Chapter 28: The Congratulatory Gift

Master Luli is useful to the Great Qin, and he is useful to the Emperor.

This matter, however, had nothing to do with him, the Prince. Fusu flipped through the imperial edict brought by Feng Quji, reading it repeatedly. Since he now held an official position, he had to perform his duties well and allow for no delays.

Xianyang, the Chancellor's Residence.

Zhang Cang crossed the threshold and entered the estate.

The officials bustling about the residence bowed as they saw Zhang Cang arrive. Zhang Cang was a man deeply trusted by the Chancellor, and he was also the teacher of Prince Fusu; furthermore, he and the Chancellor had both studied under Xunzi.

Inside the residence, Li Si was reviewing military reports from the north and the proposed appointments for the Three Excellencies and Nine Ministers. Seeing Zhang Cang, he smiled and said, "Wang Jian has returned, and I truly find myself busier by the day."

Zhang Cang stood to the side and bowed slightly. "If the Prince were here, he would surely come to assist the Chancellor in handling the documents."

Li Si’s motion of flipping through bamboo slips paused. He suddenly asked, "Can the Prince review documents now?"

"The Prince has not yet reviewed official documents, but he has read a great many."

Li Si set down the bamboo slip in his hand and looked out at the blue sky, for it was the most beautiful time of the spring season. As he relaxed his shoulders and neck, he said, "Zhang Cang..."

Before the Chancellor could finish his sentence, Zhang Cang had already bowed respectfully to the side.

Li Si looked up at the blue sky and white clouds and asked, "How is Mao Heng faring lately?"

Zhang Cang replied, "The Chancellor knows what kind of man Mao Heng is. He knows nothing of political affairs; he is only well-versed in the Book of Songs."

Li Si laughed. "Of course I know. Does he still curse me?"

Zhang Cang offered a helpless smile. Everyone had studied under Xunzi, so naturally, they understood each other well. It was only a pity that Han Fei was no longer with them.

Li Si continued, "I read the records sent from the Academy of Scholars yesterday. You and Master Luli had quite a good discussion. It is fortunate that with you and the Prince, that old gentleman is willing to remain in Xianyang."

"Chancellor, this is merely my duty."

Li Si placed one hand behind his back and stroked his beard with the other. "You have been teaching the Prince for half a year now, have you not?"

"Since the beginning of the twelfth lunar month last year, it has been nearly half a year."

"I have read the records from the Academy of Scholars, as well as the words exchanged between you and that old gentleman. There are some arguments there that I had never heard you mention before."

Zhang Cang frowned, not knowing how to respond. Li Si did not even suspect that this was due to the Prince. Most likely, Li Si, as a teacher to the Prince himself, had no idea what truly occupied the Prince's mind. The conversations at the Academy of Scholars were indeed influenced by the Prince, and Zhang Cang felt that some of the things said were... truly impeccable, especially regarding the system for selecting officials. So much so that now, looking back, Li Si had become this suspicious.

Seeing that Zhang Cang did not reply, Li Si patted him on the shoulder and said, "The Poetry, History, Rites, Music, and Spring and Autumn Annals that our teacher taught—I have always felt my own learning and knowledge to be shallow, and I have failed our teacher."

Seeing Zhang Cang standing there, still silent and appearing somewhat troubled, Li Si suddenly smiled, trying to put the other man at ease. He whispered, "I always thought that the teacher’s most cherished student was Han Fei."

Zhang Cang said, "The teacher’s most cherished student is indeed Han Fei; the teacher’s proudest student should be the Chancellor."

Li Si sighed with emotion. "If the winter is not cold, one cannot know the pine and cypress. If the task is not difficult, one cannot become a gentleman... What the teacher taught has served me throughout my life."

After saying this, Li Si added, "I leave the matter of Master Luli to you."

Zhang Cang replied, "I would not dare take the credit."

Li Si nodded in appreciation. "I have matters to report to His Majesty. You must look after the Prince."

Before Zhang Cang could say anything more, Li Si walked away quickly.

After leaving the Chancellor's Residence, Li Si paused briefly. He had many thoughts in his mind, yet he could not fathom the depth of Zhang Cang—after all, Zhang Cang’s words were airtight. When they studied under Xunzi, the teacher gave the *Book of Songs* to Mao Heng, the *Book of Documents* to him and Han Fei, but the *Spring and Autumn Annals* to Zhang Cang. Having pondered these things, Li Si walked quickly toward the palace gates.

Zhang Cang remained within the Chancellor's Residence. He took a scroll of bamboo slips from his sleeve; it contained his views on the appointment of officials. In truth, the Prince was a man who excelled at asking questions, and Zhang Cang did not know... whether it was under the Prince's influence that he had written this scroll. Last winter, in their correspondence, the Prince had once said that in this world, the vast majority of things had no perfect choice; how could there be so many optimal solutions? Since they were not optimal, there would inevitably be flaws.

Zhang Cang hesitated for a long time before sitting down to help the Chancellor process the remaining documents. It was not until late at night that Li Si returned to the residence, looking weary. At this moment, the Chancellor's Residence was still brightly lit. The other minor officials were gone; only Zhang Cang remained, sitting in the residence, reviewing documents. In the silent night, the night breeze blew into the hall, causing the candle flames to flicker.

***

The nights after Grain Rain were even warmer than in the third month, making it easier for drowsiness to take hold. Two or three servants stood in the residence, but sleep had already overcome their reason; they were so dazed they did not even notice the Chancellor had returned. Only Zhang Cang remained, his expression focused as he wrote comments on the documents.

Li Si stepped forward and said, "That Mao Heng is cursing me again by the canal, saying that the old scoundrel Li Si is unforgivable."

Hearing this, Zhang Cang hurriedly set down his brush and bowed. The surrounding servants suddenly roused themselves and bowed as well.

Li Si said, "Naturally, I will not lower myself to argue with him."

Zhang Cang replied, "Back when we were under Xunzi, Mao Heng was already at odds with the Chancellor. So many years have passed, and nothing has changed."

Li Si sat down and looked at the documents that had been reviewed, satisfied with each roll. He said, "And then there is Chunyu Yue, who is complaining again about how the Prince enslaves his servants... Haha... I have already applied the rules the Prince uses for his servants to the construction of the Great Wall. Results should be visible within half a year."

Zhang Cang said, "The Prince is young and his actions lack consideration. I will surely take care to guide him."

Li Si nodded, pondered for a moment, and said, "His Majesty is going to increase the number of troops in the north again."

When the Chancellor finished organizing the bamboo slips and was about to end his shift, Zhang Cang handed over the scroll he had prepared earlier and bowed, saying, "Chancellor, this is what I have written."

It should be said that this was the method for selecting and employing officials that he had written, inspired by the Prince. It mostly improved upon the concept of "using officials as teachers," yet it did not abandon the core idea, giving the Legalist philosophy advocated by Han Fei or Li Si a different flavor.

Li Si held down the bamboo scroll and said, "Fetch Feng Quji."

Half an hour later, the Right Chancellor, Feng Quji, arrived in a hurry, unsure of what major event had occurred late at night. When he saw Li Si and Zhang Cang there, he approached. Li Si handed him the bamboo scroll and said, "Right Chancellor, please take a look."

Feng Quji first straightened his robes and read it carefully. As he read, his expression grew increasingly solemn, and he paced back and forth, occasionally muttering to himself. Li Si picked up some dried dates from the side, chewed them, and shared some with Zhang Cang.

After a long while, Feng Quji closed the bamboo scroll and asked, "Chancellor, what is your intention?"

Li Si said, "What does the Right Chancellor think?"

"It cannot be done!" Feng Quji said. "At least not now. The people in the former six states are still here; I fear it would incite even greater calamity."

Li Si’s eyes grew sharper. "Do they not want to restore the feudal system? This method of selecting officials would completely sever their thoughts of feudalism."

Feng Quji shook his head slowly. "Chancellor, the time for this strategy has not yet arrived."

Li Si looked at Zhang Cang. "Then should we let His Majesty see it?"

Just as Zhang Cang was about to speak, Feng Quji said again, "Even less so. If His Majesty sees this method of selection, he will surely push to implement it. By then, neither you nor I will be able to stop it."

Li Si put another dried date in his mouth, chewing as he pondered. Late at night, it grew even quieter. A gust of wind blew into the residence, and Zhang Cang continued, "I shall take this back and refine the strategy further."

Li Si finally nodded. Feng Quji also expressed his agreement. The three of them finally reached a consensus: this was a sharp sword, but it could not be used lightly. Once used, no one knew what kind of disaster it would cause; at the very least, it had to be implemented step by step.

Zhang Cang left the Chancellor's Residence with the scroll. For some reason, Li Si felt a sense of regret—like finding a treasure, yet being unable to use it. The three men’s late-night conversation felt like it had temporarily stabilized the state of the Great Qin. The night was like ink; this night was no different from any other, and the darkness over Xianyang was as tranquil as always.

Walking on the streets of Xianyang, Zhang Cang recalled the words the Prince had once spoken: there are no perfect choices in this world; one must always sacrifice a part of something.

The next day, plowing the fields was a major event in Guanzhong. After the Grain Rain, Guanzhong was incredibly busy, and agricultural work became the top priority for everyone. Fusu left Xianyang and headed toward Shangyan Mountain, where he witnessed a magnificent sight.

Zhang Cang rode his horse alongside him, speechless for a long time at the scene. Every plot of land was being farmed; families of three or five were pushing plows or driving oxen, racing to get the grain planted.

Tian An, driving the carriage, shouted, "Prince, many nearby counties also want to plant more wheat."

Zhang Cang said, "Wheat ripens early; after the summer harvest, one can plant beans."

The group arrived at Shangyan Mountain and saw Shusun Tong riding a donkey. A group of children was chasing him in play.

"Stop it, don't pull my beard!"

Even though Shusun Tong said this, the children reached out one after another to grab his long beard. Looking closely, one could see that the old gentleman's beard was indeed much thinner than before. Afterward, Shusun Tong was dragged away by the children to play again. Fusu could not understand how this old man could be so happy playing with a group of children.

"Shusun Tong is a scholar, yet he ignores court affairs and only cares to play with children here. I wonder what the teacher would think if he knew."

Fusu muttered to himself, then saw Li You digging a well. Since Li You was a military commander, seeing him digging in the dirt made Fusu feel relieved.

Having been to Hangu Pass, things here were still the same upon his return. General Zhang Han was still overseeing the place. Many mulberry saplings had been planted on the mountain, and Zhang Han said quite earnestly, "Prince, I have cleared a field on the hillside, intending to plant it full of celery."

Fusu smiled. "Yes, celery is good; it can be used to make pickled celery. Hmm... plant more radishes as well."

Zhang Han cupped his hands. "I obey, Prince."

After the Grain Rain, every county began plowing. The soldiers who had gone on the campaign had all returned, and Fusu saw a scene of a family of six or seven sitting in the fields eating. In the newly turned soil, the family—consisting of aged grandparents, a young couple, and two or three children—sat together. While eating, they would even greet their neighbors who were also eating in the fields. After finishing their meal, the family would continue to plow the land.

As Fusu was watching this sight, a troop of horses entered his field of vision. When they drew near, Fusu saw clearly who it was and smiled. "Greetings, Shaofu."

Wang Ben dismounted and bowed with a smile. "Prince, my father asked me to bring some goods."

Fusu stepped forward and asked, "When does the construction of the West Wei River begin?"

Although he was the Du Shui Zhang (Director of Waterways) and Zhang Cang was the Gong Shi Ling (Director of the Workshop), the scheduling for building the West Wei Bridge still had to be arranged by the Shaofu, one of the Nine Ministers.

Wang Ben said, "It will start after the spring plowing, during the dry season. The Right Chancellor will arrange the manpower."

Since the matter involved the Right Chancellor and was overseen by him, Fusu felt that at most he could only say a few words about minor details. After all, it was a matter of state, and as a Prince of the Great Qin, he was still young.

The feeling of being treated like a child was very unpleasant; they might as well have said, "Leave it to me, Prince!"

That was about how it was...

Fusu asked, "What good goods did your family bring?"

Wang Ben led the men to the back of the line, lifted the cloth covering one of the carriages, and smiled. "Twenty carriages of rhinoceros hide."

Rhinoceros hide was indeed a precious item; it could be used for armor, belts, medicine, and even shields. While the various states still existed, rhinoceros hide was something they all stockpiled before war. Fusu thought of the south, where there were likely still herds of rhinoceroses. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, rhinoceros hide was counted by the carriage load and was an important type of leather.

Fusu felt troubled looking at the hides. Wang Ben noticed the Prince's expression and was also very confused. What troubled Fusu was what to do with all this rhinoceros hide? It wasn't as if he was going to make leather armor for his servants; they weren't going to war.

General Wang Jian was now the wealthiest man in Guanzhong besides the First Emperor himself. He was generous, sending dozens of carriages of rhinoceros hide at once. Fusu looked at the carriages of hide, not knowing how to handle them. Even if he had sent some grain, that would have been practical. His three thousand servants lacked for nothing except grain.

Wang Ben saw that the Prince had not spoken for a long time, and he too fell silent.

Fusu said, "We are far too short on grain; I can't have them gnawing on rhinoceros hide."

It should be said that Guanzhong, and indeed the entire world, was short on grain.

"Shaofu Wang."

"I am here," Wang Ben stepped forward respectfully.

"Can this be exchanged for grain?"

"This..." Wang Ben was also in a difficult spot. A carriage of rhinoceros hide could be exchanged for dozens of carriages of grain, but the problem was that even his family, with their ten-thousand-stone salary, was currently short on grain. That salary would not be received until after this year's summer harvest.

Fusu added, "Rhinoceros hide is quite good, too. Shangyan Mountain will accept it."

Wang Ben finally let out a long sigh of relief. At last, he could go back and answer to his old father.