Chapter 395: Chapter 398: Scheme_1
After Jia Xu’s ’stirring things up’, the court meeting ended quickly, and officials from many clans left with relaxed strides. In their elation, they believed they had shielded all the clans within the Qin Dynasty’s borders from a fatal crisis. They failed to notice that high-ranking ministers such as Zhuge Liang, Xiao He, and Guo Jia did not return to their offices but instead proceeded to the imperial study.
Big matters are discussed in small meetings, and small matters resolved in big ones! The plans that would determine the future direction of the state were usually deliberated in the secrecy of Qin Wudao’s imperial study. No power, when discussing important matters, would invite a large crowd to debate endlessly. Setting aside whether any conclusion could be reached that way, even if it could, the matter would become common knowledge. With many mouths come many opinions, and no one could guarantee that their own ranks were free of spies planted by other forces.
Inside the imperial study, the fragrance of tea filled the air, refreshing the mind and spirit. After the emperor and his ministers had taken their seats, a protective barrier automatically activated. They sipped their tea while discussing the momentous affairs that lay ahead.
"Your Majesty, I plead for punishment," Zhuge Liang began, his face filled with shame as he was the first to conduct a self-critique. "If Minister Jia hadn’t discovered it so early, I would still be unaware that so many clan officials had infiltrated the court."
Out of trust, Qin Wudao had delegated the authority of appointing and dismissing court officials to the Prime Minister, reserving for himself only the final act of stamping the seal. Yet, as Prime Minister, Zhuge Liang had failed to keep a close watch over the court, allowing clan officials to occupy half the positions—a situation that had nearly led to severe consequences. They had specifically discussed the composition of court officials, agreeing that at most thirty percent should come from the clans.
"You should have paid more attention! How could you have missed such a significant problem in the court!" Qin Wudao chastised, annoyed. However, considering the multitude of recent events and that Zhuge Liang and the others were preoccupied with state affairs, it was somewhat inevitable that they had overlooked official appointments and dismissals. Therefore, after a brief reprimand, Qin Wudao imposed no further punishment.
Nevertheless, he became intensely curious about the speed at which clan officials had expanded their presence in court. No matter how busy Zhuge Liang, Xiao He, and Guo Jia were, they would surely review the lists of court officials. So how did the clans manage to evade their discerning eyes? To find the answer, I must thoroughly investigate this matter.
"Your Majesty, in just two short years, clan officials have come to make up more than half of the court," Zhuge Liang said, organizing his thoughts, growing more alarmed as he considered it. "I deduce they may have formed factions and are following a meticulous plan!"
In the past two years, due to the rapid development of the Qin Dynasty, many new official positions had been added to the court. As a result, the number of attendees at court assemblies exceeded two thousand. He recalled the clan officials who had spoken out that day; most held lower ranks and were concentrated in newly established positions. These positions all shared a common characteristic: their primary duty was liaison with the local regions. The Qin Dynasty was simply too vast. Consequently, three to five liaison officers were assigned to each administrative region. These officers formed what was known as the Department of Military and Political Affairs, responsible for local military and governmental functions, effectively acting as a secondary tier of the imperial court. Fortunately, when these positions were initially established, he had worried about too much power accumulating, so he had granted them only advisory rights, not decision-making authority.
"Gentlemen, I intend to abolish the clan system and continue with the singular imperial examination system!" Qin Wudao announced solemnly, holding his teacup and feeling its scorching warmth.
The clans’ self-interest is far too great. It is precisely this excessive self-interest that has driven them to continuously increase their numbers among court officials, all in a bid to seize greater power. He even suspected that if the court’s own strength were not so formidable, the number of clan officials in the Qin Dynasty would have multiplied. Only the imperial examination system can ensure fairness.
"Your Majesty, the prerequisite for abolishing the clan system is to dismantle the clans’ power," Xiao He said thoughtfully. "As you saw today, Minister Jia merely proposed a thorough investigation of the clans and was met with their strong opposition. A single powerful expert can forge a mighty clan. We must gather evidence of the clans’ crimes, suppress their powerful members with swift and overwhelming force, and then apprehend the corrupt clan officials. Only on this foundation can we abolish the clan system!"
A clan was an interest group. They aspired to become a special class, subordinate to imperial power but possessing significant privileges. The Qin Dynasty suppressed clans to create a relatively fair social environment and protect vulnerable commoners. The Huang Family, for instance, plotted against hundreds of thousands of commoners for their own selfish interests.
"That’s a strategy for the present, but how do we prevent the resurgence of clan power in the long term?" Qin Wudao’s gaze was sharp as he looked at the assembled ministers.
"This..." Everyone frowned at the question. They were among the most intelligent people in the Qin Dynasty, but they approached this thorny issue with extreme caution.
One minute passed, everyone’s brows deeply furrowed. Ten minutes later, the atmosphere in the hall was heavy. An hour passed; the tea had grown lukewarm, yet no one spoke.
Qin Wudao sat in the foremost seat, not urging them, but silently pondering. Clans had a long and deeply rooted history; their presence had been felt since the very birth of the Primal Continent. In the primordial era, various races vied for supremacy, forming the initial clan structures, with each race constituting a clan. As races grew stronger and their populations increased, internal divisions began to emerge, forming groups bound by blood ties, thus refining the clan structure. The ultimate consolidation of clan power came with the privatization of Cultivation Techniques and martial skills, leading to the formation of numerous powerful groups, each wielding considerable strength. These individuals were a minority, yet they controlled the vast majority of their respective group’s power.
Two hours later, Guo Jia stood up and spoke calmly, "Your Majesty, merely suppressing them is not as effective as redirecting them. Using formidable military power to suppress them will only work temporarily. I suggest we break up the clans, scatter their members, and concurrently stipulate that families with more than fifty members must pay additional poll taxes. This way, clans unwilling to break up their households will face taxes several, even tens of times higher, until the burden becomes unbearable. Once clans are divided, their individual interests will diverge, making reunification exceedingly difficult. Beyond the five degrees of kinship, ties will effectively cease to exist."
Qin Wudao listened attentively, nodding frequently, but in the end, his brow furrowed tightly again. He had to admit that implementing Guo Jia’s plan would deal a severe blow to the clans’ power. However, when it came to clans, the largest in the Qin Dynasty’s Saint’s Court was the imperial Qin Family itself! Each emperor was the head of the Qin Family. Three years ago, he had perused the family register; the imperial family now numbered over thirty thousand. If Guo Jia’s plan were enacted, it would severely impact the imperial family. Yet, to exclude the imperial family would likely incite defiance from the other clans.
As if seeing through Qin Wudao’s concerns, Guo Jia proposed another plan, "Your Majesty, the imperial family can adopt the Decree of Enfeoffment. This would involve granting unique titles exclusive to members of the imperial family, awarded based on blood lineage and merit. Each heir would inherit the title at one rank lower, and once a line’s title diminishes to nothing through successive generations, they would be removed from the imperial family roster. The larger the imperial family, the greater the burden on the state. Without a corresponding system, I fear that in ten thousand years, the state will be unable to support the imperial family!"
The problem was that imperial offspring were supported by the state. They often did little but procreate; a prince might have dozens of sons, who in turn could sire hundreds of grandsons. Such an ever-expanding number of descendants would inevitably drain the nation’s economy.
"Excellent. This proposal is very good!" Qin Wudao understood the reasoning well. He turned to the other ministers and asked, "What are your thoughts, gentlemen?"
Seeing Qin Wudao’s satisfied expression, the other ministers all voiced their support.
For the clans of the world, this was a devastating strategy, one they could only endure silently. After all, even the imperial family was to be subjected to division, so what grounds did they have to resist? As for actual resistance, they would have to carefully weigh their strength against the court’s.
For the imperial family, it was an open stratagem, yet one they would willingly embrace, for who could resist the allure of noble titles?
As the saying goes: After I am gone, what care I if the flood engulfs the world!
With these two strategies, the power of the clans could be curbed. Simultaneously, members of the imperial family could be assigned to various regions, thereby strengthening the imperial family’s influence across the land. After all, the imperial family was different from other clans. As long as Qin Wudao remained Emperor, he could unite its members—a feat other clan leaders could not replicate.
Of course, clan leaders would also strive to maintain their clan’s cohesion. However, if the court actively worked to disperse their members, preventing them from even meeting, how could any meaningful cohesion be maintained?