In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

In this situation, if you want to obtain the greatest benefit, there are only two best ways.

The first option is to unite, with both sides joining forces to eliminate one of them first, and then slowly wear each other down.

The second method is to steal the enemy's base, taking advantage of the chaos when two sides are locked in a fierce battle to seize the spoils of victory.

If we had to put it in perspective, the previous situation leaned more towards the first scenario: he had reached a cooperation agreement with the royal family and was now targeting the Papacy.

There's no need to worry about anyone having ulterior motives. When he first came to the main city, he knew how much the royal family and the Papacy were at odds. Cheng Gujian himself had a strong personal bias towards the Papacy. Hoping for them to cooperate was a pipe dream. It was impossible for them to even join forces against him, an outsider.

Xu Shi himself had his own reasons, and of course he wouldn't do anything with the Vatican.

but.

From the moment today's events began, this situation changed.

Gu Yi was absolutely right when she said that Cheng Gujian was using them. After all, when they were fighting to the death with the Holy See, Cheng Gujian did not do anything to help them. This was obviously a case of using someone else to do the dirty work, hoping to use this opportunity to make both himself and the Holy See suffer heavy losses.

It would be best if one side were completely wiped out; even if not, at least one side would suffer heavy losses.

According to relativity, if someone else becomes weaker, it's equivalent to me becoming stronger, so they are the biggest beneficiary.

However, despite this logic, Cheng Gujian couldn't really do nothing. He had to intervene when both sides were exhausted in order to maximize his profits. Ideally, he could eliminate both competitors in one fell swoop, so that he would become the undisputed leader in the future.

Anyway, if the roles were reversed, Boss Xu would definitely do the same thing. He didn't believe that Cheng Gujian didn't understand such a simple principle.

That's the strange thing. Since they knew there was a hidden danger, why did they turn around and go to the palace to usurp the throne?

This move is utterly baffling. Even considering the circumstances of the Hualan Empire, where the throne naturally carries an inherent sense of confidence, this is absolutely a terrible move. Wouldn't it have been better to eliminate other threats first before launching a rebellion? After waiting for so many years, why worry about such a short time difference?

Not to mention that he only started raising troops after the dust had settled between himself and the Holy See—Xu Shi knew very well that Cheng Gujian had been paying close attention to him all along, and he was also fully aware of the specific situation between himself and the Holy See.

Without being immodest, we were practically dominating the Papacy; in terms of statistics, our casualty ratio was almost in the double digits.

Such exaggerated data also means that once Xu Shi has dealt with the Vatican, he is fully capable of continuing his battle with Cheng Gu Jian.

Don't think that Cheng Gujian is so fearless because he's an SS-ranked figure. The Holy See also has an old SS-ranked pope, and he was still dealt with.

Since everything is so clear from beginning to end, there is only one possibility why the Grand Duke of Gujian would still do this.

He did it on purpose.

The fact that he did it intentionally means that his ultimate goal is not to rebel and become emperor. On the contrary, he wants to give himself, or rather Dongfang Xiao, an opportunity so that she can rightfully eliminate him.

In other words, he never intended for this so-called rebellion to succeed, and even if it had succeeded, he would have found a way to make it fail.

"If my thinking is correct, even without my interference as an outsider, you would still have decided to cut yourself off from Her Majesty the Queen, wouldn't you?"

Xu Shi took a deep breath and said calmly, "However, considering that I am also a potential threat in your eyes, I'm afraid your actions will be even more extreme."

"For example... self-destruction?"

"..."

Cheng Gujian's face had been getting worse and worse as Xu Shi analyzed the situation, and after hearing him say the word "self-destruction," he finally sighed resignedly.

It's obvious that what Xu Shi said wasn't exactly the same as what he was thinking; at least 80-90% of it was correct.

He never intended to replace Dongfang Xiao; instead, he always followed the late emperor's edict, wholeheartedly assisting the young empress in her development, and ultimately seizing power to consolidate the empire.

However, Dongfang Xiao was too young when he ascended the throne and could not make decisions at all, so he had to show his ruthless methods to control the government and clear away obstacles for him.

This approach is certainly not wrong, but the problem is that his abilities are too strong, and over time he will find himself in a very awkward situation from which he cannot extricate himself.

A smooth transfer of power is unlikely—the royal family, or rather the entire empire, probably recognizes Cheng Gujian more than the young empress. If it were just a simple return of power, he would be put on the spot by his supporters.

Even if he doesn't want to, he might be dragged into a rebellion—it's not that he can't control his subordinates, but if such a situation occurs, the Hualan Empire will inevitably fall into turmoil, and all his previous efforts will be destroyed.

Under such circumstances, he had to risk his life to ensure the stability of Dongfang Xiao's throne—the new empress, who could even overthrow the Grand Duke of Gujian, was someone who, if not all, could certainly command the respect and awe of most.

In particular, Dongfang Xiao, who suppressed and quelled his own rebellion, was even more persuasive.

However, despite these claims, the plan still faces many obstacles.

First and foremost is the Papacy. It's easy for them to die, but once they lose their restraint, given their ambitions over the years, they will inevitably seize the opportunity to launch a war.

Therefore, before dying, one must find a way to completely destroy it.

His original plan was to support another force to create a rivalry with him, while also putting the Hualan Empire into a three-way balance of power.

Then let this new force, which can be called the royalist faction, destroy the Papacy, thereby establishing more prestige for Dongfang Xiao.

Finally, they will take care of themselves; that would be the perfect ending.

Xu Shi's arrival was like a godsend – in his view, Xu Shi was ambitious, powerful enough, and, more importantly, stood on the opposite side of the Holy See, which was perfect.

Xu Shi did not disappoint him, bringing not only newer and better technology, but also truly eliminating the Papacy, the greatest threat.

The only drawback is that he is not under his own control and may very well become a second version of himself, or even a more threatening one – after all, he has no intention of seizing power, but this outsider may not.

Therefore, he had to go a step further and perish together with him, so as not to let him affect his plans.

Self-destruction was his choice—as an SS-class "Chosen One" with destructive power, self-destruction was like a human nuclear bomb, and the consequences were self-evident.

He could also take his supporters with him—these people were also a threat to the imperial power. He never expected that his death would make them loyal to the little empress, so no matter how loyal they were to him, they could not be left behind.

In short, it is enough to protect Dongfang Xiao and her supporters. There are still many loyal ministers in the court. The reason why he did not choose to kill them but only temporarily controlled them was because he needed them to support and assist her after his death.

But in the end, he failed—Xu Shi couldn't let him get his way completely. Now, in his current state, he was being suppressed by Wen Shengkui. Suicide was possible, but self-destruction was unlikely.

Not to mention that Xu Shi brought all of this into the open, which went even further away from his plan.

He neither needed nor wanted Dongfang Xiao to know his plans; only in this way could she lead the empire further without any worries.

"...How could this be?!"

Looking at Cheng Gujian before him, Dongfang Xiao was so shocked that he couldn't recover for a long time, muttering repeatedly, "How could this be!"

She really couldn't accept it. After all, many years ago she had labeled him as a "traitor" and, while fearing him, she also wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible.

If you tell her now that the other person is actually the one who is most loyal to you, even blindly loyal, wouldn't that mean that you've been living in the wrong world all these years?

She instinctively didn't want to believe it was true and tried hard to find reasons to refute it.

But she couldn't find it, and the more she thought about it, the more she realized that this was indeed the case.

The most obvious example is probably the clash between Cheng Gujian and Xia Wuyou just now—think about it carefully, was it really impossible for him to kill the other party with his strength? Obviously, it was possible, but he didn't. Instead, he actually did as the other party wished and sparred with Xia Wuyou.

All they wanted was to arrive at the appointed time and capture them all in one fell swoop.

As for the other party's earlier statement, "just one step away," it certainly didn't mean that they were just one step away from killing Dongfang Xiao and seizing power, but rather that they were just one step away from completing the plan's loop.

However, as the saying goes, a small mistake can lead to a huge difference, and Wen Shengkui's appearance, or rather Xu Shi's arrangement, was still a step ahead.

Conversely, if it weren't for Old Master Wen's formidable strength, Cheng Gujian's plan would definitely have succeeded.

The sudden reversal even caused the little empress to break down a bit.

"So I won't let you have your way."

Xu Shi ignored her thoughts and continued coldly, "At least you can't take my life, and I will make sure your death is meaningless."

Yes.

If Cheng Gujian can be dealt with without him being harmed, then the other party's plan will have failed halfway.

Or it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they lost everything, because without the Holy See and Cheng Gujian, the one who would dominate would not be Dongfang Xiao, but Xu Shi.

At that time, the entire Hualan Empire will fall completely under his control, and the little empress will remain a puppet without real power, which is naturally completely contrary to Cheng Gujian's expectations.

Even so, Xu Shi was still a little annoyed.

In the end, he was still outmaneuvered by the other party. Not only was he used by Cheng Gujian to destroy the Holy See, but he almost became the stepping stone for the other party to support Dongfang Xiao.

Although it's unlikely that such a thing will actually happen, I'm still annoyed.

That's why he chose to reveal everything when the other party was on the verge of failure; it was a way to kill them by destroying their spirit.

"Xu Shi...Xu Shi!"

Cheng Gujian let out a unwilling roar. Compared to death, this kind of treatment was a greater blow to him, since he was already powerless to change anything.

"Why is Li shouting so loudly?"

Xu Shi looked down at him and said, "If you want to take advantage of others, you have to be prepared to fail, don't you?"

"Die with regrets, Brother Cheng."

He chuckled and gestured to Dongfang Xiao, "Now you may begin, Your Majesty, or would you like me to do it for you?"

"I……"

Knowing everything, Dongfang Xiao naturally couldn't bring herself to kill Cheng Gujian anymore—she dared not say she could completely let go of the shadow of the oppression he had cast over the years, but it was clearly unlikely that she would personally kill someone so loyal to her.

To be fair, if it weren't for his loyalty to the royal family, he would have had countless opportunities to oust himself and take his place.

But he didn't do that, and that alone says a lot.

"...Could you please spare his life?"

The little empress gritted her teeth and looked at Xu Shi tentatively, asking him a question.

"No, you can't. Do you have a choice?"

Xu Shi wasn't buying it and looked at her teasingly.

To be honest, she didn't really have any. After all, Xu Shi had already planted the seed in her heart. Although she wasn't completely obedient yet, under Xu Shi's influence, her desire to kill Cheng Gujian was growing stronger.

As for Cheng Gujian himself, upon seeing this scene, he instantly understood that Xu Shi's control over Dongfang Xiao seemed to be even deeper than he had imagined.

"...Your Majesty, let's begin."

His face grew paler and paler; this was probably the epitome of the despair that comes with a broken heart. "If my death can prevent the breakdown of your cooperation, then it wouldn't be such a bad thing."

Although it wasn't the outcome he had envisioned, it was still the best possible result for him.

Xu remained silent, quietly appreciating everything.

"...Alright, you little bastard."

Just then, Wen Shengkui slowly spoke up, "I'll decide to spare his life, what do you say?"

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 302 Are you still calling him Dad, huh?

2023-10-27