The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 302 The National Dilemma

One should not readily believe the words of a drunkard, especially those of Chen Ping. Even if they are not drunkards, one should not readily believe what this person says.

Those who believed Chen Ping's words all met with bad ends.

Feng Jie felt that he could only believe three-tenths of what Chen Ping said, but upon further reflection, he felt that was not right... He could only believe one-tenth at most.

In the first year of the new emperor's reign, the population of Guanzhong increased to 800,000, making it the most populous region, while the population of other counties in the Central Plains had not yet seen much improvement.

The reason why Guanzhong has a population of 800,000 is because Guanzhong is under the emperor's nose, it has the best teachers and the best schools, and the annual civil service examinations are held in Guanzhong.

It is said that the current emperor, in order to repay the kindness of his former prime minister Li Si in teaching him, wants to invite the prime minister to Guanzhong, as the emperor wants his teacher to retire in his old age.

But the prime minister repeatedly refused, hoping that the emperor could devote his energy to state affairs.

This heartwarming story has spread throughout Xianyang.

Everyone knows that the current emperor was trained by Prime Minister Li Si.

Some people think this has nothing to do with Prime Minister Li Si. Officials who were demoted by the Prime Minister believe that the reason the emperor acted this way is because he was a very filial person and a role model for young people all over the country.

Zhou Qingchen hadn't been to Xianyang for a long time; he was one of the Qi-Lu scholars who had come to Qin back then.

After his trip to Mount Tai, Zhou Qingchen traveled the world for several years. When he returned to Xianyang, he found that the emperor had changed.

After announcing his identity at the gates of Xianyang, Zhou Qincheng, led by soldiers, arrived at the Xianyang Palace and paid his respects to the new emperor at the Zhangtai Palace.

As the winter solstice approached, Fusu's first year as emperor was about to end. Looking at Zhou Qingchen kneeling on the ground, he said in a low voice, "No need to kneel and pay your respects, get up."

Zhou Qingchen slowly stood up and looked at the young emperor. The new emperor was dressed in a black robe, without a crown, and his brows were sharp, just like a young Qin Shi Huang.

"I have heard from the people of the world that they all say the new emperor is wise and virtuous. Since people have such a sentiment, I congratulate the emperor."

"I have only been emperor for a year. All I have done is reduce the number of troops and let the soldiers go home. And you are congratulating me? Aren't you ashamed?"

Zhou Qingchen then said, "These are my heartfelt words."

"There's no need for heartfelt words. I have no intention of tearing your heart out, and I have no interest in your innermost thoughts."

"Yes……"

Zhou Qingchen stammered for a moment.

Fusu was reading a book in his hand, with the brazier beside him still burning. He said, "To this day, the population of Guanzhong is only 800,000, of which at most 400,000 are able-bodied men. However, the population of the counties in the Central Plains is still declining. Even though I have reduced the number of troops, there has been no improvement. Can this problem be solved?"

Zhou Qingchen remained silent.

Fusu continued, "The issue of taxation has been discussed for ten years. Taxes are heavy in various parts of the Central Plains, and there is also a large amount of uncultivated land. This, coupled with the population problem, is a double whammy. Is there a solution?"

Zhou Qingchen lowered his head again.

Fusu said, “The population of Guanzhong is indeed at its peak, but it all comes from people who have migrated from all over the Central Plains. The development of Guanzhong is vastly different from that of the area east of Hangu Pass. The population is uneven, the development is uneven, there are not enough officials, and the former lands of the six states are still desolate.”

At this point, the main hall of Zhangtai Palace returned to silence.

"Let's not talk about how wise I am. Let's look at it realistically. There are still so many problems in this country that need to be solved."

Zhou Qingchen bowed and said, "I misspoke."

Fusu put down the book in his hand and asked again, "Did you gain anything from your travels around the world?"

Zhou Qingchen handed over a scroll and said, "I have been to the South, and in my opinion, the South is not so bad."

Tian An took the scroll and placed it in front of the emperor.

Zhou Qingchen's books were still written on bamboo slips. No matter how the world changes, there are still people who use bamboo slips.

Zhou Qingchen was just that kind of person. Fusu pushed aside the bamboo slips on the table and looked at them carefully.

This time, he mainly went to the south.

After the Qin army marched south, it broke through the barrier of the Five Ridges, allowing communication between the north and south.

But that wasn't enough. For long-term travel between the north and south, roads were needed. In Zhou Qingchen's account, he discovered a place called Meiling.

Meiling Mountain is steep and is said to be famous because it is full of plum trees.

The road Zhou Qingchen mentioned, which passes through Meiling, is actually the Meiguan Ancient Road.

Later, in the following text, there is another road that leads directly to the Xiang River. This road is the Xiaohe Ancient Road. In the past, when merchants from the six kingdoms traveled north and south, rhinoceros horns and rhinoceros hides from the South China Sea were transported from there.

Now this road is in Tu Ju's hands, and the Qin army has occupied all the key points of this ancient road.

Fusu tried more than once to bring Zhao Tuo and Tu Ju back.

However, the time is not yet ripe, and officials' penetration into the south is still insufficient.

Chen Ping always judges others based on their worst instincts. His schemes can be used, but not too often, otherwise they will ruin the production and appearance that Qin Ting has worked so hard to build.

Qin officials should be pragmatic, cooperative, and realistic.

Fusu hoped that all Qin officials would be like this; even if they were not like Prime Minister Li Si, they should at least be as hardworking and conscientious as Sima Xin.

Fu Su looked at Zhou Qingchen and had to admit that his idea was very forward-thinking; developing Meiguan and Xiaohe Ancient Road was indeed worthwhile.

A far-sighted and forward-thinking vision may not be suitable for the current environment. The Northeast still has potential for development, but how much manpower and resources do you have?

Fusu put the scroll away and asked, "What are your plans now that you've returned?"

"I wish to stay in Guanzhong and write down what I have seen and heard over the years."

"Let's go to the Imperial Academy in Tongguan."

"Yes."

Fusu instructed, "You were a scholar in Qin before, so your knowledge is beyond question. Go to the Imperial Academy to serve as a scholar. If you have any other plans in the future, then tell me."

"I accept your order."

After Zhou Qingchen left, Fusu drank a sip of tea.

Occasionally, a cold breeze would blow in through the windows on one side of the main hall. The chime bells in the main hall of Zhangtai Palace had not been rung for a long time; since the emperor ascended the throne, the chime bells had not been used to play music.

Fusu recalled what Zhou Qingchen had written in his book: in the south, Lingnan salt produces five million shi of salt annually, and grain yields one and a half shi per mu.

Even in Changsha County, the yield of slash-and-burn agriculture was only one shi per mu.

An hour after Zhou Qingchen left Zhangtai Palace, Fusu also arrived at the palace. This land was so vast, with some places being prosperous and others being very barren.

But the land is the most honest, and the grain it produces is the most substantial.

Salt and grains from the South are real, and this land holds many other treasures that will sustain generations.

Even now, Fusu is full of confidence about the future.

Even though the country still has many problems today, many of which have been passed down from the Zhou Dynasty, and many of which are contradictions that even two thousand years of imperial dynasties could not resolve, the treasures of this land will still give people confidence.

After the winter solstice, the Qin Dynasty entered the second year of the new emperor's reign. The court and the people were still on holiday, and the officials did not go to the Zhangtai Palace for discussions. People continued to live their lives, some in a hurry and some in a leisurely manner.

Prince Gao returned to Xianyang, and the emperor appointed him as the Minister of the Imperial Clan, in charge of the affairs of the Qin royal family.

After meeting the emperor, Prince Gao went to Yongcheng.

After seeing Gao off, Fusu thought of his great-grandfather again. It was his great-grandfather who taught him how to perform Qin etiquette, how to undergo the coming-of-age ceremony, and how to be a good Qin prince.

The heavy snow continued to fall in Guanzhong. Fusu walked on the city wall of Xianyang, accompanied by Zhang Han and Meng Tian.

Fusu said, "This snow just won't stop falling."

Meng Tian said, "I've heard that quite a few people have moved to the southern part of the Gobi Desert this year."

Fusu said, "Nowadays, how many children on the grasslands are reading classic texts?"

Meng Tian replied, "Dong Yi said that all the herder children in the northern and southern deserts are reading books from the Central Plains."

Fusu sometimes felt that it was a real waste to keep a man of Zhang Han's talent in Xianyang as the Inner Minister. He thought that someone like Zhang Han should go to the frontier or to develop other places.

Zhang Han was not only a talented general, but also a skilled builder.

Wuwei County and the city gates of the Hexi Corridor were both built under his supervision.

Fusu asked, "How has General Zhang Han been lately?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Han clasped his hands in a fist and replied, "I have been reading books about Tongguan recently."

Fusu said, "Lou Jing sent a letter earlier, saying that people from the Western Regions have been in close contact with people in the Hexi Corridor recently, and they want salt, iron and silk."

The most scarce items in the Western Regions were ironware and silk, especially the long spears of the Qin Dynasty.

However, the long spear was only a fleeting feature in the Qin army, and only a few Qin soldiers possessed it because it was too difficult to forge and production had ceased.

Even though Xianyang had a lot of materials left over from casting long spears, they were all stockpiled.

Zhang Han said, "I believe that what they want is not just iron and silk, but also craftsmen who can forge ironware."

Fusu then asked, "What does the Grand Commandant think?"

Meng Tian replied, "This humble general believes it is possible to sell to the people of the Western Regions, but this transaction needs to be controlled by the emperor."

“Hmm.” Fusu stopped walking. “The Grand Commandant’s idea is to establish a market in the northwest and let the people of the Western Regions buy and sell in our market, and all the gold they get will be ours.”

Meng Tian nodded.

Fusu reached out and touched the city wall, saying, "The Western Regions are rich in gold; it is indeed tempting."

Even after descending the city wall, the emperor did not give a definite answer to the two generals' words, probably because he felt that the two generals' ideas were not good.

Because the emperor often presided over state affairs when he was still a prince, and he stored grain under the beacon towers of the Great Wall, which helped the Great Wall overcome several food crises.

Last year, the emperor ordered the establishment of military farms on the border, transforming Prime Minister Li Si's policy of relocating people to defend the border into a policy of military farms. This truly fulfilled Prime Minister Li Si's vision of ensuring that the Qin Dynasty's grain would grow along the border.

Looking back at the statements of the Grand Commandant and the General, among these two Generals, Meng Tian had the ability to lead troops and the talent to command them.

Zhang Han was talented in construction and also skilled in military strategy.

However, both generals lacked the ability to manipulate people's hearts and minds, and this deficiency was particularly evident.

No wonder the emperor looked so disappointed when he returned to the palace.

Then again, can we blame the Grand Commandant and the General?

Back when the emperor was still a prince of Qin, he often said that everyone has their own area of ​​expertise, which reflects the spirit of the Qin people under the Qin legal system.

He's a great general, someone who leads troops into battle. It's already quite remarkable that he can do some city construction along the way.

The emperor, however, did not make things difficult for the two generals and the Grand Commandant.

The winter solstice has passed, but the emperor still hasn't mentioned appointing another prime minister, and life in Xianyang remains unchanged.

Inside Gaoquan Palace, Fusu held his daughter, looked into her bright eyes, and said, "Do you know who I'm going to entrust the Western Regions trade route to?"

The little princess, who was not yet a year old, naturally did not understand anything. She looked at the bell in the emperor's hand and reached out to take it.

Seeing his wife approach, Fusu placed the child in her arms before continuing to read the documents.

This year, as Zhou Qingchen returned to Xianyang from the south, he also brought many documents from the south.

It was Chen Ping who made Zhao Tuo and Tu Ju feel that the Qin court had finally finished the Northern Expedition and was now free to deal with domestic affairs. The most important domestic issue was likely that it was these two generals who were guarding the south that made them send their children to study in Guanzhong.

Looking at the documents from the south, Tu Ju discovered a type of rice from Xiangjun that could yield 2.5 shi per mu.

Fusu knew this kind of rice; it was called Champa rice.

In February of the second year of the new emperor's reign, the Qin court finally began its court discussions. After a two-and-a-half-month rest, the officials returned to the main hall to continue discussing state affairs.

The emperor did not mention taxes again, making this the only remaining issue for the Qin court, one that might ultimately fizzle out.

The first meeting of the court today was to discuss this year's civil service examination. The examination in Guanzhong has been held for eight years, and this is the fourth one.

Every year, hundreds of new officials are sent to the Qin court.

Fusu sat on the throne, listening to the ministers discussing in the hall. Some said that the standards should be lowered and more people should be recruited into the government. Nowadays, there is a severe shortage of officials in various places. Some remote areas even have only one county magistrate and no county assistant.

Some people believe that the selection of officials must be rigorous, and that if it is relaxed now, it will be relaxed in the future.

The Qin court continued with its previous power system, in which the emperor always had the power of veto or final decision.

No matter how fiercely they argued or made a scene, in the end, the emperor had to make the decision.

The court debate continued until noon without reaching a conclusion.

After the court meeting concluded, Fusu went to Gaoquan Palace for lunch, and then returned to Zhangtai Palace to continue handling state affairs.

From last year until now, the emperor has been handling state affairs every day without fail, just as he always has.

Fusu then saw Xiao He's document and hesitated over it for a long time.

The list of officials to be promoted this year has not yet been released, but in Xiao He's document, it was mentioned that at the beginning of this year, the rivers and lakes in Chu suffered from floods again, and it was hoped that the emperor could urge the officials in various parts of Chu to carry out water conservancy projects.

Furthermore, Xiao He planned to merge the counties surrounding Zheng Guo Canal and Bai Canal into Weibei, and to collectively refer to Zheng Guo Canal and Bai Canal as Zheng Bai Canal.

Even though he was in Guanzhong, Xiao He still cared deeply about the land of Chu.

In February, the Guanzhong Plain is still swept by howling winds, with no rain in sight and no sign of warming up.

On this day, having some free time, Fusu took his family for a walk in the northern suburbs and met Xiao He again.

At the Zheng Guo Canal, Xiao He revealed his development plan for the area north of the Wei River.

(End of this chapter)