Chapter 140 This is the real history
Qin Sheng took a sip of water before laying out his views one by one: "Shang Yang's reputation after his death will certainly not be very good. The content of his reforms mainly revolved around 'farming' and 'warfare'."
"Farming represents food production, and warfare represents military strength."
"The only purpose of the reforms was to strengthen the Qin army. The national economy and people's livelihood seemed to be outside his consideration."
"The policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, implementing the grassland reclamation order, and prohibiting farmers from purchasing grain is completely tying the people to the land, forcing them to focus only on farming and not worry about anything else."
"Only if the people cultivate more land can we provide more food for the army."
"They used to be able to do small business to make a living, but after the reforms, they can no longer do that."
"Isn't this just another form of policy to keep the people ignorant?"
"There are farming rewards. The more you plant, the more rewards you get. To achieve this goal, he also changed the household registration system, implementing a system of collective responsibility for ten and five, encouraging everyone to report on each other..."
Qin Sheng stopped.
Shang Yang's achievements are undeniable. Without him, there would be no Qin State today, and there would be no subsequent feat of unifying the six kingdoms.
The Qin State will also be completely nailed to the pillar of shame with the name of "barbarians outside the pass".
Shang Yang made an indelible contribution to the Qin State.
But from the perspective of the common people, the more he analyzed, the more he felt that Shang Yang's policies were indeed too harsh.
It’s just that many things are not written in the book "The Great Qin Empire", which is why so many people read this book but did not raise too many questions.
Seeing Qin Sheng stop, Chu Yian blinked: "Why don't you continue?"
Qin Sheng pursed his lips and leaned back in his chair: "Just tell me directly. If I keep guessing, Shang Yang will become a complete villain."
Chu Yian couldn't help laughing at his words, and his shoulders were shaking with laughter.
Qin Sheng poured a glass of water in front of Chu Yian, who took it and drank it all.
Putting down the cup, she gave Qin Sheng a thumbs up, her eyes seemed to be shining: "Xiao Shengzi, you are really amazing, your guess is absolutely right."
Qin Sheng: ...
If he didn't know a lot of things that were not written in the book, he wouldn't have guessed in this direction.
Like many people, I think that Duke Xiao of Qin and Shang Yang were both rare sages throughout history.
There is a kind of open-mindedness and selfless dedication spirit of "if I don't go to hell, then no one will."
Duke Xiao of Qin and Shang Yang were also rare good men who truly understood each other and worked hard for the country and the people.
Chu Yian didn't let Qin Sheng guess anymore, but said directly: "Historians have commented that Shang Yang is the greatest villain in the thousands of years of Chinese history!"
The air seemed to quiet down instantly. Chu Yian looked at Qin Sheng quietly, waiting for his reaction.
Qin Sheng's eyes widened when he heard Chu Yian's words, his eyes full of shock, and even the pen in his hand fell to the ground with a clang.
He knew that Shang Yang's reputation might not be very good, but he really didn't expect it to be so bad.
For thousands of years, they have been nailed to the pillar of shame...
Shang Yang's achievements are witnessed by everyone and cannot be denied or repudiated in any way.
But under such circumstances, he is still rated as the number one villain...
Qin Sheng pursed his lips, and suddenly he didn't know what to feel. His heart was extremely complicated.
Future generations will judge their merits and demerits, but this review is a bit...
There must be a reason why Shang Yang was evaluated this way, but Chu Yian's book glorified him to such an extent that it would not be an exaggeration to call him a saint...
Qin Sheng had some negative comments on this aspect. Chu Yian did not choose to write the real history but chose this beautified version. He must have been afraid that the person above would follow suit and bring disaster to the common people.
There were also a few other words in Chu Yian's words that caught Qin Sheng's attention.
China, thousands of years of history...
No wonder she always feels confident when talking about history, whether it is good or bad. With thousands of years of cultural heritage, it is hard to imagine how brilliant it is.
Qin Sheng became more and more curious about the world in which Chu Yian used to live.
If possible, he really wanted to see those splendid civilizations and cultures with his own eyes, and also wanted to see what the world would look like in thousands of years.
It must be a wonderful world to be able to cultivate a personality like Chu Yian.
Chu Yian saw the shock on Qin Sheng's face with satisfaction, chuckled twice, and slowly told the story.
"Didn't Shang Yang have a policy before him to abolish the well-field system and open up the fields?"
"That includes the abolition of slavery."
"Once slavery was abolished, everyone was no longer a slave. It seemed like the people had gained a huge benefit, but slaves at that time actually didn't have to go to the battlefield."
"At that time, wars were mostly conflicts between nobles. A war in which a few hundred people died was considered a large-scale war."
"But if slavery is abolished, everyone will go to the battlefield."
Qin Sheng nodded, thoughtfully.
For the common people, most of them certainly do not want to go to the battlefield, but this law forces them to go.
This is actually not much different from forcing them to die.
Before any actual benefits were obtained, the implementation of this law was difficult for both the common people and the princes and nobles to accept.
Chu Yian continued, "He also implemented a small family policy, allowing private ownership of land and forcing people to live in separate households. Even brothers were not allowed to live in the same room and had to live in separate households."
"As a result, one household may be divided into two, three, or even more households."
"Dividing households was already against human ethics and heresy at the time. Taxes that were once paid in one share became payable in several."
"Many people reformed the country to transfer some of the benefits of the nobles to the common people to make the country better."
"But Shang Yang's reforms not only affected the interests of the nobility but also further oppressed the people, making their burden even heavier."
Qin Sheng pursed his lips. This was what he had just thought of.
From Shang Yang's perspective, he made Qin State strong, but from the perspective of the people, his reforms did make their lives more difficult.
The nobles hated him and the people also complained about him.
After Shang Yang's death, I'm afraid everyone would applaud and cry, but that didn't happen.
Chu Yian smiled and said, "In fact, the real Shang Yang is quite different from what is described in this book."
"To give another example, during the battle to recapture Hexi, Shang Yang relied on his wisdom and strategy to capture Prince Ang alive."
"But the truth is that Shang Yang was passing on a message to Prince Ang as an acquaintance. They used to get along well, but now they have to go to war. It's really sad."
"Why not sign an alliance and withdraw our troops?"
"Prince Ang believed it, thinking Shang Yang was out of nostalgia for the old times. When he arrived, he was captured alive by the ambushed Qin soldiers. Shang Yang took advantage of the opportunity to attack the Wei army, leading to its defeat."
"There was no such thing back then. Everyone fought in an upright manner."
"All is fair in war, and war is the art of deception." Neither of these two sentences quite explains his behavior.
"Others are competing in military tactics, strategy, and wisdom to see who is more powerful, but he's just lying..."
Chu Yian sighed and stopped commenting on the matter. Instead, he continued, "And Shang Yang's death wasn't as righteous and awe-inspiring as it's described in the books. He was dedicated to the public interest without regard for personal gain."
"As soon as Duke Xiao of Qin died, Ying Qian falsely accused Shang Yang of treason. Ying Si ordered his arrest, but Shang Yang fled upon hearing the news."
"After fleeing to his fiefdom, he wanted to stay at an inn, but because of the decree he had issued, no one could stay without proof of identity. The innkeeper was afraid of being implicated and didn't dare let him stay. Shang Yang then realized that his laws were too harsh."
“That’s where the term ‘self-destruction’ comes from.”
"Soon after he fled back, the army of King Huiwen of Qin arrived. Shang Yang's army engaged in battle, but the disparity in strength between the two sides led to his defeat. He fled again with his people."
"He wanted to flee to Wei, but he defrauded Prince Ang and attacked Anyi, the former capital of Wei, forcing Wei to move its capital."
"The people of Wei hated him so much that not only did they not let him pass, they also tied him up and sent him back to Qin."
"Shang Yang was killed by Qin soldiers and his body was taken back to Xianyang and torn into pieces by five horses in public. King Huiwen of Qin then ordered the extermination of Shang Yang's entire family."
“This is the real history.”
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