The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 272 Term of Office and Transfer of Officials

Looking at King Fuchu's expression, Feng Jie placed the dossier on the table beside him and said, "This is the archived dossier. King Fuchu can look at it at any time. Xiang Liang is dead, and now there should be no one in Chu who wants to restore Chu."

Fu Chu remained seated quietly, offering no reply, his gaze fixed blankly ahead.

The servant who had been tending to the fodder said, "It's been like this lately, he doesn't say a word."

Feng Jie said, "If things improve, then we'll open the door and let him move around freely. If he wants to go back to Chu, we'll let him go."

The servant replied, "Yes."

Afterwards, Feng Jie led everyone in the courtyard out of the house.

As the outer gate slowly closed, only Fu Chu remained, sitting alone in the courtyard.

After a long silence, Fu Chu slowly reached out, picked up the dossier beside him, untied the rope binding it, and opened the dossier to reveal a list of names and a list of charges.

Having been brought to Guanzhong for so many years, even Wang Jian is now dead.

Sometimes, when he thought about how the Qin people had humiliated him, Fu Chu felt a pang of sorrow in his heart. When Xiang Yan abandoned him, he also longed to kill Xiang Yan.

Fortunately, Xiang Yan did indeed die in battle, and even his descendant, Xiang Liang, died.

The State of Chu is gone, truly gone.

Now no one will want to save the State of Chu anymore.

On this day, no one disturbed King Fuchu of Chu, and the courtyard was very quiet.

The next day, King Fuchu of Chu opened the gate of his residence and walked out of the house, leaning on his cane.

Originally, the Qin soldiers who should have been guarding outside the mansion were gone. Fu Chu walked out of the courtyard and onto the bustling streets of Xianyang. He found that no one stopped him and let him walk as he pleased.

Everyone on the street knows that a strange old man lives in this house and is always cared for by someone.

But the children didn't know who the old man was; he had lived there as long as they could remember.

Now that the old man has gone out, he has attracted the curiosity of the children around him.

Fu Chu walked along the bustling street. He walked for half a day, wanting to leave Xianyang City and go to the Chu region, but he spoke in the Chu language, which the people of Xianyang City could not understand.

The weather is getting colder and colder, and it looks like it's going to snow again.

The pedestrian quickened his pace, but Fu Chu was lost. He didn't know how to get out of Xianyang City. Xianyang was too big, much, much bigger than Shouchun, the Chu capital where he used to live.

After resting for a while, Fuchu continued on his way.

He found himself on a street, but he had no idea where he was.

It started to rain freezing rain, and the raindrops felt bone-chillingly cold on my skin.

Fu Chu found the eaves of someone's house, put his cane aside and sat down. He didn't know whose eaves it was, and the owner didn't seem to be home.

As night was approaching, Fu Chu remained hidden under the eaves, looking around helplessly. He wanted to return to Chu, but no one was willing to help him anymore, and none of the people from Chu had come to visit him.

For some reason, Fu Chu felt a deep sadness. He stopped looking at the hurried passersby and instead focused his gaze on the water on the ground, where freezing rain mixed with ice particles continued to fall.

A cold wind blew, making Fu Chu frown. He suddenly realized that Xiang Liang was dead, and almost all the old nobles of Chu who were associated with him were dead. Now no one cared about his life or death.

King Zheng of Qin spared the life of the King of Chu, but he also gave him the cruelest choice: to watch helplessly as the hope of Chu's restoration was crushed.

For twenty years, Fu Chu had never imagined that the Qin state would go to such lengths.

A man walked up to him, and Fu Chu looked up at him and said, "You are Feng Jie, the Minister of Justice of Qin."

Feng Jie asked, "What, you want to go home?"

Although Fu Chu was already old and his hair was completely white, he was still somewhat afraid of the Qin people, especially their officials.

Along the way, he asked so many people how to get to the State of Chu, but no one told him or was willing to help him. They all just wanted to stay away from this old man.

Feng Jie asked, "Do you want to go back to the State of Chu?"

Fu Chu fell silent.

Standing next to Feng Jie, Chen Ping stared at Fu Chu.

Fu Chu felt uncomfortable being stared at, so he turned his head away from the two men.

Chen Ping said, "Actually, you don't miss Chu that much. If you would starve to death on the way to Chu, would you still go back?"

Fu Chu remained silent.

Chen Ping continued, "You have never missed the State of Chu, nor have you ever loved the people of Chu. All you care about is your wealth and status in Chu. Unfortunately, Qin will never give you any of that back."

These words were like a steel needle, shattering Fuchu's last shred of dignity.

Chen Ping's words were harsh, and Feng Jie didn't want him to say them anyway, so he gave him a disapproving look.

Realizing he had spoken too quickly, Chen Ping wisely took a step back and said no more.

Feng Jie stepped forward, looked at the other person, and said, "You're almost sixty. If you die at eighty, you'll have twenty years left to live. Twenty years isn't a short time. You still have a long way to go in your life. Even if we say another ten years, it's still quite a long time, isn't it?"

As he spoke, Feng Jie handed him a scroll and said, “This is your new identity. From now on, you are no longer the King of Chu. You can spend the rest of your life in Guanzhong, or you can go to Chu. It’s up to you. The house in Xianyang is still yours. You are free now. All of this is given to you by the young master. The young master also thanks you for signing the arrest warrant from back then.”

After saying this, Feng Jie left with Chen Ping.

Perhaps it was because of Chen Ping's words, or perhaps it was because he learned that the State of Chu truly had no hope of restoration, but Fu Chu burst into tears at that moment.

It was indeed unsightly for a man with white hair and beard to cry, so Feng Jie arranged for several Qin soldiers to escort him back to his residence.

After finishing these tasks, Feng Jie took Chen Ping back to the Imperial Censor's Office.

On the way back, Feng Jie said, "Chen Ping, you shouldn't have said those things to him."

Chen Ping said, "I misspoke."

Feng Jie added, "But what you said is also true. Fu Chu should no longer have any thoughts of going back. If he goes back to Chu, he will really starve to death on the road."

"Yes." Chen Ping nodded in response once again.

After bringing Chen Ping back to the Censorate, Feng Jie asked him to help the Right Chancellor handle some case files.

Feng Jie then organized the remaining files concerning Xiang Liang and the nobles of Chu, and took them to the Prime Minister's residence to give to the young master for review. This was the final step.

At night, the Prime Minister's residence was still lit, with only Prince Fusu and a few officials handling state affairs.

As Feng Jie approached the gate of the Prime Minister's residence, he bumped into two or three officials who were off duty.

They were all talking about this year's taxes and the land reclamation in places like Xingyang.

Feng Jie approached carrying the book, bowed, and said, "Young Master."

Fusu was looking at the case file when he asked, "Is it done?"

Feng Jie put down the dossier in his hand and said, "These are all the dossiers concerning the former nobles who committed crimes in Chu. They are all recorded. The Right Chancellor said to let the young master take a look."

Fusu opened one of the scrolls and was reading it. Feng Jie continued, "As instructed by the young master, Fuchu has been given a new identity. From now on, he is no longer the King of Chu, and there will never be another King of Chu. He has been given a household registration and identity, and will live in Guanzhong from now on."

Fusu continued, "Have all the criminals in Chu been dealt with properly?"

"Reporting to Young Master, everything has been taken care of."

Fusu then said, "Alright, file it."

"Yes."

Feng Jie put the files away again and sent them to the Censorate for filing.

This year's national affairs are so busy that even at the winter solstice, we have to work overtime. In addition to the autumn harvest tax, there is also the task of delivering grain to the emperor's western tour entourage in the north, all of which are to be managed by Prince Fusu.

It was unclear how late it was, but Fusu told everyone in the Prime Minister's residence to go home first.

We can't keep them too late, since there's a court meeting early tomorrow morning.

On his way back, Fusu also brought several scrolls of documents. When he returned to Gaoquan Palace, he saw his wife grinding red bean paste. When she saw that her husband had returned, she said, "The accounts of Sanchuan County are clear. We can start making paper next spring."

Fusu nodded without asking any further questions. Instead, he tasted the freshly ground red bean paste and said, "Where are the red beans from? They're very sweet."

"Really?" Wang Tang'er tasted it and said, "Hmm, it's a bit too sweet. These are red beans sent from Sichuan."

The couple doesn't usually eat sweets; even when they make red bean paste, it's usually for making zenggao (steamed rice cake) the next day.

In the depths of winter, being able to enjoy a hot steamed rice cake is one of life's greatest pleasures.

My father's western tour started last year's winter solstice and has continued until this year's winter solstice. I don't know if he will return next year's winter solstice.

In the past, the couple would go to Yongcheng to pay respects to their ancestors every winter. However, due to their busy schedules, they were unable to do so this year and had to send their son, Li, instead.

The next day, while Fusu was jogging early in the morning, Tian An prepared to make steamed rice cakes.

The old man has to work from morning until noon to eat a pot of steamed rice cake.

Therefore, I ate tofu pudding and pancakes for breakfast.

"Young master, madam, the young master has sent a letter."

Wang Tang'er took the letter and said, "Heng'er has written a letter."

Gongzi Heng and Zhang Jing went to the army camp with Wang Ben. Judging from their pace, they should have reached the Helan Mountains in the north and were about to reunite with their father.

As she read the contents of the letter, Wang Tang'er frowned even more.

His wife's expression suggested that the boy had probably gotten into trouble. Fusu asked, "What's wrong?"

Wang Tang'er said, "He said he was going to fight the Donghu."

Fusu also took a look at the letter. It turned out that his younger brother Gao had gone to the north to ask Meng Tian for help in borrowing troops. He happened to run into Heng'er, and the uncle and nephew hit it off and decided to attack the Donghu.

After reading it, Fusu said to his wife, "This matter will be discussed in the court meeting, so there is no need to worry."

These words were also meant to comfort his wife.

Wang Tang'er said, "It's good to let the child experience war; he'll cherish his life in the future."

As she spoke, the lady regained some of her strict motherly demeanor.

In the eyes of the people in the palace, the lady was indeed worthy of being the grandson of the Duke of Pinyang. Her demeanor was naturally different from that of ordinary women, and she was a woman from a military family who carried some of the air of a military family.

At Zhangtai Palace, as usual, all the ministers who came to the court meeting today were present, but many of them looked rather unwell and dejected.

It's not their fault; there are just too many national affairs to handle this year. Many people were busy until late at night yesterday before returning home. Some whispered among themselves that if things continue like this, they might not live for more than a few years.

When Prince Fusu walked up the steps in front of the Zhangtai Palace, everyone fell silent.

Fusu entered the main hall and first took a scroll from the Right Chancellor, which contained the official transfer orders for this year.

The process for transferring officials in Qin was quite complicated, especially for county magistrates. Such transfers would begin with the county submitting documents, then be reviewed by the prefecture government, then reviewed by the Inner Historian and the Prime Minister's office, and finally decided by the emperor.

The emperor is currently not in Xianyang, and according to the emperor's decree, these orders are to be overseen by Prince Fusu.

Sometimes Fusu quite liked the strictness of the Qin law. Officials had a one-year probationary period when they first took office. According to the Qin law, the probationary period was one year. After that, they were tested every three years during their term of office. If they passed the test, they would stay in office; if they failed, they would be demoted.

These are all written in the Qin law. Sometimes the Qin law even had the foresight to increase the upper limit of the term of office. An official's term of office in the local area could not exceed nine years, which was to prevent local entrenching and corruption. The Qin law called this "prohibition of long-term appointment".

Within the Qin dynasty's prefecture-county system, the probationary period and the long-term ban on official appointments were both overly lenient methods of governing officials.

Of course, these were Fusu's initial views, but everything still needed to be discussed with the Prime Minister. As a prince of Qin, he was merely the magistrate of Xianyang.

Qin's examination was actually quite simple: as a county magistrate, one could not have more than three backlogged cases.

The amount of taxes owed cannot exceed one-tenth.

Otherwise, he would be demoted to a lowly official and punished by being sent to the frontier.

Only a few officials held hereditary positions, such as the tomb workers of Liyi, whose positions were both lifelong and hereditary.

Furthermore, positions held within the Ying clan were also hereditary.

Before Qin unified the six states, the position of Xianyang Magistrate was not easily appointed, and even if it was, the position would be frequently changed. However, after the death of Neishi Teng, the positions of Xianyang Magistrate and Neishi have remained vacant to this day.

However, even though the location was vacant, it did not hinder the daily defense of Xianyang City, so it remained unoccupied.

Even Fusu knew that the so-called Xianyang magistrate position was, in his opinion, just a sinecure left to him.

The court is currently discussing the rotation of county magistrates this year, especially those in Guanzhong.

The Weibei region needs to establish a prefecture government, and Fusu initially considered Li You as the candidate for the prefect of Weibei.

Zhang Cang or the Right Chancellor are considering Wang Li.

Fusu has not yet made a decision on this matter, but in everyone's comments, one person is mentioned: Xiao He of Weibei.

Listening to the discussions, they all felt that Xiao He, the magistrate of Jingyang County in Weibei, was a very good candidate, and it would be perfect to appoint him as the prefectural assistant.

Moreover, since Xiao He took office as county magistrate, Jingyang has been the best-developed of the three counties north of the Wei River.

The calls for Xiao He to serve as prefectural assistant grew louder and louder, and Fusu said, "Let Xiao He serve a one-year trial period."

Everyone bowed and agreed.

The subsequent court discussions all revolved around sending grain to the north.

As for the Liaohe Plain in Northeast China, the matter was not mentioned at all during the court meeting.

The group ended their court meeting early and were on their way to the Prime Minister's residence, still talking about how the young master had said he would bestow this year's new wheat upon each household, and it was being delivered to them.

This brought a touch of warmth to the hearts of the officials who were working overtime during the Lunar New Year holiday, amidst the cold national policies.

(End of this chapter)