The Heavenly Screen reappeared, its radiance illuminating the Nine Provinces.
Within Shouchun City, the newly established capital of the Great Yang Empire, the atmosphere instantly froze solid.
Yan Xiang and Ji Ling, who had surrendered only recently, stood below the dais, craning their necks, their faces filled with undisguised anticipation and tension.
Their expressions were complicated in the extreme, mingling reverence for the Heavenly Screen's divine revelations with deep anxiety over their own futures.
After all, they had only just cast aside their identities as Yuan Shu's former subordinates and staked their fortunes and lives on this new emperor.
Whether this new emperor was a dragon or a worm, the true Son of Heaven or a fleeting joke that bloomed and faded like an ephemeral flower, might receive its final verdict in the Heavenly Screen's few brief words.
Yet in stark contrast to their agitation, Yang Feng sat firmly upon the dragon throne.
He seemed extraordinarily unconcerned.
He even felt a little like yawning.
Anyway, I've already taken over the magpie's nest, cleaned out Yuan Shu's old lair, and become the ruler of Huainan.
Even if the Heavenly Screen starts bad-mouthing me next and says Liu Zhang beat me into utter defeat, so what?
Whatever.
Not a ripple stirred in Yang Feng's heart; he had even planned his escape route for the worst-case scenario in advance.
At worst, I'll just stop being emperor.
I'll simply throw down the burden, shove the imperial jade seal into Ji Ling's or Yan Xiang's hands, say, "Do your best. I have faith in you," then dust off my backside and leave.
Find somewhere with lovely mountains and clear waters, buy a few hundred mu of land, build a big house, and start my retirement straight away.
I refuse to believe Ji Ling and these other newly surrendered fellows would actually dare chop my head off.
They're only trying to scrape together a living in these chaotic times and find wealth and honor.
I've given them a chance to earn merit by following a founding emperor. Even if it all falls apart in the end, we can part peacefully. There's no need to make it so bloody.
We're all civilized people, after all.
Of course, that was only the worst-case plan.
If the Heavenly Screen knows what's good for it and says I easily put that governor of Yizhou, Liu Zhang, in his place, that would naturally be the best outcome.
When that happens, I'll follow heaven's will and reluctantly carry on being emperor.
Then I'll pocket Yizhou, that land of heavenly abundance, hold its natural defenses, and quietly watch the winds and clouds of the realm shift.
Whether it talks me down or talks me up, the initiative will always be in my hands.
That feeling of having everything under control left him utterly at ease.
Just as Yang Feng leisurely prepared himself mentally, the boundless radiance upon the Heavenly Screen suddenly flashed, and line after line of large golden characters in ancient seal script cascaded down like a waterfall.
[Now, after Yuan Shu's downfall, Yang Feng, the greatest emperor of all time, did not remain in Huainan for long.] [He knew full well that his foundations were unsteady and that he could hardly withstand the combined strangulation of the realm's warlords, so he gathered Yuan Shu's remaining troops and traveled west, eventually making his way to Yizhou.] [Liu Zhang, governor of Yizhou, heard that Yang Feng had come seeking refuge with Yuan Shu's remaining troops and already felt no goodwill toward him.] [Weak and suspicious as he was, he had long since seen through Yang Feng's intention to seek refuge in name while actually taking over the magpie's nest. Thus, he repeatedly held banquets, preparing to poison the wine and kill Yang Feng's entire party.] [Yet Yang Feng seemed to have divine assistance, narrowly avoiding the poisoned wine every single time and repeatedly thwarting Liu Zhang's schemes.]
"Hiss-"
A chorus of sharp gasps rose from below the dais.
Cold sweat instantly beaded on Yan Xiang's and Ji Ling's foreheads, and a chill ran down their backs.
That was far too close!
So in the Heavenly Screen's other version of events, His Majesty actually faced such perilous treatment!
Liu Zhang looked weak and incompetent, but who would have thought his heart was so vicious!
Their hearts pounded, and their gazes involuntarily flicked toward Yang Feng on the dragon throne, only to find their emperor still looking as calm as light clouds on a gentle breeze, as though the unlucky fellow described on the Heavenly Screen were not him at all.
Meanwhile, the words on the Heavenly Screen continued.
[Word that Yang Feng had fled to Yizhou soon spread throughout the realm.] [For a time, the warlords of the realm seethed with indignation. From Yuan Shao in the north to Cao Cao in the Central Plains, they sent envoys to Chengdu, declaring in no uncertain terms that Yang Feng was a Han subject in name but a traitor to the Han in truth-a worm gnawing at the nation, the common enemy of all under heaven!] [They strongly recommended that Liu Zhang, governor of Yizhou, invoke his standing as a kinsman of the Han imperial house to behead this traitor on the spot and set the record straight!]
As those words ended, every official and soldier throughout Shouchun City who witnessed this scene turned deathly pale.
It was over.
Now they had been completely isolated by the entire realm.
So in that future, His Majesty not only had to face Liu Zhang's poison but also endure the pressure of public opinion from the entire realm.
This was simply a death trap!
[With the verbal support of the realm's warlords, Liu Zhang instantly felt he had nothing to fear.] [Believing righteousness was on his side, he abandoned those underhanded assassination methods and instead openly assembled his forces, preparing to wipe out Yang Feng and the remaining troops under his command in one stroke, then claim credit before the realm.]
An atmosphere of despair hung over everyone's hearts like dark clouds.
Ji Ling and Yan Xiang exchanged a glance, each seeing deep fear in the other's eyes.
They could almost see the miserable fate awaiting their party in that future, surrounded on every side by Liu Zhang's army and ultimately annihilated to the last man.
Yet just as everyone thought the story was about to reach its tragic conclusion, the scene on the Heavenly Screen abruptly changed!
[Who could have known that Yang Feng, the greatest emperor of all time, had long been prepared for this!] [He had chosen Yizhou not because he had nowhere left to turn, but because he could devise strategies within his command tent and secure victory a thousand miles away!] [He knew that Liu Zhang had two peerless talents under his command. One was named Li Yan, courtesy name Zhengfang!] [The other was named Fa Zheng, courtesy name Xiaozhi!] [Both possessed the talent to weave the warp and weft of heaven and earth, the ability to bring peace and stability to a nation. They could truly be called talents rare through the ages!] [Yang Feng knew even more clearly that, though they served Liu Zhang-that worthless ruler of grand ambitions and meager ability, weak and suspicious-in name, countless grievances and resentments had long since arisen in their hearts!] [He knew that with only a little enticement from him, these two would abandon darkness for the light without the slightest hesitation!] [And it was precisely because of these two men, these two seemingly insignificant choices...] [That the history of the world was utterly changed!]
As those words ended, the large golden characters upon the Heavenly Screen abruptly froze.
That appraisal of Li Yan and Fa Zheng exploded like a thunderclap inside everyone's minds!
At that moment, the entire world fell into deathly silence.