The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 185 The Cold Spring

Inside Zhangtai Palace, Li Si reported to the First Emperor on the many decrees issued that day. As he left Zhangtai Palace, freezing rain began to fall again.

It was still very cold in Guanzhong at the beginning of the new year. Rain and ice pellets fell together, and they stung when they hit people.

The sky was still sunny at noon, but it started raining as night was about to fall.

The umbrella remained a rare item, possessed only by important figures in the court, and these umbrellas were all bestowed upon him by Prince Fusu.

In the eyes of the Qin people, the umbrella was still something that was dispensable.

It only seemed to hold a more prestigious status in the hands of officials in Xianyang.

Li Si arrived at the Prime Minister's residence with an umbrella, only to find that the young master was no longer there.

By this time, most of the clerks had already gone home. Li Si saw Cheng Miao sitting to the side, still looking at the documents, and asked, "Young master, have you gone home?"

Cheng Miao replied, "At noon, the young master went to visit Grand Commandant Wang."

When Cheng Miao looked up again, he saw that the Prime Minister had also left.

The rain continued to fall outside the Prime Minister's residence. Cheng Miao listened to the rain while eating his pancakes and continued reviewing documents.

Only after the rain stopped and the sunset reappeared on the horizon did Cheng Miao tidy up the still somewhat messy files, clean up the place, and then close the door of the Prime Minister's residence before leaving.

After the rain, Guanzhong was damp.

Every time Prince Fusu came to visit Grand Commandant Wang, Grand Commandant Wang's residence would be cleaned very thoroughly, and even the wine in the residence would be hidden away.

The beauties who used to accompany him while drinking were all hidden away. When the young master arrived, the Grand Commandant's mansion was clean and had a scholarly atmosphere.

This was quite different from usual. You should know that whenever the Grand Commandant invited Zhang Cang to his residence for a banquet, there was always fine wine and beautiful women.

When the young master came to visit this time, the Grand Commandant had arranged the mansion to be very "simple".

The young master came to visit the Grand Commandant, and he even brought two large live fish.

The Grand Commandant was naturally delighted and immediately ordered the two large live fish to be cooked.

Afterwards, the father-in-law and son-in-law ate fish while talking about their business.

They were talking about ordinary family matters, such as the affairs of the young master Heng and the young master Li.

Grand Commandant Wang was very pleased to hear the young master talk about the young master, and he often listened very attentively.

Fusu said, "After Heng studies under Shusun Tong for thirteen years, he will go to the army with the Grand Commandant."

Wang Ben thought about it and realized that Heng would be twenty years old at that time. Although it was a long time, he could still wait.

After finishing the fish, Wang Ben asked, "I wonder which army camp you intend to send the young master to?"

After thinking for a moment, Fusu replied, "From now on, let him travel around, whether to the north or the south, and let him go to the seaside."

Wang Ben nodded.

As night was approaching, Fusu bowed and said, "I'll head back now."

"Your subject sees you off, my lord."

Wang Ben escorted the young master all the way to the palace gate before leaving.

Unless there was something urgent, Fusu would always return to the palace on time at nightfall.

Young Master Li would stop crying whenever he saw his father return.

The prince's stable life has remained unchanged for decades. It is reassuring that an emperor's heir can be so stable.

Young Master Heng is not at home, so the house is very quiet during mealtimes every day.

After eating fish at the Grand Commandant's residence, the young master still had a good appetite when he got home.

As night fell, in the quiet home, Granny Wang was tidying up the hall and occasionally looking after the young master's manners, while Madam was helping the young master organize the documents.

Wang Tang'er looked at the stacks of bookshelves and said, "These books are going to be full again."

Upon hearing this, Fusu stopped writing and looked up. In the candlelight, rows of bookshelves were piled high with files.

This wasn't the first time Tian An had organized the bookshelves. "We just organized them last year, how come there are so many again?"

Fusu said, "Tomorrow, tidy up the books here, and I will send some to Shusun Tong."

Tian An nodded and said, "Okay."

Although the young master said he would clean up tomorrow, Tian An started cleaning up that night.

Among the palace attendants, Tian An was one of the few who could read and write, and he was able to help the young master organize documents.

Most of the books here are to be sent to Shusun Tong, and they were all written by the young master over many years.

With paper available, the bookshelves weren't so crowded anymore, but they still couldn't store too much.

Grandma Wang watched Tian An patiently tidying up the books and said, "Let them tidy up."

As she spoke, Tian An knew she meant that she was getting old.

Tian An said in a low voice, "People just don't realize how old they are as they get older."

Grandma Wang nodded with a smile.

Tian An added, "Look at these papers, they can't understand them."

As he spoke, Tian An put stacks of papers together, strung them together with a needle and string into a book, and then piled it aside.

The following day, three cartloads of books were taken out of Gaoquan Palace. In previous years, almost every two or three months, two or three cartloads of books would be sent to Shangyan Mountain.

I wonder how many books one would need to write to govern a country.

It seemed as if this young master Fusu possessed a lifetime's worth of strategies for governing the country. After running five laps around Gaoquan Palace and washing the children, Fusu was having breakfast.

Just then, a palace attendant hurried over and reported to Tian An that there was a private fight going on in Tongguan City.

Some children from Tongguan got into a dispute with some sons of famous scholars.

Fusu chewed on his noodles and then served his wife a bowl of fish porridge.

Seeing his wife take a bite, Fusu said, "It's been a long time since I've cooked for myself. I wonder if my skills have become rusty."

Wang Tang'er took a bite of the fish porridge and said, "Delicious."

Tian An smiled and said, "Madam, this is made by having the young master specially select the best rice from Sichuan, and then stewing it with fish from Guanzhong."

After breakfast, Fusu began to inquire about the students' private fights.

Yesterday, Chancellor Li Si went to Zhangtai Palace to see the Emperor and reported on the events of last year. After a winter's rest, the officials, who had been resting, all headed to Zhangtai Palace to begin today's court meeting.

As Fusu walked along, he listened to Tian An recount the story, explaining how it all started.

The former nobles of the six states believed they should be treated well in Qin, and the scholars and officials of the six states still considered themselves scholars and officials.

But teaching in rural areas is different; everyone is equal in this regard.

What worried the old nobles was whether the Qin court would show favoritism. Everyone knew that Prince Fusu had taught many students in the past ten years, and these students were very supportive of Prince Fusu.

Sima Xin has already made proper arrangements for this matter.

Fusu only listened to it briefly, but didn't pay much attention to it.

As they walked, they arrived in front of Zhangtai Palace, and Tian An stopped talking.

Fusu entered the hall, where all the officials had already arrived. With the emperor's arrival, today's court meeting officially began.

Yesterday there was a freezing rain, and the Guanzhong Plain is still cold this morning. This long winter shows no signs of ending. According to the twenty-four solar terms of Gongzi Fusu, today should be the spring equinox, but the cold wind in Guanzhong is still blowing, and it is still not suitable for labor and farming.

This cold weather will likely continue until the time of Jingzhe (the Awakening of Insects).

As in previous years, Tian An would wait in front of the main hall every day for the court meeting to end, and today was no exception.

No one knows how old Tian An is, but this old man has always looked this old, probably over eighty years old.

Today's court meeting still revolved around the issue of the teaching support examination.

Since the scholars who came to Qin have all passed away, the number of ministers who can attend court meetings has also decreased significantly, which is why there are not enough ministers in the Qin court now.

In addition, a group of old Qin officials, led by the prime minister, were all getting old.

In other words, even in the future, Prince Fusu hoped to have a group of ministers who could help govern the country.

These students who volunteer to teach are extremely important.

Today's court meeting also discussed the horse-breeding situation in the north and northwest, where Meng Tian and Zhang Han were both cultivating land and raising warhorses.

Even after the court meeting ended today, the officials were still discussing whether to send more tutors to the north and Guilin Prefecture.

After the court meeting concluded, many decrees concerning the examinations were sent out.

The exam is scheduled for the beginning of autumn, so even those who came to Guanzhong last year should be in good shape after a year of preparation.

At the foot of Shangyan Mountain, the young master Heng was talking to an old man.

The old man leaning on a cane is the current Duke of Pinyang, and also the great-great-grandfather of the young master.

It is said that the old man has been staying at home for many years, but in reality, he would come to Shangyan Mountain every two or three days to visit, and occasionally ask Shusun Tong for a bowl of tofu.

Heng sat to the side, watching the old man eating tofu, and said to the cat girl next to him, "Sister Nu'er, why are you always carrying an account book?"

Li Nu'er was over twenty years old, but she was still a good helper to Uncle Sun Tong and Grandpa Tian. She was dressed in a black and gray outfit and wore a cloak. She was still in charge of the county's grain.

In response to the young master's question, she replied, "Many years ago, you said that the county's grain supply could only be more, not less."

Heng raised his head and asked, "Is there too much or too little grain in the county?"

"Don't worry, young master." She put away the account book in her hand and said, "Our county's grain supply will definitely be more than enough."

When Li Nu'er saw Zhang Jing walking over while eating a pancake, her face darkened.

Heng saw Nu'er's expression and looked at Zhang Jing with great curiosity.

It started snowing again. Heng returned to the schoolhouse, sat down next to the old teacher, and helped him carry a scroll of books. He asked in confusion, "Why is Li Nu'er unhappy when she sees Brother Zhang Jing?"

Shusun Tongdao: "Zhang Jing is just like his father."

Heng said, "Of course."

Shusun Tongdao: "Zhang Jing and his father were the people who consumed the most grain in the county."

Upon hearing this, Heng suddenly realized that Zhang Jing's stomach was a bottomless pit; he seemed to be eating all the time, and the county's grain would be gone sooner or later.

“But Brother Zhang Jing eats a lot and does a lot of work,” Heng said, feeling indignant on behalf of his best friend.

"What does the young master think of this county?"

"That's great."

Seeing that the young master answered so quickly, Shusun Tong nodded in satisfaction and said, "Then what kind of people do you think everyone likes in our county?"

Heng then asked, "A learned person?"

Shusun Tong picked up a scroll and tapped it lightly on the child's forehead, saying, "So, young master, you are dull-witted."

(End of this chapter)