Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 107



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Episode 107 – Rewarding merits and merits

The young emperor never thought of taking back the rewards he had bestowed on Qingyun.

Firstly, it was a reason for the government to encourage good deeds, secondly, it was because if there was no reward for merit, no one would want to achieve merit, and lastly, thirdly, it was simply ‘favor’ for Cheongun.

In any case, the emperor had no intention of taking back the reward he bestowed on Cheongun, but according to what I heard from the Grand Prince of Murim, even Cheongun’s rebellion was nothing like the rebellion he had suffered.

In a way, it was an action that could be considered a crime of ‘treason’, so it had to be seen as almost risking death.

That was why the emperor and Zhu Guanqian worked day and night to devise countermeasures.

I thought of all the logic I could come up with while Cheongwoon was unconscious, and calculated all the excuses I could come up with.

I didn’t expect that he would end up putting a metal plate on his face and being stubborn, but he was still able to take the plate off.

So, all of these things were right on target, and all that was left for Cheongwoon to do was to quietly accept his reward.

But what the heck?

Cheongun seemed to still have something to say.

“Your Majesty, I have something to ask you.”

There is no logic, no justification, no reasoning left. What kind of nonsense are they trying to say?

The emperor nodded his head out of curiosity, although he was inwardly anxious.

“Speak.”

Cheongwoon seemed to be gathering his thoughts and was silent for a moment. Let’s wait a moment without rushing, and Cheongwoon slowly opened his mouth.

“There are three people who contributed to the victory of the war. The person called ‘Gap’ devised a plan and led the battles that took place throughout the country to victory. The person called ‘Eul’ stabilized the country and its people, ensuring that supplies were not cut off. The person called ‘Byeong’ led the large army and won all battles. If you were to choose the person with the greatest merit among these three, which one would you choose?”

Is it a question and answer?

It was a method mainly used by ancient sages to persuade or teach monarchs.

It was also a method of teaching enlightenment to the martial artists. I had heard that Buddhist martial artists attained enlightenment through Zen questions and answers.

After a moment of thought, the emperor gave his answer.

“If I were to name one, I would choose the person with the greatest merit as the one named ‘Eul’ who stabilized the country and its people and ensured that supplies were not cut off.”

“Can I ask why?”

“Because supply is the support and means that sustains the army and allows it to move.”

No matter how great a general you are, you cannot lead a hungry body.

There is a reason why it is said that an ordinary general studies tactics, but a great general studies distribution.

The answer to this question can be found by looking at the fact that the decisive factor in the defeat of the past war despite the overwhelming military power of the overlord was the ‘supply’ problem.

“Also, he stabilized the country and the people, allowing the soldiers to fight without worrying about the rear, so the person named ‘Eul’ is the one who has contributed the most.”

“But, I would like to ask why you ignore the person with the greatest merit and only reward me.”

The words of Cheongun suddenly changing orbit.

“······What does that mean?”

When the emperor asked with a frown, Cheongwoon continued speaking as if he had been waiting for him.

“The cause of the incident in Guizhou was none other than the ‘epidemic.’ And the one who cured the epidemic was not me, but a woman called Cheonhwasinnyeo (天花神女).”

Heavenly Flower Goddess.

The emperor knew the facts about her, having heard detailed reports about the epidemic that had occurred in Guizhou Province.

“Even if Soshin defeated the elder of the Demonic Cult known as the Blood Heavenly Goddess, the one who solved the plague in Gwiju Castle was the ‘Heavenly Fire Goddess.’”

“You are the one who defeated the elder of the Demonic Cult, but the one who achieved the greatest merit is not you, but the Heavenly Goddess?”

“that······.”

Cheongwoon chewed his lower lip as if trying to bite it. But did he now admit that he couldn’t just let it go?

“Yes, that’s right.”

Cheongun nodded as if confessing to having defeated the Blood Heavenly Goddess.

And from Cheongun’s appearance, the emperor was able to understand Cheongun’s intentions and thoughts.

In any case, the situation is such that logic, justification, and even reasoning are all blocked, and it is impossible to escape the reward.

This is a symbol and strategy to divide up the rewards that will be received one way or another and receive at least the minimum.

To put it simply, it can be called ‘reward splitting’.

“Also, the contribution of the Jang Gang Hyeopgaekdan in helping the Heavenly Goddess to resolve the epidemic situation was not small. I think they should also be rewarded.

What Cheongun wanted to say was simple.

I acknowledge the importance of the Emperor’s adage, ‘reward for good conduct and punishment for bad conduct.’

But isn’t ‘rewards and awards’, which ranks people according to the size of their achievements and gives them appropriate rewards, also important?

“If Your Majesty were to give unfair rewards, I believe that would also undermine the trust between the ruler and his subjects, Your Majesty.”

“Hmm.”

The emperor let out a sigh without realizing it.

But in fact, the ministers of Taehwajeon were watching, and the historians were recording the emperor’s words without missing a single word, so it was only a whisper.

Inwardly, he was chewing.

I thought you were only good at martial arts, but you also have considerable talent in literature.

A talented person with both literary and martial skills.

It was truly a Cheongun that I could not help but love more and more the more I saw and experienced it.

“Good. I will acknowledge the merits of my Jang Gang Hyeopgaekdan.”

“If that’s the case….”

“So, let us turn a blind eye to their treason.”

“······yes?”

“In recognition of your merits, I will turn a blind eye to the treason committed by the warriors of the Hyeopgaekdan who pointed their swords at the Geumuiwi and obstructed my will.”

Cheongun’s mouth was tightly shut.

It seems that he never expected the Emperor to ‘return rewards’ in this way.

To be exact, it could be called ‘reward swindling’, but Cheongun was not the only one who could swindle the reward here and there.

This made the reward splitting pointless. Still, Cheongwoon showed no intention of giving up until the very end.

“Your Majesty, may I say one more thing to you?”

I wonder how far he will go in refuting this.

The emperor nodded, thinking that he would see it through to the end.

“Speak.”

“A person named A killed a person named B with a sword. In that case, who is responsible for the crime? Sword or A?”

“A sword is just a tool, so the blame naturally lies with A.”

“If that is so, then Your Majesty’s order to the military personnel of the Royal Guard was wrong. Then who is responsible for that?”

“The Royal Guards simply faithfully carried out my orders, so responsibility for their actions naturally lies with me.”

The position of monarch is one that carries ‘responsibility.’

The responsibility of a subordinate was no different from that of a monarch, and Cheongwoon’s eyes sparkled as if he was thinking of that.

“But I would like to ask why you are holding the band of knights responsible for the treason.”

“What does that mean?”

“Your Majesty said that the sin of killing a person lies not with the sword but with the one holding the sword, and that Your Majesty is ‘responsible’ for the mistakes of the Royal Guard.”

“That’s how it was.”

“Just as Your Majesty regards the Golden Guard as your limbs, the Jang River Swordsmen are also your subordinates, your hands and feet, and your swords.”

When I heard this far.

The emperor was able to immediately understand what Cheongun was trying to say.

“Therefore, all the fault lies with me, the ‘King of the Yangtze River.’ I am responsible for providing the cause for the disrespect to the Grand Prince of Murim, and for daring to disobey His Majesty’s will.”

“······.”

“If you are going to hold the Hyeopgaekdan responsible, I think it would be right to hold me responsible for the same thing and not reward me for my achievements as if they were nothing.”

One, this kid is real.

The emperor’s face distorted and his stomach turned.

If there had been no ministers watching over him, if this had not been the solemn Taehwajeon that looked after state affairs, and if the historians had not recorded every word of the emperor’s words, harsh words would have been uttered by this emperor long ago.

And Cheongun, I don’t know, now that it has been revealed that he is the King of the Yangtze River, he confessed that he was the King of the Yangtze River as if he was going to make a big deal out of it.

But that actually became an excuse for ‘dividing the rewards.’

······If I had known this would happen, I would not have revealed that I was the King of the Yangtze River.

The emperor regretted it for a moment, but that did not mean he had nothing to say in rebuttal.

“If we go by your logic, isn’t Cheonhwa Shinnyeo a member of the Hye-min Party? The Hye-min Party is a member of the Seonmu-gwan, so in the end, it’s no different from your merits, so aren’t you the one who has the greatest merit?”

“that······.”

This time, Cheongwoon was speechless as if he had been hit with a bullet.

According to the logic that Cheongun had previously developed, Cheonhwasinnyeo and Cheongun could be seen as one body. Therefore, Cheonhwasinnyeo’s achievements could also be considered Cheongun’s achievements.

It was a self-inflicted wound that applied the logic of Cheongun as it is.

There were no more excuses or justifications, so what happened?

“Actually······Cheonhwa Shinnyeo is not a member of the Hyemin Party.”

“Isn’t Cheonhwa Shinnyeo a member of Hyemin Party?”

“That’s right. Currently, there is only one member of the Hye-Min Party named ‘Park Jin-Hyeon.’”

“Then why is Cheonhwasinnyeo staying at Hyemin Hall and Seonmu Hall?”

Then Cheongun opened his eyes wide.

I wondered how he knew that, but as he had done a thorough investigation in advance, the Emperor knew everything.

So, no amount of lame excuses would work, but guess what?

“I was the one who committed the kidnapping······.”

······What the heck is this?

At Cheongun’s unexpected words, not only the emperor but also the ministers of Taehwajeon were shocked at the same time.

The historians, who had been out of their minds since earlier, were now completely out of their minds.

Of course, kidnapping······?

“Are you saying that you kidnapped the Heavenly Goddess and imprisoned her in the missionary office?”

I was wondering if this made any sense, but Cheongwoon noticed and nodded his head slightly.

“What is that······?”

“Oh my! Cheongun, you idiot! How dare you lie and say that this place is safe!!”

The deputy inspector of the royal palace, Ju Gwan-cheon, who could not stand to watch, shouted.

It was the most rude thing of all to suddenly interrupt the Emperor’s conversation, but neither the Emperor nor any of his ministers found fault with it.

“Uh, uh, what the…?”

“What are you talking about···?”

There has never been such nonsense as that.

But Cheongun just shouted as if he was being treated unfairly.

“It’s not a lie! If you send someone to Sacheondangmun to check the facts, you will quickly find out the truth!”

As far as the emperor knew, the Heavenly Flower Goddess was the daughter and legitimate daughter of the Sacheon Tangmun named Tang So-hyang.

As Cheongun said, if we check the truth at Sacheondangmun, it will be revealed right away, but wait.

“Does that mean that the Sacheondangmun also knows about the kidnapping?”

“That······ yes. No, that’s right.”

“Does the Sacheondangmun know that you have kidnapped the Heavenly Goddess and are imprisoning her in the missionary office?”

“That’s right.”

“And yet he left you alone? That vicious Sacheondangmun?”

No matter how much the emperor said he had no interest in the martial arts world, the powers that be, including the Nine-Tailed Faction and the Five Great Factions, knew about it.

Of course, the emperor was not unaware of the Five Great Masters, Sacheondangmun.

And as far as the Emperor knows, the Sacheondangmun is the place where kindness is repaid twice and grudges are repaid tenfold, so what is going on?

The emperor snapped at Cheongun as if to tell him to stop talking nonsense, and instead of answering, Cheongun quietly raised his head.

Then, he cautiously looked at the emperor with a look of utmost embarrassment, and from that look on Cheongwoon’s face, the emperor was able to remember what had happened in the Murim Alliance the other day.

-I don’t plan on getting involved in the affairs of the martial arts world, but if it’s related to Cheongun, I won’t just consider it as a martial arts world matter.

It was a warning to the elders of the Murim Alliance, who were like snakes, to stop plotting a conspiracy.

In other words, it meant that if you touch Cheongun, you won’t be left alone, and the Murim Alliance is a group that represents the martial arts world.

The emperor’s words would have spread throughout the entire martial arts world, and it was impossible for the Sacheon Tangmun to not know about it.

Let me say this again.

“······Ah, because of me?”

The emperor was so embarrassed that he even forgot the title ‘I (朕)’.

In any case, the Sacheondangmun was unable to do any harm to Cheongun because of the emperor’s words.

If anyone dared to touch Cheongun, the emperor would step in and destroy the Sacheondangmun clan, so the Sacheondangmun clan could only suck its thumb even though the precious daughter of the Oksu Gyeongji clan was kidnapped.

I don’t know why Cheongun kidnapped Cheonhwasinnyeo.

However, given the circumstances, it seemed as if it was true that Cheongun had kidnapped Cheonhwasinnyeo.

So, the saying “자승자박” was not about Cheongun but about the emperor······.

“Therefore, I believe that most of the rewards should go to the Sacheondangmun, including the Cheonhwasinnyeo, Your Majesty.”

No, really, what should I do with this kid?

* * *

He bowed his head and waited for the emperor’s answer.

But no matter how much time passed, there was no answer from the emperor.

‘Did it work······?’

It seemed like it went through properly.

To be honest, I thought it was perfect. Even if it was Taesang No-gun, it was a perfect reward split that would be indescribable.

I turned my head briefly and checked out the atmosphere in Taehwajeon.

There was no chaos in Taehwajeon, but there was no commotion to be heard.

The ministers looked at me with expressions as if to say, ‘What kind of crazy bastard is that…?’, and the historians who were recording my conversation with the emperor were looking puzzled, holding their brushes in their hands, as if to say, ‘What the…?’

Then, as if the strength in his hand had given out, the sound of the brush falling to the floor was the only sound heard in Taehwajeon.

So even the rewarder, ‘Ju Gwan-cheon’, was embarrassed.

I never expected that I would go beyond ‘reward-returning’ and ‘reward-throwing’ to ‘reward-splitting’.

I was finally able to be sure.

‘It worked.’

As I slowly raised my head, I could see the emperor holding the back of my neck.

The look in his eyes and expression as he looked at me contained the emotion of, ‘This little bastard is really···!’······.

“Huh, huh?”

“Your Majesty, Your Majesty···!!!”

“Call the royal physician! Now, right now!!”

The emperor, who had been holding the back of his neck, suddenly fell backwards, causing Taehwajeon to flip upside down.