Li Yunxiu lay draped across Wang Yu's chest, panting softly.
"You're not even as good as Ardai," Wang Yu remarked abruptly.
Li Yunxiu's eyes widened, and her temper flared. She bit down hard on his chest. "Why do you love infuriating me so much?"
Wang Yu replied in all earnestness, "Because you're at your prettiest when you're angry."
Li Yunxiu was struck utterly speechless. What kind of excuse was that?
Yet why did a sweet warmth blossom in her heart?
"What do you plan to do?" Li Yunxiu asked suddenly.
"Do about what?" Wang Yu asked, puzzled.
"Zhao Yu is still being kept under secret house arrest by His Majesty." Li Yunxiu stared intently at Wang Yu. "How do you intend to resolve the problem of your identity?"
Wang Yu remained unconcerned. "The Emperor isn't going to release Zhao Yu. Why should I need to resolve my identity?"
Li Yunxiu looked straight into Wang Yu's eyes. "Do you not trust me?"
Feeling the two soft mounds pressed against his chest, Wang Yu asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"You made perfume, built blast furnaces, and fired glassware.
"You bought up land, took in refugees, and amassed stockpiles of grain.
"You wiped out the Black Qiang, resolved the aftermath, and took charge of the White Qiang.
"Under your stewardship, the Three Northwestern Prefectures have become as solid as an iron bastion.
"Are you truly willing to hand all of this over to His Majesty on a silver platter?"
"Even if I weren't willing, what could I do?" Wang Yu countered. "Zhao Yu is under house arrest by the Emperor, and Xiao Yue'er is in the Emperor's hands as well. The moment he brings Zhao Yu into the open, my cover will blow."
Xiao Yue'er—whose given name was Chen Yue'er—was Wang Yu's childhood sweetheart. They had grown up next door to each other as children. Once, Chen Yue'er had nearly been abducted by a kidnapper, and Wang Yu had risked life and limb to rescue her.
From then on, Chen Yue'er became Wang Yu's little shadow, constantly clamoring that she would grow up to be his wife.
A few years later, Chen Yue'er's parents met with an untimely accident and died, so she moved into Wang Yu's household. Not two years later, Wang Yu's parents also succumbed to illness and passed away, leaving the two of them to depend on each other, scraping by as best they could.
And so time slipped by until late the year before last.
The Emperor dispatched men to knock on Wang Yu's door, taking the pair to the imperial capital. Wang Yu was made an impostor to take Zhao Yu's place and assume command of the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, while Chen Yue'er was kept in the palace doing menial chores, serving as a hostage.
Of course, the Emperor never believed that a woman with no blood relation could truly hold Wang Yu in check; his real trump card was the original Zhao Yu.
Though Wang Yu knew all of Zhao Yu's interpersonal relationships, he knew nothing of the intimate details of Zhao Yu's early life. If outsiders asked, he could brush it off by claiming he had forgotten, but once the genuine article appeared, it would be impossible to conceal the truth.
Would the officials of the Three Northwestern Prefectures, the five generals of the Zhenxi Army, or Zhao Rong, the manor's chief steward, obey a fake Prince of Zhenxi?
They would only kill him!
Naturally, the Emperor had never anticipated that a transmigrator would inherit Wang Yu's memories and emotions, bringing along the knowledge and wisdom of another world—and, on top of that, a cheat code!
Yet strictly speaking, even with that unexpected turn, the original scheme had been sound back then. Even as a transmigrator, his identity remained fraudulent; the underlying reality hadn't changed.
Except—
Li Yunxiu looked at Wang Yu. "That was when you were just an ordinary person, weak in martial arts, limited in capability, and dependent entirely on my support and assistance.
"But things are different now," Li Yunxiu said. "Not only have you stepped into the Xiantian realm, but you also have the military merit of destroying the Black Qiang to your name, earning the allegiance of the entire Zhenxi Army.
"With your current prestige and military exploits, coupled with your grip over the army's grain and logistics, you could bring even Zhao Jingjun and Zhao Defang to heel with nothing more than a written transfer order."
Li Yunxiu hadn't even mentioned Lu Yunzhou, Peng Hu, or Yang Tianzhao.
"And then there are the White Qiang and Ardai. The one they recognize is you, not the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, and certainly not Zhao Yu," Li Yunxiu said solemnly.
"And what of it?" Wang Yu countered. "Even if I command fifty thousand troops and have the backing of the White Qiang, that's merely a small faction holed up in the Three Northwestern Prefectures.
"The Emperor possesses the four seas and a million soldiers; the court holds sway over twelve circuits and eighty-three prefectures across the realm, with boundless provisions of grain. What do I have to measure against the Emperor? What right do I have to be unwilling?"
"That would only apply if the Emperor were capable of turning his full might against you!"
Li Yunxiu explained, "Flames of war are rising all across the realm right now. In the north, the Xianbei refuse to submit, and the Xiongnu are on the rise again. In the south, the Five Poisons Sect of the Miao Frontier is backing two tribes in rebellion; not only Chuannan Circuit, but even Chuanxi Circuit has been swept into the turmoil.
"In the Central Plains, the Shuntian Army and the Red Lotus Cult have risen up, seizing prefectures across Henan and Wanghai Circuits. His Majesty cannot collect taxes from Jiangnan, while the imperial court is packed with parasites who do nothing to earn their keep, making victory elusive.
"Though the imperial court still appears formidable, it is in steady decline. Who knows when it will lose its grip on the realm entirely? When that day comes, you will be a regional warlord capable of swaying the fate of the entire land."
At this point, Li Yunxiu abruptly fell silent.
Wang Yu said nothing either, merely looking at her.
"You had already thought of all this, hadn't you?" Li Yunxiu asked suddenly.
"No, I hadn't," Wang Yu shook his head.
"You had!" Li Yunxiu insisted, nodding. "You just weren't sure of where my heart lay, so you kept it from me."
"Truly, I hadn't," Wang Yu shook his head again. "If the Emperor were wise and valiant, governing the land so well that the world was peaceful and the common folk lived in contentment, would I have to be completely out of my mind or bored out of my skull to pick a fight with him?
"If he issued a decree, I wouldn't utter a single objection. I would hand the Three Northwestern Prefectures right over to the court, and then happily roam the martial world as a footloose wanderer. Galloping freely across the jianghu, living carefree and unburdened—wouldn't that be wonderful?"
Li Yunxiu fell silent. She recalled the conversation she had had with Wang Yu last year in Daxing Prefecture. He had given the exact same response back then: as long as the Emperor brought peace to the realm, he would retire to the mountains and forests.
Li Yunxiu believed he was speaking the truth. From his everyday behavior, she could tell he truly wasn't someone who craved power or status—much like how Asuri was willing to surrender his power for the sake of the White Qiang people.
Yet ever since leaving Jingji Circuit and arriving at the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, Li Yunxiu had realized that with the court's current system and the Emperor's pattern of behavior on multiple occasions, bringing peace to the realm would be exceedingly difficult.
Unless some external force intervened—for instance—
"What if His Majesty requires your help to pacify the realm?" Li Yunxiu suddenly asked. "What if the Emperor requisitions the Zhenxi Army to fight the Xiongnu, or to march into the Central Plains to eradicate the Shuntian Army and the Red Lotus Cult? Would you agree?"
After a brief pause, Li Yunxiu added, "The news that you have stepped into Xiantian will reach His Majesty sooner or later. If he cannot set his mind at ease regarding you and seeks to take control of the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor before the realm is even pacified, will you agree to that?"
Wang Yu also fell silent.
Li Yunxiu immediately understood the meaning behind his silence.
With the talent in martial arts, commerce, and military administration that Wang Yu had displayed, he looked down on the Emperor entirely!
Asking him to help the Emperor pacify the realm was practically like asking a top student to throw away his future to take an exam in place of a dunce, helping the slacker get into a prestigious university while he himself was shoved off to tighten screws on a factory floor.
Though the analogy might be slightly exaggerated, that was essentially the gist of it.
Putting herself in his shoes, Li Yunxiu wouldn't be willing either.
Yet reality still held many dilemmas.
Li Yunxiu said, "Chen Yue'er is still in His Majesty's hands, and you don't know where Zhao Rong stands. And... there is also my Li family, situated right in Jingji Circuit. My second uncle is still serving as an official in the imperial court."
The Li family was a minor aristocratic clan in Jingji Circuit, known for scholarly traditions alongside their ancestral martial arts, though their martial skills were only mediocre. Over years of development, some members farmed or engaged in commerce, some entered officialdom, while others drifted through the martial world.
Li Yunxiu was of the main direct lineage. Her father was one of three brothers: her father stayed home to practice martial arts, her second uncle served as a court official, and her third uncle roamed the jianghu.
This was also one of the reasons the Emperor had felt secure in sending Li Yunxiu here.
Wang Yu looked at Li Yunxiu, not expecting that she would bring this issue up on her own initiative.
Yet her raising it brought another question to Wang Yu's mind. "At our wedding, how come no one from your family showed up?"
"..."
Li Yunxiu lowered her eyes and said softly, "Perhaps that is because His Majesty does not trust me either."
If the Li family came to the northwest, would they collude with Li Yunxiu to sideline Wang Yu, seize control of the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, and usurp the roost?
"Could the Emperor really be that brainless?" Wang Yu asked. "It's not as if the whole clan would have come—"
Having reached this thought, Wang Yu himself grew uncertain. Judging from the Emperor's prior actions, it was hardly out of character for him.
He was a man who constantly sought to hold leverage over his subordinates, yet never trusted them, all while expecting their unconditional obedience.
Honestly, this persona differed quite drastically from what the original host had known, as well as what Li Yunxiu had once described!
Wang Yu looked at Li Yunxiu with an odd expression in his eyes.
Li Yunxiu couldn't resist taking another bite out of Wang Yu's chest. "His Majesty truly has strived with all his might to govern well, taking the pacification of the realm as his solemn duty."
At this, she sighed again. "Yet seeing how he governs now, his narrow-minded pettiness truly does not befit a sovereign."
Wang Yu raised an eyebrow. It was rare indeed to hear anything other than praise for the Emperor from Li Yunxiu's mouth.
"So what do you plan to do?" Wang Yu countered, tossing the same question back to her.
"I don't know..."
Li Yunxiu truly didn't know. She was certainly gifted in both the pen and the sword, skilled whether at administering the civil affairs of the three prefectures or planning strategy and commanding troops on campaign, but when it came to maneuvering the games of human nature, she lacked Qianqian's keen insight.
"If you don't know, then let's just cross each bridge when we come to it," Wang Yu said nonchalantly. "As the old saying goes, the cart will find a path when it reaches the mountain, and the boat will straighten itself at the pier. When the matter arrives, a solution will present itself."
Li Yunxiu rolled her eyes at him. "What nonsense are you babbling? When the matter arrives? More like when death arrives!"
Wang Yu repeated his question, "Then tell me, what solution do you have?"
It was precisely because she had none that Li Yunxiu felt so vexed. "I told you, I don't know!"
The Li family had resided in Jingji Circuit for over a century; naturally, they could not uproot their entire clan and move to the northwest before the broader situation became clear.
Furthermore, Chen Yue'er was tucked deep inside the forbidden palace, hidden away heaven knows where by the Emperor. They wouldn't even know where to begin searching, let alone the fact that they possessed not a single informant within the imperial palace.
Then there was Zhao Rong. Though Wang Yu had broken through to Xiantian, he was still no match for Zhao Rong.
"There you have it!" Wang Yu spread his hands. "Since we have no solutions for now, we set it aside and focus on improving ourselves first.
"Besides..."
Wang Yu gently took hold of Li Yunxiu's waist, stroking her smooth skin.
Li Yunxiu felt the shift inside her and couldn't help but gasp in surprise.
"You...?"
"I'll teach you a cultivation method."
"Ah?"
"The ceiling of your current martial arts isn't very high. You might as well switch over to this technique."
"What technique?"
"The Method of Harmonizing Yang through Taiyin."
"Mmh, ah..."
Chapter 132