Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 199 - 184: The Ancients Trap Each Other

Chapter 199: Chapter 184: The Ancients Trap Each Other

The balladeer held the memorial in his hand, deep in thought.

He had roughly guessed what the final case entailed, but found it incredibly difficult to make a final decision.

Kill Sima Yan?

In history, this was a matter for which Emperor Taizu of Sheng was greatly criticized, and moreover, Chu Ge felt it was completely unnecessary.

At that time, Sima Yan was already over seventy years old.

Even if he truly succeeded in rebelling, how many years could he reign as emperor?

And, deduced from the subsequent occurrences, the likelihood of Sima Yan successfully rebelling was not high. To kill a founding hero over such an insignificant hidden danger seemed utterly needless.

Would not killing him impact the longevity of the Great Sheng Dynasty?

Chu Ge still didn’t believe it.

He even began to doubt whether this was the correct approach, wanting to continue searching for clues within other memorials.

But after much consideration, "second-generation collapse" was indeed most likely related to powerful officials usurping the throne. With everything in the state well-organized by Emperor Taizu of Sheng, other possibilities seemed exceedingly unlikely.

"Think again, maybe there is something I’ve overlooked..." Chu Ge mused, sorting through everything he remembered about Sima Yan from the beginning.

He had once prepared intensively for Zhou Ping’s case, hence he had a deep understanding of the people involved in that case.

"If looking at historical records, Sima Yan didn’t show many signs of being power-hungry, especially when compared to Zhou Ping, he was practically the epitome of a good official.

"There are only three instances in history that recorded when Sima Yan, serving as Prime Minister, became arrogant. Twice were incidents where officials offended his authority, and he petitioned to remove them from office; another was out of jealousy of an official with ’Prime Ministerial talent,’ resulting in that person not being promoted...

"But these seemed like trivial matters.

"For a Prime Minister, merely dismissing those officials who offended him was quite tolerant, and as for the jealousy towards the talented official, it seemed more like an unfounded accusation, somewhat far-fetched.

"In my view, his major blunder was recommending Zhou Ping, who was also from Huai Region, as his hometown successor after he feigned illness and left his position.

"Zhou Ping, as Prime Minister, went much further than Sima Yan had. It’s said that Zhou Ping was promoted because he bribed Sima Yan in private, of course, regional reasons also played a significant role.

"At that time, these officials were basically organized into interest groups by region. Sima Yan represented the largest bureaucratic interest group then, the Huai Region group, and after Zhou Ping became Prime Minister, he took over his leadership position.

"Zhou Ping’s fate needs no mentioning; his death indeed had much to do with Emperor Taizu of Sheng deliberately allowing it to strengthen imperial power by eliminating the Prime Minister’s influence, but his own bullying and arrogant demeanor, completely lacking a sense of crisis in political struggle, rather justified his end.

"However, the reason for Sima Yan’s execution...was excessively far-fetched.

"Most crucially, Sima Yan had already vacated his position as Prime Minister and returned home due to ’illness’...

"Wait, that timing..."

Chu Ge suddenly realized something and started to calculate the key moments involving Sima Yan.

"At the beginning of the Great Sheng Dynasty, just a few years in, Sima Yan had already resigned as Prime Minister. It was clear that Emperor Taizu of Sheng was pleased, bestowing upon him plentiful farmland and fine residences, even marrying his eldest daughter to Sima Yan’s eldest son.

"At that time, Sima Yan was in his fifties.

"Ten years later, Zhou Ping’s case erupted; Zhou Ping had been recommended by Sima Yan, and the two had always been close, both being from the same hometown and related by marriage. After Zhou Ping’s case unfolded, over ten thousand officials were involved, with ramifications spanning ten years. Yet Sima Yan was unaffected, remaining as usual, even frequently appearing in court.

"At that time, Sima Yan was in his sixties.

"Another ten years passed, and Sima Yan, then over seventy, was once again implicated in Zhou Ping’s case, which led to his execution by Emperor Taizu of Sheng.

"This man... was also like Emperor Taizu of Sheng; blessed with longevity..."

After sorting out these key points regarding Sima Yan’s age, Chu Ge suddenly recalled a joke, one about a longevity competition.

Putting the content of the joke aside, at this moment, Emperor Taizu of Sheng and Sima Yan did seem to be competing over who could live longer...

Viewing the results, Emperor Taizu of Sheng lived another three years after killing Sima Yan before passing away. However, judging from the vitality Sima Yan showed, if he hadn’t been executed by Emperor Taizu of Sheng, it’s debatable who would have lived longer.

After all, at over fifty years old, Sima Yan had already claimed illness and retired from his post, only to be sprightly and lively well into his seventies...

"Suppose, Emperor Taizu of Sheng hadn’t killed Sima Yan.

"Assume further, Emperor Taizu of Sheng died two years earlier, and Sima Yan lived two more years, reaching his eighties, outliving Emperor Taizu of Sheng by two or three years.

"What would have happened?

"Could a rebellion have been successful?"

Chu Ge furrowed his brows, instinctively wanting to reject his own speculation.

"It’s unlikely.

"After a successful rebellion, he indeed could have passed the throne and power to his son. So, it’s not like there’s no motive.

"But come on, at over seventy years old, he could die at any time, not to mention whether he’s become senile or lacking in energy.

"Could someone that age still lead a rebellion?"

Chu Ge pondered for a long while before finally reaching a conclusion that even surprised himself.

"Yes.

"There are historical precedents for this kind of thing..."