In Ark Simulator, why do I always get a tough start?

Chapter 94 Chen Huijie's Change of Mind (Seeking full subscription)

You saved all the members of the Edwiss family without anyone noticing your underhanded actions.

[Your family's power has not only not been weakened, but has also gained a group of loyal members willing to die for your plans.]

Soon, a month later, you received the good news you had been hoping for from a letter delivered by Weiss, Ensiodes' loyal subordinate.

All five hundred-plus members of the Edwis family have found new employment and settled successfully in Victoria.

In Victoria, a small group of business-savvy members began to expand the Kalan trade within Victoria's borders.

[I believe that after a period of time, they will definitely bring you more mining orders and partners.]

[And the Edwis family children, at his urging, began to be enrolled in local schools by their parents.]

[Although given Victoria's average wages, it's unlikely these kids will be able to attend a good school.]

But for Sherag, it's already a great blessing to have a generation of educated descendants who can contribute to the development of their hometown in the future.

Moreover, the Edwiss family is not without its capable members.

That was Ensiodis's friend, Nosis.

This gifted young man, renowned for his intelligence even during the time of Kjerag, has no way to repay your kindness in saving his family and has decided to dedicate his entire life to you.

You have fully covered all the tuition fees for this gifted boy, allowing him to study alongside Enciodes at a prestigious school in Victoria.

[And the field Noxis studied is precisely the kind of science and engineering that you need most now that the Sherrag reforms are underway.]

But all of this is not your greatest gain.

The members of the Edwis family, whom you saved, are now fully aware of the persecution and framing they suffered at the hands of the Manju Institute.

After learning the truth and experiencing the collapse of their faith, Edwis's people harbored an unprecedented hatred for the Manjusaka Academy.

After all, while Sherag was poor in resources, it was nowhere near as abundant as Victoria.

However, in Shelag, they were still descendants of nobles, and when they walked the streets, they received the love and respect of the common people.

As a result of political persecution by the Manjusaka Academy, they were reduced from nobles to third-class citizens in Victoria.

From being respected to being looked down upon by xenophobic Victorians, even earning less as a laborer than Victorians.

The immense disparity in their circumstances, coupled with intense hatred, fueled the Edwis family's burning desire to tear Manjusaka to pieces.

At this moment, Enciodes, who knew of your plan, arrived before them with his "Death Squad Recruitment Plan."

He told them, "You are prepared to storm the Holy Mountain and settle accounts with all the sins of Manjushri Temple."

But you lack strength.

[If they hate Manjuin and want to reclaim their former status and glory, they will become your loyal henchmen!]

They will be the vanguard in your future assault on the Holy Mountain and the purge of Manjushri Academy.

The Edwis family, united in their hatred of the enemy, were filled with righteous indignation.

Enciodes originally intended to select suitable candidates from Victoria's orphanages and some unemployed people to train as assassins.

Now, Edwis's people have greatly accelerated his progress.

He selected 150 elites from among them and entrusted them to Fiona, who had experience in military training, for mentorship.

[The kind-hearted Fiona, though initially unwilling to join your coup plot.]

However, I witnessed firsthand the persecution you suffered at the hands of the Manjusaka and the other two great families, as well as the series of atrocities resulting from the closed-mindedness and ignorance of the Sherag.

Ultimately, unable to bear seeing her friend and others continue to suffer, the girl hesitantly accepted the team's training assignment.

Fiona's choice to believe in you will end Kjerag's ignorance and darkness, leading him to a better future.

She believed that you, who had once described your hometown to her with such passion at the Royal Guard Academy, would never betray her trust.

Your brother wrote a lot in his letter, but only briefly mentioned you two sisters at the end.

“Enya and Enshia are working very hard in middle school, so you don’t need to worry, brother. I have already made plans for them.”

"They will not know our plans; they will continue their university studies in Victoria until they finish their studies."

"The sins that are despised by all the people of Shelag are enough for the two of us brothers to bear."

"...I'm sorry, my dear brother."

"Brother, I'm afraid I can't even fulfill your small wish."

After reading the letter from Ensiodis, you gave a bitter smile and threw it into the fire.

[You are well aware of whether you intend to overthrow the Manju Academy or to maintain a stable rule over Sherag.]

You can't simply ignore religious issues.

The faith of Yelagand is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people of Shelag.

[Leaving aside the fact that Yeragand actually exists.]

[If you use force to compel the people of Shelag to ignore Jeragand's teachings and obey only your commands.]

[Then, the people of Shelag will likely bring endless backlash against your rule.]

Therefore, to stabilize the people of Shelag, they must be made to feel that their faith has not been shaken.

[And only the "Saintess" of Sherag could do this.]

[The Saintess. She is the most exalted being in Sherag, and the one closest to Jeragand; she is Jeragand's representative in this land.]

In reality, the saintess, who held no real power, was merely a figurehead used by the Manju Institute to appease the people of Sherag.

The saintess, whose sources of information were controlled by the Manju Institute, served only to legitimize all of the Manju Institute's decisions in the name of Yeragand.

Similarly, this is why you need the Saintess.

You need a saint to grant you the legitimacy to destroy Manjushri Academy and rule over Sherag.

You also need a puppet saintess to ensure that Sherag's faith remains intact while preventing religion from interfering with your judgment.

And this saintess can only be one of your own.

Only family members will wholeheartedly support your decisions and won't interfere with your decision-making at the most crucial time.

However, the selection of a saintess involves extremely cruel challenges.

Therefore, although the custom of selecting a saintess was preserved, for a century no young woman from Sherag dared to step forward and inherit that position.

[And this person... you can only choose Enya, who passed the test in the original storyline.]

"In the original story, Ensiodes, as the eldest brother, sacrificed Enya's becoming a saintess to bring the family back into the ranks of the three great families, which led to the rift between the siblings."

"Now, I'm the one who's making my sister participate in this brutal selection process."

Faced with this dilemma, you can't think of a better solution than involving your family.

But the only thing you're better at than Enciodes is that you don't just see them as younger siblings who need your protection.

Once they embark on the power struggle, they will all need to bear the responsibilities that come with it someday.

Concealment and deception are the greatest harms one can inflict on family members.

Sooner or later, you'll let Enya, and even Enshia, know about your plans.

The only thing you, as their older brother, can do for them... is perhaps just to take the blame for them.

"pray!"

[But as you were pondering, Chen Huijie's unusually loud voice interrupted your thoughts.]

This decisive former Lungmen police superintendent always barges into your room without knocking, leaving you with absolutely no privacy.

But this time, after Chen Huijie broke in, you noticed fresh bloodstains on her clothes.

"Chen? What happened? Where did the blood on you come from?"

"Who else could it be? It's the blood of the Perrochi and Brantau families!"

Chen Huijie answered you through gritted teeth.

"Just as you said, they immediately sent people to annex these lands after the Edwis family left!"

"I led a portion of the Shiva'ish people and stayed there to guard the area, which led to a minor conflict with the two major families..."

"No one was killed, right?"

[You've asked the question that's most important to you right now.] "Of course not, I know what I'm doing."

[Chen Huijie's answer relieved you. If she had killed members of the other two major families, the situation would have been completely different.]

[The Sherag family has always considered infighting the greatest sin; therefore, although the three families are constantly at odds with each other, they have rarely clashed directly.]

However, Chen Huijie's arrival exacerbated the conflict.

This chivalrous and righteous woman, who hated evil and was filled with righteous indignation, could not bear to watch her friend suffer persecution, yet she had no right to resist.

So this time, she made her move.

However, what you need is Chen Huijie's chivalrous spirit.

"Chen, you're being too impulsive."

“This is Sherag, not Lungmen. Even if you were a Lungmen police superintendent, you wouldn’t have law enforcement authority here.”

"Here, the only institution that can make a ruling is the Manju Academy."

You adopted a worried expression and patiently explained to Chen Huijie, who had no idea about the political structure of Shelag.

“You are aware of Manju Academy’s attitude towards our family, Chen.”

"The fact that the other two major families dared to take over our territory must mean that the Manju Academy has tacitly approved it."

"Your fight off the other two major families today is of no use."

"Next, Manju-in will likely use the pretext of 'actively provoking family conflicts' to force our family to give up more land as an apology."

"—They dare?!"

After a slight pause, Chen Huijie's loud voice, laced with anger, rang out again.

Why don't they dare?

Faced with Chen Huijie's fury, you once again adopted a wry smile and asked in return.

“Manju has long disliked my family’s reforms to Sherag, and on this point, his interests are aligned with those of the other two families.”

"And in Shelag, who can defy a ruling made by the Manju Academy?"

"—You can't just let yourself be slaughtered like this, Qi."

However, after hearing your words, Chen Huijie belatedly realized her mistake, but her face still showed strong resentment.

"Then tell me, what should I do, Chen?"

You sensed Chen Huijie's wavering and chose to pose a question you had prepared beforehand to her.

"You want me to rebel? How am I supposed to rebel?"

“I have no military power, nor any army under my command. If I were to secretly train troops in Shelag, I would be awaiting the trial that Manju Academy has been waiting for.”

"At that time, not only me, but my family will be driven out of Shelag."

"And now, Manjusin, Perroch, Blantau... everyone wants to drive us out of Shelag, the ones who brought about the reforms."

"Tell me, Chen, how should I resist? What should I resist?"

Your series of questions plunged Chen Huijie into a deep silence.

Having witnessed the Manju Academy's framing and dirty tricks, Chen Huijie was now very clear that she was fighting against an unjust and powerful force.

But how can I overthrow this powerful force?

Whenever Chen Huijie questioned her in this way, the word "rebellion" would naturally come to mind.

But Chen Huijie quickly dismissed this idea.

As a righteous police superintendent, Chen Huijie believes that "rebellion," which disrupts order, is always the most unforgivable crime.

However, faced with the ignorant, corrupt, and dark Manju Institute of Sherag, and the two powerful families who were about to drive their friend to his death, the situation became dire.

Despite her desire to rebel against this injustice, Chen Huijie still finds it extremely difficult to control herself and develop the idea of ​​overthrowing this corrupt regime.

If Chen Huijie were truly a free-spirited knight-errant, she really would have done that.

But Chen Huijie didn't want her friend to bear the stigma of "rebellion."

She still wanted to believe that justice and fairness existed in this world.

She still believes that some things can be resolved without resorting to desperate measures.

"I'll help you, Inori!"

Chen Huijie gritted her teeth, left you with only one sentence expressing her determination, and then ran out of the room on her own.

And you know very well what Chen Huijie wants to do.

[This righteous superintendent probably wants to mobilize the masses on his own, right?]

She wanted to single-handedly overturn the reputation that Manjushri had built up over hundreds of years in Sherag.

She wanted to expose the darkness of Manju Academy to the people of Sherag.

But you know, this chivalrous police superintendent will only receive indifference, even insults and accusations, in return.

She'll eventually realize that even if everything she says is the truth, it won't change anything.

Because the truth needs to be defined by those in power.

But instead of stopping Chen Huijie, you let her continue doing it.

Only by constantly creating conflict and friction can you give Manju-in and the two major families the feeling that "you are resisting in vain."

Only in this way can you lower their guard.

Only in this way can you lure them into the carefully woven net you've created without them even realizing it.

Of course, you have another plan—you hope Chen Huijie can gain more from this experience and grow as a person.

At the very least, you hope that your inevitable power grab will be seen by Chen Huijie as a symbol of being "forced into a corner."

They know what evil is, but they don't know why evil arises.

[Someone like Chen Huijie will always only ever be a police superintendent.]

A single police superintendent is not enough to be your right-hand man in ruling Shelag.

Only by truly understanding what power is and knowing how to bring genuine justice to the people, instead of getting trapped in the vicious cycle of "justice" and "evil," can we truly achieve this.

Chen Huijie has finally become a true pillar of society.

However, your heart is constantly conflicted.

"If it were possible, I would truly wish that you would always be that righteous superintendent who tells me whether all of this is right or wrong."

"There are so few people in this world as pure as you."

You murmured to yourself, seemingly lamenting the impending passing of a righteous police superintendent.

You and Chen Huijie share some similarities; both of you steadfastly pursue the paths you believe in, without wavering.

But at the same time, you are like two extremes, like two magnets of the same polarity facing each other.

Although you pursue justice, you never believe that absolute justice exists in the world.

As someone in power, you can sacrifice the interests of a portion of the population to satisfy the needs of more people, thus achieving your "relative justice."

In a sense, you are not fundamentally different from those in power, such as the Grand Elder.

However, you weren't doing this for your own power, but so that this country could break free from isolation and the people of Shelag could have the ability to protect themselves.

However, Chen Huijie judges her sense of justice by public opinion and morality.

She was not afraid of power or hardship; she would fight against anything she perceived as evil or oppressive with all her might.

But in the end, the police superintendent, who saw things in black and white, became nothing more than a speck of dust in the world.

Or will you, who ultimately seize power, become the next "evil" to be condemned?

【you do not know.】

But you understand that perhaps, in this very life, Chen Huijie will serve as a constant reminder to you, a warning against letting that high position corrupt your humanity.

(End of this chapter)