The Great Qin Empire---Qin Li

"Laugh, keep laughing!"

Dongmen Bao was gnawing on a cooked pig shoulder while staring at everyone with eyes as big as cowbells. They either lay on the table with their hands on their stomachs, their shoulders swaying slightly, or tilted their heads to hold the pillars and laughed secretly. Ji Ying was the most excessive, laughing so hard that even tears came out.

"A Bao even named his son Wei, hahaha, it's really funny to kill me!"

"Actually..."

Hei Fu coughed, but when he saw Dongmen Bao's murderous expression, he swallowed the words back.

The problem of favoring boys over girls cannot be cured in the 21st century. An ancient person with little education experience is even less likely to accept it easily. It is useless to persuade such a thing.

In more than ten years, there will indeed be a period of "favoring girls over boys".

"If you give birth to a boy, don't raise him. If you give birth to a girl, feed her with meat. Don't you see the dead bones supporting each other under the Great Wall?"

This is a ballad that can only be sung with helplessness and despair. If Heifu could change, he hoped that period would never come.

So Heifu shook his head and said to his brother who couldn't help laughing: "After being promoted to a doctor, I deserve 700 acres of land. It should be granted before the spring. If my brother knows about this, he will be worried again, right?"

Last year, the two brothers laughed at Zhong's famous saying because Heifu was promoted too quickly.

Zhong said at that time, Zhongdi, you should be promoted slowly, or you can't finish planting the land!

This sentence should make the two brothers laugh for the rest of their lives.

Jingle said: "More than that, now my uncle not only has to worry about the fields at home, but also the spring plowing of the whole village. Brother Zhong may not know, but my uncle has been recommended by the village's Tian Zuo Li and appointed as the Tian Dian of Chaoyang Village! He is also an official now!"

"Oh?"

Heifu understood immediately: "It seems that the composting method that my uncle and Tian Zuo Li tried in the village has been effective?"

"Of course."

Jing laughed: "Brother Zhong didn't see that during the harvest in August, the 200 acres of land in Yunmeng Township produced 40% to 50% more millet than the ordinary fields next to it! Tian Zuo Li was so happy that he immediately reported the matter to the county. Tian Shufu of the county was also very happy after coming to inspect it in person, and sent someone to report the matter to the county..."

"In early October, the county issued an order to upgrade my uncle's title to Shangzao!"

"Only one level?"

Heifu was slightly disappointed. Nanjun was too stingy. Such a big agricultural discovery, which did not exceed the threshold of a doctor, should be at least two or even three levels to be justified? Or, the field officials of Nanjun still had doubts and planned to try planting for another year before reporting to Xianyang? Then Xianyang would make up the reward. Indeed, things like per-acre yield often depend on the mood of God, and there is a lot of randomness. It is not wrong to be cautious.

In this way, their family's fields reached a thousand acres, and the family business increased tenfold unknowingly.

Looking at the people present, who didn't double their worth after fighting two battles?

Dongmen Bao said that after he returned home, the relatives who had ignored his family for the past ten years since his father's death suddenly came to ask about his well-being and competed to hold his twin daughters to get close to him when they learned that he had become a no-changer. There were even a few wrinkled old women who pulled him and secretly taught him the secret recipe for giving birth to a boy.

For example, he would take off the tiles on the roof, dig out the grass inside and boil it into soup to eat, and he could only have sex with his wife on the day of Wu, and he should be moderate at other times...

Moderation is a joke! The next day of Wu is at the end of the month!

Dongmen Bao also said that he ran out not because he was upset about having a daughter, but because he couldn't stand the noise of these people. Although he was annoyed by their behavior, he didn't want to slash at them like he would on the battlefield...

"These relatives are more difficult to deal with than the enemy on the battlefield." He complained.

Not only Dongmen Bao, but everyone present, after returning home, their titles, clothes and money were enough to make a sensation in the village, attracting a large number of relatives and neighbors to watch, and thus causing their own troubles. Troubles aside, Hei Fu did not disappoint the promise he made to everyone when he left Anlu to "make achievements and seek wealth and honor."

But he also had a promise that he had not fulfilled. After a few days of rest, Hei Fu planned to find an opportunity to go to Jingling County. He also failed to bring Huaimu's words. Because everyone gave up some credit, Huaimu was promoted to a doctor. His uncle and brother were able to inherit this title just after they recovered their freedom from being slaves. What a lucky guy...

At this point, Heifu suddenly remembered something and asked in surprise: "Wait, where is the sugarcane I planted two years ago? How is it growing?"

Heifu habitually called Zhuzhe sugarcane, which everyone knew. Two years ago, he accidentally found some wild ones by the Yunmengze Lake, so he took them home and planted them on the edge of the field. It was originally the season in October when the sugarcane was sweet and ready to be harvested, but he was retaliated by the left lieutenant and assigned to take a dozen garrison soldiers and prisoners to serve in the north.

Heifu missed the first harvest like this. Before he left, he remembered to ask Zhong to plant another year. I wonder how it is now.

"Brother Bo led people to cut the mulberry stalks before the snow fell, and put the cut mulberry stalks in the newly dug cellar. The weather is so cold, they should be able to be stored until spring."

What Jing couldn't understand the most was why Brother Zhong was so interested in those unpalatable mulberry stalks?

Hei Fu was relieved. If they were placed in the cellar, they should still be fresh. He told Jing mysteriously that those sugarcanes would be of great use to him, but he couldn't tell others for the time being.

Jing had long been accustomed to Hei Fu's mysteriousness, so he smiled and stopped asking.

Anyway, Brother Zhong would bring surprises to the family no matter what. This was the trust that the younger brother had in his elder brother.

Everyone ate in this restaurant until nightfall. Dongmen Bao and others who lived in the county said goodbye and went back, while Hei Fu and his friends were going to stay in the Chuanshe.

Jing also told Heifu that when Heifu and his friends go to Guansi to submit their "Zhi", or service certificate, tomorrow, he will take a leave and take a car back to Yunmeng Township. His mother and Zhong have been looking forward to it all day, so he must tell them the good news as soon as possible...

"That's good." Heifu thought for a while and said, "I will also visit Anpu tomorrow. He has taken good care of you in the past year, and Xijun..."

Heifu's current title is higher than Xi, but he still respectfully calls him "Xijun". Although the two have had arguments and have no personal relationship, Xi, who is impartial and insists on handling cases according to the law, is still one of the people Heifu respects most in this era.

He always felt that the reason why Qin was able to unify the world was not only because Qin had strict laws and perfect terrain, but also because it had several generations of wise monarchs and the ambitious Qin Shihuang...

It was also because Qin had thousands of Qin soldiers like Huaimu and hundreds of local Qin officials like Xi.

"Brother Zhong, you don't have to go." Jing shook his head: "Both of them are no longer in Anlu. An Pu was transferred to Jingling County to be a judge half a month ago."

He lowered his voice: "I heard from the clerk in the school that he was transferred away on purpose because he had a disagreement with the left judge."

"What about Xijun? Where did he go?"

"Xijun was transferred away in March last year. Because he ranked first in the performance for three consecutive years, he was favored by the county's supervisory censor and transferred to Jiangling City, the county government. He should also be a legal official..."

"That's really unfortunate."

Heifu nodded, and at the same time a question flashed through his mind. In history, has Xijun been transferred away after becoming a judge in Anlu?

"Could it be that because of me, Xijun solved two more major cases and was promoted because of this?"

...

The next morning, Heifu brought his men to the county judge's office in Guansi District. Although it was just after sunrise, it was already busy. After all, Qin and Chu were still in armed confrontation. As Anlu was a border county, the bandit and military situation in each township had to be summarized here, so it would not be deserted all year round.

Considering that officials from other places often came to do business early in the morning, in order to let them rest or change clothes, a queuing house called "Shu" was built outside the official office. When Heifu and his men arrived, there were already several people queuing in Shu. A man who looked like a village head was just called in. Behind him, there was a pavilion chief who was packing clothes and tidying up his appearance, preparing to meet his superior.

"It's all Abao's fault." Ji Ying complained, "It's all because he got up late, so we are late."

Dongmen Bao snorted coldly from his nose and disdained to answer. But Bu Cheng, who was both a doctor and a witch, smiled and said that Dongmen Bao's eyes were red and he was in low spirits. He was afraid that he was overworked last night. He had some herbal prescriptions for kidney tonic. I wonder if he would like to try it?

Several people were arguing in a low voice, which immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of the Shangzao Pavilion Chief who was tidying up his appearance in front. He turned around to scold them, but when he saw how they were dressed, he couldn't help but take a breath...

Four Shangzao with red hats on their right buns, two Zan Niao with gray hats on their heads, and two Bu Geng wearing trapezoidal short hats...

Not to mention, the one surrounded by the crowd was actually a Guan Dafu wearing a double plate hat and a sword on his waist. This scene... is extraordinary!

Hei Fu and others saw that the little Shangzao suddenly turned back with a bad face and looked at him. Li Xian immediately called out his name.

"Li Guo?"

Li Guo rubbed his eyes and looked. Who else could it be if it wasn't Li Xian from the same clan who called him? After more than a year, Li Xian had grown a beard and was a little unrecognizable.

"Li Xian, when did you come back?" Li Guo looked at the gray hat on Li Xian's head and was secretly surprised.

Back then, Li Xian was the laughing stock of the entire Li family in Yushui Township. Because he was a descendant of a branch, he did not inherit the title, and his family was poor. In order to support his children, he had to work as a guard. At that time, the clan members were not optimistic about this.

Sure enough, a year later, although Heifu, the head of Huyang Pavilion, had made many contributions, these contributions were not enough for Li Xian to be promoted to a duke. During the clan sacrifice, Li Guo laughed at him again. At that time, Li Xian's face turned pale and he slammed the table and left.

That was the last time Li Guo saw Li Xian. A few days later, Li Xian was implicated by Heifu and was arranged to serve in the north. Since then, there has been no news for more than a year. Only one duke title was passed back, and then there was no news again. Everyone thought he was dead. The three orphans and widows in his family cried all day long. The clan leader was already discussing whether to provide relief. At the clan gathering, Li Guo also made a lot of sarcastic remarks, saying that Li Xian had chosen the wrong path.

"If you had come to serve me as a guard, it would have been great, and you wouldn't have died outside!"

How proud he was at that time, how surprised he was when he saw Li Xian again.

"Brother, I just returned from military service, and I met you here, what a coincidence." Li Xian sneered in his heart, but his face was normal.

Ji Ying was a sharp-tongued person. He could tell at a glance that the two brothers of the same clan seemed to have a feud. Seeing that Li Guo was just a superior, he rolled his eyes and began to flatter Li Xian like he did yesterday, and talked about his merits.

"If Li Zhanniao hadn't come up with a plan and led us to defeat the rebellion, Li Duwei would have been in danger!"

The more Li Guo listened, the uglier his face looked. In the past, he laughed at Li Xian's mediocrity and incompetence in front of his clansmen. Now, listening to Li Xian's various achievements, he was secretly shocked. Seeing that Li Xian's title was higher than his, in this comparison, he was the more mediocre one.

Heifu watched the scene from the side, and did not stop Jiying's various sarcasms. Every family has its own problems. All of a sudden, he understood Li Xian's eagerness to behead him and get the title when he was in Waihuang.

But it seems that when Li Xian returns home, the patriarch of the Li family, as long as he is not stupid, will have to re-examine this branch son who returned home in glory, right?

At this time, after receiving the notification from the gatekeeper, a lieutenant hurried out and shouted to the outside of the door: "Heifu official doctor, where is the county right lieutenant and left lieutenant invite you!"

He used "invite" instead of "summon", and he was smiling, which was extremely polite, but...

Heifu official doctor? This title is too difficult to pronounce! The guard standing guard at the door with a serious face almost couldn't help laughing.

Hei Fu tried to hide his embarrassment, responded, and led everyone to bypass the young pavilion chief Li Guo who was supposed to be summoned first and walked forward, but secretly thought in his heart:

"Maybe it's time to give myself a formal name?"