Chapter 122: Is this talented person comparable to Zhuge Liang? Turns out it’s Lin Beifan, the official dog!
Looking at their affectionate appearance, many talented individuals drowned their sorrows in alcohol during the late night.
Meanwhile, Lin Beifan carried a large sum of money and engaged in lively conversations with numerous women, returning home with a full load.
Princess Ziyue of the Slanted Moon Dynasty escaped from the imperial city overnight, accompanied by her trusted confidants.
After traveling through several places and confirming that no one was chasing after them, they headed towards a secluded and mysterious valley where they had a hidden dwelling—a small village.
As soon as they arrived, they immediately startled the inhabitants living in the village.
“Princess, why have you returned?”
“Weren’t you going to the capital to settle accounts with Lin Beifan, that official dog?”
“Why do you look so disheveled? What happened?”
…
Princess Ziyue forced a bitter smile and said, “My identity has been exposed, so for the sake of safety, I had no choice but to flee from the capital!”
The people were shocked and pale.
“Princess, your identity has been exposed?”
“How is that possible?”
“Who else knows about your identity?”
…
“It’s that official dog, Lin Beifan!” Ziyue gritted her teeth and recounted the events.
One powerful old man spoke with a fierce momentum, “He actually discovered the princess’s identity and disrupted our plans twice. This person must not be allowed to live. I will go and kill him immediately!”
“Yes! Let’s go and kill him!” the crowd shouted in unison.
“We can’t kill him! He is within the imperial city and enjoys the protection of the court. Moreover, there is a deeply unfathomable grandmaster in his household. If we could have killed him earlier, why would we be threatened by him?” Ziyue expressed her helplessness.
Everyone felt angry, resentful, and extremely helpless.
“Everyone, let’s put aside the matter of that official dog for now. There is something more important at hand, related to our plan for the restoration of our dynasty!”
Ziyue’s face turned serious. “Have we been following the wrong strategy all this time? Have we been moving in the wrong direction for the past 20 years, leading to slow progress?”
“Why does the princess say such things?” the people were puzzled.
“Take the recent uprising of the Tianyi Sect as an example. First of all, we chose the wrong location!”
Ziyue explained Lin Beifan’s theory.
Everyone suddenly realized.
“Now that the princess has mentioned it, we realize that the location was indeed wrong!”
“Choosing the Eastern Jiang region, directly confronting the Great Wu court, was indeed inappropriate! In fact, there are better choices, such as the territory of the regional kings. We can survive in the cracks, accumulate strength, and wait for the right opportunity!”
“For example, the Wuxi region that the princess just mentioned is an excellent choice!”
“The people there are more ignorant, making it easier for us to spread our teachings! There are a considerable number of people, allowing us to quickly build an army! Moreover, the area is vast, making it convenient for us to hide and not easily be wiped out!”
“There are no downsides other than having to face the million-strong army of the Wuxi Duke!”
“Why didn’t we think of this before? We should have chosen the Wuxi region long ago!”
“The princess is truly clever!”
…
Princess Ziyue basked in the admiring gazes from everyone. Although she didn’t come up with those ideas herself, she couldn’t help but feel a great sense of satisfaction from being admired. It was a feeling she had never experienced before.
“But I believe that the reason for our failure is still because of that official dog, Lin Beifan!” A young man gnashed his teeth.
“If it weren’t for him exposing our tricks and destroying the foundation we painstakingly built, we would have achieved great success by now! It’s infuriating!”
“Yes, I hate him! I wish I could go and kill that damn Lin Beifan!”
“Without him, our grand cause might have succeeded!”
“That official deserves a miserable death!”
The group of people felt frustrated and cursed Lin Beifan one after another.
Ziyue couldn’t help but speak up, “Actually, even without Lin Beifan, our uprising could still have failed! It would have been ruined either by his hands, someone else’s, or even by our own hands!”
“Why are you speaking up for that official?” someone asked.
“It was clearly his doing!”
“I really wish I could rush to the capital and kill him!”
“Listen to me carefully and I’ll explain the reasons,” Ziyue said.
Princess Ziyue presented Lin Beifan’s theory to everyone. Upon hearing it, they all pondered and felt regret.
“The princess is absolutely right! Deception and trickery are not long-term solutions! You can deceive people for a while, but you can’t deceive them forever. Sooner or later, the truth will be exposed, and our foundation will collapse!”
“Even without Lin Beifan, there would have been other intelligent people!”
“A disorganized team is like loose sand and cannot contend with a regular army!”
“Timing is also crucial! But when we are in a fog, who can see clearly?”
“In order to establish an effective system of rewards and punishments, and to lead soldiers in battle, we need military strategists! But here, who knows how to lead troops and fight? How can we accomplish that?”
“No wonder we lost. It’s not unjust!”
Ziyue concluded, “Lack of sincerity in belief hinders the consolidation of people’s hearts! A weak team has no combat power! Unclear rewards and punishments lead to a lack of military discipline and character! Without the right timing, we cannot seize opportunities! Ineffective strategies can cause the downfall of an entire army! Insufficient resources result in defeat before even engaging in battle! Only by mastering these aspects can we be invincible and achieve great success!”
At that moment, a young person looked at Ziyue with excitement. “Princess, did you come up with all these ideas? You’re amazing!”
“It must be the princess, who else could it be?”
“With such a wise and heroic princess leading us, revenge and the restoration of our country are within reach! Haha!”
“You’re absolutely right!”
…
Everyone was extremely excited, as if they could already see a bright future ahead!
Only Princess Ziyue felt guilty and hesitant. “Well…”
One of the elderly men stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a torch, and smiled. “Although I also wish it were so, the person who proposed these theoretical methods is definitely not Princess Ziyue! The princess has been wandering outside since childhood, working tirelessly for the grand cause, without receiving a systematic education! Otherwise, the princess would have figured it out long ago. How did we end up like this?”
Princess Ziyue blushed.
As the elderly man pointed out, if she had the capability, she would have rallied the troops in the past 20 years! How could she be running around like a rat crossing the street?
“Only an extraordinary person can come up with such words!”
The elderly man said excitedly, “Princess, could you find this person and appoint him as our military strategist? With his guidance, we will be invincible and our grand cause will succeed!”
“Is he really that amazing?” Princess Ziyue tried to maintain her composure.
Although she also admitted that the person was talented!
But the thought of that person swindling millions of taels of silver from her made her grind her teeth in anger!
“This person is truly gifted. His wisdom rivals that of Zhuge Liang. With just a few words, he has dispelled the fog and shown us the way forward!”
The elderly man was extremely excited. “Throughout my life in court and on the battlefield, I have encountered various talented individuals! But such extraordinary talent, this is the first time! If our dynasty had the assistance of such a capable person back then, perhaps…”
At this point, tears welled up in the elderly man’s eyes, and he couldn’t continue speaking.
“Old Xu!”
“Old Xu!”
…
Everyone comforted him one after another.
He was a highly respected and loyal old courtier who, in his youth, exerted his authority in court and devoted himself to the cause of the dynasty!
Now, in his old age, he was tirelessly traveling with the others, working hard to restore the dynasty!
He had dedicated his entire life to the dynasty!
With noble character and selfless dedication, everyone held great respect for him.
“Old Xu, don’t think too much!”
Princess Ziyue consoled him gently, her gaze determined. “We will definitely seek revenge and restore our nation! The Slanted Moon Dynasty will rise again under my leadership, shaking the world!”
“I also believe that Princess Ziyue can achieve it!”
The elderly man spoke with anticipation. “However, if we can find that talented person, our efforts will be twice as effective! By the way, Princess, who is this person? Such great talent surely cannot remain unknown!”
“Yes, who is this person?”
“Princess, please tell us!”
“Even if we have to capture him, we must bring him to us!”
…
Everyone eagerly questioned.
“This person is none other than…” Princess Ziyue’s lips twitched. “The corrupt official you all mentioned… Lin Beifan!”
Everyone’s expression immediately changed!
“What? That person is actually Lin Beifan?”
“This super corrupt official who ruined our plans!”
“How is that possible?”
“Princess, are you joking?”
…
Everyone couldn’t believe it!
The elderly man asked again, “Princess, is it really Lin Beifan?”
“It is indeed him! There is no need for me to deceive you all. Luoxia can testify to it!” Princess Ziyue forced a bitter smile and recounted the situation at that time.
After hearing it, everyone still couldn’t accept it and felt extremely uncomfortable!
To think that such a super corrupt official, a notorious greedy official, was the super talent comparable to Zhuge Liang that Old Xu spoke of!
There was simply no connection between the two!
Moreover, this corrupt official personally destroyed their plan for resurgence, making them like rats crossing the street!
If they let him become their strategist, commanding them in battle, they would never be able to accept it!
Old Xu sighed deeply. “Ah! I heard early on that Lin Beifan, the top scholar who achieved the rare feat of consecutive triple success in the imperial examinations, is the most outstanding top scholar since the founding of the Great Wu. He is eloquent, articulate, and hailed as a celestial being! In a short period, he rose three ranks, maneuvering skillfully in the officialdom and enjoying the Empress’s trust. Now it seems that he is indeed a capable person!”
“Unfortunately, he is a member of the Great Wu court, and his position is contrary to ours! Furthermore, he has a bright future ahead and will not abandon his own destiny and join our cause! In addition to all that, he is a tremendous corrupt official…”
“That kind of talent won’t be of use to us!”
“It’s a matter of fate, what a pity!”
Shaking their heads and sighing, they walked alone towards the inner hall, their figure showing a few more signs of age.
Everyone dispersed with waning enthusiasm.
Princess Ziyue watched as everyone’s figures left and saw the disappointed expression on Old Xu’s face, who had worked hard for the dynasty his entire life. She felt extremely uneasy.
However, the reality was as such, and she couldn’t deceive everyone.
Everyone’s disappointment also weighed heavily on her heart.
If only that talented individual hadn’t been Lin Beifan, the corrupt official, how great would it have been?
But there were no “ifs” in reality!
Fate played a cruel joke on her!
Over the next two days, Princess Ziyue spent her time organizing Lin Beifan’s theories as her guiding ideology.
The more she sorted and pondered, the more she realized the profoundness and boundless benefits of his ideas.
At the same time, she grew even more admiring of Lin Beifan’s talent.
After all, with just a casual remark, he analyzed the situation so clearly and brought her such great benefits.
If given time and opportunity, the restoration of the dynasty wouldn’t have been an impossible task.
On the third day, Princess Ziyue handed the organized materials to Old Xu.
Then, she said to her maid, “Old Xu, we’re returning to the capital!”
The maid was dumbfounded and asked, “Returning to the capital?”
It may be a bit late to say this, but there are many characters that actually exist in the real world like Zhuge Liang, and regions that actually exist in the real world like Jiangdong, Jibei, and Wuxi. All of this is because Lin Beifan transmigrated to a world with a wuxia template. Where the setting of a wuxia story usually takes place in ancient China, it often inserts original characters in history.
