Chapter 169 - 133: Meeting an Old Friend, Yet Strangers
The ferry port bustled with activity, people coming and going without any signs of chaos typical of rebel-controlled areas.
On the contrary, it seemed even more prosperous than the outside.
Chi Yu Zi was a bit surprised as she asked, "How is this different from what has been publicized outside?"
On their journey here, they had often heard horrific tales of cannibalism among the rebels, such as human meat hanging in butchers’ shops and bodies being flayed and split in half for sale.
Gu Wen explained, "If people knew the benefits of the rebels, a larger rebellion would arise. The imperial court has countless regulations to control the people, but in the end, the most effective measure is to keep them ignorant."
"Then how do the rebels obtain their food if they engage in such looting and pillaging?" Chi Yu Zi asked what seemed a rather foolish question, but considering her identity as a cultivator and that peasant uprisings might not necessarily exist in worlds beyond theirs, it wasn’t entirely stupid—just naive and somewhat simple-minded.
"Where does the imperial court’s grain usually come from?" Gu Wen rhetorically asked and answered, "Rebellion is a skillful business; mere looting and killing don’t constitute a real rebellion. A true rebellion replaces the government and becomes a new governing body."
When he learned that the rebels had held out for half a year, Gu Wen knew that a form of order must have been established here. Since it was local powerhouses that had rebelled, maintaining order came naturally to them.
This was precisely why so many rebellions occurred and why aristocratic families often succeeded—they had a clear program.
"It’s somewhat similar to power struggles in the Cultivation World," Jun Yan remarked. "When the top cultivators decide the victor, maintaining order is the priority. Even within the Demon Sect, outright murder is not tolerated."