The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 301 Chen Ping's Drunken Ramblings

It is currently the time of rest and recuperation, and the minor official guarding the gate of the Imperial Academy is still somewhat lazy.

Because it was during the holiday season, there were actually very few people at the Imperial Academy. Many books and documents were sealed up, and everyone had gone home for the festival.

But when the official saw the teacher who brought the young man, he still made arrangements for him as usual. Not only was the matter of the volunteer teacher a matter that had to be dealt with, but it was also during his time off.

"Liu Ying?"

The clerk glanced at the name in the document, then at the young man before him, and continued, "The son of the magistrate of Pei County, fourteen years old this year."

"Yes," Liu Ying replied.

The clerk continued, "There is food and lodging in Tongguan City. You can stay here. If you have other accommodations, you can stay as you wish. Come to school next spring."

As they spoke, the clerk led Liu Ying into the Imperial Academy, giving him instructions as they walked.

Liu Ying asked, "My elder brother also works at the Imperial Academy."

“You have an elder brother…” The clerk continued walking in front, leading the group along the aisles between the bookshelves on both sides, and asked, “Who is it?”

Liu Ying replied, "Liu Fei."

Upon hearing this, the clerk paused slightly and asked, "Are you Liu Fei's younger brother?"

It seems my elder brother really does work at the Imperial Academy. Liu Ying asked, "Hmm, does he live in Jingyang?"

The clerk looked you up and down, then whispered, "You two brothers do indeed resemble each other..."

Liu Ying asked, "Isn't my elder brother at the Imperial Academy?"

"They're on holiday and have all gone home."

"I plan to go to Weibei to see him."

"That's your business."

Upon arriving in Guanzhong, Liu Ying was filled with curiosity. He had many questions he wanted to ask, but he felt it would be impolite to ask too many.

Seeing the person in front of her hand her several books, as well as a key and an overcoat, Liu Ying accepted them one by one.

After doing all this, the clerk wrote Liu Ying's name on a wooden plaque and whispered, "Alright, you can go back now."

"Can I go back now?"

"Ah."

The clerk nodded, looking very busy.

Liu Ying walked to the outside of Tongguan City and saw a man standing beside the carriage that had brought him there. The man's figure was familiar, so he stepped forward and called out, "Uncle Cao?"

Upon hearing this, Cao Can turned around and saw Liu Ying, exclaiming with delight, "It really is you, lad, haha!"

Liu Ying smiled and said, "Thank you for your help, Uncle Cao. My father said that even if Uncle Xiao He is too busy to take care of me, Uncle Cao will definitely take care of me."

Upon thinking of Liu Ji, Cao Can's lips twitched. He looked around and asked, "Where is Liu Ji?"

Liu Ying replied, "My father and mother are both in Pei County, and my younger sister still needs to be taken care of. As the county magistrate, my father has many important matters to attend to in Pei County."

Cao Can said, "You rascal, how did you manage to get to Tongguan all by yourself?"

"The Master brought me here; the Master is still inside the Imperial Academy..."

Cao Shen took Liu Ying's bundle and said in a low voice, "Even if Prefect Xiao is busy, he is thinking of you. Go to Jingyang first."

"it is good."

The thought of seeing his brother in Jingyang filled Liu Ying with joy.

Once back in the carriage, Cao Shen drove towards the north of the Wei River, still thinking that Liu Ji had really sent both children to Xiao He to raise.

This man is really capable of doing such a thing. He may have complaints in his heart, but he won't say them in front of Liu Ying.

Liu Ying looked at the scenery of Guanzhong. There were still some snowflakes falling from the sky. It had snowed heavily for a day and a night yesterday. As far as the eye could see, there was snow everywhere. Occasionally, someone could be seen walking on the snow in the distance, but most of the scenery was just a blanket of snow.

"Winter in Guanzhong is very cold. When you go back, change into some thick clothes. Liu Fei's old clothes are just the right size for you."

Liu Ying nodded and said, "I wore my brother's clothes when I was a child."

Cao Can nodded and continued driving the carriage.

It was night when they arrived in Jingyang. Liu Fei stood in front of the county gate and saw the man sitting in a horse-drawn carriage.

Upon arriving, Liu Ying alighted from the carriage and called out, "Brother."

Liu Fei said, "It's been many years, you've grown taller."

With a smile on her face, Liu Ying said, "Father misses his elder brother very much."

"Hmm." Liu Fei responded and led Liu Ying into the county. The two entered the county government and met Xiao He, who was looking at documents. Xiao He was still very busy during his leave.

Cao Can safely delivered Liu Ying. Xiao He glanced at him and saw that it was indeed Liu Ying, but he still had official business to attend to, so he said, "Prepare more wine and meat tonight."

"Yes." Cao Can smiled and went to prepare.

Upon learning that Liu Ying was about to arrive in Jingyang, Liu Fei prepared a room for him inside the county government building.

Liu Ying began cleaning his future residence, while Liu Fei explained to him the rules for entering Tongguan and the rules of the Imperial Academy.

Now that Liu Fei is employed at the Imperial Academy, he is basically self-sufficient, thanks to the academy's provision of room and board, as well as a monthly stipend. Liu Fei even considered bringing his mother to live with him in Guanzhong, but she consistently refused.

Liu Fei asked in a low voice, "Did Father read all the letters I wrote to him?"

Liu Ying, who was tidying up the books, was in a good mood and did not notice Liu Fei's downcast expression. He smiled and said, "Father reads them every time, and it takes him a long time."

"Did you show it to my mother?"

Liu Ying added, "It was sent. Once, Father even argued with Mother about it. In the end, Father still sent a letter to Aunt Cao, saying that Aunt Cao did not want to come to Guanzhong."

Upon hearing this, Liu Fei made a decision. He knew that Xiao He would eventually return, and he would return at that time as well.

Facing Liu Ying, Liu Fei still wore a smile, keeping his thoughts to himself, and said, "We'll have mutton to eat today."

Until nightfall, mutton, wine, some pickled radishes, and a few flatbreads were the meal for the prefect's family.

With an innocent look on her face, Liu Ying exclaimed, "It's so nice not having my mother to look after me."

Xiao He gave a soft hum and said nothing more.

Cao Shen also had a smile on his face.

Liu Fei thought that Liu Ying was saying this now because he had finally escaped the control of the Lü family for the time being, but it wouldn't be long before Liu Ying would miss home.

Xiao He asked, "Are there still teachers bringing students to Guanzhong these days?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Ying chewed on mutton and looked at her brother beside her.

Liu Fei replied, "The Imperial Academy has many rules. Nowadays, there is no explicit rule that the Imperial Academy must bring students to Tongguan. It is not an explicit rule, but an unwritten tradition. Students can be brought or not."

Xiao He nodded.

Liu Fei added, "The emperor's dissatisfaction with the Imperial Academy was not actually due to the teachers, but rather to the lack of sufficient officials."

While they were eating, Xiao He met Wu Bo.

Wu Bo hurried over and whispered, "The Prime Minister's residence has sent a document."

Xiao He stood up and quickly left.

Liu Ying was excited as he ate the meat. He had only been in Guanzhong for a short time, and he had already heard his elder brother talk about the emperor and the prime minister's mansion. These were things that his father had never dared to dream of before.

The next day, just as the heavy snow in Guanzhong had stopped for a day, freezing rain began to fall again.

In Jingye County, Shusun Tong looked at the ground covered with a thin layer of ice and said with a solemn expression, "In the past two years, the winters in Guanzhong have been harsh and long, while the springs have come early and have been too warm."

Li said, "Hasn't it always been like this in Guanzhong? Is Teacher afraid of the cold?"

Shusun Tongdao: "The sweltering heat is long, spring and autumn are too short, and winter is bitterly cold. This kind of weather will lead to a bumper harvest in Guanzhong."

Li then said, "I believe that Guanzhong needs favorable weather to have a good harvest."

“Favorable weather and abundant harvests…” Shusun Tong pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, “What a fine phrase, favorable weather and abundant harvests.”

Li said, "Father Emperor has sent someone again to persuade the old prime minister to return to Xianyang."

Shusun Tong stroked his beard and sat down. "Is Li Si going back to Xianyang?"

Li shook his head, sat down next to his teacher, and looked at the heavy snow falling from the sky. "The old prime minister said that he is too old to help the emperor handle state affairs and declined."

Seeing that the teacher remained silent, Li continued, "Father sent the imperial physician to take care of the old prime minister again, and invited the old prime minister to Xianyang, but the old prime minister refused again. Father said that he would invite the old prime minister to Guanzhong so that he could take care of him in the future, but the old prime minister said that the emperor should focus on state affairs."

"Now the Emperor has sent Wu Gong, the disciple of the old prime minister, to Guanzhong, and also asked Wu Gong to invite the old prime minister to Xianyang, but the old man has refused the Emperor again."

Shusun Tong chuckled and said, "It is said that Li Si built the gate of his residence opposite Lü Buwei's back then. Do you know why?"

Li shook his head and said, "This disciple does not understand."

Shusun Tong explained, "Being the prime minister of Qin was not easy back then. There was Lü Buwei before him, so how could Li Si not be wary? Now the emperor is retired at Mount Li, so how could Li Si dare to covet power?"

In the winter of the first year of the new emperor's reign, since the start of his leave, the emperor had been staying deep in the palace, rarely going out or walking in front of people, and even his ministers were rarely summoned.

Some say that recently the emperor has been frequently looking at maps and documents from the Western Regions.

In the taverns of Xianyang, Chen Ping has recently been drinking with his colleagues, including Zhang Cang and Cheng Miao.

Now he is drinking with the Minister of Justice, Feng Jie.

The shopkeeper was very polite to Chen Ping, and even refused to charge him for the drinks. This was because Chen Ping had built up connections in the Hexi Corridor and introduced the shopkeeper to several merchants from the Western Regions, which in turn brought the shopkeeper several beauties from the Western Regions. With beauties from the Western Regions in the shop, there were even more customers.

The shopkeepers were so busy treating Chen Ping like royalty that they didn't even need to pay for the drinks.

Feng Jie was slightly drunk. He asked, "What do you think the Western Regions will become in the future?"

Chen Ping said, "In the future, many people in the Western Regions will read the classics of the Hundred Schools of Thought. They will read Xunzi, Mozi, or other books. The people of the Western Regions will speak the Guanzhong dialect and talk about the principles of Guanzhong. They will abandon the old customs of the Western Regions. They will respect the emperor and support the Great Qin. As long as the emperor issues an edict to the Western Regions, hundreds of thousands of people in the Western Regions can become hundreds of thousands of soldiers to fight for the emperor."

Feng Jie asked, "Where are we going to fight?"

Chen Ping was also drunk. He was a little confused, but he chuckled and said, "Let's go to more distant places and send the books of the Hundred Schools of Thought to more distant countries, so that the people there can also write our language and speak our Guanzhong dialect."

Chen Ping was really drunk. Feng Jie thought his words were unrealistic and sounded like he was talking in his sleep.

……

P.S.: Only one chapter today. My eyes haven't been feeling well lately, so I can't look at electronic devices for too long. I need to adjust my screen time and writing schedule. But I'll be able to update as usual tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)