Chapter 20: The Old Qin People

Tian An stood outside the Imperial Censor Office, waiting for the Prince to come out.

Moreover, the sunlight was quite good today; Tian An looked up at the sun, and with the sunlight, it was much warmer. The snow left over from the past two days was melting, and the melting snow formed a water curtain under the eaves.

Prince Fusu had truly been inside the Imperial Censor Office the whole time, truly patiently reading the documents coming and going from the officials, and even for a document from a minor local official or a county magistrate, the Prince would read it over and over again many times.

Cheng Miao did not know when he had fallen asleep, and by the time he woke up, the Prince was no longer in the Imperial Censor Office.

He stood up, supporting his lower back with one hand, and seeing that the sky was about to turn to night, he intended to leave this place, but then he remembered the Prince's letter, so he picked up a roll of bamboo slips nearby, and then looked again... the calligraphy copybook that had originally been on the table was also gone.

"That was most likely taken away by the Prince as well."

Thinking this, Cheng Miao left Xianyang Palace before the sky turned to night.

The next day, because the court was in recess and the Court Discussion would not continue until after the start of the coming spring, the Imperial Censor Office could not be left without someone to watch it, and the incoming and outgoing documents still needed to be managed.

For this reason, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Cheng Miao arrived early at the Imperial Censor Office and continued to write.

The First Emperor had praised his Clerical Script, so he continued to write.

Today, occasionally two or three officials came by; they were all there to submit documents from various regions.

The two or three officials were still whispering, and Cheng Miao, holding his brush, listened quietly.

Why did Zhang Cang visit the Prime Minister's Mansion late at night? Why was the Prince silent for an entire night after returning to the palace?

Cheng Miao thought again of yesterday's flatbread; the Prince's flatbread was truly delicious, and if only he could eat it one more time in this lifetime.

The West Wei River is located to the south of Xianyang, and Fusu walked along the riverbank still thinking about that Xianyang Bridge; at present, the two banks of this river were still empty and desolate.

From a geographical perspective, if a bridge were built here, people on both sides of the Wei River could save several miles of travel.

"I heard the Prince went to the Imperial Censor Office yesterday?"

The person who arrived was none other than his teacher.

Fusu saw his teacher step down from the carriage, stepped forward, and bowed, saying: "Teacher."

Li Si walked to the riverbank, gazed at the Wei River, and said: "Your servant saw the letter the Prince gave to Zhang Cang last night; Zhang Cang was greatly moved and visited your servant late at night, and your servant gave him some pointers."

Having said this, Li Si took out a scroll of the Classic of History and offered it with both hands, "This is Zhang Cang's reply."

Fusu took the bamboo slips, did not open them to look immediately, and then handed them to Tian An, who was at his side.

Li Si stood beside the Prince; today he seemed to have very few words.

"Your servant will take his leave now."

Fusu gazed at the Wei River, then regained his composure and said: "Tian An, see the teacher off."

Tian An smiled and said: "This old servant will see the Prime Minister off."

Just before boarding the carriage again, Li Si looked back at the Prince's back, feeling vaguely that the Prince had heavy concerns on his mind, but was unwilling to speak of them to him, his teacher.

Sitting back inside the carriage, Li Si looked sideways out the window.

The coachman drove the carriage, and Li Si took one more look at the smile on Tian An's face.

As the carriage moved further and further away, Fusu continued to watch the Wei River.

Tian An stood behind the Prince, not knowing if the Prince wanted to eat fish, and whether he should have someone go down to the river to catch some.

Yesterday, when Fusu was reading the documents coming and going from various regions at the Imperial Censor Office, it was not entirely without gain.

Among them was a document that spoke of restoring the enfeoffment of the Six States, pacifying the old nobility of the Six States, and reducing land taxes; in this way, the world could be settled, and the hearts of the people could be settled.

At first glance, this document was indeed for the sake of the world's stability, but that was only at first glance; upon closer inspection, it was actually full of selfish motives.

First, they wanted to restore enfeoffment; second, to pacify the old nobility of the Six States; and furthermore, to reduce land taxes.

But... once enfeoffment was restored, a vast amount of land would return to the hands of princes and nobles, while the Commoners would still have no land to till; how would the few meager acres of land the Commoners possessed be affected by the increase or decrease of land taxes?

If the remonstrance on this document could truly be implemented and land taxes were truly reduced, the princes and nobles who possessed vast amounts of land would be the first to benefit.

It was clearly a measure to stabilize the world, yet by reducing land taxes, it instead enriched a small minority.

Therefore, after returning from the Imperial Censor Office yesterday, Fusu threw that document into the stove and burned it with a fire.

It turned out that not all officials of this Great Qin were as lovable as Zhang Cang, Cheng Miao, and Zhang Han, nor were they as loyal as Meng Tian and Wang Bi.

There were still bad people among the officials of Great Qin.

"Tian An..."

"This old servant is here."

Fusu said slowly: "Do you think people are all willing to live a better life?"

Tian An said in a low voice: "That is certain."

"After Shang Jun's reforms back then, did the Qin people live well at that time?"

"Replying to the Prince, of course they were good." Tian An's voice paused for a moment, and he added: "But before Shang Jun came to Qin, the Old Qin People at that time were too miserable, too difficult; the Old Qin People walked step by step out of the danger of national extinction. When this old servant was young, I still remembered large groups of Old Qin People going to pay respects to Qin Xiaogong."

"When this old servant was a child, I always heard the grandfathers say that the Old Qin People were too difficult, the Old Qin People were very, very bitter; the Great Qin of today started step by step from that time, and the grandfathers told this old servant not to forget the suffering of the Old Qin People."

Fusu looked at the thin ice still floating by the river and gazed at the distant sky; black clouds pressed down, and there was no wind.

It had only been clear for one day yesterday, and now the weather in Guanzhong looked like it was going to snow again.

Fusu intended to return to the palace, but before going back, he stopped by Shangyan Mountain to take a look and saw Shusun Tong, who was riding a donkey and holding a scroll of the Classic of History.

Shusun Tong was riding on the donkey's back, reciting the contents of the book, with a large group of children following behind him.

Every time he recited a sentence, the group of children would follow and recite it as well.

Fusu did not intend to have the carriage stop, but instead passed by Shangyan Mountain and returned to Xianyang; on the road, he could still see people diligently digging vertical shafts.

And there was Zhang Han, standing at the intersection, performing his duties faithfully.

Looking at these scenes, he felt his mood improve significantly.

Fusu returned to the palace, looked at Zhang Cang's answer, and then wrote an essay and some questions, having Tian An send someone to deliver them to him.

This cold winter saw heavy snow again, and the heavy snow fell continuously for several days.

Cheng Miao stood in front of the Imperial Censor Office; having nothing to do, he tucked his hands into his sleeves and stood under the eaves watching the heavy snow filling the sky.

This snow was truly very, very heavy, almost making it impossible to see the road ahead.

Prince Fusu had not come here for three days; Cheng Miao sighed in the cold wind, feeling in his heart that he would likely never eat such delicious flatbread again in this lifetime.

Just as he was thinking this, Cheng Miao suddenly heard the sound of footsteps treading on snow; he turned his head to look and saw a figure walking through the snow.

He had assumed it was someone coming to deliver documents on this snowy day, but once the other party drew near, Cheng Miao saw the tall and thin Tian An, along with Prince Fusu, who was carrying a food box.

"Your subject, Cheng Miao, pays respects to the Prince."

"No need for such formalities," Fusu said, then walked into the Imperial Censor Office, adding, "I hear your calligraphy is quite good."

Speaking of writing, Cheng Miao regained his confidence and explained, "If the Prince likes it, this subject can write a few more characters."

Fusu waved his hand and said, "Eat your meal."

Cheng Miao bowed deeply once more; he took the flatbread handed over by the Prince with both hands and tasted that delicious flavor again, a smile on his face, still chewing in his mouth—this life was enough.

Tian An cleared away the ice shards frozen on the inkstone, then ground the ink well and placed it before the Prince's desk.

While Cheng Miao was eating, Fusu sat to the side and began to write; the questions to be written this time were still to be delivered by Cheng Miao to Zhang Cang.

"Prince, that Zhang Cang also keeps to himself on ordinary days, just like this subject."

Fusu wrote an essay and instructed, "Please deliver this to my teacher, Zhang Cang."

Cheng Miao very contentedly tucked this scroll of bamboo slips into his sleeve, then stood to the side, waiting for the Prince's instructions.

Just like that day, Prince Fusu was very focused on reading the documents coming and going from various places, without speaking during the process.

The stove was burning very brightly, and the office was both warm and quiet; coupled with having just eaten warm food, sleepiness welled up in his heart, and Cheng Miao fell asleep once again.

When he woke up again, the Prince was no longer here, and the sky was about to turn to night.

For several days in a row, Fusu's life was spent this way; the vast majority of the time was spent in the Imperial Censor Office, and he and his teacher, Zhang Cang, communicated through letters to impart knowledge.

Although he had only met Zhang Cang once, Fusu felt that his relationship with Zhang Cang had almost turned from teacher and student into pen pals.

And Cheng Miao was the important link passing letters back and forth between the two.

This heavy snow fell intermittently for another five days; the winter in Guanzhong is very long, and often there is still rain and snow even by the third month of the following year.

Fusu sat inside the bedchamber, holding a brush and writing on bamboo slips; what he was writing were the stories of the Old Qin People. Tian An was an Old Qin person, and he knew many stories of the Old Qin People.

Hearing these stories of arduous struggle, a kind of strength was awakened in the bottom of Fusu's heart.

It was a memory hidden deep in the soul that would never be erased; these memories of blood and war appeared in his mind like scenes from a painting.

Sometimes history is just this similar: if you fall behind, you will be beaten, so one must enrich the country and strengthen the army, and one must struggle arduously.

Back then, Shang Yang wrote that the Qin people ate grass; at that time, in order to protect their homeland, the Qin people could even dig up grass to fill their stomachs, because they knew that if they did not guard their homeland, their wives and children would be sold as slaves.

The brush in Fusu's hand continued to write; people cannot forget those arduous stories. If the Old Qin People want to enrich the country and strengthen the army, they need to implement reforms.

Even if many vested interest groups get hurt during the process of this reform, even if a class disappears, this process is cruel and heartless, but one must still grit one's teeth and carry on.

Just as the old master Xunzi said, the ruler is the boat, and the commoners are the water.

Then, the Great Qin now seems to be undergoing a second reform.

The next day, Cheng Miao stood at the entrance of the Imperial Censor Office as usual, waiting for Prince Fusu.

Regardless of whether it was strong wind or heavy snow, the Prince would always arrive at the entrance of the Imperial Censor Office right on time.

Cheng Miao bowed and said, "Prince."

Fusu asked in surprise, "Why is it always you who stands guard here?"

Cheng Miao explained, "Originally, several of us took turns standing guard, but those people all had emergencies at home. Since this subordinate is the only one with nothing to do, Vice Prime Minister Feng let me stand guard at the Imperial Censor Office. My home... also has nothing much going on."

Fusu handed the food box in his hand to him.

Tian An placed a small box of bamboo slips on the desk and urged, "These are all to be handed to Censor Zhang; sorry for the trouble."

Cheng Miao wolfed down a bowl of noodle soup, nodding incessantly as he did so.

And Fusu, just like before, began to look through the files here.

No matter how heavy the wind and snow were, Prince Fusu came here every day to check the documents, continuing like this day after day.

When the wind and snow stopped once again this year, the year also came to an end.

In the first month of the following year, Guanzhong was still gloomy, with wind and snow as before; one gets used to the sound of the wind after listening to it for a long time.

Zhang Cang carried a bundle on his back and arrived at the foot of Shangyan Mountain; he looked up at this newly built village, his footsteps pausing slightly, his gaze seemingly searching. Not finding the person he wanted to see, he stepped into the village.

Having walked only two steps, a Qin Army commandant ran over quickly and blocked him, saying, "Who goes there?"

Zhang Cang took out his Official Seal and explained, "I have come to seek Master Shusun Tong."

Seeing the seal, the commandant cleared the way and added, "Follow this subordinate."

Zhang Cang hoisted the heavy bundle on his shoulder again and finally arrived in front of a room, just as a few children ran out.

At the same time, Zhang Han also arrived here.

Zhang Cang turned his head to look and saw that as soon as this general arrived, a group of pitch-black puppies charged toward the tall general, like an army of puppies rushing toward their target.

Along the way, a few puppies tumbled to the ground; they twisted a few times and ran off again, and then a large group of puppies surrounded Zhang Han, clawing and trying to climb up.

Zhang Han used his foot to push these puppies aside, and after hearing the commandant's report, he said in a deep voice, "Prepare some ginger soup for the Prince's teacher to ward off the cold."

Zhang Cang bowed to express his gratitude and walked into Shusun Tong's room.

Inside the room, Shusun Tong saw the person who had arrived and said, "Zhang Cang? A student of Xunzi, a close friend of Prime Minister Li Si, and now the teacher of Prince Fusu."

Zhang Cang walked into the room and did not speak immediately, but instead put down the bundle.

The bundle landed on the desk with a heavy thud, along with the characteristic clattering sound of bamboo slips.

"Although this old man has only been in Qin for half a year, this old man is good at remembering people; once I have seen a person, I will never forget them."

Shusun Tong added, "Prince Fusu and the Prime Minister truly have a good strategy, using the act of relocating people to guard the borders to send some Qilu Doctors to the north. The Prince bestowed three hundred disciples upon me, but in reality, it was to make this old man leave the Court Discussion; this sequence of events is truly a good design."

Having said this, Shusun Tong sighed again, "Alas... Li Si is truly too formidable; this old man only realizes it now, so it turns out we all fell into the trap of Prince Fusu and Li Si."

As he was speaking, Shusun Tong walked to a corner of the room, sat down, and began to grind beans, adding, "There is an item on Shangyan Mountain called soy milk; this thing is truly delicious, but it is too tiring to drink a mouthful of soy milk, hmm..."

As he spoke, Shusun Tong turned the millstone, his chin whiskers trembling slightly because he was using too much force.

Zhang Cang said, "Beans were originally food to satisfy hunger; why go to such lengths?"

Shusun Tong could no longer push the millstone, and, exhausted, he held his waist and asked, "Censor Zhang, what brings you here?"

Zhang Cang explained, "The Prince asked me to bring these Classics of History, hoping you can teach them to the children here; they were all written by the Prince's own hand."

(End of chapter)