Chapter 47: An Empire Unprecedented in History

During the first two conversations with the First Emperor, although reasons for the Qin Dynasty's collapse in its second generation had been touched upon, they were merely mentioned in passing amidst other topics and thus somewhat scattered. This time, however, the First Emperor had come specifically for the causes of the dynasty's demise.

Li Nian recalled the notes he had prepared in his mind and began to speak, "From the perspective of later generations, there were many reasons for the fall of the Great Qin: harsh Qin laws, the failure of the system of military merits and peerage, the malicious plots of the nobles of the six former states, Prince Huhai and Zhao Gao... these were indeed factors in the downfall of the Qin after two generations."

Li Nian’s tone shifted. "However, upon recent reflection, I believe the primary reason is that the Great Qin was the first unified state in history that refused to implement the enfeoffment system, choosing instead a centralized empire."

"A country like this had never existed in past history, and consequently, neither Your Majesty nor the ministers of Qin knew how to properly govern such a vast empire."

"With no historical precedent to draw upon, Your Majesty and your ministers had to grope your way forward alone, as if walking in pitch darkness, never knowing whether the next step would land in a quagmire or upon a smooth highway."

These were the insights Li Nian had gained a few days prior while perusing the bamboo slips of the Qin ministers. Standing at the downstream end of history, positioned in a later era, he naturally knew the achievements and faults of the First Emperor, as well as the successes and failures of the Qin.

Yet, what if one stood in the shoes of the First Emperor and his ministers?

The Great Qin was the first centralized dynasty in Chinese history!

"The first" meant unprecedented, pioneering, and devoid of any ancestral experience for reference. Everything began with them, and they were the ones who had to experiment and grope their way forward.

Therefore, how could one successfully govern such a country?

Were the promulgated decrees right or wrong?

People downstream in the history books could see this at a glance, but to those living in that era, it was an impenetrable fog of the unknown.

It was much like a certain phantom of later ages—that too was a state appearing for the first time in world history, unprecedented, without prior experience to reference, forcing them to cross the river by feeling for the stones one step at a time.

Yet exploration does not always lead to success; crossing a river by feeling the stones, one might slip and drown in the current!

The philosophers of the Hundred Schools of Thought were no different. They, too, were pathfinders attempting to forge a suitable way forward in this era of great transformation—be they Confucians, Legalists, Taoists, or Mohists.

Did Chunyu Yue and the others truly believe that restoring the Zhou-style enfeoffment system was objectively the best course of action?

Was there another possibility? In the history they knew, the Zhou was the pinnacle, and since they did not know how to surpass the Zhou, they simply wanted the Great Qin to emulate its path.

This was a hesitation born of uncertainty toward transformation, a fear that reform would make things worse, hence the desire to return to the rites of the Zhou.

After all, the risks of transformation were unknown, whereas emulating the Zhou had sustained a dynasty for eight hundred years.

Could a clever man like Li Si not foresee the impact of "burning books and burying scholars"?

Of course he could. It was simply that, in his view, such repercussions were outweighed by the benefits gained.

Regrettably, subsequent history proved that the impact was far greater than Li Si had anticipated. But how could Li Si, living in that era, have judged that the repercussions would be so severe—to the point of being branded one of the First Emperor's tyrannical acts?

Such is the limitation of an era. The ancients living in their time were simply incapable of judging whether certain actions were right or wrong, especially when measured by the standards of later generations.

Li Nian continued, "Because it was the first time, and because they were groping in the dark, neither Your Majesty nor the ministers of Qin could accurately predict whether many things would turn out for better or for worse. In this regard, the Great Han actually picked up a bargain. The Gaozu established the Han after the Qin, and because the Qin had already tested certain things first, the Han was spared countless detours."

"In any case, they only needed to open their Sharingan, copy straight from the Great Qin, keep what the Qin did right, and abandon or correct what the Qin did wrong. I believe the emperors of the Han should all bow to Your Majesty and say 'thank you'!"

Hearing Li Nian's words, Ying Zheng's face darkened slightly, and that familiar sensation of being a tragic chump arose within him once again. His Great Qin had merely paved the way for the Great Han.

Ying Zheng thought to himself, *'Once I find that Pei Gong, I shall certainly give him a most hospitable reception!'*

Li Nian resumed, "Therefore, regarding the collapse of the Great Qin, I believe we should not be too harsh on Your Majesty and the lords of Qin. You were the trailblazers, and experimentation inherently carries the possibility of failure."

Ying Zheng's expression improved considerably. Indeed! Recently, when handling state affairs, he had increasingly felt the difference between governing the entire realm and governing the old state of Qin. In governing the former Qin, he could clearly see the impact generated by a single decree, but now, sometimes that clarity eluded him.

However, Li Nian's next sentence pulled Ying Zheng right back from his contemplation, for Li Nian declared: "The second primary reason for the downfall of the Great Qin, I believe, is Your Majesty!"

Ying Zheng's gaze instantly locked onto him, yet Li Nian lacked the nervousness of their first two encounters. He calmly continued, "Your Majesty was too hasty, and too confident. Your Majesty wished to bring the entire realm under absolute control within a very short span of time, and Your Majesty genuinely believed you could achieve this feat, thereby ignoring practical realities."

"In history, Wang Wan was dismissed from the post of Chancellor by Your Majesty, and Li Si was appointed in his stead. I believe this is a direct manifestation of Your Majesty's impatience."

"Chancellor Wang Wan advocated for the use of enfeoffment in distant regions to gradually exert control over the whole realm, dealing with the remote territories only after the adjacent areas were fully secured."

"Your Majesty was impatient; how could you possibly wait? Thus, in the history books, Li Si replaced Wang Wan as the Chancellor of Qin, because Li Si shared Your Majesty's mindset—he was equally impatient and equally confident!"

"Yet, did Your Majesty consider whether the Great Qin possessed a sufficient number of officials to govern the former lands of the six states? And whether the peoples of those six states were willing to accept Qin's rule?"

"Perhaps Your Majesty did consider it in history, but simply did not care, confident that the task could be accomplished and that the world would inevitably be brought to submission."

"The fact that Your Majesty did not establish a crown prince while on the throne is likewise a manifestation of your excessive confidence!"

"Perhaps Your Majesty believed that none of the princes were fit to inherit the imperial throne, which is why no heir was designated; but I believe it was more because Your Majesty felt everything was under complete control, that an heir could be named at any moment, and there was no need to rush."

"Yet the reality was that upon Your Majesty's passing, Prince Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si forged an imperial edict, murdered Prince Fusu, and elevated Prince Huhai to the throne, directly causing the Great Qin to perish in its second generation."

Ying Zheng caught the underlying meaning in Li Nian's words: *If you had appointed an heir early on—whether Prince Fusu or someone else—and left that fellow Huhai no room to maneuver, the Great Qin might not have fallen in the second generation.*

*You were simply too confident, assuming that leaving no heir would matter not, and that even upon the brink of death, a single lingering edict would compel the world to obey. Yet Huhai, Zhao Gao, and Li Si quite deliberately chose to ignore your imperial edict.*

"Your Majesty's excessive confidence was further manifested in the failure to exterminate the nobles of the six states root and branch!"

"Who were the nobles of the six states? The Great Qin destroyed their countries, stripped them of their power and wealth. How did Your Majesty suppose they felt in their hearts? And what would they do if given the opportunity?"

"Your Majesty was confident that these people were no longer a threat, failing to eliminate their influence and instead letting them roam unchecked, ultimately becoming a plague to the Great Qin!"

"The third primary reason for the collapse of the Great Qin: Huhai and Zhao Gao. Though, in truth, this point can ultimately be attributed to Your Majesty."

Hearing this, Ying Zheng's face darkened completely. *Would this ever end?*