Qin Dynasty: Who offended my frail and sickly minister?

Zhou Wenqing didn't even need to look; he could guess what these people were thinking right now.

Slaves? Once they're sent away, they're sent away. We can just buy another batch later. They can exchange them for a golden plaque bestowed by the emperor, as well as fine paper and ink sticks—this business is a sure-fire way to make money!

such a pity……

A slight smile curved his lips.

Whether the slaves sent away can be bought again in the future is another matter.

Once the academy is completed, these conscripted slaves will finish their work, be screened, and those who are not extremely wicked will naturally be assigned to different places. In any case, they will not be returned to their hands.

The fewer slaves a private individual has, the easier it will be to find an opportunity later on.

These greedy fools are only concerned with their immediate gains. By the time they realize what's happening, it will be too late for regrets, and they will be powerless to stop it.

Thinking of this, Zhou Wenqing glanced at Wei Zhuang out of the corner of his eye without making a sound.

I must thank Doctor Wei.

If he hadn't raised his doubts in public, how could this news have spread so widely and become so incredibly effective?

Kui Zhuang remained unmoved by these distractions.

He silently weighed the options in his mind: site selection, organization, funding, recruitment, and rewards—each step was interconnected and flawless.

Such thorough consideration is something even he himself might not have been able to achieve.

The pros and cons are clearly evident.

After a moment, he slowly spoke:

"Zhou, the Minister of the Interior, has considered everything thoroughly. Your subject... has nothing more to say and no further objections."

The whispers in the hall ceased for a moment.

On the throne, Ying Zheng's gaze fell on him, then returned to his seat:

"Since Minister Kui has no objection, do any of you ministers have anything else to say?"

After being relentlessly interrogated by Wei Zhuang, they finally confessed their guilt. Throwing a few more chess pieces on them would only result in their demise.

The senior officials at the head of the table were grinding their teeth to dust, but they could only swallow their anger and grit their teeth to accept it.

Moreover—the minds of all the officials and civil servants in the hall had already wandered off.

Not everyone is so farsighted. It's just about letting ordinary people learn a few words and having more doctors and craftsmen. It's not like they're making their own children learn. What's there to object to?

That's a good thing.

"We have no objection."

Although their voices weren't perfectly in sync, their attitudes were already quite clear.

So... the Great Qin Academy!

Ying Zheng's eyes flashed, and he said in a deep voice:

"In that case, the Great Qin Academy shall be established immediately. The selection of the site, supervision of construction, and the selection of students shall be decided jointly by Minister Zhou and Minister Li..." He thought for a moment and then added, "Minister Wei shall assist in the handling of this matter and there shall be no mistakes."

In his view, Li Si and Zhou Wenqing would only be busier in the future. Kui Qing was not an incompetent person. With him around, no one would dare to shirk their responsibilities, and he could also help them share a lot of the burden.

His gaze swept over the officials whose eyes were gleaming:

"The matters concerning the requisition of slaves and the bestowal of plaques of commendation shall be handled in accordance with the report submitted by the Zhou Inner Historian."

"As you command!"

The officials bowed in response, and shouts of "Your Majesty is wise!" echoed throughout the hall.

Ying Zheng waved his hand, and the attendant understood, stepping forward and drawing out his words as he sang:

"Court adjourned—"

At this point, the "advantages" of insisting on using a wheelchair become apparent.

Zhou Wenqing clearly saw Ying Zheng give him a deep look before he stepped away.

Unfortunately... in his current state, he can't even run away!

His gaze swept quickly across the hall—General Wang Jian and General Meng Wu were walking out side by side, their imposing figures standing out in the crowd.

Savior!

"General Wang! General Meng Wu!"

Zhou Wenqing manually turned the wheels of the wheelchair, trying to catch up, and the wheelchair creaked as he turned it.

"It's been a few days, Generals. How have you been? Could you please help me out...?"

Before he could finish speaking, a hand firmly pressed on the armrest of the wheelchair, the force not heavy, but it firmly locked the wheel, stopping him in place.

"Brother Zicheng, why trouble the two generals?"

Behind him, Li Si slowly peeked out, his expression carrying a hint of a half-smile:

"I'm here. Didn't I tell you? This wheelchair isn't heavy."

"Brother Gu'an..." Zhou Wenqing chuckled dryly, "You must be tired today. Why don't you go back and rest? I'll have A-Yi come and pick you up..."

"Not tired."

Li Si interrupted him, firmly gripped the wheelchair handles with both hands, and pushed him forward:

Li Si interrupted him, firmly gripped the wheelchair handles with both hands, and pushed him forward:

"His Majesty has issued a decree summoning us to the side hall. Let's hurry, lest we keep His Majesty waiting."

When was there an imperial edict? I didn't see it.

Zhou Wenqing leaned back forcefully, his face full of resistance, as if this would nail him to the spot.

Unfortunately, the wheelchair wouldn't cooperate and continued to roll forward with a creaking sound.

As he passed by Wang Jian, the old general winked at Zhou Wenqing: "Zicheng, hurry up and go, don't keep the king waiting."

That smile, that tone, clearly said: Good luck to you, I can't help you.

Zhou Wenqing panicked and grabbed Wang Jian's sleeve:

"General Wang, I remember there's still a jar of fruit wine in your residence! Why don't you push me back, and we can drink it together?"

He suddenly turned to General Meng Wu: "General, why don't you come too? You can also invite Meng Tian and Meng Yi. I've already prepared the gifts for our first meeting, and I'm just waiting to present them to them when we meet again! There's no time like the present, how about today?"

He spoke extremely fast, as if he wanted to throw all his chips at the table.

Wang Jian looked down at the sleeve he was clutching, then looked up at the person pushing the wheelchair behind him, and couldn't help but laugh out loud:

"No rush, no rush. You'll have plenty of opportunities to meet people your age in the future. As for the fruit wine..."

He paused, patted Zhou Wenqing's hand, and subtly pulled his sleeve back:

"Zicheng can just send someone to my residence. I... I mean, that brat won't mind."

After saying that, he strode away, leaving only a string of hearty laughter echoing in the corridor.

Zhou Wenqing is petrified in his wheelchair.

Li Si lowered his head, leaned close to his ear, and spoke in a voice as gentle as a spring breeze in March:

"Brother Zicheng, do you have any more tricks up your sleeve?"

Zhou Wenqing: "..."

It's gone, completely gone.

We walked to a side hall, the door of which was half-closed.

Li Si pushed him inside, and Zhou Wenqing glanced around—the throne was empty; Ying Zheng had not yet arrived.

He had just breathed a sigh of relief, saying he hadn't heard the king's decree, when he heard the door behind him creak shut.

"...Why are you closing the door?"

"I was afraid you'd run away." Li Si walked around to stand in front of him, looking down at him with a complex expression. "Brother Zicheng, oh Brother Zicheng, you really are something else today..."

"Reckless and unruly?" Zhou Wenqing muttered under his breath.

"You actually know that?!" Li Si glared angrily, his chest heaving a few times.

"Do you know how scared I was? My heart almost jumped out of my chest! Zhou Wenqing, you're getting more and more amazing! How many times has this happened? Why can't you even give me a heads-up?"

Zhou Wenqing opened his mouth: "I..."

"Don't tell me you've forgotten," Li Si interrupted him. "How could you forget something like this?"

Zhou Wenqing choked.

Seeing his appearance, Li Si sighed deeply, his voice softening:

"Sigh~ Zicheng, I don't know why you've developed the habit of going it alone. When it comes to important matters, you always subconsciously leave others out. That's not good."

"Look how cunning those old foxes are, they still stick together, let alone us?"

He knelt down in front of Zhou Wenqing, looking up at him, his eyes no longer filled with anger, but only with unwavering worry:

"I know you have many backup plans that others can't easily see through, but have you ever considered what if those plans go wrong? What if any link in the chain fails? What if you're outmaneuvered?"

He paused, then lowered his voice: "You have to give us a chance to catch you."

"Putting everything else aside, just look at what happened just now. How can you guarantee that you didn't take the wrong porcelain vase? Or that it wasn't switched by someone with ill intentions?"

"Actually, the simplest thing is that we plan things out together regarding the university. What is there that I can't speak up for, argue for, or negotiate on your behalf?"

"Brother Zicheng..."

Zhou Wenqing lowered his head, listening to Li Si's rambling, his eyes flickering.

Although... but... I was very touched...

Brother Gu'an, you're really overthinking it.

I just like to improvise and, when an idea strikes, I just go for it!

What backup plan, what scheme, what interconnected steps—that's all just excuses you made for me afterward.

He opened his mouth, then silently closed it again.

Forget it, let Brother Gu'an continue to imagine.