To the First Emperor of Qin: The state has decreed this!

Chapter 390 Requesting to Atone for His Crimes Through Merit

Zhang Fan paused, then raised his voice slightly: "Therefore, I request to atone for my crimes through meritorious service. I am willing to accompany the army on this northern expedition to the front lines!"

These words plunged the court into dead silence once again.

The civil officials who were just about to agree with Zong Yu abruptly stopped in their tracks.

Wang Ben and other military officers also stared at Zhang Fan in astonishment.

How could someone who spends all his time in the Imperial Academy of Natural Sciences be sent to face the Xiongnu cavalry head-on?

Zong Yu knelt on the ground. Upon hearing Zhang Fan's words, he was first shocked, his mind went blank, and then he beamed with joy.

He suppressed his smugness and lowered his head even further.

The North is bitterly cold, and on the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes.

A battle involving hundreds of thousands of people, with arrows flying everywhere, and the situation changing in an instant!

Let alone Zhang Fan, even a battle-hardened general could risk dying on the battlefield.

More importantly, as long as Zhang Fan leaves Xianyang and leaves this place!

Then the court became much more peaceful!

Zhang Fan volunteered, which was tantamount to courting death, but it also saved him a huge problem.

Using the Xiongnu as a tool to kill, distancing oneself from the power of the court, and quelling today's strife.

This is a win-win-win situation!

"His Majesty!"

Zong Yu immediately straightened up and loudly proclaimed, "Lord Zhang is a man of great integrity and ability to correct his mistakes. I deeply admire him! Since Lord Zhang has a heart to serve his country and is willing to go to the front lines to fight the enemy, I believe this is a blessing for Great Qin. I beg Your Majesty's permission!"

Zong Yu was impatient, fearing that Zhang Fan might change his mind.

Seeing this, Wang Ben stepped forward: "Your Majesty, the front lines are perilous. Master Zhang is a national treasure of Qin and should remain in Xianyang to oversee the manufacture of weapons. How can you so easily risk your life?"

Ying Zheng ignored Wang Ben and Zong Yu, his gaze passing through the crown and fixed on Zhang Fan.

"Immortal Master!"

Ying Zheng's voice was deep and somber. "The front lines are no ordinary place. They are not the streets of Xianyang, nor the workshops of the Imperial Academy. There, there is only slaughter and bloodshed."

Are you sure you mean it?

Ying Zheng asked again, giving Zhang Fan the opportunity to retract his order.

The Qin Dynasty needed Zhang Fan's intellect, but Ying Zheng didn't want him to take risks.

Zhang Fan stood in the hall, his back straight.

Meeting Ying Zheng's gaze, he firmly replied, "Your Majesty, I have no intention of joking. Please grant me permission!"

Zhang Fan's eyes were filled with rage.

This anger was not directed at the civil officials in the court, but at the Xiongnu in the far north.

He traveled to the Qin Dynasty and originally intended to develop technology step by step to enhance the national strength of the Qin Dynasty.

He could tolerate the open and covert struggles in the court and deal with all kinds of political calculations.

But he would never tolerate anyone setting foot in his mansion or trying to take advantage of those around him.

The Xiongnu envoy openly demanded Mi Yueyao in the main hall today!

It's obviously aimed at me!

While angry, Zhang Fan was also full of doubts, as Mi Yueyao had been staying at his residence for some time.

Despite being a princess of a fallen kingdom, she acted discreetly and even cautiously.

Such an insignificant remnant of the Chu state!

How did Touman Chanyu, who was far away in the desert, know the name of Mi Yueyao?

He needs to figure this out.

If the Xiongnu were lustful, there were plenty of beautiful women in the Qin royal family.

If the goal is to restore the power of the Chu state, Mi Yueyao, an orphan, cannot cause any trouble.

What exactly did this woman do this time?

What secret are they hiding?

Since the Xiongnu want her so much, the answer must be in the north, in the Xiongnu king's tent.

To put my mind at ease, I have to go there myself!

Seeing the resolute look in Zhang Fan's eyes, Ying Zheng knew that he was determined to leave.

The hall was silent; everyone awaited the emperor's final decision.

After a long silence, Ying Zheng slowly nodded.

"Very well. Since Minister Zhang is so determined, I will grant your wish."

Ying Zheng's voice was firm, "Issue the decree! Zhang Fan shall accompany the army on the day of the expedition! Order Wang Ben to select elite armored soldiers to protect Zhang Fan!"

Wang Ben accepted the order and responded loudly.

Zong Yu lowered his head, a sinister smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

The morning court session has ended.

The officials left the main hall one by one, and Zhang Fan walked steadily among them.

The officials around him deliberately kept their distance, and occasionally someone would glance at him out of the corner of their eye.

Zhang Fan ignored these people, took a deep breath, and tried to suppress the anger in his heart.

Before I had gone far, a series of hurried footsteps came from behind me.

"Lord Zhang, Lord Zhang, please wait."

Zhang Fan stopped and turned around. Eunuch Li was hurrying over.

Eunuch Li approached Zhang Fan, bowed slightly, and said in a low voice, "Lord Zhang, His Majesty has decreed that you must come to Zhangtai Palace for an audience immediately."

Zhang Fan nodded slightly, closed his eyes to calm his anger, and when he opened them again, his eyes were calm again.

"Thank you for leading the way, Eunuch Li!"

The two walked along the palace path, neither of them speaking a word.

We arrived at Zhangtai Palace.

Eunuch Li pushed open the heavy palace door, gestured for Zhang Fan to go in, and then closed the door tightly from the outside.

The lighting inside the main hall was rather dim.

Several charcoal fires burned brightly, making a slight crackling sound. Ying Zheng took off his court robes and changed into casual clothes. He was sitting behind a large desk reviewing memorials.

Zhang Fan walked to the center of the hall, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your subject Zhang Fan pays his respects to Your Majesty."

Ying Zheng did not look up, nor did he stop writing with his vermilion brush. The only sound in the hall was the soft scratching of the brush against the bamboo slips.

Zhang Fan remained standing quietly, maintaining the posture of bowing.

After a while, Ying Zheng put down his pen, raised his head, and looked directly at Zhang Fan.

"Zhang Fan, kid!"

Ying Zheng's voice echoed in the empty hall, carrying a sense of oppression, "Your audacity is growing ever greater."

Zhang Fan straightened up, his expression unchanged, and calmly replied, "Your subject dares not!"

"You dare not?"

Ying Zheng snorted coldly, threw the scroll of bamboo slips in his hand onto the table with a thud, "In the court, in front of all the civil and military officials, you openly insulted the envoy of another country, and even bypassed me, directly ordering him to be beaten out with sticks!"

Then, without consulting anyone else, he volunteered to join the army on the expedition! What else wouldn't you dare to do?

Ying Zheng stood up, walked around the desk, and stood in front of Zhang Fan.

"That Zong Yu would love for you to leave Xianyang and die out there. But instead, you did just that, jumping right into his trap!"

Ying Zheng's tone became more angry, "Do you know what a battlefield is? It's a death trap where hundreds of thousands of people fight to the death! Swords have no eyes, and arrows are merciless!"

"What are you, someone who makes things, doing on the front lines?"

Zhang Fan looked at Ying Zheng and could tell that behind Ying Zheng's stern words lay worry.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

Zhang Fan's tone softened as he explained, "I did not act impulsively to seek my death. I do not understand how to lead troops into battle. After the army sets off, I will only hide behind General Wang Ben's central camp and will never charge into battle."

With elite armored soldiers protecting me, my safety is assured.

"Hiding in the back won't work either!"

Ying Zheng flatly refused, "There are too many variables in the military camp. Don't you understand your importance to the Qin Dynasty?"

The Imperial Household Department still needs you to manufacture bearings, and the Great Qin Dynasty still needs you to lay railway tracks and build trains!

If anything happens to you, the grand plan of Great Qin will be thwarted. I absolutely do not agree to you taking such a risk.”