Qin Dynasty: Who offended my frail and sickly minister?

Fortunately, the gentleman stopped them; it was just about writing a letter.

The two children took on the task. One sat down at his desk, serious and meticulous, carefully considering each word, while the other picked up his pen with joy and sincerity. The only sound in the study was the soft rustling of turning pages.

Let them write. Zhou Wenqing went back and tidied up the manuscripts. Looking at the unusually clean and simple documents on his desk, he breathed a long sigh of relief.

With the affairs related to the cold disaster gradually coming to a head and the accumulated documents nearly exhausted, on this day of rest, with the sun shining brightly and having had his fill of tea, he decided to change into some light clothes and stroll into the courtyard to stretch his muscles.

If you sit like this any longer, you'll rust.

Since falling ill last time, Zhou Wenqing has not dared to give up the idea of ​​strengthening his body. The Eight Pieces of Brocade, which General Wang once called "dancing," is now being practiced quite well.

He didn't ask to return to his previous life's ability to climb rocks with his bare hands, nor did he dare to hope for even the original owner's level of riding horses to study. He only hoped that this body wouldn't fall ill so easily and hold him back, and he would be grateful.

The sunlight fell warmly on him, and Zhou Wenqing had just gotten into position—

"Zicheng, this old man has come to see you again!"

General Wang's voice preceded his arrival as he strode into the courtyard.

Well, his mansion won't be quiet for long.

Zhou Wenqing simply stopped his stance, turned around, and glanced around at him.

"The old general has arrived, but where is General Meng Wu?"

These two generals always visited together, sometimes even bringing wine, but Zhou Wenqing didn't drink it. Usually, the two of them would drink together in the courtyard, so it was a bit strange that only one of them came today.

"He's watching the border troops practice their large-scale formation drills soon, and the soldiers are doing extra training," Wang Jian said dismissively, waving his hand.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Wenqing paused slightly, his gaze sweeping over the man's face with a hint of surprise:

"Such an important matter, why didn't General Wang personally oversee it? Why did he come here instead?"

It should be noted that although the two generals have worked together for many years and have a close relationship, in official matters, General Wang Jian is the commander-in-chief and General Meng Wu is the adjutant. Why is the commander-in-chief not overseeing such an important matter as the border army's exercise, but instead coming to me?

Wang Jian grinned and joked, "It hasn't even started yet. Let that old bastard lead the kids to practice first. How could I easily make a move? He alone is enough."

He suddenly changed the subject, lowered his voice, and said in a rather mysterious tone, "I've come here because I have something more important to discuss."

"Something important?" Zhou Wenqing asked, puzzled, as he led him down the corridor. "What could be so important for me?"

"It was His Majesty who sent me here." Wang Jian took half a step forward.

Zhou Wenqing paused slightly.

Wang Jian continued, "The birthday banquet is approaching soon, and envoys from the six kingdoms will arrive one after another. At that time, it will be a chaotic mix of all sorts of strange and monstrous things, and all sorts of monsters and demons will flock to Xianyang. That place Your Majesty gave you, cough! the place that houses craftsmen, what's it called again?"

He lowered his voice even further, his tall frame bending slightly in sync, making him look somewhat comical, but his words were anything but frivolous:

"Others may not know, but we know it in our hearts. That's a vital and secret place for our Great Qin Dynasty. Shouldn't we send more people to guard it properly?"

Zhou Wenqing's eyes flickered slightly.

"The Craftsmanship Bureau is quite famous now, and there are many people eyeing it." Wang Jian straightened up, his brows furrowing.

"I've lost count of how many spies I've dealt with. Some have infiltrated openly, others have sneaked in secretly. They come wave after wave, without a moment's peace."

He held up two fingers and waved them in front of Zhou Wenqing. Those two fingers were thick and sturdy, like two small radishes, but at this moment they inexplicably carried a sense of solemnity:

"If the open workshops are like this, then the hidden ones must be guarded even more closely. His Majesty ordered me to secretly send people to guard them, so I quietly assigned two people to you."

Zhou Wenqing was infected by his mysterious appearance and subconsciously lowered her voice as well:

"Two people?"

"Each has a border army, all elite, and best at infiltration." Wang Jian withdrew his hand, patted his chest confidently, "With them here, Zicheng, you can rest assured."

"I see." Zhou Wenqing bowed respectfully. "Thank you for your trouble, General. I am grateful."

"Hey! Zicheng, why are you being so polite with me? If we can't hold that place, I'll be the first one to feel the pain!"

Wang Jian waved his hand dismissively, "It's all for the sake of Great Qin. If Zicheng makes more of those things for horseback riding... I'd be overjoyed, why would I need to worry about it?"

He spoke with such fervor and confidence, as if he were about to don armor and go into battle at any moment.

Just as Zhou Wenqing was about to say a few words of reflection, he saw Wang Jian's eyes suddenly dart around.

"Ah, of course—"

Wang Jian drew out the words, his tone light and airy, as if he were just mentioning it casually:

"If Zicheng is truly grateful, how about giving me two stacks of fine paper? I could reluctantly accept them."

Zhou Wenqing: "..."

Before he could speak, Wang Jian continued, his tone tinged with resentment:

"The amount we bought from the Department of Hundreds of Items is far too little; it's simply not enough! That brat Li Si keeps telling me he's out of stock, just making me wait, humph!"

He swung his fist as if Li Si were standing right in front of him:

"Wait my ass! They have no respect for the elderly at all. With so many glorious deeds, what if they forget them? Do you think they can just wait?!"

Is it that I'm "old" again now?

Zhou Wenqing opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

And yet, it's still too little?

He clearly heard Li Si mention that nearly half of the fine paper sold by the Bureau of Hundreds of Items was jointly monopolized by these two generals.

half!

Wang Jian and Meng Wu bought almost half of the items!

Is this a family genealogy or a chronicle?!

Zhou Wenqing silently swallowed a mouthful of grievance, and looked at the old general in front of him with a face full of "I am very wronged", and for a moment he was speechless.

"Zicheng!" General Wang Jian nudged him with his elbow, rubbing his hands together and looking at him expectantly. "You must still have some, two stacks, just two stacks, that's not much, is it?"

Yes, there definitely is. After all, no matter how much stock the Baiwu Department has, it ultimately has to pass through Zhou Wenqing's eyes and be under his control.

but!

If this gets started, given the two generals' enthusiasm for fine paper, won't it never end?

Today General Wang came to ask for two stacks, tomorrow General Meng Wu came to ask for two stacks, and the day after tomorrow the two of them came together to "borrow" two stacks... He might as well turn this mansion into a branch of the Department of All Things.

Zhou Wenqing narrowed his eyes slightly, an idea forming in his mind.

"General Wang," he sighed, looking troubled, "I really don't have any of this fine paper here. It's in such high demand, the supply can't keep up with the demand. If you don't believe me, look around my study; I don't even have half a sheet for myself!"

He spoke sincerely, and even turned slightly to the side, making a "please go ahead" gesture.

Wang Jian indeed craned his neck to peek towards the study—through the half-open door, he could vaguely see that the pile on the desk was indeed ordinary manuscript paper, yellowish-white and rough in texture, a far cry from the jade-white appearance of fine paper.

"This..." Wang Jian scratched his head, and the expectation on his face visibly diminished.

Before he could speak, Zhou Wenqing changed the subject, her tone suddenly becoming lighter:

"but……"

Wang Jian instantly straightened up again.

"General Wang, do you remember when I said I would brew my own fine wine and sell it someday, and I'd send you ten jars first?"

Wang Jian was taken aback, then remembered his drunken ramblings from that day, and his eyes suddenly lit up:

"Is it that you were talking about... a wine with a different flavor and taste?"

"That's right!" Zhou Wenqing clapped his hands. "The wine is almost ready. In a few days, I'll personally deliver it to your residence. What do you say?"

"Okay!" Wang Jian slapped him on the shoulder, making Zhou Wenqing's shoulder slump. "It's a deal!"

It's a deal.

Wang Jian grinned so hard his mustache stood on end. He nodded in satisfaction, turned to leave, but after a couple of steps, he turned back and reminded him, "Zicheng, don't forget!"

"I can't forget it, I can't forget it."

Zhou Wenqing rubbed his shoulder and watched the burly figure stride out of the courtyard gate.

He had just breathed a sigh of relief and was about to turn around and go back into the house—

The burly figure retreated backwards again.

Zhou Wenqing: "...?"

General Wang Jian, with half his body still outside the door, seemed to suddenly remember something and called out:

"Oh, right, Zicheng!"

"I suddenly remembered—" Wang Jian stroked his beard and said in a serious tone, "There's still some fine paper left in the manor. I'll have someone send you two stacks later."

Zhou Wenqing was taken aback. "Old General..."

Wang Jian waved his hand, interrupting him, "How can someone create fine paper only to find it unusable themselves? Besides, that manuscript paper is too rough; it doesn't suit someone like you and your handwriting at all! It doesn't look good!"

He spoke with such self-righteousness, as if it were something perfectly natural.

Zhou Wenqing opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

Wang Jian, however, had already completed his "arrangement" with satisfaction and waved to him:

"Alright, it's settled then! I'm leaving, you can continue dancing!"

After saying this last sentence, he made the decision on his own, turned around with satisfaction, and strode away.