webnovelfull Chapter 499 Giving up and letting things take their course, whatever.
Chapter 499 Giving up and letting things take their course, whatever.
Looking at the unfamiliar handwriting on the notebook, a murderous glint flashed in Zhuge Liang's eyes.
Although these people at the very top of the pyramid are exceptionally intelligent, they all have a bad habit: an almost pathological desire to control everything and a dislike for anything or anyone that is out of their control, including Guan Xing in front of them.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang's instinctive reaction upon sensing something amiss was to kill Guan Xing to eliminate any future trouble.
But he immediately rejected the idea as soon as it popped into his mind, for two reasons. First, Guan Xing had just made great contributions in battle and promoted a large number of capable ministers and generals. If Guan Xing were killed, regardless of what others thought, Shen Yi, who commanded tens of thousands of troops, would definitely rebel immediately.
Furthermore, there's Xie Chong, the governor of Kuaiji. If Shen Yi and Xie Chong, these two powerful officials, were to join forces, they could easily throw the still unstable Jiangdong into chaos. Zhuge Liang dared not take that risk.
Secondly, Zhuge Liang had an extremely strong curiosity about Guan Xing. He was eager to know how much more Guan Xing, who possessed steelmaking technology, papermaking technology, and knowledge of the imperial examination system, knew that he didn't know. He was reluctant to kill Guan Xing unless he squeezed all the good stuff out of him.
Since they can't kill him, they can only try to appease him carefully and wait until the war stabilizes or even until the Northern Expedition succeeds and the country is unified. Maintaining stability is the top priority. Besides, at least for now, Guan Xing is still loyal to the Han Dynasty.
Wait, something's not right...
When Guan Yu was defeated at Maicheng, if Guan Xing hadn't given him a heads-up and dragged him to Jiangdong, would Guan Yu have retreated to Linju and fallen into Lü Meng's ambush?
Upon realizing this, Zhuge Liang broke out in a cold sweat and quickly changed his mindset, beginning to simulate the scene of Guan Yu's defeat at Maicheng in his mind. The more he simulated it, the more alarmed he became.
If Guan Xing hadn't secretly left Chengdu to rescue Guan Yu that day, Guan Yu would certainly have gone to Linju and been killed in battle or captured, and the consequences would have been...
Zhuge Liang dared not think any further, his face growing increasingly gloomy as he looked at the notebook.
Meanwhile, Guan Xing, unaware of the gravity of the situation, was still basking in the shock Zhuge Liang had felt at the imperial examination, humming a tune as he led Jiang Wei to find Zhang Bao.
But Jiang Wei couldn't keep a secret. After hesitating for a long time, he couldn't help but ask, "Brother Anguo, you are really amazing. You can even come up with a method like the imperial examination. If the king really promotes the imperial examination, I will definitely participate."
Young people are confident and believe they are no less than others. If everyone is placed on the same starting point and the same platform, they will definitely be number one among their peers.
Jiang Wei naturally shared this thought, but he knew that his father was only a lowly county official, and his Jiang family was just a poor family in a remote area. If the recommendation system continued, he would never be able to compare with large families like the Xun family of Yingchuan or the Zhong family of Changshe. Even if he were to be appreciated by a talent scout, he would probably only be a county governor at best. That's why he willingly joined Liu Bei.
However, if the imperial examination system were implemented, it would be different. It would not consider family background but only knowledge. Jiang Wei believed that he was no less capable than anyone else, so he strongly supported the imperial examination system and believed that all children from poor families would also support it.
Guan Xing patted his shoulder and laughed, "Don't worry, that day will come, but when it actually comes, you'll probably already be a general and a marquis, so you won't need to participate."
Jiang Wei chuckled foolishly, "That would be best, of course, but Brother Anguo, how did you come up with such a good idea as the imperial examination system? I just feel..."
Guan Xing asked curiously, "What do you feel?"
Jiang Wei carefully considered his words before saying, "I feel that this system is too perfect. It doesn't seem like it was conceived hastily, but rather the result of countless attempts and improvements. Take the anonymous grading system, for example. Who would cheat and prevent cheating on their first attempt at the imperial examination? This seems like a helpless measure taken after experiencing cheating multiple times and being unable to stop it. Otherwise, who would have the time to have someone copy the exam papers and send them to another group of people to grade them? Wouldn't that be too much trouble?"
These words struck Guan Xing like a heavy hammer, instantly turning his face pale. He instinctively turned around to look at Zhuge Liang's tent, and two words flashed through his mind.
It’s over.
If even Jiang Wei could notice the problem, how could Prime Minister Zhuge not notice it?
Furthermore, Zhuge Liang was the original owner's teacher, so he must have been very familiar with the original owner's behavior and habits. Wouldn't it be suicide to act arrogantly in front of him?
The more you say, the more mistakes you make. I've interrogated so many suspects, how come I can't get rid of this bad habit?
Moreover, Guan Xing, who had experienced countless battles, had long discovered that the people of this era were not as stupid as depicted in online novels. On the contrary, they were all extremely intelligent, each one more cunning than a monkey. Zhuge Liang was the most cunning of all, one of the very elite among the elite. How could he not have noticed the anomaly that even Jiang Wei could detect?
Therefore, Guan Xing was very certain that the fact that he was not the original owner of the body had been exposed to Zhuge Liang, and that Zhuge Liang was now thinking about how to deal with him.
Thinking of this, when Guan Xing looked at Zhuge Liang's tent again, he felt that the person sitting inside was not Prime Minister Zhuge, but an ancient ferocious beast that wanted to devour people, which might rush out at any moment and tear him to pieces.
How to do?
Or should we slip away and run away immediately?
But where could they escape to? Could they cross the river to the north and join Cao Cao?
Let's forget about it. Cao Cao is even more suspicious. If he notices something is wrong, he'll definitely be even more ruthless to me. If I fell into the hands of Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, I might at least have a whole body left. But if I fell into Cao Cao's hands, I'd probably have to burn myself alive.
What should we do then? Should we confront Prime Minister Zhuge?
Before he could think it through, Jiang Wei asked in surprise, "Brother Anguo, what's wrong? Why is your face so pale? Why are you sweating? Why are you trembling?"
Upon hearing this, Guan Xing trembled even more violently, forcing a smile as he lied, "My chest hurts a bit, it might be a recurrence of an old injury. Could you go find a doctor for me?"
"Oh, oh..." Jiang Wei, without suspecting anything, turned and ran.
Guan Xing waited until he was far away before turning around and preparing to slip away in another direction. However, he found that his legs were weak and wouldn't obey him. He didn't dare to linger, and he stumbled along for a short distance when Mi Fang came running towards him. She quickly ran up to Guan Xing and was about to speak when she saw that he was not in a good condition. She quickly reached out to support him and asked, "An Guo, what's wrong?"
Guan Xing continued to lie, saying, "My leg cramped up, what brings you here?"
Mi Fang quickly said, "I just received news that your father has recaptured Chaisang and returned to Jiangling. He should arrive in two or three days. So could you tell the King that I should hurry to Wu County to prepare for the sea voyage?"
Upon learning of Guan Yu's return, Mi Fang was so frightened that he collapsed on the spot.
The person he fears and least wants to see right now is Guan Yu, because Guan Yu is the biggest victim of his surrender of the city to Wu, and he knows Guan Yu's temper very well. Guan Yu is the kind of person who can be so crazy that even Liu Bei can't stop him.
Although Liu Bei gave him a chance to redeem himself through meritorious service, Guan Yu might not accept it. If Guan Yu really killed him, Liu Bei couldn't say anything.
Therefore, they had to leave before Guan Yu returned, and they had to travel south along the Gong'an-Nanchang route to avoid running into Guan Yu, who was returning from Chaisang along the Yangtze River.
"Uh..." Guan Xing had a headache.
He understood Mi Fang's concerns and his father's temper, and fully supported Mi Fang's departure now, but he would rather not plead with Liu Bei. How could he dare to see Liu Bei now?
What if Liu Bei also notices his abnormality and draws his double-edged sword to kill him?
Wait a minute, something's not right. How can I not even see Zhuge Liang, let alone Liu Bei? I'm not a criminal suspect. What kind of behavior is this, hiding all the time?
Besides, if I don't go to see Liu Bei, won't Liu Bei look for me? If he can't find me, wouldn't that just prove that I'm guilty?
Besides, how long can I hide? I can't hide forever, can I?
Well, it's all the same whether I stick my neck out or not. An ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her in-laws sooner or later, so I might as well go for it.
Thinking of this, Guan Xing steeled his heart and gritted his teeth, saying, "Uncle Mi, you go back first. I'll go and discuss with the strategist and send you away before my father returns."
Without waiting for a reply, he turned around and strode towards Zhuge Liang's tent with a feeling of desolation and loneliness.