Chapter 4: The Old Man's Big Gamble

  A spacious great hall, with two upper seats on top. Meng Li took the right upper seat as if it was his birthright, with a big knife and golden horse by his side. Then he carefully examined the great hall, which was much larger than his own one mu three fen land. Since being crowned and moving out of the imperial palace, due to receiving favor and not being assigned to a remote place, he had been living in one of Yin Fei's traveling palaces, which were naturally not very large.

  After a while, the cheap relatives from the neighboring country of Xu still hadn't come to talk to the prince. "Your Highness, Yin Guo and his men are showing their attitude. When they arrive, we should make them wait for a bit, maintain our posture, and don't think that we're here to borrow troops, but rather that we're bestowing favors upon them."

  Shaking head slightly and sighing, hehe, showing attitude.

  Meng Lai got up to take a look around, and the calligraphy and paintings on the walls were not few. Meng Lai, who didn't understand calligraphy or painting, thought these wall decorations were all masterpieces. Why? Because even he could tell that they looked good. The beautiful women in the paintings were one after another, really making him feel like he couldn't bear it. The beauties in the paintings smiled and frowned just like real people. Hmm, it seems that ancient people being good at painting beauties is not an exaggeration, you know that even Zhang Fei had a painting of a beauty with exceptional workmanship.

  A series of rapid footsteps came towards the great hall.

  He took a surreptitious glance at the leader, an extremely elderly man with white hair and beard, who was dressed in a mandarin robe embroidered with large red flowers, followed by several middle-aged men also dressed as wealthy masters.

  He took a deep breath, it seems that this old man has already made up his mind. He didn't even wear his formal attire and came directly, is he trying to intimidate me? Humph, indicating that no matter how I plead today, he has made up his mind to protect himself and the Yin family's reputation at all costs.

  "Hmph, this is getting intense! I've got to keep up the momentum, can't let it weaken. First, I'll pretend to lose for a while."

  With hands clasped behind his back and head held high, he pretended to be admiring a painting, turning his back on the crowd. Then, with a slight tilt of his head towards Xu Si, he exchanged a knowing glance before waiting for their greetings.

  "A humble villager, Yin Shi, Yin Xiong, Yin Sang, and Yin Wei have seen the Ninth Prince's mansion." They walked to the center of the hall, raised their arms in a circular motion, spread their sleeves like a large roc spreading its wings, and bowed with clasped hands.

  "Good heavens, humph! Is it really so cheap for these uncles and grandfathers to look down on me like this?!" He thought with great resentment about the heartlessness of this world. Little did he know that before his possession, this Ninth Prince was skilled in literature and had a proud and arrogant personality, plus being favored by the emperor, which made him have the image of a spoiled rich kid, not at all like a heroic master who could hold up the sky. No wonder these 'relatives' retreated as soon as the Empress Dowager died.

  After a while, the four of them were still sitting in Fengyi's posture, bowing to themselves. At this time, Meng Li seemed to have just come back from these beautiful paintings and hurriedly said to the four people: "Grandfather, uncle are all family members, why be so polite, please get up quickly. Just now I was watching these paintings and got a bit carried away, forgive me." With a Bodhisattva-like expression, Meng Li's hands were empty and didn't actually help anyone up. At this moment, he was secretly laughing coldly in his heart: "Haven't eaten pork, haven't seen pigs run?" Those social struggles and bookish talks are nothing compared to this.

  "I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy. Your Highness knows that a humble villager like me wants to return home before old age, and it's truly heartwarming for you to come and see me off. The moon hasn't shone in vain with a child like you." With an expression of joy and relief, the goat-like beard smiled as the sparkling eyes twinkled incessantly.

  Hmph. Old thing, what are you doing here, putting on airs and pretending to be superior? You're still playing these petty tricks!

  "The old duke has spent his whole life toiling for the country, I suppose he's exhausted by now. Let me fulfill my filial duties, bring people, send the old duke to the imperial carriage and let me serve him till the end of his days to make up for what Mother Empress couldn't do."

  "Hehe, no need for that, Father is still...Father has us three children to support him in his old age, how can we trouble Your Excellency? Today the sky is already late, we have decided to set off tomorrow at noon to return to our hometown. Let Father take a look at that piece of his hometown again." At this time, Yin Xiong cleverly interjected and resolved the awkwardness for Old Father, after all, there are still sons around, how can it be up to you, an outsider grandson, to support Old Father?

  "Haha, does the Duke not know that it's safest inside the camp? Being able to live out one's years is already the best choice. The sword is right above your head, just waiting for you to step out of this gate!" Xushu finally chimed in at this point. Meng Li, who had quietly let out a sigh of relief, immediately picked up his teacup and gently blew on it before taking a few sips. Indeed, strategists all have a fondness for being the first to shock people.

  "How dare you, a lowly servant, to interrupt us?" Yin Xiong angrily spoke up for his father.

  "Heh heh, Uncle, why get angry? Don't you want to hear the opinion of this book boy? Who's right and who's wrong will be clear at a glance. When beating a dog, one must consider its master; even my foot-washing servant is more noble than you. Seeing the arrogant 'Uncle' Meng, I am extremely furious, and my tone has also become deeper."

  "How dare you! Don't you apologize to His Highness?" A loud shout came from the trembling old man, who then pushed Yin Xiong forward, making him kneel in front of Meng Li. "Your Highness, I, a humble commoner, have failed to teach my son properly and beg for punishment!"

  The old thing thought it was so big, trying to bully me. Xu Shu narrowed his eyes slightly and continued: "Since you know your own crimes are so great, then let me explain them to you in detail."

  "This young man is not simple, his plans and changes are all swift and reasonable. I don't know where my grandson found such a strategist." Indeed, it's because of age and experience, although the old man's intelligence may not be as high as Xu Shu's, but his ability to judge people has been trained over many years. That's quite accurate. It's worth noting that his own daughter was also a stunning beauty back in the day, but she was married off to the third prince as a concubine, which left many people perplexed. However, after the throne was secured, many people had no choice but to give him a thumbs up and say, "This old man has a good eye." Palace politics are different from outside, though - his own daughter abandoned her son, leaving him without any support, and now he's also lost sight of his retreat. The old man knows that it's easy to enter the palace, but hard to leave; after being the emperor's father-in-law for over a decade, he's accumulated enough wealth and power, and most people wouldn't dare to think about leaving. He had planned to quietly slip out of the capital and return home while his grandson was attracting attention. But now that his grandson has arrived, everyone who's been paying attention to him knows. At this moment, he's just a big ant, slightly larger than his grandson, but trying to jump out of this noose is extremely difficult. However, it seems that this grandson is not entirely without redeeming qualities, and with a strategist by his side, he doesn't seem like a simpleton either. He's been hiding in plain sight all these years - I hadn't noticed anything at all! And does the old man really want to retire? That's just a ruse; if he retreats, he'll be left with nothing but bones, and if he doesn't, his bones will be crushed to dust. If there's really an opportunity, the old man will still take a gamble. After all, it's easy to accumulate wealth from extravagance, but hard to save from thriftiness!

  Xu Shuna's IQ of over 90 is not a waste, although he is still young and lacks experience. Looking at the old man's expression and attitude, after some analysis, it can be seen that this old man still has momentum. So, now it's just a matter of giving him some encouragement. Let him recognize the potential stock that his family has invested in with their lives.

  "There were a few small thieves on the road who came to make a move and were easily taken care of by me. Even the noble prince has people making moves against him, can you, old master, really be safe and sound?!" He said, releasing his bodily aura. "And I, a mere scholar, dare to follow the prince and gamble on the fate of the world. Can't you, old sir, just admit defeat?" Now is the time to show one's true worth. It's like investing, what was said earlier about grandiose plans ultimately depends on the market situation, which is capital."

  A burst of sighs and whispers came. To know that the martial arts in this world are divided into six levels: Martial God, Martial Emperor, Martial King, Martial General, Martial Master, and Martial Artist, corresponding to the civilization of the world, famous far and wide, first-rate, second-rate, third-rate, and not even a rate. The Martial Artist is also divided into six realms. Strategists are the same, strategizing for the world, for the country, for the vassals, for the city, for war, and for people. Ordinary people who reach the second realm of Martial Artists are already seasoned veterans. Even the commanders on the border are only just entering the third-rate, while the great generals in the court are merely at the peak of the third-rate. Although it's unclear what realm this strategist is in, after being mixed up in the imperial court for so many years, several people can confirm that they are absolutely more formidable than the current great general. It's truly astonishing that a mere strategist by his side has already reached the second-rate!

  Wait, he just said he's a strategist? That means he's proud of his plans! His level as a strategist must be no lower than that of a warrior's realm. This Ninth Prince is hiding something incredibly deep to have recruited such talent! To think that even the old master is only at the peak of human strategists at this moment. Without a vast world, it would be impossible for a strategist of that caliber to emerge. After all, Xu Shu is also a figure whose name will be passed down for thousands of years.

  The four people who were shocked at this moment had a sense of awe for Meng Li for the first time. Awe that only Tian Yan had!

  "Dare I ask, sir, what is the boundary of a strategist?" The cautious inquiry brought forth his own question. At this moment, the old man had only one thought: to gamble!

  "I'm no genius, I've just entered the realm of national governance." Although his words were humble, his tone was very arrogant. Anyone who reaches this level at his age would be proud!

  "The general under your command, Zhongjun, has never failed in battle and has never been defeated, but unfortunately, I am inferior to him. Although I have some strategies, I lack this one point, which is the troops to carry out our plans!" He said this with great tact. Xu Shu, who had finished his wine, knew that it was almost time to get to the point.

  "Is there a general? He must be a very powerful one, I don't know if he's of the Wang rank or...". At this moment, Meng Li was just a big, smooth leg to the four of them. They were the first hair on it, and they had to hold on tight!

  "The humble villager is willing to offer 200 private troops and 1,000 guards to Your Excellency. At the same time, I present 100 catties of gold and 1 million taels of silver. 500,000 dan of grain." The old master who knew that if he was going to make a bet, he had to make a big one, had indeed made a costly investment for Meng Li. It's worth noting that these 200 private troops were within the limit allowed by the state, while the guards were actually secretly trained soldiers with a different name."

  "Good, Princess will arrive at the fief and there will be a generous reward for the Duke." Xu Shu took a look at this old man who seemed to understand things and drew him a big pie. Anyway, how much of a generous reward depends on the mood of the master at that time!

  Still lamenting that he is still a poor man, Meng suddenly found himself surrounded by glittering gold and silver. The soldiers had money and food. Now they could plan their journey back to their hometown. Finally, they were no longer afraid of being buried alive by the dead bodies.

  "In two days, I will send you a letter with the specific plan for returning to our hometown and let's discuss it in detail. Since we've happily received people, money, and grain, it's time to leave now. Staying longer won't gain us much more."

  "It is fitting, it is fitting, Your Highness, slow your pace." The four men bowed and paid their respects until the sedan chair was no longer in sight.

  "Didn't Father say that we shouldn't help him with his reckless spending and instead focus on returning home safely? How could he have given away all our family's assets to him?" Yin Xiong and the others exchanged a glance, sensing that their father had changed his mind, but they didn't dare disobey. After Meng Li left, they slightly expressed their discontent. "Besides, can we even guarantee our lives on this perilous journey?"

  "Fool, a strategist who plots the country's borders calls him master and also has at least a Wu Wang-level general. Do you know what that represents?" The gloomy Shishen was quite annoyed that his three children had no insight whatsoever.

  "What does it represent?"

  "That means we may witness the rise of an empire, and we are the founding fathers!" With a flick of his sleeve, he sang as he walked towards the mansion: "In my old age, I recall my youthful recklessness, with yellow clouds on the left and blue clouds on the right, to repay the city for following the royal son..."

  The three sons behind stared blankly at their old father who had been trembling slightly just now, but was now walking back with steady and big strides.