"Absurd! Gan Luo became prime minister at the age of twelve and made great contributions to the Qin Dynasty. Why does the old Grand Secretary have such a problem with me? Could it be that the old Grand Secretary looks down on me and thinks Your Majesty has no vision?"
Upon hearing this, Ying Lin immediately felt uneasy: "That Li brat, he actually set a trap for me. If I had said that I looked down on him, he would probably have used the excuse of looking down on His Majesty to put me down. What a close call!"
"Hahaha, how laughable! Do you think you can compare to Gan Luo? Li Zhongcheng, you should just be a Censor-in-Chief. The waters in this court are too deep; you can't handle it!"
Li Lin shook his head. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Gan Luo is a sage, and I dare not say whether I can reach his level, but I will do my best. Does the old clan leader have anything else to say?”
"What a fine promise of going all out! His Majesty entrusted you with the task of overseeing the Construction Department to create the Four Great Inventions, but now that they haven't even been completed, you've already left the department. What is the meaning of this?"
"Hahaha, Lord Zongzheng, perhaps you have forgotten? I, Li, have already instructed the craftsmen of the Construction Division. Now they have accepted my knowledge and are more than capable of manufacturing the Four Great Inventions. Furthermore, Zhang Han, whom I recommended, will meticulously continue to implement everything I have done in the Construction Division. I believe that within three years, one of the Four Great Inventions will be born!"
"Oh? What if there's still no invention after three years?"
"Please cut off my head!"
"Minister Li, you said it yourself..."
Upon hearing this, Ying Lin was overjoyed and was ready to confirm his statement.
Unexpectedly, the First Emperor couldn't stand it anymore; he didn't want the future Princess Manyin to be a widow.
"Alright, Your Excellency, do you wish to question my decision?"
"This old minister dares not, this old minister merely..."
"I have not granted Li Zhongcheng the authority to establish his own residence. For the time being, I will have Li Zhongcheng temporarily serve as acting prime minister. If he can achieve something within six months, I will promote him to the position of prime minister. What do you think?"
The First Emperor had no choice. He knew that if he used his power to suppress others, he could directly push Li Lin to the position of prime minister.
But he didn't want it to be like this.
This will inevitably lead to resentment among those below.
Since that's the case, let's give him six months to demonstrate his abilities. If he performs well, we can smoothly promote him to a permanent position. Even if everyone is dissatisfied, there are still tangible results to show for it.
Naturally, there wouldn't be any opposition.
"This...this is still not a good solution, but for the time being, this old minister has no complaints!"
"Very well, since you, the Imperial Clan Minister, have no complaints, then today's court session is adjourned. Oh, and Li Lin, you stay behind; I have a few words to say!"
"promise!"
The grand court assembly began and ended amidst arguments between Li Lin and meritorious officials such as the Imperial Clan Court and the Imperial Historian.
This was truly an unprecedented and bizarre scene for the officials of the Qin Dynasty.
Many insightful people were amazed by Li Lin's remarks on the political issues of the court, marveling at his courage.
After all, someone who can openly say in front of hundreds of people that the First Emperor made a mistake and that there are too many officials in the court who are just sitting around doing nothing is no ordinary person. Such a person is either ruthless or fierce.
They are not to be offended easily.
People walked around intermittently, and in less than half an hour, everyone in the entire palace had left.
Only the First Emperor remained seated on the dragon throne, looking at Li Lin before him, a complex mix of emotions surfacing within him.
[What's wrong with Your Majesty today? Your unusual behavior this morning was one thing, but why have you kept me here again? I was planning to see Gao Shu right after the morning court session. Doesn't this delay my plans to befriend Gao Shu?]
"Li Lin, do you know why I left you behind alone?"
"Your humble servant does not know!"
"I have given you hints many times today, hoping you would just go through the motions. Those people want to get rid of you, and I have already helped you. But you have directly exposed the reality of Qin, a reality that even I dare not expose. After you exposed it, do you really think you can clean up this mess? Or do you have the confidence to become a second Shang Yang?"
Looking at the First Emperor's eyes, which held a hint of reproach.
He was not afraid.
He knew that revealing the complex and true state of affairs in the Qin Dynasty would inevitably cause him a great deal of trouble.
What he said, only he can solve.
Why is it that the officials of the Great Qin are currently incapable of handling such a complex situation?
They are all people who have worked hard.
In his early years, he paid an extremely heavy price for Your Majesty's unification of the six kingdoms. Now that he has reached middle age, shouldn't he enjoy himself? This is only natural, and there's nothing that can be done about it.
Humans are prone to laziness.
That's normal.
Therefore, in recent years, the First Emperor has basically turned a blind eye to what the meritorious class could do within the rules, not because he deliberately indulged them.
He simply didn't want to discourage the old men who had followed him, in other words, the meritorious officials who had pacified the six kingdoms.
"Your Majesty, you are too lenient. In governing a country, one cannot be lenient, much less indulge in personal feelings. The Qin Dynasty is now gradually declining in the hands of the meritorious class. It is true that they were the great contributors to the Qin Dynasty before unification, but now that it is unified, these people should relinquish their power. Why can't the Qin Dynasty adjust its policies in time? Have you considered the reasons for this?"
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