He originally intended to surrender to Wei, so why did he end up restoring Han?

Chapter 114 Wang Si: Aspiring to Become a Literary Writer

After hearing these words, everyone felt sorry for Chang Xi. He was originally the one who most wanted to join Liu Bei and the first to persuade Zang Ba and others to join Liu Bei. However, due to a series of unforeseen events, he became the only one among the generals of Mount Tai to be imprisoned here.

It's all a matter of timing and fate.

Even Ji Ling, who usually didn't get along with Chang Xi, chimed in at the right moment: "It really is as those guards said, they've become honored guests, while you've become a prisoner."

It's not surprising that Ji Ling is here. Everyone is kept in the same management office, and they've all gotten to know each other quite well, so it's common for them to visit each other and make friends. Ji Ling also took advantage of her free time to come here and see what was going on.

Upon hearing this, Changxi was overcome with grief and tore the report in front of him to shreds. He scattered the shreds on the ground, as if this would wash away all the resentment in his heart.

Although Wang Si himself has a more volatile temper than anyone else, it doesn't stop him from advising others not to get angry: "Don't get so angry, calm down, calm down."

Ji Ling chimed in, "Exactly! Even if you tear this report to shreds, Zang Ba will still comfortably remain the Chancellor of Xiapi. Your outburst won't affect him, and you won't gain anything. You'll have to rewrite the report anyway. What's the point?"

Chang Xi didn't refute, but said somewhat dejectedly, "That's true. Thinking about it, it's all my fault. Why didn't I see through Zang Ba's heartless nature back then? Now I deserve this fate."

Ever since he was captured, Chang Xi has been pondering why he ended up in this predicament.

Then he thought, what wrong had Liu Bei done? Legally speaking, both Zang Ba and he were Liu Bei's subordinates. Disobeying orders and plotting independence could essentially be considered treason. If Liu Bei had simply killed his subordinates for betrayal, the whole world wouldn't have thought anything of it; they might even have sung his praises.

But Liu Bei ultimately didn't kill him. Instead, he kept him imprisoned here, providing him with food and drink every day. Moreover, because of the forced daily training, his health had improved significantly. It didn't seem like an attempt to humiliate him; no one had dared to come and provoke him during his long stay here.

Later, he began to hate the traitors who had guided Liu Bei's army, but soon he felt relieved again. The soldiers were unwilling to lose their lives in a meaningless war. In order to save their lives and for a happier future, it was reasonable to arrest this "stubborn element."

Even now, he still hates Zang Ba, believing that this man betrayed his friends for personal gain and deceived the feelings of his brothers. However, Zang Ba did not break his promise and had been trying to negotiate peace with Liu Bei. At the same time, before Chang Xi went to Jiqiu City to garrison, Zang Ba clearly told him that the longer they held out, the more advantageous the negotiations would be for them.

Ultimately, all the problems pointed to himself. If he had thwarted Liu Bei back then, or if he hadn't agreed to Zang Ba's request, or even if he had opened the city gates after obtaining Liu Bei's letter after resisting for a while, he wouldn't have needed to come to the administration office.

Emo emotions surged up like a tide, overwhelming Changxi's heart.

Wang Si glanced at Chang Xi's blank expression as he stared ahead. He first patted Chang Xi on the back, but there was no reaction. He then waved his hand in front of Chang Xi's face, but still, Chang Xi didn't move.

He nodded excitedly and said to Ji Ling, "It seems he won't be able to get out of this anytime soon. Let's take his pen away."

As he spoke, he reached out towards the calligraphy brush that Changxi had placed on the table, intending to take it for himself.

Chang Xi immediately snapped out of his daze, slapped Wang Si's hand, and glared at him: "This is for my report. You've already received yours, go use your own!"

"My pen is worn out, can I borrow yours?"

"Get lost!"

Ji Ling, however, noticed something else and asked Wang Si, "Didn't you finish your report a long time ago? Is there anything else you need to write?"

Chang Xi, being a military commander with extensive experience, wrote his report starting from his time as a bandit in Mount Tai with Zang Ba. In contrast, Wang Si's resume as a spy was much simpler, making it much faster to write.

Wang Si didn't feel there was anything shameful about it, and immediately expressed her desire to contribute to Lu Wan's newspaper.

Lu Wan's publications were also divided into different categories. In addition to major categories such as mathematics, economics, and medicine, there were many smaller categories, including a literary section aimed at the general public. In order to inspire others to contribute, Lu Wan herself even submitted articles anonymously to the publications.

This move was, of course, motivated by ulterior motives. As previously stated, it aimed to inspire ordinary people spiritually. If a few geniuses from humble backgrounds could emerge and make some achievements in fields outside of classical studies, then Lu Su would have made a huge profit.

Newspapers from Xuzhou were naturally distributed to the Xuzhou War Criminals Management Center. In this way, these war criminals were able to cultivate their minds in their spare time, and Wang Si was one of them.

After reading one article, Wang Si became completely engrossed, searching for interesting articles to read every day. However, newspapers and magazines had only been published for less than a year, so there weren't many available for him to read, and in the end, he could only suppress his curiosity.

When people are cooped up for too long, they start thinking about creating their own content. Wang Si hadn't had any new articles to read for a long time, so he gradually started thinking about writing some articles himself.

As he wrote, he began to imagine the future—a luxury he, an intelligence operative, could only dream of. He had served under Cao Cao, his hands stained with the blood of countless people, both allies and enemies.

Now that he's in the war criminal management center, his personal safety is actually guaranteed.

Moreover, compared to the oppressive atmosphere of Cao Cao's camp, where one could easily be beheaded if not careful, life here was obviously more comfortable.

Now that life is getting better, why not take this opportunity to pursue higher-level dreams and soothe your homesick heart?

"I've been reading a lot of newspapers and magazines lately, and you know what? They're really well-written, especially the stories. I can't believe how they came up with those ideas. I just can't seem to write with that same flair."

Ji Ling looked down on the people who came in from the back gate. After all, he had been a general under Yuan Shu before, and having seen the ocean, he found it hard to be impressed by mere streams. So he didn't think much of these minor characters. Therefore, he scoffed at Wang Si's fantasies: "How did he write it? He wrote it with a pen. He's gifted, a born literary genius."

Wang Si knew he couldn't possibly compete with those people, but he couldn't just give up without even trying. He wanted to ask these two for their advice: "Do you think it's possible for me to get my article published?"

As he spoke, he pulled out a newspaper: "Look, this side says: 'Calling for submissions from all interested parties. For details, please contact the editorial department.' What does this mean? It means we can give it a try too."

"This isn't a simple matter, is it? What do you want to write?"

Even though Ji Ling had no experience in literary creation or even any literary background, it didn't stop him from pouring cold water on Wang Si's creative enthusiasm.

They are prisoners of war now, and being alive is already a great fortune. To even think about publishing their personal hobbies in newspapers seems like a very challenging endeavor.

"I've been thinking, what do people like to watch these days? After much thought, based on my years of experience as an undercover agent, I think people still prefer to watch something tense and exciting."

"Tense and exciting? You're not planning to write something that violates the rules, are you? If so, I'm going to report you!" Ji Ling's words were indeed quite intimidating. After these people were arrested, many of them tried to escape, but they were all caught and brought back one by one.

Thirty percent of the people were arrested because they were unfamiliar with the area and wandered off, resulting in them being tied up by nearby villagers. Another seventy percent were reported by acquaintances and were violently suppressed by the guards before any action could even begin.

The guards didn't beat people. Their textbooks taught them that the worse you treat someone, the more ruthless you suppress them, the more they will see it as the result of their resistance, and then imagine themselves as heroes resisting Liu Bei's tyranny, thus fighting even harder.

Therefore, for those incorrigible prisoners, there's no need for elaborate tricks; simply locking them in a pitch-black cell is sufficient. Meals are delivered irregularly, and before long, the person inside will lose their sense of time and gradually begin to go insane.

After enduring the torment of darkness and loneliness, none of the prisoners could remain defiant after being locked up for seven days. Upon their release, they were all reluctant to discuss their experiences in the solitary confinement cell and declared that they would rather be enslaved by others than return.

However, most prisoners of war who had been inside the solitary confinement cell gave it positive reviews, and even told newcomers that they should all go inside at least once in their lives, or they would regret it for the rest of their lives.

Wang Si immediately retorted, "Of course it's not that kind of low-class stuff. What I'm going to write is the story of when we were spies for Cao Cao, based on what I know and have experienced. That way, it won't disgrace my status as a scholar, and it will also attract readers."

Ji Ling laughed out loud after hearing this, and said sarcastically, "You guys have nothing to offer? Oh my, don't kid me. What kind of story could you possibly have? Throwing stones at people? Seriously, if I were you, I would keep this secret to my grave, let alone write it down."

Wang Si naturally couldn't sit idly by while Ji Ling mocked him. With his fiery temper, he was capable of going crazy and catching flies when they landed on his pen. If he couldn't catch them, he would take his anger out on his pen, stomping it to pieces before he felt relieved.

"What do you know? That was a mistake. If Cao Cao, that idiot, hadn't suddenly ordered us to contact Lu Wan, none of this would have happened. Ultimately, it's all Cao Cao's fault!"

"You, Ji Ling, have the nerve to talk back to me? I've never seen anyone squander their lord's elite troops in one fell swoop."

Wang Si certainly had his reasons. At the time, the Xuzhou intelligence station was in a state of disarray, with soldiers unfamiliar with their generals and generals unfamiliar with their soldiers, due to the large number of arrests during its initial reconstruction. It was under these circumstances that he was appointed as the head of the Xuzhou intelligence station.

In this situation, even gathering low-value intelligence required careful consideration, let alone contacting high-ranking officials on the other side. Cao Cao, an amateur, was instructing professionals, believing that these newly recruited spies could complete their mission in a few months.

This wasn't just wishful thinking; it was pure fantasy. After Wang Si was arrested, Cao Cao acted as if he were dead, showing absolutely no intention of rescuing him. (Actually, Cao Cao was also unable to directly contact Liu Bei to release Wang Si because Lu Wan was injured.) What more could be said? Wang Si was utterly disillusioned with Cao Cao.

During this time, Cao Cao did consider ransoming Wang Si, but the messenger who had gone downstairs had not taken the stairs and could no longer come, so Wang Si remained imprisoned here.

Seeing Wang Si arguing with Ji Ling again, Chang Xi's previously heavy mood eased a bit, and he teased Ji Ling, "Exactly! Back then, Governor Liu only had a little over ten thousand men. You all had forty thousand men attacking together. Even if every one of his soldiers could take on two men, you all would have won. But what happened? The whole army was wiped out!"

Ji Ling blushed immediately, stubbornly retorting, "They weren't all wiped out; about a hundred or so people managed to escape!"

"What's there to be proud of?!"

"Alright, I'll be blunt. I don't think you can get this done, so don't waste your time. No matter what, what you've written will have a very hard time passing the censorship. If the censor knew that this article was written by a war criminal, he most likely wouldn't let you pass."

Wang Si didn't care about Ji Ling's discouraging remarks. Anyway, he had nothing to do every day, and writing was just a way to pass the time.

Is Ji Ling here? No one's in his dorm.

A familiar voice reached their ears, and they immediately recognized it as the guard's voice.

Thinking someone was looking for him, Ji Ling immediately stretched out his hand to indicate that he was there, and at the same time shouted to the guard, "I'm here! I'm here."

The guard nodded and said, "Yes, come with me. The warden wants to see you."

They need to see him? His report was finished a long time ago, and he hasn't done anything disciplinary recently. Could it be someone's trying to bail him out? But Yuan Shu has been dead for over a year. Wait, are they going to execute him?

Wang Si and Chang Xi also looked at Ji Ling. They didn't know what had happened either and wanted to ask the guard, but the guard had already walked away. In the end, they could only stand up and silently watch Ji Ling leave. The room returned to the silence that had filled the room when the group of strangers didn't know each other at the beginning.