After receiving the imperial edict from the King of Qin, Fan Ju and Bai Qi showed complicated expressions.
It seems confused, like I can't believe it, like I'm sad, happy, and disappointed.
Zhu Xiang has been living with the two elders for many years, but it is difficult for him to tell what they are thinking at the moment.
But after that day, Bai Qi's health improved, while Fan Ju, although not sick, felt a little unwell again.
Bai Qi whispered to Zhu Xiang: "Ying Hou is very grateful to His Majesty, but I have to realize once again that the former lord has passed away."
Zhu Xiang made random guesses, and Fan Gong was depressed again, probably because King Qin Zhu and King Qin Zhaoxiang had completely different styles of doing things. He realized that King Qin Zhaoxiang's era was indeed over, and now the traces of King Qin Zhaoxiang were gradually being stripped away and replaced by the new king from the court to the people, and he felt sad.
Fan Ju did not make any mistakes in his life, so he maintained a relationship of both king and friend with King Zhaoxiang of Qin until his death. Although he complained about King Zhaoxiang's suspicion in his later years, after King Zhaoxiang's death, the things he was dissatisfied with became dim with the washing of sadness, and the things he missed in the years became more and more shining like gold grains washed by river water and sand.
Even if Fan Ju wanted to return to the court now, King Zhu of Qin would probably have to move the story of "greeting someone with the shoes turned upside down" back to the Warring States Period. However, Fan Ju, the ambitious prime minister during the reign of King Zhaoxiang of Qin, has now lost all his spirit.
The people around Fan Ju tried to comfort him, and Zhu Xiang also took care of him wholeheartedly. Fan Ju occasionally pulled himself together, inspired his survival instinct, or thought about taking care of the new king for the former lord.
But he may be too old. His heart knows what is best to do, but his body cannot cheer up as well as his reason.
I'm old, just old, so old that I can't even walk.
When Fan Ju was welcomed back to his fiefdom by his eldest son, he stayed for a day beside the tomb of King Zhaoxiang of Qin.
When Bai Qi learned about this, his face turned pale. He thought to himself that it was a good thing that he left later. Otherwise, Fan Ju went to the tomb of the former lord, and he did not go. Wouldn't it bring disaster to his family? Why didn't Yinghou tell me in advance? There was no tacit understanding at all.
When Fan Ju was ill, his family came to Xianyang, so Fan Ju left for a few days.
Ten days later, Bai Qi was also ready to leave.
Before leaving, he left all the military books to Zhu Xiang and asked Zhu Xiang to give them away to anyone he wanted.
Zhu Xiang asked, "Mr. Bai, if you take good care of yourself, you may be able to go to the battlefield. Mr. Lian is still in the barracks."
Bai Qi smiled bitterly: "If I am healthy enough, I would naturally want to come back. But my body..."
Bai Qi went south to attack Chu and east to attack the Three Jins. The territory he crossed was much larger than that of Lian Po. The long-distance raids and the differences in water and soil took a particularly heavy toll on his body.
None of Bai Qi's sons were capable, so he wanted to live a few more years and raise a grandson to inherit his legacy. Otherwise, according to the Qin system, if there was no capable person among three generations, the family might fall into decline.
In fact, some of Bai Qi's sons were capable of fighting, but they were not considered generals and were at most middle-level generals.
Bai Qi felt very upset when he saw Li Mu and the up-and-coming Wang Jian. He was so capable, why didn't he have sons like Li Mu and Wang Jian
Forget it, teach your grandson well. If you can't teach him well, throw him to Zhu Xiang to teach him and let him learn to farm from Zhu Xiang.
Before leaving, Fan Ju and Bai Qi talked to Zhu Xiang about their family members.
Now is the time for Qin to change, and those who can gain a foothold in the Qin court are truly capable people. However, although Fan Ju and Bai Qi's sons will not enter the court, they can serve as county governors and county magistrates, and at least be mid-level generals in military affairs. In fact, they are not defeated and are still Qin nobles.
Just looking at Zhu Xiang and the young friends around him, the two old people always feel a little disappointed with their children and grandchildren.
When Bai Qi left, he gave Ying Xiaozheng a jade pendant that he always kept close to his body.
He heard from Zhu Xiang's casual chat that the evil spirit of a general can ward off evil spirits, so Li Mu gave Ying Xiaozheng his close-fitting dagger. He also gave Ying Xiaozheng the jade pendant.
Moreover, this jade pendant is an ancestral heirloom and is said to belong to the Qin royal family.
Only then did Zhu Xiang realize that the civilian war gods of the Warring States Period, like the humble scholars of later generations, were also descendants of famous families hundreds of years ago.
Bai Qi's ancestor was Prince Bai, the son of Qin Wugong. His descendants took their ancestor's name as their surname, Bai. So when Bai Qi first entered the army, he called himself "Gongsun Qi" to intimidate his superiors by using his ancestor to get promoted.
However, when he achieved success, Bai Qi immediately changed his surname back.
After all, hundreds of years ago, the ancestors of the Bai family did not even dare to call themselves the Ying surname Bai family, but only called themselves the Bai family. Now that Bai Qi's status was high, it was naturally not easy for him to use the tiger's skin as a banner.
Even Bai Qi doubted whether his ancestor was Gongzi Bai, because his family had a genealogy that said his ancestor was Baili Xi, because the fiefs of Gongzi Bai and Baili Xi were both in his hometown.
Bai Qi even complained to Zhu Xiang about his ancestors and family tree, which shows how much he trusts Zhu Xiang.
He is just a little bit away from reaching three hearts of favorability, which of course proves that Bai Qi is living very comfortably in Zhu Xiang's family.
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "Mr. Bai is like my family. My ancestors were also descendants of the princes of Lin State. By the time of my father's generation, they were commoners. In this era, it is very common for one generation to be a prince and the next to be a commoner."
Bai Qi stroked his beard and said, "It is to teach the next generation well."
He must have been busy fighting and failed to educate his descendants well. When he returned home, he focused on helping his descendants to make progress.
Ying Xiaozheng patted his chest and said, "It doesn't matter. When I become the King of Qin, I will recognize the Baigong branch as the Ying family name again!"
Zhu Xiang laughed out loud, revealing Ying Xiaozheng's thoughts: "The most powerful Wu'an Jun in Qin is a member of our family, a royal bloodline, right? Hahaha, Zheng'er, why do you want to move all the good things to your own home?"
Ying Xiaozheng was furious: "I'm not! I didn't!"
Zhu Xiang ignored his nephew's anger and continued laughing.
Bai Qi, Lin Zhi and others also laughed. They all thought it was just a child's joke and didn't take it seriously.
After becoming the prime minister, Xunzi was busy with official duties and had already moved into the house near the Xianyang Palace awarded by Qin Wangzhu. He only came back occasionally during his days off. After Bai Qi and Fan Ju left, Zhu Xiang immediately felt that his home was much quieter.
But he was leaving soon, so it didn't matter.
Xue Ji was happy that she didn't have to stay in Xianyang as a hostage this time and could travel with her lover and children, but she was also worried about the long journey.
I heard that it would take a very long boat ride to go to Wu County, which had just been established in Qin State. Whether in Zhao State or Qin State, there were very few opportunities to take a boat ride, so Xue Ji was a little scared.
Zhu Xiang said, "If you are afraid, shall we take a carriage?"
Xue Ji shook her head: "I heard that boats are less bumpy than carriages. Zheng'er is young, so it's better for him to take a boat. I'm scared now, but I won't be scared after riding it for a while."
Zhu Xiang said: "Okay, if you are afraid, don't go on the deck. It should be better if you can't see water in the cabin."
Xue Ji nodded. No matter how scared she was, it didn't matter as long as she was with her lover and children.
Zhu Xiang had not been reunited with Lin Zhi and Cai Ze for long before he had to leave again.
Cai Ze saw him off in a very normal manner, while Lin Zhi sat on the ground howling and saying that Zhu Xiang was an ungrateful man.
Cai Ze could no longer bear it and said to Zichu, "When you become the King of Qin, please exile Lin Li."
Zichu said, "Okay, I think so too."
Lin Zhi howled even louder, calling Cai Ze and Zichu ungrateful men.
Hearing that Zhu Xiang was going on another long journey, Xunzi's worries were gone and he hurried to see him off. Before he saw his shadow, he heard Lin Zhi's howling.
Han Fei and Li Si, who shamelessly came to the banquet to attend, initially thought that Lin Zhi was crying about parting. When they approached and heard the content of Lin Zhi's crying, both of them turned pale and quickly covered their ears.
Did we hear something we shouldn't have heard? Could it be that brothers turned against each other, and close friends became enemies? !
Xunzi's face changed, he slammed his crutch on the ground and rushed over.
Han Fei hurriedly followed: "Xunzi! Walk slowly, be careful not to fall!"
Huh? Han Fei stopped stuttering? No, now is not the time to focus on this! Li Si also hurried over: "Xunzi! Xunzi, watch your step!"
When Lin Zhi heard the word "Xunzi", he immediately rolled over and ran away.
Xunzi held up his cane and said, "Look at the cane, you little bastard!"
Lin Zhi wiped away the non-existent tears on his face and said, "I was just joking with them, don't be angry, Xunzi!"
Xunzi angrily rebuked: "You insulted Zhu Xiang and betrayed his loyalty. You slandered the crown prince and the prime minister for persecuting virtuous officials. You should be executed!"
Lin Zhi didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "I was really just joking!" Why did Xunzi come? Wasn't Xunzi still angry with Zhu Xiang? He thought Xunzi would definitely not participate in their ridiculous farewell party and would meet with Zhu Xiang privately.
"What's wrong? Why did Lin Qing get beaten again?" Xunzi chased Lin Zhi around, and Qin Wangzhu Buyi came late, "Lin Qing, what did you do again? Apologize to Xunzi quickly!"
After seeing enough of the fun, Zhu Xiang and Ying Xiaozheng hugged Xunzi's arm and waist respectively to stop Xunzi from beating Lin Zhi.
"Xunzi, forget it, that's just who he is. He studied Laozi and Zhuangzi."
"That's right, Mr. Xun, Uncle Lin practiced Laozi and Zhuangzi, and that's how he was. Don't get angry with the descendants of Laozi and Zhuangzi, it's too much to handle."
Lin Zhi patted his clothes and said, "Xunzi, I was just joking. They said even more outrageous things when they joked in private. Zhu Xiang, right?"
"You big-headed devil, why don't you apologize quickly!" Zhu Xiang scolded, "It's okay for you to be beaten, but what if Xunzi is mad at you?"
Ying Xiaozheng agreed: "Yes, Uncle Lin, please apologize quickly."
Lin Zhi bowed and said: "Xunzi, I was wrong!" Just admit your mistake, admit it immediately!
Lin Zhi admitted his mistake cleanly and neatly, and Xunzi felt so angry that he couldn't get over it. He really wanted to go find Lin Zhi's teacher to settle the score.
"Get out!" Xunzi straightened his clothes, hit Lin Zhi on the back with his cane, and then stopped beating Lin Zhi because the King of Qin was there.
"Are you two still my friends? You just stood there and watched me get beaten?" After Lin Zhi saluted the King of Qin, he went to find trouble with Cai Ze and Zichu.
Cai Ze rolled his eyes at Lin Zhi and ignored him with his hands in his pockets.
Zichu smiled and said, "You know I'm weak, so it doesn't matter if you get hit, but what if I get hit by Xunzi by accident?"
Zhu Xiang tried to smooth things over: "Okay, okay, I and Zheng'er are here to protect you, what else are you dissatisfied with?"
"How dare I be dissatisfied with the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister?" Lin Zhi said sarcastically.
Cai Ze said calmly: "Then shut up."
Lin Zhi was about to make an insulting gesture to Cai Zebi, but under Xunzi's watchful eyes, he endured it.
Qin Wangzhu watched the excitement and said cheerfully, "Isn't it a banquet? Why hasn't it started yet? I'm hungry. Eh? Han Fei, who is the person next to you? Why haven't I seen him before?"
Han Fei stammered, "Yes, it's a friend, Li Si."
Li Si: “…”
Your Majesty, I am... the King of Qin?!
Li Si regretted it. He heard from Han Fei that only Zhu Xianggong's friends came to see him off, and he was about to present another policy paper to Zhu Xianggong. When Han Fei asked him if he wanted to go with him, he shamelessly agreed.
Xunzi didn't say he couldn't go, so Li Si thought it shouldn't be a problem for him to just go and get some face.
Aren't Zhu Xianggong's friends the prime minister Cai Qing and Lin Qing, who succeeded Cai Qing as prime minister? If he could make himself familiar with the prime minister and prime minister, it would be very useful for his career.
It would be even better if I could meet the prince.
But Li Si never expected that he would meet the King of Qin directly!
He is not ready to meet the King of Qin directly yet. If he leaves a bad impression on the King of Qin, won't his official career be ruined immediately
Moreover, it is rumored that the King of Qin is suspicious and cunning. Would he misunderstand that he deliberately came to the nobleman to make himself familiar
Although he did think so, he didn't want the King of Qin to think so!
Li Si was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to react.
First... Kneel down first? Or be neither humble nor arrogant...
What the hell! Li Si fell to his knees with a thump: "I pay my respects to the king!"
"Your Majesty? Are you from Chu?" As soon as King Qin Zhu heard the title and accent, he realized Li Si's origin.
Li Si said nervously, "Yes! I came from Chu State to study under Xunzi!"
Qin Wangzhu's face had just become stern after seeing the stranger, but when he heard that Li Si came with Xunzi, he immediately became gentle again: "Since you are Xunzi's disciple, stand up and take good care of Xunzi."
Xunzi was old and had been overworked recently, and Han Fei was still a little stutterer, so it was normal for him to have another disciple accompanying him.
For a great sage like Xunzi, the disciples around him were almost like servants. If he wanted to show off, he could bring as many disciples as others brought servants to a banquet.
"Li Si is Han Fei's friend and also a talented person. I had planned to recommend him to Your Majesty after he polished his policy papers. Now that I have met him today, let Your Majesty get to know him first." Zhu Xiang looked at Li Si, who was kneeling on the ground and trembling, and helped Li Si. "But he, like Han Fei, still needs to be polished. Now he is too impetuous and needs to cultivate his character."
Duke Xiang of Zhu affirmed his talent but denied his character, and Li Si felt mixed emotions of sadness and joy.
King Qin Zhudu trusted Zhu Xiang's recommendation 100%.
He immediately helped Li Si up and said kindly, "It's rare for Zhu Xiang to recommend someone, and the person he recommends must be a great sage in the future. You must hone your skills well, and I will wait for you to enter the court."
Li Si was filled with gratitude: "Yes, Your Majesty!"
"Zhu Xiang, is it better for him to hone his skills under Cai Qing or Lin Qing?" Qin Wangzhu let go of Li Si, too lazy to think, and asked directly.
Since he is a talent, he should be used immediately even if he has a bad character. We can't stay in the Xianyang Academy like Han Fei and quarrel with others every day.
Zhu Xiang said, "Both are fine. What Li Si lacks is the basis for advancement and retreat, and the principles of firmness and flexibility. If he learns a little bit from Cai Ze and Lin Li, he will benefit a lot. It all depends on which direction the monarch wants to train him, or who is more in need of someone around Cai Ze and Lin Li."
The basis for advancing and retreating, the principle of hardness and softness... Qin Wangzhu pondered for a moment and asked in confusion: "Why doesn't he sound like a Confucian scholar?"
Xunzi said: "There are also Confucian disciples who do not know how to advance or retreat, or how to be firm or flexible."
Zhu Xiang said: "Your Majesty is wise! I can tell from the first glance that he studied Legalism!"
Xunzi: “…”
Li Si: “…”
Xunzi's hand holding the cane trembled slightly.
Qin Wangzhu coughed a few times and said, "Xianyang Academy contains hundreds of schools of thought. You can learn anything. Xunzi, I am a little tired. Come in and rest with me first."
He hurriedly pulled Xunzi away regardless of his status, and before leaving, he gave Zhu Xiang a look that said "you are doing bad things again".
Zhu Xiang felt wronged. He had done nothing bad, he just spoke too quickly.
"Hahaha, Xunzi is the most valued disciple, and the two disciples he brings with him both tend to be Legalists." Lin Zhi covered his mouth and laughed.
Cai Ze glanced at Lin Zhi and said, "You still know how to whisper? I thought you dared to laugh loudly."
Zichu said, "If he dared to laugh loudly, Xunzi would not have to do it himself, Zhu Xiang would have beaten him to death. He really wanted to piss Xunzi off to death. Are you Li Si?"
Zichu looked at Li Si, who was covered in dirt and looked silly, and said, "Go and comb your clothes quickly. Xunzi will be even angrier if he sees that your clothes are not clean."
Han Fei also came to his senses, quickly apologized to Zhu Xiang and others, and then took Li Si to sort it out.
On the way, Han Fei asked in a low voice: "You actually didn't tell Xunzi that you were studying law?"
Li Si replied in a low voice: "Do I dare to say it!"
Han Fei puffed out his chest and said, "I dare!"
Li Si: “…” Oh, that’s great.
Seeing Han Fei and Li Si leave, the master of alienation Cai Ze said sharply: "Are they friends? They are friends on the surface but not on the heart."
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "Friendship is real, but I'm afraid Li Si wants to curry favor with Zhu Xiang by being close to Han Fei."
Zichu said: "It is normal for a scholar to seek an official position. As long as he has talent, Qin will not reject him. But Zhu Xiang, you have to be careful."
Ying Xiaozheng kept nodding.
His future right-hand man and left-hand man, Prime Minister Li Si, was still too young and was seen through by his elders at a glance.
In other words, Han Fei is stupid.
In my own memory in the dream, it seems that the future Han Fei is not very smart in understanding human nature
Oh, this guy is really troublesome. Even if I don't kill him, will he jump into another pit on his own
"I know that he is a jackal who only cares about interests. He will follow whoever is beneficial to him. So I am not afraid of him." Zhu Xiang smiled, "I have three generations of kings, Jun Shang, Xia Tong and Zheng Er, to protect me. He will only flatter me and dare not be my enemy."
Ying Xiaozheng continued to nod: "That's true."
Zhu Xiang said: "Although Li Si has character flaws, he is not very smart in dealing with people. He is not very good at wielding power. Instead, he is easily exploited and brings about his own destruction. So there is no need to be afraid."
Ying Xiaozheng kept nodding: "That's right."
Zichu rubbed Ying Xiaozheng's head vigorously: "You know it again?"
Ying Xiaozheng raised his head proudly: "I just know it!"
"Well, you know everything," Zichu said. "Before you leave Xianyang, your father will hold a hunting ceremony at the foot of Mount Li, and ask you to show your bravery in the ceremony. Since you are so proud, how many prey can you hunt?"
Ying Xiaozheng was surprised: "What? Why haven't I heard of it?!"
Zichu said, "How long have you been hiding at home? Your father has just made up his mind, so he should be ready to tell you today."
Zhu Xiang was puzzled: "Although we have completed the national mourning period, the king has not yet completed the mourning period. Why doesn't Xunzi stop the king from hunting?"
Hunting was a form of entertainment for the nobility, and excessive indulgence in hunting would be considered as laziness. However, due to the integration of Qin and Rongdi cultures, the kings of Qin all liked hunting and regarded hunting as a military action similar to military exercises and parades, giving it a political color. Xunzi saw this when he formulated the Qin Li and standardized the hunting etiquette.
However, although Xunzi did not stop the monarch from hunting, he should also prohibit the monarch from killing animals during the filial period.
Zichu said, "Your Majesty will not start a war in the short term, but the six eastern countries are ready to make a move, and Your Majesty wants to demonstrate his strength through winter hunting. Your Majesty and I will not participate in the hunting, and Zheng'er will preside over it."
Zhu Xiang pressed Ying Xiaozheng's head and asked: "Zheng'er, this little guy, is leading the hunt?"
Ying Xiaozheng jumped up and hit Zhu Xiang's arm with his head: "How am I small? I will definitely hunt a deer for you!"
"It means to fight for the throne in the Central Plains, right?" Zhu Xiang laughed. "Okay. Uncle and aunt are going to prepare to go south, so I'm afraid they can't go hunting. Can you do it alone?"
Although "Zhu Lu" is an allusion to the late Qin Dynasty in "Records of the Grand Historian", it has already been recorded in "Spring and Autumn Annals", so Zhu Xiang immediately understood what Ying Xiaozheng meant.
Ying Xiaozheng puffed out his chest: "Yes!"
Zhu Xiang said: "I will prepare a lunch box for you."
Ying Xiaozheng nodded: "Yeah!"
Zichu held his forehead with his hand and said, "We are just going hunting, not marching to fight. Why are you preparing a lunch box? Will the Imperial Garden be short of food for him?"
"Zhu Xiang, why don't you come in?" Qin Wangzhu shouted from the doorway, "What are you guys talking about outside?!"
Even if these kids forgot that he was the King of Qin, they should at least remember that Xunzi and I were their elders, right? ! Xunzi got angry again after leaving his elders aside to chat!
"Here they come!" Zhu Xiang, Ying Xiaozheng, Zichu and Cai Ze hurried inside.
Lin Zhi said, "I'm going to change my clothes and come in with Han Fei and Li Si later. I'm afraid they will be embarrassed to come in."
He waved his hand and went straight to Zhu Xiang's room to find Zhu Xiang's clothes to change.
After changing his clothes, Lin Zhi returned to the courtyard and saw Han Fei and Li Si wandering outside the door.
"Come in when you come. Xunzi is waiting for you to serve him." Lin Zhi said with a smile, "Li Si, would you like to work as a clerk under me for a while?"
Li Si said excitedly: "Thank you, Prime Minister, for your kindness!"
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "Zhu Xiang is my younger brother, so I will naturally take good care of the people he recommended. Don't worry, I don't have much to do here, just some laws and regulations about land tax, you will be able to get started quickly."
He had to take a good look at this person's character, so as not to tarnish Zhu Xiang's reputation of "all those who recommended him are great sages."
Even though Li Si was a wolf at heart, he wanted Li Si to appear to be a sage on the surface.
Li Si pretended to be a great sage all his life, and he was indeed a great sage.
If you attach too much importance to something, you will expose your weakness to others, just like Han Fei to Han State, and power is Li Si's weakness. As long as he can grasp Li Si's weakness, Lin Zhi is confident that he can easily control and use Li Si.
Lin Zhi praised Li Si with just a few words. Li Si began to realize how much benefit the title of "recommended by Duke Zhu Xiang" would bring him.
Han Fei showed doubt in his eyes. After thinking for a while, he sighed in his heart.
Li Si fell into the trap.
However, Duke Zhu Xiang’s friends must also be kind people, so it should be fine. I won’t remind him. Let Li Si figure it out on his own. This must be a test!
(End of this chapter)