The realization dawned on Prince Anchang, and his face turned as black as thunder. This Prince Anchang had long dominated the Lingdong region, living a life of luxury and wielding absolute power. He had never suffered such blatant disrespect before.
However, mindful of An Sheng's current status as an imperial envoy, Prince Anchang's chest heaved violently. His eyes blazed with fury as he stared directly at An Sheng. Trembling with rage, he pointed at the bloody heads on the ground and gritted his teeth. "I demand a reasonable explanation from Lord An!"
"Oh? An explanation?" An Sheng raised an eyebrow and gradually wiped the smile off his face. He slowly lifted his head, tilted his chin slightly upward, and his eyes grew colder and more menacing. For the first time, he showed an arrogant and condescending attitude towards the prince. Then he slowly opened his mouth, his tone tinged with disappointment. "I did this for your sake, Your Highness."
Prince Anchang could no longer maintain his composure. Cracks of rage and annoyance appeared on his feigned calm face. "You claim to be doing this for me after massacring my men? It's utter nonsense! An Sheng, as a high - ranking official and an imperial envoy of our dynasty, you are so reckless with human lives and indiscriminately killing the innocent. I, I will..."
"Your Highness!"
Old Qiu immediately interrupted the prince. Then, regardless of the difference in status, he stepped forward and stood shakily in front of Prince Anchang, clearly showing his intention to protect him.
Meeting An Sheng's calm and confident demeanor with his own experienced and steady gaze, Old Qiu was secretly startled. He felt that there was more to this than met the eye.
He bowed slightly to An Sheng, adopting a humble posture of a subordinate. "Lord An, I'm a dull - witted old man. On behalf of our prince, I'd like to ask what exactly do you mean by saying that your actions are for our prince?"
An Sheng suddenly burst into laughter. His voice was naturally shriller than most people's, and this laugh sounded even more eerie and unpleasant to everyone's ears.
Everyone saw Lord An first sweep his calm and unfathomable gaze across the crowd, and finally, he addressed Prince Anchang in a sarcastic tone. "According to the laws of our dynasty, both high - ranking provincial officials and feudal princes are strictly prohibited from raising private troops. This is to prevent some people from amassing their own forces behind the court's back and plotting to usurp the throne. The late emperor was always kind to Your Highness. Even though the law clearly states that neither princes nor imperial sons should have fiefdoms, the late emperor still bestowed the greatest favor and trust upon you, Your Highness. Am I right?"
Prince Anchang was taken aback and was about to speak.
But An Sheng continued. "However, Your Highness, how could you betray the trust of the late emperor and His Majesty by amassing your own forces and plotting to usurp the throne?"
Even the domineering Prince Anchang showed a look of confusion and shock. "Me, amassing my own forces and plotting to usurp the throne?"
When he came to his senses, Prince Anchang's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He glared at An Sheng, and the flames of anger in his heart erupted. "Nonsense! Don't slander me! When have I ever done such a thing!"
An Sheng suddenly looked at the prince with an innocent face. "Yes, I don't believe it either!"
Then he pointed at the blood - soaked heads on the ground, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly as if with a calm nonchalance. "Raising private troops is a serious crime, and it's impossible for Your Highness to be involved. I hit it off with Your Highness at first sight and know your character well, so of course I don't believe it. That's why, for the sake of Your Highness's reputation, I killed all those who testified against you for privately hoarding, training, and raising troops. Especially those in official positions, I left none alive to eliminate future troubles once and for all. Your Highness, do you think I did the right thing?"
Prince Anchang: …
Everyone: …
There was a deathly silence.
A trail of blood trickled from the corner of Prince Anchang's mouth, and his eyes rolled back as he fell straight backwards!
"Your Highness!"
"Your Highness! Your Highness!"
"Quick, someone! The prince has fainted! Call the doctor!"
Amid the chaos, An Sheng sat back in the armchair, looking lazy, with a glint in his eyes.
Humph, this was nothing. He had worked his way up from the palace to his current position, killing countless people and using innumerable dirty tricks. As time went on, he even disdained to hide them and put them all out in the open, aiming for a fearsome reputation of being decisive, ruthless, and tyrannical.
This situation was exactly what he wanted.
Then, propping his head up with one hand, he pretended to look a little unwell. His voice was neither too loud nor too soft. "Ah, I was drunk last night. I just wanted to go out and relax, but I got caught up in this mess. And somehow, I've gone to so much trouble for the prince. Quick, where's the doctor? First, take a look at the prince. After that, call him to see me too."
…
A Mei was so engrossed in the story that it took her a while to open her mouth. "Did Prince Anchang really vomit blood from anger and faint?"
An Sheng nodded. "There's no way to fake that."
"And then?"
"Then I just came back."
A Mei blinked. "Oh, will he cause trouble for you after he wakes up?"
An Sheng sneered, narrowing his eyes slightly. "He has to swallow this bitter pill, whether he likes it or not!"
A Mei suddenly looked confused. "Husband, the prince is so rich and powerful. Why does he still raise private troops in secret?"
An Sheng was sitting face - to - face with A Mei. He casually put his arm around her and pulled her onto his lap. Then he picked up her little hand and gently stroked it while patiently explaining. "It's because he's too rich. After extorting so much from the common people, he has to raise troops to maintain his power."
This made A Mei even more confused.
An Sheng asked rhetorically, "A Mei, do you know that the common people have to pay taxes every year?"
"Well, of course I know that."
"As far as I know, the various taxes in Lingdong are extremely harsh on the common people."
A Mei listened attentively, and An Sheng explained bit by bit. "In Lingdong, those who have farmland have to pay land tax, those who do business have to pay tax, and there are also poll taxes, city - defense taxes, integrity - maintenance taxes, and so on. The officialdom in Lingdong is constantly finding new ways to extort money from the common people."
An Sheng even gave an example for A Mei. "Take a peasant household. Suppose their annual harvest is only twenty guan. They have to pay at least twelve taels of silver in taxes, which accounts for sixty percent of their annual harvest. If there are many people in the family, they can't even make ends meet. Some are forced to sell their children just to survive."
"Sixty percent?" A Mei was shocked and almost jumped out of An Sheng's arms in excitement. She said angrily, "This is just too much! After a year of hard work and paying the taxes, there isn't enough food left for themselves. How can the common people survive?"
An Sheng hooked the corner of his lips. "Of course they can't survive."
A Mei frowned and said angrily, "If they can't survive, why don't they rebel? If it were me, I'd rather die but take someone down with me when I'm pushed to such an extent."
"Indeed, madam, this is a sensible thought," An Sheng said, his eyes filled with relief as he nodded. Then he let out a soft snort and drawled, "It's not like what you said before. When people can't even survive and feel that death is inevitable anyway, they will naturally resist."
A Mei blinked her eyes and suddenly had an idea, as if she had thought of something. "Is the troop - hoarding that you mentioned at first..."
An Sheng reached out and gently tapped A Mei's little nose. "Right, our lady is getting smarter. If there is resistance, there must be suppression. And for suppression, one needs to hoard and train troops. Throughout history, training and maintaining an army have always cost a fortune. So, A Mei, do you understand now?"
A Mei's expression suddenly turned solemn. "Yes, my lord. I understand. Prince Anchang is forcing the common people into a corner with no way out. The people have no choice but to resist, so Prince Anchang trains troops to suppress them. But training troops costs money, and this money still comes from the people. This..."
"It's just a vicious cycle," An Sheng sneered, with a strong sense of sarcasm in his eyes. "This Prince Anchang has really made one wrong move after another."
