Divine Brilliance

“You all, you all really made me angry this time!”

Looking at the altar below, at the three thousand kid corpses around Zhongxuan, Zong Shou felt his eyes hurt. The anger gathered at his sword became thicker and thicker.

“Although I didn’t kill these three thousand kids but they died because of me!”

He waved his sleeves and Xiaori charged down from mid air, pouncing towards Zhongxuan.

The latter’s expression changed and with a change in hand sign, a sword appeared. Many visible ripples spread out all around.

However the moment he used that spell it aggravated his injuries.

Although he had already entered Saint Realm, but the Yin Yang Heart Needle Curse went against Heaven and Earth and would take away a thousand years of lifespan. At this moment the righteous energy of Heaven and Earth pretty much swallowed all of his lifeforce. The chakra meridians in his body was all broken.

The amount of strength he could use now was extremely less.

That sword was smashed by a single palm by Xiaori and then he charged to the side of his body. With a claw strike, Zhongxuan’s brain and body instantly turned into meat paste.

Looking at Zhongxuan die, Zong Shou felt the grievances in his chest instantly vented.

He wished that he could torture Zhongxuan but at this moment this was the only plausible outcome.

He then looked towards Liu Li, his eyes filled with disdain, “So this is what your Confucian Faction does? If you are unhappy with me and see me as an evil demon then you all can fight me head on! Even assassinate me, that is all fine. Why did you use the lives of these three thousand kids to use this evil curse? Those kids were all innocent, why did you treat them as ants and not hold their lives in any regard?”

Liu Li instantly frowned, he wanted to say that it was down by Yinyu and Zhongxuan and it didn’t concern him. However thinking about it he was also present and knew about it. He shook his head, “They are all the children of sinners and they deserve to die, there is no need to pity them.”

“They deserve to die? Even if they are supposed to be killed you can do so based on the law, why did you use such evil techniques to wipe out their souls such that they couldn’t even reincarnate?”

Zong Shou shook his head, his face filled with disbelief, “You Confucians talk about not doing to others what you don’t want others to do to you! You went against the words of the Saints just like that? That preposterous Ruler did such ignorant things and as a Confucian you didn’t stop him, even agreeing with him?”

Liu Li instantly felt his face turn red as he scoffed coldly, “What do you want to say? There is no evil methods and proper methods, the only thing evil is the human heart. If we can kill you then any method can be used!”

“So to kill me, to achieve your goals you all can be unscrupulous?”

Zong Shou laughed coldly and had a mocking expression in his eyes, “I know that Confucians pay most attention to benevolence! You all say that you all must treat one another like loved ones, do things with benevolence at the core!”

Liu Li’s heart convulsed and he felt that each word from Zong Shou was like a whip smacking on his body.

“…You all also said that people who are benevolent can be seen from their actions. You all also say that a person of virtue not only wants himself to be good, they want others too. Even your ancestors mentioned that if you want the heavens to punish such people it is impossible!”

“People who are benevolent are also humans! Meng Zi also said that if people can’t be benevolent then what is the difference between us and animals? Ask yourself, how did what you did today anything the Saints wrote? How do you have any face to call yourself a Confucian? How can you answer to the few Saints of Confucian Faction?”

Each sentence caused Liu Li’s face to turn whiter. The blood vessels in his chest shrunk up, his throat felt sweet, like he was about to vomit out blood.

Only then was he shock to notice that his Dao foundations was already shaking.

He instantly understood and knew that he was personally looking at the Saint Ruler. Each word that questioned himself struck right at his soul, causing him to start doubting himself, to start doubting the path that he took!

The kid in front of him was really vicious!

Zong Shou rubbed his sword and smiled, “Does Mr Liu know that after this victory, there would be five decrees that will spread all over?”

Liu Li didn’t understand why Zong Shou was telling him all this at such a time? However his interests were successfully perked as he listened on solemnly.

“The first one is to restructure the three law departments, forming a Ministry of Law which would be alone outside of the control of the Cabinet. All my officials will be controlled by it. If there is a need, or if I go against the law, I will even be punished! From now onwards all physical torture and punishment will be removed! Except for the one when killers will be sentenced to death…”

Liu Li was stunned. Hearing what Zong Shou mentioned, he was actually going to put himself beneath the law!

If he broke the law he would be punished the same as a commoner!

As for physical punishment it was something the Confucians wanted to remove for thousands of years but couldn’t.

The Ruler was afraid of subjects revolting and officials being greedy which was why there were punishments like killing nine generations, breaking backs etc. The Confucians weren’t allowed to say anything about them at all.

The landlords wanted their slaves to listen to them, afraid that they would steal their wealth. Which was why there was whipping, canning, castrating etc punishments.

Although Confucians chased for benevolence but everything they did went against what they strove for.

Now all these concepts are actually going to be completed in the hands of this ignorant Ruler in front of him?

Preposterous! How would this Ruler truly care about the lives of the commoners?

“Physical punishment is cruel and it wastes manpower! If the law is clear and the people live a good life why will they break the law? Why would we need to use cruel punishment to warn them? Within Great Gan all of such punishments can be replaced by hard labor!”

Waste labour force? Replaced by hard labour? So that was the case, he really didn’t truly pity the people.

That was what he thought in his heart. He bit his lips and his face turned purple.

“Second! Use tax to subsidise the Farmers. You Confucians say we focus on merchants and not agriculture and will collapse sooner or later right? No, we focus on both. The importance of agriculture is something I know. They earn little and sooner or later they will become workers, that is a huge problem. Since that is the case I will support them and let them happily farm!”

Liu Li scoffed coldly but his heart was shocked.

He had mocked Zong Shou’s policies in private many times.

He said that even if Great Shang didn’t attack, Great Gan would collapse anyways.

He didn’t think that Zong Shou actually had such a solution to use taxes to subsidize the Farmers. What a unique method…

Speaking of which, this agriculture problem wouldn’t become a weakness of Gan.

Workers, agriculture, soldiers, merchants, so in his eyes, workers and agriculture is more important than soldiers and merchants?

“Third! All workers will have standard salary requirements and working limits. Since people are taxed then the taxes must be spent on the people too. The Cabinet will have a pension plan such that workers no need to worry about their future!”

Liu Li was shocked once more. What was this weird policy?

“You are just buying their hearts and emptying your own coffers!”

He saw a golden energy appear in that white pillar. It was pure and clean, looking really noble and majestic. It even made him want to willingly bow and worship him.

The Phoenix and dragon roared and chirped once again, the roar was majestic and the chirp was clear!

Saint Emperor!

Liu Li’s gaze constricted once more. Zong Shou before was only a king, a saintly King, now he could truly compare to the three ancient Saint Emperors!

However what was good about Zong Shou’s policies that caused his fate to have such a huge change?

Such that Heaven and Earth liked it so much? For this country to become so prosperous?

Zong Shou shook his head. It was too tough to let people of this generation understand consumerism.

Only if one didn’t have worries when they were young would they spend and not save, to keep their money at home for it to turn moldy.

Confucians always talked about hiding wealth among the people but what was the point of hiding wealth like this.

Rather than the wealth of Great Gan being accumulated in the treasury, why not give it to the people.

“The fourth one, all the grain and farmland is cleaned out, the officials will be in charge of grain. From now onwards there will ne no more farmland transactions. Great Gan Imperial Court will purchase and sell grain, selling it at normal price to the people!”

Not only Liu Li, even Yuntai’s body jolted.

Was this Zong Shou not afraid of angering all the nobles? Was he not afraid that they would revolt?

Not, what did he have to fear? He held three million troops and even crushed Great Shang! He was worshipped by all people and inside it his prestige was uncontested.

Such a policy benefitted everyone. Even if the aristocratic families were unhappy they won’t be able to go against it!

Moreover due to the Confucian Faction, the aristocratic family disciples taught by the saints mostly left Great Gan Imperial Court and even colluded with Great Shang in the dark.

Even if they wanted to stop it now they couldn’t. After this battle they even had to be worried that Zong Shou would take revenge on them for betraying the Ruler!

Taking back all the farmland was something Great Shang’s past Ruler said before he started war.

When he unified the land he didn’t do it.

Zong Shou’s methods were more gentle and more suitable. He might really succeed.

Liu Li’s eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. He understood that once the four decrees were sent out, all the people would support him!

What would happen to their Confucian Faction?

Although he didn’t burn books and wipe out the Confucians, but he was ten times more vicious than Qin Emperor!

Losing the hearts of the people, how could Confucian Faction remain as one of the factions?

He looked out and saw that the gold energy glow extended by a hundred feet!

“My fifth decree is to ask all the scholars to evaluate Confucianism. To evaluate their pros and cons! To judge it!”

He paused and a cruel smile appeared on his face, “Naturally they will also discuss Yinyu’s actions and these three thousand kids. You not doing anything. What would the people of the world say about that?”

Yinyu’s body trembled and he clenched his fists. This Zong Shou wanted Great Shang and him to be dissed by the entire world?

Black blood seeped down from the corner of Liu Li’s lips, he was despondent and gave out one last laugh.

“What a Saint Ruler! Each word slaying the heart, I really am the Confucian Faction sinner! I was wrong, I was really wrong…”

He actually used his own sword to slash his neck, with the flash of a sword light his head fell off among the blood light…