Chapter 11: Reason? You Beast, You Are Unworthy of Hearing It!

“Good!”

Looking at her younger brother speaking so eloquently before her, Chu Lan’s eyes were full of satisfaction as she praised him aloud:

“It is rare to see you take something this seriously. Go ahead and do it as you please!”

“Thank you, Elder Sister. Rest assured.”

Chu Hao smiled with confidence, his eyes filled with the air of a strategist who had everything under control.

“This time, I won’t show myself. Even if it fails, no one will be able to pin it on me.”

Watching Chu Hao leave in high spirits, Elder Mo stepped forward and said with a sigh, “The State Uncle’s move truly does have some merit. If it is handled well, it might even shake Xu Tian’s very foundations in the Confucian Dao.”

“It is indeed somewhat interesting.”

Chu Lan’s expression calmed. Not a trace of her earlier anger remained on her face.

“Still, these are only minor details.”

“If it can distract Xu Tian even a little, that will already be enough.”

She looked toward Elder Mo, anticipation flashing through her eyes.

“Elder Mo, how are the materials coming along? Can the formation be activated?”

Elder Mo’s expression tightened, and he nodded seriously.

“It is almost fully prepared. Moon Maiden is handling the final batch. I can guarantee it will be completed before Your Majesty’s birthday banquet.”

“Good!”

Chu Lan smiled in great delight.

Looking out the window, she said in a soft, distant tone, “Winning hearts and planting people takes far too long. These stones of Great Xia must all be ground to dust…”

……

Three days later, Great Xia Academy.

Today was the academy’s annual grand ceremony.

Confucian scholars from all under Heaven had gathered here, and lofty discussions could be heard everywhere.

In a quiet room in the rear courtyard, several figures sat facing one another.

“You have all heard the news from the Northern Frontier recently, have you not?”

Prime Minister Li Hongru spoke first, the worry in his brows impossible to dispel.

“The Second Prince detained three merchant ships from the neighboring Shan Kingdom. For some reason, the matter has now spread throughout the whole capital. Even the street peddlers are discussing it.”

The old Prime Minister sighed. Looking at Xu Tian, who still wore an easy, untroubled expression, he asked hesitantly, “Your Highness the Prince of Qin, this matter… how do you view it?”

The gazes of the several Great Confucians around them instantly gathered on Xu Tian.

Yet Xu Tian merely smiled freely and said at leisure, “I am only an idle prince now. You all think too highly of me.”

“If I were to rashly discuss matters of state, it would not only violate propriety, but also give the Empress another excuse to come trouble me…”

Li Hongru’s mouth twitched, and he could only let out another helpless sigh.

Everyone knew that even if the court reached a consensus, it did not mean the Second Prince would obey the order.

With the Xia Emperor in seclusion, the only one who could restrain the Second Prince was Xu Tian.

But now…

Just as the thoughts of each person began to diverge, a sudden commotion broke out outside, mixed with the cries and cheers of many students.

“What is happening outside?”

Xu Tian tilted his head slightly and listened.

“It seems to be… coming from the Debate Platform in the front courtyard.”

Li Hongru frowned.

“Today is the grand ceremony. By rights, it should be a day for expounding the classics and discussing the Dao. There should be no need for debate. Why is there such an uproar?”

The few men exchanged glances and quickly headed forward.

……

Before the Debate Platform, a sea of heads surged.

Several hundred students in Confucian robes had formed a circle, while beyond them stood the crowd of onlookers.

At the center of the platform, two figures were confronting one another sharply.

One of them looked calm on the surface, though a trace of worry flickered faintly between his brows. It was none other than Li Chuan, the son of Li Hongru.

As for the man facing him, he wore splendid brocade robes, held a folding fan in one hand, and had a faintly mocking smile hanging from the corner of his mouth.

He was Zhao Wudao, the legitimate son of the Zhao Family of the capital.

“Brother Li, you keep saying that a Confucian cultivator should put the people first.”

Zhao Wudao stepped forward, his voice bright and resonant as it carried across the entire plaza:

“But now the Second Prince has detained merchant ships on the northern border, enraging a neighboring nation and exposing the common people of the frontier to the calamities of war. Is this the benevolence and righteousness you speak of?”

“His Highness the Second Prince guards the frontier. If he seized those merchant ships, then he must naturally have had his reasons!”

Li Chuan’s face remained calm as he looked at Zhao Wudao and spoke in an even tone:

“As for you, you hear a little wind and immediately think it is rain. Without understanding the truth, you come here to twist right and wrong and shake the people’s hearts. Your intentions deserve condemnation!”

“My intentions deserve condemnation?”

Zhao Wudao gave a mocking laugh and spread his hands as he swept his gaze around the crowd.

“What a joke! No matter what, once war breaks out, it is the frontier commoners who suffer. Have you ever asked what they think?”

“You stand here speaking passionately and grandly, yet all because you yourself are not the one going to the battlefield! That is why you can be so lavish with your righteousness, spending the sacrifices of others so freely…”

The moment those words fell, the surroundings exploded into an uproar.

Those words were far too harsh. He was practically pointing at Li Chuan’s nose and cursing him outright.

And Li Chuan was the leader of the Ironblood Salvation Society within the academy.

The founder of that organization had been none other than Xu Tian himself, back in his days as Prince of Qin.

So Li Chuan did not represent only himself here.

As the two sides hurled accusations back and forth, on the outer edge of the crowd, Chu Hao, dressed in ordinary clothes and mixed into the throng, was listening so gleefully that he nearly could not stop himself from applauding.

“Good! Well said!”

Chu Hao lowered his voice and spoke excitedly to the attendant beside him:

“See that? That is Zhao Wudao! My elder sister is always saying he is all honeyed words and no substance, but now look—hasn’t he turned out to be useful after all?”

“As long as he stands firmly on the moral high ground of speaking up for the people, then whoever comes will die.”

“Where is Xu Tian, anyway? Why hasn’t he shown up yet?”

Chu Hao grinned from ear to ear, as though he could already see Xu Tian trapped in an awkward situation with no way forward or back.

At that moment, the crowd suddenly stirred.

“The Prime Minister is here!”

“That is… His Highness the Prince of Qin!”

The crowd parted like a receding tide, opening a path.

Xu Tian walked forward with his hands behind his back, his expression calm, his eyes without the slightest ripple.

Li Hongru and several Great Confucians followed half a step behind him, their faces so dark they seemed ready to drip water.

This matter was a mire. There was no clear distinction of right and wrong. The moment one touched it, one would only be dragged into trouble.

When Zhao Wudao saw Xu Tian appear, the light in his eyes instantly flared.

“Greetings, Your Highness the Prince of Qin. Greetings, Prime Minister!”

The students all saluted in unison.

Zhao Wudao also cupped his hands perfunctorily, but his back remained straight, and his gaze met Xu Tian’s directly, even carrying a hint of provocation.

“Your Highness the Prince of Qin, you have come at just the right moment.”

Zhao Wudao did not give Xu Tian any chance to speak, launching his attack first:

“Your Highness is a prodigy of the Confucian Dao. You stepped into the Third Rank in a single bound, and against all opposition you established countless academies while still in a martial body. You must surely possess a profound understanding of the Confucian Dao.”

“May I ask Your Highness—how would you evaluate the Second Prince’s conduct in disregarding the safety of the common people?”

The moment those words were spoken,

the entire plaza fell silent in an instant, quiet enough for a pin to be heard.

All eyes turned toward Xu Tian at once.

Everyone knew that even though Xu Tian no longer held the title of Crown Prince and no longer possessed the authority of the Regency,

his stance would still influence the situation of all Great Xia.

“Zhao Wudao, is it?”

Xu Tian finally spoke, his voice carrying a calmness so profound it sent a chill through the heart.

“This student is he.”

Zhao Wudao lifted his chin, a smug smile hanging on his lips.

“The legitimate son of the Zhao Family, and also a student of the academy. I ask Your Highness the Prince of Qin for instruction…”

“There is no need for instruction.”

Xu Tian simply looked at Zhao Wudao in silence.

He confirmed it once again.

That was right. It was the same disgusting aura.

“My principles are spoken for human ears.”

Xu Tian’s voice was not loud, yet it rang clearly by every person’s ear:

“And you, beast, are unworthy of hearing them.”