Chapter 215

"Then Your Highness, I'll go home first and wait for the meal."

"Wait!" The Prince of Badong called Wang Yang back irritably, then ordered his attendant: "Books."

The attendant brought the books, and the Prince of Badong took them, flipping through them casually, and asked: "The Southern Barbarian Unified Examination, you wrote it?"

As soon as Wang Yang heard this, he knew that Xiao Deng had heard he had been imprisoned, so she had released the books in advance to increase his bargaining chip in front of the Prince of Badong.

The silk delivery was due next month; the Prince of Badong might kill him to silence him, so he couldn't hide his light under a bushel now, but should instead demonstrate his value. This was also an important reason why Wang Yang didn't avoid calculating against the Chief Clerk and showing his wisdom and influence under the Prince of Badong's nose. However, the display also had to be measured; open cards and hidden cards each had their roles, whether hidden or displayed, it all depended on one's heart.

Wang Yang said: "I wrote it."

The Prince of Badong looked at Wang Yang, his gaze scrutinizing: "You also understand barbarian studies? You really are hiding your light..."

"Your Highness is too kind. I only understand a little."

According to Xiao Baoyue's design, Wang Yang was supposed to take the initiative to throw out bait here. But Wang Yang rejected it, and not only rejected it, but also drastically modified Xiao Baoyue's original script.

"You only understand a little and you wrote a book?"

Wang Yang smiled: "Writing a book is not difficult; writing a good book is difficult."

The Prince of Badong stared at Wang Yang: "Then how is this book you wrote?"

Wang Yang paused and said: "Not bad."

"Hahahaha! Wang Yang, you brat are interesting! You suit this Prince's temper! You started in this Prince's military residence when you were twenty; I'll keep the position of Military Aide for you."

This was a previous agreement between the two, but at that time, the Prince of Badong didn't necessarily have much sincerity and might have even harbored thoughts of killing him, so he probably hadn't thought about fulfilling the contract. Now that the old matter was brought up again, it actually carried a bit more sincerity.

"Many thanks, Your Highness! Then Your Highness, I will take my leave." Wang Yang again revealed his intention to leave.

"What's the rush!"

"The meal from Fragrant Snow Pavilion will arrive in a while; if I go back late, the taste..."

The Prince of Badong rolled his eyes at Wang Yang: "Look at your lack of ambition! It's just a mere Ten-Thousand-Coin Chopstick Dish..."

Wang Yang immediately said: "Then Your Highness, tomorrow—"

The Prince of Badong knew Wang Yang's ability to climb up the pole, so he immediately interrupted:

"Zhiyan, now that the Southern Barbarian Colonel's Office has been abolished, why are you researching barbarian studies?"

Right. Fundamentally, there was no need to take the initiative to throw out bait; the Prince of Badong was guilty of a guilty conscience, how could he not ask?

Wang Yang said: "The imperial court might open barbarian trade in Jingzhou; my uncle wants me to follow along and plan it, so—"

The Prince of Badong's face changed, and he immediately asked:

"The imperial court wants to open barbarian trade? When did this happen? Why doesn't this Prince know?"

"No, no, it's just a small-scale draft discussion among a few people, and no decision has been formed yet. Whether it will be reported to the top and whether it will be implemented are both unknown."

The Prince of Badong's expression was uncertain:

"This proposal is inappropriate, right? The barbarians are coarse and fierce; how can we trade? Isn't this aiding the enemy?"

Wang Yang didn't explain in detail, but simply said:

"If you want to penetrate the interior of the barbarians, one way is through force, and the other is through profit; since it is inconvenient to use force, then use profit. Guide them with profit, tame them with profit, and transform them with profit; it might yield miraculous results."

"Is this your uncle's idea?"

"Yes."

"Which uncle? The Cavalier Attendant Wang?"

"Yes."

Xiao Baoyue told Wang Yang to push it onto Wang Yi as much as he wanted; she had a way to round out the lie. Although Wang Yang guessed a bit, he couldn't be one hundred percent sure yet. However, since Xiao Deng had designed the front and back so clearly, she naturally had preparations.

The Prince of Badong played with the scabbard and asked as if casually:

"To what step has this draft discussion progressed now?"

Wang Yang deliberately hesitated for a moment, his tone troubled:

"This... I am also not very clear."

The Prince of Badong frowned:

"What? Still hiding things from this Prince? Afraid this Prince will leak the secret?"

Wang Yang excused himself:

"Your Highness, you take it too seriously; there is nothing to keep secret about this matter. It's just that the matter hasn't been accomplished yet, and various details are still under discussion; even if I say it, it might not be accurate. It's better to report to Your Highness after it's finalized."

The Prince of Badong restrained his patience and said:

"It doesn't have to be accurate; it's just casual chat. Recently, the matter of Liu Cheng being kidnapped has made this Prince feel troubled, and I am also thinking of ways to govern the barbarians. Just now, hearing you talk about trade, I felt it was a bit interesting, so I am a bit curious. You can just say it; don't have any misgivings."

Wang Yang then picked a few items from the barbarian governance strategy he had previously told Xiao Baoyue and expanded on them, with many ideas but little reality, mainly focusing on promoting the concept of trade; his words sounded very serious and the system was rigorous, as if it had already undergone heavy discussion, making the Prince of Badong stunned.

"... Actually, I don't understand the whole process in great detail. Although my uncle often discusses barbarian affairs with me, he only talks about specific problems and nothing else. So I also don't know to what step it has progressed now. However, my uncle has finally selected three barbarian tribes and asked me to understand the situation and see which tribe is suitable as a trial location. I think since it has already been discussed as a trial, it is probably almost ready."

"Hmm... This Prince has long heard that your uncle is well-versed in barbarian affairs; today, hearing what you said, it really lives up to its reputation! Especially the thorough consideration of first selecting a trial location; this is good! Whether it works or not, try it first; even if there is a problem, the scope is small, and it is easy to remedy."

Your Highness, your way of fishing for information is not clever...

"Your Highness is too kind; my uncle often says that governing barbarians cannot be achieved overnight and must be done step by step."

"Well said! Step by step! This Prince governs Jingzhou and knows the temperament of the barbarians well. If there is no foolproof preparation, acting rashly will easily lead to trouble."

Seeing the Prince of Badong with an expression of "hurry up and ask me," Wang Yang smiled secretly in his heart, but simply replied:

"Your Highness's words are very true."

Seeing that Wang Yang didn't ask, the Prince of Badong had to pretend to be indifferent and asked: "Then which three barbarian tribes did your uncle choose?"

Wang Yang paused slightly and replied: "They are the Yidu Barbarians, the Wu Ning Barbarians, and the Yongning Barbarians."

The Prince of Badong's heart jumped, his fingers holding the scabbard tightened slightly, then he quickly returned to normal, moved his gaze away, and said in a casual tone: "Which one are you planning to choose?"

Wang Yang sighed:

"I am ashamed; I haven't chosen yet. My understanding of these three tribes is limited, and most of what I know is historical hearsay; as for the current situation, it still needs further investigation."

The Prince of Badong was happy and just about to speak, but closed his mouth again, thought for a while, and said:

"This Prince doesn't understand these three tribes either; you should investigate them."

Oh, you can keep your cool.

Good, then I'm not in a hurry either.

Just as Wang Yang replied, he heard the Prince of Badong add: "However, Kong Zhangyu knows these things best; if you have any questions, you can ask him."

Hooked.

Wang Yang's tone felt slightly surprised: "Mr. Kong actually knows barbarian affairs?"

"Although his essays are pedantic, he still has ability in this regard. If you are interested, this Prince will have him go to your residence tomorrow."

"Your Highness is so caring; Yang is extremely grateful!"

After Wang Yang left, the Prince of Badong immediately summoned Kong Zhangyu...

"Tomorrow, think of a good excuse and find a way to make him avoid that important tribe; let him choose from the other two."

Kong Zhangyu remained silent.

The Prince of Badong knocked on the table with dissatisfaction.

Kong Zhangyu came to his senses and hurriedly bowed to apologize.

The Prince of Badong said unhappily: "Did you hear this Prince's words?"

"I heard, but Your Highness, is there such a possibility... that Wang Yang knew about that matter in advance and then deliberately came to probe the truth?"

The Prince of Badong was stunned, thought about it carefully, and said: "Although this Prince doesn't think so, you are right; we must be on guard. What are your thoughts?"

"After the goods are delivered, immediately..." Kong Zhangyu made a cutting gesture.

The Prince of Badong waved his hand:

"This Prince has changed his mind; this person has good learning, no foundation, and is interesting; he can be used."

Kong Zhangyu was shocked: "Your Highness, this is inappropriate! Keeping him is keeping a handle!"

"If you say that, isn't this Prince keeping a handle by keeping you?"

"This..." Kong Zhangyu was speechless and couldn't find words to refute for a moment.

The Prince of Badong smiled and patted Kong Zhangyu on the shoulder:

"Just kidding. This Prince knows your loyalty; how can he compare to you? It's just that this person understands barbarian affairs, is good at managing life, and has good learning; to accomplish great things, how can such talent not be used?"

Kong Zhangyu frowned, his expression worried: "I'm afraid he may not be of one mind with Your Highness..."

The Prince of Badong smiled: "He is a bit slippery, but he is greedy for money and profit, aims for fame, and has already asked this Prince for the position of Military Aide; now that he has this Prince as a backer, can he not rely on me? As for having a few little thoughts, as long as he doesn't violate taboos, it's no big deal..."

"Your Highness, the human heart is difficult—"

Kong Zhangyu wanted to persuade him further but was interrupted.

"Hedong Liu just had an accident; if another Langya Wang dies, it's too eye-catching."

"But—"

"Alright, this Prince has his own ideas about whether to take action or not; no need to discuss it further. Just tell me what strategy to take regarding Wang Yang."

Kong Zhangyu had to temporarily give up his persuasion, lowered his head slightly, pondered for a moment, and said:

"Your subordinate suggests, on one hand, to probe the imperial court's movements and see if there is any wind leaking out..."

The Prince of Badong said: "That's natural."

"On the other hand, since he can probe Your Highness's truth, then your subordinate can naturally probe his truth."

"You must grasp the measure; if he knows nothing, don't be too clever and make him suspicious instead."

"Your subordinate will act carefully and will never let him detect any clues."

"You must prevent him from choosing that tribe that shouldn't be chosen, and you cannot leak the secret; if you can't handle this matter, don't come back to see this Prince."

Kong Zhangyu bowed and cupped his hands: "I will certainly not fail Your Highness's trust!" He thought about it and still felt that killing him was safe, so he advised again: "Your Highness, your subordinate thinks the human heart is difficult—"

Clack!

A cold, hard object hit Kong Zhangyu's chest, startling him! Looking down, there was actually a long ring-pommel saber in his hand! Then he saw the Prince of Badong smiling insidiously:

"Jinhuai, how about a bet? Let's bet on whether this Prince can make you take the initiative to draw the saber..."

Kong Zhangyu was stunned for a moment; before the Prince of Badong could finish speaking, he immediately knelt and kowtowed:

"It was your subordinate's slip of the tongue! I beg Your Highness to forgive my crime! I beg Your Highness to forgive my crime!!!"

The Prince of Badong was also stunned and asked suspiciously: "What are you doing?"

Kong Zhangyu tremblingly held up the long saber and said in a trembling voice: "Is Your Highness going to make your subordinate commit suicide?"

The Prince of Badong:...

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Note: Recently, AI has become very popular, and there are many victims, but in fact, DeepSeek's accuracy on academic questions in literature and history is less than ten percent; even for classical sources that don't require much thinking ability, it often makes things up, and its accuracy is not even as good as an encyclopedia. However, more and more people treat AI's answers as real, thinking it has mastered a lot of data (but in fact, it has very little professional data). I really want to write a clarification, that is, to dismantle the "Seven-Jeweled Pavilion" of DeepSeek's answers on literature and history; maybe I'll put it at the end of the "Jingzhou Chaos" volume? But I feel it doesn't fit the style, so I'll talk about it later.