My son, Fusu, please abdicate the first emperor!

Chapter 740: Your Majesty is wise and the Chief Justice has a good opinion.

April, spring of the second year of the reign of Qin II.

After Qin and Baiyue formally signed a ceasefire agreement, Baiyue congratulated Qin II on his ascension to the throne. Subsequently, the Qin army that had originally remained in the Guangdong and Guangxi areas gradually withdrew.

From now on, the Guangdong and Guangxi regions would be the place where the princes and kings of Guangdong could run wild.

From then on, the central government no longer spared the energy to help Feng Guoguang resist the barbarians, and the last remaining military force was completely withdrawn.

From then on, Ren Xiong had to face the powerful Jin State in the north and the Baiyue tribe in the east alone.

In such a tiny country, Ren Xiong should have been trembling with fear and tried his best to maintain good relations with the central government to avoid being destroyed by any party.

On the one hand, the Baiyue people wanted to take back their original homeland, while on the other hand, the State of Jin had the largest population and land besides the Qin State.

However, the clever Prince Guang, upon hearing that the court was in an uproar about abolishing the system of military merit and titles, hurriedly sent his confidant to write a memorial to Qin II after the emperor withdrew the central military forces.

The gist of the memorial was that he was very grateful to His Majesty the Emperor for rewarding him with the title of a prince, and he was extremely grateful for it.

But now he had a small request. Ren Xiong said that he would not interfere with whether His Majesty the Emperor would abolish the military merit system, but he hoped that His Majesty the Emperor would allow him to use the military merit system in his fiefdom to recruit soldiers and horses to resist the powerful Jin State and the Baiyue people who missed their homeland.

"What do you think?" The Second Emperor chose to ask this question in the court, which showed that he did not care much about Ren Xiong, or that he did not care at all about the Guangdong and Guangxi regions that he had fought so hard for.

The ministers guessed the emperor's intention, pushed the issue forward among themselves, and finally asked Meng Tian to come out and answer.

Meng Tian's face darkened. "Your Majesty, I think this Prince Guang obviously doesn't take you seriously. Your Majesty just promised the Baiyue people that the Qin Dynasty would no longer attack the Baiyue. But Prince Guang turned around and asked Your Majesty to allow him to implement the military merit system in his fiefdom."

"Isn't this trying to snatch your people from your Majesty, deliberately provoking a war, and even destroying your Majesty's credibility? If the Baiyue people knew that your Majesty knew and agreed to this, would they still choose to make peace with our Qin State?"

All the ministers seconded the motion, "Your Majesty, please make your decision."

Fusu thought about it and decided that this matter should indeed be rejected.

Ren Xiong is a brainless man. Doesn't he know that his words and actions will cause an uproar in the world?

If I agree to his request, the Jin State will vigorously promote the military merit system in Chu one day.

The war that had just ended was brought up again.

Anyone who interferes with my peaceful development will be punished by death!
However, the young Qin II thought about it and decided that he definitely could not agree to this matter, but he could not let him personally reject Ren Xiong.

Fusu sat on the high imperial throne, looking at the dukes and ministers below the stage.

Their beards began to turn gray.

Of course, he also noticed that Zhang Cang's face was flushed red, and it seemed that he was about to lose his temper again, no, he wanted to make some shocking remarks.

"Then I'll have to trouble the two prime ministers to reply."

Feng Quji and Wang Wan raised their heads at the same time. They had lived their entire lives and were about to be buried, but this was the first time they had encountered such a thing.

"Your Majesty, this..."

"Prince Guang is only forty years old. He was once a general who participated in the South Vietnam War and made great contributions. Logically, he should be granted the title of Marquis in my Great Qin. I am young and lack talent and virtue. I am afraid that if I issue an imperial edict, he will not obey it and instead feel resentful towards me."

"Moreover, if the princes of the world saw that I had issued an edict not to allow it, they would probably criticize me."

After hearing this, Feng Quji said, one eye is big and the other is small.

What? The emperor actually knew what the princes thought of him.

What? The emperor actually said something like "morality is low and talent is low"?

For some reason, Feng Quji felt that today's event made his heart surge.

After hearing these words, Wang Wan couldn't help but wipe the sweat off his forehead.

They say Fusu and Qin Shihuang have completely different ways of governing, but aren't the results the same?

Use the prestige of these old ministers to clean up his mess.

Moreover, the Second Emperor was too immoral to let them do such an offensive thing.

If one wants to be the first emperor, he should take full responsibility for his own actions, and he would never push such matters to his ministers.

It's just that the honorable Emperor Qin Shi Huang was more concerned about his own face. When he made ridiculous and stupid mistakes, professionals would stand up and take the blame for the bad debts on themselves to save his face.

Although you didn't save much in the end, after all, you were originally a naked monkey, and even if you put on a dragon robe, you would still be naked.

Wang Wan thought that those meritorious officials and princes would probably scold him soon.

"Yes." While Feng Quji was still in shock, Wang Wan had already agreed.

Feng Quji was like an ice cube that had just been fished out of the cellar in spring, except that his heart was damaged.

"only."

Fusu looked at Feng Quji and Wang Wan and said with a smile, "Thank you, Prime Ministers."

Wang Wan could only force himself to suppress his nausea and replied with a smile, "It is my duty to share your majesty's worries."

Feng Quji was speechless.

Feng Jie's mouth unconsciously opened into the shape of a shoe sole.

The other ministers were also quietly looking at Fusu from the audience. Alas, they finally discovered that their emperor was an old scoundrel.

Zhang Cang had long seen through Fusu's true colors and was not surprised at all.

It's just that he has something important to say.

"Your Majesty, I think it is not enough to just ask the two prime ministers to reject this matter. To deal with Prince Guang, you must send an imperial censor to give him a good lecture on his behavior."

"It shouldn't be that serious, right?"

Fusu didn't want his fans to quit being his fans in the first place, and now he puts the blame on the two prime ministers and even sends people to scold them. Isn't this like slapping himself on the left cheek with his left hand?

Zhang Cang shrugged excitedly when he heard this, "Your Majesty, when you first appointed Ren Xiong as the Prince of Guang, I was strongly against it."

The ministers all looked at Zhang Cang.

I have to say that Zhang Cang is still brave, although not brave enough.

"The Book of Changes says that if virtue does not match one's position, there will be disaster. If virtue is weak but one holds a high position, wisdom is small but one plans big, strength is small but one is responsible for a heavy task, then one will rarely fail.

"If a person's own virtues cannot match his position and the wealth he has gained, it is easy to cause disaster. If a person's virtues are shallow and his position is too high, if he lacks wisdom but has big plans, if he lacks ability but has heavy responsibilities, he will rarely be able to accomplish anything."

"Ren Xiong, he can't even recognize a few words, and the memorials he submitted to you were not even written in the official document format. Your Majesty is determined to abolish the military merit system, and he actually asked Your Majesty whether the military merit system can be implemented in the country."

"The vassal states today are probably different from the vassal states in the past. No matter what, they still have to listen to the central government. This is the significance of your majesty's establishment of the Guanzhong-based system."

"But Prince Guang has no sense of responsibility. When Your Majesty wants you to go left, he insists on going right. Isn't this clearly making things difficult for Your Majesty?"

Under the tassels, Fusu couldn't help but widen his pupils.

His body leaned forward slightly.

Although Fusu knew that Ren Xiong was just a local general with little education, his goal was to become a local emperor, with a harem, countless soldiers and people.

He had no intention of offending himself, he was just foolishly asking himself if it was okay. As the emperor, facing a son who was not smart but had no bad intentions, Fusu of course chose to forgive him.

But after hearing what Zhang Cang said, Fusu couldn't help but feel angry in his chest.

It has to be said that writers are good at stirring up emotions.

Meng Tian replied, "Your Majesty, General Ren Xiao fought with you and made countless contributions in the war against the State of Chu."

Because Fusu retreated midway during the war against the State of Chu, the subsequent finishing work was basically left to Meng Tian, ​​Ren Xiong and others.

It was also at that time that Zhao Tuo missed a good opportunity for promotion and had to participate in the Nanyue Campaign. It turned out that the so-called Nanyue Campaign was just a scam by Qin Shihuang to make them all surrender.

"Your Majesty knows Ren Xiong well. Ren Xiong's actions were definitely unintentional. If Your Majesty sends an imperial censor to admonish him with great fanfare, it will probably lead to a big mess."

"No matter what, Ren Xiong is now a local lord. Our Great Qin should also treat lords like Ren Xiong with courtesy, instead of judging him based on how much he has read."

"Ren Xiong is already a local lord, how can we still treat him as an ordinary subject?"

Zhang Cang's heart began to beat when he heard this. He wondered if what he had just said was a bit too much.

In fact, what Zhang Cang said was more than an exaggeration.

It was obvious that he looked down upon a man like Ren Xiong being a prince. Of course, Zhang Cang was not jealous, but he just felt it was ridiculous for a man like Ren Xiong to be a prince. If such a man was a prince, could the people of the princely state be happy?

Fusu's gaze moved back and forth among the ministers in the hall. The ministers were not completely convinced by Meng Tian's words. Instead, they felt more attuned to Zhang Cang's words.

Just because Zhang Cang is not jealous doesn’t mean that others are not jealous.

In the past, Ren Xiong was considered a fool by everyone. He was born into a commoner family and became a general by killing people.

In the end, he actually became a prince.

These elegant scholars who are usually full of knowledge, as well as the wealthy princes who are both civil and military, naturally felt dissatisfied.

As for Meng Tian's words about putting the overall situation first, they just thought Meng Tian was hypocritical.

So the ministers began to whisper to each other again.

When in doubt, they would whisper to each other. This was also the iron rule of the Qin Dynasty.

"Tingwei, what do you think?"

Fusu's gaze finally fell on Xiao He.

He was too low-key. I invited him back from Pei County, but this gentle man who didn't like arguments chose to stand idly by when facing the struggle between me and my father. Or, he was at a loss when faced with such a thing.

Fusu had always wanted to know whether Prime Minister Xiao, who laid the foundation of the Han Dynasty, was worth it for him to risk giving up the battlefield of Chu and driving thousands of miles to a small place like Pei County to invite him?
They all claimed that they were looking for someone because of a dream. King Wu Ding of Shang Dynasty created a legend of a pair of wise kings and virtuous ministers. Don't let them make a fool of themselves here.

There are so many people in Pei County, including the arrogant second daughter of a landlord, Lu Zhi, the heroic Liu Ji, and the Qin Dynasty's chariot god, Xiahou Ying, but they are no match for Xiao He.

The emperor's words fell on the ground, and every minister turned and looked at Xiao He.

There were many people who were jealous of Xiao He. It was said that he was the one who decisively gave up the crown prince when the emperor and the emperor were fighting for power, which led to the ministers in the court almost turning against him and turning to Qin Shihuang.

Everyone believed that beneath Xiao He's calm and honest appearance, he had a heart that was wavering and opportunistic.

It doesn't matter whether the story is true or not, as long as the story spreads in line with everyone's wishes, everyone will be satisfied. The truth is not important.

However, there were also many people who admired Xiao He, because since he became the Minister of Justice, the powerful people in Xianyang City should no longer easily submit cases to the Minister of Justice.

All eyes were focused behind Xiao He.

Feng Quji fell into deep thought, thinking that he had to implement the policy slowly. Even if he wanted to reform, he had to do it slowly and avoid drastic changes. He also had to find an opportunity to talk to the emperor about these things in detail.

There is also the issue of the crown prince. At the beginning, the Feng family was too tough and forced the emperor to appoint a crown prince, which made the emperor unhappy.

It is time for him to bend down his self-righteous back and personally tell His Majesty the Emperor the pros and cons of this matter.

At worst, he can just retire from the stage.

Feng Quji was so busy speculating about these things that he had no time to care about the successor backbone of the Qin Dynasty.

Wang Wan was very optimistic about Xiao He. After his last visit, he had a very favorable impression of Xiao He. His disciples and even vassal officials also followed suit and showed great respect to the Chief Justice Xiao He.

Wang Wan believed that Xiao He's future achievements would probably be greater than his own.

So Wang Wan chose to listen carefully.

Wei Liao looked at Feng Quji worriedly. He lived in the palace and heard a lot of rumors. Now the situation of Empress Feng and the eldest prince was very bad, and he didn't know how the emperor would choose to deal with it.

If the successor issue could be handled properly, the second emperor's throne would be more secure. After all, the way Qin II succeeded to the throne was difficult to comment on for those who knew the inside story.

Since ancient times, China has been a country that attaches great importance to filial piety.

The reason why Shun was favored by Yao was because he chose not to retaliate against his father's indifference and the persecution of his stepmother and stepbrother, and therefore he was recommended.

Being able to achieve this level and being elected as the representative of filial piety by everyone shows the trend of the world.

Even in an era of ritual collapse and music decay, being unfilial would still be considered a serious sin. Especially considering what Qin II was going to do in the future, to spread culture and education, he could no longer put aside the matter of appointing a crown prince, otherwise the people would feel that the emperor was not trustworthy.

No matter what, the emperor must never procrastinate, as that would allow disaster to grow in the dark.

Judging from Feng Quji's appearance, he should have known some news.

Each minister has his own concerns, and each is responsible for a certain link or module in the operation of the Qin Empire, so that this state machine can operate conscientiously and orderly.
-
Getting back to the topic, Fusu asked Xiao He what he thought.

Xiao He was in a dilemma, he felt that both sides had their reasons. But Xiao He was not stupid, he knew that if he said such words, the tiger and wolf officials of the Qin Empire would collectively laugh at him.

Xiao He was sweating profusely because of this dilemma. But he couldn't wipe it off and could only let the sweat flow down his forehead.

"Your Majesty, if I were facing this matter, I would choose to forgive Ren Xiong's mistake this time. I ask Your Majesty to write a letter to Ren Xiong personally to tell him the benefits and disadvantages of this matter to the world."

"In my opinion, criticizing a prince of a vassal state will inevitably make him angry and ashamed. And if we just reject it lightly, I am afraid that Prince Guang will make the same mistake again next time."

"Of all the difficulties in the world, only sincerity can solve them."

All the ministers were silent.

Feng Quji, who was originally daydreaming, couldn't help but listen carefully after hearing it.

On the throne, the young Qin II finally smiled.

"Well, well, the most difficult thing in the world can only be solved with sincerity."

"I will follow your advice today. However, since you came up with this plan, you will handle it and write the letter."

"As a great imperial court official, writing letters to advise the princes, this is not considered to be disrespecting the princes, right?"

All the ministers bowed their heads and praised, "Your Majesty is wise, and the court judge has a good opinion."

PS:

[I didn’t manage to leave before because I had some conflicts with my next-door neighbor and didn’t sleep well that night.

This time I am determined to go home and stop writing novels to concentrate on the civil service exam. Life is difficult and I have no choice but to do this. Wish me all the best!
I am grateful for this year's experience of writing books and spreading correct knowledge and views, which I find very meaningful. 】

(End of this chapter)