Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 194 - 183: The Risk of the Minister Usurping Power? (Big - , Requesting Monthly Tickets!)

Chapter 194: Chapter 183: The Risk of the Minister Usurping Power? (Big Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets!)

In the grand hall, the lights were brilliantly lit.

It was deep into the night when Emperor Taizu of Sheng, portrayed by Dark Sand, threw the last memorial onto the desk and leaned back wearily.

So tired...

As an old man of seventy, even possessing the talent of "Lustrous Spirit," the long years of reviewing memorials had pushed his physical state to a considerable limit.

The role of an emperor was truly not meant for humans.

Thus it is said, in a feudal society, the vast majority of people live lives not of their own choosing.

Farmers labor diligently every day, but once disaster strikes, they face the grim fate of selling children, extreme poverty, and disease.

Wealthy merchants, though they live in opulence and luxury, once targeted by officials, don’t escape without losing a layer of skin, and more severe cases involve confiscation of all family assets for military supplies.

Officials strut and lord over others and can indulge in various shades of income, grey or black. But once exposed, the result is nothing short of the extermination of their entire family.

The emperor, seemingly at the pinnacle of feudal society, can kill or do as he pleases, yet is not absolutely free.

To govern well, one must work harder than a farmer; to ignore responsibilities means risking chaos in the realm and the loss of one’s rule.

How difficult!

By comparison, Dark Sand preferred modern society.

Though oppression and suffering also existed in modern times, at least with the developments in production technology, the likelihood that most people live safe and happy lives is far greater than in the past.

There were no new memorials on the desk now, affording Dark Sand a rare moment of rest.

"Phew... Finally finished this batch of memorials...

"But, it has been a long time since any new cases have come up.

"I originally thought there would definitely be the widely implicated Zhou Ping’s case, but after carefully reviewing the memorials, I found that Zhou Ping’s case had already been closed ten years ago...

"Strange, this doesn’t seem like the style of ’Dark Sand’.

"But indeed, it’s a case already resolved, and there isn’t much in these memorials related to Zhou Ping’s case. From a gameplay perspective, I probably don’t need to dredge up old cases."

From the cases after the North-South Ranks case onward, no new system prompts would be triggered, leaving the player to search and discover through towering piles of memorials on their own.

Such odds are like finding a needle in a haystack.

But, armed with knowledge of history in his mind, Dark Sand also paid targeted attention to some notable historical cases during his review, such as Zhou Ping’s case.

It was a case of great impact, which Dark Sand had thought would inevitably come up during his role-playing as the emperor, but only after thorough scrutiny and comparison of names in the memorials did he realize this case had occurred ten years ago.

Historically, this case indeed happened before Dark Sand’s portrayal of Emperor Taizu of Sheng.

However, Dark Sand knew that in the "instance" of "Embrace the Heroic Spirit of Thistles and Thorns," these events are never aligned with their real historical timelines. Like the Blank Seal Case, its timing clearly mismatched, appearing to be a forced relocation and amalgamation by ’Dark Sand.’

So, the fact that Zhou Ping’s case had already happened left Dark Sand somewhat uneasy.

Zhou Ping’s case, actually, was not complicated.

Shortly after the founding of the Great Sheng Dynasty, at that time, Prime Minister Sima Yan resigned due to illness, and on leaving, recommended his fellow townsman Zhou Ping as his successor.

Afterwards, due to his efficient management and appropriate conduct, Zhou Ping was highly valued by Emperor Taizu of Sheng and held great authority.

However, very soon, a major case against Zhou Ping unfolded.

It started when Zhou Ping’s son was rapidly driving a carriage in the street, accidentally fell off, and was killed. Enraged, Zhou Ping took the law into his own hands and killed the carriage driver.

When Emperor Taizu of Sheng learned of this, he was furiously demanded that Zhou Ping pay with his life for the carriage driver’s.

Zhou Ping requested to redeem his life with wealth, which Emperor Taizu refused. Realizing Emperor Taizu intended for him to die, Zhou Ping conspired with the Imperial Censor and other officials to rebel and covertly win over civilian and military officials.

Then, when foreign envoys arrived to pay tribute, Zhou Ping did not report it to Emperor Taizu but instead detained them himself.

This was discovered by a supervising officer appointed by Emperor Taizu of Sheng, who reported it. Furious, Emperor Taizu of Sheng ordered a thorough investigation, which led to a great purge. Zhou Ping’s officials, not wholly loyal, included many who understood opposing Emperor Taizu of Sheng meant certain death, so they secretly reported him.

Consequently, numerous pieces of evidence regarding Zhou Ping’s rebellion were uncovered, including various corrupt activities of his associates.

Emperor Taizu of Sheng eventually executed over twenty thousand people, mostly officials and their families involved with Zhou Ping.

Logically, such a significant case should have occurred during "emperor" gameplay.

But Dark Sand flipped through the memorials extensively only to discover that this incident had unfolded according to real historical events nearly ten years ago.

"Forget it, since it hasn’t turned up in the game, it probably isn’t there.

"Possibly ’Dark Sand’ has some randomness in structuring cases.

"If each time the victory conditions are strictly based on real historical cases, then players starting out could simply copy the answers, right? A bit of randomness also adds some obstacles for players during gameplay."

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