Chapter 12 Qin 12

The convoy moved forward slowly. Zhu Qing'ai noticed when the group entered a certain area, which mainly included Taishu Jiuzhong's land and his small thatched hut.

She could monitor places further away, but that's something she could do but didn't need, so it's better to save her energy.

Otherwise, she should have noticed the King of Qin's actions as soon as he left the palace.

Noticing that people had entered the host's territory, and not just Ying Ji, but also the next King of Qin, Ying Zhu, Zhu Qing'ai pondered for a moment and decided not to look at them. The group chatted and exchanged pleasantries while trying to extract something from the situation.

This also allows Taishu Jiu to get used to human social situations. She believes that it's impossible for one person to unify a world and then just break up with it when the world ends.

Their unique forms dictate that they will travel together for at least a few worlds. By then, when both of them have grown strong enough, they can each go their own way.

So Zhu Qing'ai continued her preparations, creating many more sculpted ordinary-looking, simply dressed commoners, or small merchants wearing slightly better clothes.

****

Taishu Jiu had not received any notification from Zhu Qing'ai. He was still checking the first batch of paper he had produced, and to be honest, the quality wasn't very good.

These papers are not as thin as cicada wings, nor can they compare to the snow-capped peaks of mountains; they are simply a normal performance under the existing conditions.

He picked up the paper with both hands, touched it, and then looked at it in the sunlight.

The paper is rough and the color is not nice, which is probably due to the raw materials. But this is the Warring States period, so it's good enough as it is.

Thinking this, he pinched the paper and tore it open with a little force. The paper wasn't brittle, so it was a decent piece of paper.

Ying Ji didn't manage to stop them, and watched as the thin, unfamiliar thing in Tai Shu Jiu's hand split in two.

Taishu Jiu turned his head in the direction of the sound, his attention shifting from the paper in his hand, and only then did he notice that someone had arrived.

He temporarily put down what he was holding, turned around and bowed to Ying Ji, repeating what he had said to Ying Ji last time: "I did not know Your Majesty was coming here. I am sorry for not welcoming you properly. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

He discovered that Ying Ji really liked to appear suddenly, never sending anyone to notify him in advance to prepare for his arrival, as if he just did things on a whim.

Fortunately, he didn't do anything illegal or disorderly in private, otherwise... he would have been discovered by the country's highest ruler before anything even happened.

Ying Ji quickly took a few steps and personally helped up Tai Shu Jiu, who was bowing. However, his purpose was soon exposed. His respect for the virtuous was not purely for the sake of respecting the virtuous; he was doing it for utilitarian reasons.

"What is this? Did Mr. Taishu make something new?"

“It’s paper,” Taishu Jiu explained before Ying Ji could ask what it was for. “It’s something used for writing and drawing. I wanted to record the structure of the agricultural tools I came up with. It wasn’t appropriate to carve them on bamboo slips, and wooden boards and copper plates were too time-consuming. After thinking about it, I invented paper.”

"Then why tear this paper up?" Ying Ji looked at it from left to right, turning it over and over, but couldn't find anything wrong with the paper.

Although this thing is not as smooth as luxurious fabric, it is for writing, not for wearing. Ying Ji thinks it is useful, so why does it have to be so beautiful?

"I'm just testing how brittle it is. If it's too brittle, it won't keep well and will break easily. If it makes a nice tearing sound, it's a good piece of paper... If you don't believe me, Your Majesty can try it yourself?"

Ying Ji looked at the paper in his hand, now broken in two, and thought that since he had already torn it once, it wouldn't make a difference if he did it once more. Besides, he also wanted to know what Taishu Jiu meant by saying that "a well-torn piece of paper is a good piece of paper."

Could it possibly be as loud as tearing silk?

He pinched one side and tore the 'paper' easily without much force, much easier than tearing silk.

And this voice... is really nice.

Although it's not particularly catchy, it's inexplicably stress-relieving.

Taishu Jiu observed very carefully and handed Ying Ji another stack of papers: "Tear as many as you want, I don't need these, there are plenty of papers left."

At this age, it's quite possible to enjoy tearing up newspapers, which can also help improve hand-eye coordination. Although it's not a newspaper, it's still paper, so there's no difference.

However, Taishu Jiu didn't say this directly, fearing that if Ying Ji asked him what a newspaper was, he would have to explain for a long time and wouldn't be able to do his work.

This unusually generous behavior left Ying Ji speechless, feeling as if he were being treated like a child.

He took the paper from Taishu Jiu and casually stuffed it to his son Yingzhu behind him, not to tear it up, but to take it back for testing.

"Have you tried writing on this, sir? How did it feel?"

Taishu Jiu shook his head honestly: "Not yet. That brush is really not very good. I'm thinking of improving it when I have time."

He was thinking of making some more charcoal pencils. Drawing with a brush was too much of a challenge for him. He could draw perfectly with a hard pen, but with a soft pen...

Moreover, this brush is even the original version, which has not been improved, making it even more difficult to use.

Ying Ji nodded: "I am very willing to support you, sir. If you need anything, just tell him, and I will cover all the expenses."

He gestured with his eyes for Gong Cheng, who had been following behind them, to come forward.

"Yang greets you, sir." Gong Chengyang bowed respectfully to Taishu Jiu. In his mind, a great talent capable of creating such things naturally deserved to be bowed to.

As for his own job, wasn't he a servant who bought things for others?

What servant? Of course he can buy materials for Mr. Taishu!

He still had many questions to ask this gentleman. The craftsmen following behind him were all looking at him with envy. Gong Chengyang was determined not to be outdone by others and was eager to show himself: "Sir, please tell me if you need anything. Although I am not as good as you, I am very familiar with casting."

Taishu Jiu looked at Ying Ji with suspicion. Why was he being so generous? Although he had been generous last time when he gave Ying Ji two thousand coins, he knew he had sold at a loss. And this time, his generosity was unusual.

It was practically equivalent to funding his research with public funds; if this were in modern times, he would be at least a dean-level position.

“Thank you for your generosity, Your Majesty, but… did Your Majesty come here for the seeds?” Taishu Jiu thought he had guessed correctly, so he said the polite words he had prepared beforehand, “It may not be possible. These crops are not yet fully grown; they are only in their third generation.”

Ying Ji: It's only the third generation and it's already this big! What will happen when it's fully grown?

"If this grain is used to grow crops, it will be fine in the first generation, but it may degenerate and reduce production in the future."

Ying Ji heard nothing else but the words "reduced production," and he panicked. Although he hadn't promoted this grain variety yet, and it wasn't even his own, he had already automatically allocated the grain to his own cauldron. Hearing the words "reduced production" pained him more than the farmers themselves.

He frowned and asked worriedly, "Then how can we avoid reducing production?"

“We need to continue cultivating them, and the climate and ecology vary from place to place. Crops that grow very well near Xianyang may not be suitable for other places…”

Taishu Jiu talked to Ying Ji about farming, successfully confusing Ying Ji. Although this King of Qin valued agriculture and even had the character "Ji" in his name, it was still difficult for him to keep up with Taishu Jiu's thinking.

After listening to Taishu Jiu's account, he understood that the road ahead was long and arduous, and he could not be impatient. His generation might not be able to use or eat the high-yield grains, but his next generation, the generation after that, and the generation after that would be able to use and eat them sooner or later.

Having temporarily abandoned the idea of ​​taking away the semi-finished grain seeds, he remembered his second purpose for coming here: the worker had been looking at him frequently, almost pleadingly asking when he would ask the master about the iron casting.

Ying Ji certainly hadn't forgotten about this matter, but he felt that food was a little more important than weapons.

He coughed, bowed, and said, "Then I will trouble you to continue cultivating superior varieties, sir."

Regardless of what Ying Ji thought in his heart, he looked at Tai Shu Jiu with a grateful expression. How could anyone not like such a talented person who was dedicated to the country and its people?

Those in positions of power should not show their emotions, but that doesn't mean they should always be expressionless. Ying Ji preferred to express his true feelings at appropriate times. Didn't you see how moved Mr. Taishu was?

Ying Ji: The strategy of treating scholars with respect is indeed effective!

Taishu Jiu: Let me look at some examples of how humans have faced this situation... I see, I should be moved!

Each of them had their own thoughts, but on the surface, they longed to hold hands and look at each other with tears in their eyes.

Ying Zhu... Ying Zhu dared not comment on this, he just silently watched his father and the talented man's deep affection from behind.

Taishu Jiu waited for a while, but Ying Ji did not take the initiative to leave, so there must be something else going on.

Come to think of it, if there's nothing else going on, the King of Qin wouldn't come looking for him out of the blue. Surely he wouldn't be invited on an outing...?

Taishu Jiu took the initiative to ask, "Does Your Majesty have anything else to say?"

Qin, who had previously used the excuse of a spring outing, was unaware of Taishu Jiu's intentions. He was pleased with the way Taishu Jiu had offered him and revealed his true purpose for coming: "The curved plow that you gave me last time, sir, I had someone make a replica of after I got back. However, the replica they made is similar in form to yours, but not in spirit..."

Ying Ji looked at Tai Shu Jiu with an expression that seemed to say, "You should ask me why right now." But Tai Shu Jiu was focusing on the wrong thing. He said, "Why is it similar in form but not in spirit? Does the curved plow I created still have a soul?"

He thought for a moment, and he didn't even know if his current state could be considered as having a soul. How could the curved plow he created have a soul?

Ying Ji: ...

Ying Ji decided not to make things difficult for himself and said directly, "The truth is that the curved plows they make are not durable enough. They often need to have their iron parts replaced after a period of use, but the curved plows you made do not have this problem. Why is that?"

"Oh~~" Taishu Jiu understood. Why didn't he just say it directly? He answered matter-of-factly, "That's because I personally smelted iron to make farm tools. Iron smelted using common methods is more brittle than the iron I smelted, so it's not durable."

Ying Ji immediately replied, "Then could you teach these incompetent craftsmen how to smelt iron?"

Although Gong Chengyang was belittled, he looked at Taishu Jiu with bright eyes, quickly bowed deeply, and said, "Please enlighten me, sir!"

“Yes, but iron smelting requires a special furnace, which can't be done in a short time. I'll draw up the blueprints for Your Majesty.” Taishu Jiu readily agreed, but he seemed to have forgotten something.

Once Ying Ji got what he wanted, his attitude improved even more, and he praised him with admiration: "I don't know how your brain works, sir, you can always create such unique things."

Taishu Jiu: ...I sculpted my own brain, of course it works well.

A note from the author:

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In the end, I found myself living a life of running around naked without any drafts...