After the second emperor ascended the throne, he was in his youth, and he was engaged in beauty pageants. Among the many beauties, there is a concubine surnamed Wang who is very outstanding, she is the granddaughter of the former prime minister Wang Juan. This girl is as beautiful as a flower, and she is smart and intelligent, and she is very knowledgeable. Recently, she saw some of the emperor's actions, and she wanted to find an opportunity to enlighten and advise.

The second illness has not improved, and one night, the princess saw the second alone on the dragon couch sighing, so she asked affectionately, "Why is your majesty sighing?" The Second replied, "When I was sick before, the Emperor himself came to visit me, and he really cared for me. Now that I think about it, I am alone, how can I not be sad? The princess said, "The first emperor really cares about Your Majesty very much, and his grace is like a jade dew, so that all things can feel his nourishment!" When the second emperor heard this, he asked the princess thoughtfully: "Why is the first emperor so admired?" The princess replied: "Because the first emperor unified the world and created the Great Qin State, he made great contributions, so naturally he was blessed all over the world." The second asked again: "Why was the first emperor able to achieve such great merit?" The princess said, "Because he has gathered a large number of loyal ministers and wise men around him." The second said: "But when it is my turn to be the emperor, except for a loyal minister like Zhao Gao, there is no other virtuous minister around, even my closest relatives and flesh are also suspicious, and now they all abandon me, I am now holding a sick body, but no one cares, what a disappointment!" The princess said, "Your Majesty need not be disappointed, everything will be fine." You don't have anything to worry about, do you? But the second said, "I am also worried all day long, how can I say that there is nothing to worry about?" After hearing this, the princess also sighed: "Your Majesty is now in the year of promise, there is no minor illness at all, please don't think too much, and live happily in the future." The second laughed and said, "I sometimes think about the kind of ordinary people's life, how good it would be to be happy together as a family?" After that, he shed tears of sadness.

When the princess saw this, she said in her heart: "I know that Your Majesty misses your father and brothers and sisters, and if they are still alive, you must be very happy." The second said: "Born in the emperor's family, the life of ordinary people is really unimaginable!" The princess said, "Your Majesty, you are the Son of Heaven, why don't you even dare to think about the life of ordinary people?" The second muttered, "You don't know: in the previous generation, there were many cases of sons killing their fathers, ministers killing kings, brothers killing brothers, and brothers plotting brothers. For example, in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Uncle Bao assisted Gongzi Xiaobai, and Guan Yiwu assisted Gongzi Jiao, and the two were estranged in order to compete for the throne, could it be that there was a feud between their brothers? I also know that you brothers can't be killed, but you can't kill them! Now that I have no brothers and sisters, and no one to talk to, I feel lonely and lonely! The princess asked in amazement, "Your Majesty also knows about the things of the previous generations?" The second replied: "These things were told to me by my teacher Zhao Gao, who said that only when my brothers die can my throne be secured, so I killed them, not because they were unforgivable." When he said this, he began to cry sadly.

The princess was shocked: "I knew that Your Majesty was very kind, and you would not do those things that hurt heaven and reason, but the matter has come to this point, and I hope that you will be kind to other ministers in the future, and you should listen to everyone's advice in everything, so that it will be beneficial to the country." I have heard that 'power, if used properly, can be a small country with a radius of only a hundred miles, but it can be majestically independent and no one dares to infringe upon it; If the rights cannot be properly utilized, a behemoth of 6,000 miles like the Chu State will still be a slave for us. The second smiled bitterly when he heard this: "Concubine Ai is right, but I don't have a little prestige, the court is all the people of the first emperor, none of them want to listen to me, think about the time when my father conquered the Six Kingdoms, he killed people like hemp, and no one in the world dared to resist, it was really majestic." Zhao Gao is right, if I don't kill to build my authority now, the ministers will definitely oppose me, which is also true. Seeing that the princess was full of contradictions and anxieties, she felt deep sympathy for him. After a while, she saw Ni snuggled up in her arms like a child and fell asleep, and she couldn't help but cry.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Gao's eyeliner heard the incident this night, and the next day, this eyeliner reported the matter to Zhao Gao. Zhao Gao listened to the words of the eyeliner, pondered for a moment, and then said viciously: "The Wang family is a bane in the end, we must get rid of her, otherwise we people will eventually die in her hands!" Eyeliner asked, "How should Lord Zhao deal with her?" Zhao Gao smiled and said, "Hehe, isn't it a trivial dish to deal with a little woman?" I'm going to borrow someone else's hand now, hahaha! Zhao Gao summoned Wu Dan and gave him such and such instructions, and then rewarded him with a lot of gold and jewelry. Wu Dan took the benefits, and was naturally very happy, so he reluctantly withdrew. Zhao Gao secretly instructed the court doctor to put some poisonous things in the medicine of the second, so that the second's illness slowly worsened.

One day, Zhao Gao came to see the second emperor and said, "Your Majesty, the mage invited by the minister heard that he had seen the immortal red pine nuts in Zhongnan Mountain. This man is not only powerful, but also a skilled doctor, so why not summon him to diagnose your condition? "The second summoned Wu Dan. Wu Dan pretended to diagnose it, and then said: "Your Majesty, your illness is really not light, this is indeed a very rare and strange disease, if you don't treat it in time, I'm afraid it will ...... It's life-threatening! The second was frightened and asked him how he should be healed. Wu Dan said: "Forgive me: To cure your illness, there are two things. The second asked what were the two things. Wu Dan said: "Dragon liver and phoenix marrow, one of the two can cure your disease." The second asked, "The dragon and the phoenix are both mysterious things, where can I find them?" Wu Dan smiled and said: "Your Majesty is the true dragon son of heaven, that is, the dragon, and the one who matches the dragon must be a phoenix, isn't your concubine a phoenix?" The second was shocked: "Do you mean to use the bone marrow of the concubine?" Wu Dan said: "Exactly." If you use the bone marrow of the concubine to make a bowl of soup, you will definitely be cured after drinking this disease, otherwise you are afraid that you will be worried about your life. The second cherished his life, and finally agreed, and said, "I have many concubines, who is the most suitable to choose?" Wu Dan replied: "The princess is the concubine designated by the first emperor, and she is the real phoenix!" And he is very virtuous, and he is a standard candidate. The second said: "The princess was given by the first emperor, and she is loyal to me, and I respect her very much, how can I bear to hurt her?" ”

The mage glanced at Zhao Gao, and then said, "You are a multiplier body, if there is a good one, it is related to the foundation of the country, and the Wang family is just a woman. Besides, Your Majesty has three palaces and six courts, and tens of thousands of concubines, once you love a woman and ignore your dragon body, the minister thinks it is very inappropriate. The minister heard that among the many concubines, only the princess loved Her Majesty the most, and it was her duty to sacrifice her life for righteousness. Once she learns that the phoenix marrow can cure His Majesty's illness, she will definitely donate enthusiastically. The second did not agree. Zhao Gao took the opportunity to say: "What the mage said is very reasonable, Your Majesty is a wise king, and he will never abandon the eternal inheritance of the Qin State because of a woman." Besides, Your Majesty is the time of youth, once you have a good one, there will be no heir to the Qin State. The second emperor was silent for a long time, so he had to sigh and say, "Let's ask the princess about this matter first, right?" If she doesn't agree, forget it. Zhao Gao said excitedly: "Yes, yes, you should ask her first." So he immediately took someone to ask the princess about the marrow.

The princess was often worried about state affairs, and suddenly heard that Zhao Gao was coming, and she didn't know what was going on, so she ordered her to come in and speak. Zhao Gao saw the princess, saluted first, and then said: "Niangniang, Your Majesty is critically ill, you are now his closest person, you have to think of a way?" When the princess heard this, she panicked, and asked eagerly, "I am just a woman, what can I do?" What did the Imperial Physician say? Zhao Gao said: "The imperial doctor said that if you want to save Your Majesty, unless there is something that can." The princess asked what it was. Zhao Gao said insidiously and viciously: "This thing is only yours, but I am afraid that you will not donate it." The princess said: "As long as you can save Your Majesty, the life of the concubine can be sacrificed, are you still stingy?" What are you talking about? Zhao Gao was waiting for her to say this, and said, "I don't need to give your life, I only need your bone marrow?" The princess was shocked: "Lord Zhao, what did you say?" Zhao Gao said: "Your bone marrow?" Only with your bone marrow can you save Your Majesty!" When the princess heard that she wanted her bone marrow, she was so shocked that she didn't know what to say. Zhao Gao said: "You just said that you can sacrifice your life, is it just a joke?" The princess was at a loss. Zhao Gao couldn't help but say, so he ordered someone to tie up the princess. After the princess was bound, she was pushed to the ground by the palace people, and then her feet were immediately cut off with a knife. The princess screamed and fainted. The palace people peeled off the skin and flesh one by one, and scraped the bone marrow from the exposed bones, which was miserable.

After a while, the bone marrow is scraped. Zhao Gao ordered it to be boiled. He immediately came to the second and smiled and said, "When the princess heard that His Majesty wanted the marrow, she was very happy, so she personally cut off her feet and let the ministers scrape them." Now the chef is already boiling the soup! When the second heard that the princess was willing to make a sacrifice, he was very moved, and wanted to visit her. Zhao Gao said: "Although the princess is loyal, there is human pain, she has already passed out, and when she is unconscious, the soul of the person will burst out from the seven orifices." Your Majesty is also sick, and it is not good for your dragon body to visit at this time! When he heard this, he burst into tears.

The second generation did not get better after taking the phoenix marrow soup, so he asked Zhao Gao what the reason was. Zhao Gao said that he could summon the mage and ask him. immediately sent someone to invite the mage Wu Dan. But the man who sent him came back and said, "The mage has taken the money and run away, and he is gone." Zhao Gao pretended to be angry and said, "Is it difficult for him to be a liar?" He should be caught and killed to avenge the princess! The second was very angry and immediately sent someone to kill Wu Dan. Zhao Gao secretly laughed, thinking that the princess was abolished, and Wu Dan killed his mouth again, to see who would say bad things about me again.

The princess became disabled, and the second was so sad that she could not eat for several days. One night, as soon as he had fallen asleep, he saw a large mouth appear in the sky, as if it was about to devour him. After a while, I saw a big ear appear in the eastern sky, and the sky became very dark. Suddenly, a sharp flash swept through the sky, followed by a violent thunderclap. The second woke up, it turned out to be a nightmare, and his heart was very uneasy, and he didn't know whether this dream was auspicious or evil. Therefore, he thought, he has not been to the court for a long time now, it is better to go to the morning court tomorrow and let the hundred officials explain the things in the dream.

Early the next morning, the second went to court despite his illness. When all the officials arrived, he told the minister what appeared in the dream. A doctor chimed in: "The Heavenly One, the Monarch and the Elephant, its immensity is boundless, which shows that the king's grace is vast." There is a mouth in the sky, indicating that His Majesty can enjoy the tribute of the Quartet, which is a symbol of submission from the Quartet, health and longevity. Ears appeared in the east, which shows that His Majesty can hear all directions and have insight into the affairs of the world, which is a good omen! When the second heard this explanation, his heart was happy.

Li Si said disapprerovingly: "The dream is indeed very auspicious, Your Majesty doesn't have to think about it." But now the affairs of the Qin State are not in the court, but outside the court! The second asked what was going on outside. Li Si said: "Your Majesty, there are some things you don't know yet: now Xianyang has too many people, horses and livestock are too many to calculate, and they have to consume a lot of grain and fodder every day, which has caused a shortage of food on the construction site, so those hungry craftsmen want to flee." At present, the expenditure of grain in the capital far exceeds the budget, and in the long run, the people of Xianyang will also be short of food! This matter is of great importance, so please be aware of it. When he heard that it was a big deal, he said, "You are the prime minister, what is there to solve it?" Li Si said: "The minister risked his life to say: I ask Your Majesty to release some of the disciples who built the Afang Palace, and then evacuate some of the population outside the gate, so that the expenses can be reduced." The second said unhappily: "The construction of Afang Palace is the intention of the first emperor, and it is a top priority, how can you release the disciples?" It's not proper, it's inappropriate. The second thought for a moment and then said, "I have an idea to solve the problem of food shortage: you will immediately issue an edict to the whole country, and from the day of receipt of the edict, no transporter and horse transporter of grain and grass shall be allowed to consume rice and grain within 300 miles of Xianyang, and the expenses of people and animals must also be borne by themselves!" In addition, it is necessary to intensify the collection of grain, grass and taxes. The second wanted everyone to realize their dreams, but Li Si said these things in a wordy manner, and the second felt very unhappy in his heart, so he hurriedly announced his retirement from the dynasty. Li Si listened to the decision of the second and could only silently comply.

In this way, the officials acted according to the edict, and they expropriated and extorted food from the people. The common people of the whole country either provide food or go out to work, and even so, they cannot meet all kinds of unexpected miscellaneous taxes and onerous forced labor. The people in the world are already miserable, and there is no way to live. The Tang people have a poem about the situation of the Qin State at this time:

The husband guarded the canopy because of the soldiers, and the hemp ramie skirt and sideburns were scorched.

Sang Zhe came to pay taxes, and the countryside was barren and still recruited seedlings.

When picking wild vegetables and roots to boil, spin and chop raw firewood with leaves to burn.

Even deeper in the mountains, there should be no way to avoid the levy.