IDWBE -Chapter 466 To Beat the Dog, Look at the Owner

Wei Yishan laughed. “Really?”

Wang Xiaoshuan suddenly became wary, stepping back a pace and said with righteous indignation, “Are you trying to get my attention? Don’t worry! I won’t fall for your tricks!”

He had grown up with Wei Yishan, later apprenticed together at Jiang Dasheng’s meat shop, spending every day side by side. They knew each other too well!

Even before the other person could “take off his pants,” he already knew what kind of scheme it was.

Wei Yishan chuckled. “Sun Chongde is not bad, but just ‘not bad.’ He’s only a friend by familiarity, not by loyalty. Now that he’s established himself in Yuanma Temple and has his own inner circle, someone like you is basically expendable to him.”

Wang Xiaoshuan pondered, then looked up. “What are you trying to say? Just say it.”

He had to admit Wei Yishan was right.

At Yuanma Temple, Sun Chongde had already cultivated his own confidants and no longer depended on him so much.

“Sun Chongde started using you simply because you’re trustworthy. You wouldn’t easily betray Prince He. In essence, your interests aligned,” Wei Yishan moved his chair closer to the stove, lifted his tea cup, and leisurely said, “Now, in essence, it’s still the same—but he also needs to look after his personal interests.”

Wang Xiaoshuan said angrily, “This bastard dares to have personal interests?”

Wei Yishan shook his head. “You’re talking nonsense again. Who doesn’t have personal interests? I do, Liang Yuanzhi does, people like you and Yu Xiaoshi do. Even the elders like Chen Desheng and He Jixiang have their own motivations.”

Hearing this, Wang Xiaoshuan fell silent, nodding in agreement. “You’re right. There are no saints in this world; everyone has personal interests.”

“That’s the right way to think,” Wei Yishan smiled. “Sun Chongde cultivating his own faction to consolidate his position in Yuanma Temple doesn’t mean he’s disloyal to Prince He.

“People like us can only be friends, partners, companions—not his inner circle,” Wang Xiaoshuan sighed. “Keep talking—I’m listening.”

A man born a groom, Sun Chongde already had ambitions. As his strength grew, what he really needed were obedient subordinates, not comrades in arms.

How could he assert authority over comrades who had no sense of hierarchy?

In many historical dramas, when emperors ascended the throne, they often first eliminated their ‘meritorious officials.’ How could an ordinary man like Sun Chongde escape this fate?

Sighing, Wei Yishan said, “Do you know the biggest tragedy for people like us?”

Wang Xiaoshuan said weakly, “You know best. Just say it; stop teasing.”

Wei Yishan said seriously, “Prince He once told us in class: the closer these princes and high officials get to the center of power, the more they develop the illusion of owning that power. In the end, everyone rushes to it like moths to a flame, dying without even understanding how.”

Wang Xiaoshuan nodded. “Prince He spoke of himself, but wasn’t he also speaking about us?”

Prince He hadn’t ascended yet, but that didn’t stop him from being the de facto ruler.

He and Wei Yishan were natives of Baiyun City, graduates of the city’s first elementary school, and Prince He’s direct disciples.

In both the military and Prince He’s household, they had free access and, most importantly, the right to ‘appeal.’

No matter who offended them, they could report it directly to Prince He.

Even though Wang Xiaoshuan had once been just a common laborer or small trader, he was proud—he felt important. He was close to Prince He!

But over time, everything had been quietly changing.

Liu Kan, Wei Yishan, and others could command armies and control regions.

Wang Xiaoshuan was still just a lowly ninth-rank sesame official, dealing daily with livestock.

It was exhausting!

Anyone could look down on him and speak freely.

He was furious. Things he once thought were within easy reach were slipping further away.

“That’s right. It’s good you understand,” Wei Yishan said, smiling. “Sometimes opportunities matter, but self-improvement is key. Following Sun Chongde won’t get you far. Come with me to the army: start as a company commander, earn merits, and I’ll guarantee you a deputy general position later.”

“Run errands for you?” Wang Xiaoshuan asked.

Wei Yishan frowned. “Do you know how many people want to be my assistant? I didn’t approve them.”

“Let them do it then,” Wang Xiaoshuan said firmly. “I can’t handle all those rules and restrictions in the army.”

He was tempted, but he knew he couldn’t go.

Like Sun Chongde, Wei Yishan didn’t need ‘brothers’ now. His words were just friendly advice.

He didn’t need sympathy. Wang Xiaoshuan, no matter how poorly he fared, didn’t need charity.

“You, still the same temper,” Wei Yishan said, shaking his head.

“Old Han Dongsheng was right,” Wang Xiaoshuan said bitterly. “I’m just not cut out for officialdom. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll return to business. Look at Tian Sixi—just a bandit, yet he’s thriving now, summoned by Prince He nearly every month. Many say he’s about to become a merchant-official like Bai Lin of Sanhe Bank.”

“A merchant-official?”

Wei Yishan snorted. “You think being a merchant-official is easy? Tian Sixi deserves it?”

“Don’t underestimate him,” Wang Xiaoshuan shook his head. “Though Tian Sixi isn’t virtuous, he’s an excellent businessman. Over the years, he’s earned Prince He a huge sum. When the army lacked funds recently, he led a donation of thirty thousand taels. You can’t despise him just because of money, right?”

Wei Yishan said flatly, “I didn’t strike him only because of the money.”

Curious, Wang Xiaoshuan asked, “Could it be…”

Suddenly, he remembered the former head of Prince He’s guards. Otherwise, why would Wei Yishan dislike Tian Sixi?

When Tian Sixi was a bandit, he had no interaction with Wei Yishan; as a businessman, he posed no harm.

He couldn’t understand Wei Yishan’s disdain.

Tian Sixi was now the greatest real estate developer in Daliang, wealthy, and favored by Prince He—a big shot in front of the prince.

Most importantly, his master was Ye Qiu.

To beat the dog, look at the owner.