Don't let Yu Ding take on any more disciples.

Chapter 389 A single outburst of anger terrifies the feudal lords, bringing peace and tranquility to the world.
Ji Chang looked at the heroic and upright young man before him and suddenly felt a little dazed.

As the Marquis of Xibo, he was diligent in his duties and cared for the people, governing Xiqi in an orderly manner, and earning him much praise and a good reputation.

Behind all this is a great deal of his time and energy, as well as the need to travel to various parts of the country to understand the people's conditions. Only he knows the true extent of his experience.

This also means that apart from his eldest son, who was the heir to the title of Marquis of Xibo, he rarely had time to pay attention to his other children.

His second son had a carefree and unconventional personality since childhood, preferring comfort to work, which left his father quite helpless.

Many years ago, on a whim, he consulted a divination master and found that the divination indicated that his second son seemed to have a good opportunity, so he sent him out to try his luck.

This departure lasted for three years.

When his son returned, he discovered that he had undergone a complete transformation.

Not only did he possess astonishing martial arts skills, but he also had remarkable insights into astronomy, geography, military strategy, and governance.

This brought him great joy and satisfaction as a father.

With one son skilled in literature and the other in martial arts, and the brothers working together, how could they not govern Xiqi well and ensure the people's well-being and prosperity?

"Father?! Father?!"

The young man's voice brought Ji Chang back to his senses. The young man said, "Furthermore, Father, you yourself said that the divination indicates this journey will be fraught with danger but ultimately safe. This danger..."

Ji Chang remained silent for a moment.

He paused, then looked deeply at the young man and said, "You may come if you wish, but remember that this time all the lords of the world have gathered in Chaoge. They are all heroes and powerful figures of the world, so you must not act recklessly and offend them."

"They're considered heroes?"

The young man couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle, "Father overestimates them."

As he spoke, the image of his senior brother from Ghost Valley, who had always been superior to him, came to mind.

“A mere child, ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth, dares to speak presumptuously of the heroes of the world.”

Ji Chang was furious when he saw this. He glanced around and said in a low voice, "Leaving aside others, let's talk about your three uncles. Which one of them isn't a renowned hero?"

The young man shook his head: "None of them."

Ji Chang, somewhat unconvinced, said, "Tell me why it doesn't count. If you don't give me a reason today, I'll teach you a lesson."

The young man smiled and said, "Although Jiang Shibo is the head of the eight hundred princes under heaven, and although he is upright, he is always careful to protect himself in important matters. He can hardly be considered a hero."

E Shishu was fierce in appearance but cowardly in reality, stubborn and self-willed, and would forget righteousness for the sake of petty gains; Chong Houhu... a man who relied on the legacy of his ancestors, was cruel and inhumane, a loyal lackey of the Yin Shang dynasty, how could he be considered a hero?

Ji Chang was taken aback by these words. He opened his mouth, but could not utter a single word in rebuttal.

It's all because... this son was telling the whole truth.

Ji Chang thought for a moment and said, "Your Uncle Su from Ji Province has well-trained troops and ample provisions, and is of upright character. Could he be a hero?"

Ji Province is the most important of the nine provinces in the world, and Marquis Su Hu of Ji Province is the most powerful of the four major warlords.

The young man laughed and said, "Father, haven't you heard that excessive rigidity leads to breakage? A rigid person will perish because of their rigidity. A true hero is one who can bend and stretch. Besides..."

Ji Chang was stunned upon hearing this, looking at his son who was full of vigor and commenting on the heroes of the world.
Then I thought of the sons of these good buddies: Jiang Wenhuan, E Shun, Chong Yingbiao, Su Quanzhong…

These children had all become famous; some were exceptionally brave, while others were skilled in both literature and martial arts. This gave him a sense of decline, as if a new generation was surpassing the old.

Fortunately... his son is also quite outstanding.

At this moment, the young man glanced at his somewhat withdrawn father beside him.

Ji Chang's eyelids twitched, and he said irritably, "What else do you want to say? Do you want to comment on your father?"

The young man chuckled and said, "What I meant was that they don't count, but Father does."

Ji Chang was somewhat pleased to hear his son praise him, but he still snorted and said, "Sycophant, if you were my subject, I would be the first to kill you."

The young man chuckled and said, "Master said that a hero must have lofty ambitions, brilliant strategies, the ability to encompass the universe, and the will to swallow the heavens and earth."

But those are heroes of times of chaos. In times of peace, those who are loyal to the Shang dynasty and love the common people, ensuring everyone has enough to eat and wear, are the ones who earn their respect and admiration.

Ji Chang paused for a long time, then looked at his son and exclaimed, "Your master is truly a divine being! By the way, which sacred mountain or blessed land is that place?"

"Guigu is located in a small valley in Yunmeng Mountain, and it can hardly be considered a sacred mountain or blessed land."

The young man shook his head and said, "Master, the Ghost Valley lineage is just a small sect. Each generation only accepts two disciples who will descend the mountain to display their skills when the world is in chaos. Each of them can make the feudal lords tremble with anger and bring peace to the world when they live in peace."

What he said wasn't some secret that couldn't be told.
On the contrary, as one of the two founding disciples of the Guigu School,

He felt obligated and responsible to promote their faction to the world.

Of course, he did not tell his father that the two disciples of their lineage were also destined enemies, and that they would eventually have a life-or-death battle.

"When he was angry, the feudal lords trembled; when he lived in peace, the world was at ease... What a spirit!"

"Right? Right? I also think that sentence sounds really powerful."

Ji Chang was somewhat shocked by this statement and pondered, "Although your lineage is not large, with such ambition, you should not be unknown. How come I have never heard of you before?"

"that……"

The young man scratched his head sheepishly: "My master is the founding patriarch, I am just the first generation successor."

"No wonder!" Ji Chang nodded slightly, seemingly lost in thought.

Sending these two disciples down the mountain at this time...

Does this mean that Master Guigu also believed that the world was about to descend into chaos?

Ji Chang's eyes flickered, his mood somewhat complicated. If the world were truly in chaos, how would he conduct himself?

No dynasty lasts forever. Over the centuries, the problems accumulated by the Shang dynasty were already enormous, a fact that anyone with eyes could see.

He acknowledged that the Shang rulers of these generations were all excellent and had tried to solve the problems, but ultimately the issues were too deeply entrenched to be resolved.

Under such circumstances, it would be difficult for the feudal lords not to have other ideas.

Even in its old age, the tiger still possessed considerable power, and some wild beasts dared not approach it even when they saw its age. However, Yuan Futong of the North Sea and King Pingling of the East Sea started a conflict…

Once this breach is opened, the consequences will be dire, like opening a floodgate. If it cannot be closed quickly, a massive flood will surely surge forth.

Fortunately, there was Grand Tutor Wen Zhong, who truly lived up to his reputation as one of the two pillars of the Shang Dynasty. He suppressed Yuan Futong's rebellion as soon as he took action.

This time, they went to conquer King Pingling; otherwise, the collapse of the great empire would have been imminent.

but……

Ji Chang couldn't help but think one step further: what would he do if the building really collapsed?

As the ruler of Xiqi, he had to consider many things.

Will they become loyal ministers who protect the emperor and defend him, or so-called traitors and rebels?

"With Grand Tutor Wen around, the Shang Dynasty can't be turned upside down."

After a long while, Ji Chang shifted his body to make himself more comfortable and stopped thinking about this troublesome problem.

As his son said, the upright will perish because of their uprightness, and those who value their reputation will inevitably be burdened by it.

He had spent most of his life earning his reputation, and naturally he didn't want to ruin it in his old age.

In fact, he didn't need to choose, or rather, he had no choice.

Sometimes, the circumstances are not created by people, but rather people are created by the circumstances.

In the face of the torrent of the times, humans are quite insignificant, so the best approach is to remain unchanged in the face of all changes and take it one step at a time.

"By the way, I call myself Xiao Wu outside for convenience. Father, please call me that too when we're out."

Xiao Wu rode his horse alongside the carriage, slowly making his way eastward in the long procession.

After such a long journey, they finally arrived in Chaoge, entered the post station, and met up with the other feudal lords.

royal palace.

Inside the Longde Hall, the emperor, dressed in royal robes and wearing a crown, raised his hand to take the presented memorial.

"Everyone's here?"

The young emperor glanced at the scene and said, "Let my uncle go and receive them. Tomorrow morning, summon the four vassal lords to court to report on local customs and conditions. The rest can pay their respects outside the Meridian Gate."

"Here!"

The servant withdrew.

"Jiang Huanchu, E Shun, Ji Chang, Chong Houhu, Su Hu..."

Di Xin looked at the names of the leading lords above, his eyes flashing. These were the most powerful and threatening lords among them.

Even when his father was in power, there was already a growing tendency for him to lose control over these individuals.

Faced with this situation, his father did not hesitate and did not ask his aunt whether she was willing to marry her off to a stranger, Ji Chang, nor did he ask him whether he was willing to marry a stranger, Jiang Huanchu's daughter.

As for E Shun, he is not a threat, while Chong Houhu has been trained by his father to be the most loyal dog.

This resolved the situation among the four major vassal states, and bought the Shang Dynasty many more years.

Now that he has descended from Guigu Mountain, he looks back at his father's method of breaking the deadlock, and it turns out to be remarkably similar to the horizontal approach he learned from Guigu's strategic thinking.

The way of the alliance is to unite the weak to attack the strong; this is called "alliance".

Or, to use the strong to attack the weak, this is called "horizontal," meaning to help the powerful to defeat numerous weak opponents.

He had felt from the beginning that his master might have had a deeper meaning when he taught him the Way of Horizontal and the Way of Vertical Martial Arts, since it was so in line with the situation he and the powerful merchant behind him faced. Now it seems that this is indeed the case.

"Well done!"

Di Xin's eyes flashed. The horizontal approach is mainly about breaking, whether it is the horizontal sword technique or the horizontal path he walks.

They exploit contradictions and interests to create rifts, hence they employ more intrigue than overt strategies; the opposite is true of the way of yielding.

His game of chess has begun.

The chessboard is the whole world!

"This is Chaoge?"

Xiao Wu took off his armor and changed into ordinary clothes, then slipped out of the post station and walked on the streets of Chaoge.

He was not interested in occasions where feudal lords met and flattered each other.

Some of them did bring their sons, such as Chong Yingbiao, the son of Chong Houhu, the Marquis of Beibo. However, since the father was cruel and the son was domineering, he couldn't be bothered with him.

As for why the others didn't bring their sons...

Xiao Wu smiled coldly. This was not because Chong Houhu was audacious, but because he was the most loyal dog of the Yin Shang among the feudal lords.

As he traveled, he discovered that Chaoge City was indeed very large, and it could be roughly divided into three areas.

The outer city where ordinary people lived, the inner city where high-ranking officials and nobles lived, and the very center... the royal palace.

It is obvious that the feudal lords belonged to the category of high-ranking officials and nobles, so even the post stations where they stayed were located in the inner city.

Even though the inner city is smaller than the outer city, Xiao Wu didn't see much of the city by the time the lights came on. As the moon rose higher, the outer city, which had a curfew, gradually quieted down.

However, the bustling atmosphere in the inner city remains undiminished, and even shows a tendency to increase.

Boom!
As the massive city gate between the inner and outer cities slammed shut, it was as if two worlds were separated.

"Tsk tsk tsk, just a door away!"

Xiao Wu couldn't help but shake his head and sigh. Suddenly, a flamboyant woman came up from the side, gently hugged his arm, and said warmly, "Young master, come and play!"

(End of this chapter)