Qin Official

In the winter of the twenty-third year of the Qin Dynasty, it was late December.

Anlu County has just snowed, and the weather is very cold. However, in the Anlu County School, three new disciples are still huddled beside the fire pit, with expectant eyes, starting their first class.

Their master "dare" asked the helper Jing to slowly dissolve the frozen ink in the inkstone with hot water, then moistened the pen and wrote a large seal character on the rough wooden board.

"Hai!"

After Jing helped melt the ink, he also sat by the fire pit to warm his hands. As an old disciple who enrolled in school last year, he could recite what the Master was going to teach everyone next, almost with his eyes closed. Because every time a new disciple comes to school, the Master has to give them a special lesson. The student's learning career begins with understanding this word...

After asking everyone to write this word on the wooden tablet, the Master continued:

"狋 means punishment. It is as flat as water, and from water, Zhi (zhi) is the ancient beast Xièzhi (xièzhi). It understands people's speech and human nature, can distinguish right from wrong, can recognize good and evil, loyalty and traitor, and when it discovers evil, it will It touches it with its horns, so it is regarded as a legal beast. Prison guards wear Xie Zhi crowns when examining cases. There are also stone sculptures of Xie Zhi outside the lobby of the county prison."

"Come on, write it three more times and feel the word well."

I was shocked to see the three new disciples carefully copying this word stroke by stroke. I couldn't help but laugh. In the next year, they will copy it hundreds of times...

The school is a cadre training school to train Qin civil servants and legal officials who are qualified for various grassroots tasks. Therefore, in the first class, everyone must understand what law is and what official officials are.

"The law is the order of the world and the appearance of everything; the officials are where the people's lives depend!"

The master became excited again, and he typed on the case and said: "Our Qin country is different from other countries. Crimes are punished according to the law, and the people do not complain when they are killed; merits are measured according to the law, and the people do not need to be grateful when receiving rewards. These are the results of handling things according to the law. . Therefore, the chapter of "Ming Fa" says: To rule the country by law is just wrong!"

So, where does the law come from? Does it come from Haotian gods? Does it come from the will of the people?

No, neither.

"The husband gives birth to the law, you are the king!"

"Those who abide by the law are ministers; those who obey the law are the people."

Legislation is the exclusive power of the monarch, ministers are the defenders of the law, and the people must obey the law and take the law as the rules of life.

The master of the school must instill this concept deeply into the minds of all his disciples, so that they can strictly adhere to this principle in their future career. Whether you are a low-level official or a high-ranking official in a county or county, you must be loyal to the king and the law.

The new disciples nodded frequently, but they were shocked and warming themselves by the fire, wandering in the world. When he first entered school more than a year ago, he was like this, full of curiosity about everything around him, and full of hunger and thirst for all unknown knowledge. But now, he has already adapted to the life of a disciple in the school. After the novelty disappears, what is left is more boring and tired.

I still remember that last fall, my brother had just sent him to school. After the first legal class, the disciples were required to take a "practical test" and write a 300-word judicial document in Xiaozhuan.

Those officials who have been working as officials for generations have been dealing with these things since they were young. They write quickly and finish the work quickly. A country boy with a poor foundation like Jing had to chew his pen and think for a long time before he could write more than a hundred words...

According to the different foundations of the disciples, the master of the school divided them into different levels. Those with outstanding performance can directly familiarize themselves with the legal provisions, while those with poor foundations need to know at least 5,000 seal characters...

Don't be surprised, this is just the most basic basic skills for practicing law.

Jing had to study again for half a year before he could pass the standard of literacy. In the next few months, they were dealing with boring laws and regulations, such as "The Law of Thieves", "The Law of Thieves", "The Law of Military Lords", "The Law of Effect" "Laws" and so on, basically learn one article a month. Not only must you understand the penalty principles of each law, but you must also read and memorize them.

Because the Master said that if they become law officials in the future and remember the laws and regulations incorrectly, then the laws and regulations you have remembered incorrectly will be used to deal with you as a punishment for dereliction of duty and serious consequences...

"It would be terrible if I misremember the death sentence." He stuck out his tongue in surprise.

In addition to law classes, they also need to learn to drive a carriage, because after the disciples graduate from the academy, they will no longer be exempted from military service, and they may be recruited to serve as charioteers on the battlefield. In addition, you have to practice swordsmanship, archery, and keep fit. You don’t need to be very good, but you must at least be able to lift the sword and hit the target.

Qin officials are not simply civil servants. They must carry swords to kill enemies in battle and pens to write official documents. They are all versatile, so they can adapt to the needs of Qin.

There are so many things to learn, and if you don't learn well, you will be whipped mercilessly by the master. Therefore, the life of the disciples in the school is much harder than that of the college students in later generations. Jing only has one day off every ten days. At this time, he would go to the official temple to look for Brother Zhong's former colleague, Wei Shi Anpu, and inquire about the news about the war...

Ask about the life and death of his brother Heifu!

…

At first, sporadic news came back about the battle to defeat Wei. Most of the news was optimistic. The Qin army was so powerful that it eventually broke through the beams and destroyed Wei. The government sent people to publicize the matter in all counties and counties, so that everyone would know the glorious victory of the Qin army and the king.

At the same time, Heifu's title was being transferred to Anlu County by Xianyang.

First from a hairpin to a non-regular, and then from a non-regular to a doctor, Brother Zhong's title soared like flying, which surprised, surprised and delighted him.

Wei Shi Anpu quietly told him: "You don't know that every time Heifu's title is upgraded, Zuo Wei's face will become even more ugly!"

My brother Zhong had an old grudge with Zuo Wei's family, and Jing knew about it. This was one of the reasons why he was repeatedly excluded in the school. In the few months after Heifu was sent north to serve, everyone was far away from fear, and those officials didn't like to play with him. It was the most difficult period.

But as the title of Heifu rose to two levels, some people began to smile at the surprise. In the small county of Anlu, there are not many people in the title of Heifu. They can be the chief official of each county with a rank of 300 shi, or be the chief official of each county. He's a local stingy man. Seeing that their family is so prosperous, how can they not quickly please them?

Ke Jing has experienced the warmth and coldness of human relationships, and his temperament has matured a lot. He only maintains a faint friendship with those classmates who fawned over him. He only hopes that Brother Zhong can return soon after the war is over.

But what came first was not the soldiers returning home, but the news that Qin and Chu were at war!

The incident started with a small conflict in Nan County. During those days, Anlu was on full alert, and it became difficult to even leave the city and return home. Nan County seemed to turn into a battlefield at any time. Fortunately, Qin and Chu chose Huaibei as the venue for their game, and Anlu was spared.

Seeing that it was already October, Heifu had been away for a whole year. Logically speaking, his term of service had expired and it was time to come back, but there was no one around. Someone from his hometown in Yunmengxiang came to warn Jing. He said that his mother was sick from anxiety and asked him to find a way to find out.

"Perhaps they were released after the term expired in October..." Wei Shi Anpu comforted and shocked, but he knew in his heart that Heifu and the others were probably involved in the war against Chu again.

Finally, in early November, I was surprised to receive the letter home from Mr. Hei from Yangcheng...

"Ding Si of the ninth month, Mr. Hei dares to pay his respects again and ask me. Is my mother okay? Is Zhong and Jing not feeling well? Mr. Hei is not well either. I am in Yangcheng now. I have been fighting for hundreds of years for the captain. The captain treats me well. Very thick..."

"It's a letter from Brother Zhong. Brother Zhong is safe and sound!"

After hurriedly scanning the letter, he was overjoyed. After thanking An Pu, he immediately took three days' leave, took an ox cart back to his home in Yunmengxiang, rushed home, gave the letter to Zhi Zhi, and read it to him personally. Their mother listened and pointed to the words above and taught them to her nieces and nephews one by one...

"Will Uncle Zhong come back?" Yang Heyue asked, raising his head.

"Yes, definitely yes!"

He said to his family in surprise: "Mother, brother-in-law, and brother Zhong said that he served as a short-hand soldier of the captain, and he was also highly regarded by the captain. I guess he no longer has to charge into battle like before. When the battle is over, he will be able to go home safely. ! Maybe it’s the Winter Solstice, maybe it’s the December Festival, when Brother Zhong comes back, we can reunite as a family and continue pounding rice cakes to eat!”

After comforting my mother in this way, I was so shocked that I hurriedly carried my bags and returned to the school, full of expectations.

But when the time entered December, through the sporadic news, he could no longer be optimistic.

At first, some people in the market said that the Qin army was defeated on the Huaibei front line, and then he was captured by the city officials, sent to the official temple, and had his hair shaved for the crime of rumor.

However, people are more vocal than Fangchuan, and rumors are still flying around Anlu. Jing initially scoffed at this, but the more they said it, the more it seemed true, and the more they said it, the more alarmist they became.

It is said that the Qin army was completely wiped out and more than ten captains died.

It is said that the Qin army was defeated and Chen and Cai were recaptured by the Chu people.

The government did not come forward to refute the rumors or tell everyone the truth, but only strengthened the control of speech.

Because the Qin State's wars, as recorded in historical books, always report good news but not bad news. Victory in battles is recorded happily on the tablets, how many beheads are beheaded, so and so breaks a certain city, and then works hard to publicize it to the people.

However, if the battle was defeated, the historian would treat it as if it had not happened, and would neither mention it in "Qin Ji" nor let the people know about it.

This is the reason why Li Xin's defeat in attacking Chu disappeared out of thin air from "The Chronicles of Qin Shihuang", because Qin's own history book "Qin Ji" also directly skipped this matter.

But there is no airtight wall in the world. Nanjun is not far from Huaibei. As the news that is not known to be true or false continues to spread, everyone is panicked. When he was shocked in the school, many disciples pointed at him and secretly Whisper.

Everyone knows that his brother Zhong is on the front line. Now the front line is likely to be a big defeat. I am afraid that Hei Fu is in danger...

Those sympathetic looks and words made Jing surprisingly angry.

"My brother Zhong will be fine!"

He said he was so confident, but he felt uneasy in his heart. He didn't even dare to tell his family and let his mother know about these things...

At this moment, someone hurriedly entered the room, disturbing the Master's lesson for the new disciples, and brought the worried mind back to reality.

The disciple who came in from outside saluted the master. After saying a few words in his ear, the master looked at him in surprise.

"shock."

"The disciple is here!"

The master said: "Go out, there is someone looking for you outside the door."

After accepting the promise, he walked out in confusion, but then he thought of a possibility. He couldn't help but open his eyes wide, and regardless of his dignity, he picked up his lower clothes and started running in the snow!

At the door of the school, a year and three months ago, Brother Zhong asked him to stay where he was, holding a bunch of citrus and stuffing him in his place. There were three men wearing warm furs standing there.

Two of them were facing in, one was facing out, and they were talking animatedly, laughing while talking.

Isn't that young man in black goatskin fur the little Tao from the pavilion that Brother Zhong once brought home as a guest? He remembered that at that time, Xiao Tao was an ordinary Lilu boy, not much older than himself, extremely dull, and wearing short brown clothes, revealing his poverty. Why is he now wearing fine clothes and covered with fur?

And who else is the other man besides Ji Ying, whom Jing has met before? In the past, Ji Ying had a thin, pointed mouth and monkey cheeks, but now his face is rosy. He is also wearing a white lamb fur, with fresh and beautiful clothes underneath. There is confidence in his eyes, and he looks like he is returning home in rich clothes.

He rubbed his eyes in shock and looked at the tall man with his back to him in disbelief. This man was even more well-dressed. He was wearing a thick bearskin coat. This kind of fur is worth at least 20,000 yuan, or even 40,000 to 50,000 yuan. Money can buy it. In the entire Anlu County, there are only the county magistrate, the county magistrate and the wealthy Zuo Wei. Looking at the double-board long crown on his head, it can be seen that this person has a high rank, he is really rich and noble...

But why is this person's figure so familiar?

"Brother Zhong?"

shouted hesitantly.

The man turned around and saw the surprise. He immediately grinned, revealing his white teeth, which contrasted with his still dark face.

"My brother."

Heifu strode over, slapped his thin and frail shoulders with both hands, and laughed loudly: "We haven't seen you for a year, and you are almost as tall as me!"