However, only now, seeing Zhang Ning's expression, did Zhou Cang realize that things were much more serious than he had imagined!
Within the Taiping Dao, while not many people knew about their impending rebellion, there were still quite a few. If you add them all together, there were at least thirty-four.
Of these thirty or forty people, more than half were chosen ones, personally taken as disciples by Zhang Jiao. The remaining dozen or so were elders of the Way of Peace.
It's understandable that one person out of thirty or forty would betray you! After all, with more people, people's hearts become more complicated.
The problem is that very few people know the exact time of the uprising; at least Zhou Cang at this time did not know the specific time, place, or arrangements!
"To this day, no more than two people know the time of the uprising. Apart from my father and two uncles, only I and a very few fellow disciples know about it."
At this point, Zhang Ning's expression grew even more grim. These people were the true core of the Taiping Dao; no matter how you looked at it, they had no reason to betray them!
Similarly, if they do betray us, things will become serious. After all, everyone holds a lot of secrets. Once they're exposed, things will be truly dire.
Seeing the somewhat flustered expressions on Zhou Cang and Liao Hua's faces, Zhang Ning suddenly smiled. The two men, seeing this, instinctively relaxed. At least, they weren't as worried as before.
"Perhaps we're getting stuck in a rut. The sexagenary cycle, if Father could calculate the time of the sexagenary cycle, then perhaps others can as well. Why are we scaring ourselves like this?"
"Besides, so what if we're exposed? Where's the evidence? My Taiping Dao isn't like those nameless nobodys who can just use baseless accusations to target us. That's impossible!" Zhang Ning said confidently.
If the Taiping Dao can be dealt with today on trumped-up charges, the same pretext can be used against the aristocratic families tomorrow. Therefore, the imperial court would never directly deal with the Taiping Dao because of a storybook.
At the very least, we need to find evidence first! However, the Taiping Dao is absolutely law-abiding in the entire main world. No matter how much we investigate, how could they possibly run away to the Land of Reincarnation or other worlds? That's impossible!
Therefore, Zhang Ning, who was initially worried, was now relieved. However, just in case, she took the book of ambition and went to the location of the Taiping Dao Jizhou Mountain Gate as soon as possible.
Jizhou is the location of the Taiping Dao's mountain gate and its core. Hidden within the mountain gate is a grotto-heaven, where the three Zhang brothers resided for a long time.
"Hey, Ning'er, what brings you in? Has something big happened?" Zhang Liang asked curiously, looking at Zhang Ning who flew over on a cloud.
Of the three brothers, only Zhang Jiao has descendants so far because of his Taoist practice. Therefore, he and Zhang Bao truly regard Zhang Ning as their daughter.
That's why he said it so directly. But to be honest, he was genuinely curious. As the Holy Maiden of the Way of Peace and the actual executor of the Way of Peace at this time, Zhang Ning usually appeared calm and confident, rarely seeming flustered like she did now.
"Uncle, something bad has happened! Things have changed. The secret of the uprising has been leaked. Even the time of the uprising has been leaked!" As he spoke, Zhang Ning handed over a few books, which the three of them took and began to read.
“Interesting, very interesting. The Azure Heaven is dead, the Yellow Heaven shall rise. These two sentences directly state our purpose, which is to use the Yellow Heaven of the Way of Peace to replace the Azure Heaven of Liu Han. At that time, I can also take this opportunity to break through directly.”
"As for the year being Jiazi, which signifies great fortune for the world, it specifically points out the time for the uprising. The year Jiazi is the best time. On that day, chaotic energy boils, marking the beginning of the spiritual energy tide. Taking the lead in the uprising will allow you to seize the mainstream, gain the opportune moment, and increase your chances of success by at least half a percent," Zhang Jiao said coldly.
“However, the time of this Jiazi year was a result that we three brothers calculated for a long time. To date, only a handful of people know about it, so there’s no reason for it to be leaked!” Zhang Liang said, puzzled.
"Ning'er, is this book now found all over the Han Dynasty?" Zhang Bao asked.
"That's right, that's certainly true."
"Alright, there's no need to be afraid of this, nor to scare ourselves. Let's see how the big man handles it. My Taiping Dao is not to be trifled with!"
"Moreover, we can spread the word more, pretending to be the ones who have been slandered, and use our connections to guide public opinion."
“Just say that someone is slandering us, that it’s baseless, that we can act a little wronged and try to buy some time,” Zhang Jiao said coldly.
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Chapter Fourteen: Instructing the Cabinet to handle the Taiping Dao matter.
In just one day, the story of "The Legend of Da Er's Ambition" spread throughout Luoyang.
As citizens of the capital, just like in later generations, the people of Luoyang also took it upon themselves to discuss current affairs and offer their opinions on the state of the nation.
However, in this era, there is no internet, not many sharp-eyed Chaoyang residents, and not many influential figures who like to attract attention.
However, this doesn't mean that the people of Luoyang don't like gossip or boasting. Sure enough, in just one day, the entire population of Luoyang knew about it.
The topic was being discussed in restaurants, in inns, and even in various newspapers.
Even if you weren't in the capital yesterday and just returned today, you can easily find out about this from a waiter.
Therefore, Cao Song's feelings when he went to work in the cabinet today were hard to describe in words.
The mischievous boy I used to see has actually achieved such success in the future. Is this still the same son who was idle and spent his days chasing after women?
Therefore, to be honest, Cao Song felt a great sense of accomplishment the moment he heard the news. His son had actually developed such skills, and as his father, he naturally felt proud.
However, in the next instant, Cao Song was completely taken aback. After all, Cao Song was a senior figure in the eunuch world, and in terms of seniority, he was much more experienced than the Ten Attendants.
Moreover, to rise from a senior eunuch to a high-ranking official in the cabinet, holding the position of Minister of Six Ministries, one must possess considerable political acumen.
If someone were to use this book to make a big deal out of it, while I'm not afraid of that, it would still be quite troublesome. And, most importantly, the royal family has always been very suspicious!
Besides, the emperors of the Liu family were notoriously shameless, petty, and vindictive. The current emperor isn't much better!
If someone pretends to be indifferent on the surface but secretly writes Cao Cao's name down in a notebook, waiting for an opportunity to settle scores all at once in the future, wouldn't the Cao family be finished?
However, upon thinking of this, Cao Song suddenly frowned. Even someone of his status had been unintentionally misled by this book, so what about ordinary people?
Will the image of Mengde become fixed after a while? Will he be remembered as someone who would rather betray the world than be betrayed by the world?
In that case, what future could Mengde possibly have? Thinking of this, Cao Song felt even more hatred for this reclusive hermit who had never shown his face.
Isn't this just idle whining, trying to sow discord between powerful families and the imperial court? And he even said it was to warn the world—is this some kind of warning?
What if some scion of a powerful family suddenly has a change of heart and leads his family in rebellion? Wouldn't the trust between the court and the powerful families be completely lost?
If the powerful families lose trust in the imperial court, and the imperial court loses trust in the powerful families, then the Han Dynasty will truly be doomed!
Feeling rather depressed, Cao Song shook his head with a wry smile and entered the cabinet. As soon as he entered, he found that six of the remaining eight officials had already arrived, and the other two were waiting in the back.