A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 256 Suicide
Murder techniques?

Zhang Tang, Mo Zimo, Huo Guang, and Chen Mo sat up straight; the old prime minister was about to teach them real skills.

Gongsun Hong smiled helplessly as he looked at his disciples' sudden surge of fighting spirit.

He couldn't understand why all the disciples he taught, despite being such a gentle and refined gentleman, were bloodthirsty.

The snow and wind howled, their whistling sound seeping into the study through the crack in the door, echoing Gongsun Hong's voice.

"The situation in the Han Dynasty can be summed up in one sentence: it is a struggle between His Majesty and the Crown Prince."

“We are the Crown Prince’s ministers, while others, officials, powerful families, wealthy merchants, wandering knights and thieves, etc., all those who serve His Majesty are His Majesty’s cronies and forces.”

"In the imperial court, the methods for eliminating other groups of officials varied, but the general order was to first overthrow the representative figures and then eliminate the factions behind them."

"The former is easier; it simply involves eliminating a person. As the ancient sages said, 'No one is perfect; everyone makes mistakes.' Whether in terms of morality or law, if you seize on the other person's weakness or vulnerability, that person is defeated."

"The latter is more difficult because it involves eliminating not just one person, but a group of people with shared interests. These people can advance and retreat together, with the wise using their wisdom, the wealthy using their money, and the powerful using their strength, thus creating the possibility of turning defeat into victory."

"A single chopstick is easy to break, but a bundle of chopsticks cannot be broken by anyone but a strongman."

"When faced with a situation where you can't break the chopsticks by force, the best way is to separate the chopsticks and break them one by one."

"Take Your Majesty as an example. After retiring to the Ganquan Palace, Your Majesty had already 'fallen'. The reason why you can still stir up trouble in the Han Dynasty is twofold: First, you are the Emperor of the Han Dynasty. As long as you do not abdicate, you are the Son of Heaven. Second, you are the father of the powerful Crown Prince."

"The emperor's authority is unshakeable; that is what later generations seek. It can be taken away but not shaken. If the word 'loyalty' is questioned, everyone in the world will become a traitor."

"Similarly, the principles of filial piety and etiquette must not be compromised. Otherwise, who would trust someone who is not even filial to their own parents, let alone give them an important position?"

If everyone in the world is unfilial, there will be no one to rely on in the future.

This brings us back to the concept of 'loyalty,' for the unfilial are not loyal!

"Our great Han Dynasty governs the country with 'loyalty' and 'filial piety', and this is the reason why."

"Due to the constraints of etiquette and order, the sovereign cannot do too much to His Majesty, at least not directly 'eliminate' His Majesty."

Gongsun Hong paused here, allowing his disciples to have a clearer understanding of the special nature of the "ruler and father".

Zhang, Mo, Huo, and Chen looked up.

I figured out what the teacher meant: with the ruler and father, the order of many things is reversed.

"Therefore, we must first eliminate His Majesty's supporters, and then 'get rid of' His Majesty..."

Gongsun Hong continued, "At the very least, we will completely eliminate His Majesty from the political landscape of the Han Dynasty."

The ultimate goal of the Crown Prince's court officials is to strip His Majesty of all political power.

The four disciples awoke with a start.

"Xiao Mo's plan is correct. We've laid a wide net to catch His Majesty's cronies like fish in one fell swoop. Putting aside the possibility of a lose-lose situation, Xiao Mo, you must understand that fishing is for eating and selling fish. Live fish and dead fish have different tastes and prices." Gongsun Hong looked at Chen Mo and earnestly instructed him, "For the Han Dynasty and for His Majesty, 'live fish' are far more important than 'dead fish,' and ideally... they should still be alive when they're served."

A chill rose in the study.

Zhang, Mo, Huo, and Chen felt a chill run down their spines. What the teacher really wanted to say was probably not that the live fish was served, but that the live fish was eaten.
Chen Moying looked at her teacher, and after confirming with her eyes that she had indeed chosen the right person to study under.

He only thought about fishing, while the teacher thought about how to eat the fish and how to sell it for a good price.

Even the family traditions of the Yuan Dynasty cannot compare to those who live to old age.

Gongsun Hong seemed to know what his disciple was thinking, and tapped Chen Mo's head with his finger. "How can you talk about your teacher like that?"

Fingers with little flesh and blood, almost indistinguishable from stone or iron, struck Chen Mo's head, causing him to grimace in pain and his face contorted in agony. He never expected that his sect would have such a punishment.

Mo Zimo and Huo Guang seemed to empathize, their heads buzzing. The teacher had never hit them before, and they didn't want to be hit; just looking at it hurt.

"Furthermore, different fish have different prices and are sold to people in the north and south in different ways. In the Central Plains, we often cook or boil fish, while in the southern Yue region, we often eat fish raw with dipping sauce and bitter wine, considering it a delicacy. However, cooking fish is generally safe, but eating it raw is more dangerous, as it can harm the internal organs and, in critical situations, even endanger lives."

There's a lot to know about eating raw food; don't assume you can just swallow it whole without any care.

Zhang, Tang, and the other three all showed expressions of humility and eagerness to learn.

“Now, there are two problems in trying to purge His Majesty’s cronies: first, they are still powerful and cannot be easily subdued; second, their large numbers may alarm both the government and the people.” Gongsun Hong analyzed.

Officials, powerful clans, wealthy merchants, and wandering knights and thieves—this basically encompasses all the major forces below the Han imperial power. Taking rash action would only cause collective panic in the court and among the people, especially officials and powerful clans, most of whom have government officials in office. A slight misstep could lead to unrest among the people.

"Therefore, the court should deal with the restoration forces in different categories."

Gongsun Hong returned to his desk and sat down, looking at his disciples. "Among all the forces that have attempted to restore the dynasty, the most difficult to eliminate, the easiest to cause panic, and the most destructive are none other than the group of founding heroes. Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse, let alone one that has only recently died."

The founding heroes ended their monopoly on the Three Dukes in just a few years. If corrupt officials only ate a bite of the common people, then the founding heroes had ate the Han Dynasty for eighty years.

Embezzling money, hiding people, controlling soldiers... Opening the pages of the Han Dynasty law, there is no crime that the Yuan family has not committed; they are all fat and bloated.

Thanks to the merits of the founding emperors, the court had little power to deal with them. It was only during Your Majesty's reign that the Han emperors began to settle scores with the founding families.

With a record of merits, money, manpower, and troops, they are comprehensive. His Majesty has gone to great lengths, even promising the meritorious families that after the restoration, the "agreement to share the world" with Emperor Gaozong will be restored for thirty years without change. This is the reason why His Majesty has tried to win over the meritorious families.

These are the main forces behind the restoration.

"Among the families that supported the restoration, there are the Chen family of Xiao Mo, the Zhou family of Pingqu Marquis, the Xiao family of Zan Marquis, and the Zhang family of Liu Marquis who have been stripped of their titles and fiefdoms by the court, as well as families whose titles and fiefdoms have been passed down to this day and whose status has risen with the tide, such as the Cao family of Pingyang Marquis Cao Can, the Wang family of Anguo Marquis Wang Ling, the Yong family of Shifang Marquis Yong Chi, and so on."

Gongsun Hong's voice was cold, "The Yuangong family wants to restore the glory of their ancestor, but they have completely forgotten that the word 'meritorious official' does not exist among the Liu family rulers!"

"To deal with these families, we must consider their ancestors' contributions to the Han Dynasty, so as not to discourage other meritorious officials, both present and future. Those with official positions in the court should be directly sent to serve as officials outside the capital. Those without official positions should be given official positions and sent to serve outside the capital, disappearing from Chang'an and the power center of the Han Dynasty for a period of time. Then, they can commit suicide!"

(End of this chapter)