The Great Qin Empire---Qin Li

Ye Teng still remembers that more than ten years ago, when he was promoted to the governor of Nanyang County in Han State, he felt a great responsibility and visited Han Fei in Xinzheng.

"May I ask, sir, how can I detect traitors?"

Considering that there are many powerful leaders in Luyang and Ye County, and petty officials also like to deceive their superiors, Ye Teng avoided the table and asked humbly.

Han Fei is a famous legalist scholar in the world, but he is a stutterer. He held it in for a long time before he could say a word.

"The seven... techniques used to detect traitors."

After saying that, Han Fei pushed the seven bamboo slips piled on the table to Ye Teng. In contrast to Han Fei's taciturnity, the bamboo slips were written in beautiful Han characters. The seven volumes of "Nei Chu Shuo Shang" have nearly 7,000 words, which fully describe the seven techniques and six subtleties used to detect traitors...

Those bamboo slips are gifts more precious than gold and jade, and are famous articles that even the King of Qin would applaud after reading. Ye Teng couldn't put it down. He spent several days reading it carefully three times. After he put it down, he sighed. Although Mr. Han Fei was a few years younger than himself, between the lines, he seemed to have read through the past and present and seen through the essence of human heart.

The more he read, the more shocked he was. The more he read, the more chilled he was. Is it true that there is only interest between people? Between the monarch and the minister, it is always a game. It is impossible to open up your heart. Is there a meeting between the monarch and the minister?

In those books, a lot of space is used to discuss how the ruler can see through the heart of the minister, including the method of observation and listening, the method of listening, the method of holding wisdom, the method of reverse speech, and the method of reverse observation.

But Han Fei also said in the book that if you want to use these seven techniques flexibly, in the final analysis, the ruler still needs to have one ability, that is, to observe everything clearly.

"The ruler must be like Li Zhu, who can see a hundred steps away and see the tip of a hair!"

Those who understand the strategy of governing must be far-sighted and able to see the hair, because if they don't see clearly, they can't see the hidden things.

Ironically, the greatest use of these scrolls given by Han Fei was to let Ye Teng learn and apply them, and become a "traitor who hijacks the king" that the ruler could not easily detect. He successfully deceived the King of Han, and until the eve of surrendering to Qin, King Han An still thought that Ye Teng was a loyal minister of Han and was ready to die for his country...

After surrendering to Qin, Ye Teng was promoted to the governor of Nanjun County, and continued to use this method to control his subordinates, and picked out and dealt with those corrupt officials who looked down on him as a surrendered minister of Han and deliberately deceived him.

Today is no exception.

This young man in front of him, who was born in a humble family and had a dark face, suddenly rose to prominence in two years. With Ye Teng's twenty years of experience in the political arena, he could see at a glance that he had a lot of things hidden in his heart.

As long as the hometowns of Heifu, Yuan and Zhong are put together and taken a look, anyone with a discerning eye will find it strange to know that the amazing achievements in agriculture, industry and medicine in the past two years were actually made by three people from the same family.

"The magistrate of Anlu County is as stupid as a dog and a pig." Ye Teng cursed secretly. He didn't find such a big loophole. Maybe he was too happy to see things that could be used as political achievements one after another?

Ye Teng is not stupid. He saw at a glance that Heifu was the initiator of these things.

To deal with this lucky young man, there is no need for too complicated methods. Ye Teng directly exposed the facts as soon as he came up.

You should try your best to raise questions that make the other party feel uncomfortable, isolate the other party, make him feel trapped in a crisis, and observe his reaction at the same time.

This is a great pleasure of being a superior.

When people are in a state of crisis, they will show their naked self, and the rationality that conceals the appearance will also be lost, and they will unconsciously reveal their true feelings...

This method has been tried and tested for ten years.

"Is it a coincidence? Or is there another reason? Hei Fu, you'd better tell the truth today!"

The two thousand stone officials, the life and death of the whole county are decided by their mouths. Although Ye Teng looks thin as a knife, he is intimidating without anger.

Seeing that Hei Fu's forehead was sweating slightly, who would have thought that at this time, there was a faint sound of piano outside, breaking the tense atmosphere.

The piano sound was not very skilled, like a beginner, trying to play under the guidance of others, a little jerky, and sometimes out of tune.

Ye Teng frowned, but then calmed down his anger, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He was not in a hurry to hear the answer. He closed his eyes and listened to the piano without saying a word...

...

The faint out-of-tune piano sounded like heavenly music to Hei Fu's ears! Because this piano sound saved him.

Facing Ye Teng's sudden questioning, he didn't even have time to think. Unexpectedly, after the piano sounded, Ye Teng's momentum weakened a little, and the questioning was not so tight.

Hei Fu hurriedly used this opportunity to race against time and desperately thought about how to answer in his mind!

Unexpectedly, the behavior of claiming to be smart and trying to exploit the loopholes in Qin Law and bring relatives together to become rich and noble has become the biggest flaw at the moment. That's right, the name of the three people in the family was heard by the county magistrate through three different things in a short period of time. No wonder he was suspicious.

What should I do at this time? Who is Ye Teng? He can't just say "I was taught by my father-in-law" every day.

Then he remembered that when he was outside the mansion before, Xi said that Ye Teng had asked him about his situation, and Heifu was even more frightened.

I think Ye Teng already knows his details. In this case, lying and perfunctory are the worst choice.

Relying on being Li You's confidant, he refuses to admit it even if he is beaten to death?

It's useless. Don't you see that Ye Teng talks about Li You as if he is talking about a neighbor's child. Things that should have been discussed by the county magistrate and the county lieutenant, he had the final say, and only sent a letter to Li You to inform him afterwards, but Li You didn't even dare to complain...

Thanks to the chat with the two petty officials along the way, Heifu at least understood what kind of person Ye Teng was: he was a domineering and dictatorial county magistrate, a cruel official who executed 400 prisoners in one day, and a law-abiding official who was observant.

The idea is to respond to his temperament, rather than blindly committing suicide.

Hei Fu thought to himself: "If he wants to embarrass Li You and investigate my injustice, wouldn't it be enough to try him directly in court? But he specially asked me to come to the private residence to block the private conversation. Does this mean..."

"Ye Teng doesn't want to do it too much?"

That's right, not every Qin official is as ruthless as Xi.

As the life-saving piano sound gradually faded, Hei Fu also figured it out. Telling the truth is the best choice at the moment.

Of course, it is the "truth" that Ye Teng wants to hear.

"The lower official is guilty!"

Hei Fu knelt down and confessed his guilt in fear, like a student who was exposed by the teacher for copying homework for his classmates.

Ye Teng slowly opened his eyes: "What crime have I committed?"

"The crime of dishonesty. All of the above were indeed thought up by Heifu, and he discussed it with his uncle and sister-in-law, and then they made it!"

Then, Heifu told the source of these inventions. He said that he felt sorry for his mother and uncle's wife who worked hard to pound rice. Looking at the water-drawing lever at home, he suddenly had an idea and asked his sister-in-law to make a treadle pestle.

Then he saw that the Jishan Copper Official lacked labor and the ore was crushed slowly. He was afraid that it would affect the efficiency of copper smelting and the speed of replenishing weapons in the arsenal, so he looked at the streams and rivers and had the idea of changing the treadle pestle to a water pestle...

As for composting, Heifu only said that he was originally a farmer's son. He had been dealing with manure and feces all day before he became an adult. He discovered it by chance.

As for the art of bandaging, he blamed it on the "adventure" when he was young, saying that after he broke his leg, he met an old man with white hair and a youthful face, and learned it from him. This is what Hei Fu lied to Chen Wujiu at the beginning.

Finally, Hei Fu said sincerely: "Although Hei Fu concealed some facts, if it was only Hei Fu who fantasized, he could not make complex equipment as easily as his sister-in-law, nor could he avoid filth like his brother, and take care of the farmland wholeheartedly in spring, summer, autumn and winter without slacking off, proving that composting can indeed increase millet and rice production!"

"Those who envy the fish by the stream cannot catch the fish, and those who retreat and make a net are the ones who make up the fish! Compared with me, my sister-in-law and my brother deserve more rewards and titles! Therefore, Hei Fu is guilty, but my sister-in-law and my uncle are not guilty!"

Hei Fu took all these things in one breath. He was still thinking that if Ye Teng did not let it go and continued to ask, he would say that he had a serious illness at the age of seventeen, and suddenly he became enlightened, and then he could see everything clearly!

What, is it wrong for me to be smart?

Unexpectedly, Ye Teng nodded and said, "You can tell the truth, that's enough."

Hei Fu was nervously preparing to answer the next question, but at this moment he felt empty-handed...

"I already know about this matter. Although you are not honest, you have no intention of deliberately deceiving. Although the law does not allow officials to be idle, it is not wrong to just think about it and make suggestions. There is no need to hide this matter in the future. Let everyone know, otherwise..."

Ye Teng looked at him and said seriously: "Even if it is a move that benefits the country and the people, you still can't escape the impression of being 'unhonest' in the eyes of the king! The wood of catalpa will also become a large and useless oak (lì) tree!"

This is why Ye Teng must ask clearly today.

Ye Teng bowed to the north and said, "The composting method and water mill should be sent to Xianyang for the king to review. Their effectiveness is enough to shock the court and the public and help the king to attack Chu. But just imagine, when the names of the three brothers of your family are presented to the king, I can see something strange, let alone the king?"

Ye Teng knew it best. Qin Wang Zheng was also a loyal practitioner of Han Fei's theory. In terms of the use of law, tactics, and power, no emperor in ancient and modern times can be better than him. Ye Teng dared not deceive the King of Qin like he did to the King of Han. The treacherous surrendered generals of Han State could only be loyal ministers in Qin.

No matter how vicious and cunning a wolf is, it will become a dog wagging its tail when it comes to the feet of the King of Qin.

If he didn't want to, he could only rebel like Changping Jun. However, in Ye Teng's opinion, that was a dead end. The general trend was set, and Changping Jun was already a dead bone in the great tomb of Chu State...

What the king hated most in his life was betrayal, and what he was most sensitive to was deception! Lü Buwei, Lao Ai, Fan Yuqi, Chang'an Jun, think about the fate of those who betrayed and deceived the king.

The king, who had to review more than 100 kilograms of bamboo slips every day, would not miss any details.

So if he didn't think of a good excuse in advance, something would definitely go wrong. It's hard to say that even he, the governor of Nanjun, would be charged with negligence.

This was also the reason why Ye Teng suppressed the "composting method" offered by Anlu and did not dare to submit it to Xianyang immediately. He had to ask clearly before making the next decision.

If Heifu had just been talking nonsense, he might not be executed suddenly, but his career in this life would be almost over...

Now he is telling the truth, so he deserves to be saved.

Hearing the county magistrate mention the King of Qin, Heifu also acted as if he had suddenly realized something: "Thank you for saving my life!"

"Do you understand?" Ye Teng smiled.

How could he not understand after hearing this? Heifu could only say: "I will remember it in my heart! I will never forget it in my life!"

"Then go down, and let the medical and emergency personnel you trained do this well!"

With just a few words, Heifu, who has a bright future, owes him a "life-saving grace". Ye Teng is very satisfied. Although he is a small figure now, he may be useful one day.

Since the goal has been achieved, he clapped his hands, let the subordinates outside come in, and began to see the guests off. He did not forget to give a few instructions before leaving.

"You are so young, but you have already heard the king's words. You still have a long way to go. Don't let small gains and small things delay your future! Mr. Han Fei gave me a message back then, and I will pass it on to you today..." Ye Teng said seriously: "I have committed a serious crime. My actions are deceiving the master. I deserve death for my crime!"