Chapter 1715: Benevolent and Intimidating

174: Liu Sichun's Struggle"Second brother, times have changed. With only this much money, we naturally need to be careful and calculate our expenses." Liu Sichun frowned slightly and patiently explai...Chapter 1715: Combining Threats and Rewards

"This palace allows you to exercise restraint over the Jinyi Guard, but when choosing who to send out on missions, you must consult with Chen Tong."

Li Chen thought for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Chen Tong, you come with us too."

Chen Tong was startled and subconsciously wanted to refuse: "Your Highness, I must stay by your side to protect you..."

"Pig brain!"

Zhou Ping'an leaned into Chen Tong's ear and said, "Your Highness is giving you a chance to redeem yourself. Such a big thing happened, and your Jinyi Guard was useless. Shouldn't the capital have sent a secret message first Don't you think you'll be held responsible"

Chen Tong was startled, remembering the prince's furious rage earlier. At that time, he had truly felt the murderous intent.

At this point, being comforted by Zhou Ping'an, Chen Tong was immediately overwhelmed with emotion and knelt down on the ground.

"Your humble servant... thanks your Highness."

"Tremendous kindness and virtue, Chen Tong has no way to repay it. He can only offer his life in service to Your Highness, dying for you is all he can do!"

This is not flattery, at this very moment, Chen Tong truly thinks so.

Li Chen waved his hand, his face a little tired, and said, "Alright, let's leave these words for later. You three, return to Beijing immediately."

The three bowed and immediately withdrew.

Walking out of the small side room, Chen Tong was met with a blast of cold wind that sent shivers down his spine. He reached for his back and realized it was soaked in a cold sweat, somehow he hadn't noticed it before.

Coming to his senses, Chen Tong immediately bowed to Zhou Ping'an and said, "Zhou sir, thank you very much this time."

Zhou Ping knew that the other party was thanking him for his guidance earlier, and said: "Why thank me Your Highness's thoughts, who can influence them I merely spoke a few words to make Your Highness understand your own efforts. If you want to thank someone, it should be Yourself."

Chen Tong wryly recounted how Li Chen had scolded him earlier, saying, "Your Highness was actually furious, but I still didn't realize it. It seems I'm only fit to be a blade... Forget it, never mind that. The two lords, please wait a moment, I'll go arrange the carriages and horses immediately and set off right away. We must absolutely not delay Your Highness's plans."

Watching Chen Tong leave, Zhou Ping'an shook his head and said, “The prince is good in every way, but sometimes he is too kind to those around him.”

"As a monarch, one must rule with both benevolence and sternness."

Zhou Changshou, however, did not agree with Zhou Ping'an's words. He said calmly: "Entitlement makes subordinates feel the vastness of Huang En's grace and be grateful, so they will work harder. And awe makes subordinates always respect and know that the power of heaven is unpredictable, so they will work harder."

"To possess might without benevolence is to be heartless. Those around such a person live in constant fear, dreading making any mistakes that could lead to their downfall. They would rather do nothing at all than risk incurring the wrath of their ruler."

"When there is grace but not authority, subordinates lack reverence and act recklessly, caring only for their own interests and disregarding those of the sovereign. This leads to subordinates developing inappropriate thoughts and plotting against their superiors."

Zhou Ping'an, hearing this, smiled at Zhou Changshou and said: "Before, I tried every means to speak of His Lordship's good qualities, but you hesitated and didn't believe or listen. Now how have things turned around"

Zhou Changshou let out a cold snort and said, "You have the time to think about these things, why not consider how to accomplish this in the capital Zhao Xuanji is someone I haven't met, but I know quite a bit about him. He is definitely not an easy person to deal with. Having controlled the government for so many years, his eyesight is venomous, and his methods are formidable, rare in the world. If you want to control him, it won't be that easy."n thought, Li Chen took the initiative to say: "When you go back later, please pass a message to that father and son outside."How do you know they didn't leaveSu Jinpa said, "Perhaps they also know th...