Chapter 4
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: The Early Bird Gets Eaten First
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Breakfast with the Emperor was, for me, like verifying a crime scene after a raid.
I'd take a spoonful, check the ledgers, take another spoonful... and repeat. Even in this bizarre state where I wasn't sure if I was eating rice or chewing numbers, I somehow managed to skim through the ledgers from the other departments.
"Phew."
The Emperor set down his spoon with a satisfied expression. I closed the final ledger just in time.
"Father Emperor, I've reviewed the ledgers from the War Department and Personnel Department as well, but they don't seem to have embezzled outright sums in the hundreds of thousands of taels like the Revenue Minister."
"Is that so?"
"It looks more like petty 'survival-type corruption'—things like slightly inflating meal allowances or overclaiming repair fees for official residences. What should be done about these?"
At my question, the Emperor picked at his teeth with a toothpick and chuckled softly.
"Let them be."
This Emperor was going to let it slide? Thinking I'd misheard, I asked again.
"Pardon? It's embezzlement, though."
"Jui-an, if the water is too clear, there are no fish. If officials are too clean, they have no leash, making them hard to handle."
The Emperor nodded coolly toward the pile of ledgers.
"They need just the right amount of stink so that a single cough from me makes their legs shake on their own. Keep these ledgers on file and pull them out one by one when those bastards start getting ideas. That's how you rule."
Chills ran down my spine. This man wasn't just a tyrant. He was a ninth-dan political master who knew how to weigh human greed and fear.
The Revenue Minister had merely crossed the line right in front of him.
The rest were livestock, emergency rations to be devoured at any time. The capable ones would never retire, and the incompetent ones would have to cut sleep to get their work done.
Even so, I felt indignant.
Here I was, waking at 3 a.m. to suffer like this, while those thieves slept warmly?
'I can't be the only one dying.'
Pain must be shared. Feigning concern, I tossed out the bait.
"But Father Emperor, if we leave them be, won't they get arrogant? Shouldn't we make an example of them? Though simply executing them feels too merciful."
"Ho? And what do you suggest?"
"Even if we punish them, why kill them? Wouldn't it be better to make them serve the empire endlessly, to the point they wish they were dead?"
I grinned wickedly.
"The sinners pay for their crimes through labor until death, and the empire gains devoted workforce. Two birds with one stone, right? I'm working like this—should the sinners get off easy by dying?"
The Emperor's eyes lit up. He ruffled my hair roughly.
"Kekeke... Yes, that's right. How dare sinners rest when even imperial blood is working."
The Emperor's smile deepened. Ominously. The kind of face that would haunt your dreams.
"You mean revise the punishments... I'll discuss it slowly with the Justice Department."
Perfect. No one escapes this hell. Not until I do.
Ministers are valuable assets.
Why kill them carelessly? Gather them up, and there's always a use. If nothing else, they can be human calculators.
The Emperor left in a good mood for his morning duties, and I dragged my ragged body back to the East Palace.
'Just a little sleep...'
Rise at 3:30 a.m.
Current time: 9 a.m.
I'd already burned through a full day's energy for a salaryman. Belly full, drowsiness setting in—I could fall asleep the moment I closed my eyes.
I flung open the bedroom door and dove into the bedding.
Creeeak—bang!
The door locked as soon as I lay down. It felt cold.
I slowly, very slowly lifted my head, one I had no desire to raise.
At the bedside stood the former Gold Army Commander and former Chief State Tribunals—old men Ma and Gwak—like grim reapers.
"Your Highness, sleeping in? The sun is up—what kind of behavior is this? From now on, it's physical training and advanced studies."
Oh, right. The schedule...
These ruthless old men. I felt like death. I needed a break. I pulled the blanket over my head and mumbled.
"Elders, I resolved a major issue today. The Revenue Minister is done for. Talented people get vacations after big jobs..."
"Without stamina, even your mind stops."
The Gold Army Commander's heavy voice pierced the blanket. He yanked it off roughly.
"And Your Highness, I saw your legs buckling when you came in. Weak lower body means you can't even flee the battlefield. Finish your studies quickly and prepare for training."
Wait, if I'm in a situation to flee, isn't that already a lost cause? What are bodyguards for?
I wanted to argue, but the Gold Army Commander picked me up and plopped me at the desk.
The Chief State Tribunals elder had somehow obtained copies of the ledgers I'd reviewed.
"Now, summarize which parts had issues and why. I'll explain the relevant laws as you go, so keep your ears open."
What kind of child abuse is this? Work and study at the same time? Staring in disbelief, the elder said firmly, unwavering.
"Time is equal for all. Imperial blood must find ways to double short time."
"......"
Astounded, I gaped vacantly.
"Hurry. Time is short."
I somehow moved my hands while listening to his drone about the Great Ming Code, feeling like I'd go mad. Sleepy, ears ringing, head spinning, headache building.
After enduring this, I collapsed on the floor from exhaustion, only for the Gold Army Commander to smack my butt.
"Up. Basic stamina lacking, so horse stance first."
I snapped.
"Shouldn't you give me a break?"
"Exercise is rest. Train the body, and fatigue fades."
"No, exercise doesn't work that way..."
As I tried to correct him from half-remembered knowledge, he cut me off.
"Take the stance quickly. Your Highness, what if an assassin smashes your chair?"
"...Pardon?"
"Without lower body strength, you collapse and die! Chairs break, but trained thighs don't!"
"......"
Speechless. The logic was too brutish to refute. An assassin ignores my neck to smash the chair?
As I hesitated, the Chief State Tribunals elder went further, tossing me a thick book.
Great Learning
"Horse stance alone is boring—memorize this while holding."
"Elder, it's been ages since I finished the Thousand Character Classic... This is too advanced."
I'd built basics from various books, but I squeezed out excuses to dodge. No use. Ironclad.
"Shaky foundations mean collapse. To see through scams like the Revenue Minister's, know the roots of their scholarship to strike back."
Not a word wrong. These old men's pressure was thorough and seasoned.
I sighed deeply, took horse stance, and picked up the book.
'Finish quick, and they'll let me rest.'
I flipped pages rapidly, drawing on past-life memory and administrative analysis to extract essentials. After 15 minutes, I closed it.
Legs trembling from reading in stance, I subtly relaxed and handed it to the elder.
"All done."
The Chief State Tribunals elder's eyes widened.
"All? Memorized?"
"Parroting word-for-word is for birds. Grasped the meaning—that's enough."
I inked a brush and diagrammed key points clearly on paper.
"The core path starts with self-cultivation to pacifying the world. I get the why and how. Memorization as tonight's homework—let me rest now."
I'd die. Needed rest now or collapse. Proved comprehension, promised diligence.
But.
"Heh......"
The elder exclaimed in admiration, grinning at the Gold Army Commander. Spine chilled.
"As expected... His Majesty's eye is divine. Such talent."
"Right? So let me rest..."
"Five years old, memorizing is hard enough, comprehension harder. Finishing in 15 minutes..."
He gripped my shoulder.
"If you comprehend, memorizing is easier. Do it now!"
What? Did I hear right?
"Smart head—do both. No reason to delay. Finish here!"
The Gold Army Commander chimed in.
"Exactly! Simultaneous is best. Body learns better. Read aloud in stance! Quiet voice means longer stance!"
"Wait, you swindlers!"
Blockhead speech slipped out.
"Finish early, get rest—why more work?"
I struggled, but their grips were unbreakable. The elder nailed it solemnly.
"Your Highness, repaying His Majesty's expectations is filial piety; growing fast to care for the people is loyalty."
"Correct. Give your all for the people, Your Highness. Rest is luxury."
Irrefutable banners of this era: loyalty, filial piety, the masses. Rejecting makes me unfilial tyrant. Checkmate.
"Arrrgh!"
I wobbled into horse stance, clutching the Great Learning, yelling.
"The Way of the Great Learning! Lies in manifesting bright virtue! Argh! My thighs!"
"What nonsense! Again!"
On the training field, shedding bloody tears, I realized: the early-rising bird doesn't catch worms—it gets eaten first.
Beyond the East Palace walls, the Emperor watched from afar. An attendant cautiously asked.
"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince looks exhausted..."
"Leave him. He'll adapt. If not, adjust then. Today's showing satisfies—fit as heir."
The Emperor stroked his beard fondly.
"If he adapts to this schedule and builds stamina, tell me. Even if not, report. Let's watch."
Gazing at the Emperor with no intent to rescue yet, the attendant silently prayed for the Crown Prince.