My lord, spare his life!

Several messages silently popped up in the system log.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you increases by one.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you increases by three.

Zhang Yang looked Wang Qi up and down with a strange expression.

Why is this guy trying to increase his favorability rating for no reason?

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, she caught the young military officer off guard and lashed him with a seemingly fierce but actually painless slap. A new notification slowly popped up in the system log—

Wang Qi's favorability towards you increases by 10.

Zhang Yang: "..."

Hey, the case's solved.

This discovery greatly intrigued Zhang Yang.

She tapped the young military officer on the shoulder with her cane.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you increases by one.

He then used his cane to strike the young military officer's arm.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you increases by one.

Zhang Yang turned to stare at Wang Qi, patted the young general's cheek with his cane, and this time, no message popped up in the system log.

"Huh, it's not working anymore?"

She refused to believe it and slapped herself twice more.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you has decreased by three.

Zhang Yang looked puzzled and poked at it with his foot.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you has decreased by one.

She murmured in confusion, "What's going on?"

Why isn't the pattern working anymore? Or is there a limit to the number of times this method of increasing favorability can be used? Just as she was about to try other parts of her body, the young general's face turned ashamed and indignant.

"Have you done that yet?!"

"Shut up."

Zhang Yang frowned impatiently and scolded him.

This NPC is really unlikable and has no sense of propriety.

Didn't you see she was busy?

The young military officer's chest heaved violently, filled with shame, anger, and resentment. He wanted to know what this woman was trying to do! The two canes earlier were one thing; the young officer thought she was just trying to deflate his ego. But what about her subsequent little tricks?!

And then there's that light, airy force...

It didn't feel like a show of force; it felt more like a deliberate humiliation and teasing.

He watched in shock as Zhang Yang leaned forward and scrutinized him from head to toe with an incomprehensible gaze.

He muttered to himself, "How strange."

With no results from her research, she could only attribute it to the game's mechanics.

The young military officer's expression was somewhat numb.

"If the young general doesn't believe me, we can also join forces with Che Si County." Xiao Sui smiled elegantly, forcefully steer the conversation back on track. "I have some connections in Che Si, so meeting the Che Si County Prefect shouldn't be difficult. It seems that Dong Xian County has a blood feud with Che Si County? If Che Si County knows Dong Xian County's plans, I wonder how they will react. Even if I have no evidence and can't convince the Che Si County Prefect, the perpetrator is Dong Xian, so they should choose 'better safe than sorry,' what do you think, young general?"

The young military officer asked gravely, "Who are you?"

Xiao Sui calmly replied, waving her sword fan: "Xiao family, Xiao Sui. Although I am an unknown figure in officialdom, I was fortunate enough to be born into a good family. As long as I mention my family name, I can easily meet some important figures."

"The Xiao family, a prominent clan in Douguo?"

Xiao Sui gave a perfunctory bow: "I dare not presume to be called a member of a distinguished family."

Young military commander: "..."

He pondered for a moment, then looked at Wang Qi with a helpless and disappointed sigh. He had to admit one thing: Xiao Sui's solution had struck at his Achilles' heel. Given the old feud between Che Si County and Dong Xian County, if Che Si County heard rumors detrimental to them, they would truly believe them. The river diversion project was massive; Dong Xian County couldn't possibly intercept every spy.

Once Xiao Sui does this, Che Si County will send people to investigate, and Dong Xian County will be unable to hide it no matter what. The truth will eventually come out!

The plan was known to only a small number of people.

The pretext for diverting the river to control the flood was the flood two years ago. That flood was indeed severe. After the news of the diversion and control was spread, there was no unusual news from Chesi County. In addition, the people they had placed there worked hard to keep things calm.

But he didn't expect that someone could see through the plan at a glance.

Xiangzhuang's sword dance is intended for Peigong.

Dong Xian's plan to control the floods was conceived in the mountains.

The young military general closed his eyes briefly, then heard Zhang Yang's voice enter his ears. This capricious empress spoke in a completely flat tone: "If you're going to manage the floods, then just do it properly. Always have reverence for heaven and earth, for nature."

Do you really think that human beings can manipulate and control all things in nature?

Dongham County may have successfully used the river to destroy the mountain counties, which might have helped them achieve their strategic goals, but how can they guarantee that they won't suffer a backlash in the future? The river that they forcibly destroyed and diverted will one day bring about a cataclysmic natural disaster!

The earth will remember their sins and repay them in kind.

"Lord Boyuan makes it sound so easy!"

She hadn't seen the flood that year.

After days of torrential rain, the entire Dongxian County was submerged in muddy, yellowish water that hadn't receded for several days. Fortunately, the mature crops had been harvested ahead of schedule, preventing the people of the county from starving. Having witnessed such devastation, they yearned even more for a stable, fertile, and prosperous land. Where hadn't they tried to control the floods? Year after year they had tried to control the floods, year after year they had repaired the dikes, yet they still collapsed.

In her words, it was just a casual remark about not showing enough respect.

The natural world will only submerge the foolish ones who honestly try to control the floods.

"Young general, have you ever heard of a 40/60 water system?"

"What water division?"

Yuan Xie slowly explained: "The way to control water is to dredge rather than block. We should guide the upstream, dredge the downstream, build nearby dikes to confine the river, and build distant dikes to prevent breaches. In addition, we should divert the flow to reduce its force. This can control floods. The floods in Dongxian are also related to the loss of control over the Fangjiang River between the two prefectures."

Water management is indeed a difficult problem.

The fragmentation of the country into powerful states, with numerous feudal lords and ambitious warlords seizing the opportunity, led to a situation of scattered and fragmented power. Everyone lived their lives behind closed doors, concerned only with the affairs of their own territories. In earlier times, some people did want to manage the waterways properly and live a peaceful life.

What was the result?

It's useless to fix the river on our own little piece of land.

If the upstream is not addressed, the downstream is not addressed, and addressing the blockage in the middle is useless, so the middle is left to languish; if the upstream is addressed, it benefits others while wasting human, material, and financial resources, which is not worthwhile, so it is left unaddressed; the downstream forces have an even more direct perspective.

Every year we try to manage it, but every year we suffer.

The more it is treated, the more impoverished and weak it becomes, and if we are not careful, it will be swallowed up.

For various reasons, flood control had always been neglected or even abandoned. The young military general searched through numerous documents before finally grasping some clues, but considering the costs and the situation, he and his adoptive father chose to seize the mountain. Unexpectedly, the scholar's few words enlightened him, allowing him to understand the problem that he had been pondering for so long without being able to figure it out.

"And who are you?"

"Yuan Xie and Yuan Youzheng were just ordinary people from ordinary families."

The young military officer, like his adoptive father, respected those with genuine knowledge, and asked seriously, "How do you know all this, sir?"

What he really wanted to ask was—

How could an ordinary person from a poor family come into contact with these things? He guessed that even if Yuan Xie was not from a noble family, he was still from a poor family and his ancestors had been wealthy, unlike him who was a pure commoner from the bottom of society.

Yuan Xie humbly replied, "I've found a good master."

Young military general: "What good fortune!"

He searched for more than half a year but couldn't find many truly substantial books on water management. He also searched through county annals but couldn't find many words or phrases about managing the Fangjiang River and its tributaries that he could refer to. The few records he did find were all cases that his predecessors had tried but failed.

"Even Dongham can be transformed into fertile land."

The young military officer stared at him darkly, his tone provocative and laced with sarcasm: "Oh, then would you be willing to help, sir?"

Anyone can talk a good game, right? Asking him questions is useless; you need the ability and the attitude to solve problems. If you lack both, don't interfere in Dong-Ham Chan's internal affairs.

Yuan Xiechong bowed to Zhang Yang, then straightened up: "This matter is of great importance and cannot be decided by me alone. I must ask the lord for a decision."

The young military officer stared at Zhang Yang in astonishment.

"...Lord Boyuan?"

The madwoman is actually the ruler of these people?

In his view, those who can command the best and brightest among men must be outstanding individuals.

Aside from his brute strength, this Lord Boyuan lacked depth in scholarship and conversation, much like his sworn brother, whose mind and temperament were quite different from ordinary people. As the young general pondered this in secret, Zhang Yang noticed the name above the other man's head flashing yellow and green.

"What, he doesn't look like their lord to me?"

I dare not make any rash comments.

The book says that birds of a feather flock together, and it's hard to say who could get along with his sworn brother and be appreciated by him.

He pursed his lips: "This matter needs to be discussed with my godfather. Rest assured, I will report back truthfully and do my best to make this happen."

Zhang Yang: "We can't let you go back for now."

Both of them need to be held hostage by her.

"If I wish to leave, Lord Boyuan may not be able to stop me."

Zhang Yang smiled enigmatically: "Even your sworn brother couldn't stop you?"

Young military commander: "..."

He turned to look at his sworn brother Wang Qi, who had remained silent. The latter flashed him a bright, fierce smile: "Since he's a hostage, his legs aren't needed for now. Break them!"

Young military commander: "..."

He stopped talking, and Zhang Yang suspected that he was cursing something very dirty in his heart.

A few days later, Wang Ba received two more letters.

One letter came from my biological child, and the other from my adopted son.

The letter from his adopted son was poorly written, with messy handwriting, numerous spelling errors, and mispronunciations. He used homophones for words he didn't know, and even circled words he didn't know the homophones for. Wang Ba could only guess, which was painful. He decisively closed the letter and opened his adopted son's letter instead.

He was shocked when he saw it.

"Tianjiang County is incredibly bold!"

Both children have been detained!

Keep reading—

The guards standing outside the tent never heard anything more.

Wang Ba remained silent, questioning the meaning of life, and didn't react much even when his trusted confidant entered. After a long while, he covered his face with his hands and sighed, "Maybe someone should tell me that his mother cheated on me while I was away fighting..."

"...Is my lord troubled by the young general?"

"He's now learned to betray his wife for a woman..."

The confidant remained silent.

Putting everything else aside, this one point alone does indeed suggest that he is the lord's child.

Wang Ba wiped his face and said seriously, "Because of this rebellious son, the news from over there has leaked out, and I'm afraid we have no choice but to stop."

"The news has leaked?" The confidant was taken aback, then immediately understood what Wang Ba was referring to, his face turning deathly pale. "What... what should we do?"

"From fake water management to real water management."

"what?"

Wang Ba felt utterly helpless. He leaned back, his gaze blank: "The female ruler my rebellious son befriended has a subordinate who can control floods. He seems quite capable, and I'm planning to borrow him. If this matter really succeeds, Dongxian County can continue to recuperate."

As long as I can survive, that's enough.

Whether it was Wang Ba or the former ruler who launched what outsiders called the "Dongxian Disaster" many years ago, their original intention was to find a rich land for their subordinates to live on and avoid the suffering of war. As for how this land was obtained, it was not important.

A trusted confidant will naturally obey his master in everything.

The situation seemed to be improving, but Zhang Yang wasn't happy. Doing homework was painful enough, and now there was this illiterate kid chattering on and on: "Why do I have to learn, but he doesn't?"

She admired Wang Qi's disdain for his homework, but she was dissatisfied because Wang Qi showed no real action beyond expressing his disdain.

A giant in words, a dwarf in deeds!

Bad review!

Yuan Xie: "He's a stranger, so it's none of my business."

The lord is one of our own.

How can the two be treated equally?

"But studying is so boring."

It's pure psychological torture.

The observed participants all said they played games to relax, have fun, and find enjoyment, but they didn't mention that they also needed to study. Why would they slack off at work and school in real life, and then start studying and working in a game? What's the point? Zhang Yang didn't understand, and couldn't comprehend it.

Yuan Xie approached, carrying his zither: "Ah, in that case, why don't you rest for a while, my lord? I'll play a tune for you to relieve your fatigue."

Zhang Yang: "Okay, okay."

As long as you don't have to study, you can do anything.

Wang Qi, who had just been mocking Zhang Yang, was speechless.

Soothing, gentle music flowed from Yuan Xie's fingertips, easing Zhang Yang's brow and gradually soothing the fatigue from being forced to study. Wang Qi scoffed, "What's so difficult about studying?"

"You don't even know as many characters as I do." Wang Qi's handwriting was so wild and unruly that Zhang Yang immediately grasped the meaning of "ugly" that Yuan Xie and the others had mentioned. For the first time, he felt a pang of regret for the few bamboo slips that Wang Qi had wasted.

Wang Qi emphasized: "...studying is useless."

These four words sparked Zhang Yang's motivation to persuade others to study.

She sat up straight: "How could it be useless!"

Those who have truly received an education will not regret their decision to study; it is the uneducated who will say that education is useless. If education were useless, why did Zhang Yang order the children under his rule to become literate?

"Take the simplest example, the letter you wrote to your old man, he struggled to even guess it, wasn't it your sworn brother who helped explain it?" Wang Qi's literacy level was outrageously low, "1234567890, you can remember three of them wrong."

He wasn't embarrassed even when he remembered it wrong.

He might even force others to follow his habits.

Use the number of lines and columns to represent the numbers he doesn't know.

How did Zhang Yang know this?

Wang Qi's sworn brother secretly complained about it. He said that once, Wang Ba appointed his son Wang Qi as the chief clerk in the army, but Wang Qi was ignorant and incompetent. He couldn't do calculations or write clearly, and the account books were a complete mess. His sworn brother had to clean up his messes.

"Mountain Ghost, who told you all this? It's that loader complaining again, isn't it! I'm incredibly intelligent, what can't I learn? I just don't want to learn!" Wang Qi immediately flew into a rage, his eyes turning red.

Wang Qi's favorability towards you decreases by one.

Zhang Yang was very unhappy when he saw this system log.

"Three wrong."

"I did it on purpose!"

Wang Qi's favorability towards you decreases by one.

Zhang Yang was even more annoyed, and said firmly, "Three wrong."

Wang Qi's breathing was disordered, and he clenched his teeth.

"Don't make me chop you up!"

"Look, you're getting impatient."

The favorability rating only decreased by one?

It's okay to say a few more provocative things.

She enjoys watching others break down and get angry.

??(σ???)σ..:*☆

There will be regular updates tonight.