The Third Party

While running around at night trying to escape and fight for his life, Zhang Xuezhou still had to make proper visits during the day.

He had agreed last night to let Anguo visit him at Laifu Inn the next day, and within an hour of returning home, he had already set off in his carriage.

Upon hearing that Anguo, whom Zhang Xuezhou was visiting, was both down on his luck and quite wealthy, Li Shaojun became quite interested in such a person and eventually removed her disguise to revert to her youthful state and join in the fun.

Rong Tianding, on the other hand, looked Li Shaojun over with great interest.

After several years, their treasure-hunting team reunited.

Compared to when Rong Tianding first met Li Shaojun, Rong Tianding felt that Li Shaojun's body had not changed much, but the vicissitudes in his eyes had become much more profound, and it seemed that the other party had not lived a comfortable life in recent years.

"Didn't expect you wouldn't even be able to get in the door after arriving, did you?"

Rong Tianding asked Li Shaojun a question with great interest, which made Li Shaojun purse his lips.

He didn't have much luck when he followed Zhang Xuezhou. He had hoped to take advantage of Zhang Xuezhou's generosity, but he never expected that he wouldn't even be able to get into the room.

Anguo was very polite, and Li Shaojun wasn't that shameless. Besides, as Zhang Xuezhou's follower, he couldn't overstep his bounds.

"I don't care about his bowl of tea!"

Li Shaojun hummed and hawed.

He even stated his purpose directly, showing that he cared quite a bit, which left Rong Tianding speechless.

"Is that tea very good?" Rong Tianding asked in a low voice.

"Anyway, I like the materials he uses!"

Li Shaojun replied sullenly.

The fact that Sole Self Realm would continue to drink it made Li Shaojun realize without even thinking that it was incredibly valuable.

As a tea supplement, this is an extremely special supplement, with nourishing effects on almost every level of cultivation, the only difference being the degree of effect.

For Li Shaojun, this was the most direct and effective tonic.

He smacked his lips twice, then pricked up his ears.

In room number one of the Jia-class buildings, Zhang Xuezhou and Anguo were politely drinking tea.

Zhang Xuezhou didn't say much, and Anguo didn't ask any questions either.

After the two had drunk three cups of tea, Zhang Xuezhou's face was visibly flushed, and Anguo finally let out a long sigh.

"You were tainted with a tiny bit of resentment, a very strong yet very thin amount," Anguo said. "The deceased was very powerful, but you killed him very quickly!"

Anguo never considered Zhang Xuezhou's individual strength. After all, there weren't many people like him who were considered great cultivators. He had previously mentioned that the high-ranking officials in Xu Chang and other courts didn't even consider someone like Zhang Xuezhou, a scholar awaiting imperial orders, to be a threat.

But in just one night, Anguo keenly noticed something unusual about Zhang Xuezhou.

He muttered his judgment in a low voice, feeling a little apprehensive, unable to immediately guess which powerful cultivator had been killed by Zhang Xuezhou and the others.

Even the resentment that cursed others after death dissipated, which clearly indicates that the person was dead beyond any possibility of dying.

"I just happened to be caught up in a fight and had some minor lingering thoughts. I was planning to rest and recuperate for a few days, but I accepted Brother Anguo's visit last night. If I delay any longer, I'm afraid it will make Brother Anguo anxious," Zhang Xuezhou replied.

"No rush, no rush!"

Anguo waved his hand.

The fact that Zhang Xuezhou had the confidence to visit suggests that the news of his recommendation had clearly been relayed.

Intelligent people don't need to chatter on and on to find answers. Anguo understood the situation, and the precious tea served to the guest was kept being poured in cup after cup.

"Is there any trouble involved?" Anguo asked cautiously.

"The assassins I encountered were from the State of Liang!"

Zhang Xuezhou replied, and Anguo felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that he was probably on a blacklist to be wary of, and that he would need to demonstrate real ability to get close to the emperor and gain his favor.

"Thank you, Brother Dongfang. I understand now," Anguo said.

Anguo felt that Zhang Xuezhou's message was worth five hundred taels of gold.

Without those words from the other party, even if he had entered the system of Chang'an City, it would have been difficult for him to Denggao in the long run.

His high level of cultivation was not a plus for him, but rather a detriment.

The State of Liang entered Chang'an City to assassinate him, and since he originated from State of Liang and possessed high cultivation, it was almost impossible for him to get close to the emperor.

Anguo had previously harbored the idea of defecting, and now that it had been confirmed again, he couldn't help but steel his resolve, feeling that he would need to use some people as stepping stones to secure his place in the court.

"If Brother Dongfang can speak to His Majesty, Anguo is willing to investigate State of Liang for the court and record its misdeeds," Anguo said in a low voice.

"This is easily resolved!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded repeatedly.

The new emperor's most valued Wei Qing was still in the Jianzhang Supervisory Office, and he hadn't arranged any good positions for Zhang Xuezhou, so how could he possibly make arrangements for Anguo?

At this point, Anguo lowered his status, making it much easier for the new emperor to assign him a position.

In particular, Anguo's self-recommendation, given that Han is familiar with State of Liang and is the most likely target of State of Liang, and even has some connections remaining in State of Liang, Zhang Xuezhou felt that State of Liang was easily framed.

The Gongsun Gui had a very high impact, and it might lead to the abolition of the State of Liang until it was completely devoid of threat.

Zhang Xuezhou thought about Emperor Jing and then about King of Liang, and felt that the struggle between the two had lasted for a very long time, and its effects still lingered even now.

Emperor Jing had a successor to rule the court legitimately, while the King of Liang found it difficult to establish a stable royal court.

After this ebb and flow, everything seemed like a contest of Fortune Technique; no matter how the King of Liang planned his next move, Emperor Jing ultimately won.

"It's said that the King of Huainan encouraged many people to practice Fortune Technique, perhaps as a precaution against future challenges..."

Zhang Xuezhou thought about another relevant party and realized that after the King of Liang's death, the King of Huainan would inevitably have an inextricable connection with him.

"Difficult!"

He couldn't help but touch the jade pendant hanging from his waist.

The dead King of Liang still wielded considerable influence, while the living King of Huainan would be even more troublesome.

Zhang Xuezhou kept assessing the probability of a future conflict between the Prince of King of Huainan and the new emperor, and also pondered whether Emperor Jing had given any relevant instructions to the new emperor.

The King of Huainan was forcibly dragged into the dispute over the Fortune Technique by Emperor Jing. The reason Emperor Jing could tolerate the King of Huainan was because of the King of Liang. Once the Prince of King of Liang's power completely collapsed, the King of Huainan would not be a party involved, but would become a new threat, which would inevitably lead to conflict.

The probability of these two conflicting is 100%.

He thought to himself, "This is difficult." It's easy to deal with the fact that the court doesn't take sides, and it's also easy to cooperate with Li Shaojun to gain an advantage. The real challenge lies in dealing with future conflicts involving Fortune Technique and other techniques.

At this moment, Zhang Xuezhou vaguely sensed that his close contact with the new emperor had created some mystery or conflict.

Either he'll be unlucky, or the new emperor will be unlucky; if either of them schemes against the other, things can easily take some strange turns.

This change seemed illogical, making it difficult for Zhang Xuezhou to grasp the core issue.

"Are we going to bring in a third party to make up the numbers?"

While he could conceal his Fortune Technique, he could only remain undetected and avoid overt Fortune Technique with the new emperor, but this did not eliminate the effects of his Fortune Technique.

Zhang Xuezhou pondered the conflicting yet close cooperative relationship between Emperor Jing, the King of Liang, and the King of Huainan. He also considered how, after his own conflict with the new emperor, he introduced Gongsun Gui, thus achieving unity against external threats and ensuring the safety of both sides. He felt he had grasped a slight sense of control over the interaction of Fortune Technique.

It seems that a third party is needed to balance this out.

This made Zhang Xuezhou blink, and for a moment he felt that anyone could be a third party.

This even includes Anguo is right in front of us.