Chapter 1828 – The Beauty’s Disruption (Part 1)
Cheng Jing chuckled, “My dear junior brothers are all proud and ambitious. How could they be content to assist a mediocre ruler?”
Whether it was Wei Ci, Yang Si, Han Yu, or Lü Zheng, and even others who had gradually entered government service but remained nameless, who among them did not harbor the aspiration to uphold justice and achieve greatness? Their reasons for entering service varied; some sought to bring glory to their families, others aimed for lasting fame, some wished to cleanse the chaos of the world, while others simply wished to act according to their principles. Ultimately, they all converged on the idea that to realize their ideals, they needed a wise and capable ruler. A mediocre monarch could hardly suppress such aspirations.
Mr. Yuanjing’s complaints about the inner circle were true enough, but it was a mutual agreement—everyone was willing to go along with it.
If one were to entrust their talents to a mediocre or even foolish ruler, that would indeed be a tragedy and misfortune.
Mr. Yuanjing murmured, “That said, Jiang Jun is quite different…”
Cheng Jing pressed, “Different how?”
Mr. Yuanjing smiled, “In every way.”
Dejected, Cheng Jing complained, “Now the teacher is speaking in riddles again.”
Mr. Yuanjing chuckled, and with his laughter deepening, his grin hinted more at “shrewd cunning.”
“Not long ago, I calculated something. Guess what I found?” Mr. Yuanjing gestured as if counting on his fingers, trying to pique his disciple’s curiosity. Unfortunately, his disciple had already grown up and was not as easily fooled as in his youth, leaving Mr. Yuanjing to reveal the answer without much fanfare, “In just a few months, it will be your great opportunity to enter service. How do you feel about that? Are you excited? Are you ready?”
Cheng Jing’s expression darkened as he suddenly grasped what Mr. Yuanjing was hinting at.
Years ago, when Huang Song was defeated and captured, Cheng Jing had also become a prisoner. Jiang Pengji and Wei Ci both hoped for Cheng Jing to enter service, but he insisted on waiting until Jiang Pengji demonstrated her legitimacy. If Mr. Yuanjing was saying this, did it not imply that a united world was merely a few months away?
He inquired, “Is there really no variable with Jiang Jun ascending the throne?”
Mr. Yuanjing responded, “The imperial star is besieged from both sides, the heavenly mechanisms are in chaos; a shift could happen at any moment. However, Jiang Jun has risen from obscurity to where she is today; why shouldn’t we believe she can continue to win? One with a resolute heart will surely achieve what ordinary folks cannot.”
Cheng Jing hesitated to speak, while Mr. Yuanjing stroked his beard with a smile.
“We are fortunate to be living in this era, witnessing her write a new chapter in history. Truly a blessing!”
Cheng Jing looked at his smiling teacher and finally understood the implication of just watching the show—no need to say anything!
For some reason, Cheng Jing felt a deeper sense of sympathy and concern for Jiang Pengji.
“Don’t you worry that she might lose and then everything changes?”
Mr. Yuanjing gazed into the night and scoffed, “Life is fleeting; I am quite an old man now. How many years do I have left? Even if everything changes, what matter? When I take my last breath and am buried in the earth, who cares for the living?”
Cheng Jing: “……”
It sounded reasonable, but his juniors still had many years to live! He couldn’t be so carefree!
He shouldn’t have come to find his teacher today. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have been sent by his teacher’s wife to deliver snacks to Wei Ci, and if he hadn’t delivered snacks, he wouldn’t have been caught by Wei Ci’s complaints and heard such explosive news… If he hadn’t heard such explosive news, he wouldn’t have come back to chat with his teacher, and if he didn’t chat with his teacher, he wouldn’t be feeling so anxious now.
Oh, sigh…
Mr. Yuanjing mimicked his disciple’s sigh and remarked, “When the immortals battle, we mere mortals just watch.”
Who knows, one day he might wake up to find the immortals had already finished their fight.
Mr. Yuanjing knew a bit of the underlying story, but only a little. Besides being a spectator, there was nothing he could do.
In this regard, he shared the same attitude as Liu Zhi, and even their words were similar.
Cheng Jing: “……”
The ignorant and the informed are the happiest; the former know nothing and thus have no worries, while the latter know everything and see no need to fret. The most pitiful is the one who knows just enough to be anxious, like him—his heart felt like it had feathers poking at it, itching and yet distressing.
Yet Mr. Yuanjing refused to reveal more, leaving Cheng Jing to sigh and remain a mere observer.
As for the so-called “battle of immortals,” they didn’t know when it started or when it would end.
So the question arises,
What significance lies in him peeking just a bit into the truth?
Aside from meaningless worries, was there any other practical use?
Its only purpose seemed to be to delay the chapter a bit longer, allowing the lazily late-stage author to procrastinate for another day.
“Little Sister?”
Half a month later, the Eldest Princess Jiang Lian walked more steadily, not only able to run a few steps without falling but even able to jump up and down in place.
This day, she rolled around outside until covered in dust, tired from playing and ready to bother her little sister.
As soon as she entered the room, she found a chubby little thing clinging to her sister.
With possessive instincts flaring, Princess Lian sprinted over and tackled the newcomer solidly, rolling around a couple of times, revealing a touch of adorable ferocity on her little face!
The fierce Princess Lian made a fierce face, pointing her chubby finger at the Second Princess and shouting, “That’s my little sister!”
The chubby little thing was dizzy from the tumble and felt utterly wronged as the sturdy Eldest Princess pounced on her, instantly bursting into loud wails.
The maidservant had been startled by the Eldest Princess’s antics but dared not step forward to pull her away from the furious Princess.
In an instant, the room was filled with the resounding cries of a young boy, tears streaming down like little raindrops.
Princess Lian still refused to back down, shaking her little fist in front of the newcomer in a menacing manner.
“Your Highness, this is the Second Young Master Feng. You can’t hurt him…”
The maidservant and the housemaid knelt, while the Lady Official, summoning her courage, pleaded, but the one-year-old Princess Lian had no idea who Second Young Master Feng was.
She merely saw someone clinging to her sister.
Confidently pointing at the Second Princess, she reiterated, “That’s my little sister!”
The Lady Official found herself at a loss for words, torn between laughter and tears at the Eldest Princess’s stubbornness.
The Second Princess was of course the Eldest Princess’s younger sister; that was obvious to everyone.
“This Second Young Master Feng is the Second Princess’s friend.”
The Lady Official repeated in hopes the Eldest Princess would calm down.
The Eldest Princess didn’t understand what “friend” meant but felt it wasn’t a good term.
Wasn’t her sister hers?
How did she become someone else’s?
The typically cheerful Eldest Princess felt wronged upon hearing that, her lips quivering as tears welled in her eyes, dropping down one by one.
The Lady Official sensed the tension rising and instinctively shot a look for help at the Second Princess.
Hoping that the one causing this dispute between the two little ones could come over and tidy up this mess.
To her surprise, the little boy just sat there watching the show.
The Second Young Master Feng cried out loudly, and the Eldest Princess, who was initially just crying softly, learned from him and began wailing as well.
