Chapter 27: The Bestowal

Before the city gates, it was exceptionally bustling; under the gaze of the subjects of Xianyang City, Prime Minister Li Si led Great General Wang Jian into Xianyang City.

Fusu looked back and saw that group of old Qin Army soldiers with graying hair and beards.

These old Qin Army soldiers left one by one after receiving the pay issued by the school officer, and the one issuing the money was none other than the school officer of the army, the Prime Minister's son, Li You.

Li You wanted to cast off this official position, but for the most part, his youth could not escape the constraints and control of the Prime Minister.

Compared to the Great General who was warmly welcomed by the subjects of Xianyang, this group of old Qin Army soldiers was unknown and ignored when they left; these old Qin Army soldiers took their share and turned to head home.

Fusu turned over and dismounted, looking at the backs of these old Qin Army soldiers, and bowed deeply.

The Prince's act of bowing was seen by the Censor Cheng Miao, who stood on the city wall; he then wrote this scene down, and with a stroke of his brush, recorded the Great Qin Prince's behavior in the history books of Great Qin.

Inside Xianyang City, the ministers and generals walked together into Xianyang Palace.

While walking along the way, Chunyu Yue spoke to Fu Nian, who was walking beside him, and while heading toward Zhangtai Palace, he said in a low voice and at a rapid pace: "I said back then during the Court Discussion that the education of Prince Fusu cannot rely solely on the words of Li Si's family; who would have thought that Li Si would then have the Prince take Zhang Cang as his teacher? It is preposterous..."

The faster Chunyu Yue spoke, the more he feared he would not finish before reaching Zhangtai Palace, "Who in the world does not know that he, Zhang Cang, and Li Si studied under the same master?"

Fu Sheng said in a low voice: "Li Si studied under the Legalist school, and neither Xunzi nor Zhang Cang are Legalists."

Chunyu Yue's expression carried a hint of anger, and he added: "That still doesn't mean he should be employed."

Shusun Tong, who was following behind, frowned as he listened, and he said: "Actually, the Prime Minister is busy with state affairs; how would he have the leisure to teach the Prince? The Prince spends most of his time interacting with Zhang Cang."

Fu Sheng nodded slowly.

Now it was Chunyu Yue's turn to be speechless.

Shusun Tong sighed secretly and said: "Since this involves Prince Fusu, it is a state affair; do not use personal grievances."

Chunyu Yue wanted to say that he and Li Si only had differences in governing the country, not personal grievances.

The crowd walked into the main hall one after another, and once Prime Minister Li Si and Great General Wang Jian entered the hall, today's Court Discussion began.

Zhang Cang was standing at Zhangtai Palace, and seeing the Prince had only just arrived, he hurried forward and said: "Prince, the Court Discussion has begun."

Fusu said: "So I am late."

Zhang Cang explained: "The Prime Minister said the Prince is only here to listen to the proceedings, so it is no matter if you do not go; if you are worried about being summoned, it is better to just wait here."

Fusu obediently and sensibly stood to the side.

Since he was late, standing in punishment at the entrance was not bad either.

The steps in front of Zhangtai Palace were too high; Fusu could not hear the discussions inside the hall at this moment, nor could he see the people inside.

Standing here for a short while, there was no sign of any intention to summon the King of Chu; the captured King of Chu seemed to have been forgotten by the First Emperor and the ministers.

An Attendant came over with hurried steps and whispered a few words in Zhang Cang's ear.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Cang said: "The Prime Minister has given instructions for me to take the Prince to see someone."

"Who is it?"

Zhang Cang added: "Please come this way, Prince."

Fusu looked at the main hall again and followed Zhang Cang's footsteps.

Walking south all the way from in front of Zhangtai Palace, Fusu saw Cheng Miao, who was bowing, as he passed the Imperial Censor Office, and he returned a smile to him, as well as to everyone else who bowed to him.

As they walked, Zhang Cang said: "The Prince bringing the Grand General back is a great achievement; the entire court and country will congratulate the Prince."

Fusu said in a low voice: "I just picked him up."

Zhang Cang said: "The Prince is too modest."

The Scholar Office was a new construction, and in recent years, more and more Doctors from the Six States had entered Xianyang, besides the likes of Shusun Tong, Zhang Cang, and Chunyu Yue.

There were many, many others, but Fusu did not recognize the vast majority of them.

Fusu followed Zhang Cang's footsteps into the Scholar Office.

At this moment, there was no one else here, and it appeared empty; presumably, most people had gone to Xianyang City to watch the excitement, or were attending the Court Discussion at Zhangtai Palace.

Inside the Scholar Office before them sat an old man, and beside this old man, a young boy in plain clothes was taking care of him, grinding ink.

Zhang Cang introduced: "Prince, this is Luli Xiansheng."

The old man stood up and said: "This old subject greets the Prince."

Fusu hurried to bow; Luli Xiansheng was a scholar from the same era as Xunzi, had a considerable reputation during the Warring States period, and was one of the Mount Shang Four Hao.

This old man's hair and beard were not very neat; his attire and long hair appeared to be managed very casually, and the old man had more white hair than black, appearing as if black hair was mixed in among the white.

"The Grand General has returned, and the First Emperor's heart can finally be at ease; from now on, the First Emperor should also properly handle state affairs, as Great Qin still has many things to do."

Fusu first looked at Zhang Cang beside him, but his teacher kept his eyes closed, appearing as if he did not intend to speak.

"Logically speaking, that is so."

"How do you intend to deal with the King of Chu?"

Luli Xiansheng's gaze remained fixed on him, and Fusu bowed and said: "Fusu also does not know how the King of Chu will be dealt with."

"For the Prince to be so steady at such a young age is truly rare."

"I am merely speaking the truth; I dare not speak recklessly."

Only then did Luli Xiansheng's gaze leave this young Prince, and he said in a low voice: "It is over, it is truly over; Qin has truly unified the world."

Fusu listened to these words; the subtext seemed to be that he still found it hard to believe, but the fact was that the era of the Warring States had truly ended.

The reality was that the various states were truly gone, and Qin had truly unified the Six States.

To this old man before him, it was likely like a dream or an illusion.

The era of the various states had truly ended; for the First Emperor and for Prime Minister Li Si, some state affairs should now be implemented.

Luli Xiansheng added: "The various states have been fighting for eight hundred years; in these eight hundred years of chaos, there was a war every three or five years, and a total war of the entire nation every ten or more years; the Commoners were resentful and miserable, soldiers died in battle, how many families were destroyed, how many states were ruined, only increasing the number of orphans and widows."

Fusu bowed and said: "The wars of the various states have truly ended."

Luli Xiansheng suddenly said: "I only hope that Qin can cherish the people of the world."

"Fusu will keep this in mind."

"Then how does the Prince think the world should be governed?"

Fusu said: "This is also what I am thinking about; it is nothing more than doing some right things, doing the right things well, and correcting the wrong things."

"He, Li Si, wants me to be able to stay and serve Great Qin and the First Emperor, but I have not yet answered Li Si; originally, I was prepared to leave Xianyang today."

Fusu stood there with a furrowed brow, listening quietly.

"But some say Prince Fusu is virtuous, and others say that since the Prince studies under the Legalist school, he will sooner or later be the next Li Si. The Prince was not in Xianyang two days ago, and I only listened to what Shusun Tong and Zhang Cang said about the Prince's recent conduct, which is why I stayed today to see the Prince, so that I might respond to Li Si regarding whether I will go or stay."

By now, Fusu understood his teacher's intention.

Luli Xiansheng waved his wide sleeves, sat upright with his hands on his knees, and asked: "How does the Prince think the world should be governed?"

Fusu had not yet spoken.

Zhang Cang, who had been silent all along, spoke up first: "Sir, the Prince once said that Xunzi had a saying: 'The ruler is the boat, and the commoners are the water...'"

Fusu stepped aside, very consciously handing the initiative of the conversation over to his teacher.

There are some things that a Prince of Great Qin cannot say casually; if said, they would be exploited and misinterpreted.

At this moment, seeing Zhang Cang able to stand up and speak, Fusu felt grateful to this teacher for clearing up his student's confusion and for being able to protect his student at critical moments; he is a good teacher.

Next, Fusu remained silent, leaving the conversation to his teacher, as his teacher and Luli Xiansheng were currently talking.

Zhang Cang looked to be only in his early thirties, yet he had the air of someone debating the classics with Luli Xiansheng.

His level of scholarship and argumentation was no worse than Luli Xiansheng's.

Afterwards, they began to talk about the system of selecting and employing officials; Fusu remembered that this was a doubt he had raised with this teacher back then.

That was still last winter, when the teacher and student only communicated through letters.

Everything is hard at the beginning, even if this beginning requires walking for more than ten years and killing many people.

Fusu felt that he was still young and had plenty of time.

The teacher and Luli Xiansheng then spoke about population, how many people the Feudal System could support, how many people the County System could support, and why the population of Qin had increased so much over the last hundred years.

By the time the Court Discussion ended and more officials were walking outside, it was already dusk.

Luli Xiansheng nodded with great satisfaction and said with a chuckle: "The Prince has found a good teacher."

Fusu said: "The old gentleman is too kind."

Afterwards, Zhang Cang and Luli Xiansheng walked out of the Scholar Office, and the two parted ways under the dusk.

Fusu watched the old gentleman's departing back and whispered: "Will the old gentleman stay?"

Zhang Cang slowly shook his head.

Luli Xiansheng did not say whether he would stay, and of course, he did not know either.

The First Emperor wanted to keep all the scholars of the Six States in Xianyang; Prime Minister Li Si had shown them courtesy, and Zhang Cang and Shusun Tong had persuaded them several times—all the efforts that could be made had been made, and even if they could not be kept, they could not be forced.

Zhang Cang added: "The Prime Minister said that if the old gentleman wants to leave, he will send troops to escort him and bestow one hundred gold."

Fusu said: "How generous."

Zhang Cang said: "This was what the Prime Minister advised the First Emperor, and the First Emperor agreed."

Truly, no one cared about the life or death of the King of Chu; he was taken away from Xianyang Palace by a few guards. Perhaps he would spend the rest of his life in Xianyang, growing old in obscurity or dying of illness.

This was likely the humanity the First Emperor showed to the rulers of the Six States.

Few of the rulers of the Six States from back then were as obedient as this current King of Chu.

For example, the King of Qi who starved to death, the King of Han who rebelled, and the one who sent Jing Ke to assassinate the King of Qin, none of them had a good end. Mostly... they did not want to live like commoners, and perhaps they could not even live like commoners.

Fusu returned to Gaoquan Palace. Early the next morning, the court was in recess; the First Emperor had feasted with his ministers last night, so it was reasonable for the court to be in recess today.

Tian An hurried over to report: "Prince, the King of Chu has been handed over to a household in Xianyang City to be cared for."

It seems the First Emperor did not want to be distracted by this one King of Chu at all; at the very least, there is no need to worry about the King of Chu's food, clothing, housing, and transportation—just let him live in obscurity in Xianyang.

"Prince, the rewards have also been bestowed."

Fusu felt a bit disappointed in his heart; he had not attended the Court Discussion and had not seen the smiles on their faces. After destroying Chu, Wang Jian had handed over his military authority on the way back, giving it to the First Emperor.

Along the way, he scattered his troops as he traveled, leaving only two thousand Old Qin Army soldiers to accompany him.

After hearing Tian An's words, Fusu realized that Great General Wang Jian had received an unprecedented reward.

The First Emperor bestowed upon Wang Jian the title of Marquis of Thoroughness, with the title of Marquis Wucheng, which was one rank higher than the Lord Wuan of Bai Qi back then.

He was granted the fief of Pinyang; Pinyang was Wang Jian's hometown and the place where he grew up, to be inherited by his descendants.

Not only that, but he was also given three hundred households in Wu County in the Chu region; Wu County... that was one of the most prosperous pieces of land in the heart of the Chu region.

He was specially granted the right to wear a sword and shoes into the palace, and an annual salary of ten thousand shi.

Wang Jian became the most dazzling person in Xianyang.

Fusu felt again that this was a very interesting old gentleman; after receiving the reward, he retired due to old age.

It is said that this old gentleman was in Zhangtai Palace, snot and tears running down his face, recounting how difficult things were for him.

Actually, this was somewhat shameless for an old man.

Fusu really wanted to say a word for his Imperial Father: "You, old gentleman, were running around outside with six hundred thousand troops; do you think my Imperial Father ate well or slept well?"

"Prince, someone is asking to see you."

Fusu drank the hot water in his bowl and asked: "Who?"

"Replying to the Prince, it is the Right Prime Minister."

Come to think of it, the Imperial Censor Office is the territory of the Vice Prime Minister, and the Old Qin People all hunker down for the winter.

Last year, when the court was in recess for the winter, I, this Prince, could be considered to have hunkered down in the Imperial Censor Office for more than two months, yet I had not greeted the Vice Prime Minister. The Vice Prime Minister is the Right Prime Minister, often referred to in court as the Right Prime Minister.

Feng Quji's age was comparable to Li Si's, but he looked tall and thin, a few inches taller than Li Si.

This person was welcomed into the hall, and Fusu bowed: "Fusu greets the Right Prime Minister."

Feng Quji also bowed and said: "Prince."

"When I was reviewing documents in the Imperial Censor Office, I never told the Right Prime Minister that I was disturbing you."

"It is no matter; the Prince may go whenever he wishes, it is no disturbance." Feng Quji waved his hand, then took a roll of Bamboo Slip from his sleeve and said: "His Majesty also has a reward for the Prince."

Fusu performed a salute once more.

Feng Quji handed over the Bamboo Slip, cleared his throat, and said, "Prince, you have performed meritorious service in escorting the Marquis Wucheng back to Xianyang, and His Majesty has specially bestowed upon you the position of Dushui Zhang."

It is not uncommon for a prince of a state to be enfeoffed with an official post; in past dynasties of various states, there were even those who had their own sovereign's prince serve as Prime Minister.

Feng Quji added, "His Majesty and the Prime Minister, considering your youth, Prince, have ordered Zhang Cang to serve as Palace Chamber Chief to assist you, and they hope you will complete the bridge over the West Wei River and the canal at Shangyan Mountain at an early date."

"Fusu accepts the order."

Feng Quji nodded with a smile and said, "There is one more matter the Prime Minister asked me to inform you of, Prince."

Fusu raised his head to look at him.

"The Prime Minister says that Wang Li has already been sent to Shangjun to guard the border."

Having said this, Feng Quji bowed and said, "This subject takes his leave."

After the Right Prime Minister left Gaoquan Palace, Fusu was still deep in thought, scouring his memory for what he had seen and learned recently at the Imperial Censor Office; the Dushui Zhang is in charge of building bridges and roads, as well as construction and engineering.

Suddenly, Fusu thought of his own official position and that of Zhang Cang, both of which fall under the jurisdiction of the Lesser Treasury, one of the Nine Ministers.

Who is currently serving as the Lesser Treasury among the Nine Ministers in the imperial court? Is that not Wang Bi?

Wang Bi is the superior of both myself and Zhang Cang.

Then Wang Bi's superior is Feng Quji.

This time, Great General Wang Jian has returned, and the Imperial Father has begun to arrange the positions of the Nine Ministers; in all likelihood... there are many people in the imperial court who are about to be promoted.

"Prince, Prince," another person ran over quickly, "Prince, someone has sent word saying that Luli Xiansheng has decided to stay."

(End of chapter)