24 Chapter 24
◎Shame.◎
Before the eunuch brought the meal, Ying Zheng specifically told the court officials that these recent fresh dishes, various stir-fries, soy products, and a wide variety of pasta, were all painstakingly developed by the eldest son after he saw how hard his father, the king, worked for the government, and they were presented to his king as a filial tribute.
The court officials immediately understood the king's implication. In addition to thanking the king, they also had to thank the eldest son for being able to enjoy the delicious food. After thanking the father and son, they also had to praise the eldest son's filial piety and then praise the king for his good fortune and ability to educate his son.
Ying Zheng listened to the above eulogy calmly, nodded with a smile in his eyes, and then announced the start of the meal.
Fusu looked as calm as his father, but he could already dig out another Xianyang Palace with his toes.
Dad, next time you brag about your son, can you please let me know in advance? It's really embarrassing without me being mentally prepared!
After the meal, the monks came up and cleared the table. The court officials did not dare to chat with the king anymore, for fear that he would ask them to praise him and his son again, so they all found excuses to leave immediately.
When Fusu heard that the court officials were all busy, he immediately understood that he was not the only one who was embarrassed.
When everyone is embarrassed, it is no longer embarrassing. The embarrassment that had plagued Fusu for the entire meal disappeared without a trace.
However, after everyone left, Ying Zheng snorted, "Do I look scary? They avoid me like snakes and scorpions."
Fusu: “…”
There is actually one person here who is not embarrassed.
Fusu immediately made an excuse for the court officials: "It's been a busy autumn harvest, and my father is busy all day. Naturally, the people below should follow him. If they are idle, wouldn't they be neglecting their duties?"
Ying Zheng reluctantly agreed. He raised his hand and beckoned Fusu to sit closer. Then he said, "Since there is no progress with Han Fei, he doesn't need to come anymore. I will find you a new teacher."
Fusu was stunned and blurted out, "Why suddenly..." He immediately realized that something was wrong and swallowed his words back.
Who was spreading rumors in front of his father? Because of his past life experience, this was Fusu's first thought. He thought his father wanted to put Han Fei in jail again.
But Fusu obviously wronged Ying Zheng. Ying Zheng just didn't want his eldest son to worry about Han Fei anymore. After all, he was just a little child and had enough worries all day long. Other things were important and could not be ignored. Han Fei was the most insignificant one, so it was better to just ignore him.
Ying Zheng understood his eldest son's surprise. He explained, "Han Fei is a prince of Han. Naturally, his heart is with Han. A stubborn stone cannot be changed. It's useless to keep him by your side. Instead of spending all this time, why don't you take a break and play some games? I've noticed that you rarely play games."
Fusu was stunned for a moment, then slowly realized what his father meant. He was filled with remorse and kowtowed quickly, saying, "Fusu is guilty. Please punish me, father."
Ying Zheng was completely bewildered, not knowing what crime his eldest son had accused him of. He forcefully helped him up and asked, "Why are you kneeling? If you have something to say, just talk. We are the only ones here, father and son. Just go ahead and speak."
Fusu was filled with shame: "I thought my father wanted to... put Mr. Han in jail."
Ying Zheng shook his head and laughed, "He has committed no crime, so why should I punish him? Han is not a threat. He is just a prince of Han who has been abandoned by the King of Han. He is not worth my punishment."
That's true. Even if it was the King of Han, his father later killed him on the pretext of rebellion in Han. However, there were still members of the Han royal family alive, otherwise Zhang Liang would not have been able to assist the King of Han - although his dream was eventually cut short by Xiang Yu.
Fusu nodded, his face still filled with shame: "It is Fusu's lowly heart, I feel guilty towards my father, please punish me."
To be fair, Ying Zheng was a man who held grudges, but that was towards others. Fusu was obviously not someone else in his eyes.
——Even if there is a grudge, it should be held against Han Fei.
Ying Zheng pinched Fusu's cheek and said with a smile, "Little fellow, are you trying to find a way to ask for a reward from me?"
Fusu looked at his father innocently. He was so ashamed that he forgot that because of the previous incident, the punishment his father mentioned had turned into a reward.
Fusu hurriedly explained: "Father, I..."
Ying Zheng waved his hand and said, "It's such a small matter, I won't punish you, but..." He pulled Fusu closer, "You seem to be reluctant to part with Han Fei, huh?"
Fusu shook his head and said, "It's not that I'm reluctant to let him go, but he didn't make me spend much effort. On the contrary, I learned a lot of Legalist techniques from Mr. Han. If I replace him, father, I'm afraid I won't have such a good teacher as him."
"Why not?" Ying Zheng said, "I asked Li Si to be your teacher."
Li Si was certainly good, but Fusu didn't like him, and interest was important in teaching, so Li Si was not suitable to be Fusu's teacher.
Fusu said, "I see that my father relies on Li Tingwei a lot. If I take up his time, I am afraid that it will delay his important work."
For Ying Zheng, Li Si was indeed very useful. There were many courtiers in the Qin court, but not many who were as pleasing to Ying Zheng as Li Si, so Ying Zheng had to assign him more work.
Considering the intensity of Li Si's work, even though Ying Zheng was a feudal ruler, he would be reluctant to add more pressure on him.
But apart from Li Si, there was indeed no teacher in the Qin court who could replace Han Fei.
The most important thing is that Fusu was indeed very satisfied with his teacher Han Fei.
Just by looking at his eldest son's reaction, Ying Zheng knew that changing the teacher would not work.
Ying Zheng could ignore the wishes of many people in the world, but now when he faced his eldest son, he was still willing to follow his wishes, just as if to coax the child.
"As you wish." Ying Zheng tapped Fusu's forehead, with a mixture of indulgence and helplessness, "Let Han Fei be your teacher."
Fusu smiled and bowed: "Thank you, father."
After getting up, Fusu said again: "Don't worry, father. Although it was a bit cruel to Mr. Han, I think he has to accept the fate that South Korea will face these days."
Ying Zheng said: "It's not just Han Fei, the King of Han should also accept his fate."
Fusu said, "Perhaps the King of Han is not blind to his own future. He is simply afraid of becoming a prisoner and wants to delay that day as long as possible. Ideally, it would wait until he dies and his son succeeds him. Then that day will come."
Ying Zheng sighed and said, "Then he probably won't get what he wants."
Fusu asked, "Father, have we agreed to attack Han after the autumn harvest?"
"Not yet." Ying Zheng said, "Let's attack Zhao first."
Han State has been oppressed and bullied by Qin State in recent years. It is only a matter of snapping a finger for Qin to conquer Han State.
But Zhao was different. Not only did it have a blood feud with Qin, it also had a capable and warlike general named Li Mu, which made it much more difficult to deal with than Han.
Fusu remembered that in his previous life, the next year, the Qin army suffered a defeat at the hands of Li Mu.
But this time it will definitely be different. By then, the Qin cavalry will be equipped with high-bridge saddles and stirrups, and iron weapons will become popular. Even if Li Mu is good at commanding troops, the Qin generals are not incompetent. Faced with such a gap, Li Mu probably won't be able to gain much advantage.
Fusu said, "Father, when we attack Han, please tell me so I can go and comfort Mr. Han afterwards."
Given that South Korea is so small now, it would be really difficult for Qin to not take the entire country into its possession the next time it attacks South Korea.
The Kingdom of Han was destroyed, so Han Fei must need someone to comfort him, right?
Ying Zheng couldn't help but laugh: "You are quite kind?"
When the Qin State attacked the Han State, the eldest son of the Qin State went to comfort the son of the Han State. This does not seem to be a timely help, but rather adding insult to injury.
Fusu reflected for a moment and explained, "Father, I truly sympathize with Mr. Han. I don't mean to ridicule him. Mr. Han will understand me."
Ying Zheng couldn't help but look his eldest son up and down several times, wondering if this was the innocence of a child. From an outsider's perspective, it was quite terrifying.
However, Ying Zheng was not an outsider, and he was very satisfied with his son's performance.
Could a prince of Qin who could inherit the throne of the King of Qin be a reserved and kind gentleman? If so, Ying Zheng would be dissatisfied.
"Okay, I'll have my father tell you when the time comes." Ying Zheng said with a smile, "Tell Mr. Han well that even though the Kingdom of Han is gone, if he's willing to serve as a vassal of Qin, he can still realize his ambitions. The King of Han is useless, but I'm very willing to use him."
Fusu: “…”
My dear father, you sound like someone is coming to make trouble. Aren’t you afraid that Han Fei will beat your son out?
Fusu said dryly, "I'll tell Mr. Han."
Ying Zheng rubbed Fusu's head in a good mood, and the matter of settling the score was put out of his mind.
…
The next day, Meng Tian was ordered to teach Fusu.
Because of the recent war planning, Meng Tian and Wang Ben, two generals who had long been on the list in the army, were busy. They no longer came to teach every day, but took turns. However, today, due to Ying Zheng's order, both of them came.
When Meng Hua was sad about living in the school dormitory, Fusu comforted him by asking Meng Tian to visit him often. But Meng Hua was so sad at that time that he overlooked one thing. His father often came to Fusu's palace. Although he did not need to be educated by his biological father, he could still see him easily if he wanted to. However, it was really difficult for him to see his mother, whom he missed more.
Fusu obviously also considered this matter, and brought Meng Hua along when he learned martial arts.
Meng Tian was teaching the eldest son on the king's orders. It was impossible for him to offer to teach his own son on his own initiative. This sounded like favoritism, but since the eldest son had spoken, it was much more logical.
But Meng Hua was struck by lightning. He looked at Fusu with pleading eyes: "My lord, I also want General Wang to teach me, is that okay?"
Fusu smiled and said, "No."
"It's good to have a companion when studying!" Fusu patted Meng Hua's shoulder. "You went to find them too, leaving me alone. Can you bear it?"
Meng Hua wanted to say that he was very cruel, but seeing the vulnerability in the big black and white eyes of the eldest master, he really couldn't say it, so he could only nod with tears in his eyes: "I will accompany the eldest master."
"Hmm!" Fusu said with a smile, "Menghua, I have good news for you. When the egg hatches, I will ask your mother to come to the palace to see you."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
