With Xiang Shaolong's intervention, the crisis at Wu Family Fort was easily resolved.
After this incident, Wu Tingfang's opinion of Xiang Shaolong changed a lot, and Wu Yingyuan and Tao Fang also highly praised Xiang Shaolong.
After all, the fact that someone could resolve a crisis with just a silver tongue was simply unbelievable to Wu Yingyuan and the others.
Ling Yi also spent a day wandering around Handan City, mainly wanting to meet the Protagonist of this world, Zhao Pan, who had been replaced by Soul Transmigration.
However, after some investigation, Ling Yi received news that was both unexpected and yet perfectly reasonable.
Zhao Pan was already quite famous. He not only ran a "supermarket" selling soap, perfume, instant noodles, and other products familiar to modern people, but he had also become one of the most trusted advisors of the King of Prince Zhao.
He was granted the title of Marquis of Taiping by the Prince Zhao, and his status was not much lower than that of Marquis of Julu Zhao Mu.
It is precisely because of this that Zhao Mu and Zhao Pan have clashed countless times, and their conflict has almost reached the point of no return.
But the butterfly effect brought about by the Protagonist goes far beyond this.
Prince Zhao became diligent and hardworking. His body, which had been weakened by the wine, was healed by Zhao Pan's "miracle medicine," and he is now full of energy and high spirits.
Zhao Pan was adept at cultivating connections, and he even shared a portion of the profits from his products with some Wenwu in the court, using these benefits to bind them to his camp.
The Marquis of Julu Julu's prestige, or rather his role in the court, has become negligible.
When Wu Yingyuan returned the Heirloom Seal of He, Zhao Mu indeed interfered. Xiang Shaolong found the flaw in Zhao Mu's words and almost labeled Zhao Mu as a traitor who plotted to usurp the throne with just a few words.
If Prince Zhao hadn't continued to trust Zhao Mu, Zhao Mu would likely have been finished this time.
However, after this incident, Zhao Mu's standing in the eyes of Prince Zhao plummeted.
During this process, although Marquis Taiping Zhao Pan didn't say much, he always spoke at the perfect time. It was because of his few words that Zhao Mu lost any chance to turn the tide.
In the afternoon, Ling Yi returned to Wu Family Fort and happened to see Shan Rou and Xiang Shaolong chatting.
However, Xiang Shaolong's expression was not good at the moment. He was staring at a bucket of instant noodles on the table with a worried look on his face.
"What's wrong?" Ling Yi asked, feigning ignorance.
"I don't know. He's been like this ever since he came back, saying strange things. I'm afraid he's suffered some kind of trauma and has gone insane."
Seeing Ling Yi return, Xiang Shaolong seemed to have found his pillar of support and stood up abruptly. However, he opened his mouth for a long time but did not say a word, and then slumped back down.
Ling Yi sat down next to Shan Rou, ignoring Xiang Shaolong's conflicted and hesitant expression, and said to Shan Rou, "I have an important matter here that I need to trouble you to handle."
"Then the investigation into Zhao Mu's residence..."
"Let's put it aside for now. Zhu Ji and her child are Zhao Mu's only protection now, so their defenses will likely be extremely tight. Besides, there are too many people watching Zhu Ji and her child right now, so we don't need to be the first to stick our necks out."
"Go to the southwest of Handan City, to a place called Niu Family Village, and find a man named Niu Zheng. If he is still alive, bring him back; if he is dead, bring back all his belongings, without missing a single one."
"Who is this Niu Zheng?" Shan Rou asked.
" Niu Zheng, real name Zhao Zheng!"
Xiang Shaolong and Shan Rou were both greatly surprised.
"Are you saying that the Zhu Ji and her child in Zhao Mu's possession are fake?" Shan Rou asked.
" Zhu Ji is real, but that Zhao Zheng is fake. More than ten years ago, just in case, Zhu Ji sent Zhao Zheng to Niu Family Village."
"Is your source reliable?" Shan Rou asked again.
"The news is true, you don't need to doubt it," Ling Yi said.
What if Zhao Zheng is already dead?
"As long as a token that can prove identity is found, anyone can be Zhao Zheng."
Shan Rou was shocked and stared at Ling Yi with disbelief. After a long while, she asked, "You want to be Zhao Zheng?"
"Originally, I hadn't planned on this, but..."
Through Zhao Pan's various actions, Ling Yi has basically determined that Zhao Pan has the ambition to contend for hegemony, but he has no intention of returning to State of Qin to become First Emperor of Qin.
As someone Soul Transmigration, Zhao Pan naturally had a deep understanding of the plot of "A Step into the Past." On his path to becoming Ying Zheng, Zhao Pan encountered too many risks and nearly lost his life countless times.
Instead, it would be safer to start by controlling the State of Zhao, making State of Zhao over the world.
Zhao Pan's choice was not surprising, but it also indicated that the Karma connection between Zhao Pan and Xiang Shaolong had been erased by Zhao Pan's cheat-like abilities.
In the original storyline, Zhao Pan and Xiang Shaolong were bound by a shared fate; if one died, the other would also die. However, since Zhao Pan, who has now been replaced by Soul Transmigration, doesn't care about this, he naturally has no such worries.
Zhao Pan may not be First Emperor of Qin, but Ling Yi cannot allow the world to exist without First Emperor of Qin.
In other words, from this moment on, Ling Yi and Xiang Shaolong were destined to be enemies with Zhao Pan.
Before Xiang Shaolong traveled through time, the doctor repeatedly emphasized to him that history must not be changed, otherwise everything in the future would be altered.
Without a future, Xiang Shaolong, who traveled from the future, would naturally cease to exist.
In comparison, Xiang Shaolong cared about this matter more than Ling Yi.
"Impossible! How could Zhao Zheng be dead? If Zhao Zheng were dead, where would First Emperor of Qin be? Without First Emperor of Qin, how could the six kingdoms have been unified?" Xiang Shaolong said excitedly.
Ling Yi and Shan Rou both looked at him.
" First Emperor of Qin? Unified the six kingdoms?"
Xiang Shaolong shrugged helplessly and said, "If I said I was from two thousand years in the future, would you believe me?"
"Evidence!" Ling Yi said succinctly.
Xiang Shaolong pulled out a pistol. "Brother Ling Yi has seen this before and knows its power. This is a pistol; people in this era could never make one."
"And Ling Yi's military dagger, that's a product of modern industry, it doesn't belong to this era."
"And this, a time machine. With this, as long as I arrive in Xianyang and Apocalypse First Emperor of Qin ascends the throne, I can return to the time and space I'm in."
"And..."
Xiang Shaolong picked up the bucket of instant noodles on the table and said with a serious expression, "Besides, Zhao Pan is also from the future. This kind of food is called instant noodles. In our time, it was an essential food for otaku."
"Instant noodles are simply impossible in this era. Perhaps something went wrong in the future, and someone used a time machine to travel between the two time periods."
Shan Rou shook her head and said, "I know Zhao Pan; he is Zhao Ya's biological son."
"Impossible! That Zhao Pan is definitely a fake. Perhaps the real Zhao Pan is already dead, and he's impersonating Zhao Pan," Xiang Shaolong said excitedly.
Shan Rou looked at Ling Yi and asked, "What do you think?"
I believe him.
These words Dawei moved Xiang Shaolong.
"What if history had changed?" Ling Yi asked Xiang Shaolong.
Xiang Shaolong trembled slightly and said, "The future will naturally change. I am a person from the future. If the future changes, then I will naturally cease to exist."
Ling Yi reminded him, "If Zhao Pan were from the same era as you, he should also know the serious consequences of changing history, but he clearly doesn't care about changing history."
Xiang Shaolong fell into deep thought.
"Then there are only two possibilities: either Zhao Pan is unaware of the consequences of changing history, but since he can time travel, this possibility is unlikely."
"What's the second possibility?" Xiang Shaolong asked.
"The second possibility is that he is different from you."
Xiang Shaolong was stunned for a moment, and murmured, "Different, why are they different? Where are they different? Could it be... a parallel universe?"
"That's right, it must be a parallel universe. How do you explain that?" Xiang Shaolong scratched his head.
"You don't need to explain, just guess the reason. Just know that he is now... our enemy."
Xiang Shaolong nodded gratefully.
"Brother Ling Yi, thank you very much."
"You don't need to thank me. I have my own needs, and it wasn't entirely for your sake."
After a pause, Ling Yi said, "Now we need to figure out two things. First, since you say these West City come from the future, we need to know how he brought them here."
" Xiang Shaolong, you'll investigate this matter."
"Clear!"
"The other one is from Niu Family Village."
"Don't worry, I know what to do." Shan Rou nodded.
"These are breathing exercises I've compiled over the past few days. They're easy to Entry and progress very quickly."
Shan Rou rolled her eyes. "Didn't you say that no one could learn your Kung Fu Hustle?"
Xiang Shaolong was speechless. "Brother, you told me yesterday that it's all about talent. You lied to me!"
"I only talked about sword techniques, not cultivation methods. Besides, it can't be considered deception. No matter how much you train, you still can't beat me."
"Hmph, with the technique, why can't I defeat you? You're too confident, unless you're hiding something," Shan Rou retorted.
"That is!"
Ling Yi laughed heartily, "Then we'll wait for the day you defeat me."
The two couldn't wait to start cultivating, while Ling Yi prepared to find Wu Yingyuan, as he needed Wu Yingyuan's cooperation on some matters.
Not long after leaving the manor, Ling Yi suddenly drew his long sword from his waist and slashed it through the Void...
" Dingdang!"
Two crisp sounds rang out in the air as Ling Yi knocked two Hidden Weapons away.
"You cowardly cowards, come out and fight!" Ling Yi shouted coldly.
A person wearing a cloak, a straw hat, and a mask emerged from behind a tree, clapping and praising as he walked.
" Ling Yi, I underestimated you after all."
" Cao Qiudao!" Ling Yi revealed the other party's identity in one sentence.
Cao Qiudao removed his mask and tossed his bamboo hat aside, sneering, "With such talent, why did you betray the organization? If I had known earlier, I would have groomed you as my successor."
Do you think I'd believe that? Tell me why you're here, or get out.
"Very well, today I'll see where your confidence comes from."
"Heh, Cao Qiudao, if you were to make a move, you would surely die today. You still have some use, so I don't want to kill you now!"