Shangjun, on the road leading to Jiuyuan County in Saibei.
Prince Fusu stood in his chariot, looking at a long silent queue of countless slave laborers and prisoners on the road next to him.
He shook his head and sighed: "The bustards gathered in the buds and mulberry trees. The king's affairs are too busy, and he can't grow rice. Where are the parents? The sky is long! How can it be permanent?"
This is "Tang Feng Bustard Yu", which describes the miserable days of Zhou people who were ordered by the king to serve abroad for a long time. They could not go home to farm to support their parents, so they wailed and asked the elusive Emperor of Heaven. When will things return to normal?
Where Fusu looked, there was a rather low valley that stretched for more than ten miles.
Countless prisoners, ministers, and servicemen from various counties, hunched over their waists, carried earth and stones from distant mountains with their shoulders and hands, and filled the valley here. They had just broken through a mountain range and were now about to fill in the valley.
Cutting mountains and cutting valleys lead directly to northern Xinjiang, which is a straight road.
"ah!"
One of the slaves screamed and fell to the ground. The earth and rocks behind him fell down and immediately submerged his upper body.
The people around him were startled. After seeing that the person who fell to the ground did not move, they turned their heads and walked step by step toward the valley ahead, carrying heavy soil on their backs.
They have seen too many scenes like this.
The legendary operation of directly filling people into the valley did not occur. The Qin official in charge of supervising the work came over and asked the two men to drag the unconscious laborer out for inspection.
Qin's laws are very detailed and strict, and every slave, prisoner, and official must be recorded in a book and cannot be dealt with at will.
If you are just fainting, revive yourself and continue working after you recover.
If he is dead, bury him in a nearby pit and check his name off the list.
Fusu watched this scene silently.
Half a year has passed since the corvee collection and construction of the straight road began.
During road construction in winter, although there was no blazing sun, countless people suffered broken fingers due to the biting cold wind, and typhoid fever was rampant. In one winter, two or three thousand of the 100,000 corvees had died.
After the beginning of spring, the weather got warmer, but not much better. Many people were recruited from counties in the south. Not only did they have difficulty adapting to the climate in the north, but they were also unaccustomed to the climate and climate. In addition, they worked all day long and died of illness and exhaustion. The probability is high.
When he first joined the army, the benevolent young master who had grown up in the palace could not stand these scenes. Fusu even asked the accompanying doctors to treat the fainted slaves, and won the title of "virtuous young master" among the slaves and prisoners. good reputation.
But later, too many people were injured and injured, dozens to hundreds a day. Even Fusu himself got cold and fell ill. He finally recovered, leaving him with a cough.
After seeing it too much, Fusu got used to it.
Every day I see those slave laborers and prisoners unable to bear the fatigue, falling down on the road and never getting up again.
In addition to occasionally lamenting, Fusu also used his duty as a military supervisor to supervise the distribution of grain and ensure that the food that these poor people depended on for daily survival would not be deducted in any way.
After all, he is just a supervisor, and the person in charge of this team is Meng Tian.
Fusu was a little confused about this. He felt that the emperor had to impose corvee services in the autumn, and that one hundred thousand people had to leave their homes and go to distant places to build roads in the middle of winter. Many injured and sick people froze to death along the way. Is it worth it?
The leaders of the world have been tired for too long.
The emperor sent out a large army and defeated the six countries within ten years.
Fusu complained a little, but he also knew that it was the great wish of the previous kings of Qin to unify the world and the mission of all the Qin kings. Therefore, he thought that although the emperor was a little impatient, he did the right thing.
But what about after unifying the world?
The emperor sent troops to attack the four barbarians one after another. The Hu people in the northeast, the Xiongnu Yuezhi in the northwest, the Yue people in the southeast, and the Yi people in the southwest could not rest for a moment.
If we say that these wars are to eliminate the barbarian troubles for the empire, then it can be said to be justified.
But before the war subsided, large-scale corvee levies began again, palaces and palaces were built, and various counties rushed and straightened roads, which made the head of Guizhou exhausted from running around, and countless people died from freezing on the road.
Even after Fusu listened to Zhao Tuo's words and thought from the perspective of the Qin master, he felt that these things might be of some benefit to the country, but if he was too hasty, he would damage the foundation of the entire empire.
Couldn't the father stop for a moment and give Guizhou a few years of breathing space?
"The head of Guizhou is running all over the world. The roads are frozen to the bone. The people are hungry, cold and exhausted, and they are wailing in the fields. How can such a world be peaceful and prosperous?"
"Now my father wants to perform the ritual of enshrining Zen and tour the hometown of the Six Kingdoms in the east, wasting people, wealth, and national power. Are he really thinking about the Qin Dynasty?"
Fusu's fists were squeezed again and again, and the thought of writing a letter of remonstrance to the emperor once again came to his mind.
He wanted to analyze the pros and cons in the document and tell the emperor that doing so would be harmful to Qin.
He even wanted to write a letter to Wu Gonghou Zhao Tuo, hoping that his brother-in-law could join him in admonishing the emperor.
He thought this in his heart, but Fusu's feet didn't move.
He recalled that when the emperor decided to attack Yueshi, he wanted to write a letter to dissuade him, but felt it was inappropriate, so he went to visit his brother-in-law Zhao Tuo.
"Young master, don't try to give me advice. It's useless."
"Be patient, and sooner or later the sea and the sky will be brighter."
"Don't use Qianlong!"
That was before leaving, Zhao Tuo was worried and warned him again and again.
Fusu trembled.
"Don't use Qianlong."
He whispered the advice Zhao Tuo gave him back then,
Zhao Tuo was right. He was just a hidden dragon now. He was too weak to make any changes.
Don't use Qianlong, save your strength.
When the time is right, you can take off and become a flying dragon in the sky!
Fusu once again looked at the heavy steps of the slave laborers and prisoners, and continued to use their lives to build a straight path for the empire.
His expression had returned to calm, he coughed slightly, and turned back to give instructions to the servants beside him.
"Drive back, I want to play cards."
…
Just when the eldest son of the empire was indulging in playing cards in Shangjun in the north, the whole of Xianyang started to move again.
Because King Jian, the Marquis of Wucheng, passed away in Pinyang, the emperor's pace, which had temporarily stopped, began to move again.
After deliberation among various departments and the emperor’s personal decision.
This time, the team for the eastward tour of Fengchan has been finalized and is about to set off.
In terms of armed force, a total of 3,000 Lang Wei troops will accompany and protect the emperor. At the same time, soldiers from counties and counties along the route will also be recruited to follow and protect the emperor to the greatest extent possible to ensure the travel safety of the emperor and the accompanying officials.
In terms of officials, Prime Minister Wei Zhuang on the right and Prime Minister Wang Wan on the left will accompany him and will be responsible for the enshrinement of Zen.
However, Taiwei Wang Bi, who was also the third prince, could only regretfully stay in Xianyang because of the sudden death of his father Wang Jian, and was unable to follow and participate in this great event.
As for the imperial censor Feng Jie, he was also left in the imperial capital. He will be responsible for the administrative affairs after the emperor and the left and right prime ministers leave, and at the same time ensure the stability of Xianyang. With this person, he can ensure that the capital is safe.
In addition, among the ministers, Fengchang, who is responsible for the rituals and music, and the servant, who is responsible for the emperor's carriage, all follow him with their authority, which is what should be done.
What is noteworthy about Zhao Tuo is that Tingwei Li Si and Zhisu Neishi Wang Wu were also accompanying him.
"Li Si is a leader of the Legalists, a favorite of the emperor, and a master of calligraphy. He is probably asked to write the Songde Stone Carvings on this eastern tour, so it is normal for him to follow."
"Only Wang Wu flattered the emperor at the court meeting where he was bestowed with titles. He probably caught the emperor's eye, so he was allowed to follow him. He is really flattering the emperor."
Zhao Tuo shook his head and sighed.
As for himself, because his title is too high, there is no suitable position for the time being, so it has been vacant. Now he is named by the emperor to follow him as Marquis Lun.
"I'm leaving home again. When I come back, my son will probably be all over the place."
Zhao Tuo felt a little resentful.
His son Zhao Che was almost one year old and had just learned to walk, which was a fun age. It was a pity that he, a father, had to leave at this time and could not accompany his son to grow up.
Not to mention that Zhao Tuo and Ying Yinman had just been together as husband and wife for a few months. They were inseparable and had fun every night. Now they have to say goodbye to Wenxiang Nephrite and follow the emperor to the east to climb mountains and see the sea. How can they feel happy? .
"I can't help it, this is my father-in-law."
Zhao Tuo shook his head again.
He could only make amends to the princess in his own house the night before leaving, and after being told a bunch of words to keep himself clean, he said goodbye to his wife the next day and followed the emperor's instructions. Leave.
It was the end of February in the twenty-eighth year of Qin Shihuang.
A large-scale team sailed away from Xianyang, slowly heading east towards Qidong with countless flags flying.
