At that time, the Second Emperor listened to the soldiers and immediately summoned Li Si. Zhao Gao hurriedly said: "The Prime Minister looks down on me. I'd better hide first, lest he say that I'm behind my back to confuse His Majesty." He hid behind the tent. After a while, Li Sixuan arrived. When he walked into the hall, he found that the second emperor was very unhappy, so he asked: "What is the purpose of your Majesty's summons?" The second emperor said: "You are the head of all officials, why don't you serve for me?" Sharing the worries?" Li Si was shocked and said: "Since the incident in Shandong, I have been worried all day long. I don't even know the taste of three meals a day. How can I say that I don't share the worries for Your Majesty?" The second generation said: "Li You has been slow to catch me. Don't you, as the prime minister, have any responsibilities if you don't come to Wu Guang?" Li Si said: "In the matter of Xingyang, according to my speculation, once the time comes, Li You will definitely attack Wu Guang. There is no better son than a father, your majesty, please rest assured, he will definitely He will make great achievements and serve the country." The second generation snorted and said, "Some soldiers from Sanchuan said that Li You was indeed having an affair with Wu Guang. Do you really not know about this? Or do you intend to cover up for Li You?" Li Siting After hearing this, he was frightened and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, where do you start talking about this? Even a dog would not dare to do such an unfaithful, unfilial and unjust thing. I don't know where your Majesty heard this. It is simply unheard of?" "The second generation said: "I heard it from the Sanchuan soldiers, and it's not wrong." Li Si was about to defend when he suddenly found half of his belt exposed behind the curtain. He thought that Zhao Gao must be hiding behind it, so he said: "Your Majesty, this is This is purely a false accusation! I dare to say that there must be a villain behind the scenes to slander Li You. Please arrest and execute the villain immediately, otherwise the country will be in danger!"
The second thought for a while, then asked Li Si what was a villain, what was a gentleman, and what was the difference between the two. Li Si replied: "A gentleman always wants to serve the country, and once he has the opportunity, he will make contributions and benefit future generations; a villain always harbors selfish interests, and when he seizes the opportunity, he will frame loyalties and harm the country and the people. There is a huge difference between the two. Please distinguish right from wrong and stay away from villains. , Get close to virtuous ministers, so that you can eradicate chaos as soon as possible and stabilize the country. You must not listen to the slanders of treacherous villains and make wrong decisions. If so, it will definitely cause pain to your relatives and happiness to your enemies! "After hearing this, the second generation thought that Li Si had made great contributions to the country and was loyal to the late emperor. How could his son secretly collaborate with the traitors? Not to mention him giving instructions. Are Zhao Gao's words alarmist? He said: "If the prime minister and his son are loyal to the country, what else can I say? But the thieves in Shandong are really fierce at present. I am very worried, so I believe what others say." Li Sidao: "Your Majesty, minister I believe that Li You will be able to defeat Wu Guang, please rest assured!" The second generation nodded and said: "Yes, I believe it too, but what I can't figure out is why there are so many thieves now?" Li Si said: " I was about to tell His Majesty, but I didn't expect you to ask about the key point." The Second Emperor happily asked the Prime Minister to listen.
Li Si talked eloquently and said: "Your Majesty, the reason why there are so many thieves today is because there are too many, too many, too heavy labors such as garrisoning, water transportation, construction, land reclamation, etc. In addition, there are too many taxes. This is the main reason for the rise of thieves! Your Majesty, please immediately stop or reduce or reduce some major projects, and let some people who are serving labor go home. Once they are stable, they will not come out to be thieves again." The second generation was very puzzled. Authentic: "These projects were all decided by the late emperor, how can they be stopped casually? I heard that the houses where Emperors Yao and Shun lived were very simple. They used earthen gui to eat and earthen vessels to drink water. They wore animal skins in winter and linen in summer. Eating coarse rice cakes and drinking vegetable soup. Compared with today, even the gatekeepers were not as simple as them. I also heard that when King Xia Yu was controlling floods, he personally held a shovel and soaked in the water all day long. , even the hair on the calf is soaked off, and the level of suffering is not comparable to that of today's slaves. Yao and Shun were like this, not to mention ordinary people, I am not willing to imitate them. I think all kings should do whatever they want. , in the name of Fu Wancheng. Think about the late emperor, who was born in a feudal lord and finally conquered the world. Then he stationed troops to guard the borders and built a lot of construction projects, just to resist the barbarians from all directions and show the great achievements of the Qin State. But after I came to the throne, there were thousands of people The thieves are swarming, but you can't stop them, and you still persuade me to stop the various projects set by the late emperor. This is because the emperor is sorry, and the subordinates don't understand my intentions. How can you be qualified to be in a high position?" Li Siting I was so shocked that I broke into a cold sweat and didn't even know how to speak. The Second Emperor said lukewarmly: "Guanzhong is peaceful now, but I am very worried. Once they follow suit and make trouble, the trouble will be big. Now you can think of a way for me to see how to make the people in Guanzhong fear the imperial court. Be afraid of me, otherwise I will depose you from your position!" Upon hearing this, Li Si was so frightened that he sweated profusely and said: "Yes, yes, I will definitely find a way for you."
Zhao Gao's legs were already numb from standing. As soon as Li Si went out, he fell to the ground. The Second Emperor looked at Zhao Gao's embarrassed look and suddenly laughed and said: "The Prime Minister said you are a villain! Villain! Hahaha..." Then he walked into the back hall with a strange expression, swinging his sleeves.
When Li Si returned home, he thought about it and felt extremely frightened. He thought that when the late emperor was alive, he obeyed his words and could be said to be a wise king and a virtuous minister, with harmony up and down. Since the Qin State unified the world and implemented the system of prefectures and counties, all government orders were issued by oneself, and his talents were often revealed, and he was eventually able to become a minister. Later, since Zhao Gao conspired to usurp the throne for the second generation in Shaqiu, they collaborated to kill the virtuous, benevolent and filial eldest son Fusu, then abolished the elders and established younger ones, killed many people who were not conducive to the rule, and did many shameful things. , and these were all done under the instigation of Zhao Gao. Who is Zhao Gao? He is just an insidious villain with evil intentions. He is deliberate, cunning and cruel in everything he does. What's more important is that he is now starting to attack himself. He seems to be providing help in times of need, but he is secretly launching cold arrows. The emperor's suspicions and accusations today are all due to him. Li Si's anger burst out when he thought of this. In order to keep his position as prime minister and kill his political rival Zhao Gao, he had to take action.
Li Si felt that there was too much to say and must write these words down. Every time he encountered something difficult to solve, he would get out of trouble by writing an article. Now he also needed to write an article, so he held the pen in his hand and wrote it word by word. This is the history of Legalism The infamous masterpiece - "The Art of Supervision". This memorial discusses how the Qin State used severe punishments and laws to rule its subjects. He summarized various Legalist techniques of controlling people and people, bringing the Legalist thoughts to an unprecedented level of severity. Li Si's main point of view is: all national affairs should be decided by the emperor alone, and he should never decentralize power to his ministers. It went in a big circle, and the article was long, but the ultimate meaning was to tell him not to listen to Zhao Gao's bad words again. , and massacred those who dared to disobey. When the memorial was finished, it was daybreak. Li Si was afraid that Zhao Gao would take advantage of the opportunity to speak ill of him again, so he rushed to court early.
In the past few days, the Second Emperor had summoned ministers one after another due to matters in Shandong, so he also attended several decent morning court meetings. When Li Si saw that all the officials had arrived, he led everyone into the Xianyang Golden Palace. After the second emperor took office, the head official of the palace stood up and said: "The emperor listens to the government. If there is anything to do, all the officials will report early, and if there is nothing to do, they will withdraw from the court!" After saying this, Li Si went out to play: "I have a memorial!" So he wrote The good memorial was presented. The Second Emperor took the memorial from the head of the palace and began to read it. Because the memorial is very long, it can be summarized as follows:
The so-called wise monarch must fully understand the principles of governing the world and fully grasp the strategies for governing the world. This requires the use of severe punishments to supervise and punish his subordinates and the people of the country; , the subordinates dare not not try their best to dedicate their lives to the emperor. Therefore, although the monarch implements dictatorship, in fact it seems that nothing happens, and the emperor can also indulge in extravagance and enjoy all the happiness in the world. , such a king can be regarded as the wisest king.
Shen Buhe once said: "Those who own the world, if they don't know how to enjoy themselves to their heart's content, will use the world as their shackles." 'This kind of king does not know how to use severe punishments to supervise and punish his subordinates and people, but stupidly sacrifices his life for the people of the world, just like Tang Yao and Yu Shun. They simply do not understand the superb state-governing skills of Shen Buhai and Han Fei. Instead, they regard the world as their own shackles. This is their fault for not knowing the art of supervision and accountability.
Han Fei also said: "A kind mother will have prodigal children; but a strict family will not have fierce slaves." 'What's the reason for this? This is whether strict family laws can be used to regulate punishment. Therefore, when Shang Yang formulated the law, anyone who casually throws fire on the road must be sentenced, let alone those who commit serious crimes? Han Fei also said: "Although it was just a few feet of cloth, some people saw it and wanted to take it for themselves, so they had the idea of stealing." But if the criminal law is aggravated, even if a hundred yi gold is placed in front of him, even a big thief like the thieves in ancient times would not dare to grab it at will. He also said, "If the criminal law is not severe, those lame ewes will climb to the top of the mountain and eat grass at will." This is because the sheep have no scruples. On the contrary, once the criminal law becomes stricter, even Lou Ji, who was good at jumping in ancient times, would not dare to easily jump over the city wall to steal. Therefore, in order to govern the country well, the king should be arbitrary and implement the art of supervision and accountability. For example, the punishment of criminals must be severe and ruthless, so that people in the world will not dare to violate the law. Therefore, the method of governing the country like a loving mother doting on her children, and ultimately spoiling the children, should immediately stop and implement the words of the saints.
There are still some people who often advocate frugality and oppose waste in front of your Majesty, which will make your Majesty lose the pleasure of material enjoyment, so such remarks are simply nonsense, and those who are strong-willed and dare to die to remonstrate Your ministers are just asking for trouble, and your Majesty should stay away from them. Only when the king can control his subordinates and the people alone can he show his nobility and authority. Only such a wise king can be dictatorial and arbitrary in national affairs, so the power of the king will not fall into the hands of his subordinates. inside. If the king is able to act arbitrarily, he will be able to block the channels of hypocrisy and morality, cut off the criticism of ministers who talk nonsense about government affairs, and drown out the wisdom of others through the deeds of martyrs. Only such a resolute and resolute king can be said to understand the minds of Shen Buhai and Han Fei, and make the laws left by Lord Shang more perfect. Once Qin's laws are perfected, who among the people in the world will dare to become a thief? Therefore, only wise kings can imitate and implement the techniques of governing the country of the Three Kings and Five Emperors. This is the beauty of implementing the technique of supervising and responsibly. Only by doing this can everything go as planned and what is in the heart can be realized.
From the above: As long as the art of supervision and accountability is implemented, everyone in the world, including ministers, officials at all levels, and the people, who want to save their own mistakes, will be too late. Who will have the desire to cause chaos? Therefore, today's king should have the governance of the three kings and the control skills of the five emperors, and he will definitely be able to master the means of controlling his subjects. What I said would not be criticized even if Shen Buhai and Han Fei were still alive in the world. Therefore, your Majesty, you should think carefully about how Qin State implements the "Technology of Supervision and Responsibility".
After the second emperor read Li Si's memorial, Long Yan was delighted. He thought what he said was very reasonable. If the Qin State did not use strict criminal laws, there would be more and more thieves, so he issued an edict to implement the "Technology of Supervision and Responsibility". From then on, the Qin State implemented an unprecedented reign of terror, and the imperial court established the method of commending officials as follows: those who taxed the people the most were capable officials; those who killed the most according to Qin's laws were loyal ministers. This edict has been issued, and the government and the public are shocked. In just a few days, the Qin State designated half of the people in the pass as criminals, and too many people were killed to count. After they killed people, they left the bodies lying beside the road without burying them. In this way, the whole of Xianyang became a place of killing. When the Qin State executed prisoners, they also asked the people to watch as a warning. This horrific and extreme autocratic rule turned Xianyang into a hell on earth.
A few days after the execution of the supervising technique, the second generation asked Zhao Gao: "How is this technique?" Zhao Gao happily replied: "This technique is great, this is an unprecedented feat!" The second generation also boasted. He asked: "Am I the first emperor in ancient times who truly knows how to govern the country with magic?" Zhao Gao praised: "Yes, your Majesty is the first. You are young and promising now, and Prime Minister Li is also a wizard. If If the method of supervision and accountability he contributed can be fully implemented, then your majesty, like the late emperor, will be a great king praised by people!" The second generation asked again: "I am very worried about things in Shandong now, what else can I do for you? How can we eliminate those thieves as quickly as possible?" Zhao Gao laughed and said, "I heard that Chief Sima Xin and Captain Dong Yi are recruiting troops everywhere. Once they are recruited, they can be sent to reinforce Zhang Han and then go on a rampage. They must kill those thieves. Zhou Wen, Wu Guang, and Chen Sheng will not live long. Your Majesty, please rest assured." The Second Emperor said, "Okay, let them kill all the thieves who dare to rebel. Kill him?" Zhao Gao happily agreed.
Li Sijin introduced the art of supervising and blaming, and Zhao Gao was both happy and worried. What he was happy about was that the implementation of this art would make people all over the world, especially the people in Guanzhong, deeply hate and despise Li Si. But he was worried that Li Si was very resourceful and if he often used these methods to please the second generation, the second generation would rely on him again. When Zhao Gao thought of this, he became worried again. He was ready to try his best to please the emperor even more than Li Si, and then squeeze Li Si out. At this time, his son-in-law Yan Le happened to find a beauty from Shanggui in Longxi County. This woman had the beauty of Xi Shi and the charm of Su Daji. Zhao Gao dedicated her to the second generation. As expected, the second generation was filled with joy and asked Zhao Gao to serve him all day long. In this way, Zhao Gao had the opportunity to speak to the emperor again.
Although Zhao Gao was happy, he was still worried that the Second Emperor would approach Li Si again. One day, he said to the second generation: "Your Majesty, the reason why the emperor is noble is because mortals cannot see him. For example, people know that dragon is a very mysterious and different kind, but they don't know what it looks like? Your Majesty If you are the true Dragon Emperor, you should lurk in the court like a dragon and not meet the courtiers easily. This is the real reason why the emperor calls himself me! Besides, Your Majesty is still young and may not know everything about the outside world. If If you handle one thing wrong, the ministers will look down on you, and the people in the country will think that you are not smart enough, so you should live in palace confinement. For external matters, please give us a few people who are familiar with the law. If there is a memorial to be submitted Come up, we will make a summary for you first, and then report to you. Using this method to handle political affairs will not only save your Majesty the time to have fun, but also prevent things from causing confusion in the court." The second generation is originally He doesn't like to deal with complicated things. He has been disturbed by the affairs in Shandong for a while. Now he listened to Zhao Gao's words and got what he wanted. From then on, he stopped meeting ministers in the court and instead took care of himself in the harem. went. Zhao Gao took control of the government.
