The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 319 Chen Ping and Gongzi Heng
After reading the memorial sent by Xiao He, Fusu learned that the construction in Weibei was not going smoothly, and the construction of a horse farm in Qizhou had caused conflicts with several nearby counties over land issues.

With so much farmland north of the Wei River, how should the irrigation water be distributed?

All these contradictions combined made Fusu realize just how worried Xiao He must be.

However, in Xiao He's writings, he said that if he could not govern the area north of the Wei River, how could he build up the Chu region?

After reading the memorial, Fusu finished his breakfast.

As a subject, once he sets a goal for himself, he will take the initiative to achieve it.

Emperors generally prefer ministers who are proactive and can set their own goals.

Fusu was willing to give Xiao He time, and what Xiao He was facing was not a difficult problem. In the end, it was still a matter of grassroots development in various counties, and the most important thing in dealing with such problems was to communicate with the people of the county.

This year's literacy campaign went smoothly, but apart from Guanzhong, the literacy campaign in areas east of Hangu Pass was not very successful.

Winters in Guanzhong are very long, and people have lost count of how many snowfalls have occurred there.

In the first month of the third year of the reign of Emperor Xin, heavy snow fell again in Guanzhong, especially in the northwest this year, where the heavy snow has turned into a snow disaster.

Han Xin wrote that he had built a huge stable at the foot of the Qilian Mountains, and the warhorses were saved, but the herders' livestock froze to death.

Han Xin even collaborated with herdsmen to compile a book for treating livestock diseases.

While the Qin court was still on leave, a snow disaster struck the Hexi Corridor, and the situation in Guanzhong was not much better.

Winter came early to Guanzhong this year, with the cold spell starting in early autumn and continuing into January, with heavy snow still falling in Guanzhong.

Each county submitted documents and informed the others of their preparations for the heavy snowfall.

At this moment, after learning about the snow disaster this year, Ying Zheng went down the mountain almost every day to visit the counties in Guanzhong.

Today, Ying Zheng arrived in Pinyang County.

The largest mansion in Pinyang County was the residence of Wang Jian, the Duke of Pinyang.

It seems that no one has lived here for a long time since Wang Jian passed away.

Li Si found a man in the village and asked him some questions.

Having received a reply, Li Si strode over and reported, "Wang Li has gone to take up a post in Langya County, and his brothers and sisters have also left. It is said that the Wang family has already divided its assets."

Ying Zheng looked at the wooden door of the old mansion and said, "Haven't you been here for the past two years?"

"No."

Upon receiving such a definitive answer from Li Si, Ying Zheng sighed, "With Wang Jian dead, the Wang family is also gone."

This may be something the current emperor did intentionally.

Thanks to Wang Jian's contributions, the Wang family's wealth and status have become immense.

Furthermore, with Wang Jian's granddaughter marrying into Gaoquan Palace, the Wang family should be even more prestigious.

However, the reality is that the Wang brothers have divided their property, and the old Wang family residence in Pinyang County remains dilapidated to this day.

Wang Ben lived a good life, but only at the level of an ordinary wealthy and powerful family in Xianyang.

When the prince married the granddaughter of the Wang family, he gained tremendous support from the Wang family. However, after Prince Fusu ascended the throne, he intentionally or unintentionally weakened the Wang family's power.

Previously, Prince Fusu needed the help of the royal family, but after ascending the throne, Fusu ruthlessly abandoned the royal family.

On the one hand, the Wang family was the emperor's maternal relatives; on the other hand, since they were maternal relatives, the emperor had to be wary of their influence on the Qin court.

A powerful emperor can have powerful maternal relatives, but at the same time, these maternal relatives must be under the emperor's control.

Throughout history, the Qin kings were often influenced by the maternal relatives of other states who joined the Qin court.

Previously, Prince Fusu needed the support of the royal family, but now, as emperor, Fusu needs the royal family, his maternal relatives, to become weak.

Because the new emperor was extremely adept at centralizing power.

To outsiders, this might seem like nothing, but to Ying Zheng, everything his son did was for the sake of the country, and towards his relatives and in-laws... this son was cold and heartless.

Li Si believed that it was precisely because Prince Fusu resembled Ying Zheng so much that he acted this way.

In fact, Ying Zheng was also that kind of person, but Fusu was more cunning.

Li Si said in a low voice, "I remember that General Wang Jian made an agreement with the new emperor. The new emperor is a man of his word and keeps his promises. The fact that the Wang family has come to this point must be related to that agreement."

Ying Zheng exhaled a breath of warm air in the cold wind, looked at the old mansion and said in a low voice, "Wang Jian is very shrewd, always has been."

The Wang family's descendants have become too ostentatious. To protect the Wang family, their power must not be allowed to grow too great. As the emperor's maternal relatives, only by reaching this point can they avoid being targeted and prevent the Wang family's descendants from harboring rebellious intentions.

In other words, it was both to ensure the royal family's continued loyalty to the emperor and to preserve the royal family itself.

A declining maternal relative would not pose a threat to the Qin court officials, but an emperor with a weak maternal relative could better consolidate power.

To this day, Wang Li of the Wang family is stationed in Langya County, while the rest of his descendants have all left Guanzhong, with only Wang Ben's family remaining in Guanzhong.

As Ying Zheng passed through Pinyang County, he suddenly smiled and said in a low voice, "Wang Jian, you are even wary of me after your death."

Li Si followed behind in silence, thinking to himself, how could Wang Jian not be on guard? To protect the Wang family, he was practically ready to dig out his own internal organs to show the emperor and his son, to see how loyal Wang Jian was.

In February, the cold wind still blew in Guanzhong. Today, Li Si dressed like an old farmer from Guanzhong and asked the people in various counties about their lives.

Last year, the emperor's edict to reduce illiteracy has been effective. Now, in each county, five out of ten people can read, and three others can barely read articles.

Upon seeing the old farmer pulling a cart full of grain, Li Si stepped forward and asked him what he was going to do.

The old farmer said, "My son is studying in Tongguan. He said all the counties are going to distribute grain." "Distribute grain?"

The old farmer first bowed in the direction of Xianyang City, and said, "When distributing grain to various counties, the price of grain shall not exceed ten coins per dou."

Li Si looked at the grain on the cart and asked, "Did you buy this?"

"I bought fifty coins' worth of old grain to brew wine." The old man continued, "This year there was a snow disaster, and the northern prefecture is short of grain. Several other prefectures also need grain. The emperor ordered the release of grain at this time so that the people in the north could get through this snow disaster."

Li Si took the water bag from the old farmer, opened it, and smelled it before realizing it was wine.

"This is the wine I brewed myself."

Li Si took a sip and said, "Hmm, this is a bitter wine that only people from Guanzhong can brew."

The old man said, "This year there is more grain, so we can brew wine with it. The county officials have allowed us to rebuild the brewing workshop and have more people to brew wine. Now, which household in any county doesn't have one or two workshops?"

Li Si took out some money from his waist and handed it to the old farmer, saying, "I'll buy this wine."

The old farmer, with his graying hair and beard, took the money and said, "That white smoke is our workshop."

Li Si looked up and saw white smoke rising from Linwei County not far away.

“That’s where our workshop’s kiln is located, hmm…” the old man took a deep breath and said, “The aroma of this wine can last a lifetime.”

Li Si also took a sniff, and sure enough, there was a faint aroma of wine in the air.

When I looked again, the old man had already driven away with a cart full of grain.

As more workshops opened up in Guanzhong, more people in Guanzhong began to study, and while studying, they also promoted better morals.

This year's grain distribution, despite the snow disaster in the new year, not only did not cause grain prices to spiral out of control, but actually made them cheaper.

Li Si was on his way back to Mount Li. The new emperor hadn't done much; he had only issued a few imperial edicts.

But people's lives have indeed changed.

There were no harsher punishments, no more laws, and no additional troops.

In just two years, the lives of people in Guanzhong have quietly improved.

It happened so quietly; the new emperor didn't even kill anyone.

Perhaps all those who needed to be killed were killed before the new emperor ascended the throne.

As Li Si walked along the imperial road in the Guanzhong Plain, he thought to himself that the world was indeed a better place now that those former nobles of the six states who rebelled against Qin were gone.

Seeing that the laws of standardized writing and standardized cart tracks were still in effect filled me with even greater excitement.

After returning to Mount Li, Li Si had a good night's sleep.

The servants who were taking care of the old prime minister were tidying up his clothes.

He wanted to check on the old prime minister to see how he was resting, but found the old prime minister asleep with a smile on his face.

The servant thought the old prime minister must have dreamed of something very good, because he even had a smile on his face while he was sleeping.

It was just past mid-February, and today, Prince Heng, dressed in an official robe, was heading towards Zhangtai Palace.

This was the first time this young master had participated in a court council and discussed matters of state.

I stepped onto the steps leading to Zhangtai Palace, even though I had visited Zhangtai Palace countless times since I was a child.

None of the previous times have been as significant as this one.

This was the first time he had entered Zhangtai Palace as a subject.

Thinking of his father, the emperor, who had been in the same situation, Heng felt a surge of anticipation and longing. He could finally stand formally in Zhangtai Palace and help his father govern the country.

When he was a child, he and Li talked more than once about how they wanted to help their father and grandfather govern the country.

When the words he spoke as a child came true, Heng even felt like crying.

Chen Ping walked alongside Feng Jie, the Minister of Justice, and said with a smile, "Young Master."

"When Heng first became an imperial censor, he was unaware of..."

Chen Ping said, "It's fine if you stand with me, young master."

Despite having visited Zhangtai Palace many times, Gongzi Heng still said reservedly, "Thank you."

Chen Ping continued chatting and laughing with Feng Jie as they walked towards Zhangtai Palace.

In those days, many princes of the six states held important positions in their respective countries, and Prince Heng was no exception.

This was a common occurrence in the eyes of the Qin court's officials.

Training successors is absolutely essential.

When Gongzi Heng arrived at the main hall of Zhangtai Palace, he saw that there were already quite a few people inside. He quickly took off his shoes and followed Chen Ping.

The people in the hall were not surprised by Gongzi Heng's arrival. At most, they bowed to him and then continued to chat about their own family matters.

These are really everyday things, mostly about health, or whose wife beat the child again.

They were talking about similar things. Heng stood beside Chen Ping and glanced to the side. He saw that Chen Ping was talking to Feng Jie again. The two of them were actually talking about the beauties of the Western Regions in the main hall of Zhangtai Palace.

(End of this chapter)