I started on a deserted island and encountered Ying Zheng, who insisted I was an immortal.

Strengthening the nation through commerce?

Are you kidding me!

"Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants."

Li Si laughed in anger, his mustache trembling.

Merchants have always been ranked last among the four classes of people!

"These people do not engage in production or farming; they only know how to speculate, buy low and sell high, hoard goods and drive up prices. What benefit do they bring to the country and the people?"

"The laws of Lord Shang clearly state: prioritize agriculture and suppress commerce! This is the cornerstone of national policy!"

"Sir, you actually claim that commerce can strengthen the nation? That's simply...unheard of!"

Li Si was truly enraged. In his view, Zhang Ying might have some magical skills in farming, but when it came to governing a country, she was a complete novice.

Ying Zheng nodded in agreement.

Prioritizing agriculture and suppressing commerce was a deeply ingrained principle in the Qin state since Shang Yang's reforms.

He guessed that Mr. Zhang had lived in the overseas immortal mountains for a long time and did not understand the national conditions of the Qin Dynasty, which was why he said such unorthodox words.

"Shang Yang?"

Zhang Ying seemed to have heard something amusing.

"Prime Minister Li, I ask you, how many years has it been since Shang Yang passed away?"

Li Si was taken aback, and subconsciously replied, "Shang Jun was enfeoffed in the twenty-second year of Duke Xiao's reign, which is nearly a hundred years ago."

"Nearly a century."

Zhang Ying nodded.

"Have you ever heard the story recorded in the Lüshi Chunqiu?"

Before he finished speaking, the atmosphere at the dinner table suddenly turned cold.

Li Si's expression changed drastically.

Meng Yi and Wang Ben froze in their tracks.

Xia Wuqie was so frightened that he almost dropped his chopsticks on the ground.

Lüshi Chunqiu!

Lü Buwei!

In Xianyang, this is the greatest taboo! It is His Majesty's Achilles' heel!

Who dares to mention this person before His Majesty?

Everyone looked at Ying Zheng uneasily, fearing that the emperor would be enraged and lash out on the spot.

However, there was not a trace of anger on Ying Zheng's face.

He simply looked at Zhang Ying calmly, his voice revealing no emotion.

"What story?"

Zhang Ying was completely unaware of the strange atmosphere around him; he simply felt that the allusion was perfectly suited to this situation.

"It is said that a man from the State of Chu was crossing the river by boat when his sword fell into the water."

"He then carved a mark on the side of the ship, saying, 'This is where my sword fell.'"

"After the ship docked, he went into the water to look for the sword at the marked spot, but naturally he couldn't find it."

After Zhang Ying finished speaking, she looked at Li Si.

"Prime Minister Li, you are well-versed in literature. Tell me, what is the moral of the story of 'Marking the Boat to Find the Sword'?"

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Li Si's forehead.

He dared not look at Ying Zheng and could only bite the bullet and answer.

"It means...it means that times have changed, but the law remains unchanged. If the country is governed by this, chaos is inevitable. It means...it's a satire of those fools who are rigid in their beliefs and inflexible."

"Well said!"

Zhang Ying clapped her hands.

"Since you understand this principle, why do you still cling to the laws of Shang Yang, which are nearly a hundred years old?"

Zhang Ying's voice suddenly rose, like a sharp sword piercing Li Si.

"A hundred years ago, the Qin state was confined to the western corner of the country, its national strength was weak, and it was surrounded by the other six states. Shang Yang's reforms, which emphasized agriculture and warfare, were aimed at carving a bloody path out of the chaotic world, enriching the country and strengthening its military, and plotting to conquer the world. The laws of that time were life-saving laws!"

"But what about now?"

"Now, the Qin Dynasty has unified the six kingdoms, standardized writing, standardized cart tracks, and brought the world under one rule! The times and circumstances have been completely transformed!"

"Yet you still cling to outdated laws from a hundred years ago as sacred decrees, wielding the sword of the previous dynasty to execute officials of this dynasty? No, to govern the country of this dynasty!"

"Prime Minister Li, tell me, what's the difference between you and that Chu man who marked his boat to find his lost sword?"

"you……"

Li Si was rendered speechless by these words, and his face turned a deep purplish-red.

His lips trembled for a long time before he finally managed to utter a sentence.

"That's sophistry! Agriculture is the foundation of the nation, and merchants pursue profit; the very foundation of the country must never be shaken!"

"Foundation?"

Zhang Ying was thoroughly enraged by his stubborn attitude.

That aura, typical of top scholars engaging in academic debate, completely erupted.

He stopped looking at Li Si and turned to the only person at the table qualified to answer the question.

"His Majesty!"

Zhang Ying's tone was serious and solemn.

"I only have two questions for you."

Ying Zheng put down his wine bowl and leaned forward slightly.

"Please speak, sir."

"First, is the Qin Dynasty's treasury full? Is the court wealthy?"

This question struck Ying Zheng like a heavy blow.

He thought of the perpetually empty national treasury and the strained finances that were barely enough to support the 300,000-strong army in the northern frontier and the southern expeditionary force.

He was silent for a moment, then slowly uttered two words.

Not rich.

Zhang Ying nodded and then asked her second question.

"Secondly, are the people of Qin prosperous? Can they afford two meals a day and be free from worries about food and clothing?"

Ying Zheng's breathing became heavier.

He recalled the emaciated, ragged people he had seen on his travels.

They lived in thatched huts, ate coarse food and wild vegetables, and after a year of hard work, most of their harvest had to be handed over to the national treasury to supply the army.

For them, even eating two meals a day is a luxury.

a long time.

Ying Zheng's voice was hoarse and bitter.

"The people are suffering."

The answer was obtained.

Zhang Ying suddenly turned around and faced the distraught Li Si again.

His voice wasn't loud, but it sounded like a resounding slap across Li Si's face.

"Prime Minister Li, did you hear that?"

"A nation cannot be strong without its wealth."

"You keep saying that the national policy of 'taking agriculture as the foundation' is not wrong."

"Then I'd like to ask you something."

"Where exactly did the problem lie?"

This Right Chancellor of the Qin Dynasty, the greatest synthesizer of Legalism, began to waver for the first time regarding the principles he had upheld throughout his life.

So where exactly did the problem lie?

He didn't understand.

"The problem lies in food!"

Li Si suddenly raised his head, as if grasping at the last straw.

"How can we talk about prosperity when the people are starving? How can we talk about a strong army when the soldiers are hungry? As long as we have sweet potatoes, everyone will have food to eat, and every family will have surplus grain. Isn't that what national prosperity and strength look like?"

He stubbornly refused to budge an inch.

This was not just a debate, but a defense of his position and power as prime minister.

Meng Yi, standing to the side, also nodded.

Although he disagreed with Li Si politically, they agreed on the point that "agriculture is the foundation of the country."

"Mr. Zhang, what Prime Minister Li said makes perfect sense. Food supplies are the lifeblood of a nation."

Zhang Ying smiled.

He picked up the cleanly gnawed lamb hoof bone from the table and tossed it in his hand.

"Having enough to eat is just the bare minimum for survival; it's a far cry from being prosperous and strong."

He threw the bone onto the table with a loud "clang".

"I ask you, is eating enough for a person?"

"Do people need clothes? Do they still need housing? If their farm tools break, do they need new ones? When cooking, they need some decent salt, right?"

With each question Zhang Ying asked, Li Si's expression grew increasingly grim.

"Can sweet potatoes conjure up these things for you?"

"Can ordinary people really exchange a house full of sweet potatoes they can't finish for cloth, farm tools, and refined salt?"

"How can we exchange them? Bring your sweet potatoes to the weavers? Their family can't even finish them all, what would they do with your sweet potatoes?"

"Go trade with the blacksmith? The blacksmith also needs to trade items for iron ore!"

"This requires something to circulate in the middle."