Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 112 Visitors from Another Time

After Zhao Cheng captured another northern state, he quickly switched to a defensive posture.

After Shazhou fell into the hands of Hao Kingdom, the young king of Hao Kingdom led his officials and rushed to Shazhou, handing over Bo County to the Dragon Descendant General.

King Hao's move was clearly not something he could have come up with himself, but rather a scheme he obtained from his newly recruited advisors. However, these advisors were not virtuous individuals who could always consider the big picture, but rather cunning and treacherous people skilled in power struggles.

Staying in Bo County was merely a means of coercing him into a position controlled by the people appointed by Grand Tutor Pu. Once he broke free, he was free.

The strategist said: Although we will have to face Zhao Cheng directly when we reach the sandbar, there are also many loyal and righteous people in Zhao Cheng's camp who are devoted to the king. The king should show his favor sooner rather than later.

King Hao agreed wholeheartedly.

Therefore, in the newly conquered Shazhou, while Zhao Cheng was still patrolling the border, King Hao directly entered the largest city of Shazhou and met with the local powerful families.

With Zhao Cheng's return, King Hao had already fulfilled his duty of treating scholars with respect and invited some of the captured civil officials out of their cages in Shazhou City.

In the general's camp, Zhao Cheng overheard this scene, raised his head slightly, and asked his advisor, "Does Grand Tutor Pu know about this?"

Zhao Cheng's advisor: "Grand Tutor Pu already knows and is on his way."

Zhao Cheng nodded: "It's good that the Grand Tutor knows," and then continued to focus his attention on military matters.

However, an advisor couldn't help but say, "Although the Grand Tutor is on your side, Your Excellency, you should still make plans soon. Prince Hao is being a little too friendly with some of your generals."

Zhao Cheng frowned, his pen pausing slightly as he wrote on the silk scroll, but he quickly continued.

Zhao Cheng: "With a formidable enemy at hand, and the generals and ministers at odds, both internal and external forces will suffer defeat."

…In the Wisdom and Courage system: the loyalty of the divine general is still above 60…

In the palace of the Hao Kingdom, King Hao was examining a pagoda floating on the table. Inside the pagoda, tiny figures could be seen circling and exploring, as if searching through a maze.

These petty figures are the very souls of his imperial guards. Now, when these guards encounter the Prince Hao outside, they prostrate themselves before him like college graduates meeting their new boss.

This pagoda was offered to him by an unknown Taoist priest when he arrived at Shazhou, and the priest left after offering it. Just as King Hao was investigating all this, Pu'e, who had transformed into clouds and entered the main hall, gazed at the young man...

The sound of Pu'e's footsteps came from behind him. King Hao awoke with a start and asked, "Who is it?"

Upon seeing that the visitor was Pu E, he forced a stiff smile: "It's the Grand Tutor."

King Hao frowned as he looked at his guards, who had already had their souls absorbed by his pagoda. Why hadn't they given him any warning?

However, Pu'e quickly laid her cards on the table: "Don't doubt it, this thing (the pagoda) is still under your control. But! This thing doesn't have enough authority for me."

Pu'e was not angry at Hao Wang's current behavior. In fact, one could say that she indulged Hao Wang's little actions in a "pampering" manner, because he was also someone Pu'e had exchanged for.

Since the Wisdom and Courage system allows you to exchange for divine generals, you can also exchange for ordinary characters.

Pu'e ignored Hao Wang's attempts to argue, appeared at the table, picked up the pagoda, and examined it closely. From her perspective, the system had already completed its analysis.

System: This object shows signs of dimensional projection and arrived approximately 6,400 years ago in this timeline.

Pu'e understood. This was something that time travelers had exchanged for, and the time travel system that granted such an exchange was probably at the "civilian" level. This kind of obvious "dimensional projection" meant that the time travelers associated with it had some kind of exceptionally strong "obsessive" obsession.

As a carrier of the "Soldier-level" system, one can analyze the actual situation of other transmigrators, such as "dimensional projections".

Pu'e's system, formerly at the "Scholar-level" and now at the "Minister-level," allows her to choose storylines and summon "transmigrators with weaker consciousness levels" from the simulated main world's historical timeline. Of course, by investing a certain amount of spacetime, she can also exchange for obsessions (Zhao Cheng) within the "Historical Verification System" of the myriad realms.

Currently, although King Hao is nominally the ruler of a country, he is actually a 'weak transmigrated consciousness' that she acquired to fill the position. Just how weak is he?

King Hao himself was unaware that his origin, thousands of times before his transmigration, was actually a shut-in who died suddenly in a game pod in another world. Through each transmigration, each identity reincarnation, and each blurring of his past life, his identity had been embedded within him.

Of course, King Hao no longer remembers that he is a transmigrator; he is still within the system.

Now, when King Hao faces Pu'e, he can feel the oppressive power emanating from her.

Pu'e advised King Hao to cultivate virtue and mind, and then confiscated and sealed the pagoda that had "chaotic corruption".

As she left the palace, Pu'e shook her head: "It seems that's how it will be."

She knew Hao Wang's consciousness all too well; she had already won him over in front of countless others.

In interpersonal relationships, anger often stems from the realization that one doesn't understand the other person. However, Pu'e fully understood the person she had exchanged for, to the point of indifference.

Once upon a time, in another dimension, the consciousness of King Hao was also that of a handsome young man. How could someone chosen by Pu'e have a poor background?
The characteristic of a transmigrator with weak consciousness is that they "integrate" into this world very quickly, and gradually forget their former self in their new life.

When the weak consciousness is about to be extinguished, in the final "crash-like" time travel, one will believe that they are a native and that the time traveler has received memories of another world.

In the current system planned by Pu'e in this plane, Hao Wang is considered a qualified existence, with the ambition to seize power.

If the current Guotai power is a "wooden table," then Zhao Cheng is the largest "plank" in this wooden table, belonging to the most important structure of Guotai. And Hao Wang (the minor ruler) is the most important nail, used to fix the "Dragon Descendants" and "Da Yao Local Powers," these table legs, to Zhao Cheng, the "tabletop" plank.

Of course, this "nail" is sometimes not good, as it can crack the boards.

For example, the current suspicion of King Hao may very well create a rift between this famous general who was born with "obsession".

As for Pu'e, she is a craftswoman! She is there to coordinate the transmigrated consciousnesses mobilized from various heavens to complete the combination of this plane.

If Pu'e herself possessed a "high-value filling consciousness" in this plane, she wouldn't need to go through all this trouble.

Unfortunately, after the change of the Time and Space Administration, he could not access the consciousness of the "Qing" level, and she could not even get her hands on the "remnants" of these consciousnesses left on the plane.

…The perspective shifts to the other side…

In the Great Palace, Wu Fei paid his respects to Emperor Xu. Although he was certain that the old man he had met in the teahouse was the same one, Wu Fei pretended that he had never met him before in the hall.

After completing the formalities, Wu Fei stood quietly at the back of the court assembly, along with the other foreign officials who had come to pay their respects. Separated by three pillars, five white jade tiles, and twenty rows of people—Wu Fei idly counted them all. He couldn't resist the urge to turn and look at the sky, but protocol forbade it.

Before the court assembly, ministers would present their reports, bringing local matters to the palace for "public discussion."

In fact, the initial plans and procedures for these matters had already been discussed in the various internal departments of the court. Now, the public discussion was to be held in the court by other court officials to determine whether or not the plan should be implemented.

Standing far away, Wu Fei could clearly sense that three forces were pulling in different directions within the imperial court. They were supporting each other on certain memorials, while collectively expressing dissenting opinions on others.

Of course, this was not yet excessive. Regarding the major plans concerning the defense of the northern border and the resettlement of displaced people in several southern counties, no court officials objected after the emperor appointed the candidates.

Xuan Chong silently thought to himself: Clearly, Emperor Xu can still manage the conflicts between the various factions in the court. But in other words, if this emperor loses his control, and the various conflicts are no longer controlled, how well can the central government function? Perhaps a highly respected regent will be needed to wield absolute power and control the government for a period of time.

Xuan Chong, with himself at the center, looked at the people in the court: Who will be the next "Huo Guang" or "Zhang Juzheng"?

At this moment, the system beeps: "Beep beep beep!"

Xuan Chong paused for a moment: "What are you doing here? Are you trying to sarcastic or insult me?"

System: "You're too petty, you need to change that." Xuan Chong: "No way. Yeah, no way, so what!?"

System: "Nothing much, it's just that during PE class, it will remind you that you should experience 'first love' at this age, which will affect your natural development throughout your life; if you resist, you will miss out on the most beautiful experience of this age."

Upon hearing this, Xuan Chong began his performance: "Ha, I thought it was something. Whatever. My youth was a sea of ​​questions, I fought hard and forged ahead. Today's sweat, tomorrow's success. Charge, charge, charge!"

The system was idle for three seconds. Then, the important matter was announced.

The system issued a task: "Support the great yao, and prevent it from dying within three generations. Reward: two academic credits."

Xuan Chong: "Huh?"

Originally, the destruction of the Great Yao was none of my business, but now I have to bow down for academic credits.

Xuan Chong: "Damn, Da Yao offered you sacrifices, are you going to bless him?"

System: "You can understand it this way."

This time, Xuan Chong fell silent.

Xuan Chong thought to himself: "The main character is Da Yao (a specific character in the game), I'm just a hired hand..."

After the court assembly ended, Wu Fei prepared to leave in the crowd, but a eunuch came and pulled Wu Fei out, inviting him to a family banquet.

Wu Fei paused for a moment, then followed. They arrived at a side hall of the palace, and after being searched, he changed into a set of fine clothes—of course, for free.

Wu Fei deliberately asked Huang Men, "Can I take this outfit with me after the banquet? Or am I wearing someone else's hand-me-downs?"

After Huangmen answered the first question, he looked at Wu Fei with a strange expression.

Wu Fei, on the other hand, perked up, feeling the perks were pretty good, reminding him of the uniforms distributed at his workplace sports meets in his past life. His loyalty to Da Yao increased by 0.01%.
…Image dropped by 19%…

Beside Emperor Yao, a daughter dressed in men's clothing was summoned. Emperor Yao had six daughters of high rank, and each of them received special favor before her impending marriage.

This daughter, born to the imperial concubine, was no exception. The emperor allowed her to wear the clothes of a servant and pour wine at the table so that she could secretly observe her future husband.

At today's banquet, Wu Fei showed absolutely no awareness of the importance of meeting the princess's parents, behaving like a mere background figure, which greatly disappointed the princess. Leaving aside his speech, his posture was atrocious (leg shaking), and he ate by directly biting into fruit, whereas the elegant way to eat it was to use a gold skewer to remove the pit. Moreover, he chose only the most common, ordinary peaches.

As for music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, Wu Fei was busy accumulating credits within the Wu family's education system, which was primarily based on military principles, and didn't enroll in any "interest classes."

As for the "food intake" and "qi gathering" practices of Taoist cultivation? Wu Fei follows the data-driven approach of body fixation techniques. His diet is mainly precise, and his hourly exercise expenditure also conforms to the data system.

It is worth mentioning that the data system of the Body Fixation Technique will not give a series of "effect assessments" to rare substances such as dragon liver and phoenix gall, golden pills and fire dates in the body, and may even oppose the ingestion of "unknown" things into the body.

This approach greatly displeased Xuan Chong, who had been eager for quick success and instant benefits in his earlier years.

Xuan Chong learned that the system could digitize his body's various data. Years ago, he wanted to take some magical drugs to directly increase his "intelligence," "agility," and "physical strength."

For example, Wu Fei looked at the table full of delicacies and asked the system, "Are these really so harmful? Doesn't the Body-Immobilizing Technique database have any information on 'consuming' these?"

The system was incredibly talkative, saying, "Are you a three-year-old? You put everything in your mouth, even poop?"

After such a lack of interest in his output, Wu Fei had no appetite for the delicacies on the table.

The "stable" intake required by the body-fixing technique only includes "six domestic animals", "five grains", and "fruits and vegetables".

The system's explanation states that these edible creatures, with domestication histories exceeding a thousand years, have interacted with humans in daily life for dozens of generations. Their biological clocks are intertwined. (The following is a series of ergonomic terms that Wu Fei couldn't understand.)

In short, the "essence" transformed from the rare and precious materials of this dimension into the body through massive amplitude transformation is described in the discipline of Body Stabilization as an "enthalpy" that maintains "cellular activity." A sudden increase in such a large amount of "enthalpy" is not beneficial and can have side effects. Only "enthalpy" that is ingested in accordance with the biological clock's cyclical rhythm and increases daily possesses high stability—the "human foundation."

Wu Fei, who was looking around at the banquet, ate a few small fruits and then stared blankly like a student waiting for get out of class to end.

…The music has ended, and the banquet is about to conclude…

However, Emperor Shu was not going to let the sparrow from the south go. After the banquet, only five people remained, including the young man in charge of the Imperial Guards, who was also Emperor Shu's nephew. Emperor Shu still kept Wu Fei behind out of his favor.

Furthermore, the emperor directly brought up the topic of military training in the capital.

This time, Wu Fei wanted to remain silent, but the emperor asked directly: "Minister Wu, you are in command of troops in the southern border. You should give a brief opinion on the current border policies of the nation."

Wu Fei looked up and said, "I am new here and do not yet know the climate and environment of the North."

The emperor picked up a mirror, looked at himself, and asked, "Although you're new here, you've been following rumors for a while now. What are your thoughts on the new army?" (His tone was clearly a warning: "Don't pretend, kid.")

Wu Fei: "May I ask, Your Majesty, what is the purpose of training the troops?" — The scene fell silent instantly, and those nearby were about to rebuke him for his audacity.

Wu Fei realized his words were inappropriate and explained: "Weapons are instruments of violence. Before creating a commandable army, a general must ask himself, 'Where will I hold these weapons?' Only then can he select and train the brave soldiers."

He then explained: If the purpose of military force is "territorial expansion," then those brave and fierce individuals without family connections should be selected and managed with a strict and authoritarian approach. Food and clothing should be clearly stratified to incentivize advancement. If the purpose of military force is "to fulfill the responsibility of defending the territory," then men from respectable families should be selected, disciplined by military law, while simultaneously treated with benevolence. Generals should share meals and lodging with their soldiers.

The scene grew even quieter. What else could the emperor possibly want to train a new army for? To protect the capital and guard against ambitious individuals. But these things couldn't be said openly.

Emperor Xu smiled noncommittally: "Is this the current situation for your Wu family, with its forces operating in both the north and south?"—clearly a hint to Wu Fei. Stop making excuses; if you can't offer effective advice to the court, then let's have a proper discussion about your Wu family's current transgressions.

Seeing this, Wu Fei could not refuse any longer: "Your Majesty, I have seen several places where troops can be recruited along the way. For example, the boatmen in the Yaodu Canal can be trained and given sufficient food and salary and honors, so they can be put to war. However, Your Majesty still needs to consider the selection of generals."

Emperor Xu: "Oh, how should I choose?"

Wu Fei: "Being born into a prestigious family can suppress both civil and military officials, but being benevolent can humble oneself to help scholars."

Emperor Shu: "How are you?"

Wu Fei answered decisively, "I am not qualified."

Emperor Xu: "An ancient military sage was able to command the women in the palace to form an army."

Wu Fei: "I am no military sage." (Thinking to himself, "You are no saint either; you lack the magnanimity of a military sage who would kill a beauty.")
Emperor Xu burst into laughter.

Wu Fei was puzzled. The Emperor opened a mirror and said, "The object I am holding is called the Mirror of Inquiry. It has no other function than to see what the person answering is thinking."

Emperor Xu stared at the malfunctioning Wu Fei. Wu Fei opened his mouth, but couldn't help thinking, "How could you be so mean?!"

System: "This sentence has been blocked for you."

Xuan Chong paused for a second: "Why didn't you block me just now?"

System: "Interacting with NPCs for story quests involves necessary dialogue, which cannot be blocked."

Xuan Chong: "#&#%￥%"

(End of this chapter)