The Great Zhou: Starting with Surviving the Northern Expedition

A modern soul enters Chai Rong. The first thing I do is make sure I don't die. In the sixth year of the Xiande era, I lead the northern campaign against the Yan and Yun regions. Instead of falling ill, I recover all sixteen prefectures in one fell swoop and make the whole realm tremble. Zhao Kuangyin? He's my most trusted brother, and the strongest general in the Great Zhou. But what I'm about to do next leaves him and my fierce, battle-hardened subordinates unable to sit still: Take military power back, clear and measure farmland, reform the imperial examinations, and establish an inspectorate. I establish a “Military Affairs Academy” so officers can no longer inherit their posts. I introduce the “Three Departments System” to take control of the treasury away from the regional military governors. I uphold the principle that “the law spares neither relatives nor nobles,” and use his brother-in-law's head to mark the start of my campaign. I don't want to be emperor. I want to design a system that can lock up even an emperor. At last, on the night of the winter solstice sacrifice to Heaven, the rebellion begins. And he is thrust into the eye of the storm, forced to make his final choice between loyalty and ambition... This is a story about “institutions.” When the brother you trust most becomes the standard-bearer of the old age; When the empire you built with your own hands begins to devour your ideals. Can a ruler with an all-seeing perspective bring an end to that brutal age when “whoever commands the strongest army becomes Son of Heaven”? Dawn has come, and the morning star shines overhead. This time, I will give these tens of millions of wronged souls a truly peaceful world.