As the hegemonic leader of his generation, the First Emperor went too far in seeking immortality and burning books, which offended many people and scholars at that time, but he still paid close attention to the construction of military and national defense. After the vigorous book-burning movement passed, he thought of things in the north again. He was worried about the Huns and wanted to patrol the north and inspect the Great Wall. So Shiling Mengtian built a highway leading to Jiuyuan. This highway started from Yunyang, a military town north of Xianyang, passed through Ziwu Ridge, and went north along its main vein. After reaching Dingyuan, it turned northeast and entered the Ordos grassland. After crossing the Yellow River, it leads directly to Jiuyuan County. The total length is about 1,400 miles. It was called the Straight Road at that time, which was the expressway of the Qin State. This highway was opened to facilitate the deployment of troops during war.
At the same time, Qin Shihuang carried out large-scale construction projects to build the country. Seeing that there were too many beauties in the palaces in Xianyang, he ordered the expansion of the palace, so he built a huge palace in Shanglinyuan. Because it was located in Acheng, it was called Afang Palace. Acheng was first built during the reign of King Huiwen of Qin. At that time, there were only three city walls on the west, north and east sides, but no south wall. The palaces are now built in the city because this is where the Western Zhou Dynasty established its capital. The design of the palace is very grand, and it can be said to be the pinnacle of the history of palace architecture. There are pavilion roads connecting the main hall, and the farthest one leads to the top of Nanshan Mountain. A compound road was built to the north, crossing the Wei River and connecting Xianyang Palace, as if the Pavilion Star in the sky crossed the Tianhe River and reached the Yingshi Star.
Because the Qin State had built Xianyang for a long time, the cities and towns had been connected together, especially the palace buildings. Since Qin Xiaogong, the Qin State has experienced continuous development through six generations of kings. The capital has undergone earth-shaking changes. The urban area is extremely prosperous and the city of Xianyang is majestic. When Qin unified the six kingdoms, every time the Qin army conquered a country, they painted their palaces and then built imitations of them in Beiban, Xianyang. These palaces are adjacent to the Wei River in the south and extend eastward from Yongmen to the intersection of the Jing River and the Wei River. They include the Han Palace, the Zhao Palace, the Wei Palace, the Chu Palace, the Yan Palace, and the Qi Palace. Each palace is connected by a pavilion passage and a complex passage. It is filled with beautiful ladies and beautiful women kidnapped from the Six Kingdoms, and all kinds of rare treasures and toys are decorated in a dazzling and luxurious way.
In addition to these palaces, the First Emperor built more than 300 palaces and annexes within 270 miles of Xianyang. The famous ones include Zhangtai Palace, Huayang Palace, Xingle Palace, Lanchi Palace, Wangyi Palace, and Fuyang Palace. Palace, Yuyang Palace, Yichun Palace, Zhiyang Palace, Bushou Palace, Bugao Palace, Gaoquan Palace, Qinian Palace, Yuyang Palace, Guo Palace, Changyang Palace, Pingyang Palace, Dazheng Palace, Chang'an Palace, Liu Ying Palace, Linhua Palace, Beidou Palace, Nanji Palace, Qichi Palace, Xuqing Palace, Taiyi Palace, Liangshan Palace, Huashan Palace, Guangyang Palace, Shihui Palace, Wangxian Palace, Tongling Palace, Changping Palace, Qinian Palace Palace, Yanping Palace, Yaohua Palace, Partridge Palace, Zhaoming Palace, Nanshan Palace, Lishan Palace, Xiqi Palace, Xicui Palace, Beishan Palace, Dongwang Palace, Xikuan Palace, etc., it is really a series of palaces. , the pavilion roads are like a chess game, with bridges and chariots between them, across mountains and valleys, through forests and water, and connected to each other. Each palace door is also equipped with magnet stones to prevent those with hidden armor and swords from entering.
The emperor also built Hongtai, Jiuchitai and Yuguantai in Xingle Palace, and built a large artificial lake - Qizhou in Yichun Garden. In his spare time, he and his family often took boats here. A horizontal bridge spanning the north and south was built on the Wei River. Because it was gorgeous and shaped like a rainbow, people called it the Hong Bridge. This bridge connects Xianyang Palace and Afang Palace, making transportation extremely convenient. There are many beauties placed in these large pool lofts. There are also luxury goods such as curtains, bells and drums, strange stones, and exotic woods, all of which are exclusively for the emperor's enjoyment. In addition, the First Emperor built more than 400 palaces outside the Pass, transforming the original palaces of the Six Kingdoms for living during the tour. The palace complex includes Zhou Palace, Han Palace, Wei Palace, Lu Palace, Qi Palace to the east, all the way to the seashore. A tall stone gate was erected in Qu County, Donghai County, and a stele was engraved on it. It was named Dongmen Que.
The First Emperor enjoyed all the wealth and honor in the world, but also considered what happened after his death, so he built the Lishan Mausoleum for himself. Daling was built by 300,000 craftsmen, and now Epang Palace needs to be built. There are not enough migrant workers, so they are recruited from all over the country. He also transferred 100,000 craftsmen who built Orchid Pond to build Hongqiao and Hongtai, and expanded the palace wantonly. In this way, there are already 700,000 craftsmen in Xianyang. Most of these people are criminals, slaves, son-in-laws, merchants, etc. Therefore, the prison in Xianyang has become empty, and even the deposed prime minister Wang Wan has been sent to He went to serve on the construction site of Abang Palace.
At that time, stones were moved from Beishan and wood was transported from Sichuan and Jingchu areas. Therefore, all the roads leading to Xianyang were filled with vehicles carrying supplies. People were rushing back and forth. Civil engineering was unprecedented. In this year, the emperor ordered the migration of 30,000 families to Liyi and 50,000 families to Yunyang. People all over the country are moving, so all the roads are full of people, and the cars and horses are crowded. There are people who are building bridges and roads, there are people who are settling down and building cities, there are people who are reclaiming wasteland and farming, there are people who are building water conservancy projects, and there are people who are digging roads. Yes, in short, on the entire land of China, from the desert in the north to the seaside in the south, there is a sea of people, chariots and horses, wars and wars, and the world is turned upside down. The great First Emperor saw the unprecedented construction climax in Qin and believed that his empire was made of iron and copper and was unbreakable.
One day, the emperor was inspecting the outskirts of Xianyang. He accidentally saw a funeral procession of ordinary people. Those filial sons were crying very sadly. The emperor saw that everyone would die, so his mood suddenly changed, and he thought of Xu Fu, Lu Sheng, and Mao Ying who were seeking immortality for him. Because at this time, he was already surrounded by some alchemists, immortals, and people who read metaphysics. Some of them were knowledgeable, and some were just scoundrels, but all of them wanted to squeeze in. The upper class either wanted to gain wealth or obtain some honorary titles. In short, these magicians and immortals were making secrets in front of the emperor and used various means to defraud money. But who knows that deceiving people can be deceiving for a while, but not forever, and their tricks will eventually fail. Just when the First Emperor was obsessed with the dream of immortality, suddenly bad news came from the sea: it was said that Xu Fu had arrived at Penglai Island, and they were killing each other in order to compete for the treasure. After hearing the news, Qin Shihuang gradually became wary of the magicians. Someone took the opportunity to make a small report, saying that those who made alchemy and sought immortality were all swindlers, and their purpose was to defraud the country of money. The First Emperor thought about it over and over, and seemed to suddenly realize it. He also thought carefully: He practiced Taoism so devoutly, but how come he could not see the gods after several years. The ruthless years have caused gray hair, and many beauties have gone gray. Because time cannot be held back, and time is not forgiving. If he does not pursue this matter, I am afraid that he will die of old age like the common people.
One day, on a whim, he suddenly came to Lanchi and started to attack Mao Ying first. When Mao Ying heard that the emperor had suddenly arrived, she was so panicked that she took away the delicacies and hurried out to greet him. When the First Emperor saw him, he said a few polite words, and then asked seriously: "How long have I been studying Taoism with you? Why haven't your immortals come to see me yet?" Mao Ying is also a smart person. After hearing this, he knew that someone was jealous of him and said bad things about him behind his back, but he plausibly said: "The reason why my immortal is not here is because something dirty and dirty has hurt him." The first emperor was shocked and asked what was going on. It is a filthy and filthy thing. Mao Ying said matter-of-factly: "Your Majesty is the beloved son of heaven, and the gods like you very much. But the people around you are greedy, find faults for others, and like to make small reports. They are dirty and vulgar people, so The gods hate them very much, so it's too late to avoid them. How could they come to this world?" The First Emperor secretly thought to himself that someone had indeed reported him. This god is really powerful. When he found out, he pretended to be serious. Son, said: "I am surrounded by either the most talented Wang Zuo, or those who are rich in wealth, and some literary people who are full of knowledge. How can you say that they are filthy?" Mao Ying asked: "Your Majesty, who is the most talented Wang Zuo? Who is the golden branch and jade leaf? Who is the literary scholar full of knowledge?" The First Emperor said: "Li Si is a man of extraordinary talent and far-sightedness. What is he if he is not the talent of a king? My beloved concubine Hu Ji is considerate and charming, isn't she? What are the golden branches and jade leaves? There are also the scribes who follow me around all day long. They are all outstanding talents. They often seek peace for me and bravely propose plans for the founding of the country. Aren't they loyal ministers?" Mao Ying smiled and said: "No, Prime Minister Li In order to gain fame and reputation, he persuaded Your Majesty to destroy the holy scriptures of the sages. This person's heart is not right, and he cannot be regarded as a talent for the king? As for your favorite concubine Hu Ji, who has done everything in order to secure her position in the harem, it is not What are you talking about? There are also those literati and consultants who are by your side all day long. They are either gossiping or making irresponsible remarks. Their purpose is to belittle others and elevate themselves. Such people are all a bunch of rats and sycophants. How can they be counted as such? Are you a loyal minister? It is precisely because they are so filthy that they follow you like demonic shadows, so the gods will not come to the mortal world. If your Majesty can stay away from these common people's dirty bodies, demons and monsters as soon as possible, the gods will definitely come!" said the First Emperor! After being lost in thought, Mao Ying said after a long time: "The immortal master's words are indeed true. When I think about it carefully, they do have their own selfish motives and their hearts are unclean. What should I do?" Mao Ying saw that the emperor had indeed revealed his true feelings, He continued to lie: "Your Majesty, the so-called real people are those who can ascend to heaven and enter the earth. They are not afraid of fire, let alone floods. Their life span is the same as that of heaven and earth. If you want to meet the wishes of the gods, please hide yourself. Act modestly, don't meet these dirty people, let them not know your whereabouts, so that the evil spirits will not come to haunt you again, and then the real person will definitely appear." The First Emperor listened to Mao Ying's words, I believed him again and called myself a real person, no longer me.
From then on, the First Emperor hid his whereabouts and no longer let outsiders know where he lived. Once, when he visited Liangshan Palace, he was afraid of being seen by others, so he took the corridor. Occasionally, he saw Li Si's luxury motorcade through the small window of the corridor, and casually said: "The Prime Minister is indeed quite majestic!" Afterwards, someone said Just tell Li Si about it. When the emperor saw Li Si's chariot for the second time, his ceremonial guard was much simpler. The First Emperor was very angry. Knowing that people from Liangshan Palace had leaked his words, he killed them all. From then on, people no longer dared to say where he was.
The First Emperor had been a real man for half a year, but still no gods came down to earth, so he had no patience at all. One day I came to Lanchi to find Mao Ying and said, "I have been a real person for half a year, but why can't I see the gods?" Mao Ying had no way to answer at this time. The First Emperor became angry and said: "No matter what method you use, you must invite the gods to come down to earth within three days, otherwise I will hold you accountable!" So he sent people to guard the palace gate. After the First Emperor left, Mao Ying lamented: "How can there be any gods in the world? I made up the song because I was greedy for the emperor's money. Today will not end well!" After saying this, she was sad for two days. He committed suicide on the third day. When the First Emperor heard that Mao Ying had died and that his dream of meeting the immortal had come to nothing, he was furious and sent people to Jieshi to ask Lu Sheng for the elixir. He also said to the envoy: "If Lu Sheng can't come up with the elixir, take him to Xianyang!"
Lu Sheng heard that Mao Ying was forced to death by the First Emperor, and that the envoy was coming to ask for elixirs from him again. Knowing that a disaster was imminent, he gathered his disciples Han Zhong, Hou Gong, Shi Sheng and others and said: "The First Emperor is really fierce and vicious. He is violent, ungrateful, and self-righteous. From his birth as a prince to the annexation of the world, he wants everything to go as he wishes. He thinks that he is the best among emperors and no one can surpass him. This is really arrogant to the extreme! He wants to have power for his own power. , specially appoints ruthless officials, and some harsh and tricky people often follow him, which has made the government a mess. I heard that prison officials are never tolerant of those who violate criminal laws, and they also kill innocent people indiscriminately. Although the doctor of the imperial court is There were more than seventy people, but they were just decorations, and the emperor never listened to them. Even the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty were just puppets executing orders, and they never dared to have their own suggestions. The emperor also liked to use criminal law to establish Because of his prestige, he dismissed two prime ministers and drove away the state captain. People in both the government and the public were afraid of him. Those scholars who talked on the street were considered to be slandering the government. Just imagine how could scholars not scold them if they had no books to read. What about the imperial court? Now there are more than two million disciples in the north and south. There are 700,000 in Xianyang alone. Add in the people who are building palaces and digging roads everywhere, and the Xing disciples are too numerous to count. They are also human beings. , are now exhausted to the extreme. Only the zombie officials can barely keep their salaries, but they are still worried all day long, always worried that they will be convicted. Now no one is loyal and wise to the emperor. But the emperor is He is getting more and more proud and arrogant day by day. He cannot hear his own faults, and everyone around him is lying to him. The law of Qin states: Anyone who does our line of work, if there is no result in the end, will be sentenced to death, Mao Ying His suicide is a precedent! I heard that there were hundreds of doctors in the imperial court who read astronomy, astrology, and clouds. They were afraid of the emperor and did not dare to tell the truth and do practical things. No matter how big or small the affairs of the world were, they decided Yu Emperor alone. I heard that he reviewed so many documents every day that they could be weighed by scales. The officials who delivered the documents were running back and forth at the inn. In order not to exceed the deadline, many people died of exhaustion on the way. Such a greedy and powerful person has arrived How can an extreme person become a god? This time the messenger came to ask us for the elixir. If we can't get it, we will be taken to Xianyang and beheaded. Qin's laws are so strict that God has already sent down a bad omen. Qin will be destroyed sooner or later, so we should escape from the tiger's mouth as soon as possible, right?"
When the disciples heard this, they were all frightened to death, so they dispersed and ran for their lives. Lu Sheng also disappeared.
