so tall!

He was almost a head taller than Lin Yue!

The First Emperor’s height was nearly two meters; it turned out that the historical records stating The First Emperor was eight feet six inches tall were true!

No wonder Qin Wuyang’s face suddenly changed and he trembled with fear upon seeing The First Emperor. For the then thirteen-year-old Qin Wuyang, facing such a tall “big man” in an era when people were generally not very tall in the Qin Dynasty, what was the difference from an elementary school student seeing Yao Ming?

If it weren’t for a deep-seated blood feud, who would have the courage to attack such a tall man?

And the historical account of Qin King circling the pillar now made sense!

At that time, The First Emperor ran around the pillar, and even after three attempts, he couldn’t draw his long sword. If The First Emperor had been wearing a common Qin Dynasty Soldier’s 94-centimeter bronze sword, there would be no reason for him not to be able to draw it. Therefore, there is only one truth!

That is, Qin Shi Huang, with his tall and slender build, as described in Han Dynasty historical records, had a sword that was a full seven feet long!

For an emperor nearly two meters tall, based on ergonomics, it makes sense that he might not be able to draw a 162 to 164-centimeter long sword in a moment of urgency.

In Lin Yue’s opinion, this wasn’t drawing a sword; it was clearly drawing out a Cao Cao!

My charming ancestor is indeed incomparable to those crooked melons and cracked dates from little Sakura!

Lin Yue secretly glanced at his waist.

He didn’t find the accompanying sword, which made him a little disappointed.

At this moment, The First Emperor also walked past him, and Lin Yue quickly followed him out.

After leaving the main hall, the morning sun had just risen, and sunlight spilled over this magnificent city. The giant beast that was Zhangtai Palace once again became full of vitality!

Lin Yue followed behind The First Emperor, whose tall figure now obscured half of the morning sun outside Zhangtai Palace.

Lin Yue could only see his back and the lingering rays of the morning sun enveloping The First Emperor!

The guards outside the hall all bowed in salute, welcoming their Emperor at sunrise.

The First Emperor stood with his hands behind his back, quietly gazing at the rising sun, his mind lost in thought.

Time around them seemed to stand still; only the unmoving The First Emperor and the continuously ascending morning sun could prove the passage of time.

When the sun rose fully in the east and sunlight completely covered the entire land, The First Emperor silently began to walk forward.

Lin Yue followed closely behind, not knowing where The First Emperor was going.

As the two walked aimlessly, The First Emperor suddenly asked, “In your opinion, is this ‘newspaper’ a good thing for my Great Qin?”

“Yes, Your Majesty, but the premise is that the imperial court strictly reviews it. Otherwise, once traitors infiltrate it, it will backfire!” Lin Yue immediately replied.

“Then why not have the Government directly produce and distribute it?” The First Emperor asked this question again.

Lin Yue thought to himself, it seems every successful emperor, without exception, likes to hold power in his own hands. Or rather, by holding power in their own hands, they become successful emperors.

But the current problem is that a purely official newspaper is destined to have low entertainment value and its language will be obscure and difficult to understand. Such a newspaper is destined not to have a wide audience. What Ji San and Lin Yue want is a newspaper that all common people can accept and enjoy!

So he thought for a moment and replied, “Your Majesty, all the lords in the imperial court are talented and learned great scholars, but the articles they write will not be understood or enjoyed by many people.

Furthermore, having resided in the imperial court for so long, they are unlikely to truly understand what the common people actually want to read or care about.

But the information conveyed by this newspaper should be easy to understand, so that every citizen of Great Qin can comprehend it. Therefore, in my humble opinion, they might not be so suitable.”

Just like the “experts” of later generations, some are simply bad, while others have been detached from the common people for too long. They don’t encounter poor people in their lives, and their status ensures they won’t be poor, which is why they can suggest driving for ride-sharing or renting out idle houses!

This is similar to “Why don’t they eat meat?” and it’s also why they frequently make mistakes.

After a pause, Lin Yue continued, “Furthermore, in my humble opinion, the production and review of newspapers should be independent and not handled by the same group. Therefore, merchants selecting content and the imperial court reviewing it is the best method your humble servant can think of.”

Lin Yue then fell silent; some things were not for him to say.

The First Emperor pondered in silence, as if thinking about something.

Just as Lin Yue was growing impatient, The First Emperor’s voice came:

“Is it not because of the ten percent dry shares?”

Lin Yue was instantly struck by lightning, unable to understand how The First Emperor had found out!

But he had no time to think now, so he hurriedly bowed and pleaded guilty: “Your Majesty, forgive me! Your humble servant… your humble servant…”

The First Emperor turned around, and beneath the twelve strands of five-colored jade tassels, only his unperturbed lips could be seen.

Lin Yue was too nervous to speak at this moment.

“Considering your loyalty to me and your service to the country, I will not hold this against you this time.

But since you have already gotten involved, you must be prepared to bear the consequences. If something goes wrong with this matter, I will not spare you.” After The First Emperor finished speaking, he returned to the main hall with his hands behind his back.

“Understood!” Lin Yue replied, his back already drenched in sweat on this crisp morning.

He then quickly followed, finally stopping in front of the main hall.

At this moment, Lu Bu noticed that Lin Yue’s complexion was a bit off, so he quietly came beside Lin Yue: “Brother Lin, what’s wrong?”

Lin Yue shook his head, a little distracted: “Nothing, thank you for your concern, Brother Lü.”

Lu Bu patted Lin Yue’s shoulder: “Don’t be so polite, we’re brothers.”

Then, a team of guards, numbering about a hundred, approached from a distance. Leading them were Zhao Yun and Li Mu.

“Brother Lin, it’s time for the shift change,” Lu Bu said with a smile.

“Mhm.” Lin Yue nodded; these were the Cavalrymen under his command. Today, it was his turn to accompany and guard His Majesty.

Lu Bu then thumped his shoulder: “Let’s have a drink together sometime, my treat!”

“Mhm.” Lin Yue was distracted at the moment, only nodding silently.

After the shift change was over and “his own people” were all around, Lin Yue leaned against a wide pillar, gasping for breath as if a drowning man had been reborn.

The First Emperor’s aura was too powerful. He hadn’t expected that Qin Wuyang, the “elementary school student” he had just been mocking, would become his own replica, almost scared to pee… After he calmed down, he began to carefully chew on what The First Emperor had just said.

Was this a warning?

Or something else?