The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 235 Idle People
Li Chengqian looked at the rain all over the sky, at the pedestrians still running in the rain on the street, and at the passers-by wearing bamboo hats entering the city gate.

One person said, "I heard that Chongwenguan is still recruiting teachers."

The speaker was a young man in his twenties, wearing patched clothes, but his eyes were quite energetic.

Another person took off his hat to keep out the rain, noticed the soldiers standing nearby, and stood outside the city gate, a corner that was slightly sheltered from the rain, and whispered, "I heard that the teaching support this time is hosted by Chongwen Hall."

"I heard that there are three to five hundred people in Chongwenguan just for editing."

"Yes, but most of these people are working for Jingzhao Prefecture and have nothing to do with us."

The young man with the patched clothes smiled and said, "That's good. Now you and I have both been hired by Chongwenguan and can stay in Guanzhong."

Another person asked, “Aren’t you going back?”

"It will be difficult to come to Chang'an again after I go back. I will save some money by teaching in the countryside, and then I will go back and bring all my relatives with me."

"Is this place so good for you?"

He looked at the people running in the rain on the official road with a little light in his eyes, and said: "They look more like people who are living for the future."

Li Chengqian listened quietly to their conversations with their local accent.

Seeing that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was silent, Guard Li Ji also did not say a word.

The rain subsided, and when Li Chengqian returned to the Secretariat, he met Li Ke and Quan Wanji again.

Li Ke now has Liu Rengui as a good friend, and Quan Wanji can be relied on.

There were not many people in the Secretariat at this hour. At dusk, most people had finished their busy day at work and were going home.

Li Chengqian looked at the pile of memorials and documents on the table and sorted them out himself. He glanced at Li Ke who was standing upright beside him and said, "Brother Ke, why do you have the leisure to come here today?"

Li Ke bowed and replied, "Father learned that Hebei County in Shanzhou had suffered a flood and asked me to go and inspect it."

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "It's just right. When you pass by Luoyang, you can send me a letter."

As he spoke, Li Chengqian took out a scroll of letters from the bottom of a pile of memorials, handed it to him and said, "Give this letter to the Imperial Censor Li Yifu, who is still in Luoyang to monitor construction matters."

Li Ke felt familiar with the name and then remembered that Li Yifu was the person who supervised the construction of the Hexi Corridor.

Li Ke took the letter and said, "This letter..."

"It's not a transfer order, it's just an exam paper for Chongwenguan. If he answers well, he will be allowed to take charge of Luoyang Chongwenguan."

Seeing his brother speak so frankly, Li Ke smiled and bowed, saying, "I am here to say goodbye to you, brother."

Li Chengqian warned: "I still say the same thing, don't be afraid of anyone when you are out there, just do the right thing, even if you don't do it well after you come back..."

"Ke, I understand!"

Li Chengqian looked at Quan Wanji who was standing behind him, and the other party bowed.

"Let's set off early. Since it is Father's wish, don't delay."

"Here."

Li Ke walked out of the Secretariat in a hurry.

Li Chengqian was still looking at the documents from various counties. Once the policy order to support teaching was issued, the twelve counties in Guanzhong and the thirty-six counties east of Weibei, in addition to expressing their stance, also hoped to get support from the court.

Things are different now. He is no longer in charge of the twelve counties in Guanzhong, but as the Grand Administrator of East Shaanxi, he is in charge of the entire East Shaanxi area.

Li Chengqian frowned as he looked at the documents from the forty-eight counties, approving them one by one. The workload was heavier than before.

Yu Zhining handed over a booklet and said, "Your Highness, this is a newly made booklet."

Li Chengqian asked, "Where is Chu Suiliang?"

"I will bring him here right away."

"So he usually goes home so early."

Li Chengqian stood up and took the booklet from Yu Zhining and said, "Put all the documents from each county on Chu Suiliang's desk and ask him to work overnight. Before this time tomorrow, review all the documents from each county and write a brief comment and give it to me."

"Here."

Li Chengqian looked at the booklet and said suspiciously, "The workmanship is quite good."

"Your Highness, this is a piece of paper that was sewed together by a woman from Lantian County using hemp rope and wrapped with leather on the outside, so it is not easy for the paper to be damaged."

The cover of this booklet is covered with leather, which feels a bit rough.

Yu Zhining explained: "Tomorrow, there will be more deliveries from various counties. I will select the best ones based on the manpower and workshops that each county can provide."

"Thank you for your help. Don't forget to tell Chu Suiliang about this."

"Well, I'm going to go right now."

So the prince left the imperial city and finished his work early, and Li Chengqian returned to the palace with the book.

That night, Yu Zhining came to Chu Suiliang's house and asked with a smile, "Is Minister Chu drinking?"

Although both of them were assistant ministers, they did not get along with each other, often had different opinions, and did not get along very well.

Chu Suiliang said, "It's not even night yet, why are you drinking?"

"That's good." Yu Zhining repeated His Highness' instructions.

Chu Suiliang immediately perked up after hearing this. He asked, "What did Your Highness really say?"

"Go now. The government affairs are very busy. If you delay..."

"Your Highness has given me an order, so I dare not delay." Chu Suiliang lifted his collar and said, "I will go right away."

Yu Zhining followed him to the door and ran into Zhang Xuansu again.

Seeing Chu Suiliang walking towards the Suzaku Gate with his head held high and without greeting anyone, Zhang Xuansu frowned and asked, "What's wrong with him?"

Yu Zhining explained: "The prince has made arrangements."

The middle-aged Zhang Xuansu snorted coldly, "Is he valued by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"

Yu Zhining smiled with emotion, "Probably."

"When he succeeds, he gets carried away. This fellow Chu Suiliang is not fit for any important task."

Yu Zhining asked, "Are you ready to go to Luoyang to take up your post?"

Zhang Xuansu nodded solemnly, "I will be leaving for my new post tomorrow. I still want to have a drink with Minister Chu, forget it, forget it."

Yu Zhining understood and said with a hint of regret: "I still have some wine stored at home."

"Very good." Zhang Xuansu grabbed his wrist and said anxiously, "Hurry to your house. I am on this trip and I don't know when I can come back."

Zhang Xuansu, who entered the government during the Sui Dynasty, was forty years old. He was a relatively straightforward civil servant in the court, but he was also a stubborn one.

At that time, Zhang Xuansu always regarded himself as a minister of the Sui Dynasty and was a loyal and upright person. During the chaotic times at the end of the Sui Dynasty, Dou Jiande tried to persuade him to join the army several times, but he refused to accept the title.

Later, Dou Jiande was defeated, and Zhang Xuansu then joined the Qin King, now His Majesty.

This process was not actually smooth. The King of Qin at that time treated former Sui officials well, respected such celebrities, and was consistent.

Yu Zhining smiled awkwardly and said to him, "You will be taking up your post tomorrow, so don't get drunk tonight." Zhang Xuansu nodded seriously.

The next day, at dawn, Zhang Xuansu, with a hangover and a dizzy head, hurriedly got on the carriage and headed for Luoyang to take up his post.

At today's morning court session, another person who looked listless was Chu Suiliang. He had not slept all night and had been dealing with documents from various counties. Standing in the court, he no longer had his usual spirited look, and his eyes, like dead fish, stared straight ahead.

It was not until His Royal Highness the Crown Prince walked into the hall that Chu Suiliang's eyes lit up a little and followed the movement of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

There are many things to talk about at the morning court today. First, there is the flood in Shanzhou, second, there is the repair of Chang'an City, and there is also the preparation for teaching.

After the morning court session, Li Chengqian went straight back to the quiet East Palace.

The Emperor has been very busy recently. For example, Your Majesty has been looking at the plan for the Crown Prince of the East Palace to teach for several days in a row.

Li Chengqian returned to the East Palace for lunch. Li Lizhi was giving lectures to Xiao Wu and Xu Hui in front of the Chongwen Hall. These two disciples were just the right people for her to practice with.

They are not only master and apprentice, but also good friends of Dongyang and Lizhi.

Dongyang was sitting at the kitchen, reading a prescription for medicine. The little deer was lying beside its owner, eyes closed, its ears occasionally twitching.

"I haven't seen Dr. Sun for some time."

Hearing his brother's question, Dongyang put down the medicine book in his hand and replied: "Dr. Sun has also gone to Shanzhou. There may be a big epidemic after the flood. He said he wants to go and take a look."

Li Chengqian looked at the small pulley made by the Shaofu Supervisor and nodded, "Dr. Sun is still Dr. Sun. It turns out that we can't keep him."

Dongyang said: "The old man said he would return to Chang'an."

Originally, he wanted to keep Doctor Sun. Dongyang had studied medicine with him for three years, and he passed all the medical classics to Dongyang.

Now Grandpa and Mother's conditions are not serious.

Li Chengqian buckled the small wheel onto the opening and closing of the ruler, tried to push the wheel, and watched the scale move. A simple vernier caliper finally took shape.

In manufacturing production, ruler is a very important production tool. A fine ruler is one of the indispensable tools as the manufacturing industry moves towards refinement.

Li Chengqian walked into the storeroom of the Eastern Palace, opened several boxes, and found several pearls.

I don’t know who gave it to the Eastern Palace, but it was probably given to me by someone from the royal family when I was seventeen years old.

The structure of the vernier caliper is very simple, it has no dial, and it can only measure to millimeters.

Try holding the pearl with the tip of a vernier caliper and measuring the diameter.

Comparing with a ruler, Li Chengqian looked at the scales of the two rulers, pulled out a long piece of wood chip from between the calipers, and said nothing with a sullen face.

Li Zhi and Li Shen, who came to see their brother's actions out of curiosity, were also observing. Seeing that their brother frowned and remained silent, the two brothers also frowned and thought.

Li Chengqian sat up straight with his hands in his pockets and said, "Aren't you going to play with Di Renjie?"

Li Zhi took his eyes off the ruler and said, "Di Renjie is not in Jingzhao Prefecture. He went out with his father again."

Li Shen said: "Brother, is this a ruler?"

"Well, I'll give it to you."

"really?"

"Don't forget it."

Li Shen quickly picked up the crude vernier caliper from the table. He said happily, "What my brother made must be useful."

Li Chengqian collected the pearl and put it into a box in the warehouse. He then locked the box and closed the door of the warehouse.

This caliper is a failure. Even the best wood will wear out. The previous plan of using only iron guide rails was abandoned. Now it seems that it must be made entirely of iron.

When people have nothing to do, they always do things that are thankless.

That's why I thought of making a ruler, but it's so difficult.

Seeing His Royal Highness the Crown Prince approaching, Ning'er put down the jar of pickled radishes and said, "Xiaofu has pickled a lot of radishes. Would you like to try some, Your Highness?"

"Do you think I have been too idle recently?" Li Chengqian felt that it was a redundant question, so he walked out of the East Palace with his hands in his pockets without waiting for her reply.

That's probably the case. Before those treasures that will benefit future generations are born, things must be quite difficult.

In the past, the court was very quiet at this time of year, but in recent years it has become increasingly busy. Last night, Chu Suiliang worked all night, and it was not until noon today that he had sorted out all the documents for the 48 counties.

Wait until Li Chengqian sees Chu Suiliang's records.

I have to say that Chu Suiliang's running script is really beautiful. Even in such a tired state, he can still write more neatly than ordinary people. People are really incomparable.

After looking at his expression, Li Chengqian said, "Go back and have a good sleep. You have to be on duty tomorrow, so don't delay."

"I'll take my leave now." Although Chu Suiliang was tired, he still spoke with full energy.

Yu Zhining finally understood the Crown Prince's intention. Some heavy work always needs someone to do it, and someone like Chu Suiliang is the most suitable person.

He handed over another file and said, "Your Highness, this is the report from each county. I have read it and Lantian County is the best in terms of workshop land and manpower arrangements."

"After you have arranged these things, just draft the charter and submit it."

Yu Zhining smiled and said, "Zhang Xuansu went to Luoyang to take up his post today. He drank with me last night. I told him not to drink too much several times, but he still got a hangover."

Li Chengqian instructed: "Once Chongwenguan has confirmed the candidates for teaching this year, they can set off next year. Each teacher will take ten volumes for teaching."

“It can be done after winter this year.”

"It's going to be a day off in two days, so you should go to bed early."

Yu Zhining bowed and saluted before leaving the Secretariat.

The frost season in Guanzhong had just ended, and the beginning of winter had arrived, so the court began to rest.

After being confined at home for a month, Hou Junji was summoned by His Majesty again. After the title of Duke of Chen, the great general, was taken away from him and his military power was withdrawn, he became an idle man.

Li Xiaogong stood outside Chengtian Gate, looking up at the sky.

After meeting His Majesty, Hou Junji also walked outside Chengtian Gate, looked up at the sky, and asked, "Why hasn't it snowed this year?"

Li Xiaogong said: "Master Li said it will probably snow tomorrow."

Hou Junji said in a deep voice: "I heard that Taoist Li has gone crazy?"

"Not crazy." Li Xiaogong followed his footsteps and said, "Master Li has been in seclusion recently. I heard that the walls of the Imperial Observatory are covered with star maps. This is a sign of enlightenment, but to outsiders, it seems like he is crazy."

"I have visited him before, and he can teach Princess Jinyang about astrology and numerology."

Hou Junji continued walking with heavy steps.

Li Xiaogong was like a fly, chattering away.

Li Xiaogong kept chattering as they walked all the way to Suzaku Street.

At the back door of Pingkangfang, there are many militiamen repairing the ditches. Whenever it rains, the streets here will be flooded.

The people working here are none other than their comrades who had once marched together to the Western Regions.

(End of this chapter)