Martial Cultivator

In the present Great Liang Dynasty, among military officials there was the Great General of the Northern Frontier and there was Chen Chao as Lord Warden Commander, enough to stabilize Great Liang. But among the civil officials, the absence of that Premier was absolutely unacceptable.

In a Great Liang with countless common people, those matters of governance had, since the early years of Tianjian, all been handled by the Premier, leading the other civil officials. It was not that the Great Liang Emperor did not care about the people’s livelihood, but his energy was limited. And now that His Highness the Crown Prince was still young, this P was all the more indispensable.

”The Premier’s health began declining day by day three months ago. By last month, he was no longer able to attend court at all. Now he can occasionally get out of bed and walk a bit, but most of the time he lies ill in bed.”

”His Highness the Crown Prince personally went to visit him. In the end, he returned with a sigh. After that, the Premier submitted a memorial report requesting retirement, asking to return to his hometown. The petition was written as a formal memorial, and during the court session it was read aloud by the Premier’s son. The entire hall of officials wept without restraint. In the end, the court officials all spoke to urge His Highness the Crown Prince to approve it. As a result, His Highness did not insist further.”

As he said this, the man himself sighed deeply. The memorial report was filled with genuine feeling and had long since spread throughout the Divine Capital. Countless scholars had read it and wept.

He himself had read it before, though he could not remember it in full, recalling only a few scattered lines:

”Since this year, the dark has turned to white, the firm has loosened and fallen away.

Flesh and blood decline by the day, will and spirit diminish by the day.

How long before I follow my father in death?”

After a moment of silence, Chen Chao asked, ”Since the Premier has resigned, is the post still vacant?”

The man composed himself and replied softly, ”The court officials have recommended several candidates, but in the end His Highness the Crown Prince said he wished to wait until Your Excellency returns to the capital before making a final decision.”

Chen Chao nodded, waved his hand, and had no further questions.

The ferry was about to depart. The man did not linger, turned around, and disembarked.

After the man left, Chen Chao looked out over the river, his expression complicated.

The black-robed monk smiled and said, ”It seems that Your Excellency is not quite as truly ’virtuous and highly respected’ within the court as one might imagine.”

Chen Chao smiled and said, ”At my age, I have not yet even reached what scholars call the age of standing firm. Even if my merits are great and my authority heavy, there will naturally still be people who worry. This is nothing unexpected. What is more, scholars have pride in their bones and are destined not to fully submit to a martial artist. Still, with the current situation, it is enough that they acknowledge my merits.”

Regarding the two earlier matters, these civil officials had not overtly targeted him. In the past, that would have been impossible. But Chen Chao understood the root of their present concern.

That concern was that his authority was too great. With authority so heavy, even if at this moment he still had the nation entirely at heart, what they feared was the uncertainty of what might happen later.

Why does a dynasty promulgate a body of law? It is precisely so that there are standards for action, and standards to rely on when things go wrong.

Thus, it was not that they could not accept Chen Chao establishing so many merits. Rather, they resented how the former Great Liang Emperor and His Highness the Crown Prince had, step by step, loosened the invisible shackles upon Chen Chao. One must know that many people begin their official careers upright and principled, but as their authority grows and their rank rises, in the end they drift farther and farther from the person they once wished to be.

Therefore, they were unwilling to entrust those words - remaining steadfast from beginning to end - to Chen Chao’s own heart. Instead, they wanted to use external restraints to forge an iron chain and bind him tightly.

Common folk in the marketplaces often have amusing sayings. When a general from the ranks commands only a thousand men, whatever his superiors say goes. But when one day he holds tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers in his hands, then it is no longer a matter of whoever says what. It becomes, ”Your Father just woke up from a nap, and how is it that you have draped a dragon robe over me?” This is bringing disaster upon me!

That was why the previous dynasty had such a regulation: commanders of provincial armies and border armies were to have their posts frequently rotated. This was to prevent soldiers from becoming too familiar with their generals, eventually leading a general to harbor rebellious thoughts.

But the drawbacks of such a system were also obvious. In the end, it caused soldiers not to know their generals, and generals not to know their soldiers, greatly reducing the combat strength of an army.

Therefore, since the founding of the present dynasty, that system was abolished. At the very beginning, that group of scholars lived in constant anxiety, fearing that one day the emperor on the throne would change his surname. But as time passed and nothing of the sort ever happened, they gradually put their minds at ease.

The black-robed monk smiled and said, ”However, that Crown Prince is still too inexperienced when handling matters.”

From hearing just these one or two matters, the black-robed monk could already tell that in both cases, responsibility had been pushed onto Chen Chao. In other words, by acting this way, His Highness the Crown Prince could temporarily avoid disturbance, but in the eyes of the court officials, their impression of Chen Chao would only worsen.

After all, by proceeding like this, His Highness the Crown Prince would leave behind an image of weakness, of relying on Chen Chao in everything. And as a result, the label of Chen Chao as a powerful minister would become even more firmly nailed in place.

Chen Chao said, ”He is still young. There are some things he cannot yet think through completely. After some time passes, it will be fine.”

The black-robed monk said, ”What I fear is that His Highness the Crown Prince is doing this deliberately.”

Chen Chao said nothing, merely shook his head.

People say that within the imperial family, there is no such thing as affection, but he had truly felt it from his uncle, his aunt, and his elder sister. Since this cousin of his was the one his sister trusted most, and whom she personally entrusted to him, he was willing to believe in him.

What is more, at this point, the worst possible outcome would be that Chen Chao could no longer maintain a foothold in the Great Liang court. It would absolutely not endanger his life.

If that day truly came, he would simply leave.

After all, he had never wanted this kingdom in the first place.

Still, when that time came, disappointment would be inevitable.

The black-robed monk looked at the face of the person before him that was expressionless, yet for some reason felt that at this moment, he was probably truly a little saddened. He hurriedly changed his words and said, ”Perhaps this destitute monk spoke wrongly. After all, from His Majesty to Your Excellency, none of you are ordinary people.”