Rise and Fall

"This is an ancestral instruction from the founding emperor, and Your Majesty's arbitrary alteration will inevitably invite disaster!"

"If I don't change now, I'll be the one who dies!"

The new emperor's decision to perform the sacrificial ceremony at Mount Tai was clearly made without consulting the Empress Dowager. The first group of people had already set off three days prior, while Wei Qing and his entourage were in the second group.

The Empress Dowager only just realized what had happened. She made a rare trip out of Changxin Palace and went to the Weiyang Palace to advise the new emperor.

The new emperor shook his head.

The new emperor hoped for good fortune, but he trusted the sword in his hand more than any magic.

Emperors have a unique advantage in cultivating their skills; if they are less successful than their subjects in controlling the country, it is because they are less skilled.

The difference in their skill in governance is not important, nor is it important that he uses governance to control his ministers; what matters is how to eliminate the hidden dangers he faces.

A single tree cannot support a forest, and a single hand cannot clap. The new emperor did not want to face the King of Huainan alone.

He didn't want to discuss the potential long-term consequences. The hidden dangers of the vassal kings and marquises of the Great Han Dynasty had been there for a long time, and he didn't believe that a subject who hadn't been granted a fiefdom could cause the downfall of the Great Han by practicing magic.

Compared to all those other trivial matters, the threat posed by the King of Huainan's divination was the real danger hanging over his head.

"His Majesty..."

"Is Mother going to say that I set a precedent out of selfishness, with endless consequences? I'm just thinking about living in the present, not the future. The court's recruitment system can be changed, the standards for selecting officials can be changed, but why can't the rules for practicing forbidden arts be abolished? I don't want to follow Father's old path of defense. I won't wait until they step on my head before I retaliate. I don't care about status or face. As long as they have the intention to attack me, I will strike first and kill them!"

The new emperor in the main hall of the Weiyang Palace held a newly forged longsword.

This time, instead of tearing down the documents, he earnestly expressed his thoughts.

He will not hesitate for any reason, such as saving face or family ties. As long as he has the ability, he will take the initiative instead of waiting to be attacked before he fights back.

"Zhufu Yan said that if a dog barks at you, what we should do is not bark back or curse back, but draw our swords and kill the dog." The new emperor said, "Dogs don't listen to reason, and we don't need to reason with them!"

Is His Majesty blaming me for not being reasonable with Han Yan?

"Han Yan... he died a good death!"

The new emperor extended his right hand, his fingers slowly tracing the blade of the sword.

The sword, forged from coal, was exquisitely crafted; its blade was like a mirror, reflecting his slightly reddened eyes.

He built a team, one of Han Yan's original teams, and people who have been with him for nearly twenty years.

"Han Yan is escorting medicinal herbs from the imperial treasury to the Alchemy Chamber for refining pills, which are also needed by the Empress Dowager!"

The new emperor turned to look at the Empress Dowager.

"He lacks the necessary qualifications. He just wanted to be closer to me, and tried to get a little closer. He's not qualified to be emperor. Not everyone aspires to the throne. Han Yan was like that, and so was Dongfang Shuo, whom you mentioned!"

"Dongfang Shuo is wicked, and he possesses a shimmering aura of destiny that far surpasses what Liu An's mere possession could forge. He must have cultivated the art of destiny long ago!"

"Does Your Majesty think that Dongfang Shuo also wants to replace me?"

"He..."

"No emperor can remain unconscious for fifteen consecutive days without causing internal strife. Dongfang Shuo merely wishes to change his fate. The empire is so vast; what harm is there in lending him a piece of land?"

The new emperor shook his head.

There are few people like Wei Qing in the world. The new emperor hopes that his subjects are loyal, but he does not want them to be without their own desires.

He was even somewhat worried that officials like Zhang Xuezhou lacked goals and would eventually give up on their pursuits.

A minister without ambition will just drift through life, and will even refuse to help the new emperor if he wants to use their power.

"Without Dongfang Shuo, how could the Empress Dowager have stabilized her illness? Now she has found an antidote and a way to get rid of her physical pain," the new emperor said.

"But he also wants to rely on the Empress Dowager's power," the Empress Dowager said.

"Yes, he wants to rely on the Empress Dowager's power," the new emperor nodded. "But what if he doesn't want to?"

"I don't want to rely on..."

Ordinary families with some assets may worry that women they meet are only interested in them because of money.

The Empress Dowager's most direct reaction was indeed her fear that someone with ulterior motives would seize the throne, while the new emperor had a different thought.

While differing opinions are difficult to change, the new emperor did indeed stump the Empress Dowager.

If Zhang Xuezhou hadn't wanted to rely on the Empress Dowager's power, things might have turned out differently.

"He himself is also ill; he ultimately needs to refine elixirs and take medicine!"

The Empress Dowager murmured something, her rebuttal and rebuke lacking the intensity of her previous one.

She looked at the new emperor, whose brows still held a hint of sadness.

The Empress Dowager had seen this expression before, and Emperor Jing had also felt this sorrow. However, unlike Emperor Jing, the new emperor changed the relevant systems, while Emperor Jing chose to obey the old system.

This was a completely different temperament from Emperor Jing. The Empress Dowager was willing to see this difference and growth, but she was also worried about the unpredictability of the future.

"The Daoist's antidote must have a hidden mechanism. While Your Majesty is still healthy, make some plans as soon as possible and stop interfering in court affairs. Everyone around me is unique. Your Majesty has already targeted Han Yan, so don't target Dongfang Shuo as well!"

"I... so be it!"

The Empress Dowager took a deep breath.

The new emperor's words were tactful, but his decision was clearly unchangeable.

The Empress Dowager was somewhat anxious and uncertain, and it was clear that she was no longer in a position to take charge of the overall situation.

If this had happened a year ago, she might have reprimanded the new emperor, causing him to retract the edict. Now, however, she could only watch helplessly as the new emperor ran amok without any oversight.

"In the past, it was the feudal lords who caused chaos and vied for the throne; in the future, both civil and military officials may harbor disloyal intentions!"

The Empress Dowager whispered something, then waved her sleeve and chose to step out through the back door of the Weiyang Palace.

"If I am capable, no one can replace me; if I am not capable, someone will surely take my place!"

The new emperor responded in a whisper as well.

The "I" he referred to did not only refer to himself, but also to his descendants.

If an emperor is a wise ruler, he lacks righteousness and is hard to replace; it doesn't matter if a foolish and tyrannical emperor is replaced.

If the people suffer under the rule of a dynasty and are constantly invaded by foreign tribes, the new emperor believes that such a dynasty should be reformed and started anew, rather than lingering on and eventually being wiped out.

"Personal interests, court interests, monarchical interests, national interests, ethnic interests—once you clearly identify the hierarchy of interests, decisions become much easier!"

The new emperor rummaged through the palace and pulled out a bamboo scroll containing his early records.

The bamboo slips were covered in dust, indicating that they hadn't been read in a long time.

Some content requires personal experience to gain true understanding; otherwise, it merely passes through the mind.

The new emperor opened the bamboo slips, and the contents recorded by Sang Hongyang came into view.

Some things he hadn't understood before became clear at this moment, and the rise and fall of many dynasties throughout history flashed through his mind. Looking at the empty Weiyang Palace, he felt as if the sword in his right hand had become incredibly heavy.

"This sword strike should mark the rise and fall of my dynasty!"

His sword-drawing technique finally arrived.

A hint of melancholy still lingered between his brows; the new emperor showed no particular surprise.

This was a sword strike belonging to the dynasty.

This sword strike carries the rise and fall of a dynasty, his melancholy, and the change he sought to make out of his unwillingness to accept defeat.