Diqin Designer

Chapter 444 International Games and Expositions

The news that the eldest son, Fusu, had been made crown prince spread from Xianyang to all directions. However, Fusu, the first crown prince of Qin, did not stay in Xianyang for long. After reading Li Nian's account of the historical records of later generations, he was sent to a remote place by the First Emperor.

This time, Fusu no longer needs to change his name; he can go to the provinces openly and legitimately as the Crown Prince of Qin.

To prevent any accidents from happening to Fusu when he went to the provinces, the First Emperor equipped Fusu with a very high-level security force, consisting of two thousand elite Qin soldiers, a dedicated cook and doctor, and appointed Wang Li as Fusu's chief bodyguard.

Arranging for Wang Li to accompany Fusu was not only to ensure Fusu's safety, but also a way for the First Emperor to make a statement: he had sent Wang Jian's grandson, Wang Li, to Fusu's side, which showed how much he valued Fusu and that Fusu's position as crown prince was secure!
It should be noted that Wang Jian was the foremost military general of the Qin Dynasty at the time, and his grandson served as the chief bodyguard to Fusu. Doesn't this mean that Wang Jian's family was on Fusu's side?

As for the First Emperor's arrangement, although Wang Jian and his son knew that Wang Li had been assigned to serve as the chief guard by Fusu's side, which meant that their Wang family had sided with Fusu, the father and son had no objections.

If it were the Wang Jian and his son from the past, they would probably have objected, because the father and son served as officials in the Qin Dynasty and adhered to the principle of not taking sides. But after learning about the history of later generations, how could they not take sides?
The father and son understood that appointing their grandson (son) Wang Li as Fusu's chief bodyguard was both an opportunity and a test from the First Emperor. If they didn't seize it and didn't give the First Emperor face, the consequences would be dire…

Even if the First Emperor were magnanimous and did not punish them, their royal family would no longer be given important positions and would be gradually expelled from the core power structure of the Qin Dynasty. Furthermore, because they knew about later history, they would be strictly monitored by the First Emperor.

According to Li Nian's account of later history, he and his father made great contributions to the Qin Dynasty, more so than the Meng brothers, but they were not as loyal as the Meng brothers.

The Meng brothers served the Qin Dynasty from beginning to end, and even in death, they died for the Qin Dynasty. One committed suicide along with Prince Fusu, while the other was killed by Huhai and Zhao Gao.

On the other hand, although Wang Li was left behind to serve as an official in the court, he and his son had already fled. Their loyalty to Qin was certainly greater than Zhao Gao's, but compared to the Meng brothers who followed Qin to the death, it seemed somewhat insufficient!
Therefore, they were not among the first to be selected for the "listening to the history of later generations" group, but were ranked after Meng Tian, ​​Feng Jie, and Feng Quji. If they could not demonstrate further loyalty, then the power and wealth of their royal family would come to an end.

In fact, losing power and wealth is not terrible. What is terrible is when the monarch thinks you are not loyal enough and keeps thinking about it. Then the problem is big. At that time, it will be a luxury to retire peacefully and return to your hometown.

When the First Emperor appointed Wang Li as Fusu's chief bodyguard, it was an opportunity for them. By siding with Fusu, they were demonstrating their loyalty to the Qin Dynasty. If they were unwilling to side with even the crown prince of Qin, their already low loyalty rating compared to the Meng brothers would become even lower.

Even if the father and son had made great contributions to the Qin Dynasty, if their loyalty rating was not up to standard, the First Emperor would still suppress them and remove them from the core power circle.

Both father and son were shrewd and understood this point perfectly. They not only did not oppose Wang Li's appointment as the chief bodyguard of Fusu by the First Emperor, but also clearly expressed their support.

Thus, not long after being made crown prince by the First Emperor, Fusu left Xianyang to gain experience in various regions, learn about local issues in the Qin Dynasty, investigate the situation in different places, and observe how each region governs.

This was the First Emperor's plan for Fusu: first, to gain experience in local governance and then to observe and train in various departments of the court.

This would allow Fusu to better understand the situation in Qin, which would benefit his future governance. However, the downside is that the crown prince's absence from the emperor's side would give others the opportunity to sow discord between the emperor and the crown prince. In the event of any unforeseen events involving the emperor, the crown prince's absence could allow those with ulterior motives to succeed in their schemes.

This was the case with the Qin Dynasty in history. Fusu was not by the First Emperor's side, but was accompanied by Zhao Gao and Huhai. Didn't this give Zhao Gao and Huhai an opportunity?
However, this does not apply to the current First Emperor and Fusu. The two agreements between the First Emperor and Fusu ensured that even if something happened to the First Emperor and someone came to order Fusu to commit suicide, Fusu could ignore it.

If anyone were to submit a memorial slandering Fusu after he left Xianyang, sowing discord between the First Emperor and Fusu, they would only fall into the same trap as the father and son. Li Nian thought Zhao Gao would most likely fall into it, little did he know that the First Emperor was setting the trap. Poor old Zhao…

After Fusu left Xianyang, the other princes also returned to their fiefdoms. As Qin gradually emerged from the initial difficulties after unifying the world, the princes' fiefdoms were eventually abolished. The prefecture-county system was the inevitable trend, and the enfeoffment system was destined to be abolished within Qin territory.

After the New Year holidays, Xianyang returned to normal, continuing to change little by little, and its prosperity remained unremarkable.

For the people of Xianyang who live here every day, some changes are hard to perceive. After all, living here every day, it always feels like today is the same as yesterday. But some changes are something that the people of Xianyang can really feel.

On this day, the sound of gongs rang out again in Xianyang City. Upon hearing this sound, the people of Xianyang City were already well aware that the imperial court must have something to announce.

Some people followed the direction from which the gong sound came and discovered that this time the sound was coming from Xuanzhengtai, which made everyone even more serious.

This was a place specially set up by the imperial court for them to explain and publicize government decrees. Based on past experience, the matters publicized at the Xuanzheng Terrace were generally closely related to them.

When the Xuanzheng Terrace was first established, it was always crowded with people, causing great disorder and requiring Qin officials on site to actively maintain order. But now, the people present naturally maintain order.

A Qin official was standing on the Xuanzheng Platform, striking a bronze gong with a loud clang until he saw that there were already many people present, at which point he stopped striking the gong.

The Qin official handed the gong to another Qin official before smiling at the crowd below and saying, "Good morning, fellow villagers!"

This Qin official had clearly preached here many times before, and many people recognized him. After hearing his greeting, "Good morning!", some people in the crowd also shouted back, "Good morning!" and "Good morning, Brother Zheng!"

The Qin official surnamed Zheng smiled and said, "I have summoned you all here today because I have two important matters to inform you!"

It must be said that the Qin people of this era were very disciplined. When they heard the Qin official say that there were two important matters to announce, the voices of the people below the stage fell silent instantly, and they all looked at the Qin official on the stage, ready to listen carefully to the two important matters.

The Qin official said, “Fellow villagers, do not worry. These are two good things! First, the Games of All Nations will be held in Xianyang this July; second, also in July, the Exposition of All Nations will be held in Xianyang.”

The terms "International Games" and "International Exposition" suggest that the former refers to a competition among nations, similar to the game of Cuju (ancient Chinese football), while the latter implies that nations held an exhibition in Xianyang to showcase their national products.

One person asked, "Brother Zheng, is this 'Games of All Nations' like the Cuju (ancient Chinese football) competition?" Sure enough, Cuju was quite well-developed in Qin. Xianyang even had a Cuju league with sixteen teams. Apart from four teams belonging to the imperial court, the other twelve teams came from the common people and were founded by merchants in Xianyang.

These merchants discovered that Cuju (ancient Chinese football) matches could serve as advertising for them. If their Cuju teams could gain fame, it would greatly promote their brands and increase the sales of their goods.

Many people buy only the products associated with a particular Cuju (ancient Chinese football) team because they love that team.

When Li Nian learned of this news, she found it very interesting that these businessmen had actually discovered advertising, brand effect, and fan economy on their own.

Indeed, people of this era were not as knowledgeable as those of later generations, but they were not stupid. They only needed a little enlightenment to figure out many things on their own.

Subsequently, Li Nian quickly advised the First Emperor to establish an administrative department for Cuju (ancient Chinese football) competitions, and to formalize and standardize Cuju competitions in Xianyang, thus establishing the current Xianyang Cuju League and setting a quota for Cuju teams that can participate in the league.

There were voices of opposition in the court regarding this matter, but after the Cuju league brought a large amount of revenue to the Qin Dynasty, these voices of opposition gradually disappeared.

Therefore, in Xianyang today, Cuju (ancient Chinese football) matches are well-known. According to Li Nian, there is a saying that "outsiders visiting Xianyang must see the nine major attractions," and Cuju matches are one of the "nine major attractions." In addition, there are also the Golden List Inscription Stele, the National Flag Square, etc.

The Cuju (ancient Chinese football) competition spread from Xianyang to other places, and some people in certain areas wanted to organize Cuju competitions. In response, Li Nian advised the First Emperor to let the people organize spontaneously, while the court would supervise and profit from it.

The Qin Dynasty has many more important things to do now and cannot afford to spend too many resources on Cuju (ancient Chinese football) matches, but if the people want to organize spontaneously, there is no need to prohibit it.

As for the league, given the current transportation level of the Great Qin Dynasty, a national league is not feasible, but local leagues organized by cities with strength can be established, although they all need to be supervised by the imperial court.

Upon hearing the question, the Qin official surnamed Zheng smiled and said, "Cuju (ancient Chinese football) is one of the events. The 'Games of All Nations' will include many sports events. As far as I know, besides Cuju, there are long-distance running, sprinting, horse racing, archery, javelin throwing, long jump, high jump, wrestling, swimming, weightlifting..."

With so many competition events, the audience listened with great interest. A burly man said, "Brother Zheng, I'm strong, could I participate in weightlifting?"

The Qin official surnamed Zheng said, "As long as you can participate in the court's selection and pass the test, you can naturally participate. In the Games of All Nations, many countries send people to compete for first place! If you can participate, you will be representing our Great Qin in the competition with other countries, bringing glory to our Great Qin. If you can win first place for Great Qin, you might even be received by His Majesty in person!"

The eyes of the crowd below the stage lit up instantly; the mere prospect of "being personally received by His Majesty" was enough to excite them.

This is an unparalleled honor, the kind that brings glory to one's ancestors. In the future, the family genealogy may even have its own page dedicated to them.

It will certainly not be easy to achieve this. There will definitely be many people who want to participate, and it will be difficult to be selected from them. Moreover, they will have to compete with experts from other countries to win first place. If they fail to win, not only will they lose glory, but they will also bring shame to the Qin Dynasty.

Having understood what the Games of Nations were all about, someone asked, "Brother Zheng, what about the 'World Expo of Nations'? Does it mean that all the nations are going to bring their treasures to Xianyang for everyone to see?"

The Qin official surnamed Zheng laughed and said, "What you said is very close. The 'Exposition of All Nations' is naturally a place to display the things of all nations. You can bring your own country's treasures, as well as exotic flowers and plants that are unique to your country and not found in other countries, and you can also bring your own country's exquisite artifacts..."

“And the ‘exhibition’ is to display these things for others to see. If you have spare money, you can buy a ticket to go and have a look.”

Upon hearing that there would be an entrance fee, some people decided not to go. If it were free, they would have liked to see what new and interesting things other countries had to offer, but since there was a fee, they decided against it.

These two events are indeed good things. Some people have already figured out something from them. The Games of Nations and the World Expo will be held in Xianyang. When that happens, the number of people coming to Xianyang will increase dramatically. With so many people coming, they will need food and lodging. If they can manage this well, they can make a fortune from this opportunity.

The Qin official surnamed Zheng continued, "I am informing you all of this today because the court needs your help!"

Upon hearing this, the Qin people below the stage loudly responded, "Brother Zheng, just tell us, what does the imperial court want us to do?"

Because the original historical practices were absent, the Qin Dynasty did not lose the hearts of the people. On the contrary, the people were more united and trusted the First Emperor and the Qin court. They believed that under the First Emperor's rule, their lives would get better and better.

After gesturing for silence from the crowd, the Qin official surnamed Zheng smiled and said, "His Majesty and the court officials hope that after the arrival of the delegations from various countries, you, my fellow countrymen, can witness the civilization and advancement of our Great Qin. For example, keeping the streets clean, not spitting, not relieving yourself in public, and not littering..."

Upon hearing what the Qin official surnamed Zheng said, the crowd below laughed and said, "So that's what it is. Even if Brother Zheng hadn't said it, we would have followed it every day."

Feeling that they were Qin people, and especially the Qin people of Xianyang who were closest to His Majesty, they could not bring shame upon His Majesty. The Xianyang management regulations, which were spearheaded by Li Nian, were spontaneously and well observed by them.

They would actively clean up and pick up any litter they saw on the street, and they would not spit or relieve themselves indiscriminately. They would also enthusiastically guide those who had just arrived in Xianyang from other places or foreign countries.

This is essentially out of love and respect for the First Emperor and the Qin Dynasty, and a willingness to abide by these regulations.

This is also an important reason why outsiders or people from other places find the streets of Xianyang to be very clean and orderly: the Qin people of Xianyang are spontaneously maintaining order in Xianyang.

The Qin official surnamed Zheng added, "Secondly, the court needs to recruit some people to help with some tasks during the Games and Expositions of the Nations."

(End of this chapter)