I Can Control My Ancestors-Chapter 68 - 26: Gu Kang Establishes Learning, Honored as a Saint After Death (Part 2)

Chapter 68: Chapter 26: Gu Kang Establishes Learning, Honored as a Saint After Death (Part 2)
"After I die, the family’s power will undoubtedly weaken swiftly."
"While you all have some talent, you may hold your ground in other families, but in our Gu Clan, it’s not enough to support the entire clan."
"This is also why I have never recommended you."
"This is a burden you cannot bear."
"Since the passing of the late Emperor, I have gradually restrained my brilliance, and except for major affairs, have not participated much in governance, instead recommending talented individuals."
"It is not as the world believes, that I buried my efforts solely in writing and education."
"Rather, it was to gradually delegate power, for the future of our Gu Clan."
"All my life I assisted the late Emperor in suppressing the officials, and the officials have developed a respectful fear towards me, a habit formed over the years."
"In such circumstances, if I were to remain sharp."
"After my death, the officials would surely unleash their anger upon the Gu Clan."
"These past years of delegating power have been to lessen their grudge against our Gu Clan."
"This way, they may not target our Gu Clan."
"Our Gu Clan has been esteemed for two reigns, and the current Emperor deeply values emotions and loyalty; after I die, he might bestow upon you some ranks and titles."
"But you must remember, under no circumstances should you act with haste; if there is real danger, yield if you must."
"Our Gu Clan aims for a legacy through the ages, not a momentary advantage."
"Even if the family’s power indeed declines, the prestige accumulated by our Gu Clan over two generations would be enough to protect the family for a hundred years."
Gu Kang’s breath grew increasingly labored, as if his thoughts were becoming unclear, and even his words seemed a bit disorganized, but his gaze remained fixed on these members of the Gu Clan before him:
"Julu is the foundation of the family."
"Our Gu Clan has shown kindness to the people of the county for two generations."
"After my death, this too must not cease."
"You, the sons of the clan, must remember, should true chaos arise in the future, these people will be the guarantee of our Gu Clan."
Seeing Gu Kang growing weaker and weaker, cries of sobbing echoed in the room.
Gu Kang did not mind this.
He seemed to want to grasp his last moments to give these family sons his final instructions.
"You must remember... henceforth... have the sons of the family study diligently the books I have written."
"I... though I cannot see how the future will be."
"But always... vaguely feel this may be the foundation for our Gu Clan to stand firm through the ages."
"As for the various issues our Gu Clan may face in the future, I have also thought a lot and left specific strategies."
"Yet the sons of the family need not... be overly concerned with these."
"The sons of the family can use the methods I provided as guidance but must not wholly rely on them."
"The world is ever-changing."
"How the future will be, no one can know."
"This, in the end, is merely worrying excessively about the unknown."
His voice grew increasingly weak.
Having said this, as if he had conveyed everything, he slowly turned his head, his vision growing more blurred.
"Do not grieve."
"Like Zhen Yu, I have no regrets in my heart."
"I feel... death is not the end of a person, but being forgotten is."
"Just as I will not forget my father, the late Emperor, Zhen Yu..."
"As long as our Gu Clan endures."
"The people of this world will not forget us."
"After I die, you may send my body back to Julu."
"Years ago, I thought... Julu would ultimately be the cage restraining our Gu Clan; now I know, it is the place where we find peace..."
"If..."
His voice suddenly ceased.
The eyes that had been struggling to stay open also slowly closed at this moment.
——In the third year of Jianchu, in August.
Grand Minister of Revenue and Champion Marquis Gu Kang passed away in Luoyang.
....
When this news spread out.
Luoyang was in turmoil.
The court and the public were in an uproar.
Even Empress Dowager Ma and Liu Da personally rushed to the Champion Marquis Mansion, their faces full of sorrow.
As for minister Gu Kang.
In truth, whether it was Empress Dowager Ma or Liu Da.
Both were well aware.
He was the foundation Liu Zhuang left to Liu Da to suppress the myriad ministers of the court.
Liu Da, ascending the throne at a young age, could quickly grasp real power, not without Gu Kang’s help.
Even if he did not speak.
To the ministers, it was a kind of deterrence.
Although after Liu Zhuang’s passing, Gu Kang never again managed state affairs as meticulously as before.
But wasn’t this also a statement in itself?
Several times he spoke, it was always about major affairs.
He accomplished everything he promised Liu Zhuang in those years.
He truly helped him guard this era of prosperity.
But such a minister,
unexpectedly died just like that today!
How could they not grieve?
Even the emotions of the court officials were somewhat complicated at this moment.
In fact, to them, Gu Kang, such a minister who solely received the "imperial favor," was quite envied and hated.
But Gu Kang’s merits are laid out here.
All of them were the most direct beneficiaries.
Among all the people under Heaven, who can say they have not received Gu Kang’s kindness?
The policies of fertile land and water management he promoted benefited the entire realm!
Now the Great Han’s moral standards are still very high.
And with Gu Kang’s delegation of power in the last few years of his life,
these people now have no trace of hatred for Gu Kang and have come in droves to pay respects to him!
Liu Da even decided to suspend court for three days to express mourning and, following Gu Kang’s last wishes, dispatched central army officers to escort his body back to Hebei, and let the officials discuss a posthumous title for him.
But the most shaken were not the courtiers.
It was the common folk!
Gu Kang’s reputation among the people was immensely astonishing!
With years of abundant harvests, Gu Kang had long become a figure of reverence among the populace, all calling him an "Immortal"!
Now, this Immortal has passed away!
When the news spread through Luoyang City,
tens of thousands of people mourned.
The scene was just like when Liu Zhuang passed away.
It was even larger than that time!
Because the people could not go to the Imperial Palace, they could only weep toward the palace!
But the Champion Marquis Mansion was different.
Although the people still couldn’t get close, they could face the Champion Marquis Mansion and weep!
The masses cried tears of blood!
And it didn’t stop there!
This news rapidly spread from Luoyang to all of Guanzhong, and then to the entire country!
The people’s reaction was unexpectedly unanimous!
The cries of lamentation echoed throughout the lands of the Great Han.
Some even erected temples for Gu Kang, sculpting imagined images of him based on various rumors, to be enshrined, with incense burning endlessly.
When Gu Kang’s body was transported to Hebei,
starting from Luoyang, every place he passed, the people came to pay their respects.
The entire Great Han was once again shrouded in a layer of gloom.
Under such a scene, the officials became increasingly mindful of Gu Kang’s posthumous title, proposing a number of beautiful titles in succession.
Finally, Liu Da decided on the posthumous title.
"Wencheng."
"Wen" represents overseeing the universe and loving the people with kindness.
"Cheng" represents stabilizing the people and establishing governance, assisting and completing the administration.
And with the moment Gu Kang’s posthumous title was determined,
a glorious era also at this moment;
——came to a complete end.
—————————
"Lord Kang, styled Jishi,
was ambitious from a young age, skilled in the techniques of agriculture, and understood the essentials of water management.
At the beginning of Yongping, the fields under the heavens were mostly barren, and the people suffered from famine. Jishi then submitted a memorial saying:
"Agriculture is the foundation of the state; it is appropriate to widely open up fields, direct the people to intensive plowing, and assist with the method of fertilization so that the land can be restored, and the yields will surely be abundant."
Emperor Ming accepted his words, appointed him as Minister of Agriculture, overseeing all agricultural affairs of the land.
Jishi encouraged the cultivation of crops and mulberry, instructed the people in accumulating fertile soil, and divided the times for farming and harvesting.
Within less than three years, there were no idle lands, grain overflowed in the warehouses, and the folk song said: "Lord Kang enriched the fields, Heaven granted a bountiful year!" Year after year of great harvests, national strength increased daily, the treasury’s accumulation was unprecedented.
Later, when the rivers, Bian and others, frequently breached, the people of Yan and Yu drowned in large numbers, Jishi once again petitioned for the task of water control.
Emperor Ming granted him the authority of a commissioner, overseeing river works. Jishi led the people to drill the Stones of Wisdom, dredge the Bian Canal, built embankments for a thousand miles, and directed the Yellow River into the sea. He often slept on the banks of the river, working alongside laborers, not avoiding wind or rain. Within a year, the water calamities subsided, river transport was accessible, and the people lived in peace.
The people felt gratitude and called him the "River God Immortal Official," establishing a living shrine by the riverbank.
In the third year of Jianchu, Jishi passed away.
Emperor Zhang was greatly grieved, halting court sessions for three days, posthumously naming him "Wencheng," and issued a decree: "Lord Kang dredged ditches and channels to save countless people, controlled the rivers to stabilize the state, and his virtue was comparable to that of Yu."
On the day of the funeral, those in white mourning clothes filled the roads, farmers halted their plows, workers cast aside their axes, and their lamentations shook the fields.
From Heluo to Youji, villages and towns privately summoned his spirit, some carved wooden images, praying for abundant years.
In later times, whenever there were droughts, locusts, or plagues, people would pray at the Kang shrine, and the incense of offerings never ceased."
——"Later Han Book. Biography of Gu Kang"