166 Jia Yi on Qin 5

A6.66|67

When the King of Qin came to power, he inherited the great achievements left by the six previous kings. He raised a long whip to rule the country, annexed the two Zhous in the east and west, eliminated the princes, ascended the supreme throne and controlled the four directions of heaven and earth. He whipped the world, and his prestige shook the world. To the south, he conquered the Baiyue region and established the Guilin and Xiangjun commanderies. The leaders of the Baiyue all submitted and obeyed the Qin officials. The King of Qin also sent Meng Tian to the north to build the Great Wall as a defensive barrier, which made the Huns retreat more than 700 miles. The Huns did not dare to go south to herd horses, and the warriors did not dare to draw their bows for revenge. At this time, the King of Qin abandoned the laws of the ancient sage kings and burned the classics of the various schools of thought to fool the people. He destroyed famous cities, killed heroes, collected weapons from all over the world and concentrated them in Xianyang. The weapons were melted down and made into a large bell and twelve golden men in order to weaken the power of the people. Then he used Huashan Mountain as the city wall of Qin, used the Yellow River as a moat, occupied a city that was a million feet high, and overlooked the unfathomable river ditch as a barrier of defense. Excellent generals guarded the stronghold with powerful bows and crossbows, and loyal ministers and elite soldiers held sharp blades to check passers-by, and the world was thus stable. In the heart of the King of Qin, he thought that the solidity of Guanzhong was like a thousand-mile golden city, and his descendants could inherit the emperor's achievements from generation to generation. 

After the death of the King of Qin, his prestige frightened people far away. Chen She was a child of the poor, a commoner, and a convict. His talent was not as good as that of ordinary people. He was not as wise as Confucius or Mozi, nor as rich as Tao Zhu or Yidun. He walked in the ranks of soldiers, but he was able to rise from a group of low-ranking soldiers, lead a few hundred scattered ones, and turn around to attack the Qin State. They cut down trees to make weapons and held up bamboo poles as flags. People from all over the world gathered to respond, carrying food and following like a shadow. The heroes of Shandong rose up at the same time and destroyed the Qin clan. 

及至秦王，续六世之余烈，振长策而御宇内，吞二周而亡诸侯，履至尊而制六合，执棰拊以鞭笞天下，威振四海。南取百越之地，以为桂林、象郡，百越之君俯首系颈，委命下吏。乃使蒙恬北筑长城而守藩篱，卻匈奴七百余里，胡人不敢南下而牧马，士不敢弯弓而报怨。于是废先王之道，焚百家之言，以愚黔首。堕名城，杀豪俊，收天下之兵聚之咸阳，销锋铸鐻，以为金人十二，以弱黔首之民。然后斩华为城，因河为津，据亿丈之城，临不测之溪以为固。良将劲弩守要害之处，信臣精卒陈利兵而谁何，天下以定。秦王之心，自以为关中之固，金城千里，子孙帝王万世之业也。

秦王既没，余威振于殊俗。陈涉，瓮牖绳枢之子，甿隶之人，而迁徙之徒，才能不及中人，非有仲尼、墨翟之贤，陶朱、猗顿之富，蹑足行伍之间，而倔起什伯之中，率罢散之卒，将数百之众，而转攻秦。斩木为兵，揭竿为旗，天下云集响应，赢粮而景从，山东豪俊遂并起而亡秦族矣。