After the death of the First Emperor, Zhao Gao had been thinking about how to persuade Hu Hai and Li Si to participate in his conspiracy. Hu Hai has always admired him and obeyed his words, so he decided to persuade Hu Hai first.
Zhao Gao secretly said to his son Hu Hai: "Now that the First Emperor has passed away, your Majesty did not appoint a prince during his lifetime. He only gave an edict to his eldest son Fusu a few days ago. When the eldest son returns to Xianyang, he will definitely ascend the throne and become the second son. The world's emperor, but you don't even have a large fief, what should you do?"
Hu Hai was extremely surprised and didn't know what Zhao Gao meant, so he replied: "That's how it is! I heard that a wise king knows his ministers best, and a wise father knows his son best. Since my father did not give an order to divide the princes before his death, then neither did I. There’s nothing to say.”
Zhao Gao said with a gloomy face: "Young Master's words are wrong. It was like this when the First Emperor was alive, but now that the First Emperor is dead, the situation can change instantly! The power in the world today, no matter who lives or dies, is in the hands of you, me and Li Si We are in control! Now we are the spokespersons of the emperor. No matter what we say, everyone in the world must listen. What's more, can controlling the ministers and surrendering to others, ruling others and being ruled by others, be the same thing? I hope you will do well. Consider this!"
Hu Hai already understood what Zhao Gao meant and hesitated: "It is unrighteous to abolish an elder brother and establish a younger brother; it is unfilial to disobey his father's edict and fear death; he has little talent and relies on the help of others to reluctantly ascend. This is incompetence. These three things are treasonous and unethical. If the people of the world do not obey, not only will they themselves suffer disaster, but the country will also fall into chaos."
Although Hu Hai spoke firmly, Zhao Gao knew that he had wavered. He was just worried that the matter would not harm himself, so he continued to encourage: "I have heard that Shang Tang and Zhou Wu killed their monarchs, and everyone in the world praised them for their behavior. Morality cannot be regarded as disloyalty. King Wei killed his father, and the people of Wei praised his merits. Confucius recorded this incident, which cannot be regarded as unfilial.
To do big things, you can't stick to small details, and to do great virtues, you don't need to be humble. Customs in the countryside vary, and officials work in different ways. Therefore, worrying about small things and forgetting big things will cause disaster in the future; being hesitant at critical moments will definitely regret it in the future. If you do it decisively and boldly, you will avoid even ghosts and gods, and you will definitely succeed in the future. I hope you do as I say. "
Hu Hai sighed and said, "Now that the emperor has passed away and the funeral has not yet ended, how can we use this matter to appeal to the prime minister?"
Zhao Gao knew that Hu Hai had agreed, so he said: "If you don't discuss it with the Prime Minister, I'm afraid the matter will not succeed. I hope I can discuss it with the Prime Minister on your behalf."
At this time, Zhao Gao felt very emotional. He had been holding back for decades and finally waited for the opportunity to stand out. He was very happy and said to himself: "Time, time, too short to make plans! I am just like carrying dry food and rushing." It’s like hurrying on a horse, lest you delay the opportunity!”
After convincing Hu Hai, Zhao Gao turned his target to Li Si.
Although there was no quarrel between Zhao Gao and Li Si on weekdays, Li Si always only obeyed the orders of the First Emperor, and he was not sure of persuading Li Si. Until a few days ago, when Li Si learned that the First Emperor had issued an edict to Fusu before his death, Zhao Gao saw fear and unwillingness in Li Si's cold eyes. Li Si was also afraid that Fusu would inherit the throne, because Fusu was not close to Li Si. Once he ascended the throne, Prime Minister Li Si's position would inevitably be replaced by brothers Mengtian and Mengyi, which was what Li Si least wanted to see.
So Zhao Gao visited Li Si late at night and said straight to the point: "The First Emperor passed away and gave his eldest son Fusu an edict, ordering him to attend the funeral in Xianyang and establish him as his heir. The emperor passed away before the edict was sent out. No one knows about it now. . The imperial edict and talisman given to the eldest son by the emperor are both in Hu Hai's hands. Who is appointed as the prince only depends on a word between you and me. What do you think we should do about this?"
Although Li Si guessed the content of the edict, he had always been thinking about how to deal with the situation after Fusu came to the throne. He did not expect that Zhao Gao would dare to try to tamper with the edict. He was surprised, very angry, and scolded Zhao Gao. Said: "How can you say such words of subjugation to the country! This is not something that a minister should discuss!"
Zhao Gao did not care about Li Si's anger and continued: "Prime Minister, please make your own estimate. Compared with Meng Tian, who has the ability? Who has more merit? Who has more far-reaching strategies and makes no mistakes? Who does the people of the world support more? With the eldest son Who has a better relationship with Fusu?"
The more Li Si listened, the more anxious he became, and he argued: "I am indeed not as good as Meng Tian in these five aspects, but why are you so demanding of me?"
Zhao Gao saw that Li Si was no longer so determined, so he persuaded him: "I was originally a slave of a eunuch. I was lucky enough to enter the Qin Palace with my familiarity with the prison law documents. I have been in charge for more than 20 years, and I have never seen any prime minister or meritorious officials dismissed by the King of Qin. Those who could continue to hold the title and pass it on to the next generation ended up being killed.
The emperor had more than twenty sons, as you know. The eldest son Fusu is resolute and brave, trusting and good at motivating scholars. After taking the throne, he must use Meng Tian as prime minister. Obviously, you will not be able to resign and return home with the seal of Tonghou in the end. I have been ordered by the emperor to educate Hu Hai and let him study law for several years, and I have never seen him make any mistakes. He was compassionate and kind, honest and kind, despised money, respected scholars, was smart but not good at words, and respected the wise with every courtesy. Among Qin Shihuang's sons, no one could catch up with him and could be established as his successor. You will definitely continue to be reused because of your helpful assistance! I hope you will consider this! "
Li Si sighed and said, "You should just do whatever you have to do! I, Li Si, only carry out the emperor's edict, and my own destiny is subject to the arrangements of God. What else should I consider and decide?"
Zhao Gaodao: "It looks safe but it may actually be dangerous, and it may look dangerous but it may actually be safe. If you don't make a decision early in the face of safety, how can you be considered a wise person?"
Li Si said with emotion: "I, Li Si, am a commoner in the streets and alleys of Shangcai. Thanks to the emperor's promotion, I was made prime minister and made a marquis. My descendants all received noble status and generous treatment. Therefore, the emperor put the country in danger." How can I live up to his trust? A loyal minister will not work hard because he is afraid of death. A filial son will not harm his health by working too hard. Each minister should abide by his duties. Please forgive me. Stop talking and don’t let me, Li Si, also commit crimes.”
Zhao Gaodao: "I heard that saints do not follow the rules, but adapt to changes and follow the trend. They can predict the root cause when they see the signs, and predict the destination when they see the trends. And things are like this, how can there be any unchanging truth! Now Now the power and destiny of the world are in the hands of Hu Hai, and I, Zhao Gao, can guess his intentions. What's more, to subdue the inside from the outside is rebellion, and to subdue the top from below is rebellion. Therefore, when the autumn frost falls, the flowers and grass wither, When ice melts and snow melts, all things are regenerated. This is an inevitable result of nature. How come you haven't even seen this?"
Li Sidao: "I heard that the Jin Dynasty changed its crown prince, and the three generations were not at peace; the brothers Duke Huan of Qi fought for the throne, and the elder brother was killed; Shang Zhou killed relatives and did not listen to the advice of his ministers, and the capital was reduced to ruins, which endangered the country; These three things are against God's will, so there is no one to worship in the ancestral temple. I, Li Si, am still a human being, how can I participate in these conspiracies!"
Zhao Gaodao said: "If we work together from top to bottom, the cause can last for a long time; if we cooperate internally and externally, there will be no mistakes. If you follow my strategy, you will be a marquis for a long time, and it will be passed down from generation to generation. You will definitely have the longevity of the immortal princes Qiao and Chisongzi." , the wisdom of Confucius and Mozi. If you give up this opportunity now and do not listen to my opinion, it will definitely bring harm to your descendants, which is enough to make people feel chilling. People who are good at dealing with others and moving their cameras can turn disaster into blessing. Do you think How to do it?"
Li Si has always loved his children very much, hoping to use his status to provide a good platform for them. Zhao Gao finally talked about his pain points. Li Si's last line of defense was destroyed. He looked up to the sky and sighed with tears. Said: "Alas! I wanted to be loyal to Your Majesty, but I encountered troubled times. Since I can no longer remain loyal to you at the risk of death, where will I place my destiny?"
Zhao Gao knew that Li Si had acquiesced to his proposal, so he reported back to Hu Hai: "I told Li Si that I informed him on your order, the prince. How dare he disobey the order!"
Hu Hai was very happy to learn that Li Si had agreed, but in his heart he gave all the credit to Zhao Gao.
Since Li Si acquiesced, Zhao Gao began to forge the edict of the First Emperor. The first letter was to Li Si. It said that Hu Hai should be appointed as the crown prince and Li Si should be informed to the world.
The second letter was given to the eldest son Fusu, and it read: "I patrol the world, praying and offering sacrifices to the gods of famous mountains in various places for longevity. Now Fusu and General Meng Tian have led hundreds of thousands of troops to garrison the border for more than ten years. Unable to march forward, the soldiers suffered many casualties. I did not make any achievements. Instead, I wrote many times to slander what I had done. Because I could not be dismissed and returned to Beijing to become the prince, I was resentful and dissatisfied day and night. As a son of a man, Fusu was unfilial. Give him a sword and commit suicide! General Meng Tian is out with Fusu. If he doesn't correct his mistakes, he should know his plan. As a minister, he is not loyal, so he commits suicide together and hands the army to the deputy general Wang Li."
Zhao Gao sealed the edict with the emperor's jade seal. The first edict was kept temporarily and would not be made public. The second edict was sent to Shangjun by Hu Hai's retainers overnight and handed over to Fusu and Mengtian. When the envoy was leaving, Zhao Gao handed another letter to the envoy and said: "This letter must not be known to outsiders. If the eldest son still does not commit suicide after receiving the edict, please give this letter to him!" "
The envoy had already set off, and Zhao Gaocai told Li Si at this time. Li Si was shocked after hearing this and asked: "Now that Meng Tian is in charge of an army of 300,000 people, wouldn't it be extremely critical if he and Fu Su lead the army in rebellion?"
Zhao Gao was not anxious at all and said leisurely: "The Prime Minister doesn't understand Fusu. The eldest son Fusu has had a long-standing conflict with His Majesty. Fusu has always suspected that Your Majesty forced his mother to die, and he has a cowardly character." , If you are too benevolent, you will not be able to do such a thing as rebellion!"
"You mean the First Emperor forced Queen Mihong to death?"
"Yes!" So Zhao Gao told the old story about Mi Hong's collusion with Xiong Zang's rebellion, and Li Si was dumbfounded.
"Even if Fusu doesn't resist, how can Meng Tian be captured without mercy when his life is at stake?"
"It is possible for Meng Tian to resist, but as long as Fusu commits suicide, he will be alone. Moreover, the power of the First Emperor is still there, so I don't even dare to do anything wrong!"
Although Zhao Gao was confident, Li Si was still very worried. He felt that Zhao Gao was taking too many risks and speculation. Once Meng Tian rebelled, things would be difficult to handle. At the same time, he now has a faint worry in his heart. Zhao Gao did not discuss such a big matter with him in advance, which shows his ambition!
After the envoy arrived at Shangjun, he read the edict and Fusu sat down on the ground and started crying. He murmured: "Father, you really can't tolerate me! Mother, my child will come to accompany you!" Then he got up and entered the inner room to commit suicide.
Meng Tian was also stunned by the sudden edict. He could not figure out why the First Emperor wanted to kill him. So he followed Fusu into the inner room and said, "Master, don't you think this matter is a little strange?"
Fusu had stopped crying and asked, "What's wrong?"
"The emperor is on a tour and has not appointed a prince. Why did he suddenly send an envoy to ask the prince to commit suicide?" Meng Tian saw that Fusu also began to doubt, and continued: "Now the emperor has sent me to lead an army of 300,000 to guard the border, and the prince will serve as the supervisor. This is the most important task in the world! Even if we want to be removed from office and prosecuted, we should go back to Xianyang to do it. Now there is only one messenger coming and he orders us to commit suicide immediately. How can we know that there is no falsehood in it?"
Fusu also had doubts in his heart and said: "I feel strange too. Don't fall into the villain's trick." Then he came out and said to the envoy: "It is important to pay attention to important matters of life and death. I hope to ask the emperor for instructions again. After I have the answer, I will It’s not too late to die.”
Seeing that Fusu was suspicious, the envoy took out the letter from Zhao Gao to him, which was also stamped with the emperor's seal, and said to Fusu: "The eldest son will understand after reading this letter. This is a private message from His Majesty before leaving. Give it to me so that I won’t reveal it to anyone else.”
Fusu opened the letter and wrote: "Thirteen years ago, your mother and your uncle fought with the Chu State against the Qin Dynasty, resulting in Li Xin's defeat and the Qin army's casualties of more than 100,000 people! This is a serious betrayal of me, so I just ordered your mother to commit suicide. I wanted to train you well, but for many years you have been exactly the same as your mother. You have been betraying me and disobeying my will. Therefore, I order you to commit suicide today! In order to save the face of the clan, this is not allowed. The letter was leaked!"
Fusu burst into tears after reading it. His suspicions for many years were finally confirmed. He didn't want to believe it was true! His father actually forced his mother to death, and now he wants to commit suicide! His heart is broken.
After burning the letter, he came out and said to Meng Tian: "General, please take care of yourself. I'll take the first step!"
Meng Tian was shocked and said: "Didn't we agree to go back to Xianyang together to ask for instructions? Why did the young master commit suicide again?"
Fusu was despairing and said: "My father ordered his son to die, what else can I ask for?" So Fusu immediately drew his sword and committed suicide.
Meng Tian was caught off guard by this sudden change. When the envoy saw that Fusu was dead, he led his guards to question Meng Tian, saying: "The emperor has issued an edict, why doesn't the general obey it?"
Meng Tian said: "I am dissatisfied and want to see Your Majesty!" Seeing that he refused to commit suicide, the envoy arrested him and handed him over to the legal officials, who temporarily imprisoned him in Yangzhou.
After the envoy came back, he reported what happened to Hu Hai in detail. Hu Hai and Zhao Gao were very happy, and Li Si breathed a sigh of relief. But at the same time, Li Si also began to fear Zhao Gao's judgment of human nature. Everything was as expected. Fusu and Zhao Gao Meng Tian was captured without any help even when he was fully capable of rebelling!
On the next day, Li Si read out the edict naming Hu Hai as the crown prince.
Due to the long wait for the messenger and the hot weather, the body of the First Emperor began to stink. From time to time, the disgusting odor would waft out of the car. The eunuchs hiding in the car could not bear it and hoped that Zhao Gao would let them out. Zhao Gao He severely reprimanded the young eunuch and told them that if they dared to get off the bus privately, their lives would be in danger.
However, the smell that wafted out from time to time in the car could not be concealed, and many people began to become suspicious. Li Si said to Zhao Gao: "It is now in the scorching heat, and the body of the First Emperor may not be able to survive for a long time. The stench coming out now will inevitably make people suspicious!" "
"The Prime Minister is very worried. I remember that the abalone I ate in Langya would have a similar smell if left for one more day. It would be better to pretend that the First Emperor likes to eat abalone and have someone load a cart of abalone to accompany him, so that the smell of the corpse can be covered up. The stink."
"Master Zhao, what a great idea! I'll send someone to do it right now." So the next day, a car full of abalone was added to the convoy. The abalone had a strong smell, which covered up the smell of the corpse.
A few days later, the First Emperor's patrol team returned to Xianyang. Prince Hu Hai announced the death of the First Emperor and ascended the throne, claiming the title of Second Emperor.
The news of the death of the First Emperor also reached the prison. After receiving the news, Meng Tian understood all the conspiracy. He burst into tears and said to himself: "eldest son! You really don't deserve to die. I guessed that there must be something fishy in it. I wanted to defend myself with troops, but you were so decisive!"
On the second day, the second emperor ordered the death of brother Meng Tian and Meng Yi.
After that, Zhao Gao came into dictatorship and successively designed to kill Li Si, Feng Jie, Feng Quji and other ministers. The brothers and sisters of the second generation were also killed. Three years later, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang rebelled in the name of Prince Fusu. The Qin Empire collapsed after only fourteen years of unification!
"There is a Kunpeng in the sky, spreading its wings and proud of the sky. The Liuhe is swept away, and the four seas are unified. I have achieved more than Yao and Shun, who can compare with me?"
"In the past, when enfeoffments were divided, brothers were ruthless; when they attacked each other, the people were in dire straits; rituals and music were gradually lost, and the territory was gradually disintegrated; instead of centralizing power, rewards and punishments should be clear; unified measurement and rulership were the same across the sea; Kyushu was one family. , the common people enjoy peace."
Unofficial history records that this poem was inspired by Qin Shihuang's masterpiece when he was entertaining ministers at a banquet after he unified the six kingdoms.
But the real historical record is the only poem that Ying Zheng wrote in his life. It's called "Ci Luo Shui Song"
〖Ancient and modern music records say: Qin Shihuang’s temple is in Luoshui. A black-headed male came out of the river. Called the First Emperor and said: Come and receive the treasure from heaven. Then he composed a song with his ministers and said:
The water in Luoyang is green in color.
The temple offers sacrifices to Daze, and suddenly it comes to the south.
Luo Bin prays, and the color shines three times.
