The moment Jiang Sheng saw Gu Chi's reaction, he knew there was a chance.
He tested the waters. "What does the lord think...?"
Gu Chi folded his hands into his sleeves and sidestepped two paces, as though distancing himself from Jiang Sheng, who was full of schemes. "What could the lord possibly think? The ruler's mind is hard to fathom. You all don't know what he thinks, so how could I? Hanzhang was right. You really should rein it in. You can't scheme against your own people. If even half a step wasn't one of our own, this would be easy to handle."
If Gongshu Wu weren't one of their own, they could arrange for Wu Yuan to kill him. Gong Cheng and Wu Yuan would most likely become enemies. They could also arrange for Gong Cheng to kill him by mistake. Gong Cheng was young and inexperienced, and his resolve wasn't strong or steady enough. The shock of that moment would be enough to backfire and leave him gravely wounded. At best, his cultivation would stagnate; at worst, it would regress.
If Gong Cheng were ruined, the Northern Desert would lose one of its trump cards.
But Gongshu Wu was one of their own, and a veteran at that. Their ties ran deep. They could think such things all they wanted, but they couldn't actually do them. "If the lord could bring himself to trade half a step for one of the Northern Desert's people, gentlemen, wouldn't you truly feel your hearts turn cold?"
If they could sacrifice Gongshu Wu today to maximize their gains, then tomorrow they could sacrifice any one of them for even greater gains.
The lord had indeed considered scheming against Gong Cheng.
But he was nowhere near as ruthless as these men imagined.
Every