Liu Xuande would never be a succubus of the Eastern Han Dynasty!

However, the Mohist master didn't care whether she understood or not. He just listened to her continue, "You are still too young, it's normal for you not to understand these things, but you must remember one thing... the common people are evil, the heroes are arrogant, and the powerful are insidious. These three are all evil. The world is Mohist, and I am the only one who is righteous."

"If our plan here fails, we can slowly devise other strategies. Why bother entering the world? We can wait until next spring, when the Great Formation of Life and Death is established, to awaken Patriarch Mo Di. Then, working together, we can create the universe... Wouldn't the world then be united? Wouldn't the Dao we seek be achieved?"

"The Way of Heaven is invisible. Only by proving it can one attain it. The one who proves it can rule the world."

The girl scratched her not-so-bright head, her mind completely drawn to this sentence. She immediately threw away her previous anger and kept asking:

"What Master Juzi said is too obscure to understand... But speaking of which, who was that 'white-skinned man' that Master Juzi met with earlier? He seems to have completely different perspectives from us."

“It’s completely different indeed.”

The Mohist master turned and looked at the towering tree, saying slowly, "According to him, it seems that in the far west, they call the will of heaven 'the consciousness of Alaya and Gaia.'"

"As for the Way of Heaven, it's the 'root.' The talented people there, like us, aspire to attain enlightenment, that is, to reach the root."

"As for the 'Dao Marks' within our bodies, they are called 'Circuits', and their number is also crucial."

Upon hearing this, the girl quickly asked, "Is their economy declining like ours?"

"...Yes, but because their population density is lower and there are fewer places to explore, their decline is much slower than ours."

"So, do they still have gods there?"

"God has long since abandoned this world, and that side is no exception."

The Mohist master patted the head of the girl who was about to ask another question and said, "In the past, the First Emperor conquered the world and created twelve golden men to expel hundreds of gods and resist the invasion of foreign gods. Then, Emperor Taizu of Han shattered the Way of Heaven, completely severing the connection between gods and humans."

“We’ve declined because of it, but we’ve also gained something we never could have before—creativity.”

"If Patriarch Mozi were still alive today, he could easily break through the shackles of the Heavenly Dao and, without much effort, mass-produce mechanical creations with their own consciousness."

“…Wow.”

The girl's eyes were full of anticipation, because this was not just empty boasting, but a real career they were undertaking, which had the potential to succeed.

She then said: "If only time could pass faster..."

“Many people want to slow down.”

"Speaking of which, that white guy's name is so weird... Something like Kishua..."

"Kishua Zelrich Schubin-Ogu."

"Yes, it's this long list of names. It's really complicated."

They chatted idly, completely ignoring the fact that their twenty-year plan had been ruined, and they all thought that the matter was over.

But this is just the beginning.

Mohist Chapter: Chapter 2: Xuande, You're Such a Bad Brother

When the sun sets, the busy day is finally coming to an end.

In the county magistrate's mansion, Liu Bei slumped on a straw mat, with a look of helplessness on his face.

"Wenhe," he said, looking at Jia Xu, who was busy reviewing government decrees, "...with all your publicity, my reputation has certainly spread, but the whole True Lord Immortal thing...isn't that a bit too much?"

Jia Xu was sitting on the main seat at this time, writing the word "no" with great effort, and replied without raising his head:

"People are foolish. If the opportunity is right and you don't take advantage of it, someone else will."

She paused, then continued, "Given the situation at the time, you could be an immortal who slew evildoers, or you could be a different species from everyone else. The difference is huge."

What Jia Xu said makes sense.

The common people all witnessed the Yao family incident with their own eyes. If Jia Xu had not taken advantage of the situation to declare Liu Bei, then afterwards, as long as someone had ulterior motives to smear him a little, it might have turned into an outrageous version like "the new prefect is raising a monster."

Liu Bei knew the pros and cons of this, but...

"But I know I'm not capable enough to accept this immortal's reputation. If there really is someone behind the scenes who intends to harm us, they can definitely make a fuss about it."

Are you an immortal who saves the world?

But this is the Han Dynasty, and the common people either belong to aristocratic families or to the emperor, but not to themselves.

Therefore, the so-called immortals are people who are enemies of the old Han forces.

Today you can wipe out the Yao family from top to bottom and distribute the wealth to everyone, but tomorrow you may also take action against them.

Suspicion will inevitably lead to disaster.

Liu Bei was not afraid of these insignificant things, but his military power was not invincible, and there were still many things in the world that could pose a threat to him.

For example, the mighty Han army.

No matter how powerful the fragment holder is, he can only fight alone and cannot fight a war of attrition.

What's more, there are other fragment holders who are eyeing it covetously.

It's like a dark forest. The fragment holders are like hunters. There is no guarantee that they will not suddenly appear and shoot you in order to compete for the fragments.

Liu Bei's idea was to stay calm and develop for a while, creating a complete social circle with his appearance and abilities. Then he would not even need to resort to force, and he could take the throne by force.

"That's even better."

Jia Xu smiled slightly. "Our problem has never been that the person behind the scenes takes action, but that they won't take action."

"It's like a hunter chasing a poisonous snake. The snake can use the terrain to ambush the hunter, but this also means that the snake will reveal its own position..."

"Even if this venomous snake is smart and chooses not to take action itself but instead arranges for its minions to do so, it doesn't matter, because everything it does leaves traces."

"If any noble family intends to join forces tomorrow, Lord Xuande will be requested to annihilate them."

Jia Xu threw the bamboo slips in his hand onto the cart, then slowly stood up, extended his left hand in front of Liu Bei, and said with a smile:

"As for now, sister, I have finished my work. Can you accompany me for a walk?"

"...I wish for it."

-

Night, Shouchun County.

Two days ago, the streets here were filled with displaced people, mostly old and young. The young and strong men had either left the city or become slaves of wealthy families.

In fact, this morning, after most of the Zheng family's military forces were dispatched, Liu Bei immediately eliminated the assassin hiding in the dark and took away all the wealth and land deeds of the Zheng family.

Even after a member of the Yao family died suddenly at noon, Jia Xu immediately sent people to confiscate all of their property on the grounds that "the Yao family was colluding with the barbarians and intended to rebel."

Then, Jia Xu began to distribute the assets of the Zheng and Yao families.

First, all the fertile land that the two families had acquired through forced purchase or illegal means was returned to the people.

All the retainers of the Zheng and Yao families stayed behind to obtain fertile farmland, but the land did not belong to them. Instead, they were put through "labor reform." Their farming time was extended according to their guilt, and the grain they obtained was only enough to feed themselves. The excess was all incorporated into the government granary.

Some of the common people whose farmland was damaged by disasters could go to the government to ask for help. If the situation was true, they could be assigned jobs by the government and get paid according to their work.

There are also many unknown people whose identities are difficult to explain. According to the government's reward order, they can go to the outside of Shouchun County to open up land. As long as they settle down and become households, they can get protection and certification from the government.

As for the elderly and children, the government will return them to their homes according to their status. If they are homeless, they can be temporarily supported by the government.

But it is still not free. As long as the children are not too young, they can help in the kitchen, garden, etc. As long as the elderly are not unable to move, they can go to the people who have newly acquired land and pass on their farming experience.

The issuance of these decrees naturally caused a stir in Shouchun County.

The remaining noble families were in a state of panic, fearing that the new governor would kill them if he was unhappy, so they quickly sent representatives to congratulate him on his appointment, sending him land and grain.

There were also some aristocratic families who held grudges and wanted to unite to cause trouble for the new governor, for example, by deliberately sending their retainers to pretend to be refugees.

But unfortunately, the moment their idea comes into being, an arrow will fall from the sky and take their lives.

Prefect Lu is in charge here.

No matter how evil a creature is, if it tries to disrupt the situation, it will be killed by him with one arrow.

Although she is a scholar, she is definitely not a hesitant person. Now that her own disciples have already started the game, she will give the strongest support.

Although these decrees have been issued, it will take some time for them to take effect.

Jia Xu held a wooden umbrella embroidered with flowers and walked side by side with Liu Bei on the street at night.

She gazed at the crescent moon in the sky and sighed, "My heart now is completely different from before... I don't know if it's good or bad."

The first reason why Jia Xu embarked on the journey was because it was fun to be with Liu Bei. In addition, she could see that Liu Bei was not an ordinary person, so she wanted to invest in him in advance.

But this step seemed to have put himself at risk as well.

She chewed over her heart again and again today and found that her feelings towards Liu Bei were not limited to "king and minister", but were mixed with some complicated emotions.

This is almost impossible for a strategist who is known for his calmness.

Emotion is a taboo for strategists.

Because of this complicated emotion, she threw aside her low-key and calm attitude, and handled government affairs for him day and night, and arranged a series of plans, all in order to completely establish Liu Bei's reputation and build momentum for him.

Although Jia Xu had done this before, he would never adopt a risky strategy.

This is not in line with her character.

Therefore, I am confused, therefore I sigh, therefore... I am in pain.

“…There’s nothing wrong with it.”

Liu Bei continued, "As you said before, no matter what the process or means are, as long as the result is satisfactory, then isn't it correct?"

"Therefore, Wenhe is still Wenhe. Nothing has changed at all."

Upon hearing this, Jia Xu fell into a rare silence.

After a long moment, she burst out laughing: "Xuan De, ah Xuan De, you really are... a stinky brother who will do anything to achieve your goals."

Mohist Canon: Chapter 3: Jia Xu

"Just think you're praising me..."

After Liu Bei said this with a slightly helpless look, he deliberately slowed down his pace, walked side by side with Jia Xu, and then held up a flower umbrella for her.

"I do know that sometimes using any means necessary can yield huge benefits in a short period of time," Liu Bei said calmly, "but everything has a price."

"If it's a sinister yet effective strategy, then your reputation will suffer; if it's a complete, unscrupulous one, then everyone will imitate it. Even if the result is good, it will inevitably lead to a wave of future imitations, causing eternal harm."

"So we can selectively use unusual means, but we must never take shortcuts in everything."

Liu Bei paused, then added: "Of course, Wenhe doesn't need to worry about these things... because I am the one who makes the decision."

His eyes were firm and there was no hypocrisy on his face.

When Jia Xu heard this, it was as if he was saying: Ignore the concepts of good and evil, and ignore morality. Just come up with some strategies, and I will protect you anyway.

"You don't need to worry about whether you are still yourself," Liu Bei continued. "For me, no matter what Wenhe becomes, it is still my Wenhe."

"..."

My Wenhe?

After hearing these four words, Jia Xu burst out laughing: "The suffix is missing, right? It should be Sister Wenhe."

"…You feel bad about this, don't you?"

"Of course," Jia Xu nodded happily. "This name can always remind me that I am still me, and you are still you. No matter what, the relationship between us will not change, right?"

Liu Bei rolled his eyes and said sarcastically, "What is the relationship between you and me?"

"A cousin who grew up together and depended on each other."

"..."

Liu Bei was too tired to complain and too lazy to refute anything. He just continued walking forward in silence.

Jia Xu didn't say anything else. He just leaned against Liu Bei's shoulder and walked slowly forward together.

He just kept looking at Liu Bei's appearance with the corner of his eyes.

She is indeed not a sentimental person.

As the daughter of the Wuwei Jia family, Jia Xu has been immersed in the fragrance of books since childhood. As the saying goes, there is a golden house in books. Although she has not reached that level yet, she can still know what she really wants.

Yes.

It’s what you want, not what the Jia family wants.

Many aristocratic families have the leisure to invest in ventures, and often marry their children off to various people with potential in order to achieve a mutually beneficial alliance.

Although these descendants of aristocratic families who are scattered outside do not use the name of the aristocratic family, they all obey the orders of the family.