Yangwu...
Zhang Cang was sitting in the courtyard, and Chen Ping was sitting opposite him.
Both of them were from Yangwu County. Zhang Cang had been famous for a long time. After all, he had served as a censor in the Qin State, so he was considered a moderate celebrity in Yangwu.
Chen Ping, on the other hand, is considered a poor person in Hufu Township, Yangwu County.
Originally, the two did not have much overlap.
The family backgrounds of the two are very different, not to mention that Zhang Cang had studied with Xunzi a long time ago and went to Xianyang under Li Si's recommendation, while Chen Ping was still studying abroad at that time.
It’s not right to say that it’s a study tour. To be more precise, it should be that I don’t have a mentor.
Chen Ping's brother tried his best to support Chen Ping, and even angrily divorced his wife because of her bad words towards Chen Ping. However, so far, Chen Ping has never made a career and is still eating and drinking at home.
Later, after Chen Ping learned a lot, he stayed at home and reviewed what he had learned while helping his brother Chen Bo farm.
After Zhang Cang fled to Xianyang and returned to his hometown, Chen Ping met Zhang Cang when he was buying goods in the county town.
After just a few words between the two, Zhang Cang, who was anonymous, discovered Chen Ping's extraordinary qualities. However, Chen Ping, who had no famous teacher to teach him, was full of doubts. When he met Zhang Cang, he suddenly became enlightened as if he had glimpsed the sky.
The two thus intersected.
In this way, the two of them can be regarded as both teachers and friends. Up to now, Chen Ping has completely digested the knowledge gained from his study tour. In terms of knowledge, Zhang Cang believes that Chen Ping is no longer weaker than him, but now he just lacks practice, so Chen Ping is full of ambition and wants to show what he has learned.
"I look at the Qin Dynasty. Although it has only ruled the world for more than 20 years, the king of Qin does not establish a crown prince, raises suspicions, appoints people to do things, and seems to listen to the ministers, but in fact he insists on going his own way. He looks tolerant on the outside, but is cruel in his heart. Now he is on the verge of subjugation. Prime Minister, this is not a good place to go." Zhang Cang said.
"I thought so before... so I am full of knowledge but don't know where to go. Now the situation in Qin may be different from what you said." Chen Ping smiled and said.
"Some time ago, the team sent by the First Emperor to search for immortals has returned. Although they did not bring back the elixir, they did bring back three types of food: sweet potatoes, potatoes and corn, with a yield of thousands of kilograms per mu. Now they have been distributed." Chen Ping said.
"Of course I know this, but Qin's problem is not about food." Because Zhang Cang had returned from fleeing, he needed to cover up. He had been trapped at home and covered up when he went out. Therefore, most of the latest news needed Chen Ping's help to know.
"Not only that, not long ago, Qin State planted rice, millet, millet, and beetroot with a yield of four stones per mu. I estimate that the wheat yield will not be less." Chen Ping said.
"In the past, there were people who could grow food four stones away." Zhang Cang shook his head.
"No, King Qin has ordered these grains to be distributed throughout the country. You should know what this means." Chen Ping said solemnly.
Zhang Cang was shocked and spread the word...
That means it is not an accidental phenomenon. It means that with the current farming technology and conditions, high yields can be achieved everywhere.
This...meaning is different.
But after thinking about it carefully, Zhang Cang shook his head again.
Why did he let the good censor go without knowing and breaking the law?
Why did he run away without even asking his senior brother Li Si to intercede for him?
To put it bluntly, his censor was recommended by Li Si. After getting along with him for a period of time, Zhang Cang discovered many problems.
Nuo Da's empire was prone to frequent chaos, and the root cause lay not with others, but with the First Emperor.
It cannot be said that the First Emperor was a coward, but the First Emperor's ambition was too great. As a minister, Zhang Cang believed that it was difficult to meet the First Emperor's ambition, and even the Qin Dynasty would be destroyed because of the First Emperor's ambition.
The most terrible thing is that the First Emperor seemed to listen to both sides, be able to retain different opinions, and tolerate criticism from others. In fact, he was a very determined person.
The short time we spent together with Zhang Cang only felt that there was a heavy shadow on his head.
He seems to see through all your thoughts and actions. The so-called ability of this king to tolerate different opinions is essentially that he takes out the things he has decided and discusses them with you again.
He even knew before the discussion what kind of reaction and rhetoric the ministers would have, and he had made all the plans.
There are many similar things. The civil and military officials under him are not like ministers, but like beasts tamed by him.
This made Zhang Cang feel deeply disrespected and fearful.
Once such a person makes a mistake, no one can stop him.
The most terrible thing is that, in Zhang Cang's view, the Qin State has already rushed towards the road of subjugation.
He couldn't face his senior brother Li Si who recommended him, so he simply made a mistake intentionally and left without saying goodbye.
Why does Qin's worry lie in food?
The worry of the Qin State was that the king's ambition was so great that most people thought it was nothing more than a dream. What did the First Emperor want to do? Zhang Cang couldn't understand it, but he could realize that he was trying to complete the journey of hundreds of years in a dozen years.
"This is not the problem with Qin." Zhang Cang shook his head.
In fact, Zhang Cang very much agreed and recognized the Qin system. After the Han Dynasty unified the world, it was Zhang Cang who presided over the unification of weights and measures and the unification of currency. Not only that, Zhang Cang also played the temperament and adjusted the music to match the five tones. The eight tones, by analogy with others, are used to formulate laws and regulations. And from this, the measurement standards of various utensils were formulated as standards for all kinds of craftsmen in the world.
Zhang Cang is the censor of the Qin State and is responsible for the collection of rare books in the royal family. Zhang Cang himself is also Li Si's junior brother. He also studied under Xunzi. Regarding the system of the Qin State, Li Si's governing philosophy is the best. Objectively speaking, the so-called Han Dynasty inherited the Qin Dynasty Zhang Cang is actually the most important person.
Without Zhang Cang, no one could perfectly restore so many legal systems of Qin, and no one could figure out the meaning of what the First Emperor did. You know, at that time, it was politically correct to overthrow Qin. If Zhang Cang hadn't fought against everyone's opinions, , many Qin laws and systems will be canceled or changed beyond recognition.
Not only that, Zhang Cang also corrected some things that were too hasty and made a century-old plan for the unification of the Han Dynasty. He did not act too hastily like his senior brother. This also achieved the situation where people's hearts were completely unified after the Qin and Han Dynasties.
Zhang Cang had long seen the collapse of the Qin State. This cannot be saved by the same food. The most terrible thing is the king sitting at the top. His ambition is too big and the world cannot bear it. In Zhang Cang's view, The First Emperor is a typical king who wants everything.
He was too overbearing and couldn't make a choice, and no ministers could advise him. Once it came to such a core issue, you said you were wrong, and the First Emperor did his own thing and didn't listen at all.
The First Emperor's so-called "all-inclusive listening" means that you are allowed to speak, but I just don't use it.
…
"There's one more thing..." Chen Ping smiled.
"The price of Qin's official salt has dropped."
"Of course I know that, but Chen Ping, don't you know it clearly? Qin's worry does not lie in the price of salt. If Qin is regarded as a carriage, the King of Qin is the one driving the carriage, and the military meritorious nobles are the ones pushing the carriage. If the carriage goes too fast, it will bump and even risk overturning. If you want it to move smoothly, you have to slow down. However, King Qin also wanted the carriage to move smoothly, so he kept raising his whip. The urging horses thought they were not running fast enough.
Someone should have advised the King of Qin, telling him that the carriage would be too bumpy if it ran too fast, and asked him to slow down, but the King of Qin would not listen to these opinions. If you make a noise around him, he will only say that you are right. Then he continued to wave the riding crop.
Over time, what officials of the Qin State wanted to do was no longer the right thing. They had to consider how to make the chariot run more steadily when the King of Qin kept whipping his whip.
But Chen Ping, this is something that cannot be done manually.
Senior brother knew that he could not persuade the King of Qin, so he just followed the King of Qin's wishes. Is this a strategy for long-term peace and stability in the country?
Can my senior brother really make the carriage move forward smoothly while satisfying King Qin?
At least I couldn't do it, so I ran away.
The State of Qin is now like a carriage that is out of control. The civil and military officials under King Qin are blindly obeying their superiors and urging the carriage to continue to accelerate. Even if someone persuades him, no one can persuade King Qin. How can such a country last long? What about words? "Speaking of this, Zhang Cang's chest was full of indignation.
There is no doubt that he was the one who advised the First Emperor not to drive too fast.
The only response I got was the sound of the wind rushing by, and the sentence "I can't hear what you said."
The senior brother catered to the First Emperor's ideas for the sake of power, but never thought about whether the Qin chariot was at risk of losing control, and no one could persuade the First Emperor to tighten the reins and slow down.
Is this something that can be changed by increasing grain production and lowering salt prices?
No, increasing grain production and lowering salt prices will only make the road smoother for chariots to drive. It is still expected that chariots will lose control.
"But what if there is someone who can persuade His Majesty to stop, or even make His Majesty's drive stop?" Chen Ping smiled.
"Previously, His Majesty was assassinated in Dongjun. Wang Jia, who was guarding Wang Jia with his attendant Zhao Si, was seriously injured. King Qin drove Jia to stay in Dongjun for a month. As a result, King Qin went on a killing spree. Thousands of corpses were buried in Dongjun, and blood flowed into rivers." Chen Ping said with a gossipy smile.
…
"Why do you believe this nonsense? King Qin is not a person who vents his anger because of personal affairs. The reason why he went on a killing spree was just because he needed to...
Besides, that's not what I meant when I said parking. "
"It's not bad... Zhao Si proposed the salt price reduction. Your senior brother Li Xiang is opposed to lowering the salt price..."
Chen Ping told the whole story.
Zhang Cang knew his senior brother very well.
Senior brother Li Si is always good at figuring out what is best for him.
In other words, Li Si's ideas basically did not conflict with the First Emperor.
Even if there is a conflict, senior brother usually changes it on the spot.
Especially something as small as lower salt prices.
So...according to the inference, that is to say, the senior brother thought that the First Emperor was unwilling to lower the price of salt, but because of Zhao Si, the First Emperor changed his mind?
(Because the left foot enters the door first, I will add an additional chapter.)
(End of chapter)
