Humans are the most easily inflated of all creatures.
They are also the creatures most likely to fail to recognize their own situation.
Of course, I prefer to stand on high ground, pointing fingers at those involved, calling this person brain-dead and that person an idiot.
But once you get caught up in it, you might suddenly become so inflated that you'll bring about your own destruction.
For example, Zhang Muyuan.
When he was still a small vendor, he was a very honest and upright person.
He experienced the court's crackdown on local gentry at the beginning of the Jingkang era, and witnessed firsthand the rebellion of those bloodsucking landlords, which was then swiftly suppressed.
Those events had deeply shocked him, and he revered the might of Heaven as much as he revered thunder.
He also felt that those local gentry were like big fools and idiots, knowing full well that the emperor's power was as great as the heavens and irreversible, yet they were stupid enough to choose to rebel.
They've really gone off the rails.
However, as wealth accumulated, as the first official around him began to treat him politely, and as everyone around him began to greet him with smiles.
His heart began to pound.
Finally, one day, with a single sentence, he caused another merchant house in Chang'an to go bankrupt, and he experienced firsthand the real power of money.
Money is also a form of power!
He felt as if he had suddenly grown taller, as if he were sitting on a cloud, looking down on the mortal world.
Later, many officials in Chang'an began to sit and eat and drink with him.
He also married his daughter to an official and spent money to get his son and confidants into government positions.
As the imperial court continued to issue new policies, unprecedented commercial dividends arrived.
His wealth increased day by day.
One night he dreamed that he had arrived in the capital city of Tokyo and met the emperor and the prime minister.
The prime minister was surprisingly polite to him, and the emperor even praised him in public, saying that the future of the Song Dynasty depended on him.
Later, with the unprecedented boom in commerce in the Song Dynasty, he felt that the imperial court could no longer do without him.
And then, what about those ordinary people?
Who can stop themselves from becoming a builder of the Song Dynasty?
He wants to build this era!
Those commoners actually complained that the pay was too low and refused to work!
We're already being kind enough to give them money so they can survive!
Zhang Muyuan thought to himself how many job opportunities he had created and how many families he had supported!
What's a few people compared to this?
They are nothing but ants!
Driven by his dream of building a business empire, he was extravagant. When Zhao Chen, then Duke of Chong, went to Xianzhou, he spent a fortune, investing 200,000 strings of cash in Xianzhou.
He's investing in the future; he's now using money to pave his way to power.
But when he heard the voices of the Imperial Guards outside, his heart skipped a beat, and he felt something was not real.
"Who!" Zhang Muyuan's face suddenly darkened and turned pale instantly.
Wang Yan, standing to the side, was so frightened that his legs went weak: "It's the Imperial Guard! The Emperor's personal troops have come to arrest people!"
"What nonsense are you talking about! The emperor won't arrest us, how dare he..."
His words caught in his throat as he watched as squads of Imperial Guards in black robes coldly entered.
The strong men they had hired in the backyard tried to stop them, but the first one to step forward was slashed on the head with a knife. The sharp blade severed his head, leaving a gap, and blood spurted out.
The strongman let out a strange cry, fell to the ground, and died instantly.
The others were so frightened that they scattered like birds and beasts.
Who is Zhang Muyuan?
Zhang Muyuan sat there blankly, instinctively saying, "I am..."
"You are suspected of murder during railway construction. We are taking you back. If you resist, you will be killed without mercy."
The Imperial Guard's tone was colder than ice and snow in the dead of winter, chilling one to the bone.
"Wait!" Zhang Muyuan said instinctively, "I am Zhang Muyuan! You must have made a mistake!"
"I don't care if you're Zhang Muyuan or Zhang Mujin! You committed murder, so go back and cooperate with the investigation!"
"I know Prefect Liu Zhiyuan! I've even had tea with Censor Zhang! You can't arrest me! I'm even building railways for the imperial court!"
The Imperial Guard kicked him, knocking him to the ground: "Even if you're the Emperor himself, it's no use!"
"Guards! Take this man away!"
Wang Yan was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground.
The Imperial Guard examined him closely and said, "Isn't this Wang Yan? Take him with you!"
On this day, a major earthquake struck Chang'an.
The doors of the thirteen wealthiest merchants were broken down, and they were all thrown into death row.
The news spread, causing widespread shock and dismay.
In the eyes of ordinary people, wealthy businessmen are the lucky ones of this era.
More than a decade ago, they were just ordinary people, like most others.
More than a decade after the implementation of the new policy, they had long since moved into luxurious mansions, with servants and strong men accompanying them whenever they came and went.
They use money to pave their way, and they have special privileges wherever they go.
Even government officials ate with them.
In this incident, thirteen wealthy individuals were arrested.
Those people who used to ride in BMWs, speeding through the streets of Chang'an, leaving others far behind, are now in prison.
Even as darkness fell, Zhang Muyuan still felt it wasn't real enough.
Last night, he was still enjoying himself in his mansion, with beautiful women and delicious food.
Now, however, he is in the Imperial City Guard's prison.
I've heard that the Imperial City Guard's prison only holds important criminals, and that once you're inside, life is worse than death.
Why is this happening?
Why is this happening?!
He just couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
In a daze, he heard footsteps and looked up.
A man walked towards them, dressed in a long blue robe, exuding an aura of authority.
"You're Zhang Muyuan?"
Zhao Huan asked.
Zhang Muyuan was slightly taken aback; this man exuded an indescribable air of nobility.
He had never seen him in Chang'an before, but he could roughly guess who he was.
He immediately knelt on the ground: "This humble citizen is Zhang Muyuan."
“They have all told me about your affairs over the years.”
Zhang Muyuan buried his head in the hay, remaining silent and not daring to speak.
What they said behind the scenes was one thing, but when they actually met the emperor, they couldn't utter a single word.
"You have done a lot for the Song Dynasty."
Upon hearing the emperor's words, Zhang Muyuan's nose suddenly stung with tears.
"The Song Dynasty truly needs someone like you."
"His Majesty……"
"However, we need Zhang Muyuan from seven years ago, not Zhang Muyuan of today."
"Seven years ago, Zhang Muyuan would not have killed someone for money."
"This humble citizen knows his crime."
"No, you are unaware of your crime. If you were unaware of your crime, you wouldn't have come to this." Zhao Huan was also filled with emotion. To be honest, he also needed merchants.
How can a country's economic development be separated from its businessmen?
However, these people crossed his bottom line, and crossed the bottom line of the Song Dynasty.
“Money and power can easily inflate one’s ego,” Zhao Huan said. “Once a person becomes arrogant, they are prone to losing themselves.”
It's unclear whether this was said to Zhang Muyuan or to Zhao Huan himself.
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