The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 101 Immortal Mountain and the Legend of Fengshan

Zhui's study was vandalized, and Zhui did not retaliate at all. If he had retaliated, the incident would have become a private fight, which is punishable by imprisonment.

It must be said that this child named Zhui was very clever; on the contrary, those who bullied him were all brought down.

Upon further reflection, one realizes that those who bullied Zhui must have employers behind them.

And it must also be because teaching is very cheap, which has attracted some students.

After reading the document, Cheng Miao sighed inwardly. These children could have lived a good life in Weinan, but they would inevitably be caught up in the struggles between people outside.

Not everyone is polite to Prince Fusu's people; there are some who are very cunning.

While he was pondering, the Prime Minister had already walked past him.

"How are the pottery workshops in Pinyang?"

Zhang Cang said, "Everything is fine."

"Has Lord Pinyang sent any other news?"

"not at all."

Listening to the conversation between the Prime Minister and Zhang Cang, Cheng Miao had already written his reply to the document.

The document was sent out of Guanzhong and headed towards Luoyang.

After a few brief days of clear skies in Guanzhong, a snowstorm swept across the entire north from the northwest.

In a private fight, Zhui was the one who was bullied. All the fighters were arrested, and Zhui was also taken to the prefect's mansion for questioning.

After the Prime Minister's office sent the document, Zhui was also released.

The prefect of Luoyang advised, "Why not teach in another place?"

As Zhui walked out of the prefectural governor's mansion, he said, "I was originally just a servant. Now, Prince Fusu has given me an identity and a household registration, and I have a name now. From today onwards, I will teach here, and I will fight against those who oppose my teaching! From now on, Zhui will only teach the poor!"

Upon hearing this, the prefect of Luoyang let out a long sigh.

Unlike Lang, who is a more easygoing person, Zhui is not like Lang.

But no, he was quick-witted from a young age and became more courageous with each setback.

After that private fight, Zhui simply built a shack outside Luoyang City, taught the poor every day, and only asked for a bowl of millet to fill his stomach each day.

In the following days, more and more people came to listen to Zhui's lectures and teachings. The content taught by Zhui was very rich, including the doctrines of Mozi or Han Fei, as well as the sayings of Xunzi and Mencius.

Despite being only fifteen years old, he speaks with remarkable eloquence and speaks loudly and clearly. He answers questions diligently and sometimes his teaching style is humorous, which can even elicit laughter from the audience.

He was very knowledgeable, after all, he was a student of Shusun Tong, and this child had been studying with Shusun Tong since he was eleven years old, so he was studious and diligent from a young age.

This boy named Zhui possesses extraordinary knowledge. His teaching style is humorous and engaging, and he can even break down and explain the words of sages, creating interesting stories in the process.

As a result, more and more people came to the wooden sheds in Luoyang to attend classes, including not only children but also the elderly.

Zhui has always been open to all comers. He did not back down because he was being bullied. He knew that the people behind the scenes would definitely try to get back at him.

Instead, his school became better and better, and more and more people came to listen to his lectures.

He would often finish his lectures late at night, and only then would the people gathered in front of Luoyang disperse.

In fact, Zhui's methods were quite good. From the perspective of the governor of Luoyang, this boy moved his school to the front of Luoyang City, very close to the city's garrison. If anyone tried to bully or damage his school, they would be discovered by the soldiers in front of the city.

Surprisingly, he truly imparted his knowledge to the poor, persisting day after day.

Today is a snowy day. The governor of Luoyang brought the boy into the city tower to rest, so that he wouldn't get too cold. The boy's spirit and perseverance probably moved the governor of Luoyang and are truly admirable.

It was because of this person that the Prime Minister's office was able to issue a document independently.

Such a young man, valued so highly by the Prime Minister's residence, naturally deserves the protection of the Prefect of Luoyang.

While it was snowing in Luoyang, the snowfall in Guanzhong was even heavier, with the heavy snow covering the entire city of Xianyang.

The heavy snow fell on the ground, and the snow piled up higher and higher.

It almost completely submerged the doors and walls of each house, making it look as if the entire house was made of snow.

Only the faint, warm light shining through the windows in the walls indicated that people lived here.

If you look closely, you can still see people moving around under the lights, their figures occasionally moving about.

Inside Gaoquan Palace, Fusu sat by the stove, while his wife led a herd of deer and many palace servants into the hall to escape the wind and snow.

Fusu ate dates and read a book.

Wang Tang'er sat to the side, her eyes also on the book, her hands still removing the pits from the dates. She placed two plates in front of her, putting the pitted dates in the plate closest to her husband.

That way, the husband can have a date whenever he wants.

Occasionally, wind and snow would blow into the hall, and Tian An would quickly step forward to close the hall door.

The howling sound outside the hall came in waves.

The heavy snow lasted for two days and two nights. When the snow stopped, Tian An struggled to push open the palace door, and the snow outside poured into the palace as he pushed.

More than ten palace servants began to work, clearing away the accumulated snow.

Even Tian An hadn't seen such heavy snow in a long time.

Fusu, however, worried that the temperature would rise too quickly after the heavy snow, leading to flooding.

By noon, a path had been cleared at Takasen-gyu Shrine, barely wide enough for people to pass through.

Tian An looked at the plum trees that still hadn't blossomed and said, "Young Master, these two trees still haven't bloomed."

"You want to cut them down?"

Tian An nodded.

Fusu said, "Even if we cut them down, it won't be enough to burn. Let's keep them."

Tian An nodded once again.

After the heavy snow stopped, more and more news reached Xianyang City, reporting that many houses in various counties of Guanzhong had collapsed under the weight of the snow.

News also came from Jingye County and Dali County that many people went to the underground channels or shafts of Jingye Canal to take shelter from the snow.

Then, news came from Pinyang County that everything was fine at the Wang family residence in Pinyang.

After the heavy snow stopped, the city of Xianyang began clearing the snow. People cleared the snow from trucks, loaded it onto carts, and hauled it out of the city.

It was the coldest time of winter, and there were hardly any people at the Prime Minister's residence.

Fusu arrived at the Prime Minister's residence alone, with only Cheng Miao guarding the place.

Whenever he thought no one was around, Cheng Miao would always stay at his post. When it comes to dedication, Cheng Miao is the best example.

Fusu walked over to him and saw that he was still asleep leaning against the pillar, so he handed him a warm pancake.

Seemingly drawn by the fragrance, Cheng Miao slowly awoke.

Upon seeing that it was the young master, he hurriedly bowed and said, "Young master." Fusu said, "No need for formalities, I brought you some cakes."

"Thank you, young master." Cheng Miao picked up the flatbread on the table and was eating it. With one bite, the oil and bread went into his mouth. The flatbread was filled with mutton and had the aroma of scallions.

Tian An then took out a bowl of mutton soup from the food box and said with a smile, "I thought the Prime Minister and Zhang Cang would be here, but they aren't. The two extra bowls of soup and the bread are here."

Looking at the documents that had arrived recently, Fusu realized that all the state affairs before and after the heavy snow had already been dealt with.

Although he is only a junior official in charge of the imperial household, he can still take a look at the documents in the Prime Minister's office.

After reading only a few volumes, Fusu learned about Zhui, a teacher who taught the poor.

Cheng Miao was eating when someone came running up quickly.

The man brought Li You and Wu Gong with him. He bowed and said, "Reporting to the young master, the Prime Minister has gone outside the city to oversee the snow removal. The Minister of the Imperial Household Department requests that you take charge of the Prime Minister's affairs."

Fusu said, "I understand."

The visitor hurried away, leaving Li You and Wu Gong behind.

With the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Imperial Household Department out mobilizing troops to clear snow, Fusu sat in the Prime Minister's residence. In fact, there weren't many things coming his way; at most, it was about where manpower was needed and the Prime Minister's residence would mobilize troops.

Li You's help was indispensable for these matters. Today, Li You was busy running around, and gradually more people came and went to the Prime Minister's residence than at noon.

Li You sent the document out, then ran back, took another scroll of documents from the young master, and ran out again.

Compared to Li You's impulsiveness, Wu Gong, who came to assist him, was much calmer.

Even as night fell, the Prime Minister's residence remained brightly lit, with messengers constantly moving about to deliver orders.

Fusu sat in his seat, reviewing the orders. Many troops in Xianyang had left the city, and the snow inside Xianyang had been cleared, but the situation outside the city remained grim.

The heavy snow disaster in Guanzhong lasted for three days before it finally ended.

The river becomes turbulent as the snow begins to melt.

In previous years, such heavy snowfall would inevitably lead to flooding, and it was almost expected that Huayin and Tongguan counties would be submerged.

If things are this difficult upstream, how much better can things be downstream?

But something different still happened. The originally turbulent Luo River had half of its water power diverted when it reached the Jingye Canal. And the small canals branching off from the Jingye Canal diverted the water to the fields, effectively reducing the pressure downstream by more than half.

The expected flood still came, but thanks to the Jingye Canal, Huayin and Tongguan, which are sure to be flooded every year, were not submerged.

When Li Si heard this news, he felt that after this great flood, Prince Fusu would be even more popular in Weinan.

After all, in Weinan today, during agricultural rites and sacrifices, grain is sent to the residence where Prince Fusu once lived, as a way of thanking him.

The snowstorm has passed safely, and news has now reached Xianyang.

Huayin County planted scallions in winter. Although they didn't grow well, they were still fresh scallions grown in winter.

Sima Xin, the magistrate of Huayin County, presented the first batch of scallions he had grown in winter to Prince Fusu.

This matter caused quite a stir in Xianyang.

Fusu has never cared about the storms and trials outside. As a prince of Qin, he should have good character and a focused and pragmatic work ethic.

As for those rumors and controversies, the Prime Minister will handle them.

The scallions that Sima Xin sent over weren't very good; they were wilted, looked dehydrated, and appeared malnourished.

This is probably because Sima Xin used too much or too little water during cultivation.

These scallions are edible, though.

"Young master, a message has arrived from Jingye County."

"Bring it here."

The children who left Jingye County made a promise to send a letter to Jingye County every year.

Fusu opened one of the scrolls. These children were all born into servant families. Zhang Han gave them household registration, and after leaving Guanzhong, they traveled to various parts of the Central Plains.

Zhui taught in Luoyang, Lang went to teach in Chu, one went to the south, and two went to the north...

Fusu read through the letters one after another. The contents of the letters were simple, mostly family letters.

These children all considered themselves disciples of Shusun Tong and were able to associate with famous figures from various places.

After Fusu finished reading, he instructed, "Have you all checked each household's report?"

"I had them delivered after I had them inspected them, young master."

Fusu said, "Have someone send them back to their respective homes."

The letters were written by the students to their families, and naturally they had to be returned to each family.

"Young master, a letter from Zhang Cang."

Fusu took the letter from Tian An. The letter mentioned that before the heavy snow this year, Prime Minister Li Si had carried out another repair on the northern Great Wall. The Great Wall in Longxi was built during the reign of King Zhaoxiang of Qin. The Prime Minister and the old Grand Commandant jointly issued an order to repair the Great Wall built during the reign of King Zhaoxiang of Qin.

Furthermore, he ordered the construction of the Yan Great Wall in the Yan region and commanded Meng Tian, ​​who was stationed in Shangjun, to expedite the construction of the Great Wall. This was intended to prepare for the major event of attacking the Xiongnu in the north.

With the snow removal work just finished, Zhang Cang was definitely staying home during the winter, so writing letters was the best thing to do.

In Zhang Cang's letter, he said that when the Zhou emperor offered sacrifices to Heaven, it was said that only the emperor could offer sacrifices to Heaven and Earth. In ancient times, people would perform the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai. When the First Emperor conquered the various states, he standardized the written language and the width of carts, and unified the south...

The gist of the statement is that, according to Confucian scholars led by Chunyu Yue, Qin's unification of the world and pacification of the south was the greatest achievement after the Zhou emperor. To establish an imperial system, it was necessary to perform the Fengshan ceremony, which was the highest sacrificial ceremony for the emperor.

By the mandate of Heaven…

This was a ceremony symbolizing the emperor's rule.

Zhang Cang wrote these things in his letter, which were all things he had heard. In other words, the matter mentioned by the Qilu doctors must have been sent to Zhangtai Palace.

Fusu scooped a tea egg from the pot beside him and ate it while pondering.

"Tian An?"

"What are your instructions, sir?"

Fusu asked, "How much patience do you think Father and the Prime Minister have left with those scholars from Qi and Lu?"

Tian An replied, "The scholars from Qi and Lu are doing very well in Xianyang. The Prime Minister will most likely... spare their lives."

Fusu whispered again, "You said Mount Tai is in the Qi-Lu region. Aren't there many people like Chunyu Yue in Qi-Lu?"

Tian An said, "Reporting to the young master, after Xunzi left Qi, the atmosphere in Qi and Lu was very strong. However, many people in Qi were searching for the immortal mountains overseas. People in Qi believed that there were immortal mountains overseas. It was rumored that there were also many Yin-Yang scholars in Qi. This is different from Lu."

Upon hearing this, Granny Wang looked surprised and doubtful. Tian An usually busied himself with things at Gaoquan Palace, but she never expected him to have such broad knowledge.

Tian An continued, “The nobles of Qi are actually anti-Lu. Compared to the legend of the overseas immortal mountains in Qi, the famous scholars of Lu mostly respect Confucianism and value etiquette. Among them, there are many scholars led by Kong Fu. The customs of Qi and Lu are different and cannot be generalized. Before recruiting scholars from Qi and Lu to Qin, the Prime Minister once said that scholars from Qi and Lu must study laws and regulations in order to become officials.”

In other words, to become an official, one must first be familiar with the laws and regulations.

(End of this chapter)