167: Chapter 167 The Young Man from Chu

"Mister, here is the newspaper you wanted."

On the outskirts of Xianyang, a young boy entered a thatched hut and respectfully handed a copy of the Great Qin Empire Weekly to a young man inside.

This man was eight feet tall, with a grand appearance that people of the time found extraordinary.

He had a light beard on his chin, giving him a somewhat ethereal air.

"Take this reward."

The young man took out three coins from his person and handed them to the boy.

"Mister, there's no need, no need."

The boy shook his head repeatedly, refusing to accept the reward money the young man offered.

The young man smiled and said, "If you don't take it, I won't teach you how to write anymore."

"Then thank you, Mister, thank you very much."

The boy had no choice but to stop refusing. After handing over the Great Qin Empire Weekly, he took the three coins, thinking to himself that he should bring the gentleman some more grain.

The young man flipped through the contents of the Great Qin Empire Weekly. As he looked at the content on the second page, he couldn't help but chuckle softly.

With his laughter, the light in the originally dim thatched hut seemed to brighten.

"Mister, what's written on there?"

Seeing the young man smile so radiantly, the boy couldn't help but ask.

The young man said, "Do you remember what you asked me to write?"

"I remember."

The boy nodded immediately.

A look of sorrow appeared on his face.

The young man looked at the boy. Over a month ago, he had come to Xianyang from the Chu Region.

After staying in an inn in Xianyang for a few days, he rented a private residence on the outskirts of the city and settled down.

On ordinary days, he would play the zither by the river.

The boy was a cowherd who often grazed his cattle by the river. Over time, the two became acquainted.

Seeing that the young man could play the zither and write beautifully, the boy asked the young man to teach him how to write.

Originally, there were private schools in the village. Before the boy's father died, he had sent him there to study.

But not long after the boy started, the Burning of Books and Burying of Scholars occurred, and studying any doctrine other than Legalism was prohibited.

The private school in the village taught Confucianism, so it was naturally shut down, and the boy was unable to complete his studies.

After his father died, he had even fewer opportunities to learn.

Having finally met someone he could talk to—and a highly learned person at that—he knelt and kowtowed, wanting to follow the young man.

The young man had come from the Chu Region and was not very familiar with Xianyang; he needed to learn about the situation through a local, so he agreed.

The young man would teach the boy to write, and the boy would bring him meals and run errands for him, acting like an attendant.

The boy's family was not wealthy, he had lost his father, and there were elderly people at home, so the young man would often give the boy some money.

Both the boy and his family felt uneasy about this.

Since the young man was teaching the boy, they should have been the ones giving him Shu Xiu.

Xiu is dried meat; Shu Xiu refers to ten strips of dried meat, a modest gift in ancient times.

The young man declined the Shu Xiu.

Seeing that he wouldn't accept the tuition gift, they could only send some grain instead.

The young man did not refuse that.

He did not work the land himself and indeed needed grain to live.

After the young man arrived in the village, the Shi Zhang was the first to visit, asking what he was doing there.

The young man's answer was that he was on a study tour.

Hearing this, the Shi Zhang no longer had any doubts.

One look at the young man told him he was the kind of scholar who possessed a wealth of knowledge.

Such scholars would travel the world to increase their knowledge.

As the saying goes, traveling ten thousand miles is better than reading ten thousand books.

Since the young man came to the village, he became the most learned person there.

Whenever the Shi Zhang encountered a neighborhood dispute that was difficult to mediate, he would seek out the young man.

With the young man mediating, his silver tongue could always convince both conflicting parties to turn their weapons into jade and silk, returning to harmony.

To thank him, the Shi Zhang would also send grain as a token of his appreciation.

After the superiors notified the Shi Zhang to hang Qin Law Feedback Boxes in the village latrines, he specifically came to talk with the young man to ask for his opinion.

The young man had traveled all the way from the Chu Region on his study tour, and this was the first time he had encountered such a thing.

The young man said, "Shi Zhang, you mean to say that His Majesty the Head of State ordered these Qin Law Feedback Boxes to be hung up?"

"Indeed."

The Shi Zhang said, "His Majesty the Head of State is benevolent."

"After His Majesty the Head of State abolished the corvée labor system, he also abolished corporal punishment."

"Hanging the Qin Law Feedback Boxes this time is likely because he wants to hear the voices of the common people to better amend the qin law."

The young man nodded and said, "If these Qin Law Feedback Boxes were hung in the busy markets, then His Majesty the Head of State would just be putting on a show."

"By placing these Qin Law Feedback Boxes inside the latrines, anyone who is literate might stuff their opinions inside after seeing them."

"Literate people all hold various official positions. If something truly happened, His Majesty the Head of State couldn't possibly kill everyone, could he?"

"The country still needs to function normally!"

"Right, right, right!"

The Shi Zhang nodded repeatedly with a face full of agreement.

He lamented, "How fortunate the people of the world are to have His Majesty the Head of State in power."

"The Second Emperor delusionally tried to use the name of the First Emperor to force His Majesty the Head of State to his death."

His expression hardened, and his tone turned cold.

"Fortunately, His Majesty the Head of State did not let the Second Emperor have his way."

"To prevent the world from being poisoned by the Second Emperor, His Majesty the Head of State raised troops for the sake of universal justice, seized control of Xianyang, took charge of the court, restricted the Second Emperor's power, and announced to the world the abolition of the corvée labor system."

Zhao Fusu claimed it was an exercise, but from the imperial nobility down to the common people, who didn't know that Zhao Fusu was seizing power?

The biggest mystery to the outside world now was how Zhao Fusu had managed to take command of Great Qin's million-strong army.

Some speculated that the First Emperor had given Zhao Fusu the Tiger Tally before he died, allowing him to command the Qin Army of the world at a critical moment.

The people of the world found this explanation to be quite plausible.

After Zhao Fusu entered Xianyang, he did not take the opportunity to proclaim himself Emperor, which also sparked discussion throughout the land.

Zhao Fusu proposed a constitutional monarchy to achieve the ultimate goal of a world for the public.

But in the eyes of the world, Zhao Fusu, after all, had not received the First Emperor's edict of succession.

The legitimacy of the throne rested with Hu Hai.

Unwilling to cede power to Hu Hai, Zhao Fusu restricted Hu Hai's authority, established a Parliament, and called himself the Paramount Leader to lead the entire Great Qin Empire.

This was also why the various ministers all addressed Zhao Fusu as His Majesty the Head of State.

In their hearts, Zhao Fusu was the true Emperor.

After Zhao Fusu took power, everyone except Hu Hai—from the commoners of the Great Qin Empire to the nobles of the Qin Region—benefited, so they all tacitly accepted the current state of rule.

The young man highly approved of Zhao Fusu's approach to winning the hearts of the people.

He believed that a monarch should govern the country with benevolence and righteousness. By implementing benevolent policies, reducing taxes and corvée labor, benefiting the people, and allowing them to rest and recuperate without interference in their livelihoods, the monarch could win the hearts of the people and achieve long-term peace and stability for the nation.