"I am well-versed in military strategy and tactics, as well as classics and historical texts. I can teach Your Majesty—but for now, let's not learn the first character, '思' (si). Instead, let's find a more difficult character and practice it. Once you master that, the strokes will become much easier."

Tong Su gripped the pen tightly and nodded earnestly: "Okay, I'll listen to you."

The man said, "There is one word that would be quite suitable."

"What word?"

He picked up a brush and slowly wrote an extremely complex character on the rice paper, still smiling: "It's it."

Tongsu peeked out.

Tong Su: "..."

Tong Su looked up innocently and asked, "General, are you joking?"

On the paper was a large group of characters with many strokes; if you were far away, you could only see a dark mass.

—Dawn.

Tong Su was a little dumbfounded.

"This character is way too difficult! We're learning this as our first character?"

Xi Chenzhou said in a serious tone, "This character has a very good meaning. 'Sun' means yang (sun) and 'dawn' means morning light. It represents the hope of the rising sun and implies a bright future..."

Tong Su said, "But I have a feeling that you are secretly trying to get your own agenda."

He laughed heartily, and it took him a long time to stop, his laughter growing even wider.

"That's right, I am indeed smuggling in my own agenda. Your Majesty, you have been staying in the capital of Dakang for so many years, you must be tired of it, would you be willing to come with me and go out to see the world?"

...

For a long time, Yun Zong wanted to send someone to kill Minister Qian directly.

But the man surnamed Qian, who was under the protection of some unknown force, escaped his pursuit time and time again. The assassins he sent were captured by them, tied up, and thrown at the gate of the Jingzhao Prefecture!

Of course, if the assassins failed, they would take poison and commit suicide, but their bodies could not be eliminated. Even if no conspiracy could be found out, they would still look terrifying.

People were coming and going at the gate of the Jingzhao Prefecture again, and the forces behind Minister Qian seized the opportunity to cause trouble. Before long, the story, along with the children's rhymes written by those people, spread throughout the entire capital, told in great detail.

Such nonsense! That only the Ninth Prince controls the Eastern and Western Depots and can send out assassins to silence witnesses; that Minister Qian incurred the Ninth Prince's wrath because he exposed his true colors; that all the oppression of the people in court is because of the Ninth Prince…

The truth and the falsehood are countless.

In the end, Yun Zong almost couldn't suppress the backlash from public opinion. If the issue of embezzling military funds were truly investigated, he really wouldn't be able to escape it.

But we can't ignore it, because the Northwest Army is keeping a close eye on us!

He had no choice but to harden his heart, cut off his arm to save his life, and shift all the blame onto his trusted subordinates in the East and West factories.

First, he forced his trusted confidants to "commit suicide" out of guilt, then he had no choice but to shut down the Eastern and Western Depots, and even emptied the Ministry of Revenue, allocating a large amount of supplies to compensate the Northwest Army. Only then could he barely appease all the forces.

—Yun Zong’s foundation rests on the East and West Depots. Now that Minister Qian has been gone and the East and West Depots have been destroyed, it’s like good things are hard to come by and bad things happen in pairs. It’s enough to make one want to vomit blood!

“I always feel like I’ve fallen into a web woven by someone,” Yun Zong said to his advisors, sitting in his armchair with a gloomy face. “Lately, everything has been going wrong, as if someone is maliciously targeting me. They want to scheme against me, gradually weaken my support, and finally—cut off my lifeline in one fell swoop.”

The aide asked, "Your Excellency, what do you wish to do?"

Yun Zong frowned in thought as he engaged in a detailed and intense discussion with them. Soon after, someone came to deliver a message that His Majesty was feeling down and wanted to take the Imperial Guards out hunting to relax. Yun Zong, already in a bad mood, didn't think much of it and impatiently waved his hand in agreement.

Shortly after the messenger left.

Yun Zong suddenly remembered something, raised his head abruptly, and shouted hoarsely, "Guards! I ask you—who accompanied His Majesty on the hunt? Summon them back immediately, they are not allowed to go!"