Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 283

As the leader, Gao Jianli knew his abilities were limited, therefore he had to be extremely demanding of himself...

On the Shu Mountain side, Xiao Yu regrouped the Shu Mountain disciples and rented a small courtyard in Sanghai City. Yun Zhongjun is still in Xianyang. The Yin Yang Elder in charge of the defense of Sanghai City is Shao Siming. The two silent girls had a brief discussion on the way. As long as Shu Mountain's actions are not excessive, Shao Siming can turn a blind eye.

Xiao Yu did not tell his compatriots this. Cooperating with the Yin Yang School was of great importance, almost determining the possibility of retrieving the Fusang Divine Tree. He must not reveal any flaws.

How to ascend the mirage is no longer a concern; now, all she needs to do is to engage in a power struggle with the anti-Qin forces in the name of Mount Shu.

"As my brother said before he left, the Farmer's Clan is most likely a seasoned anti-Qin stronghold. Everything Lu Wei has done is against Qin, but he hasn't established direct contact with other anti-Qin righteous men. Therefore, the Shu Mountain Clan will play this liaison role."

She took out her jade flute, which she always played when she was alone to keep herself awake. But this time, as soon as the jade flute touched her lips, her cold face couldn't help but furrow her brows and turn to look out the window.

A bright green leaf was stuck there.

'It's her. She wants me to go out. Has the anti-Qin righteous people made a move?'

After changing into a black bodysuit, Princess Shushan dashed out of the room without hesitation...

...

Lu Wei did not place any necessary hopes on Shushan, but allowed them to develop freely.

The task assigned was a very ordinary one: to make contact with anti-Qin forces. This was not because Lu Wei hoped to remotely control the anti-Qin forces from Shu Mountain, but simply to ensure that the situation of forces in Sanghai was normal and would not arouse suspicion.

It's no surprise that Sanghai City is rife with undercurrents due to the mirage.

Moreover, the greater the undercurrent, the more reassured Ying Zheng and Donghuang were. In any case, these forces could not actually cause any damage to the mirage. The bigger the commotion, the more clearly the actions of the anti-Qin forces would be exposed, ensuring that the mirage's departure would not be in vain.

On the contrary, if all forces remain silent, Ying Zheng and Donghuang will become even more vigilant: people of their status are not afraid of having enemies, but only of enemies hiding.

'Therefore, if we bring back the Shu Mountain sect members who left Sanghai and they join forces with the Mohists and the Xiang Clan, we can make Sanghai lively again.'

Playing with the 'little gadget' in his hand, Lu Wei lowered his gaze, looked at the sheet music spread out on the table and memorized it, then put the ocarina to his lips and began to play it melodiously.

Lu Wei entered Sanghai City with Li Si, but Li Si, preoccupied with dealing with the mirage, stopped paying much attention to him.

Unrestricted, Lu Wei returned to the farmhouse in Sanghai, a place that was originally secluded but had become public over time, attracting many eyes to watch him.

Despite the attention, Lu Wei was nominally Li Si's guest, so no one bothered him. He was happy to practice swordsmanship and read books in the stronghold, or play chess with Li Shiqi. Recently, he has also started learning music, which is quite relaxing.

He was waiting for time, but he didn't know what those eyes were waiting for.

Besides Lu Wei, the other three guests of Li Si were also very pleased:

Chu Nan Gong wandered aimlessly around the city all day, often observing the world from the Jinshui Bridge and Yinshui Bridge. The old man's ability to remain hidden in the city once again came into play: those who were meant to see him would naturally come to him, and those who were not meant to see him would not notice anything.

After changing his appearance, Xinghun traveled to various teahouses in Sanghai, savoring the many flavors of tea, showing great interest in drinking tea.

The last one, Gongsun... let's not even mention him. The name of the School of Names is far from comparable to the other leading schools of thought in the Hundred Schools of Thought. Gongsun was clever and eloquent, but he could only rely on Li Si and act as a lackey barking at the gate of the Legalist school.

There aren't many people in Sanghai City who would pay attention to her, and even if there are, they're just small fry.

For the first two weeks after Li Si's arrival, Sanghai City remained largely unchanged. It wasn't until Li Si sent an envoy to inform Xiaoshengxianzhuang of his impending visit that the curtain quietly rose...

Tianming, Shaoyu, and Gaoyue are now openly known as Confucian disciples, and Confucian disciples are the least in short supply in Sanghai City.

Therefore, the three of them could openly travel to many places, acting as Zhang Liang's messengers connecting various factions in Xiaoshengxianzhuang.

If you disregard classes, life in Xiaoshengxianzhuang is definitely more comfortable than in Jiguangcheng: both the environment and the food are top-notch, and the safe atmosphere in Xiaoshengxianzhuang means you don't have to worry about enemies breaking in.

But I need to attend classes...

Of course, only Tianming was worried about this. Shaoyu and Gaoyue had received basic education since childhood, so it was not difficult for them to keep up with the learning progress. Even though Gaoyue was a girl, she was able to learn the skills of the Six Arts of a Gentleman with patience.

Tianming, however, was naturally mischievous. Despite his exceptional talent, he was clueless about many things and needed to start learning basic literacy.

"Tianming Shaoyu, it seems there's some kind of event at the main gate today. The sect leader, the second master, and the third master have all gone there."

Gao Yue was dressed in the robes of a Confucian disciple and wore a crown on her head. Although she was somewhat delicate-looking, she was brought in by Zhang Liang, so no one would doubt her gender without reason.

As for Yan Lu and Fu Nian, they could most likely see through Gao Yue's problem, but each of them had their own reasons for not revealing it.

"It must be Li Si's visit. Third Master mentioned it before." Shao Yu stroked his chin and quickly guessed the reason. There were only a few people in Sanghai City who could be welcomed by Fu Nian.

"That's the Prime Minister of Qin? I bet he's a really, really bad old man, with hair as white as Master Ban's, hehe." Tianming was caught yesterday asking Master Ban to 'borrow' his little wooden kite, so he's deliberately making sarcastic remarks, since Master Ban can't hear him anyway.

"Maybe." Shao Yu was in a good mood. He had reunited with Long Qi, his partner who had been separated from him during the Qin-Chu war, in the outskirts of Sanghai over the past two weeks. Long Qi not only brought the tiger tally of the Xiang clan, but also his Seven Seas Flood Dragon Armor.

Initially, Shao Yu had reservations about whether he should put on that armor again, but yesterday he met the sage Chu Nan Gong from the Chu region on the Jinshui Bridge, and his words revitalized Shao Yu!

Even if Chu has only three households left, it will surely be Chu that destroys Qin!

If it weren't for the fact that there were still a few days before the next time we could leave the city, he would definitely have run to Long Ju that very night: "Let's go and see what the so-called Prime Minister of Qin looks like!"

"Okay, that's what I was thinking too!" Tianming, fearing he wouldn't be able to go, immediately looked at Gao Yue: "Yue'er, do you want to go?"

"Hmm," Gao Yue pondered, then said, "There will definitely be many Confucian disciples attending the ceremony today, so it's alright if we go too."

"Great!"

The three agreed to head to the reception hall. They knew that if they went to the door at this time, Fu Nian would definitely chase them away. It would be better to wait in the pavilion outside the reception hall, where they would surely see the prime minister.

"Who is that strange child? He looks younger than me."

After waiting for about half an hour, just as Tianming was getting impatient with the twig in his mouth, a troop of Qin soldiers cleared the way, and the sect leader Fu Nian finally arrived with several guests he had never seen before.

Tianming's gaze was immediately drawn to Xinghun's attire: each of the Yin Yang Clan's formal wear was unique.

“This outfit is…” Shao Yu hesitated, but Gao Yue replied in a deep voice, “Judging from the patterns on the clothing, they are from the Yin-Yang School.”

"The Yin-Yang School..." Tianming Shaoyu was speechless upon hearing this, his gaze cautiously fixed on Gao Yue's expression... Both of them knew that Gao Yue's father, Yan Dan, the former leader of the Mohist School, had died at the hands of the Yin-Yang School, and now they had encountered another member of the Yin-Yang School...

Gao Yue didn't notice her two companions' behavior at this moment, but her expression was indeed serious: this was partly because the first person Gao Yue looked at was not Xing Hun, but a certain peasant hero to Xing Hun's right.

On the other hand, after listening to Tianming's words and noticing Xinghun, she immediately felt uneasy under Xinghun's amused gaze: there was no doubt that the Yin-Yang technique in her body could deceive ordinary people, but to the left protector of the Yin-Yang School, it was very strong.

Gao Yue knew little about the internal relationships within the Yin-Yang School; she didn't know whether Xinghun was friend or foe to her master...

"Moon, are you... alright?"

Noticing that Gao Yue's face was turning pale, Tianming immediately supported her arm and asked in a low voice.

Shao Yu also came over and supported her on the other side, the two of them hoping to calm Gao Yue's possible sadness with their presence.

"I'm fine." Giving an awkward smile, Gao Yue nodded to her two companions and changed the subject, saying, "Besides that Yin Yang family member, the others that Li Si brought also seem extraordinary."

The middle-aged man accompanying Fu Nian was naturally Li Si. Contrary to Tianming's guess, he did not have a full head of white hair. Despite being over fifty, Li Si was well-maintained and looked about the same age as Yan Lu, who was in his thirties.

However, upon closer inspection, those tiny wrinkles are still impossible to hide.

Behind them, Yan Lu, Zhang Liang and the other two were familiar faces, and Xing Hun had already introduced them. Gongsun Linglong was not particularly outstanding in appearance and lacked distinctive features, while Chu Nangong was very distinctive but too short to be easily seen. Therefore, after Gao Yue reminded them, Tianming Shaoyu's gaze decisively turned to the tall and elegant swordsman.

Based on the conversations between the Mohists and the Three Masters during this period, this person's identity is not difficult to guess:

Lu Wei, the chivalrous leader of the peasant clan, whose stance and attitude are of paramount importance!

Chapter 336 The Lord of Yan and Zhao

Lu Wei could have reasonably refused the trip to Xiaoshengxianzhuang with Li Si, since he was neither a retainer of Li Si nor an official of the empire.

Lu Wei followed Li Si from Licheng to Sanghai at Li Si's invitation as a 'friend' in a private capacity. As a 'friend of the Prime Minister,' Lu Wei obviously could not easily refuse.

However, Li Si's official status or his former student status at Xiaoshengxianzhuang had nothing to do with Lu Wei. The reason he hadn't refused was because of Xiaoshengxianzhuang itself.

Having been in Sanghai City for so long, Lu Wei has not had time to meet with Fu Nian and Zhang Liang alone for various reasons. This trip with Li Si is undoubtedly an opportunity.

Confucian etiquette never goes wrong. After a brief exchange of pleasantries from the main gate to the reception hall, Li Si unsurprisingly asked Fu Nian for permission to visit his former teacher, Xunzi. Although Master Xunzi had been in seclusion for ten years, Fu Nian's status as the prime minister made it difficult for him to refuse, just like Lu Wei of Licheng.

Furthermore, Li Si chuckled and said that all that was needed was to inform Xunzi, and whether or not to meet him would be up to Xunzi himself, so he agreed.

Lu Wei visited Xiaoshengxianzhuang several times over the past ten years. Although he met Xunzi only a handful of times, he understood that the Confucian scholar was always stubborn. Since Li Si, who had gained power in Qin ten years ago, was resolutely expelled from his school by him, even though Li Si had become the prime minister this time, he would most likely still be turned away if he wanted to see him.

They exchanged a glance with the gentle and refined Zhang Liang, and the two nodded with smiles and stayed behind, instead of following Fu Nian, Li Si, and the others to Xunzi's hermitage.

After everyone had gone far away, the two walked side by side out of the hall through the side door and came to the peach blossom grove in the back hall.

"The peach trees here have been growing very well in recent years, thanks to the meticulous care of Brother Lu's disciples in the farming community every year."

Winter had only just ended, and the peach trees in Xiaoshengxianzhuang were growing much faster than those in Dazeshan. The buds were already showing some pink color, as the temperature by the sea was always a bit milder than in the mountains.

"The cooperation between farmers and scholars is seamless. Xiaoshengxianzhuang spends a considerable amount of money on these garden plants every year, and the farmers will naturally provide a return that matches the expenditure of the Confucian scholars."

Smiling in response to Zhang Liang, Lu Wei glanced casually to his right, noticing someone following them: three auras, all youthful and undisguised, one of which, an aura from the Yin-Yang School, immediately revealed their identities: Tianming Shaoyu and Gao Yue.

These three children are no longer of any use to Lu Wei, and he doesn't care what they want to do. However, Shao Yu is somewhat of an obstacle to Mi Lian and Mi Xin's path. The Western Chu Overlord of the original timeline and the Xiang Clan behind him are also targets that need to be eliminated. The Shu Mountain and Yin Yang School are already working on this.

Zhang Liang's internal strength was much weaker than Lu Wei's. He waited a while after noticing Lu Wei's actions before discovering the three eavesdroppers.

Unlike Lu Wei, although he could not identify Gao Yue's Yin-Yang aura, as soon as he knew there were three eavesdroppers, he immediately and accurately guessed that the target was Tianming and the others.

Judging from this distance, the chances of the three children overhearing their conversation were slim, and even if they did, it wouldn't matter. So Zhang Liang continued with peace of mind, "Brother Lu has received a lot of attention lately, and there will be even more from today onwards."

His tone was full of emotion: "Brother Lu was there at the Mechanical City, wasn't he?"

"With the gathering of righteous men from the six states and the Qin army mobilizing, anyone would want to witness the unfolding events firsthand."

Lu Wei did not deny it. He was confident that his whereabouts had not been exposed or seen by anyone. However, some things cannot be concluded by seeing them with one's own eyes, especially for Zhang Zifang.

“Indeed.” Zhang Liang did not ask what Lu Wei had done in the Mechanized City, but said softly, “However, the development of the situation has exceeded everyone’s expectations. If the anti-Qin forces do not have a strong enough ally to help them, they may fall apart.”

This is an explicit indication that Zhang Liang actually has many other questions for Lu Wei that need to be answered, but the most important issue now is the anti-Qin movement.

"The Mohists have another plan, don't they?"

"The Azure Dragon's power is earth-shattering, but to overthrow the Qin Dynasty, what we need most is people."

Faced with Zhang Liang's sincere gaze, Lu Wei remained unmoved, smiling politely: "Zifang, what do you think will happen to the world if the Mohist school's plan succeeds?"

"When the emperor dies, a power struggle will immediately erupt within Qin. In this situation, righteous men from the six states will raise their banners to resist tyranny and restore the rule of the people of the six states to their lands."

Zhang Liang's first sentence was quite fantastical, but the second sentence made Lu Wei raise an eyebrow: "Brother Lu's Farmer's Clan is the number one force in the Jianghu, with an army of 100,000. Now that the Yan and Zhao kingdoms have both died out, if the Qin Emperor were to be in trouble, the Farmer's Clan would be the first to raise an army of righteous men. Brother Lu could easily become the master of Yan and Zhao. If he could further advance into Guanzhong, it would not be impossible for him to be revered as the leader of the world alliance!"

Having said that, Zhang Liang calmly met Lu Wei's gaze, his handsome yet spirited face composed and resolute: "I think this is the answer Brother Lu wants?"

It was too fast, and the environment and timing were somewhat inappropriate, but the more serious the matter was, the more Zhang Liang's sincerity was revealed in the sudden revelation of it under these circumstances.

Lu Wei's ambition had already been hinted at to Mr. Zhang San a long time ago. Now that he has brought it to light, it is because Zhang Liang has keenly sensed the increasing pressure on Sang Haicheng.

Although he believed that the peasant school would ultimately stand against Qin, how many more righteous warriors from the six states, already suffering heavy losses in the Mechanical City, would die by the time the peasant school truly made up its mind to act...?

“If Brother Lu agrees with what I say, I can immediately act as an envoy to persuade the nobles of Yan and Zhao to support the peasants. Although the Daze Mountain range has always belonged to Qi, I can also help persuade the royal family of Qi to give Brother Lu the Dongjun, Jibeijun and other areas where Daze Mountain is located.”

In addition to seeking help from farmers, Zhang Liang also outlined the contributions he and the anti-Qin forces could make.

This sincerity is undoubtedly much greater than that of Changping Jun and Yan Dan's conferment of titles, and can even be described as somewhat audacious. It is almost an open invitation for Lu Wei to become king and receive the title of leader of the world, just like the Zhou emperor in the past.

But how much sincerity he can actually deliver is still just empty talk.