si-mexico Chapter 204: Official Sponsorship of the Martial Arts Conference
Chapter 204: Official Sponsorship of the Martial Arts Conference
"I am a chivalrous man who roams the Jianghu. How can I be a lackey of the imperial court and help you oppress the people?"
Zuo Sanhe snorted coldly, looking like he would not bow down for a few pieces of silver.
Shen Changgong smiled and said,
"My dear, that's wrong. Let me ask you, where does your income come from? You're human beings too, you need food and shelter. You travel the world all day long, do you really rely on hunting for a living?"
"Of course we have our own ways of making money. We rob the rich and help the poor, we do good deeds, and we save some money for ourselves. We need to survive so that we can continue to rob the rich and help the poor. Isn't that what we should do?"
"To put it bluntly, it's just robbery. So, can you be sure that the people you robbed are bad guys?
If someone tells you that a certain landlord is a bad person, find a few people to pretend to be passers-by and tell you that it is indeed true.
But in fact, the landlord was a kind-hearted man who loved to give alms. You just killed him because you had a grudge against him. What should you do?"
"This……"
Zuo Sanhe was speechless for a moment and didn't know how to answer.
"To give you another example, are you so sure that all of you Jianghu people are good people? You are not subject to the laws of the court, you are unrestrained and lawless. Are there no bad people?
What should we do when those evil people, under the pretext of robbing the rich to help the poor, wantonly kill and rob? "
"Then of course we have to be chivalrous and kill him."
"Then how do you judge whether those so-called chivalrous people around you are not hypocritical hypocrites?
How could you know that the heroes you helped were actually harming innocent people?
How can you understand that, in the eyes of others, you are not such a person?"
Zuo Sanhe was speechless again, not knowing how to answer.
Shen Changgong said again,
"Everything you do is based on your own subjective judgment, deciding the life and death of others. But are you always right?"
"Then don't your county magistrates and prefects also rely on their own judgment to sentence people?"
Zuo Sanhe finally found a way to refute it.
“But there are laws to constrain them, and if they do something wrong, they will be punished by higher-level officials.
If you do something wrong, who can punish you?"
Zuo Sanhe lowered his head and fell into deep thought.
He felt that what Shen Changgong said seemed to be somewhat right, and seemed to overturn his long-held beliefs.
What made him even more unbelievable was that a prince, a man second only to the emperor in the entire Yan Kingdom, would actually say so much to him.
Shen Changgong continued
"Master Zuo, you, the people of Jianghu, have acquired excellent martial arts skills, and you are chivalrous and righteous. You come and go like the wind, free and easy, and you take pleasure in taking revenge. Countless people envy you.
But in my opinion, you don’t respect your ancestors and your king and father.
You are living a carefree and happy life, but now you are wanted by the government and cannot even go home.
How should I live with my elderly parents and frail wife and children at home?
Their son and husband are wanted criminals. How can they hold their heads up at home?
To put it nicely, you are free and easy; to put it bluntly, you are selfish!
Your ancestors are watching over you in heaven. Do they expect you to be granted titles of nobility and become generals to bring honor to your family?
Your families are waiting for you at home, counting on you to provide for them and shoulder their responsibilities.
Why don't men take Wu hook and charge Guanshan Fifth State.
Please come to Lingyan Pavilion for a while, as if you are a scholar and a marquis of ten thousand households.
You all have excellent martial arts skills. You should go into battle to kill the enemy, defend your homeland, be respected by the people, expand the territory for your country, and make great achievements. This is what a man should do.
Instead of going hungry all day, sleeping in the open, not daring to go home, and not being able to lift your head."
Zuo Sanhe was silent for a long time, then he raised his head, looked at Shen Changgong with deep eyes, and said,
"Lanling Prince, we all know that you are a good official, and I admit that you are right. Who doesn't want to hold their head high and lead a good life?
But all of us are wanted criminals by the government. Most of us were on the run when we were in the countryside, saw injustice and helped others, but accidentally killed someone."
"So, I'm giving you a new chance. Come and join the conscription order. If you're chosen, your past will be wiped out, and you'll start a new life. Kill the enemy, gain merit, and be crowned a marquis and a general, bringing honor to your family.
This king has reformed the military system. Promotions no longer rely on connections or recommendations. The capable will be promoted and the mediocre will be demoted. As long as you have the ability, you will definitely be able to rise to the top."
Shen Changgong looked at Zuo Sanhe. Although he didn't know how good his martial arts were, he knew he was not a weakling just by looking at his eyes and figure.
He waited for the other party's answer.
Zuo Sanhe said,
“Your Majesty, we also have the pride of family and country. We hold the martial arts conference and choose the martial arts leader not for our own selfish desires.
Your Highness probably doesn't know yet, but the Kun people's ranger gang has also formed a unified organization called the Mie Yan Society.
The people from the Yan Destruction Society are infiltrating our Yan State and have already wiped out two gangs. They also rob and commit all kinds of evil.
They have only two goals. One is to avenge the demise of Kun’s army in our country, and the other is to assassinate you and Yu Huatian.
The Kun Kingdom is very powerful, and the Kun people are very proud. In the martial arts world, we Yan people are also suppressed by the Kun people."
Shen Changgong frowned when he heard this and said,
"Destroy the Yan Society? Come over here and tell me in detail."
The soldiers made way, Zuo Sanhe walked up to Shen Changgong and said,
"Kun Nation suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of our country. Those Rangers couldn't swallow this humiliation and wanted to get back at us. After all, they believed that Kun Nation should have crushed our country.
They believed that Yu Huatian was a traitor who had betrayed the Kun Kingdom with a large army and must be eliminated as soon as possible.
And you are the pillar of Dayan and the culprit who defeated Kun’s army, so you must die too.
Jianghu matters, Jianghu matter.
Their soldiers can't beat our soldiers, so these gangsters want to bully us.
We don’t agree!
We also want to show them that our Great Yan, not only have formidable soldiers, but our people in the underworld are not cowards either!"
Shen Changgong narrowed his eyes, looked at Zuo Sanhe, and thought quickly in his mind.
This so-called Anti-Yan Society cannot move the army of Dayan, but if it specializes in sabotage, looting, assassinating officials and generals, etc., it can also cause considerable trouble.
After a moment, Shen Changgong smiled and said,
"Master Zuo, I have a suggestion that I would like to discuss with you."
"Oh?"
"It's like this, you see, this Yan Mie Society is your enemy, and also the enemy of the court.
How about the imperial court sponsor your martial arts conference, help you build the arena, maintain order, and help you select the leader of the martial arts world?
Even in the battle against the Yan-Mie Society, the imperial court can send troops to help you.
This is not about being a running dog of the imperial court, but a union of the imperial court and the people of Dayan to fight against foreign enemies.
As I said, how we, the people of Dayan, fight is our own business, and it is not the turn of these foreign enemies to bully us."