Chapter 222: The Hearts of the Five Nations, an Unsolved Puzzle

Gongsun Pingxi and Gongsun Zhongshu were distant cousins.

The Gongsun clan was the most renowned scholarly surname in Da Chu.

When mentioning Bai Lu Academy, one of the most famous schools in the world, students could not help but feel reverence, for its last three heads of school.

All came from the Gongsun noble family, demonstrating the depth of its scholarly tradition and academic prestige.

Yu Ke, upon reading this, suddenly recalled the five-nation conflict.

Imagine the countryside: those who could read and write were few and far between, like phoenix feathers or unicorn horns.

All great clans possessed libraries; indeed, anyone with a private library was a great clan.

Knowledge was monopolized by the elite!

The Gongsun family had effectively bet on both Qianyuan and Da Chu.

It made Yu Ke think of another family that had bet on three nations.

This was an era of entrenched aristocratic clans; imperial power was merely the strongest of these clans.

The realm itself rested upon the rise and fall of these families.

Yu Ke continued flipping through the Han records.

The first name that met his eyes was the current emperor of Han.

Yuwen Yan!

This young emperor, having ascended the throne eight years ago, finally shattered the eunuchs' shackles, reclaimed imperial authority, and transformed from a puppet into a true Son of Heaven.

Han had suffered two centuries of eunuch tyranny, with the Divine Strategy Army under the control of the Grand Eunuch.

In court, eunuchs could draft edicts and dismiss ministers.

Even the emperor had to bow to their will.

Thus, governance grew corrupt; the Grand Eunuch called himself "Ninety-Nine Hundred Years," equating himself with emperors.

The records detailed how imperial succession was manipulated by eunuchs.

Five generations of Han emperors had failed to break free from the two-century-long eunuch dictatorship.

Han's ruling power was firmly held in the hands of eunuchs.

Think back then!

The former emperor of Han could not escape the eunuchs' curse; driven to despair, he died in depression, leaving no heir to succeed him.

At his deathbed, his eyes filled with tears, he cried in anguish: "I shame my ancestors! Past rulers were constrained by feudal lords—I, however, fell into the hands of household slaves, eunuchs!"

Three days after the emperor's death, the eunuchs slowly and leisurely arranged the funeral, as if the nation's greatest matter were but a child's play.

A state cannot be without a ruler; at that time, the Grand Eunuch Han Zhong held supreme power.

He casually selected a distant branch member of the Yuwen clan to continue the dynasty, and coldly instructed the imperial messenger:

"Bring the tallest one to the palace!"

The messenger's cry echoed before the thirteen princely mansions:

"Bring the tallest one! Bring the tallest one! The tallest one shall enter the palace and become emperor!"

At first, the crowd was bewildered; then someone suddenly understood and pointed to Prince Ying:

"Prince Ying is tall! Prince Ying is tall! He's the tallest—he must be the one!"

Prince Ying was hastily brought into the palace.

Yet.

"Tallest" did not mean physically tall—it meant oldest in age.

A ridiculous misunderstanding, laughable and absurd.

But Han Zhong paid no mind; he merely smiled faintly:

"It doesn't matter. Whoever becomes emperor is but my puppet."

That Prince Ying was Yuwen Yan!

Yet no one had anticipated!

This Prince Ying was a man of hidden brilliance and grand strategy.

For eight years, he bided his time, quietly gathering strength, waiting for the moment.

Finally!

Inside Ganlu Temple, he struck like thunder, personally slaying the all-powerful Grand Eunuch Han Zhong, ending Han's two-century-long eunuch dictatorship in one blow.

After reclaiming imperial authority, he planned with foresight, pushed bold reforms, established a cabinet to balance court factions, and firmly controlled the military to consolidate his power.

Yuwen Yan, as a youth, was obsessed with Daoism; in middle age, he embraced Buddhism, making it the state religion.

Yu Ke gently stroked the pages, silently pondering.

Han was vast and flat, dotted with lakes, renowned as the "Land of a Thousand Lakes," blessed with Detianduhou geography; its territory even surpassed Chu's, making it one of the five nations' richest lands.

Yet!

In past years, under eunuch rule, the economy stagnated; Han was the weakest among the five nations.

After ascending the throne, Yuwen Yan vigorously pushed reforms.

Yu Ke gently turned to the second page of the record.

Li Xian!

He was currently Han's Grand Marshal, also honored as Grand Tutor; at sixteen, he topped all three imperial examinations, ranking first, a genius whose path should have been smooth and swift.

Yet, facing eunuch tyranny, he chose a different path—wandering mountains and rivers, retreating from the world, traveling among the states.

Only when Yuwen Yan killed Grand Eunuch Han Zhong and reshaped Han's politics did Li Xian return home and open a private academy to teach.

Yuwen Yan, hearing of his virtue, personally visited him in humble attire.

Thus!

At thirty-six, Li Xian rose to become Han's Grand Marshal.

Before leaving, Li Xian gave his students one final lesson, smiling at the Confucian scholars in his classroom:

"Studying can bring peace to the realm!"

Li Xian began dedicating himself to reform.

Externally, he actively pursued marriage alliances with Chu, strengthening their alliance.

Internally, he carried out sweeping reforms to allow the people rest and recovery.

He reformed the imperial examination system, reopening upward mobility for humble-born scholars and valuing talent.

He also encouraged grain production to secure the people's livelihood.

More profoundly, Li Xian advocated relocating the capital to Ji'an.

He suppressed local aristocratic and noble clans.

He established marketplaces in Han and Chu, issued new currency, introduced "large-denomination silver notes," and elevated the status of merchants!

He strengthened ties between Han and Chu, promoting economic and cultural prosperity between the two states.

These measures, among others.

Within a few years, Han transformed from its former corruption into a land of revival.

Yu Ke closed the four records, his mind at ease. Han's development had unfolded exactly as he predicted, confirming his thoughts.

He had not even bothered to read the names of the current commanders in the three armies.

There was no need to look further.

The records contained the major events and figures of the past few years in each state.

He slowly closed his eyes; with his ability of 【Discerning Talent】, he felt as if he had walked alongside each of the men he had just read about.

The Empress, Tuoba Shu Yi, Gongsun Zhongshu, Yuwen Yan.

The fate of the realm gathered upon these men.

And in recent years, all they had done.

Was one thing!

"Lu Chen" smiled.

Dou Gu saw this, deeply puzzled—why had the Young Protector not thoroughly examined the past battle records of the three generals before closing the roster?

This sudden action surprised him.

In contrast,

Jia Fu and others' eyes gleamed with anticipation; they knew the Young Protector, with his years of glorious victories and lofty prestige, could surely perceive the situation and find a way to break the enemy.

Zhou Cheng sank deeper into thought, staring intently at the map's deployment of the three enemy forces, striving to find a flaw or hidden advantage in the complex battlefield.

Yet, facing this overwhelming tide, three flawless offensives, he racked his brain but felt only despair—no glimmer of hope could be found.

Zhou Cheng's lips curled in bitterness—it was an unsolvable situation.

Zhou Jinyu stood silently behind Lu Chen, scrutinizing every page he had flipped through, leaving no detail unexamined.

Desperate to piece together a strategy from these "pieces of information."

Yet!

Despite her utmost effort, her mind remained chaotic; she, too, felt powerless against the crisis before them.

Like a dead end!

(End of Chapter)