From Qin Xiaogong to the Second Emperor of Qin

"...Give me another twenty years, and Ying Qu Liang will surely lead his armies east and bring the Central Plains under his rule. Alas, Heaven has not granted me the years..."

Filled with boundless regret over ambitions left unfulfilled, Duke Xiao of Qin, Ying Qu Liang, fell at Hangu Pass.

He had taken the throne at twenty-one, inheriting a Qin that was on the verge of being swallowed by the Six States east of the mountains. Now Qin had grown strong, but he was about to leave it.

A dream passed in the blink of an eye, and the world had changed beyond recognition.

When he awoke once more, Qin had become the Qin Dynasty, which had swallowed the two Zhou states and destroyed the feudal lords. Yet he had become a criminal of the Qin Dynasty: Hu Hai.

His father was wary of him, and his elder brother kept his distance.

Faced with the Qin Empire, seemingly prosperous but beset by danger, where will the once-great ruler go from here?

This is a work of fiction. Please don't nitpick any parts that don't match history. If you can't accept fanciful portrayals of historical figures, please move along.

Please don't argue with the author in a haughty, aloof manner over the political or other details. You won't be happy, and the author will be miserable...

References include The Great Qin Empire, The Han Dynasty in Those Days, The Book of Lord Shang, History of Qin, Qin Laws, and various Baidu searches.