Li Si
![Seal of Tingwei. Tingwei was the official in charge of judiciary, Li Si was appointed as the Tingwei of Qin after the guest officers expulsion incident.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/%E5%BB%B7%E5%B0%89%E4%B9%8B%E5%8D%B0.jpg)
John Knoblock, a translator of classical Chinese texts, considered Li Si to be "one of the two or three most important figures in Chinese history" as a result of his efforts in standardizing the Qin state and its conquered territories. Li Si assisted the Emperor in unifying laws, governmental ordinances, and weights and measures. He also standardized chariots, carts, and characters used in writing, facilitating the cultural unification of China. 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 had the metal weapons of the feudal states melted and cast into bells and statues. He also lowered taxes and eased draconian punishments for criminals that had originated from statesman Shang Yang. Provided by Wikipedia
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