Kingdom (キングダム)

THE RISING TUMULT

What's that carriage doing here?

M-Minister of the Left, sir! What brings you to a place like this?

Unofficial business. This remains between us.

Send the guard down below outside, too.

The two of us are going to have a little chat.

Oh, Cai Ze... Cai Ze...

This could be a state funeral, it's so grand.

I suppose it's only fitting, given his accomplishments...

All six nations have sent their condolences.

Cai Ze sensed his impending death,

and managed to bring His Highness and the king of Qi together

before he breathed his last.

What's more...

Laws.

Laws will be given the highest power,

and laws will rule over the people!

Tell me, Si Shi...

This perception of you as Qin's leading law authority--is it correct?

It is.

Rather, I wish it were. But it's very much mistaken.

So it is him after all.

Yes.

They don't call him "guardian of the law" for nothing.

Li Si...

He truly is a beast when it comes to the law.

What do you want?

This foul-smelling underground cell is no place for a minister.

Cai Ze has passed away.

So I heard.

If you're done here, leave.

I have less time to spare than you think.

What are you doing, Li Si?

My position as one of Lü's Four Pillars has vanished.

Now I'm just a pure legalist.

Legalists read legal texts and think up drafts of new laws.

And you think you'll see the day when those new laws are enacted?

I don't need to.

You or I may die, but the law will live on.

Live on, and mature. That's its nature.

Cai Ze left me with a difficult assignment at the end.

I wager he knew all along

that that meeting would turn to that kind of talk!

That's why he kept me there...

What kind of talk?

About law!

Once Qin conquers the other six nations, laws will rule,

and we'll create a nation of laws to govern the entire Middle Kingdom!

Is that what Cai Ze said?

No: His Highness.

What?!

I know that what His Highness speaks of must be a monumental solution.

And yet...

Ponder as I might, I cannot catch the slightest glimpse

of what shape these governing laws may take!

Well, no.

That touches on the very essence of legalism.

It's nothing someone like you would comprehend.

Are you saying you can see it, then--

what kind of laws would govern this Middle Kingdom?

Yes, I can... though only faintly.

Tell me, then! Whatever shape will these laws take?

Have I any obligation to tell you?

None! But tell me anyway!

You just said you're a pure legalist, did you not?

Supposing the Middle Kingdom has been unified,

making laws based simply on your awareness that the population has grown

will end in great failure.

Do you know why that is?

W-Well...

Because the new citizens are from enemy nations that had been at odds.

Wrong. It's because their cultures differ.

Each of the six nations has different systems of writing, of measurement.

Their currency and their ideologies differ as well.

Ideologies...

Confucian thought is especially dangerous.

In Wei, Zhao, and Han, it comes before the law.

But that's not the only obstacle.

A law that would govern the Middle Kingdom

QIN

ZHAO

YAN

QI

CHU

HAN

WEI

must take these people from six nations of disparate cultures and make them one.

Now let me ask you one thing:

What is "law"?

Answer me that, Lord Changwen.

Law... uses punishment...

to control people and govern them.

Ridiculous! Punishment is a tool, not the true character of law!

Th-Then...

what is "law," Li Si?!

"Law" is an aspiration!

It is the ideal of human behavior which a nation seeks from its citizens,

given form in words.

You must consider how you want the people of this unified nation to be,

how you want them to live, where you want them to be headed!

If you can do that, the laws will come into shape on their own.

This is Li Si, guardian of the law!

That's where it gets difficult, of course. But start there.

So it's true.

Be bold. Foolish laws sow misfortune among the people.

This is why Cai Ze had me join them at that meeting.

The whole point

was to make me realize:

this man is essential for a post-unification world!

Li Si!

Please! Lend us your might!

Li Si, formerly of Lü's Four Pillars, has arrived.

What is the meaning of this, Minister of the Left?!

Lord Changwen!

Calm yourselves!

Although I acted of my own accord,

I do have His Highness's approval.

B-But this man did the most to support Lü's faction--

and pulled the most strings behind the scenes!

How many casualties have we suffered thanks to him?

He's one man we must never forgive!

I agree.

Then get back in your cell!

That won't work.

I heard about this unification business.

And about the system of laws to be established in its wake.

It is far too much for any of you here to handle.

The only ones in the Middle Kingdom capable of the task

are me and Master Han Fei.

I know well how you all must feel.

But our post-unification laws will show everyone in the Middle Kingdom

the very reason for the unification itself!

What does our history with each other matter

in the face of drafting such momentous laws?

We all had our grudges in the past political infighting!

But know that those days are behind us!

If Qin cannot face this issue as one,

the long-held dream of unification will surely crumble away into nothing!

Your Highness!

A wise decision.

Jie Yi, sir!

Minister of the Right!

Li Si's aptitude for government is also extraordinary.

We'll no doubt have need of his skills soon enough.

Enough about me.

One seldom sees that expression on the high commander's face.

He seems to be dealing with a difficult issue.

Your Highness.

May I ask the others to leave the hall?

I wish to seek your advice in private.

This is unusual.

No--

this is a first.

What is it, Lord Changping?

What problem is not meant for others' ears?

We're deploying a large army to Zhao next year.

HEIYONG

I know: A conquest of western Zhao, with Heiyong as our base.

Yes. However...

As it stands, I simply cannot see how to begin.

What do you mean, Lord Changping?

Wasn't Heiyong to be the linchpin of your strategy?

HEIYONG

Heiyong will fulfill that role, yes.

But Li Mu has suddenly begun building multiple castles

over a large swath of western Zhao.

Castles?

He's putting defensive bases where there had been nothing,

building a complex defense network to guard against a Qin invasion.

I assume the individual forts in this hastily built defensive line aren't robust,

HEIYONG

but the Qin army will still have to destroy every new fort that pops up.

The western campaign will be a drawn-out war.

Drawn-out...

How many years?

At the very least...

ten.

But that's far too--

I know.

It well exceeds the timeline of destroying six nations in 15 years.

Li Mu must have realized Qin only has enough stamina for a short period

and is intentionally trying to prolong the fight in the west.

Unfortunately, with fair tactics, even 15 years may not be enough to destroy Zhao...

Meaning our dream of conquering six nations goes up in smoke.

That can't be...

"With fair tactics"?

Then... are there unfair tactics?

Lord Changping.

Yes.

Just one: the mother of all cunning schemes, leading to great casualties.

And what is this cunning scheme,

Lord Changping?

Of course.

I'll be concise, so please listen carefully.

Handan, the royal capital of Zhao.

HANDAN

Handan?

HANDAN

YÈ

To the west are the Taihang Mountains, to the south the Yellow River.