The Moon in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 42: Shangjun's Law (Part )

"Shang Jun was the first to standardize weights and measures."

"Only by unifying the weights and measures can we have a fixed standard for the division of land, grain and food taxation, military pay, military merit rewards, and the manufacture of military equipment."

"After the land reform, we can set up counties. On this basis, we can absorb scholars from all over the world and establish an official system. The people will no longer be directly managed by the nobles and will no longer be responsible to the nobles."

"No matter how many households the nobles of the Qin Dynasty were granted, the people were no longer their private property, but were distributed uniformly by the court."

"All taxes collected from the people of Daqin will be collected by the central government, and will no longer pass through the hands of the nobles."

"All taxes collected from these lands are collected by officials and centralized in the central court. Only when the court has money can it support the entire official system and no longer rely on the nobles."

"And all officials only need to be responsible to the king. In addition, the extremely strict, detailed and rigorous Qin Law established by Shang Yang can only complement the official system. It is definitely not possible to manage it by enfeoffing nobles."

"In the administrative system of the Qin Dynasty, the highest level is naturally the central government of the king. Below that level are the prefectures, below that are the counties, below the counties are the townships, below the townships are the pavilions, and at the very bottom are the villages."

"From top to bottom, it is all-encompassing and all-inclusive; only with such a strict and meticulous system, coupled with strict laws and punishments to ensure clean governance, can all the power of the entire Qin Dynasty be held together."

"And the work behind all this is the fundamental reason why the entire military merit system can truly exert its power."

"The reality of the military merit system is the integration of farming and warfare. The premise of the integration of farming and warfare is land and farming. All of this is inseparable from an efficient and rigorous management system."

Ying Zheng nodded and said, "My disciple understands that only with substance can one have appearance. On the surface, it looks like a military merit system, but in reality it is a land system and an official system. Only when these two are effectively implemented can the military merit system have a chance to exert its power."

"This is also why the seemingly simple system of military merit and rank is not something that other vassal states can learn from. When soldiers from other vassal states go into battle and kill the enemy, they naturally have their own laws for rewards and punishments."

“But when they actually implemented it, it changed.”

"First, there is not enough land to reward. Second, corruption is rampant, the aristocracy is in power, and the law has become a mere decoration. It is easy to punish, but it is difficult to reward."

"With punishment but no reward, the lower-class people have little chance to advance, so naturally no one is willing to risk their lives. If they lose on the battlefield, they will lose their cities and lands, and the people will flee with nothing. If they want to survive, they can only rely on other nobles. The more powerful the nobles become, the harder it will be to change the law."

"This has become a vicious cycle. It is impossible to turn it into a benign one without breaking it. But how easy is it to break it? If we are not careful, there will be internal strife. Before the outsiders come in, our own people will be finished. If this is the case, it is better not to change. The purpose of reform is to become stronger, not to destroy ourselves."

Ying Zheng sneered: "We can only delay it day by day and muddle through."

Zhong Cang nodded in agreement: "That's right, and that's why the poor people in other vassal states have no chance of advancement, so most of the talented people in the world come to Qin."

"And the Qin State has always treated the scholars of other vassal states well. After all, in the Qin State, as long as one is truly talented and dares to fight, one can truly bring honor to one's family and enjoy wealth and glory. People of insight can all see that if there is a country that truly unifies the world in the future, it will be the Qin State!"

"As long as the next emperor of the Qin Dynasty continues Shang Yang's policy, and there are no major accidents, it is only a matter of time before the country is unified."

“As long as scholars enter the court of the Great Qin, the more they understand Shang Yang’s law in detail, the more certain they will be.”

Ying Zheng nodded and said: "My Great Qin has had wise rulers for generations. We will eventually unify the world."

Zhong Cang bowed and said, "I firmly believe this."

He then said, "It has been more than a hundred years since Shang Yang's reform. The world has changed and some laws are no longer applicable. Although several generations of predecessors have realized this and have revised many laws, the fundamental structure of Qin law is still impossible to change."

"This has also led to the emergence of some extremely bad things now."

"My lord, do you know why the Qin people are so happy when they hear about war, and why everyone is vying for titles?" Ying Zheng pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "First, it is naturally to get rewards for meritorious service, and second, it is naturally that the Qin laws are strict, and there are often repeated crimes, and titles can exempt people from punishment."

Zhong Cang nodded heavily:

"Exactly. Qin's laws were harsh for a reason. Officials and nobles are all human and can be corrupt."

"In order to ensure that Qin Law can be truly implemented and strictly enforced, we can only use severe laws as a deterrent. In order to avoid problems in the middle and avoid collusion or concealment, all punishments are mostly based on the collective responsibility system."

"This policy has both advantages and disadvantages, but in the end the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. The advantage is that it has a remarkable effect and Qin law can be strictly enforced. The disadvantage is that it is inevitable that some people will suffer injustice."

"Even if you don't make any mistakes yourself, you never know when your relatives, friends or even neighbors will make mistakes, and you may end up committing a crime as a result."

"And the title of the Great Qin, deliberately designed by Shang Jun, is extremely precious and has many uses."

"In the Qin Empire, nothing is more important than a title. With each promotion, a title in the Qin Empire not only comes with numerous rewards, such as land and slaves, but can also be transferred to become an official, and naturally can also be used to atone for sins."

"So all the Qin people are eager to seek titles."

"That's right. When Shang Yang formulated the Qin Law, he was also strict about the acquisition of titles, mainly for the purpose of military victory."

"Of course, there are many ways to obtain a title, such as cultivating the land well, working hard, catching thieves, being brave, offering advice, and making donations to the court, but it is extremely difficult and there are limits to how much you can get."

"The main way to obtain a title is through military merit."

"If you have military merit, you will have a title, and if you have a title, you will have everything."

"This is also why the warriors of the Qin Dynasty are happy to hear about war and are not afraid of death."

"The soldiers of the Qin Dynasty are the strongest in the world. They are invincible with me."

"Just like everything in the world, there is yin and yang. It is also because the title of the Great Qin is so precious that many vicious incidents occur repeatedly."

"There have been many incidents of fighting for merit, and some even killed their colleagues for military merit."

"On the battlefield, there was even more killing than usual. Wu Anjun alone led the troops and killed over a million people."

"Things have gotten a little backwards now."

"The purpose of being awarded a title for military merit is to make the Qin Empire stronger. The purpose of being stronger is to defeat the enemy, gain more land, and more manpower."

"Talent is the foundation. Only when people work can we generate income."

"If you kill too many trees and gain land, but no one cultivates it, what is the meaning of this land?"

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(End of this chapter)