Chapter 316 - - 314 How to Raise an Emperor_1

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When under the eaves, one must bow one’s head.

Even unwilling in the heart, one must heal the wounds before calculating the next move.

Thus,

Yu Hongsheng very astutely paid his respects to the princess, begging her forgiveness for the previous assassination attempt and giving her all the face she was due.

The princess knew her own family affairs; the art of controlling others was not something that could be learned in just a few days under Duge’s instruction.

After losing power, she knew she was just an ordinary person, and that her current status and position were propped up by Duge.

Hence, she didn’t behave pretentiously but magnanimously forgave Yu Hongsheng, and after painting him a grand picture of future restoration, both naturally entered a harmonious ruler-minister mode.

It was a true ruler-minister mode.

Duge didn’t let Luo Shuang rest; now that he had his base, of course, he wanted to cultivate her ability to handle public affairs. If she couldn’t manage a faction well, how could she possibly manage a country in the future?

Loyalty.

One could be loyal to a person, and at the same time to a country, to the people of the country, to one’s beliefs, and even to love…

Unlike maintaining relationships, these could happen simultaneously.

The only drawback was that one couldn’t leap from side to side like maintaining relationships.

Otherwise, one’s attributes would surely drop sharply.

Of course, there was a loss of attributes when switching allegiance in maintenance too, but with Backstab there to offset, there wouldn’t be much noticeable impact.

But this time, the auxiliary keyword for loyalty was “trend,” which meant no more frequent switching of allegiance.

Who would call a person who flits between multiple allegiances a loyal subject?

Therefore, Luo Shuang’s abilities must be cultivated; she couldn’t just be a mere mascot.

…

“Princess, if one does not sweep one’s own house, how can one sweep the world?” Duge piled all Dragon Teeth’s documents on Luo Shuang’s desk and said, “Although Dragon Teeth is an assassin organization, the affairs it deals with are many. To ensure every assassination mission is completed smoothly, you need to be thoroughly familiar with the organization’s assassins and targets.

Of course, Dragon Teeth is not only an assassin organization but also has a public front, so you must manage the affairs of the Coiling Dragon Sword Sect as well.

Although it’s not as complicated as managing a country, it’s a good fit for your current stage. If you have any questions, you can ask Master Yu; he has operated the Dragon Teeth organization for many years and is an expert in this field…”

An expert?

That’s my own sect!

Yu Hongsheng nodded gloomily from the side.

“I understand, Master,” Luo Shuang nodded.

“Since you understand, let me test you. Besides handling the affairs of Dragon Teeth, is there something else you need to do?” Duge continued to ask.

“…” Luo Shuang was stunned again.

“Think about how your father emperor dealt with state politics?” Duge led with gentle persuasion.

“Balance!” Luo Shuang ventured.

“Right, balance,” Duge said with a smile, nodding, “To be precise, you need to learn to cultivate your own power here. To Dragon Teeth, you are an outsider.

Without your confidants here, your current situation is similar to that of a newly enthroned emperor, with the power of state affairs held by the old ministers like Yu Hongsheng. Any of your orders need to go through him to be implemented.

If one day he becomes displeased with you or harbors ill intentions, you could be deposed by him.”

Yu Hongsheng’s forehead vein twitched a few times as he quickly defended, “Princess, I would never do that.”

“Princess, this is a typical case of professing one thing and doing another,” Duge glanced at him with a smile and asked, “Princess, do you trust him?”

“I don’t,” Luo Shuang resolutely shook her head.

“So, your current priority should be to transform the people in Dragon Teeth into your people, little by little. You can use coercion, bribery, division—any means necessary. When more and more of them are yours, Dragon Teeth will truly belong to you, not Yu Hongsheng.”

Duge smiled, “Of course, you’re not without your own people right now. I, Wu Chang, and the senior brother who has developed a rift with the master, can all be considered your people. We three are your base.”

He glanced at the senior brother and continued, “Of course, by the time I went to fetch you, the three of them might have already reached some agreement…”

“Master, we haven’t,” Wu Chang interjected.

“Senior Brother Leng, really, we haven’t,” the senior brother also hurried to defend himself, now truly afraid of his junior brother.

“Princess, don’t heed their words. Trust your own judgment. A true emperor must always harbor suspicion towards their subordinates, even if they show none, you must assume they do,” Duge said. “That way, when they do harbor ill intentions, you won’t be taken by surprise but will have countermeasures ready in advance.”

As he spoke, he turned to the eldest disciple and said, “Senior Brother, a single act of betrayal is like planting a thorn in our master’s heart. You know how Dragon Teeth deals with traitors, so as long as the Princess and I live and we control Dragon Teeth, your life is yours, as is wealth and honor.

But if the Princess and I were to die, your life might not be your own anymore. You need to understand this. That’s why I… hurt you less than I hurt the master…”

The eldest disciple looked towards their own master, his face uncertain: “Senior Brother Leng, I understand.”

Yu Hongsheng’s temples throbbed uncontrollably as he cursed inwardly, a bunch of idiots, wait until I’ve recovered, I’ll slap and kill all of you, what schemes? In the face of true power, your schemes amount to nothing.

“Senior Brother, you should be expressing your determination to the Princess, not me.” Duge shook his head and said.

“Princess, your servant will follow your lead with utmost dedication,” the eldest disciple said.

“Then do you know what you should do?” Duge asked.

“I will do my best to protect the Princess’s safety, pull more junior brothers to the Princess’s side to contend with Master,” the eldest disciple said.

“That’s right,” Duge smiled, “But what’s more crucial is that you should occasionally wound Master to maintain his current state of grave injury. Of course, don’t kill him, because we still need his prestige to intimidate Dragon Teeth…”

“…” the eldest disciple.

“Leng Shi, I bear you no grudge…” Yu Hongsheng trembled all over, Duge’s plan for him caused great terror, as if his own thoughts had been laid bare.

“Master, don’t be angry,” Duge said to Yu Hongsheng with a smile, “You also know that as things stand now, this is the best course of action, isn’t it?

If you want to be free, it’s easy, once the Princess truly takes control of Dragon Teeth, and has people under her to counterbalance you, you’ll naturally be free. Moreover, the Princess is in need of men. Once you have recovered from your injuries, show your loyalty to her, and you will surely live safely into old age.”

“…” Yu Hongsheng glared at Duge furiously.

“Senior Brother Leng, how do I proceed if Master is alive?” The eldest disciple asked.

So naive!

Asking this directly isn’t this inviting his enmity?

You should know that he originally resented me more.

Duge sighed inwardly and turned his gaze to the foolish eldest disciple: “Master is aging, but you are still young. If you diligently practice, oneday your martial skills will surpass Master’s, and you will not fear his retaliation.

Moreover, by distinguishing yourself with meritorious deeds, when the Princess reclaims her kingdom and you are awarded titles of nobility, with your own followers and titles, who would dare to move against you behind the scenes? Do they really think the laws of the kingdom are just for show?”

“Oh.” The eldest disciple’s eyes lit up as if he had seen the light.

Yu Hongsheng’s face was full of sullen resentment.

Luo Shuang looked at her master, who had completely split the two apart with just a few words, and her admiration for Duge grew even more.

This is what a capable minister is!

With Master’s assistance, how can the great cause not prosper?

Some days before, she had been blinded by foolishness, thinking of finding someone to counterbalance Master. But seeing those mediocre nobodies, who among them could match Master’s talent?

She diligently learned Duge’s way of doing things and made a silent vow in her heart, “Master, wait for me, when I ascend the throne, the position of Empress is surely yours…”

“Princess, think again, is there anything else that you must do?” Having handled the matter with Yu Hongsheng and the others, Duge then turned his attention back to Luo Shuang.

“There’s nothing else, right?” Luo Shuang said.

“Someone still controls Dragon Teeth from behind the scenes. We need to find out who it is, see if we can swallow Dragon Teeth whole step by step,” Duge shook his head and said, with a serious tone, “Moreover, among the various mission targets of Dragon Teeth, search for any usable talent, analyze the data gathered from all over Dragon Teeth, and look for an opportune moment to rise up. These are all things you must do, Princess. Remember, our goal is the whole world, not just being the leader of an assassin organization.”

“Yes, I know, Master,” Luo Shuang hesitated, then nodded again.

“Then let’s begin!” Duge sat next to Luo Shuang, took a secret report, and handed it to Luo Shuang, “I will oversee Your Highness, correct your mistakes…”

“Thank you, Master.” Luo Shuang sat straight, nodding solemnly.

Duge then turned to Wu Chang, his brow furrowing slightly, “Wu Chang, your martial arts are weak, you can learn some skills from the senior brother and go on missions with the other brothers to refine your attributes.

Otherwise, with your current abilities, you wouldn’t only be threatened by the Heavenly Demon but even a simple internal strife could claim your life. I hope that when the Princess wages her battles across the land, you can truly become a War God, peerless among warriors.”

“Yes, I will follow the instructions,” Wu Chang didn’t retort this time but respectfully bowed to Duge.

Because he had come to realize that he had learned too much from this native.

If he could survive the Alien Battlefield, the valuable experience would benefit him for a lifetime.

…

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