The grape wine in Zi Shou's hand instantly lost its appeal.
What did he mean, they had fallen into the trap?
From Xin Jia's expression, Zi Shou caught a whiff of something ominous.
Xin Jia held out his memorial and said excitedly, "Your Majesty's strategy was divinely calculated-divide and conquer!"
"Although the nobles from across the land had come to Chaoge and donated money, none of that had shaken their foundations. So Your Majesty began laying your plans."
"First came provocation: telling the nobles that their ancestral graves would be dug up and their ancestors' remains relocated, then forcing, er, compulsory surgery on them, continually stoking the anger in their hearts!"
"Then came sowing discord among the nobles."
"The world is vast. Nobles from different regions could never be of one mind; most of them do not even know one another. And nobles all think highly of themselves, refusing to bow to anyone else. Your Majesty first used the statues in the Ancestral Temple to open a rift in their hearts, making them argue endlessly over whose ancestors had achieved more."
"And these rumors widened that rift!"
"Some of them do indeed slander their ancestors, but other matters truly are open to suspicion. Take Emperor Shun, for example. Legend says he toured the south and died in the Wilds of Cangwu. If I remember correctly, Cangwu was a sparsely populated wilderness at the time. There were neither important towns to inspect nor powerful neighbors or formidable enemies to guard against. It is highly suspicious."
"Things like Xia Qi killing Bo Yi are uncertain as well."
"And these murky, inexplicable matters redirected the nobles' anger toward one another!"
"For example, a group of Fei clansmen, descendants of Bo Yi, fought with Lou Yunqu, who had once rebelled. Not only did this