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Hearty laughter burst from Xiao Ming’s lips. He said to Pang Yukun, “Good, with your words, I am relieved.”
He looked at Niu Ben and the other generals and said, “It is my fault not to reward merits, but you must not forget your original intention, nor betray my trust in you.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Niu Ben and the others said in unison.
Their visit to the council hall today was originally to discuss the matter of Prince Zhao and his son, and Empress Zhao and the Thirteenth Prince. Unexpectedly, there was another gain.
Pang Yukun’s stance this time greatly pleased him. This way, the reforms in the six provinces would at least proceed unhindered. However, he was past the age of believing someone after just a few sentences. How Pang Yukun would lead this group of officials and follow him would ultimately depend on their actual actions.
After a few more words, Xiao Ming dismissed Pang Yukun. At this moment, he looked at the humiliating letter on the ground. After some hesitation, he picked it up.
Today’s humiliation filled his heart with desolation and anger. The kind and industrious Han people, for thousands of years, had been as docile as sheep, yet they were repeatedly bullied by foreign tribes.
Having come to this world, was he to let the Great Yu Empire live like a lamb?
No, he would raise this lamb into a lion that could devour wolves. To achieve this, the Great Yu Empire must foster a martial spirit, and even move towards militarism.
After all, the Western countries during the Age of Discovery were practically no different from militarism. Militarism refers to the worship of force and military expansion, taking armed aggression and expansion as the foundation of a nation. Is this not the essence of the Western powers now?
Of course, the Great Yu Empire also had a truly militaristic nation before it, and that was the Golden Tent Khanate. Compared to the Western powers, the Golden Tent Khanate was no less formidable.
So, in such an environment full of bandits, he must adopt more aggressive military policies to preserve the Great Yu Empire’s wealth and maintain the nation’s stability.
As he was thinking, Fei Ji returned. “Your Majesty, Empress Zhao and the Thirteenth Prince have both been properly settled. I have ordered guards to strictly guard the courtyard and not allow anyone to approach.”
Xiao Ming nodded, “From now on, let Empress Zhao and the Thirteenth Prince live in this courtyard. All their food and expenses will be provided by the prefectural office.”
Fei Ji had already had a premonition. This meant that Empress Zhao and the Thirteenth Prince were virtually under lifelong imprisonment, but this was undoubtedly the best outcome for them.
If they lived outside, they might suffer various humiliations, which would also be bad for the imperial family’s reputation.
Having settled the matter of Empress Zhao and the Thirteenth Prince, Xiao Ming continued, “Prince Zhao and his son are guilty of heinous crimes. This time, you will be responsible for supervising their execution.”
Fei Ji’s eyes flickered. He said, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
After saying this, Xiao Ming waved his hand, dismissing Fei Ji. His instruction for Fei Ji to supervise Prince Zhao’s execution was not without reason.
To expedite the unification of the Great Yu Empire, he had indeed adopted a “boil the frog slowly” approach to the issue of powerful families.
But since then, Fei Ji had become the representative voice of the powerful families. Sometimes, what Fei Ji said in the council hall represented the interests of these powerful families.
Although Fei Ji spoke for the powerful families to avoid exacerbating conflicts among the common people, he had to warn Fei Ji, lest he completely collude with them.
This supervision of Prince Zhao’s execution was a reminder to Fei Ji, because Prince Zhao was from a powerful family, and powerful families could also become like Prince Zhao.
He wanted Fei Ji to understand his attitude.
Fei Ji departed, and Xiao Ming threw the barbarian’s humiliating letter into the brazier, letting it turn to ashes, but he kept the words in his heart.
Today’s humiliation was the driving force for his future endeavors.
The news of Prince Zhao and his son’s beheading in the East Market was published in the Qingzhou newspaper, instantly becoming a hot topic of discussion among the common people.
In Room 1 on the fourth floor of the Wei Family Restaurant, Li Chuyuan was enjoying the food provided by the restaurant. Compared to when he first came to Qingzhou Province, he had gained a significant amount of weight.
Attending to him was his butler, Wang Cheng, who came from the State of Chu, and lying in his arms was the courtesan from Qingzhou’s Cuihong Tower.
“Your Highness, the newspaper says that Prince Zhao and his son Zhao Yuanliang will be beheaded in three days. Elder Fei sent word, asking Your Highness to also observe on that day.”
Li Chuyuan was drinking wine and playfully teasing the woman in his arms when his expression suddenly changed. “Hmph, why should I be called to witness the execution of Prince Zhao and Zhao Yuanliang? It’s nothing more than ‘killing the chicken to scare the monkey.'”
Wang Cheng chuckled and said, “Your Highness jests. Prince Zhao is not a chicken, and Your Highness is not a monkey. Since Elder Fei personally sent someone, Your Highness should still go, lest you displease the Emperor. After all, the person who truly wants His Highness to see is the Emperor.”
Li Chuyuan’s hand gripping the wine cup suddenly turned white at the knuckles. He had the woman in his arms leave, then said to Wang Cheng, “The Emperor, the Emperor, the Emperor, you call him ‘Emperor’ so readily.”
This Wang Cheng was nominally his butler, but in reality, he was sent by the Prince of Chu to supervise him, for fear that his impulsive nature would ruin important matters.
At the same time, Wang Cheng was also responsible for collecting intelligence on Qingzhou Province.
Wang Cheng smiled and said, “When one is under someone else’s roof, one has to bow one’s head. If our State of Chu had the ability to sweep across the world, we wouldn’t have to now depend on Xiao Ming’s goodwill.”
Li Chuyuan dejectedly slammed the table. “Sigh, I’ve been in Qingzhou Province for at least two or three months now, and I still don’t understand why Qingzhou Province can manufacture so many types of firearms.”
“That is why Xiao Ming is truly formidable. However, Your Highness need not worry. According to Xiao Ming, this knowledge of firearms merely came from Western missionaries. Now that the French have sent a large number of missionaries to Lin’an, it won’t be long before we have these things too.”
Li Chuyuan nodded, he suddenly remembered something and said, “I heard that my imperial father now trusts that French missionary, Richard, very much. Is that true?”
“This Richard knows everything from astronomy to geography. His Highness the Prince of Chu truly trusts him greatly. After all, now the only ones we can rely on are the French. Look at the fate of Prince Zhao and his son now. If we can’t protect the State of Chu’s land, our fate will be the same as theirs.”
Li Chuyuan sighed softly and said, “However, the longer I live in Qingzhou Province, the more I feel its uniqueness. Look at the items in this guest room; each one is ingeniously crafted. How can our State of Chu compare? And this food is also so delicious, simply a delicacy on earth. No wonder the Wei Family Restaurant can earn so much every day.”
Wang Cheng’s expression became serious. “Your Highness, this is not the time to indulge in the pleasures of the palate. Although Your Highness is a hostage, you must shoulder the heavy responsibility of revitalizing the State of Chu.”