xymnovel Chapter 3 My Great Qin Dynasty is Full of Flaws
Chapter 3 My Great Qin Dynasty is Full of Flaws
It was past midnight, and the chill penetrated to the bone.
The air in the side hall of the imperial palace seemed to freeze. The bronze goose-fish lamp on the table was burning brightly, the oil crackling and hissing, and the flickering flame cast Ying Zheng's shadow long, like a giant beast perched on the wall.
Normally, by this time Ying Zheng would already be suffering from a splitting headache, having to rely on acupressure or taking pills to stay awake. But tonight, although he hadn't closed his eyes, his mind was in a strange state of excitement—not the heat from the drugs, but the trepidation of a hunter spotting his prey in the dark.
He had just drunk his third glass of water. The cramping in his stomach had indeed lessened considerably; the burning sensation had subsided, replaced by a long-lost clarity.
"Political poison..."
Ying Zheng pondered these words, his gaze falling on the mountain of bamboo slips.
Each of these memorials weighed several kilograms, and when stacked together, they represented the weight of the entire Qin Empire. In the past, he had been proud of this, believing that only by personally reviewing these 120 kilograms of bamboo slips could he control the pulse of the world. But now, after listening to the analysis of that monster called "Little G"... no, that "strategist," his gaze towards these bamboo slips changed.
It's no longer about looking at a symbol of power, but about looking at a bunch of useless people who may be hiding countless lies.
"You say you can help me 'eliminate poison'?" Ying Zheng's voice was low, with a hint of barely perceptible hoarseness. "Do you know the weight of this? It involves military intelligence at the border, the finances of the counties, and the allocation of convicts. If there is even a single word's difference, it will mean the death of a head."
The light screen floating in mid-air still glowed with a faint blue light, but the skull icon on it had disappeared, replaced by a highly technological blue radar scanning animation.
Words are the carriers of information, but they can also be a breeding ground for lies.
Data, however, usually doesn't lie—unless the person falsifying it is exceptionally good at math.
[Dear user (Your Majesty Qin Shi Huang), which type of memorial would you like to examine first? We suggest starting with "Financial Statements" or "Resource Allocation," as these documents are often the hardest hit by corruption and inefficiency.]
Ying Zheng snorted coldly and reached down to take a scroll of bamboo slips tied with a black rope from the top of the table.
"This is the annual report that Teng, the governor of Nan Commandery, just submitted, reporting the amount of grain and fodder harvested in Nan Commandery this autumn and the amount of rations transported to the convicts at Mount Li." Ying Zheng's fingers traced the rough surface of the bamboo slips. "Teng was one of my old ministers, who made the greatest contribution to the conquest of Han. He governed the commandery with strict discipline. His report should be accurate."
Despite saying that, Ying Zheng still unfolded the heavy bamboo slips and held them up in front of the light screen.
"How do you intend to 'see'?" Ying Zheng asked. "Do you even have eyes?"
Please face the bamboo slips with the text facing me (although I don't have physical eyes, I have taken over your visual nerve signals as a camera).
[The lighting is slightly dim, so the ISO sensitivity has been automatically increased...]
[OCR (Optical Character Recognition) in progress... Recognition mode: Mixed Small Seal Script/Qin Clerical Script...]
[Scanning... Please keep your hands steady and do not shake.]
Ying Zheng frowned, his arm muscles tensing slightly to maintain the posture. How could the First Emperor, a figure of immense power, present bamboo slips to an empty frame? But to test the object's capabilities, he endured it.
A green progress bar appeared on the screen and quickly jumped from 0% to 100%.
[Scan complete.]
[Document length: 1200 words.]
[Core content extraction in progress...]
[Data model being built: Southern County Grain and Forage Income and Expenditure Table.]
Only three breaths had passed.
"That's it?" Ying Zheng was somewhat incredulous. In the past, when he reviewed a memorial like this, he would need to study it word by word and check the data from previous years in his mind, which would take at least fifteen minutes.
[The "Southern County Grain and Forage Audit Report v1.0" has been generated.]
[Do you want to view the analysis results immediately?]
"Read it." Ying Zheng put down the bamboo slips.
The text on the screen began to scroll, but this time it was no longer in a casual tone. Instead, it became extremely cold, professional, and even exuded a kind of majesty that Ying Zheng found unfamiliar—a majesty of absolute rationality.
[Report Summary:]
[Document Body: Report by Teng, Prefect of Nan Commandery, on the Collection and Transportation of Autumn Grain in the Thirty-Seventh Year of Qin Shi Huang's Reign.]
[Key Data 1: Nanjun reported a total of 300,000 shi (a unit of dry measure) of millet to be collected this year.]
[Key Data 2: A total of 200,000 shi (a unit of dry measure) were transferred to Xianyang and the Lishan construction site.]
[Key Data 3: Transit losses (transportation damage) were declared at 30,000 shi (approximately 10%).]
[Core Data 4: 70,000 shi of grain remained in the Nanjun Treasury.]
Ying Zheng listened to the figures and nodded slightly: "The accounts are clear, no different from previous years. The 10% transportation cost is also standard practice. Any questions?"
In the laws of the Qin Dynasty, a certain percentage of loss was indeed allowed during grain transportation. After all, the journey was arduous, with wind and rain, and rats and birds stealing food. A loss of 10% was within an acceptable range.
The light screen flickered, as if emitting a silent sneer.
[This is a huge problem, my CEO.]
Based on my comprehensive calculations of Qin Dynasty geography, climate, and physics from my database, this report contains serious logical flaws.
[Flaw 1: The transportation distance does not match the damage.]
[From Nanjun (present-day Jiangling, Hubei) to Xianyang, the journey by both land and water was approximately 1,200 li. It was autumn at this time, and based on historical meteorological data, rainfall in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River was expected to be below average this year, ensuring smooth water transport. According to the Qin laws, specifically the "Gold and Cloth Law" and the "Labor Law," laborers transporting grain were required to travel 50 li per day, making the one-way trip take 24 days.]
[Flaw 2: People are eating too much.]
The report states that 5,000 laborers were conscripted to transport grain. Based on the metabolic rate of a normal adult male engaged in heavy physical labor, each person consumes approximately 0.05 shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain per day. For a 24-day round trip (including return rations) plus the cost of transporting goods, the theoretical total consumption should be around 12,000 shi.
However, he declared a loss of 3 shi (a unit of dry measure). Where did the extra 1.8 shi go? Was it eaten by roadside rats, or did it end up in someone's pocket?
Ying Zheng's face instantly darkened.
He was adept at the art of rulership, but not at arithmetic. In the past, such detailed calculations were handled by the clerks under the Minister of Agriculture. He only considered whether the final result matched his general impression. If the losses were 10% in previous years, he would assume it would be the same this year.
"You mean..." Ying Zheng's voice was as cold as ice, "...that Teng is deceiving the emperor?"
[It may not be the Prefect of Nan Commandery himself.]
As a high-ranking official, he was only responsible for signing and affixing his seal. The real trickery usually lay hidden at the lower levels of execution—in the hands of the "warehouse officials" and "treasurers" responsible for weighing and escorting goods.
But that's not the most exciting part. Please see the next data analysis.
This system has detected an abnormal violation of Benford's Law.
"What...what law?" Ying Zheng frowned, the strange term irritating him. "Speak plainly! Speak in a way I can understand!"
The cursor on the screen is jumping around, seemingly adjusting its language strategy rapidly.
Okay, in layman's terms: This accounting is blatantly fake.
[In real, natural data, the distribution of numbers follows a pattern. However, in this bamboo scroll, the frequency of endings (0 and 5) in the grain remittance figures for each county and township is as high as 80%. This indicates that these numbers were fabricated to round up, rather than being weighed out grain by grain.]
Conclusion: At least 30% of Nanjun's accounts are inflated. This isn't just a matter of losses; it's a systemic deficit.
"Bang!"
Ying Zheng slammed his palm on the table, causing the brushes on the brush holder to tumble to the ground.
"How dare you!"
Anger surged within Ying Zheng. He had always believed in governing the world with strict laws and severe punishments, that the Qin legal system was as impenetrable as an iron net. He never imagined that such detailed figures regarding finances and grain could be so easily exploited. Thirty percent of the figures were inflated! If this was the case nationwide, wouldn't half of the Qin treasury be empty?
"Investigate! A thorough investigation is necessary!" Ying Zheng stood up, pacing back and forth in the hall, his murderous aura palpable. "I will send imperial censors to Nanjun! Arrest those granary officials one by one and skin them alive!"
[Wait a minute, Your Majesty. 】
Arresting them is easy, but sending people to investigate now might not uncover anything. Since they dared to falsify accounts, they must have already made preparations to cover it up (for example, burning down the granary and claiming it was a natural disaster).
Instead of alerting them, how about... we play a more interesting game?
Ying Zheng paused, turning to look at the light screen, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "You mean... you're bluffing him?"
[This isn't just a scam; it's a devastating attack. I've prepared some charts for you.]
[Generating a chart for you...]
[Rendering in progress... Pie chart generated.]
[Rendering in progress... Bar chart generated.]
The light and shadow on the screen shifted, and suddenly two graphics that Ying Zheng had never seen before appeared.
One is round, like a large pancake, cut into several different colored fan-shaped pieces, each labeled with a number and percentage. The other consists of several colorful pillars of varying lengths and heights.
Ying Zheng stared at the round disc for a long time: "What is this? Why does it look like a shield?"
This is a pie chart. The red area represents "embezzled/falsely reported grain," the green area represents "actual grain received into storage," and the yellow area represents "reasonable losses."
This kind of graphic allows you to see the severity of a problem at a glance, without having to read thousands of words of nonsense.
This is "data visualization." In the future, it will be a powerful tool for bosses to yell at their bosses.
Ying Zheng stared at the enormous red fan-shaped object, which occupied almost a third of the round cake. The visual impact was far more shocking than hearing the words "30% water content." It was a shocking red, like a piece of flesh and blood cut from the body of the Qin Dynasty.
"What a brilliant 'data visualization'!" A cruel smile curled at the corner of Ying Zheng's lips. "This thing allows me to see into people's hearts."
He sat back down at his desk, the weariness in his eyes vanished, replaced by the excitement of having mastered a powerful weapon.
"Little G".
【exist. 】
"This scroll is only from Nanjun." Ying Zheng reached for the taller pile of bamboo slips. "There are also scrolls from Jiujiangjun, Sanchuanjun, and even a memorial from Li Si concerning the standardization of weights and measures."
"Since you won't sleep, I won't sleep either."
"Tonight, I demand that you settle all the scores of this empire for me!"
【…】
[Warning: System CPU temperature is rising.]
[A risk associated with the "996" work schedule has been detected. According to labor law...]
"What? You want to defy the imperial decree?" Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow, and the hilt of the Tai'a sword tapped slightly against the table.
No, what I mean is... it's an honor to serve Your Majesty. Come on, bring me all those messy accounts!
……
As the night deepened, the watchman outside the palace rang the fourth watch gong.
But inside the side hall, a massive "data cleansing" spanning two thousand years is underway.
"Next volume! This is the memorial from Beidi Commandery requesting additional laborers to repair the Great Wall, written by Meng Tian." Ying Zheng's movements became faster and faster, completely unlike an old man nearing fifty and suffering from serious illness.
[Scan complete.]
[Analysis Result: Logically consistent, data solid. General Meng Tian truly lived up to his reputation as a pragmatist, meticulously managing every expenditure down to the single digit. However… there's a minor issue: the loss rate of the cowhides used for transporting the stones seems unusually high. It's recommended to investigate whether anyone is reselling the cowhides.]
"Write it down! Ask Meng Yi tomorrow!" Ying Zheng quickly carved a few words on a blank bamboo slip, his eyes burning with fervor.
"Next volume! This is the progress report from Zhang Han, the Junior Steward of the Imperial Household Department, on the mercury grotto filling project at Mount Li."
[Scanning in progress...]
[Didi! High-energy warning!]
The report states that the purchase price of mercury was 200% higher than the current market average. Zhang Han may be innocent, but his purchasing officials definitely took kickbacks. It's recommended to investigate the chief secretary named Sima Xin.
"Sima Xin..." A cold glint flashed in Ying Zheng's eyes as the carving knife in his hand pierced deeply into the bamboo strip. "I remember this man, so glib-tongued. Good, very good, he even dares to covet my tomb!"
Time passed slowly, and the blank bamboo slips beside the desk were now densely covered with Ying Zheng's handwriting. These were no longer ordinary red annotations, but death warrants from the King of Hell.
In the past, when Qin Shi Huang reviewed memorials, he relied on experience, intuition, and the emperor's suspicion.
Now, he relies on computing power, logic, and damn big data.
This feeling captivated Ying Zheng. For the first time, he felt he had truly "seen" the empire clearly. Before, he viewed the world through a fog, behind layers of bureaucratic veils; now, those veils had been brutally torn away by the blue light curtain, revealing the bloody, riddled-with-holes truth beneath.
When the first rays of dawn pierced through the window and shone on the golden bricks inside the palace, Ying Zheng finally stopped what he was doing.
The once towering pile of memorials had been divided into two. The left pile consisted of very few "credible" ones; the right pile, however, consisted of a mountain of "deceptive" ones.
Ying Zheng put down the carving knife in his hand, feeling his eyes sting and his fingers stiff, but his spine was straighter than ever before.
"Little G." Ying Zheng looked at the sunrise outside the window, his voice eerily calm.
Good morning, working people.
After working through the night, we processed 45 memorials, discovered 128 data vulnerabilities, and estimated to have recovered approximately 500,000 coins in economic losses.
Also, it's time for you to eat breakfast. I suggest millet porridge with pickled vegetables, and avoid greasy meat soup.
"Five hundred thousand coins..." Ying Zheng muttered to himself, "This is just the result of one night."
He slowly stood up, stretched his stiff neck, and his joints cracked.
"Zhao Gao!"
The palace doors opened with a creak, and Zhao Gao, sporting huge dark circles under his eyes, cautiously peeked in. He had been guarding outside all night, listening with trepidation to the emperor's occasional roars and eerie mutterings coming from within.
"Your Majesty...should we change our clothes and go to court?" Zhao Gao asked tentatively.
Ying Zheng turned around, his back to the morning light, his tall figure completely shrouding Zhao Gao in shadow.
"Change your clothes." Ying Zheng's voice was no longer as weak as it had been the night before, but was filled with the metallic clang of metal. "This morning at court, I have something 'interesting' that I want to show all of you, my beloved ministers."
Zhao Gao glanced over and saw that His Majesty was tightly clutching a bamboo slip covered in writing. The writing was messy and sharp, like swords about to be drawn.
What terrified Zhao Gao the most was that the emperor's originally pale and gloomy face now had a slight smile on it.
That was the smile of a hunter watching his prey fall into a trap.
"By the way, Zhao Gao." Ying Zheng suddenly stopped as he stepped out of the palace gate and gave him a half-smile.
"This servant is here." Zhao Gao trembled, and cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
"Go tell the Minister of Grain Administration to bring all the grain and fodder ledgers from the past three years to the main hall," Ying Zheng said casually. "I have recently learned a new arithmetic method and would like to have a friendly competition with him."
Zhao Gao felt a chill run down his spine. Although he didn't know what His Majesty had learned, he instinctively felt that a bloody storm was about to break out in the court.
"only!"
Watching Ying Zheng stride away, Little G, hovering in the air, silently typed a line of comments that only it (and the readers) could see:
[Today's Morning Court Spoiler: A devastating attack is about to begin.]
[Attention Qin Dynasty officials, please fasten your seatbelts, Excel phobia is about to strike.]