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Chapter 643: The Heaven-Made Chessboard, All Life as Pieces
🕑 Added 2024-09-29 07:48:14 +0000 UTCChen Gong's hands trembled uncontrollably. Upon realizing that everything had already been meticulously prepared by Taishan, Chen Gong could no longer suppress his inner shivers. It turned out that the whole world had been manipulated; the world indeed had an owner, but the master only took a step back to make the world better.
At this moment, Chen Gong felt an icy chill all over. After carefully analyzing everything that had happened from the beginning until now, he couldn't help but sigh deeply, realizing that the other party had prepared everything in advance.
Chen Gong's thoughts became increasingly detailed, connecting many previously unnoticed details. The more he thought, the more shocked he became. The saying, "Great sound is silent; great form is formless," proved to be true.
Reflecting on the past few years, Chen Gong discovered a crucial situation: the Liu family rulers of the world. The only one thriving was Liu Bei; the others had either died or were no longer able to uphold the Han dynasty’s banner. Liu Bei was the only one left who could be considered the legitimate heir of the Han.
Consider the situation five or six years ago at Hulao Pass. Liu Bei was valued because there were four major regional governors of the Liu family, and the Han dynasty had not yet declined. Liu Bei, being of Han bloodline and coming in person, was tacitly accepted by various lords. At that time, the Han dynasty’s banner bearers were Liu Yu, Liu Shao, Liu Biao, and Liu Yan!
Now, Liu Yu, who had the highest prestige, was defeated and saved by Liu Bei, then sent to Chang’an under Kong Rong, which benefited Liu Bei's reputation.
Liu Yan, who was the first to propose the regional governor system, had already died of old age. His son Liu Zhang occupied Shu but couldn’t even take Han Zhong, leaving Shu's loyal officials waiting for a capable ruler. Another one gone.
Liu Biao, who once ruled Jingzhou, despite his heroic past, had lost Jingbei and after being defeated at Xiangyang, had regained his former stature. Unfortunately, he was helpless under Yuan Shu's pressure, lacking not just strong leaders but basic resources, with only 700,000 people and an equal number of Five Streams tribes causing trouble. Facing Yuan Shu, who had been fattened by Liu Bei to a population of ten million, it was a miracle to hold on.
As for Liu Shao, his unfortunate faction had already become part of Yuan Shu’s near ten-million-strong force.
Comparing this horizontally, it was strange if Chen Gong didn’t realize the issue. Liu Bei might not have been aware, but his subordinates clearly allowed Yuan Shu to deal with these rulers, and their methods were subtle and unnoticeable. One would not understand the entire situation without seeing this as a trap set by Liu Bei.
The more Chen Gong thought, the more frightened he became. From this grand perspective, the world situation was deliberately created by Liu Bei’s side.
A lightning bolt of realization struck Chen Gong's mind. He immediately guessed everything. Liu Xie, having endured years of coercion, would naturally act to stabilize the situation by bestowing more power to Cao Cao. The first thing he would do was undoubtedly to reclaim military power.
This was in direct conflict with Cao Cao’s goal of pacifying the world. The outcome was predictable. Chen Gong firmly believed that Liu Xie could never successfully reclaim power.
To be honest, no matter who was in Cao Cao’s position, it would be challenging to surrender military power under the emperor's and officials' strong demands. After all, this not only concerned his fate but also the fate of his entire lineage.
In fact, this is not irreconcilable. As long as the emperor is patient and the subjects loyal, power can gradually be reclaimed. Chen Gong wasn’t very certain about Cao Cao's loyalty, but he knew that Cao Cao had not completely decayed. His ability to issue proclamations and admit mistakes indicated many things.
Unfortunately, Chen Gong knew that Liu Xie, having experienced so many times of losing control of his fate, would never trust or dare to trust Cao Cao. Perhaps at the beginning, when Liu Xie was in extreme distress, a bowl of Cao Cao’s porridge might have earned Liu Xie’s recognition.
But what about afterward? After the initial relief? Chen Gong had seen Liu Xie's cold nature once before. The result was already determined. All the brilliance of the Han dynasty would inevitably fall on Liu Bei, and Cao Cao would strip Liu Xie of all his glory, leaving only his life as a puppet.
Chen Gong finally understood. Even if Liu Xie became emperor, it would not change much. Throughout history, emperors were not lacking, and even achieving greatness would only place one behind Qin Shi Huang, who was the first and thus unsurpassable.
Since that’s the case, it would be better to excel as a minister, so much so that the emperors of all dynasties look up to one. Not as an emperor, but to achieve a level that makes emperors look up to you, reaching the utmost pinnacle!
Chen Xi couldn’t hear Chen Gong’s thoughts, but if he did, he would be deeply alarmed and would spare no effort to retain Chen Gong. After all, this was a matter of great importance. Though not entirely the same, the difference was minimal; indeed, the world was a chessboard.
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