Chapter 17: Returning to Luoyang, Liu Zhuang Seeks Counsel

The wheels of history always roll forward; they will not pause for anyone.

—Not even the Emperor can stop them.

From the moment the state mourning ended;

And the posthumous title for Liu Xiu was determined.

This Emperor, who had once illuminated an era, had completely vanished from the human world, and the era that belonged to him would ultimately turn its final page.

Luoyang.

It was now the second year of the Yongping era.

After a lapse of nearly twenty years, the descendants of the Gu family had finally received an imperial edict once again, and were about to step back into the political center of the Great Han.

However, the Gu family of today was naturally not what it once was, and this imperial edict did not stir up any waves.

Things were different, after all.

Following the successive passings of Gu Xiao and Liu Xiu, the Gu family was no longer the existence that everyone had to look up to.

Times change and the world shifts; Gu Xiao’s prestige would only continue to wane.

With no one in the imperial court, it was naturally impossible for the Gu family to maintain a prestige that remained at its zenith.

Of course, the most critical factor was the attitude of the Emperor, Liu Zhuang.

His personality was completely different from that of Liu Xiu.

From the very beginning of his reign, Liu Zhuang had thoroughly displayed his differences, bringing a profound shock to all the ministers of the Great Han.

He had actually restored the system of ceremonial robes that had been abolished since the Qin dynasty.

The crowns, garments, jade pendants, and imperial carriages were all modeled after ancient styles.

These rituals, recorded only in ancient texts, felt somewhat unfamiliar even to the assembled ministers.

And that was not all; subsequently, Liu Zhuang demonstrated formidable political acumen.

He first appointed Deng Yu, the head of the current meritorious officials, as Grand Tutor.

He then appointed the imperial clansman Liu Cang as General of the Household of Cavalry.

After settling the meritorious officials and the imperial clan, he immediately initiated a large-scale personnel reshuffle.

After all, he had been the Crown Prince in the Eastern Palace for over a decade.

Moreover, Liu Zhuang had been intelligent since childhood; from a young age, Liu Xiu would frequently borrow state affairs to ask for his thoughts, and later, he even participated directly in military matters.

He already possessed his own core team and could be said to know the court of the Great Han like the back of his hand.

The saying "a new emperor brings a new court" was manifested to the fullest in the current Yongping era.

Yet, through this series of personnel changes, the ministers keenly perceived the underlying tone of Liu Zhuang’s governance.

—He was suppressing the families of imperial in-laws!

This point alone was enough for the ministers to stop regarding the Gu family with any particular concern.

Although the Gu family was different from traditional imperial in-laws.

As long as the Emperor held this attitude, it was destined that the Gu family could not ascend to the heavens again in the new dynasty.

Because Gu Kang’s wife was Liu Li!

Though he was a brother-in-law, he was still an imperial in-law!

In truth, Gu Yi was naturally well aware of all this.

Regarding this Emperor, Liu Zhuang.

Although he was not often mentioned in modern society, Gu Yi was still clear about his personality.

Setting aside his achievements, one need only speak of his greatest characteristic.

Guarding against imperial in-laws!

Throughout Emperor Ming’s life, he never once heavily employed an imperial in-law.

But Liu Xiu had said those words in public back then; he could not disregard the Emperor’s dignity.

Fortune and misfortune are interdependent.

Since the Gu family had received "imperial favor" during Liu Xiu’s reign, they were destined to bear the subsequent costs.

Furthermore, in Gu Yi’s view, marrying a Princess was far better than marrying the women of the family into the imperial harem.

Since it could not be avoided, one should minimize the risk.

Although this move might cause the Gu family to not be heavily employed by Liu Zhuang.

But as long as no unexpected situations occurred, even if the Gu family could not be heavily employed, they could still ensure that the Gu family’s floor would not be too low.

After all, the Gu family’s foundation was too shallow; the moment they lost power, they could potentially fall straight to the bottom.

This could also be considered a safeguard.

Moreover, Gu Yi did not believe that Liu Zhuang would necessarily suppress the Gu family harshly.

—The current Gu family was different from ordinary imperial in-laws.

The Gu family had started from nothing.

Liu Xiu had once used the Gu family to suppress the group of meritorious officials, forcing them to honestly hand over the power they held.

And with the Gu family’s current population and foundation, they were simply not yet comparable to the great clans of the era.

The world today was completely different from the early Han period.

Back then, those who accompanied Liu Bang in conquering the world were almost all fellow villagers and old brothers, mostly commoners or the lowest-ranking officials.

But what about the Great Han today?

Almost every one of the meritorious official group came from a great clan, and behind every one of them lay their own political stance.

Only the Gu family was different.

For an Emperor with Liu Zhuang’s personality, this was a huge plus.

And events unfolded exactly as Gu Yi had anticipated.

Liu Zhuang had truly summoned the Gu family.

A caravan stretching dozens of meters moved slowly along the imperial road.

What was loaded on the carts was not wealth, but the Gu family’s latest improved curved-shaft plow.

Over these years, Gu Kang had never stopped improving farming tools.

And because he was very knowledgeable about farming matters.

After his several improvements, the current curved-shaft plow had completely surpassed the existing long-straight-shaft plow in practicality.

This was what Liu Zhuang’s edict had required Gu Kang to bring.

Moreover, Gu Kang also wanted to take this opportunity to probe the future direction of this Son of Heaven’s governance.

This was extremely critical for him.

Although he had been in Julu, he had been paying close attention to the situation in the court all these years; the series of measures taken after Liu Zhuang ascended the throne were enough to illustrate the difference in personality between him and Liu Xiu.

Whether it was civil governance or military rule.

As someone with a political attribute as high as 90 points.

Gu Kang would not let any opportunity slip by.

Everyone in the world could see that the Emperor did not like imperial in-laws.

How could he not see it?

Gu Kang was very clear that this was likely the only opportunity for the Gu family in this reign.

If they failed to grasp it, even if they didn't fall to the bottom, the Gu family’s prestige would rapidly decline.

The current Gu family already lacked sufficient foundation in the eyes of the world.

If they truly wanted to lay the foundation for eternal glory, they had to have talented people coming forward generation after generation, until the Gu family’s name was considered common knowledge among the people; only then could it be considered a preliminary success.

It was precisely because of this.

Gu Kang had only brought Gu Sheng on this trip.

Since Gu Xiao’s passing, he had been carrying the entire Gu family, and he was incomparably clear about the talents of his two younger siblings.

They were capable of maintaining the status quo, but insufficient for building a legacy.

The world today no longer had the "merit of following the dragon" for them to establish; they could only reach the highest point through their own efforts.

Only by being elite could they revive the Gu family’s prestige in the world.

This was the goal of Gu Kang’s trip!

Moving forward along the way.

Facing the prospect of stepping back into Luoyang, the reactions of the two brothers were completely different.

Gu Kang was as calm as ever from beginning to end.

It was hard for anyone to tell from his face what he was thinking.

His personality had always been very steady and calm; no matter what he encountered, he remained unperturbed.

As for Gu Sheng, he was like most military generals of the era; the closer they got to Luoyang, the more excited he became.

He had been stifled for too long!!!

No military general would lose the desire to build a legacy.

Gu Sheng was the same!

He had always admired those famous generals of old, longing for the day when he could build a legacy like them, adding bricks and tiles to the eternal foundation of the Gu family.

The two brothers rode at the very front just like that.

Seeing Gu Kang keeping a straight face the whole time, Gu Sheng could not help but speak up to persuade him: "Elder brother, there is no need to worry."

"With the talents of us two brothers, how could we not be heavily employed by His Majesty?"

Although Gu Cheng’s political acumen was higher than Gu Xiao’s.

Compared to Gu Kang, however, he paled in comparison.

Gu Kang had been constantly contemplating what the Gu family should do if this trip failed to gain the Emperor’s favor.

A gradual reduction of their fiefs was inevitable.

The title of Marquis of Champion might not be secure either.

If they focused on education, given the Gu family’s current foundation, perhaps they could rise again if talented individuals emerged in the future.

But all of this was full of uncertainty.

Gu Kang was a pragmatist; he wanted to consider everything for the sake of the entire family.

Even if this generation was destined to yield no results, he could not let the entire family suffer too great an impact.

But this was destined to be a problem that could not be solved in the short term.

At the very least, before seeing the Son of Heaven, Liu Zhuang, the future of the Gu family was full of uncertainty.

Luoyang.

When the two brothers, Gu Kang and Gu Cheng, stepped into this magnificent, massive city once again, both of their expressions were somewhat complex.

As the current political center of the Great Han, the changes in the entire city of Luoyang were immense compared to before.

Gu Cheng was fine, though.

After all, he had come to report the funeral when Gu Xiao passed away.

But for Gu Kang, it was completely different; ever since he left Luoyang with Gu Xiao, this city had only been something he heard about.

He had thought about the scene of returning to Luoyang more than once.

Now, it had actually come to pass.

As the memories of his youth surfaced bit by bit from his mind, even someone with his steady temperament could not help but be moved.

For this return of the Gu family, Liu Zhuang still gave enough face to the "Marquis of Champion."

Although it did not reach the peak of Gu Xiao’s time.

He still sent protocol officials to welcome them and had Gu Kang and Gu Cheng go directly to the imperial palace to meet him.

In this era, this could be considered a great honor.

Moreover, Liu Zhuang had clearly prepared for this meeting, having the ministers who were originally discussing affairs in the Southern Palace withdraw, leaving only the daily guards.

And Gu Yi had not guessed wrong.

The reason Liu Zhuang summoned the Gu family this time indeed had to do with the fact that the Gu family was different from other great clans.

However, it did not stop there.

The biggest reason was that Liu Xiu had told him before he passed away that both sons of the Gu family had talent and could be put to important use.

This was Liu Xiu’s ability as an emperor to recognize talent.

He had told Liu Zhuang more than once.

When he had just ascended the throne, Liu Zhuang actually did not take this to heart.

Because he was well-versed in the chaos caused by Wang Mang, he had a deep sense of wariness toward the families of imperial in-laws.

But when he heard that Gu Kang often went deep into the fields and had improved agricultural tools, causing the grain production in Julu Commandery to rise higher and higher, he decided to meet the current descendants of the Gu family.

Perhaps this was the greatest joy of this game.

The idle move Gu Yi had made to gain achievement points had instead played a major role in breaking the deadlock for the Gu family.

Even he had not foreseen this.

Southern Palace.

Although he had already guessed it in his heart, when Liu Zhuang saw Gu Kang again, he still could not help but be stunned.

Because he often went deep into the fields to test farming tools.

Compared to most scholars today, Gu Kang’s skin appeared somewhat darker, surprisingly not much different from Gu Cheng, a martial man who practiced martial arts year-round.

This was completely beyond Liu Zhuang’s expectations.

For a moment, Liu Zhuang’s gaze even softened slightly.

Sure enough, a pragmatist like Gu Kang fit Liu Zhuang’s expectations for a subject very well!

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty!"

Gu Kang did not lose focus because of Liu Zhuang’s momentary astonishment, but instead performed the salute earnestly.

And Gu Cheng, at this time, also completely put away his usual flamboyance, silently standing behind Gu Kang and following suit with the salute.

"Jishi, Zhenyu," Liu Zhuang called them by their courtesy names affectionately, "Why must you two be so formal with me?"

"There are no outsiders here, and the late Emperor never stood on such ceremony with Lord Xiao in private."

"Quickly, take your seats."

Hearing the Emperor address them this way, Gu Cheng’s tense expression immediately relaxed a little.

The Emperor directly addressing a subject by their courtesy name.

This had always been an act indicating closeness.

But Gu Kang remained steady, and only after solemnly saluting Liu Zhuang again did he walk to his seat and sit down.

Liu Zhuang kept his eyes fixed on Gu Kang, the expression on his face becoming increasingly complex.

"I have long heard that Jishi often concerns himself with the hardships of the farmers."

"Now it seems, what was said is not false."

He said with a sigh.

Upon hearing this, before Gu Kang could speak, the relaxed Gu Cheng immediately revealed a smile and said, "That is only natural. Your Majesty may not know, but my brother’s understanding of farming is in no way inferior to that of the farmers."

"The fields he has personally cultivated over these past few years even have better yields than those of experienced farmers."

"Oh? Is that truly so?" Liu Zhuang revealed deep interest, looking at Gu Kang and asking, "Does Jishi have any unique strategies?"

"I heard you improved the plow, and the effect far exceeds the long-straight-shaft plow. I wonder if you brought it?"

Here it comes!

Gu Kang understood in his heart that this seemingly casual conversation was actually hiding the Emperor’s probing of his talent.

It was very likely to directly determine the future status of the Gu family.

But his expression did not falter in the slightest; he bowed to Liu Zhuang and said, "In reply to Your Majesty, your subject has brought the curved-shaft plow, and it is currently outside the palace."

"Bring it here at once." Liu Zhuang was still very interested in this and hurriedly gave the order.

And taking advantage of this time, Gu Kang also voiced his own reforms regarding agricultural matters.

"Your Majesty, your subject has followed my father deep into the fields since childhood to observe farming, so I do indeed know a thing or two about agricultural matters."

"The foundation of farming is the land."

"Nowadays, the people throughout our Great Han all deeply understand the importance of fertilizing the fields."

"The methods used also vary, such as manure, plant ash, oil dregs, and so on, each with its own merits."

"Your subject used this as a base and made some improvements, such as adding river mud, pond mud, and other things, which makes the effect even better."

Gu Kang had deep attainments in agriculture.

Although he had not yet fully grasped all the experience Gu Yi had left behind, his level was already far beyond that of his contemporaries.

Simply put, this was experience that required generations of people to slowly grope for.

But, Gu Kang had brought it forward!

And just as Gu Kang was saying these things, the curved-shaft plow was also brought in.

Gu Kang did not stop; using the curved-shaft plow, he explained its ingenuity to Liu Zhuang in detail, such as how it saved physical strength and what its advantages were compared to the current long-straight-shaft plow.

Liu Zhuang was completely captivated by Gu Kang’s explanation.

Perhaps influenced by Liu Xiu, he was also extremely attentive to the affairs of the people.

Now that he saw Gu Kang speaking of a grand plan concerning the people’s livelihood.

How could he not be serious?

Gu Kang’s steady and resolute character destined him not to suffer from stage fright, and he explained everything with perfect clarity.

The more he listened, the more complex Liu Zhuang’s expression became.

Although the current Gu family was not what it was at its peak.

But for someone of Gu Kang’s status to be so knowledgeable about farming was enough to show his difference.

He remained silent like this until Gu Kang finished speaking, and only then did Liu Zhuang let out a long sigh and say, "If not for the late Emperor, I fear I would have lost a great talent for governing the world."

"From this, it can be seen..."

"I am far inferior to the late Emperor."

His expression was full of emotion.

Facing such self-deprecating words from the Emperor, even Gu Cheng did not know how to respond for a moment.

But Liu Zhuang did not care; his expression returned to normal in an instant, and he looked at Gu Kang earnestly and asked again: "Jishi, let me ask you again."

"Given the current situation of our Great Han."

"How should one govern the world?"

Having confirmed that Gu Kang indeed had talent, then he had to determine Gu Kang’s upper limit!

Clearly, that was what Liu Zhuang meant.

Hearing this, Gu Kang’s expression did not change, but he did not answer Liu Zhuang directly either; instead, he saluted Liu Zhuang once more, and only then did he speak:

"Your subject dares to ask, in what way does Your Majesty wish to govern the world?"

Gu Kang was a person with a very flexible moral bottom line; if there was one persistence, it was likely to keep the Gu family continuously great.

Determining the Emperor's thoughts before providing an answer was a demonstration of his self-confidence.

Regarding this answer from Gu Kang, Liu Zhuang was extremely surprised; he fell silent for a moment, his gaze gradually sharpening, and he said with exceptional resonance:

"I intend to complete the great undertaking of the late Emperor Zhongyuan!"

The great undertaking of Zhongyuan was the magnificent ambition that Liu Xiu had expressed after the Fengshan sacrifices;

—to restore the national strength to the level of the era of Emperor Xiaowen of the Former Han;

to pacify the Western Regions and settle the Xiongnu;

to leave behind a foundation for the Great Han that would last for ten thousand generations!

Gu Kang understood Liu Zhuang's intentions in an instant, and his expression finally changed.

When a capable minister meets a mediocre ruler, it has always ended in regret.

Gu Kang had been worrying about this matter all along.

To establish a great undertaking, one must not encounter a mediocre ruler.

After Liu Zhuang spoke these words, the heavy stone that had been hanging in Gu Kang's heart finally began to settle.

——————

"In the third month of the second year of Yongping, the Emperor issued an edict for the Gu Shizi to have an audience, and he asked Gu Kang for his strategy.

Gu Kang responded with composure; his words were incisive and his logic was orderly.

Upon hearing this, the Emperor was astonished and marveled at him, and thus he sat knee-to-knee with Gu Kang to talk at length, not stopping until dusk."

——《Book of the Later Han: Annals of Emperor Xiaoming》

(End of this chapter)