Peace Order

Chapter 1713 - 59: Emperor!

When Prince Qin left the Wind Listening Pavilion, Xue Daoyong looked at the remnants of a chess game on the board, his lips twitching as he couldn’t help but say: "Indeed, I’ve said so much to him, and yet he won’t even concede a single game."

"Seven years ago, I couldn’t beat that lad."

"Seven years later, why is it even harder to beat him?"

"Could it be that I’m really just an incompetent chess player?"

Xue Daoyong began to doubt himself. After a while, a shadow quietly appeared beside the old man, none other than the leader of the Xue Family’s secret guards, a person to whom even Xue Daoyong had surrendered in his younger days when wandering the Martial World.

The world knows Xue Daoyong of the Xue Family as a Seven Heavens Martial Arts Grandmaster.

But few living know of the specter behind the ferocious tiger in times of chaos.

The martial arts realm of this shadow, the cultivation of Inner Strength, might not surpass Xue Daoyong, but when it comes to methods of killing, even this chaotic tiger could not match him. The old man within the shadows looked at Xue Daoyong, who was upset about the chess game, and spoke for the first time:

"The Xue Family’s legacy, accumulated over a hundred years with countless life-risking endeavors, is something Prince Qin has no intention of taking from the Family Head. Why then do you still want to give it away voluntarily?"

"In this matter, I truly do not understand."

Xue Daoyong tossed the chess pieces in his hand, smiling as he replied: "Are you feeling heartache too?"

The shadow said: "Among the many gold and silver properties, there’s also what we’ve painstakingly fought for. Previously, it seemed unimportant, but seeing the Family Head give it away so simply, no matter what, there’s a bit of reluctance in the heart."

Xue Daoyong burst into laughter: "You are truly daring in your words."

"Indeed, it’s hard to see clearly!"

With a sigh, Xue Daoyong looked at the old comrade before him and said: "The child in your eyes is still the young lad who couldn’t detect you back then, merely Li Guanyi."

The Shadow Guard leader was perplexed: "Isn’t it so?"

Xue Daoyong said: "Yes, and no. He is indeed the young lad we’ve watched grow up, but he is also now the Prince Qin controlling a vast territory, with strategists like rain and fierce generals like clouds under his command."

"You feel heartache giving to Li Guanyi."

"Then, if it were given to Prince Qin, if he asked for it, would you still dare say you couldn’t bear to part with it?"

The Shadow Guard was stunned, for some reason feeling an unexplainable chill.

Xue Daoyong held a chess piece in his hand; the black and white pieces resembled the world, the human heart. He said faintly: "I’ve always told you to read more, read more. Looking at history, haven’t you noticed?"

"In times of chaos, many wealthy merchants occupying a city or a state are willing to spend vast fortunes supporting those who seem like mere bandits or vagabonds at the time."

"They even forge weapons and gather local warriors for them?"

The Shadow Guard answered: "Is it because they, like the Family Head, foresaw the changes in the world and wanted to prepare in advance?"

Xue Daoyong, unable to resist, cursed with a laugh: "At such a time, you’re still flattering the old man here, talking about seeing through the chaos and betting on the world. Ninety percent of people who do this are merely self-preserving."

The Shadow Guard asked doubtfully: "Self-preserving?"

Xue Daoyong stretched out his hand, his white eyebrows hanging down, looking at these two chess pieces: "In the upheaval of the world, should it still be a peaceful time, with no war arising from all directions and hidden perils in the court, the Central Plains Dynasty mostly exploits the people."

"Thus, with numerous taxes and levies, the burden weighs down on the people’s heads, leaving them weary."

"Yet, this is merely a remedy not addressing the root cause."

"It’s only borrowing the legacy of a hundred years to fill the present gap."

"In the world, be it the king on the dragon chair or the civil and military officials, the wealthy families in the city, and the people, their contradictions are only temporarily suppressed and masked as peace."

"But these contradictions will eventually accumulate, like on the chessboard."

"Advantage accumulates little by little until it becomes a grand momentum, and then there’s indeed no room for maneuver, suddenly someone raises their arm and the world responds."

"Chaos will soon ensue."

"At this moment, the people’s hearts are the foundation, and when the people can no longer be exploited, guess what these mighty ones of the world will do?"

The Shadow Guard remained silent.

Xue Daoyong stood with hands behind his back and said faintly: "Seize from the merchants."

"As you say, the Xue Family is vast, seemingly extending across the world in various state and county chambers, with shops and accumulations everywhere, appearing strong and prosperous, yet—"

"What does it matter?!"

This aged fierce tiger let out a weary sigh, saying:

"The present is a time of chaos after all!"

"How do you become a conqueror? By strength of arms, what riches and legacy, once you lay down the perseverance in your heart and pick up the blade, the Xue Family’s chambers are merely the granaries for mighty heroes and rulers."

"Jiang Wanxiang, in his old age, slaughtered the renowned civil officials of the court, making a river of blood, under Prince Qin there are countless troops, whose number exceeds hands, and who can kill you and me within ten moves in direct confrontation."

"In the upheavals of history, how many top wealthy merchants had a peaceful end?"

"Guanyi is too kind-hearted."

"Prince Qin takes nothing, only because he is a sentimental king, sticking to his moral boundaries and rules."