Chapter 21: The Imperial Palace

The Qin Empire finally fell, and the Qin royal family, which had lasted for more than 560 years, ended its mission. What makes people think about it is, how did the behemoth of the Qin Empire fall? What was the reason for its fall?

When Qin Shi Huang Yingzheng established this empire, he was full of confidence and thought that it could be passed on forever. If you have to add a time limit, Yingzheng hopes that it will be 10,000 years. Unfortunately, it died in less than 15 years.

This system was undoubtedly the most advanced political system in the world at that time. Throughout his life, Ying Zheng resolutely implemented the meritorious lord system, not only meritorious heroes and clan members, but also his own royal sons and grandchildren - if a member of the royal family wants to be a lord, he must make military achievements. Members of the royal family have no privileges, neither divide land nor confer titles, but only receive a fixed amount of royal benefits. Government officials do not have special privileges, neither central government officials nor local government officials can be hereditary, and there are strict management rules for job evaluation. The powers of the central government officials are checked and balanced by each other, and no one can dominate the government alone. The government officials who were sent to local posts not only did not have much power, but could not even guarantee their own personal safety, and many county guards and county commanders were killed by thugs during the anti-Qin wave. The people of the capital also have no privileges, they are not exempt from taxes, and they do not have any other benefits, and living in the capital Xianyang is not much different from living in Chu and Zhao.

However, it may be precisely for these reasons that the state power is effectively unable to control local affairs. Hu Hai's rise to power and Zhao Gao's conspiracy accelerated the emergence of this power vacuum, and the large-scale killing of royals and government officials abandoned the last straw.

Obviously, the Qin Empire's "bread" was spread too big. The empire had so much work to do that it had left his people at a loss. There are so few people who can avoid the heavy labour that they simply do not have time to work in the fields. The punishments of the empire were so elaborate and trivial that they were tiresome and fearful to his people. Countless criminals and unfortunate people were sent to the capital to serve their sentences, and it was this group of people who first sparked the sparks of the riots.

The treatment of the nobles and remnants of the Six Kingdoms was too simplistic and crude, and although their privileges were abolished and all of them were relocated to the capital Xianyang, this measure was neither put in place, nor did it solve their political treatment and relieve their ideological concerns. The idea of restoration lingered in their minds. The education of the people was not carried out in depth, so that they did not agree with the ideals of the Qin Dynasty.

In short, a great imperial system has a short respite after a short period of experimentation. However, this system was not abandoned with the rapid demise of the Great Qin Empire. On the contrary, the system was developed and continued for 2,000 years.

【Liu Ji】

The revolutionary army led by Liu Ji finally advanced into Guanzhong and came to the heart of the empire, the capital Xianyang. This is not the first time he has been here, as he had escorted prisoners to serve here many times when he was the head of the Surabaya Pavilion.

However, as a general, it was indeed the first time that he led many soldiers to the capital and personally inspected the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty. Prince Qin and the Manchu officials all knelt on both sides of the road, they lowered their heads and did not dare to look directly at themselves, and some even felt frightened and trembling, and the atmosphere was extremely solemn.

Liu Ji never thought that there would be such a day, and his mood felt unprecedentedly happy. He had every reason to be proud and proud, because this seemingly impossible task was successfully completed by him, and it was completed without the other generals daring to touch it. He also had every reason to congratulate himself, because Xiong Xin promised that the first to enter the customs would be the king, and Liu Ji seemed to see the prospect of being crowned king.

He pardoned Prince Ying of Qin and Manchu officials. Later, he also abolished the Qin Empire's cumbersome legal system, retaining only three criminal offenses – homicide, wounding, and robbery. (The three chapters of the covenant with the fathers, the murderer dies, the wounded and the thief is guilty.) The rest of the knowledge is removed from the Qin law. ）

The happiest are the judicial officers who have not yet been killed by the mob, because they no longer have to worry about the mountains of unresolved cases at hand, and finally do not have to worry about overdue cases. In addition, those criminals who are still in prison awaiting sentencing, and the hundreds of thousands of prisoners who are still building the Afang Palace, the Lishan Tomb, and the Great Wall, will no longer have to bear the punishment they deserve.

It stands to reason that the people of Qin, especially those in the capital Xianyang, should feel sad and sorry for the destruction of their country. But it is clear that they did not feel the slightest pain, nor did they feel sorry for it. They even rejoiced a little because the Revolutionary Army had repealed the harsh laws of the Empire.

Although their country once unified the world, their relatives, friends, and children may have participated in many annexation wars and fought bloody battles on the front. The achievements of the Qin Empire for thousands of generations have been credited to them. But none of them seem to remember any of that. At the time of unification, they did not feel that they were living in a glorious era; On the contrary, at the time of their demise, they felt that a new era had arrived.

They rejoiced at the arrival of the revolutionary army Liu Ji, simply because the revolutionary army abolished the complicated and trivial legal system of the empire. They also sent beef, mutton and wine as gifts to the soldiers of the revolutionary army. Their enthusiasm is like that of the neighbors in Zhongyang, who came to congratulate them with enthusiasm when they saw that other families had happy events. Of course, among the people of these capitals, there are many remnants of the Six Nations who have just relocated, and their excitement is difficult to hide.

【Soldiers】

The moment he stepped into the Xianyang Palace, Liu Ji was stunned, and all the soldiers who followed him into the palace were stunned. They had never seen such a magnificent scene, and many of the soldiers had never even been to Xianyang before.

They never dared to imagine that one day they would be able to swagger into the heart of the empire. The splendor and luxury of the palace were unimaginable in their lifetime. And right now, here they are.

What excites them even more is that every item in the palace is extremely precious, and taking a few random items is enough for them to eat for several lifetimes. They didn't think about living in this palace in the future, and they didn't dare to imagine it. But they can move all the belongings here now, because the owner of this place has already been driven away by them.

The soldiers were like wild horses, running frantically in every corner of the palace, trying their best to remove all the treasures here. Even the leader Liu Ji was a little out of shape, he had never seen such a luxurious palace and so many precious treasures. The palace is resplendent with gold, countless pavilions and jade pavilions, a dazzling array of rare treasures, thousands of peerless beauties, and all kinds of good horses and hounds, Liu Ji feels that this is a paradise on earth. He was so nostalgic for this place that he didn't want to leave at all.

【Collection】

In the midst of this frenzied crowd, there was a lone figure who hurried through the busy line and made a beeline for the most deserted part of the palace, the National Archives. He didn't seem to be interested in the glittering coins and fine crafts. He has been immersed in government documents for a long time, and feels that these bamboo books such as government documents, legal classics, and national maps accumulated in the archives are the most valuable treasures. He has the world hidden in his heart, and he is the most senior veteran in this revolutionary army - Xiao He.

Xiao He was holding these precious bamboo slips and books, and no one was allowed to touch them. He was afraid that these reckless warriors would accidentally defile or damage these treasures.

In that year, the government documents processed by Emperor Yingzheng, Prime Minister Li Si and other central government departments had to be sent here for registration and safekeeping; The number of household registrations, agricultural production, conscription and distribution of servitude, and public security and prisons compiled and reported by Surabaya County and other counties every year can also be found here, and some of them may have been fabricated by Xiao He himself and escorted by Liu Ji; And those historical classics of the Six Kingdoms, classical works and philosophical books of the hundred schools of thought that have been destroyed by the people have also found a unique copy here. Also, the map of the Yan Kingdom brought by the assassin Jing Ke back then is intact here. In addition, after the annexation of the Six Kingdoms, important government documents, maps of mountains and rivers, and people's records were also sent to the country.

Xiao He looked at these collections, and fantasized about the operation of state power in his mind. Through these collections, he can learn about the geographical mountains of the counties and counties of the country, the dangers of the Guansai, the registered population, the government decrees and taxes, and the social conditions and public opinions, and can know how the supreme rulers of the Qin Empire, Ying Zheng and Li Si, thought about government affairs, how the state power operated, and how the social situation developed and changed. Xiao He later built a new National Archives to preserve these precious materials. This not only provided an important reference for the later wars, but also played a great role in guiding the later founding of the country.

【Liu Ji】

Liu Ji lay in the palace of the Qin Empire, fantasizing about the prosperous and prosperous times in the future. He watched the soldiers around him linger one by one, and he was even more determined to be stationed here. Accepting the advice of other generals, he ordered the gate of Xianyang to be closed and sent heavy troops to defend the pass of Xianyang, Hangu Pass. Liu Ji wanted to block the pace of other revolutionary armies entering the city and enjoy this prosperous and prosperous world alone.

But it was clear that his idea was overly simplistic.

All the revolutionary troops who are still fighting bloodily in other places will not let Liu Ji's idea succeed, and the most angry among them is the young general Xiang Yu.

While Liu Ji went west to destroy Qin and won a final victory, Xiang Yu went north to save Zhao and also won a decisive victory. To a certain extent, it was Xiang Yu who contained the main military force of the Qin Empire in Zhaodi, and Liu Ji had the opportunity to take advantage of the situation to advance into Guanzhong.

At this time, Xiang Yu was still fighting bloodily in Zhaodi.