Chapter Twenty-Three: Robbed Along the Way

Everything had been proceeding smoothly, yet Fusu always failed to play by the rules; whenever a critical moment arrived, he would invariably spring some unexpected surprise.

First, he had those alchemists develop something akin to "Heavenly Thunder," and now, Fusu was leading that group of fools around Chunyu Yue to push for some "Provincial System." This was a direct threat to the very foundation of Li Si's position as Chancellor!

On what basis had Li Si become Chancellor? Was it not through the implementation of the Commandery-County System? This was the system he had pushed for with all his might, a system that he and his circle of Legalist and Confucian scholars had spent years meticulously refining.

Now, Fusu had suddenly introduced a "Provincial System" that appeared even superior to his own Commandery-County System. Li Si began to panic.

Shusun Tong, seemingly realizing the gravity of the situation, gritted his teeth and said, "I shall return at once to consult with Master Kong. Tomorrow, at the Grand Court session, we will submit a formal remonstrance to His Majesty!"

Li Si nodded. Shusun Tong departed in haste.

"Master Wu, you too must draft a memorial. List the evidence in detail; this time, we must ensure Fusu has no opportunity to turn the tables." Master Wu nodded immediately.

Still uneasy, Li Si turned to Zhou Qingchen and said, "It is not enough. You must go personally and speak to Zhao Gao. Our very survival hangs on this one move. Tell that gutless wretch to use his full strength, or we shall all be finished!"

Zhou Qingchen nodded and hurried away.

...

Within the office of the Commandant of the Guards, Wang Ben had just removed his light armor, preparing to finish his shift and head home. Suddenly, a guard rushed in, shouting, "My Lord, My Lord, something terrible has happened!"

"What is the matter, to cause such panic?" Wang Ben asked with visible displeasure.

The guard looked nervous as he reported, "The two men, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, whom the High Minister ordered us to capture some days ago... they have been snatched away on the road!"

"Snatched away?" Wang Ben was stunned.

He walked back into his room and retrieved the arrest warrant. Upon seeing the personal annotations made by the First Emperor himself, Wang Ben’s expression turned grim. He donned his light armor once more and demanded, "Where were they taken? I want a detailed report of the entire incident!"

Seeing this, the guard quickly handed over a bamboo scroll and pleaded, "My Lord, let me go! I guarantee I will capture those two and bring them to justice."

Wang Ben did not immediately agree. Instead, he read through all the information, falling into a contemplative, uncertain silence. At a time like this, for someone to dare hijack prisoners wanted by the Emperor—if they didn't have a death wish, it meant those two individuals were of immense importance.

...

Wang Ben thought it over carefully. Finally, he removed his armor again, handed the report back to the guard, and said, "Report this truthfully to the High Minister and His Majesty!"

The guard hesitated, momentarily stunned. "Are we not to send men in pursuit?"

Wang Ben shook his head immediately. "No!"

This affair involved Prince Fusu and clearly signaled the onset of a struggle for the succession; Wang Ben had no desire to wade into such murky waters. He would simply focus on maintaining order in Xianyang. As for the rest, let the High Minister worry about it.

"Keep yourself out of trouble," he thought. Whether the princes beat each other to death had nothing to do with him. His father had told him that the Wang family must never interfere in the succession struggle, and Wang Ben had always adhered to this. Besides, Prince Fusu had nothing to do with him—he wasn't his son-in-law, so why should he worry?

With this thought, Wang Ben happily finished his shift and headed home.

...

At night, within the Imperial Palace, the First Emperor held the bamboo scrolls that Meng Yi had organized regarding the Provincial System. Then, his gaze fell once more upon the formula for gunpowder.

The First Emperor fell into deep thought. The power of gunpowder was enough to alter the outcome of any war. As for the Provincial System, it was the most satisfactory governance structure he had ever seen; the various aspects it touched upon were precisely what the Great Qin needed to implement.

Of course, before seeing the Provincial System, the First Emperor had been most satisfied with the Commandery-County policy. The two systems shared many similarities; it was as if the Commandery-County System were a rough draft, while the Provincial System was a perfected, golden path forged through tempering.

This was a system that could change the direction of the entire imperial court!

"Fusu, oh Fusu! How is your mind fashioned, that you could bring Me so many surprises all at once?" This forced the First Emperor to consider whether he should name Fusu as Crown Prince sooner.

The next second, the First Emperor shook his head. He still needed to observe for a while longer. Fusu’s performance during this period had been far too conspicuous, to the point where even as his father, he felt as if the boy had become a different person.

...

At that moment, the Censor-in-Chief Feng Jie walked in and said with great respect, "Your Majesty, the matter has been investigated."

Zhao Gao took the bamboo scroll and presented it to the First Emperor.

"Chunyu Yue dares to take the lead in rashly criticizing the Commandery-County System and mocks Me for not knowing how to govern!"

The First Emperor slammed his hand on the table and roared, "These Confucian scholars have such audacity! First, there were the likes of Lu Sheng and Hou Sheng, distorting facts and deluding the masses! Now, there are scholars saying I am a tyrant, greedy for power, and obsessed with grand achievements..."

The more he spoke, the angrier the First Emperor became, gasping for breath.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!" Zhao Gao stepped forward to console him. "Your Majesty works diligently every day, handling all affairs personally. How can anyone say you are greedy for power?"

Zhao Gao's attempt to console only served to further ignite the First Emperor's inner rage.

"I originally thought that the Hundred Schools of Thought could all be used for the benefit of Great Qin, so I even created the system of Doctor-scholars for policy discussion, with the Confucian school as the leader. It seems now that I was wrong!"

The First Emperor raised his eyes slightly, his gaze piercing as he looked at Censor-in-Chief Feng Jie. "Does this matter involve Chunyu Yue? Did Fusu participate?"

"This..." Feng Jie’s eyelid twitched. He quickly said, "Your humble servant does not know."

"You don't know? Then that means Fusu did not participate?"

The First Emperor’s anger subsided slightly, and he gave a cold snort. "It must be so. Otherwise, at yesterday's banquet, Fusu would not have deliberately undermined Chunyu Yue! If Fusu knew what these scholars were doing, he would surely have stopped them and argued against them. After all, I am his father; surely he wouldn't join these scholars in cursing his own father?"

Feng Jie’s face turned pale; he dared not respond.

The First Emperor took a deep breath and looked at Meng Yi. "In a few days, you shall have Fusu record the Provincial System in its entirety. I wish to study it carefully."

"Yes!" Meng Yi bowed to accept the order.

At this time, Feng Jie spoke again, "Your Majesty, yesterday, Chunyu Yue and other scholars went to visit Prince Fusu. It seems they were discussing the Provincial System as well..."

The First Emperor narrowed his eyes and cursed, "Those scholars, who lack the strength to truss a chicken, certainly have sharp eyes—they know the Provincial System is a good thing."

Feng Jie nodded.

"By the way, has Wang Jian come to request an audience again?" The First Emperor suddenly remembered something and sighed.

Zhao Gao nodded immediately. "Yes, Your Majesty."

"The Marquis of Wucheng truly cannot bear to part with his granddaughter!"