The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 54 News from Sichuan

Upon hearing this, the guards quickly ran out of the main hall of Zhangtai Palace with the documents in hand.

Fusu continued tidying up the documents on the table, classifying and labeling them, such as which prefecture they were sent to, which army they were sent to, or which of the Nine Ministers in Xianyang they were addressed to.

After finishing these tasks, Fusu said, "Father, I will take my leave now."

"Ah."

The Emperor simply responded with a sound.

After Fusu bowed and left the main hall, Ying Zheng sat in the quiet hall, listening to his own breathing.

After reading the scroll in front of him, Ying Zheng walked out of Zhangtai Palace, looked up at the starry sky, and recalled the words he had spoken earlier: In those days, it was extremely difficult for the various states to govern their own lands, and all the states were trying to reform and strengthen themselves.

Reforms in various states also failed, as seen in the states of Han and Wei...

In the past, the various states encountered chaos and difficulties when governing their lands; how much more difficult would it be for the Great Qin now?

After leaving Zhangtai Palace, Fusu headed straight for Gaoquan Palace. Without Tian An needing to inform him, Prince Gao and Yin Man were already waiting in front of Zhangtai Palace.

Upon seeing that it was the Emperor's elder brother, the two quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Brother."

Fusu looked at his younger brother and sister, who had grown taller again, and opened the food box in his hand. Actually, there was another space in the lower layer of the food box, where another piece of steamed rice cake covered with red bean paste was placed.

This is precisely why Fusu brought the food box out and carried it in his hand.

Fusu handed him the food box and said, "Take this and share it with your younger brother and sister."

He laughed and said, "I will share it with my younger siblings."

Yin Man looked up at her elder brother and said, "Brother and Father, please focus on governing the country. We will take good care of our younger siblings."

Fusu nodded and asked, "Do you still read books on ordinary days?"

Gao replied, "Yes, we go to Jingye County for one day every three days. We spend the three days back teaching our younger siblings, and the day we go to Jingye County to consult with Master Shusun Tong."

"You must read more books, including your younger siblings."

"Ah."

Gongzi Gao and Yin Man nodded in unison.

"Wait until your elder brother has finished repairing Weinan before returning. If you encounter any difficulties, you can send a message to Tian An or inform Father."

Gongzi Gao then said, "Brother, there is no need to worry."

Yin Man also said, "Yes, don't worry, I'll hit my younger siblings if they misbehave."

The palace maids behind her smiled upon hearing this. Yin Man was the eldest daughter among the children, and she certainly didn't hold back when beating her younger siblings; she really did it.

Fusu nodded in satisfaction, "Brother, you should go back now. Come visit Weinan more often when you have time."

Gongzi Gao and Yin Man bowed together and said, "We will remember your teachings, elder brother."

The palace maids held the steamed rice cakes for them, but the brother and sister weren't in a hurry to eat. The two young and short children stood there watching their departing elder brother.

After a long while, when the emperor's figure could no longer be seen, Prince Gao said, "Our father and emperor will surely be able to govern the country well."

Yin Man responded, "Mm."

The next morning, just as dawn broke, families began to set out for the fields. Some were elderly people in their fifties or sixties, some were couples in their thirties, and some were children in their teens. They started working in the fields.

On the way back to Weinan from Xianyang, Fusu slept in the carriage, but it was very uncomfortable to rest in the carriage.

Stepping off the carriage, I saw that Tian An was already preparing breakfast.

Fusu relaxed his neck and arms, took two deep breaths of fresh air, and his whole body felt refreshed.

When they reached the Yellow River, Fusu sat by the stove, took off his shoes and put on more comfortable straw sandals. He then stretched his arms behind his back several times before feeling much more relaxed.

"Young master, Imperial Censor Zhang has returned."

Fusu nodded and stood up again, seeing his teacher Zhang Cang standing in the distance.

Zhang Cang bowed and said, "Young Master."

Fusu looked him up and down and said, "It's been half a year since I last saw you, teacher. You've gained weight."

Zhang Cang felt somewhat ashamed and smiled awkwardly, saying, "When I was in Luoyang, Mao Heng always hosted banquets for me, with plenty of wine and meat, so I ate a lot of it."

Fusu asked, "Isn't Mao Heng coming along?"

"Mao Heng only loved poetry and not politics, but the young master only had politics around him."

"Right."

Fusu sat down on the riverbank, looked north, and said, "Teacher, look, these fields are all newly reclaimed."

Looking out, the fields stretched as far as the eye could see, and the outline of Shangyan Mountain could be seen at the edge of the field. Fusu said, "I didn't mean to make Weinan any different. People outside have a lot of talk about it, but people are all the same. Look at the people of Weinan. Their farming activities are also carried out by family groups. Each family contributes its own people, and that's how this scenery came about."

Zhang Cang stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "I wonder who is in charge of the farming?"

Fusu understood the teacher's unspoken meaning; in fact, he knew exactly who was in his class.

"It was Cheng Miao who was in charge."

"Isn't it Zhang Han?"

Fusu said, "General Zhang Han is a strict man and a military commander. Let Cheng Miao govern first. If there is any chaos, Zhang Han can step in to suppress it."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Cang frowned and said, "We should present a kind face to them in public, but we should keep Zhang Han's ruthlessness to ourselves."

Fusu said, "I cannot guarantee that these relocated poor people will adapt to life here so quickly. Someone needs to reassure them."

"Young Master's thinking is very thorough; Cang is overthinking it."

The sound of Tian An's footsteps came from behind, and Tian An immediately said, "Young Master, you can eat now."

Fusu then came to his senses and ate noodles with his teacher.

Tian An is still the same as always, he can't eat noodles without garlic.

He used to eat garlic by the Xianyang Bridge, and once he started, he couldn't stop. Now he eats garlic with every meal.

Now, wherever he goes, he plants garlic.

Fusu recalled the garlic he had planted near Xianyang Bridge, the garlic he had planted along the Luo River, and Tongguan Pass.

Tian An would even share the garlic with the villagers of Tongguan. Fu Su thought that it wouldn't be long before the whole Guanzhong region would be filled with the smell of garlic.

Fusu saw Tian An chewing a clove of garlic, and then he saw General Xin return.

Tian An then handed over a stool and a clove of garlic.

In this way, the two elderly people sat together eating garlic and noodles, and perhaps still felt that the flavor was not strong enough, so they took out some boiled bitter greens from the pot and mixed them with the noodles.

Fusu then looked at the fields in the distance and asked, "Have all the matters in Luoyang been arranged?"

Zhang Cang chewed his noodles, swallowed them, and replied, "It went smoothly. We killed a few people, and some others pointed at Guanzhong and cursed the tyrannical Qin Dynasty, but nothing else happened."

Fusu's expression was knowing.

A soldier hurried over and whispered a few words of instruction to General Xin Sheng.

Upon hearing this, Xin Sheng slowed down his chewing of noodles, indicating that the messenger could leave.

Fusu put down his chopsticks and asked, "Is there something important happening in the army?"

Xin Sheng replied, "Tu Ju is reckless. His army suffered a great loss when it ventured deep into the mountains. The First Emperor ordered Zhao Tuo to go and assist Tu Ju."

Zhang Cang ate his noodles without saying a word.

Hearing that the war was not going so well, everyone was somewhat distressed.

Fusu said, "That's good. I've heard that General Zhao Tuo is quite brave. I've seen him fight several people at once without being at a disadvantage."

Xin Sheng smiled and said, "What you say is absolutely right, young master."

The court meeting at Xianyang Palace has just ended.

After Ying Zheng finished the court meeting, he was sitting in the back hall of Zhangtai Palace. Chancellor Li Si, Grand Commandant Meng Wu, Wang Ben, and Feng Quji were discussing the upcoming supply of provisions and the troop deployment to the south.

After everyone finished speaking, the First Emperor said, "All of you may leave."

The group then bowed and took their leave.

Li Si and Meng Wu walked at the front, and the others followed one after another out of the main hall and stood in the sunlight.

Originally, Tu Ju underestimated the enemy and almost made a big mistake, but fortunately it was only a small part of the troops, and the majority of the troops were repairing the canal.

Li Si glanced at the crowd following behind him. Hearing that the battle had gone badly, these people were too busy apologizing to even think about their punishment.

Even if the First Emperor were to become angry because of this, Li Si felt it was perfectly normal. He could even accept that the failure of the southern expedition was due to his own actions and the actions of those behind him.

But the First Emperor said nothing, only that he would provide compensation to the soldiers who died in battle and comfort the defeated Tu Ju.

And now, with Zhao Tuo going to provide assistance.

The First Emperor has been in a very good mood lately, almost strangely so.

Li Si thought about it again and still didn't feel anything was wrong. He felt that something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. After leaving Xianyang Palace, the crowd was about to disperse.

"Prime Minister."

Upon hearing General Meng Wu's call, everyone stopped in their tracks.

Li Si stopped and looked at the old Grand Commandant.

Now, Meng Wu is the Grand Commandant, in charge of all military affairs. If we're talking about the failure of the southern expedition, he was the first to apologize to the First Emperor in the rear hall, but the First Emperor doesn't seem to care about this defeat.

But the First Emperor was the First Emperor after all. He could accept temporary setbacks, just like the temporary setbacks when attacking the State of Chu, but he was determined to make up for it tenfold.

That's why Zhao Tuo was sent.

Besides Li Si, the others also looked at the old Grand Commandant.

Meng Wu, leaning on his cane, asked, "I heard that you visited the First Emperor yesterday, and the Prime Minister was also there?"

Li Si replied, "That's right."

Meng Wu said in a low voice, "I've heard that you are a very talented young master."

Li Si had a deep understanding of this. The prince was not only exceptionally talented, but he also learned everything incredibly quickly. Currently, many documents were being reviewed by the prince, regardless of whether they concerned military or civil matters.

Meng Wu said, "Last night I received a document from Zhangtai Palace, which included approval to send reinforcements to Shu. I was puzzled at the time, since land reclamation in Shu went smoothly this year, why send reinforcements? The handwriting doesn't look like it belongs to..."

When the handwriting was mentioned, everyone looked at Li Si.

The three dukes and nine ministers of the court are all here now. Wang Ben felt that his status was too low, so he moved slightly to the side.

Meng Wu continued, "I had someone inquire, and it was indeed sent from Zhangtai Palace. However, you didn't leave Xianyang until last night. Could it be that you knew beforehand that Tu Ju's southward journey would be unfavorable?"

Li Si shook his head and said, "Grand Commandant, you are overthinking it."

Even if Prince Fusu were incredibly intelligent, he couldn't possibly be a prophet. Meng Wu said in a low voice, "That's right, that's right. I was just overthinking it. At my age, I tend to overthink things."

Feng Quji said, "Prime Minister, I'll escort the old Grand Commandant back."

After saying this, Feng Quji helped the old Grand Commandant, who was leaning on a cane, walk along the road.

Li Si was still standing there when he noticed that Feng Quji was supporting the old Grand Commandant and talking to him.

Wang Ben said, "Prime Minister, let's go and discuss the matter of provisions."

Recently, Li Si has been quite absent-minded, especially when facing the First Emperor.

The two arrived at the Prime Minister's residence.

The Prime Minister's residence was bustling with officials coming and going, making it the busiest place among all the official residences in Xianyang. Wang Ben sat down and said, "In previous years, whenever there was a war, most of the grain and fodder were transferred from Shu."

Li Si nodded. Since Qin built the Jian Di Road and dug the Jian Peng (also known as Dujiangyan), the grain and fodder in Shu (Sichuan) had indeed become a major pillar for the Qin army.

Wang Ben added, "Now that Prince Fusu has truly completed the canal, if the construction in Weinan proceeds smoothly, Weinan will become another granary in the future, and indeed, the granary of Guanzhong."

Recently, Li Si felt that the fate of the Qin Dynasty was inextricably linked to the digging of canals, whether it was the Zheng Guo Canal, the Jian Peng Canal, or the one currently being dug, or the canal in Weinan.

Li Si picked up the dossier beside him and said, "Let's not talk about that. Let's quickly decide on the grain supplies."

Wang Ben nodded and said, "Yes."

Inside Gaoquan Palace, Prince Gao was feeding the fish in the rain pond. He whispered, "Does my brother often eat these fish?"

Upon hearing this, the palace maid shook her head.

The young master sat to one side, his hands supporting his chin. Behind him came the sinister cursing. His younger brothers, Jiang Lü and Hu Hai, had been beaten by her again.

The cries of the two younger brothers rose and fell, a sight that even bystanders found heartbreaking.

Gongzi Gao said, "General Zhang Han said that if they are not taught strictly, they will make a big mistake. Yin Man was right to be punished. If they are not punished now, they will be harmed if they make mistakes in the future. As their elder brother, I should teach them."

Yin Man said, "Exactly."

Jiang Lü and Hu Hai's hands were beaten until they were red and burning with pain.

Because they overturned their elder brother's bookshelf. It should be noted that Gao and Yinman were allowed to read here by their elder brother, but Huhai and Jianglu were not.

When the twelve-year-old Prince Gao spoke, his words were very stern.

It seemed like he really would beat his two younger brothers to death.

Under the watchful gaze of Prince Gao, Jiang Lü and Hu Hai's sobs grew fainter and fainter until they were barely audible. They lowered their heads and dared not move.

Gongzi Gao then withdrew his gaze and said, "Yin Man, help your brother tidy up the bookshelf."

Yin Man nodded and said, "Yes."

The Gaoquan Palace has a vast number of books. Looking at the towering bookshelves, Prince Gao could only sigh. Compared to his elder brother's knowledge, he felt as if he were looking up at a towering mountain.

At Tongguan, Fusu had just finished reading a scroll of documents. Beside him was a bag of rice. He thought about how the Qin dynasty had moved the people of Guanzhong to develop agriculture together with the local people of Shu. In later history, Shu during this period was known as the Southern Silk Road. The Dujiangyan Irrigation System irrigated tens of millions of acres of fertile land, feeding countless people in Shu.

The development of civilization cannot be separated from the agricultural foundation, and the need for agriculture leads to the need for water conservancy.

Feeling the warm spring breeze on his body, Fusu looked at the newly reclaimed fields in the distance. He didn't know if he was doing the right thing, but seeing the smiles on people's faces, he felt that it must be the right thing to do.

After his teacher Zhang Cang returned, he went to Dali County to work with Cheng Miao to oversee the construction of Weinan County.

Fusu held up some rice with both hands. This was not rice grown in Sichuan this year; the rice from this season was not yet ripe. It was rice from last year.

This document was sent from Sichuan by Li You, who also sent a bag of Sichuan rice and a jar of Sichuan wine.

In fact, today is also a special festival for the people of Sichuan. Today is the Water Release Festival for people in various parts of Dujiangyan. People are holding a grand water release ceremony to pay tribute to Li Bing, who built Dujiangyan.

Fusu calculated the time and realized it was exactly Qingming Festival.

Li You sent someone to deliver the document and even specially chose a date.

In fact, Li You said in his letter that he felt that digging the Jingye Canal would also benefit the world, and he wanted to invite himself, the prince of Qin, to celebrate the Water Release Festival in Shu.

Fusu picked up a ceramic bowl from the side, which was already filled with wine, namely Shu wine from Sichuan.

Facing the direction of Sichuan, Fusu drank the wine in the bowl in one gulp.

Tonight, we're having rice. The pale yellow rice is cooked in an earthenware pot, and soon steam rises from the pot, carrying the unique aroma of rice.

Then steam an egg custard and stew it with mutton.

Once the rice was cooked, Fusu lifted the lid of the pot, scooped out the rice grains with a wooden spoon, and put the rice, along with some crispy rice crust at the bottom, into a bowl.

General Xin and Tian An both loved steamed eggs; the two elderly people were absolutely delighted with them.

As they were eating, Fusu saw Zhang Han walking towards them, with a small dog pulling a small cart behind him.

The cart was loaded with chicken and duck eggs, as well as some radishes, scallions, ginger, and a lot of vegetables.

Normally, the food here is delivered by General Zhang Han, and it is all brought from Jingye County.

Fusu asked, "Has General Zhang Han eaten?"

Zhang Han bowed and said, "This humble general can eat as soon as I get home."

The half-grown puppy was very obedient and squatted down at Zhang Han's feet.

Fusu then said, "I have some rice here, but I can't finish cooking it all."

After hesitating for a moment, Zhang Han bowed and said, "Thank you for the gift, young master."

"You're welcome." Fusu pointed to the earthenware pot beside him and said, "I might have put in too much water, it's a little..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Han picked up a wooden spoon and began eating from the earthenware pot.

Fusu asked, "General Zhang Han, don't you want any vegetables?"

Zhang Han paused briefly while eating, noticing a half-bowl of steamed egg custard beside him. He poured the custard into the pot, stirred it, and ate, saying, "Delicious."

After he finished eating, Fusu discovered that there really wasn't a single grain of rice left in the pot.

Afterwards, Zhang Han took the earthenware pot to the riverbank, washed it, and put it back in its original place. He then said, "I once met a soldier from Shu. We were in the army together, and I ate rice cooked by that Shu soldier. It tasted different."

How do people in Sichuan make rice?

After a moment's recollection, Zhang Han said, "This humble general has forgotten."

Zhang Han always spoke the truth. Most other people would probably have inquired about it or just given a vague answer.

If it were Zhang Han, he would simply say he forgot and that's the truth.

"Young master, the silkworms raised in the village will start producing silk in another month."

"I see."

"I will retire at the end."

Zhang Han left, and the half-grown puppy followed half a step behind, pulling a small cart with the distinctive sound of wood rubbing against wood from its wheels.

Fusu gazed in the direction of Xianyang, waiting for his teacher to send the agreed-upon craftsmen to Weinan.

(End of this chapter)