Qin Shihuang wanted to abolish the scripts of the Six Kingdoms and promote the Qin script throughout the world to unify writing.
This incident may cause an uproar in the hometown of the princes who originally belonged to the Six Kingdoms, and shock countless people from the Six Kingdoms.
But in Xianyang, the capital of Qin, not even a small splash was made.
Because the local Qin people originally used Qin characters, and whether they unified the world's characters would have no impact at all on them, the Qin people.
Things like the previous unification of weights and measures may have caused a commotion in Shandong, but not many people paid attention to it in the original Qin land.
In Xianyang City today, most people's attention has fallen on the newly emerged "paper". It is said that the emperor used this new thing to replace the administration of slips.
The emperor's thoughts are the biggest thing in the world, and this matter naturally attracts the attention of countless people.
Especially as the Shaofu successively produced several batches of hemp paper, in addition to meeting the emperor's personal needs, it also began to be officially put into official use in several important departments, allowing more people to see this novel thing, and at the same time, it also brought
came greater attention.
On this day, Sima Xin, an official in the Tingwei Mansion, got together with his friend Dong Zhong while taking a rest.
Dong Zhongnai is a minor official in Taipu Mansion. He is about thirty years old, has a long beard and a dark face. He has been friends with Sima Xinnai for many years.
After the two of them got together and drank the syrup made from flour, the topic couldn't help but turn to the latest hot topics.
"Brother Sima, your Tingwei Mansion is one of the first official offices to use paper? I wonder what it feels like to write on that thing?"
Sima Xin said with a smile: "What kind of feeling can it have? It's just like writing on silk. Sometimes it's quite troublesome to write the wrong words. Its main advantage is that it's light."
"In the past, we issued decrees to counties or responded to letters from beggars in counties. Sometimes we needed hundreds of kilograms of bamboo slips at a time, and we had to use a horse-drawn carriage to slowly pull them to the place. But now that we have paper, we need a horse-drawn carriage to pull it.
A hundred kilograms of bamboo slips and a stack of paper are enough. You don’t even need to use a horse-drawn carriage to transport the letter. You can carry the letter to the local counties with just one ride. The efficiency is really much higher. In my opinion
, for this reason alone, the usefulness of paper far exceeds that of slips.”
Dong Zhong said with admiration: "I really envy Brother Sima. We servants don't know when we will be able to use paper."
Sima Xin smiled slightly. Although the Shaofu made paper, the quantity was limited and it is still a rare item.
In addition to the emperor's side, several important departments such as court officials and internal history officials were used to a certain extent.
Even if a department like Taipu, which manages vehicles and trains, needs to be issued for use, it should be put to the end.
Faced with the envy of his long-time friend, Sima Xin comforted him and said: "Brother Dong, don't worry. I heard that the emperor has ordered the construction of a large number of paper-making workshops in Guanzhong to produce a large amount of paper. It will be put into use in various government offices in the future. Sooner or later you will be able to use it too."
Up."
Dong Zhong sighed: "Yes, Shaofu is already expanding the papermaking workshop. I heard that this paper was made by Shaofu Zhao. Shaofu Zhao is really powerful. During the previous war, he made huge cannons. Later,
Then we made the plough, and now we have made paper."
"Hey, otherwise why would everyone call this paper 'Shaofu Paper' in private? Our Shaofu Zhao is really a capable person!"
Sima Xin followed with a compliment, but then he thought about something interesting and said, "Actually, besides writing documents, this paper also has other wonderful uses."
"Oh? What's the magic use?"
Dong Zhong, as a servant of the imperial family, had never even seen the appearance of paper. He only heard rumors that this thing was useful, and he was filled with envy. Now when he heard Sima Xin said that this thing had other wonderful uses besides writing, he immediately
He straightened his ears.
Si Ma
If there is a wrong word on something, the whole piece of paper will be considered useless. It is far less effective than if you write a wrong word on a slip, you can use a sharpener to scrape it off and rewrite it. You can only replace the copy again, which is a waste of time. "
Dong Zhong nodded. The official document requirements are very strict, and naturally there should be no typos in the documents.
Thinking of this, Dong Zhong wondered again: "Brother Sima, that should be the defect of this thing. How can it be called a wonderful function?"
"It was precisely because the paper with the wrong words on it could not be reused and was discarded directly that people discovered its wonderful use."
When Sima Xin said this, he frowned and said with a smile: "To be honest, Brother Dong, I have a friend who saw some wrongly written Shaofu papers piled up in the official office, and thought that some noble people used silk to go to the toilet.
Since the silk can be used, and this paper is similar to silk, why can’t it be used? I took some waste paper and used it in the toilet, hehe, it feels much better than toilet chips, so comfortable!"
Dong Zhong's eyes widened and his face turned red.
Mr. Zhao Shaofu worked hard to make paper for the purpose of writing words and benefiting the world.
Because the output is limited, even the officials in our Imperial Servant's Office have no chance to use it. You people in the Tingwei Mansion, just use it first, but you actually use it for pickling. If Zhao Shaofu knew about it, he wouldn't be angry.
Vomiting blood.
Look at Sima Xin showing off proudly.
Dong Zhong said angrily: "Brother Sima, that friend who uses Shaofu paper to go to the toilet, couldn't be you?"
…
In the doctorate palace.
"Pushe, our doctor's job is to manage books and texts, compile narratives, understand ancient and modern times, and teach knowledge. Now that Shaofu paper has been made, why don't you use it with us!"
"Yes, I heard that this Shaofu paper is good at writing. One piece of paper can be worth several slips. But compared with silk books, it is such a good thing. As doctors in charge of books, we should use it. Pu She should do it.
Please beg me!"
Many doctors blushed and expressed their demands to Doctor Zhou Qingchen.
Most of these doctors are disciples of famous masters, the Yin Yang family, Huang Lao and others.
As the reputation of paper spread, they were naturally full of curiosity about this novel writing material.
Faced with the requests of these scholars and doctors, Zhou Qingchen looked helpless and said: "I have written to the emperor about this matter. Because the Shaofu paper was newly made and the quantity is limited, it is currently used for the offices of Tingwei Mansion and Zhisu Neishi Mansion.
There are not even other official offices such as Tai servants and Dian Ke. If you want to use it, you have to wait until it is mass-produced in the future. Just wait patiently. Sooner or later there will be one."
After hearing this, the doctors calmed down. This reason really left people speechless. Even the servants, Dianke and other official offices of one of the nine ministers were useless. What could these doctors fight for?
Just when the matter was about to subside, Dr. Confucianism, who was watching with cold eyes, started to speak mockingly.
"Haha, why bother asking for something like this that has major flaws, is expensive and difficult to use? In my opinion, this so-called Shaofu paper will be abandoned soon. By then, we won't be using slips to record events.
.”
Dr. Zhuzi looked angrily, and when they saw the one who spoke was the notoriously prickly Chun Yuyue, they all became even more angry.
This guy, with no sense of good or evil, instigated a group of Confucian scholars to stop Princess Shang of Zhao Shaofu, and even talked back to Tingwei Li Si in public in the court. In the end, this group of doctors were collectively deprived of the power to participate in political discussions in the previous court.
Immediately, a famous doctor reprimanded: "You Chunyu have started talking nonsense again. That Shaofu paper is made of hemp, leather and other materials. It is cheaper than bamboo slips, is thinner and better than silk. How can it have major flaws? How can it happen again?"
Expensive and difficult to use? In my opinion, you probably saw that this thing was made by Zhao Shaofu, so you held a grudge and deliberately slandered it."
"Yes, apart from being more fragile than bamboo slips, does this Shaofu paper have any flaws? It is obviously made of low-grade materials and is cheap, but you, Chunyu Yue, say it is expensive and difficult to use. What nonsense!"
Several other scholars and doctors also started shouting. They already disliked Chunyu more and more.
"Slander? Slander?"
Chunyu Yue said disdainfully: "Why slander this thing? You said that the Shaofu paper is cheaper than the bamboo slips. But I want to say that the price of this thing is much more expensive than the bamboo slips, and it cannot be stored. It is also used for administration. It seems
It’s very efficient, but it’s actually the most time-consuming.”
"If this thing is promoted, it seems convenient and simple, but in fact it is just a luxury thing. It is far less cheap and easy to use than bamboo slips. In my opinion, this thing will be abolished by the emperor before it is your turn to use it."
Without waiting for a few scholars and doctors to refute.
Chunyu Yue immediately said: "I heard that Tingwei and Zhisu Neishi used Shaofu paper for administration during this period, and the losses were very large. The papermaking workshop of Shaofu could only barely supply them. The emperor then worked hard to build paper in Guanzhong.
The reason for this is that if you write on paper, once you write a wrong word, the paper will no longer be of use."
"We use bamboo slips to write. If we only write a wrong word, we can cut it off with a knife. You can continue to use the bamboo slips to write. If you make a wrong word, you will cut it once. If you make a wrong cross, you will cut it ten times. One bamboo slip is enough to write from scratch.
Don’t change until the end.”
"But the Shaofu paper is different. If you accidentally write a wrong word on a piece of paper, then the paper is considered discarded and cannot be used again, and you need to replace it with new paper."
The doctors frowned.
What Chunyu Yue was talking about was indeed a practical issue.
When writing, especially when transcribing a large number of official documents or copying books, typos are common and no one can avoid them.
When using bamboo slips to write, if they make a mistake, they can use a sharpener to scrape off the typo and rewrite it. This is also one of the benefits of bamboo slips, which has a great error tolerance rate.
But compared to the bamboo slips, this Shaofu paper is said to be extremely thin, so it is impossible to scrape it with a knife. If a word is written wrong, the whole piece of paper will really be ruined.
Seeing those doctors who doubted him become silent, Chun Yuyue showed a smile on his face and continued to speak.
"Moreover, laws and decrees are usually around a dozen or so. If you use a piece of paper to write down a decree that is several tens of times in length, there will be most of the blank space on the paper. In fact, you only need one or two bamboo slips to record the words.
But if you have to use paper that can record hundreds of words to copy it, wouldn’t it mean that the price of this piece of paper is more expensive than the bamboo slips that record the same words?”
"If a piece of paper is used to record hundreds of words of legal documents, then I would like to ask you, how many of you can guarantee that each word of the hundreds of words is good?"
"As long as one word is mistaken in the middle, the entire paper, and even the hundreds of words transcribed on it, will be discarded. It is necessary to replace the paper with new paper and copy the previous words from the beginning. If another typo occurs during this copying process
, then we have to start over again.”
"Gentlemen, if this is the case, a document written on Shaofu paper may appear to be one piece of paper, but in fact it may be ten pieces of paper. Isn't it expensive? Once it is written
If you make a mistake in a word, all the words written before will have to be copied again, which will waste more time. You are also people who use swords and pens, do you know whether what I said is correct? "
Chunyu Yue had obviously made preparations for the investigation. Once these words came out, no one from Dr. Zhuzi spoke out.
Instead, those Confucian doctors became excited and talked about the disadvantages of this Shaofu paper.
Qi Bibi had always held a grudge against Zhao Tuo for his previous public opposition to feudalism, so he was merciless at this moment.
He sneered and said: "Zhao Tuo made paper and thought he could please the emperor. In fact, this paper wasted money and wasted money, and it was far worse than bamboo slips. We, the people of Xia, have used these bamboo slips for thousands of years, and there has never been any inconvenience.
This is an ancient relic, and it cannot be replaced by something he can just fiddle with. This matter is just like when we fought with us to entrust the enfeoffment of counties and counties. It has never been heard of people who do not learn from the ancients and live long."
At this moment, not only the doctors who had a problem with Zhao Tuo made sarcastic remarks, but even the usually cowardly doctor servant Shooting Zhou Qingchen was moved by Chun Yuyue's words.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! He shook his head and said: "We have been in Qin for a while. Qin people are the most practical. If they find that this Shaofu paper not only does not bring convenience, but also
It will make administration more troublesome, so it will probably be abandoned soon. Alas, it is a pity that Mr. Zhao made such a move."
"This is our opportunity. An opportunity to make the emperor trust us again! Maybe this will restore our political power!"
After the paint withered, he immediately cheered and said, "What is the opportunity that Dr. Chunyu mentioned?"
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Chunyu Yue smiled and said: "As Pu She said, Qin people are very practical. Before, we thought that the emperor valued courtesy, but in the end we were criticized by Li Si. Now that we know that the emperor values practicality,
, then you should do what you like."
"Since we have seen that this Shaofu paper is a waste of money and people, we should write to the emperor and point out the defects of this thing. The emperor values practicality, and when he sees us pointing out the shortcomings of Shaofu paper, he will definitely be dissatisfied.
We have a good impression of us, and we know that we are useful to the national affairs, so maybe we can use this to restore our power to discuss affairs in the previous court, what do you think?"
The famous doctor who had previously reprimanded sneered: "What a letter to the emperor, pointing out the defects of the Shaofu paper. Could it be that Dr. Chunyu forgot that, thanks to you, except for the emperor's edict, we have no power to write to the emperor to discuss politics.
"
"Yes, after what happened last time, not only can we not go to court, we can't even write letters to discuss affairs. How can we talk about admonishing the emperor!"
The doctors screamed one after another, remembering the tragic incident of being forbidden to speak, and glared at Chunyu Yue angrily.
Chunyu Yue did not panic at all, but smiled and said: "Why are you so anxious? Although we cannot write to the emperor to discuss politics, Prime Minister Zuo can!"
"We can advise Prime Minister Zuo to write to the emperor, but if he does not sign our name, it will not be considered a violation of the order. If the emperor listens to Prime Minister Zuo and abolishes the Shaofu paper, then Prime Minister Zuo can mention our contributions.
, when the emperor is overjoyed, won’t he forgive us?"
Zhou Qingchen said hurriedly: "Prime Minister Zuo didn't go with us when he tried to dissuade Princess Shang last time. I'm afraid he won't help us this time."
"Yes, although Prime Minister Zuo is fond of Confucianism, he is not a Confucian person. After what happened last time, he may not be able to help us."
Others also shook their heads and said that they had no hope of persuading Wang Wan.
Chunyu Yue shook his head and said, "You are wrong. Prime Minister Zuo is not helping us this time."
"Um?"
Everyone looked at him in shock.
Chunyu Yue smiled toothily.
"Shaofu Zhao Tuo has come up with a useless thing, which wastes people and money and damages Qin's national strength. Prime Minister Zuo is a man who serves the country. How can he just sit back and ignore it when he sees the disadvantages of this thing?"
"Prime Minister Zuo, he is not helping us, he is helping Da Qin!"