Benjamin Lewis immediately killed Samuel Cole upon returning to the army—not so much to eliminate a traitor, but more to vent his anger. Because regardless of whether Samuel Cole had leaked information, as long as Lewis wanted to become king of Guanzhong, Arthur Knight and the coalition of feudal lords would never agree, and the result would still be the same: he wouldn’t succeed. With or without Samuel Cole, the outcome wouldn’t have changed. But to have the fruits of victory, almost within his grasp, suddenly handed over to someone else—how could Benjamin Lewis not feel excruciating pain? As for Samuel Cole’s untimely death, he truly brought it upon himself. Samuel Mason quoted the ancients, saying, “There is no greater disaster than the desire for profit.” Thus, the death of Samuel Cole was the result of his greed. If he had only wanted to survive, he could have surrendered on the battlefield when the two sides fought. His real aim in leaking information was to secure a favorable position for himself in Arthur Knight’s camp after the fact. Little did he know that the rift between Lewis and Knight was not unbreakable, and once the dust settled and the truth about Cole came out, how could he possibly escape death?

Of course, some things can’t be seen until the very end. It’s like trading stocks—who doesn’t go through countless deliberations and comparisons, convinced there’s a ninety-nine percent chance the price will rise before holding on? Yet things often go against our wishes; we’ve all experienced or witnessed outcomes where the pursuit of gain leads to loss, resulting in situations that are both laughable and lamentable. But this is the harshness of life—there’s nothing anyone can do. It’s just a pity that Samuel Cole, an old revolutionary, staked his lifelong reputation on the certainty of a showdown between Lewis and Knight in hopes of a better life, only to lose his life and have all his anti-Qin achievements wiped away. Therefore, there’s no need to call Samuel Cole a traitor; he was just blinded by greed, thinking himself clever, but in the end, man proposes and heaven disposes—he tripped over his own schemes and died without name or honor.

Simon Scott

Simon Scott was from the same hometown as Benjamin Lewis, also a native of Pei County. In the first year of the Second Qin Emperor, Simon Scott joined Benjamin Lewis’s uprising against Qin as a retainer. When Benjamin Lewis left Pei County with his troops, he left his elder brother Noah Lewis and Simon Scott to look after his father and wife and children. During the Chu-Han conflict, in the Battle of Pengcheng, Simon Scott was captured by the Chu army along with Martha Lee and Mr. Lewis, and they formed a deep bond. After Benjamin Lewis left Pei County, Simon Scott and Martha Lee spent about five or six years together day and night. Especially during the three years they were both prisoners of the Chu army, although the historical records are not detailed, during those years Martha Lee was often accompanied loyally by Simon Scott, and the two developed a life-and-death bond in those turbulent times. In the sixth year of Emperor Gaozu of Han (201 BC), thanks to Martha Lee’s intercession, Simon Scott, who had no notable military achievements, was made Marquis of Biyang. After Benjamin Lewis’s death, the two became even less restrained and frequently visited each other. The Book of Han, “Biography of Zhu Jian,” says: “The Marquis of Biyang behaved improperly and was favored by Empress Dowager Lü.” This refers to their affair.

The secret relationship between Simon Scott and Martha Lee was eventually discovered by Martha Lee’s son, President Grant. According to the Book of Han, “Biography of Zhu Jian”: “After a long time, someone slandered the Marquis of Biyang, and President Grant was furious, ordered an investigation, and wanted to execute him. The Empress Dowager was ashamed and could not speak. Many ministers resented the Marquis of Biyang’s conduct and wanted to have him executed.” President Grant could do nothing to his own mother, but he had ways to deal with Simon Scott. Martha Lee, knowing she was in the wrong, dared not plead with her son and was at a loss. Fortunately, Simon Scott’s friend James Brown, whom he had once helped, used his eloquence to persuade President Grant’s favorite Ruth Hunt and managed to save Simon Scott’s life. After President Grant’s death, Simon Scott and Martha Lee became even closer and more brazen. After Martha Lee died, the Lü clan was exterminated, but because Simon Scott had prepared in advance and received help from Jack Lane, James Brown, and others, he survived unscathed after the Lü clan’s downfall. In the third year of Emperor Wen (177 BC), the King of Huaiyang, Charles Lewis, harbored a grudge against Simon Scott for not saving his biological mother during Emperor Gaozu’s reign, and seized the opportunity to kill Simon Scott. This lover of Martha Lee followed her in death three years after she passed away.

In the fourth year of Emperor Hui of Han (191 BC), Martha Lee needed to choose an empress for the twenty-one-year-old Evan Lewis. Fearing she would not be able to control the new empress, she came up with an unusual solution: she married her underage granddaughter Diana Brooks to Evan Lewis. Uncle and niece marrying—was this not incest? After the wedding, Evan Lewis and the young empress did not have a real marital relationship; instead, he consorted with other women. First with women, then with men. At the time, several men who were appointed as palace attendants wore hats decorated with beautiful feathers, jade belts around their waists, and faces covered in makeup—most of these were President Grant’s male favorites.

Not long after the wedding, someone secretly reported to President Grant that this marriage had been arranged in bed by the Marquis of Biyang, Simon Scott, and Martha Lee. Simon Scott had an affair with the Empress Dowager, and Evan Lewis was already ashamed and resentful; now, with this added offense, it was like adding fuel to the fire, and he resolved to take revenge.

Simon Scott was originally a close family retainer of Benjamin Lewis in Pei County, taking care of Martha Lee and her son, and their relationship was already ambiguous. After Benjamin Lewis ascended the throne, grateful for his service to the family, he made him a marquis. He and Martha Lee continued their old affair, and Benjamin Lewis did not interfere.