Chapter 1397 – Southern Prosperity, the Autumn of Chaos (Twenty-Three)
Liu Zhi’s face revealed a hint of surprise and disbelief as Jiang Pengji calmly gazed at him, unwavering.
“Is this matter really that important to you?”
Liu Zhi raised his eyebrows slightly, his gaze towards Jiang Pengji mixed with complexity. He wasn’t the gossipy type, but he was quite curious about the history Gu Min knew, particularly who was fortunate enough to pluck this unreachable flower. He had considered Qi Guanrang at one point, but after Qi Guanrang married Wei Yuan’s eldest daughter, Liu Zhi had crossed him off the list. Now—he was somewhat uncertain.
Could it be Qi Guanrang would lose his wife in the future, and only after years would the two secretly achieve their desires?
If that were the case, where would Wei Ci fit in?
Jiang Pengji was unaware of Liu Zhi’s train of thought and said coolly, “To be frank, this is the basic attitude required for an alliance.”
“I didn’t send anyone to kill him,” Liu Zhi shook his head in denial, but suddenly remembered something. He added uncertainly, “However, I can’t guarantee that I truly didn’t. All living beings are driven by emotions; he’s no exception. But he is proud and self-important, viewing such emotions as burdens, voluntarily discarding that part of himself. This part of him eventually became a separate ‘Liu Zhi.’ Though he is independent now, they share the same origin, and he still retains his strength. If he were to borrow my hands for something without me noticing, I wouldn’t detect it at all.”
Liu Zhi loathed this state of affairs.
The other party had once taken advantage of a gap, seized control of this body, and brutally snuffed out the life of Gu Min, who had just given birth.
Not just Gu Min, but the two heirs who had died young before also seemed intertwined with this figure.
Liu Zhi dared not think…
How desperate and resentful Gu Min must have been in her final moments!
She had always been a clever person. The entity controlling her probably wanted to kill Gu Min because she had learned things she wasn’t supposed to, threatening their very existence. For instance… the truth behind the deaths of the two heirs, which the entity feared she might reveal.
Jiang Pengji said, “During that assassination, Wen Zheng was injured on his left hand. According to him, the behavior of those assassins was quite strange; it didn’t seem like they truly intended to kill him but rather were testing something. Initially, I suspected you had sent them to probe whether Wen Zheng was my soft spot.”
Liu Zhi was puzzled, “Soft spot?”
Jiang Pengji replied, “The person I trust the most, the one I least guard against—that is my soft spot.”
Liu Zhi fell into an unusual silence for a moment.
“Forgive my bluntness, but such a person can’t exist, can they?”
“One must have dreams; perhaps it has been guessed!” Jiang Pengji maintained her usual calm tone as if stating, “Today is a sunny day.” She continued, “I have my reasons for suspecting you. Before our alliance, weren’t you my enemy? As a normal father, who would enjoy a ghost taking over their daughter’s body and identity, audaciously claiming everything and thriving because of it? If I were that father, I’d throw a punch and knock that shameless outsider out! I even suspected that Liu Xi wasn’t dead; she might still be lurking in some corner of the world! Once I’ve unified this world and stand at the pinnacle of power, would you welcome her back to seize this body and identity…”
The positions of Liu Zhi and Jiang Pengji had always been oppositional.
Jiang Pengji occupied Liu Zhi’s daughter’s body, and Liu Zhi was fully aware—why would he like her?
Simply because she could achieve what Liu Xi could never accomplish?
Liu Zhi was no Gu Zhen; he might not place much value on fame and fortune.
The two could only tear off their false masks and converse calmly due to their shared enemies, forced into an alliance.
As Jiang Pengji spoke, cracks appeared in Liu Zhi’s typically calm expression.
“After a person’s death, it takes time for their spirit to fully dissipate; however, when I entered this body, it was still warm. In other words, someone had swiftly taken away the real Liu Xi. As soon as Liu Xi left, I arrived. Who took Liu Xi? It’s hardly a mystery. I certainly have reason to suspect you and that person are in cahoots, having reached some mutual agreement. Facing a ‘killing daughter’s enemy’ every day while acting calm and composed, playing the role of a benevolent father—your professionalism is indisputable,” Jiang Pengji said in a tone of “just as I thought,” “My wild guesses aren’t without basis, right?”
Liu Zhi was rendered speechless, then finally managed to retort.
“Knowing I have malice towards you, you can still act calm and play along with me. Truly worthy of a future emperor; indeed impressive.”
Jiang Pengji replied, “The reason why conspiracies are frightening is due to the element of ‘darkness’; the unknown dangers are the hardest to guard against. To me, you belong to the ‘known.’ Meanwhile, you are unaware of my ‘malice’ towards you. Who should be more afraid?”
Liu Zhi: “…”
He was truly at a loss for words. He initially thought he was taking Jiang Pengji seriously, but this person was more challenging than he expected.
Jiang Pengji said, “Speaking of which, I’m suddenly very curious about something. Could dear ally provide some answers?”
Liu Zhi: “…”
Could he say no?
If they continued chatting, he genuinely questioned whether his decision to ally with Jiang Pengji was right or wrong.
In some respects, Jiang Pengji was much scarier than the system entity.
“You, as part of the system’s separation, giving up cooperation with him and the plan to let Liu Xi return to occupy my body… there must be a reason, right? If the reasoning isn’t sufficient, I genuinely doubt your sincerity in cooperating with me or if you are deliberately deceiving me.”
Liu Zhi remained silent for a long time; he refused to answer that question, but Jiang Pengji could guess.
For Liu Zhi, was there anyone more important than his daughter Liu Xi and son Liu Zhao?
The person who would make him abandon cooperation with the system and turn to Jiang Pengji for an alliance could only be one answer—
Gu Min!
“Is Gu Min’s death related to the system entity?” Jiang Pengji asserted confidently, “You mentioned before that the system entity occupied your body, using it to do things you didn’t wish to, while you remained unaware. I’ll boldly speculate; could it be that guy used your body to harm Gu Min… or worse, killed her? You know the truth, which is why you resolutely overturned previous plans to ally with me?”
Liu Zhi caught a glimpse of her and coldly retorted, “Could you shut your mouth!”
Knowing it was a sensitive topic, she still insistently stepped on it…
If it weren’t for the opponent’s strength, he’d definitely have someone bag her and beat her to death!
“It seems I’ve hit the mark,” Jiang Pengji stated without surprise. “Since this body belongs to your daughter, our positions are opposed, and there’s no chance of peaceful coexistence. Once the system entity is dealt with, if you don’t want to die, it’s best to find yourself a way out.”
Once the system was dead, Jiang Pengji would have no reservations, and she’d personally eliminate all threats.
She hoped Liu Zhi wouldn’t do anything to cross her bottom line.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t show any mercy.
