Petty Men

Watching the veins throb on Luo Pei's forehead, as if he wished he could have him clubbed to death on the spot, Su Ziji turned and returned to the ship. Halfway there, he could not help but let out a snort of laughter.

"What can an imperial envoy do when he runs into a mad dog like this?"

But after laughing, Su Ziji's smile faded. Mad dog though this eunuch was, lacking both learning and awareness of the times, even daring to threaten an imperial envoy, he represented Prince Qi. Su Ziji himself could withstand him, but for anyone else, would it not mean their family's ruin and death?

Draw close to gentlemen and keep petty men at a distance—even the mediocre understood this principle. Yet some misjudged it, while others even believed petty men were useful, capable of handling dirty work.

"But drawing close to gentlemen and keeping petty men at a distance is not really about whether one personally employs them. It is about the effect of employing petty men on the court and the realm."

"The reason petty men are petty men is that their talents are meager, their learning shallow, and their natures vengeful over the slightest grievance. Once offended even a little, they disregard all consequences."

"Such eunuch slaves may be utterly loyal to His Majesty, but their natures are too narrow and too impulsive. Let them run wild, and a tiny caprice of power can bring ruin and death to countless households, leaving a mess impossible to clean up."

"Not to mention the immense losses caused by erroneous decisions."

"Therefore, when appointing or dismissing officials, the first thing to consider is their impact."

Still deep in thought, Su Ziji looked up and saw Jian Qu and Cen Rubai emerge by the railing. They had