The leisurely life of the Qin people

Chapter 91 Young Master Gao and Mr. Luli
On the way back to Xianyang, you could still hear the sound of rain falling on the carriage.

When they returned to Takasen-gyu Palace, the deer were waiting there. They only went back to the palace after the mistress returned.

Let Wang's mother-in-law take his wife to rest first, and Fusu sit down as there are still some things to arrange.

When the young master is not here, someone looks after this place, and if anyone comes to visit, someone will make a note of it so that the young master can report it when he returns.

Upon hearing the report from the eunuch, Tian An stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Young Master, Master Lu is leaving."

"gone?"

Tian An said in a low voice, "They said they wanted to visit other places in Qin and would set off first thing tomorrow morning."

Fusu, still holding the pen in his hand, said, "I understand."

Master Luli was a representative figure of Huang-Lao thought, and one of the few remaining representatives of this school of thought after Qin unified the world.

At Zhang Cang's urging, Mr. Luli agreed to stay in Xianyang.

Fusu said, "Send a message to Gao, asking him to see off Mr. Luli."

Tian An nodded and immediately sent someone to deliver the message that very night.

The next day, before dawn, Prince Gao received the news and sent Shusun Tong on a fast horse to Xianyang.

Xianyang was already bustling with activity when Prince Gao met the eunuch who was there to meet him.

"Son."

"But did my brother give me some instructions?"

The eunuch replied, "Master Lu Li has not yet left his home. Young master, please wait here."

Gongzi Gao nodded very seriously. This was the first thing his elder brother had entrusted to him, and he was determined to do it well.

Shusun Tong sat to the side eating a pancake, watching the bustling scene in Xianyang. As he ate, he said, "Young master, these are pancakes that Tian An made and left over last night. Although it's been a night, they're still delicious."

Gongzi Gao waved his hand and said, "Teacher, I'm not hungry."

Shusun Tong exclaimed, "What a pity to waste such a fine pastry... How did he make the crust flaky? It's truly a masterpiece."

As a few drops of rain fell, pedestrians on the official road rushed towards Xianyang City.

Shusun Tong led the carriage into Xianyang City. After explaining his purpose to the city's garrison commander, and with Prince Gao present, the commander naturally dared not make things difficult for him.

As the rain intensified, he sat high on the carriage shaft and whispered, "Teacher, is Mr. Luli... not going to leave Xianyang today?"

Shusun Tong then took out a cake from his bundle and handed it to him.

This time, when Gongzi Gao took the cake, his initial anxious and apprehensive expression was gone. He began to learn from Shusun Tong's composure and "what will be, will be" attitude.

Gongzi Gao ate his cake and asked, "Teacher, why did my brother send me to see off Master Luli?"

Shusun Tong was also sitting on the carriage shaft.

The master and apprentice sat on the carriage shaft, while the horses snorted under the city gate. The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the roar of the rain almost drowned out their voices.

Shusun Tong stroked his beard and said, "Because Prince Fusu knows that Mr. Luli is hostile to Zhang Cang and Li Si, even if Mr. Luli agrees to stay in Xianyang, their ideals are ultimately incompatible, and it is only a matter of time before he leaves Xianyang."

"For you, young master, it would be enough to keep that old gentleman in Xianyang for a year or two. The reason you came to see off Mr. Luli is because you are young."

Gongzi Gao still looked completely bewildered.

Although they were brothers, Shusun Tong could see that Prince Fusu was far inferior to Prince Gao.

In contrast, Gongzi Gao is much more ordinary. It is precisely because of Gongzi Gao's ordinariness and youth that he has always had a pure and sincere heart. This child has not yet experienced the wickedness of human nature and has always grown up under protection.

Prince Fusu, however, was different. He was too intelligent. He could learn things after only a little exposure or a glance. Therefore, he did not need to experience much. His mind was already as deep and shrewd as the people in the Qin court.

If it were Prince Fusu who were to see off Master Luli, it would inevitably cause the latter to overthink things and make Master Luli feel that the Qin court was unwilling to let him leave.

That's why Prince Gao came to see him off. Master Luli would only believe that Prince Gao was simply following the instructions of his elder brother, Prince Fusu, to come and bid him farewell.

Mr. Lu could only conclude that Gongzi Gao was an innocent child and would not have any resistance.

Shusun Tong left his words at that, not saying too much to Gongzi Gao.

I don't want to spoil Gongzi Gao's youthful spirit.

Gongzi Gao ate his pancake, gazing at the heavy rain outside, and said in a low voice, "You few go and check again. Is Mr. Luli really leaving?"

"Reporting to the young master, we sent someone to inquire half an hour ago. Mr. Luli has prepared a carriage and will leave Xianyang as soon as the rain stops."

Young Master Gao nodded as he ate his pancake.

Another hour passed; it should be noon by now.

Gongzi Gao was somewhat relieved that his teacher had brought two pancakes, otherwise he would have been hungry by noon.

Shusun Tong explained to Gongzi Gao the knowledge of Master Luli, including his expertise in Huang-Lao philosophy and his mastery of the Book of Changes.

Gongzi Gao asked, "Is Master Luli even more capable than Confucius' disciples?"

Shusun Tong smiled helplessly and said, "If you see more of these things, you will actually think that Confucius' disciples were just ordinary people."

Speaking of this, Gongzi Gao remembered that his teacher and his teacher Kong Fu did not get along well. Just last year, Confucius' descendants sent someone to reprimand Shusun Tong.

Gongzi Gao felt that his teacher was carrying too much of a burden, especially in terms of knowledge.

He asked curiously, "Teacher, have you ever met Xunzi?"

Shusun Tong said in a low voice, "I have met him. I met Xunzi once at the Jixia Academy. Later, I became a student of Kong Fu and never saw him again."

Gongzi Gao said, "If only you had taken Xunzi as your teacher back then, how wonderful that would have been."

Looking back now, Shusun Tong has nothing to regret. Now teaching, he feels as if he has broken free of shackles, and these years have been the most enjoyable years of his life.

If he were truly a disciple of Xunzi, would he still have to contend with and compete with Li Si? Shusun Tong felt that he... might not live much longer.

Young Master Gao, you're quite the joker...

Before long, the rain stopped, and Xianyang City returned to its bustling state.

The once quiet streets were bustling with activity again, with people working, talking loudly, and hawking their goods.

Gongzi Gao also noticed that some people were selling cloth. He recognized the cloth; it was cloth produced in Jingye County, and it turned out that it sold so well in Xianyang City.

Before long, a carriage arrived from inside the city.

Shusun Tong dismounted from the carriage and made a gesture of respect. He remembered another reason why Prince Fusu had sent Prince Gao to see off Master Luli.

That is because I, Shusun Tong, am a disciple of Confucius. Young Master had long anticipated Young Master Gao's character, and he would definitely ask me, as a disciple of Confucius, to come and bid farewell to Master Luli.

Seeing off this great sage of the Warring States period, Shusun Tong had no reason to refuse such a favor. The carriage was almost upon them, escorted by soldiers.

Seeing the style of the carriage, and bowing to his teacher, Gongzi Gao also bowed.

The carriage arrived and stopped beside Shusun Tong.

An elderly man stepped out of the car and said with a smile, "Shusun Tong?"

"Shusun Tong greets the old gentleman."

Mr. Lu asked, "Have you heard any news about the descendants of Confucius lately?"

Shusun Tong replied, "There has been no news for a long time."

Even though news had been sent to Jingye County last year, Young Master Gao didn't know why his teacher was saying this. He bowed and said, "Gao, on behalf of my elder brother, greets the old gentleman."

Mr. Luli said, "I am just going out for a walk to see some old friends. I am not worthy of your farewell, young master."

Gongzi Gao added, "My elder brother is busy with state affairs and has no time to attend to you, sir. He sent me to see you off. Please do not take offense, sir."

Mr. Lu nodded slightly, lowered his voice, and said, "Young Master Fusu has shown extraordinary talent since childhood. Sometimes, precocity is not necessarily a good thing. I was worried about that, but I never expected that Young Master Fusu would have such a kind younger brother."

It was as if Master Luli had seen through a person with just a few words. Gongzi Gao looked quite nervous, but he remained silent, waiting for his teacher to finish.

Shusun Tongdao said, "After entering Qin, the old gentleman has lived in Xianyang for a long time, so he probably hasn't seen the changes in Guanzhong."

Mr. Luli said, "How else can Guanzhong change?"

Shusun Tong then said, "Why don't you come with us to Jingye County, sir?"

Mr. Lu looked around and at the boy beside him, and said, "Very well, since we're out for a stroll, let's go and see Jingye County. This old man also wants to see that magical canal."

Upon hearing this, the young master Gao, who had been standing to the side looking very reserved and nervous, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Afterwards, he followed his teacher back into the carriage. Their carriage was in front, and Mr. Luli's carriage was behind. The two carriages headed towards Jingye County.

Sitting inside the carriage, Gongzi Gao asked, "Teacher, Mr. Luli's friend must also be a very remarkable sage."

Shusun Tong smiled and said, "It must be extraordinary."

Gongzi Gao is indeed very ordinary, so ordinary that one might blindly admire him, but it's enough that he's sensible; he doesn't need to be overly intelligent.

As Mr. Luli said, being precocious like Prince Fusu is not actually a good thing. Too many years of youthful ignorance and too much understanding will lead to increasing loneliness and fewer confidants. Most such people will live a lonely life.

It doesn't refer to all precociousness, but rather to precociousness as extraordinary as that of Prince Fusu.

Just past noon, the car arrived in Jingye County. At that time, smoke was rising from the chimneys of every household as they ate their meals.

When Li Nu'er saw that Shusun Tong had brought guests, she put on a stern face. She was going to tell the young master and Grandpa Tian that he had brought guests to eat grain again.

However, she did not react on the spot, but instead went to find the wife of Prefect Zhang.

Inside a house next to the school in Jingye County, Gongzi Gao had food prepared. He said, "Most of the food in the village is wheat-based. If Mr. Luli doesn't like it, Gao can prepare some millet rice."

Mr. Luli smiled and said, "That's perfect."

Shusun Tong personally served the old man a bowl of noodles and explained, "I have been teaching here for a long time. Prince Fusu has been running this business for several years and has now achieved considerable success."

Mr. Luli ate his noodles, his gaze fixed on the view outside the window.

It seems this old gentleman has no interest in the books here.

Gongzi Gao sat to the side, holding a bowl, also deep in thought. His teacher had once said that the various schools of thought among the philosophers were different.

After the meal, Mr. Lu picked up one of the scrolls and, while looking at it, asked, "Is this the Mohist school's concept of universal love?"

Shusun Tong explained, "Prince Fusu has entrusted us with teaching, and he never uses only one school of thought."

“Hehe…” Mr. Luli laughed and nodded with appreciation, “Back then, when Prince Fusu became the student of Prime Minister Li Si, Chunyu Yue said that when teaching Prince Fusu, one should not only listen to one side of the story. Now, seeing how Prince Fusu teaches the children here not to listen to one side of the story, it is truly interesting how things are in this world.”

Shusun Tong nodded. Master Luli also had ideas about governing the world. Back when Fan Li assisted the Yue state, he advocated encouraging agriculture and sericulture, accumulating grain, practicing the Huang-Lao philosophy, and keeping the people calm and undisturbed.

Seeing the old gentleman pick up a volume of Han Fei's book, Mr. Luli repeatedly praised it.

This puzzled Gongzi Gao, who said, "I have always thought that Han Fei's doctrines conflict with the old master's Huang-Lao doctrines."

Mr. Lu chuckled and said, “Guanzi once said that the law comes from rites, and rites come from the Way. Shen Buhai once said that a wise ruler relies on the law rather than wisdom, and on numbers rather than words. Han Fei’s theory of the two handles of punishment and reward is in line with our school’s view that spring and summer are for virtue and autumn and winter are for punishment. The so-called 'virtue first, punishment later' is in accordance with the heavens, so how can there be any conflict?”

Upon hearing this, Gongzi Gao felt his eyes had been opened. He had no idea that it could be understood in this way. He quickly bowed and said, "I have learned a great deal."

Shusun Tong led Mr. Luli out of the school and headed towards the canal in the north of Jingye County. The Jingye Canal has been successfully excavated for two years now.

After the autumn rains, the water flow in the canals became very stable.

Mr. Lu walked along the canal with great interest, and even wanted to go into the underground canal to take a look, but was stopped by the guards stationed there.

Shusun Tong explained, "Old sir, the underground culvert is prone to collapse, so it is sealed off every rainy season to prevent accidents."

Mr. Lu did not insist, but said he wanted to go and see the 20,000 hectares of newly reclaimed land in Weinan.

Once back in the carriage, Prince Gao was still immersed in Mr. Luli's profound discourse. He said, "Teacher, could we ask Mr. Luli to stay and teach?"

Shusun Tong pondered for a moment. He did want to, but if the person was determined to leave, he couldn't persuade them otherwise.

“Young master, if we invite you sincerely, the old gentleman might stay.”

"Okay, thank you for your guidance, Teacher."

Seeing that Gongzi Gao still seemed quite confident, Shusun Tong had a feeling that the child was likely to suffer a setback.

Mr. Lu stayed in Weinan for a day. He ate the dates from Dali County, looked at the vast fields, and then it was time for him to take his leave.

Seeing that Prince Gao had stood bravely and decisively in front of Mr. Luli's carriage, Shusun Tong loudly proclaimed his sincerity, wanting the old gentleman to stay in Guanzhong.

For a moment, it seemed that Mr. Luli was truly moved by Gongzi Gao.

However, what Gongzi Gao responded to was a sigh and an old man's thanks for the invitation, but unfortunately, Mr. Luli had an appointment with his old friend.

Watching the carriage disappear into the distance, Mr. Luli really did leave. Young Master Gao was still standing there, stunned in the cold wind, quite devastated.

Shusun Tong comforted him, saying, "The old master is still very willing to accept you as his disciple."

The young master raised his head and asked, "Really?"

"The old gentleman had a prior appointment and had to leave."

Seeing that the young master still looked disappointed, Shusun Tong comforted him, "In a few years, when you ask the old master again, perhaps he will agree to your request."

(End of this chapter)