Chapter 1269: Vexation of Officials
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Lord Tang is the God of Fortune in this world, and the representative of the Evil Monarch in the mainland! You naturally have the qualifications to speak like this. As long as the Evil Monarch exists in this world, as long as Lord Jun rules this world, Lord Tang’s position is unshakeable! Even the Emperors of the countries of this world have to treat you with respect and be careful with you,” Tie Huaili said bitterly. “And because of this sa reason, I wish to beco a person under Lord Tang!”
“What kind of reason is that?” Tang Yuan’s voice was filled with rage. “Third Young Master Jun and I were brothers from youth, and it is the sa way now. From the start, it was just a friendship between the two of us. What does it have to do with outsiders like you? So what if he is now the Evil Monarch? Even when he was contending with the three Holy Lands, the entire continent didn’t think well of his chances. I stuck by his side. I’d never cared about his status or his abilities. I only value him as a person. Jun Moxie, as a person! Even if Jun Moxie is no longer the Evil Monarch, even if he’s a re beggar, or a cripple, he will still be my, Tang Yuan’s, brother! This is sothing that will never change! And this is sothing that has nothing to do with the politics of you officials!”
“I will strongly reiterate one thing. I, Tang Yuan, am only a rchant. Whether it is Tian Xiang City, the Xuan Xuan Continent, or any other place, there are no factions that belong to . This is especially the case for courts which are filled with sches and strife! The reputation of the Evil Monarch is also not sothing that you people can use like a tiger’s skin to drape over yourselves! Not only is this a taboo for the Third Young Master, it is also a taboo for , Tang Yuan!” Tang Yuan snorted angrily.
Tie Huaili didn’t seem to mind those words as he spoke in a calm tone. “Lord Tang is already standing at the peak of the world, so you can naturally set yourself apart from the affairs of the world and be completely unrestrained like this. But countless common people are still coiled among the mortal dust. n are helpless in acting in spite of themselves as they live in this world! As a general for half my life, I have seen the families of many brothers who died in battle, being bullied by society with no one to turn to. Abandoning a bright future in the army, I returned to Tian Xiang, hoping only to do so good for those brothers and heroic soldiers who died fighting under !”
Tang Yuan cocked his head and looked at him as he snorted in a ridiculing tone. “It sounds touching, but your current actions are clearly one where you are putting profit before conscience, being blinded by greed! Disregarding the costs, you’re trying to cast your lot under a rchant’s signboard. Do you still rember your original intentions!?”
“How would I not rember! I’ve never forgotten for even one mont!” Tie Huaili roared agitatedly. “Ever since I returned to Tian Xiang, it was Old Master Murong who personally made arrangents for . He helped with the official registrar, made an imperial censor, and after nurous setbacks and twists, I reached the position of a circuit intendant. But after Old Master Murong retired, I quickly dropped three ranks, finally beco the Senior Supervising Official of the capital.
“Compared to those high ranking officials in the palace courts, this position of mine is not high at all. However, this position is the one I truly wished for the most! The Senior Supervising Official of the capital is responsible for overseeing the daily affairs of the common people. It belongs to the Ministry of Justice and can be said to hold a position of power. But what I value the most about this position is that the common people can bring all their grievances to ! And among these people, many of them are the descendants of those soldiers and brothers who’d fought under or their widows!”
Tie Huaili laughed bitterly. “Lord Tang had been born to a rich family and was clad in silk and gold from birth, enjoying delicacies everyday. You would naturally not understand the difficulties of those underprivileged people who’d lost their fathers and husbands in war! But no matter how difficult life was for them, they still lived on with determination. The words ‘live on’ may seem easy to say, but it is an extrely difficult task to do!
“Especially those girls who have so beauty; their looks which were supposed to be a blessing from the heavens!. But it would instead beco the very thing that beca the tragedy for their entire family! Just because a child from the family looks pretty, it would be a reason for the family to be destroyed! Isn’t this an extrely tragic and laughable joke? However, such tragedies are happening everyday, constantly!”
The more Tie Huaili spoke, the more agitated he beca. Towards the end, he directly stood up and a heroic aura that had once accompanied him on the battlefield years ago once again surged from him.
Tang Yuan listened quietly, not interrupting him.
“Ever since I took on the position of the supervising official, I’ve placed especially great importance on this issue! However, after I’d been in the job for a while, I finally understood that things were nowhere as simple as I’d imagined. Back then, I’d naively thought that as long as I was in that position, I would be able to fully protect the families of those brothers of mine! But who would have thought that those people whom I could protect are those who are of insignificant status. In other words, I can only protect people who others allow to protect! If sobody in power wants to stop from protecting them, I cannot do anything!
“Those who dared to do those kinds of heinous cris are mostly rich Young Masters of privileged families with great power! No matter which one of these families, none of them are entities that a re official like can offend! If I forced things and sought my own humiliation by confronting them, those prideful bastards would instead start an even more crazy revenge! The most abominable thing is that they would not carry out their revenge against . Instead, they would target those innocent victims whom I was trying to protect in a harsher manner. And as for , I can only watch powerlessly!”
Tie Huaili’s voice rose with rage. “Countless tis, the victims of such bullying ca to look for , hoping that I could help them. I’ve indeed beco a person with authority, but I realized that the results of wielding my authority to help them only caused their plight to worsen! I’ve escalated the cases to the imperial courts countless tis, and even looked for the Minister of Justice. But all my efforts were akin to dropping a pebble into an ocean, having completely no effect. Without the imperial court to back up, my position is nothing but a false reputation. I can’t even deal with the son of a re grain rchant!
“In the eyes of the aristocratic families and the rich rchants, my efforts are nothing but a joke! In fact, they’ve already taken as a subject of ridicule now. So of those bastards had even began to specially target the families of those soldiers who died in battle just to amuse themselves by looking at how I will react! These people will simply watch by the side with so wine in their hands as they observe how I run into walls at every corner!”
Tie Huaili beat his chest with grief. “I didn’t lay a hand on the commoners, but the commoners are dying because of ! I, Tie Huaili, am a person who doesn’t know my limits and am seeking my own humiliation. I’m just an object of amusent to them and that is fine. So humans are born to be played with by other people. We’re either played by ourselves, or played by our superiors, or even the world. However... what does this have to do with the innocent families of those brothers of mine?!”
He grew increasingly agitated as he spoke. “Those soldiers and brothers had shed their blood and sweat for years to protect their ho and country. When they were killed in battle, the country only gave a re 50 silvers to their families! Their widowed wives and children were then bullied and humiliated by the very people whom they died to protect! Even if they tried to quietly endure the sufferings and suppression, it was completely no use. Those bastards are only content when they see these destitute people bow and bend under the oppression, scraping under their feet for rcy to the point of sending their daughters to their doorsteps...
“Those who refused to bend and accept this hand that fate had ruthlessly dealt to them eventually all disappeared soundlessly from this world. God? Is there such a thing as God in this world?!”
“Could it be that the aristocrats of Tian Xiang are really all so inhumane? Don’t they know any gratitude?” Tie Huaili’s voice broke and grew hoarse.
Tang Yuan was also completely speechless.
To think that a simple question from him would actually uncover such a serious matter.
“Lord Tang, you’d once lived the life of a debauchee as well and visited your fair share of brothels!” Tie Huaili’s breathing grew rough as he lanted bitterly: “But do you know how many of those girls that hundreds and thousands of n abused in those brothels that you’d once visited were daughters of n who’d bled and died to protect Tian Xiang!? How many of them were girls that had been sold to the brothels after the aristocrats had their fill of fun with them!
“Many of those girls had co from good families. They were the daughters of loyal subjects, knowing nothing but purity and innocence! They were precious daughters who were doted on and loved by their fathers!” Tie Huaili panted from the effort to voice the tragic emotions in his heart. Looking firmly at Tang Yuan, he roared: “God of Fortune, Tang Yuan! You are lofty and exalted, setting yourself apart from the affairs of the world. But are you able to hear the aggrieved souls of those soldiers in the underworld crying so loudly?!”
“I CAN HEAR THEM!” Tie Huaili hamred his chest again. “Every night when I lie on my pillow, I will dream of my departed brothers, begging to take care of their family! But I can’t do it! I am helpless to do it! I have sinned! I have sinned, ah!”
Tang Yuan drew in a breath of air, his lips trembling with shock. Standing up, he said. “Lord Tie, this Tang had been disrespectful with my words just now. Please, sit. Sit down, and let’s talk slowly.”
Jun Moxie listened from the side, his face as sullen as a stale pool of water. Killing intent leaked from his body.
Those things that Tie Huaili had said were undoubtedly the cold, hard truth.
The top families of Tian Xiang who wielded the highest authority perhaps would not stoop so low to do these kinds of things.
However, so of those middle ranking families indeed had this kind of perverse past ti.
In the last several hundred years of Tian Xiang’s history, the various influential families in the country had ford extrely wide connections. Even if a single small family was provoked, if the matter was not handled cleanly, all their backings would quickly co forward to retaliate!
As long as the offended party was not snuffed out quickly enough with a single stroke, they would have countless opportunities to strike back!
This heavenly web of connections was completely airtight! However, how could there be heavenly webs in the mortal world?!
As ti passed, this web had beco harder and harder to unravel, and the connections between the aristocrats grew ever more intricate. At the sa ti, their actions beca more and more lawless, resulting in the lives of the commoners becoming harder and harder to the point where many people would not be able to continue living. In the end, the country would also devolve into a criminal state...
Tie Huaili sat down, his emotions still incredibly agitated. He’d already completely forgotten about the matter that he’d co to ask from Tang Yuan and had instead completely vented his emotions. His eyes red and bloodshot, he sighed. “Just like this, the people of the capital even began to hail as a just and incorruptible official who’s willing to serve the people. But in actuality, I’m just a useless person who cannot do anything for them. However, the people still beco increasingly reliant on , and my reputation as an official actually beca better...”
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