The Crown Prince sat there, explaining His Majesty’s intentions. However, he also had to admit that the descendants of the military aristocratic families were currently performing terribly on the battlefield. This left the Crown Prince somewhat unsure of what His Majesty was truly thinking.
“Your Highness, if His Majesty intends to open the promotion channels and elevate a group of commoners to General, you must vehemently oppose it! By doing so, the military aristocratic families will undoubtedly throw their full support behind you!
“Furthermore, as you know, the Grand Marshal’s position is currently somewhat unstable. It’s not because the Grand Marshal has done anything wrong, but because our defenses have crumbled and we’ve lost so much territory. His Majesty is undoubtedly furious.
“Although His Majesty previously refrained from interfering in specific military matters, it’s impossible for him to ignore them now. That is why Jiang Kai was elevated to Viscount; His Majesty is sounding a warning bell for the Grand Marshal!
“If the promotion channels are opened, the Grand Marshal will definitely struggle to maintain his position. Right now, the forces with the greatest merit are Jiang Kai’s. When the time comes, a massive number of commoners under Jiang Kai will definitely be promoted to General!
“Take that Hu Hao, for example. He will undoubtedly be promoted to General, and he is Jiang Kai’s man! Jiang Kai currently only controls a few corps, but once those commoners are elevated… tell me, how many troops will Jiang Kai control then?
“Those commoners will need troops to lead, won’t they? And the aristocratic families in the Southwest Combat Zone will also need troops. By then, His Majesty will have no choice but to authorize Jiang Kai to expand his forces further. When that happens, the massive army Jiang Kai controls will be something the Grand Marshal cannot even begin to compare with!
“Right now, the Grand Marshal’s family troops have also been deployed to the front lines. Word is they are fighting poorly and have already lost numerous generals. With this constant ebb and flow, the Grand Marshal will eventually lose control of the military! Jiang Kai already refuses to listen to the Grand Marshal’s orders!
“And the other Combat Zone Commanders are opportunists. Seeing Jiang Kai’s rising power, they might defect to him! Therefore, the promotion channels absolutely must not be opened!” a Major General serving as an advisor argued passionately. The others nodded in agreement; the channels truly could not be opened.
“I understand. But if Imperial Father is determined to open them, I cannot stop him. Furthermore, my other brothers will definitely support the move. They also want to cultivate their own power bases within the military from among those commoner officers!
“So… sigh! I truly don’t know what Imperial Father is considering! Isn’t he worried the aristocratic descendants might rebel?” the Crown Prince sighed in profound frustration.
At that moment, a middle-aged man sitting quietly in the far corner, who had remained silent the entire time, caught the Crown Prince’s attention. He seemed deep in thought.
“Mr. Liu, do you have any brilliant insights to share?” the Crown Prince asked.
The man’s name was Liu Yuzi. He had been highly recommended by the Crown Prince’s mother. However, the Crown Prince had never heavily utilized him. If it weren’t for his mother constantly insisting this man possessed immense talent, the Crown Prince never would have employed him.
Therefore, when making this trip, the Crown Prince had thought about it and decided to bring him along.
“Your Highness, not only should you refrain from opposing the opening of the promotion channels, but you should actively urge His Majesty to open them! Simultaneously, you must persuade the Grand Marshal to agree as well!” Liu Yuzi stood up and declared.
“Bullshit!” The Major General who had just argued against opening the channels immediately jumped up and cursed at Liu Yuzi.
Liu Yuzi completely ignored the Major General, keeping his eyes fixed entirely on the Crown Prince.
“Calm down! Everyone is free to voice their opinions! Come, sit down! Both of you, sit!” The Crown Prince pressed his hands down in a calming gesture.
Liu Yuzi immediately sat back down. The Major General glared fiercely at Liu Yuzi before taking his seat as well.
“Why should I actively support it? You know perfectly well that my primary backing comes from the Grand Marshal and numerous military aristocratic families. If I support this, those people will turn and support my brothers instead! Wouldn’t I just be digging my own grave?” the Crown Prince asked, looking at Liu Yuzi.
“Your Highness, let me ask you: among the military aristocratic families right now, who is actually capable of shouldering significant responsibilities? The Grand Marshal? The various Left and Right Generals? The Vanguard Generals? Or perhaps the Combat Zone Commanders?
“Right now, the only person who can truly be called a ‘General’ is Jiang Kai! Moving forward, Jiang Kai will likely continue accumulating merit. Given Jiang Kai’s immense prestige within the military, if he demands the opening of the promotion channels, the ordinary officers will undoubtedly support him. Has Your Highness noticed a terrifying trend?
“Right now, many of our generals aren’t dying at the hands of the Allied forces; they are dying at the hands of our own soldiers! This is a terrifying reality! If no one can win the hearts of those soldiers, the descendants of the military aristocratic families will slowly be eradicated!
“Leaving others aside, let’s look at the Grand Marshal’s family. The Grand Marshal’s family possessed 42 generals. Roughly ten days ago, their family troops entered combat. As of now, I hear 12 of them are already dead!
“At this rate of attrition, tell me, how much longer can the Grand Marshal’s family hold out? Even if they have other descendants step up to fill the vacancies, do those replacements know how to fight? Won’t they just be killed by their own soldiers as well?
“Therefore, Your Highness, the future of the Empire relies on Jiang Kai! It relies on those commoners who actually know how to fight! Those aristocratic families will ultimately face extinction!” Liu Yuzi laid out his analysis to the Crown Prince.
Hearing this, the Crown Prince and the others sat in stunned silence, deeply immersed in thought.
“Your Highness, this Hu Hao possesses immense talent. No matter what, you must win him over and make him serve you! A talent like this is the making of a supreme commander! You either kill him, or you win him over! Otherwise, among you Princes, whoever wins him over will secure the world!” Liu Yuzi continued.
“What did you say?!” Hearing this, the Crown Prince instantly shot to his feet, staring fixedly at Liu Yuzi.
“This man is a prodigious talent, highly recommended even by Jiang Kai! Judging from the battle reports, he has earned the absolute trust of his subordinates. Furthermore, with just a single division—even if he did privately conscript troops, it’s still less than a corps—he actually managed to cripple three Allied corps! He possesses both extraordinary courage and brilliant strategy! If you don’t win over such a man, are you going to wait for your brothers to win him over?
“If you refuse to value him, then you must eliminate him. However, Your Highness, I strongly advise against that. If you do, not only will you offend Jiang Kai, but you will also incur the hatred of every commoner officer and soldier in the military! The losses would far outweigh the gains!
“Hu Hao holds immense prestige within the Southwest Combat Zone. If you kill him, you will never be able to control the Southwest Combat Zone! And the Southwest Combat Zone is slated to expand to 600,000 troops! That is a massive force!
“Furthermore, Jiang Kai knows how to fight! Tell me, whoever secures Jiang Kai’s support can easily stand as your equal and rival you for the throne! You must take this matter with the utmost seriousness!” Liu Yuzi pressed.
The Crown Prince began pacing back and forth across the meeting room, his hands clasped behind his back.
“But if the Crown Prince supports Jiang Kai and supports opening the channels, what about the aristocratic families? They will definitely defect to the other Princes!” one of the Major Generals challenged Liu Yuzi.
“What use are those aristocratic families anyway?! Do they know how to fight?! We are in chaotic times! Since those generals don’t know how to fight, tell me, what use are they?!
“Forget who they support; they can’t even protect their own family’s power! I have the latest statistics here—compiled personally by me. Since the war broke out, 18 Major General families have vanished completely! 4 Lieutenant General families have vanished! And the rate is only accelerating!
“The Full General families haven’t vanished yet, but their own generals are dwindling rapidly. It’s safe to say that if the war continues, who knows how many military aristocratic families will be wiped out? Even the Grand Marshal’s family might face extinction!
“The war has already pushed our nation to the brink of collapse! If we still refuse to open the promotion channels, who will command the Eastern Spirit Empire’s troops?! Are we going to let people who don’t know how to fight command them?! Is that even possible?!
“Your Highness, you must think like His Majesty! You must consider not only your personal interests but the interests of our nation as a whole! Why did His Majesty leak the rumor that he intends to open the promotion channels? He is simply testing the waters! Testing the reactions of those aristocratic families! Yet, up until now, look at them—does any family dare to voice their opposition? Do you know why they don’t dare?!” Liu Yuzi asked.
“Why?” the Crown Prince asked immediately.
“They are also terrified of being shot in the back by their own men! Think about it: they are generals, with Regimental, Battalion, and Company Commanders serving under them. If those commanders find out their superiors are actually opposing the opening of the promotion channels, tell me, will those commanders eliminate those generals?!” Liu Yuzi explained.
“Exactly!” The Crown Prince thought for a moment and nodded, then resumed his pacing and deep thought.
“The Grand Marshal wants to oppose opening the channels. But think about it: in just a few days, his family has lost so many generals! If the Grand Marshal continues to oppose it, I dare say even the Grand Marshal’s personal safety will become an issue!” Liu Yuzi continued.
The others stared at Liu Yuzi in shock. They truly hadn’t considered this angle. Right now, those soldiers held the guns! If they found out they were risking their lives in battle yet couldn’t be promoted to General, and that their own commanders were actively opposing their promotion… why wouldn’t they just kill them? What reason would they have to let them live?
“Then tell me: should I contact this Hu Hao? Should I support Jiang Kai? Jiang Kai knows my father-in-law is the Grand Marshal; he probably won’t trust me!” the Crown Prince stopped pacing and looked at Liu Yuzi.
“It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t trust you. Furthermore, you don’t necessarily need to completely win Jiang Kai over. You just need to make Jiang Kai believe that you, the Crown Prince, are acting in the best interests of the nation and the people! You just need to show him that your thoughts align with his! That is enough!
“He is a General of the Empire. His loyalty lies with the Empire and with His Majesty. This includes you; if you ascend the throne in the future, he will be loyal to you. You just need to ensure he doesn’t actively oppose you and doesn’t get too close to the other Princes!” Liu Yuzi advised.
(End of Chapter)