NOVPUBLi Youu never considered himself a good person, and of course, he didn’t think Chen Xi and Jia Xu were good people either, but today, he suddenly realized that Chen Xi and Jia Xu were actually kindred spirits!
Li Youu was aware that he was considerably weaker than Jia Xu and the others in terms of basic talents and intelligence. If it hadn’t been for his encounter with Zixu when he was young, Li Youu was clear that he would never have reached his current level.
Originally, with his abilities, reaching the level of a quasi-first-class, average strategist or civil official was already the limit. But the abilities he exhibited now were no less than those of any first-class strategist or civil official, and his greatest strength lay in his versatility.
When he was young and left his hometown, he saw that the Humble Family had no support and boldly declared he would carve out a path for them. A middle-aged man ridiculed him, "With your lone strength, how can you save the masses?"
"If I don’t try, how can I know; if I don’t try, how can I have no regrets?" Li Youu still remembered his response.
The middle-aged man was stunned and stared at Li Youu for a long time before speaking, "Death will end your path, and infamy will follow you—can you really have no regrets?"
"Right and wrong, success and failure can only be judged by those who have acted!" Li Youu said earnestly, watching as the middle-aged man stared at him, dumbfounded.
"You can never achieve it if you keep learning this way. Your material is doomed, you can never despise the masses. If you want to accomplish what you desire, at least your talents and learning must be sufficient. With your mere abilities as a strategist, what can you really improve?"
"Please teach me, teacher," Li Youu had said, as if divine inspiration had struck him at that moment. It was from that point that his knowledge, comparable to anyone’s, began.
"Very well, young man, I don’t have much to teach you, but I know how to make you the world’s top all-rounder. Your spiritual talent cannot awaken on its own. Without awakening your hidden strength, you can never stand at the top. Let me teach you how to unlock it!" The man laughed heartily, extremely satisfied with Li Youu’s answer.
Li Youu spent a full ten years supplementing his political strategies and military strategies, plus his conspiracies. He learned everything a civil official ought to know and reached a stable quasi-first-class level, after which his spiritual talent awakened.
If quantified, Chen Xi exhibited an internal management score of a full hundred, Jia Wenhe’s strategic acumen reached ninety-seven or ninety-eight, his military strategy hit ninety-four or ninety-five, and his political strategy scored about ninety-one or ninety-two, while Li Youu’s three attributes were around eighty-seven.
However, the spiritual talent Li Youu awakened was balanced. When three or more attributes reached the same high level, each increased by 10%, meaning Li Youu’s original level of eighty-seven actually manifested as ninety-five or ninety-six in all first-class areas. His passive, comprehensive thinking talent made the medium-talented Li Youu extremely formidable.
It was already terrifying for a versatile individual to reach a quasi-first-class level in everything, and for someone like Li Youu, who perfected his jack-of-all-trades ability to a first-class standard in every aspect, even Jia Xu found him to be very difficult to deal with. This was because Li Youu could do everything well; there was no chance for anyone to exploit his weaknesses since every board was equally long.
This was why Jia Xu had never heard Li Youu mention his spiritual talent; it had been in effect since the moment it awakened, maintaining Li Youu’s strength.
[My past vows, I am willing to uphold once again. I, Li Wenru, will not be weaker than anyone. My greatest strength lies in having no deficiencies, and I definitely won’t allow any unresolved issues in my conclusion.] Li Youu thought to himself. He had been in a slump for a while, and now it was time to reflect seriously on this. A vow should not be discarded so easily!
"Wen Ru, what are you thinking about? Let’s go!" Liu Bei walked a few steps, then noticed that Li Youu, who always followed him, was missing. He felt a bit unaccustomed and turned around to see Li Youu, who had been somber, now with a touch of a smile on his face. For some reason, Liu Bei felt a warm surge and asked with a smile.
"I’m coming." Li Youu quickly caught up and followed closely behind Liu Bei. They passed through the shadow of the Library Pavilion and into the warm sunshine of the late autumn. A sudden warmth radiated over Li Youu, who thought, [Following Lord Xuande, overcoming those noble families that have been insurmountable for millennia, has always been my aspiration. If Grand General He could become a chancellor at seventy-two, why should I waste my talent at just over forty?]
"It feels like Wen Ru has changed a lot," Liu Bei murmured softly to himself as he saw Li Youu catch up and then turned to walk towards another building.
"I’ve simply come to realize a few things," Li Youu replied with a smile that lacked the previous dusk-like despondency, his entire being radiating a vigorous zest for life that was infectious to those around him, "I intend to live to see that day arrive!"
"Hahaha, let me borrow a phrase Chen Xi once taught to Wen Ru," Liu Bei laughed heartily, pleased with Li Youu’s current mindset. After spending so much time together, Liu Bei was extremely satisfied with Li Youu’s abilities – military strategy, political strategy, calculated planning, mathematics, the Study of Changes, the Three Religions and Nine Schools – Li Youu knew everything Liu Bei could ask about!
"Please, Lord Xuande, enlighten me!" Li Youu said with a smile on his face.
"For the sake of tomorrow," Liu Bei paused, his entire demeanor becoming solemn as he looked at Li Youu, then spoke in a deep voice.
"For the sake of tomorrow?" Li Youu repeated, a glow of pride crossing his face, and then he nodded, "Indeed, for tomorrow, not only for our tomorrow but also for the sake of..."
"The people, the Han Dynasty, the entire world!" Liu Bei stated gravely, his spirit reaching its pinnacle as he looked at Li Youu.
"The path taken by Lord Xuande, Li Wenru will definitely cover any shortcomings!" Li Youu said to Liu Bei, looking at him with each word pronounced distinctly, his expression solemn.
"Good! Should I, Liu Xuande, achieve success one day, I will never forget this day!" Liu Bei reached out his right hand to Li Ru, who also slowly placed his hand in Liu Bei’s, a sense of shared glory appearing on his face, unlike Chen Xi’s fleeting and mood-breaking actions.
While Liu Bei was displaying the harmony between a wise ruler and a capable minister, Chen Xi was tucking Chen Lan into bed, instructing two maids to watch over her and to wake her up when it was time to eat, so as to avoid Chen Lan sleeping through mealtime and not wanting to eat. Only after these precautions did Chen Xi leave Chen Lan’s courtyard to check on Fan Jian; after all, upon returning, one ought to mark their presence at Fan Jian’s, to avoid being accused of unfairness.
"Husband..." Chen Xi could tell just by looking at the listless Fan Jian flipping through books on the bed that he was probably infected by Chen Lan’s lethargy.
"Go get some sleep, has your bridal gown been embroidered yet?" Chen Xi teased Fan Jian’s forehead and gently pushed the about-to-rise Fan Jian back onto the bed, asking curiously.
"No, my mother said she has prepared it for me. Why do you ask?" Fan Jian asked in confusion. Embroidering a bridal gown was a cumbersome task, and since her mother had prepared it for her, she did not want to waste too much time – it was tiring, and it had to be done beautifully. It would be impossible without at least half a year if she had to do it herself.
"Oh, it’s nothing. Who prepared my clothes?" Chen Xi suddenly recalled an issue – it seemed that no one had made his groom’s attire. His mother had passed away when he was very young, and he had fallen out with his family, without any aunts to prepare such things. So what was he supposed to do about his clothing for the wedding?
"..." Fan Jian was stunned, then mumbled in confusion, "Husband, you haven’t prepared your attire? Black Clothes with Golden Pattern, to match the attire of Feudal Lords..."
Chen Xi was dumbfounded. He thought someone would have prepared it for him. By this reckoning, he did not have anything. He had already obtained information about himself from Chang’an. Liu Biao, Li Que, Guo Si, these people, in order to win over Liu Bei, had arranged for a bestowed wedding, then recognition of his achievements, bestowing a jade tablet and granting him the title of Pavilion Marquis. The wedding ceremonies of a Feudal Lord King required specific attire... 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪
Thinking of this, Chen Xi was no longer worried; he felt completely stress-free. After all, at the time of the bestowed wedding and title, he would have to change clothes, and while normally he wouldn’t have the attire of a Feudal Lord King, they would definitely prepare it for him when bestowing the title.
"Husband, why not contact the Chen Family? After all, Old Master Chen himself is a Marquis, and could certainly provide these items," Fan Jian whispered, since it was now too late to rush the production. The most important issue was that when the Han Dynasty had granted titles in the past, only the seal ribbon was bestowed, without the robes, making it hard for Chen Xi to maintain appearances.(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to cast recommendation votes and monthly votes at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
