Qin Shihuang stroked his beard and said: "This word is quite novel."
Heifu's summary is indeed good. For more than a hundred years, Qin has been implementing a dual-track system of prefectures and counties and feudal lords.
Yes, Shang Yang advocated centralization, but he himself was a beneficiary of the monarchy system. After Shang Yang, King Hui of Qin and King Zhao successively named Chuili Ji as Yanjun and Wei Ran as Ranghou.
Great princes who had actual fiefdoms. The fiefdoms of these princes were intertwined with counties and counties. It was not unreasonable to call it "one country, two systems".
However, Qin Shihuang was a little disgusted with this kind of "one country, two systems" because at the beginning of his succession, the Qin State seemed to have a tendency of feudalism overtaking the counties:
Lu Buwei, the Marquis of Wenxin, had a settlement of 100,000 households in Luoyang, Henan Province. He also had ten cities in Hejian as his fiefdom, and was extremely powerful. Even Lao Ai was included in the Marquis of Changxin, and he had Shanyang City as a settlement, and Hexi
, Taiyuan is Fengtian...
At that time, within the four borders of the Qin State, everyone from the court ministers to the local officials said: "Is it the Lao family? Is it the Lu family?" But they didn't know that there was a King of Qin!
The palace was defiled and the national laws were destroyed. If the Qinian Palace Revolution had not wiped out the Lao Ai rebellion in one fell swoop and exiled Lu Buwei, the state of Qin would have been overturned. How would there be a chance to unify the country?
In addition, what Heifu said did not sound much different from what Prime Minister Wang Wan advocated.
Wang Wan and others did not dare to advocate a comprehensive enfeoffment like the Zhou Dynasty, but set the enfeoffment sites in the three newly conquered lands of Yan, Qi, and Chu. Because the three places were not only far away from Qin, but also had very different cultures.
Qin itself and the three Jin Dynasties still maintained counties.
Therefore, in the emperor's view, what Heifu said was just the same old tune and had no new ideas. Fortunately, Heifu's next words made the emperor be patient again and did not drive him out.
"I have never set foot in the Central Plains and Yan, the hometown of Qi. I dare not speak nonsense. I can only talk about what I saw and heard in the Chu land and Yuzhang in the south of the Yangtze River."
"In Hengshan, Huaibei, Huainan and other places, according to what I have seen, although there are many wealthy people and scholars in the countryside, and the industry and commerce are more prosperous than in Guanzhong, the system of counties and villages is not much different from that in Qin. In addition, the household registration in these places
If there are too many princes, not only will a lot of taxes be reduced in vain, but in a hundred years, as the Tingwei said, it will become an unstoppable trend. Therefore, I believe that any place where the people can be organized into households should be counties and counties rather than enfeoffed!"
This statement was different from Wang Wan's. Qin Shihuang became a little interested: "Go on."
Heifu said: "However, Yuzhang and Cangwu are different, especially Shanggan at the southernmost end of Yuzhang..."
He apologized, asked for some writing and ink slips from his visitor, and drew a map on them.
"Your Majesty, please see that it takes two months to travel by land from Xianyang to Nanjun or Jiujiang County; it takes at least half a month to travel by water from Jiangling or Shouchun to Nanchang; and then from Nanchang to Shanggan, there are many forests and swamps, the road is dangerous, and it takes
January... If this is the case, it will be difficult to communicate the annual plan. If something happens locally, we will have to deal with it ourselves and it will be difficult to inform the court."
"In addition to the long distances and the inability to transmit court decrees in a timely manner, Shanggan and other places are also dominated by Yue people. There is no basis for establishing households and uniforming the people, and they cannot collect taxes. Even if there are nominal counties and counties, there is no way for the people to predict them.
, there is no soil to cure it.”
"When I was in the army, I once heard Zhanghan, the Sikong of Jiujiang County, telling the story of how Uncle Han was ordered by the King of Zhou to enfeoff the Northern Territory. It was said that he was about to receive the Northern Kingdom, and because of his uncle, he not only defended the King of Zhou against the Bian people
, and also led the people to build ravines and borrow real acres, turning the originally wild borderlands into fertile farmland for the city. This may be the benefit of enfeoffment..."
"Therefore, Mr. Hei thought that instead of leaving vacant counties and counties in Shanggan, Cangwu and other places, it is better to enfeoff the princes to control them. But there is no need to enfeoff kings, just border marquises, so that they can lead the people to move and govern according to customs, which is slow.
Slowly promote education. You can also send eunuchs, lieutenants, and assistants to the border princes' territories, and they will be controlled by Jiujiang County and Changsha County. In this way, even if there are changes in the border princes a hundred years later, the court can easily deal with it..."
After Qin Shihuang heard this, he thought for a moment: "The land where the people are organized into households are made into counties and counties, and the barbarians on the border divide their children into border marquises. Is this what you call one country, two systems?"
"only!"
Unexpectedly, the emperor sneered and said: "Hei Fu, you want to use my gentlemen as border magistrates. You also wrote a letter saying that Jiangnan is hot and has the disease of water poison. The princes grew up in the north.
, with rich clothes and fine food, and suddenly entered the wilderness, I am afraid that I will get sick and die before I even get there!"
"I...I didn't consider this, it's a death penalty!"
Hei Fu bowed his head and broke out in a cold sweat, but this could not be considered as estrangement between brothers and sisters, so he gritted his teeth and said boldly: "Every word I say is out of a public heart and is based on what I have seen and heard. I hope that
Your Majesty, check it out!"
After Qin Shihuang was silent for a long time, he finally spoke again.
"You are the son of your master, and you are a relative of flesh and blood. You cannot rely on unworthy honor and unearned service, but you have already kept the weight of gold and jade... There is some truth in what you said."
He seemed to be touched, but did not comment on Heifu's advice. He just waved his hand and said, "Get off."
…
After Heifu left the inner court, it was only when he returned to the outside of the palace and breathed in the cool night air that he finally recovered.
No one saw that the clothes under his armor were already soaked all over because he was frightened by the emperor.
"Is this risky and bold suggestion worth it?"
Judging from the emperor's last soliloquy, at least he didn't make Long Yan furious.
The system of the Qin State is that the clan cannot be attributed to its place of origin without merit. Qin Shihuang has more than 20 sons. The eldest son, Fusu, is about to hold a crown ceremony, and the youngest son, Hu Hai, is also ten years old.
According to convention, they only enjoy the title of prince, with a mansion and salary. The next generation can also be called "Gongsun, Wangsun". After one generation, they will be common people.
This is also what the Confucian scholars and doctors shouted, "Your Majesty now has a large empire, but his children are just ordinary men." It was a normal thing in the Qin State, but from the perspective of Shandong, it was incredible.
The ancients said it well, but the descendants of the master must not be good? They are respected but have no merit, they are generous but no work, and they carry many heavy weapons... If they are allowed to be border marquis according to what Hei Fu said,
It can be regarded as a meritorious service to the country's border defense. Although the first and second generations will suffer more, the descendants can still enjoy wealth and honor.
He did not ask for his suggestions to be adopted. If Qin Shihuang was so easy to persuade, then he was not Qin Shihuang.
But Heifu's goal has been achieved.
"I have my own political opinions, and I am not simply copying what Li Si and Wang Wan said."
"After tonight, Your Majesty, you will deeply remember me as a person and my words!"
Looking at the crescent moon, Hei Fu showed a smile: "It can also make the emperor feel that Hei Fu is loyal to the country!"
…
"Your Majesty, the two memorials have been found..."
The visitor was ordered to find the two slips kept in the palace. According to Qin Shihuang's habit, he would immediately send the memorials and instructions to various government offices and then to counties, but some petitions would be collected after reading them.
, neither giving instructions nor refunding.
These unpublished memorials often contain secrets, which the visitors are most afraid of touching...
Qin Shihuang opened two slips while thinking about Hei Fu's advice just now.
One of them was submitted by the visitor Yang Huan after he returned from Nanchang in December. He reported everything he saw and heard along the way to Qin Shihuang in detail, especially the dissatisfied complaints of the Nanchang garrison and the black husband's presence there.
The power of an expeditionary army.
The second copy was a letter from the Jiujiang County Supervisor and Censor in February.
The book talks about the suggestion that Nanchang, Fanyang and other places in the south of the Yangtze River are far away and difficult to manage. Now that the city of Nanchang has been built and thousands of households have moved from Nanjun, a new county may be established in the south of the Yangtze River.
But at the same time, the censor responsible for supervising officials reminded the emperor that the six counties in Yuzhang were conquered by Heifu's troops. At present, except Yugan Road, which is under the jurisdiction of Qianyue Wu and his son, the rest of Nanchang
, Fanyang, Luling, Jiujiang, and Shangganxi five counties were all appointed by Heifu's old department as the order, Wei, and Cheng.
These people were recommended by Hei Fu and stayed in the Nanjun Township Party. If Yuzhang established a new county, these people would probably control the local military, political and legal power, which Qin Lu was very wary of.
Therefore, the censor proposed that Heifu's old subordinates be transferred to different counties to serve in different counties to prevent the emergence of hilltopism...
The emperor had already read these two memorials, but gave no further instructions.
Until today, after carefully examining Heifu and observing his words and actions, Qin Shihuang made a decision.
"Although Hei Fu's words failed to break out of the confinement rut (kējiu), he was able to offer Yuzhang to enfeoff the princes of Gan and Jiangxi as border princes, so we know that he had no selfish motives."
Those who have different intentions would definitely avoid the "territory" that belongs to them, but Heifu did not avoid it at all.
"This son is a loyal person to the country, and the censor is too worried."
So Qin Shihuang gave instructions in the memorial: "At the beginning of the Yuzhang in the south of the Yangtze River, the barbarians and the Yue people were uneasy, and the counties needed to be the horns of each other. Therefore, there is no need to change the positions of the officials in the five counties."
During the period of military control, this situation was inevitable because the Jiujiang County Supervisor and Censor was too sensitive.
In Qin Shihuang's plan, in the next few years, he will have a bigger plan to implement in Limen, south of Jiuyi. By then, the soldiers of the southern expedition will be of great use, how can they cut off Qiancheng early?
Moreover……
"In the past hundred years, I heard that Qin had rebellious border princes and feudal lords, but how could there ever be any rebellious Qin officials in counties?"
…
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