Chapter 460

Chapter 460

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Side Story Side Story 8 (4)

He was indeed too careless!

Facing multiple crises in a very short time, he naturally focused his energy on mastering the intelligence of Da Yong, leading him to fall into a misconception due to the external appearance Da Yong presented.

In the burst of information he encountered in a very short time, the Emperor of Da Yong had been on the throne for twelve years, still in the prime of life, only thirty-four years old. Under her rule, the world had already achieved great governance, with developments in artillery, paper currency replacing copper coins, and overseas territorial expansion. One could imagine—

Under the leadership of such an Emperor, everyone should be striving to excel, actively forging ahead, wishing to lay the foundation for Da Yong’s eternal legacy in just a few decades.

The efficient operation of the Three Departments and Six Ministries system and the flow of talent through the imperial examination system were clearly products of such a competitive atmosphere.

Everyone should complete their tasks as quickly as possible.

With this in mind, and to quickly get past Qiao Yan, Guo Jia chose to report early.

But from the news spoken by the little princess, it seems that Guo Jia still maintains the habit of arriving exactly on time, never early?

He thought again and felt that this was indeed possible.

If subordinates were pushed to their limits, Guo Jia of this world should not have such a healthy physique, Da Yong’s various endeavors should not be flourishing, and the slow-paced life on the streets of Luoyang should not exist…

But he only realized this fact now, which seems a bit late.

Fortunately, it was just a five-year-old child who exposed this, not the current Emperor.

There should still be a way to muddle through…

“Governor Guo, do you know?” Qiao Huan tilted her head and said seriously, interrupting Guo Jia’s thoughts, “Mother Emperor said that when your eyes roll like that, you must be thinking of some trick to deceive others. She told me not to forget the lesson of almost being tricked into revealing the list of Suiyuan City’s hunting tour.”

Guo Jia: “…”

“Let me guess.” The future Taizong Emperor, who would later enjoy writing storybooks, not only showed her extraordinary observational skills but also her habit of deduction and fabrication.

“Are you afraid that Mr. Xi will intercept you at the palace gate on time, follow you back, and trick you out of the fine wine buried under the tree?”

After resigning from the Ministry of Works, Xi Zhicai was assigned by Qiao Yan to be Qiao Huan’s imperial tutor, also holding the idle position of Grand Master of Splendid Happiness.

After dealing with the political affairs and Qiao Huan’s studies, he often chatted with this exceptionally intelligent crown prince about court officials’ gossip.

Ordinary children might just listen and forget, but who is Qiao Huan?

She has an excellent memory!

Seeing her precocious demeanor and her proud posture while guessing, Guo Jia couldn’t help but laugh.

Whoever taught this child came up with such a plausible reason.

She even told him that after finding a solution to the problem of replacing another version of himself, he could at least get some reward—drinking that jar of wine.

This reason, in a way, is something he would do.

What a clever person.

Seeing Guo Jia nod in agreement with her judgment, Qiao Huan waved her hand, “Alright, I won’t trouble you anymore. If we delay any longer, you’ll have to face the Emperor exactly on time.”

Guo Jia smiled, “Then, see you later.”

However, as Guo Jia continued towards Lantai, his figure gradually disappearing from Qiao Huan’s sight, he did not see Qiao Huan saying to Sun Ren, who had arrived by her side, “Later, I must tell Mother Emperor that Governor Guo’s situation is not right.”

Sun Ren, who had been assigned by Qiao Yan to Qiao Huan’s side since last year, temporarily holding the position of Golden Guard, was responsible for teaching Qiao Huan physical fitness skills. Hearing Qiao Huan’s serious tone, she immediately asked, “Why is that?”

Just now, she followed Qiao Huan nearby, ensuring the other did not leave her sight. Although she did not rush to the front of the conversation between the adult and the child, if she did not see wrongly, the conversation should have been harmonious?

Qiao Huan lifted her neck and replied confidently, “Every time he hears my guess, he makes up another reason, just to make me think more. This time, he actually went along with my words, definitely not normal.”

“Wait and see, he must have done something bad.”

Still holding her hands behind her back, Qiao Huan, though young and often acting childishly, somehow made Sun Ren feel that this child, when grown, would surely be as shrewd as the Emperor.

On the other hand, Guo Jia, who had been concluded by Qiao Huan as “having done something bad,” stood before Qiao Yan with a nervous heart.

Seeing the prosperous scene under Da Yong’s rule undoubtedly made Guo Jia have infinite speculations about this Emperor before meeting her.

To emerge from the chaotic late Han period, where heroes frequently appeared, and directly interrupt the development conditions of Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Sun Quan, and Liu Bei, replacing the Han Dynasty’s foundation as the absolute winner with the upper hand in public opinion, this Emperor’s character needs no further explanation.

She even broke through the ordinary notion that women could not be respected, completely overcoming the gender disadvantage, and sat on the throne of the Son of Heaven.

What’s even more terrifying is not her ability to gather talents first and develop military advantages, but—

For others, becoming the ruler of the world is the end of their career, but for Qiao Yan, it is very likely just her starting point!

But such a person, even in his original era, due to some special reasons, did not ride the first wave of success as in this world, should have seized other opportunities to rise to the top, not…

Not like never having heard of her… right?

“Fengxiao?” Qiao Yan, holding a vermilion brush, looked at Guo Jia, seeing a fleeting look of confusion on his face, and interrupted his momentarily straying thoughts.

Guo Jia immediately realized that no matter how many thoughts he had, he must not reveal any in front of this discerning Emperor.

He should now focus all his attention on expressing the contents of the debriefing document, rather than pondering how the other ascended to the throne!

But what Guo Jia did not expect was that after he thoroughly integrated the document with Zhuge Liang’s assistance yesterday and presented it to Qiao Yan in a smooth tone, he was prepared for various questions from Qiao Yan, but only heard her ask, “By the way, how is Yilang’s health?”

The Yilang in Qiao Yan’s mouth was, of course, Guo Jia’s son, Guo Yi.

Hearing this question, Guo Jia almost replied without thinking, “Thanks to Your Majesty’s blessings, he is already fine.”

Qiao Yan placed the brush on the desk, “That’s good. I have been thinking of sending Huaixu to Leping for studies recently. If Yilang’s health is improving, why not send him there as well, so they can look after each other.”

She took the document handed over by Guo Jia, flipped through a few pages, and then said, “Actually, whether this debriefing is necessary for Yanzhou’s situation, we both know. The top priority recently is still in the western expedition. Just proceed according to the plan you listed. I know that placing you and Wenhe in the governor’s position is a waste of talent, but he is not suitable for the central court, and you are unwilling to stay in Luoyang for long.”

“But this time, stay in Luoyang a bit longer, and return after the paper currency issuance is completed.”

Guo Jia understood the implied meaning in Qiao Yan’s words.

Yanzhou is close to Luoyang, and the issuance of paper currency would inevitably involve this area.

Perhaps a few counties, perhaps most of the region, in any case, it requires the cooperation of him, the Governor of Yanzhou.

But having his carefully prepared speech brushed off so lightly made him feel extremely uncomfortable.

“Is there anything else to report?” Qiao Yan raised her eyes and asked.

Guo Jia replied, “No, I have an appointment with Wenruo, so I will take my leave now.”

Regardless of whether the lack of two inquiries made last night’s preparations useless, Qiao Yan was far more approachable than he imagined, undoubtedly good news.

Now, it’s time to discuss the next steps with Zhuge Liang!

But as Guo Jia took his leave, and the palace gate of Lantai closed in front of Qiao Yan, her expression suddenly darkened.

Before the lingering sound of the door closing ended, the system heard Qiao Yan’s slightly urgent voice, “Do you have the ability to detect the situation of outsiders?”

The child Qiao Huan could see that something was definitely wrong with Guo Jia today based on his actions and words. Qiao Yan, who had known Guo Jia for twenty years, how could she not see this!

Even if Guo Jia felt that he had quickly mastered a batch of this world’s knowledge, in front of Qiao Yan, he was still full of flaws.

What’s more, the Emperor herself was a transmigrator with experience in soul transmigration, and she had a more sensitive intuition than anyone else for such abnormal behaviors!

Guo Jia’s performance today was not like facing her, but like facing a completely unfamiliar and strong-willed Emperor.

Before the system could answer, it heard Qiao Yan continue, “When I mentioned Guo Yi, he answered almost without hesitation, clearly showing no doubt that Guo Yi was his acquaintance, a completely genuine familiarity. But he said that Guo Yi’s health was improving thanks to me, indicating he has no memory of this world.”

Otherwise, he would not know that Guo Yi had already gone to Leping with Zhuge Ke last year for studies and was currently undergoing training in Lü Bu’s Suiyuan City in July, with no health issues.

But this question about Guo Yi’s health was asked by Qiao Yan in a casual, almost leisurely tone, so how could Guo Jia, with no memory of this place, think that this was Qiao Yan’s way of testing his true situation.

He would not have thought that from his speech today and his reaction to Guo Yi’s name, combined with over twenty years of modern society influence before transmigrating to the late Eastern Han, Qiao Yan immediately judged his identity.

“If I’m not mistaken, he is another Guo Jia, isn’t he?”

The system’s slightly delayed response rang in Qiao Yan’s head: [Yes.]

Upon receiving this reply instead of an “I don’t know” answer, Qiao Yan slightly relaxed.

Then she continued to ask, “Then, as the most unscientific existence in this world, can you tell me how he came here, and where the original Fengxiao went?”

The system heard clearly that in the latter half of Qiao Yan’s sentence, there was a kind of majestic authority from long-term high position, also showing her exceptionally clear attitude.

Compared to why another Guo Jia appeared in this Guo Jia’s body, whether other systems had intervened in this world, she cared more about the whereabouts of the original Guo Jia!

A classic question is, when a person has different life experiences at the turning point of the world, whether the two directions developed can still be considered the same person.

At least in Qiao Yan’s judgment criteria, no!

Another Guo Jia did not experience the process of creating the Da Yong foundation from scratch with her, was not the Guo Jia who rushed to Bingzhou due to Xi Zhicai’s letters and proposed the strategy of killing Hu to redeem death, becoming her subordinate.

So no matter if he has Guo Jia’s name and some of the other’s early-formed habits, he is not her Governor of Yanzhou!

The system whispered back: [I must first clarify, this matter cannot be considered my fault.]








Qiao Yan sighed, “Speak, I’m listening.”

“Ten years ago, when you asked your subordinates who the top strategist in the world was, and the main quest was successfully completed and settled, I submitted the results. But with so many systems running simultaneously, to prevent any system from muddying the waters, there are specialists who come to verify the results.”

“The timing of this verification is uncertain; it could be immediate feedback after submission, or it could be five or ten years later, in short…”

“In short, I only recently underwent verification?”

“That’s correct, and because the person who came was a novice, it directly caused a brief overlap between this parallel timeline and the official Three Kingdoms history, bringing several figures from the official Three Kingdoms history here.”

“But don’t worry!” The system quickly raised its tone, “We absolutely must fix such low-level errors. At most, within a month, these people will return to their original trajectories. During this period, your subordinates…”

“Just consider them as spectators watching the current situation.”

Qiao Yan held her forehead; the system’s assurance of “within a month” did not make her feel any relief.

What made her even more speechless was obviously the mention of “several” figures from the official Three Kingdoms history.

One would be manageable, but several?

The court system of Da Yong and the situation at the end of the Han Dynasty had changed so much over the past dozen years that they were almost completely different. In such a situation, any node suddenly filled with an existence not suited to this place, like Guo Jia reporting to her today, might sound fine at first but still carried a subtle unfamiliarity.

If several more people appeared like this, her governance might face some disturbances.

Especially if Liu Bei, Sun Ce, Sun Quan, and Yuan Shao appeared here, it would be manageable since they either no longer had corresponding bodies or were under Qiao Yan’s strict control.

But if Cao Cao, who was currently on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, suddenly became the King of Wei Cao Cao from another world, who knows what chaos he might cause.

Twelve years on the throne as the Son of Heaven gave Qiao Yan the confidence that even if he dared to establish an independent regime in Tibet, she had the means to quickly suppress it. But if this incident harmed her relationship with her subordinates, she would definitely argue with the troublemaker to the end!

“Who has been replaced by their counterparts from the original historical trajectory? And why didn’t you tell me in advance?” Qiao Yan asked after some consideration.

The system replied, “I originally thought that with their intelligence and being in another world’s version of themselves, they wouldn’t be easily discovered, enough to hide their identities before being corrected.”

Who knew Guo Jia would directly run into Qiao Yan and expose his identity in such a low-level manner.

“As for who has been replaced… we’ll have to wait until the system maintenance bureau arrives to know.”

What’s the use of this system anyway!

Considering the system hadn’t messed up in fulfilling the life-extension promise after completing the task and had made an indelible contribution in her early foundation-laying, Qiao Yan didn’t actually say this out loud. Instead, after Qiao Huan came to report Guo Jia’s unusual behavior, she praised her a few times and assigned a task to her subordinates:

Go check who Guo Jia has been in contact with.

And secretly investigate in Luoyang City to see if anyone else is behaving unusually.

Feeling she had made a great contribution, Qiao Huan looked at her mother curiously and asked, “Are we going to keep them under surveillance now?”

“It’s fine,” Qiao Yan patted her head, “It’s not contagious.”

——————

Of course, it wasn’t contagious; at most, it was just a group of sudden tourists.

Thinking of these people who thrived in the late Han history and the Five Barbarians’ chaos she couldn’t help but think of during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Qiao Yan suddenly felt that having the chance to meet these people might not be a bad thing.

But these visitors from another world couldn’t just hide in the shadows; they had to follow her rules.

Fortunately, this long-renewed Da Yong territory didn’t give them any room to hide themselves.

This was probably due to the difference in aura.

Just after Cao Ang noticed something unusual, Cao Cao welcomed an envoy led by Cai Zhaoji and settled them in the camp. Feeling more adapted to this place after confiding in his eldest son, Cao Cao was completely unaware that on the very first night of their stay, Jiang Tang asked Cai Zhaoji, “Do you think General Cao’s situation is the same as yours?”

Over a decade of experience in the Western Regions had completely erased any trace of Jiang Tang’s Qiang origins when she spoke the official language of Da Yong.

And on her face, roughened by the northwest wind and sand, her eyes, which had been confused when she first entered the Huangzhong Valley, now shone with a sharp edge.

She was indeed engaged in translation work, but the translation for the Emperor of Da Yong’s envoys to various small countries was not the same as that of ordinary civil officials.

Cai Zhaoji met her questioning gaze, hesitated for a moment, but then nodded.

Not long after she became another version of herself from another world, Jiang Tang, who was traveling with her, noticed something unusual about her situation.

This really couldn’t be blamed on her poor concealment.

She wasn’t like Cao Cao, who was directly dropped into the position of the highest military commander with Cao Ang and Cao Hong to back him up, nor was she like Guo Jia and Zhuge Liang, who were placed in Luoyang City with access to information and able to help each other out.

The moment she wrote the name Cai Yan, she completely exposed her unusual origins.

The Cai Zhaoji of this world would never write this name, the same as the Emperor’s.

What made it even harder for Cai Zhaoji to quickly adapt was that she couldn’t possibly get used to the fact that women in this world could hold important official positions, even equivalent to the Three Excellencies!

When she heard from Jiang Tang about this Cai Zhaoji’s promotion history, it almost completely overturned her cognition.

But the bound volumes of the Leping Monthly Report she carried with the army told her in the most straightforward way that this was indeed happening here, and words could wield such astonishing power in her hands.

And this was just one of the many endeavors in her over thirty years of life.

Compared to her own experiences of being exiled to the Xiongnu, captured by the Left Virtuous King, having two children with the Xiongnu, being ransomed back, remarrying, and then pleading for her husband’s life after he committed a capital crime, the Cai Zhaoji of this world seemed like a completely different person.

Perhaps the only similarity was that they both had photographic memories and exceptional literary talents.

Because of this vastly different history, she even felt like a thief sitting here, stealing someone else’s position.

But Jiang Tang, who was traveling with her, didn’t detain her. Instead, she recorded everything Cai Zhaoji said, sent a letter to Luoyang, and still led her up to the plateau to carry out the Emperor’s mission of meeting the queens of Tangmo.

But before that, another unexpected event occurred.

Cao Cao had also been replaced by his counterpart from another world.

Both of them keenly noticed something unusual from Cao Cao’s attitude towards Cai Zhaoji.

In such a short time, Cao Cao from another world couldn’t fully adapt his cognition. Although he showed respect to the envoy, he hadn’t yet realized that Cai Zhaoji of this world was an equal to Cao Cao in status, not just a simple female official.

His behavior was still somewhat careless.

“What should we do now?” This sudden change made Cai Zhaoji couldn’t help but ask Jiang Tang.

Should they temporarily halt their actions?

Especially, thinking that she was now the leader of this team, Cai Zhaoji felt the heavy responsibility almost crushing her, rather than feeling elated by the sudden favorable treatment.

However, what she heard was Jiang Tang’s affirmative reply, “No, even if General Cao has been replaced, it doesn’t change our plans. The Emperor wouldn’t want us to miss the best opportunity to reclaim Tangmo.”

Jiang Tang walked back and forth in the tent a few times and said, “We’ll send a message to the Emperor informing him of General Cao’s situation and continue our actions.”

Hearing this decision, Cai Zhaoji bit her lip and finally asked the question that had been on her mind for two days: “But aren’t you afraid that my presence might delay this operation? Maybe it’s better to stay here temporarily and wait for the Emperor’s instructions.”

“No,” Jiang Tang shook her head, “This isn’t a real battle, but it’s the same as the urgency in combat. Because of the battle General Cao and the others completed first, plus the new artillery being put to use, all conditions for Tangmo to make a decision are already in place. Any hesitation at this point might make them think that Da Yong still fears the unknown Tibetan plateau, and that’s definitely not what the Emperor wants to see.”

“If we hesitate now and let the message delay for half a month, it will be much more troublesome to disband these independent countries after reclaiming the Western Regions!”

Jiang Tang’s judgment was absolutely correct, and Cai Zhaoji was convinced by her words.

But she was just afraid…

“Look, your memory is impeccable; you’ve remembered everything I told you on this journey.”

Jiang Tang squatted down, took Cai Zhaoji’s hand, and said earnestly, “I’ve also heard about your other life and know you have a heart stronger than anyone else’s. This belief is what we need to pass on to those Qiang people.”

Isn’t this also the character of Huaxia?

Cai Zhaoji was stunned by these words when she felt something being placed in her hand as Jiang Tang finished speaking.

When she opened her palm, she saw a piece of candy wrapped in oil paper.

Jiang Tang smiled, “The Emperor once gave me a piece of ginger candy, and now I give you one. But after eating it, we have to prepare for work.”

“By the way, cheer up, don’t let this world’s you look down on you! After all—”

“How do you know she’s not watching your performance?”

Author’s note:

I was thinking, would it be too cruel to let Zhaoji see this place and then return to her original world, but I still hope that the historical Cai Zhaoji could travel to this world and take a look.

Yesterday, I mentioned “The Later Han Dynasty: Biographies of Exemplary Women: Dong Si’s Wife,” which reads:

Si was the Commandant of Tuntian, committed a crime punishable by death, and Wenji went to Cao Cao to plead for him.

At that time, the hall was full of famous scholars and envoys from afar. Cao Cao said to the guests, “Cai Bojie’s daughter is outside; now I will let you see her.” When Wenji entered, disheveled and barefoot, she kowtowed and pleaded for mercy, her words clear and poignant, moving everyone present. Cao Cao said, “I truly sympathize, but the documents have already been sent, what can I do?” Wenji said, “Your stable has ten thousand horses, and your warriors are like a forest; why spare a fast horse and not save a dying life?” Cao Cao was moved by her words and pardoned Si’s crime. It was cold at the time, and he gave her a headscarf and socks.

“Cai Bojie’s daughter is outside; now I will let you see her.”

Cai Bojie’s daughter is outside; now I will introduce her to you all.

This statement is quite… um…

Regardless of whether the historical Cai Zhaoji could completely change her fate after traveling back, I hope she could see another way of living, rather than being bound in such an environment after “disheveled and barefoot, kowtowing and pleading for mercy” for a husband she may or may not have had feelings for.

By the way, this historical figure’s journey to Da Yong probably won’t be written very long, and there’s a planned system exchange meeting later, probably about two days, and an extra 20,000 to 30,000 words of side stories. I’ll see if I can add an interesting theme, and then it will officially conclude.

See you at 9:30 tomorrow morning.