The second day, Qin Shi Huang talked with Li Yan until late at night. He appeared in the Great Qin court with full spirit, not knowing how he managed to rest last night.
But Emperor Qin Shi Huang was not the only one. The model worker had to be attributed to Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty. He abolished the system of Premier and almost decided everything by himself, like an inexhaustible old cow.
It is said that in a span of ten days, Emperor Hongwu reviewed over a thousand documents, which covered over three thousand matters. That means on average, he had to handle more than three hundred things per day.
These matters are not of the same type. There are appeals for disaster relief funding, requests for approval of official transfers, and major capital punishment cases that require his review.
No wonder they say he deserves to be the emperor. With such a wide range of affairs handled efficiently by Hongwu, who else could be worthy of the throne?
Xinzheng's dignified gaze swept over the court ministers, and he directly dropped an ace: "Now that the realm has been newly established and peace prevails across the four seas, in order to secure the foundation of our nation, I wish to appoint a successor. Which prince among you do you think should be chosen?"
With this declaration, the court ministers were indeed shocked. They were all wondering in their hearts why the King would suddenly decide to appoint a successor today.
Previously, there were not a few ministers who had presented petitions requesting the King to appoint a successor, but the King had largely ignored these requests. Today, it seems as though the sun has risen from the north.
It's just that the matter came up suddenly, catching them off guard. If they had known the King intended to appoint a successor today, they would have given it more thought and planned out which prince would be most beneficial to them.
But they were all the most outstanding among the people of Qin. Although they were caught off guard by Ying Zheng's sudden attack, they quickly calmed down and began to analyze this matter.
The first to speak up was Chun Yu Ye. "Prince Shufu is steadfast and courageous, trustworthy and inspiring to his troops, broad-minded and kind-hearted. He can be the successor!" he declared.
Seeing Chun Yu Ye, Ying Zheng's eyes subtly narrowed. He had just heard about the "book burning and literary purges" the day before, and was at his wits' end with these Confucian scholars.
Moreover, he had to consider the possibility that if he were to appoint Prince Shufu as his successor, Shufu might take some drastic measures against him after his death, such as favoring Confucianism and steering Qin astray.
Prince Shufu can be appointed as the crown prince, but he must be reformed, and Confucianism must no longer be the main body of learning for the King of Qin.
Chancellor Wang Wan also spoke up, "Prince Shufu, being the eldest among the princes, has a good reputation and should be chosen as the successor!"
Chancellor Feng Jie said, "I too believe that Prince Shufu should be chosen as the successor. As the oldest among the princes, appointing him would be a legitimate and reasonable decision. It would command the respect of both officials and the other princes, thereby securing the foundation of the Qin state."
What Feng Jie said was the same as what Li Yan had said earlier, that it would be better to establish the eldest son as the crown prince. Appointing Prince Shufu would reduce the conflicts among the other princes and make the succession more stable, which would be beneficial to the country.
In essence, Feng Jie hoped to establish a succession system for Qin by appointing Prince Shufu as the crown prince.
Meng Tian had already returned to Xianyang and was now also present in the hall, but he could not express his opinion: first, as a commanding general and representative of the Meng clan, his statement would have far-reaching consequences; second, last night when his younger brother Meng Yi returned, he had told him that he had already expressed his opinion before the King.
Zhao Gao, Li Si, and some other officials looked at Feng Jie after hearing his words.
What is this guy talking about? What does he mean by "naming Prince Shufu as the successor would be legitimate and reasonable, commanding the respect of both officials and other princes"? Has he asked for their opinions? Aren't they all part of the Qin government?
Although Zhao Gao had not yet conspired with Hu Hai at this time, he was also unwilling to see Prince Shufu become the crown prince of Qin. He was well aware that if Shufu were to become the crown prince and ascend the throne, he would never trust or employ him; instead, he would likely view him as a traitor and have him killed.
Since it has been ruled out to appoint Prince Shufu, who should be appointed as the crown prince then?
He doesn't have a good relationship with the other princes either!
Zhao Gao hadn't even considered Hu Hai, because at that time, Hu Hai was under ten years old and was completely incapable of competing with his older brothers for the position of crown prince.
Zhao Gao, however, took a different approach. He couldn't think of any prince he wanted to support, so he advised the King not to rush the appointment of a successor. "Your Majesty is young and strong, and you still have many years to rule the world. Why should you hurry to appoint a successor? Once the wise men have found a potion that will make Your Majesty immortal, you will be able to rule for centuries!"
The first priority is to stall the King's intention to appoint a successor. It's crucial that the King doesn't select Prince Shufu.
This was Zhao Gao's plan, and he well knew that someone like him couldn't coexist with Shufu!
Ying Zheng looked at Zhao Gao and saw through his words. Although it seemed like flattery, saying that he could live forever and rule over Qin for millions of years, Ying Zheng could tell that Zhao Gao had ulterior motives.
From Zhao Gao's words, Ying Zheng had an idea of how to deal with Zhao Gao: Since you said that the wise men can find an elixir that will make me immortal, then why don't you eat it yourself!
Ying Zheng turned away from Zhao Gao and looked at Li Si, saying, "Li Si, do you think which prince should be appointed as the crown prince?"
Li Si didn't want to answer because he also didn't want to appoint Prince Shufu, but his thinking was different from Zhao Gao's. He believed that Shufu and Chun Yuye were too close to the Confucian school, and if Shufu were to ascend the throne, he would necessarily distance himself from the Legalist school.
In reality, Li Si did not care about who would eventually sit on the throne, but he cared about whether the prince who ascended to the throne would be able to trust and employ him.
It is quite obvious that the likelihood of Prince Shufu not employing him is greater than the likelihood of employing him if he were to ascend the throne.
However, the King was watching him, and he couldn't not answer. Li Si didn't choose to flatterer like Zhao Gao and delay the King's decision on appointing a successor. Instead, he chose one of the other princes from his memory.
"I believe that Prince Gao can be appointed as the crown prince. Prince Gao is diligent and loves learning, abides by the laws, and possesses the qualities of a successor!"
The key is not who the prince chosen is, but the phrase "abides by the laws and respects the regulations" in his words. Li Si was reminding Ying Zheng that although Prince Shufu is Your Majesty's eldest son, he may not necessarily continue to use Qin's laws if he ascends the throne. He might listen to the Confucians and restore the system of the Zhou Dynasty.
Would you prefer to see the Qin Dynasty transform into another Zhou Dynasty? Would you like to see the system of commandery and county reverts to the feudal system? Would you want to witness the reunified empire fragment once again?
If Your Majesty is unwilling to do so, please do not make Prince Fusu the crown prince, and choose a prince who supports Your Majesty's ideas instead.
Ying Zheng naturally understood the implication in Li Si's words, and Chun Yuye also picked up on it, frowning slightly. He and Li Si were good friends.
The friendship cannot sway political opinions. Now that many of the senior officials support Prince Shufu, and the Confucian scholars finally see hope and a path forward, it cannot be allowed for Li Si to sabotage it.
Chun Yuye immediately countered, "The Minister of Justice is mistaken. According to his words, does that mean that Prince Shufu has not been diligent and learned, or that he does not abide by laws and regulations?"
Ying Zheng didn't pay attention to Chun Yuye and looked at an old general in the hall, asking, "General Wang Qian, you are wise and prudent with strategies. Who do you think can be the crown prince?"
"What does that have to do with me?"
"I really don't want to answer, nor do I care. I just want to finish this meeting early and go home."
King Wang Qian said, "I am of old age, and I do not know which prince can be the crown prince. It is up to Your Majesty to decide."
His achievements are too great; besides Han, the other five states were all conquered by him and King Wang Ben.
Therefore, together with his son Wang Pen, he decided that after returning to Xianyang, they would gradually withdraw from the government of Qin Dynasty to avoid the fate of being perceived as having too much power.
