The Moon in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 14 Find something for Zhao Ji to do

(In response to the requests of many readers, this article still changes the protagonist's name to a more common name, from "Zhao Zheng" to "Ying Zheng". The previous article has also been revised. Thank you for your understanding and support. Thank you.)
Ying Zheng knew long ago that Zhao Ji would definitely not agree.

But he had plenty of ways to control Zhao Ji, and he had already thought of the reasons.

"I am not alone. After a few days, the servants will have rested. Two maids will be enough to serve."

Zhao Ji decisively retorted: "That won't work either. You are not with your mother, so I don't feel comfortable with anyone taking care of you."

Ying Zheng advised, "Mother, I am getting older. I am almost four years old. It is time for me to have my own room. It will only affect your rest and my studies."

"You don't want me to fail in my studies, right? Now that I've met such a good teacher, you still want to waste my talent and make me a useless person, right?"

Seeing that Zhao Ji was about to cry and make a scene, he quickly interrupted the topic:
"There's no point in crying. Things have come to this point. I've made my decision and you are not allowed to disagree. Hurry up and cooperate with me. I'll move to the front yard after dinner."

Ying Zheng gave him a sweet treat after a beating, and persuaded him:

"It's nothing big, Mom, because she's thinking about me. Besides, I'll still be with you for three meals a day."

The combo that Zhao Ji wanted to launch was forcibly interrupted, making her feel uncomfortable.

But she knew that once her son made up his mind, no one could persuade him, and he would remain steadfast.

I used to be happy that my child had his own ideas on this issue, but now I just wonder why this child is so stubborn.

hum~
Zhao Ji had no choice but to agree. She held Ying Zheng in her arms and said pitifully:
"Then you should think more about your mother and spend more time with her when you have nothing to do. Otherwise, how will she live every day? It will be too boring."

Seeing that Zhao Ji finally agreed with him, Ying Zheng nodded repeatedly: "Of course, of course, don't worry, mother, I will definitely do it. I will come to accompany you when I have time."

I thought to myself, 'It seems like there's no time at the moment.'

"But we still can't let our mother sit idle. Women can't sit idle. If they sit idle, they will get into trouble. We need to find something fun for our mother to pass the time. There are too few entertainment activities in this era, and we are in an enemy country."

Ying Zheng thought about it and decided that it was time to bring Mahjong to the world. It was easy to learn and suitable for all ages. It was a good way to kill time. The most important thing was that you would never get tired of playing it. Now that there were enough people in the family, it was possible to play it.

Also, let your mother go out more often. The people of Zhao exclude the people of Qin, but the nobles are different, not to mention there are hostages from other princes.

I still need to make more friends. Besides, with mahjong, even if my mother is worried that it is dangerous to go out, I can invite other ladies to come home and play.

It's always better to find something to do than to create something.

Thinking of this, Ying Zheng was determined to make Zhao Ji addicted to mahjong.

Anyway, she has a big family and a lot of wealth, so she is not afraid of playing mahjong. This is the least harmful thing that a noble lady can do.

Thinking of this, Ying Zheng said, "Mother, to prevent you from getting bored, I have thought of a game. I will teach you now. Tell others that you saw a way to play it in an ancient book. Find a craftsman to make it tomorrow. It is very fun."

Ying Zheng then explained the method of playing mahjong. Zhao Ji thought it was boring, so Ying Zheng just smiled and told her to do it and she would know after playing a few games.

Zhao Ji always listened to Ying Zheng the most. She thought that she would know after giving it a try, and she was actually looking forward to it.

After a short rest after dinner, the two chatted for a long time. Seeing Ying Zheng yawning, Zhao Ji could not bear to keep him any longer.

He personally helped Ying Zheng clean up, and asked Geng Ying and Yan Jin to take daily necessities and take him to the front yard to find the best room, and then cleaned up again.

"Zheng'er, try it today. If you're not used to being alone, tell mom to move back quickly. Mom doesn't have much to do every day, so it won't be inconvenient."

Seeing that Zhao Ji was about to cry again, Ying Zheng quickly responded and comforted her for a while. Zhao Ji finally calmed down and told Yan Jin:
"Yanjin, the young master's safety depends entirely on you. You must take good care of him."

Yan Jin responded solemnly.

When Zhao Ji returned to her room, Ying Zheng stood in front of the door and watched her go. Zhao Ji looked back every three steps, reluctant to leave. After Ying Zheng returned to his room, he breathed a sigh of relief, as his clingy mother had finally left.

Go to bed quickly, tomorrow will start the boring study life day after day. Ying Zheng was already prepared.

The country is so beautiful, how can I not embrace it?

This life must not end in a second life!

Ying Zheng has already made up his mind!
The next day, as the sky was about to brighten, Zhong Cang was outside the door, about to ask Yan Jin to wake up Ying Zheng.

The door of the room opened slowly, and Ying Zheng, who had already washed his face and dressed neatly, appeared in front of him.

He smiled slightly, clasped his hands and bowed:
"Morning, teacher."

Zhong Cang was stunned and laughed heartily.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Over the years, Zhong Cang never had a chance to wake Ying Zheng up.

The study began, day after day, with a good teacher, learning never felt boring and every day was extremely fulfilling.

Even when it comes to learning martial arts, Ying Zheng is extremely talented. Zhong Cang only taught him how to do it first, how to use his own true energy to guide the circulation of his meridians, and he hasn't taught him anything more advanced. Even so, he has seen results in three days, and Zhong Cang now thinks it is natural.

Ever since Ying Zheng entered the sect, the master and disciple have practiced together every morning and evening, and Ying Zheng has never made a single mistake.

Yan Jin, the assassin of Luowang, was so shocked that he could not speak. He was able to live to this day, thanks to his cultivation. He considered himself a talented person, but compared with Ying Zheng, there was a world of difference. Not to mention that Ying Zheng was both civil and military.

He thought that the young prince was still young, and if he could follow him from today on, his future would be limitless. He became more respectful to Ying Zheng.

As for Geng Ying, after the mahjong game was made, he plays mahjong with Zhao Ji and several maids every day, and they have become obsessed with it.

Ying Zheng also saw mahjong, which was made of wooden blocks, about an inch in size, painted on five sides, and made with great care.

However, no one wanted to play with Geng Ying anymore. She had profound martial arts skills, outstanding eyesight, and a very accurate card memory. She had won too many games, so no one wanted to play with her anymore.

So she later found a piece of veil to cover her eyes, so that she could barely see with her blurred eyes, and then he played with her.

At first, Zhao Ji was not used to not having Ying Zheng by her side. She couldn't sleep at night and was in a low spirit for several days.

I couldn’t adapt for several days, but when I made mahjong, I became addicted immediately.

Zhao Ji was quite talented at playing mahjong, but she was no longer satisfied with the stakes she had been betting against the maids recently.

Ying Zheng thought that it was time to let her go out and find some noble ladies to play with, so that she could make more friends. After all, the royal families of the vassal states all had close ties with them.

But I still have to remind you not to bet too high. Small gambling can bring joy, but big gambling can harm your health.

Money should be spent on the blade, even on the handle. It would be inappropriate to throw it into the sewer.

Zhao Ji still listened to Ying Zheng's instructions.

After hiding from place to place for several years, he could finally take a break. He often held banquets and invited other noble ladies who were held hostage in Zhao State to the banquets. After the banquets, he would invite them to play mahjong.

Such a great pastime also has unexpected social effects.

For a time, the hostage house became a popular place, and later even the noble ladies of Zhao State came to visit.

The courtesans of the hostages of various countries, including some noble women of Zhao State, invited her to attend banquets one after another. Zhao Ji was in a very good mood, attending banquets all day and playing mahjong in her spare time. She was no longer depressed as before, and she was even more radiant in her joy.

However, Ying Zheng had always been very low-key, only studying with Zhong Cang in the other courtyard, and never leaving the house. No one paid attention to the child.

Mahjong became popular in Handan City in a very short time after it was launched, and even broke through the circle of aristocratic ladies. Both men and women noticed this little gadget and became addicted to it after trying it.

It is said that King Xiaocheng of Zhao was addicted to mahjong, and as a result, the game, which was popular among the nobles, would surely spread to the common people as long as the common people could afford it.

Now it has not only quickly become popular in the Zhao court and the country, but has also spread to various vassal states.

The nobles have neither time nor money, but what they lack is new and interesting things, not to mention that this thing has excellent social properties.

The invention of mahjong also promoted the development of tables and chairs. Long tables and kneeling were too inconvenient, and the legs could not bear it after a long time.

After King Wuling of Zhao's reform of wearing Hu clothing and riding and shooting, Zhao State had an open mind and, like Qin State, emphasized pragmatism.

When we first started playing mahjong, we would put two long tables together and use a small Hu chair. However, the Hu chair was small and short, and when we sat on it, the long tables seemed too low, which was very uncomfortable and inconvenient.

Before Ying Zheng could come up with any ideas, after mahjong became popular, some people had already suggested improving the tables and chairs and made high-legged tables and chairs.

It is still very simple, without any fancy features. The table is simply raised to make it square, and the chair is also raised to make it comfortable to sit on.

Once people sit on a high chair, few prefer to kneel again.

Then, nobles immediately started making tables and chairs with better materials, more exquisite patterns, and more sophisticated workmanship.

Some people were dissatisfied with the discomfort of sitting for a long time, so they improved the prayer mats by wrapping grains with several layers of silk and making them into seat cushions. They were indeed much more comfortable, and people followed suit.

There is also the material of mahjong itself. Ordinary ones are not worthy of their status, so mahjong made of a variety of materials has appeared.

Some are made of brass for the traditional ones, some are made of gold for the wealthy, and some are made of precious wood for the elegant ones.

Some are even more extravagant, having craftsmen spend a lot of time carving jade, only to find out after the cards are finished that they are unusable because each card has a different pattern on the back, which can be difficult for those with good memory to remember the cards, and the owner of the card has a very bad experience.

But the more this is the case, the more nobles will want to make a set of jade cards that can be played with.

It was truly made by a nobleman. I wonder how much effort he put into finding a piece of extremely transparent jade without any impurities.

After making it, I looked at the back and they are exactly the same. Unfortunately, it still cannot be used because it is too transparent. In the sun, you don’t need to look at the pattern, you can just look at the card directly.

It became the laughing stock of the whole city for a while.

In the end, it was Prime Minister Zhao Sheng, Lord Pingyuan, who came up with a better technique and made one out of black jade.

However, it is said that it was borrowed by King Xiaocheng of Zhao after only one day of playing with it.

It has to be said that the nobles are always full of creativity when it comes to entertainment and enjoyment. In just a few months, they have all kinds of styles.

The lives of Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, mother and son, in Zhao State finally got back on track.

(End of this chapter)