20: Chapter 20 Fan Zeng: What the heck?

His knotted muscles stretched his hemp clothing tight. He radiated a sense of power that made many people instinctively keep their distance from such a beast.

This allowed the three of them to easily reach the front and clearly see the contents written on the announcement.

Upon hearing the Qin Official's interpretation, the scholar and the elderly warrior both showed expressions of disdain.

While those two were being dismissive, the double-pupiled giant spoke up in praise: "Young Master Fusu is truly a benevolent man!"

The scholar and the elderly warrior were both rendered speechless.

Subsequently, the expressions on their faces turned sour at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Uncle!"

"Second Father!"

"Could it be that Yu is wrong?"

"Hehehe..."

The cold sneers from the scholar and the elderly warrior were enough to signal their thoughts.

The young, double-pupiled man scratched the back of his head, somewhat confused by their meaning.

"Yuer..."

The elderly warrior lowered his voice, signaling the double-pupiled giant to lean down, and whispered in his ear: "I'm afraid Young Master Fusu has already usurped the throne, established himself as Crown Prince, and is merely waiting to ascend."

"Yu disagrees!"

Xiang Yu had met Fusu before; he had even stayed in Fusu's Hall of Recruiting the Worthy and served as Fusu's retainer for a period.

Fusu had always been respectful, polite, and followed the proper hierarchy; he was a true gentleman. In Xiang Yu's eyes, Fusu would never commit an act of rebellion.

Xiang Liang looked at Xiang Yu with an expression of disappointment. This nephew of his wasn't unintelligent; he was simply too naive. He didn't understand human nature!

Unfortunately, this kind of skill cannot be taught; it is something one must realize for themselves.

In his view, this Fusu was a person who hid himself extremely deeply.

His arguments with the First Emperor were likely a deliberate attempt to feign incompetence, causing the First Emperor to relax his guard—or perhaps the First Emperor had already sensed Fusu's secret power grab and thus kicked him out of Xianyang, exiling him to the Great Wall.

Fusu was likely unwilling to be sidelined from the political center and thought of returning to Xianyang at any moment; the First Emperor might have even been murdered by him.

After the First Emperor died, before his bones were even cold, Fusu had impatiently launched a military coup to seize the throne.

Such a person was far too terrifying!

Xiang Liang did not fear those who bared their fangs and seemed scary.

He feared those who appeared harmless on the outside but were masters of patience and endurance on the inside.

Such a person was like a venomous snake.

At the slightest opportunity, they would strike with a vicious bite. They would not move until they could kill their opponent in a single blow.

Through Xiang Liang's mental gymnastics, Zhao Fusu had become a man of deep schemes and high cunning.

Such a person was likely no easier to deal with than Ying Zheng.

Xiang Liang's heart felt heavy.

He was a nobleman of the State of Chu.

After Chu was destroyed, their nobility scattered and fled.

Over the years, they had gradually gathered together, secretly recruiting soldiers and horses, accumulating strength, and actively contacting other anti-Qin forces to overthrow the rule of Great Qin in one fell swoop.

They had finally waited for Ying Zheng to die and were planning to reveal themselves, but they hadn't expected Young Master Fusu to have been hiding his brilliance for years, able to easily mobilize the 200,000 Qin Army troops in Guanzhong.

Fusu would become a massive obstacle to their anti-Qin cause.

"Uncle, you are indeed wrong."

Xiang Yu suddenly spoke out loudly.

"Eh?"

Xiang Liang was lost in thought, so he didn't understand Xiang Yu's sudden remark.

"Look, Young Master Fusu didn't seize the position of Crown Prince; instead, he wants Young Master Hu Hai to take the throne."

"What did you say!"

Xiang Liang was shocked by what Xiang Yu said.

He looked closely at what was written on the announcement and indeed saw Young Master Fusu saying that a country cannot be without a ruler for a single day, and that Young Master Hu Hai should ascend the throne as soon as possible.

"Young Master Hu Hai says: The father's sins shall be repaid by the son."

"The Father Emperor campaigned against the Six Kingdoms, leading to the destruction of their royal houses and leaving their people displaced and their families broken. Hu Hai is willing to strip off his robes and carry thorns to plead for the world's forgiveness."

"An Edict of Self-Reproach!"

The pupils of both Xiang Liang and the scholar Fan Zeng constricted.

Hu Hai's Edict of Self-Reproach would have a massive impact on their great cause of opposing Qin.

Edicts of Self-Reproach did not originate now; back in the Zhou Dynasty, Emperors had already used them to alleviate conflicts with the populace.

After a monarch issued an Edict of Self-Reproach, there were usually tangible benefits given to the people.

Sure enough, he saw heavy-hitting news in the announcement.

The Great Qin Empire is abolishing the Corvée labor system!

Those already serving Corvée will receive three meals a day and be fed to their fill every time!

"Boom!"

The atmosphere at the scene instantly exploded.

For the common people, they didn't care much about an Emperor carrying thorns to apologize. In the eyes of the clever, that was just political theater.

But abolishing the Corvée labor system concerned every single one of them.

In Great Qin, everyone from age seventeen to under sixty was required to serve Corvée labor.

One had to serve Corvée once a month, which meant working for free and even bringing your own food.

The poll tax was collected based on the number of people.

If your family had four people, it had to be paid four times.

The more people, the more that was levied.

Generally speaking, a child who reached fifteen had to pay a share of the poll tax.

Basically, every household had more than two-thirds of their harvest taken away!

During the time of Emperor Wu of Han, children aged seven had to pay the poll tax. Later, it was changed to three years old. Most terrifyingly, for a period, it was even changed to one year old.

Consequently, many people killed their own children to avoid paying a share of the poll tax.

They had to pay the poll tax and serve Corvée labor.

Most laborers had almost no grain in their hands and basically went hungry.

Many people of Great Qin, in order to pay less poll tax, were forced to go to the battlefield or travel far to the frontier to build the Great Wall.

Walking hundreds of kilometers over such great distances caused many to die from the long trek.

Others were killed by bandits in the wilderness.

Corvée labor was absolutely terrifying for the common people at the bottom.

If Corvée could be canceled, it would be a wonderful thing for them.

In the future, they wouldn't have to go serve Corvée every month. Thus, they would have more time to plant crops.

Husbands and wives would no longer be separated, suffering the pains of longing.

At the same time, they couldn't help but break into a flurry of discussion.

"Is this real or fake? People serving Corvée can actually get three meals a day and be full every time!"

While the rich had meat and wine rotting, there were frozen corpses on the road; even here in the capital of Great Qin, there were large numbers of bottom-tier commoners living a life of hunger.

The lives of people in remote mountain villages were even worse; most were skin and bones from hunger, their faces the color of withered vegetables.

If serving Corvée meant eating three meals a day and being full every time, then wouldn't going to serve Corvée become a plum job!

Most people still questioned the contents of the announcement.

"The court is abolishing the Three Councilors and Nine Ministers System and establishing a National Congress, a Legislative Yuan, and a Judiciary Yuan. The head of the National Congress will be Young Master Fusu. The Legislative Yuan proposes the abolition of corporal punishments, including: tattooing, nose-cutting, foot-cutting, and castration, to be replaced by imprisonment and reform through labor."

"After a unanimous vote by the Collective Representative Assembly, the Great Qin Empire abolishes tattooing, nose-cutting, foot-cutting, and castration, replacing them with imprisonment and reform through labor."

Fan Zeng: What on earth?