Chapter 32: Chapter 21: Great Zhou 2
Translator: 549690339
“Hmm!”
This person was also fearless, speaking coldly, “The ancestral fields of others are the result of generations of toil and sweat, accumulated through hard work. You commandeer them with just an order, if this isn’t robbery, what is? And you still have the face to claim it’s to relieve the people’s burdens. I see it’s clearly for the Li Family’s empire, seizing the benefits of the people to stabilize their own foundation!”
At these words, the crowd was even more shocked, looking at that person in doubt and fear, not daring to speak.
“Ha ha!”
Only the storyteller on stage didn’t care at all and instead asked the audience, “Do you know why, throughout history, most dynasties couldn’t last more than two to three hundred years before they inevitably fell apart, disappearing like smoke and clouds?”
“This…”
The crowd hesitated, afraid to answer.
The storyteller smiled, “It is because noble families became powerful, arrogant landowners amassed lands under heaven, monopolizing the good fields of thousands of families, yet did not pay the taxes of those thousands, while the landless people bore heavy taxes. Life was hard for them, and with no other choice, they rose up to recreate heaven and earth!”
Having said this, the storyteller turned his gaze back to the man, speaking with icy words, “You parasites of the state, consuming the fat of the people, fattening yourselves, yet speaking of sweat and toil, deceiving yourselves and others, utterly laughable!”
“You…!”
“Slap!”
Enraged, the man wanted to retort, but the storyteller cut him off with a clap of the block of wood used to keep time.
“Grand Ancestor nationalized all land, distributing it equally among the people, ensuring that farmers had their fields, weavers their looms, residents their homes, and young and old had support. The commoners were no fools; they were well-fed and clothed without worries, and then had the excess energy to study and practice martial arts, enlighten their minds, and strengthen their bodies!”
The storyteller glanced coldly at the confounded middle-aged Confucian scholar, “This is the fundamental strategy for nation-building, an act in accordance with natural and human principles. Those who tried to stop the inevitable were long since turned to dust and ashes. You remnant evildoers, however, still harbor malevolent intentions. Do you not know that the net of heaven is vast and unfailing, sparse yet letting nothing slip through?”
“You…!”
“Hmph!”
Furious, the man’s face turned the color of iron, but the storyteller paid him no mind and continued, “Agriculture is the foundation of all under heaven, and land is the root of farming and sericulture. When Grand Ancestor implemented this policy, it greatly relieved the burdens on the people. Furthermore, he selected great farmers and craftsmen from across the country, bringing together the diverse seeds from the Four Seas to develop farming and sericulture, and with the power of these sectors, pushed forward industry and commerce…”
“Thus, all under heaven were prosperous, the people were wealthy, and no longer suffered from the worries of survival or the difficulties of food and clothing. Grand Ancestor’s great plan to establish martial arts throughout the nation was finally put into action. The Great Zhou Martial Scriptures spread far and wide; from the elderly to the youngest children, everyone understood the wonders of the Martial Arts Scripture and benefited from it. The strength of the people surged, and the power of the nation soared.”
“It is precisely because of this strategy that brought immediate benefits and will continue to benefit generations to come; our Great Zhou has been established for two hundred years but still enjoys the prosperity of its spring and autumn period, thriving and advancing day by day. Abroad, it has expanded its territory and subdued all directions; at home, all under heaven are prosperous and the nation is peaceful. In this age of martial arts, everyone is like a dragon. Such a scene, how could you lowly opportunists ever achieve
The storyteller smiled, then addressed the crowd, “The Great Zhou Martial
Scriptures are the essence of our Great Zhou Country, initially compiled by Grand Ancestor, combining all that he learned in his life. After the spread of martial arts throughout the nation, countless brilliant successors emerged, who drew inferences from one another and continuously innovated.”
“Up until now, the Great Zhou Martial Scriptures aren’t just the work of Grand
Ancestor, but also the collective effort of hundreds of millions of our Great Zhou’s citizens, numerous martial artists, scholars, grandmasters, and prodigies. It’s a testament to pooled wisdom and painstaking effort, arguably the greatest book under heaven from ancient times to the present day.”
“There are currently twelve scrolls in the Martial Scriptures, with the Power Scroll as the main outline. As the name implies, it’s the foundation of cultivation techniques. When Grand Ancestor integrated natural cycles into his practice, he fused the martial arts of hundreds of schools and created the Nine Yin and Nine Yang, Tai Chi Chaos Yuan, Heavenly Punishments and Earthly Evils, Five Elements and Four Laws. The foundational principles of all martial arts under heaven are contained in this scroll, combining Yin and Yang, perfectly complete, not only avoiding the danger of conflict but also complementing each other, with a profundity beyond compare.”
“Today, the 18,365 Grandmaster Realm martial artists recorded in our Great
7.11011 are all rooted in this scroll’s Martial Path.”
Having said this, the storyteller looked back at the middle-aged man, smiling and asking, “Do you know how many martial artists reached the Grandmaster Realm before Grand Ancestor implemented his martial arts policy two hundred years ago?”
The man remained silent.
The storyteller didn’t care and simply continued, “Officially, there were only two people, Grand Ancestor himself and the master of the Divine Sword Manor. Even if you count the hidden potential of major sects like Shaolin and Wudang, they were just a handful!”
“After martial arts were established throughout the land and everyone was like a dragon, Grandmasters emerged like bamboo shoots after a rain in the two hundred years hence. The number of Inner Strength martial artists and True Qi experts is countless. How could you parasitic rats understand Grand Ancestor’s grand strategy and ambition in this prosperous age of martial arts?”
The storyteller shook his head and went on, “Apart from the fundamental
Power Scroll that outlines the essence of cultivation techniques from the Martial Scriptures, there is also the Soldier Scroll that involves cultivating armor, harmonizing military and martial practices, and the Life Scroll that integrates medical theory and martial arts, capable of prolonging life, detoxifying, and saving lives from injury.”
“Furthermore, the Fighting Scroll that discusses striking techniques and combat, the Yi Scroll concerned with divination and the art of war, the Formation Scroll on the mysteries of the universe and natural law, and even the Taoist Scroll that touches upon profound meditation, the unity of the classics from Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism…”
“In short, it encompasses everything, leaving nothing untouched. It is not merely a sacred tome of martial arts, but also a remarkable book in the fields of military, weapons, medicine, pharmacology, fighting, technique, Tao, principle, engineering, formation, divination, and arithmetic. The Great Zhou’s people all benefit from the Martial Scriptures, and foreign barbarians desperately seek but can’t obtain even a single scroll.”
With that, the storyteller stood up, his cold gaze turning to the middle-aged Confucian scholar, “You remnants, still wish to be the centipedes that won’t die even when crushed, resisting such a grand trend of the Martial Path and the vast might of heaven?”