A sinister glint appeared in the First Emperor's eyes; he seemed to have understood why Li Lin had done this.
Because he heard Li Lin's true thoughts.
"Emperor Qin Shi Huang, please don't force me. The entire court is now filled with Legalist followers. I'm not a renowned representative of Confucianism like Chunyu Yue. How can I challenge Prime Minister Li Si? If I don't protect myself wisely in court, I'll probably end up even more miserable than Shang Yang!"
This little guy, I didn't expect him to still be playing it safe! Is it so hard for you to speak properly and show your true strength? Or is it that if I were to make a wrong decision, you would immediately know the right answer in your heart?
Got it!
Since you, you rascal, want to keep your achievements hidden, then let me take the big stick.
No matter how rebellious these people are, they can't possibly rebel against me!
"Very well, since the Censor-in-Chief is so supportive of the Prime Minister's suggestion, then I will adopt it first and see how it goes before implementing it. What do you all think?"
"Your Majesty is wise!"
"Your Majesty is wise!"
......
In an instant, a roar like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami erupted, making Prime Minister Li Si feel somewhat flattered. Wasn't His Majesty a little displeased just now?
What's going on?
Should we still adopt his approach?
Should we continue to enforce strict laws and severe punishments?
That would be wonderful!
Li Si was overjoyed. Of course, he didn't know that this was just a temporary mistake made by the First Emperor, in order to wait for Li Lin to come up with a perfect solution.
However, this inadvertently made Li Sibai very happy.
If he knew that the First Emperor was just using him as a tool to trigger Li Lin's monstrous scheme, he would surely be "grateful" and shed tears of joy.
Just moments after the First Emperor sat back on the dragon throne.
Just as he had predicted, Li Lin was inwardly criticizing him, which made him very satisfied with his ingenious creation, but he still maintained a calm and dignified expression on his face.
[The First Emperor is foolish! Didn't you just say it perfectly well? A good policy is one that matches the realities of the Qin Dynasty. How could you waver so quickly?]
At this point, the Qin Dynasty was already at its last gasp. The best course of action was to abandon its militaristic warfare, promote the teachings of Huang-Lao (the Way of the Yellow Emperor), adopt the Daoist principle of non-action, allow the people to recuperate and rebuild their lives, and wait until the nation's strength was restored before indulging in extravagance again. Why must one generation accomplish the feats that took three generations to achieve? Furthermore, the policy stipulated that most ordinary people receiving corvée labor were not paid, and some corrupt officials even withheld food from them. How were ordinary people supposed to survive during this period of corvée labor?
Moreover, the main flaw in Qin's current laws lies in the excessive leniency of the scholar-officials. While they appear to support Qin, how can they be as patriotic as the common people? They are sophisticated egoists; the more you treat them with respect, the more they will take advantage of you!
[Once the teachings of Huang-Lao have been largely disseminated, allowing for a period of rest and recuperation, increased social productivity, and a larger population, then the principles of benevolent rule and hegemonic power should be implemented. Using Confucianism as the outer shell and Legalism as the core, drawing upon the strengths of all schools of thought, how could the Qin Dynasty not usher in an unprecedented golden age?]
[Sigh, I never imagined that the First Emperor would be so easily swayed. The persistent, often exaggerated, advice he received changed his mind. Is this still the powerful and influential First Emperor I knew?]
Just as Li Lin felt utterly disappointed, and just as the ministers echoed and praised him in unison, it was as if a mountain of praise had been raised.
The First Emperor suddenly waved his hand, and the entire hall fell silent.
You little rascal! With such a vast and brilliant strategy in your heart, why are you so afraid of retaliation? If it weren't for the fact that I could hear your thoughts and hear such a brilliant and targeted solution...
I suspect they really will keep getting stuck on the same old problems!
However, now that we have these specific methods and measures, why don't I implement them?
"Please be quiet, everyone. Just now, I intended to take the advice of Prime Minister Li Si, merely to test whether you had any good solutions. I did not expect that you, the pillars of Qin, have disappointed me so much. Are you even inferior to Chunyu Yue?"
The ministers' submissive and obsequious manner in the face of the First Emperor's reprimand amused Li Lin and his companions.
"I think Li Si's words are too far-fetched and impractical. I asked you all to come up with some practical solutions, but you couldn't come up with a single one. What use are you to me? Do you think that because I haven't carried out large-scale killings after unification, you've become complacent?"
"Your Majesty, I dare not!"
"Your Majesty, we had absolutely no such intention!"
......
"Hmph, even if you had a hundred lives, you wouldn't dare! But I do have a good idea."
The First Emperor sat on the dragon throne, his piercing dragon eyes sweeping over his ministers. Every minister's face was filled with fear and curiosity; they were terrified of the First Emperor's majesty.
But they were also curious about the brilliant idea that the First Emperor had just mentioned.
"I intend to change the laws of Qin since the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin, which were based on the Shang Yang system. Instead, I will adopt the more moderate yet practical Huang-Lao philosophy as the national law of Qin, abolish harsh punishments, and reinstate the corvée system. I plan to have censors dispatched from the central government to supervise the implementation of the new corvée system in various localities. What do you all think?"
"this......"
Faced with the First Emperor's desire to change the fundamental principles of the Qin state established since the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin—the Law of Lord Shang—the ministers' expressions were not good. After all, the Law of Lord Shang had been in operation in the Qin state for a hundred years!
It has been ruled by six generations of monarchs.
The most crucial factor in Qin's ability to unify the world was its adherence to the laws of Shang Yang.
But now the First Emperor intends to change this very foundation of the nation.
This naturally left the ministers at a loss, and the faces of the Ying clan members standing to the side were also not good, after all, the ancestral laws could not be easily changed.
Sitting high above, the First Emperor naturally had a clear view of the expressions on the faces of this group of people.
He knew they would object; he knew it even before he said it.
When the county system was initially chosen, there was a three-month-long dispute. In the end, it was only through his and Li Si's joint efforts that the county system was chosen despite the opposition.
But what about now?
Prime Minister Li Si did not look well. It seemed that on this road of recuperation and rest for the people, he, Ying Zheng, was the only lonely traveler.
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