Chapter 11641 — Your Majesty, You Must Not
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
Hou Chuang said, "Your Majesty misunderstands. What this old subject means is that you need someone to take the calamity in your stead—a plum tree struck dead in place of the peach, as the saying goes."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou caught on. "Grand Preceptor, do you mean to have Wei Zhao bear the calamity in my place?"
Hou Chuang nodded. "With the proper handling, it is entirely possible."
"Then explain it all to me, quickly."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou was so excited he rubbed his hands together.
To face Wei Zhao in a head-on clash—that he had neither the ability nor the nerve for. But to hide behind the scenes and quietly pin the blame on Wei Zhao—that he not only had the nerve for, but plenty of it.
From the side, the Queen cast him an exhilarated look as well.
So long as it meant dealing with Wei Zhao, everyone present was a grasshopper bound to the same rope!
Hou Chuang said gravely, "Your Majesty need only do one thing."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou asked hurriedly, "What thing?"
Hou Chuang said, "An Edict of Self-Blame."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou froze, then pointed at himself in a daze. "You would have me issue an Edict of Self-Blame? What kind of joke is this?"
The Edict of Self-Blame was the exclusive prerogative of the Son of Heaven, yet it was not something he could issue whenever he pleased.
Once issued, the consequences that followed were absolutely not something a puppet Son of Heaven like him could bear.
Then again, even a genuine Son of Heaven wielding true power, once driven to the point of issuing an Edict of Self-Blame against himself, would without question suffer a grievous blow to his vitality. For a puppet Son of Heaven like him, it might well send him straight to his grave.
Hou Chuang said, "Your Majesty, but hear this old subject out. The essence of the Edict of Self-Blame is to state one's faults to the Way of Heaven."
The Son of Heaven frowned. "And what of it?"
Hou Chuang said gravely, "Does Your Majesty not see that this is precisely a power held by you alone?"
"Ha?"
The Son of Heaven was utterly lost. "Confessing one's faults to the Heavenly Dao counts as my privilege now?"
Hou Chuang corrected him. "Not confessing—stating one's faults. Ordinarily, no matter how formidable a master might be, there is no way to petition the Heavenly Dao directly. But Your Majesty can. Does Your Majesty not sense the vast room for maneuver in this?"
The Son of Heaven was astonished. "So that is how the Edict of Self-Blame can be understood?"
To him, this was a perspective he had never encountered before.
In his long-held understanding, the Edict of Self-Blame had always been something profoundly negative—a thing he strove desperately to avoid, a thing he did not even wish to mention.
And now, in Hou Chuang's mouth, it seemed instead to have become a remarkable privilege?
Hou Chuang laughed. "Think on it, Your Majesty. Two children have done wrong. One can confess his fault to his parents face to face, while the other cannot even get an audience with them. Which of the two, in Your Majesty's view, has the advantage?"
"Naturally, the one who can face his parents!"
The Son of Heaven answered without a moment's hesitation, then his eyes blazed with light. "I understand the Grand Preceptor's meaning. So long as I issue the Edict of Self-Blame, I may confess my faults directly to the Heavenly Dao—only how precisely that fault is apportioned will be for me alone to decide!"
Hou Chuang nodded. "Your Majesty is wise."
After that, he needed no further prompting; the Son of Heaven had found his own way.
In the end, the Son of Heaven had flaws of one kind and another, but he was by no means a fool. At the very least, he did not lack the petty cunning to calculate his own advantage.
Before long, the Edict of Self-Blame was drafted.