Volume 2: Soaring! The Overlord of the Region Chapter 268: The Birth of Jian from Shuihudi
"Hey, Boss Wang, are you still open for business today?"
"Ah? Good morning, Boss Liu. Hey, today is my kid's last day of school this year. I figured he'd have to get up early anyway, so I opened the shop."
"Hahaha, it's better to open a shop. This way I don't have to make breakfast myself. Come on, a bowl of porridge and two pancakes."
"Okay." Wang Laoshi quickly served the food and asked, "Boss Liu, your son won't be able to spend the New Year at home this year, right?"
"No way, this brat actually passed the Yingtian County Examination this year. Then he hurried north to take part in the Imperial Examination next year. He should be almost in Beijing by now."
Although he spoke with disdain, anyone could hear the pride in his tone.
"Oh, okay, okay, I don't know when my brat will be as blessed as your son."
"Hey~! Boss Wang, your young master is so smart and clever. He has read newspapers to us neighbors for so many years. We have all seen it. Moreover, my kid often praises him. He said that your young master is a little young now, and his essays need to be polished. If he studies hard for another two years, he will definitely have no problem passing the provincial examination next year!"
"Haha, if the juren master says it's okay, then it's really okay."
The two were chatting there, and soon another customer arrived.
"Hey, Boss Liu, why are you still in Nanjing?"
"Eh? That's strange, Boss Ma. Why can't I stay in Nanjing?"
"Didn't your son pass the imperial examination? Shouldn't he go back to his hometown and get some land? Then you can enjoy a peaceful and comfortable life!"
"Bullshit! If it weren't for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince rechecking the household registration and implementing the benevolent policy of naturalizing refugees on the spot, my kid wouldn't have had the chance to take the exam. As for being lucky enough to pass the exam, he followed the example of other candidates and openly accepted hidden households and embezzled state land? Humph, not to mention that it has become extremely difficult to hide the population after the national household registration census, our family has received such a great favor from His Royal Highness, how can we do such a thing? So, I'd better stay in Nanjing and play cotton. This way, I'll feel better."
Humph, if it weren't for His Highness's household census and the subsequent reconstruction of the Yellow Book Library, no one would have been sure which direction the wind was blowing. It would be strange if you didn't hide a large number of people and embezzle land.
However, even though he was thinking this in his heart, the customer said, "That's right, that's right, Boss Liu, Gao Yi!"
"It's not that noble. As I said before, the Crown Prince made his fortune in Nanjing. If we in Nanjing don't support the Crown Prince, wouldn't that make us look like a joke?"
As the morning light gradually brightened, more and more customers came to the shop. At this time, Wang Laoshi's son Xiao Laoshi also finished washing up in the attic and came downstairs with his school bag.
"Haha, little boss finally came down? Hurry up and read the newspaper for us. Today is the finale of "The Revival of Shu Han", right? Hey, Jinling Daily is interesting. It has martial arts, fairy tales, fantasy, and now a new theme has been opened up: time travel! Wow, after reading this book, I've been wondering what kind of hegemony I would achieve if I traveled to the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period."
"Wait a minute, wait a minute, young boss. There seems to be another bold headline on the front page of today's newspaper. Can you read it to us first?"
"Okay." He swallowed a steamed bun and drank half a bowl of porridge. He wiped his mouth, picked up the newspaper and read aloud: "A large number of Qin bamboo slips were unearthed in Yunmeng, Huguang. The refinement of Qin law is shocking."
"Huguang? Qin bamboo slips? Little boss, are these Qin bamboo slips from the Qin Dynasty? Are the decrees of the Qin Dynasty recorded on them?"
"Uncle Liu is indeed the father of Big Brother Liu. He hit the nail on the head!" Little Laoshi first read the general idea at a glance, and then said to everyone: "My dear uncles, today's front page says that in September this year, a heavy rain suddenly hit Shuihudi, Yunmeng, Huguang. An ancient tomb was washed open by a mountain torrent, and a lot of bamboo slips flowed out. The local county magistrate then organized people to investigate... After that, the matter was reported to the higher authorities, alarming the Huguang Provincial Administration... Finally, when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince learned about it, he sent people to protect the bamboo slips and sent them to His Royal Highness's teacher, Lu Kun, to Lu Shujian. So Mr. Lu organized a large number of people to translate the collected Qin bamboo slips into regular script. After a thorough study, everyone was extremely shocked."
"Ah? It's enough to shock your highness's teacher. Why is that?"
"Because what is recorded on these bamboo slips is mainly the laws of the Qin Dynasty. And according to the content of these laws, the Qin laws are really too detailed!"
"Fine? Well, I've heard before that Qin's laws were strict, and we common people could have our hands and feet cut off, or even be beheaded, or even our entire family exterminated if we weren't careful. How do you explain this word fine?"
"Haha, Uncle Liu, the questions you ask are getting more and more powerful."
"Hehe." Old Liu touched his head embarrassedly: "In the past few years, I have listened to you read so many newspapers, and heard a lot about national affairs. In the evening, my brat would also talk about some things in the newspaper when he got home. After so many years of smoking, this piece of wood should have the smell of smoke."
Amid the laughter of the crowd, Xiao Laoshi quickly flipped through the newspaper and quickly found the detailed report on the Shuihudi Qin Bamboo Slips on page 13.
"My dear uncles, after Mr. Lu's research, the owner of the Qin Tomb in Shuihudi, Yunmeng was called Xi. He was a low-ranking official in the Qin Dynasty... More than a thousand bamboo slips were unearthed from his tomb. The content on them is extremely rich. For example, the part about coroners records the steps and methods of distinguishing between suicide, hanging, miscarriage, trauma and other causes of death. This "Fengzhenshi" is mainly in the form of cases, and one case talks about one or several laws. It specifically includes interrogation, prisoners, arrests, surrender, punishment, inspection and other aspects. It can be said that officials use this as a basis, and basically there will be no false cases.
The main point is the Land Law. The content in it is really amazing. Uncles and uncles, the Land Law stipulates that: in early spring, it is forbidden to cut down trees in the mountains and forests; it is forbidden to burn grass and pick newly sprouted plants before July in summer; it is forbidden to catch young birds and young animals, poison aquatic animals, and use traps or nets to catch wild animals and birds. In addition, it clearly states how much the plow should be driven into the ground, how many hours the plowing ox can be used every day, etc.
The regulations on corvée labor...hiss, is this really Qin law? How come the people of the Qin Dynasty were paid wages and given rice when they performed corvée labor, and they could also use coupons to get clothes from the government office where they served? Hiss~~ Too detailed. Even the regulations stipulated that people under six feet tall would be given a few less cups of rice than those over six feet tall. Ah, and there is also this one, that in any conscription for corvée labor, no matter whether they are from a high or low household, no more than two people from each household were allowed to serve...Oh my God!
In addition, there are military merits, how many heads are awarded, how many titles are awarded, and how to be promoted specifically. The punishment for snatching comrades on the battlefield is also very detailed. Well... In addition to being detailed, the above laws, in the words of His Highness in the newspaper before, each one is highly feasible!"
Xiao Laoshi was reading the newspaper by himself, while the audience gradually fell into deep thought.
As citizens of Nanjing, they have been influenced by Jinling Daily for many years, and in fact, everyone has a certain level of "level". Although they are old and learn new words slowly, most of the time they still like to listen to Xiao Laoshi reading the newspaper. But in fact, as many adults who have struggled for survival for many years, what they can hear from the newspaper is much better than a child like Xiao Laoshi who is in his teens and has not even experienced the provincial examination.
"Um, Lao Zhang, you used to farm in the countryside, right?"
"Yes, I farmed for about twenty years when I was young."
"Well, would the village head and the head of the village in our Ming Dynasty manage farming in such detail?"
"How is that possible! Humph, if you ask me, it's only in the last two years since His Highness made some adjustments that things have gotten a little better. In the past, the village headmen and other people were always thinking about how to harm us, the lower households! Just like what His Highness said before, I've experienced things like flying sowing seeds and not harvesting them all! You see, these guys are so focused on these things, how can they have the energy to guide us in farming? How can they care about the condition of the oxen?"
"...Hey, you said, our Ming Dynasty has been established for more than 200 years, which is much longer than the Qin Dynasty. Why do I feel that we are not as good as the Qin Dynasty in terms of laws and regulations?"
"Yes, what have we in the Ministry of Justice been doing for the past two hundred years?"
