Where Immortals Once Walked

“Tax them, and they die later. Don’t tax them, and the state collapses at once! Once taxes rise, they only keep rising. Where can it possibly stop? Brother Wang’s idea of easing labor obligations and lowering taxes is a fine vision, but—” He shook his head.

Everyone listened and also felt this was a dead knot.

The state treasury was empty, so taxes were levied. The common people were squeezed past endurance, so they rebelled. Suppressing rebellions costs money. Once too much money was spent, taxes had to be raised again. When taxes grew too harsh, the people rebelled again...

It was an endless death spiral.

He Lingchuan looked at Gao Jilin. “What does Brother Gao think?”

“I think we still have to identify where the roots of these troubles lie.” Gao Jilin said slowly, “Disasters have struck the state one after another because origin energy is thin and cannot nourish all regions. That shows the state’s strength is already weak to begin with. First, one has to see where the illness lies. Is it the ruler’s arrogance, stubbornness, and love of grand achievements? Is it treacherous ministers holding power? Or is it reckless governance and tyranny? Only then can the right medicine be prescribed.”

The students all nodded. “Brother Gao speaks well. Only by finding the pulse can one know the disease.”

“Enough with those useless words!” A voice suddenly rose from nearby, drowning out the rest. “Let me ask you this. How long has this ruler been on the throne?”

He Lingchuan looked over and saw that the speaker was in his early twenties. He was large and plump, with a slightly long face and a somewhat red nose. He then answered, “A few years now. May I ask who you are?”

“My surname is Du!” The man went straight on asking, “Did the state only become poor and weak after he took the throne?”

“No.” He Lingchuan shook his head. “The previous ruler was old, muddleheaded, stubborn, and self-willed. He did quite a few foolish things.”

When it came to Yuan’s former ruler, he naturally had nothing good to say.

“And after the new ruler took office, things didn’t improve at all?”

“Almost not at all,” He Lingchuan said. “The new ruler tried pushing through reforms, but they failed.”

The man slapped the table with a crack. “Then what more is there to say about the root cause? It lies with the ruler!”

Before Gao Jilin could speak, Jiang Tao said unhappily, “Du Shan, a state’s weakness has many causes and many effects. How can you pin all of it on the ruler alone?”

“All those causes and effects you speak of are surface appearances. Trace them back to the root, and it’s still the ruler!” Du Shan said without courtesy. “If one wishes to wear the crown, one must bear its weight. He cannot sweep away the old, cannot establish the new, cannot recognize and properly use talent, cannot punish the wicked and govern the corrupt, and cannot benefit the state or the people. Tell me, whose fault is that in the end?”

Liu Zewu also joined in. “Then, according to you, what should be done?”

Seeing that more and more people were paying attention to him, Du Shan smiled and continued, “There is a superior policy and an inferior policy. Which would you like to hear?”

He Lingchuan chose, “Let’s hear the inferior policy first.”

Du Shan immediately shook the wine pot. “Ah, it’s empty!”

He Lingchuan smiled and raised a hand to call a waiter over. “Bring a jar of five-year-aged Seeping Spring Fragrance for Brother Du!”

The wines at Fragrance-Filled House were also divided by grade. The best and most famous was its own brewed Seeping Spring Fragrance, supposedly made with spring snow gathered from the branches and plum blossoms still in bud. It was fragrant, smooth, and refreshing.

Of course, its price was far higher than that of second and third-rate wines.

Prices in Beijia were already high, and this place added several more layers on top of that. A jar of five-year-aged Seeping Spring Fragrance costs five taels of silver, or five thousand coins.

Even Du Shan was startled. He raised a thumb and said, “Generous. You are?”

“My surname is He.”

Jiang Tao muttered under his breath, “Brother He, you’re being foolish. This fellow won’t come up with any proper scheme.” They were publicly funded students, and their families were not short on money, but they still would not spend five taels of silver on good wine for a stranger just to hear one inferior policy.

He Lingchuan said quietly, “It’s fine.”

He was not the kind of person who threw money around for no reason.

When the wine arrived, Du Shan smashed open the mud seal, lowered his head to the mouth of the jar to inhale its fragrance, then poured himself a cup.

“The inferior policy is to find a few pretexts to convict and confiscate the property of those corrupt ministers who run rampant in court. Use the silver and wealth seized from them to fill the treasury, and the state won’t be short on money for the time being.” Du Shan took a sip of wine. “There’s no more money to scrape from the common people, but after so many years, the state’s parasites have fattened themselves nicely. If you don’t slaughter them now, when will you?”

A gleam flashed through He Lingchuan’s eyes. “That sounds good, but why do so few states use it?”

Yuan, in its current situation, had not moved against its ministers either.

“The roots and branches are tangled together. There are misgivings in the heart, and the ruler can’t bring himself to do it.” Du Shan chuckled. “But who says no one has ever used it? Beijia’s vassal state Xuluo did. When the third monster king ascended the throne, it did not pardon the deficits owed by officials of every rank. Instead, it ordered inspections of money and grain throughout the regions and set a deadline to make up the shortfalls. Anyone who failed would be severely arrested and punished. Within a few years, the treasury’s funds had been restored. It didn’t confiscate their households outright, but the effect was much the same.”

Jiang Tao scratched his head. “What you’re saying isn’t exactly wrong, but...” It doesn’t follow convention, nor is it the usual reasoning of governance and statecraft.

Du Shan did not even look at him as he continued, “In any case, this is only wine politics. Three cups and some idle talk. What method can’t be mentioned?”

Wine politics simply referred to discussing politics over drinks.

In the end, was it not just them wagging their tongues?

He Lingchuan spoke at just the right moment, “If the ruler could do that, wouldn’t he have done it years ago? Would he really wait until now? If he suddenly tries to seize people now, the royal court and the state may be thrown into turmoil, and nothing will be accomplished.”

All the students present knew that, in truth, even emperors could not simply do whatever they wished.

Boldness and capability, some people were born with them, while others never brushed against them, even at death.

“That is exactly the point!” Du Shan slapped the table again and laughed. “That’s why I still have a superior policy!”

He Lingchuan had already understood somewhat, but he still said, “Please speak.”

“Since the root lies with the ruler, just replace him with someone else.” Du Shan narrowed his eyes. “The highest seat belongs to the capable. Whoever can quell disorder and bring peace to the people can naturally sit securely on that throne.”

Everyone burst into laughter. “Du Shan offering a poisonous scheme! Sure enough, it’s this again!”

“The first blade of reform swings back and kills the ruler. Hahahaha!”

As soon as He Lingchuan heard this, he knew Du Shan liked to take an unorthodox path. It seemed he was already famous for it within the academy.

If Sun Hongye were here, the two of them would probably appreciate each other greatly and hail each other as kindred spirits.

Facing everyone’s laughter, Du Shan remained perfectly at ease. “For a ruler, indecision is a grave taboo. As the saying goes, ‘if the heart is not ruthless, the throne is not steady.’ Why should one man’s inability drag all living beings down with him? Besides, this ruler has been unable to strengthen the state or benefit the people for years, which shows that he occupies his post without fulfilling its duties. Someone else ought to replace him. When I say it, you all laugh and think it’s some wild fantasy. But in every dynasty, in every age, has it not always been so?” He gave a loud laugh. “Let me ask you all this: what matters more, the state and its people, or the ruler?”

He Lingchuan lowered his gaze slightly, thinking of Yuan’s Minister of War, Nian Zanli, and even “Divine Master” Hong Xiangqian.

In truth, was what they were doing not exactly as Du Shan had said?

Gao Jilin had been pondering all this time. Now, he suddenly said, “Yuan is weak internally. It has separatist powers and uprisings, so the royal court has to send soldiers to suppress them. However, war burns through money faster than anything, and without money, armies cannot be maintained. Therefore, the central government has to levy taxes on the common people statewide. The tax burden grows heavier, the people can no longer survive, nine out of ten places are emptied, and then they have no choice but to rebel... This cycle causes the state’s strength to decline further, and is probably one of the main reasons for Yuan’s decay.”

Du Shan slapped the table. “Did you hear that? Did you hear that? This is Yuan’s most urgent problem! Come, keep going.”

Gao Jilin smiled and continued, “The Yuan Army lacks men, horses, money, and grain, but in the final analysis, what it lacks is money. As long as it has money, men, horses, provisions, and fodder can all be bought. Yuan’s ruler’s most urgent task is to quickly obtain a large sum of outside wealth. That way, if the poor have a way to make a living, they won’t rebel. If the state has military funds, it won’t need to raise taxes on a large scale. The vicious cycle above will be broken. So long as this can be maintained and the state and its people are allowed to rest and recover for a time, Yuan can return to a healthy path.” He paused for a moment before adding, “There are many reasons for Yuan’s weakness. I’m only choosing one to discuss. Not long ago, Yuan fought the Battle of Han River against the Provincial Governor of Xun Province, General Nian. Yuan’s army had originally been beaten back again and again, forced to retreat to the natural barrier of the Han River. I heard that later, the Royal Court of Yuan and the local governments managed to gather money and grain to send to the front. As a result, Yuan’s army immediately fought General Nian to a draw.”

He used the Battle of Han River to support his view.

Everyone spoke up at once, “That makes sense, but where would this money come from?”

“If they’re already at the end of the road, that means they’ve tried every method they could think of. Where else can they get money?”

“Borrow it, steal it, rob it. Anything works. Otherwise, the state can simply wait to collapse, and the ruler can wait to have his head cut off.” Du Shan bared his teeth. “Do my superior and inferior policies not correspond perfectly to Brother Gao’s words? Confiscate the wealth of corrupt state parasites, and the common people will clap their hands in approval. The royal court gains both reputation and money, receiving both public praise and real benefit, and now it has funds to fight the war. Conversely, if this ruler can’t get the money, then he deserves to fall. Replace him with someone who can bring himself to do what must be done.”

Zheng Zewu shook his head. “How could it be that easy? The relationships within a royal court are often tangled and complicated...”

Du Shan glared. “Must it not be done just because it’s complicated? Those who accomplish great things must endure what others cannot endure and do what others cannot do. The state is on the brink of peril, and the ruler is still worrying about the front and looking over his shoulder. That is a grave taboo!”

Jiang Tao scratched his head. “But killing only a few state parasites probably won’t raise enough money, right?”

“Then steal, rob, or borrow too. You can’t tie your own hands and feet.” Du Shan laughed. “Is this the time to care about face?”

Surprisingly, no one else refuted his view. Instead, they followed his line of thought and extended it into a buzz of discussion.

Some of their suggestions sounded utterly unbelievable to He Lingchuan. No, not unbelievable. Rather, he found them quite enlightening.

Lately, he had been busy with his own mission and rarely thought deeply about such major matters.

These fellows do have some substance in their bellies after all.

Only when the discussion gradually died down did he ask Du Shan, “In Brother Du’s view, should a state’s system worship the gods or serve the ruler?”

Du Shan picked up a bit of dried small fish and chewed it, answering without even pausing to think, “We are humans, so the fate of humans should naturally be held in human hands. Are we supposed to let the gods decide whether we live or die?”

He Lingchuan smiled.

At that moment, Gao Jilin suddenly said to He Lingchuan, “There are several people over there who have been staring at Brother He. I fear their intentions are improper. Should we report them to the authorities?”

Public order near the Imperial Academy was quite good. If a report were made here, the local government office would definitely respond.

Everyone followed his gaze and indeed saw a table of three or four people sitting near the door. They were all burly men, and they had ordered only one pot of tea. As they drank, they kept staring at this side, their gazes seeming unfriendly.

“Oh, no need, no need.” He Lingchuan waved his hands repeatedly. “Thank you all for your concern, but they were sent to protect my safety. They’re not villains.”

These men were just some of the Tongxin Guard stationed at Fleeting Thoughts Manor. They had accompanied him in plain clothes today, though they did look rather like ruffians.

All the students were stunned.