Controlling mountains and rivers since the Warring States Period

Chapter 595 Execution of Liang
In the ninth year of Yuanjia,

The emperor, who had been plotting with his confidants in the toilet for a long time, finally outlived Liang Ji's greatest ally in the thirteenth year of his reign by patiently enduring and killing him, thus accumulating enough power to support him.

immediately,

He launched an attack on Liang Ji, a powerful minister who had held power for more than ten years and had seen two emperors and one empress dowager pass away.

Liang Ji was quickly defeated.

As the deadbeat who had seen too much of the ways of the world said:
"Liang Ji was too domineering. He couldn't even tolerate his own brothers and only accepted flatterers around him, indulging in his own likes and dislikes to get close to others."

"The Liang family members did not benefit from him; however, the Sun family, as his wife's family, was promoted and became wealthy because of him."

"He who advises him with reason is banished; he who corrects him with law is killed; he who corrects him with love..."

"Without filial piety, brotherly love, loyalty, trustworthiness, benevolence, and righteousness to attract people, and without the lure of benefits, who will still surround him once his power shows signs of wavering?"

but,

Liang Ji himself was not killed directly by the emperor.

Knowing how to learn from the mistakes of his predecessors, he was not fooled by the emperor's excuse of "attending a meeting in the palace."

When the emperor overturned the table, mobilized his forces, and engaged in a fierce battle with Liang Ji in Luoyang...
This relative of the emperor, whose power was only slightly less than that of Wang Mang of the Han Dynasty, never took off his armor for a moment.

However, his foundation was too weak.

The petty people who came for profit also quickly left when the emperor, who had used the "Mandate of Heaven of the Liu Clan" for over three hundred years, launched a campaign to gather a group of officials to settle scores with the Liang Clan.

Thus, Liang Ji was trapped in his magnificent residence, which was not at all part of the imperial palace.

"I've had my share of happiness!"

"Among all the subjects under heaven, who is as unrestrained and carefree as I am?"

"To die today is not a regret!"

Having become obese and bloated from years of wealth and luxury, Liang Ji drew his sword. His swollen face revealed an unusual calm and composure, unlike his usual domineering and irritable self.

He had acquired some of the kind and honest appearance of his father, grandfather, and brothers.

He turned to his wife, Sun Shou, and said, "You were by my side, yet we didn't manage to escape. Aren't you angry and regretful?"

Sun Shou was beautiful and had a temperament very similar to Liang Ji.

Before death, she, like her husband, only smiled.

“Others may flee, but I have become your bedmate and enjoyed wealth and honor for many years thanks to your favor, so naturally I cannot run away.”

She smoothed her hair and recounted an example from the eve of Wang Mang's downfall:
"If an incompetent like Wang Yi, who lost hundreds of thousands of troops, could still give his life for Wang Mang, what about me?"

She's much more capable than Wang Yi!
Liang Ji then burst into laughter, embraced his wife as they always did, and then picked up his sharp sword and ended his life.

As his blood gushed out and his consciousness began to leave his body,

Sun Shou took the blood-stained sword and then committed suicide.

The emperor's men rushed in, only to find the couple's corpses. Regretting that their contribution had not been fully realized, they turned and reported back to the monarch.

The powerful minister who had dominated the court and intimidated the emperor for over a decade vanished.

And what follows,
Naturally, the emperor was delighted and overjoyed.

And the posthumous trial of the Liang couple and their associates.

……

"Human nature is indeed complex."

"I thought Liang Ji and his wife would abandon each other when disaster struck."

Who would have thought that in the end the two would choose to become a pair of lovers who would live and die together.

but,

Take Wang Yi as an example from the past:
Even such incompetent and shameless scoundrels can, in the face of danger, show the brilliance of humanity in those close to and trusted by them.

There's no need to delve deeper into the relationship between Liang and Sun.

"As expected, no matter how much you see, you'll never get tired of it."

He took a sip of the milk tea made with tea leaves from Kuaiji County and milk from Murong Yan.
God's lips still bore a slight stain, yet his mouth did not stop, continuing to offer sincere sighs of solace for the complexities of human nature.

"True feelings are indeed admirable."

"But some things cannot be ignored."

Several deceased and virtuous teachers from the Taiping Dao, who were sitting opposite God, also held milk tea and offered their opinions.

"When judging a person, one must also consider the foundation of their character."

"If the foundation is wrong and the stance is crooked, whatever you say or do will harm others."

Liang Ji's affection for Sun Shou,

He had already surpassed many people of his time, and even his own family was placed behind the Sun family.

But their love and affection...

And how many lives have been caused to shed blood and tears, and to bear the pain?

The glamorous, elegant, and composed demeanor of those in positions of power
And what one is not built upon the bent backs of countless ordinary people?

Some people enjoy a peaceful and tranquil life, even becoming so engrossed in love, hate, and passion that they cannot extricate themselves.

We must never forget those who are carrying heavy burdens on their journey.

"The property of Liang Ji that was confiscated was almost half the amount of taxes levied on the Han Dynasty."

"This is really..."

Thinking of the turmoil in Luoyang, and the endless stream of money and treasures presented to the emperor and his officials, as well as the land, manors, and residences under the Liang family that were seized by the court...
Sun En couldn't help but shake his head.

In the present Han Dynasty,

Because officials are generally from prominent families and enjoy a large amount of land, houses, and servants, they have never had to worry about food and clothing since childhood.
They had vastly different lifestyles and ways of thinking from the bureaucrats of later generations who entered officialdom through the imperial examinations.

therefore,

The results of the raid are generally credible.

Liang Ji's reputation had so bad that everyone despised him.
Distinguished guests, you are unlikely to tarnish your refined and beautiful reputation for a little money just as you are about to celebrate your victory.

of course,

Money that could be seen and touched, placed directly before the emperor, could not be touched carelessly; it had to be counted and deposited into the national treasury.
However, they were still happy to accept the land and population that the Liang and Sun families had accumulated in the local area.

During the reign of Emperor He,

Lady Liang thus gained the status of a maternal relative and enjoyed decades of preferential treatment and wealth.
Even without Liang Ji's affair,
The land and people in the hands of the Liang family were also coveted by other powerful families.

While God, accompanied by several great and wise teachers, sat serenely on a small island in the East China Sea, sipping milk tea and discussing worldly affairs, facing the sea breeze...
They were lying on Liang's corpse, tearing and devouring it with glee.

The emperor was very generous about this.

He knew full well how difficult it was to resist Liang Ji's authority, and he was happy to reward the meritorious officials.

The Liang family's assets in Luoyang were to become the emperor's spoils.

Those in the local areas would belong to the aristocratic families.

The emperor and his ministers cheered and rejoiced, celebrating that the world had ushered in a new era.

but,

How many people will actually be covered by what they call "new"?
One act ends and another begins on stage.

What does this have to do with the people running around in a panic below?
The latter wasn't even considered an audience member.

The important people will only be seen as tables, chairs, and benches that have suddenly become intelligent and can now move and run.

"They finally got a chance to change things, but all they cared about was dividing up the spoils."

"He didn't even think about distributing the money that Liang Ji had squeezed out over the years to the people to make up for their losses."

"This emperor... alas!"

Zhao Shen, who hailed from the Western Sea and was known for his abundant martial virtue, also sighed.

The emperor had finally obtained the power he had longed for, so he was bound to make a show of it.

to this end,

He issued an edict exempting some disaster-stricken areas from taxes.

But he chose to ignore the cries of thousands of starving people.

former,
The reason is that the disaster victims were already lacking food and clothing, and even if they were squeezed dry, they still couldn't raise enough tax revenue.

It would be better to simply remove it, saving the court the trouble of sending officials.

the latter,
This is because the money had just entered the emperor's pocket and he hadn't had a chance to enjoy it yet, so naturally he was reluctant to part with it.

In the heart of the emperor who had officially seized power, there were still many things he planned to do and many grand goals yet to be achieved.
Those precious gold beans, how could they be easily given away?

In any case, disasters will never stop, and disaster victims will never disappear.

The people will never be able to be fed.

"Moreover, if one truly desires to survive, one can even enter the manor of a powerful family and accept their protection."

Why add to the burden on the imperial court?

The emperor, while in the palace, also said this to the eunuchs.

The money obtained from Liang Ji was indeed a huge sum, equivalent to half a year's worth of taxes from the Han Dynasty.

But Liang Ji has been domineering for so many years, and the damage he has done to the Han Dynasty is far more than just "embezzling half a year's income".

The emperor felt that even reducing him to ashes would not be enough.

Therefore, he was even more reluctant to loosen his grip and let the money in his palm slip away.

This greatly disappointed the previous emperors of the Han Dynasty who had hoped that he would be like Emperor He and Emperor Shun, showing the qualities of a wise ruler after taking power.

They could only console themselves:
"The unrest has just subsided, and there are still many things that have not been sorted out."

"Once Liu Zhi regains his spirits, he will be able to apply his intelligence and wisdom to governing the country!"

An emperor who could secretly plot the assassination of a powerful minister in the toilet...
His talent and ability must be considerable.

just,

It's not very clear yet.

As emperor, he had a strong sense of responsibility towards the country he ruled.

"As long as it's not as capricious as God!"

Yege'er wasn't very interested in things in the Central Plains.

He simply sipped his warm milk tea gently as the two elders sighed about the future of the Central Kingdom.

He took two sips.

Yege felt that the taste was not quite to his liking, so he took out a few more pieces of candy from his pocket and threw them into the cup.

The taste of milk tea was quickly replaced by cloying sweetness.

The light milk tea water suddenly became thickened with syrup.

He Bo felt a toothache just looking at it, and even forgot to accuse Yege'er of taking the opportunity to offend God.

He then took out a few coconut-filled buns and handed them to Yege'er, telling him to use them to reduce the odor.

Yageer rejected this paternal love that had nothing to do with him, and stroked the cup, saying:
"When I was in Taixi, I always missed the taste of my hometown."

"After arriving in Rome, I had to avoid many foods in order to take care of my health."

"Now that I'm dead, I can eat and drink whatever I want."

The people of the Western Sea

Due to the characteristics of the soil and water, they developed an exceptionally sweet taste.

Just like the people of Xinxia, ​​who, under the scorching sun, only wanted to stay in a cool place and were too lazy to move.

unfortunately,

The climate in western Thailand is relatively cool, and the land is not well developed, making it difficult to cultivate crops, let alone produce other sweet-tasting crops.

Even though the initial immigrants who explored the western regions mostly came from the Western Sea,

But Yege'er wouldn't burden those ships that need to battle the sea and cross thousands of miles just for his own selfish desires.

He was thus forced to give up the taste of his hometown.

Later, conditions improved.

He's reached an old age, his body is becoming weaker, and he can no longer eat or drink whatever he wants.

Fortunately,

He became a dead ghost.

The dead don't need to worry about this kind of problem.

"Well said!"

As Yege'er's grandmaster, Zhao Shen nodded in agreement with his grand-disciple's words.

He didn't throw sugar into the cup, but instead took out a handful of equally sweet dates and popped them into his mouth.

Sun En, who was concerned about current affairs, was led astray by their performance and couldn't help but show a "sweetness overload" expression on his face.

He Bo looked to the left, then to the right, and finally glanced at Sun En, who was quietly drinking tea, before extending his hand.

He poured spice powder from Xinxia into the cup, instantly turning the flowing liquid into a paste.

Sun En couldn't imagine what it tasted like, and lost his appetite for the milk tea in his hand.

Fortunately, it is located next to a small reef island.
Just in time, a group of large black and white sea fish passed by.

They flapped their tails, creating a huge splash that sent seawater crashing onto God and the dead, and taking away the strange drink as well.

"on purpose?"

A soaking wet God stood shivering in place, looking in the direction of the hooligans in the sea.

A large black and white fish made a "plop" sound and sprayed a jet of water from the vent on its back.

"It was intentional!"

He Bo therefore concluded.

He turned to the several great teachers and said, "You may go back now."

I need to take care of something in the sea!

finished,

He rolled up his sleeves and walked into the sea, chasing after the black and white fish.

The three who did not return immediately watched God disappear into the sea.

The vast, azure sky and earth embraced them.
The sun shines warmly on the earth.

Occasionally, splashes of water would rise from the sea.
It might bring a few schools of fish, or a few jellyfish.

Everything seemed so bright and beautiful.

Perhaps the troubles of the world,
For heaven and earth, which have existed for an unknown amount of time and whose future duration is unknown, this is utterly insignificant.

Regardless of the good or bad of the secular world,

The sun will always rise as usual.

"It's a pity Zhang Jiao isn't here."

"Otherwise, it would be good to take this opportunity to relax and rest."

Sun En suddenly started talking about his juniors.

Yggdrasil told him, "God took me to see him earlier, and I even treated him to milk tea."

"Then, Zhang Jiao probably wasn't used to the milk that the people from beyond the Great Wall often drank, so he felt unwell and couldn't respond to God's invitation."

Sun En then recalled events from his life.

"At first, I was also a little unaccustomed to the customs of the frontier."

But it took root in that land of Liaodong.

Cold winter snow,
Difficult pioneering efforts
People will always make choices that are more suitable for survival.

The gentlemen who came from the Central Plains
A considerable amount of land has been reclaimed in Liaodong.

They learned from the local barbarians, eating a lot of roasted meat and drinking a lot of cow and sheep milk.

Just like their kin in the Western Sea.

"Zhang Jiao wouldn't run off to Liaodong like you, would he?" Zhao Shen said, echoing his recollection of the past.

Sun En continued with a smile, "Later generations have their own paths to follow; our ancestors can only provide guidance, not make decisions for us."

"Let him be!"

Thinking of the hidden, pervasive chaos in the Central Plains...
Thinking of Zhang Jiao's character, which was even more decisive and tenacious than his own,

Sun En stood facing the sea breeze with his hands behind his back, without saying a word.

The wind blows and the waves crash.

The sun, having climbed overhead, began to shift westward.

The sky over the Central Plains gradually darkened.

(End of this chapter)