Chapter 1308: Impeachment! (1/2)
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Within the capital, the vast influence the Confucian school had built up over more than one thousand years caused 'Might Makes Right' to be recalled from the marketplaces within a single day. This withdrawal was so clean that not a single copy could be seen throughout the entirety of the city.
Efforts to destroy Wang Chong's reputation also began.
A memorial jointly signed by more than ten thousand illustrious Confucians was sent straight to the Secretariat. It demanded that Wang Chong be stripped of all his positions and that the printing and distribution of 'Might Makes Right' be banned.
A few days later, the voices supporting Wang Chong and 'Might Makes Right' amongst the people dwindled to almost nothing. The Confucian school's 'Benevolence and Righteousness' immediately began to make a clamor, occupying the absolute advantage.
The situation changed so quickly that everyone was caught off guard.
Clap!
A thick book was thrown out a window and onto the street.
”Father, give me back my book!”
A cry of alarm came from within, the voice exceptionally young.
”Bastard thing, you're banned from reading such heresy in the future! Didn't you hear what the village elder and Master Zhu said? This is nothing but a pile of twisted words that aren't even worth considering. Don't you know who Master Zhu is? Do you think that some King of Foreign Lands could possibly be more formidable than Master Zhu?” came the furious rebuke of the father.
The name of Master Zhu caused the youth's voice to become much quieter.
”That's that! If you don't want you, your sons, and your son's sons to be rejected by all schools and teachers, you'll stop messing around with these things! Master Zhu has already spoken! Do you still think that this is some trivial matter?!”
The father's rage was palpable.
Similar events took place all throughout the realm, catching everyone by surprise.
”Your Highness, it's bad!”
Hurried footsteps resounded through the Wang Family Residence as a pale-faced Su Shixuan rushed in.
”Your Highness, we just received news that the people have begun to throw away their copies of 'Might Makes Right', even beginning to pile them up and burn them!”
Su Shixuan had just finished speaking when he looked around the study and froze. Cheng Sanyuan, Xue Qianjun, Xu Keyi—everyone was here. The atmosphere was solemn, and all of them had unsightly complexions.
Su Shixuan was immediately rendered speechless. It was obvious that Su Shixuan was not the first to receive the bad news, and when all this news was gathered together, the situation looked extremely bad for Wang Chong.
None of them had imagined that the Confucian Sect would play a card like Master Zhu. In truth, if they hadn't seen it for themselves, they would have found it very difficult to imagine that a Confucian of one hundred and twenty years of age was still living in this world. People like Su Shixuan didn't even know that Master Zhu had ever existed.
But wave came after wave. Flapflap! A messenger bird flew in through the window.
”A letter from King Song!”
Everyone only needed a glance to recognize that the golden hoop on the bird's leg belonged to King Song. As they were both residing in the capital, King Song would never use this means to send news unless the matter was of utmost importance.
The people in the room grew even paler.
Swoosh!
Wang Chong's expression was calm as he waved his hand. The letter tied to the bird's leg immediately flew through the air and into his hand. Upon glancing at it, Wang Chong felt his heart sink. The Confucian Sect had finally made its move.
When it rained, it poured. One day later, a piece of news began to sweep through the world. The Imperial Court had formally begun an impeachment investigation of the King of Foreign Lands, Wang Chong. The crimes he was accused of included 'raising a private army with thoughts of rebellion', 'defying the Sage Emperor's decree and opening the imperial household's Qixi armory without permission, removing fifty thousand ballistae and nearly one million ballista bolts without the Sage Emperor's approval'. There were also crimes like 'cultivating henchmen and engaging in nepotism', but the first two crimes alone were enough to doom Wang Chong.
The Great Tang strictly controlled the number of soldiers the great clans and noble houses could keep. They would normally have only a few squads, and absolutely could not exceed one thousand soldiers. But Wang Chong, in recruiting the Wushang Cavalry, had built up an army of more than ten thousand, and Wang Chong had even equipped them with identical suits of Meteoric Metal armor and sharp Wootz Steel swords. This force was enough to engage in a large-scale war and even resolve it.
And it far exceeded what was allowable for a private army.