Martial Cultivator

The replacement of old with new is an unchanging principle of heaven and earth.

Nothing remains exactly the same forever. A dynasty rises and falls, cycles repeating endlessly. Naturally, some people grow old, and some are in the prime of youth.

No one stays young forever, but there are always people who are young.

The Xie Family’s ancestor, when seeing Chen Chao off at the end, even laughed at himself and said, “In the past I never felt it so strongly, but some time ago, when I read that Premier’s memorial requesting resignation, I truly felt a deep ache in my heart.”

Now, throughout the entire Divine Capital, and even across all of Great Liang, that memorial submitted by the Premier requesting to resign has in fact been highly praised. Court and countryside alike have given it a name: The Taihu Resignation Letter.

There is even a saying: those who read the Taihu Resignation Letter without shedding tears are not worth befriending.

Taihu is the style name of that Premier.

After leaving the Xie Family’s ancestral residence, Weng Quan quickly came up and asked, “Your Excellency, where are we going? Back to the bamboo building, or to my second uncle’s residence?”

Only an hour had passed; presumably, the people over there had not yet finished leaving.

Chen Chao shook his head, boarded the carriage, and said softly, “To the Premier’s residence.”

......

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Early autumn had arrived, though it was not yet the season of yellowing leaves and falling foliage. Yet the old tree in the Premier’s residence already showed the air of decline. When the autumn wind blew, the leaves it had left this year, few to begin with, rustled down one after another.

There were not many servants in the Premier’s residence. Now there was only an old servant, bent with age, sweeping the fallen leaves from the ground.

The Premier, reclining beneath the corridor, struggled to open his somewhat clouded eyes and spoke softly. “That Chinese scholar tree was planted by my father on the day I was born. One could say it is the same age as this old man. It is said such trees usually live a hundred years, but looking at it now, it seems it will depart together with this old man.”

The Premier was covered with a thick cotton quilt, its fabric already somewhat faded. Beside him stood a small yellow-clay brazier, with an old copper kettle set upon it, its surface long since uneven.

It was all filled with the traces of time.

By the brazier, a young man in black robes sat upright and proper. Glancing at the Premier’s head of white hair, he said softly, “Premier has finally set aside worries over the affairs of state. This is precisely the age when you should be nurturing your health and enjoying your later years. You should not harbor such thoughts.”

“Lord Warden Commander, speaking of this, this old man is truly ashamed. In truth, several years ago this old man already had the intention of retiring. At the time, His Majesty was still here, the world was relatively peaceful, and whether this old man remained or not made little difference. But now, to speak frankly, this old man has never once thought of withdrawing. With the ruler young and the state uncertain, this is truly not a time when one should step back. Yet with this broken body of mine, this old man really can no longer hold on. This old man can only fail Great Liang, and fail these common people.”

Moisture welled up in the Premier’s clouded eyes. This elderly man, who had entered officialdom early and spent nearly his entire life in the court, sighed endlessly.

Serving the country and the people for a lifetime, the Premier had, over the years, more than once thought of leaving the official world, returning home to read and pursue scholarship. Yet every time he wished to step back, he was unable to do so for one reason or another.

Just as back then, when the Great Liang Emperor raised troops, captured the Divine Capital, and ascended the throne, countless colleagues were unwilling to serve a second ruler and chose to resign their posts. But the Premier thought that the realm had just undergone upheaval and the people’s hearts were unsettled. If the court fell into chaos, it would ultimately be the common people who suffered. And so he decided to remain in court and do what he could for them. His intentions were good, but he still met with much misunderstanding. Many close friends, from that point on, cut ties with him forever.

After that, the years passed in a blur. When he once again wished to retire, it happened to coincide with His Majesty leaving the country and the Crown Prince assuming regency, leaving behind this Great Liang court. Under such circumstances, even wanting to retire made it truly difficult to reach a decision.

Chen Chao said gently, “Premier has already done a great deal. It cannot be done better than this. That is enough.”

The Premier said softly, “But this old man still cannot set my mind at ease.”

Chen Chao thought for a moment and said, “This time, when I returned to the capital, His Highness discussed with me the matter of selecting a new Premier, though no decision has yet been made. Does Premier have someone in mind?”

The Premier shook his head. “Having been an official my entire life, there are many principles I still understand. A subject must not put his sovereign in a difficult position, nor should he place the successor in one. If I were truly to recommend someone, and he were to take office and then encounter any problems, should His Highness show him leniency out of regard for my feelings? “And to the court and the realm, should they refrain from speaking out because of consideration for this old man’s reputation? So no matter what, this old man should not open my mouth.”

Chen Chao considered speaking, intending to say that the Crown Prince should not be judged as an ordinary ruler. But after some thought, he let it go. In this world, anything may change, but the word ‘rules,’ once set down, are written in black and white.

“This junior already has someone in mind. Tutor Zhang from the academy should be able to shoulder the responsibility.”

Since this Premier was so clear-headed, there was no need for Chen Chao to hide anything.

The Premier nodded, saying nothing.

As expected, that Tutor Zhang was precisely the best successor in the Premier’s own mind.

After some thought, the Premier trembled as he drew an envelope out from beneath the quilt and handed it to Chen Chao. Chen Chao glanced at the Premier’s withered arm, now almost devoid of flesh, before accepting the envelope.

“Tutor Zhang’s abilities are sufficient for great responsibilities, but his age is already not small. At most, he can still be of use to the state for ten years. After ten years, the position of Premier will still be vacant. Lord Warden Commander, some matters require planning ahead. There are more than ten names on the paper, all of whom have the potential to become Premier. This old man ask that Lord Warden Commander speak to His Highness and give these people more cultivation. Perhaps one of them will, ten years from now, be able to take over from Tutor Zhang. As for the rest, even if they cannot become Premier, they are destined to be capable ministers. With them around, the people of our Great Liang should be able to enjoy several decades of good days.”

The Premier said with emotion, “We scholars are able to do very few things. This matter counts as something that must be done, and must be done well. As for other matters, they will have to trouble Lord Warden Commander to put in more effort.”

Chen Chao nodded his head.

The Premier looked at Chen Chao and remained silent for a long time, then suddenly spoke and asked, “If one day the demon race were completely wiped out, and there were no longer any need to worry about the calamity of demons in the north, would the lives of the people become better?”

Half of the court’s taxes were sent to the Northern Frontier. To many civil officials, this was something they were unwilling to accept, yet had no choice but to accept.

If there were no such protracted war lasting year after year, then the court’s taxes could be reduced by quite a bit, the treasury would become much more abundant, and the lives of the people under heaven would grow better and better.

Chen Chao said calmly, “If one day the north no longer needs to fight wars, the lives of the people will naturally become much better. This official will do his utmost to let that day arrive as early as possible, to let the people suffer a few fewer years.”

The Premier said softly, “Even if there is no way, this old man asks that Lord Warden Commander do everything possible to hold the Northern Frontier, and not allow the demons to move south. The people’s lives may be a bit bitter, but at least they can go on living. If in the future, when they raise their heads, what they see are demons...”

The Premier did not continue, as if he could not bear it, unable to bring himself to say it.

Chen Chao merely said calmly, “That is what we martial artists are meant to do. Scholars, including the Premier, are skilled at putting a shattered realm back together, at how to build another Heaven Reaching Tower, and we must ensure that the Heaven Reaching Tower built by scholars has a place where it can be built.”

After hearing this, the Premier only asked one final question.

The same as what someone else had asked before.

Can it be protected?

Even if it cannot be protected, it still must be protected.

This was Chen Chao’s answer.

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