Read Online Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Joe Abercrombie
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Better to be held in fear, than in contempt. Shilla knew this. There is no place for sentiment in politics, do you see?'
'I see that wherever I turn in life there's always some fucking old dunce trying to give me a lecture.' That was what Jezal thought, but he was not about to say it. The memory of a Practical of the Inquisition bursting apart before his very eyes was still horribly fresh in his mind. The squelching sound of the flesh. The feeling of spots of hot blood pattering across his face. He swallowed and looked down at his shoes.
'I see,' he muttered.
Bayaz' voice droned on. 'Not that a great King need be a tyrant, of course! To gain the love of the common man should always be a ruler's first aim, for it can be won with small gestures, and yet can last a lifetime.'
Jezal was not about to let that pass, however dangerous the old man might be. It was clear that Bayaz had no practical experience in the arena of politics. 'What use is the love of commoners? The nobles have the money, the soldiers, the power.'
Bayaz rolled his eyes at the clouds. 'The words of a child, easily tricked by flim-flam and quick hands. Where does the nobles' money come from, but from taxes on the peasants in the fields? Who are their soldiers, but the sons and husbands of common folk? What gives the lords their power? Only the compliance of their vassals, nothing more. When the peasantry become truly dissatisfied, that power can vanish with terrifying speed. Take the case of the Emperor Dantus.' He gestured up at one of the many statues, one arm broken off at the shoulder, the other holding out a handful of scum in which a rich bloom of moss had taken hold. The loss of his nose, leaving a grimy crater, had left the Emperor Dantus with an expression of eternal embarrassed bewilderment, like a man surprised whilst on the latrine.
'No ruler has ever been more loved by his people,' said Bayaz. 'He greeted every man as his equal, always gave half his revenues to the poor. But the nobles conspired against him, fixed on one of their number to replace him, and threw the Emperor into prison while they seized the throne.'
'Did they really?' grunted Jezal, staring off across the half-empty square.
'But the people would not abandon their beloved monarch. They rose from their homes and rioted, and would not be subdued. Some of the conspirators were dragged from their palaces and hung in the streets, the others were cowed, and returned Dantus to his throne. So you see, my lad, that the love of the people is a ruler's surest shield against danger.'
Jezal sighed. 'Give me the support of the lords every time.'
'Hah. Their love is costly, and fickle as the changing wind. Have you not stood in the Lords' Round, Captain Luthar, while the Open Council is in session?' Jezal frowned. Perhaps there was some grain of truth in the old man's babble. 'Hah. Such is the love of nobles. The best that one can do is to divide them and work on their jealousies, make them compete for small favours, claim the credit for their successes, and most of all ensure that no one of them should grow too powerful, and rise to challenge one's own majesty.'
'Who is this?' One statue stood noticeably higher than the others. An impressive-seeming man in late middle-age with a thick beard and curling hair. His face was handsome but there was a grim set to his mouth, a proud and wrathful wrinkling of his brow. A man not to be fooled with.
'That is my master, Juvens. Not an Emperor, but the first and last adviser to many. He built the Empire, yet he was also the principal in its destruction. A great man, in so many ways, but great men have great faults.' Bayaz turned his worn staff thoughtfully round in his hand. 'One should learn the lessons of history. The mistakes of the past need only be made once.' He paused for a moment. 'Unless there are no other choices.'
Jezal rubbed his eyes and stared across the forum. The Crown Prince Ladisla, perhaps, might have benefited from such a
'I see that wherever I turn in life there's always some fucking old dunce trying to give me a lecture.' That was what Jezal thought, but he was not about to say it. The memory of a Practical of the Inquisition bursting apart before his very eyes was still horribly fresh in his mind. The squelching sound of the flesh. The feeling of spots of hot blood pattering across his face. He swallowed and looked down at his shoes.
'I see,' he muttered.
Bayaz' voice droned on. 'Not that a great King need be a tyrant, of course! To gain the love of the common man should always be a ruler's first aim, for it can be won with small gestures, and yet can last a lifetime.'
Jezal was not about to let that pass, however dangerous the old man might be. It was clear that Bayaz had no practical experience in the arena of politics. 'What use is the love of commoners? The nobles have the money, the soldiers, the power.'
Bayaz rolled his eyes at the clouds. 'The words of a child, easily tricked by flim-flam and quick hands. Where does the nobles' money come from, but from taxes on the peasants in the fields? Who are their soldiers, but the sons and husbands of common folk? What gives the lords their power? Only the compliance of their vassals, nothing more. When the peasantry become truly dissatisfied, that power can vanish with terrifying speed. Take the case of the Emperor Dantus.' He gestured up at one of the many statues, one arm broken off at the shoulder, the other holding out a handful of scum in which a rich bloom of moss had taken hold. The loss of his nose, leaving a grimy crater, had left the Emperor Dantus with an expression of eternal embarrassed bewilderment, like a man surprised whilst on the latrine.
'No ruler has ever been more loved by his people,' said Bayaz. 'He greeted every man as his equal, always gave half his revenues to the poor. But the nobles conspired against him, fixed on one of their number to replace him, and threw the Emperor into prison while they seized the throne.'
'Did they really?' grunted Jezal, staring off across the half-empty square.
'But the people would not abandon their beloved monarch. They rose from their homes and rioted, and would not be subdued. Some of the conspirators were dragged from their palaces and hung in the streets, the others were cowed, and returned Dantus to his throne. So you see, my lad, that the love of the people is a ruler's surest shield against danger.'
Jezal sighed. 'Give me the support of the lords every time.'
'Hah. Their love is costly, and fickle as the changing wind. Have you not stood in the Lords' Round, Captain Luthar, while the Open Council is in session?' Jezal frowned. Perhaps there was some grain of truth in the old man's babble. 'Hah. Such is the love of nobles. The best that one can do is to divide them and work on their jealousies, make them compete for small favours, claim the credit for their successes, and most of all ensure that no one of them should grow too powerful, and rise to challenge one's own majesty.'
'Who is this?' One statue stood noticeably higher than the others. An impressive-seeming man in late middle-age with a thick beard and curling hair. His face was handsome but there was a grim set to his mouth, a proud and wrathful wrinkling of his brow. A man not to be fooled with.
'That is my master, Juvens. Not an Emperor, but the first and last adviser to many. He built the Empire, yet he was also the principal in its destruction. A great man, in so many ways, but great men have great faults.' Bayaz turned his worn staff thoughtfully round in his hand. 'One should learn the lessons of history. The mistakes of the past need only be made once.' He paused for a moment. 'Unless there are no other choices.'
Jezal rubbed his eyes and stared across the forum. The Crown Prince Ladisla, perhaps, might have benefited from such a
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