What Zhang Liang thought was also what all the knowledgeable people in the seven countries thought.
The Han Dynasty only had one isolated city, Xinzheng. If the King of Han did not have the confidence to unite with the Chu army to regain the lost territory, surrender would not be difficult to accept.
But the King of Han's surrender was so humiliating, so humiliating that even the common people of Han could not raise their heads after hearing the whole story of the King of Han's surrender.
After hearing this, Prince Chu of Qin held his forehead and said, "It's not that I don't want him to surrender, but at least he surrendered in a more decent way. I don't know how to accommodate him."
Lin Zhi said, "Your Majesty, when you say this, don't raise the corners of your mouth so high."
Qin Prince Chu coughed dryly and said with a smile: "I just found it a little funny to see the Korean guest official in the court closing the door to welcome guests."
Although Prince Chu of Qin was recorded under the name of Lady Huayang, Xia Ji, as the biological mother of Prince Chu of Qin, was also honored as the queen mother.
The imperial relatives were the most important part of the court of each country. When Xia Ji became the queen mother, the influence of the Han Dynasty in the court of Qin gradually grew.
Prince Chu of Qin pushed this matter forward.
The Qin court now has local forces represented by the Qin royal family; there are deep-rooted forces of Chu's foreign relatives; and the group of Zhao friends that King Zichu of Qin brought from Zhao are not Zhao forces, but "monarch forces" based on the Xianyang Academy.
The "king's power" only needs to grow gradually. Looking at the power of Qin's native clan nobles and the power of Chu's foreign relatives, Qin Prince Chu believed that the current situation was not stable enough, so he supported the power of Han's foreign relatives.
The three-legged tripod is the most stable form.
However, some Han people were quite greedy and repeatedly instigated Queen Mother Xia to interfere in the affairs of Zhao Ji and Zheng Er, and even framed Zhu Xiang.
Prince Chu of Qin handed Cheng Jiao over to Queen Dowager Huayang to raise, but he was unable to stop the desires of these people.
Queen Mother Xia was not persuaded by them and hardly had any emotional interaction with Cheng Jiao. She was only almost tempted by those people's suggestion of "making the prince and the queen reconcile to preserve the prince's filial piety."
She had no intention of harming Ying Xiaozheng. She simply thought that it would be a good thing to reconcile the prince and the queen, and that the prince would be grateful to her if she did it.
When Zhu Xiang went to court for the first time to depose the empress, Queen Mother Xia became frightened and fell ill.
She was worried that Zhu Xiang's words were also a mockery of her for not raising Zichu well, and that she was meddling in the affairs of the crown prince and Zhao Ji as Zichu's mother.
The Queen Mother Huayang was the one who managed the backyard of King Qin Renwen. She didn't understand the affairs of the previous dynasty, but she was very skilled in appeasing the hearts of the women in the backyard.
She immediately defended Zhu Xiang, saying that Queen Mother Xia had raised the King of Qin for eleven or twelve years, so how could it be said that she had no grace in raising him
After the King of Qin returned to Qin, although he was recognized as his own son, Queen Mother Xia also cared for him very much. How could she be called unkind
Zhao Ji abandoned Zheng'er, who was only one year old, and Zheng'er had provided her with good food and drink for so many years, but she actually insulted and beat Zheng'er. No normal woman would sympathize with such a person.
This is not only not a normal mother, she is not even a normal person. Queen Mother Xia should not compare herself with her and humiliate herself for no reason.
Among the local specialties that Zhu Xiang sent to Prince Chu of Qin, Queen Mother Xia's share was always included, which let Queen Mother Xia know that Zhu Xiang really had no grudge against her, and Queen Mother Xia felt at ease.
This time, when the Han ministers gave advice to Queen Mother Xia and asked her to fight with Queen Mother Huayang for the custody of Prince Chengjiao, Queen Mother Xia finally learned her lesson. As soon as the other party left, she went to look for Zichu.
Only then did King Zichu of Qin begin to consider whether to let Zhu Xiang and his wife raise Prince Cheng Jiao.
After Prince Chengjiao was enlightened, Queen Dowager Huayang repeatedly mentioned that Zhu Xiang should educate Prince Chengjiao.
Queen Mother Huayang knew that it was enough for her to raise Prince Cheng Jiao to this age. If Cheng Jiao wanted to have a promising future, he still had to find a good teacher.
Is there any better teacher in the world than Zhu Xiang
Qin Wang Zichu originally disagreed.
He knew how much Ying Xiaozheng valued Zhu Xiang and his wife. By handing Cheng Jiao over to Zhu Xiang, he was sharing the love that Zheng'er had received from Zhu Xiang and his wife, and he was worried that Zheng'er would feel resentful.
But the move by the Han ministers to ask Queen Mother Xia to snatch the child away made him waver.
It just so happened that Ying Xiaozheng was returning to Xianyang with Xue Ji at this moment, and he took the initiative to help Xue Ji educate Cheng Jiao.
Prince Chu of Qin observed for a while and found that Ying Xiaozheng was very close to Cheng Jiao. He suddenly thought of something and ordered Crown Prince Zheng to raise Prince Cheng Jiao.
Isn't this matter over? Qin Wangzichu felt that he was too wise.
The matter was indeed settled. According to Zhu Xiang's letter, Zheng'er and Cheng Jiao got along very well, and Zheng'er was annoyed by Cheng Jiao's bad attitude every day.
But the narrow-mindedness inherited from the King of Qin's ancestors would not let King Zichu of Qin forget the jumping up and downs of those Han ministers.
When the King of Han surrendered, the Han ministers in the Qin court would not have felt anything.
They are said to be Han ministers, but now they are all Qin people and Qin ministers, and they will only cheer for Qin to destroy Han.
But the King of Han was too shameful. He lowered the standards of all those who had any connection with Korea, and this group of Korean ministers also looked bad.
In order to avoid having people say "You are talking about the King of Han... Hey, don't run away" every time they went to court, many thin-skinned Korean ministers claimed to be sick and stayed indoors.
Queen Mother Xia was so angry that she fell ill, and Prince Chu of Qin personally took care of her for two days.
The whole city of Xianyang was filled with gossip such as "The King of Han is like this, and the scholars from the State of Han are like this and that." This would have been impossible without the King of Qin's instruction.
The executor was of course Lin Zhi.
Cai Ze was still inspecting the state of Qin at the time, supervising the autumn harvest of local officials. When he came back and wanted to stop it, it was too late.
Although this matter was not bad for Qin and the King of Qin, it was not good either. If Cai Ze was in Xianyang, he would never allow the tyrant Zichu and the treacherous minister Lin Zhi to collude with each other and waste manpower and resources to do such a stupid thing just for "fun".
Now, hearing the foolish emperor Zichu and the treacherous minister Lin Zhi making fun of the court officials again, Cai Ze gave them an insulting look and said, "Those who are embarrassed in the court are not only the relatives of the Han Dynasty, but also the Han guest officials, and the Qin people who have been in Qin for several generations but whose ancestors were Han. Your Majesty, please don't let them feel disappointed."
The foolish Zichu immediately defended himself: "It was the King of Han who made them feel disappointed. What does it have to do with me?"
Cai Ze bowed his hands and said: "I would like to resign from the position of Prime Minister."
"No." Qin Wang Zichu said, "Okay, I won't laugh. Lin Qing, don't laugh either."
Lin Zhi said with a straight face: "Don't laugh."
Qin Wang Zichu: "Cai Qing, look, Lin Qing is no longer smiling."
It belongs to the previous king! Cai Ze was extremely rebellious in his heart!
"Let's continue talking about how to deal with the King of Han." Cai Ze saw how the two men were in collusion with each other and felt helpless, so he could only compromise and change the subject.
Prince Chu of Qin said, "I originally wanted to exile the King of Han to the land of Bashu. But he works so hard that he can be a role model for the other five monarchs. I am hesitant, should I treat him well?"
After the Qin Dynasty unified the world, King Chu of Qin was worried that the six kingdoms would restore their rule, so he planned to place the rulers of the six kingdoms under house arrest in remote areas or execute them secretly.
But the King of Han's miserable appearance made King Zichu of Qin waver.
He felt that the kings of the six countries seemed to be almost incompetent. The King of Han was so ridiculous, and the kings of the other five countries should not be able to cheer up after their countries were destroyed.
Perhaps they should be praised highly, so that the scholars of the six countries can see what kind of waste their original kings were, which will help dispel their desire to restore the monarchy.
Now that the academy recommendation system has been established, even after Qin has no more wars to fight, there is still a stable channel for scholars from the six states to seek official positions.
Looking at the king of a fallen country who was hurting his eyes, the capable scholars of the six countries would probably be more likely to choose the latter between restoration and the interests of themselves and their families.
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "Qin gained the world with benevolence and righteousness, so it will naturally treat the king of a fallen country who surrendered voluntarily with kindness. I suggest that Your Majesty confer the title of Shunhou on the King of Han, grant him good fields and a beautiful house, and let him live out his old age in Xianyang."
Cai Ze thought for a moment and said, "I second the proposal. After the king of Han was conferred the title of Shunhou, the king and the king had a very pleasant conversation at the banquet, and the king recommended Han Fei to be an official in Qin. The king was very happy when he knew Han Fei's talent, and appointed Han Fei as Shangqing, and agreed that Han Fei should move the tablet of the former king of Han to the ancestral hall to continue worshipping."
Qin Wang Zichu said: "Let Han Fei become the patriarch of the Han family? I wonder if Han Fei can take on this important task."
Lin Zhi said: "If he can shoulder the heavy responsibility, the royal family of Han will be integrated into Qin under his leadership; if he cannot shoulder the heavy responsibility, the royal family of Han will decline. Whether he can shoulder the heavy responsibility or not, it will benefit the monarch and not harm him."
Cai Ze added: "Han Fei was taught by Xunzi and Zhu Xiang, and he is talented and virtuous. After your Majesty appoints him as Shangqing, you can also appoint him as Xiangbang."
Qin Prince Chu turned a deaf ear to him and said: "I will issue an imperial edict to appoint him as Shangqing and add him as the Crown Prince's Secretary, so that he can continue to assist the Crown Prince in Nanjun."
Lin Zhi also ignored Cai Ze and said, "Han Fei and Li Si have always been the prince's right-hand men. Li Si and Han Fei were close friends. When Han Fei did not take up an official post, Li Si did not seek an official position either. He only served the prince as a minor official in Nanjun with Han Fei. Now we can also appoint Li Si as the chancellor."
Qin Wang Zichu nodded: "That's right. Han Fei and Li Si are doing the work of the Chancellor and Chancellor."
The Chancellor was the head of the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace, and the Chancellor was his deputy. The two presided over all matters concerning the Crown Prince. This position existed in the pre-Qin period.
After finalizing the positions of Prince Chancellor and Chancellor of the Imperial Secretariat, King Zichu of Qin formally appointed Meng Tian as Zhongshuzi, that is, the prince's close attendant, and then gave an imperial edict to Zhu Xiang, the Lord of Changping, stating that since the prince was far away, Zhu Xiang could directly appoint officials of the Eastern Palace such as Zhongshuzi in the future.
Lin Zhi joked, "Zheng'er has been the crown prince for so many years, and only now has Prince Chu of Qin started to assign officials to the Eastern Palace for him. If the news spreads to the six kingdoms, others will think that the king does not value Zheng'er. Right, Cai Ze."
Cai Ze said: "I want to resign and return home. It doesn't matter if it's Han Fei or Li Si, Zhu Xiang or Li Mu. Let them take over. I don't want to do this anymore!"
Qin Wang Zichu coughed dryly and said, "Prime Minister, Han Fei and Li Si are immature, Zhu Xiang, Li Mu and Lu are upright, and Lin Zhi is even more wicked and unfit to be a prime minister. I have no one to trust except you!"
"Ah, right, right." Lin Zhi said self-deprecatingly, "I am a cunning villain. How can Cai Ze let me take all the power?"
The palace servants wanted to cover their ears.
It comes again and again, they dare not listen to this.
"Han Fei! Xia Tong appointed King Han as Shunhou, granted him good land and a beautiful house, and let him live in Xianyang." Zhu Xiang had Han Fei's door opened, and handed a decree to the haggard Han Fei. "Xia Tong had just made the decision, and King Han hadn't even arrived in Xianyang yet, but he wrote a letter and had it delivered to the Han River ferry as fast as possible. He has been sailing day and night to bring it to you to reassure you. Cheer up, and don't let Xia Tong down."
Han Fei, who was so thin that he was just a skeleton, burst into tears: "Teacher..."
Zhu Xiang took the dirty and smelly Han Fei into his arms and patted his back gently to comfort him like a child: "It's okay, it's okay, you should cheer up... Ah, who is your teacher? Forget it, it's who you say it is, don't cry."
Zhang Liang stood by the door with his head down.
The King of Qin was originally touched by the respect and care that Duke Zhu Xiang showed to Han Fei. But after hearing Duke Zhu Xiang's words "Who is your teacher?", the corners of his mouth twitched and the warmth disappeared.
The teacher is really pitiful. He has followed Duke Zhu Xiang for so long, but Duke Zhu Xiang still refuses to accept him as his disciple.
Han Fei's disciple Zhang Liang sighed and felt that it was time for him to cheer up.
First set a small goal and help the teacher become a disciple of Duke Xiang of Zhu.
Ying Xiaozheng touched his chin and said, "If Han Fei becomes my uncle's disciple, then you are a generation younger than me. You should call me uncle-master?"
Zhang Liang's face fell: "Don't even think about it."
After waiting for so long, Li Si, who finally got an official position under the crown prince with the help of Han Fei, was moved by his hard work and happiness.
After hearing Zhang Liang's words, he was no longer happy.
The prince offered to be your uncle, and you still despise him? What kind of person is this!
Li Si felt jealous and angry when he thought about how he had worked diligently for Duke Zhu Xiang and the crown prince for so many years and only got the position of Chancellor of the Imperial Secretariat.
Koreans are really annoying. No wonder the King of Korea would humiliate the entire nation and trample on their faces!
From today on, Li Si, a man from Chu, begins to hate all Koreans equally!
(End of this chapter)