The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  “Young Master, it’s bad! The King of Foreign Lands has written a book that’s selling like crazy. The entire city is astir over the book, and almost everyone in the capital has a copy. The situation is extremely bad!”

  “Heh, is that so? Given the time that has passed, it’s about time for him to make his counterattack. But his way of counterattacking was to write a book pushing his theories?”

  Li Junxian gently smiled and waved his hand, his expression composed and carefree. Given all the time that had passed since the reduction of the army and the start of the anti-war marches, if Wang Chong wasn’t planning to just sit around and wait for his death, this was about the right time for him to show some movement.

  If Wang Chong had done nothing at all, it would have left him truly rather surprised.

  “Young Master, that’s not it! The situation is different! Young Master, just take a look and you’ll understand!”

  To Li Junxian’s surprise, the Confucian Sect disciple began to coldly sweat even more, his entire person even more overcome with anxiety. He apparently had thousands of words on his mind but didn’t know how to say them. His face red with agitation, he decided to just open the bag at his side and offer the book he had bought from the marketplace.

  There was a sheet of paper laid out in front of Li Junxian, as he had been planning to do some writing. Li Junxian had originally not placed too much attention on the book presented, but when he saw the simple title, he immediately paled.

  “Let me see that!”

  Li Junxian’s expression became extremely grave. Even as the brush laden with ink dropped onto the paper and left a giant stain, he paid it no attention.

  Flapflap!

  When he took the book and flipped to the first page, Li Junxian felt like he had been struck by a lightning bolt, his face completely draining of blood. Gone were his composure, carefreeness, confidence, and grace.

  “Impossible! This can’t be…!”

  Li Junxian trembled as he read the book, his face growing paler and paler. For the first time in his life, Li Junxian was in complete disarray. He finally understood why that disciple had been so panicked and uneasy. This was no longer a simple book. This book shook the very foundations of the Confucian Sect and the Confucian school.

  ……

  Boom!

  Whether it was Li Junxian, the Confucian Sect, the Grand Preceptor, or King Qi, none of them had expected Wang Chong’s counterattack to be so vicious, so tyrannical, so terrifying.

  Wang Chong had already been stripped of all military authority, and in the court, the combination of the First Prince, Li Linfu, King Qi, the Grand Preceptor, and Li Junxian had completely monopolized political power. They had originally believed that no matter how capable Wang Chong was, he wouldn’t be able to stir much of a storm. But contrary to their expectations, even without military or political authority, Wang Chong had still managed to create a storm that no military or political authority could have achieved.

  Wang Chong had directly attacked the hearts of the people.

  “‘Might makes right’, ‘the strong eat the weak’… In this theory, just where do the benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom of my Great Tang go!?”

  In a bamboo forest within the capital, an old Confucian read the book in his hand, his body trembling in fury.

  “Heresy! This is blatant heresy! The person who dared to say such words should be strangled to death!”

  Elsewhere, an irascible and renowned Confucian of the capital slammed a palm against his table, his face twisted in rage.

  “A mighty King of the Great Tang dares to expound such a theory! Even pigs and dogs are better than him!”

  Elsewhere, four or five Confucians who had been criticizing Wang Chong in front of the marching crowds had gathered together, all of them wrathful.

  ……

  Putting aside the reaction of the Confucians, once ‘Might Makes Right’ was fully distributed to the capital, it created an earthquake and impact that no one could imagine. In the thousands of years of history of the Central Plains, there was no previous example of a general publishing a scholarly treatise, and this one was written by the illustrious King of Foreign Lands. Its effects in the capital were particularly unexpected.

  Chapter 1293 - Shaking the World! (II)

  Chapter 1293: Shaking the World! (II)

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  On the early morning of the same day, there were only a few copies of the book in the marketplace, but in a short time, this number ballooned into the hundreds, then the thousands, continuing to climb with dizzying speed. Around six hours later, it was no longer just a hot commodity in the capital, but throughout the entire realm, setting off an earthquake in the empire. Even many of the people who were marching stopped their protests so they could get their hands on the book and see what it said.

  Two days, three days… The storm was intensifying, ultimately transforming into one that engulfed all of the Great Tang. ‘Might makes right’, ‘the strong eat the weak’, ‘survival of the fittest’, ‘law of the jungle’, ‘those who use war to seek peace will create peace, but those who seek peace through compromise will bring about peace’s end’, ‘help oneself and be helped by the heavens’—these new and unprecedented arguments were like a breath of fresh air, and they also delivered an enormous ideological blow to the minds of the people.

  Never before in the history of the Central Plains had a book so forcefully exposed the relationships between countries and people. Moreover, it used a blatant method to illustrate the law that governed which people survived in this world. These arguments opened the minds of the populace.

  The surging tides in the capital that so ardently opposed war and favored peace were instantly stymied. It was like a bucket of cold water had been poured over the crowd, causing them to calm down.

  ……

  Longxi, Big Dipper City.

  Geshu Han stood on the blackened walls, reading the book ‘Might Makes Right’, which his subordinates had delivered as quickly as possible from the capital. He stroked his beard and smiled, his body brimming with excitement. To Geshu Han, this small book was a supreme treasure.

  “Hahaha, a good book, a good book! Wang Chong, this general didn’t judge you wrongly! A thousand memorials and ten thousand remonstrations cannot compare to this book of only some tens of thousands of words. The ancients said that a silver tongue can surpass a mighty army of one million. I didn’t believe this in the past, but now, I do!”

  Geshu Han’s eyes glowed with a strange light, and the cloud of worries that had covered his brow for many days had been swept away. This was the best news he had heard ever since the Confucian Sect had entered the court and begun to suppress the militarists.

  “The heavens are protecting the Great Tang! If the Central Plains has you, the country will be forever blessed and the age will continue unbroken!”

  Geshu Han’s loud laughter drifted far into the distance.

  ……

  “Hahaha, good, good, good! You truly are the person that I know! I just knew that you wouldn’t stand by as the hearts of the people developed into this state.”

  In the distant Anxi Protectorate headquarters, Gao Xianzhi was looking at his own copy of ‘Might Makes Right’, delivered by an express courier from the capital, his entire body bursting with enthusiasm. The current state of the Great Tang was embodied in the saying ‘when it rains, it pours’, and Gao Xianzhi felt the same way. In this short period of time, it felt like the skies over the Great Tang had fallen, with far too many incidents taking place.

  In this situation, even though he was an important subject of the empire, Gao Xianzhi still felt a deep helplessness. Military might was not omnipotent, and there were places that not even martial prowess could help one reach.

  Moreover, a commander could not leave his post without orders. This fact alone made Gao Xianzhi incapable of doing anything.

 
……

  “This kid really does dare to say anything!”

  In the distant Beiting Protectorate headquarters, An Sishun muttered to himself as he gazed at the message in his hand and the book on his desk.

  ……

  “This kid really does have some guts!”

  In Youzhou, after reading the message in his hand, Zhang Shougui sneered, flicked his sleeve, and immediately left.

  That boy in the capital truly had caught him by surprise, but this was not Zhang Shougui’s current concern.

  “Have you found those two traitors yet?”

  “Milord, we discovered them in the land of the Xi and Khitans!”

  ……

  Whoosh!

  While Wang Chong was printing and distributing ‘Might Makes Right’ on a large scale, countless messenger birds were flying toward the various countries bordering the Great Tang.

  More than four thousand meters above sea level, in the royal capital that was the center of the towering Tibetan Plateau, Dalon Trinling’s brows were tightly furrowed. At his side were two objects: an intelligence report from his spy in the Great Tang’s capital, and Wang Chong’s book, ‘Might Makes Right’. This book had been sent over some time ago, and from the moment it had arrived in his hand, Dalon Trinling had become motionless, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

  “Imperial Minister, the suppression of the militarists by the Confucian Sect within the Great Tang is an extremely rare opportunity for us, but the King of Foreign Lands writing this book might pose a severe danger to our plans!”

  The Great General of the Yarlung Royal Lineage, Namri Songtian, was standing behind Dalon Trinling, his eyes brimming with concern. There was no doubt at this time that the Great Tang was the center of the world. The slightest movement from its lands would immediately be reported to the surrounding countries, even the most ordinary and everyday decisions made by the Imperial Court.

  “Imperial Minister, nothing good can happen if the King of Foreign Lands is allowed to succeed. Not only will our attempt to use the Confucian Sect to utterly suppress the Tang army have failed, if the Great Tang begins to do as this book says, a sheep will become a wolf and will truly begin to pose a threat to us!” Namri Songtian said.

  Ü-Tsang and the Great Tang had spent several centuries battling against each other, winning some and losing some. For Namri Songtian, this was the normal routine. A few decades later, regardless of whether it had won or lost, Ü-Tsang would have recovered its energy. As long as they waited, all the defeats and humiliations Ü-Tsang had suffered from the hands of the Great Tang would be returned a hundredfold. But with this book… the situation was entirely different.

  If Wang Chong were truly allowed to succeed, then given the enormous influence he held in the Great Tang, that empire would become an empire of wolves and tigers, and that day would truly be the end for Ü-Tsang.

  “What effects has this matter had on the Great Tang so far?” Dalon Trinling suddenly asked.

  “People are fighting each other to get a copy!” Namri Songtian replied. Wang Chong’s book had far greater influence than he had expected, which was one of the reasons for his great concern.

  “This book is already out there, and there’s nothing we can do to change that. Our only option is to try and minimize its effects.”

  Dalon Trinling’s expression was calm, but deep within his eyes was a rare tinge of worry. Although he had still yet to meet Wang Chong, in this first exchange, Dalon Trinling had already sensed the threat this King of Foreign Lands posed. There was no question that this was a monstrously powerful foe.

  “…Inform our men in the Central Plains to think of every way possible to purchase these books. It’s impossible to destroy every copy, but we can still try our best to reduce the number of people able to read it. In addition, tell Li Junxian that the actions of the King of Foreign Lands have made us extremely uneasy, and that this is not the conduct of a country that longs for peace. Have their Confucian Sect think of a way to resolve this matter,” Dalon Trinling said.

  The King of Foreign Lands was definitely not an easy character to deal with. He could only drive the tiger to swallow the wolf.

  ……

  Flapflap! As eagles and hawks took off, in distant Mount Sanmi, the name of the book ‘Might Makes Right’ had the entire mountain quaking.

  “Bastard! How could this sort of thing happen!?”

  A furious roar came from the massive golden tent at the summit. In a great clamor, countless tables and chairs were overturned as Ishbara Khagan raged.

  Ishbara Khagan’s eyes were open wide and his chest was heaving. At the Battle of Talas, the Great Tang had used an army of one hundred thousand to defeat a foe ten times its number, and in the following Battle of Khorasan, the Arabs had suffered so many losses that the number exceeded one million. Even the Arab War God, Qutaybah, had died to Wang Chong.

  Ishbara Khagan had always believed that the Western Turkic Khaganate was incredibly powerful, but it had not reached a level where it could contend against the Arabian Empire. If not even Arabia could deal with the Great Tang, just which country could?

  It was precisely this string of battles that had broken all of Ishbara Khagan’s confidence, and he was now extremely apprehensive of the Great Tang’s King of Foreign Lands. No, this was no longer apprehension, but fear. And this fear had played no small part in the Western Turkic Khaganate’s swift agreement with the other countries to reduce its army.

  “Just what is that Confucian Sect in the Great Tang doing? Do they not know what will happen if this book is completely distributed throughout the Great Tang and everyone accepts its ideas?!”

  Ishbara Khagan found it impossible to remain calm. This book scared him more than an army of one million men. No one understood more than him just how terrifying this book was.

  Whether it was the Western Turkic Khaganate or the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, they had been able to suppress the various dynasties of the Central Plains, which often had ten times their population, constantly forcing them into a passive defense while they launched attack after attack, because the Turks had wolfish natures while the Tang and all those other dynasties were like sheep, or perhaps one could call them scholars.

  For the strongmen of the steppe, scholars were cowards.

  It was a principle of the world that wolves ate sheep, but if the Tang of the Central Plains accepted the ideas of the King of Foreign Lands, the Western Turks would no longer be facing a sheep, but a wolf that was just as vicious as they were, perhaps even more!

  This was Ishbara Khagan’s deep fear.

  All the maids in the tent trembled in fear. The only people able to maintain their composure were the Blackwater Shaman and Wunu Shibi. But when they gazed at that book, the two of them also had exceptionally grave expressions.

  Chapter 1294 - Shaking the World! (III)

  Chapter 1294: Shaking the World! (III)

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  There was no question that if the King of Foreign Lands were allowed to succeed, he would not just be deciding the outcome of a single war, but settling all the wars far into the future. A Great Tang whose people were all soldiers, adhering to the principle of the strong, and carrying a desire to expand was a nightmare for all the countries around it.

  “Your Majesty, now is not the time to consider this. Kuluo, send your people to tightly watch for any movement in the capital,” Wunu Shibi suddenly said, his eyes turning to a fierce Western Turkic general at his side. “If things go bad and that kid’s ideas are accepted by all of the Great Tang, a war will be coming!”

  “Yes, Milord!”

  The general swiftly left with this order.

  “Gurlan, pass on my order! All the troops should be ready to go to war at any moment!”

  With Wunu Shibi’s prompting, Ishbara Khagan also returned to his senses. The Western Turks were too far away to do anything about the events going on in the Great
Tang’s capital. They could only prepare themselves for the worst-case scenario and see how the situation developed.

  ……

  Goguryeo, the Xi, the Khitans, and Mengshe Zhao to the southwest all felt fear and unease upon learning of the events in the Great Tang’s capital.

  ……

  Meanwhile, Wang Chong’s ‘Might Makes Right’ had been like a match setting alight the powder keg that was the capital, and it was having far greater influence than anyone had expected. At this time, it had the attention of both the court and the people.

  The marchers swiftly quieted down while the tea houses were filled with people discussing this book.

  “…Swords and sabers can destroy the bodies of humans, but they cannot destroy a man’s ideals. In the relationship between countries and peoples, in that boundless dark forest, if one does not recognize the importance of courage and martial might, the only thing awaiting one is death!”

  In a tavern of the capital, a man gripped the book in his hand as he muttered to himself. This phrase written on the final page of ‘Might Makes Right’ had attracted his notice.

  There were many phrases in Wang Chong’s book that had elicited fierce discussion from the crowds, and this was one of the most famous lines. As the man muttered to himself, a hint of understanding appeared in his eyes, and he somewhat calmed down as he began to look back on his fierce anti-war stance.

  “Perhaps peace isn’t bad, but it’s not as easy to achieve as I imagined and requires great price and effort. Just like this book says, only courage and martial might can maintain this peace!”

  The man tightly clenched the book as if it was the most precious treasure in the world. He had read so many books, but none of them had ever given him such a unique feeling, had ever enlightened him like this.

  Similar events were taking place in every corner of the capital. The words ‘might makes right’ were spreading like a flame throughout the entire empire.