The Great Qin Empire---Qin Li

On the tenth day of the first lunar month, Heifu was wearing casual clothes, a scarf wrapped around his head, and a black robe, sitting in a carriage, with the gradually blurred Anlu city wall behind him...

He was not alone. The prison official Shi Le was going to the county city for work, and he was also traveling with Heifu. He was too lazy to ride a horse, so he got on Heifu's carriage and took the initiative to drive for Heifu, and said with a smile: "Official, the left lieutenant gave you a thousand yuan, is it really good not to accept it?"

Money is an unwritten convention in the officialdom of various countries. If someone goes to a distant place to guard or serve as an official, his colleagues will give him money wrapped in silk cloth, which is called money, which is actually a farewell red envelope. The county clerks did not have much salary, so most people only gave one hundred or two hundred, and those with a close relationship gave three or five hundred.

But today, when Heifu's friends and subordinates came to the city to see him off, Zuowei's nephew Yunxiong showed up at an inopportune time and presented money with a smile. Heifu weighed it and thought it was probably more than a thousand coins...

Heifu knew that Yun was trying to show his goodwill to him, but Heifu did not intend to write off the previous grudge. He smiled and threw the money bag back to Yunxiong, saying that he appreciated Zuowei's kindness, but if he accepted this "huge sum of money".

"Wouldn't it be that Zuo Wei bribed me?"

Hei Fu told a joke that made Yun Xiong look ashen, then he bowed to everyone and walked away...

"If you give it to me, I will accept it."

Le laughed, and at the same time turned around and shouted to the people behind him: "We must arrive in Jiangling in late January, and we can't delay. You should speed up and catch up with the carriage. If someone is tired, take turns to ride my horse. Remember to keep an eye on the prisoners!"

The three or five jailers who were escorting the two prisoners wearing wooden clamps and walking slowly agreed. At the same time, someone said jokingly: "With such brave and meritorious officials as officials and officials traveling with us, I don't think these two people dare to run away."

Hei Fu said a few humble words and asked Le in a low voice: "Le Lingshi, what crime did these two people commit? The county court couldn't even judge them, and you had to escort them to Jiangling in person?"

Le shook his head: "These two brothers are crazy about money. They dared to forge coins at home!"

Hei Fu glanced at the two people in a state of embarrassment behind the carriage and said, "This is a serious crime."

After a trip to Wei and Chu, Hei Fu felt deeply that in other countries, private coins were circulated, and the government could not control it, so they simply relaxed the laws and regulations to allow you to mint coins at will. In the Qin State, the state minted coins uniformly, and local and private minting was strictly prohibited. The Qin law clearly stipulates that anyone who mints coins privately should be arrested and severely punished, and sentenced to life imprisonment, in addition to "searching for their rooms" or confiscating their coins and coin molds.

Even so, there are still many people who take risks, because the face value of copper coins is greater than the actual value of their raw materials. Privately minting coins is definitely profitable as long as they are not discovered.

Le said: "Although some of the half-liang coins circulating in the market have been in circulation for too long and have been damaged, their size and quality are the same. The workshops all cast coins according to the standards of Xianyang. However, in the twelfth lunar month, there are more coins with darker colors on the market. These must be counterfeit coins. So Nu followed the clues and arrested two craftsmen. He searched their homes and found the copper molds for casting coins, as well as 1,100 newly made coins!"

So the two were convicted of counterfeiting, but during the trial by the prison officer, they revealed a more shocking fact in order to reduce their sentence: the molds they used were obtained from Jiangling. It is said that there is also a counterfeiting gang in Jiangling, and the quality of the copper coins cast is no different from the official copper coins!

This is no longer something that Anlu County can handle. Le was ordered to escort the two to the county city and hand them over to the county court judge for trial.

At the same time, Le also sighed: "Alas, Xijun is not here, and these cases have been handled more slowly."

Heifu smiled and said: "I heard that Xijun was transferred to the county city last year and also served in the county prison?"

"Yes." Le said: "Xijun was the best in the three years of performance evaluation, and was favored by the supervisory censor and recommended to the county, so he was promoted. Now he is working as the left prison historian in the county prison."

Qin State had divided the counties into different departments, but they were not the neat six departments like later generations. Instead, they were more subdivided. Heifu knew that in addition to the chief historian, there were merit, warehouse, field, household, prison, military, and thieves departments, which were equivalent to the various departments in the province. The chief clerk of each department was called "Yuan" (yuàn), which was nominally the same level as the county magistrate, but actually higher. Those with titles below Gongcheng were not allowed to serve.

Under the chief of each Cao, there are two assistants, named left and right, usually held by officials or officials. Xi was only an official, but he was promoted to the position of Zuo Yu Cao Shi, which was definitely an exception.

Hei Fu was somewhat helpless: "I thought that after returning, I was one level higher than Xi, but I didn't expect that our positions would remain the same."

He was recruited to the county this time and served as the "Left Bing Cao Shi".

"It would be great if the official went to work in the Thief Cao."

Le joked: "Maybe after Xi Jun's trial of this case, you can help arrest people."

Hei Fu laughed: "I also want to work with Xi Jun."

That being said, working in Bing Cao is what Hei Fu needs most at the moment. The Thief Cao is equivalent to the Provincial Public Security Department, which is responsible for public security. But Bing Cao is equivalent to the Provincial Military Region, which is responsible for conscription, training, combat and other military affairs.

Heifu also knew that the person who transferred him to take up the post was the new Nanjun County Lieutenant Li You, and the implication was self-evident.

Li You wanted to make good achievements in Nanjun!

Heifu secretly guessed: "In the first war against Chu, the outstanding performance of a remnant of Nanjun soldiers impressed Xianyang, and Li You also tasted the sweetness of leading this soldier. So he applied for an external transfer to coordinate the military affairs of Nanjun, which was just right. This was preparing for the second war against Chu."

The county lieutenant was in charge of the military affairs, and his rank was equivalent to two thousand stones, which just matched the title of Zuo Shuchang. Nanjun was also a large county on the front line of the war against Chu. Li You personally recruited and trained soldiers, and then led them to fight, which made it easier for him to make meritorious deeds.

This was a happy and sad thing for the people of Nanjun. The happy thing was that they finally didn't have to treat them as "miscellaneous troops" like in the last war, doing things like luring the enemy, filling ditches, and cutting off the rear. What worries me is that when the war breaks out again, Nanjun may have to recruit more soldiers and take on heavier responsibilities.

But the general who will attack Chu the second time is Wang Jian. Just hearing this name, Heifu feels more at ease. At least he is more reliable than Li Xin.

"Li You is from Shangcai. Most of those who defected to Li Si are wandering scholars and clerks. I guess there is no one who knows military affairs and is familiar with this county. That's why I was recruited to serve in the military department. With Li You as a backer, I don't have to worry about being excluded. I still have to think carefully about how to make achievements..."

Thinking of this, Heifu yawned and dozed off in the swaying carriage.

...

Nanjun is a large county with a territory of thousands of miles. The distance from Anlu to the county seat is not short, it is more than 400 miles. Heifu and his companions walked for seven or eight days, heading west, passing Xinshi, Yundu, Dangyang, and then entering the Xiadao, a north-south road, and turning south.

When they were hungry, thirsty, and tired, they rested in the pavilions along the way. Looking at the pavilion chiefs and pavilion fathers who were busy entertaining people, Heifu remembered the days in Huyang Pavilion.

On January 18th, the dusty people approached the center of Nanjun.

The number of pedestrians on the road gradually increased. There was an endless stream of merchants coming and going from the south and north, soldiers serving in the garrison, unkempt prisoners, and hurried clerks. Sometimes when there were too many people, they even had to avoid the left side of the road to pass.

This area is also on the banks of Yunmeng and the Yangtze River. The climate has warmed up in mid-January. The rice fields on the roadside are endless, and the villages stand tall in the distance. Nearby, hundreds or thousands of farmers and officials are scattered in the fields, driving oxen to plow the fields.

Tian Dian and Tian Zuo Li, wearing black clothes, stood on the ridge of the field. They glanced at Hei Fu and his party, but just glanced at them casually, turned back, and continued to urge everyone to work in the fields.

"It's worthy of being the county seat."

Le said, "When an official doctor walks in Anlu County wearing a double plate crown, he will definitely attract frequent attention, and there will be endless people turning back and bowing. But before we reach the county city, the small officials on the edge of the field seem to be accustomed to it, just glanced and stopped looking."

"What does my title of official doctor mean in the county?"

Hei Fu laughed dumbly. He had heard that in the county city, there are so many officials and doctors everywhere. Only officials at the level of five doctors are worthy of attention.

At this time, a city has appeared in front of everyone.

The wide and deep moat surrounds the city, and the waves are sparkling in the twilight. After crossing the moat, there is a majestic city gate in front of us, with two big characters on the top of the gate.

"Ying County."

Hei Fu breathed a sigh of relief, and his destination was reached.

"Official, you and I will take our leave now."

Le Yiyi got off Hei Fu's carriage reluctantly and bowed to him to say goodbye. They still had to bypass this city and walk five or six miles south to reach the real county seat: Jiangling.

It turned out that after the Qin State controlled Jianghan, the original Yingdu of Chu State was divided into two. The Chu King's Palace Ji Nancheng in the north was Ying County, and the residential market area in the south was called Jiangling County. The county governor and county magistrate were stationed in Jiangling, while the county lieutenant of Nanjun was stationed in Ying County, which was higher in the city and easier to defend and difficult to attack.

The county lieutenant's seat was generally not in the capital county, but had its own separate seat, which was also the norm in Qin State.

Heifu watched Le and others escort the prisoner away from the fork in the road, and then took a deep breath and asked the driver to drive to the gate of Ying County.

Unlike Jiangling, where merchants gathered and it was prosperous, Ying County had a bit more of the temperament of a military town.

Flags fluttered on the five-meter-high city wall, and county soldiers patrolled on it. A dozen gatekeepers with spears and armor stood on both sides of the city gate.

Heifu showed his identity card, biography, and the letter of appointment sent to him by Li You. The gatekeeper read every word carefully, kept looking up to observe Heifu's face, and checked that there was no problem, so he let him into the city.

"Qin State is too troublesome, and the conscription is coming so quickly. I don't even have time to change my name at the county household official. Otherwise, if the check doesn't match, I will be in trouble."

Heifu secretly complained, and before he recovered from the dimness under the city gate, a man suddenly ran to the middle of the road in front of him and stopped his carriage!

"Wait a minute!"