Chapter 18 Chapter 18 How Shang Yang Changed the State of Qin

There were many reforms in the Warring States Period, and the northern and southern vassal states made great strides, but among them, Shang Yang's reform was recognized as the most successful. The success and great significance of Shang Yang's reform have been expounded many times in various historical materials, but many people generally summarize the reasons for the success of Shang Yang's reform as the support of the king of Qin, Shang Yang's personal policies and determination, and his outstanding achievements. administrative capacity.But compared with the real history, these views are slightly rough.Why Shang Yang's reforms achieved the greatest success, and why only Qin's reforms can remain strong for a long time, this is a very meaningful question for both the past and the future.

Under the background at that time, the whole process of Shang Yang's reform can even be regarded as a fairy tale miracle.Before Shang Yang entered the state of Qin, the reform movements of other countries had already started vigorously, but the state of Qin was still quiet.Almost none of the young talents who have the ability to change the law and create a great cause are willing to cross the Hangu Pass and enter the mysterious country of Qin.Because in the eyes of everyone, it is almost impossible to achieve political reform in the Qin State. The economic conditions of the Qin State are backward and poor, the slavery aristocracy is powerful, and the folk customs are barbaric and tough. , but they were uncivilized barbarians at the time. Naturally, no one dared to set foot in such a country.But Shang Yang dared, and he walked in bravely. Although he died as a guest of Qin State in the end, his reform succeeded. , This period of his life was regarded as an incredible miracle.

But why was Shang Yang able to create such a miracle? Speaking of the reasons why Shang Yang was able to create miracles, the first one is very simple. He went to Qin, which was like a blank sheet of paper. The Qin State at that time was poor and backward. Compared with the countries in the Central Plains, it was a piece of white paper that was poor and blank.In Qin State during this period, although the farming economy has become the main mode, the Guanzhong Plain is vast and sparsely populated, and three-fifths of the land has not been developed. The agricultural production level of Qin State is far behind that of the six Central Plains countries. .Whether it is the degree of economic development or the degree of civilization, they are far behind the Central Plains countries.And within the Qin State, the ruling contradictions in the early Warring States period were also extremely sharp. A large number of slaves began to revolt in groups. Some of them fled collectively, and some gathered in the mountains and forests to become robbers.In the degree of feudalization, Qin State was also far behind. As early as 594 BC, the State of Lu implemented a feudal taxation policy - the first mu tax. Qin State did not rule until 408 BC. Duke Jian of Qin implemented this policy.Compared with the countries in the Central Plains that could implement reforms from top to bottom, the power of the king of Qin was very limited. In the early Warring States period, the abolition of the king of Qin was controlled by the old nobles.Under such circumstances, how difficult is it to achieve reform?

But it is also these conditions of Qin State that give him the natural advantage of successful reform.First of all, Qin's economy is backward and its system is backward. As a result, they do not have the strict slavery state system like the Central Plains vassal states.Although Qin State introduced the etiquette and laws of the Zhou Dynasty during Bailixi's period and wanted to become a civilized country, the maturity of the country's political system was far behind the old slavery framework of the Central Plains countries.Reform under such conditions will inevitably encounter resistance, but compared with the obstruction of the entire administrative system, the obstruction of the old nobles is obviously easier to deal with.Although Qin's production organization is loose and production is backward, Qin's economic potential is huge.The Guanzhong Plain is rich in land. As long as the mode of production can be reformed and farmers' enthusiasm for production can be improved, Qin's production can take off rapidly in a short period of time. The immediate reform effect will make the obstacles in the early stage of reform disappear.

Another favorable condition for Qin's reform is their culture.In the eyes of the people of the Central Plains, the people of the Qin State are uncivilized "barbarians", because they are "barbarians", the old nobles of the Qin State have much less old-fashioned ideas in their minds.In such a loose old system, it is obviously much easier to overthrow and rebuild a new national system than to carry out reforms in a country with a long cultural and historical heritage like Qi.For example, Zou Ji, the reformer of Qi State, adopted the method of irony and remonstrance to promote his ideas, and all the reform content did not involve the transformation of Qi State’s administrative system on the surface, it was because of the deep-rooted pressure of the old system.

The most important factor for the success of Qin's reform is Qin Xiaogong himself who advocated reform.Looking at all the monarchs of the vassal states at that time, it is almost impossible to find a monarch who has such a firm determination to reform like Qin Xiaogong.He was able to give reformers full support and unreserved trust, which no reformer in other countries can get. This kind of unreserved support and unrepeatable trust comes from Qin Xiaogong's personal character, and even more from his unique life experience. Qin Xiaogong's family background is very special. He was not the orthodox heir of the Qin royal family.His family is a relatively partial branch of the Qin royal family. Qin Xiaogong's father, Gongzi Lian, was expelled from the country in his early years because he advocated reform and touched the interests of the old domestic nobles.Later, Prince Lian was indomitable and took advantage of the coup d'état in Qin to return home suddenly, and seized the position of monarch after a bitter battle.This coup was extremely dangerous. At that time, the old-fashioned faction had deployed troops to ambush him at the border, ready to kill him at any time. Fortunately, the officers who supported him in the army defected, so they took the risk and succeeded in seizing power.Gongzilian is the Qin Xiangong in the history of the Qin State. During his reign, he abolished the barbaric burial system, formulated the Baojia system of five families and one army, and began to initially promote the prefecture and county system, setting up four counties across the country as a pilot.It's a pity that his luck was very bad. At this time, Qin State was facing the threat of Wei State to the east.At this time, Wei State was in the most powerful period after Wei Wenhou's reform. Qin State lost the entire Xihe area in the war against Wei State.Most of the participants in the reform era did not have a long-term vision, and their views on reform had always been utilitarian. Qin Xiangong's failure in foreign wars also became a reason for conservatives to question reform.In 362 BC, with the regret of unfulfilled ambitions, Qin Xiangong died in sorrow and anger, and his 21-year-old son Quliang came to the throne. He was Qin Xiaogong who later created the Qin Reform.

Although Qin Xiaogong is young, he has long been aware of the inheritance of the family and his father's hard work for the reform, and he is also a person with great ambitions. The success of the reform is not only related to the strength of Qin, but also More related to the father's last wish.Therefore, after Qin Xiaogong ascended the throne, he issued notices seeking talents many times in a row, hoping to recruit talents who would promote reforms. He would give this talent unreserved trust and let him help him create a powerful Great Qin Empire.He quickly waited for this talent - Shang Yang.

For Qin, a country with special conditions for success, Shang Yang is also a figure that cannot be copied.Shang Yang, formerly known as Gongsun Yang, is a descendant of the nobles of the Wei State. Before heading west to the Qin State, he used to be a counselor next to the uncle of the Xiangguo of the Wei State. It was the early days of Wei Huiwang's enthronement. Zuo, many important strategies actually come from Shang Yang, who is his senior counselor.It was also during this process that Shang Yang really got in touch with the core administrative organization of the most powerful country in the Warring States Period at that time. His governance experience and vision all came from this period of time.In terms of inheritance, Shang Yang inherited Li Kui's legalist theory, highly respected Li Kui's "Fa Jing", and studied it carefully. During the long thinking, he gradually formed a set of governance reform ideas of his own.Such a person with profound theoretical accumulation and rich experience in governance is the best candidate among reformers.

Before Shang Yang came to the Qin State, there were two accidental factors that made him almost unable to come to the Qin State. One was the uncle seat who had admired Shang Yang’s talent for a long time. Before he died, he recommended Shang Yang to King Hui of Wei. If it is recommended by Zuo Zuo, then I am afraid there will be no powerful Great Qin Empire, but Wei Huiwang thinks that Uncle Zuo is old and confused, and scoffs at Shang Yang's talent.The second accident was that the scheming uncle was afraid that Shang Yang would not be used by King Wei Hui and would become the enemy of Wei State in the future, so he persuaded King Wei Hui that if you refused to use Shang Yang, you must kill him.Shang Yang just sneered when he found out, since he didn't listen to you and use me, how could he listen to you and kill me.In fact, as Shang Yang expected, King Wei Hui didn't take Shang Yang as a dish at all.Don't kill him if you don't need it, let him fend for himself.

These two coincidences also contain some important information: First, after several years of tempering by the uncle Zuo, Shang Yang has forged an unfathomable scheming, and he has long been able to predict other people's scheming. God, such an extremely intelligent person was able to undertake that earth-shattering reform.Second, King Wei Hui is not a wise monarch. From his point of view, even if he listens to the uncle and respects Shang Yang, he will not trust Shang Yang for a long time. It is impossible for such a self-willed king to give Shang Yang A platform for displaying talents.

Therefore, it is reasonable for Shang Yang in this period to pin his hopes on Qin.Among the Six Kingdoms at that time, Zhao and South Korea had not undergone large-scale reforms, Qi was ruled by the clan, and Shang Yang did not have the ability to criticize Zou Ji, so naturally he could not go there.As for the ambitious state of Chu in the south, Wu Qi's example is also on display.Therefore, the Qin State is the only way out for the ambitious Shang Yang.Shang Yang is the only choice for the ambitious Qin State. In 361 BC, Shang Yang came to the state of Qin and met Qin Xiaogong who was eager for talents. After three days of conversation, Shang Yang moved Qin Xiaogong with his theory.In 359 BC, Qin Xiaogong promulgated a reform decree, appointing Shang Yang as Zuo Shuzhang.This revolution that changed the history of the Warring States Period began from then on. Shang Yang's reform was doomed to be full of thorns from the very beginning.Before the promulgation of the reform decree, Qin Xiaogong called a group of ministers to discuss it, which resulted in the collective opposition of the old nobles. Minister Qian Long and others tried their best to obstruct Shang Yang's reform, and Shang Yang was not a person to be provoked. People started a debate, and the opposition was refuted speechless with a lot of verbal swords.The blatant opposition turned into an undercurrent, and countless open and dark arrows were waiting on the road of Shang Yang's reform. But Shang Yang is not afraid. The reason why he has confidence is because of years of ups and downs, which made him understand the simplest truth: for the reform to be successful, the most simple and direct method must be adopted, and the core contradiction of things must be grasped to start, and the mess will be cut quickly. .Therefore, the first policy adopted by Shang Yang was to reform the law and change people first.The so-called change of person is to establish the absolute prestige of the reformer, so that he can gain enough trust from the majority of people.It is not easy to accomplish this goal. Who are you, Shang Yang?How many people in Qin know you?Is it necessary to persuade one after another earnestly, or go to the street to make a report? Shang Yang's method is simple. It doesn't need to be used as a report or persuasion, just set up a piece of wood. This is the famous "Shang Yang South Gate Standing Tree" event in history.Shang Yang erected a 3-foot-long log at the south gate of Leyang City, and hung up a notice: Whoever can move the log to the north gate will give him 10 taels of gold.At that time, it was like suddenly receiving a text message saying "Congratulations on winning the lottery" today. It was hard to believe.The wood is not heavy, and the road is not far away, so why award 10 taels of gold?After standing for a whole morning, the bonus has been multiplied several times to 50 taels of gold. At this time, a foolish boy came and took the wood away boldly.As a result, Shang Yang didn't say anything, and of course cashed in the reward.The allusion of the standing tree in the south gate spread like wildfire, and all the people of Qin knew a fact: this Shang Yang meant what he said. Shang Yang's prestige was established in this way, and then he struck while the iron was hot and introduced the content of the first stage of reform.Facts have proved that Shang Yang not only has a loud slogan, but also has a lot of courage, and his work is more realistic.The content of his reform in the first stage is the most elementary reform, including the abolition of the hereditary system of traditional slavery, the establishment of a system of conferring military merits, and rewarding soldiers for their enthusiasm for combat; Farming; encourage the development of the small-scale peasant economy, and stipulate that if there are more than two sons in a family, the sons must live in separate households after they grow up. This increases the number of self-cultivating farmers and expands the country's tax sources. These few policies of Shang Yang were implemented by Wu Qi, Li Kui and others. Most of them are not new. Some of them are supplements to the content of the reforms during the Qin Xiangong period, such as implementing the household registration system and rewarding farming.But doing so is very realistic. In a country with a backward economy and low production level like Qin, the first thing to solve is the problem of food for the common people. It is necessary to immediately improve the economic level in order to truly win people's hearts.Another reason is that Shang Yang insisted on changing the law first to change people. The first step in changing people is to establish personal authority, and the second step is to firmly grasp most of the people in the country under the control of the government. Only in this way can the opposition of the old aristocracy to the reform become empty talk.The reform was carried out in this way, and the effect was immediate, and the economic level of Qin State improved rapidly.A large number of advanced production technologies from the Central Plains were introduced, and the agriculture and animal husbandry of the Qin State developed rapidly. The expansion of small peasant economic groups led to the bankruptcy of a large number of nobles and the shrinking of their properties. The abolition of the hereditary system allowed the country to save money. There is more money going into infrastructure.Another reason for the immediate results is that Shang Yang is ruthless. When he established the household registration system, he also stipulated the Baojia Liansi system, that is, one person commits a crime, and many people are implicated. He uses the brutal state machine to suppress all forces that oppose the reform.This is a method that all previous reformers have never used in the process of reform.One is that they will not receive such strong support, and the other is that they themselves are not ruthless enough. Shang Yang was ruthless enough. For example, once on the banks of the Weishui River, he killed more than 700 old aristocrats who sabotaged the reform. Only a few of them actually sabotaged the reform. Most of them were relatives who were implicated. There is a neighbor, and the clear water surface of the entire Wei River is instantly stained red by billowing blood.Even Qin Xiaogong's son, Shang Yang, would never tolerate him.At that time, the two teachers of the prince encouraged the prince to oppose the reform and slander Shang Yang. After Shang Yang learned about it, he decided to torture the two teachers, one had his nose cut off, and the other had his face tattooed.He didn't even give face to the crown prince, so naturally he wouldn't give face to anyone else.No way, just follow him honestly. The first stage of Shang Yang’s reform lasted for 7 years. By 352 BC, the results of the reform had been very remarkable. There was a scene of abundant storage in Qin State, and the enthusiasm of the people for production was greatly improved.In terms of national taxation, the emergence of a large number of self-cultivating farmers has greatly increased the government's income. The treasury is rich and powerful, and the old aristocratic forces have been brutally suppressed. It is difficult to pose a threat to the reform for a while.The huge benefits brought about by the reform have been deeply rooted in the hearts of the Qin people. When the internal affairs were smooth, the strength of Qin's army was also greatly improved.The introduction of the system of rewarding military merits made the people of Qin, who were originally tough and martial, more motivated to fight, and they did not need to be mobilized to fight.Since the third year of Shang Yang's reform, Qin State has successively launched offensives in the Hexi area, defeating the Wei army many times. The original Qin State's disastrous defeat in the war against Wei State was now easy to attack and defend.Wei State, which had originally taken an offensive against Qin State, also had to change its policy. It focused on defense against the stronger Qin State, and turned its attention to the Central Plains vassal states in the east.For the rising state of Qin, this incident is particularly important. It makes the transforming state of Qin lose a powerful opponent and gain sufficient room for growth. It seems that it is only a matter of time before Qin regains the lost land in Xihe and advances eastward to the Central Plains. up. The second stage of Shang Yang's reform began from this period.In 305 BC, Shang Yang promulgated the reform decree again. Because of the outstanding results of the reform, Shang Yang at this time has become a great leader holding the power of Qin.In the country of Qin, this is a role that is under one person and above ten thousand people. No one dares to hinder the opponents who were originally fighting openly and secretly. The content of the second stage of Shang Yang’s reform mainly includes four aspects: one is to abolish the well fields and open rice fields, which completely cut off the economic lifeline of the slave-owner nobles and broke the monopoly of the slave-owner nobles on the farmland. They, as long as they are hardworking enough, can transfer the land of the original slave-owner aristocrats to their own names, and the national laws will provide them with absolute protection.The second aspect is to formally establish the local administrative system of the Qin State, that is, the system of prefectures and counties. The country is divided into 41 counties. In the hands of the monarch, the old aristocrats who were originally painted as prisons have completely become dead tigers since then.The third aspect is to unify weights and measures, integrate the national economy, and establish the state's absolute management power over commercial trade.The unification of weights and measures has enabled the country to have a unified tax standard, and the collection of commercial taxes has become more institutionalized.The fourth aspect is the compilation of "Qin Law", which is another feudal social law in China after "Fa Jing". In all aspects of economy, politics, and military affairs, the purpose is to establish a strict official supervision system. The rigor, seriousness, and efficiency of Qin officials that the six countries later envied were laid the foundation for this. There is also an important purpose in these four reforms. The first stage of reform is to establish the influence of the new law and establish the absolute authority of the new law; The unshakable state body of the empire has penetrated deeply into the blood of the Qin Empire.Even if Shang Yang will be smashed to pieces one day, Shang Yang's reform will become an inseparable part of the Qin Empire from now on. At this time, the Qin Empire was still enjoying the results of Shang Yang’s reforms, and the efficiency of the national economy was greatly improved. Without increasing taxes, the government expanded tax sources, increased tax revenue, and had sufficient treasury reserves to support large-scale wars.The military strength of the Qin State is also gradually increasing. During this period, the Qin State has moved its capital to Xianyang, and has established a national policy of advancing eastward to the Central Plains. The ideals of the Qin State are also more ambitious than those of the Central Plains. Their hegemony, their ideal is to unify the whole world in their own pocket.This is the wish of the king of Qin, they are too much looking forward to the glory of the world.This is also Shang Yang's wish. He expects that his life's painstaking efforts will become China's future laws and regulations. During this period, Qin State's eastward advance was unstoppable.Before the Qin State moved its capital, the Qin army had successively regained the lost lands in Xihe, such as Anyi and Yuanli, and the Wei army, which dominated the Central Plains, was beaten and retreated steadily.By 343 BC, Qin State had become a force that could not be underestimated in the eyes of the princes. Even the nominal Emperor Zhou came to congratulate Qin Xiaogong and granted him the status of overlord.In 340 BC, Shang Yang personally led an army to defeat Wei's 100,000 troops and captured Wei's son. Wei had no choice but to return all the Xihe territory to Qin. It is far from enough in the eyes of Qin Xiaogong and his ministers to just clear up the shame.It is not enough to regain the lost land, and it is not enough to obtain the status of the overlord. The most important thing is to pacify the six countries of the Central Plains and unify the world.The 12 years of the second stage of Shang Yang's reform were the critical 12 years of the Qin Dynasty's booming period.In the past 12 years, Qin State and Qi State attacked on both sides, which completely weakened the strength of Wei State, and Qin State's wish to open up the road to the east has been completely realized since then.Since then, the sturdy Qin people have stepped out of Hangu Pass for the first time.The sharp saber is pointing directly at the fertile land of the Central Plains. The disasters of the six countries in the Kanto region and the great cause of China's reunification are getting closer. Another turning point in Shang Yang's life occurred in 338 BC.This year, Qin Xiaogong, who had spared no effort to support Shang Yang, passed away.The king of Qin who came to the throne was the prince Si who had married Shang Yang back then, and this was King Hui of Qin.Soon after Qin Huiwang came to power, the liquidation of Shang Yang began. A large number of old nobles who lost their power spread rumors everywhere and framed Shang Yang for rebellion. Qin Hui Wang sent troops to arrest Shang Yang in Shang Yang's fiefdom.Shang Yang fled immediately after hearing the news, but when he fled to the border, no innkeeper was willing to take him in.Because according to the laws set by Shang Yang himself, if an inn takes in a guest without an "ID card", he will be punished with serious crimes.Shang Yang, who had nowhere to go, was finally arrested by Qin's pursuers and sentenced to being torn apart. There are many reasons for Shang Yang's tragic ending.One is because of the stains in Shang Yang's reform.The biggest mistake of Shang Yang's reform was that it overcorrected and the methods were too cruel. Qin State established a rule of severe punishment and strict laws. Every mouthful of spitting on the street will be punished.Later, after Qin unified the world, Qin Shihuang's "tyranny" was rooted in Qin's increasingly stringent legalist thought after Shang Yang's reform began.But another important reason is Qin Huiwang's own imperial mind. A person with high achievements like Shang Yang poses a huge threat to the royal power, and it is impossible not to get rid of it.In the history of the Warring States period, if the powerful officials of the Qin State did not know the reason for their success and retirement, they would end up miserable.For example, Li Si, Lu Buwei, Fan Sui and others who had a good death, the reason is that they accept as soon as they are good.With Shang Yang's character, this is impossible.So from the first day Shang Yang entered Hangu Pass, his fate of being torn apart by a car was already doomed, and he was destined to become a martyr in this era of great change.