Chapter 189

Zhu Que also understood Jia Jing's ambition upon hearing his words, and his expression grew calmer.

He thought for a moment, then spoke with some hesitation.

"Marquis, I will remember your words! I will surely follow your ambition and take it upon myself to aid the realm."

"But... what worries me is that, Marquis, your power and influence grow ever greater, and you have displayed such astonishing martial prowess—how could you not be envied?"

"If slander and defamation arise among court and populace, will Your Majesty still trust the Marquis as before?"

"Since ancient times, the pattern of 'when the birds are gone, the bow is stored; when the rabbit is dead, the dog is cooked' has been all too common. I fear that even if the Marquis harbors no ulterior motives, His Majesty may still find it hard to tolerate."

Jia Jing heard this, his eyes deepening, he lifted his gaze toward the direction of Shenjing, and spoke word by word:

"How the Emperor thinks and acts is beyond our control; we can only do our own duty."

"Since I was first promoted by the Emperor, the sovereign's grace has been profound, he has entrusted me with important responsibilities, and his trust in me has only grown."

"From a lowly eighth-rank military officer, in less than three years I have risen straight to second-rank military marquis, plus Vice Minister of War, commander of the nine frontiers, controlling several hundred thousand troops."

"At least up to now, the Emperor has not failed me in the slightest; therefore I cannot betray his kindness, or else I would be ashamed before the world."

Jia Jing's attitude toward Emperor Jing Sheng Di has always been consistent: if the ruler does not fail the minister, the minister will not fail the ruler.

As long as Emperor Jing Sheng Di can tolerate him, he is willing to be a loyal minister and capable general.

Even after the Da Han Empire is revived, he could go overseas to become an East Asian king, a Korean king, a Japanese king, or the like.

But if Emperor Jing Sheng Di changes his mind, he will not entrust his own fate to the whims of others.

Therefore, the Embroidered Uniform Guard must develop, and military authority must be retained.

He harbors a public-spirited heart to benefit the world, but he does not possess foolish loyalty that allows himself to be sacrificed.

He can always be respectful toward Emperor Jing Sheng Di in attitude, consider more for the Emperor, and exert himself and shed blood for the revival of the Da Han Empire.

But he cannot accept saving the Da Han Empire from peril, only to be later purged by others.

Of course, these are merely precautionary speculations; so far, Emperor Jing Sheng Di has nothing to say against Jia Jing.

"It's still premature to talk about these now! No one knows how the situation will develop later! We just need to make preparations on both fronts!"

"The art of scheming is ultimately just a minor trick; as long as military power is in hand, no matter how many schemes they devise, they are nothing more than clowns jumping on beams!"

"We should instead solidly attend to present affairs: first destroy the Northern Yuan, pacify the grasslands, unite the northwestern troops' hearts, and truly do a bit more of beneficial statecraft."

"Thus, in court and under heaven, we will be able to enjoy even broader horizons!"

"The world is vast, the heavens and earth expansive; even as you command the Embroidered Uniform Guard, you must broaden your vision!"

Jia Jing spoke in a calm voice.

His current plan remains focused on accumulating strength: building high walls, stockpiling ample grain, and delaying the proclamation of kingship.

First, grasp as much military authority as possible, while reviving the Da Han Empire and laying out plans for the world, and at the same time collect all system rewards.

As long as his strength continues to rise, there is nothing for him to worry about.

Zhu Que rose, walked to Jia Jing's side, and spoke with a touch of respect:

"Marquis, despite such martial prowess, you remain neither arrogant nor impatient, with a steady mindset—truly admirable to your subordinate!"

Jia Jing reseated himself at the table, took the rice bowl Zhu Que offered, and spoke in a solemn tone:

"You too, eat quickly; when you're done, get back to work! Prepare the memorial to the Emperor, bring it for me to review."

"Remember this: arrogance brings loss, humility brings gain; the higher one's position and authority, the greater one's achievements, the more we must maintain reverence."

"Especially toward the Emperor, one should constantly keep a reverent and humble heart. In action one may be more conspicuous, but in conduct one must still stay low-key."

"The way of governance: learn more from Zhang Tingyu, less from Nian Gengyao."

Zhu Que heard this and froze for a moment; he knew that Zhang Tingyu's principle of 'ten thousand words, ten thousand responses, not as good as one silence' was the way of governance.

"He just wasn't sure what had become of Nian Gengyao, yet the Marquis singled him out for criticism, saying not to learn from him."

"Could it be that Nian Gengyao last time arbitrarily brought his own sister to the manor, offending the Marquis?"

He thought it over, still unclear, decided to have the Embroidered Uniform Guard investigate when he had the time, and respectfully bowed with clasped hands:

"Subordinate will firmly keep the Marquis's teachings in mind!"

…………

Shenjing City.

Qian Qing Gong.

At this time, the sun was already high three poles; the early spring sunlight warmly shone on the glazed tiles of the west warm pavilion of the side hall of Qian Qing Gong, casting a golden glow.

Emperor Jing Sheng Di sat behind the imperial desk, his frame thin, holding a brush soaked in vermilion red ink, tracing strokes, focusing on reviewing the memorials.

Xia Shouzhong stood respectfully to the side, carefully observing Jing Sheng Di's facial expression.

At that moment, Jing Sheng Di finished reading a memorial, a hint of anger appearing on his face, and he said coldly:

"These censorial officials, I have already declared that peace talks are unacceptable, yet they keep submitting memorials urging peace—what exactly are they up to?"

"And they still talk about not waging war recklessly—am I really a tyrant who wages war wantonly?"

"They are nothing but ignorant incompetents, rashly discussing state affairs—utterly clueless!"

Xia Shouzhong stood with his head lowered to the side, opened his mouth, but still swallowed his words of advice.

After thinking, he said:

"Your Majesty! Before Marquis Jingwu departed, he repeatedly urged you to prioritize your health; you haven't eaten since this morning—shall I have a meal served..."

Xia Shouzhong found it hard to speak on state matters, so he used the pretext of a meal to divert Jing Sheng Di's attention.

Of course, he was not speaking in his own name but using Jia Jing's words to advise, because he found Jia Jing's words more effective than his own.

Jing Sheng Di's expression indeed softened a bit, but he still had no appetite, waving his hand as he said:

"There's no rush for a meal; let me finish these memorials first."

After saying that, Jing Sheng Di picked up the memorials again to review, but several in a row were all peace‑advice submissions from the censorial officials.

There were even memorials urging that Jia Jing's authority over the nine frontiers was too great and that the imperial sword and his frontier command should be taken back.

Jing Sheng Di didn't even look twice, just gave a cold snort, and threw these memorials to one side.

Jing Sheng Di's complexion, which had eased a bit, again turned cold and hard as iron.

Grand Attendant! From now on, put all these memorials that do not discuss substantive matters and only know to recklessly discuss state affairs to one side.

Select the important and urgent memorials concerning border affairs, disaster relief, and the New Policies; I want to see them first!

Jing Sheng Di issued the order with a grim face.

The memorials handled by the Office of Transmission from the Six Ministries and Nine Senior Officials, the Censorate and Audit Bureau, local senior officials, and frontier commanders exceed a hundred each day.

However, only a minority of them contain good news and substantive discussion of practical matters.

Xia Shouzhong bowed and said:

This servant will obey the order!

Jing Sheng Di threw some of the Censorate's memorials to one side, then picked up several local memorials and began reading them.

Not looking would have been fine, but as soon as he looked, his mood worsened—either disaster here, bandits there, or a demand for money.

The more Jing Sheng Di looked, the worse his expression became, especially a memorial from Jiangnan.

It said that implementing the New Policies was difficult, local gentry and powerful clans secretly obstructed it, even frontier Guard Post officers secretly took part, civil and military colluding, making Jing Sheng Di's face turn black.

"Smack!" Jing Sheng Di heavily threw the memorial onto the imperial desk.