Li Si

He "created a government based solely on merit, so that in the empire sons and younger brothers in the imperial clan were not ennobled, but meritorious ministers were", and "pacified the frontier regions by subduing the barbarians to the north and south".

He made up his mind to take up politics as a career, which was a common choice for scholars not from a noble family during the Warring States period.

In 237 BC, a clique at the Qin court urged King Zheng to expel all foreigners from the state to prevent espionage.

As a native of Chu, Li Si would be a target of the policy, so he memorialised[clarification needed] the king explaining the many benefits of foreigners to Qin including "the sultry girls of Zhao.

As a result, Han Fei was imprisoned, and in 233 BC convinced by Li Si to commit suicide by taking poison.

Li Si himself penned the edict ordering the destruction of historical records and literature in 213 BC, including key Confucian texts, which he thought detrimental to the welfare of the state.

[citation needed] When Qin Shi Huang died while away from the capital, Li Si and the chief eunuch Zhao Gao suppressed the late emperor's choice of successor, which was Fusu.

Li Si and Zhao Gao tricked Fusu into committing suicide and installed another prince, Qin Er Shi (229–207 BC), in his place.

In 208 BC, Zhao Gao had Li Si subjected to the Five Punishments, executed via waist chop at a public market, and his entire family to the third degree exterminated.

Sima Qian records Li Si's last words to his son as having been, "I wish that you and I could take our brown dog and go out through the eastern gate of Shang Cai to chase the crafty hare.

"[4] Believing in a highly bureaucratic system, Li Si was central to the efficiency of Qin and the success of its military conquest.