Chapter 259: I Am No Hero

Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT , Rock

Meng LiGe pondered over Ling Tian’s words for a moment before suddenly raising his head to ask, "If young noble were to stage an uprising, what would you do? What would the commoners be to you?"

"Tools!" Ling Tian said without a shred of hesitation, "If I were to stage an uprising to conquer the continent, the commoners of the continent would be the sharpest tool in my hands! Wealth can be extracted from them to build up my army. Their men can be conscripted to become my army. The commoner's will can become the support for my movement. The rage of the commoners can be incited to justify my actions! As such, if I were to stage an uprising, the commoners would be my tools!"

Meng LiGe frowned, "What if young noble becomes the ruler of the continent? What would you do? How would you deal with the commoners?"

"They would be my people!’ Ling Tian no longer fiddled with his wine glass and looked up with a stern expression, "If I am the ruler of the continent, the commoners would be my people! I would definitely do my very best to benefit the people! I would ensure that the old will be cared for and young would have someone to rely on. Even if a thousand years were to pass, this heart of mine will not change!"

"With young noble’s current abilities, it isn’t impossible for you to become a blessing to the commoners. The lives of the commoners are now miserable beyond words with famine spreading across many places. However, I've never seen young noble take any actions. I wonder why this is the case? How can young noble gain my trust?" Meng LiGe asked with an unnaturally sharp tone.

"Hahaha…" Ling Tian laughed, "I am neither the ruler of the continent nor a deity of benevolence. I am only the young noble of the Ling Family and every single tael of silver of my Ling Family was painstakingly earned! Even if the commoners are in the pits of despair and suffering from famine, what has that got to do with me? I will save people out of compassion but not because it is a necessity! Isn’t it a little pointless for Mister to ask me such a question?" Ling Tian questioned.

"The world does not belong to the Ling Family, and the commoners are not the people of my Ling Family. Even if all the commoners were to die from a great flood, what does that have to do with me?" Ling Tian said with ridicule, "As long as my Ling Family is wealthy and can lead a plentiful life, why should we be afraid of famine in the world? Even if the world were to fall into total chaos, it has nothing to do with me!"

Meng LiGe’s face turned cold as he scolded, "Isn’t young noble Ling a little too heartless? How can you rule the world like that?!"

Ling Tian sneered and said, "If my Ling Family has no ambitions, we can only survive by being heartless! If my Ling Family has no ambitions and chooses to save the commoners at this moment, we will only be inviting our destruction! This is without exception! Mister can say that I am heartless, but does Mister know how many people my Ling Family can feed if we don’t take out a single tael of silver? Does Mister know how many families will be destroyed if my Ling Family ceases to exist?"

Meng LiGe said coldly, "I don’t know, but I am willing to hear."

Ling Tian replied with a ‘hmph’ and said without courtesy, "Does Mister know that the businesses of my Ling Family have expanded greatly over the years and are no longer restricted to Sky Bearing? The Ling Family’s business is spread all over the continent with us having many branches in even the Heavenly Wind and Heavenly Sun continents. As a result of these businesses, the Ling Family provides at least 500,000 jobs for the people. Counting the families of these people, our Ling Family feeds at least 2,000,000 people! When these people are well-fed, they will also be able to help others to prevent thousands of people from starving to death! If my Ling Family were to disappear at this moment, a few hundred thousand families would be destroyed for sure. Does Mister agree with that?"

As he said that, Ling Tian stood up, "If my Ling Family were to perform large-scale charitable acts to save the famine victims all around, we would definitely be able to save millions of lives for sure! At that time, the prestige of our Ling Family would be like the sun in the sky, and we would become a deity-like figure in the hearts of the people. However, it would definitely be a big taboo for our Ling Family! If we don't have the heart to rule the continent, we would definitely be massacred!" A chilly gaze glowed in Ling Tian eyes as he looked at Meng LiGe, "No ruler would be able to tolerate such an existence. While the Ling Family would become the charitable deity in the eyes of the people, we would definitely become the biggest enemy in the eyes of the empires!"

Meng LiGe’s face changed, and he already knew what Ling Tian was about to say. Thus, he couldn't help but let out a sigh.

"At this time, what should my Ling Family do?" Ling Tian said slowly and with a deep tone, "With the Ling Family present, we would still be able to offer some assistance if we see the commoners suffering. But if my Ling Family were to disappear, even if the commoners of the world were to worship us, how can they save the many lives in my Ling Family?"

"As such, what use is it for me to gain the hearts of the commoners? If this young noble treats them as ants, I would be able to ensure their livelihood at the very least. If I were to treat them as brothers, I would only be harming them! My Ling Family would be destroyed because of these brothers! If our Ling Family were to perish, our assets would be divided and the countless workers who used to work for my Ling Family would be no different from the victims of the famine. While my Ling Family would be completing a charitable act, it would be our greatest mistake. Cause and effect, with cause comes effect and with effect comes cause. What does Mister think about that?"

Meng LiGe shook his head with a sigh, "Young noble is right and your words are the truth! While young noble can be an ambitious individual, your actions are not one of a hero!"

Ling Tian burst out into laughter, "Why does Mister have to state the obvious? You should know that the ones who are able to accomplish great things have always been the ambitious individuals. Heroes… ah ah, heroes can become a great general to triumph in every battle! Heroes can become the commander in chief of an army to gather the hearts of the soldiers. Heroes can be government officials to be the mouthpiece of the people. However, heroes can never be kings, rulers or emperors and they can certainly not call themselves sovereigns! If they do, there will only be the corpse of a dead hero and never a living king!"

Ling Tian’s lips then curled up in a smile, "Heroes can only be the subordinates to those with ambitions. If not, they would be dead for sure!"

"The biggest advantage of an ambitious individual is their ruthlessness, resorting to any means possible to arrive at their goal. Thus, an ambitious individual can only hope to rise up in a chaotic world and accomplish their ambitions! The greatest flaw of a hero is also the greatest strength of a hero. That is, they are righteous and treasure their relationships, keeping the promises they make. There are some things a man should do and some he shouldn’t. Thus, a hero can rise to prominence instantly in chaotic times. They can even leave their names in the annals of history. However, they would never be the rulers of a great nation. An ambitious individual would be able to easily kill a hero because of the weaknesses of a hero! Thus, I am not a hero, and I am also not willing to be a hero!"

Ling Tian smiled as though he wanted to say, "I am an ambitious individual, one who would rule the world!"

All of a sudden, silence filled the chamber! Everyone had their heads lowered in deep thought as though they had gained enlightenment.

"Pa, pa, pa!" While Meng LiGe’s face was still calm, he began to clap his hands in applause, "What a view on heroes! What a view on ambitious individuals! Young noble’s words have really widened my horizons. It is indeed an enlightening view!"

Ling Tian then said with a smile, "I've already answered Mister’s question. I wonder if Mister is satisfied?"

Meng LiGe stroked his beard and said solemnly, "Young noble’s words are the truth to ruling in chaotic times and heresy in governance! Now that the world is becoming chaotic, you are naturally right!"

"Then, Mister has yet to answer Ling Tian’s question." Ling Tian lifted up his glass leisurely and raised it in a toast. Then, he knocked glasses with Yu BingYan by his side and downed the wine in a single gulp.

Yu BingYan’s face turned red as she saw that the wine glasses of the three individuals were already empty. But because Ling Tian had the staff from the Smoky Thea Tower leave and Ling Chen was not around, the little princess of the Yu Family could only become the little servant maid to serve the guests. However, not only was Yu BingYan not angry at all, she felt a sense of sweetness in her heart. For Ling Tian to say such treasonous words in front of her, he had definitely treated her as close kin.

Furthermore, the conversation between Meng LiGe, Mister Qin, and Ling Tian was a top secret one! Despite that, Ling Tian didn't bother avoiding Yu BingYan or concealing anything from her. Just this alone was enough to make Yu BingYan’s maiden heart fly over the moon. Ling Tian had already used his actions to tell Yu BingYan something: You are my woman!

While Ling Tian didn't say that out loud, Yu BingYan could hear that in her heart!

If I can live to a ripe old age with Tian’ge and be his woman who he cuddles in his arms, how great that would be! As Yu BingYan thought about this, she couldn't help but be troubled about her own affairs as she turned around and began to weep silently. I… will I really have that happiness?

Meng LiGe then replied Ling Tian, "I believe young noble is already extremely clear about the situation of the continent presently. Since you do not despise my shallow knowledge, I shall give my humble opinion."

He then stood up and fetched a few tea glasses from the tea set on the table and placed them in a formation. Ling Tian and Mister Qin had already stood up to see what Meng LiGe was doing.

Meng LiGe then said with composure, "Presently, chaotic times are about to befall upon the three continents. This is the moment for the ambitious and heroic characters to stand out and shine! Let us not mention the Heavenly Wind and Heavenly Sun continents first. For the Heavenly Star Continent, there are seven empires and nine great families. Yu, NanGong, XiMen, DongFang, BeiMing, Ling, Yang, and Lei families. Besides that, there is also the Xiao Family which can form a lone power. On the surface, it seems as though the various powers are all harmonious and not invading each other’s territory. However, they are all secretly resorting to all possible means and wish to swallow the Heavenly Star Continent. No one will be able to avoid that!"

After pausing for a moment, Meng LiGe received a teacup from Ling Tian and drank half a cup of tea before continuing, "The Moon Deity Empire is located in a desolate place and is a poor nation. If a power was able to rule the continent, a single decree would be enough to capture the Moon Deity Empire. As such, there isn’t a need to talk about them!" Following which, Meng LiGe then took away one of the cups on the table.

"As for the Western Han and the XiMen Family, they just fought a bitter battle and lost one of their important geographical location for defense. While the strength of their country isn’t weak, they are not a strong competitor either. Thus, the Western Han can also be placed aside for now. Sky Bearing, positioned in the center of the continent with enemies from all direction! At the same time, it can also launch its attacks in all directions. Originally, it should be the most dangerous position but any power which is able to gain Sky Bearing can also gain an advantage to launch their attacks in all directions. However, Sky Bearing is now extremely stable with the imperial family of Sky Bearing being an exception. To the imperial family of Sky Bearing, the safest place is actually the most dangerous place. It is a pity that the imperial family is still ignorant about it! With the Ling Family being present, the imperial family of Sky Bearing exists in name only and without any substance. Thus, they can be replaced by the Ling Family." Meng LiGe revealed a smile.

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