The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 44 Memories and Rainy Days

Fusu poured all the bran in his hand into the fishpond, then focused his gaze on the map.

Qin Ting finally looked at the Hexi Corridor. This place is not called the Hexi Corridor yet, but people now say it is a very beautiful valley.

Fusu found a place in this valley, which later became known as Yangguan.

Yangguan has not yet been established, but its location remains unchanged.

The Qin people only glanced at it briefly, but seeing the richness of the Hexi Corridor, they naturally became interested in it.

Tian An walked into the hall and said, "Young Master, the stove is ready."

Fusu nodded, rolled out the kneaded dough, spread it into flatbreads, and placed them in an oven to bake.

Then he put the lid on, and the young master sat by the stove, warming himself while reading and waiting for the pancakes to cook.

Tian An stood aside and said, "Jingye County is going to stay warm this winter, so they have baked a lot of cakes as grain reserves."

Fusu nodded.

When the lid was lifted again, the aroma of the cakes filled the entire Takasen-gu Shrine.

Fusu took the cakes out of the stove, put them into a basket, and instructed, "Give these cakes to Gao and have him distribute them to his younger brothers and sisters in the palace."

Tian An took the cake, put a lid on the basket, and handed it to the person next to him.

Fusu took another basket of cakes from the oven and left Gaoquan Palace while the cakes were still warm.

Making cakes is a very hard job, and the young master spent half a day making these cakes.

As I walked from Gaoquan Palace to the Imperial Censorate, just like last winter, there were hardly any people in Xianyang Palace during the court recess.

Fusu arrived at the gate of the Imperial Censor's Office and entered carrying a basket.

Just like last year, Cheng Miao is sitting here.

However, besides Cheng Miao, there was another person here, namely the Right Chancellor Feng Quji.

Upon seeing the young master arrive, Feng Quji hurriedly bowed and said, "Young master."

Cheng Miao also bowed.

"I have come here to review some documents, and I hope the Right Chancellor will not take offense."

Feng Quji bowed and said, "You may freely consult the files here."

Fusu looked around and placed the basket in front of the Right Chancellor.

Before Feng Quji could reach for the cakes in the basket, he saw a hand already reaching for the basket; the owner of that hand was Cheng Miao.

Cheng Miao took a still-warm cake from the basket, returned to his seat on his side, tossed his hair behind his shoulder, and then tasted the cake that the young master had brought him with great care.

Feng Quji also took out a pancake from the basket, took a bite, and found it to be very delicious.

The Imperial Censorate has a separate area, which is closest to the bookshelves and has the largest desk because Prince Fusu frequently reviews the files sent from various places every year.

Tian An lit the candlestick and placed it on the young master's table.

Fusu took several books down from the bookshelf and looked at them carefully.

The winds outside continued to blow. Fusu observed the population changes in various places in recent years. The north was relocating people to guard the border, so there had been many changes in household registration recently, especially among people from Yan, Zhao and Qi, most of whom registered in Shangjun.

Once the Jingye Canal is completed, there will be another large-scale relocation of people. Fusu discovered that most of the Prime Minister's relocation policies were aimed at the Chu and Zhao regions, and it seemed that the population of these two regions would be emptied out.

No wonder, the local conditions in Chu and Zhao have been the most complicated lately.

But there's nothing we can do about it. Whether it's guarding the northern borders or conquering the south, the impact on the Yan, Zhao, and Chu regions is the greatest.

Fusu then saw another scroll of documents. This scroll came from Handan County, which used to be the capital of the State of Zhao, but now it had become the Handan County of the State of Qin.

Fusu saw the name Wang Wan in the document.

After leaving Xianyang, Wang Wan should have returned to her hometown.

According to the documents sent from Handan Prefecture, Wang Wan was invited to Handan as a guest and stayed there for a long time.

Not only that, after Wang Wan went to Handan, many former nobles from the six states came to visit him.

Fusu frowned as he read the news. The governor of Handan had also recorded the names of some guests who had visited Wang Wan.

These names are easy to find out. Just ask the prefect of Handan, and the prefect can dig out the background of every guest who visits Wang Wan. The background includes the person's previous background, their origins, and even their origins. He can also find out how many family members the person has and how many children they have.

This is the rigor of Qin law. If something were to happen to Wang Wan in the future, such as if Wang Wan wanted to start a rebellion, accomplices could be found among these guests.

However, Fusu did not see any valuable names.

Moreover, even if the other party harbors rebellious intentions, they will not easily reveal it.

When Wang Wan was away from home, he was a guest in other people's residences, and he was visited almost every day.

Even the strictest Qin laws couldn't stop Wang Wan from speaking behind closed doors when receiving guests.

Fusu sighed with some disappointment, really wanting to know if Wang Wan was speaking ill of the Qin Dynasty after his retirement, and what exactly he was saying.

"Young master, there will be a winter hunt tomorrow."

Fusu rolled up the bamboo slips on the table again, tied the knot with a rope, and put them into a cloth cover.

Where do you winter hunt?

"Reporting to the young master, it is located beside the Zheng Guo Canal."

"Great, I was just thinking of going out for a walk to clear my head."

Feng Quji bowed and said, "Tomorrow, I will arrange for someone to come and fetch the young master."

Cheng Miao was still eating his pancakes.

Feng Quji glanced sideways and was surprised to see that this man still had room to eat. No wonder Cheng Miao wanted to stay in the Imperial Censor's residence all winter; it turned out he could eat the young master's cakes here. Cheng Miao had actually kept this a secret for two years.

As night was approaching, Feng Quji looked again at the young master who was still reading.

On the young master's desk lay a scroll of documents and another scroll of bamboo slips.

As the young master looked at the scroll, he was also writing something on another bamboo scroll.

Noticing the other party's gaze, Fusu picked up his brush and said, "You flatter me, Right Prime Minister. I have a habit of taking notes when I read."

Feng Quji simply stood behind the young master, looked at the bamboo slips categorized by year and location, and noted the number of households listed, and nodded slightly, saying, "I have heard the Prime Minister mention this matter."

"Everyone learns in a different way. I can't remember everything I see, so I write down some notes so I can refer to them when I need them."

Feng Quji looked at the young master's learning method with a knowing expression and found it quite pleasing.

Fusu stood up and said, "It's getting late, I'll head back now."

"It is time for me to return."

The four walked to the outside of the Imperial Censor's residence, and Cheng Miao closed the door.

Tian An carried the basket he had brought with him, but now the basket was empty.

As Fusu breathed in the chilly air, he turned to look at Cheng Miao, who was following behind him, and asked, "The court is closed for the night. Is it usually Imperial Censor Cheng who is here?"

Feng Quji replied, "He volunteered to stay at the Censorate."

Cheng Miao, standing behind, bowed and explained, "I have recently been focusing on calligraphy, and it is better for me to be alone in the Censorate."

Fusu said, "Imperial Censor Cheng's calligraphy is very good."

"Young master's calligraphy is even better than before."

As they spoke, they arrived at the palace gate, and Fusu saw them off as they left the palace.

Tian An said, "Young Master, I've heard that the Right Chancellor is a very steady person."

Fusu said, "I can see that."

This can be seen from Feng Quji's words and actions; he was very careful about his words and actions.

Unlike the outspoken and ambitious Prime Minister Li Si.

Judging from Feng Quji's words, he only says what needs to be said, and such a person is also loyal, perhaps only to the First Emperor.

The following day, the Right Chancellor had carriages prepared early in the morning and people were sent to greet Prince Fusu at the palace gate.

The city of Xianyang is bustling after the court sessions have ended. In fact, the city of Xianyang is always bustling at this time of year.

After the Xianyang Bridge was completed, even more merchants and travelers came to Xianyang.

As Tian An followed Prince Fusu toward the palace gate, he said, "This winter hunt was organized by the Prime Minister, who invited many people, including General Wang Ben."

Fusu nodded slightly.

The Qin people were martial and loved hunting. At this moment, by the Zheng Guo Canal, Wang Ben spurred his horse forward and fired an arrow into the distance. The arrow landed precisely on the straw man.

Li Si, holding a wine bowl, exclaimed loudly, "General Wang, what excellent archery skills!"

"Hahaha!"

Wang Ben was laughing loudly.

Just then, a rider came from a greater distance and fired an arrow from an even greater distance, which landed with extreme precision on the straw man.

Wang Ben's laughter stopped abruptly, as if a hand had grabbed his throat. His face even turned slightly red. He looked around and shouted, "Whose arrow was that!"

A general carrying a bow slowly stepped out of the ranks.

Li Si, holding up his wine bowl, laughed and said, "General Zhao Tuo, your archery skills are superb! I admire you, General."

Zhao Tuo ignored Wang Ben and walked straight forward, took the wine bowl, and bowed, saying, "Thank you for the wine, Prime Minister."

The organizer of this winter hunt was Prime Minister Li Si, and everyone treated him with great courtesy.

Moreover, the Prime Minister also brought a lot of fine wine.

"General Zhao Tuo was a skilled archer."

Then voices came from another direction. Wang Ben turned his head and saw Right Chancellor Feng Quji and Prince Fusu.

Upon seeing that it was Prince Fusu, everyone bowed in greeting.

"The Right Chancellor said that there were people hunting here today, so Fusu came to take a look. He did not mean to disturb your enjoyment..."

Li Si quickly straightened up and opened his arms, saying, "No need for formalities."

Fusu saw Wang Ben, whom he hadn't seen for a long time. His temples were now white, and he hadn't expected him to change so much in just one year.

"General Wang has gray hair."

Wang Ben said, "Although I have white hair, my archery skills... how could I possibly lose to that brat Zhao Tuo!"

Zhao Tuo bowed and said, "General, please come."

After saying that, the two were about to have an archery contest.

Li Si invited Fusu to sit aside and watch the generals compete in archery, their spirits high after drinking.

Fusu said, "Teacher, I saw something about Wang Wan while I was looking through the documents yesterday."

Li Si's gaze was still fixed on the group of boisterous generals as he whispered, "How is Wang Wan?"

“When Wang Wan was in Handan, many former nobles from the six states went to visit him.”

Li Si said, "My lord, there's no need to worry. What else can Wang Wan do besides say he's resentful? The old nobles of the six states who went to visit Wang Wan are all just like him, not worth mentioning."

Tian An was already grilling meat on the side. Back when he was building Xianyang Bridge, he had already figured out a great way to grill mutton.

Fusu countered, "Would he rebel against Qin?"

Li Si waved his hand and said, "He will most likely talk about rebelling against Qin, but he himself will most likely not. Apart from pointing at Xianyang and cursing, this man will never be able to stir up any trouble."

Fusu thought to himself, "My teacher is right. If Wang Wan could really cause any trouble, she would have done so when she was stripped of her position as prime minister."

If Wang Wan was truly a hidden danger, back then... given Li Si's methods, would he have allowed him to leave Hangu Pass alive?

Zhao Tuo fired another precise arrow, and the soldiers around him cheered in unison.

Li Si raised his wine bowl and said loudly, "Hahaha! General Wang is no match for Zhao Tuo. He's too old, too old..."

Wang Ben, his face flushed, pointed at Zhao Tuo and shouted, "Again!"

Fusu took out a piece of gray silk from his sleeve and handed it to him, saying, "Teacher, this is a letter from Li You."

Li Si, still smiling, took the silk cloth handed to him by the young master and looked at the contents of the letter. It talked about the local customs and conditions of Shu, and also mentioned that he would manufacture a large quantity of brocade in Shu and sell it to the Western Regions to make a fortune.

The rest of the story... included his sending people south to investigate, but his old father was never mentioned.

Li Si repeatedly confirmed whether Li You had forgotten who his father was.

Although the father and son did not get along well, Li Si thought that even if the boy did not write home, it was probably because he was too embarrassed to do so. He would eventually send someone to deliver a letter to the young master, subtly inquiring about the old father's recent situation.

Unexpectedly, this kid didn't mention it at all.

Fusu didn't think that far ahead; he just felt that the Prime Minister would be happy to see Li You's letter.

Upon seeing the Prime Minister smile, Fusu said, "Li You is doing very well in Shu; he is even thinking about how to benefit the people of Shu."

Li Si nodded and drank the wine.

The contest between General Wang Ben and General Zhao Tuo has just come to an end.

Wang Ben first acknowledged Zhao Tuo's strength, then selected several captains from the generals' ranks and had them fight Zhao Tuo together.

Several people started fighting in the snow.

Zhao Tuo roared, lifted a man by the waist, and then threw him into the river. He held his own against the combined attack of several men.

"Haha!" Li Si happily raised his wine bowl and proclaimed loudly, "General Zhao Tuo is a fierce general of our great Qin!"

Wang Ben walked over laughing. Although he had lost the contest, he laughed and said, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh, young master."

Just then, Tian An finished grilling the mutton and brought it all over.

Fusu said, "General! Let's eat meat and drink wine!"

"Thank you, sir."

As everyone was enjoying themselves with wine and food, amidst the laughter and merriment, Fusu glanced to the side and saw that Feng Quji, who had brought him there, had not joined them.

A palace attendant whispered a few words to him, and Feng Quji hurriedly left.

The eunuch who delivered the message noticed the gaze and, seeing that it was the young master looking in their direction, bowed and hurriedly left.

Fusu was still chewing on mutton when he looked ahead and saw Zhao Tuo defeating five opponents single-handedly, knocking them all to the ground.

Li Si said, "Give me wine! Give me good wine."

Zhao Tuo bowed and said, "Thank you, Prime Minister."

The tough guy got the wine and sat down to drink it heartily.

Wang Ben said in a low voice, "Young master, you may not know this, but Zhao Tuo is not yet thirty years old. Don't let his bravery fool you, he is also quite skilled in military strategy and learning."

Li Si also said, "Haha! What my Great Qin lacks least is fierce generals."

Looking at the generals before him, Fusu also felt that the Qin people were brave and fierce, and that the Qin Dynasty would never lack fierce generals.

Wang Ben added, "This man has requested to lead the southern expedition several times, but he is not among the generals leading the expedition."

Fusu asked in confusion, "Why?"

After saying this, Fusu realized that he had asked a redundant question, since the selection of the generals for the southern expedition was decided by the First Emperor.

Li Si chewed on a skewer of mutton, then picked up another and said, "This mutton is really good."

Wang Ben said, "It is indeed delicious."

Upon hearing this, Tian An, who was still grilling meat by the fire, smiled and popped a clove of garlic into his mouth.

Ever since he ate garlic by the Xianyang Bridge, Tian An has been addicted to it, so he planted some garlic at Gaoquan Palace.

Just then, Tian An handed over a clove of garlic.

Fusu broke the garlic cloves in half and gave them to the Prime Minister and General Wang, saying, "You can eat this garlic with your meals."

Wang Ben put one in his mouth, initially frowning from the spiciness, but then his brows relaxed and he chewed faster and faster.

Li Si ate slowly, probably because he was still not used to it.

Fusu then had Tian An give Zhao Tuo a clove of garlic.

Zhao Tuo raised his voice and said, "Thank you for the gift, young master!"

Fusu clasped his hands in greeting and said, "General Zhao, there's no need for such formalities."

Zhao Tuo sat down and continued to eat and drink. At this time, the generals in this winter hunting camp were sitting in twos and threes.

The captains who had been beaten by Zhao Tuo sat together, eating and drinking.

None of the people came out with troops. More than ten generals came out for a winter hunt together. Since the court was closed, there was nothing else to do.

Fortunately, we didn't bring too much garlic this time; otherwise, if everyone had a head of garlic, the whole camp would probably smell like garlic.

Li Si said, "This dish is spicy at first taste, but it tastes quite good after eating more."

Fusu said, "It was bought from people from the Western Regions."

At the table, Tian An smiled and leisurely roasted mutton, popped a clove of garlic into his mouth, and sprinkled salt and pepper on the meat.

Fusu explained, "What Tian An sprinkled is called pepper salt, a seasoning made by mixing pepper and salt."

Tian An finally spoke up to explain, saying, "We used salt from Sichuan, garlic from Wusun, and pepper from Yuezhi."

"Wusun?"

Fusu explained, "It was garlic that the Yuezhi obtained from merchants from Wusun. I had Tian An buy it from them."

Li Si remained silent. In recent years, the Qin Dynasty had been busy with campaigns in the south and north, and did not want to think about the Western Regions.

Fusu said that, and then continued eating his meat while asking, "I heard that General Wang Ben went to the Western Rong to exchange warhorses?"

Wang Ben said, "They exchanged twenty cartloads of rhinoceros hides for three thousand warhorses. The Western Rong people took the rhinoceros hides to fight the Xiongnu."

When rhinoceros hide was mentioned, Fusu nodded knowingly and even hummed in agreement.

Well, what General Wang Ben and General Wang Jian had in abundance was rhinoceros hide.

Their family was so wealthy that they even sent rhinoceros hides by the cartload. The wealth of the six states had all entered Qin, and it seems that a considerable amount of wealth also ended up in the pockets of Generals Wang Jian and Wang Ben.

Wang Jian was a cunning old fox, extremely shrewd.

This is Fusu's impression of Wang Jian.

Wang Ben certainly had a lot of rhinoceros hides, and exchanging them for thousands of warhorses would not have been difficult for him.

Furthermore, these thousands of warhorses were intended for Meng Tian of Shangjun to defend against the Xiongnu.

Fusu asked, "General Wang, have you seen the river valley of the Western Rong people?"

"Hmm." Wang Ben nodded and said, "The water and grass are abundant, there are countless cattle and sheep, and herds of warhorses."

Fusu asked, "Are the Western Rong people easy to deal with?"

Wang Ben slowly shook his head.

The general idea is that it's neither easy nor difficult to deal with.

"Such a wealthy territory, if we can see it, the Xiongnu must be able to see it too."

Li Si had just swallowed the meat in his mouth and was deep in thought, staring at the garlic in front of him.

Wang Ben also fell silent.

Neither of them gave a definite answer, probably because they were simply too busy to focus on anything else.

Tian An, who was grilling meat, remained calm. He looked up slightly and saw that the stove next to the grill was overflowing with water.

That was the state of the water boiling. Tian An wrapped his hands with a cloth, took the handle of the pottery pot off, and then poured out a bowl of clear hot water.

The water was steaming and swirling in the bowl. Then Tian An placed the pottery pot aside, a little further away from the fire.

Upon seeing the young master, both the Prime Minister and General Wang fell silent, as if they had already said everything they needed to say.

Tian An looked at it with a puzzled expression, then smiled and took out a cloth bag from his sleeve. He poured out some almonds and distributed them to the Prime Minister and General Wang.

Then, Tian An placed a bag of almonds in front of the young master, and then brought him some water that had cooled down a bit.

Tian An remained seated by the stove, intently roasting the mutton. He stood the ribs upright and placed them by the fire to roast, occasionally turning them around.

Fusu ate almonds and drank hot water.

Whether it was when he went to fetch the old general back then or now, Fusu felt that Tian An's skills were becoming increasingly superb.

No matter where he is, this young master of Qin can always eat well and have a full meal.

You can eat fish and freshwater delicacies by the river, you can make noodles and pancakes in the palace, and you can always pick a lot of bitter herbs in Jingye County.

Here, he can roast the lamb ribs that have been removed from the ribs to a very delicious degree.

Because Tian An has a skill: he can always make the most of food under limited conditions.

After eating his fill, Wang Ben stretched his muscles and then called Zhao Tuo to go hunting together.

Fusu then whispered to his teacher, "General Wang, is something on your mind?"

Li Si sighed and began to recount a past event.

This story mentions the relationship between Wang Jian and his grandson, Wang Ben and Wang Li. Wang Ben did not want his son Wang Li to go to Shangjun, but Wang Jian insisted on sending his grandson to work on the Great Wall.

Outsiders say that General Wang Jian lived like a god in Pinyang County, but in fact, the relationship between Wang Jian and his son Wang Ben was not good.

Each of the generals in this winter hunt had their own things to do.

After drinking and eating to his heart's content, Li Si fell asleep inside the carriage.

Fusu walked along the Zheng Guo Canal, which was built by the State of Zheng. He stopped and scooped up a handful of water.

This canal also changed the fate of the Qin people.

In the future, the Jingye Canal will also change the fate of many people, turning them from poverty to wealth.

Tian An asked, "Young Master, shall we return to the palace?"

Fusu shook his head, just then seeing Zhao Tuo bring back prey, a huge wild boar.

This drew loud cheers from the surrounding generals.

At present, neither the teacher nor General Wang Ben has considered matters concerning the Western Regions.

But that's alright. As Xunzi once said, "Even the closest path will not be reached if you don't walk it; even the smallest task will not be accomplished if you don't do it."

This means that the worst thing in life is for someone to only talk the talk but not walk the walk.

Xunzi believed that every task, no matter how big or small, should be approached with a down-to-earth attitude, accumulating little by little to achieve success.

Xunzi's words are always so simple and easy to understand. He always uses very interesting and easy-to-understand examples to make metaphors.

It's alright, Fusu thinks there's no big problem. There are still many things that need to be done step by step, and there's plenty of time.

Fusu looked at the Zheng Guo Canal, but he couldn't see the end of it as far as the eye could see.

The Qin people of that time dug out the Zheng Guo Canal inch by inch with their own hands and simple tools.

Therefore, when Wang Ben and Li Si were eating garlic but did not mention advancing westward, Fusu was not disappointed.

After a day of walking, Fusu did not go hunting. While the general was still planning to roast meat for dinner that night, Fusu and Tian An returned to Zhangtai Palace.

Feng Quji was supposed to go winter hunting today, but he left unusually.

After listening to the accounts of several eunuchs, Tian An learned that Feng Quji had gone to coordinate the distribution of grain and fodder to Shangjun.

The next day, it rained again in Guanzhong. This winter, like autumn, has been rainy.

Tian An personally drove the carriage out of Xianyang City, escorted by the old general Xin Sheng.

This old general was stationed at Hangu Pass back then, and Fusu had met him.

Looking out the window, Fusu saw villages and counties, some with smoke rising from their chimneys, indicating that people were cooking.

A light drizzle fell on the rooftops, which still had some snow on them. When the night grew cold, the water from the drizzle would freeze.

The carriage was not moving very fast, as Fusu wanted to see more of the scenery around the houses.

The convoy was escorted all the way to Jingye County, where the carriages stopped. Fusu was still somewhat reluctant to leave and wanted to enjoy the scenery in the rain a little longer.

Fusu still remembered that it was in his previous life.

Back then, I was a child from a mountainous area. I disliked rainy days because I couldn't go out to play on rainy days.

Later, Ms. Xu, a teacher who came to teach in the area, gave her an umbrella.

The umbrella that Teacher Xu gave me was very big and heavy. When I was little, I needed to hold the handle with both hands to keep it steady.

After that, whenever it rained, I would hold an umbrella and walk in the fields and along the muddy roads.

Before I had an umbrella, I hated rain.

After getting an umbrella, I realized how much I love rainy days.

Memories flashed through my mind. Later, I came out of the mountains, and Teacher Xu, who taught in the rural area, said that I could get into university.

Later, I actually got into university and became one of the children who left the mountains.

Now, Fusu stands in the rain, reminiscing about the past.

Fusu realized that even now, without an umbrella, he still loved rainy days.

Upon entering Jingye County, Fusu saw a person working in the rain.

The laborer saw the young master being escorted by soldiers and ran quickly along the ridge of the field. The newcomer bowed and said, "Young master."

It turns out to be Zhang Han, who has now been promoted to Commandant and is even farming himself.

Fusu handed him three hard-boiled duck eggs, saying, "You've cooked too many. General Xin Sheng is too old to eat hard-boiled duck eggs."

Zhang Han accepted the cooked duck egg and hurriedly bowed, saying, "Thank you, young master."

Fusu continued walking into the village.

As Zhang Han walked, he carefully peeled the duck eggs, removing the shells to reveal the egg whites. With each bite, some egg white would slip from his lips. He chewed vigorously as he walked, glancing occasionally at Prince Fusu walking ahead.

Sure enough, a lot of celery was planted on the mountainside of Shangyan Mountain, covering a large area. Although it was the dead of winter, Fusu still saw a few scattered plants.

Tian An also saw it, and he said in a low voice, "In this cold winter, the celery can grow so well, but the plum blossoms in front of the palace have not yet bloomed."

Fusu also saw the mulberry tree, which had no leaves but had already grown to be half a person's height.

(End of this chapter)