He chose to override the opinion of the majority, thinking that feudalism was the root cause of the division and frequent wars among Zhou's princes.
"Defending the counties and prefectures?"
Zhao Anping quickly realized:
This isn't just any debate in history, right?
In the original historical context, the old faction represented by the Prime Minister, and the new faction represented by the Minister of Justice Li Si, engaged in a debate.
And the final outcome was -
Perhaps Qin Shi Huang preferred this centralization mode, or perhaps Li Si was indeed eloquent. These are not important.
What is important is that the final result of these things was that, from then on, the county and prefecture system based on the principle of "landform and watercourse convenience" has lasted to this day.
Nowadays, because of Li Si's early rise, Li Si knew Qin Shi Huang even earlier, and even held the position of Imperial Teacher.
So he became the Prime Minister's side, governing the world, and swapped roles with the original Prime Minister position.
"Indeed, although countless events might change the micro perspective of history, when viewed from a macro perspective, the overall direction of history does not change."
Zhao Anping recalled the content taught by his high school history teacher.
History is what it is because of the influence of certain individuals, not the other way around.
The influence of an individual can change history and allow it to make up for many regrets, but the overall direction will not change—
Even without Liu Bang, there would still be people like Zhang Bang, Li Bang, Wang Bang, and the like beneath him who would challenge the authority of Qin.
History has always been a thing formed by the intertwining of necessity and chance.
"Only a few days, and the pace of time is so fast!"
On the phone, the modeling appears automatically.
This is the most original interpretation in history of the contradiction between centralization and decentralization of power.
"Qin Shi Huang today required the Minister of Justice and the Prime Minister to present their respective opinions in a court debate, in order to establish the local system."
[The main character follows.]
......
In the hall of the palace.
This is the temporary palace of Qin Shi Huang. After uniting the six states, Emperor Qin Shi Huang made a lot of preparations:
Including collecting goldware from all over the empire to adorn the palace hall, in order to show respect for the emperor's status.
These are all things done to strengthen the imperial power:
Helpless, the mutilation of Fu Miao's Rebellion was too deeply engraved in his mind.
"Your Majesties, may I ask both of you what your views are on the establishment of feudal states and counties?"
"I will make my own decision, but please, Your Majesties, let each of you give your advice and help me plan for our great Qin."
Li Si quickly stood up and bowed, saying: "May I report to Your Majesty. In my opinion, the counties should be implemented throughout the empire."
"I have the following reasons."
"In the hall of the palace, your excellencies, please allow me to speak for a moment."
"It is under heaven that the Zhou dynasty once commanded, why has it declined?"
"Then, is it truly the will of heaven that has destroyed it? No, no, it is not."
"Zhou, by dividing relatives and establishing feudal states, intended to guard the Zhou kingdom. It is by using the law of granting relatives near and dear officials fiefs to establish feudal states that the Zhou royal territory is protected from disintegration."
"The outcome, need not be elaborated."
Li Si was about to present the next argument, but was interrupted by Wang Wan.
"Nonsense!"
At this point, Wang Wan said in a severe tone, "Reporting to Your Majesty, I believe what the Prime Minister has said is very foolish."
He loudly declared:
"Prime Minister, do you really think that the law of establishing feudal states is the reason for the collapse of the Zhou dynasty?"
"The decline of the Zhou royal house, is it not due to the change in fortune coming to our great Qin?"
"If it weren't for the transfer to our Qin, how could we have unified?"
"Such words from the Prime Minister, is it to say that my Qin should not have been unified?"
A sound of sucking in breaths echoed through the imperial hall.
Everyone knows that Wang Wan is raising the issue to an extreme level, but everyone knows that the emperor actually responds well to this kind of thing.
Wang Wan's words, like a loud echo on the ground, directly pointed at Li Si. The hall of the palace was filled with noise and commotion at that moment.
Li Si maintained his composure, smiled slightly, and bowing his hands said:
"Wang Taian, your words are mistaken. It is not that Li Si denies the unity of our Qin, but rather a careful consideration for the long-term benefit of the kingdom and the people."
"The King of Wen and the King of Wu divided the world into fiefs, with good intentions at the time. However, with the passage of time and the distant blood relations, the feudal lords held their territories, fought against each other, and where was the majesty of the Son of Heaven? This was not a fault of heaven's will but a failure in the system."
"Now that our Qin has unified the world, if we were to implement the system of feudal lords again, would it not repeat history? The county and district system, with direct control from the center, ensures government orders are carried out smoothly and local stability is maintained. Wouldn't this be wonderful?"
Upon hearing Li Si's words, Wang Wan's face turned dark green, and he spoke in a deep tone:
"Prime Minister, although your words have some merit, they are overly idealistic."
"The lands of Yan, Chu, and Qin are thousands of miles away from the central plain, without the garrison of feudal lords, how can the borderlands be secured? If left to govern themselves by counties and districts, how can the central government respond in a timely manner if something were to happen?"
"Establishing feudal states, not only can ensure that the borderlands remain peaceful, but also demonstrate the emperor's benevolence, allowing all princes to be loyal and repay the country. This is a good strategy to stabilize the foundation of the state."
Li Si said solemnly, "Wang Gentleman, your words are rather shortsighted."
"The feudal system may provide temporary stability, but in the long run, the feudal lords' power will grow, and they might become ambitious. What will the central government do then?"
"And let's not forget that the emperor's mentor, Zhao Zi, was a fervent supporter of the county and district system. Zhao Zi has done many things for the emperor, is there any problem?"
Qin Shi Huang asked in doubt, "Is it true that Zhao Zi instructed the Prime Minister?"
Li Si nodded in agreement, bowing respectfully said:
"That is indeed the case."
"Yes, indeed. When I first met Zhao Zi, I was going to study under Xunzi. However, on the way, I was attacked by bandits and it was then that I met Zhao Zi."
"He passed on to me the county and district system, and the debate between Confucianism and Legalism."
Wang Wan fell silent suddenly:
He knew the weight of Zhao Zi in the heart of Emperor Qin Shi Huang.
Qin Shi Huang seemed to also sense that something was wrong, speaking in a cold tone:
"That's it for today's court session."
"I will give you both my answer tomorrow!"
Qin Shi Huang waved his hand, indicating for the others to leave the hall.
In the hall of the palace, the officials all looked at each other in surprise:
What's going on?
How can it suddenly end?
Li Si, however, smiled lightly:
He knew what the King was going to do.
He was going to find Zhao Zi and ask.
"Mr. Zhao Zi, I will definitely promote and carry forward your teachings!"
Li Si looked at the departing Qin Shi Huang and secretly clenched his fist.
It was you who gave me knowledge when I was in dire need of food and warmth that year.
Now, I must promote your ideas and ensure that the line of Zhao Zi is recorded in history for all to see.
......
The phone modeling was completed, and as expected, Zhao Anping immediately received a question about signing up.
"Did Ying Zheng come to see me?"
Zhao Anping looked at the message prompts on his phone.
Now he should be called Qin Shi Huang, right?
"Qin Shi Huang probably knows himself what he wants to do..."
He opened the chat window, and Qin Shi Huang had already asked a question.
["Sir, are you available?"]
["I have unified the six states and ascended the throne as an emperor."]
["I'm sure you have already known that."]
["I would also like to ask you, what should I choose between the feudal system and the county system?"
["Li Si and I have argued for a long time in the court, but still no answer was reached."]
["I have pondered for a long time, and still want to ask for your guidance."]
