Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 94, Section 93: Maintaining Balance and Embracing the Jade.
We finally finished the meal peacefully.

When the food was taken away, Zhou Ju, as an observer, truly breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing that he also took the opportunity to go down and have a couple of bites, Qin Jun smiled to himself:
In a sense, Ji Heng was also a simple emperor.

Nowadays, the emperor's meals are served in nine tripods and eight sacrificial vessels.

That is, the nine bronze tripods with stylized coiled dragon patterns are identical in shape and decrease in size sequentially. The eight gui vessels are eight gui vessels with interlocking coiled dragon patterns, identical in shape and uniform in size.

The feudal lords used a 7:6 ratio, the high officials used a 5:4 ratio, and the lower officials used a 3:2 ratio.

During Qin Shi's observations, Ji Heng's tableware, while still numerous in comparison, was considered simple with only six or eight pieces.

His mind was preoccupied with ruling and national affairs; if he focused all his energy on that, it would be quite direct.

Moreover, the current predicament facing the Qin state is also somewhat related to his "deep favor".

Because although those meritorious officials who helped establish the empire were dissatisfied with the distribution of benefits, he never thought of killing them to eliminate future troubles.

General Yan's receiving imperial favor was an exception, but it didn't mean that others received none at all.

If he were ruthless enough, like the Ming Dynasty's founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, who famously said, "Let us drink together in the golden goblet, and I will show no mercy with my blade," then with his unprecedented and unparalleled ruling power, although there might be some minor troubles, he would certainly have far fewer worries.

Or perhaps it was the tactful way of Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, who used a cup of wine to release military power.

If all else fails, King Goujian of Yue also had the saying, "When the birds are all gone, the good bow is put away; when the cunning rabbit is dead, the hunting dog is cooked."

If that were truly the case, the current political landscape would be entirely different.

It should be noted that he overturned the previous hereditary system of enfeoffment with absolute power, and because his authority was concentrated in one person, he was spared the troubles of sharing the country with aristocratic families as in the Han and Tang dynasties.

His absolute authority ensured the smooth implementation of government orders, a situation unprecedented in the entire history of feudal dynasties.

With this blessing, everything you do will be highly efficient.

Qin Shi personally carried Ji Heng's dragon-tiger seal back to Lanchi, feeling both moved and fortunate.

so good!
He was such a king.

……

Back at Lanchi, Chi Nu and the others breathed a sigh of relief.

She then looked at the small seal Qin Shi was holding in his hand, her eyes now filled with delight:
"Your Majesty, the King truly values ​​you! No one, not even those in the imperial palace or among the highest officials, has received such an honor!"

Wu Zi's face flushed with excitement. She had just finished pouring the tea and crawled two steps closer.
"Your Majesty, please do your utmost to prepare New Year's gifts for the King! Your Majesty's kindness moves this servant to tears!"

Qin Shi's heart was pounding.

At Zhangtai Palace, she was so focused on how to keep Ji Heng from getting angry that she became somewhat slow to react in other ways.

And now...

She opened her palm and looked at the small, exquisite white jade dragon-tiger personal seal, and her heart couldn't help but race.

[They obeyed every command.]

Anyone who disobeys this order will be executed immediately.

This was the first political right she possessed in the Qin state.

Before this, even though the many servants and maids in Lanchi Palace served only him, the king had never explicitly stated that he had the power to decide their lives and deaths.

As a person with a healthy mindset, she is not excited about being able to control other people's lives and deaths, nor does she want to execute anyone at will.

She simply became involved in this royal power struggle.

Despite her own enthusiasm for the Ironworks and the added advantage of being a queen.

However, she finally obtained the ticket to participate in and make decisions in court politics!

Turn the seal over; faint red marks can be seen in the seal script characters on it.

She didn't find it particularly easy to identify, so she stared at it for a while and only recognized one character: 【衡】.

Could it be that the characters "郑衡" (Zheng Heng) are engraved on it?
After all, private seals at that time often bore names. Or perhaps it was the seal of "King Heng of Qin"?

She ordered, "Bring me cinnabar ink!"

Wu Zi hurriedly ordered a maid to go to the study, and soon a piece of cinnabar and a piece of snow-white cloth were presented.

Qin Shi pressed down carefully and forcefully, removed the seal, and finally saw the seal characters on it clearly—

【Holding Balance and Embracing Xuan】 At that moment, her heart pounded like a drum.

【衡】【璇】 refers to 【玉衡】 and 【天璇】 in the Big Dipper.

The former represents balance, fairness, and stability.

The latter symbolizes the earth's power to bear all things.

What they have in common is that both belong to the emperor's authority.

If this meaning is subtle enough, then Qin Shi also knew a phrase—from the Tang Dynasty dynastic history, the Book of Northern Qi.

In the past, Fangxun ruled the world, and Liu Bi was entrusted to his son; Chonghua held the reins of power, and held the balance of power.

The meaning is: In the past, Emperor Yao, who ruled the world, passed a jade disc to Emperor Shun; Emperor Shun, who controlled the calendar, was like holding the stars Heng and Xuan in the Big Dipper, symbolizing his control over state power.
She stared at the bright red cinnabar mark on the silk scroll, then picked up the dragon-tiger seal again and slowly pressed it into her palm.

Her fair and soft hands had shown signs of hard work before, but now, there was no roughness in her palms, only the crimson seal characters remained, which she slowly clenched.

Maintain balance and embrace the celestial.

She silently recited it once.

"I will treat Your Majesty well and with all my heart."

She heard herself speak slowly.

And at this moment, I thought of what to do to thank the king.

……

Having power means having a foundation for one's own existence.

Thus, Qin Shi enjoyed an exceptionally restful sleep.

Even though she woke up early in the morning and the Red Maiden had already led her maids to settle the south side hall of Xianyang Palace, and the Lanchi Palace was a little noisy, it did not affect her wonderful and peaceful mood.

She had previously given out generous rewards and firmly believed that benefits could enhance people's initiative.

Now, without anyone urging her, she ate breakfast early in the morning, washed up and tidied herself up, then quickly took the notes she had compiled and got into the carriage.

What's a mere three-hour commute to Tieguan Workshop!
She's capable!
—Although he was soon shaken and disoriented by the speeding carriage.

During the wildly shaking journey, she gripped Fu Cai's hand tightly: "If I have any free time, I must learn to ride a horse!"

Wait, are stirrups and horseshoes no longer used?

She had seen the saddle before.

The majestic six-horse chariot of the emperor, with its saddles adorned with carved pearls and inlaid with jade, was impossible to ignore.

However, since there are no heavy cavalry nowadays, most of the cavalry's tasks are reconnaissance, harassment, and pursuit, rather than frontal charges, so the demand for stirrups is not very high.

But horseshoes are still very necessary!

Moreover, heavy cavalry, an invincible force on the battlefield, will inevitably emerge sooner or later!

Qin Shi, trembling and dizzy from the speeding train, struggled to pull out the silk scroll and painstakingly wrote down the words "horseshoe" on it, lest he forget them.

Fu Cai, however, gripped her hand tightly: "Women of Qin should be strong and capable of wielding bows and riding horses! If Your Majesty wishes to learn, please arrange it, so that you may protect yourself!"

Otherwise, if someone were to fall accidentally, it could really be fatal.

Even so, she did not give up trying to persuade Qin Shi out of caution.

Qin Shi laughed: She truly loves the current atmosphere in Qin!

Here it comes! Rubbing my hands together, begging for votes! Any more? *shakes*

*From online annotations. The *Book of Northern Qi* is from Li Baiyao of the Tang Dynasty.

In ancient times, the Big Dipper was associated with the power of the emperor.

[In my personal opinion] Qin Shi Huang truly treated his meritorious officials well. It wasn't that he lacked opportunities; many years after the fall of the six states, he genuinely didn't act. [If you insist on bringing up Lü Buwei, I can't stop you...]

[The Qin Dynasty had saddles.]

No historical records have been found for horseshoes and stirrups yet.

Heavy cavalry required specific skills, weapons, and horses. On ancient battlefields, they were an invincible steel torrent, not something you could simply have at will.

The pinyin for "九鼎八簋" is: jiǔ dǐng bā guǐ.