When people made mistakes, they had to bear the consequences.
Great Xia had no saying about how "training officials wasn't easy." An official who made a mistake could never expect to be dismissed for a few months, then transferred to an equivalent post elsewhere to carry on as before.
And as for making a mistake and getting promoted for it, rising to glory while public anger boiled over... did they really think the champions of the Martial World wouldn't perform the traditional act of "taking heads in the dead of night"?
A light punishment to serve as a stern warning—a palm raised high but brought down gently, striking softly while the culprit cried out in agony—was about as far as leniency could go.
Take Zhao Chong's current predicament. In theory, he could submit a memorial admitting fault, receive some punishment, perhaps be demoted a rank, and more or less muddle through.
But Zhao Chong did not dare do that.
He knew how serious this was, even more clearly than his great-grandson, who was known as a gifted scholar.
Whatever the reason, more than two hundred Wind Patrol Envoys had died in prison. He could not escape responsibility.
Besides, as one of the leaders of the Conservative Faction, he stood at the eye of the storm now that the Conservative Faction and the Reform faction had torn away all pretense of amity. If he did not find a way to step back, he feared he would soon be smashed to pieces!
The Wind Patrol Envoys' fury would erupt soon. He had to clear his name before it did.
So he began writing a memorial at once. Less than an hour later, it lay before Di Renchen.
In it, he first explained that he had no ability whatsoever to manage prisons across