The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 184 Disciples of Xunzi

By the time the New Year arrived, Zhang Liang had completely gotten used to this identity, while Guanzhong seemed not to have investigated the matter at all, perhaps because Wang Yu had arranged it so well.

Han Yuan's identity remains solid, and he has fully integrated into the life of a volunteer teacher.

In the Shu region under Qin rule, Qin laws remained very strict, including a very strict ban on witchcraft.

During the New Year, the people here also worship Li Bing and his son, comparing Li Bing to the river god who brought prosperity to Sichuan.

The New Year's sacrificial ceremony was held at the Chengdu Prefecture government office.

The emperor's edict was read aloud by people from Sichuan in the Sichuan dialect.

Some officials from Guanzhong also read the emperor's edicts in the Guanzhong dialect.

When the people of Shu offered sacrifices of black animals and dark wine, and sacrificed Shu jade and millet to celebrate the New Year, the First Emperor's New Year edict was also sent to Shu.

If this imperial edict is the same as in previous years, it won't really matter.

However, news arrived that Prince Fusu and Prime Minister Li Si had issued a decree for the examination of teachers in rural areas. This examination was open to all Qin citizens with household registration, including the teachers in rural areas.

Zhang Liang had no interest in this exam and didn't want to take it.

Having obtained the identity of Han Yuan, Zhang Liang could harbor a sense of侥幸 (a lucky break), but he could not fool Prime Minister Li Si and the people in Xianyang.

Therefore, Zhang Liang had become accustomed to this identity and planned to continue to lie low here.

The more Zhang Liang learned about rural education, the more he felt he understood Prince Fusu's philosophy of governing the country.

In doing so, Zhang Liang did indeed learn some knowledge he had never had before, as well as some newer concepts of governing the country.

Throughout history, governing a country has required a powerful royal family, the ability to attract scholars and officials from all over the country, and a strong military. Only in this way can a country be established.

But Prince Fusu thought differently. He believed that the country should not be governed solely by scholar-officials, as such a group of people with vested interests was harmful to the country.

That's right, these are indeed words that Zhang Liang actually saw, from a book sent from Guanzhong.

Furthermore, Prince Fusu's educational philosophy precisely demonstrates that he valued the common people, encouraged more commoners to become officials, and rejected the scholar-officials.

It is shameful for scholar-officials to form groups based on their families. I hope that future students will not become such shameful people.

Zhang Liang had no idea how this renowned scholar had offended Prince Fusu.

The so-called "Teaching Support Order" was nothing more than an attempt to eliminate scholar-official families and prominent figures.
Zhang Liang thought of someone named Kong Fu.

It is unknown whether this person is alive or dead; there has been no news of him to this day.

Zhang Liang thought to himself, if Prince Fusu really does this, it will probably cause some trouble.

Qin selected officials based on merit. Would Prince Fusu choose a scholar-official family with better education? Obviously not... So Prince Fusu would choose a commoner with slightly less education.

In this way, a renowned scholar like Kong Fu would inevitably feel humiliated.

So what? Zhang Liang stood in the crowd and looked up at the notice hanging on the city wall. This was what Prince Fusu had told the world: he did not want famous people with family backgrounds like Kong Fu.

Qin did not want people with unclean backgrounds. It was just a matter of becoming an official, which was not difficult at all.

This is the implied meaning found in Prince Fusu's decrees.

Zhang Liang discovered that the other two scholars in Jiangyuan County were very supportive of Prince Fusu's ideas; they were Qin's most loyal supporters.

This sentiment is pure: to eliminate the scholar-officials and to be ashamed of them.

In their words, sages are sages of the people, not sages of any particular household.

Your family may have produced sages, but you cannot use their name to deceive and swindle generation after generation. The descendants of sages should also be treated fairly, just like ordinary people.

This is what Zhang Liang heard from the volunteer teachers; for them, poverty was a kind of honor.

Because they never seek money when they teach; they will continue teaching as long as they don't starve.

That's true; every teacher Zhang Liang encountered who went to teach in rural areas was extremely poor.

However, it is different for prominent figures with family backgrounds.

Whenever Zhang Liang heard these words, he felt that this concept was too harsh.

These upright scholars, who have nothing to fear, are fearless in the face of heaven and earth.

Because behind them stand thousands of people who share the same ideals.

They were Prince Fusu's most steadfast supporters.

Several minor battles occurred in the north last year, and the country remained very busy with governance.

On the New Year of the thirty-fifth year of the First Emperor's reign, Fusu sat in the Prime Minister's residence with his teacher Li Si, preparing for the autumn examinations that year, which were scheduled for the beginning of autumn.

As the exam papers flashed by, Fusu was checking the questions for the exam. Each examinee needed to answer twenty papers, for a total of one hundred questions.

This exam will last for a month, and its content is currently known only to Prime Minister Li Si and Prince Fusu.

These scrolls were carved into printing blocks by highly skilled craftsmen, and then printed out one scroll at a time.

Fusu looked at the book of mathematics and hesitated, "Will the teacher think there are too many questions on the exam?"

Li Si shook his head and said, "I don't think it's too much."

Since last winter, Li Si has done a lot of questions, but he feels that he has aged a few more years. These exam papers can really select talents for the country. Even he, Li Si, could not answer many questions. In fact, the young master was very bold and put the difficult problem of the Xiongnu on the border on the exam paper.

There are also discussions on the system of supporting education in rural areas, as well as the drawbacks of the former nobles of the six states serving in Qin.

Li Si could imagine that there must be some people in the examination hall with pens trembling in their hands. The questions about the Xiongnu and the border were what Qin was facing right now. Who would dare to answer recklessly?
There's also the system of supporting education in rural areas; it's inappropriate to say it's good or bad.

Even the drawbacks of the former nobles of the six states in Qin's rule almost led people to support Qin's extermination of the former nobles of the six states.

Li Si was quite satisfied with these papers.

The dossier clearly states that the ministers Qin wanted were those who could support the country, protect the country, and uphold the country's unification.

If one cannot even uphold these views, then one cannot be a subject of Qin.

Li Si took a sip of tea, his expression solemn.

The clerks in the Prime Minister's office all knew that the Prime Minister would drink bowl after bowl of tea every time he looked at these examination papers.

After Fusu had organized all the scrolls, he sealed them with wax and stamped them to make sure they were secure and without any omissions. He then had Tian An personally deliver them to the craftsmen in the capital.

Fusu instructed, "These craftsmen must not leave before winter this year."

Tian An said, "Yes."

After finishing his business at the Prime Minister's residence, Li Si hurriedly headed to Zhangtai Palace.

It was New Year's Day, and the First Emperor was sitting in Zhangtai Palace reviewing documents from various regions. It was a time for New Year's celebrations, but the emperor insisted on reviewing documents from different places.

Li Si entered Zhangtai Palace and paid his respects.

Ying Zheng merely glanced at the prime minister, noticed that the prime minister had even more white hair, and then looked away, as if he were somewhat annoyed by the white hair.

Li Si said, "The imperial edicts issued to various regions this year have been distributed."

"Ah."

"Young Master has read all these documents."

Ying Zheng said, "With so many state affairs being handled by Fusu, I think I should keep an eye on him more."

Li Si felt that the emperor thought the young master might make some important mistakes. He stood aside with a smile, saying that so far the young master had been formulating policies for the sake of the country.

Since it is for the sake of the country and the nation, what the young master has done must not be wrong.

Ying Zheng pondered, "Back then, I made a decree with you to change customs and traditions. Now, does it seem inappropriate?"

Li Si replied, "If you were here, young master, you would probably firmly believe that it is necessary to change customs and traditions."

Ying Zheng then said, "All of Xunzi's disciples are like this."

Han Fei had said something similar to the emperor, who was then the King of Qin.

Li Si took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled, without saying a word.

Ying Zheng then said, "Now my son is also reading Xunzi. What do you think of his behavior?"

Li Si said, "Your conduct is quite reminiscent of Xunzi of yesteryear."

"Hehehe..."

The emperor suddenly smiled.

It's unclear whether that laugh was a response to Li Si's flattery.

The text still praises Li Si's eloquence, noting that he was able to serve as prime minister in the Qin court and oversee national development for the emperor for so many years. Besides his exceptional talent, this prime minister also possessed the debating skills taught by Xunzi.

Ying Zheng said, "I have heard that later generations have complained about Fusu's policy of sending students to teach in rural areas, saying that this is not the way to govern a country."

Li Si bowed and said, "When Qin wanted to implement the prefecture-county system, everyone in the world opposed it, including people like Wang Wan who were right in front of the emperor."

Ying Zheng gazed at the bright sky outside the palace and listened quietly.

Li Si said, "Back then, in order to implement the prefecture-county system, to standardize writing and cart axles, the number of people who opposed it was countless. Qin became powerful because of the reforms, and now it needs to reform in order to govern the country. I often have long talks with you, my lord, and you often say that the territory Qin possesses is more than the total territory of the six states in the past."

“The Zhou emperor enfeoffed the vassal states, but the vassal states did not submit to the Zhou emperor. The prince thought that the Zhou emperor could not control the vassal kings. In the disputes among the vassal kings, the Zhou emperor could only make concessions at every turn in order to mediate. Just as Han Fei said, a loving mother will raise a spoiled child, and a strict master will not have a strong servant.”

Han Fei's words were a metaphor, but in Prince Fusu's eyes, this loving mother was just like the Zhou emperor.

Ying Zheng said, "So you think Fusu's strategy was correct."

Li Si replied, "As you have said, the prefecture-county system has reshaped the world, and the rural education support system is reshaping the hearts of the people. If the world is to change, then the people of the world must also change."

Noticing the emperor's gaze, Li Si quickly bowed and said, "Your subject..."

"You have been teaching Fusu for so many years, and this child is indeed becoming more and more like one of Xunzi's disciples."

Li Si wanted to explain that Xunzi was actually a very kind teacher, and such a kind teacher should not have been able to teach such a prince.

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but when facing the emperor, Li Si couldn't bring himself to say them.

How could the young master resemble a disciple of Xunzi?
In fact, Prince Fusu is becoming more and more like you, the emperor.

Li Si stood silently to the side, thinking to himself.

(End of this chapter)