How to Cultivate a Ten-Thousand-Mile Empire for the Young Emperor Qin?

Chapter 61: Cotton field buds

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When Han Fei went to visit Zhu Xiang, Zhu Xiang was squatting beside the cotton field, instructing farmers on how to prune the cotton plants.

The cotton has now formed buds, and the fruit branches and leaf branches can be seen.

Zhu Xiang taught farmers how to distinguish between fruit branches and leaf branches, cut off the leaf branches, and only keep the leaf branches at the bottom of the main stem, with the number of leaf branches remaining being no more than three, so as to free up space for the growth of cotton fruit branches, prevent the leaf branches from robbing the fruit branches of nutrients, and save soil fertility.

The farmer could understand picking off the leaf branches, but when Zhu Xiang said that the fruit branches should also be removed appropriately and the fruits on the remaining branches should be picked, the farmer looked hesitant.

Zhu Xiang smiled and explained: "Cotton is like fruit trees. The more fruits you bear, the better. Picking off the rotten fruits will ensure the nutrition of other healthy fruits. If you don't pick off the unhealthy fruits, all the fruits will not grow well due to malnutrition, and the harvest will not be good."

The farmer nodded, showing a look of understanding.

After seeing that the farmers understood, Zhu Xiang continued to teach them how to top the trees, remove extra buds, and remove empty branches.

Zhu Xiang spoke very slowly, repeating each sentence many times. He could always tell from the farmers' dull and weathered faces whether they understood what he said, and then he patiently taught them until they understood everything.

If it were in modern times, he would distribute pamphlets and guide farmers according to the pamphlets.

In modern society, even farmers are basically literate, but their ability to understand text information is relatively poor, and agricultural guidance technicians need to explain it many times. Zhu Xiang thought that teaching such farmers was already difficult enough. When he returned to the Warring States Period, Zhu Xiang realized that modern farmers could probably become officials in this era.

Literacy is such a scarce skill in this day and age.

Fortunately, during the few years Zhu Xiang had lived in Zhao, he had honed his ability to teach illiterate farmers. Now, teaching the most obedient Qin civilians among the six states was much easier than when he was in Zhao.

However, even though the Qin people would follow his orders no matter how many doubts they had in their hearts, Zhu Xiang still tried tirelessly to make the farmers truly understand the reasons behind these practices.

Only when the farmers understand these principles will what he teaches them now become their own abilities, and only then will the farmers be able to spread the skills he teaches to other places after they leave the village.

If the increase in farmland income was the only thing he could see, it would not mean much to the country. Only when the things he taught were also used in places he could not see, would his journey through time be worthwhile.

After being idle for a while, the King of Qin still couldn't control his desire for power, so he returned to the palace and worked diligently.

Prince Zhu was so happy that he burst into tears. He immediately abandoned the beauty in his family and moved into Zhu Xiang's farm. He was very happy playing with his grandchildren every day, and his face became much rosier.

Now Prince Zhu was standing under the shade of the tree, holding Ying Xiaozheng's hand. Zhu Xiang patiently taught the farmers, and he and Ying Xiaozheng patiently watched Zhu Xiang teach the farmers.

"Zheng'er, is your uncle exactly like the sage described in the books?" asked Prince Zhu.

Ying Xiaozheng said with great dignity: "My uncle treats nobles and commoners equally, just like a saint, so it is easy for people to hate him."

Prince Zhu nodded: "His equal treatment is an insult to many people."

Ying Xiaozheng said: "I will protect my uncle!"

Prince Zhu smiled and said, "Zheng'er can definitely do it."

Ying Xiaozheng looked up and said, "My uncle went to the fields to demonstrate how to pick branches and leaves. I want to go too."

Prince Zhu took Ying Xiaozheng's hand and walked out of the shade of the trees happily: "Let's go together."

Then the Crown Prince of Qin and the great-grandson of the King of Qin also went to the fields and worked in the fields with Zhu Xiang.

Han Fei happened to see this scene when he came to pay a visit to Zhu Xiang under the guidance of his guards.

"Please wait a moment. The Crown Prince, Prince Zheng and Zhu Xianggong are busy in the fields." The guard said with a stern face.

Han Fei was surprised and asked, "Prince?"

The guard did not answer, but blocked Han Fei's way.

Han Fei stretched his neck and looked behind the guard. The people in the field were not dressed in fancy clothes, but he could barely see that the clothes of two people were made of more exquisite fabrics.

One of them had a head full of silvery white hair, and the other had gray hair. From the back, they both looked like old men. It was unclear who was the crown prince of Qin and who was Duke Xiang of Zhu.

Han Fei guessed that the man with gray hair and a slightly plump figure should be Duke Zhu Xiang, because the Crown Prince of Qin was older.

Given Han Fei's status, he was not qualified to ask the guards to pass on the message and interrupt Zhu Xiang's work.

So Han Fei stood there for a full quarter of an hour. Zhu Xiang saw that Ying Xiaozheng was walking off track. When he was carrying Ying Xiaozheng to the ridge of the field, he found that someone was waiting for him.

Han Fei also realized that there was another person in gorgeous clothes in the field, but he didn't see him because he was too short.

Is this little dwarf Gongzi Zheng

Han Fei remembered who Prince Zheng was. It was rumored that Duke Zhu Xiang was the uncle of the Qin hostage, so the young prince of Qin who followed Duke Zhu Xiang to work in the fields should be Duke Zhu Xiang's nephew.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting. Who are you?" Zhu Xiang asked as he helped Ying Xiaozheng wipe the dusty face.

Han Fei cupped his hands: "I, I am, I am..."

He became nervous and stuttered even more, and it took him a long time to introduce himself successfully.

Zhu Xiang raised his head and smiled, "Don't be nervous, speak slowly, do you want a drink of water?"

Anyone who came directly to him must have been introduced by someone, so Zhu Xiang was very polite even though he didn't know the person.

Originally, Zhu Xiang should have known the name after being introduced by others. But he was recently busy with farmland guidance, and left these things to Meng Wu who had nothing to do. If Meng Wu felt that he could meet him, he would meet him.

Because of this incident, Meng Wu went home and complained to his father for a long time, blaming Zhu Xiang for being too credulous.

Zhu Xiang washed his hands, took out a bamboo tube and handed it to Han Fei: "Drink some water first, and then we can talk slowly under the shade of the tree. Prince, do you want to go back and rest first?"

Prince Zhu wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "No need. Zheng'er, give Grandfather some water."

Prince Zhu half-knelt, Ying Xiaozheng stood on tiptoe, picked up the bamboo tube and fed water to his grandfather.

Prince Zhu could drink water by himself, but he insisted on being fed by his grandson. After drinking the water, he smiled like the Maitreya Buddha in later generations, as if the water fed by Ying Xiaozheng was sweeter than the water he drank himself.

Looking at the interaction between the grandfather and grandson, Zhu Xiang smiled.

Compared to the King of Qin who deliberately showed his affection for Zheng'er and himself, he felt more relaxed and comfortable getting along with Prince Zhu.

Prince Zhu had lived in his house for more than half a month, and his favorability towards him had increased to one and a half, which deeply moved Zhu Xiang.

Prince Zhu is truly a rare kind-hearted man among the Qin kings.

Han Fei took the water from Zhu Xiang with a red face and took an awkward sip to moisten his throat.

He couldn't believe it and said, "You, you are Duke Zhu Xiang?"

He thought the person he was talking to was the prince. The prince was the highest status among the three, so it was more in line with his imagination that he was the first to speak.

Zhu Xiang said: "I am. This is the prince..."

"I am Master Zheng!" Ying Xiaozheng said proudly.

Prince Zhu rubbed Ying Xiaozheng's head with a smile and said, "Yes, he is the smartest Zheng'er among the princes of Qin."

Zhu Xiang was helpless about Prince Zhu's behavior of praising Zheng'er whenever he got the chance.

He thought that Prince Zhu only had half a crush on him, and he probably had more than two hearts for Zheng Er.

Prince Zhu obviously has more than 20 sons and so many grandchildren that he can't remember their names. But when he saw Zheng'er, he acted as if Zheng'er was his only precious grandson. When facing Zheng'er, he was completely an overly kind and doting grandfather.

However, his nephew was so charming that all the grandparents doted on him, and it was not just Prince Zhu.

Han Fei stammered, "I am Han Fei, a member of the Han royal family. I came to ask for your advice..."

"Wait, who are you?" Ying Xiaozheng stepped forward, "Han Fei?"

"Yes... yes." Han Fei was glared at by Ying Xiaozheng, and his momentum was reduced.

"Zheng'er, be polite." Zhu Xiang wondered why Ying Xiaozheng had such a strong reaction to the name Han Fei. Logically, it should be him, a later generation, who had a strong reaction to the name Han Fei, right

But now was not the time to think about these things. He looked at Han Fei deeply and said, "Do you want to become Xunzi's disciple?"

Han Fei hurriedly said: "No, no, I want to become a disciple of Duke Zhu Xiang!"

Zhu Xiang: “…” What?! Han Feizi wants to take me as his teacher

Ying Xiaozheng: “!” What! ! Han Fei wants to take my uncle as his teacher!

Not knowing who Han Fei was, Prince Zhu, who was watching from the side with a smile, said, "Many people want to become Zhu Xianggong's disciples. What are your abilities that would allow Zhu Xianggong to accept you as his disciple?"

Zhu Xiang: “!” Han Feizi worshipped me as his teacher, and I still want to test him? !

Ying Xiaozheng: “…” Uncle is too powerful.

Ying Xiaozheng rolled his eyes, pulled Zhu Xiang's sleeve and said, "Uncle, don't accept him. If he learns some skills, he will go to help the King of Han and become hostile to the State of Qin!"

Han Fei's face immediately turned pale.

Ying Xiaozheng looked at Han Fei's face and felt very happy, as if he had avenged his great hatred.

Although his greatest hatred for Han Fei was that he destroyed Han Fei's country and ordered Han Fei to be executed.

Ying Xiaozheng shook his head. No, what hatred do I have with him? It was me in the dream who had hatred with him, it had nothing to do with me.

"Go back first and talk slowly." When Zhu Xiang heard Ying Xiaozheng's words, he couldn't help but think of Han Fei's refusal to work for the King of Qin because of the Kingdom of Han.

But if you think about it carefully, Han Fei did not refuse to work for the King of Qin very resolutely, otherwise he would not have shown his works to the King of Qin, nor would he have explained his theories to the King of Qin in detail.

Moreover, Han Fei wrote to the King of Qin in prison to explain the misunderstanding and that he was not seeking death. The King of Qin regretted his decision to execute Han Fei and immediately issued an imperial edict to pardon him, but he did not catch up.

If there weren't so many mistakes...

Zhu Xiang touched Ying Xiaozheng's head, who was holding his clothes with both hands and had a smug look on his face.

The accident has already happened, there will be no ifs. But in this life, Zheng'er will definitely not kill Han Fei just because Han Fei is a threat to him. This is not because Han Fei will no longer care about Han, but because his existence makes Han Fei's threat to Zheng'er's rule negligible.

"You have come from afar, so you should review it first." Zhu Xiang said, "You came here to seek advice, so you must have brought your works with you. Let me take a look first."

Han Fei bowed excitedly: "Yes!"

Zhu Xiang supported Prince Zhu, who was a little unsteady on his feet due to fatigue, and with his nephew's tail following behind him, he led Han Fei back to the house where they lived.

Xunzi was on vacation today and was reading a book in the pavilion in the courtyard.

Seeing a stranger coming, he raised his eyes lazily: "Who?"

Zhu Xiang replied: "Han Fei, a member of the Han royal family, came to me for advice. I will read his works first."

"Oh." Xunzi continued reading and ignored Han Fei.

Zhu Xiang introduced to Han Fei: "This is Xunzi."

Han Fei hurried to pay his respects.

Xunzi just waved his hand as a sign of agreement, and was very cold.

Han Fei looked depressed. Although Xunzi didn't know him and therefore couldn't be warm to him, Xunzi's cold attitude still made him a little sad.

However, he quickly cheered up, and under the guidance of his servants, he tidied up his appearance, thinking about how to explain his thoughts to Zhu Xiang.

Zhu Xiang, Prince Zhu and Zheng'er took a shower together and soaked in the bathtub to relieve their fatigue.

"Uncle, don't accept him, don't accept him." Ying Xiaozheng clenched his small fists and beat Zhu Xiang's belly softly.

Zhu Xiang said weakly: "Okay. If he is really talented, I will recommend him to Xunzi."

The world-famous Han Feizi became his disciple. Would he give up studying law to learn farming? Han Feizi's fans in the future would cry.

"No, chase him away!" Ying Xiaozheng continued to hit Zhu Xiang's belly.

Zhu Xiang's belly was covered with abdominal muscles formed from frequent work in the fields. Ying Xiaozheng didn't hurt his uncle by hitting him, but hurt his own hand, and was so angry that he hit his head on Zhu Xiang's belly.

"Ouch, be gentle, don't use the iron head skill on your uncle's stomach." Ying Xiaozheng's impact was not strong enough, but Zhu Xiang still covered his stomach and pretended to be in pain, "Do you know how hard your head is?"

Prince Zhu laughed heartily and turned into a Haha monster: "Zheng'er, why do you hate him so much?"

Ying Xiaozheng snorted and said, "Because he is a member of the royal family of Han, he will not be devoted to Qin!"

Zhu Xiang said: "That's true. But let's take a look at his works first."

How could he not read Han Feizi's first-hand work "Han Feizi"

Ying Xiaozheng then stopped: "Okay." He also wanted to see it again. I don't know if Han Fei at this age has similar thoughts to the Han Fei he knew in his dream.

After taking a bath, Zhu Xiang dried his hair slightly and went to see Han Fei with his half-wet hair loose.

Prince Zhu was tired, so he went back to his room to rest. Although Ying Xiaozheng was also tired, he held on to his uncle tightly and insisted on going with him.

Zhu Xiang was very puzzled. It was normal for many people in later generations to feel disgusted when seeing the word "Han". Could it be that Zheng'er also had "Korea aversion"? This Korea was not that Korea.

"Sorry for the long wait." Zhu Xiang asked Han Fei to sit down.

Han Fei touched the chair and sat down carefully.

Zhu Xiang was in a state of confusion. Was he really that scary

"Zheng'er is a bit clingy. Please don't mind if I hold him and chat with you," said Zhu Xiang.

Han Fei shook his head vigorously: "No, no." He looked at Zhu Xiang's loose silver-white hair and felt a little dazed.

Unexpectedly, the prince of Qin he thought was actually Duke Zhu Xiang, and judging from Duke Zhu Xiang's face, he was not an old man. Was Duke Zhu Xiang born with a different appearance? He was indeed a world-famous sage!

Han Fei respectfully presented the letter he had brought. Zhu Xiang tucked her hair behind her ears, supported Zheng'er with one hand, and unfolded the letter with the other.

Han Fei's works at this time were very different from Zhu Xiang's impression of "Han Feizi".

He had not yet become Xunzi's disciple, nor had he traveled to the Seven Kingdoms, so his vision, knowledge, and thoughts were very immature. He was just an ordinary scholar who wanted to make Korea powerful.

Zhu Xiang sighed slightly in his heart. Han Fei is still just a rough jade.

However, unpolished jade is still jade, and Han Fei's thoughts are quite good compared with his peers. At least he thought about the relationship between the king and ministers, and the country and the people.

"Not bad." Zhu Xiang glanced over the ten lines and had already memorized Han Fei's letter.

Han Fei thought that Zhu Xiang had only glanced at it and did not read his works carefully. This was normal, as his reputation was not yet at the level that would make Zhu Xiang read his works word by word.

Han Fei straightened his back and wanted to explain his works to Zhu Xiang, but Zhu Xiang spoke first and asked questions about some things in Han Fei's works.

Looking at Han Fei's surprised expression, Ying Xiaozheng hugged his uncle's arm with a smile on his face.

Are you scared? Are you shocked? My uncle has a photographic memory. Maybe he is more familiar with your works than you are. Humph!

Han Fei was indeed surprised that Zhu Xiang could tell him some details that he himself could not remember clearly, and he even took out the bamboo slips to ask him questions.

Han Fei was so shocked that he couldn't even stutter: "Duke Zhu Xiang, you memorized all of it?!"

Zhu Xiang said modestly: "I have a better memory."

Han Fei took a deep breath. He really remembered everything.

No, he is worthy of being Duke Zhu Xiang!

Why didn't the King of Han send someone to invite Duke Zhu Xiang earlier? Han Fei was extremely sad and angry.

Seeing Han Fei's downcast expression, Zhu Xiang asked with concern: "What's wrong? Are you tired, thirsty, or hungry? Do you want to rest first and talk tomorrow?"

Han Fei quickly said: "No, I'm not tired. I just thought, if the King of Han welcomed Zhu Xianggong into Han..."

"Then Han would have perished by now." Ying Xiaozheng hugged Zhu Xiang, turned back to look at Han Fei, and said sarcastically, "Do you want Bai Weng to use the capital of Han to exchange for my uncle's entry into Qin?"

He hesitated for a long time, lowered his head, and his eyes were a little red.

Ying Xiaozheng loosened his arms and leaned towards Han Fei.

Huh? Crying? Is the young Han Fei so fragile? Let me see... Ouch!

Ying Xiaozheng held his head and glared at his uncle.

"Don't be naughty." Zhu Xiang said.

"Oh." Ying Xiaozheng moved his butt a little, leaned his back against Zhu Xiang's belly and stretched his legs.

Zhu Xiang said, "But Zheng'er has a point. If I really have the ability to make a country strong as the rumors say, if I go to South Korea, I will only bring more trouble to South Korea."

Han Fei sniffed and said aggrievedly: "Can't Han, Han, can't they keep talented people?"

Zhu Xiang thought for a moment and said, "You should have heard that during the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a country whose ruler was very benevolent and righteous, so he attracted many talented people to join him. Therefore, the King of Chu sent troops to destroy this country. Do you think it is wrong for the ruler to be benevolent and righteous?"

Ying Xiaozheng tilted his head. He seemed to have heard this story before, but he couldn't remember where.

Han Fei said: "I know. So now is not the right time to practice benevolence and righteousness."

Zhu Xiang laughed: "If that monarch did not implement benevolent policies but instead prepared the army, would the King of Chu not destroy him?"

Han Fei said: "This..."

Zhu Xiang shook his head. "You wrote this story in the letter to prove your point that we don't need to follow the ancients. It's sophistry. It's true that we don't need to follow the ancients, but this story doesn't illustrate the point you want to explain."

"A weak country near a strong country may survive a little longer if it is mediocre. But once it tries to become strong, it will surely be destroyed by the strong country immediately."

"The original territory of Shang and Zhou was very small, but Shang and Zhou were originally on the border, so they expanded secretly without arousing the vigilance of others. The same is true for Qin. Qin gradually became stronger because the Central Plains countries looked down on Qin's western border and gave Qin the opportunity to develop."

Zhu Xiang sighed. Although he sympathized with Han Fei, he also directly shattered Han Fei's fantasy: "Han State has lost its opportunity since its founding."

Zhu Xiang waved his hand, and a servant handed him paper and pen. He drew a geographical location map of the seven countries on the paper.

South Korea's territory is located right in the middle of the seven countries and its area is small. Even if others do not attack it, it will be affected by wars among other countries.

Therefore, although South Korea will not be destroyed in one go, it has already entered a slow decline since its early days.

Zhu Xiang explained the geographical location of Han to Han Fei, compared it with Qin, and told Han Fei why Han had no hope of becoming the dominant power among the seven countries.

All of Qin's wars were fought outside Hangu Pass, so if they won, they would gain benefits, and if they lost, they could prepare for a year and fight back again. The production order within Qin's territory was not disrupted by the war.

As for other countries, the war took place on their own land, and even if they won the war, their national strength would be gradually consumed by Qin.

This is what happened to the State of Zhao.

In the war between Qin and Zhao, Qin actually won less and lost more, but it was Zhao that gradually weakened, because farmers near the battlefield could not farm with peace of mind, and missing a season meant missing a year.

How many people will die of starvation in a year of famine? How much tax revenue will be lost

Later generations knew that they had to keep the enemy out of the country. If the war started on the homeland, half the battle was lost. At that time, only the Qin State had this awareness.

"Qin is far superior to other countries in terms of strategy," Zhu Xiang said with emotion.

When Bai Qi heard that Zhu Xiang was instructing students, he immediately went to watch the fun.

He just happened to hear Zhu Xiang say this, and a proud smile appeared on his face: "Many people don't see through this, but Zhu Xiang can see through this, so he can be ranked among the famous generals."

Zhu Xiang waved his hands repeatedly: "I've already said that kindness cannot lead an army, I can't do it."

Bai Qi asked: "What if I ask you to defend the city? What if I ask you to defend against the Xiongnu?"

Zhu Xiang: "... Well, I can really lead this army. But it's better not to go. I'm timid and can't stand seeing blood and flesh flying everywhere."

Bai Qi dragged a chair and sat down: "I didn't intend to recommend you to go, so I won't let you go. You guys continue."

Han Fei looked at the calm-looking old man who suddenly appeared with confusion.

Zhu Xiang introduced: "This is Bai Qi, Lord Bai of Wu'an."

Han Fei's expression froze, and immediately a layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Ying Xiaozheng sneered: "Mr. Bai, he is afraid of you!"

Bai Qi held the ceramic cup and said calmly, "Well, the six nations are afraid of me."

Ying Xiaozheng complimented: "Mr. Bai is amazing!"

Bai Qi chuckled.

Han Fei didn't even dare to move his eyes.

After Bai Qi defeated Chu, he mainly focused on the Three Jins. Bai Qi played a big role in the decline of Han.

But when he saw Bai Qi, Han Fei couldn't even feel hatred. This Wu'an Jun was really too powerful, so powerful that people dared to hate him behind his back, but were too scared to even hate him in front of him.

Ying Xiaozheng proudly patted his uncle's arm as if it were an armrest.

He felt that he had regained his place for his dream self.

My dream self, no thanks!

"If, if there is also a Wu'an Jun in the Kingdom of Han..." Han Fei was still very brave and quickly recovered from his fear of Wu'an Jun.

"What's the difference between that and welcoming me to Han?" Zhu Xiang said, then scratched his cheek embarrassedly, "Comparing me with Bai Gong, I am flattering myself."

"You didn't." Bai Qi said, "If I were in Han, the six countries would definitely attack Han frequently to eliminate the threat of me. Even if I can win once, twice, three times, or several times, as Zhu Xiang said, every victory of Han will consume its national strength. Either the King of Han can't stand this and send me to another country; or I can protect Han during my lifetime, and once I die, Han will be destroyed immediately."

Han Fei clenched his clothes with both hands: "Korea, Korea, is there nothing you can do? Korea has been established for hundreds of years..."

Zhu Xiang sighed: "Han Fei, if Jin can be destroyed, why can't Han?"

Han Fei raised his head suddenly.

Zhu Xiang's expression turned very cold without him noticing: "You want to make Han strong. Is it Han or your status as a royal family member of Han? If you only want the status of a royal family member of Han, you can persuade the King of Han to surrender the country. There are always places on the border of Qin that cannot be developed. You can appoint the King of Han as king."

"If what you want is for Han to be strong..." Zhu Xiang paused for a moment and sneered, "Why can Han be strong? The throne of Han was obtained by betraying the old master and dividing Jin among the three families. It does not cultivate virtue or kingly governance, does not care about the common people and does not employ talented people. It does not do a single good thing. Its geographical location is also so bad. Why do you want such a country to be strong? Why must the King of Han be your family?"

“Uncle…” Ying Xiaozheng looked up at Zhu Xiang worriedly.

Zhu Xiang took a few deep breaths and erased the image of King Zhao from his mind.

He said: "Han Fei, now South Korea will not perish, because the other six countries still need to keep this small piece of South Korea as a buffer. But South Korea will definitely perish, because the world must be unified to end the war. No matter how selfish the nobles of the six countries are, they can't stop the trend of the world. If you want to learn from me how to keep the world divided and the people living in misery, please go back."

Zhu Xiang waved his sleeves, then hugged Ying Xiaozheng, apologized to Bai Qi, and turned to leave.

"Uncle..." Ying Xiaozheng hugged Zhu Xiang's neck and continued to worry, "Uncle, are you okay? Don't be angry. Let's drive him away!"

Zhu Xiang rubbed Ying Xiaozheng's face and said, "I'm just a little sad. Everyone is selfish. All wise men know that unifying the world is the best way to save the world, but they will stand against us for the sake of their own families. That's why I'm sad."

It's not for the country, it's not that noble.

The legal principles of the seven kingdoms all came from the Zhou Dynasty. The lower-class people went wherever life was easier. The nobles knew that the seven kingdoms were originally one family, and they even had in-laws with each other.

The concepts of family, country and nation were not proposed until after the unification of the world, and were consolidated only in modern times.

At this moment, everyone is just thinking about their own interests.

The young Han Fei tried to stop the demise of Han State not because he loved Han State, but because he could not accept that the royal family of Han was no longer the royal family of Han; later, Zhang Liang assassinated the King of Qin not for Han State itself, but only for the destruction of his own family and the King of Han.

In other words, the "country" they refer to is equal to the "king", not the land and people in their minds.

Because the common people nowadays are like grass and their status is not even up to that of “common people”.

The same is true for the Qin State. The expansion of the Qin State was also because the King of Qin wanted to become a bigger "king", and it had nothing to do with ending wars and saving the world.

Although the founders of later feudal dynasties thought so in their hearts, they would at least raise the banner of ending the chaos, reorganizing China, and saving the world and the people.

But now, such banners do not exist.

Han Fei was a famous thinker in later generations, and his theories played a great role in the formation of the feudal dynasty system in later generations.

When Zhu Xiang met Han Fei, he had a certain "pilgrimage" thought in his mind, just like when he met Xunzi.

At this moment, Han Fei was just a scholar who only had eyes for the Han royal family. The Han king, whom he wanted to continue to rule, was no less powerful than the current Zhao king. The Han king was even more stupid, but because of his small territory and frequent attacks, he could not do anything absurd and earth-shattering.

The image of King Zhao appeared in Zhu Xiang's mind.

No matter how badly the State of Zhao was ruined by the King of Zhao, no one called for overthrowing the King of Zhao.

The court of Han was full of extravagance, and the king and his ministers were all extremely incompetent. Han Fei still wanted to continue the rule of the King of Han and did not look down at the Han people who were crying under the rule of the King of Han.

This is the thought of this era, the norm of this era.

this is the truth.

After all, I am still out of tune with this era.

Zhu Xiang held Ying Xiaozheng's hand and placed it on his forehead.

Through discussions with Han Fei, Zhu Xiang discovered that no matter how hard he tried to fit in into this era and no matter how hard he tried to avoid seeing things he did not want to see, there would always be people telling him that he was incompatible with this era, and that all the wise men in history books who were respected by later generations would stand against him one by one.

"I'm fine, I just thought of King Zhao." Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "Han Fei is a very capable man. King Han is just as stupid as King Zhao. When I saw him trying his best to maintain King Han's rule, I thought of King Zhao."

Ying Xiaozheng said: "Then... if we change the King of Han, will Korea be better?"

Zhu Xiang smiled and said, "Maybe. If Han Fei himself became the King of Han, perhaps the country would be much better."

Ying Xiaozheng pouted: "Then the King of Han should continue to be stupid and not stand in the way of Qin's unification of the world."

Zhu Xiang pinched Ying Xiaozheng's pouting lips and said, "South Korea will not stand in the way of Qin's unification of the world. No country will stand in the way of Qin's unification of the world."

He asked, "Zheng'er, if your uncle wants to let common people learn to read and write, and pass the exam to become officials, do you agree?"

Ying Xiaozheng was silent.

If all the common people in the world learned some of their uncle's skills, it would be difficult to be a king.

Zhu Xiang said, "I'm just talking. Zheng'er, aren't you tired? You've been working in the fields for so long. Let's go back and sleep."

Ying Xiaozheng asked, "Just leave Han Fei there?"

Zhu Xiang said willfully, "I'll let Xue receive him."

Ying Xiaozheng: “Ah?”

Uncle, can you please stop pushing things you don't want to do onto my aunt? Uncle, you're going too far!

Zhu Xiang was sometimes very willful. He said something to Xue, who sighed and went to entertain Han Fei, fulfilling her hospitality.

Xue complained, "Since you admire his talent, why did you anger him?"

Zhu Xiang said confidently: "He made me angry."

Xue sighed: "Yes, yes. Since he angered you, I will kick him out."

"No need, let him continue to learn from Xunzi." Zhu Xiang said embarrassedly, "It seems that I will not be able to accept disciples in the future."

Xue said: "With your temper, you really can't accept disciples."

After complaining, Xue went to help Zhu Xiang clean up the aftermath.

She thought Han Fei would get angry and leave after hearing her lover's hurtful words. She planned to let Han Fei stay at home for a day, and then contact the Xianyang Academy for him to live there.

But the next day, Han Fei stood in front of Zhu Xiang's door with the letter in his arms. He did not back down and wanted to continue asking Zhu Xiang for advice.

Just looking at his red and swollen eyes, Zhu Xiang knew that what he said yesterday made him feel uneasy.

Zhu Xiang's tone towards Han Fei was much softer. Han Fei was not wrong at all, it was he who was wrong.

"Don't learn from me." Zhu Xiang said sincerely, "You should learn from Xunzi."

Han Fei asked, "Duke Zhu Xiang is unwilling to teach me?"

Zhu Xiang said: "It's not that I don't want to teach you, but I can't teach others. If others really learn what I want to teach, it will not be good for my disciples."

Zhu Xiang pointed to the ground and said, "I am a farmer. I only look down at the ground."

He pointed to the sky and the distance again: "The wise men of this era should look to the king, to a greater and more distant place. So even if you want to learn from me, I can't teach you. I will recommend you to Xunzi."

Han Fei seemed to understand.

But Zhu Xiang refused to teach him. He wanted to stay at Zhu Xiang's house and wait for an opportunity to ask Zhu Xiang for advice, so he had no choice but to turn to Xunzi.

After Xunzi learned about this, he first took out his ruler and hit Zhu Xiang hard several times, scolding him, "Why don't you return the disciple you don't want to teach to me?" Then, he tested Han Fei with a complicated expression.

"Your goal is to continue the rule of the Han royal family, but as Zhu Xiang said, the Kingdom of Han is doomed to perish. Even so, do you still want to study?" Xunzi asked.

Han Fei said firmly: "I will not give up! I want to learn from Xunzi and Zhu Xianggong! I want to see why Qin is so powerful!"

Xunzi said: "Since you have made up your mind, then you can take my class."

Xunzi arranged for Han Fei to study at the Xianyang Academy and listen to his lectures every day.

After Han Fei became familiar with the laws of Qin, he would arrange Han Fei to serve him by his side and satisfy Han Fei's desire to have close contact with Zhu Xiang.

Xunzi didn't know whether the outcome of Han Fei's contact with Zhu Xiang would be good or bad. Anyway, the State of Han would be destroyed, and for Han Fei, it probably couldn't be worse than this.

The King of Qin learned about this and was aware of Zhu Xiang's anger.

He held his forehead and sighed.

After dismissing everyone, the King of Qin held his forehead and remained silent for a long time.

After a long while, his deep voice was heard in the empty room: "Zhu Xiang, Zhu Xiang, if the King of Qin also becomes incompetent, will you hate him as much as you hate the King of Zhao and the King of Han? You will, right?"

Zhu Xiang would definitely do that, so he couldn't completely trust Zhu Xiang.

I hope Zheng'er can grow up safely, otherwise the other Qin kings will definitely kill Zhu Xiang.

Zhu Xiang's attitude of being loyal only to virtuous kings is really a thorn in people's throat.

"Fortunately, I am a wise king." The King of Qin sighed and stood up, "Let's go to Zhu Xiang's house."

Thinking of Zhu Xiang, he became greedy again.

The fields have had a good harvest these days, so Zhuxiang should have fresh seasonal vegetables again.

The King of Qin thought it was time for the Crown Prince to work again, so he went to rest.

(End of this chapter)