Idiot vs. Ambitious Schemer

The ministers' looks toward Zhou Ming grew somewhat strange.

Naive?

Childish?

Or... mentally deficient?

In any case, all the ministers felt that their Your Majesty was simply far too young.

But Zhou Ming had his own considerations, and his reasons for doing this.

First, he was indeed in the wrong. Most people would probably privately feel that the so-called "promise" their Your Majesty had fulfilled was rather ungenerous, and that he was toying with and humiliating the Lucis Family.

After the Old Duke had been angered to death, it was only natural for the Lucis Family to raise troops in rebellion.

After all, no matter who this happened to, they would never be able to swallow that grievance.

Thus, Zhou Ming was in a very passive position in terms of public opinion, unable to stand on the moral high ground.

Faced with the rebel army's offensive, he could only lower his stance as much as possible and avoid provoking them again, causing even greater destruction.

Second, the so-called "withdraw two thousand li and pardon the Lucis Family three times" was not because Zhou Ming was naive or brainless. It was a strategy adopted to win the war.

In fact, he had more than dozens of ways to defeat the rebels. The probability of his failure was zero.

Zhou Ming's challenge to fight a decisive battle with the rebels on the Edalas Great Plains was meant to eliminate as many rebel forces as possible and wage a beautiful war of annihilation!

He sought to weaken the Noble Faction's strength to the greatest possible extent!

As for "three pardons," that too was a tactic of luring the enemy in. He wanted the Lucis Family to become recklessly confident under the protection of those pardons, repeatedly court disaster, continually make mistakes, and finally