Conferred God: Started from Swallowing the Heaven-Repairing Stone

Chapter 194: Tolerance for the Country
Ao Bing could probably guess why Emperor Xin did this: it was to centralize power.

The power of the Shang Dynasty, and even the army, was not entirely in the hands of Emperor Xin, but was distributed among the nobles of all sizes in the country. This was true not only for the Shang Dynasty, but also for the other vassal states.

Emperor Xin broke the ancient rules and appointed slaves as officials in order to take back the power scattered in the hands of the nobles and centralize power.

A centralized system is definitely better than a feudal system. If he succeeds in centralizing power, the Shang Dynasty will surely be able to prosper.

Just one point, under the feudal system, luck is dispersed among many people, but under the centralized system, luck is concentrated on one person.

The more luck one has, the greater the increase it brings, and it can even derive status and transform into combat power. If Emperor Xin can absorb the luck of the Nine Provinces in one body, then his strength will be comparable to that of a perfect quasi-sage.

By then, with the addition of the Nine Cauldrons, he will be one of the top beings below the saints, able to compete with those with great supernatural powers, and second only to the human emperors of all generations.

With such strength, why worry about the prosperity of the Shang Dynasty? If the Zhou Kingdom dares to rebel, a single slap will destroy the entire Xiqi Kingdom.

Unfortunately, although this idea was good, Emperor Xin overestimated himself.

In the early days of the dynasty, when it was at its peak, even the founding emperor, with his huge prestige, might not be able to centralize power successfully, let alone now, when the Shang Dynasty has begun to decline.

Forced centralization will not only fail, but will force the domestic nobles to rebel, causing the whole country to rebel and the country to collapse.

Emperor Xin's idea was correct, but his strength did not allow it. Internally, he could not subdue the nobles. Externally, he could not intimidate the princes.

This episode is shit!

Just look at Huang Feihu, he is Emperor Xin's confidant, but even so, he is still dissatisfied with Emperor Xin's centralization of power.

A glimpse of the whole picture shows that if Emperor Xin continues like this, he will sooner or later be deserted by his friends and relatives, and his son will also betray him!
"Hey!"

Suddenly, Ao Bing sighed.

Only at this moment did he realize that the culprit that led to the demise of the Shang Dynasty was none other than Emperor Xin.

He is not on the wrong path, but it is not the right path, so he will definitely succeed. Sometimes, the harder you work, the worse the result will be, because the environment is not good.

The Shang Dynasty could not stand the turmoil any more. If it reformed hastily, it would only bring ruin to itself. The best way was to compromise with the nobles and win their support to maintain the rule of the Shang Dynasty.

Moreover, even if he really wanted to centralize power, he would not have done it the way Emperor Xin did. His intention was too obvious. He should have used more gentle means and influenced people subtly.

"The ancient sages used their relatives as wings to shepherd the people and govern the four directions. Your Majesty does not employ your relatives, but instead appoints criminals. You are close to outsiders and distant from your relatives. This is really unacceptable."

After sighing, Ao Bing expressed his opposition to Emperor Xin's policies, and his words, as expected, immediately resonated with Huang Feihu, who then continued:

"Your Majesty's move is indeed inappropriate. Because of this incident, many ministers even left Chaoge and returned to their fiefdoms. The power of the Shang Dynasty is weakening day by day, and it really can't withstand such a big turmoil."

Hearing this, Ao Bing could not help but feel a chill in his heart. Some ministers left Chaoge and returned to their fiefdoms. This was a very serious matter. It was no longer an expression of dissatisfaction to Emperor Xin, but a direct threat.

When the dukes and ministers left the Shang Dynasty and returned to their fiefdoms, they changed from being ministers of the Shang Dynasty to being princes. This meant that if Emperor Xin did not withdraw his orders, they would no longer support the Shang Dynasty.

The first step to a country’s demise is the disunity among the princes.

"Alas, although the king's order is inappropriate, it is also forced by the situation."

"Now that the Shang Dynasty is declining, the princes are becoming stronger and stronger. The king may be forced into a corner, thinking that Yuan Sheng was also born a slave.

"That's why we employ slaves, hoping that a figure like Yuansheng will emerge among them to save the Shang Dynasty from its decline." Ao Bing thought for a moment and made excuses for Emperor Xin.

Yuansheng is Yi Yin, the founding hero of the Shang Dynasty, who was born a slave. Emperor Xin wanted to have another Yi Yin in the Shang Dynasty, so he employed slaves, which was reasonable.

"Besides, no matter how wrong the king is, it is for the good of Shang. As the saying goes, tolerance is for the sake of the country, so what's wrong with everyone to tolerate it?"

"When the Shang Dynasty has overcome the difficulties, you can find a way to make the king take back his order. For now, it is better to be patient."

"Otherwise, what good will it do for you to continue to oppose the king like this? Do you really have to wait until the Shang Dynasty is destroyed before you wake up?"

Seeing that Huang Feihu's expression seemed to relax, Ao Bing continued.

He said these words in order to convey them to other ministers through Huang Feihu, asking them to put the overall situation first and not engage in internal strife at this time.

Otherwise, if the Shang Dynasty really perished, none of them would be in a good situation.

"Tolerate each other for the country!"

"Long Bo said it well. In times of national crisis, we should really tolerate each other for the sake of the country. However, it is not easy for us to take a step back. Is the king willing to take a step back?"

Huang Feihu pondered Ao Bing's words several times in his mind. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that what he said made sense. At this time, it is indeed not right to fight among the people, otherwise it will only benefit outsiders.

But tolerating each other for the sake of the country means being tolerant of each other. If you want them to take a step back, the king must also show some expression, right?

"You will go and talk to the minister. I will go and talk to the king."

"However, Your Majesty is still the ruler after all. Even if you want to retreat, the ministers should retreat first. Otherwise, how can Your Majesty save face if you are forced to retreat by the ministers?"

"This country does not belong to the king alone, but to everyone. Wu Hou is also a royal family member, so he should know the importance of this better than I do."

Knowing that Huang Feihu was convinced by him, Ao Bing struck while the iron was hot and continued.

There are many nobles in the Shang Dynasty, and Ao Bing may not have much face among them. It is highly likely that these words he says will not have any effect.

But if Huang Feihu were to speak instead, explain the pros and cons, and persuade everyone to put the overall situation first, the probability of convincing them would be very high.

Similarly, Huang Feihu was a minister, and if he tried to persuade Emperor Xin, it would most likely have the opposite effect and further anger Emperor Xin.

But Ao Bing is different. He is not a minister of Emperor Xin, but a guest official of some kind. His status is equal to that of Emperor Xin. Only when Ao Bing says these words will Emperor Xin listen to him and consider them seriously.

"If the king is willing to retreat, that would be the best. I'm just afraid that after we retreat, the king will not want to retreat."

It was obvious that Huang Feihu knew Emperor Xin better than Ao Bing, and he expressed his concerns with a wry smile on his face.

“This can’t be…”

Ao Bing didn't think that Emperor Xin would be so outrageous as to joke with his political credibility. What good would it do him to trick the ministers? Nothing, it would only accelerate the demise of the Shang Dynasty.

Emperor Xin was extremely intelligent, and Ao Bing didn't think he was unaware of the consequences of his actions.

"It's hard to say, but what Long Bo said does make sense. Let's do as Long Bo said. The king will take care of it, and the ministers will take care of it."

(End of this chapter)