Poverty Alleviation in Qin: A Sky-High Review of "I Am the Female Prime Minister of All Time&qu

Recently, Chunyu Yue has been unable to eat or sleep properly.

The images in the sky kept swirling in my mind. The thought that all the Confucian scholars would be expelled from the court by Song Ye in the future, and that the Confucian and Taoist cultural lineage that had been passed down for hundreds of years would be cut off in the Qin Dynasty, filled me with anxiety.

He knew that the only bargaining chip he could rely on right now was his eldest son, Fusu.

Fusu had studied Confucianism with him since he was young, and he valued the bond between teacher and student the most. He was the only hope for Confucianism to make a comeback.

After tidying his clothes, Chunyu Yue went to the palace alone to see Fusu.

Upon seeing Fusu, he sighed deeply, his expression filled with sorrow and earnestness: "My lord, I have come here today to beg you to protect the Confucian lineage of the Great Qin."

Fusu hesitated, then cupped his hands and asked, "What makes you say that, Master?"

Chunyu Yue stepped forward, his tone carrying a subtle pressure: "You and I have both witnessed the future within the Heavenly Canopy. When Song Ye truly arrives in Xianyang, I and all the Confucian scholars in the court will have no place to stand."

"Young master is a student I personally taught. How can I stand by and watch Confucian etiquette disappear?"

Upon hearing this, Fusu was in turmoil and felt extremely tormented.

He deeply respected Chunyu Yue and couldn't bear to see his teacher suffer such a tragic end. However, the chaos and disasters brought about by the enfeoffment system had already been witnessed in the heavens, and he knew that the Confucian theory of enfeoffment was no longer in line with the current trend of unifying the world. Forcibly implementing it would be of no benefit to the Qin Dynasty.

On one hand, there is the gratitude owed to the teachers who raised and guided me; on the other hand, there is the stability of the realm and the national policy of prefectures and counties established by my father, the emperor...

Two conflicting thoughts tugged at my heartstrings, and I didn't know how to respond.

Seeing his silence, Chunyu Yue's eyes deepened with sorrow, and he pressed on relentlessly: "Young master, you have studied Confucianism since childhood, receiving the teachings of Confucius and Mencius. Your benevolent heart is entirely a product of Confucianism. Now, the Confucian school is in imminent danger, and its literary lineage is about to be severed. If you stand idly by, you will be abandoning your teacher, abandoning the Way, and abandoning your benevolence!"

"I do not seek power or wealth; I only wish to preserve a thread of ritual and music for the Great Qin, so that future generations will not only know law but not benevolence, only centralized power but not education. You, my lord, hold the position of heir apparent; how can you sit idly by and watch us perish?"

Every word was a righteous moral admonition, burdened with the heavy weight of gratitude towards the master and his sect.

Fusu stood quietly with his eyes lowered, his mind in turmoil.

In the past, whenever his teacher spoke of Confucianism and Taoism or talked about inheritance, he would wholeheartedly support them.

But listening to these earnest words today, images of reckless acts against the tide quietly surfaced in the sky, and for the first time, a faint, unfamiliar doubt arose.

He silently asked himself: Was his teacher's desperate efforts and relentless pursuit truly only for the severance of Confucian culture and the extinction of Qin Dynasty rituals and music?

Or... was it more out of fear that his decades-long career in the court would be in vain, fear that the power and foundation of a group of Confucian scholars would be destroyed by Song Ye? Was it selfishness at play, or unwillingness to accept defeat?

The thought had barely sprouted in his mind when Fusu suddenly jolted, a hint of fear flashing across his brow.

He quickly suppressed this outrageous speculation and was filled with apprehension.

How could I think of my teacher like that?

I have respected my teachers since childhood and have never dared to doubt their true intentions.

But today, for the first time, he began to doubt whether the great righteousness of the nation and the inheritance of culture spoken of by his revered mentor were mixed with too much worldly selfishness.

This sudden clarity of mind, though faint, was so real that even Fusu himself was unaware of it.

Chunyu Yue keenly noticed the wavering and hesitation in Fusu's eyes, and knew that the time was right.

He stopped lecturing forcefully, his imposing aura instantly dissipated, and his figure slightly hunched over. "Young master, I have spent half my life in officialdom, dedicated my life to spreading Confucianism and assisting the Great Qin. My fellow disciples and I have spent our lives studying the classics until our hair turned white. All we have ever sought is for the continuation of our literary tradition and the preservation of rites and music."

"Now that the heavens reveal the future, our life's work is about to be destroyed, leaving us with nothing but exile and displacement in our old age. My own old and frail body is of little consequence, but the absence of Confucian scholars and benevolence in the Qin Dynasty is a national tragedy and a sorrow for the world!"

Having said that, he took half a step forward, almost pleadingly: "I don't seek to protect myself, I only beg you, young master, to have mercy and protect the lineage of Confucianism, and to protect you, my teachers. If even you stand idly by, we will truly have nowhere to go."

His aged voice was choked with sobs, conveying an image of utter loneliness and helplessness, solely devoted to the Great Dao.

Looking at his once dignified and solemn mentor, now humbly pleading with sorrow in his eyes, Fusu felt his nascent doubts instantly overwhelmed by guilt.

"Teacher, you don't need to do that; the students understand."

"I will certainly speak on behalf of Confucianism before my father and do my utmost to preserve our teachers and the Confucian tradition."

Chunyu Yue's eyes flashed, a triumphant glint quickly crossing his gaze, but he concealed his true intentions perfectly, saying, "Thank you, young master! With your words, even if we scholars face storms ahead, we finally have a glimmer of hope..."

With the eldest son as a pawn in the game, even though Song is enjoying the emperor's favor and its momentum is unstoppable, the Confucian school may still have a chance to turn the tide.

Song Ye, Song Ye, I refuse to believe that you hold a place in His Majesty's heart that surpasses that of the future Crown Prince.

..

Meanwhile, at Zhangtai Palace.

The contents of the celestial curtain that descended this time were all-encompassing, especially the last few sentences which contained a wealth of information. The First Emperor made a decisive decision and immediately halted Xu Fu's recently prepared voyage to seek immortality.

"Xu Fu, you have repeatedly submitted memorials claiming that there are immortal mountains and elixirs in the Eastern Sea that can grant immortality. I ask you, do these immortal seas and elixirs you speak of truly exist?"

He paused slightly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, "If you are lying to the emperor, you should know what the consequences will be."

Upon hearing this, Xu Fu's expression froze.

He absolutely hated Song Ye and Tianmu!

Cold sweat poured down Xu Fu's forehead, soaking his back in an instant. His legs trembled slightly, but he dared not lose his composure in the slightest: "Your Majesty, please calm your anger! There must be a misunderstanding! The celestial prophecy, though wondrous, is not necessarily accurate; perhaps the judgment is flawed!"

"The Eastern Sea is vast and boundless, its immortal mountains hidden among the clouds and mist, their traces difficult to find. I have not yet set sail this time, so naturally I have not found the elixir of immortality; this is not a lie!"

"Your Majesty! The heavens have shown that Song Ye will live to be 120 years old, far exceeding the lifespan of ordinary people! This is enough to prove that there must be elixirs of longevity and secret arts of immortality in the world! I am not just making empty promises!" In order to dispel the emperor's doubts and save his life, Xu Fu quickly came up with a clever excuse.

"When the Heavenly Canopy reappears, everything will be clear," Ying Zheng declared definitively.

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Fu's heart tightened.

If Tianmu were to expose his deception of the emperor in public, he would surely die!

Xu Fu suppressed his trembling and hurriedly cupped his hands in a tentative gesture, asking with a cautious pleading tone, "Your Majesty, regarding my voyage to seek immortality... shall we proceed as planned?"

Ying Zheng raised his eyes, his dark pupils calm and unwavering. "This matter will be discussed later."

Upon hearing this, Xu Fu felt a chill run down his spine.