Outside Purple Dawn Hall, wind and rain swept through the night.
Beneath the golden candlelight inside the hall, Emperor Chen set down the memorial in his hand, worry knotting his brows. Grand Commandant Tong Huan, seated beside him, leaned forward slightly and said with a face full of smiles, "Do not worry, Your Majesty. Although this year's floods came a little early... the channels we dug earlier have proved their worth. At the current pace, the Huaiyang Canal Section should be largely complete by next autumn!"
At this, he clapped his hands in delight. "A single canal will rescue the people from hanging upside down in misery. In years to come, the people of Ji Province, Yi Province, Yi Province, and elsewhere will surely remember the court's boundless grace. With this undertaking, Your Majesty will be worshipped as a living Buddha in ten thousand households and achieve a feat without equal!"
Emperor Chen's brows eased a little. He tapped his palm against the desk and sighed. "If all the civil and military officials at court understood my painstaking intentions as you do, I... what would I have to worry about? Now our Great Chen stands alongside the Western Liang Kingdom and the Eastern Yang Kingdom. The strong thrive, the weak perish. A nation that fails to strengthen itself must serve the strong in its weakness...
"Our Great Chen will surely unite all under heaven. But before we can repel outsiders, we must first bring peace within. There are still many discordant voices at court, and I do not wish to hear them... nor will I abandon what I intend to do simply because some people seek to tie my hands!"
As Emperor Chen spoke, his voice surged like wind and thunder, echoing through the hall and making Tong Huan's eardrums