I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 98 Zhang Liang, are you willing or not?
As soon as Zhang Liang said this, Meng Tian's brows furrowed tightly.

He didn't expect that Zhang Liang, who was caring for others in the tutoring class, would be so disrespectful and even hostile to His Majesty when he was in his twenties in real life.

Although Meng Tian wanted to attack Zhang Liang now, he knew more clearly how much the emperor valued him now. Even if the emperor's wishes were not taken into account, Meng Tian would not attack him casually just based on the suggestion Zhang Liang made before leaving the get out of class.

So, after a moment of silence, Meng Tian said coldly:

"Zhang Liang, be more respectful with your words. This general's sword is not just for show."

"Your Majesty, everything you said is true. I have indeed seen you in your forties, and you have indeed made some very good suggestions, which is why you are meeting us today."

"This general has been guarding the border for many years and only returns to Xianyang for one month every year. If I didn't know you were useful, would I have come to see you out of boredom?"

His words completely confused Zhang Liang.

Zhang Liang thought about it over and over again, but he really couldn't figure out what kind of trick these three people were performing.

After a while, Zhang Liang also looked unhappy and frowned:
"Then you should explain clearly what is going on!"

Meng Tian looked at the emperor's expression and saw that the emperor nodded slightly to him. After thinking for a while, he slowly spoke.

According to him, an immortal guided His Majesty into a dream, in which he met many emperors and generals of later generations, as well as Zhang Liang, the strategist and one of the three great heroes of the early Han Dynasty. In that dream, Zhang Liang was in his forties, had already avenged his great hatred, and was very calm. Even when facing the First Emperor, he was able to remain neither humble nor arrogant, neither happy nor angry, and he even put forward more alternative suggestions when everyone was discussing national policies.

When Zhang Liang heard the idea proposed by "himself", he couldn't help but be shocked.

He did feel that this method was something he could come up with, but he could not believe that he would be willing to tell Ying Zheng about this kind of thing 20 years later.

What exactly went wrong here???
After listening to Meng Tian's words, Zhang Liang was silent for a long time before he said:
"What evidence do you have to prove that this was said by the forty-year-old me?"

Ying Zheng laughed when he heard it.

He pointed at Zhang Liang, who was tied up in the cell:
"You are being held here now, isn't that the best evidence?"

"With the methods you used to hide, do you think anyone could find you under normal circumstances?"

Zhang Liang loudly retorted:

"What if you placed the spy next to me?!"

Ying Zheng spread his hands:
"If you really think so, then I can't do anything about it."

"But Zhang Liang, if you really feel this way now, then I have to think carefully about whether your brain is sufficient for a twenty-something-year-old."

Zhang Liang was silent again.

He knew that what Ying Zheng said was right.

Because, if there really was a spy from the Qin court among his subordinates, he would have been found out long ago, and would not have waited until this moment. And if he was caught in this way, the Qin would not have put him in the imperial prison. Besides himself, the others seemed to be more important people. He would be executed without even seeing Ying Zheng.

Even though he came from the Zhang family, which had been prime ministers of Han for five generations, and even though he was a former Korean noble, didn’t Ying Zheng kill enough nobles?
There is no need for this at all.

Ying Zheng was willing to talk to him now, obviously because he knew Zhang Liang was capable and intelligent, so he wanted to use him. However, when the Kingdom of Han was destroyed, Zhang Liang was only thirteen or fourteen years old and had not yet entered the government. How could anyone know his talent?

Based on Ying Zheng's previous performance, the other party seemed to have known his plan to assassinate him during his eastern tour, but this plan only existed in Zhang Liang's mind. He didn't even know the route of the eastern tour, and he had no plan at all.

Eliminate all the impossibilities, and then even the one that remains, no matter how unbelievable, is most likely to be true.

Zhang Liang raised his head with great effort and looked at the three people outside the door:
"What will I be like in 20 years? Have I avenged myself?"

Ying Zheng was silent for a moment, then said calmly:
"Yes, according to the original history, you helped a man named Liu Bang destroy the Qin Dynasty and establish the Han Dynasty. You were called one of the three heroes of the early Han Dynasty."

"Later, you entered the Martial Temple and were called one of the Ten Sages of the Martial Temple. People in later generations praised you as a sage of strategy."

"Zhang Liang, I already know who participated in the destruction of Qin in later generations, and I also know the family background of Liu Bang, but I only arrested you. Do you know why?"

Zhang Liang looked at him intently:
"You want to use me?"

"Or, you are so conceited that you think all the talents in the world can be used by you, so you think that if you capture a so-called strategist in advance and use coercion and inducement, I may not be able to withstand it?"

"But Ying Zheng, I really want to know, since you just said there are three heroes of the early Han Dynasty, then why are there no other two? Moreover, since I chose to help that Liu Bang, and he succeeded in the end, it shows that he is also a rare talent. Why is it me, and only me? The hatred of others towards you cannot be greater than mine."

Ying Zheng smiled and shook his head.

He did not care how dirty and smelly the prison was. He leaned casually against the cell door opposite Zhang Liang, trying to make himself feel more comfortable in the prison with his height.

"Yes, among the three heroes of the early Han Dynasty there are Xiao He, Han Xin, and you."

"Even after the fall of Qin, there was the Chu-Han War. The King of Han was Liu Bang, and the King of Chu was Xiang Yu - the King of Chu who shouted that even if there were only three households left in Chu, Chu would be the one to destroy Qin. To be honest, Xiang Yu's hatred for me is probably no less than yours."

"It's just that, although they are all very good talents, I don't need them."

"As for fighting, I have Meng Tian and Meng Yi, the father and son of the Wang family, and many talented people who have not yet made their mark. My Great Qin does not lack good generals at all. So I don't need Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu, or Han Xin, the Military Genius. As long as the world does not fall into chaos, they will have no room to play."

"As for governing the country, I also have Li Si and the three dukes and nine ministers. They are enough. If Liu Bang and Xiao He can be promoted to higher positions and serve the Qin Dynasty based on their own abilities in the future, I will naturally not refuse. But now I don't need to capture them specifically. There is no reason and no need."

"Only you, Zhang Liang, are different."

"I just need a conspirator."

When Zhang Liang heard him give him such an evaluation, his face twitched involuntarily.

Although this is not a derogatory term, and Zhang Liang does not deny that he is a person who is good at playing with people's minds and calculating against others, the conspirator himself does not want to hear such an evaluation.

He suppressed the urge to curse again and looked at Ying Zheng:

"So? Just be frank, what do you want to do?"

Ying Zheng leaned against the cell door, looking relaxed and contented:

“You’re in your forties and you’re making a suggestion, but it’s just a suggestion.”

"I need a more complete charter that is more suitable for the current situation of Daqin, and you are the best candidate."

"If I remember correctly, Zhang Liang, you studied the Huang-Lao technique, right?"

"If you can apply Huang Lao's art to Daqin and let the people recuperate, wouldn't you be willing? Han didn't give you such an opportunity." "Moreover, you have raised many knights to assassinate Qin, and I didn't touch any of them, but now you have so many mouths waiting to be fed. If you stay in the imperial prison for one more day, they will cause trouble and face the risk of destruction. Do you really want to see this day?"

"Let's take a step back and say that even if you don't want to care about all this, then what about Han Di?"

"The people and officials of Han were the first among the six kingdoms to be brought under the rule of Qin. After so many years, they still can't adapt. I have been trying to make them adapt, such as standardizing the wheels and writing, but all this still has limited effect."

"As a descendant of the Zhang family who has been prime ministers of Han for five generations, don't you want the people of Han to live a good life?"

"I have traveled to many places in my life, and I understand the hardships of the people better than your King of Han did. It's not that I don't want them to recuperate, but I haven't found a suitable way. Now the way is in front of us, don't you want to return to Han openly and govern the people who belonged to your Zhang family back then?"

Zhang Liang was completely silent.

He had to admit that he was shamefully tempted by King Zheng of Qin.

If the first two points, using Huang-Lao philosophy to govern the country and worrying about the safety of his knights, only ignited a flame in Zhang Liang's heart, then the last point, allowing him to return to Han openly to govern the people of Han, was too tempting.

In the final analysis, Zhang Liang assassinated Qin because Qin had caused the destruction of his country and his family, and because he had feelings for the land of Han.

He has missed his homeland for so many years. If he could govern Korea, it would fulfill his lifelong wish. No matter how many years have passed in the future, he will always want to return there.

But apart from Ying Zheng, no other monarch would have the courage to allow a descendant of a noble family who had served as prime minister of Han for five generations to return to Han to govern there.

half an hour.

Zhang Liang raised his head and looked at the First Emperor.

This time, his eyes were extremely serious and sharp, calmer and more observant than any other time before.

"What do you want me to do? Tell me clearly. And what can you give me?"

There's a show.

Ying Zheng also put away his casual look, stood up straight, raised his fingers and started counting.

"First, I want you to use the wanderers you have recruited to find out how many people in the six kingdoms are planning to rebel against Qin, and how much power they have. Then select the most powerful ones and report to me."

"Second, I want you to give a complete and detailed strategy on how to promote the county-state system, how to use the county-state system to gradually erode the power of the remnants of the six kingdoms, and how to use one group to fight another."

"Third, after the county-state system has achieved its effect, how can we complete the Enfeoffment Order with the least loss and eliminate the drawbacks of the county-state system."

He put away the three raised fingers and looked straight at Zhang Liang:

"As for what I can give you——"

"First, the position of the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers will be given to you after you complete the first point above."

"Second, if you can come up with an effective county-state system, I can give you the land of Han as a fiefdom, but you must also be prepared that this fiefdom will be cut off by the Enfeoffment Order in the future."

"three……"

Ying Zheng paused for a moment before saying:

"You can still set up an intelligence organization on your own as you are doing now. It will be affiliated with the Qin Dynasty, but you can be in charge of it. It will be mainly responsible for investigating the power of the remnants of the six kingdoms and the specific people they follow. If necessary, you can hunt them down and kill them on the spot. I give you the right to act at your own convenience. In the early stage, you don't have to tell them that you have returned to Qin."

"So, are you satisfied?"

Zhang Liang was completely dumbfounded.

He felt like he was listening to the same ghost stories he had heard as a child.

The conditions that Ying Zheng gave him were so generous that they were absurd.

Of course Zhang Liang knew that Ying Zheng accepted him under certain conditions. If he agreed, he would have to work for the Qin Dynasty in the future. Although these requests were difficult to meet, they were not impossible to do. Everything depends on human efforts.

But what he never expected was that the other party would actually offer such a price to win him over.

Isn't Ying Zheng afraid that the people he raised with the salary from the Qin Dynasty will rebel? !

"How dare you ask me to continue organizing the Rangers of the Six Nations to work for the Qin?"

Zhang Liang retracted his jaw, which was about to drop, and asked in disbelief:

"My knights are all survivors of the Six Kingdoms. They hate the Qin Dynasty to the core. Aren't you afraid of backlash in the future?"

"What's more, even if the so-called Enfeoffment Order can divide the power and territory in the hands of the prince, that is a matter for the future. You dare to ask me, a Korean noble who has been a minister of Korea for five generations, to return to Han and be crowned king. Aren't you afraid that I will rebel before the Enfeoffment Order is issued?"

He couldn't believe that Ying Zheng could give such generous treatment to a prisoner like him.

No one in this world is irreplaceable, even the arrogant Zhang Zifang would not think so.

But after Ying Zheng finished speaking, he slowly leaned back against the cell door behind him and became leisurely again.

"If I can destroy the six kingdoms once, I can destroy them a second time."

"As long as I am alive, I have absolute confidence in victory over any rebellion in the Qin Empire. However, the remnants of the six kingdoms do not have this confidence because they have been frightened by the Qin cavalry. Their backbones have been broken after their kingdoms were destroyed. Apart from you and Xiang Yu, I do not think anyone else has the fortitude to persevere."

"As for you..."

"Zhang Liang, I'm looking for you because you're a conspirator. You're good at playing with people's hearts and minds, and you're good at using everything you have to win. You can certainly make a small profit with a big one, but you won't fight a rock with an egg, right?"

"After so many years, the people of Han finally stopped fighting. If you want to rebel, it will be like plunging them into the quagmire again. I have seen you at different ages. I don't trust your character, but your brain."

"At least you won't do such a ridiculous thing before I die."

"So - Zhang Liang, are you willing or not?"

After a long time.

A steady, powerful, and unprecedented voice rang out and echoed in the imperial prison.

"It's what you wish for!"

(End of this chapter)