Qin Dynasty: Who offended my frail and sickly minister?

Zhou Wenqing naturally noticed Li Si's sudden bright eyes and the way he gripped the pen tightly again. He chuckled inwardly, but his face remained calm as he continued:

"Your Majesty, regarding the affairs of the Department of Hundreds of Items in supervising the manufacture and sale of finely crafted heated brick beds, Chief Secretary Li has previously been in charge of the production and sales of paper and other materials. He is already familiar with all the procedures and manages them well. This matter involves a great deal of details, including materials, costs, pricing, and sales. It is most prudent to entrust it to him for overall coordination and oversight."

Brother Zicheng!

A surge of emotion welled up in Li Si's heart, and his gaze toward Zhou Wenqing was almost sparkling with gratitude.

It's all thanks to Brother Zicheng for remembering me! This job—benefiting the people, filling the national treasury, and leaving a mark on history—it has everything. Even if you don't care about these things, it would be a lucrative job for a ruthless person to do. If this were mentioned at a court meeting, I'm afraid all the officials would fight tooth and nail for it!

Brother Zicheng just casually handed it over to me; what a profound trust that is!

He unconsciously straightened his back even more, secretly vowing that he must do this job well and cleanly, without making the slightest mistake.

He was determined to ensure that the names "Li Si" and "Zhou Wenqing" would stand side by side in the annals of history, their fame lasting for eternity, shining brightly!

Seeing Li Si's eyes gleaming with excitement, as if he couldn't wait to roll up his sleeves and get to work, Zhou Wenqing silently touched his nose, and something called "conscience" stirred subtly within him.

Brother Gu'an always takes on the most tedious tasks for me with such high spirits, and he even looks so grateful and willing to do anything for me... I really feel a little guilty about it.

Sorry, Brother Gu'an, it's not that I'm deliberately targeting you, it's just that... if you have nothing better to do and start overthinking things, it's worrying! I'm just thinking about your safety.

He secretly wondered if he should send two doctors from his own household to work at the Li residence.

Let's not overwork this future pillar of strength prematurely, that would be a huge mistake!

Okay, let's do it this way. Tomorrow we'll transfer those two most troublesome, cough! most meticulous ones over there!

Suppressing his slight unease, Zhou Wenqing turned to Ying Zheng and continued, "As for the specific tasks involved in promoting the construction of heated kang beds, such as verifying the households suitable for building them, organizing local craftsmen to learn the construction methods, and even checking the effectiveness afterward, since Prince Fusu has this intention and needs experience, we might as well entrust it to you to handle."

"In this way, Chief Secretary Li is skilled in planning and construction; and you, young master, are deeply involved in promoting it in the countryside. The two complement each other, and perhaps we can achieve twice the result with half the effort!"

"Excellent!" Ying Zheng clapped his hands and nodded, looking at Zhou Wenqing with appreciation. "Minister Zhou's considerations are very thorough, and you know how to appoint the right people. I approve!"

If all the civil and military officials in the court could be like Minister Zhou, who understands the big picture and is also good at practical matters, and who thinks through everything thoroughly, then I'm afraid I can't even dream of it!

Enough, enough. Comparing those scoundrels to Minister Zhou is an insult to you. They are not even close to being as good as him. Let's not think about it anymore!

However, as soon as this thought crossed my mind, another thought popped up: Zhou Aiqing's elusive fellow disciples... could they really not be found at all?

He tapped his finger unconsciously on the imperial desk. Maybe... instead of waiting until the country is destroyed, he could send his spies from various countries to conduct a preliminary investigation?

Sigh, ever since I met someone as shrewd and clever as Minister Zhou, the more I look at those blockheads in the court, the more infuriating it becomes!

Suppressing these thoughts, he turned his gaze to his eldest son, who stood below him, his tone becoming that of a monarch, yet a barely perceptible expectation lingered in his eyes:

"Fusu, since you have such a strong will and sense of responsibility, I grant your request. You will oversee this matter together with Minister Zhou, and Chief Secretary Li will coordinate with the Ministry of Works to provide all necessary support. You must do your utmost to achieve tangible results and set an example, so that the people can truly feel the benevolence of the court, and let the court and the public see the responsibility of the descendants of Ying Qin!"

"Yes! Your subject obeys!" Fusu's cheeks flushed slightly with excitement. He bowed solemnly again, his clear voice brimming with an irrepressible youthful vigor.

"Your son kowtows in gratitude for Your Majesty's trust! I will certainly devote myself wholeheartedly to learning from you, and work with Chief Secretary Li to steadily advance our endeavors. I will be diligent and pragmatic, and personally lead by example, never daring to fail Your Majesty and you, my father, in your high expectations!"

With the political affairs settled, the atmosphere in the hall instantly relaxed.

Li Si was carefully blowing on the still-wet ink on the paper when Zhou Wenqing glanced at him and couldn't help but laugh:

"Li Changshi is using a whole sheet of fine paper! So extravagant! Will his household be starving?"

"Hehe, what's the big deal!" Li Si's eyes darted around, and he said matter-of-factly, "I've recorded such an important matter in detail. Your Majesty is wise and mighty; perhaps you'll reward me if you're pleased. How could I not be able to afford a meal?"

Hey, you clever fellow from Gu'an, so quick to seize every opportunity! Why wasn't it me who said those eloquent words?!

Before Zhou Wenqing could respond, Ying Zheng was already overjoyed and clapped his hands, laughing:

"Very well, Li Qing's words are exactly what I want to hear. You've remembered Zhou Aiqing's brilliant strategies, so you certainly deserve a reward—how about a roll of toilet paper?"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Li Si beamed. "Very well! Your Majesty may not know, but this toilet paper is a rare item that sells out the fastest in the Department of Items. I'm definitely not losing out!"

"Ha ha ha ha--"

The laughter that filled the hall hadn't subsided, and Zhou Wenqing's smile was still on his lips when he suddenly paused.

No, we've been so focused on how to build, sell, and promote the kang (heated brick bed) that we've overlooked the most important thing!

No matter how warm the kang (heated brick bed) is, it's useless without a fire!

He quickly suppressed his laughter, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was so engrossed in my speech that I forgot about a fundamental matter."

"There is still one concern to be made in advance when promoting the kang. The warmth of the kang depends on its continuity, and it needs to be burned continuously. The consumption of firewood is the primary consideration for people using the kang. However, the firewood for heating does not necessarily have to rely solely on the giant trees in the mountains."

"Oh?" Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow slightly. "Does Minister Zhou mean there is some treasure that can resolve this predicament?"

Before he could finish speaking, a series of rustling sounds came from the side.

Everyone turned to look, and saw that Li Si had already carefully moved aside the paper that had been filled with writing, and then solemnly took out a brand new sheet of fine paper from his bag.

The paper was pure white and of fine texture, clearly a top-quality product from the Bureau of Hundreds of Items. He didn't even blink, quickly smoothing it out, picking up his brush again, dipping it in ink, and adopting a serious, meticulous posture, as if afraid of missing even a single word. He even urged the paper on.

"Zhou, the Secretary, speak quickly! These crucial points must be recorded in detail so that they can be filed for future reference!"

Zhou Wenqing was both amused and exasperated by his display, raised his hand in a gesticulating manner, and shook his head helplessly:

"Li Changshi, are you trying to steal the Imperial Historian's pen? There's no need to be so serious about everything!"

"Yes, yes!" Li Si said without looking up, his pen already scribbling the beginning, his tone carrying a familiar teasing tone.

"Zhou, the Inner Historian, always hits the nail on the head. How could we dare to take his words lightly? These notes will be submitted to the Inner Historian's Office for archiving later. Zhou, the Inner Historian, remember—be careful what you say!"

The final, drawn-out "be careful what you say," coupled with the mischievous glint in his eyes, instantly eased the tense atmosphere in the hall.

Fusu listened intently beside his teacher and couldn't help but secretly curl the corners of his mouth into a smile.

He blinked, listening to Li Si's words, and a thought suddenly popped into his mind.

When Confucius taught, his disciples recorded his words and deeds, and over time, these were passed down to form the Analects.

Fusu's heart skipped a beat.

This gentleman will surely be no less accomplished than Confucius in the future!

The moment this thought popped into his head, Fusu was startled.

But upon closer reflection, he felt perfectly justified—Confucius taught people self-cultivation and governance, and so did his teacher; the sage traveled throughout the states, and his teacher also traveled from the state of Han to the state of Qin; the sage had seventy-two virtuous disciples…

Fusu quietly counted on his fingers: himself, Azhu, the few children from the village who were listening in, each barely counted as half, plus Huhai...

Uh.

He crossed out Hu Hai without changing his expression.

Okay, it was a little short.

But it's okay—there's plenty of time!

The more Fusu thought about it, the more urgent the matter became.

Now that paper is available, everyone is busy resting and copying their family histories. Zhang Han said that a few days ago, General Wang personally came to his door with a stick and forced him to write an article praising his master. Before the ink was even dry, it was included in the Wang family's history. When General Meng Wu heard about this, before he could even catch his breath, he also came to the door with a stick, saying that he couldn't fall behind.

Then look at your own husband—

He quietly raised his eyes to observe the profile of the person speaking calmly.

The Minister of Agriculture, a young scholar, was a trusted confidant of the King and a pillar of the state. Yet, he had no secretary or advisors. Even his clerk, who helped with copying and writing, was someone he "borrowed" while temporarily staying at Li Changshi's place.

The worst part is that the gentleman himself isn't in a hurry at all!

Fusu suddenly felt a heavy sense of mission.

He secretly clenched his sleeve, already having made up his mind. Fine paper was too expensive for him to afford, but he could always afford manuscript paper. He would ask Li Changshi to help him bring back a few more reams, cut them into small notebooks the size of a palm, and keep them close to his body so he could write down whatever his teacher said or did.

Well, we also need to drag Ah Zhu into this, as for Hu Hai... well, never mind.