Chapter 588: Why Not Ask Heifu?

"The world is divided into five zones of submission: the inner domain within the fiefs, the lords' domain beyond the fiefs, the allied domain of the border lords, the treaty domain of the Man and Yi barbarians, and the wild domain of the Rong and Di. The reason for this distinction is that distance and terrain make circumstances different…"

In the thirty-third year of Qin Shi Huang, the last month of winter (the twelfth month), Chunyu Yue — who still held the title of Erudite — spoke with fervent confidence before Prince Fusu in the prince's residence.

"The land of Yue belongs to the wild domain. Since the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, it has never received the civilizing influence of the Central Plains. It is not that force cannot subdue them, nor that might cannot overawe them, but that the Yue people dwell in lands beyond the pale — they are a people who crop their hair and tattoo their bodies. They cannot be governed by the rites, music, laws, and statutes of the Central Plains. Moreover, their land is uninhabitable for men of the Central Plains. Therefore, it is not worth troubling the Central Plains over."

"If we gain their land, it cannot be organized into commanderies and counties; if we attack them, it cannot be swiftly seized. This old man truly cannot fathom why His Majesty insists on this southern campaign."

A few days earlier, Qin Shi Huang had announced to his assembled ministers the campaign plan he had been brewing, and at once it stirred a colossal uproar in Xianyang!

When Chunyu Yue heard of this, he grumbled incessantly, and the Mohist Tang Duo nodded in agreement.

"Though a state be great, if it delights in war, it is doomed to perish."

The Mohist school opposes all wars that are not in self-defense. In earlier years, it was for the sake of unification that the Qin Mohists, bearing the pressure of betraying their masters and ancestors, aided Qin in destroying the other states. Yet warfare remains frequent. A few years ago, the Emperor's campaign against the Xiongnu was barely justifiable, because the Xiongnu posed a threat to the border forts and even to the Guanzhong heartland. But now, with this southern campaign against the Hundred Yue — the Yue people are tucked away in a remote corner, too busy fighting among themselves; how could they possibly threaten the Central Plains?

Chunyu Yue nodded and said, "Indeed. The Book of Changes says: 'Gaozong campaigned against the Guifang, and after three years conquered them.' The Guifang were petty barbarians; Gaozong was a flourishing Son of Heaven of the Yin dynasty. For a flourishing Son of Heaven to campaign against petty barbarians and only conquer them after three years — this tells us that the use of arms must not be taken lightly. How can it be done so rashly?"

Confucians and Mohists had always been mortal enemies, but this time, they found themselves in rare agreement.

Of course, although the Emperor had decided on the eastern campaign against the Lord of Canghai, for the southern campaign, because the matter was of immense consequence, he still ordered the hundred officials to deliberate — but only the high ministers.

The Confucian Erudites, ever since the Feng and Shan sacrifices and the book-proscription affair, had already been stripped of their right to discuss policy. Frightened, too, by the live-burial of the fangshi magicians, whenever the Emperor had any matter at hand, the Erudites fell silent as cicadas in winter, no longer daring to offer reckless opinions.

They had truly and vividly become mere ritual vessels adorning the court and temples — of no other use whatsoever.

The Mohists, meanwhile, had been pulled to safety by Heifu and Zhang Cang and had not suffered too great a blow. Relying on the "promotion of crafts and technical learning," they had even found a new path forward and could still accomplish practical work. But when it came to court politics, they too had no voice.

The two men could only do as they always had — place their hopes on Prince Fusu.

Compared to several years ago, when he had gone to the northern frontier as army supervisor, Fusu had now fully come of age. He was very tall, nearly surpassing Qin Shi Huang. His face had grown somewhat leaner, and between his brows there was an added touch of worry — perhaps because he had too many cares; though still young, faint forehead lines had already begun to appear.

After Chunyu Yue and Tang Duo had finished speaking, Fusu gave a sigh.

"What you two have said is all reasonable. But with this kind of argument alone, my Imperial Father will absolutely not listen!"

This was a lesson learned from falling down time and again. Over all these years, from the casting of the Twelve Metal Colossi right after unification to last year's ban on the Hundred Schools of thought — had he offered too few remonstrances? Yet not once had Qin Shi Huang been willing to hear him out!

At first there had at least been reprimands, but lately, Qin Shi Huang would not even see his face. The memorials he submitted sank like stones into the sea.

There were also clever adviser-retainers who taught him not to persist in remonstrance, but to learn from princes like Huhai — never utter a word about state affairs, only ask the Emperor about the sights he saw along his journeys, and even roll about and act spoiled, saying he wanted to come along next time, which greatly comforted the Emperor in his old age…

This privilege of the youngest son was, of course, something the eldest son Fusu could not learn. But he too could inquire after his father's well-being and speak pleasant, courteous words to win Qin Shi Huang's favor.

Yet Fusu refused.

"My Imperial Father has twelve sons, more than ten daughters, hundreds upon thousands of consorts, ten thousand ministers, and a hundred million subjects."

"For my Imperial Father's health and well-being, there are plenty of people to show concern and offer comfort. For his achievements, there are plenty of people to flatter and fawn. But looking across this whole world, the one who can speak a word of truth to my Imperial Father…"

He gave a bitter smile.

"Is it only Fusu, after all?"

As the eldest son, there were always certain responsibilities that had to be shouldered. What others dared not say or would not say — he alone had to step forward.

"If Fusu were to imitate those people, disregarding the facts and deceiving his sovereign and father merely for private gain — never mind whether Fusu could win my Imperial Father's favor that way; if it were so…"

When alone, he sighed deeply to himself:

"Then my Imperial Father would truly be a solitary man, utterly alone…"

"As a son, Fusu cannot bear to do that!"

Because he could not bear it, because he did not wish to deceive, he had to speak the truth.

But that did not mean he had to use the same approach every time.

Fusu was growing up too; he too could learn from his lessons.

"I will not remonstrate immediately."

After pondering for a long while, Fusu rose and said, "My Imperial Father dislikes using the past to criticize the present. Using affairs of ancient times to admonish him will only backfire. What my Imperial Father wants to hear, even more, is not empty talk, but solid evidence!"

With that, under the astonished gazes of Chunyu Yue and Tang Duo, Fusu bowed to them with clasped hands:

"Fusu has his own plan. But first, I would like to ask you two gentlemen to help me with two matters!"

…

After the events of the eastern tour, the Feng and Shan sacrifices, the rebellion, and the live-burial of the fangshi, the Emperor's practice of ordering the assembled ministers to deliberate on policy had become entirely a formality.

The First Emperor's heart grew daily more arrogant and obstinate. Consequently, no one dared raise any dissenting opinion anymore. Everyone was guessing at Qin Shi Huang's thoughts — he probably wanted to campaign against the Hundred Yue. And so, throughout the twelfth month, in the court hall of Xianyang, the assembled ministers vied with one another to support the southern campaign, listing all manner of reasons to prove the war's legitimacy.

For instance: the Southern Yue tribes were sheltering nobles of Chu and plotting to help those Chu people restore the Chu state. For instance: the Great Qin had sent friendly envoys and merchant caravans to bring the Yue people back to the Central Plains to see the dazzling world, yet the Lord of Xi'ou had brazenly attacked them. Also, it was "said" that the Hundred Yue practiced cannibalism — a vile custom that must be stopped by the civilized men of the Central Plains.

Amid this chorus of support, Qin Shi Huang still did not directly reveal his stance. But what struck him as strange was that Prince Fusu, who should have jumped out early to oppose, had, through two successive court sessions, merely listened to others' arguments without uttering a single word himself.

Although Qin Shi Huang was rather displeased with Fusu, his son's sudden change of character also made the Emperor somewhat unaccustomed.

It was not until a few days before the first day of the first month of spring that, after court had adjourned and the ministers had all dispersed, Fusu finally requested an audience with the First Emperor through the court usher.

In the period right after his return, because he was angered by Fusu's remonstrances, Qin Shi Huang had been too annoyed even to see his face. Now that Fusu had remained silent for over half a month, the Emperor was somewhat curious to know his opinion, and so he granted Fusu permission to enter the palace for an audience.

On the way into the palace, Fusu could only sigh inwardly. Since Qin Shi Huang's return from his tour, two months had passed, and this was his first chance to enter Xianyang Palace — whereas high ministers like Li Si and Ye Teng had been summoned into the palace far more than three or five times already.

It was absurd, really: born into the imperial family, a father and son meeting was harder than an ordinary meeting between sovereign and minister!

Shaking his head helplessly, Fusu continued striding forward. He had chosen not to remonstrate before the great assembly, but to pick a moment when father and son were alone — hoping, too, that his words from the heart might move the Emperor somewhat.

Qin Shi Huang was as he always was: when seeing his youngest son Huhai, he would often show a smile, with the tender affection of a parent licking his calf. But toward his eldest son Fusu, his face was always set stern.

The moment they met was still awkward. Bound by blood and bone, yet father and son did not know what to talk about. Qin Shi Huang stiffly asked Fusu what he had been doing lately, and Fusu stiffly answered.

Fusu had recently been assigned a post — "Libationer of Xianyang" — responsible for overseeing the establishment of technical and agricultural studies. Committed to his office and its duties, he personally went to inspect the workshops, learned from Tang Duo about Mohist crafts and techniques, and also made an effort to go into the fields to identify crops. He was no longer that noble young master who could not tell the five grains apart.

Furthermore, Fusu was very interested in the printing technique that had spread from Jiaodong. He felt that this invention could not only make official documents more efficient but could also be used to promote education and moral transformation.

Only, in his view, what needed to be printed was not merely legal statutes and ordinances, or almanac rhymes for the farming seasons, but also the Odes, the Documents, the Rites, and the Music…

After this awkward exchange of questions and answers, Qin Shi Huang's expression softened somewhat — because what Fusu had been doing lately was, at least in the Emperor's eyes, "useful" work, not empty rites and elaborate formalities.

The atmosphere seemed to ease a little. But the words that needed to be said still had to be said. If he did not say them, he would not be Fusu!

"Speak."

Qin Shi Huang seemed to understand his eldest son's temperament as well. Seeing Fusu pause in his speech, hesitating as if wanting to say something, he said coldly, "I know you have been holding it in for a long time. Say everything you want to say — all of it!"

"Then your son and subject will be so bold as to speak."

Fusu drew a deep breath. He had a premonition that this time, despite all his preparations, he was still very likely to be rebuked.

But when harsh truths went unspoken by others, should he also pretend not to see, watching his Imperial Father grow daily more arrogant and stubborn, watching the realm slide step by step into an abyss of chaos?

As expected, the moment Fusu opened his mouth, Qin Shi Huang's expression darkened.

What Fusu spoke of were the disasters afflicting various regions in recent years…

The Qin Empire was too vast — forty commanderies could not all enjoy favorable weather. If it was not drought here, it was flood there; they had just seen off a locust plague and now welcomed famine.

"Taiyuan Commandery has suffered repeated crop failures for years. Even using composting and waterlogged-fertilizer methods cannot make up the shortfall. The common people sell their ranks and pawn their children to secure food and clothing, relying on Your Majesty's benevolent grace to save them, only thus escaping death in the ditches."

"Chen Commandery is the same — four consecutive years of poor harvests, and in the fifth year a locust plague struck. The people's livelihoods have yet to recover."

The Qi region has just endured a great upheaval. Apart from Jiaodong remaining intact and Langya suffering only minor losses, Linzi and Jibei were both dealt heavy blows and likely cannot recover fully within five or ten years. In the neighboring Julu Commandery, the rebel Lu Goujian, a gallant of the heroic sort, has fled into the mountains and forests and has yet to be suppressed. Between Dong Commandery and Sishui, bandits have gathered in the Great Wild Marsh, led by a brigand called "Peng Yue."

This is the current state of the Central Plains. Peace and prosperity? It has nothing whatsoever to do with peace and prosperity!

"Yet at this critical juncture, Imperial Father intends to send troops on an expedition thousands of li away, carrying provisions and clothing, to wage war south and north!"

After laying out the Qin Empire's internal troubles, Fusu began to describe the difficulty of attacking Yue.

"Your son has heard that in the south, miasmic pestilence is rampant. If a great army penetrates deep into Yue territory, marching through dense forests and bamboo thickets, there will be many venomous snakes and fierce beasts. In the scorching summer months, epidemics will break out. I fear that before battle is even joined, two or three out of every ten soldiers will be dead. And when we conscript the idle gallants and delinquent youths from east of the Passes, they will worry about peril and death, fearing each day may be their last, and once they enter Yue territory they will seize the chance to desert. In this way, even if we capture every last Yue person, it cannot compensate for those who die."

"The Yue people were born south of the Yang and Han rivers and know the terrain intimately. If we strike Yue with troops and the Yue people flee into the deep mountains, dense forests, and impassable strongholds, we will be unable to do anything to them. Once the army leaves, the Yue people will gather together again. Even if we establish walled towns and strongpoints, we can only leave large garrisons to hold them. Over months and years, the soldiers will grow weary and provisions will run short."

"To supply those soldiers, the Central Plains can only send out several hundred thousand civilian laborers, shuttling supplies over a thousand li. This will leave the men of the Central Plains unable to plow and sow, the women unable to spin and weave. The able-bodied will join the army to fight, the old and weak will transport provisions. Those at home will have no food, and those on the road will have no grain. By then, the common people will suffer bitterly from military service, desertions will multiply, and even if the court executes them wholesale, it cannot stop it. When that happens, bandits and thieves will surely rise in every commandery…"

Fusu only wanted to tell his Imperial Father that if one simply calculated the potential gains from attacking Yue, one would discover that what was gained in war was actually less than what was lost.

To fight over superfluous land and send soldiers and civilians to their deaths in vain — would that not bring sorrow to the entire realm, high and low alike?

To squander vast sums of wealth, to fight over a piece of land that cannot be governed, merely to satisfy the hollow title of "extending south to the Northern Door" — and for this to let tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands die in battle — is this truly the need of governance?

In his view, the coveting of a victorious name in conquest was nothing but a deceptive banner!

"Therefore, war is a calamitous affair. When one side is in peril, all four quarters are drawn in. Your son fears that the outbreak of upheaval and the rise of treachery and evil will begin with this attack on Yue. I beseech Your Majesty — be prudent!"

Having spoken his piece in one breath, Fusu prostrated himself on the ground and closed his eyes.

Though hope was faint, he only wished that his Imperial Father could, just this once, heed a word of remonstrance!

After a long silence, Qin Shi Huang spoke.

"Finished?"

"Your son has held nothing back."

"Held nothing back?"

Qin Shi Huang sneered. "A suckling child sitting in Xianyang, ignorant of the world's affairs, and yet he begins to critique the merits and flaws of the realm and the great matters of state and war. You are still the same. In Our view, you have simply spent too much time with those Confucian scholars who pontificate about the world from their studies!"

"Your son is not speculating, nor speaking recklessly. Every word is the truth!"

Had it been any other prince or minister, seeing the Emperor angered, they would have long since trembled, prostrated themselves, and admitted fault on the spot.

But Fusu raised his head and bravely replied, "The disasters in Taiyuan and Chen Commanderies — all the ministers know of them. They simply report the good news to Your Majesty and conceal the bad."

"As for the Hundred Yue, over this past month, Fusu has asked others to find for me every document and classic text that mentions the Hundred Yue. I have examined them word by word and come to understand their geography. I have also invited Mohists who have been to Yuzhang and Limen and discussed matters with them in detail to understand the people's livelihoods. Though it cannot compare to visiting in person, I have still gained a rough understanding — this is absolutely not groundless talk."

This was the help Fusu had asked of Chunyu Yue and Tang Duo.

Qin Shi Huang disliked him for dealing in abstractions rather than practical matters — very well, he would learn to do practical work. The Emperor disliked his past remonstrances as empty and insubstantial — very well, he would investigate bit by bit, gain a firm foundation, and prove his assumptions correct before opening his mouth.

He only hoped that through these preparations and changes, his loyal words might be heard and taken to heart by the Emperor.

But what Fusu did not know was that the people he saw as needing pacification were precisely the ones the Emperor wished to send to the frontier to be expended!

Fusu wanted to slow things down, but the Emperor wanted to hurry.

Qin Shi Huang looked at his young son, his own hair fully white, and then looked at his graying temples and beard in the bronze mirror. At times, he even felt a twinge of jealousy.

You can wait — but can We?

Human nature is inherently evil. To swiftly bring order to this realm, only harsh laws can be used!

His hidden painstaking effort to secure the interior through outward expansion could not be spoken of to outsiders, and this whelp fundamentally did not understand it!

A violent clash, opposing ideas, irreconcilable contradictions.

What angered the Emperor even more were Fusu's next words.

Fusu bowed again and said, "Including the 'Record of the Southern Campaign' written that year by the Governor of Jiaodong — your son also stayed awake through the night and read it three times! That the southern campaign is not easy is also a conclusion drawn from this book. Between its lines, it is entirely an exhortation for Your Majesty to halt the southern campaign. Now, the assembled ministers at court all know nothing of the south's perils and thus uniformly support the southern campaign. Since Your Majesty deems Fusu's words unfounded, why not ask the Commandant-Governor, who knows the south best, what he thinks?"

Fusu believed that anyone who had carefully studied the southern situation would share his view — let alone Heifu, who back then had found every way to tactfully admonish Qin Shi Huang and persuade him to postpone the southern campaign!

Although several years had passed, Fusu still could not forget the words Heifu had spoken to him outside the Jingbian Shrine in Yiqu City, Beidi Commandery:

"Has the Prince not heard the song of the old Qin folk of Yong? 'Rather go north of the frontier to garrison, than south of the river to do corvée!' Forgive my bluntness, but without the western expansion, there would have been a southern campaign. And when that time came, what the civilian laborers of the Central Plains would face would not be roads smoothed into straight tracks and expressways, nor the frontier where one could wear wool to ward off the cold, but the miasma-ridden, water-leech-infested lands of Lingnan. The corpses fallen by the roadside would be ten times as many…" (See Chapter 434)

Western expansion and southern campaign — choosing the lesser of two evils. It was only a pity that it had merely delayed things by a few years.

Although Fusu was deeply dissatisfied with Heifu's proposal last year to nail the Qi rebel captives to the roads, whether it was his vigorous debate with Li Si that turned book-burning into book-revision, or his efforts everywhere he went to promote prosperity — wool, salt-sunning, enriching his jurisdiction — in these things, Fusu greatly admired him.

He also believed that on the matter of the southern campaign, Heifu would offer Qin Shi Huang the correct counsel!

As things stood now, the Chancellor, the Imperial Secretary, and the Nine Ministers all stammered and dared not speak. The one who could dissuade the Emperor was perhaps only Heifu…

But he did not know that these words had violated Qin Shi Huang's greatest taboo!

"Very well."

Qin Shi Huang suddenly laughed, but the laughter was somewhat unusual.

"You have indeed read quite a few books. But the circumstances of eight years ago are vastly different from the circumstances of today. We have personally been to Yuzhang — what We saw and heard there was utterly different from that 'Record of the Southern Campaign.'"

His smile vanished, and his expression abruptly turned cold and ruthless.

"We do indeed wish to hear what Heifu will say!"

Whether he would move with the times, or mark the boat to find the sword!

Just at that moment, an usher entered trembling, interrupting this father-son conflict.

He glanced at Fusu, made a deep bow to Qin Shi Huang, and raised a rolled-up memorial high with both hands.

"Your Majesty, the submission from the Commandant-Governor of Jiaodong has arrived!"

PS: A big chapter of five thousand characters — just one chapter today.

(End of chapter)