Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

Song Wen's figure disappeared at the end of the winding mountain road. Zhang Zhiwei stood still, his gaze calm.

At that moment, Zhang Jingqing quietly appeared beside him.

Zhang Jingqing had eavesdropped on Zhang Zhiwei's conversation with Song Wen for a while. Although he no longer interfered with Zhang Zhiwei's opinions, he was still worried.

“Even if everything this person says today is sincere,” Zhang Jingqing said slowly, “your steel mill may not be able to rest easy.”

Zhang Zhiwei nodded: "That's for sure, but it's not a big problem. I might not be able to protect an entire country, but I'm more than capable of ensuring the safety of a factory."

Zhang Jingqing nodded. "With your abilities, I have no doubt about that. By the way, besides him, did you also meet with that Commander Zhang alone?"

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Although we did not meet in person, we did meet once."

"What did he say?" Zhang Jingqing asked. "I saw that he was full of vigor when he came down the mountain, without any of the trepidation he felt when he came up the mountain."

"I just did a divination for him, predicting the outcome of what he was going to do next," Zhang Zhiwei said.

"Oh? What was the outcome?" Zhang Jingqing pressed. "When this person first came up the mountain, he had already predicted his future, but his influence was too great. His future was like a fog, or a tangled mess of countless people's fates, impossible to see through or understand. However, one thing is certain: he must be a very important and crucial person."

"As for the ending..." Zhang Zhiwei smiled and said, "From a fortune-telling perspective, I don't know his ending either, because I never calculated it for him."

"You didn't calculate it?!" Zhang Jingqing exclaimed in astonishment. "But you said you predicted the outcome of what he was going to do next..."

Zhang Jingqing immediately realized: "Then aren't you... just spouting nonsense?!"

“Master, you are mistaken!” Zhang Zhiwei said solemnly, “Although we have not performed any divination, it cannot be said that we are talking nonsense!”

“If making things up without any evidence isn’t considered nonsense, then what is?” Zhang Jingqing said irritably, “Look at the vibrant life and the thriving world he was in when he came down the mountain, it was as if victory was just around the corner. I never expected you to be making things up.”

Zhang Zhiwei retorted, "How can you say it's just made up? Even without divination, it's still an accurate judgment I made based on my strategic vision and understanding of the current situation."

"Strategic vision?" Zhang Jingqing glanced at Zhang Zhiwei: "You're just a Taoist priest who practices breathing exercises on the mountain every day. You haven't read as many newspapers as I have. What strategic vision do you have?"

Zhang Zhiwei: "…………"

Actually, Zhang Zhiwei isn't really involved. It's not that he's trying to trick Xiao Shuai, but rather that some things are just impossible to calculate accurately.

He could perform divination and calculations, Zhang Jingqing could perform divination and calculations, and other diviners could also perform divination and calculations.

Given the power and influence of Song Wen and his brother-in-law, they had no shortage of highly skilled diviners around them who would divine for them and offer advice, much like the emperor had an organization called the Imperial Observatory composed entirely of diviners.

If sorcerers could truly predict the entire future by asking a few questions in their inner vision and deducing a few scenarios in a divination hall, wouldn't the emperor be omniscient and omnipotent? How could the previous dynasty have fallen?

The fact is, the more things are involved, the wider the scope of the impact, and the more difficult it is to calculate.

If it's just some trivial matters, like palace intrigue, which concubine has poisoned someone, or which prince is going to have a blood test to prove kinship... the Imperial Observatory can indeed predict accurately, because it only involves a few people.

But if you ask them to calculate the decisions made by the emperor that concern millions of ordinary people and the rise and fall of the nation, that would be very unlikely.

Moreover, even if they were to accurately predict the future, they wouldn't dare to say it outright, otherwise they wouldn't be able to withstand the backlash.

Zhang Zhiwei didn't calculate that he could say those things to Xiao Shuai. If Zhang Zhiwei had calculated it, he wouldn't have been able to say those things to Xiao Shuai.

"Come on, tell me about your 'strategic vision,' and I'll give you my opinion!" Zhang Jingqing teased, but she was actually curious.

Zhang Zhiwei didn't keep his master in suspense and said, "Master, you heard it just now. Song Wen is very dissatisfied with his brother-in-law's actions. He thinks he doesn't understand the situation. The Japanese pirates have already occupied more than one-tenth of the territory, and he's not resisting them. Instead, he's emptying the treasury to create internal strife. He's simply insane."

"And Song Wen is not the only one dissatisfied with the current situation. What were the various warlords fighting for in the past? There may have been some rivalries, but the major ones were all for the purpose of unifying China and achieving hegemony."

"Now that the great cause has not yet been achieved, the Japanese pirates have attacked. Many people can clearly distinguish which is more important."

"If we don't turn our guns on the Japanese pirates now, do we want to repeat the chaos of the Five Barbarian Invasions, or do we want to live in a corner of the country and become a spineless coward in Jiangdong?"

"No matter which one it is, the people below will not allow it. And among the warlords under him, if you ask who hates the Japanese pirates the most, the young marshal who has a blood feud with the Japanese pirates is definitely one of them."

"Back then, he was able to win the Central Plains War because of the young marshal's troops. Now the young marshal is also very dissatisfied with him. His forces are no longer enough to suppress the forces of other warlords."

"If he continues to act willfully and cuts into internal affairs, the situation could become extremely tense."

"Therefore, he had to declare war on the Japanese pirates. Even if he didn't want to declare war in a dignified way, the people around him would help him to do so."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jingqing's eyes lit up: "Your idea is quite unique. I must say, you do have some strategic vision."

"And..." Zhang Jingqing smacked her lips and said, "Your description of this Jiangdong rat is quite interesting and vivid. Throughout history, if such a person had a capable son, he would most likely also try to take his place."

Zhang Zhiwei laughed and said, "Speaking of which, this man does have a son. If he were really around, the father and son would probably be fighting already."

At this stage, the biggest hater in Jinling should be his son.

"You really have a son?" Zhang Jingqing asked curiously. "How come I've never heard of him before?"

“I studied in Russia, but I can’t come back!” Zhang Zhiwei said.

"With relations between the two sides so tense right now, I'm afraid things won't be easy for them," Zhang Jingqing said.

"We might be digging potatoes in Siberia where temperatures are tens of degrees below zero!" Zhang Zhiwei said.

Zhang Jingqing was taken aback: "That's definitely not going to be easy."

Then, Zhang Jingqing looked up at the sky and said, "I observed the celestial phenomena a few nights ago and vaguely sensed that the world situation was about to undergo a major change, but the timing and cause were difficult to discern. After hearing what you said, I have a clearer understanding now." He looked at Zhang Zhiwei: "So, the change is about to begin. What do you plan to do next? Do you want to get involved?"

In the past, he would never have allowed Zhang Zhiwei to participate in these matters, but now he felt that Zhang Zhiwei was a sensible person, and even if he were to participate, it would not be a rash decision, but rather one with his own reasons.

Zhang Zhiwei said, "I don't intend to get involved in this. This isn't a fight; in your words, Master, it's about human relationships and social interactions."

Zhang Jingqing nodded: "I think so too. Killing him would be bad. Although the current situation is turbulent, it still has a beginning and an end. If he dies, who knows what kind of trouble it will cause."

"So..." Zhang Jingqing looked at Zhang Zhiwei: "Do you think it will be a mutiny?"

"Master really understands things instantly!" Zhang Zhiwei had barely finished speaking when a flick on the forehead landed on his head, followed by a scolding: "You have no manners!"

"Understands immediately" is a phrase Zhang Jingqing often used to praise his disciples' intelligence.

Zhang Zhiwei stopped fighting back and didn't use his golden light defense. He chuckled twice, rubbed his head, and made his already messy hairstyle even more disheveled.

Zhang Jingqing flexed her fingers. When she was tapping him, Zhang Zhiwei hadn't used the Golden Light Mantra for defense, so she hadn't used it to hit him either. As a result, when her fingers hit Zhang Zhiwei's head, it felt like hitting a piece of iron, and her knuckles ached.

This brat's forehead is really hard; even the Golden Light Spell probably wouldn't hurt him. I'll have to use Thunder Magic from now on...

Zhang Jingqing said, "Then stay on the mountain for a while. The ordination ceremony for this year is about to begin. I heard you're going to take the first person to be ordained this year as your disciple?"

Zhang Zhiwei nodded: "Master, didn't you always say that I've reached the age to take on disciples? I just happened to find a promising candidate in this year's monastic training, so I'll just make a casual request to test him."

"First place in the ordination ceremony... You really are making such a casual request!" Zhang Jingqing said irritably.

He felt from the bottom of his heart that Zhang Zhiwei's test was a bit too simplistic and brutal, but he respected Zhang Zhiwei's decision.

"The fact that he came in first place in the ordination ceremony shows that he is talented and hardworking, which makes him easier to teach. It wouldn't be good if we took in a lazybones," Zhang Zhiwei said.

Someone like Wang Ye is fine as an observer, but if you were to become his master, it would be quite a challenge.

“You have your own ideas, and I won’t interfere in that matter, but one disciple is a bit too few!” Zhang Jingqing said, “Bring the energy you have for instructing others outside back to the Celestial Master’s Mansion and take on eight or nine disciples.”

Master, you guessed so accurately... Zhang Zhiwei nodded repeatedly: "Alright, alright, I will try to take on more disciples in the future."

"That's more like it!" Zhang Jingqing added, "Speaking of which, your legal rank hasn't changed in a long time, has it? Shouldn't you be promoted to the second rank?!"

Zhang Zhiwei waved his hand: "There's no need for that. With my current strength, talismans and magical positions are just icing on the cake, they're dispensable. Rather than having them bestowed upon me and occupying a magical position for nothing, it's better to give them to someone who needs them."

Zhang Jingqing nodded, agreeing with Zhang Zhiwei's statement, and then continued:

"There's one more thing," Zhang Yi suggested. "Since you're going to accept the first disciple in this ordination ceremony, why don't you preside over the ceremony?"

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Uncle-Master Zhang Yi is trying to slack off. We can't let him get away with it. Besides, I have other things to do, so I really can't attend this ordination ceremony."

"What is it?" Zhang Jingqing asked. "Didn't you just say you wouldn't get involved?"

“I have other things to do besides getting involved in this,” Zhang Zhiwei said. “The situation will change drastically after this, and I need to make some preparations before it completely deteriorates.”

"What preparations should we make?" Zhang Jingqing pressed.

“I plan to go to Chongqing, where my steel plant is located,” Zhang Zhiwei said. “Previously, I considered that we would eventually have a major battle with the Japanese pirates, and that the steel plant, as a pillar industry, would undoubtedly be a thorn in our side and would be bombed, and even the surrounding people would not be spared.”

"Therefore, as a precautionary measure, I proposed to hollow out several mountains and build a number of air-raid shelters that can accommodate a large number of people. Then, we would move some of the key buildings of the steel plant into the mountains."

“I asked Wang Ai to hire a team of foreign experts to make design drawings. We have been constructing according to the drawings for the past few years, but due to the lack of some large-scale engineering equipment, the progress is very slow and we cannot complete the project on the agreed time. So I plan to go there myself and do something like the Foolish Old Man Who Moved Mountains.”

"You kid... Yu Gong moving mountains..." Zhang Jingqing looked at Zhang Zhiwei in shock: "I know you have the art of moving mountains, but can you really move them?"

Zhang Zhiwei shook his head: "That's the Qi vein of a moving mountain, not the physical moving of a mountain. In the end, we can only use some crude methods like the Earth River Chariot. Otherwise, how could it be called the Foolish Old Man Moving Mountains? The key is that it's foolish!"

"Don't underestimate yourself!" Zhang Jingqing laughed. "With your cultivation level, the Earth River Chariot you unleashed is no different from moving mountains. You can't be considered foolish."

"However, can you complete such a large project by yourself? Do you need me to ask someone from the Technique Sect to come and help?"

“I appreciate Master’s kindness, but one sorcerer is enough. All of them combined are about the same as me putting in a little more effort, so it’s not very meaningful…” Zhang Zhiwei looked down at the ground: “This kind of thing needs to be done by professionals.”

"You want to... ask the geomancer for help?" Zhang Jingqing asked.

“Master, you’re still standing too high,” Zhang Zhiwei laughed. “There aren’t many people who can create terrain, and even terrain immortals aren’t good at digging holes!”

Skilled at digging tunnels… Zhang Jingqing found the key point and instantly realized: “You’re looking for tomb raiders, mountain movers, and forest unloaders?”

“Yes, that’s them.” Zhang Zhiwei laughed. “It would be such a disgrace to use such good skills to dig graves. I plan to ask them to help me dig air-raid shelters.”

Zhang Jingqing exclaimed, "That's a good idea! However, as the saying goes, those who walk different paths cannot make plans together. You need to carefully consider how to persuade them. Too much of a good thing can be bad!"

No one knows a disciple better than his teacher. He wasn't worried that Zhang Zhiwei wouldn't be able to persuade the tomb raiders; what he was worried about was that Zhang Zhiwei's methods were too ruthless.

Although the tomb raiders are low-class, unsavory professions, they are still different from the Quanxing sect. When dealing with them, one still has to adhere to the code of honor among the common people.

“I know what I’m doing!” Zhang Zhiwei said. “I know a warlord in Changjun who’s nicknamed Zhang Dafoye.”

"He told me that in recent years, a gang leader has emerged in the Xiangyin area. This person is the leader of the Xieling Warriors and is known as the head of all bandits in the world. It is said that he controls hundreds of thousands of bandits in thirteen provinces, including the south and north, and is currently very powerful."

"This disciple wishes to meet him, and hopes that... he will grant this disciple the honor!" (End of Chapter)