I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 99: This military order, why don't you just chop off my head? !
The spring of the twenty-ninth year of King Zheng of Qin.

Zhang Liang, who had been imprisoned in the imperial prison for several days, finally saw the light of day again.

He changed into his original rather simple clothes, and looked no different from the ordinary people in and outside the city of Xianyang. Except for his unusually handsome appearance, the rest of him was completely out of place in this huge Xianyang Palace.

Ying Zheng walked in the front, while Fusu and Meng Tian lagged behind half a step, following him on the left and right. There was no one guarding Zhang Liang at all.

This made Zhang Liang feel uncomfortable.

While quietly twisting his wrists and ankles, which had been bound for so long that they were somewhat stiff, he was thinking about the series of events that had happened today.

Yes, even for someone as smart as him, these things were beyond his understanding.

Ying Zheng was indeed a heroic ruler. Zhang Liang had to admit that before Qin unified the world, no monarch of the other six kingdoms could compare to him.

Ying Zheng actually let go of the remnant of the Six Kingdoms who had always wanted to assassinate him, without any worries, and even dared to let Zhang Liang continue to control the knights under his command. Just for this point, Zhang Liang could not think of any monarch who could have such courage.

Not only did Ying Zheng dare to delegate power to himself, he also dared to promise to give him a fiefdom after the county-kingdom system was established.

This is more than just audacity...

How strong does one’s self-confidence need to be to be able to do such a thing?

Zhang Liang, who regarded Ying Zheng as his lifelong enemy, certainly knew how powerful the First Emperor was, but he never thought that he would be so shocked after actually coming into contact with him.

half an hour.

Zhang Liang, who was lagging behind the other three, said slowly:
"What are you going to do?"

The three of them suddenly realized that no one had told Zhang Liang what they were going to do.

Ying Zheng clapped his hands and laughed out loud in surprise:

"Yes, yes, yes, I forgot to tell you that I have to go to the Ministry of Works, Meng Tian and Fusu both want to go with me, so I took you with me."

Zhang Liang's mind was filled with question marks again.

What the hell is this? He just got released from the imperial prison and now he wants to be the Minister of Works?

Is he planning to throw himself into the pile of prisoners and dig a grave for himself?

He hesitated for a long time before saying:

"You are the monarch. If you want to build something, why don't you just call the craftsmen from the Ministry of Works to the Zhangtai Palace and talk to them? Why do you have to go there in person?"

"That's disgraceful."

That's a bit of an understatement.

According to Zhang Liang, this was not only disgraceful, but also a great disgrace to the monarch!
He had been wandering in the market for many years and had long understood the principle of judging the situation. He did not have the useless backbone and arrogance of ordinary descendants of the Six Kingdoms aristocrats, otherwise he would have committed suicide out of shame and anger when he was fleeing in a dilapidated house.

Now that he had chosen to be a minister of the Qin Dynasty, he could no longer address him directly as he did when he was in the imperial prison. Although he still felt uncomfortable calling him "Your Majesty", it was always okay to be polite.

Ying Zheng turned around and squinted at him:

"Why, has the King of Han never been to the residences of his subordinates before?"

"So what if he wants to do something but is worried?"

Zhang Liang's face turned red and his neck became thick after hearing this.

The King of Han is going to be the Minister of Works? What a joke! Of course he can't go!
What if you are worried that your subordinates will not do a good job? If they don't do a good job, they will be beheaded. What else can you do?
The facts were before his eyes, but he couldn't say it. Although it didn't seem to be wrong, he did feel a little ashamed when asked by Ying Zheng.

"…Then what exactly are you going to do as the Minister of Works? This should be the duty of a craftsman."

Zhang Liang was speechless for a long time, and finally decided to change the subject:
"I heard that Qin's laws were strict. Scholars, farmers, merchants, and soldiers all had their own duties to do. If they crossed the line, they would still be punished even if they had made contributions."

"If you, the emperor, are like this, what should the people below do?"

Ying Zheng looked at Fusu and Meng Tian beside him, and saw smiles in each other's eyes.

It seems that although Zhang Liang has compromised, he is still very dissatisfied in his heart, otherwise why would he find fault so much.

After thinking for a while, Ying Zheng did not answer but asked:

"If they can offset their crimes with other merits, or even get a reward greater than the punishment, then officials will not care about cases, farmers will not work, and they will all tinker with things that should be considered by craftsmen. What do you think?"

Zhang Liang's mouth was blocked again.

Ying Zheng smiled and said:

"Perhaps among the common people, there are farmers who have the talent of craftsmen, and there are officials who are better at farming, but everyone has their own duties. If they can complete their own duties properly first, and then explain their abilities in other areas to their superiors, their superiors will probably not interfere too much, and may even help to conceal it."

"Someone once told me that if the water is too clear, there will be no fish. As long as there are people around, these small problems are always inevitable, but as long as they are not excessive, I will not be too harsh on them."

"Besides, if you want to know what I am going to do as the Minister of the Imperial Household, then you can go with me and see. It will not be a big loss after all."

Zhang Liang was completely speechless and could only nod silently.

whatever.

I want to see today what you are going to do!
…………

The three of them took a carriage and arrived at a mansion located outside the Xianyang Palace.

This is the Ministry of Works.

Generally speaking, the Shaofu of the General Works was in charge of large-scale construction projects such as palace construction, which could be said to be the ancient version of city construction. The official in charge of the Shaofu of the General Works was called Shaofu. Although he was not a high-ranking official, he was at least a middle-level official.

And because the Ministry of Works was located in Xianyang City, the craftsmen here were almost equivalent to a gathering place for the best craftsmen in the entire Qin Dynasty.

Ying Zheng got off the carriage and entered the gate of the Ministry of Works.

There were only Meng Tian, ​​Fusu and Zhang Liang behind him. He did not bring any more guards. When he left the palace, he had changed into more low-key and simple clothes, similar to Zhang Liang. Fusu's clothing was originally low-key, always in black and white. Even if he did not change, no one could recognize him as the eldest son of the Qin Dynasty after he left the Xianyang Palace.

Only Meng Tian was still in military uniform and carrying a sword, ready to protect Your Majesty at any time.

Ying Zheng strolled into the Ministry of Works. The guards at the door wanted to step forward to stop him, but after seeing Meng Tian's formal attire, they gave up such rude behavior and retreated straight back.

After entering the door, many craftsmen were sitting on the ground in the open space in the yard. Some were studying the paint surface in the sun, some were comparing their shadows to see whether their piece of wood was planed straight, and some even built a shed and started working on the furnace here.

In short... most of the craftsmen were shirtless, or had their sleeves rolled up to their shoulders, and none of them looked very decent.

Ying Zheng didn't even raise his eyebrows, and seemed to be unconcerned about the scene. But Zhang Liang's expression was not very good.

In his opinion, the Qin Dynasty was a unified dynasty, but even the Chief Minister was so rude, and the craftsmen there were not well dressed. This was too corrupt.

Ying Zheng's reaction was even more outrageous. As a monarch, he did not reprimand the enemy when he saw such a scene. Did the Qin Dynasty really only rule the country by laws and not care about etiquette at all?
Seeing his expression, Meng Tian next to him took the initiative to explain:
"The Ministry of Works has always been like this. Your Majesty has been here before, but that was all announced in advance, so they were dressed neatly before. But in fact, when blacksmiths are working on iron, it is easy for them to be damaged by sparks if they are wearing clothes. They would rather burn their skin than damage their clothes. Even if the court distributes clothes to them, they are reluctant to wear them."

"Other craftsmen either often do manual labor or their clothes get dirty easily, just like ordinary farmers always roll up their trouser legs when they go to the fields. Clothes will get damaged easily if they wash too much, so they are reluctant to do so."

"Don't think this is unsightly. They are just doing their jobs. Even if they have titles and their income is several times or even dozens of times that of ordinary people, they are reluctant to give it up. Moreover, many craftsmen come from the Mohist school and are frugal by nature. It would be bad to force them. Apart from these clothes, do you see anything wrong with them?"

Zhang Liang looked carefully and found that most of the craftsmen were silent and focused on their work. They had no intention of entertaining them. Even if they had something to discuss, they would lower their voices and talk in groups of three or five to avoid disturbing other colleagues who were observing the things in their hands.

Although they all look unkempt and uncouth, in fact, this group of people are the ones who think the most.

Zhang Liang was also affected by this atmosphere and answered in a low voice:

"I understand."

He said nothing more, and his expression returned to normal, no longer showing surprise at the craftsmen's attire.

After they stood in the yard for a while, a man came out in a hurry to greet them.

The man walked quickly, but he didn't seem hurried, just looked very serious. Looking up, we could see that he was very young, about 20 years old, about the same age as Zhang Liang, and younger than all the craftsmen in the yard. Perhaps because of this, he had a few mustaches on his lips and a short beard on his chin, which made him look mature.

He was wearing the official uniform of one of the Nine Ministers. When he came in front of the four people, he slowed down his pace and appeared solemn.

When he finally came up to them, he bowed respectfully to Ying Zheng and the others:

"Shaofu Zhang Han, nice to meet you——"

Ying Zheng raised his hand to interrupt:

"Just call them Shangguan."

Obviously, he didn't want to reveal his identity at this time.

The young official who called himself Zhang Han understood immediately and hurriedly saluted everyone:

"Shaofu Zhang Han, I greet all the superiors."

"I wonder if the superior officer has come to visit me unexpectedly today. Is there something important he wants to tell the Minister of Works?"

Ying Zheng paused for a moment, then said:

"Well, there is indeed something more important that I need to come and talk about in person. There is something that I want to ask you if you can make."

"This thing is called paper."

Zhang Han was very confused.

What is paper…how come I’ve never heard of it?
He raised his eyes and looked at the four people who came to visit the Minister of Works.

The first one was naturally the First Emperor. As the Shaofu, he had naturally seen him from afar during court meetings. But most of the time, due to his official position, he was not qualified to have a private conversation with the emperor. So he could recognize him, but he was just able to recognize him and was not familiar with him.

And half a step behind the First Emperor, on his left, was General Meng Tian.

The Meng family has always been a noble family with high status in the Qin Dynasty. Meng Tian's grandfather Meng Ao was originally from Qi. Later, he defected to the Qin Dynasty and became a senior minister. He served in four dynasties, including King Zhaoxiang, King Xiaowen, King Zhuangxiang, and Emperor Qin Shihuang. He went on dozens of expeditions and made many military achievements. Meng Tian's father Meng Wu was also a military general. Although he was not as good as Meng Ao, he was also a famous general who participated in the war to destroy Chu.

With such ancestors, as long as Meng Tian did not seek death, he would not have a bad life - what's more, he himself was also very promising, so over the years since Meng Wu retired, the brothers Meng Tian and Meng Yi had been valued by the First Emperor.

Zhang Han had only met the man on the right of the First Emperor once, and that was after he took office as the Minister of the Imperial Household.

That was the eldest son of the Qin Dynasty, and the recognized future crown prince, Prince Fusu.

Although there was a handsome man of the same age as himself whom he did not recognize, this lineup was already so luxurious that it could only be put together for a sacrifice to heaven.

Zhang Han really couldn't figure out what ability a mere Junior Official of the Imperial Household could have that could have alarmed the three of them to go out together.

He was a little panicked, and tried his best to keep his voice from shaking:
"Your Majesty... Sir, I have never heard of this thing. Please explain it to me."

Ying Zheng nodded but was not angry.

"It's okay. It's normal that you haven't heard of this thing. We just heard about it too."

As he said this, he turned to look at Meng Tian and asked:

"Did you read and remember everything Zhu Biao gave you in class today?"

Meng Tian bowed:

"Yes, I have written them all down."

In class today, everyone was discussing the national system, but Meng Tian kept his mission in mind and did two things at once. While listening to their arguments, he asked Zhu Biao for the papermaking process and began to memorize it desperately. With the advance instructions from His Majesty, he knew that his most important task after entering was to memorize this thing.

Ying Zheng thought for a while and said:

"There is more than one kind of papermaking technique there... The one that takes the shortest time seems to be called Hanpi paper? It uses the pouring method, right?"

Meng Tian thought about it carefully in his mind before he said with certainty:

"That's right. The production efficiency of Hanpi paper is relatively low. Not much paper can be produced at a time, but it does take the shortest time. From the beginning of production to the finished product, as long as the weather is not too bad, it will not take more than half a month."

Ying Zheng nodded with satisfaction and said:

"Then you can talk to Zhang Han about how to make this Han leather paper. Give the Ministry of Works a month. After all, it will take time to make the paper curtain."

When Zhang Han heard this, his scalp felt numb.

Not to mention that this is an item I have never heard of...

This damn thing hasn't even been made yet, but the military order has already been issued. What if it can't be done in a month? Should I take my head to see His Majesty?
He looked at Meng Tian nervously, hoping that he would not say anything too outrageous.

Meng Tian coughed lightly and spoke:

"First, in this season, cut two to three-year-old mulberry branches, peel them, and then tie them up, press them with stones, and soak them in running water for seven days..."

Zhang Han's eyes turned dark and he wished he could faint right now.

There is only one month left, and it will take seven days just to soak the bark, why don’t you just chop off my head, that would be faster!!!

(End of this chapter)