The man’s chin tilted upwards with an arrogant curve. "Hmph, who is this stray cat or dog that recognizes this official? Why aren't you hurrying to kowtow and pay your respects!"
"Feng Qingchen, don't get too pleased with yourself. As fellow strategists, my today will be your tomorrow!"
"Pah!"
Feng Qingchen could no longer stand it and spat, then irritably resumed his rant. "You have no idea how many matters I have to deal with in a day, how many memorials I have to read, how many officials I have to appease. Yet you stand here with your lips flapping, saying I'm just like you!
What's alike about us?
I'm no strategist; I'm just a mule forcibly detained in the capital by the Xia family!
Not only am I worked to death, but I don't even get a single day off for relaxation!
Even a mule can rest for a while and eat grass when it's tired, but while I'm talking to you, countless matters have piled up!
Is this what you call a strategist?
I also want to tour mountains and rivers, and I want to understand the people's conditions.
I can't go far, but even staying in the capital to drink tea and play chess would be fine. My demands are truly not high!
But even this minuscule demand has become a luxury.
You say this t
Originally thought it would be abandoned, but unexpectedly, it became a stumbling block that tripped up the Fourth Prince."
"So, you were the one who had my attendant report to the Fourth Prince, accusing me of disloyal intentions, and then colluded with Xu Changling to set up that series of traps for me?"
Feng Qingchen heard this and clicked his tongue ungracefully. "Tsk, you overestimate yourself.
For someone as insignificant as you, it wouldn't be worth my effort.
Or rather, I simply don't have the time to bother with you, a nobody from some forgotten corner!
If I had that time, wouldn't it be better to just lie down and rest?
If you have anyone to blame, it's yourself for provoking the wrong person; one is deceptively wicked, the other is cunningly malicious, and they ended up implicating His Highness the Fourth Prince to share the blame with you."
"Provoked the wrong person?"
Chen Shu murmured, repeating the words with a look of utter confusion.
"That's why I say you're foolish!
You don't even know who you provoked, yet you call yourself a strategist. What a load of nonsense, you're just a clown.
If it weren't for the King of Wu in the past, I would have dealt with you and the Fourth Prince together like a dish to be stir-fried!"
His confidence utterly shattered by the harsh criticism, Chen Shu asked hazily,
"Then, in your eyes, who deserves the title of 'strategist'?"
As if surprised by the question, Feng Qingchen rested his chin on his hand and pondered, "Across the realm, there is truly only one person in my heart who deserves the title of 'strategist'.
But what's the use of having extraordinary wisdom and exceptional intelligence?
As the saying goes, extremes breed reversal.
I wonder if that esteemed individual did too many wicked deeds, only to have a foolish son born."
...
Changzhou County, a thousand miles away.
"Achoo—"
Seeing the silly young man blocking his doorway before dawn and sneezing, Lin Qingge said speechlessly,
"Constable Yan, if you're sick, take medicine."
"Your subordinate thanks you for your concern, my lord. It might be someone talking about me.
My mother says I've never caught a cold since I was little."
Lin Qingge looked Yan Tinghao up and down, as if discovering a new continent, and exclaimed in surprise,
"I always thought the saying that fools don't catch colds was just a joke, but it's actually true?"
Yan Tinghao, whose感动 did not last three seconds: ...
After his contemplation, Lin Qingge waved his hand impatiently. "Alright, if you have something to say, say it. If not, get lost quickly."
Having temporarily entrusted the proprietress of the Fragrant Soup Pavilion to Ling Han's care, Yan Tinghao looked around and leaned close to Lin Qingge's ear, lowering his voice.
"My lord, I just wanted to ask if Tang Wan'er and Liu Jinhua are really dead?"
"Oh ho, you've grown a brain!"
Lin Qingge, surprised to hear this from him, looked at Yan Tinghao with newfound respect.
Taking it as an indirect affirmation, Yan Tinghao scratched his head and chuckled naively,
"My lord, I just think more directly, but I'm not stupid."
Lin Qingge, who believed that a mind that doesn't turn well was essentially no different from being stupid, walked past the simple-minded man and headed towards the nearby outhouse for his daily routine.