When Meng Wu was chatting about official business with Lu Buwei and Li Si, he did not forget to care about his son's situation.
When he learned that Zhu Xiang had given his son some advice, he gave his son a look that was so disappointing that Meng Tian almost lowered his head to his chest.
"I'll give you a chance. If you don't seize it, don't say you are my son in the future." Meng Wu said sternly.
Meng Tian didn't dare to refute a word.
Meng Wu found Zhu Xiang and Ying Xiaozheng to apologize, saying that if his son was really incompetent, he should find someone else, as he could not afford to lose face.
Zhu Xiang laughed: "Your Tian'er is not that bad. He is very respectful to Zheng'er and behaves well among his peers. Zheng'er is dissatisfied with him only because he has not yet accepted Zheng'er as his master. But this is not his fault. Mentality is not something that can be adjusted immediately if you want to."
It's just like everyone who has just started working knows that the more respectful they are to their boss, the chances of promotion they will get, but few people can actually do it.
Meng Tian did nothing wrong in his behavior, but seeing that Ying Xiaozheng was young, it was difficult for him to treat him as his "father". If it was any other prince of Qin, Meng Tian's behavior would not be a problem, and the relationship could be cultivated slowly.
Ying Xiaozheng was arrogant and had high demands on others, so Zhu Xiang indulged him.
Zhu Xiang treats the people around Ying Xiaozheng like a naughty parent doting on his naughty child, "My son Zheng is very good. If he is not satisfied with you, then you should change."
After he said this jokingly, Ying Xiaozheng was not moved, but glared at Zhu Xiang fiercely.
Meng Wu couldn't help laughing: "Indeed, Zheng'er can't be wrong, let Tian'er correct it."
He knew that Zhu Xiang was telling him in a tactful way that Ying Xiaozheng's temperament was similar to that of the former lord, and that he was born to be a king. The more Meng Tian served Ying Xiaozheng, the more he would learn to get along with the "King of Qin" in advance, and the smoother his future would be.
The King of Qin was not satisfied with his subjects, so of course the subjects had to either correct themselves or pack up and leave. Could this be a way of rebelling against the king
Meng Wu had served as a guard for King Zhaoxiang of Qin and had a very clear understanding of this point.
"Your son still has some talent, don't worry too much." Zhu Xiang comforted, "He is young, still a child, don't be too harsh on him."
Meng Wu sighed and half-jokingly said, "Child? After spending so much time with Zheng'er, it's hard not to be harsh on the 'child'."
Zhu Xiang touched Ying Xiaozheng's head and said, "There's nothing we can do about it. Zheng'er is just amazing."
Ying Xiaozheng shook his head, feeling slightly dissatisfied.
He wanted to tie his hair up as soon as possible and didn't want his uncle to touch his head like a child.
Seeing Ying Xiaozheng shaking his head, Zhu Xiang touched it again.
Ying Xiaozheng continued to swing.
Zhu Xiang continued to touch.
Ying Xiaozheng butted Zhu Xiang with his head, left his annoying uncle, and went to play with his aunt.
Zhu Xiang sighed: "Is Zheng'er going to enter the rebellious stage so early?"
Meng Wu laughed.
After receiving sincere words from Zhu Xiang and Ying Xiaozheng, Meng Wu no longer mentioned letting Meng Tian leave, and carefully taught Meng Tian his experience as the guard of King Qin.
The most important thing for a king to do as a servant is to be cautious and to read his words and expressions. After Meng Wu's father, Meng Ao, entered Qin, he was highly valued by King Zhaoxiang of Qin. Meng Tian was the third generation of the Meng family after entering Qin, and he was also an arrogant nobleman on weekdays.
But if he wants to go further, he must suppress his pride and willingly become the king's "servant."
For the King of Qin, no matter how tolerant he was to the ministers, all the ministers were his "concubines". If he had not recognized this, Meng Tian would have sought to be sent out, which would have been better for him and his family.
Meng Tian actually knew this in his heart, but he was young and energetic, so it was inevitable that he felt awkward going from being served to serving others.
But he will become a favorite of Qin Shihuang in the future, and he will adjust his mentality quickly.
In less than ten days, Ying Xiaozheng went from raising his eyebrows and glaring at him to sharing half of the boiled eggs that he didn't like with him.
Then, Zhu Xiang gave Ying Xiaozheng another boiled egg. Ying Xiaozheng never shared any boiled eggs with Meng Tian.
"My uncle is so abominable." Ying Xiaozheng complained to Meng Tian, "When I was a kid, I didn't like boiled eggs, so my uncle would come up with different ways to make steamed eggs, fried eggs, or poached eggs for me. Now he's like, 'Zheng'er, you've grown up, you can't be picky about food!'"
Meng Tian looked at a loss.
It is really difficult to be a qualified attendant. His own father didn't teach him how to respond when his master complains about his close elders.
If he agreed with the young master and said "Ah, yes, yes, yes", the young master would probably let him go the next day; but if he didn't agree with the young master... Meng Tian broke out in a cold sweat.
Fortunately, Zhu Xiang was nearby and heard Ying Xiaozheng's complaints and saved Meng Tian.
"That's right, Zheng'er has grown up, and you are not allowed to be picky about food anymore." Zhu Xiang pressed Ying Xiaozheng's head into his arms and squeezed it. "Don't bully Meng Tian. How will he respond if you complain to him about me?"
While struggling, Ying Xiaozheng said, "As a subject, of course you have to agree with me!"
Zhu Xiang said: "As a minister, you should advise the king on inappropriate words and deeds. He should say with a straight face, sir, Lord Changping is right!"
Ying Xiaozheng was so angry that he howled, and then Zhu Xiang blocked his mouth with a piece of plum jam cake.
He immediately stopped struggling, holding the cake in both hands, his cheeks puffed out like a hamster.
Zhu Xiang looked at his nephew, the big hamster, and felt a great sense of accomplishment.
Look, I raised the First Emperor's cub into a little foodie who is satisfied as long as he is fed delicious food. Who in the future wouldn't say that I'm awesome!
Zhu Xiang winked at Meng Tian.
Meng Tian understood, and while Ying Xiaozheng's mouth was blocked by the steamed cake, he quickly left to avoid Ying Xiaozheng's complaints.
After eating a steamed cake, Ying Xiaozheng licked his fingers and said, "He is so boring." Why would the great Ying Zheng in the dream favor a dull person
Zhu Xiang took out a handkerchief and wiped Ying Xiaozheng's hands and mouth: "He is not familiar with you yet. When I was not familiar with your father..."
Ying Xiaozheng raised his head: "When you are not familiar with it?"
Zhu Xiang showed a look of reminiscence: "When we were not familiar with each other, I deducted his wages because he made a mistake in the calculation."
Ying Xiaozheng burst into laughter and threw himself into Zhu Xiang's arms, asking his uncle to tell him more about his father's dark history.
Zhu Xiang then took Ying Xiaozheng to find Xue Ji, and the couple secretly spoke ill of Zichu.
Zhu Xiang: I am telling the truth, how can it be called bad words
Meng Tian accidentally heard it once and left quickly.
After Meng Wu found out, he unceremoniously brought a small stool and sat down beside him to listen to the funny stories that the future King of Qin had told him.
Meng Tian was shocked to see his father behaving like this.
My dear father, didn’t you say that I should be cautious when serving as a servant
Once again, Meng Tian felt that his own father's words and actions were inconsistent and he was not worthy of being a role model.
The relaxed and happy life of Zhu Xiang's family of three made Lu Buwei and Li Si envious again.
Han Fei couldn't help but feel a little depressed.
He thought of the King of Han and the royal family of Han. No matter whether it was the current King of Han or the future King of Han, their talents and growing environment were not even comparable to that of Prince Zheng's little finger.
It is really just wishful thinking for him to save South Korea.
Fortunately, when the ship docked, Zhu Xiang instructed him to get busy and he soon stopped thinking about random things.
This time when he came to Southern Qin, Zhu Xiang mainly did two things. The first was the trade war, but now he was just setting up a textile workshop to make preliminary preparations for the trade war.
After Zhu Xiang discussed with Xue Ji, Zhu Xiang found that Xue Ji was fully capable of doing this task, so he asked Xue Ji and Lu Buwei to recruit workers and do business.
During the Warring States Period, most men were conscripted to join the army, and many women in the society went into business to support their families. Women were best at textiles, so Lü Buwei was very cooperative.
The second thing Zhu Xiang did was to guide spring plowing, which was also his job.
This trip to the south to guide spring ploughing was different from the last time. Last time, Zhu Xiang promoted the improved varieties of rice and wheat, but this time, Zhu Xiang guided farmers to plant traditional beans and millet.
The rice and wheat promoted by Zhu Xiang had high yields. Because Meng Wu and Li Mu promoted stone mills in Southern Qin, Southern Qin now also collected wheat and rice when collecting taxes, so the situation emerged that farmers in Southern Qin only grew wheat and rice.
However, such planting structure is very unscientific and has poor ability to resist natural disasters.
In ancient China, farmers rarely planted only one crop. Even in the late Tang Dynasty, when wheat was grown in the north and rice in the south, farmers in the north and south would plant other grains on their fields.
Sometimes they take turns, and sometimes they choose different fields to grow different crops.
This is the wisdom that farmers have gained through generations of farming experience. In addition to worrying about soil degradation, if a single crop is affected by pests and diseases, the overall yield will be reduced. Only by planting coarse grains can we survive by eating other grains even if the yield of one crop is reduced.
Although the crops promoted by Zhu Xiang were high-yielding, their seeds would deteriorate and pests and diseases would be difficult to avoid. Even if the yields were higher than those of current crops, there was still a risk of total crop failure. For the sake of food security, it was necessary to guide farmers to grow the old crops when they already knew that the new crops were high-yielding.
The modern planting structure is simple because modern technology has greatly reduced the risk of pests and diseases and assumed the responsibility of cultivating high-quality seeds. Now farmers have to bear these risks themselves.
It should have been easy for Zhu Xiang to change the planting structure of Southern Qin.
The Qin Law was very detailed, even stipulating what kind of fields farmers could plant and how deep they could dig when plowing. If they failed to do so, they would be fined. So Zhu Xiang only needed to change the local laws.
Zhu Xiang brought Han Fei with him, and Han Fei praised the Qin Law highly, thinking that this matter was easy.
But Zhu Xiang just smiled and asked Han Fei to try it out in the fields for a while to see if it was really suitable.
Han Fei held his head high and went to work as a farm official with full confidence. Less than ten days later, he went to Zhu Xiang with a frown to seek advice.
Zhu Xiang was squatting by the field chatting with farmers. When he saw Han Fei coming, he did not stand up, but just looked up and smiled, "I heard that you have arrested so many people that the county jail can no longer accommodate them."
Han Fei's face immediately turned red, and he bowed: "Please give me some guidance, Duke Zhu Xiang."
Zhu Xiang waved his hand and said, "Wait for me for a while."
Han Fei stood aside obediently with his head lowered.
Zhu Xiang continued chatting with the farmer.
What he talked about with the farmers was pests and diseases and soil degradation.
He asked the farmer if he had encountered these problems and how he solved them, then agreed with the farmer's wisdom and expressed his own views.
Han Fei waited for a quarter of an hour, and more and more farmers gathered around Zhu Xiang.
After the conversation, the farmers all sighed that they still had to grow some grains to ensure a good harvest.
"I brought some excellent corn seeds from the north. When I cultivate more seeds, I will share them with you." Zhu Xiang said, "Planting beans, potatoes, pumpkins and other crops in the fields will yield high yields and can be rotated to protect the soil. If you plant some peppers, garlic, ginger, cotton and hemp, you can also make some money to buy good clothes for your family. By the way, Wang is recruiting textile workers in Nanqin."
Zhu Xiang also talked about the workshop opened by Xue Ji and Lu Buwei in Southern Qin, saying that during the slack season, women could go to the workshop to earn some money, cloth and food.
The farmers took notes one after another. Some of them turned around and ran back to the village, calling for people to come and hear the news.
Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "Soon an official will post a notice to tell you all about this. Don't worry, I'm just letting you know in advance so you can be prepared."
The farmers were very interested in the "advance" news, and more and more people gathered around.
Zhu Xiang left the fields only when it was getting dark.
Seeing that Zhu Xiang looked very tired, Han Fei did not ask any questions immediately.
The next day, after Zhu Xiang woke up and had breakfast, Han Fei came to ask for advice.
At this time, the farm official from the village that Zhu Xiang had visited yesterday reported that the farmers were all willing to change their crops. When other neighboring villages heard the news, they also became interested.
Tian Li was very excited.
According to this situation, he probably doesn't need to arrest anyone and can complete the order of changing crops during today's spring plowing.
Zhu Xiang nodded: "It's good that it works. I will give you the notice later, and you will give it to the county magistrate and ask him to post it in the village."
After the farm official left, Han Fei asked, "Why didn't the county magistrate come to see Duke Zhu Xiang?"
Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "I told him not to come. When I was in the fields yesterday, I asked him to go to another place to publicize the benefits of changing crops."
Han Fei frowned.
Zhu Xiang pointed to a chair and asked Han Fei to sit down. Then he said to Han Fei, "I know your confusion. The laws are very detailed and the punishments are very severe, but the people don't support them and the efficiency is very low, right?"
Han Fei nodded: "Aren't they afraid?"
Zhu Xiang said: "Of course they are afraid. But they are more afraid of starving to death. When it comes to matters that concern their own interests, they will pretend to obey even if they know they will be punished. Moreover, there are few officials and they don't have the energy to check what each farmer has planted in his field. They are lucky."
Han Fei still frowned, seemingly dissatisfied with Zhu Xiang's answer.
Zhu Xiang said: "People are emotional creatures, not puppets. Even if there are strict laws and harsh punishments, they will resist if they don't understand the laws. Especially since Southern Qin was originally part of Chu, the Chu people are used to being casual and are not used to the strictness of the Qin Law."
Seeing that Han Fei was still frowning, Zhu Xiang smiled bitterly in his heart.
He knew that Han Fei would certainly believe that if punishments did not scare the common people, then the punishments should be increased; if there were not enough people to manage the people, then more people should be added.
This is the Legalist school.
But the reality is not that easy.
Zhu Xiang first talked about the training of officials, and then talked about the officials' salaries and the things they needed to do, so that Han Fei knew that the more officials there were, the better.
Too many officials not only increased the burden on the national finances, but also the Qin State did not have that many people available.
Zhu Xiang then brought up the dangers of complicated laws and decrees during their implementation.
For example, the Qin Law stipulates that the cultivated land must be dug a certain number of feet. But in reality, how could officials possibly keep track of how much each person who cultivated the land dug
Normally this decree is useless, but if you want to torture someone, you can use it because the people who plow the land cannot provide evidence to prove that they dug deep enough.
If the laws are too detailed, they will not be enforceable and will eventually become a tool for officials to oppress the people.
"Laws are the bottom line. When it comes to farmland, it means how much land tax farmers need to pay." Zhu Xiang said, "The rest can only be controlled by morality and customs. For example, let farmers work hard on farming."
"Detailed farming measures also need to be explained, because many farmers do not understand how to plant better. But this should be taught in an encouraging way, not a punishment. Because the best way to farm the land is not easy for farmers to do due to various objective reasons." Zhu Xiang sighed and said earnestly, "This is why a country needs both law and Confucianism, Taoism, and the Hundred Schools of Thought."
Han Fei's frown finally relaxed a little, and he said, "I am grateful for your guidance."
Zhu Xiang said, "You are a self-taught Legalist and a student of the great Confucian Xunzi. You should be the one who can accept this the most. I hope that in the future you will not be partial to any one school, but study both Legalism and Confucianism. With your talent, you will definitely be able to do this."
Han Fei said: "Duke Zhu Xiang is even more capable of doing this."
Every time Han Fei chatted with Zhu Xiang, his stuttering would gradually decrease.
Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "Of course I can do it, but it will be difficult for me to appear in the court in the future."
Han Fei was puzzled: "Duke Zhu Xiang is talented enough to be the prime minister."
"Maybe?" Zhu Xiang rubbed his nose in embarrassment and said, "I have told the Lord before that there are many people who can be prime ministers in Qin, but I am the only one with a high position who can guide farmers in farming. So it is better for Qin and the people of the world for me to stay in the fields than to be in the court."
"It was like this during the time of the first lord, and it will be like this in the future as well." Zhu Xiang said, "So the future of the Qin court depends on you, on you and Li Si and other younger generations."
Han Fei lowered his head and said: "I may not be able to enter the court of Qin."
Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "No, I believe you will. Maybe you won't do it now, but after Qin unifies the world, you will become an official."
Han Fei pursed his lips and clenched his sleeves with both hands: "Is this me..."
Zhu Xiang jokingly asked, "A bit awkward?"
Han Fei lowered his head even lower.
Zhu Xiang said: "No. It is normal for you to do so. You are the prince of Han, and it is right for you not to help Qin destroy Han. You are Han Fei who cares about the world, and it is also right for you to serve as an official after Qin has unified the country."
Zhu Xiang pointed at his face and said, "I will not help Qin attack Zhao either."
Han Fei suddenly raised his head and looked at Zhu Xiang's smiling face, his eyes filled with warmth.
He also knows that his current behavior is very twisted, and that people around him do not understand him and even despise him.
"Do your best. Before the Qin State is unified, you should stay with me and learn what you lack. After the Qin State is unified, you can show your talents." Zhu Xiang patted Han Fei's shoulder gently. "What you lack now is that you know too little about the grassroots. It is difficult to put your knowledge into practice."
Han Fei nodded vigorously, stood up, and bowed deeply to Zhu Xiang.
Han Fei still had many doubts in his mind, but he was a Confucian after all, so he decided to try again using the knowledge taught by Xunzi.
Although the Qin Law was strict, after Zhu Xiang came to Southern Qin, the King of Qin gave him enough power to change the laws and punishments. So Zhu Xiang found an excuse and gave some small punishments to the people captured by Han Fei, and then let them "make merit" and released them home.
In the feudal era, the country was ruled by man, so Zhu Xiang's action was normal.
However, Zhu Xiang used the excuse that "the King of Qin was lenient and gave a chance to the people of Southern Qin who were not used to the Qin Law" to direct the people's cheers towards the King of Qin. He gained a lot of favor for King Qin Zhu in Southern Qin, while he himself hid behind the scenes.
Zhu Xiang's move finally opened Lu Buwei's mind and made him start to think about how to be a good subject.
Zhu Xiang was working hard in Nanjun. A month later, Li Mu came by boat with a gloomy face and picked up Zhu Xiang from the field.
"Zhu Xiang, have you forgotten something?!" Li Mu said angrily.
Zhu Xiang was puzzled: "What did you forget?"
Li Mu scolded, "Have you even forgotten that you were going to replace me as the governor of Wujun?"
Li Mu was imprisoned in Wu County, waiting for Zhu Xiang to free him.
He had already sharpened his swords and spears, and when Zhu Xiang arrived, he would go south to train his troops.
Spring ploughing was the top priority, and in order to get busy with the spring ploughing, Li Mu took off his armor and had been busy with paperwork for a long time. Even Wang Jian picked up a pen and worked with Li Mu on the county affairs.
Both of them were looking forward to Zhu Xiang's quick arrival.
When they heard that Zhu Xiang had arrived in Nanjun, they were very happy. They would finally be freed from the mundane affairs of the county magistrate.
As a result, they waited for a month but still didn't see Zhu Xiang.
Wang Jian thought that Zhu Xiang had some important task entrusted by the King of Qin, so he stayed in Nanjun temporarily.
After Li Mu inquired about Zhu Xiang's recent behavior, he immediately took a boat to arrest Zhu Xiang.
"He doesn't have any important mission at all! He just forgot about farming!" Li Mu gritted his teeth, "He just thinks that the fields in Wujun are not as good as those in Yunmengze!"
Wang Jian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Duke Zhu Xiang shouldn't be that kind of person.
Zhu Xiang is really that kind of person.
He sighed, "Li Mu, isn't it just being a county governor? What's wrong with you being the governor for a while longer? The spring ploughing in Wu County is almost done, you've done a great job, there's no need for me to get involved. Nan County is not as developed as Wu County, and the people there are not obedient. Of course I have to stay here."
Li Mu gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty appointed you as the governor, and you are neglecting your duty!"
Seeing that Li Mu was furious, Zhu Xiang said awkwardly, "I was wrong. I will go to Wujun to take over and hand Zheng'er over to you immediately."
Li Mu: “…”
Li Mu kicked Zhu Xiang lightly, knocking him to the ground, then grabbed Zhu Xiang's collar and pulled him up: "Don't put everything on Zheng'er."
Zhu Xiang said: "I didn't force you to do this. Your Majesty has decided to let Zheng'er temporarily take over as the governor of Wu County. At the same time, he can also assist you in handling military affairs and train your ability to handle government affairs. I am just a cover. I have an imperial decree and I won't lie to you!"
Li Mu took a few deep breaths and asked, "If that's the case, why don't you send Zheng'er here quickly?"
Zhu Xiang slapped his head and said embarrassedly, "I forgot."
Li Mu rolled up his sleeves.
Zhu Xiang lifted up his robe and ran away: "Hey, hey, hey, let's talk it over, don't hit me! With your strength, if you hit me, how can I get up from the bed?"
Li Mu said: "You should stay in bed for a few days, otherwise you won't remember it!"
Zhu Xiang said: "It's only one month!"
Li Mu said: "Stop! Don't run!"
Xue Ji led Ying Xiaozheng by the hand, watching Zhu Xiang being chased by Li Mu and climbing up a tree, she smiled bitterly and shook her head: "Don't learn from your uncle. But Zheng'er, even though your uncle forgot, why didn't you remind him?"
Ying Xiaozheng said: "Because I also want to play for one more month. Anyway, my grandfather won't blame me and my uncle, so why can't I rest for one more month?"
Ying Xiaozheng was worried about his aunt.
This was the first time that Xue Ji took on such an important task, and her uncle just ignored it with an "I trust you" look on his face, which made Ying Xiaozheng very worried.
Although it was finally proven that his aunt was really capable, Ying Xiaozheng still hoped to help his aunt more when she took on a big task for the first time.
As for the teacher, being the prefect of Wujun is not a bad thing. What's wrong with being the prefect for a while longer
The teacher has done a great job as the prefect of Wu County. My uncle doesn't need to worry about the spring ploughing and crop changes.
Xue Ji said, "You should go to Wujun now. Zheng'er, please wait for a while. Your aunt will also come to Wujun soon to build a workshop."
Ying Xiaozheng asked: "What about my uncle?"
Xue Ji's eyes showed helplessness and indulgence: "Let him do whatever he wants. Your Majesty can't do anything about him, so what else can I do?"
Ying Xiaozheng snorted coldly. When he became the King of Qin, he would definitely not let his uncle be so lazy and disobedient.
When Meng Wu heard that Li Mu was coming, he knew that Zhu Xiang was going to be beaten.
He actually felt a little guilty.
Although Nanjun was much more difficult to manage than Wujun, Wujun was once the core area of Wuyue. After years of cultivation by the two countries, the people were well educated and had rich farming experience. Chu started to develop Nanjun during the Warring States Period. After that, Qin and Chu fought a war, causing Chu to completely abandon this area. There were still many tribes established by immigrants from Chu's vassal states.
But judging from the results alone, it was a fact that he was not as good a county magistrate as Li Mu, so Zhu Xiang stayed to help him.
But even though I feel guilty, I still want to watch the fun.
Meng Wu and Meng Tian watched Li Mu "beat up" Zhu Xiang, and they laughed so hard that their eyes became invisible.
Meng Tian looked at Changping Jun who climbed up the tree and begged for mercy from Li Mu, and then looked at his father who was smiling with particularly malicious intent. The image of his father in his mind collapsed again.
At the same time, Meng Tian also realized one thing: his father, Lord Changping, and General Li might really be good friends.
"Meng Wu, axe." Li Mu said to Meng Wu.
Meng Wu laughed and said, "Do you really want to pull Zhu Xiang down and beat him up? Forget it. Even if I really let you beat him up, you can't do it. Zhu Xiang, quickly think of a way to calm General Li down, otherwise you can just sleep on the tree."
"Who did I stay here for a month to help?!" Zhu Xiang scolded, "Are you enjoying watching the fun?"
Meng Wu immediately said with a straight face: "No, I am definitely not happy. I am just telling the truth."
Zhu Xiang cursed, "Don't use my words to anger me!"
Li Mu snorted coldly: "You also know that your words are very annoying?"
Zhu Xiang coughed dryly and said, "Well... Okay, I was really wrong. I will go with Zheng'er."
Anyway, the spring plowing here is almost done, and Han Fei can finish it next.
Li Mu raised his eyebrows: "This is what you should do."
Zhu Xiang said: "Then, then I will stay in Wu County as the governor for a while longer?"
Li Mu didn't say anything.
Zhu Xiang said awkwardly, "How about this, how about this, Zheng'er and I will serve as the governors of Wu County together and help you develop Wu County. When the farming season is slack, I will serve as your staff and help you with logistics?"
Li Mu then rolled up his sleeves: "Come down."
Zhu Xiang breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to get down from the tree.
Then he discovered with embarrassment that he climbed up the tree very easily, but seemed unable to come down
Ying Xiaozheng rushed from Xue Ji's side to Li Mu's side, jumping up and down towards Zhu Xiang, mocking his uncle for being stupid.
In the end, Meng Wu and Li Mu found a ladder, and Li Mu climbed up the tree to help Zhu Xiang get down.
Ying Xiaozheng was even happier.
He was happy when his uncle was embarrassed.
Zhu Xiang gritted his teeth and tapped Ying Xiaozheng's forehead.
Xue Ji couldn't help laughing: "You are embarrassing yourself, why are you bullying Zheng'er?"
Zhu Xiang snorted coldly and tapped Ying Xiaozheng's forehead again.
Although Ying Xiaozheng's forehead was red from the splash, he still smiled happily.
It’s rare to see my uncle in such an embarrassing situation, I’m happy!
When Zhu Xiang saw Ying Xiaozheng's smile, he couldn't help but laugh too.
Li Mu sighed and smiled helplessly.
Meng Wu shook his head and thought to himself, Li Mu, oh Li Mu, so if Zhu Xiang doesn’t “bully” you, who will he “bully”
Li Mu had come to arrest people, so Zhu Xiang had no choice but to follow the boat to Wujun for the handover, and together with Ying Xiaozheng, he took up the post of the governor of Wujun.
Xue Ji stayed in Nanjun temporarily and continued to build a textile workshop with Lu Buwei.
Han Fei also stayed, and Li Si, who had been "missing" for a long time, followed Zhu Xiang to Wujun.
Only then did Zhu Xiang know what task Lin Zhi had assigned to Li Si.
Lin Zhi wanted to change the land law, so he sent Li Si to Southern Qin to collect information from the people. He himself inspected the core farming hinterland of Guandong in Qin State to collect information about the old Qin State.
Li Si brought out the results of his work at the grassroots level.
"Due to the war between Qin and Chu, nine out of ten male households in Southern Qin were left alone, and most of the fields were farmed by women."
"The same is true for the relocated Qin army households. The Qin soldiers are training outside, while the women are farming and weaving at home."
"Those with military merit and titles who died in battle had their lands not reclaimed. There are laws that stipulate that widows with sons can inherit their lands, but the government does not hold widows without children accountable for cultivating their lands, so they have no land to cultivate..."
Li Si presented the data he had collected one by one.
As Zhu Xiang listened to the data compiled by Li Si, he recalled something he heard when he was on a business trip with his archaeological colleagues.
The excavation of the Yunmeng and Liye Qin bamboo slips has made a great step forward in the study of the Qin Dynasty. In particular, the Liye Qin bamboo slips are basically the statistical data of the county at that time, and this kind of historical record is of the highest value.
At the beginning of modern Chinese history, there was a trend of "doubting the ancients". The core idea of the trend was that the historical records handed down to later generations were all false, and only the materials dug out from the tombs were true. Moreover, the more "unofficial history" the unearthed materials were, the more authentic they were, and the official records were all false.
This was the beginning of "historical nihilism" in later generations.
This trend of thought was quickly curbed. Everyone could see their sinister intentions, which was to deny China's history and its predecessors.
In fact, this idea seems to make sense, but if you think about it carefully and change the era to modern times, you will easily understand the fallacy.
In modern times, do you trust marketing accounts or official news? Do you trust novels or the research of a certain academy of sciences
Although official and expert information may be wrong, the probability of error is still much higher than that of information from the public who does not know who the author is. Moreover, in ancient China, most of the history was written by later generations, so there were fewer taboos.
Moreover, with the information we can dig out now, the parties involved can know more. They have already made a choice once, and it is not just imaginary.
Therefore, when excavating archaeological data now, the archaeological community pays the most attention to "objective data" records, and does not believe in bamboo slips that are written like stories, such as many bamboo slips of "The Strategies of the Warring States".
The Yunmengze and Liye Qin bamboo slips are obviously among the most valuable unearthed materials for research.
In the records of Qin bamboo slips, we can see that there are many titles of nobility preceded by military merit and followed by the character "寡". That is to say, although there was no policy of widows inheriting land in the laws at that time, it was already very common among the people.
As early as the beginning of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Gaozu of Han and Empress Lü formally determined through laws that women could inherit titles for female households, widowed households, and when military meritorious men died in battle.
The intensity of war today is no less than when the Qin Dynasty unified the world, so this phenomenon has already appeared a long time ago.
Although Lin Zhi had an eccentric personality, he was very steady and cautious in his work.
When he wanted to implement a new law, he would produce evidence that the entire court could not question. Now he ordered Li Si to come to Southern Qin to collect evidence that could support his policy.
Li Si did a very good job.
Zhu Xiang recalled that Li Si in history started out as a high-ranking official at the central government level. He did not expect that he would do well at the grassroots level.
"You have done very well." Zhu Xiang said, "The Lord has given me the power to make my own laws. You can try out Lin Li's policies in Southern Qin temporarily to see if there are any shortcomings."
Li Si asked excitedly, "Leave it to me?"
Zhu Xiang said, "I believe you. Besides, our General Li is going to fight again. I don't know how much more territory will be taken, but there are not enough people to work."
Li Mu rolled his eyes at Zhu Xiang.
When Zhu Xiang arrived in Wu County and saw the piles of documents in Wu County, he began to complain.
I've been complaining for several days, but he still won't stop.
He didn't even think about the fact that these things were originally done by him and Zheng'er. He had already helped him deal with them for an extra month, and he was still complaining.
Li Si said: "I will definitely not let Lord Changping down!"
Zhu Xiang said, "Okay, go and follow Zheng'er."
Li Si: “…”
Why?! Shouldn't he be studying and working with Lord Changping? Why is he following Gongzi Zheng? Is he going to study
Although Li Si knew that it was important to please Gongzi Zheng, he wanted to work now! He wanted to do practical things!
But Li Si did not dare to refute and could only follow Ying Xiaozheng in a depressed mood.
Then he found that Changping Jun had escaped from the city, leaving Ying Xiaozheng sitting on a high chair, frowning as he dealt with documents.
"Sir, where is Lord Changping?" Li Si asked in confusion.
Ying Xiaozheng said unhappily, "Uncle? Where else can uncle go? Of course he's going to inspect the fields."
Li Si stammered, "But, but the county governor's duty..."
Ying Xiaozheng slammed the imperial edict on the table and asked Li Si to read it himself.
Li Si stepped forward and took a look, and was petrified.
No wonder Lord Changping asked him to assist Prince Zheng, because Prince Zheng was the real prefect of Wujun.
Prince Zheng is so young, is there really any problem
Li Si was filled with worry. If Ying Xiaozheng made a mistake, as the favorite grandson of the King of Qin, Ying Xiaozheng would be fine, but the people around him would be in trouble.
But apparently, apart from him, all the high officials in Wu County were not worried.
Li Mu and Wang Jian also quickly broke camp and left Wucheng, heading south to train their troops and expand the territory of Wujun.
The only person in charge sitting in the Wucheng County Magistrate's Mansion was Ying Xiaozheng, who had not grown his hair long and only had two small buns.
Li Si and Meng Tian looked at the pile of documents next to Ying Xiaozheng, seeming to want to say something but stopping themselves.
For the first time, they both felt disapproval towards the great sage Zhu Xianggong.
Even if the King of Qin used the Wujun incident to hone Prince Zheng, Duke Zhu Xiang simply ran away without leaving even a trace. Isn't that too much?!
(End of this chapter)