Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 173 - 168: Only Killing!

Chapter 173: Chapter 168: Only Killing!

Returning to the very start of the north-south list case again, Chu Ge fell into deep thought.

He had known all along that handling it this way would have serious consequences, but clearly, he had still underestimated those consequences.

Originally, he thought that the impact of this case on the reign of the Great Sheng Dynasty would last only about thirty to fifty years.

However, he hadn’t expected that even a relatively moderate and peaceful way of handling it could halve the reign of the Great Sheng Dynasty!

Clearly, this was not a simple imperial examination.

If it were merely a simple exam, then what would it matter if one candidate was not recorded? It was only about the officials-in-training for one year; even if none were used, it wouldn’t have too much impact.

Emperor Taizu of Sheng had executed tens of thousands of officials, yet the court hadn’t stopped functioning.

Therefore, the issues involved in the north-south list case clearly extended beyond these scholars and involved officials at court, and even some deeper matters.

"I remember during the Qi Dynasty’s time, there was a scholar who had passed all the way to the palace examination but was disqualified. He could not find peace, so he joined the military only to be ’doubted and unused’.

"The reason was quite simple; because he was too ugly and lacked strong connections, no one favoured him.

"So, he defected to the enemy, killed over ten thousand Qi Dynasty troops in battle, was appointed as a chancellor by the enemy state, and even wrote poems to mock Qi.

"After that, the Qi Dynasty reformed the imperial examination, ensuring that anyone who reached the palace examination could no longer be disqualified, fearing that talents might defect because of this.

"Thus, the imperial examination was never just about selecting a few insignificant officials; it was the only upward channel for grassroots talents and the most critical link in binding talents and garnering public support for the entire nation.

"If there’s a problem with this link, it indeed shakes the foundation of the nation.

"If one rejected talent could cause so much trouble for the Qi Dynasty, one could only imagine the unimaginable consequences if Emperor Taizu truly offended all the talents from the north in this year’s examination.

"Keep in mind, the Northern Barbarians had only retreated beyond the borders a few years ago. Many people in the north even hoped that the Northern Barbarians would return. After all, before the establishment of the Great Sheng Dynasty, the fragmentation of Huaxia was unimaginable.

"With the north and south separated for over two hundred years, Yan and Yun split for over four hundred years, and places like River West isolated for over five hundred years... The differences in these places were unimaginable.

"Some areas had been smoggy just decades after separation, and after centuries, the identification as the same ethnicity might barely exist.

"And throughout his life, Emperor Taizu strove to mend this fragmentation.

"So, seeing a group of bureaucrats collectively pushing the entire north toward the Northern Barbarians, he was, of course, furious.

"Therefore, from a national perspective, establishing separate north and south lists for selecting scholars was very necessary.

"However, setting up north and south lists required at least a decade of planning and standardization, and Emperor Taizu, now in his seventies, did not have the energy anymore.

"He could only opt for strict punishment; after all, these officials were already overstepping their bounds while he was alive, who knows what kind of trouble they could stir up after his death..."

Chu Ge understood more clearly why the north-south list case was so significant.

But he still didn’t quite grasp why the punishment had to be so severe and harsh, why some major officials had to be exiled or even torn apart by chariots?

Why wasn’t a fine or demotion enough?

Chu Ge furrowed his brows and continued to analyze.

"Just as I analyzed before, Emperor Taizu wouldn’t live much longer; historically, he had less than two years before his demise.

"Moreover, Emperor Taizu couldn’t possibly predict his own death. So many emperors historically died in their forties and fifties, and he was already over seventy; every day was like counting the days waiting for the grim reaper. Living another day was a divine grace.

"So, why did these officials dare to overstep their bounds?

"First, the chief examiner Zheng Sansheng established the fateful fact that all northern scholars had failed; then Emperor Taizu had Liu Xin and others form an investigation team to look into the matter and subtly hinted them to include northern scholars, but their findings remained unchanged, and they even deliberately showed some of the worse papers from northern scholars to Emperor Taizu...

"Didn’t they know that Emperor Taizu was a very murderous emperor?

"Risking their lives to contradict the emperor, why?

"For the fairness and justice of the imperial examination? Clearly, that was impossible.

"There are only two possibilities: first, they have a huge interest behind this action and are willing to take the risk for that benefit; second, they gamble on their luck, thinking that even after making a probe, it isn’t certain they will die.

"It was unexpected that Emperor Taizu of Sheng, even at the age of seventy, still had the strength to wield the knife, not indulging them at all. A try and they would pass away.

"So, the key issue at this point is: what exactly is the huge interest they are after? Why can’t simple demotion or punishment suppress their ambition, nor can it sustain the continuation of the Great Sheng Dynasty’s reign?

"Why must heads roll to halt this tendency?"

The answer wasn’t difficult, so Chu Ge almost instantly thought of it.

"Power.

"They want to wrest power from the emperor’s hands.

"The ultimate goal of every civil official is to marginalize the emperor and become the king without a crown. The entire bureaucratic system is actually always trying to deceive the emperor and seek benefits for themselves.

"The way Emperor Taizu of Sheng handled this matter would send a specific message to these bureaucratic gentry.

"Emperor Taizu of Sheng is getting old, not far from passing away, his physical and mental strength and even his judgment are no longer what they once were.

"So, if Emperor Taizu of Sheng said nothing and let this matter pass, it would mean that he no longer had any energy to deal with these things.

"If he couldn’t handle such an important matter, what about other matters? Surely they would also be beyond his capability to address?

"By then the officials could fully unleash their actions.

"Even after a new ruler ascends the throne, they could naturally justify this practice as ’the established system.’

"They would say, back when Emperor Taizu reigned, he too only recruited scholars from the south, which means Emperor Taizu approved it. So, why not continue recruiting only southern scholars after the new emperor takes over? It seems flawless.

"By then, they would probably only intensify their efforts. As southern scholars increasingly dominate, with the court factions all held by specific groups, it would be hard to say whether future emperors could contain them.

"If Emperor Taizu of Sheng only demoted and fined them?

"The outcome wouldn’t be much different either. The officials would still think that Emperor Taizu couldn’t wield the knife anymore, and such a serious matter only resulted in demotion and a fine. Then in the future, when they do relatively minor things, wouldn’t they do as they please?

"After all, the emperor is already senile in his old age, he might not notice; even if he does notice, it would just end in demotion and a fine, with the punishment not proportional to the gains.

"If Emperor Taizu of Sheng could live another thirty years, then lighter punishments could be considered. After all, there would still be enough time to reform the entire system and fix the ratio of north to south exam passers.

"But he no longer has the time, he could die at any moment, and once he dies, the way this matter is handled would become a clear signal.

"So, there’s only killing!

"Because only by executing a major purge could those officials be intimidated and a clear signal left for future emperors that the imperial examinations must take candidates from both north and south.

"Officials trying to control the imperial examinations and hence continually fostering their faction is inevitable, and by the middle to later stages, it often becomes irreparable. But Emperor Taizu of Sheng’s approach, at least in the early stages of the dynasty, managed to curb this corrupt inclination as much as possible, extending the reign of the Great Sheng Dynasty as much as possible."

At this, Chu Ge couldn’t help but sigh lightly.

Indeed, behind the actions of these historical heroic figures, there’s always a deeper reason.

Many say that Emperor Taizu of Sheng killed several great scholars over the north-south exam case as if it were utterly reprehensible, yet in reality, with the deeds these people did and the actual consequences that arose, mere execution was already lenient.

He took up a memorial and wrote one word on it.

"Kill!"

Indeed, there was no other solution than killing.

Circling back, he reached the standard answer given by Emperor Taizu of Sheng.

Of course, this did not mean his analysis was meaningless.

Because this was just the first difficult question Emperor Taizu of Sheng faced in his role as emperor, with many more challenges awaiting him. Analyzing this problem would be very helpful in addressing future ones.

Chu Ge calmed his mind a bit and continued to analyze the following cases.