Chapter 38 3. Set up counties and establish centralization

221 BC was destined to be an unusual year in China's 5,000-year history.Because in this year, a Qin king named Yingzheng, with the assistance of a large number of capable ministers and good generals, strategized, and after nearly ten years of southern and northern wars, he finally wiped out Han, Zhao, Wei, Chu, and Yan successively. , Qi and the Six Kingdoms ended more than 200 years of disputes among the feudal lords and the Warring States Period, and achieved unity in the true sense for the first time in this ancient land. Therefore, Yingzheng became the first in Chinese history. emperor.

A brand-new country has just been established, and there is a lot of waste waiting to be rejuvenated. There are so many problems in front of Qin Shihuang, which makes Qin Shihuang very headache.How to establish a centralized regime to achieve a high degree of political unity?How can we make the Great Qin Dynasty last forever?He decided to hand over these issues to the ministers for discussion in the court, hoping that they could come up with a good solution for him. During the court meeting, the old prime minister Wang Wan, who was the head of all the officials, was the first to come forward and said: "I would like to report to your majesty, the old minister believes that it was precisely because King Wen of Zhou established the state and implemented the enfeoffment system that the Zhou Dynasty was preserved. Eight hundred years of foundation. Now that our new dynasty has just been established, the situation has not yet been completely stabilized, especially in remote places such as Yan, Qi, and Chu. The folk customs are fierce, and it is really difficult to manage if you do not entrust the king to guard it. Therefore, the old minister suggests that your majesty please divide the feudal The princes are the kings, and lead the army to guard the important places to realize the management of these areas. In my view, as long as I follow the Zhou system, our Daqin Guozuo will surely last forever." Prime Minister Wang Wan's memorial was agreed by some senior officials.

After hearing Wang Wan's words, Qin Shihuang thought for a long time.In fact, before that, he had done some in-depth thinking on how to govern this huge country, and weighed the pros and cons of the enfeoffment system of the Zhou Dynasty.In the end, he believed that the emergence of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Rebellions was rooted in the enfeoffment system of the Zhou Dynasty.Although the enfeoffment system of the Zhou Dynasty did strengthen the king's rule over the fiefdom people, but later, the power of the kings in various places increased greatly, forming a situation that could not be lost.The enfeoffed kings are no longer subject to the constraints of the king. They wantonly waged wars for their own interests, and it is difficult for the people in the fiefs to find peace.Now that the world has just been stabilized and unified, if he continues to imitate King Wen of Zhou and entrust the princes, it will undoubtedly plant the root of disaster.Therefore, he personally disagrees with Wang Wan's claim.

Qin Shihuang waved his hands, looked at the ministers below who had made countless contributions to the great cause of reunification, and said: "In my eyes, what is the Zhou Dynasty's 800-year foundation! Please think about it, dear dear ones, why have there been wars and chaos for hundreds of years? Isn’t the enfeoffment system of the Zhou Dynasty the root cause of the chaos in the world? Because of the enfeoffment system of the Zhou Dynasty, there were many states within the state, so there was the Spring and Autumn Period Five Hegemons, Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period. Today, the world is finally unified in my hands. I hope that under the governance of me and my successors, the world will enjoy peace forever, the war will end forever, and the people will live and work in peace and contentment. Therefore, I must not Repeating the mistakes of the Zhou Dynasty, the proposal of the old prime minister is not advisable."

Being criticized by the first emperor in public, Wang Wan was a little embarrassed.He wanted to argue a few more words, but when he saw Ying Zheng's dignified face, he retreated resentfully. Qin Shihuang looked at the silent ministers below, and understood that the reason for their silence was that they were afraid of being punished for saying something wrong.In order to dispel their worries, he said to them with a smile on his face: "What other good ideas do you loves? Just speak out boldly and let everyone discuss. Even if the words are wrong, I will not pursue any responsibility."

Ting Wei Li Si didn't agree with Wang Wan's suggestion at first. Seeing that Emperor Shihuang encouraged the officials to speak up, he seized the opportunity to remonstrate with Qin Shihuang: "Your Majesty is wise, His Majesty's vision is so far-sighted. It is not as good as waiting for myself, but it is also a blessing for the country, the country, and the common people." Li Si boldly continued: "These days, I have been troubled by this problem. After thinking about it, I think that the world should be divided into counties and counties, and the New Deal should be implemented. In my opinion, the implementation of the system of counties and counties, There are many advantages. For example, on the one hand, it relieves the danger of disaster caused by enfeoffment; blessings of blessing."

The system of prefectures and counties mentioned by Li Si aroused Qin Shihuang's strong interest.In his heart, Li Si is really a rare talent, with a talent that spans the universe.He knew that over the years, Li Si, who was born in Legalism, had made great contributions to Qin State.Thanks to Li Si's assistance, he was able to complete the hegemony of unifying the six countries.Therefore, he said to Li Si with a smile on his face: "The county system that Li Aiqing mentioned is a good idea, but I don't know how to implement the county system. Please Li Aiqing explain it to me and your family."

Therefore, in the court hall where Qin Shihuang discussed matters, Ting Wei Li Si talked freely, talking about the prefecture and county system that he had been thinking about for many days with the emperor and the ministers.Listening to Li Si's explanation, Qin Shihuang sometimes nodded and sometimes frowned in thought; all the ministers were also deeply attracted by his theory, held their breath and listened carefully. In fact, Li Si did not create the system of prefectures and counties. As early as the period of Shang Yang's reform, for the sake of national security and the need for war preparations, the seven heroes of the Warring States Period established prefectures and counties in important border towns one after another.It's just that the system of prefectures and counties at that time was slightly different from the system of prefectures and counties envisioned by Li Si. In ancient times, the level of counties was slightly lower than that of counties.After absorbing the experience of his predecessors, Li Si innovated and put forward his own unique idea about the system of prefectures and counties.After Li Si's explanation, Qin Shihuang realized that the implementation of the prefecture and county system was conducive to political stability and economic development, so he expressed his firm support for Li Si's proposition.

According to Li Si's idea, and after some discussion among the ministers, the county system of the Great Qin Empire was formed in this way.Its basic content has the following aspects: First, considering the vast territory of the Great Qin Empire, the world was divided into Sanchuan, Hedong, Nanyang, Nanjun, Jiujiang, Zhangjun, Kuaiji, Yingchuan, Dangjun, Sishui, Xuejun, Dongjun, Langya, Qijun, Shanggu, Yuyang, Youbeiping, Liaoxi, Liaodong, Daijun, Julu, Handan, Shangdang, Taiyuan, Yunzhong, Jiuyuan, Yanmen, Shangjun, Longxi, Beidi, Hanzhong, Bajun, Shujun, Qianzhong, Thirty-six counties, including Changsha County and Neishi County, are convenient for governance.

Second, each county has official positions such as sheriff and county lieutenant.The sheriff is the highest officer of a county, and is in charge of all affairs of the county; the county lieutenant is in charge of the army and judicial power of a county. Third, the lower level of administrative organization of the county is set up as a county, with a county magistrate and a county lieutenant.Under the county, there are grass-roots organizations such as townships and pavilions. Fourth, in order to strengthen centralized rule and ensure the smooth implementation of central government orders, the county guards, county lieutenants, county magistrates, and county lieutenants are all directly appointed by the emperor and cannot be hereditary.

After the establishment of the prefecture and county system, in order to strengthen the control of the local government, Qin Shihuang also implemented the system of Sangong Jiuqing to strengthen the assessment and supervision of each prefecture and county.The county guards report to the central court every autumn and winter about their governance status for a year, and the county magistrates also report their governance status to the county guards. At this time, the central government or the county conducts assessments on its subordinates. The lighter ones are demoted, the more serious ones are dismissed from office and served prison terms. Supervision is supplemented by assessment. The central government sends county supervisors to supervise counties, and counties and counties also send supervisors to supervise counties or townships.Through this kind of top-down supervision, the central decree can be implemented relatively smoothly to the lowest level, which basically guarantees the smooth flow of the decree. The implementation of the system of prefectures and counties is self-evident for the importance of the nascent Great Qin Empire; it also has a profound impact on the Chinese nation.Qin Shihuang implemented the system of prefectures and counties, which greatly consolidated and stabilized the centralized rule and national unity of the Qin Dynasty.Through the operation of the bureaucratic system, state power can extend from top to bottom to the bottom of society, and everything is based on the will of the supreme ruler.The main officials at the central and local levels were directly appointed and dismissed by the monarch, which avoided the monopoly of the aristocratic class on official positions and was conducive to the selection of talents by the monarch.The system of prefectures and counties not only greatly strengthened the power in the hands of the king, but also effectively avoided the occurrence of wars. The system of prefectures and counties in the Qin Dynasty was the beginning of the bureaucratic system in China's two thousand years of feudal society. It laid the foundation for China's local political and administrative system and established the basic framework of a centralized feudal dynasty.In addition, the idea of ​​national unity supported by the county system has been deeply affecting later generations.