Chapter 1451 - 1359: Allegiance (Part 2)

The situation in Shu may not be terminal, but it does need strong medicine; otherwise, Li Xiong wouldn’t have sought out Zhao Hanzhang.

He has thirteen sons, every one of them useless.

Not to mention the older ones, even the younger ones consider themselves princes. They think Cheng Country is the realm the Li Family built through great sacrifices. By the age of seven or eight, they are already domineering, wanting whatever they desire, and if they don’t get it, they either throw tantrums or severely punish servants and slaves.

Li Xiong is too busy with state affairs to have much energy to educate his children. Those around them, to appease and curry favor with the princes, tend to indulge them a lot.

By the time Li Xiong realized this, it was too late to properly educate them.

The worst part is, after replacing all the attendants around his children, the new attendants, to avoid punishment and trouble, quickly submitted to the children as well.

Besides the attendants, there are their maternal families, relatives, and court officials. He couldn’t possibly lock them up and prevent them from interacting with these people.

As Li Xiang said, the roots of disaster have already taken deep hold, and he lacks the ability to eradicate them. Li Ban is already the best of the worst, but he likely can’t stabilize the court either.

Li Xiong must consider the future, not only for the Li Family but also for all the people of Cheng Country, including his old comrades...

Li Xiong is a person who values emotional connections; he still wants things to begin and end well with them.

Zhao Hanzhang knew this, which is why she was determined to have a serious conversation with Li Xiong.

Since he sincerely treated her well, she also had to reciprocate with sincerity.

At this time, Shu was not yet the prosperous upper country it would be in later generations. It had many mountains, a sparse population, and a fierce folk custom. The Sichuan Basin had fertile lands thanks to the Dujiangyan reservoir, but the dense forests, abundant grass, steep mountains, and narrow paths made it rarely communicate with the outside world.

Now many people in Shu still identify only with the Later Han, let alone her, Zhao Hanzhang, and even the Wei and Jin dynasties were not recognized by the populace.

Since Li Xiong coveted the resources and development of the Central Plains, hoping for Shu to develop like the Central Plains, it was necessary to have a thorough discussion on how much he was willing to offer and compromise.

She also hoped for national prosperity, well-being of the people, and prosperity for scholars, merchants, and nobles, but she knew that was impossible.

There were both harmonies of interest and points of conflict between them, making it impossible for everyone to accept.

Especially the conflicts between Li Xiong’s generals and local nobles and the local populace, if not already severe, why would Li Xiong prefer to weaken the vassals and let the court govern Shu?

Without destruction, there can be no creation. Zhao Hanzhang had only three basic conditions for Shu.

After weakening the vassals: first, the court’s army must station in Cheng Country;

second, Shu must share a legal system with the court;

third, the appointment and removal of officials in Shu must be approved by the court.

Only by reaching a consensus on these three points could the weakening of the vassals be truly achieved in Cheng Country; otherwise, eventually, the situation would spiral out of control.

Zhao Hanzhang specifically chose a time to have a secret conversation with Li Xiong via radio, and no one knew what they talked about.

The court was to resume its duties on the eighth, but before the eighth, Zhao Hanzhang suddenly announced she would focus on spending time with her family, refraining from entertaining guests or seeing court officials from the third to the seventh.

Apart from Li Ban, only a few close ministers around him knew of Li Xiong’s self-initiated vassal weakening.

Like in the Central Plains, Cheng Shu also had the custom of celebrating the New Year, and after the second day, he took the civil and military officials of Cheng Country and his sons to tour the region, planning to inspect various places and celebrate with the military and civilians.

Li Xiong’s camp was stationed in Ba Mountain. He climbed Ba Mountain, looking in the direction of Han Zhong, and sighed with the ministers who followed him up, "It’s been many years since I visited Han Zhong. I’ve heard that it’s now very prosperous, with smooth roads, busy merchants, and the people living in peace and prosperity."

The ministers quickly flattered him, "Our Cheng Country is not lacking either. The Great King is lenient, the people live in peace, and our Shu brocade and grain bring back quite a bit of ’Zhao’ currency every year."

Cheng Country had its own currency system with self-minted coins, but it was chaotic. In Shu, the money from the Wei Jin period, Cheng Country’s copper coins, and the ’Zhao’ currency were all in use.

Because of the chaotic currency system, bartering was still the primary method for small transactions among the people, which was detrimental to commerce and trade.

The ministers of Cheng Country had already foreseen this and recently planned to convert all currency into ’Zhao’ currency. They believed the main task of the Princely Heir’s trip to Luoyang for the New Year’s court assembly was this.

The Central Plains had developed rapidly in recent years, and although Cheng Country’s ministers were content in their corner, most had family traveling abroad or going to the Central Plains to take examinations for official positions, so they were aware of the outside world.

They also wanted to enjoy the convenience and benefits of development in the Central Plains; adopting the ’Zhao’ currency and unifying currency was their first step.

They wanted both an independent political system and to enjoy the same policies and economic support as other states and counties in Hua Country, assuming their Great King shared this mindset. They never imagined Li Xiong would aim for destruction followed by renewal, initiating a complete overhaul.

At the end of the narrow path on Ba Mountain, a team in armor suddenly appeared, and the ministers glanced over, their eyes freezing as something felt off. "Who are they? This isn’t our Cheng Country’s military uniform!"

As the group approached, Great General Li Yun was shocked, stepping forward and shouting, "Quick, protect the Great King!"

Li Xiong stopped them, saying, "These are Your Majesty’s trusted aides, do not be discourteous."

Li Xiong’s trusted aides then quieted down, awaiting his orders.

Zeng Yue stepped forward with his entourage, cupping his fist, saying, "King Cheng, Your Majesty’s temporary residence is to the west of Shandong, please move to meet."

Li Xiong agreed.

All the officials of Cheng Country were startled, following eastward with their hearts in their throats, not understanding why the emperor was present here.

Zhao Hanzhang was not in the main camp but was personally waiting at a corner. Upon seeing Li Xiong leading the group over, she immediately smiled and went to meet him.

Li Xiong also saw her and, though never having met before, instantly recognized each other.

He hastened his steps and when nearly reaching Zhao Hanzhang, he knelt on one knee to salute. Before his knee touched the ground, Zhao Hanzhang caught him, smiling as she helped him up, "Zhong Jun, rise quickly. I regard you as a brother, and ask you to treat me as a sister."

Li Xiong insisted on kneeling, giving Zhao Hanzhang a kowtow before standing up again, his face filled with emotion, "I should have gone to Luoyang to pay my respects to Your Majesty, but due to my inadequacy, Your Majesty has been troubled to come here. I am truly ashamed."

With a smile, Zhao Hanzhang held his hand, "The scenery of Shu is different from other places. It’s thanks to your blessing that I am fortunate enough to see such majestic mountains. Moreover, given your character, entering Shu is worthwhile to experience, even climbing knife mountains or walking through fire if necessary."

Li Xiong blushed, repeatedly claiming "ashamed."

Zhao Hanzhang said earnestly, "It’s rare for those in power to step back for the greater good after holding significant authority. Your moral character is as clear to see as the shining sun and moon, so why feel ashamed?"

As for not governing his territory well, that’s a matter of ability.

A person’s capabilities are limited, yet acknowledging one’s inadequacies and stepping back without seeking power or profit is better than ninety-nine percent of the people in this world.