67 Chapter 67

◎Leave.◎

Zhang Liang's brother had not yet fully recovered, so he had to stay in Xianyang for a few more days.

As the end of the year approached, the court was on holiday, and Fusu also took a holiday for himself. In the morning, he read the memorials at his father's place. In the afternoon, when his father summoned musicians to listen to music, he voluntarily withdrew and left the palace to chat with Zhang Liang.

The sage was young but very insightful. It was a rare opportunity to communicate with him, and Fusu certainly would not miss it.

In the few interactions Zhang Liang had with Fusu, he had a very good impression of him. Since he had this opportunity, he was also happy to interact with Fusu.

Therefore, the two of them had a very pleasant conversation.

Ying Zheng was puzzled. Why were Koreans so popular with Fusu? Han Fei left, and now Zhang Liang arrived.

Just as he was thinking this, the eldest son came in and started talking again: "Father, Zifang knows his sensitive status and is afraid of causing trouble for us, so he has never left the house. But now he will be leaving Qin in a few days. I want to invite him to go out and see the scenery and people's livelihood in Xianyang."

Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow: "He's leaving?"

"Yes, Father. After Zifang sent his brothers back to Yingchuan County, he continued to travel the world." Fusu rested his chin on his hand, his tone full of envy. "Mr. Han is also traveling around the world. They are truly free and easy."

Ying Zheng asked calmly, "Do you want to go too?"

Fusu immediately shook his head: "No."

"Oh?" Ying Zheng said, "I look at you with admiration."

Fusu said seriously: "Father, my ambition is to rule the world, but not to be in it."

It sounded like a tongue twister, but Ying Zheng understood it. He nodded with satisfaction: "My son must not be as useless as those Koreans."

Fusu smiled and corrected him, "Father, I am from Yingchuan County. You forgot again."

Ying Zheng said, "It's not even half a year yet, and it's not just me, many of us are not used to it. We must change quickly, otherwise when will the people of Yingchuan County remember that they are Qin people?"

Starting with this topic, the father and son talked about the current situation of Yingchuan County for a while, flipped through the memorials there, and came to a good conclusion. Now the people of Yingchuan County have lived a normal life. Even if someone wants to pull them into rebellion, no one will give up a good life to do something that will cost their lives.

What we need to guard against are the princes, nobles and some powerful families who have escaped the net. They have money and connections, and although they cannot pose a big threat, if they cause trouble, it is inevitable that they will disgust people.

However, there is a solution to this problem. It is obviously not feasible to send people to watch everyone one by one and arrest anyone who makes any unusual move. It is better to mobilize the general public and let them report the rebellious people who attempt to disrupt their peaceful lives.

The father and son could not stop talking about government affairs until the eunuch came to ask when the meal would be served.

After dinner, Fusu returned to the palace for a nap. Before leaving, he did not forget to inform his father of his plans: "Father, I will go out to play with Zifang this afternoon."

After all, Zhang Liang couldn't stay for a few days, so Ying Zheng waved his hand and said, "It's up to you."

Of course, Fusu asked Zhang Liang for his opinion before going out to play. After a nap, they gathered outside, first strolled around Xianyang City, and then looked outside the city.

The autumn harvest is over and there is no one in the fields. However, there are people picking up branches in the mountains and forests, including adults, children and the elderly. They are preparing for the upcoming New Year and winter.

Zhang Liang said, "Yingchuan County... I believe the situation is similar."

"Of course," Fusu said, "since he is a Qin man, my father will certainly follow his principles."

"That's good, but..." Zhang Liang breathed a sigh of relief, "With the eldest master here, I really don't have to worry about anything."

Fusu joked, "Since you said that, I can no longer ignore it even if I want to."

"You are too modest," Zhang Liang said with a smile. "It is precisely because I have seen your character that I dare to say such words."

Fusu straightened his expression and said, "As long as Fusu can do what he can, I will ensure that the world will be peaceful and prosperous."

Zhang Liang did not say anything, but just bowed solemnly.

Two days later, Zhang Liang left Xianyang. Fusu did not see him off, but only gave him writing brushes, ink, and porcelain as gifts. He also very practically packed two bags of gold for him to use as travel expenses. This made Zhang Liang, who received the gifts, feel a little amused and helpless. Fortunately, he already knew Fusu quite well and knew that he had no other intentions, so he accepted the gifts frankly and asked the visitor to express his gratitude on his behalf.

After the others came back and learned that Zhang Liang and his brother had left the city, Fusu suddenly sighed: "I'm a little regretful. I should have kept him no matter what."

Li Ying said: "Yeah, just looking at that face makes me eat two more bowls of rice."

Fusu held his forehead and said, "Sage of Strategy, one of the Three Heroes of the Early Han Dynasty, besides looking at their faces, can you see anything else?"

Li Ying thought for a moment and said, "I heard Chen Ping is also very handsome. Young Master, why don't you go find him?"

Fusu: “…”

Fusu said: "No!"

…

After seeing off Zhang Liang, the Qin State welcomed the New Year. There was no need to go to Yongcheng this year. Fusu and her sisters and brothers made trouble for their father for two days. Finally, Ying Zheng, who was always good-tempered in front of his children, drove them all away with a fierce face. However, the children were not afraid. They rode their bicycles and ran away laughing.

Ying Zheng rubbed his temples and lectured his eldest son: "You started this. Put away the bicycle and those toys! Children of the royal family are so unruly! What a disgrace!"

Fusu smiled and rubbed his father's back: "Father, it's New Year's Day, don't be angry."

Ying Zheng said angrily, "Who made me angry?"

Fusu immediately said angrily: "Father, don't be angry, don't be angry. I will go and deal with these little scoundrels in a while. They are the ones who made you angry."

Ying Zheng couldn't help but laugh: "The villains are the first to complain, aren't they just relying on your power?"

"Huh, really?" Fusu exaggeratedly made a surprised expression. "So I'm that powerful? I thought it was because we all knew that my father was the most easygoing father in the world!"

"You..." Ying Zheng pulled his eldest son in front of him, poked his forehead, and said with a smile, "You have a clever tongue! Well, let them make their noise. After the New Year, I will have the teachers increase the homework."

This time, Fusu was genuinely horrified: "No, Father!"

Seeing his reaction, Ying Zheng smiled even more happily: "You will be the one to tell them this good news when the time comes!"

Fusu: “…”

Children, I am sorry for you.

After the noisy New Year is over, we officially enter the cold winter.

The main issues in the court were where it snowed heavily and whether there would be a snowstorm, or where the houses were weak and whether their collapse would cause casualties.

This also reminded Fusu, who was becoming more and more proficient in handling government affairs as he followed his father, that he remembered that there would be an earthquake and a famine this year.

He was too young at the time and could not remember the specific location and time of the natural disasters and man-made disasters. The historical records were not very detailed, making it impossible to investigate.

Earthquakes are inevitable, so Fusu copied the methods of preventing various disasters and the precautions after disasters in a notebook, printed it and sent it to various counties, asking minor officials to publicize it among the people.

Famine, however, can be avoided. After obtaining his father's consent, Fusu checked the grain inventory, ordered inspections of local water conservancy projects, and ordered people to observe the climate so that they could take precautions in advance.

Before we knew it, it was already the middle of the twelfth lunar month, and Ying Zheng’s birthday was only half a month away.

The king's birthday has fixed conventions. Not only do the court and the harem have to celebrate the king's birthday, but Ying Zheng himself also has a lot of ceremonies. At the end of the day, there is no time to breathe.

Based on this, Ying Zheng didn't like celebrating his birthday very much.

Fusu happened to have some free time, and in order to let his father have a happy birthday, he took his children to bake a cake for his father.

Because he couldn't find milk, Fusu had to use goat's milk, egg white and sugar. Everyone worked together to beat it, and finally made a little cream.

The cake was presented to Ying Zheng at a family banquet. The concubines below had no idea that their children had made such a white dessert without their knowledge and the eldest son's knowledge. When they heard this, they almost stretched their necks to see the king's reaction.

Ying Zheng first tasted the cream on the surface, and frowned slightly as soon as he put it in his mouth. Seeing this, Fusu hurriedly pushed away the cream and picked up a piece of bread for his father.

The cake base under the cream won Ying Zheng's favor, and he ate three bites in a row before stopping.

Fusu explained, "Cream is made from goat's milk, so it has a certain taste, which is why my father doesn't like it."

Although Ying Zheng also ate mutton on a regular basis, people's tastes can be strange. For example, when Fusu was in the underworld, he never ate raw tomatoes, but he ate scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

Ying Zheng said, "A little bit, but the snacks hidden inside are good. Why is it made like this?"

This question stumped Fusu. Cake...isn't it just like that?

Fusu blinked and said, "It just... suddenly occurred to me. Actually, I don't like cream either. Father, let's not make cream next time."

Ying Zheng nodded, laughed again, and said, "You have these strange ideas, but you don't like them."

"Stupid." Ying Zheng finally concluded.

Fusu stared, feeling too embarrassed to act like a child and fawn in front of his father and the others in the harem.

"This bread is easy to make." Fusu carefully spread the butter on the bread. "I've already built the bread oven. If you want to eat it later, just tell the chef to make it."

However, in the end, the ones who used the bread oven the most were not Ying Zheng or Fusu, but the concubines in the harem. The bread was sweet and soft, and not only they liked it, but their children also liked it.

Fusu was afraid that the children would develop cavities from eating too much, so he quickly gave orders to the chef in charge of the bread kiln, forcibly limiting the amount of sweets the children could consume daily. The concubines' plan to build their own bread kiln was also rejected by Fusu.

The children have a lot of study activities every day and don’t care about this matter, but the concubines can’t help but complain. It’s just a matter of food, and the eldest son is too stingy.

However, due to the king's majesty and the eldest son's current unbreakable status, they only dared to complain quietly and did not dare to do anything else.