Through Time Chapter 18

Inside the Great Qin Palace.

Zhao Gao is talking in graphic detail, about what happened today at the Kong Palace.

“Your Majesty, you did not see that Kong Jia’s old face was green.”

“And he kept begging that I wanted to see Your Majesty!”

“The old slave’s heart was so relieved.”

After hearing Zhao Gao’s return, Qin Shi Huang burst out laughing and

“Good! Hahahaha, I never thought this old man would have his day!”

“In the past, when I summoned him to the palace, he would refuse, but today I want him to have a taste of this!”

Zhao Gao added at this point.

“But this man’s response was really extremely quick, and my old slave merely gave him that paper.”

“In less than a moment, he understood the subtleties.”

Qin Shi Huang, however, was not the least bit surprised and said indifferently that

“As the head of Confucianism, he must be a man of great talent, and since I have given so many hints, it is not surprising that he could see it so quickly.”

Zhao Gao echoed at this time.

“Your Majesty’s words are very true, but even if these people are brilliant, they are no match for Gongzi Lang.”

Hearing these words, Qin Shi Huang gave a self-satisfied smile, but soon returned to his normal self.

“Long’s son is indeed good, but he is still too young in ability, it would have been better if he had come to his senses a few years earlier.”

If only it had been a few years earlier, before he had started taking those poisons…

Just as Qin Shi Huang began to reverie, the sound of an endowment came from outside the door.

“Your Majesty, a letter has arrived from the Kong House.”

Zhao Gao hurriedly took it and brought it to Qin Shi Huang.

Only after reading two lines, Qin Shi Huang laughed out loud once again and said

“Hahahaha, this old man is still going to go and work for my son obediently!”

“I’d like to see what his face will be when he finds out the identity of Long’s son!”

Zhao Gao naturally guessed that it was the other side that had succumbed, and he said, with a bit of concern

“It’s just that, Your Majesty, in that case, will Gongzi Lang’s identity be discovered.”

Qin Shi Huang put away the epistle and said that

“No matter, Kung Lao’s son thinks highly of himself and will certainly not take the initiative to say his identity.”

“Lang’er himself is still thinking of rebellion, so naturally he will not say much about it either.”

“As long as we avoid this old man when we go and don’t make too much of a show of it.”

Zhao Gao did not find any loopholes, so he said, from the bottom of his heart.

“Your Majesty is wise!”

Qin Shi Huang said at this point that

“Let the artisans make paper as soon as possible, according to Long’s method, and this art of printing.”

“With these two things, the Hundred Schools of Thought will be nothing more than a possession in my pocket.”

“Yes!”

Zhao Gao took his warrant and left the palace.

—-

Inside Zhao Long’s manor.

Zhao Long got up earlier today.

The main reason was that Hef and the others hadn’t returned yet and the teenagers had to watch.

In the small courtyard, a pot of porridge was set on the table that Zhao Lang had newly made.

A group of teenagers in ragged clothes stared at the congee with dead eyes.

Such thick congee, they only saw it during the New Year holidays.

It was not a very good time for the ordinary farmers of Da Qin.

As Wang Cai distributed the congee to everyone, he spoke of the

“You are all considered virtuous, when you enter the village and meet the gongzi, you go and ask who gives back breakfast!”

Zhao Lang showed a faint smile on the side, since he had promised the group of teenagers that they would be fed, he naturally had to do it.

Anyway, there was no shortage of food on the farm now.

When the potatoes came out afterwards, there would be even less of a shortage.

Just as quickly, there was a chaotic scene in the small courtyard.

The teenagers were huddled together at the front in order to get the porridge first, and they all nearly came to blows.

A few of the shorter ones each fell to the ground.

This was their rule of survival, whoever grabbed it was the one who got it.

“Back off, all of you! Or no one will get to eat!”

Zhao Lang stepped straight forward and frowned as he spoke.

Although he was also only sixteen or seventeen years old, he had never eaten or dressed poorly since he was a child.

He was much taller than these teenagers and had more of a special soldier’s physique.

He directly pressed the group of teenagers back.

Facing Zhao Lang most of them lowered their heads, still the boldest of all who went to die, looked at Zhao Lang and stubbornly said

“You… Family Master, you said you’d let us eat.”

“How dare you! How dare you speak to the Duke like that!”

Wang Cai saw this scene and directly chided.

Zhao Lang, however, did not take it personally, the reason why he chose these teenagers.

It was for the teenage vigour they still had in them.

Look at Wangcai, although he was still young too, he had already been trained by Uncle Fu and the others to be a competent servant.

“Not bad, remembering that I am the head of the family.”

Zhao Lang laughed and

“I did promise to mind my fill, but when you are here with me, you have to abide by my rules.”

“Now, all of you, line up in two lines from lowest to highest!”

Zhao Lang didn’t preach any great doctrine of unity and friendship, who wanted to hear that?

A direct and forceful order was all that was needed.

Tempted by the food, the teenagers stood according to Zhao Lang’s command and one by one began to serve the porridge.

Soon, the small courtyard resounded with the sound of drinking congee.

“Give me a bowl too.”

Zhao Lang said as he picked up the bowl.

“My lord, this…”

Wangcai, however, hesitated.

The congee was actually good, but it was only relative.

Compared to Zhao Lang’s usual food, there was still a difference.

“What? This congee is not drinkable?”

Zhao Lang laughed.

“No, no, no.”

Wangcai hastily denied to and then gave Zhao Lang a bowl.

Zhao Lang carried the congee and drank it up with all the teenagers.

When the bowl of congee was finished, Zhao Lang said that

“From now on, every morning, my breakfast will be the same as theirs.”

Hearing these words, the gazes of all the teenagers in the courtyard who looked at Zhao Lang changed slightly.

Wang Cai couldn’t refuse either, so he could only think of asking the kitchen to make the ingredients better.

Then he spoke again to the go-getter at one side, saying

“After that, we will queue up to receive porridge like this every day, go to death, you arrange it.”

“You must wait until everyone has got their porridge before you take it, do you understand?”

Go Die looked at Zhao Lang and frowned, as if he didn’t understand why he got to eat last.

“Understood.”

Go Dead finally returned.

Only then did Zhao Lang nod, ready to go and see how the little venue he wanted was coming along.

As soon as he turned around, he saw that several people from Hef were at the entrance of the courtyard, looking at him with complicated eyes.

“Uncle Hef, when did you guys come back.”

Zhao Lang hurriedly asked.

Hef returned and

“It has just arrived.”

“My lord, yesterday we went back to collect the men and were all set to go back to the farm.”

“I didn’t expect to encounter a group of people fleeing the disaster, so I was delayed. ”

“Fleeing a disaster?”

Zhao Lang frowned slightly, he didn’t quite remember any major natural disasters in the Qin Dynasty.

Hef revealed a bitter smile and said

“It’s not too easy to say for a while, but I do have a few dozen more children here.”

As soon as Hef pointed backwards, Zhao Lang saw both men and women, dozens of pairs of big eyes looking at him.

“Have the kitchen cook some more porridge!”

Without asking any more questions, Zhao Lang turned around and went to arrange for food.

Looking at Zhao Lang’s busy figure, and then looking at the children’s gaze at Zhao Lang.

Instead, Hef revealed a bitter smile and spoke to a few of his old brothers, saying

“Brothers, I’m afraid that our children’s lives are all going to be given to the Duke.”