There is only one kind of mistake in the world, and that is being incapable.
Zhou Ping'an yawned, obviously disagreeing with Zhou Changshou's words. "These past few days, we killed so many people, and the silver we recovered alone is almost ten million."
That's ten million taels!
Zhou Ping'an chuckled with a sly smile: "Not only that, but with the warning sent and the bank replenished with silver, the situation is already significantly easing. In a short while, we'll be able to start wrapping things up. A storm was thus quietly quelled. Compared to the carnage that would have ensued had the storm raged on, these deaths are but a mere drizzle. So, their demise was entirely justified."
"It's not you who died, so of course you don't care."
Zhou Changshou said in a deep voice, "The news we received was ten million taels, but the Jinyiwei only counted six million taels delivered. These four million taels..."
"Of course, it was swallowed by the Jin Yiwei below. Even if Chen Tong was an idiot, he wouldn't be stupid enough to take this money. It was the people below who thought that since they were far away from the emperor in the capital, they didn't know their specific situation, and they had gotten used to taking advantage of those above them, like plucking feathers from a passing goose. This tradition has been popular in every dynasty."
Zhou Changshou sighed and said, “So you let them embezzle funds, this is equivalent to them sending the reasons for their autumn reckoning to your hands. When you feel that it's almost time to stop, with a single order, you can wash away these Jinyiwei who created bloodshed, in this way, all the silver will be in hand, and the resentment of the people will also be released. You planned everything from the beginning, didn't you?”
Of course.
Zhou Ping'an said matter-of-factly, “What else could I do? Although His Highness gave me the authority to control the Jinyi Guards, would the Jinyi Guards below really obey me? It’s perfectly normal for them to steal benefits. Not taking advantage is strange. But since they made a mistake, they should be punished. Power unused expires.” He said to his second brother, “That's how it works."

"With such a setup, there will always be perceptive people within the Jinyiwei. They will eventually see through your manipulation and blame you for everything. Do you not fear their revenge?" Zhou Changshou asked.
"What are you afraid of."
Zhou Ping'an smiled and said, "We have the East Palace backing us up. As long as I'm useful for a day, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will not allow anyone to threaten my life. If there comes a day when I'm truly afraid of those Jinyiwei, it means I have no further use to the Crown Prince. At that time, it will also be the day I retire with honor."
"Will you retire after achieving success?"
Zhou Changshou said disbelievingly.
"It's pretty good to hold office for a long time, who wouldn't like power? I'm not like you, indifferent to fame and fortune, only wanting to support the country. But think about it, without power, you can't even control your own destiny, how can you possibly help the country?"
Facing Zhou Ping'an's sarcasm, Zhou Changshou let out a cold snort and said, "I'm afraid it's because you have too much hatred on your body. At that time, even if the Crown Prince wanted to protect you, for the sake of the overall situation, he would also have to shed tears and execute Ma Su."
"Being able to shed tears in battle is not Zhuge Liang's fault, but Ma Su's own. If he were Guan Yu or Zhang Fei, do you think Zhuge Liang would have executed him? To put it plainly, there are no mistakes in this world, the only mistake is that one's abilities are insufficient."
Zhou Ping'an stood up and said lazily, "I'm going to write today's report for the prince. What do you want me to tell him?"

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