The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 138 My father-in-law is a very good person

Li Si merely chuckled upon hearing this, but remained respectful towards the First Emperor.

These rhinoceros hides were naturally disposed of by the Imperial Household Department Manager, so what could Li Si say?

After Ying Zheng finished reading the military report, he handed it to Li Si.

Li Si took the military report and frowned as he looked at it before handing it to the young master.

Fusu took the military report, read it, and placed it in the hands of the eunuch beside him.

The military report was simple: Zhang Han led his troops into the Hexi Corridor, and the Western Rong people were willing to cooperate with the Qin army in defending the Hexi Corridor.

The Xiongnu did indeed march straight towards the Qilian Mountains, but their forces were not numerous.

Zhang Han believed that this was just a test by the Xiongnu. Modu, who had proclaimed himself the king of the Xiongnu, led his Xiongnu people back to the west of the Altai Mountains once again.

In his military report, Zhang Han also explained that it was because of General Meng Tian's great victory that Modu was wary and dared not offend the Qilian Mountains.

Zhang Han had already set up an encirclement in the Qilian Mountains, just waiting for Modu to lead his army into the heart of the valley.

This plan to lure the enemy ultimately became useless due to the great victory in the north.

However, this is not necessarily a bad thing; at least it avoids a large-scale war in the short term.

Li Si stepped forward and reported, "Your subject has something to report."

Ying Zheng looked at the map and nodded.

Li Si said, "Touman Chanyu has fled north and moved his royal court to the North Sea."

It has to be said that Touman escaped quite far, which is astonishing; he actually fled all the way to the North Sea, which is Lake Baikal.

Just how much fear did Meng Tian instill in this old Xiongnu king?

They didn't even dare to stay in the northern desert anymore, and fled all the way to the northernmost part of the grassland. To be able to escape so far, the old Xiongnu king must have traveled a thousand miles a day.

Fusu didn't know what fueled the ambition of this Xiongnu king, who actually wanted to march all the way south.

According to the Prime Minister, the current Chanyu Touman wants to reside in the North Sea and no longer wants to fight.

This old Xiongnu king's life in the North Sea must have been quite difficult, and he had lost his prestige among the various Xiongnu tribes.

Few Xiongnu people followed Touman Chanyu to the North Sea; it is said that even his children were unwilling to go to the North Sea.

After reporting their respective affairs to the emperor, the two left Zhangtai Palace.

It was still snowing heavily outside the palace. Fusu exhaled a breath of warm air and said, "It's really cold today."

Li Si took out another scroll of letters from his sleeve, this scroll was wrapped in cowhide.

Seeing the Prime Minister hand it to him, Fusu asked, "Teacher, what is this for?"

Li Si said, "This is another military report from Longxi."

Fusu frowned and took the letter.

Li Si looked up at the still-snowy sky and stepped down the steps.

As the prime minister walked down the aisle, Fusu noticed a few gray hairs at his temples.

People age very quickly in this era. Most people have gray hair in their forties, and by their fifties, their hair is probably completely white.

Fusu, holding the letter in his hand, also walked down the steps.

After returning to Gaoquan Palace, Fusu opened the letter and realized that it was a letter sent by his younger brother, Gao.

The content of the letter differed slightly from that of the military report, but the result was the same, as it mostly recorded the process of Zhang Han's troops advancing into the Hexi Corridor.

Initially, a dispute arose between several teachers who had gone to teach in the Western Rong people's valley and the Western Rong people. Later, the Western Rong people had to ask the Qin army for help because the Xiongnu army was approaching the Qilian Mountains.

Afterwards, Lou Jing asked General Zhang Han for permission to persuade the Western Rong people to let the Qin army enter their valley to jointly resist the Xiongnu. At first, the Western Rong people agreed.

So, according to the original plan, the Western Rong people and the Qin army should have fought against the Xiongnu together.

However, this matter took another turn after Zhang Han led 5,000 soldiers into the valley of the Western Rong people.

When Zhang Han led his troops into the valley of the Western Rong people, it should have been a scene of peaceful coexistence between the Western Rong people and the Qin army.

When the army entered the Xirong River Valley, Chen Ping was the first to change his mind.

He had a Qin army unit capture the leader of the Western Rong people and drive all the Western Rong people in the valley into Longxi, east of Wushaoling.

Afterwards, Chen Ping explained to Zhang Han why he did this, because he had discovered the Western Rong people who had connections with the Xiongnu.

Before the Qin army's northern expedition, there was a period of time when the Western Rong people and the Xiongnu people had contact.

After General Meng Tian's great victory in the north, some Xiongnu people secretly contacted the Western Rong people.

This suspicion then spread between the Qin army and the Western Rong people.

In Gao’s letter, he wrote that he suspected that the Qin army’s suspicions about the Western Rong people were deliberately spread by Chen Ping.

Gao was even convinced that it was Chen Ping who fabricated the rumor, and that Chen Ping wanted to gain merit.

In fact, Chen Ping was also trying to save his own life. If the Western Rong people changed their ways, they would collude with the Xiongnu from within and without, and the Qin army would inevitably suffer a great calamity.

Even if Chen Ping was the mastermind behind this, Fusu could understand him, as long as it was for the sake of the Great Qin.

However, in Zhang Han's view, Chen Ping's actions of coercing the Qin army would damage the Qin army's prestige and might even make people think that the Qin army was fickle, so who would dare to trust the Qin army in the future?

Therefore, Zhang Han hung Chen Ping up and whipped him a few times, but fortunately he didn't die.

In Gao's letter, Chen Ping did not complain about Zhang Han, and even said that General Zhang Han did the right thing, and that he, Chen Ping, deserved to be punished.

So much so that Zhang Han seemed to feel a little embarrassed about slapping Chen Ping, and gave Chen Ping a position as a military clerk, keeping him in the military tent to offer advice and strategies.

Zhang Han is an upright man, and Chen Ping is such a... person. It's unlikely that these two will stay in the same military tent for long. Fusu suspects that the two will turn against each other sooner or later.

Zhang Han was a very loyal general. He loved his profession and considered it a great honor in his life.

Zhang Han was exceptionally talented.

He was a rare general who could govern the army, govern the people, and oversee construction—a true all-rounder.

After reading the letter, Fusu wrote back to Zhang Han, ordering him to train the Longxi border troops, continue to control the Xirong River Valley, build Wuwei County and Zhangye County, and establish military garrisons.

After writing a reply to Zhang Han, Fusu took out a scroll map. This map depicted the entire defense line of the Northwest. In the future plan, Qin not only wanted to control the Hexi Corridor, but also to advance westward.

People's ideals are often very simple, and these simple ideas are related to people's initial desires. People always hope that their home can be bigger so that it can accommodate more family members.

Fusu felt that the territory of the Great Qin should be even wider. As for the Yuezhi people or the people of the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions, they could be subjects of the Great Qin or not.

Fusu had actually been preparing plans for the Northwest for some time, but when he presented them to Wang Ben, who was reeking of alcohol, Wang Ben's eyes widened in disbelief upon seeing the map of the Northwest defense line.

In his mind, Zhang Han had only taken over the territory of the Western Rong people, but the young master had already planned the construction for the next few years and even drawn up the defense line for the Great Northwest.

It should be noted that beyond the Qilian Mountains, there are many areas that are not part of the Qin Dynasty's territory.

Wang Ben did smell of alcohol, but he wasn't drunk. He glanced around and, seeing that no one else was around, quickly put away the scroll of map.

Seeing his father-in-law's actions, Fusu asked in surprise, "What's wrong?" Wang Ben coughed, glanced at the empty Grand Commandant's mansion, and whispered, "This map must never be shown to anyone else."

Just as Fusu was about to speak, his father-in-law spoke up again.

“From now on, you may summon me privately to discuss such matters in private, my lord.”

Since we're all family, we can talk about it privately.

He was still somewhat pleased that the young master would discuss such an important matter with him, the Grand Commandant.

The Grand Commandant was one of the Three Dukes in the imperial court, holding the position of command of the army and troops of the empire on behalf of the First Emperor, and standing alongside the Chancellor.

It was probably due to the teachings of Wang Ben and the Duke of Pinyang that the Prime Minister only feared Meng Tian, ​​but not Wang Ben, who did nothing but shirk his duties all day.

Meng Tian's massacres in the north may also have been due to the regret over the passing of General Meng Wu.

After reading Wu Gong's letter, Fusu saw the memorial tablet of General Meng Wu in Meng Tian's camp.

Fusu asked, "Grand Commandant Wang, is it permissible to send reinforcements to Longxi?"

Wang Ben nodded, his eyes serious, and said in a low voice, "Recently, some troops from the south have returned, and some troops from the north can be transferred to Longxi. They are all on the Great Wall defense line. It's just a matter of transferring troops, not a difficult task."

"Developing the Northwest is very important, but the Northwest is underpopulated," Fusu said worriedly. "Can we continue to relocate people?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Ben was quite troubled.

Deploying troops and increasing the number of soldiers are minor matters; relocating people is the major issue, and such a matter requires the Prime Minister's assistance.

Fusu realized that his request was a bit excessive, so he said, "I will ask the Prime Minister."

"On the winter solstice, the Prime Minister and I will go to Zhangtai Palace to celebrate. I will inform the Emperor at that time."

Fusu understood his father-in-law's unspoken meaning: that the prince didn't need to owe Li Si a favor; Wang Ben could petition the emperor for permission. For the prince's great cause and for the sake of the Qin dynasty, Wang Ben was willing to give up the position of Grand Commandant.

His unspoken meaning was roughly this...

My father-in-law is a very good person. He never refuses to help when he can, and he always does his best to assist.

Even if it's something outside his job responsibilities, the father-in-law will bite the bullet and do it anyway.

Fusu admired him greatly.

Fusu found the location of the Xirong River Valley on the large map of the Grand Commandant's mansion and wrote the four characters "Hexi Corridor" on the north side of the Qilian Mountains.

From then on, this place had a new name; since the Qin Dynasty, it has been called the Hexi Corridor.

In the future, Fusu will write down many new place names, such as Kucha, Yangguan, Yumenguan, Jiayuguan...

Fusu hopes that these beautiful names can appear as soon as possible.

In the construction of the defense line in Northwest China, Fusu wanted to relocate 280,000 poor people from the Central Plains to implement a large-scale project of relocating people to strengthen the border, and also allocated 50 mu of land to each household.

Furthermore, they relocated convicts, established military farms to atone for their crimes, and constructed canals and fortified cities.

The surrendered Hu people became cavalrymen from the Central Plains, serving as guides, and some merchants were also relocated to Longxi.

Therefore, it is hoped that one million mu of farmland can be added and hundreds of thousands of military horses can be stored.

Wang Ben saw the young master off. Looking at the young master's back, he had a feeling that the young master was not a tyrannical person, but that the young master had many things he wanted to do.

Sometimes, Wang Ben felt that the young master wanted to do too many things, making it seem like he could never finish them all in a lifetime.

These were not pressures from the emperor, but rather what this young master desired.

Even more so, the young master hoped that the emperor could grant him even greater power.

Wang Ben could tell that the young master had only been one year in the position of one of the Nine Ministers, yet he already seemed bored and somewhat tired of the position of Minister of the Imperial Household.

This is because the Minister of the Imperial Household Department had to report to the Three Dukes of the Court when he acted, which made him feel constrained.

Wang Ben sat alone in the Grand Commandant's mansion. He looked down at the map that had been put away and put it into his pocket so that it would not be seen by outsiders.

A sense of sorrow inexplicably welled up in Wang Ben's heart; he was very worried about the young master.

Others could see it, Wang Ben could see it, but Li Si saw it but turned a blind eye, allowing the prince's ambition to grow.

Wang Ben saw that Prince Fusu wanted to do more and more things.

Then the young master's ambition will grow bigger every day, and the position he wants will become higher and higher.

Whenever Wang Ben thought of this, he would feel very dissatisfied with Li Si. Li Si knew about the changes in the prince's temperament, but did not offer any advice. As a teacher, Li Si even seemed to encourage it.

Doesn't Li Si think that the young master is no longer satisfied with the position of Shao Fu Ling? What if one day the young master feels tired of having to report everything to the First Emperor?
Wang Ben, who had no idea how Zhang Cang was doing lately, was increasingly unhappy as the court was now closed. So he left Xianyang to go and drink with Zhang Cang.

The snow fell for two more days, and winter in Guanzhong is getting longer every year.

Looking at the heavy snow outside the palace, Tian An said, "I wonder how many of the Xiongnu people who were driven north by General Meng Tian have frozen to death."

As Tian An gets older, he likes to talk about happy and joyful things.

Fusu walked outside the palace and said, "Let's go."

Tian An followed the young master into the snow, followed by several eunuchs who were struggling to carry a box of bamboo slips.

As the Minister of the Imperial Household Department, Fusu also worked at the Prime Minister's residence. He first passed by the empty residence of the Doctor, and then by the equally empty residence of the Grand Commandant.

Prince Fusu walked ahead, followed by Tian An and the eunuchs carrying boxes, and then they passed the Imperial Censorate, where three or five people were on duty.

We finally arrived at the Prime Minister's residence, where quite a few people were still walking around.

Upon seeing the young master arrive, Cheng Miao rose and was the first to bow, followed by all the civil officials.

Fusu glanced at everyone present and asked, "Has Lord Wu not returned yet?"

Cheng Miao said, "There's still no news."

In the next two or three years, Meng Tian will most likely not launch another northern expedition. No matter how fierce this general is, he cannot continue to march north in the dead of winter; people would freeze to death.

Helan Mountain is what the Xiongnu call "Mountain Moving". Fusu felt extremely envious when he thought that Meng Tian should be herding horses at the foot of Helan Mountain.

When he had some free time, Fusu wanted to go to the foot of Helan Mountain, build a house there, and live there for half a year.

"When Lord Wu will return is just a matter of the Prime Minister's word."

Cheng Miao was still a little confused when he heard what the young master said, but he took a basket from Tian An and lifted the cloth on the basket to reveal a bunch of cakes.

These pancakes are still warm. Cheng Miao hasn't eaten pancakes made by the young master in a long time. Only after the great victory in the Northwest and the North did the young master have the leisure to make pancakes.

Fusu sat down and first looked at Cheng Miao's calligraphy. His clerical script was still very beautiful, but compared to the small seal script, the clerical script was more square.

The square characters in the clerical script look neat and upright, which gives them a unique aesthetic appeal, a feeling that Fusu fondly remembers.

It is likely that Fusu, who came from a later generation, preferred square characters and found the angular strokes and pressure of these characters particularly beautiful.

Its brushstrokes and strength are well-suited for calligraphy.

(End of this chapter)