Setting the Rules, Establishing a New System!

Three years later--

In the early days of the Great Qin, its rule was not yet stable, but as more and more people settled within Great Qin borders, various problems arose...

The former Spring Rosy Clouds Island was renamed Qin Island after the establishment of the Great Qin.

now--

Qin Island – Inside the Efang Immortal Palace.

Inside a magnificent palace, on a dragon throne crafted from Fourth-Tier golden crystal, Qin Xiao sat regally, receiving the homage of his officials...

Below and to the side of the dragon throne, there was a table...

As the third-generation clan leader, Qin Mingyi should listen to and assist in the government affairs, which can be considered as sharing Qin Xiao's burdens and solving his problems, and working together to handle the affairs of the court.

Qin Xiao's aura was restrained, yet he exuded an incomparably domineering power...

Subtly revealed, this is the majesty of an emperor!

This refers to the Dao Path of Qin Xiao, the only one among the second generation of the Qin Xiao to embark on this unique Kingly Dao of benevolent rule, on the day the Great Qin was established...

Qin Xiao then comprehended his own Dao!

What he sought was the Great Way of the King, Dao Law: the King Origin Dao Principles!

It can be said that he attained enlightenment in one day, comprehended the Dao Rhyme, and within a year, he had thoroughly grasped it, reached the pinnacle in one day, and broke through the Dao Foundation!

And right now--

The emperor's majesty is vast and boundless; every gesture, every rule, exudes the king's disdain...

Qin Xiao swept his gaze across the officials, his eyes devoid of sorrow or joy, and said:

"These are the same old faces. Does our Great Qin, which possesses the lands of the Three Seas, not have a single capable minister?"

Just this one sentence--

This intimidated all the officials, who felt immense pressure. Their faces turned pale, and large beads of sweat dripped from their brows; not one dared to speak...

After a moment, Li Si, one of the six Grand Secretaries, offered his advice:

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. The Great Qin has just been established, and the court is not yet at peace. It will naturally take some time for Your Majesty to make a decision..."

"Therefore, the officials remained unmoved; everything was for the stability of the Great Qin."

"Only after the court is stable, all under heaven submit, and laws and regulations are strictly enforced, will we gradually accept talented individuals from all over the world and employ them..."

"The Great Qin is still solid, but we must proceed step by step; the task is arduous and the road ahead is long."

Upon hearing this—

Qin Xiao remained unmoved, but how could he not understand Li Si's unspoken meaning? Now that the Great Qin was established, the old powers...

They can't wait to get their share of the profits!

Therefore, Li Si made this statement as an implication to prevent future discord between the emperor and his ministers. Li Si was indeed a skilled orator...

His words were perfectly watertight.

Qin Xiao thought for a moment. The Great Qin had been established for three years, and there was no point in dragging it out any longer. Since they wanted to grant him a title, he might as well take this opportunity...

The basic framework of the Great Qin was finalized in one go.

"Li Si is right."

"Now that the Great Qin just been established, it is time to set forth a system to enfeoff many meritorious officials and their families, in order to better govern the Great Qin..."

"In your opinion, Great Qin, what kind of system should it adopt?"

Speaking of this--

The ministers below the stage began to stir, and finally, Shang Yang, one of the six scholars, proposed a draft, after all, it was about reforming the system...

Shang Yang was quite the veteran, starting with his Shang Yang's Reforms.

Shang Yang had been in charge of the Qin Clan's land reforms, and now that the Great Qin was established, Shang Yang was undoubtedly the one to perfect the system. He said:

"The enfeoffment system was an old system of the Great Shang State. Although it included the division of prefectures and counties, in essence, it still followed the path of enfeoffment..."

"Although this method is simple, it has many drawbacks!"

"However, a complete prefecture-county system could easily lead to local powers becoming too powerful, jeopardizing the imperial authority. Once power is dispersed, chaos can easily ensue..."

Therefore.

"This old minister suggests that we might continue the Nine-Rank Immortal Clan System and uphold the policies of the Northern Frontier era, but the nation cannot be confined to a single region..."

"It is advisable to appropriately integrate the prefecture-county system, establishing six ministries centered on the imperial court: the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Punishments, and the Ministry of War!"

Correspondingly: selection and appointment of officials, population and household registration management, imperial examinations and education, water conservancy construction and machinery, judicial affairs, and military mobilization...

"The six ministries maintain the basic operation of the country, thereby facilitating communication between higher and lower levels."

"And these numerous officials belong to the Six Ministries, above which are the Six Grand Secretaries, who assist in governing and share Your Majesty's burdens..."

"This is the core location."

"Further down, there are prefectures, protectorates, Prefecture, and so on..."

"Although the increased structure may seem cumbersome to ordinary people, for cultivators, the layers of organization allow for better governance of their territory."

"The Nine-Rank Immortal Clan System can provide the country with high-quality talent, but officials do not necessarily have to be members of the Immortal Clan..."

"The Nine-Rank Immortal Clan System restricts the major Aristocratic Clan to prevent them from shirking their duties, while the Nine-Rank Official System serves as the court's check and balance, supervising and monitoring the Immortal Clan in various regions."

"Furthermore, I suggest implementing a separation between immortals and mortals."

"Further weakening the territories controlled by various Aristocratic Clan..."

"A rule was established that all forces entering the Nine-Rank Immortal Register must, in accordance with the regulations, limit their territories and are not allowed to excessively annex other territories."

"Furthermore, all Grotto-Heaven throughout the country must be reported and registered, with regular and fixed amounts of tribute made to the national treasury, and an annual spiritual tax must also be paid..."

"And throughout the country, they gathered promising young immortals and established Daoist academies."

"Afterwards, the existence of sects was banned nationwide, allowing for the gathering of talent, strengthening the nation, and the registration of Lineage who had achieved the ninth rank..."

"A rigorous review and verification are still required. Only by obtaining the Great Qin Clan Establishment Decree can Immortal Clan be established, recorded in the Nine-Rank Immortal Register, and become a legitimate force of our Great Qin."

Drifting and scattering--

Shang Yang then summarized a complete system for governing the country...

Although many of the regulations were extremely strict, they were entirely beneficial to the Great Qin Dynasty, whether it was restricting Aristocratic Clan clans from acquiring land and expanding their territories...

Or perhaps the mortal and immortal realms are separated, with no interference between them.

Ultimately, by monopolizing the talent pool, individuals can only grow through national means and eventually obtain state permission to establish the Immortal Clan...

The development of the Immortal Clan also required them to continuously make contributions to the Great Qin Dynasty.

This virtually eliminated the possibility of rebellion at its source!

Even if a certain Lineage grows powerful in the future, it will never be stronger than the Great Qin. The underlying logic of this is the monopoly of talent...

This is the real solution!

Subsequently--

Qin Xiao, going with the flow, accepted Shang Yang's advice. Although there were dissenting voices later, the decision was ultimately made...

Finally, the division of power among the various factions took place!

The essence of enfeoffment is to allocate a portion of land and population to a certain power...

However, in Shang Yang's new policy system, the harm of enfeoffment was minimized, but it was most fatal to those factions and forces!

Because under this new policy—

Those lineages like Mr. Ghost Valley of Cloud Dream Mountain, or the four major sects directly descended from the Qin Clan family, will likely have to undergo restructuring or disband...

Qin Xiao's approach was quite simple: the four major sects, along with other forces of varying sizes, either...

It will be converted into a Daoist temple!

Alternatively, one could integrate into the Six Ministries system and become a part of it...