r18novel Chapter 83 A Startling Speculation
Chapter 83 A Startling Speculation
Chapter 83 A Startling Speculation
Since ancient times, judging heroes by their success or failure has been a mainstream view.
Zhao Sheng's disregard for judging heroes by success or failure made him an anomaly in this era.
"hey-hey."
Faced with Wang You's praise, Zhao Sheng smiled shyly and said, "Actually, I used to think that Zhao Kuo was a useless person who only knew how to talk about war on paper."
But last time you said that the greater the resistance to Prime Minister Fan's new policies, the better the policies were.
We should not judge heroes by success or failure, but rather look beyond the surface to see the essence.
Later, when I was looking through historical records, I came across the account of Zhao Kuo again. After careful reading, I discovered that Zhao Kuo was not so incompetent as he seemed; on the contrary, he was quite capable.
Before Emperor Gaozu of Han acquired the title of Marquis of Huaiyin, he personally led troops in campaigns in the south and north. Later, he asked the Marquis of Huaiyin how long he could command troops, and the Marquis of Huaiyin replied that he could command 100,000 troops.
Even someone like Emperor Gaozu of Han, who led troops in numerous campaigns, could only command 100,000 soldiers. Zhao Kuo, on his first time as a commander, was to lead around 200,000 troops.
Being able to command such a large army effectively is already quite an achievement.
The exact troop strength in the Battle of Changping has been debated not only in later generations, but also in ancient times.
Given the strength of the Zhao state at that time, it could not support so many soldiers, let alone provide logistical support for more than 400,000 troops in battle.
Given the circumstances at the time, providing logistical support for more than 400,000 troops would have required at least the same number of civilian laborers.
Emperor Yang of Sui thrice threatened Goguryeo, and each time he mobilized a million laborers to ensure logistical support.
This is not difficult to analyze. Any military general who has fought in battles can tell that the so-called 400,000 troops at that time included auxiliary troops and civilian laborers for logistics.
Killing innocent people and claiming credit for their crimes was all too common in ancient warfare.
The military merit system of the Qin state was based on meritorious service in killing enemies.
Wang You thought about it carefully and realized that he had indeed spoken out for Fan Da Xiang Gong back then.
Although he didn't particularly like Fan Da Xiang Gong and thought he wasn't as noble as later generations had described him, he still highly approved of the policies of his new administration.
At the time, because of the death of Fan Da Xiang Gong, the initial controversy arose from the posthumous title determined by the government. Later, the debate escalated and the issue became whether the new title was fair.
Zhao Sheng said that the new laws formulated by Prime Minister Fan were problematic, otherwise how could they have failed so quickly?
Wang You countered that one cannot judge a hero by success or failure.
Reform itself will inevitably affect the interests of some people. The greater the resistance, the greater the impact of the new law on the interests of those with vested interests.
If there is absolutely no resistance, then there is no point in continuing the reform.
Unexpectedly, Zhao Sheng not only listened but also gained this insight.
At this moment, a servant came in to report that the meal had been served.
Zhao Sheng then stopped chatting and asked the waiter to bring the dishes.
"Little sister, the food is coming soon. Bring the Wang family's little sister over for dinner first," Zhao Sheng called out.
Zhao Jiu, who was chatting and laughing with Mu Jie'er, said somewhat displeased upon hearing this, "Big brother, you and Young Master Wang can eat first. I'm not hungry. I'll play with Mu Jie'er some more."
"Of course you're not hungry since you just ate, but Miss Wang hasn't eaten yet," Zhao Sheng said irritably.
"Forehead--"
Only then did Miss Zhao remember this, and she looked at Sister Mu and asked, "Sister Mu, are you hungry?"
"Sister Jiacheng, I'm hungry," Mu Jie'er said, touching her lower abdomen and blinking.
"Then let's go have dinner. The Golden Soup at Fanlou is excellent and would suit you perfectly," Miss Zhao said with a smile.
Wang You was stunned when he heard Mu Jie'er address Zhao Jiu Guniang.
In ancient times, a woman's name was called her maiden name. Scenes like those in some TV dramas, where people casually ask a girl's name, would never have happened in ancient times.
"Gui" refers to a woman's boudoir. It doesn't mean that a woman's name can only be used in her boudoir, but rather that her name should only be known by her family.
Many people have a misconception that women don't have names; they are usually given a name followed by "mother" according to their birth order.
If the eldest child is called the eldest aunt, and the third child is called the third aunt.
Even after marriage, they are addressed in the same way. Those of higher status may take their husband's surname and be called Mrs. So-and-so.
But in fact, the woman was famous; she just kept her name a secret from her family.
Therefore, even if Miss Zhao's name is Jia Cheng, she will not tell Sister Mu.
Moreover, Zhao Jiacheng doesn't sound like a woman's name at all.
This title reminded Wang You of someone—the Princess of Jiacheng County.
Based on Zhao Sheng's previous introduction, he had many brothers in his family and only one younger sister, who was very much loved.
Both of them share the surname Zhao, so they seem to fit the bill perfectly.
But if Zhao Sheng is truly the son of the Prince of Yong, then why would he participate in the prodigy examination?
It should be noted that, according to the imperial clan system of the Song Dynasty, members of the imperial clan were not allowed to have private contact with high-ranking officials in the court, participate in the imperial examinations, or hold any substantive positions.
Strictly speaking, the prodigy examination was not a civil service examination, but members of the imperial family could not even hold substantive positions. The honorary positions they were granted were based on their bloodline.
In other words, participating in the prodigy exam was meaningless for members of the imperial family.
However, Wang You quickly recalled Zhao Sheng's previous performance. In the earlier exams, Zhao Sheng seemed to have concluded that he would not qualify for the palace examination.
When the results came out, there was no disappointment.
It seems like they already knew the outcome and didn't care about it.
Wang You hadn't thought much of it before, assuming Zhao Sheng was just trying his luck, so he didn't pay much attention.
Looking back now, even if it was just a matter of luck, I must have hoped that I could win a prize.
Even if you don't care much, you'll still feel some disappointment if you don't even qualify for the palace examination.
If Zhao Sheng is the son of the Prince of Yong, then it makes sense.
As a member of the imperial family, he knew he could not participate in the palace examination, otherwise his identity would be exposed.
The prodigy exam wasn't as rigorous as the imperial examination, but during the palace exam, their identities were definitely thoroughly investigated.
Therefore, Zhao Sheng must have deliberately given random answers when answering the questions.
Knowing that he would not qualify for the palace examination, there was naturally no sense of disappointment.
As for why Zhao Shengming would participate if he knew there was no result, why did he still participate?
Wang You thought it was probably out of resentment.
In his memory, later generations seemed to divide human needs into five levels.
My memory of this is rather vague, but it's something like this: once people have satisfied their basic needs for survival and some material needs, they start to pursue spiritual needs.
Wang You felt that this spiritual need was probably about ideals and aspirations.
Although the titles of the imperial family members in the Song Dynasty were to be inherited at a lower rank, as the eldest son of a prince, he would still become a duke in the future.
Wealth and honor are innate; some people are content with enjoying them, while others want to realize their ideals and values.
Wang You didn't know if his guess was right, but if Zhao Sheng was the son of the Prince of Yong, then wanting to associate with him would mean endless trouble.
Miss Zhao Jiu led Sister Mu to the table and sat down.
Zhao Shengyi turned his head and saw Wang You staring blankly. He asked with some confusion, "Ziqian, what's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing."
Wang You snapped out of his reverie and shook his head. Seeing the concern in Zhao Sheng's eyes, a thought struck him.
Who says that Zhao Zongquan must be the emperor in the future?
He did not awaken his memories of his past life; Zhao Zongquan was the emperor.
Having awakened his memories of his past life, Zhao Zongquan is still...
Wouldn't his awakening have been in vain?
He had always aspired to become an official and climb to a mediocre position, never thinking of changing anything.
It's not that he doesn't want to, but the more he understands this era, the more powerless he feels.