[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful":3,"chapter-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-27":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Even a Gentleman Must Be Careful",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2268647,4429,"Chapter 27: Twenty-Seven: The Age of Imperial Supremacy and Popular Neglect","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-27",27,"\u003Cp>Twenty-Seven: The Age of Imperial Supremacy and Popular Neglect\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong suddenly noticed something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something… he had ignored since arriving here, buried in relentless work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, the current Zhou Dynasty is indeed a golden age worthy of historical record; Luoyang and Chang’an in Guanzhong are truly flourishing capitals drawing envoys from myriad nations, and the empire’s frontier troops, brimming with martial vigor, make even defeating a minor state seem unworthy of the title “famous general,” while the integrated cultural influence of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism sweeps across the surrounding barbarians.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if the Wei clan’s female emperor is not a wise ruler, she is certainly a strong one, far from being a tyrant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This young dynasty, barely eighty years old and recently renamed from Gan to Zhou, must be acknowledged as being in a peak phase of unstoppable upward momentum—its foundation is relatively solid, far from the terminal phase of historical cycles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong was reborn from a time that was already a golden age into a dynasty that is also, in its own way, a golden age.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he had overlooked… this glorious golden age has nothing to do with the tens of thousands of disaster-stricken people in Longcheng County, nor with the vast majority of commoners across the empire’s ten circuits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of the wealth of this imperial golden age is concentrated in the hands of the imperial family Zhou Ting, the Guanlong aristocracy, the Five Surnames and Seven Clans, and local powerful gentry—perhaps extending only to the well-off commoners living in the empire’s heartland, Guanzhong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So what does this golden age have to do with you?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It is most tragic when a golden age is built atop widespread suffering—so much so that historians dare not even record it, fearing it would sully the legacy of “the reign of X” or “the golden age of X”; even future readers of history refuse to look, lest it shatter their illusions and yearnings for the great dynasty their ancestors built.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And even if you strain every sinew, you cannot topple this golden age—it remains intact, unshaken… think of how utterly hopeless that is.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And if even a “golden age” looks like this, Ouyang Rong vowed never again to open a history book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet here he was, standing right within a future footnote of some history book, merely a lowly seventh-rank county magistrate, staring wide-eyed at the suffering ignored beneath this golden age…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What should I do, Ouyang Lianghan?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong soared once more into the clouds, gazing at the ancient pagoda before him and asking himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But no one answered him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After standing outside the pagoda for a long while, Ouyang Rong turned and left, returning to reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had not entered the Merit Pagoda in many days; since establishing the relief camp with work-for-relief programs, he had indeed occasionally heard the crisp sound of wooden fish drums—likely accumulating considerable merit—but he had never gone inside to check.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had been waiting, waiting until the relief and flood-control efforts were nearly arranged, then entering the pagoda to see—if he reached ten thousand merit points, he would immediately go to the Pure Land Palace to claim his blessing and leave; if not, he would remain as Longcheng County Magistrate a while longer—after all, his term was four years, and he might as well accomplish as much as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if his merit reached ten thousand before relief and flood-control were complete, Ouyang Rong could not bring himself to abandon his post halfway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He never abandoned a task halfway unless absolutely forced—whether it was the Merit Pagoda app being banned and his return to Donglin Temple, his stubborn decision to return “home” to take the imperial exams, or now, relief and flood-control—this was his nature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So why enter the pagoda before finishing?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Absurd as this is.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Again, the garden with drifting plum petals; within a quiet pavilion by the water, a beautiful woman arrived wearing a crown and carrying a sword, and upon seating herself, uttered these four words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who upset Sister Xie?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer lowered her head, stroking a cat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She sat alone by the water in a deep purple narrow skirt; the cat in her arms was peculiar—pure white, with black markings around its mouth resembling a butterfly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this time in the Zhou Dynasty, cats were called “li nu,” rare creatures mostly imported as tribute from foreign lands, such as Persian cats; imperial consorts and princesses kept them in abundance—the current favorite, Princess Changle, was a “cat slave,” rumored to own seven fine cats, each with elegant names.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, the keeping of li nu gradually became fashionable among the upper-class women of Luoyang; yet in the south, they remained exceedingly rare—Wei Mei had seen only a few, once spotting an elderly Wang clan sister in Wuyi Alley who cherished one; indeed, the creature was charming, but she found it too delicate, and Wei Mei disliked anything overly pampered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Rats, all rats! Even the grain meant to save lives in the relief granaries is not spared… absurd as this is.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer looked up and saw the Xie clan maiden still gripping the hilt of her sword on her knees, fingers white with pressure, knuckles cracking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister Xie comes from a six-generation noble lineage, so naturally you find them absurd.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei turned her body sharply, “Don’t you find it absurd?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Absurd, but not surprising.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei stared at her. “You’re not angry either.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What use is my anger? Everyone has their fate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What if… you were given the authority to decide their fate?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Execute them all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer lowered her head, stroking the cat. Wei Mei turned away, gazing at the night view beyond the pavilion, silent now, her gaze somewhat lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the door, a plump-faced young maid waited quietly; seeing her mistress and the Xie clan maiden no longer arguing, she entered with tea and snacks for Wei Mei, then placed a book chest beside her mistress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer called, “Cai Shou,” and handed the cat in her arms to her personal maid—the cat’s name was “Xian Die Nu,” gifted by her distant aunt; originally a pair had been given, but one had already perished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike Wei Mei, Su Guoer favored gentle creatures; the more fierce they were, the more she wanted to tame them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The plump-faced maid Cai Shou happily took Xian Die Nu and ran off to stroke the cat for her mistress; only then did Wei Mei notice the white cat with butterfly-like mouth markings had a limp leg.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But her attention was not on such trivial matters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But… even if you execute them all, it won’t solve the current relief grain crisis. How will Brother later manage flood control?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer, retrieving a book from the small chest, replied softly, “Follow the path of previous county magistrates.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What path?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman with floral makeup on her brow replied indifferently, “Ask your brother—he should know. Even if he doesn’t, someone will tell him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei stared for a moment at the plum-makeup woman flipping through a poetry anthology.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Su sister was indeed brilliant; it was said her father and elder brother often came to consult her for advice, and many affairs of the Su household were decided by her in her chambers with a casual word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But unlike her father and brother, who were refined and humble, this Su sister was far too proud, indifferent to most things; sometimes Wei Mei wondered if there was anyone or anything in this world she truly cared about, besides her father and brother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei did not press further, only took a deep breath and said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And even more absurd: the court’s first thought is not relief, but stability—no riots from refugees! No food, yet no unrest allowed—I simply cannot comprehend: in their eyes, what are the common people?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Water,” Su Guoer nodded, reciting fluently, “Emperor Taizong often said: the ruler is the boat, the people are the water; water can carry the boat, and it can also capsize it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t Emperor Taizong mean, when he said that, that the people are precious, the state secondary, and the ruler least? Do they fear the people at all?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They do. But ‘the people are precious, the ruler is light’—that was said by your Confucian sages. Emperor Taizong never said it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s the difference?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In your Confucian ears, Emperor Taizong meant ‘the people are precious, the ruler is light.’ But in my… in the Li clan descendants’ ears, Emperor Taizong taught the art of rulership: the sovereign must fear danger; when the water is calm, the boat is stable. A single decree ordering you to stabilize the region, to make the people suffer a little more—that’s one way to calm the water, albeit the worst method.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei turned back, stubbornly asking: “So is it the people who are precious, or the ruler?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you asked my father or brother, they would give you the answer you wish to hear. But I am not them. What I say, Sister Xie, you won’t like.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, speak. I will listen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then I also believe the people are precious—because all the people of the world together are certainly more precious than one ruler, for this water can capsize the boat.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer nodded, then asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But what if only one-tenth of the people? One percent? One ten-thousandth? Even… just one person? Compared to the ruler, who is more precious? If he is more precious, then he is the ruler, and the ruler is the people—so in the end, isn’t it still the ‘ruler’ who is precious? And if they are equally precious, then what is the point of calling him ‘ruler’?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even your Confucians admit there is a distinction between ruler and people; everyone tacitly accepts hierarchy. So why ask who is more important?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei coldly asked: “So the ruler may impose his will upon the hearts of millions?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Guoer shook her head:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course not. The last one who did that was the mad Emperor who forged two swords; the first was the First Emperor, a thousand years ago, seeking the elixir of immortality. Both tyrants died beneath the cauldrons and swords. Thus, the Gan Dynasty ceased casting cauldrons and swords to burden the people; thus, Emperor Taizong warned: water can carry the boat, and it can capsize it—do not become a tyrant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But the problem now is: how much of this ‘people’s water’ must rise before it can overturn the ‘ruler’s boat’? If it’s merely a tiny splash at the bow, should it be heeded? The ruler always has a scale in his heart.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If all the people of the empire are likened to a lake, then all the disaster victims of Longcheng County in Jiangzhou together amount to no more than a spoonful of water—the boat… doesn’t care.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room grew still. Su Guoer quietly flipped through her usual poetry anthology; the plump-faced maid pouted, quietly teasing the cat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until a woman suddenly rose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stood before the cold, plum-makeup woman and spoke, word by word:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The ruler doesn’t care—but someone does.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Mei turned and left.\u003C\u002Fp>",1856,"2026-06-19T21:28:25.445Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","135e9fbb9c3b3a360e38bddcc46122e6dafa2c01f3f4d69e8c19178828e8559e","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-28","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-26",864,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Feven-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-cover.jpg"]