Through Time Chapter 7

“Dad, are you all right.”

Zhao Lang hurriedly went forward and helped Qin Shi Huang up.

“Your Majesty… Brother Zhao!”

Li Si and Zhao Gao also rushed around, neither of them had just reacted either!

“I’m fine, it’s just that my feet are a bit numb.”

Qin Shi Huang stood up and said.

Zhao Lang knew what it was because of, and he also knew that paper making would be a shock, after all, the Four Great Inventions of China were not something he bragged about.

Of course, he wouldn’t tear down his cheap old dad at this time.

“Long’er, can this paper still be improved?”

Qin Shi Huang picked up a crumpled piece of paper directly from the side and stroked it uncontrollably.

But worthy of being the First Emperor, he quickly suppressed his excitement and began to consider the practicality.

Zhao Lang nodded rightfully and said.

“Of course you can, if there was a suitable place and more hands, this paper could become as smooth as silk.”

“There is no problem with using it to make books.”

“Well, well!”

Qin Shi Huang applauded directly.

As emperor, he knew all too well the usefulness of this paper, which could be described as a national treasure!

Just think, a scroll of bamboo slips weighing several catties of recorded text could be fixed with a single piece of lightly flown paper.

A few carts of bamboo slips, turned into book paper, might as well have been a few dozen pages!

“With this paper! I am great…”

Qin Shi Huang narrowly stopped his mouth, almost missing the point.

Zhao Lang asked, curiously

“Father, what did you say?”

“I am saying that with this paper, our great work will, for sure, succeed.”

Qin Shi Huang covered up and

“When the time comes, as you say, I will be the emperor and you will be the crown prince!”

Zhao Gao and Li Si, who were on the side, heard this and both of them looked at each other in extreme shock.

Great Qin did not have a crown prince yet, so was His Majesty implying something with these words?

Zhao Lang skimmed his lips and said that

“Father, you only have one son in me, who will I give this crown prince to if not to me.”

Suddenly, Zhao Lang’s face changed slightly and he asked

“Father, you don’t have an illegitimate son outside, do you!”

Zhao Lang put himself in his place and thought about it, if he had a demented son and his wife was gone.

It was hard not to take a concubine or something when one had money.

Zhao Gao and Li Si’s expressions suddenly became odd.

“Cough cough cough!”

Qin Shi Huang coughed violently and spoke with a red, old face that

“Where did that come from! Don’t you talk nonsense, am I that kind of person, your father?”

“All right, give me the method of making this paper, I’ll go and find men and a place.”

Zhao Lang nodded back and

“No problem, father, I’ll give you this method later, but you have to remember to keep it a secret now.”

“It’s all in our capital.”

Qin Shi Huang nodded heavily and said that

“I know that this paper is definitely our secret, and I will never divulge it, no matter what.”

Zhao Lang, however, shook his head at this time and said that

“Father, it’s small, the pattern is small.”

“Now we have to use this paper to increase our income and build up our capital, so of course we have to keep it a secret.”

“But if, instead, the day comes when we really want to become great, these techniques, instead, should be published!”

“Only when it is used by every household will that mean we have succeeded.”

Qin Shi Huang quickly understood what Zhao Lang meant, if every household could afford to use it, then learning and education, too, could follow into every household!

“Everyone can become a scholar?!”

Qin Shi Huang was at this moment shocked by the scenario Zhao Lang was talking about in his heart.

But he quickly shook his head and

“It was me who was greedy, even if paper soon became popular, copying and compiling books is not an easy task.”

Nowadays, the books and journals of the Great Qin are carved out by special craftsmen, one by one.

No ordinary craftsman could do the job.

That is why the books spread very slowly.

With paper, the speed of copying would certainly have been greatly increased.

“Copying books?”

Zhao Lang quickly thought of something.

The art of printing!

Although the system didn’t give a reward, he knew this basic principle!

Anyway, the art of papermaking was to be given to his old man, and this printing art, just to give him a matching one.

“Father, I actually have a way to make books out quickly.”

Qin Shi Huang said, with a start.

“Make books quickly?”

The book was an extremely valuable item in terms of bringing the Great Qin.

It was something that could be used as a family heirloom.

Even the average nobleman did not have much of a collection of books at home.

And now, Zhao Lang actually said that it was possible to make books quickly.

Zhao Long revealed a smile and said that

“Father, do you have a seal on you?”

Qin Shi Huang froze for a moment, as if he could not think of any connection between the seal and the quick book-making.

After fumbling around on his body, he pulled out a seal and said to

“This is the seal I used when I was young, take a look.”

Zhao Lang took it and looked at it, it was a small jade seal with the word ‘Zheng’ engraved on it in large seal script.

Of course, Zhao Lang did not recognise it.

Taking the seal, Zhao Lang breathed into it.

Then pressed it to the back of his own hand.

The words on the seal appeared on the back of his hand.

“Father, look.”

Zhao Lang put his hand out in front of Qin Shi Huang.

Qin Shi Huang stared at Zhao Lang’s hand for half a day, then said that

“Well, father knows, you have suffered all these years, your hand has lost weight, I will, tomorrow, have another ten thousand taels of gold sent over!”

Zhao Long was blinded for a moment.

“No, father, I am asking you to read the words.”

Qin Shi Huang said, puzzled.

“I see the words, what is wrong with that?”

Zhao Lang imprinted another word on the back of his hand.

Qin Shi Huang still had a puzzled look on his face.

Behind him, Zhao Gao was also confused.

Li Si’s eyes, on the other hand, lit up faintly.

Zhao Lang once again printed a word, at which point several words joined together in a row, and then said that

“之乎之者.”

Seeing this scene, Li Si’s heart exploded with shock.

He took out one of his own seals directly from his body and stamped over to a piece of paper, one after another.

Looking at the words that did not take shape on the paper, Li Si shouted that

“I got it! I got it!”

Qin Shi Huang was extremely surprised when he looked at Li Si as if he was in a frenzy.

One must know that Li Si was the Prime Minister, and even more so the representative of the Legalist school today.

Reason borders on cold-bloodedness.

Yet he was made to look like this by Lang’er with a small seal.

Qin Shi Huang asked in a deep voice that

“Brother Li! What do you understand!”

Li Si, who had finally come to his senses by this time, looked at Qin Shi Huang and said, excitedly

“Your Majesty… Brother Zhao! The great work of the ages is at hand, right before our eyes!”

Looking at Li Si’s appearance, Zhao Lang knew that he really understood.

It was no wonder that the other party was excited.

Having thrown out two of the four great inventions today, anyone else would have gone mad.

Zhao Lang returned the seal to Qin Shi Huang and said that

“Father, just carve all the words into the seal and then just combine them at will, you can produce whatever book you want.”

Qin Shi Huang also understood at this time.

He looked at the seal in his hand and actually lost his words for a moment.

After a long time, Qin Shi Huang’s voice, with a bit of coldness in it, asked

“Long’er, all these things, how do you know them all?”