Chapter 59

Midnight.

Daxia Academy.

Su Huaiyu was very punctual, delivering the map.

It must be said that Su Huaiyu not only had an extraordinary memory but was also quite skilled in painting.

There was not a single flaw.

"This is the map I saw three years ago; I believe it hasn't changed much since then."

After handing over the map to Gu Jinnian, Su Huaiyu spoke.

"Three years ago?"

Gu Jinnian was somewhat curious.

"I was in prison for these three years."

Su Huaiyu replied calmly, making Gu Jinnian immediately understand.

"Sorry."

Gu Jinnian felt a bit embarrassed; he really didn't mean to, he had truly forgotten about it.

"It's fine."

The latter shook his head, not minding at all.

Having received the map, Gu Jinnian did not look at it immediately but instead asked Su Huaiyu,

"Brother Su, do you think there's anything strange about the recent flood in Jiangning County?"

Gu Jinnian sat down and poured a cup of tea for Su Huaiyu.

Although Su Huaiyu sometimes seemed a bit off, his thinking ability was strong, and he might provide some inspiration.

"There is."

Su Huaiyu nodded.

"Throughout history, Jiangning County has indeed experienced floods, but they were generally minor, at most flooding some farmland."

"Now, a sudden flood, which is strange in itself, especially with the interference of monsters."

"In the territory of Daxia, the country is peaceful and the people are content. Even if there are monsters, they dare not cause trouble, only doing minor evils. But such a flood, causing tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of casualties, is different."

"Monsters have intelligence and are not foolish. Offending the Daxia Dynasty would ultimately lead to a fight to the death. If a major disaster really erupted in Jiangning County, the entire court would mobilize, and even the Demon Emperor would die under the iron cavalry."

"This matter cannot be measured by common sense."

This was Su Huaiyu's insight, which aligned with Gu Jinnian's.

"Then do you think it's related to my drowning incident?"

Gu Jinnian continued to ask.

For a moment, Su Huaiyu fell silent.

His gaze fell on the candle, as if in deep thought.

After a while, he gave his answer.

"There is a high possibility."

"If my previous speculation is correct, someone wants to cause chaos in the court by assassinating the Crown Prince."

"But the Crown Prince survived, and with the Marquis's intimidation, the other party dares not continue to trouble the Crown Prince, which means they must use other means to cause internal turmoil in Daxia."

"The flood in Jiangning County, leading to widespread suffering, is indeed a good method, and the ultimate beneficiary is still Emperor Jiande."

"If internal turmoil erupts, the resentment will rise to the sky, and the remnants of Jiande can directly rebel, forming a force to return to the capital."

Su Huaiyu spoke, making these speculations.

But Gu Jinnian shook his head.

"No."

"It's not that serious."

"The flood in Jiangning County won't cause such a big disturbance. If it does, the court will spare no effort to provide relief, which can reduce the impact."

"Moreover, the remnants of Jiande have been hidden for twelve years. Using this incident to rebel is not enough. There must be more involved."

"To truly rebel, one must gather the right time, place, and people, all of which are essential."

Gu Jinnian rejected this possibility.

What can a flood do, no matter how big it gets?

To put it bluntly, if Jiangning County is completely lost, it can be dispersed to other places.

As long as they have food, it won't escalate.

For a group of old forces that have been overthrown, regaining power is not an easy task.

Just with the flood in Jiangning County, they want to start over?

What are they thinking?

If it were that easy, the local princes wouldn't be stupid.

Are they eating for nothing?

If they were to clear the court, they would do it themselves, not you.

"Your Highness means."

"Is this just one part of it?"

Su Huaiyu, with his strong thinking ability, instantly understood Gu Jinnian's meaning.

"Possible."

"But the specifics are unclear. Only those in power know."

Gu Jinnian sighed.

The reason is simple: the more you know, the more you are in a position.

The old man in the court won't tell him anything.

If he really had to say, he would tell his father, and even some things he wouldn't tell his father.

Court politics, you either figure it out yourself or have someone guide you, but to secure a position, you must rely on yourself.

Looking at the long river of history, let alone the Daxia Dynasty, in Gu Jinnian's previous life, in five thousand years of history, how many people got to their positions by flattery?

Those who can hold office are all the best of the best. Flattery is situational, but ultimately it comes down to ability.

With sufficient ability and social skills, one can rise higher.

Of course, if you insist, some did get there by flattery, but generally, if such people exist, those above them are not much better, like Emperor Yongsheng.

The emperor on horseback.

With iron-fisted methods, the ministers he brings out can't be bad.

This matter definitely involves a lot, but it's not his place to guess.

"Your Highness means?"

"Is this just one part of it?"

Su Huaiyu was curious, not understanding what Gu Jinnian was thinking.

"Many things I can't participate in."

"Nor do I want to know."

"But I must protect myself. If I think positively, I might be overthinking, and it won't cause any harm."

"But if I think negatively, if they can't get me, they use the millions of people in Jiangning County as pawns. The power behind this is terrifying."

"Who knows if they won't target me again one day."

"So, my idea is simple. Since I can't find out who they are, I'll make them reveal themselves."

"If I'm wrong, I'm just being too cautious."

"If I'm right, I'll prevent it in the future."

Gu Jinnian was straightforward.

He had been thinking about his drowning incident, and Su Huaiyu speculated that it might be the remnants of Jiande trying to cause internal turmoil.

Now, with the flood in Jiangning County, Gu Jinnian couldn't help but connect the dots.

After all, using millions of people as pawns is a bit extreme. Compared to himself, if they failed once, would they try again?

But he was in the open, and the enemy was in the dark, making it difficult to unravel the mystery. It would be better to get involved and find the details from major events, gradually uncovering the truth.

"Your Highness is indeed wise."

"But how do you plan to force them to reveal themselves?"

Su Huaiyu nodded but was also curious about how Gu Jinnian would force the enemy to show themselves.

"Simple."

"They want Jiangning County to be in chaos."

"So I won't let Jiangning County be in chaos."

"Annoy them to death."

Gu Jinnian was confident.

The method was straightforward.

They want Daxia to be in chaos? I won't let Daxia be in chaos.

"Can Your Highness stop the flood?"

This time, Su Huaiyu was truly surprised.

The flood in Jiangning County, a headache for the court, and Gu Jinnian actually had a solution?

"Temporarily no."

"But I can think about it. If I come up with something, it will be a great gain."

"Even if I don't, the people in the court aren't just eating for nothing."

Gu Jinnian looked at the map, speaking sincerely.

Su Huaiyu: "......"

"I'll leave first."

"If Your Highness needs anything, just call me."

Su Huaiyu was silent.

He really thought Gu Jinnian would come up with something.

But this?

"Alright."

"Brother Su, take care."

Gu Jinnian watched Su Huaiyu leave.

He then closed the door and began to study the map of Jiangning County.

Jiangning County, relying on the great river, is surrounded by water, rich in grain, and known as the land of fish and rice.

From the map, it can be seen that it is surrounded by water on all sides, with twelve major roads for trade.

There are also about 470 smaller paths.

The latest news is that all the main roads have been destroyed. Gu Jinnian picked up a brush and marked an 'X' on the twelve places on the map.

He didn't think the twelve main roads were destroyed by the disaster; it was clearly the work of monsters.

"What do they want by destroying the roads?"

Gu Jinnian frowned, pondering.

As a screenwriter, Gu Jinnian has always believed in one truth: no matter what the plot, the logic must be sound.

If it doesn't make sense, make it make sense.

Nothing in the world happens without a reason.

Destroying the main roads must have a purpose.

"Causing chaos is not the main goal."

"Such powerful monsters, daring to do this, must have been promised something great or have deep-seated grudges."

"The promise is more likely. If it's a deep-seated grudge, it would have been expressed long ago. The Daxia Dynasty and the monster race have no blood feuds. If the human race is at fault, they should be punished."

"The monsters causing chaos, destroying key main roads, and purposefully destroying food and housing."

"What do they want to do?"

Gu Jinnian pondered.

The candle flickered.

Reflecting on Gu Jinnian's handsome face.

After a while, a glint of insight flashed in Gu Jinnian's eyes.

"Causing a rebellion."

"Preventing the transport of food and supplies."

Suddenly, Gu Jinnian thought of it.

More accurately, he confirmed his suspicion.

What is the only downside of destroying the main roads? It's that the court's food and supplies cannot be transported into the city.

They can be transported through the smaller paths, but the journey is extremely inconvenient.

With 470 smaller paths surrounding the area, even if you find a nearby path, the concept of a large army marching is different.

Generals, soldiers, horses, iron cavalry, food carts, supply carts, and a large number of logistics personnel.

A delay of one day means less food.

If they slowly travel these smaller paths, the food might be finished by the time they arrive.

Moreover, most of these smaller paths are mountain roads, extremely inconvenient for a large army, though better for small traders.

But for the court soldiers, it's very difficult.

If they travel in batches, what if something goes wrong? Not to mention rebels, even refugees, driven by hunger, might rush for the food.

In a peaceful era, if a general dared to slaughter civilians, they would be removed from power.

"Damn, I thought they would use some trick."

"Turns out it's just this?"

After figuring it out, Gu Jinnian couldn't help but mutter to himself.

All this effort just to cause a rebellion.

It's really laughable.

Looking at the map, under the candlelight, Gu Jinnian shook his head.

"If they chose another county, it would be more challenging."

"Choosing Jiangning County."

"Ha."

"These bastards, you're all going to die."

Gu Jinnian coldly said to himself.

Knowing the enemy's plan, Gu Jinnian was not afraid at all and even had a plan in mind.

Of course.

On the condition that he's not wrong.

If he's wrong, there's nothing he can do. He's not a divine calculator and can only let the court figure it out.

But if he's right, Gu Jinnian is 100% confident in making the enemy suffer.

However, he still needs to check the latest situation.

He won't act rashly, in case he's wrong and embarrasses himself.

Putting the map aside.

Gu Jinnian lay back on the bed, continuing to lie flat.

But lying back on the bed.

Gu Jinnian couldn't sleep.

He had slept for more than two hours during the day.

So he was a bit insomnia at night.

Or perhaps it was because of practicing the Supreme Martial Art, giving him abundant energy.

At this moment, Gu Jinnian missed his previous life, where he could read something to pass the long night.

"Wait."

"Will browsing history be detected?"

Suddenly.

Gu Jinnian got up.

He suddenly realized something.

His transmigration was sudden, and he didn't have time to do some things.

"No."

"I always clear my browsing history."

"It's fine, it's fine."

Fortunately, after a while, Gu Jinnian remembered his habit and sighed in relief.

If he didn't have this habit, he would have been troubled for life.

As the saying goes.

"Unafraid of being crushed to pieces, I will leave my purity in the world."

Lying down again.

Gu Jinnian didn't sleep.

He didn't know what he was thinking. After half an hour, he got up and looked at the door, which wasn't locked.

He looked around, his eyes full of disappointment.

"Extremely boring."

Back on the bed.

Gu Jinnian was really bored.

He couldn't sleep.

It was quite annoying.

Suddenly, Gu Jinnian remembered something.

"How could I forget this?"

Gu Jinnian got up and sat on the bed.

In his hand was a talisman.

This was a Thousand Mile Sound Transmission Talisman.

It can mimic others' voices and randomly transmit sound to others.

Since it was late and he had nothing to do, he might as well vent some resentment.

Thinking of this, Gu Jinnian began to consider whose voice would be best to use.

It definitely couldn't be his own.

Otherwise, if discovered, wouldn't it be troublesome?

It also couldn't be someone close to him.

You can't betray your friends.

In the world, it's all about loyalty.

Whose voice then?

Gu Jinnian thought