The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 212 Winter of the Thirty-Sixth Year of the First Emperor
Zhang Liang learned that Guanzhong had also had a bumper harvest this year, and that Ju's elder brother had come to visit him.

Ju's elder brother was working as a craftsman. He came to visit but only said a few words before leaving. He also mentioned that a huge observatory and an armillary sphere had been built in Langya County.

Some say the emperor is about to embark on another eastern tour, but this is just a rumor and no one mentions it anymore.

Zhang Liang did not participate in their conversation, but only listened in.

Then, Ju's elder brother left.

His elder brother gave Ju a lot of food and clothing. As Ju carried them into the house, he said, "Master Han, I have five elder brothers."

Zhang Liang said, "It would be good to have more elder brothers."

“Yeah,” Ju said, scratching his head. “No wonder I’m the dumbest.”

Zhang Liang shook his head without speaking, a smile on his face, but in his heart he thought of his elder brother Han Fei.

Han Fei had been dead for many years, but Zhang Liang still remembered his elder brother and the lessons his brother had taught him when he was a child.

However, his elder brother died in the Qin state afterward.

Looking at the bright moon in the night sky, Zhang Liang recalled the events of that year. He was still young then, and Han Fei had given him many instructions before leaving.

It seems that Han Fei understood long before he went to Qin that Han could not be saved.

After that, Han Fei never returned. Some say that Li Si killed Han Fei, while others say that King Zheng of Qin killed Han Fei.

Zhang Liang had heard many such speculations.

He had considered Han Fei's situation in Qin at the time; later, the Qin army launched a large-scale attack, and Han was destroyed.

At that time, Prince Fusu was just a child.

To Zhang Liang's relief, Prince Fusu greatly admired the knowledge and ideas left behind by Han Fei.

However, it's funny to think about it.

Despite being the closest person to Han Fei, he became a disciple of Huang Shigong after the fall of Han and studied rites in Huaiyang.

I initially thought that the knowledge left behind by Han Fei was very important, but I never expected that the person who would inherit it in the end would be Prince Fusu.

instead of him.

Zhang Liang felt extremely envious of that young master.

Moreover, Zhang Liang also wanted to know what Han Fei had left behind in the Qin state.

The matter of Han Fei's cause of death is no longer important. In the process of teaching, Zhang Liang will temporarily forget about the restoration of the kingdom.

I've heard that autumn in Guanzhong is rainy, and sometimes the rain from Guanzhong flows into Sichuan, causing rain in Sichuan as well.

Every household collected and dried their grain, storing it away before the rainy season.

This year's land tax has been safely delivered, and the people of Sichuan have finished a year's work.

Until this year, when winter arrived in Sichuan, snowflakes fell from the fields, and the distant mountains of Sichuan were covered in snow.

This year's heavy snow came suddenly, quickly and urgently.

"Master Han, what solar term is it now?"

After a moment's thought, Zhang Liang replied, "It's Minor Snow."

Prince Fusu's choice of the twenty-four solar terms was excellent; by the time of Minor Snow, the climate had fully entered winter.

Zhang Liang sat by the stove, looking at the new scrolls sent from Guanzhong.

These books were all recently printed. They are made of paper, and the handwriting on each page is neat and in clerical script.

Zhang Liang could tell that the ink must have been prepared first using a tool such as a wooden carving, and then printed on.

Ju said, "Master Han, this is the last batch of books for this year. Every year when winter comes, no more books are made in Guanzhong."

Zhang Liang nodded.

Ju placed some rice cakes near the stove to roast. Once the rice cakes were roasted until golden brown and cracked, they were ready to eat.

Break the rice cake open and smell the aroma of rice wafting out.

As luck would have it, the fragrance attracted Lü Matong.

Wearing heavy boots, Lü Matong strode over, picked up a baked rice cake, and put it in his mouth to chew.

Ju looked at the Qin army captain with dissatisfaction. The captain didn't even know that this was Master Han's meal for today.

There was nothing Ju could do. He knew he couldn't defeat this fierce Qin soldier, and besides, he was a good friend of Master Han. So he took another piece of rice cake and put it aside to continue baking.

When Commandant Lü arrived, all he wanted was food, so Ju had no choice but to wash the cured meat to prepare today's meal.

Lu Matong chewed on a rice cake and said, "I heard that Prince Fusu has sent people to arrest Zhang Liang again."

"Zhang Liang?"

“Yes, haven’t you heard?” Lu Matong lowered his voice and said, “Back then, Prime Minister Li Si sent Qin troops to capture Zhang Liang in various counties and prefectures across the land, but to no avail. Now, Prince Fusu is also trying to capture Zhang Liang. I heard that this time Prince Fusu has sent people to Chu to capture Zhang Liang again.”

Zhang Liang said, "I haven't heard of it."

Lu Matong picked up the rice cakes that were baking on the stove and said casually, "That's right, how would you know about these things in Shu?"

In fact, Zhang Liang had already heard about these things from the county magistrate.

Lu Matong hesitated and said, "Just who is this Zhang Liang? When he appeared in Dongjun, a meteor fell in Dongjun."

Zhang Liang said, "That is indeed a strange story."

"Yes."

This was certainly a strange story; only Zhang Liang himself knew he was in Shu. Did Prince Fusu send troops to Dongjun to capture him?
What if a meteorite falls in Dongjun?
Thinking carefully about the consequences of this matter, although it would not affect him personally, he felt that Prince Fusu was probably trying to lure Zhang Liang out.

Or perhaps, Prince Fusu had other motives.

Just then, he heard Ju Dao say, "We only had three rice cakes, and you ate them all."

Lu Matong said, "I only ate two pieces."

Master Han didn't eat a single bite.

"We have plenty of this kind of rice cake in our army. I'll bring it to you tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Ju could no longer reprimand the other party and instead asked, "Really?"

Lü Matong said, "That's for sure."

After saying that, Ju went on to prepare today's meal.

Lu Matong then said, "I may have to go to Guilin County."

Zhang Liang stopped writing, looked up at him, and asked, "What are you going to Guilin County for?"

"The army needs manpower, and I need to go to Guilin County to take up my post."

Zhang Liang said, "If Prince Fusu and Prime Minister Li Si want to govern the south well, they need to keep sending people to the south. It's not just you; this time, there will definitely be even more people going to the south."

"You're right, I'm not the only one."

In Lü Matong's memory, Zhang Liang was an extremely intelligent person. He could understand the deeper meaning of government orders from the documents sent to and from Guanzhong, make arrangements in advance, and his judgments were often correct.

Lu Matong then said, "You should go to Xianyang."

Zhang Liang asked, "What would I do in Xianyang?"

“Your skills will be even more impressive if you use them in the Prime Minister’s residence in Xianyang. You were born to be the Prime Minister.”

"Brother Lü is too kind," Zhang Liang said as he put the book back on the shelf.

“I’m telling the truth. Someone like you is born to be prime minister. Your abilities surpass those of any other official in Sichuan. That’s what the county magistrate said.”

Zhang Liang frowned as he listened to these words, and then he saw Lü Matong staring with his big, bell-like eyes.

Before the other party could speak again, Zhang Liang coughed lightly twice.

Lu Matong smiled guiltily and said, "The magistrate really didn't say that. Master Han, don't glare at me. I just think you're suitable to be the prime minister. That magistrate even said you can't see the times clearly. I think he's the one who's blind."

Zhang Liang breathed a sigh of relief, no longer wanting to speak to Lü Matong.

Lu Matong said, "However, your body is too weak. If you were to go from Shu to Guanzhong and walk the Shu Road again, it would probably kill you. You were sick for many days after you walked the Shu Road once when you entered Shu."

Zhang Liang said, "The roads to Shu are indeed difficult to travel."

After finishing his meal, Lü Matong picked up his sword and headed to his post in Guilin County. He wouldn't be seen again for at least a while.

Although Ju disliked this Commandant Lü, he still escorted him for a while, and even gave him the shoes that his brother had given him.

The road from Shu to Guilin County was also very difficult to travel. Ju and Zhang Liang had both seen people from Guilin County who had lost all their decent cloth.

The jungle and mountains have worn down almost every inch of your skin.

This time, Lü Matong's journey to Guilin Prefecture must have been extremely arduous. Ju gave him shoes in the hope that he could make his way to Guilin Prefecture more comfortable.

This child is still very kind.

Zhang Liang recalled Lü Matong's words: "You were born to be a prime minister; you should go to Xianyang to serve as an official."

In the winter of the thirty-sixth year of the First Emperor's reign, while it was snowing heavily in Sichuan, it was also snowing heavily in Guanzhong. The snow was so heavy that it reached people's ankles, making it the heaviest snowfall in nearly ten years.

In Jingye County, Heng sat beside the old scholar Shusun Tong, gazing at the heavy snow outside the window, remaining silent.

Shusun Tong said, "Don't look anymore, the snow is so heavy you can't get back."

As soon as he finished speaking, the wooden door was pushed open, and Zhang Jing walked in. He said, "Master, the underground channels have all been sealed off."

Shusun Tong nodded and said, "Good."

Recently, Shusun Tong has grown increasingly disliked Zhang Jing, as the boy is growing up to look more and more like Zhang Han.

This made Shusun Tong think of Zhang Han whenever he ate.

Especially the way the child ate. When he saw the soup from the other child's bowl splash onto his own table, Shusun Tong put down his chopsticks, took a deep breath and said, "How many times have I taught you? How can you still be so rude when you eat?"

Heng said, "Brother Zhang Jing is starving, please don't be angry, Master."

Seeing that Zhang Jing wolfed down his bowl of noodles, Shusun Tong knew that the child was definitely not full, so he put his own bowl in front of him and said, "Eat slowly."

"Thank you, Master Xie," Zhang Jing replied, still chewing.

Heng held a large bowl of noodles and ate them. He noticed that the snow on the windowsill was getting thicker and thicker. He said, "Grandpa Tian'an will be very happy."

Shusun Tong said, "With such heavy snow, what is there for him to be happy about?"

“Grandpa must be happy. Such heavy snow must have frozen many Huns to death. Every year at this time, Grandpa would stew tofu to celebrate. Stewed tofu is the best in the cold winter.”

Shusun Tong swallowed hard and asked, "Do we still have any tofu?"

Zhang Jing shook his head vigorously.

Heng understood what the old master meant. Seeing the disappointment in the old master's eyes, he quickly said, "I'll take Brother Zhang to grind tofu right away."

Shusun Tong nodded in satisfaction, then added, "It's cold, so don't grind too much."

(End of this chapter)