Chapter Eight, within ten steps

Han Rizi pondered for a moment and murmured: "A thousand miles away, the emperor has no control; within ten steps, the emperor is no different from an ordinary person. Therefore, the emperor's power extends only beyond ten steps and within a thousand miles... Yet I am trapped within ten steps"

"How can we break the deadlock?" Han Rizi raised his head and asked

Han Rizi did not make a sound, nor did he turn back

Even the most powerful emperor has times of discontent, Han Ruzi speculated

Han Rizi lay on the bed, when someone entered the room, extinguished the light, and collapsed onto the small couch by the window

Han Rizi's eyes sparkled, "My mother never... I have never heard these stories before"

At that moment, he was almost asleep when suddenly the voice of the palace maid Meng'e came from below the window, "I have inquired, those two individuals have been sent for treatment and will not die."

However, this was of no help to the current emperor, as he could not control anything within a ten-step radius, nor had he found any favorable "circumstances" for himself. It was not until the evening, when he was about to sleep, that a small matter gave Han Rizi some confidence

The two individuals who were beaten because of me

"By the Empress Dowager's decree, from today onwards, I shall serve Your Majesty," Yang Feng said

Although Jing Yao is older, his movements are quite nimble. He hurriedly embraced the East Sea King around the waist and sternly reprimanded, "East Sea King, please conduct yourself with dignity; this is the imperial palace"

The Minister of Rites is somewhat "smarter" than expected, and Jing Yao, feeling embarrassed yet not daring to express his anger, said with a flushed face: "The fasting will soon come to an end, Your Majesty will have plenty of days to eat meat, why bother to mention such trivial matters to the foreign ministers?"

Is this really that note?" Jing Yao still had doubts

"To humiliate me and the Cui family," King Donghai said indignantly, not concealing his anger towards the Empress Dowager and his covetousness for the throne

It is difficult for me to find someone to talk to in the palace. Han Rizi walked back to the bedside

The King of the East Sea coughed twice and finally could not help but express his thoughts, "It is not I who leaked the secret, but you who were too careless and revealed your true intentions. However, your tactic is quite cunning, 'I want to eat meat,' you want to test whether the Minister of Rites is trustworthy, right? Hmm, truly cautious, perhaps a bit overly so.

Yang Feng withdrew; he did not need to serve the emperor at night, nor did he need to teach the emperor everything hand in hand

Yang Feng stepped forward, aware that some words should not be spoken, yet certain qualities of the emperor moved him. Yang Feng was willing to take a risk, "Do you want to know what an emperor is?"

The King of the East Sea was quite surprised by this, waiting for more than an hour before finally speaking, "It is truly strange that no one is monitoring us."

Yang Feng approached the bedside and said, "You are quite clever, having not truly written any secret edict. You are also very fortunate, as the Empress Dowager is magnanimous and considers this merely the antics of a child, not wishing to pursue the matter too rigorously"

Your Majesty is overly concerned; both inside and outside the palace, and throughout the court, everyone has their own means of self-preservation. Those who require Your Majesty's protection are precisely the ones who are not worth protecting.

"Within ten steps, within a thousand miles." Han Ruzi pondered Yang Feng's words, wondering when his own "opportunity" would arrive and whether it would ever come. Suddenly, he was struck by a thought: since Yang Feng had not explicitly stated some things, and since ordinary people were within ten steps, why couldn't he do something within those ten steps?

Upon mentioning the term "sorcery," the King of the East Sea was himself startled, kneeling obediently and murmuring: "Perhaps she can hear us speaking here; otherwise, she must have been harmed by her own sorcery, which is why she is hiding and does not dare to meet anyone"

Han Rizi originally intended to win the favor of the palace maid beside him, but instead found himself rendered speechless by her words, while Meng E remained motionless, as if she were about to fall asleep.

Han Rizi's drowsiness vanished in an instant; he was concerned about the lives of the two eunuchs, but it did not reach the level of constant preoccupation. He felt a sense of joy because someone had finally answered his question directly, and the stagnant water within ten paces had finally stirred slightly

The three individuals did not linger, departing hastily

If there is indeed guilt, then my transgression is even greater

It was not easy to meet Yang Feng, and there were some matters he wished to clarify: "What are the actual benefits of being an emperor? The King of Donghai desires to become emperor, yet you do not agree. I have never had such thoughts, yet you insist on pushing me forward. I have heard that during the reign of my grandfather, Emperor Wu, he once became so enraged that blood flowed for a thousand miles. As for me, I do not even dare to acknowledge my own birth mother."

Meng'e in the darkness fell silent for a moment, "They deserve their fate"

Yang Feng came and went, overhearing some conversations. He neither opposed nor took the opportunity to offer suggestions. He resembled a half-hearted shepherd, occasionally checking to see if the cattle and sheep were still grazing in their place, before returning to his own affairs

Yang Feng remained in place without moving, while the three individuals who had retreated to the entrance also stopped, unwilling to leave the emperor alone with the cunning and treacherous eunuch.

Yang Feng did not participate in these trivial games; he waited outside the door, not looking at anyone. When the time came, he escorted the Emperor to pay respects to the Empress Dowager and to attend the ceremony, remaining almost inseparable.

I never intended to stand out; now it is worse than before

What happened to those two people

After the meal, Han Ruzi took every opportunity to converse with the eunuchs and palace maids around him. However, the results were minimal; they were puzzled by the Emperor's change in character and soon became wary, responding as little as possible. When they had to speak, they would deliberate carefully, and their words seemed less directed at the Emperor and more as if they hoped to convey a message to someone who was not present.

"Your Majesty left behind quite a few writings yesterday, and one pair of characters is enough to discern their authenticity." Yang Feng carefully tucked the note away, as the Empress Dowager had already been convinced; the opinions of others were of no significance.

Yang Feng shook his head and said, "There is no way, it is both the time and the circumstances. Throughout history, how many heroes and great figures have lived in obscurity simply because they were born at the wrong time? Your Majesty, it is better for you to rest assured."

You could lose your head at any moment! The King of the East Sea found it incredible that the Emperor remained so calm, but upon recalling that his earlier threats had no effect on his elder brother, he felt relieved. "I understand your meaning; you and your son have truly suffered in the past... it has been too tragic, without a royal title, without a master, you are even worse off than ordinary members of the royal family. If you ask me, the Empress Dowager must harbor a deep hatred for you and your son; she is even unwilling to see you."... it has been too tragic, without a royal title, without a master, you are even worse off than ordinary members of the royal family. If you ask me, the Empress Dowager must harbor a deep hatred for you and your son; she is even unwilling to see you.

How did you come to this?

This voice was cold and icy, neither referring to itself as "servant" nor addressing "Your Majesty" with respect, appearing even more disrespectful than Jing Yao and Zuo Ji, who had come to seek justice.

Han Rizi slightly nodded his head, indicating indifference

This child is very intelligent. If the circumstances were slightly better, Yang Feng would be confident in cultivating him into a wise ruler. However, the current situation only allows him to engage in empty talk.

The King of the East Sea was taken aback, realizing that he had made a grave mistake. His attitude immediately softened, "I am sorry, I momentarily... Please forgive me, Your Majesty..."

Soon he discovered that the eunuchs and palace maids around him were not all the same; behind their expressionless faces lay each person's little secrets: the old eunuch holding the crown would occasionally steal a glance at the palace maid holding the garments, ... the palace maid holding the garments quietly observed her companion who was holding the jewelry box ... . ... Meng E was also part of this chain of mutual surveillance, but her status was slightly higher, and no one dared to meet her gaze

What everyone feels from the emperor is not warmth, but pressure

Which two people

Jing Yao and Zuo Ji exchanged a glance, both unsure of how to respond to this statement. They each mumbled a few words before simultaneously taking their leave. The King of Donghai fixed his gaze on the Emperor, and only upon hearing Jing Yao's urging did he awkwardly bid farewell

There was an additional dish at dinner, and upon tasting it, Han Rizi was quite surprised by the meaty flavor. He was still in a period of fasting and absolutely could not come into contact with meat. After chewing a few bites, he realized it was shiitake mushrooms. It seems that his complaints had some effect.

If you had been a bit bolder, perhaps the Minister of Rites could have taken action yesterday, but instead you wrote, 'I want to eat meat,' and of course the ministers would not take it seriously. Only by daring to take risks can one achieve rewards; someone like you will never rise to prominence.

When Emperor Wu was enraged, blood flowed for a thousand miles, yet beyond that thousand miles, there lay another thousand. The armies of the Great Chu have never been able to exhaust the world, and Emperor Wu also faced troubles close at hand. He changed the crown prince three times and executed seven high-ranking officials, with countless favorites in the inner palace being discarded. Throughout his life, Emperor Wu encountered at least five crises: three times while traveling incognito, once in the court, and once within the palace.

Han Rizi hesitated and nodded his head

Have you seen the Empress Dowager

The afternoon fasting was still normal, and Yang Feng did not kneel at the door. According to the rules, he remained outside and never entered to disturb the Emperor and the King of Donghai

Lying in bed at night, Han Rizi reflected on the day's experiences and realized that he had not come away empty-handed; at the very least, he had come to understand one thing: the palace was not solely under the influence of the Empress Dowager, for there were turbulent undercurrents surrounding him.

There are distinctions between the noble and the humble, and differences between the rich and the poor. Since there is a clear division between the master and the servant, there cannot be the same transgressions.

At first, Han Ruzi thought that these individuals were fraught with contradictions among themselves. However, on his way to meet with the officials of the Ministry of Rites, he suddenly realized that the eunuchs and the palace maids were actually serving their own masters and were wary of one another

"This is not a bedtime story," Yang Feng's tone became stern, "I am imparting a lesson to you."

The Minister of Rites did not attend today, and a Deputy Minister took his place. He maintained a distance from the Emperor at all times, and refrained from speaking as much as possible.

Han Rizi recalled the two eunuchs who had been beaten; their method of self-preservation was to scream in agony

Han Rizi turned around, and the King of the East Sea looked at him with a face full of surprise. After a moment, he revealed an expression of extreme anger

"It was given to me by Master Yuan," Yang Feng said calmly

The next morning, Han Rizi finally saw Meng E's true appearance. She appeared to be around twenty years old, not much taller than the thirteen-year-old emperor. Her looks were not unattractive, but she could certainly not be described as beautiful. Her expression was blank, indistinguishable from others in the palace. Han Rizi could not recall when she had begun to serve him.

The young emperor was not discouraged by this defeat; instead, he resolved to pay attention to everyone within a "ten-step radius." However, he aimed to avoid the mistakes made when writing the "secret edict" and would never again implicate others.

Han Rizi encountered a formidable opponent during his first attempt within the "ten steps". He struggled to recall the appearance of this palace maid, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not remember. In recent days, there had been too many people coming and going, all bearing the same expression, making it truly difficult to distinguish them.

Han Rizi's last shred of trust in the King of Donghai had long since vanished, yet this person was merely ten steps away. He did not wish to engage in a dispute, so he said: "In any case, this matter cannot be accomplished regardless."

Yang Feng coldly said: "I am telling you what the true emperor is like, the most authentic form, not the so-called doctrines proclaimed by the learned scholars."

"No," Han Ruzi replied decisively, "I do not wish to deal with anyone, especially not with the Empress Dowager. If I do not remain on the throne for long, that is my fate."

After a whole day, Han Ruzi was utterly exhausted, and all he gained were a few sparse replies; within his ten steps, there remained a desolate expanse.

He turned to look at the indistinct figure on the chair, realizing that in recent days he had been so focused on gazing at the Empress Dowager and the powerful officials that he had overlooked many details around him. "Ahem... what is your name?"

In the darkness, there was a profound silence. The new attendant seemed to have learned from the lessons of the previous two eunuchs and was unwilling to engage in conversation with the emperor. After a considerable amount of time, a woman finally spoke: "My name is Meng'e. Is there something you need?"

"I have seen her before; she is not an ordinary person..." The King of the East Sea lowered his voice further, "As long as she is present, Father’s gaze never turns to anyone else. It is said that she practices... witchcraft."

Han Rizi was somewhat skeptical of witchcraft. He slightly turned his body and looked at the King of the East Sea, puzzled, and said: "Why did the Empress Dowager allow you to be my attendant and permit us to be alone together?"

We still need to find a way to deal with the Empress Dowager, as this time the message was sent to our Cui family. The King of Donghai, unaware of the Emperor's intentions, eagerly proposed a new suggestion

Han Rizi raised his head and asked, "I almost harmed many people, didn't I?"

"I want to eat meat," what does this mean?" The King of the East Sea was bewildered, scanning the people in the room one by one. Finally, he looked at the Emperor and suddenly understood that the child had changed the content of the "Imperial Edict" behind his back. In an instant, his anger kicked caution out of his mind, and he lunged forward, shouting, "You dare to play me!"

Han Rizi did not think so; he even suspected that the King of the East Sea was pretending to be foolish. In any case, if he were the King of the East Sea, he would not be anxious at all. Since the Cui family is a prominent clan, they would never easily submit to the Empress Dowager, and the King of the East Sea still has a chance