Chapter 7059 Kneeling also requires qualifications

Chapter 7059 Kneeling also requires qualifications

Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong were actually just resentful, but to be honest, they didn't have the guts to ask about Liu Bei's ascension to the throne. They would only ask a few questions in private among their own people, and they wouldn't even ask in front of others.

Some things, even asking about them would be considered presumptuous, so it's best to know nothing and ask nothing. Even if we're not qualified to submit a memorial or sing praises, we should at least show that we're happy for Grand Commandant Liu's ascension to the throne. Grand Commandant Liu, he's our sun!
After all, Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong were both exceptionally intelligent people who knew and understood everything. Their desire to ask for help was merely a result of their greed. Did they really not know that?

"Alright, just do what you're supposed to do. When the Prince of Jin really ascends the throne, Bo Fu and I will have to pay our respects." Zhou Yu glanced at Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong and said as calmly as possible, but in reality, Zhou Yu's mentality was also a bit broken. There was no way around it; the emperor being Liu Bei and the emperor being Liu Tong were two completely different things, especially for Zhou Yu.

Unlike the others who cowered and hoped that Liu Bei's ascension to the throne would not happen, Zhou Yu realized eight years earlier that this was not something they could stop. Liu Bei's failure to ascend the throne was purely due to his own unwillingness and Chen Xi's other ideas, which allowed Liu Tong to benefit from the situation.

In other words, once Liu Bei comes to his senses and Chen Xi resolves the social unrest and brings prosperity to the land, then everything will no longer be an obstacle.

The problem is that all the above conditions were met eight years ago. At that time, when Liu Bei was about to ascend the throne, the people under Yuan, Cao and Sun were no longer in a position to disagree. Moreover, it had been ten years since the Yuanfeng era. To be honest, Liu Bei had given them all enough time to adjust, and the money Chen Xi gave them was more than enough to completely buy them off.

"Should we also submit a memorial?" Zhuge Jin suddenly suggested.

Zhou Yu paused for a moment, looking at Zhuge Jin with some surprise, but quickly grasped Zhuge Jin's line of thought. He then unconsciously stroked his chin and began to seriously consider the matter.
When it comes to matters of ascending the throne, only a handful of people are qualified to submit a petition. Others, even if they wanted to, are not qualified. The fortunate thing is that Jiangdong is indeed qualified to push this matter forward.

After all, Jiangdong was indeed won through battle and made real contributions, so it was a place where they could stand tall. Therefore, at this moment, they naturally had the right to be a little weak and kneel down to Liu Bei to offer their gifts.

However, this matter is normally difficult to reverse because Zhou Yu has always acted very arrogantly.

Therefore, when Zhuge Jin mentioned this matter, Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong both changed color, fearing that Zhou Yu would get angry on the spot. After all, they had known what kind of person Zhou Yu was for many years. He was a very proud and arrogant person. If you came up and said, "Why don't we also submit a memorial?", where would Zhou Yu put his face? Zhou Yu also cares about his reputation!
“That’s true, we can also submit a petition and push this matter forward.” Pang Tong nodded.

Zhou Yu's face alternated between pale and flushed. Although he had long recognized this reality, he also knew that Liu Bei had only just stepped onto the jade steps, which was enough to give them a buffer and also to save face for them.

To be honest, Zhou Yu was still somewhat unwilling, but Liu Bei was too strong and Chen Xi was too outrageous. Zhou Yu had already accepted this reality, so after receiving this secret report and sighing in his heart, he decided to turn a blind eye and let Liu Bei do as he pleased.

After all, sometimes not intervening is tantamount to acquiescing, and acquiescence is the same as agreeing with something.

Now that Zhuge Jin has exposed the truth, since he has already tacitly approved and agreed to this matter, why not submit a memorial to urge him to ascend the throne and sing his praises? Our leader is the only one besides those few who is qualified to sing praises to Liu Bei!
As for the others, such as the Yuan family and the Cao family, they can only submit memorials of praise later, or they are not qualified to sing hymns of praise. Since that's the case, why don't we seize the opportunity to sing a song for Liu Bei? If we're a little more submissive, they will reward us!
Putting everything else aside, I, Zhou Yu, have sung your praises, and you don't reward me, you don't reward me handsomely? What will others think of you? Damn, so even for something as important as supporting the emperor, I, Zhou Yu, have taken the lead, and you don't even give me face? How could that be? Let alone Chen Xi being a respectable person, even if Chen Xi weren't respectable, he would still be richly rewarded for this kind of thing. After all, status and position really matter at times like this!
Just like what Chen Xi kept complaining about, even if Liu Bei wanted to ascend the throne, and others played the role of supporting him, it was Chen Xi who would ultimately submit the petition. No one else had that right. Even Guan Yu and Zhang Fei could only support Liu Bei as he climbed the steps, and Liu Bei had to walk the last few steps by himself.

"Ziyu, you've really given me a huge problem!" Zhou Yu said through gritted teeth, his tone clearly showing some annoyance, but he then composed himself.

"Zibu, you take the lead in drafting a petition urging him to ascend the throne." Although Zhou Yu was annoyed, he knew that only the master was qualified to submit such a petition. Even if the act was a bit underhanded, many people wanted to sell themselves to the emperor but were not qualified! He, Zhou Yu, had earned his position through his own abilities, so why would he really give it up for the sake of face?

Are you kidding me? That's an idiot.

As for pride, arrogance, and haughtiness, these can all be personas. It's fine to play around with them at other times, but you absolutely mustn't let them cloud your judgment at this moment.

Just like at the end of the fifth year of Yuanfeng, the first thing to do after killing Serian was to go and claim credit from Chen Xi. At a time like this, how can you pretend to be dead!

Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong exchanged a glance, gaining a new understanding of Zhou Yu. So this guy really is smart! All that pride and arrogance, all that stuff they played with him before, it was all just a persona, right? Damn!
But you can't say it. Even if you know, you have to pretend you don't know and follow orders.

Moreover, Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong were well aware that their entire petition urging Liu Bei to join the empire was simply a way to get a share of the spoils, and even Liu Bei's subordinates wouldn't object. After all, this was a Jiangdong faction, spearheaded by Zhou Yu, a gesture of respect, and represented the general consensus in the Central Plains.

This is great. It means that the standard has passed the test of history and gained everyone's approval. So, doing this will bring a lot of benefits and won't make you disliked.

"I will find professionals to fix this as soon as possible and then hand it over to the Commander-in-Chief," Zhang Zhao replied decisively. Zhou Yu waved his hand, indicating that was the case.

From a certain perspective, Zhou Yu had actually seen through this fact long ago, but he was somewhat unwilling to accept it. However, no matter how unwilling he was, after witnessing the prosperity of the Han Dynasty and Liu Bei's exaggerated ability to control the army, he could no longer have any other thoughts.

After sending Zhang Zhao and the others away, Zhou Yu sat alone at the table, quietly thinking, unaware that Sun Ce had even walked in.

"Gongjin, what are you thinking about?" Sun Ce asked Zhou Yu with a smile.

"Ah, Bo Fu, I'm sorry, I was too focused and didn't notice you coming over." Zhou Yu said to Sun Ce with a somewhat guilty expression. Sun Ce smiled, pulled up a chair, and sat down. Seeing this, Zhou Yu sighed. It was obvious that Sun Ce knew everything.

"What, still thinking about the Prince of Jin stepping onto the jade steps?" Sun Ce said casually.

"We can't help but think about it." Zhou Yu sighed, revealing his true feelings to Sun Ce. "At this time, we have to keep a close eye on every little move. In fact, it's only Liu Bei and Chen Zichuan who are truly concerned. If it were anyone else, people like us would be running away at all costs. One mistake could throw Chang'an into chaos, and things would be nothing like they are now."

"Since you already know everything, what are you still thinking about? Just wait for the outcome." Sun Ce picked up a piece of pastry from the side, put it in his mouth, and looked at Zhou Yu with a hint of questioning.

“We will reap the greatest benefits from this.” Zhou Yu sighed softly. “Once Liu Bei ascends to the throne, the benefits we gained during the period of inactivity will be greatly reduced. Many of our previous irregular operations will also have to be formalized. After all, the emperor’s orders and the Prince of Jin’s orders are two different things. Even if the latter causes a huge uproar, it will still have to be done with some semblance of dignity. But if the former causes a huge uproar…”

The rest is self-explanatory, but Sun Ce also understood that if an emperor with sufficient power were to weigh certain matters, it would essentially be a test of the strength of your family lineage.

“I originally thought you would at most acquiesce to this matter, but I didn’t expect you to actually have Zibu and the others prepare a letter urging you to ascend the throne.” Sun Ce looked at Zhou Yu with some emotion. “Actually, there was no need to go to such lengths. You could have just done nothing and acquiesced. There was no need to exchange your face for benefits. Jiangdong is already full. A little less or a little more doesn’t really matter.”

"This is the last great opportunity. There won't be another one after this. Besides, others aren't even qualified to submit a memorial." Zhou Yu waved his hand and said, "Moreover, Bo Fu, I am a person of principle. When facing Chen Zichuan, pride is completely meaningless. After defeating Serian, I returned to the Central Plains immediately. You should know this better than anyone."

Sun Ce nodded; he was well aware of the matter.

“So, I know exactly what to do now,” Zhou Yu said frankly. “As for your feelings of distress, I did feel some discomfort when I made this decision, but now, all I can think about is how to get more benefits from Chen Zichuan.”

Sun Ce was somewhat speechless upon hearing this. So that's what you're thinking now. Fine, if that's your idea, then I really have nothing to say. You can do whatever you want.

"After all, Chen Zichuan is stronger than me, even terrifyingly so," Zhou Yu said with a hint of exasperation. "I still can't understand why that guy is so strong. We're currently at war with foreign powers, but you're in the Central Plains. Can you even feel the atmosphere of war?"

“I can’t feel it. Everyone is eating and drinking as usual,” Sun Ce said, shaking his head.

“That’s the problem. Think about how many men we in Jiangdong have lost so far in our efforts to defeat Serian,” Zhou Yu said to Sun Ce with a very serious expression.

"I'm not entirely sure about the exact amount of loss, but it's over 400,000," Sun Ce replied after a moment's thought. This figure was already quite accurate, and the reason he could answer so readily was largely because when Sun Ce was distributing fiefs, he had each person sign off on their share, so he knew the exact amount.

From a certain perspective, Sun Ce was a man of principle. No matter how carefree he was at other times, he was indeed fair in matters of death and reward. He did review the records of every soldier who died or went missing before issuing the necessary documents.

“Yes, more than 400,000. How many people do we in Jiangdong have in total? Even if we include the able-bodied men transferred from Xuzhou and Qingzhou, we have actually reached the point where every household is in mourning. But have you noticed that even before we distributed fiefdoms to them, they didn’t have any complaints?” Zhou Yu said with some emotion. Then, before Sun Ce could answer, Zhou Yu gave his answer, “Chen Zichuan’s solutions for compensation and funeral arrangements have resolved almost all the problems.”

"The gap is so large that it's indescribable. I can't even find a comparable example in history. Bo Fu, can you understand that feeling?" Zhou Yu looked at Sun Ce with a weariness that seemed to be an escape from reality and said what he had always wanted to say but didn't know who to say it to.

“I have personally witnessed this era and also the previous one. When I traveled with you in Jiangbiao back then, the wealthy households I saw had virtually no advantage over the farmers in Yanzhou, the workers in the fruit processing workshops in Jiaozhou, and the workers in the Qingzhou Ocean Fisheries Bureau.” Sun Ce said calmly, “There may be differences in food, drink, and daily necessities, but if you transfer the living conditions of these people to the present day, not to mention power and influence, there is basically no difference.”

Back then, wealthy households in Jiangbiao would use ice chests in the summer to eat some iced drinks, fruit juice, snacks, and river delicacies. But the workers at the Jiaozhou fruit processing workshops, while not eating fruit as they pleased, would have at least a dozen bowls of fruit jelly and coconut milk every day without anyone interfering. River and seafood were standard fare, and what meat and vegetables they ate each day depended entirely on what the local fisheries branch could get their hands on.

But whatever you get, it's all meat, and good meat at that.

In those days, large fish had some with a layer of fat as thick as a finger's width, making them quite good meat even if used to render oil. Unlike later generations who preferred lean meat, in this era of oil scarcity, people mainly preferred fatty meat.

The living standards of wealthy households in Jiangnan back then are now generally comparable to those of workers in large factories and workshops. The food prepared in the canteen in Chang'an for veterans, which Sun Ce considered to be food reserved for generals for twenty years, is now being eaten freely by ordinary soldiers.

Anyone who isn't a fool can see just how exaggerated this progress is.

“I can at least understand Liu Bei’s strength, and at that level, we can still defeat him if we work together. But Chen Zichuan, that’s not a matter of strength, he’s from another world.” Sun Ce rubbed his temples. He wasn’t stupid, he was just too lazy to think.

“Yes.” Zhou Yu sighed softly. “All I’ve been doing all along is trying to get some benefits out of Chen Zichuan. I don’t know if Chen Zichuan knows or not, but I think even if he figured it out, he wouldn’t care. What’s worse than targeting others in this world is this kind of indifference.”

“Gongjin, if it’s really upsetting for you to hold onto the letter urging me to ascend the throne, then we can just sit here and wait for the outcome. There’s no need for this,” Sun Ce said honestly to Zhou Yu, worried that Zhou Yu might lose his composure.

If Zhang Zhao, Gu Yong, and others today see Zhou Yu's arrogance and haughtiness as merely a persona, then in Sun Ce's eyes, Zhou Yu was actually just that kind of person, only setting aside his pride once again for Sun Ce's sake.

"No, this is the last chance. I don't know if I'll ever have another chance like this. Besides, kneeling before Liu Bei and admitting defeat to Chen Zichuan isn't an unacceptable reality. I realized a long, long time ago that those two are invincible when they join forces. I've just been running away from it." Zhou Yu shook his head and revealed his true feelings to Sun Ce.

This was like dissecting one's own heart and showing it to others, a humiliation that Zhou Yu felt no shame at all, only a calm acceptance of reality.

"After all, they are indeed too strong, so strong that no matter how much I try to escape, I cannot avoid the shadow they cast. It's time to face reality. This era belongs to Liu Bei and Chen Zichuan, not to us," Zhou Yu said.

"Come on, let me take you to the brothel." Seeing Zhou Yu's expression, Sun Ce quickly said, feeling that Zhou Yu's mentality was somewhat unbalanced.

"Get out of here. What are you going to do at the brothel? There are a few pretty girls there. Even if I don't pay any money, those people will still take advantage of me." Zhou Yu said irritably. Don't you know what it means to be handsome like Zhou Lang? Don't you know what it means to be noticed even when the music is wrong? I, Zhou Yu, am handsome and capable. Going to the brothel would just be a waste of money and being played by others.

“That’s true.” Sun Ce looked at Zhou Yu and agreed that Zhou Yu was right.

"You shouldn't go either. You'll just get taken advantage of. Brothels are only for ugly, ordinary people. You haven't even touched many of the dancers at home!" Zhou Yu glared at Sun Ce and said, "Stay away from those places!"

"Okay, okay." Sun Ce nodded repeatedly, not daring to mention the brothel again.

"Where shall we go?" Sun Ce asked Zhou Yu, setting aside his other thoughts.

"Let's go to Zhaoyang Palace and get some fresh air." Zhou Yu's eyes lit up, and he decided to go to the scene without hesitation!

Zhou Yu certainly had the right to kneel in the first row to pay his respects; to be fair, he was quite impressive.