Qin Official

In the mid-spring month of the thirty-third year of Qin Shihuang (February), the southern and northern wars were all decided, and Sanchuan Shou Li You finally left Xianyang and returned to Luoyang.

"Sanchuan is the gateway to Guanzhong, the throat of the world, and the most important. As a county guard, your responsibilities are not small. You must be cautious in everything you do. Otherwise, not only will you be blamed, but your family will also be implicated."

Li Si's instructions seemed to be tireless, and Li Youwei agreed. However, before leaving, he still couldn't help asking his father that question.

"Father, what is your Majesty's purpose in ordering Young Master Fusu to lead the army to conquer the sea?"

In the past few days, the government and the public were greatly shocked by this appointment. Everyone was speculating on Qin Shihuang's intentions. Li You was not the only one who found it difficult to understand.

Li Si glanced at his son and there was no need to hide it: "Your Majesty is preparing for his death..."

Li You was shocked: "His Majesty, he..."

Li Si said: "Although His Majesty has a minor illness, he should be fine for at least a few years."

Li You breathed a sigh of relief: "Then why do you have to arrange it like this?"

Li Si shook his head helplessly: "It's just a precaution."

Li You was a little strange: "Your Majesty, doesn't he want to live forever, so he hasn't had an heir for so long? Why now..."

Li Si sneered: "Do you believe it? Do you believe that His Majesty can live forever?"

Li You was speechless, but Li Si unceremoniously pierced the window covering: "Who believes this except His Majesty himself?"

In the final analysis, Li Si, like his husband Xun Qing and his brothers Han Fei and Zhang Cang, are staunch "atheists" who believe in human power but scorn the power of ghosts and gods.

"Father, you can't say this."

Li You looked out of the study with some guilt. This was a big statement for someone to hear. However, there were only two father and son in the study, and all the women and slaves were separated, so he could open the window and speak openly.

Indeed, since those sorcerers were deceived, they still believe that the emperor can get the elixir of death. I am afraid that the only one who is immortal is Qin Shihuang himself, right?

All the ministers knew in their hearts that it was only a matter of time before the emperor died when the sun would eventually set in the west. Spending a lot of manpower and material resources to pursue the illusory eternal life, in the end, it is all in vain. The ministers did not dare to object, just to give His Majesty a head start.

Even Prime Minister Li Si didn't believe that the emperor could survive. What's more, Li Si learned from some sources that the emperor's health was indeed not in good condition recently...

Perhaps, even Qin Shihuang realized this and doubted his "destiny". He re-examined his sons and began to think about who should be sent to him if he did not survive until the day when he found the Queen Mother of the West and obtained the elixir. What about inheriting a huge empire?

There are direct descendants, but there are no direct eldest sons. Due to special reasons, Qin Shihuang did not establish a queen and did not have a legitimate son. In this way, the eldest son Fusu is undoubtedly the most qualified competitor for the position of crown prince.

But Fusu also had disadvantages: his mother's family was a relative of Chu State, and the Changping Lord who betrayed the emperor was Fusu's maternal uncle. He preferred the opinions of hundreds of schools of thought, which deviated from the legalist legalism, the basic national policy that Qin had adhered to for a hundred years. He did not like the emperor, and made several remonstrances that angered Qin Shihuang.

At the same time, the other young masters gradually came of age. The young master was highly proficient in music, and the young master Lu was known as a filial brother. Even the youngest son Hu Hai, who was most favored by the emperor, was 16 years old. He began to be arranged by Qin Shihuang, and he broke one of his hands. Zhao Gao, the commander of CRRC who was unable to drive, learned the law.

The position of the crown prince is vacant, and Fusu may no longer be the only candidate. The minds of the officials are beginning to become active. Just because the emperor is strong, no one dares to form a gang and openly engage in the Nine Dragons to seize the throne.

But now, Qin Shihuang suddenly announced Fusu as the general of the Eastern Expedition, which immediately added another layer of confusion to the already complicated battle for the reserve!

Li You said tentatively: "Father once told me that the prince is not a general. This is the unwritten rule of the princes since the Spring and Autumn Period..."

This rule comes from a past event in the Jin Kingdom. Hundreds of years ago, Jin Xiangong suddenly sent Prince Shen Sheng to lead the army to attack the Gaoluo clan in Dongshan, which caused an uproar in the Jin court.

At that time, the Jin Dynasty official Li Ke remonstrated: "The prince is a person who worships the country, is in charge of the grain, and never leaves the king's side day and night, so he is called a son of a tomb. The king behaves according to the rules and follows the rules. Following the king on expeditions is called "Zhongzi". To support the army and stay in the country is called supervising the country. This is an ancient system."

Either supervising the country or supervising the army, this is also the basic function of the prince. The country cannot be without a king for a day. If there is a problem with the current monarch, the prince must be ready to take the throne at any time, otherwise, chaos will occur.

In this case, it is not the prince's job to lead the army on an expedition. The military is dangerous. If the prince is defeated, it will be a loss for the country. If something happens to the monarch when he goes on an expedition and he cannot come back in time to succeed, it will also be a big problem. trouble.

If he goes to war and returns with a great victory, the monarch will not be able to reward him. The prince is already the crown prince of the country. If he goes one step further, wouldn't he be the king of the country? And if you return without success, you will be blamed by the monarch and despised by the countrymen, and you will suffer disaster from now on.

This is the origin of "whether a king's heir is suitable or not a commander". After the Spring and Autumn Period, it was also followed by the Seven Kingdoms.

If you know this and still force your prince to lead the army to go to war, you are either an old and confused king, or you are learning.

Duke Xiang of Jin sent a signal to the outside world: "I want to abolish the elder and establish the younger!"

Prince Shen of King Wei Hui is the most typical example. He once led the army as the prince, but was defeated in the Battle of Maling and captured by Qi Sunbin. Although he was later redeemed by Wei, due to this defeat, Prince Shen lost the opportunity to inherit, and instead allowed his younger brother to take the throne.

But Li Si shook his head.

"Everything is just speculation. Even my father can't understand what His Majesty's intentions are."

Han Fei once said that Tao is invisible and can only be used by the unknowable. This means that the most important thing for a king is that his heart cannot be seen through by his ministers, and his intentions cannot be guessed by his ministers.

Qin Shihuang was an emperor who paid great attention to power and power. Although he had a clear distinction between love and hate, whenever something happened, he would not express his position first and let the officials discuss and observe their attitudes. On key issues, such as the position of crown prince, he will not reveal his true feelings to anyone!

Although in Li You's view, Fusu's being sent as a general from afar was a sign that he had completely lost favor, but looking at it conversely, wasn't this the emperor's emphasis on Fusu and his test?

Li Si got to the point: "Fusu is only a young master, not a prince. The rules of whether a king's heir can be a commander or not does not apply to him."

With the veteran general Yang Duanhe as his assistant and the Jiaodong defender Heifu as the logistics, they used 30,000 people to force North Korea to pay tribute, and then wiped out a small city-state. It seemed easy and not very dangerous. It was simply a gift to Fusu. of credit. As long as the emperor is willing, he can use this as a ladder to support Fusu as the prince.

But it is also possible that the emperor wanted to keep Fusu far away and make him never return. After the battle, he issued another edict to let Fusu guard the border areas and not be able to return to Xianyang...

King Wuling of Zhao once did this. He asked Prince Zhao Zhang to lead an army to attack the Zhongshan Kingdom. After he dismissed the troops and returned to the country, in the name of meritorious service, he made Prince Zhang the Daijun and rushed to the remote Daijun to vacate the crown prince's position. He made his youngest son the crown prince.

So in the final analysis, is this a prelude to Qin Shihuang's desire to imitate Duke Xian of Jin and King Wuling of Zhao, abolishing the elders and establishing younger ones? Or did he deliberately give Fusu an opportunity to punish treason and accumulate fame for himself? Even with Li Si's intelligence, he is still not sure.

"No matter what, father, my family must make plans in advance..."

But Li Si shook his head: "You should do your job well as a county guard, and you must not interfere with the fight for the reserve!"

It would be embarrassing if you guessed the emperor's intention wrongly and jumped out early, only to find that the result was exactly the opposite.

Although he decided that the Li family would never be involved in the fight for the crown prince, Li Si couldn't help but sigh with emotion when he stood in front of the empty prime minister's palace gate after sending his son off.

He recalled the lively scene on his seventieth birthday.

He held a banquet at home, and all the civil and military officials came to toast and congratulate him. There were thousands of carriages and horses in front of the door. Qin Shihuang also issued an edict to encourage him. All the men of Li Si were married to Qin princesses, and his daughters were all married to the Qin clan. This kind of trust And glory, civil and military officials, who can compare with him?

That day was the peak of Li Si's career. Now that the prosperity is gone, the scene of that day is still vivid in his mind.

Li Si couldn't help sighing: "Xun Qing once told me that the ban on things was very popular. I, Li Si, was originally a commoner in Shangcai, a commoner in the streets, but your Majesty promoted me to such a high status. Nowadays, people There is no one above Li Si in the position of minister, and it can be said that he is extremely wealthy and glorious."

"However, things decline at their extremes. When things develop past their extremes, they will begin to decline... Now I don't know how many years your Majesty has left to live. His position as crown prince is vacant, and the emperor's heart is unpredictable. I don't know where he will end up in the future! "

One emperor and one courtier, this is a simple truth. Li Si knew that he seemed to be inferior to one person and superior to ten thousand people, but all the power, wealth and honor were given by the emperor.

If you can give, you can take! In the Qin Dynasty where monarchy was supreme, this was just a matter of a word from the emperor!

Once the mountain collapses and the second emperor ascends the throne, will he, Li Si, be like Wen Zhong? Or will he be expelled like Zhang Yi and Gan Mao? Or, like Qi Tianying, can he continue to dominate the government? It's really unknown.

The more unpredictable and unclear it is, the more confused and frightened it becomes. This has become the biggest inner demon of Li Si, the right prime minister of the empire!

The old Li Si looked up to the sky and asked secretly.

"If such a day comes, how will my power and the Li family's wealth be continued?"

…

In March, the news that Fu Su was the general and was attacking Canghaijun brought great shock to Xianyang and then spread along Chidao to Jiaodong County on the seaside.

In Heifu's mansion, after Heifu received the letter from Ye Teng, Heifu and his wife were chatting about the matter, and made an analysis similar to that of Li Si and his son.

"What is your majesty's intention? I really don't understand a woman like this."

Even though Ye Zijin was smart, she was still shocked by the emperor's decision to appoint Fusu as the general and Heifu as the supervisor of the army.

But Hei Fu held up his palms and smiled: "But I understand."