The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 287 Zhang Liang's Another Farewell

After reading what the Right Chancellor had written, Fusu replied, "Very well, the Grand Chancellor will be in charge of the Grand Chancellor. Chen Ping and Feng Jie will still be under the Right Chancellor's command."

Feng Quji bowed and said, "This is merely a suggestion; the decision is entirely up to you, my lord."

Fusu said, "I need the assistance of the Right Chancellor."

"Your subject will do his utmost."

The Grand Master of Ceremonies was one of the Nine Ministers, specifically the Chief of the Foreign Affairs Department, and was in charge of foreign affairs.

Now this position has been reinstated, led by the Right Chancellor, and the Minister of Justice Feng Jie and Chen Ping have been appointed to assist the Right Chancellor.

Feng Quji remained the Right Chancellor, and the title of Grand Chancellor was merely nominal; Chen Ping was in charge of the actual work from then on.

As for Feng Jie, he remained in the position of Minister of Justice and also held the authority of the Censorate.

Tian An served tea to the young master and the Right Prime Minister. The wind and snow outside were getting heavier and heavier. This year's snow came early. It snowed in Guanzhong in late autumn, and now that winter has arrived, the snow has been falling intermittently for several days.

As for the position of Inner Historian, there was no need for discussion. Since the Emperor had appointed Zhang Han as Inner Historian and Commandant, Fusu could also go along with it and appoint Zhang Han as Inner Historian, in charge of the security of Guanzhong and the defense of Xianyang.

As for the position of Grand Master of the Imperial Stud, Fusu planned to hand it over to Cheng Miao.

The position of Grand Commandant was given to Meng Tian.

The position of clan head of the Ying clan was handed over to Prince Gao.

Inside the main hall of Zhangtai Palace, Feng Quji took a sip of tea. The young master still didn't mention the appointment or dismissal of the prime minister, but he didn't ask any more questions either.

Having prepared all the appointments, Feng Quji did not hear the young master mention the appointment or removal of the prime minister when he left Zhangtai Palace.

Walking in the wind and snow, Feng Quji arrived outside Xianyang Palace, pondering that perhaps the Qin Dynasty would no longer have a prime minister, and that Prince Fusu was Li Si's disciple.

With Prince Fusu's talent, he could serve as prime minister himself, while the other officials in the Nine Ministers or the prime minister's office would only need to carry out government orders.

As Feng Quji walked through the bustling streets of Xianyang, he encountered Chen Ping.

It was as if he had been waiting on his inevitable path all along.

Upon seeing him approach, Feng Quji asked, "Were you waiting for me?"

Chen Ping, without batting an eye, calmly replied, "Our people have found out that Zhang Liang had a close friend who seems to be a volunteer teacher. I'm still investigating who the others are."

Chen Ping's investigative abilities are better than Feng Jie's, and he is also very adept at understanding human nature. His future achievements will definitely be even greater. It should be said that such a person can find a way to survive in any environment.

Feng Quji said, "Very good, continue the investigation."

Chen Ping took two steps to catch up and asked again, "I heard that you summoned the Right Chancellor, young master."

Chen Ping was an extremely astute person, and this matter could not be kept from him, especially since the prince's enthronement ceremony was to be held tomorrow. The summons before that must be for something important.

Feng Quji also suspected that Chen Ping probably already knew what it was about.

Chen Ping will be the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat from now on, which is to say, Secretary Chen. Feng Quji naturally wouldn't tell him this, but instead said, "Young Master has praised your achievements in recent years."

"Ah..." Chen Ping bowed and said, "I wanted to ask if the Right Prime Minister has any instructions."

"No, it will happen in the future."

Feng Quji said this and continued walking in the snow. Chen Ping clearly knew the answer he wanted, but he still asked one more question. He was truly a cunning person.

The curfew started unusually early tonight. In preparation for Prince Fusu's enthronement ceremony tomorrow, Zhang Han stayed up all night on the city wall of Xianyang, keeping an eye on the numerous lists of people who had entered the city in the past few days.

The news that Prince Fusu was about to ascend the throne had already spread throughout Guanzhong, and Xianyang City had become increasingly lively these days.

The more people came to Xianyang, the more Zhang Han felt the pressure on maintaining public order.

The next morning, before the heavy snow had stopped, Ying Zheng, dressed in loose clothing, pushed open the gate of the Lishan Palace, pulled his cloak tighter around himself, and felt the cold wind blowing against his skin. He heard the sound of someone running in the snow.

The sound grew closer, and when he looked up, he saw his grandson jogging in the morning.

Ying Zheng smiled and waved.

Li stopped running, took a few deep breaths to make her breathing easier, and walked up to her grandfather.

Ying Zheng asked, "Why are you running?"

“My father used to take us running. Whenever we couldn’t get up, my mother would beat us. I got into the habit of running in the morning and felt more energetic.”

"Great! You need to be in good spirits to be happy."

"Grandpa ran with me?"

"Your father is ascending the throne today, aren't you going to go and see him?"

"Grandpa Tian has prepared a carriage and horses that are waiting at the foot of the mountain. Grandpa, can we go together?"

Ying Zheng stood up, stroked his beard, and said, "I won't go. Hmm... it's getting late. If we go to Xianyang now, it will probably be noon. Let's hurry."

Li said, "Then your grandson will go to Xianyang first."

Ying Zheng stood in front of the palace, watching the young man walk down the mountain step by step.

Suddenly, Li stopped and said, "From now on, Grandpa and grandson will go for a morning run together."

Ying Zheng nodded and said, "Okay."

The heavy snow in Guanzhong showed no signs of stopping even at noon.

The people of Guanzhong all know that Prince Fusu is going to become emperor, and many people want to go to Xianyang to see him.

Even if they arrived in Xianyang, they wouldn't be able to see Prince Fusu. It's just that so many people here support Prince Fusu, and everyone is hoping that this benevolent prince will become emperor.

Now, their hopes are about to come true.

Zhang Liang arrived at the foot of Tongguan Pass. This was his second time visiting Tongguan and his second time in Guanzhong. He came to a restaurant in front of the city and ordered a bowl of tofu pudding and a flatbread.

The shopkeeper brought over a plate of hot tofu pudding while chatting with the customers next to him.

Zhang Liang had eaten tofu pudding once in Shu, made by the magistrate of Wu County. This time, he came to Tongguan to collect the documents for supporting education in rural areas. Today was the day the new emperor ascended the throne, and he specially chose this day because all the counties were busy and no one would pay attention to a teacher from Shu.

The new rule established by the Imperial Academy last year stipulates that each teacher must come to Guanzhong every five years to receive official documents and pass an exam before they can continue teaching there.

Everyone around was talking about Xianyang; to them, Prince Fusu becoming emperor was a great thing.

Zhang Liang took a bite of tofu pudding and then a bite of pancake.

The shopkeeper said, "The customer is a new face."

Zhang Liang handed over his token, which was given to him by the county magistrate and also served as a symbol of his status as a volunteer teacher.

The shopkeeper smiled and said when he saw the token of the volunteer teacher: "There have indeed been quite a few teachers this year. You teachers are from all over the country and have to travel all this way. Thank you for your trouble."

Zhang Liang said, "Your pancakes are delicious."

As the shopkeeper wiped down a table, he said, "My pancakes are made with this year's newly harvested wheat. The wheat comes from Longxi, where the summer days are long and the wheat is at its most fragrant."

Listening to the shopkeeper's explanation, Zhang Liang nodded and said, "Even a single pancake is so picky."

The shopkeeper said, "Our prefect used to grow scallions. He said that the young master hopes we can eat better and be full, so there should be more food and the food in our bowls should be better."

Zhang Liang nodded; these exquisite foods were the kind of food and clothing for nobles.

Nowadays, the food and clothing of nobles are almost ubiquitous in Guanzhong.

The shopkeeper was busy attending to other customers, so Zhang Liang stood up, paid for his meal, and then entered Tongguan City.

Tongguan City is bustling with activity today because the new emperor has ascended the throne. Students in Tongguan City are also enjoying mutton buns. As long as they are students, the mutton buns are free, and each person can eat one.

Zhang Liang went to the Imperial Academy and revealed his identity.

After being allowed to pass, Zhang Liang headed towards the Imperial Academy, surrounded by the chatter of the crowd.

"Why is the volunteer teacher suddenly asking questions this time?"

"They said it hadn't been checked for many years, and the Censorate needed to compile a list of teachers sent to rural areas for education."

"It's really tiring," someone complained.

"I heard it was arranged by an imperial censor named Chen Ping," someone added.

Hearing the surrounding chatter, Zhang Liang entered the Imperial Academy, explained the situation to the people there, and presented Wang Yu's letter, requesting to see Master Wang.

When Zhang Liang saw Wang Yu again, the man had a smile on his face. Zhang Liang stepped forward and said, "Master Han!"

Zhang Liang smiled knowingly and bowed, saying, "It's been many years."

The two greeted each other as if they were old friends who hadn't seen each other for many years, which attracted the attention of those around them, but everyone only paid attention for a moment.

Master Wang and Master Han were of similar age, so they may have studied together.

When Zhang Liang arrived at Wang Yu's home, he learned that Wang Yu had a wife and children after all these years. The house was not large, but it was in a good location within Tongguan City, with a market on one side and a canal leading into the city behind it.

Wang Yu poured a bowl of wine and said, "We agreed to drink together on the Winter Solstice."

Zhang Liang took a sip of wine, then slowly exhaled and said, "Yes, it's a promise."

"Today is the day the new emperor ascends the throne; you should go to Xianyang."

"I'm not going to Xianyang anymore. I'll leave after we've had a drink together."

"Back then, you were determined to oppose the Qin Dynasty. Now that you've been teaching in rural areas for so many years, do you still want to oppose the Qin Dynasty?"

Zhang Liang said, "Your ideals are very good."

Wang Yu then said, “If you still want to teach in rural areas, I won’t stop you. Although you are determined to overthrow the Qin Dynasty, you have never done anything to harm others. I hope you can respect yourself.”

As he spoke, Wang Yu clinked his wine bowl against Zhang Liang's and said, "Stay here and work with me at the Imperial Academy."

Zhang Liang said, "The children are still waiting for me to return to Sichuan to teach. It will take five days to travel from Tongguan back to Sichuan."

"You must stop opposing the Qin Dynasty."

Zhang Liang did not reply, but finished the wine in the bowl and said, "Your wine is very good."

Wang Yu said: "Respect yourself."

"Ah."

Zhang Liang got up and left the small family home.

The two had not seen each other for many years, and only drank a bowl of wine together.

But sitting opposite each other, they remained silent, for there was really nothing to say; each had their own ideals.

How Zhang Liang lived was none of Chen Ping's business, nor was it any of Wang Fuzi's business.

He has not done anything to harm anyone, and that is enough. The new emperor will not make things difficult for Zhang Liang.

At first, many people did not understand the new emperor.

They didn't understand why the new emperor was so determined and persistent in implementing the policy of supporting education in rural areas.

Building a nation was also the most important ideal of the new emperor's life.

How could they understand that there is a type of person... whose ideals are so selfless?

(End of this chapter)