Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 274, Section 273: Transitional Chapter
The Queen never mentioned this, but Xinming clenched his sleeves tightly.

Filial piety is an extremely important quality. Her mother devoted herself to her wholeheartedly, yet she often reflected on her own lack of filial piety. She never confided this hidden inferiority and self-loathing to anyone.

But at this moment, Xinming felt that the Queen understood him.

She pursed her lips, then stood up: "It's rumored in the palace that the Queen will be holding an examination, but it won't test your knowledge of classics and history. Go and find out what kind of talent she needs."

The maidservant was somewhat surprised: "Why does the princess inquire about this? Didn't the queen ask the king to have the princess go to Zhangtai Palace to inquire about state affairs after the New Year? Why not have the eighth prince inquire about matters related to the inquiries about state affairs?"

Xinming glanced at her, then repeated, "Go and inquire about the Queen's examination."

The maid paused, then hurriedly bowed and said, "Yes, sir."

……

Meanwhile, Prince Qian was also waiting for Princess Wen in the palace.

Dressed in riding attire, he paced back and forth, repeatedly asking, "Hasn't my sister changed her clothes yet? My horse must be getting impatient."

As soon as she finished speaking, Princess Wencai hurriedly came out of the inner palace and said, "No matter how fast the horse is going, we must first go and pay our respects to Father."

Thinking of this, she felt a sense of helplessness: "On my father's birthday, the gift I carefully prepared was only glanced at twice before being set aside. On the contrary, he savored the food presented by the Queen for a long time..."

Although she was the Queen, she had only been in the palace for two months. On the contrary, her status as the eldest princess was becoming increasingly insignificant...

Then look at my younger brother beside me, with his clear, bright eyes—

Prince Qian was also lost in thought!
“Exactly. That’s what I was thinking too! Father doesn’t have a big appetite, but the pastries the Queen served were so exquisite, and Father enjoyed them for so long, they must have been extremely delicious.”

Prince Qian hesitated and asked, "Sister, do you think the Queen will send me such pastries on my birthday?"

Eat, eat, eat, just eat!

Princess Wen almost raised her hand to smash his head.

But looking at her younger brother, who had suddenly grown even taller, she felt a sense of helplessness.
"Forget it, what's the point of bringing this up with you..."

She walked out first, but Prince Qian muttered to himself, "I know what you mean, sister—you feel that you are not as valued as the Queen, don't you? But if I were the King, I would also value the Queen."

The Queen can refine snowflake salt! And the palace chefs make all sorts of delicacies. I've even vaguely heard that she has the Nine Heavens Thunder God Pill... With such abilities, who wouldn't value them?
"As for what you wrote, elder sister, there are so many learned men in the court. Who can't write a thousand words? If Father takes a second look, he'll probably have to write hundreds more words in his reply. It's better not to read it at all."

It's already New Year's Day holiday, why do we still have to look at these things? Isn't that a headache?
Princess Wen stomped her foot angrily: "You!"

However, the other person added, "Besides, elder sister, you should be closer to the Queen. I heard that the coal was also mined by the Queen's orders, and now she's even going to renovate our palace to keep us warm. Her thoughtfulness is even more considerate than our mother's..."

Mother was overjoyed and was still carefully instructing the craftsmen on her requirements before they left. But for some reason, my older sister just couldn't stand these things...

Hey.

Wang Ziqian thought with a touch of melancholy: I'll have to worry about the mother and her two children a lot from now on.

The elder sister always judged herself by how much she had read, but when he was working as a signal mirror, the ink-wielding maidservant beside the queen was illiterate, yet she was smarter than all of them.

Everyone in the palace was here, including the prince riding a tiger.

The difference was that even on New Year's Day, he was still accompanied by a physician. He coughed lightly twice, his face pale: "What use is it for me to come to Shanglin Garden in this condition? I can't ride a horse, and I'm afraid of catching a cold even if I just walk a few steps in the mountains..."

"It would be better to stay in Xianyang Palace and read a few more books." The Imperial Physician, who was required to report to Qin Shi regularly, had learned some of the Queen's style. He asked, "With a prince's status, if he read a few more books, would he want to become a great scholar like Han Fei, or the Prime Minister of our Great Qin?"

Chenghu remained silent.

The physician seemed oblivious and continued, "Does Your Highness feel that your health is poor? I have heard that Princess Xinming was born with weak lungs and is now enjoying a visit to the greenhouse. Since you are afraid of catching a cold, Your Highness should wear thicker clothes."

"The hat is also ready."

"It is always better to look at the vast world in the wilderness and forests than to bury yourself in old books and then go out to enjoy the scenery, pointing at the chives and saying that the wheat seedlings are growing strong."

Cheng Hu paused, then gave a wry smile: "You're quite the smooth talker."

The physician smiled and said, "This was ordered by the Queen. She said she would rather the prince be illiterate than die young—only by living can one have all kinds of opportunities and achievements."

"Moreover, if I serve the prince diligently, I will also have the opportunity to participate in the medical team of Ganquan Palace after the New Year, which is said to have the secret medical manual of Kunlun."

As he spoke, a smile on his face, he had already firmly placed a snow fox fur hat on Chenghu's head:

"Prince, let's go out and see the scenery."

"I also urge you to seize this opportunity; otherwise, with so many talented people in the Imperial Medical Academy, when will it ever be my turn?"

Cheng Hu remained silent, completely wrapped up, and then left the palace gate.

……

The people of the six palaces are now enjoying themselves in the Shanglin Garden, just as they did during the Qin Dynasty.

Aside from enjoying horseback riding and sightseeing every day, she did not handle any political affairs, and all palace matters were left to the ladies. The same applied to her before and after.

He did, however, take the time to force the maids around him to take turns having a proper holiday.

Now only Fu Cai and her many maids remain to serve her, and she couldn't help but advise, "This servant knows that the Queen is considerate, but there are simply too few people serving her..."

Qin Shi laughed and said, "Then take a look around. If there are any good maids in the palace, promote them to gain experience."

Fu Cai was taken aback.

But the Queen looked at her with a smile: "I appointed you as Chief Secretary and Junior Secretary, not so that you would spend your whole lives just staying in Ganquan Palace."

Fu Cai's interests lie in clothing design and styling, and she enjoys doing these things.

Although Chi Nu and Wu Zi have different personalities, they have already shown the demeanor of a well-rounded warrior at a young age—even if they are not aware of it themselves, their skills and knowledge are actually comparable to those of a local official.

What they lack is the literary and scholarly foundation passed down from aristocratic families, but in this world, there are those who learn how to do things from the elite and those who learn how to do things from ordinary people.

It would be a waste not to use such talented people who have served Ji Heng for many years to do more things.

She looked at the young woman in the mirror who was putting a hairpin into her hair:
"Fu Cai, you should know, right? I still have so many things to do."

　Tomorrow marks the official start of my new year's career!

　　(End of this chapter)