Taiheiki

Chapter 289 Repeatedly
"Are you saying that the Western Palace will plot against the Emperor?" Zhang Huan asked.

"I didn't say that, but if the Empress Dowager didn't want her entire family to be wiped out, her only option was to kill the Emperor and then have a younger person succeed him. That way, she could preserve her family until she died or the Dou family was destroyed by the Emperor!"

"You've overstated! You've overstated! Brother Ranming, please don't take the General's words too seriously!" Feng Kun coughed twice, trying to smooth things over. Zhang Huan remained silent, maintaining an eerie stillness. All three present could be considered exceptional individuals. Both Feng Kun and Zhang Huan knew that Wei Cong was telling the truth—otherwise, why was the average lifespan of the emperors of this dynasty so low? Why were so many children ascending the throne? Ultimately, wasn't it because the power structure of the Han Dynasty couldn't even accommodate a child emperor to adulthood?

Ultimately, the sudden death of a young emperor and the replacement with an infant emperor is far less damaging to the empire than a complete purge of the powerful maternal relatives who control the court when the emperor comes of age. An empire might be able to do this every two or three decades during its rise, but during its decline, it would only lead to bloodshed and death. Weighing the pros and cons, the only option is for the emperor to die in his teens.

“Wei Mengde, perhaps you have a point! However—” Zhang Huan paused slightly, “but now I want to ask you a question: Are you a loyal subject of the Han Dynasty?”

"Of course!" Wei Cong answered decisively, "Without a doubt, perhaps I am even more loyal than you!"

“What kind of loyal minister would suggest dividing up the young emperor’s property? Or even murdering him?” Zhang Huan sneered.

“A loyal subject like me!” Wei Cong answered without hesitation, “If there is anyone in Luoyang who truly wants the Emperor to live a long and healthy life, it is me!” He sighed, “Don’t you understand? If you don’t have the ability to control it, immense power and wealth will only cost you your life. The Emperor is just a toddler learning to walk. If he wants to live to adulthood, the Empress Dowager must first feel safe! Yes, I moved the Emperor’s imperial garden, but that will allow him to grow up safely. After all, he doesn’t know how to hunt yet! What use is the imperial garden?”

"Then why didn't you choose an older emperor in the first place?"

"Then let him consolidate his power and then kill us all?" Wei Cong sneered. "Zhang Sikong, in the eyes of an emperor who holds great power, who do you think is more hateful—you, me, or the Empress Dowager? Or are they all equally hateful? Zhou Bo and Huo Guang, they both installed the older generation as emperors, what were their fates?"

"This—" Faced with Wei Cong's sharp words, Zhang Huan was once again defeated. Just as Wei Cong said, after Zhou Bo destroyed the Lü clan, he installed the Prince of Dai as emperor. After Emperor Zhao of Han died, Huo Guang successively installed Liu He, the Prince of Changyi, and Liu Xun, the great-grandson of Emperor Wu of Han who had been living among the common people, as emperors. All three were older when they were installed as emperors. As a result, although Zhou Bo had made great contributions to the Liu family after installing the Prince of Dai as emperor, he was imprisoned in his later years because he was falsely accused of treason, which was a terrible humiliation. Huo Guang first deposed Liu He, the Prince of Changyi whom he had installed, and after his own death, his entire clan was also exterminated by Liu Xun, the Emperor Xuan of Han whom he had installed. Wei Cong's meaning was very clear. Installing a young emperor could at least ensure peace while the emperor was young. However, if an older person was installed as emperor, the person installed would not only not be grateful to him, but would also quickly clash with him out of vigilance and fear. In the end, either the person installed would be deposed, or the entire family of the emperor would be exterminated.

"Alright, Brother Ranming!" Feng Kun spoke up again, "We've been dealing with Mengde for quite some time now, he won't let us suffer losses. He made it very clear just now, it's not that he doesn't want to be a loyal minister, but he can't risk the lives of his entire family to be one, can he? Besides, he didn't eat the imperial gardens himself, but used them to reward his soldiers. Aren't these soldiers also of the Han dynasty?"

"Hmph!" Zhang Huan sneered, "Feng Kun, now that you've become Grand Commandant and been granted the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households, you speak up for him in everything. Yes, he didn't give you the Imperial Garden, because he couldn't. But is it right for him to use it to win over his own soldiers?"

“Zhang Sikong!” Wei Cong said, “You’re mistaken. I do intend to move the Imperial Garden, but to be precise, it’s for you and the soldiers under Grand Commandant Feng. As for my 20,000 men, they have large tracts of land to be allocated in Jiaozhou, Jingzhou, and Yangzhou. Why would I need to target the Imperial Garden? If you don’t like it, then forget it. Tomorrow I’ll go to the palace and have it allocated only to Grand Commandant Feng’s soldiers. Zhang Sikong’s land will not be allocated!”

This wasn't the first time Zhang Huan had been cornered by Wei Cong that night. He stared at Wei Cong in astonishment, his mouth agape, speechless for a moment. Even Feng Kun, resentful of Zhang Huan's harsh words earlier and unwilling to smooth things over, turned his head away and bowed to Wei Cong alone, saying, "Then I thank the General on behalf of the soldiers!"

"No need to thank me, thank the Emperor and the Empress Dowager!" Wei Cong laughed. "Actually, you could have told your soldiers in advance that you got it by fighting for it with me and the Empress Dowager!"

"This...this is vying for people's hearts with you and the Empress Dowager!" Feng Kun exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

"It's alright!" Wei Cong laughed. "The Grand Commandant is already so old, the Empress Dowager won't suspect anything, and as for me, I won't care either!"

"Alright, alright!" Feng Kun thought for a moment and said to Wei Cong, "Then thank you very much, General!"

"No need for such formalities between us!" Wei Cong laughed. "This matter is settled. Alright, let's discuss the next matter, the construction of the Mengjin Bridge, starting with the source of funding..."

Seeing Wei Cong skip over the matter of distributing rewards to the soldiers and continue speaking, Zhang Huan's face flushed red and then paled, and he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. He had spent half his life leading troops in battles on the frontier, and he knew perfectly well what his foundation was. Although the troops he brought to Luoyang this time were not numerous, they numbered over ten thousand. If, as Wei Cong said, land was distributed, he might not even need them anymore, and the Zhang family of Dunhuang's foundation would be firmly established. After all, who could bring tens of thousands of soldiers who had benefited from him into the world? But he had already made his position clear, and he couldn't back down now, leaving him in a dilemma.

"Let's leave it at that for now!" Wei Cong yawned. "Time flies when we're talking about things. How about we discuss the rest tomorrow? What do you two think?"

"That's perfect!" Feng Kun laughed. "Mengde, you're still young, but these old bones of mine are starting to give out!"

"Hehehe!" Wei Cong laughed, "Grand Commandant Feng, you're not old at all. In my opinion, you can serve for at least another three to five years without any problem!"

"Three to five years? I can't accept that!" Feng Kun shook his head with a wry smile: "At most, I'll have to submit a petition to retire in a year or two, otherwise this old body of mine will have to be left in Luoyang!"

"Luoyang isn't so bad after all!" Wei Cong stood up with a grin. "To be frank, the feng shui of Mangshan is excellent!" "No matter how good the feng shui is, it can't compare to my hometown!" Feng Kun sighed. "To be honest, Mengde, after this year's work is done, I'll submit my petition to retire. I owe all my success in becoming one of the Three Dukes to you. I'm content!"

Wei Cong saw Zhang and Feng out of the mansion. The two men thanked Wei Cong and then got into their own carriages. Zhang Huan became increasingly depressed. Suddenly, he stomped hard twice on the carriage floor, and the carriage stopped abruptly. Someone outside said, "Minister, what is it?"

"To the Grand Commandant's residence!"

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"My body isn't what it used to be!" Feng Kun apologized to Zhang Huan for his exhaustion. "It's getting worse every day. Ranming, what's the matter that you have to tell me so late?" As he spoke, he yawned, and his drooping eyelids made it seem as if he was about to fall asleep.

"It's still about tonight!"

"What happened tonight?" Feng Kun sighed. "Hasn't everything already been made clear? If you don't want it, Wei Cong won't give it to you. What else is there to say?"

“It’s not that I don’t want them, but those soldiers aren’t my private army, they’re all soldiers of the Han Dynasty!” Zhang Huan retorted, “Why distinguish between them?”

"So, Ranming, you've regretted it again? And you want to ask for more for your soldiers?" Feng Kun shook his head: "Why are you doing this? You're all talk and no action, and in the end you'll have to go back to Wei Cong and make yourself lose face."

“Lord Feng, you are mistaken! I am only loyal to the Emperor and the court!” Zhang Huan retorted.

"Fine, fine, fine!" Feng Kun waved his hand. "You're loyal to the Emperor and the court, so we're not, okay? But believe it or not, if we follow Wei Cong and the Empress Dowager's ways, the Han Dynasty can be at peace, and the Emperor can at least live to be fifteen or sixteen. If he marries a daughter of the Dou family, it won't be difficult for him to assume personal rule. If we follow your ways, the world will definitely be in turmoil, and the Emperor might die of illness tomorrow. You and I are both old, and we should know that it's not enough to just be loyal ministers; you have to be able to get things done. Wei Cong, put aside everything else, you've seen these past few days how well he's handled things, one by one. Isn't that being a loyal minister? In my opinion, if you don't change your mind, you shouldn't be one of the Three Dukes anymore. You should just write a letter and return to Liangzhou!"

Zhang Huan was speechless for a moment after being interrupted by Feng Kun's words. After a long while, he said, "What if Wei Cong does something disloyal in the future?"

"Sigh!" Feng Kun sighed. "Zhang Ranming, Zhang Ranming! How old are we? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say we're practically buried in the ground. Why are you still worrying so much? Do you really want to stay in this position for another ten or eight years? Do you even have the energy for it? Why not work for another year or two, then petition to retire and go back to your hometown, take on some disciples, teach, and mentor the younger generation in your village? As for what happens after that, we can just close our eyes and leave it at that. Do you expect two dead men like us to care about Wei Cong? Isn't that a joke?"

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Leaving the Grand Commandant's residence, Zhang Huan boarded the carriage, a sense of bewilderment he had never felt before. Feng Kun's indifferent, detached attitude, focusing solely on the present, had completely stunned him. He had never imagined such a thing—old age and death becoming a refuge, freeing him from the censure of the scriptures he had studied, allowing him to follow his own heart. Was this the sage's ability to act as he pleased without transgressing the rules? Thinking this, he quickly shook his head, banishing this rude and somewhat absurd thought from his mind. Then, a question suddenly surfaced in his mind: "If I and Feng Kun can use old age and impending death to escape our shackles, how did Wei Cong manage to do it?"

The General's Mansion.

After seeing Feng Kun and Zhang Huan off, Wei Cong didn't go to bed immediately. He still had a lot of work to do. In a sense, power has weight; the greater the power, the heavier it is. If you can't bear it, you'll be crushed by it. Wei Cong was a typical example. Every order he issued, from the initial idea to the final document, had to undergo repeated consideration and revision, which required immense energy. Shi Xie, who had just joined the shogunate, only then realized this.

"The petition to launch a campaign against Tan Shihuai beyond the Great Wall is rejected!" Wei Cong said, wiping his face with a hot towel. "Why? It's simple. How can we fight without soldiers, food, and weapons? We just finished a civil war, and Youzhou, Jizhou, and Bingzhou are in turmoil. Shouldn't we recuperate for a few years first? Subordinate state troops? Please, subordinate state troops are meant to be your support. Only if your own troops are capable will subordinate state troops fight hard. Your own troops are exhausted and their armor and weapons are incomplete. Subordinate state troops aren't stupid; they'll only look down on you. How can they fight hard for you? They'll be lucky if they don't turn against you. Rejected! Rejected!"

"Yes!" Shi Xie nodded as he wrote furiously, transforming Wei Cong's extremely colloquial writing into elegant formal language. After finishing, he handed it to Wei Cong, who glanced at it briefly and nodded: "Alright, that's fine! Put it aside for me to stamp later!"

"Yes!" Shi Xie responded. He looked at Wei Cong, and then asked, "General, the northern barbarians are powerful and raid the border prefectures and counties every year. If this continues, the border areas will only become weaker and weaker. When will we be able to send troops to conquer Tan Shihuai?"

"Send troops to attack Tan Shihuai?" Wei Cong frowned and tossed the towel in his hand to the servant beside him. "Why send troops to attack him?"

"what?"

“What I mean is, there’s no need for a major military campaign to conquer Tanshihuai!” Wei Cong replied irritably. “This is no longer the era of Emperor Mingzhang. To be frank, the court has nothing to offer and has many troubles to deal with. Tanshihuai has already pacified the entire northern desert region, and his royal court has been established at the foot of Tanhan Mountain (present-day Shangdu County, Inner Mongolia) and the banks of the Chuqiu River (present-day Dongyang River), only 300 li from Gaoliu, a distance of two or three days for cavalry. To deal with such a powerful enemy, we would have to deploy several armies simultaneously, each with 30,000 to 40,000 troops and tens of thousands of cavalry. This is beyond the court’s current capacity. Besides, even if we defeat Tanshihuai by spending money and supplies, the court will not be able to establish a stronghold in the southern desert region. The vacated territory will only allow other barbarian tribes to become stronger, which would be a net loss!”

(End of this chapter)