Diqin Designer

Chapter 31 I am afraid that Pei Gong will not be the King of Qin
"Legalists impose severe punishments, on the one hand to deter those who may break the law, and on the other hand to intimidate the people, hoping to scare the people with cruel punishments, so that the people will be more obedient and easier to govern."

"It is equivalent to building a cage full of thorns, and only allowing people to live in the cage according to their rules."

"For a certain period of time, people are afraid of the pain of the thorns and can endure living in a cage. But when the thorns of the cage become sharper and sharper, the range of people's activities in the cage becomes smaller and smaller, and they are often scratched by the thorns. Will they still be willing to endure it?"

"By then, no matter how severe the punishment is, it will not be a deterrent. It will only make the person in the cage not afraid of the pain caused by the thorns and break the cage."

Li Nian talked about the Han Dynasty again. "When Emperor Gaozu of Han first entered Guanzhong, he only made three laws with the people of Guanzhong: those who kill people will be killed, those who injure people and steal will be punished! Other than that, all the complicated and harsh laws of the Qin Dynasty were abolished!"

"When these three points were announced, the people in Guanzhong were very happy and supported Emperor Gaozu of Han."

"The Records of the Grand Historian: Annals of Emperor Gaozu said: 'I made an agreement with the elders, with only three laws: killing people will be punished, wounding people and stealing will be punished. All other Qin laws will be abolished. All officials will continue to work as usual. The reason I came here is to eliminate harm for the elders, not to invade or bully others, so don't be afraid! And the reason I returned to Bashang is to wait for the princes to arrive and then decide on the rules.'

He sent people with Qin officials to go to the counties and towns to announce it. The Qin people were very happy and rushed to offer cattle, sheep, wine and food to the soldiers. Pei Gong refused to accept them again, saying: "There is plenty of grain in the warehouse, not lacking, and I don't want to waste people's money." People were even more happy, but they were afraid that Pei Gong would not become the King of Qin. "

After these words were spoken, Ying Zheng's face turned a little ugly. He didn't expect that even the Qin people would dislike the laws of the Great Qin. Then Emperor Gaozu of Han won the hearts of the Qin people with just three laws.

Especially the sentence "I am only afraid that Pei Gong will not become the King of Qin" was like a knife stabbing Ying Zheng in the heart.

Although he had passed away when Emperor Gaozu of Han entered Guanzhong and was not the one governing the Qin Dynasty, and the Qin laws may have been revised and were no longer what they are now, the Qin Dynasty was ultimately his country, and the king who brought about the demise of the Qin Dynasty was his descendant.

"The Records of the Grand Historian written by Sima Qian is not very objective. Your Majesty, just listen to it and don't take it too seriously."

Knowing that the sentence "I'm afraid that Pei Gong will not be the King of Qin" was too heartbreaking, Li Nian comforted Ying Zheng and continued, "It is not advisable to have a heavy punishment, but it is also not advisable to have a light punishment. It will not deter those who may break the law, especially businessmen."

"Businessmen are profit-driven, and when they think the profits are greater than the risks they have to take, they are more likely to break the law than ordinary people."

"Too light a punishment will not protect those who abide by the law. If people who rob others are not severely punished but only receive a small fine, is that fair to those who have been honestly accumulating wealth? In the long run, who will still earn wealth through hard work? It would be better for everyone to rob."

"Therefore, the law must maintain an appropriate degree, neither too harsh nor too lenient, so that the offender will feel pain and warn those who have not violated the law, but also prevent the offender from jumping off the wall and committing a greater disaster. Of course, some crimes cannot be forgiven lightly, such as treason and murder."

"As I said, the most important point in guiding the people to 'obey the law' is to make them feel the benefits of the law! During the reign of King Xiao, the Qin law was recognized by the old Qin people because they could see the benefits of the Qin law to them. Now, the good impression brought by the Qin law has gradually been worn away, and naturally only fear and disgust are left."

"The benefits of the law are, for example, for farmers, they can have a stable farming environment, without having to worry about their fields being robbed today or their houses being occupied tomorrow; for merchants, they will not be harassed by officials when doing business, nor will they encounter bandits when doing business; and for people who buy things from merchants, if they buy fake or inferior goods, the law can seek justice for them and make the merchants pay the price."

"After feeling the benefits of the law, people will take the initiative to obey and uphold the law. After all, except for a very small number of people, most people still want to live in peace and stability."

"'Observing laws and regulations' is also conducive to 'loving the country and being loyal to the emperor'. Your Majesty can incorporate 'loving the country and being loyal to the emperor' into the law. Being unloving and unloyal to the emperor is breaking the law." Ying Zheng had recovered from his fear that Pei Gong would not become the King of Qin. His eyes lit up when he heard this. Not to mention anything else, this one could be done. Whoever is disloyal to the Great Qin, whoever is disloyal to me, is breaking the law.

After listening to Li Nian's talk, Ying Zheng felt that there was some truth in it, but it was just empty talk. What should be done concretely?

Ying Zheng asked eagerly: "According to your opinion, how should we guide the people?"

Li Nian keenly noticed the way Ying Zheng addressed him. Judging from the way he addressed him, the First Emperor had a good impression of him. However, Li Nian was not very happy. Instead, he calmly warned himself in his heart:
Li Nian, Li Nian, you must not get carried away just because the First Emperor treats you well for a while. The First Emperor is also a king, and also a man-eating tiger. Even though he is nice to you now, he may turn against you and be ruthless the next moment. Don't treat the emperor as an ordinary person.

The imperial family is the most ruthless, living with the emperor is like living with a tiger!

Facing an existence that controls his life and death, Li Nian feels that he should be in awe and not treat the king as a fool, nor think that he is superior to the king just because he comes from the future.

Even though the First Emperor seems to trust him now, how could an emperor like the First Emperor trust others easily?

According to Li Nian's own estimation, the First Emperor now only trusts him 30% at most. Once he makes paper and grows potatoes and lets the First Emperor experience them, his trust will increase.

Li Nian took a deep breath, calmed his thoughts, and said, "My king, if you want to guide the people, I think there are two things you need to do: first, the government should take the initiative to guide. The government refers to your king, the ministers of the Qin Dynasty, and the local officials; second, enlighten the people so that they can distinguish right from wrong."

When he heard the words "enlighten the people", Ying Zheng narrowed his eyes calmly.

Because in the Legalist doctrine, the people cannot be too smart. They only need to act according to the king's instructions and do not need to have so many ideas.

The people are easy to control when they are ignorant!

Li Nian said: "What I mean by the government taking the initiative to guide is to make the people develop in the direction that the king hopes for, such as guiding the people to 'love the country and be loyal to the king, and abide by the law'. At the same time, it is also to prevent people from plotting and harming and leading the people astray."

"If someone is dissatisfied with the king and the Qin Dynasty and wants to incite the people to revolt, they will constantly spread all kinds of rumors that are unfavorable to the Qin Dynasty. At first, the people may not believe it, but as time goes by, no one comes out to correct the rumors. What do you think will happen?"

Ying Zheng thought of the allusion in "Strategies of the Warring States" and replied: "Three people make a tiger!"

Li Nian said: "That's right. Although the six kingdoms have been destroyed, many of their nobles still exist and still have prestige among the people of the six kingdoms. If they spread rumors about the king and the Qin..."

Hearing this, a cold light flashed in Ying Zheng's eyes.

(End of this chapter)