Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 150: Casting weapons for the people!
"When the excitement ends, sadness comes, and you will know the limit of gain and loss." Yuan Gong whispered.

There was a strange look in his eyes.

He is a fortune teller.

This sentence has the most thorough understanding.

Yuan Gong sighed softly, "Yes, everything has its own life. Heaven and man are all subject to good fortune. Good fortune will change, and so will people and things. What you have now is only temporary and may be gone at any time."

"Power and violence are not the basis for ruling the world."

"If His Majesty still relies on these things, then when they leave him, he will feel the pain of cramps and bones being pulled out, and then he will have a great enlightenment. But will His Majesty really wake up? Or will he just go all the way?"

"You said so too."

"Your Majesty is a sword."

"How can you get close to such a sharp blade?"

"If you are not careful, you may be injured or even killed by the blade."

"Aren't you afraid?" Yuan Gong looked at Xia Zhibai curiously.

He became more and more interested in Xia Zhibai.

Because Xia Zhibai has a thorough understanding of many things in the world.

Extraordinarily thorough.

Such people shouldn't put themselves in danger.

At least we should do as he did in the beginning, humble ourselves and wait for the right time, and not fight against fate.

Why go the other way?

Xia Zhibai laughed heartily, and he opened his arms and said, "The wind rises from the tip of the green duckweed, and the waves form from the ripples. I, Xia Zhibai, do not have too many intentions to hide my shortcomings. Even if I fall to the bottom of the valley, I will bloom, and even if I sink to the bottom of the sea, I will still look at the moon."

“Instead of complaining about the darkness, it is better to hold a lantern and move forward.”

"The world is in a state of turbidity."

"Both civil officials and military commanders have been influenced by the turbid current, and they only see their own interests, not much public spirit. In my opinion, the world is heading towards a very strange extreme, which is 'slavishness'. The Yuan Dynasty ruled the world, and because they were a minority, they naturally wanted to put themselves above the majority to protect their own power and status."

“However, after the restoration of China, this trend still exists.”

“It’s even getting worse.”

"Scholars and generals alike are all trying to climb up the social ladder, not for fame, but for the benefits of power. They have already stood in opposition to the vast majority of people on this land. They are not motivated to make progress, and they don't want to see others surpass themselves, let alone admit that they are weaker than others."

"They have a higher status than ordinary people."

"The arrogance and dignity that comes with this status has blinded them all."

"I don't know if King Yan will listen to me."

"If he really investigates, he will definitely find out that many of the generals he has entrusted with important tasks are not honest. This situation cannot be stopped at present because this is the prevailing trend in the world."

"Even the most honest person will slowly become corrupt and degenerate if he stays in this kind of environment for a long time."

"The Guo Huan case that the court is investigating strictly this time is only for civil servants."

"When the investigation reaches the military commanders, I'm afraid most of the generals in the Five Military Commands will not be able to escape, and the generals in the major military bases will also find it difficult to escape."

Yuan Gong raised his eyebrows.

Xia Zhibai smiled and said, "The current emperor is aware of this situation, but he only wants to be strict with others. As the saying goes, if the top beam is not straight, the bottom beam will be crooked. He himself can't do it, let alone expect others to follow it?"

"It's just relying on force to maintain it."

"Once the powerful are corrupted, the already deformed system of the Ming Dynasty will also become completely corrupt."

"That's what His Majesty is doing now."

“Just cover the lid.”

"The problems of the system he designed were stopped by killing people with force to ensure the normal operation of the system. Because it was a small government, even if all the officials in the court were killed, they could still be quickly replaced because there were many local clerks."

"But can we kill them all?"

Xia Zhibai shook his head.

“There’s no end to the killing.”

"It's just a change of people who look clean."

"And what I have to do is to keep lifting the lid. When the current emperor can no longer cover it, that will be the time for me, Xia Zhibai, to take the stage. It is also at that time that I may be able to add a scabbard to the sword of the Ming Dynasty."

"But it's too early."

"It's not time for the Ming Dynasty yet."

"I don't have that kind of prestige."

Hear the words.

Yuan Gong nodded slightly.

He could already understand Xia Zhibai's thoughts.

If he rebelled on his own, he would face too much resistance, so he might as well use the Ming Dynasty as a platform to do his own thing. When enough problems were exposed in the world and the current emperor had to make adjustments, Xia Zhibai would naturally be entrusted with important tasks.

And the reason why he was so bold to "admonish".

It's just lifting the lid.

He didn't care whether he would be believed or not, nor did he care whether anyone would listen. He just wanted to speak out the facts, and when the "bad consequences" he mentioned emerged one by one in the world, people would naturally think of this scene.

That's enough. "What are you going to do?" Yuan Gong asked.

Xia Zhibai stood with his hands behind his back, looking calmly at the water, his eyes slightly closed, and said calmly: "Of course it is to establish trust. Without trust, there is no foundation. The reforms of all dynasties have primarily been to gain the trust of the people, from ancient times to the present, without exception."

"If you don't have faith, how can you expect the people to follow you?"

"My credibility lies in business. Through my own operations, I make people's lives better and make them believe that by following me, they can indeed move towards a better future. When I achieve this, I will be successful."

“History is created by the grassroots people.”

"So are the days."

“If you want to change history, you must first change the people. Once the people believe, the trend will take shape.”

"The people." Yuan Gong lowered his eyebrows and smiled bitterly, "You seem to be too superstitious about the power of the people? They don't have such strong power? Especially since you seem to have said that you want to abolish the 'scholars', how many people in the world will let you do what you want?"

Xia Zhibai looked at Yuan Gong calmly and said, "It is better to correct a wrong than to go too far. It is better for one family to cry than for all to cry. It is better for scholars to cry than for the people to suffer. It was these scholars who built the political system of the Ming Dynasty. If we don't eliminate these people, how can we rebuild a new one?"

"As for the superstitious people."

"This is not superstition, but trust in the people."

"Master, have you ever read the books of the various philosophers? Most of the articles written by the pre-Qin philosophers criticized those in power, and few would blame or criticize the people. But what about the scholars today? Most of them flatter those in power and slander the people."

“People are still the people of this land.”

"Compared to the philosophers of the past, they are less upright and righteous, and no longer uphold justice. The people do not make many mistakes. If there are mistakes, they are the fault of those in power. This truth was known to the world in the pre-Qin period, but now it is going backwards."

"A gentleman is guided by righteousness, while a villain is guided by profit."

"The people in power today have no sense of justice, but have taken all the benefits, and they don't allow anyone to criticize them."

Xia Zhibai shook his head with deep emotion.

Yuan Gong was silent.

For the first time, I felt ashamed.

Xia Zhibai is not afraid of failure, and doesn't even care about failure.

He had long known that he would experience many failures and setbacks. What he had to deal with was a stale system that had existed for so many years and interest groups that were becoming increasingly selfish and conservative. In front of this group of rentiers, he was destined to run into obstacles one after another.

He had already figured it out.

He was just testing the extent of the world's corruption through his repeated boldness.

From the initial court to the opening of Prince Yan's Mansion.

He has tried both civil and military skills.

I also know the appearance of the civil and military officials in the world.

Xia Zhibai was not comparing himself with contemporary sages and talents, but with the philosophers of the pre-Qin period. His vision was extremely broad and his mind was surprisingly open. Under such circumstances, how could he be hurt by some rumors?
Xia Zhibai's will is extremely strong.

Yuan Gong bowed respectfully towards Xia Zhibai and said, "Yuan Gong is grateful for your advice."

"Since the decline of the Yuan Dynasty, I have been hiding the misfortune from the world. I actually have some complaints about the world today, because as far as I am concerned, the world today is full of contradictions and conflicts. The system is extremely imperfect, and even at the beginning of the founding of the country, there was a danger of collapse. This is indeed the case. In just over a decade, the 'Empty Seal Case' and the 'Hu Weiyong Case' broke out, and now there is a 'Guo Huan Case'."

"The series of major cases has shown that the foundation of the Ming Dynasty is unstable."

"Especially when farmers are in charge of the country."

"It also made many scholars despise him."

"Your Majesty's indifferent attitude towards scholars is even more intimidating. In fact, there are many kind-hearted people in the world, but facing the cruelty of your Majesty, they are frightened. Over time, fewer and fewer people are willing to serve as officials."

"If Yao Guangxiao hadn't invited me this time, I wouldn't have risked my life to come here."

“But it was worth the trip.”

Xia Zhibai looked at Yuan Gong meaningfully and said, "The Prince of Yan is not a wise ruler. It's just that the system of the Ming Dynasty determines that if there is chaos in the world, the Prince of Yan is the most likely to enter the court."

"Your Majesty is too cruel in killing people. If we talk about cause and effect, it will definitely bring disaster to future generations."

"But that's not the real reason."

"The reason why the King of Yan is favored by so many scholars is that, except for the Crown Prince, the King of Qin and the King of Jin all look down on scholars. They do not trust scholars, but rather trust those reckless and straightforward warriors."

"The King of Yan is equally cruel."

"But because I'm ranked fourth, I have to restrain myself."

"Every bite and every drink is destined to happen."

"I don't know why you are here, but I can tell you this."

"I just don't believe in fate."

“I always believe that man can conquer nature.”

"The world today is really too depressing and exhausting. The faces of local people are also full of fatigue. Their lives should not be like this, and they should not be despised and looked down upon by the powerful."

"If His Majesty were a sword."

"Then I will forge a hammer and sickle for the lower class people."

“Let all those who look down on the lower classes take a closer look, or they will pay the price.”

“Awaken the hearts of tens of millions of workers and peasants!”

　I'm still a little confused. I need to slow down. My mind wanders easily. Damn it!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)