Officials were chosen based on their ability to serve the First Emperor and obey him. To promote obedience, punishment was severe. Even the First Emperor's own son, who warned him not to kill scholars, was demoted and sent to the north to build the Great Wall â€" notorious as a place where people were likely to die.” excerpt from Qin Shi Huang â€" First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty by Hinsbergh, Gavin Van. The concept highlighted in the source above is most similar to the concepts found in what law document from the prior river valley civilizations