"Bang!"
The vast, subtle palm force collided with Wang Hao's palm. The palm force, formed by Acquired True Qi, canceled out Wang Hao's strength. Wang Hao only swayed slightly without taking a step back, and at the same time, he roughly understood Cao Haisheng's purpose.
That palm strike wasn't very strong; at most, it was equivalent to a strike from Late Grandmaster Level who hadn't grasped the Martial Dao Intent Realm. Clearly, the opponent hadn't used much of their strength and was probably testing his power.
"Indeed, he has a great physique for practicing external martial arts!"
Seeing that Wang Hao only swayed slightly before regaining his balance, Cao Haisheng's eyes shone brightly. He was very satisfied with Wang Hao's strength, especially Wang Hao's imposing height of ten feet.
This junior is truly remarkable!
Although that palm strike was just a casual blow, it still contained half of my strength, yet my opponent withstood it without suffering any harm.
This body is indeed incredibly powerful!
"Junior Wang Hao greets the Eunuch!"
Wang Hao hurriedly bowed to Cao Haisheng, but only as a junior.
Although the Blood Robe Tower was a subordinate organization of the Eastern Depot, this was not the public perception; at least, the Eastern Depot would not publicly acknowledge the existence of the Blood Robe Tower.
After all, the purpose of the Blood Robe Tower was to deal with dirty business that could not be handled openly. It had offended too many powerful forces, and it was absolutely forbidden to get involved with the Eastern Depot, the imperial court, or even the Da Ming royal family.
Therefore, regardless of the occasion, members of the Blood Robe Tower should not refer to themselves as subordinates when meeting members of the Eastern Depot, to avoid causing any trouble.
"I heard that Old Ghost Chu has high hopes for you?"
Cao Haisheng calmly sized up Wang Hao, growing increasingly curious about the young man.
" Elder Chu did indeed give me guidance a few times!"
Wang Hao replied respectfully as always. He knew that Cao Haisheng and Elder Chu from the same era and had even competed against each other, so they were old acquaintances.
"Since you are someone Elder Chu values, then we'll test you. You've already passed the test in terms of strength, and you did very well. But how about the other aspects?"
"Please set the question, Master; I will do my utmost!"
Wang Hao couldn't guess what Cao Haisheng was thinking, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.
"The world universally condemns our Eastern Depot as the eunuch faction, the source of chaos and corruption in the court and among the people. This has been the case throughout history. What is your opinion on this claim?"
Cao Haisheng looked quite interested. He knew Elder Chu's personality very well. If this kid only had outstanding talent in Roshi, there would be no way he would be valued by him. So this kid's mind was definitely not weak. He just didn't know to what extent.
Standing to the side, Eunuch Wang looked at Wang Hao with a hint of worry in his eyes.
This is a potentially fatal question!
One wrong move and he would incur the wrath of the eunuch, at which point Wang Hao would certainly not have a good end.
He had a good impression of Wang Hao and naturally didn't want to see this sensible junior suffer.
Wang Hao was also taken aback by the question, but he didn't feel embarrassed at all.
This might have been a life-or-death question for people in ancient times, but as a modern, well-rounded individual who has spent years browsing various online forums, how could I possibly be stumped by such a problem?
This question is simple; it can be answered with just four words!
Wang Hao replied confidently, his expression full of self-assurance.
This kind of question has been discussed countless times by modern online trolls, with all sorts of answers available, including some that try to overturn the verdict from the perspective of the eunuchs.
You can fool them with anything.
"Oh! Bring me the brush and ink!"
Cao Haisheng was surprised and waved to the Eunuch Wang beside him, signaling to serve Wang Hao with pen and ink.
Eunuch Wang was extremely efficient. In no time, he brought out a set of writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and presented them to Wang Hao on a wooden tray, while secretly transmitting his voice.
"Young man, don't try to be a hero if you can't answer well. My family will plead with the eunuch on your behalf!"
After all, they had given him such a generous gift, so he certainly didn't mind lending a hand.
Wang Hao gave a subtle nod to Eunuch Wang, then picked up a brush and wrote four characters with swift, flowing strokes.
"Master, I've finished writing!"
Wang Hao bowed to Cao Haisheng again, indicating that it was all settled.
When Eunuch Wang saw the four characters written by Wang Hao, he was stunned. Then he became anxious, feeling that if he presented these four characters, he might anger Cao Haisheng, and then things would be difficult to handle.
"Bring it here!"
Noticing Eunuch Wang's hesitation, Cao Haisheng became somewhat dissatisfied and directly ordered him to bring it up.
"Yes, Master!"
Helpless, Eunuch Wang had no choice but to show Cao Haisheng the four characters he had written. However, after reading them, Cao Haisheng was also stunned and looked at Wang Hao, waiting for Wang Hao explanation.
"The victor is king, the Prince Cheng!"
Wang Hao wrote the four characters "The victor is king, the Prince Cheng," which was also his answer.
"The Grand Eunuch was not mistaken. My answer is indeed 'the victor is king, the loser is Prince Cheng.' You should understand that history is always written by the victors. Since they have won, they can write it however they want. As for the truth, who can know?"
Wang Hao smiled and explained. Cao Haisheng listened thoughtfully and even nodded in agreement, vaguely understanding what Wang Hao meant.
"It is true that there were many instances of eunuchs wielding power, but this measure was also a helpless choice. The power of eunuchs came entirely from the emperor. If the involvement of eunuchs in politics were truly so harmful, wouldn't emperors throughout history have seen this?"
When discussing the dictatorship of eunuchs, we need to talk about the origins of eunuch involvement in politics. It was nothing more than officials representing certain forces vying for power with the emperor, and even attempting to force him to abdicate. In the past, emperors had no choice but to use their most trusted eunuchs to deal with those so-called loyal ministers and scholars.
Because the power of eunuchs all came from the emperor, their status and even their lives were at the emperor's whim. This ensured their loyalty, which was the main reason why most emperors of dynasties would employ eunuchs to participate in politics.
To say that eunuch rule was the Root of the cholera epidemic among the people is pure nonsense. The most important thing for the country to be stable is to ensure that the people have enough to eat and land to cultivate. But I dare to ask, do the eunuchs and other eunuchs own any land?
This question startled Cao Haisheng and Eunuch Wang once again, and they both shook their heads slightly.
They were all castrated men, they didn't even have offspring, what use were they for farming!
So he had never actually heard of any eunuch occupying farmland.
"Looks like there aren't any left!"
Wang Hao smiled confidently and continued, "Anyone who has read history books can understand that whenever a dynasty reaches its end, there are always a large number of displaced people who have lost their land. In order to survive, these displaced people have no choice but to gather together and revolt, which accelerates the demise of the dynasty."
This is because of severe land annexation, and most of this land ended up in the hands of large landowners and high-ranking officials. Therefore, they were the main culprits behind the dynasty's downfall.
"Let's return to the topic of eunuch rule. It's undeniable that there were some bad apples among the eunuchs, which caused chaos. But the court was ultimately a place for scholars. Even if the eunuchs issued any decrees, these officials had to carry them out. How they would carry them out is easy to imagine."
The most important point is that a certain group controls public opinion. With this power, whatever people say becomes the truth; the saying "three men can make a tiger" refers to this kind of thing.
At this point, Wang Hao raised his head, looked directly at Cao Haisheng, and respectfully said in a loud voice, "Therefore, this junior believes that you, Eunuch, are not some eunuch faction, but rather Bao Huang, a force dedicated to protecting the Emperor's authority!"
"Well done, what a Bao Huang! Well done, the victor is king, the Prince Cheng!"
Before Cao Haisheng could say anything, a cheer suddenly came from outside, followed by a dashing young man in brocade robes striding in.
"This old servant greets Your Highness the Three Sovereigns!"
Upon seeing the visitor, Cao Haisheng quickly rose to greet him. The visitor was none other than the current emperor's third son— the Three Sovereigns Zhu Yijun!
"No need for such formalities, Eunuch Cao!"
Zhu Yijun reached out and helped Cao Haisheng, who was bowing deeply, to his feet. Looking at Cao Haisheng's full head of white hair, he said with emotion, " Eunuch Cao has sacrificed so much for our Da Ming Dynasty! On behalf of Yijun father, I thank you! Eunuch Cao, you have worked so hard!"
As he spoke, Zhu Yijun solemnly bowed to Cao Haisheng.
This startled Cao Haisheng, who quickly helped Zhu Yijun up. However, Zhu Yijun used considerable force, and fearing that he might hurt her, Cao Haisheng could only let her finish the bow.
Although Cao Haisheng was terrified by Zhu Yijun's performance, he was also deeply moved and felt that his life had been worthwhile.
Eunuch Wang, standing to the side, was also moved to tears; it was a genuine feeling of being touched.
These eunuchs were always cursed as eunuchs and their dogs wherever they went, truly hated by everyone and even by dogs. They never expected to finally meet someone who understood them, and even the Three Sovereigns the court bowed to thank them.
How could they not be moved?
After this incident, Eunuch Wang found Wang Hao much more pleasing to the eye, and his goodwill towards him increased significantly.
If the initial goodwill stemmed from the Mystic Yang Fruit given to them by Wang Hao, then now it's a genuine, heartfelt affection, a feeling of kinship with him considering him a close friend.
These are real family!
" Three Sovereigns for your understanding, Your Highness. This old servant will certainly dedicate myself to the Da Ming until my dying breath!"
Cao Haisheng was so moved that he immediately knelt down, his expression one of unwavering determination.
"Please rise, Eunuch Cao!"
Zhu Yijun helped Cao Haisheng up again, laughing heartily, "I believe what Eunuch Cao says; it's countless times more sincere than those civil officials who only shout slogans!"
"Your Highness is too kind!"
Cao Haisheng nodded modestly, but his old face beamed with a smile as bright as a chrysanthemum, clearly pleased with the words.
"Last year, I only heard that Consort Attendant Chu taken on a disciple, and I thought he was just a martial artist. Who would have thought that he would be a man of both literary and martial talents? It is truly a great fortune for our Da Ming to have such a loyal and righteous minister as you!"
Zhu Yijun turned to look at Wang Hao, and the shock she felt upon seeing his imposing figure, which was over ten feet tall, was indescribable.
He himself was seven feet tall, which was quite tall, but compared to this guy, he was far inferior; he had to look up to see him.
However, his expression revealed a sense of satisfaction, and he even had an impulse to bring it under his command, but he quickly suppressed this impulse.
There was no other way. Wang Hao had already been nominally affiliated with the Confucian School. If he were to truly bring Wang Hao under his command, he would inevitably be targeted by the Confucian School and subsequently isolated by the entire court. In that case, the throne would be completely out of his reach.
Therefore, he could only admire Wang Hao's great talent but could not recruit him for his own use.
"Thank you for your Three Sovereigns. Actually, only a small part of what I said just now was my own thought; most of it was said by Yang Jingzhong."
Wang Hao smiled modestly and then shifted the blame onto Yang Jingzhong.
After all, his resume only showed that he had eavesdropped on a private school for a few years and was only able to recognize characters, but he didn't have any real knowledge. It was too strange for him to suddenly spout so many Great Dao.
But if you put it on Yang Jingzhong, it's a different story. He was a true genius who once achieved the highest rank in the imperial examinations.
In this way, everything becomes much more reasonable.
" Yang Jingzhong? How could it be him?"
Zhu Yijun and the others all frowned, clearly not understanding Wang Hao's words.
It's worth noting that Yang Jingzhong was labeled a traitor just over half a year ago, with irrefutable evidence against him. Yet now, Yang Jingzhong is praising eunuchs, and with such insightful words. This seems extremely strange.
"Actually, we've all misunderstood Lord Yang. He was forced to do those things..."
In order to shift the blame onto Yang Jingzhong, Wang Hao recounted everything Yang Jingzhong had said that day, even adding his own interpretations and presenting him as a reincarnation of Marquis Wu Zhuge.
Zhu Yijun and the others were stunned, and then they were filled with regret, feeling extremely sorry for Yang Jingzhong's death, and even more resentful towards Confucian School.
"Bang!"
"It's truly hateful that such a great talent for governing the world has been so wasted by Confucian School!"
Zhu Yijun slammed his fist on the table, filled with resentment.
After all, he was a prince of the Da Ming Dynasty and someone who aspired to compete for the throne, so naturally he placed his position on the opposite side of Confucian School.
Seeing the death of such a remarkable man as Yang Jingzhong, who possessed extraordinary talent, is naturally heartbreaking.
This is a truly talented individual who should have belonged to their Da Ming Dynasty!
Compared to Zhu Yijun, Cao Haisheng and Eunuch Wang felt no less regret and resentment, after all, Zhu Yijun was a close friend of theirs!
But now this confidant is gone just like that!