People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

He established the Taiping Granary to store grain and relieve famine, ensuring that the Qin state would not suffer from natural disasters.

He also vigorously promoted merchants to balance the power of military nobles and break the trend of governing the country solely through violence.

Furthermore, commercial taxes were abolished, and corvée labor was eliminated.

Recently, the Qin state has even proposed a righteous army, giving it a legitimate reason to launch an attack and laying the foundation for Qin's unification of China.

Count them all.

He may be power-hungry, but he is by no means a short-sighted person.

Therefore, he always felt that he was a very contradictory person.

He is a businessman who disguises himself as an official, and he will always unconsciously seek profit.

Seeking personal gain, seeking family gain, seeking national gain.

Not making a profit is a loss, and making a small profit is not making a profit.

On the one hand, they wanted the King of Qin to lose his virtue and the hearts of the people; on the other hand, they did not want the Qin state to decline as a result, thus failing to unify the world and allowing him to be remembered for generations.

Ying Zheng said, "Uncle, ever since I heard about 'rule of law,' I have thought about it day and night, and have had many conversations with Gai Nie."

"In this context, it seems that the premise of 'rule of law' is that the monarch should govern by doing nothing.

"I wonder if I have said anything wrong."

After listening, Lü Buwei was stunned. He hadn't expected that Ying Zheng had already discovered the hidden meaning in his words and pointed directly to the core of his thoughts.

Although his book, Lüshi Chunqiu, is classified as a work of the Miscellaneous School, this "miscellaneous" does not mean chaotic or disorderly. Rather, it is a work that incorporates the strengths of various schools of thought and integrates them with his own governing philosophy developed over many years.

The core idea of ​​this book is centered on the Huang-Lao philosophy, "combining Confucianism and Mohism, and integrating Legalism and the School of Names," practicing non-action, following nature, and achieving everything through non-action.

He believed that governing the country with the idea of ​​"non-interference" was very beneficial for easing domestic conflicts, allowing the people to recuperate and recover, and promoting development.

Moreover, he has some personal experience with this, which proves that the effect is very good.

For example, the reason why the Qin state has gradually prospered in recent years is because his ideology has given various industries within the Qin state some freedom to develop.

Therefore, this book was written both to ensure his lasting fame and to provide guidance for Qin Shi Huang after he assumed power.

Unfortunately, Ying Zheng disliked the concept of "governing by doing nothing" and believed that it was inferior to the Legalist approach of law, strategy, and power.

Lü Buwei said, "Your Majesty is right. If you want to 'rule the country according to law'..."

Before Lü Buwei could finish speaking...

Ying Zheng said directly, "What if I don't want to 'govern by inaction' but instead want to 'rule the country according to law'?"

Lü Buwei instinctively said, "That's impossible."

The essence of "rule of law" lies in putting the people first and restraining power.

In the Qin state, the one with the most power was naturally the King of Qin.

Ying Zheng remained unfazed and said, "Why is it impossible? I have already thought of it."

Lü Buwei took a deep breath and said, "Please speak plainly, Your Majesty."

Ying Zheng said, "Rule the country by law!"

A rumble of thunder sounded outside the window; it was a muffled rumble.

Lü Buwei left Zhangtai Palace and sat in the carriage returning to the Prime Minister's residence.

Looking out the car window at the continuous drizzle, the rain intensified.

He did not argue with Ying Zheng on the spot about "ruling the country by law" and "governing the country according to law".

He needs to think about it carefully.

Should they continue to persuade Ying Zheng, or seek another path?

If we continue to persuade them, how should we do it?

……

Chapter 183 The Meaning of Form and Name

Inside the study of Zhangtai Palace.

After Lü Buwei left, Ying Zheng remained in a kneeling position.

He was deep in thought.

After a long while, Ying Zheng slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

"Gai Nie, which do you think is better, 'rule of law' or 'rule of law'?"

Gai Nie's face remained as resolute and cold as ever.

"I do not know."

In his view, there was no real difference between Lü Buwei's "rule of law" and Ying Zheng's "rule of law".

It's all just the application of 'law' to govern the country.

Ying Zheng shook his head slightly. Unlike him, Gai Nie did not study Legalism and did not understand the meaning of Legalist terms.

"The Zhuangzi's 'Heavenly Way' says, 'Once the division and adherence to one's duties are clear, then form and name come second.' Gai Nie, have you heard of this?"

Gai Nie said calmly, "My teacher explained it as, 'Divide the objects and name them according to their shapes.'"

Ying Zheng said, "That's right. The Legalist school's current study of form and name originates from the Daoist school of thought."

Gai Nie paused slightly and said, "So, is there a big difference between Your Majesty's 'rule of law' and the Prime Minister's 'rule of law'?"

Ying Zheng seemed to want to confide in someone as well.

"That's right, the difference is huge."

He knew neither why his father proposed "rule of law".

Undeniably, this approach to governing the country was indeed of great benefit to the Qin state.

But he knew even better what it was that enabled the Qin people to grow from a small, destitute state that was bullied by others to a powerful nation that now dominated the west and looked down on the other six states!

This is the law of Lord Shang!

The laws of Lord Shang were his summary of "ruling the country by law".

Gai Nie said, "Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

Ying Zheng said, "The Legalist school's theory of form and name, as advocated by Shen Buhai and Han Fei, focuses on the examination and combination of form and name. This is why the Legalists are also known as the 'School of Form and Name.'"

Gai Nie nodded slightly.

The so-called 'form' is something that people can directly perceive and grasp, while the so-called 'name' is what people call the 'form', which contains an understanding of its use.

The principle of 'examining the combination of form and name' is the root of Legalism.

This is why Ying Zheng and Gongsun Longzi discussed law and names back then.

It's not an exaggeration to say that the Legalists and the School of Names are in cahoots.

Therefore, he was able to perceive the difference between '依' and '以' very sensitively.

A single word's difference, a single shift in intention, determined the future fate of the Qin state.

Ying Zheng continued, "Han Fei once said in his essay 'Employing People,' that a wise ruler should ensure that people do not have unrelated affairs, so that there are no lawsuits; he should ensure that people do not hold multiple official positions, so that they can develop their skills; and he should ensure that people have different achievements, so that there are no disputes."

"Therefore, it is necessary to assign one title for each matter, one official title for each position, and one title for each merit. Do you understand?"

Gai Nie pondered for a moment and said, "I have read some of these. This is Han Fei's idea that a ruler should arrange his ministers like objects, so that each of them can perform their duties and be of use."

Ying Zheng said, "That's right. Define everyone's responsibilities, and no action should overstep the boundaries. Otherwise, regardless of the motive, they will be severely punished."

"This is because everything has a form and a name, so that things are unrelated and therefore there is no need for litigation."

Gai Nie said, "If officials do not hold multiple positions, their skills will be maximized. This means that each official position should have its own name and function, and as long as they do not hold multiple positions, each official position will be able to perform its function to the fullest extent."

Ying Zheng nodded and said, "Not bad."

"By making people's merits different, there is no need to argue." This means that each merit has a different form and name. Once the merits are clearly defined, there is nothing to argue about.

Ying Zheng paused, then said in a low voice, "Therefore, if the 'form and name' are in disorder, there will be a danger of usurpation!"

Gai Nie felt a chill run down his spine.

Transgression?

This implication almost implies that Lü Buwei has interfered in matters he shouldn't have.

He thought for a moment and said, "Does Your Majesty believe that Chancellor Lü..."

Ying Zheng raised his hand to stop Gai Nie from continuing.

"Han Fei wrote a fable in the chapter 'Power'."

Gai Nie said, "I would like to hear the details."

"Once, when Marquis Zhao of Han was drunk and fell asleep, the official in charge of his hat saw that the Marquis was cold, so he put a coat on him. When the Marquis awoke and was pleased, he asked his attendants, 'Who put the coat on me?' The attendants replied, 'The official in charge of his hat.'"

"You have committed the crimes of both the clothing pawner and the hat pawner. The clothing pawner was guilty for neglecting his duties; the hat pawner was guilty for overstepping his authority."

Finally, Ying Zheng said slowly, "It's not that I don't hate the cold, but the harm caused by the invasion of officialdom is greater than the cold."

Gai Nie sensed the worry in Ying Zheng's tone.

He used the reference to Marquis Ai of Han to refer to himself, and the reference to Dian Guan Dian Yi to refer to Lü Buwei, suggesting that Lü Buwei had inappropriate thoughts.

At this moment, Lü Buwei was arguably the most powerful person in Qin. The King of Qin, who had not yet assumed personal rule, had no ability to stop Lü Buwei.

If Lü Buwei were to do something, it would surely cause a huge upheaval, and the blow to the Qin state would far exceed the alliance of the other states.

Don't be fooled by the fact that Ying Zheng will be able to easily and decisively eliminate Lü Buwei in the future.

In short, it can be summarized as, "When fortune smiles, heaven and earth lend their strength; when luck turns, even heroes are powerless."

Lü Buwei made a foolish move, but Lao Ai provided a crucial assist, securing the support of the Chu faction...

Ultimately, it was only through his outstanding political skills that he was able to use a smooth series of moves to send Lü Buwei away.

Even so, they couldn't eliminate Lü Buwei on the spot; they needed to plan things out slowly. It was only two years later that Lü Buwei was awarded the reward for "what merits he had made for Qin."

If Lü Buwei hadn't made that disastrous move and hadn't had Lao Ai, and if he had wanted to reclaim the power of the prime minister from the king, a bloody storm would have surely ensued if Lü Buwei had refused.