My son, Fusu, please abdicate the first emperor!

Chapter 656 Li Si: I'm afraid that's the case
Kong Yu, a direct descendant of Confucius, was a representative figure of Confucianism in the early Qin Dynasty.

He became the first choice to advise everyone on this historical event.

Speaking of which, when Kong Yu followed Fusu from Linzi City to Xianyang City, all the Confucian scholars in Xianyang City gathered in a row at the west gate of Xianyang City.

This is all to welcome Kong Yu.

Confucius is dead, but his writings and thoughts are like a light in the darkness, illuminating the life path of many young people in troubled times.

Because Kong Yu was a descendant of Confucius, he was welcomed with great ceremony.

That day, when Kong Yu's disciple Shusun Tong saw all the Confucian scholars standing on both sides of the wide street in Xianyang City to respectfully welcome Kong Yu, he was extremely envious.

He hopes that he can become such a person one day.

However, Kong Yu did not like the person who greeted him.

At first, he looked unhappy when he was greeted by the crowd, because many of these Confucian scholars had abandoned their declining home countries and came to Qin for money and status.

How could Kong Yu have such an affair with these people?

Moreover, Kong Yu was familiar with the Book of Changes and believed that those who actively sought official positions were actually blindly following others because they lacked talent and confidence. In fact, if you plant a good phoenix tree, the phoenix will come to roost.

If a person truly masters the laws governing the operation of heaven and earth and understands the Tao, then he will naturally be known by people, will naturally be recommended to the king, and will naturally be reused.

So in Kong Yu's eyes, the people who came to greet him were actually just a bunch of scum who were just putting on a show.

You know what, Kong Yu was aloof and arrogant, but he was right. It was actually the Confucian scholars represented by Zhou Qingchen who encouraged the Confucian scholars to welcome Kong Yu.

These people usually gathered around Ying Zheng and did only one thing - singing praises for him.

Ying Zheng's arrogance was closely related to those dozen doctors.

If the emperor of a country was praised by a few rural folks, the First Emperor might not be happy about it. But if these people were all famous "virtuous and capable", then in the eyes of Qin Shi Huang, these compliments would not be fictitious.

He really believes whatever others praise him for.

The emperor's new clothes were put on Ying Zheng by these dozen people together with Zhao Gao and Li Si.

Now that Zhao Gao had been beheaded, there were hundreds of people who had connections with Zhao Gao and secretly transferred money to him, and these Confucian scholars were an important part of them.

Now that so many things have happened in the Qin Empire, the entire country has become a machine serving Ying Zheng; the ruling group is completely out of touch with reality and the grassroots masses, and has embarked on a path of extravagance and luxury.

These Confucian scholars have made great contributions!

At that time, Zhou Qingchen came to greet Kong Yu, not entirely for Kong Yu, but mainly to flatter Lord Hengyang.

The person was invited by the prince, and he came to greet him, which was just to show his support to the prince.

But Kong Yu's face was very ugly. After all, Zhou Qingchen was a doctor who had been conferred a title. Not only did he have a very high status, but he also held a position in the court. Because he could make Ying Zheng happy, Ying Zheng allowed him to enter the court to discuss politics.

Kong Yu's face looked grim, which made Shusun Tong sweat.

He kept giving Zhou Qingchen ways out so that his face wouldn't turn from blue to pale.

However, Kong Yu was still impolite to Zhou Qingchen, so Zhou Qingchen reported the matter to Ying Zheng when he returned.

Zhou Qingchen said to Ying Zheng, "Kong Yu is an arrogant person. If you summon him, he will probably scold you."

Ying Zheng was conceited at that time, so he naturally didn't believe it.

As a result, Ying Zheng did meet Kong Yu, but after Kong Yu arrived, he asked Ying Zheng, "Your Majesty, how do you plan to govern the world?"

Ying Zheng thought Kong Yu would contradict him, but he actually came to question him.

Kong Yu's action indeed confirmed what Zhou Qingchen said in front of Ying Zheng, and Ying Zheng believed that Kong Yu was arrogant.

Moreover, Ying Zheng had become the emperor, and his goal was to make everyone obey him rather than for himself to obey others.

So Kong Yu was put aside by Ying Zheng.

When Ying Zheng handled government affairs, he would ask Zhou Qingchen whether these matters were in accordance with etiquette and law, instead of asking people like Kong Yu and Chunyu Yue.

Because as long as they are asked, they will definitely say they are against it and will definitely teach Ying Zheng how to do things.

So today's situation is the retribution for Ying Zheng's long-term exclusion of loyal and upright people.

Sima Wuyi, together with many palace historians such as Hu Wujing, came to pay a visit to Kong Yu.

In the Carp Pavilion of the Imperial College, seven historians came together to Kong Yu.

With the killing of Zhao Gao and the implicated Qin people, the historians also got the opportunity to restore order.

They have long been fed up with the days of evil and treacherous people in power.

If you say nice things, lies, or empty words, you can get promoted and get rich; but if you say the truth, unpleasant words, or useful words, you will be ignored.

Once this kind of trend starts in the court, will those historians who write truthfully have any way to survive?

As for the childish act of appointing a tree as one of the Five Great Officials, Ying Zheng specifically asked them to record it in the book. As for the experience of sneaking out of the palace at night regardless of danger, he had actually been caught many times, but it was not allowed to be recorded in the book.

Now, these historians are seizing the opportunity and want to take advantage of this opportunity to do something practical.

When the sky is darkest, the rosy fingers of dawn will reach down to the earth.

Everyone gathered around Kong Yu and asked him a question directly.

"As the crown prince, you ignored your majesty's objections and personally killed the imperial servant appointed by your majesty. Is this in accordance with the moral principles of father-son relations?"

Kong Yu immediately said, "The prince is upright, Zhao Gao is a traitor, and your majesty has been harboring and nurturing the traitor for many days, and has been stubborn and refusing to change his ways. The prince is a son, but he killed his father's ministers, which is to uphold justice and to follow the right path. Your majesty is a father, but he condoned the traitor and lost his way."

"Those who are righteous will have many supporters; those who are unrighteous will have few supporters. This is the root of the support that the Crown Prince has received from his subjects today."

This is why, although Fusu did little, he received a lot of support; while Ying Zheng did some big things and countless small things, but lost a lot of people's hearts.

In a sense, without Ying Zheng's strong and extensive interference in people's livelihood, it would be impossible to attract the favor of his subjects and the people towards Fusu.

In other words, Ying Zheng is now building momentum for Fusu in disguise.

It was just like in Fusu's memory that in history, Ying Zheng inexplicably built up momentum for Liu Bang, making everyone know that an emperor would emerge in the southeast and asking people to follow him.

Let’s get back to the topic.

Kong Yu's comments are concise and clear.

All seven historians nodded.

Sima Wuyi, Hu Wujing and others all breathed a sigh of relief.

With Kong Yu's words, the talented people in the world would not blame them for how they wrote next, and they would also have confidence in how to record these things in history.

I have a general idea of ​​what should be written and what should not be written.

Next, the seven people asked Kong Yu some more questions.

When Kong Yu saw that these people were polite and docile, he knew that they were all gentlemen of integrity, so he entertained them warmly.

They came in the morning, and Kong Yu kept them until noon.

The news soon reached the Zhangtai Palace.

Ying Zheng, who had lost his queen, had now lost the respect of his son. The guards around him pretended to be respectful but actually had ulterior motives. Ying Zheng sat in the Zhangtai Palace. This winter was extremely cold for him.

However, according to history, Ying Zheng died at the age of fifty, but he ruled the Qin State for thirty-nine years.

Now Ying Zheng has been in power for thirty-two years.

Such a long reign is second only to King Zhaoxiang in the history of Qin State.

This means that Ying Zheng’s political foundation is very solid.

Otherwise, such a big thing would not have happened, but the news from the Imperial College still reached his ears.

Zhao Gao was a treacherous minister, but even without Zhao Gao, there were still Zhao San and Zhao Wu.

Ying Zheng was still able to quickly get news from those villains who had offended loyal ministers on a daily basis.

To be honest, villains are more popular with the emperor than gentlemen in political occasions. This is because villains don't care about benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness. In certain special political occasions, they will not consider the interests of the country and the family.

They only believed in one thing: whoever treats me well, I will treat him well. If Ying Zheng treats them well, they will obey his orders completely and unconditionally.

So no matter who comes, no one can solve this problem.

With 32 years of governing experience and accumulation, Ying Zheng immediately summoned Li Si and Zhou Qingchen.

Now Ying Zheng doesn’t dare to trust other people rashly.

He wants to take back his authority and power.

This requires a brief period of tolerance towards Fusu, or even a show of weakness.

Ying Zheng's expression remained the same as usual, and it was difficult for outsiders to guess what his mentality was at the moment.

The only people Ying Zheng could trust were Li Si and Zhou Qingchen. Because they had offended too many people, if he lost his power, these people would surely be strangled by others.

Ying Zheng's political ability is definitely very high. It's just a pity that the shadow of his childhood is always hidden deep in his heart. He seems to hate the lower class and would rather peel off a layer of skin from the lower class than let them live a good day.

Li Si, Zhou Qingchen, and Yao Jia were so anxious that they stamped their feet at home.

Now the news that the crown prince had killed Zhao Gao has spread to Xianyang, and it won't be long before it spreads to the rest of the country. Once the crown prince takes the throne, they will certainly be killed by someone like the crown prince.

So as soon as Ying Zheng called them, these three people came immediately.

Ying Zheng didn't waste any words. He closed the door, sent the servants away, and got straight to the point:

"I heard that Kong Yu said that I had lost my moral integrity for many years, and that the Crown Prince was actually doing the right thing by killing Zhao Gao. Therefore, everyone in the world would praise the Crown Prince when they heard this. Is that right?"

The careful Li Si discovered that Ying Zheng did not bring his long sword today...

After experiencing the embarrassment that day, Ying Zheng was not only ashamed and angry, but also very angry. How could he continue to wear his sword?

So Ying Zheng simply stopped carrying a sword.

This master of the political field knows too well that showing weakness to the enemy is the best way to protect oneself.

So Ying Zheng began to pretend that he listened to the advice and planned some big things.

Faced with Ying Zheng's questions, Yao Jia and Zhou Qingchen just stared at each other, not daring to speak.

Li Si is old, but he is in good health and spirit.

Even after hearing about such a big thing, I didn't panic.

"I'm afraid so."

Li Si's stern voice collided with the air in the Zhangtai Hall, and the charcoal in the copper furnace made a hissing sound as the hot fire evaporated water vapor.

The hearts of Yao Jia and Zhou Qingchen were like water poured into Yanbei in winter, freezing quickly.

The two began to tremble.

"Your Majesty is the king after all, and the prince is the minister after all. If the prince does anything to your majesty, the whole world will blame him. Because in this world, a father is always a father, and a son can only be a son."

"Heaven, Earth, Sovereign, Parents, and Teachers. No matter how hard the prince tries, he cannot avoid these ethics."

"Your Majesty, don't worry. Today, Kong Yu spoke up for the prince. If the prince does something outrageous in the future, Kong Yu will also criticize him."

Li Si bowed to Ying Zheng and said, "Kong Yu is different from the ministers. Kong Yu is not loyal to people, but only to morality. It seems that they are all supporting the prince today, but in fact they are only supporting their own morality."

"The prince has gained nothing. Your Majesty will not lose anything either. Please rest assured, Your Majesty."

After listening to Li Si's words, Ying Zheng immediately put his mind at ease again.

"good."

[The word "shan" here does not mean good. It means that what is said is right. The meaning of "shan" in ancient Chinese originally meant reasonable.]

Ying Zheng relaxed.

"It won't be long before word spreads to the army that the crown prince has killed Zhao Gao. What should I do then?"

Li Si said to Ying Zheng, "Your Majesty, why are you worried? The prince is sharing your worries, so why are you worried?"

Ying Zheng was puzzled and cast a doubtful look at Li Si.

Ying Zheng was like a seriously injured dragon. He now crossed his legs, feeling sleepy and uneasy, and quietly recuperated in his palace.

Well... at this moment, he was very much like the beauties he had captured from all over the place, at a loss as to what to do.

Li Si looked at Ying Zheng and said to him, "Your Majesty, please restore the posthumous title system."

Ying Zheng shook his head, "I will not take back my order."

"Then the ministers will probably instigate the Crown Prince. I wonder if in your Majesty's mind, the Crown Prince is a filial child?"

When Ying Zheng heard this question, his hands and feet went numb.

At this time, Zhou Qingchen stood up and said, "Your Majesty, you should take the crown prince with you on your eastern tour; you should let the crown prince attack Nanyue; you should let the crown prince supervise the construction of the highway; you should let the crown prince be responsible for recruiting civilians."

"As the saying goes, one does not gain wisdom without experience. The prince is still too young to understand the profound meaning of what you, Your Majesty, have done. If you let the prince do these things, it won't be long before people all over the world stop praising him."

"And the Crown Prince will also understand how difficult it is to govern such a vast country. Only your way, Your Majesty, can suppress those local tyrants and intimidate those villains far away."

As soon as Zhou Qingchen opened his mouth, the viciousness of his scheme made Yao Jia feel numb behind his back.

This is asking Your Majesty to drag the Crown Prince into the water as well.

When Ying Zheng heard this, he suddenly felt a pain in his heart.

No matter whether he once claimed to be the Ancestral Dragon or he really was the Ancestral Dragon.

Coming to this world of unreasonable rules and flaws, Ying Zheng is just a human being.

He dealt with his own son personally and pushed him into a desperate situation.

This is an extremely difficult thing for every father.

This requires him to lose his humanity and conscience.

So would Ying Zheng agree to do this?
(End of this chapter)