Evolution - Chapter 33
Chapter 33
Ji Changqing was diligently carrying out her educational outreach at home, with the full support of her grandparents, who went out on schedule every day to teach their old friends health exercises for the elderly.
She didn’t preach any grand principles. Having been born and raised here, she understood better than anyone that the common people had their own unique wisdom for survival.
When popularizing the basic laws, she didn’t care what people complained about; she simply told them that if they didn’t comply, they would face fines at minimum and jail time at worst.
Everyone was taken aback, muttering a few words about how meddlesome these officials were. But Ji Changqing knew that nine times out of ten, they had accepted it. For money’s sake, they would do whatever was required. Life had to go on, after all.
While her pleasant community teaching work was in full swing, news reports about thugs suddenly erupting in violence, randomly injuring and killing people, would pop up online from time to time. It wasn’t obvious at first, but gradually, everyone began to wonder: why has there been so much news about random assaults and murders lately? How has public safety gotten so bad?
Slowly, public opinion began to subtly allude to the idea of “the strong using force to break the law.”
The onlookers were terrified, especially the many uninformed masses whose evolution was not yet significant. People started to worry. If everyone around them suddenly possessed explosive martial strength while their own evolution couldn’t keep up, wouldn’t their personal safety be completely unprotected?
Some had already taken to the internet to vent their fears, arguing that since everyone was evolving at different rates, the existing security forces might not be able to handle potential criminals. They accused the Alliance of inaction, of failing to protect its citizens.
Once emotions reached a certain point, public opinion fermented with incredible speed. In just two or three months, resentment toward the Alliance had built up, with some agitated individuals even questioning the competence of the representatives the Alliance had stationed on Blue Star.
The goodwill initially generated by the Alliance members’ good looks was now being used to question them with that same metric:
“Were you all chosen for your looks? Why are you doing absolutely nothing?”
Faced with the furious public questioning, the Alliance methodically released videos and data.
Arranged in chronological order, the public could see:
Even before the Alliance’s existence was officially announced, they had provided various nations on Blue Star with evidence of crimes committed by all sorts of criminal organizations and forces. This was followed by each nation’s reaction to and handling of the evidence presented to them.
After their public debut, the Alliance had continued to clean up criminal organizations and various terrorist activities. It was just that the Alliance’s information-gathering capabilities were so powerful and their actions so swift that many terrorist activities were dismantled while still in the planning and recruitment stages.
And because the public had not suffered any substantial harm, the nations had kept all of this under wraps.
They had been silently protecting the people of Blue Star, just as they protected the other citizens of the Alliance.
The frequent news reports of violent assaults and murders were mostly sudden, isolated incidents. The Alliance representative meekly stated: “It is our oversight. We misjudged the response speed of the current security forces to sudden incidents. In the future, we will enhance aerial patrols to ensure the personal safety of the public.”
The reversal of public opinion was truly whiplash-inducing.
After the videos and data were released, the public’s dissatisfaction with the Alliance quickly transformed into dissatisfaction with their own respective countries.
They silently handled all the big stuff, and you can’t even manage the small things. You’re trash! What’s the use of having you?!
The trash who had been secretly stirring the pot: This is too much for me…
As the online clamor gradually subsided, perhaps because it seemed the world was at peace, the game unlocked a new feature. The instance worlds that players had been randomly assigned to in the second stage, regardless of whether anyone had cleared them before, were now open. Anyone who had passed the second stage could choose to spend points to enter an instance world they had never been to before.
As for whether they could obtain new items or win points and contribution from the instance worlds, that would depend on their own abilities.
Ji Changqing, who had spent a month farming easy rewards in the game and then nearly two months back in her community teaching, was particularly invigorated. Although farming—which was basically like picking up free money—was nice, doing the same thing every day for a whole month was just too depressing.
She quickly called her friends, preparing to form a team to tackle an instance world.
The First naturally accepted the invitation with pleasure.
Surprisingly, Lin Huang and Zhong Lan came along as well.
The four of them met up. The First wanted to go to a more technologically advanced instance world, but the other three unambitious middle-aged people expressed a desire to go to an ancient-themed one.
Middle-aged people, you know, they all harbor a little fantasy of “wearing the robes of our Han people, and reviving our land of rites and etiquette.”
Of course, they wouldn’t actually want to go back to ancient times, but experiencing it in a game was perfectly acceptable.
Besides, if things went south, they could just kill themselves to get back. They could afford to spend those few points.
As a research fanatic, The First felt that going to an ancient instance was rather pointless, but then she thought about the gorgeous Hanfu robes, and figured it would only be a two or three-day delay. So, why not?
After selecting the category, they clicked confirm.
Matching instance world… Match successful!
Logging into the game…
Special Notice:
1. In the ancient world, apart from team communications, no black technology exceeding the world’s tolerance is permitted. Triggering this three times will result in automatic ejection from the game.
2. The time flow in the instance world is controlled. Successful completion or death upon failure will result in automatic exit.
3. Each instance world can only be entered once.
4. The main quest will be automatically acquired upon entering the instance world.
5. Explore the game world on your own. The instance world is open, with no limit on the number of entrants. There may be surprise drops of other players.
The four of them didn’t think much of it. It was just a game, after all. An instance like the second stage, limited to a single team, was the real oddity.
Almost as soon as they landed, the four of them received information about their new identities and, at the same time, their main quest: End the chaotic era as soon as possible.
Zhong Lan happily received the identity of a mystic. She cheerfully announced over team comms: “I’m in the State Preceptor’s Residence, as one of his junior disciples.”
Lin Huang quickly responded: “I’m in the Imperial Merchant Lin family.”
The First was silent for a long time before she finally spoke, her voice muffled: “I’m in the Artisan He family. Can one of you figure out a way to buy me out and give me commoner status?”
Only Ji Changqing remained silent. If her icon hadn’t still been lit up, they would have thought she’d died on arrival.
Of course Ji Changqing couldn’t respond. Her situation was a bit unusual.
The moment she landed, she found herself on a battlefield, clad in armor, a long spear in hand, mounted on a horse. In the distance, banners fluttered like a forest; up close, war chariots were interlocked side-by-side. The air thundered with the sounds of battle. Naturally, without a second thought, the first thing to do was carve a bloody path out!
As she fought, Ji Changqing received her identity information, and a wave of frustration washed over her, making her fight all the more fiercely.
Ji Changqing, Princess of the Zhenbei Royal Residence. To which it must be added: her father and brothers had just died in battle, leaving behind a residence full of women, with her as the sole remaining seedling of the Ji family name.
There was also a piece of news that might or might not be good: back in the royal residence, three of the wives and concubines of her father and brothers were pregnant.
The soldiers, who had initially thought she was just a pampered noble lady who had come to the battlefield to cause trouble, were utterly astonished. Watching Ji Changqing cut a swath through the enemy, invincible and unstoppable, they had no time for other thoughts and followed her closely, charging alongside her.
As the saying goes, an army of sorrow is bound to win. The Jingbei Army, with black gauze wrapped around their arms in mourning, were already filled with grief and indignation. Seeing their princess fight so valiantly, their spirits soared, and their morale became as high as a rainbow. They forcefully pushed back a wave of the enemy assault.
After the bloody battle, Ji Changqing was escorted back into the city. Only then did she have a moment to send a message to her teammates: “Just finished a fight. I’m the Princess of the Zhenbei Royal Residence, and now the only seedling left.”
Zhong Lan was shocked. “You didn’t wipe out the entire royal family the moment you arrived, did you?”
The First couldn’t help but laugh, typing out a string of “ha ha ha’s.”
Before Ji Changqing could curse Zhong Lan, she heard an announcement that the generals were seeking an audience.
She wiped her face, not having time to change out of her blood-stained armor. “Send them in!”
The generals entered in unison and bowed with cupped fists. “Princess, our provisions are nearly exhausted, and the supplies from the imperial court are long overdue. This…”
Ji Changqing sighed wearily and waved her hand. “First, tell me the current situation.”
After her heroic performance on the battlefield, the generals, who were already quite loyal to the Zhenbei Royal Residence, exchanged glances. They figured that the princess was, after all, a temporary leader thrust into command, and was in the dark about many things. She indeed needed a detailed explanation.
The first Zhenbei Prince was the founding emperor of the Great Zhou’s own brother. After the dynasty was established, he was granted the title of Zhenbei Prince for his military merits, a title to be passed down through generations. His duty was to guard the northern border, protect the imperial capital, and defend against the barbarians.
The Great Zhou Dynasty had been founded for just over a hundred years, with only three emperors having reigned. The Zhenbei Prince who had just died in battle was already the fourth generation to hold the title, and Ji Changqing, the current sole heir, was the fifth. This showed just how high-risk the position was.
Two years ago, the emperor, who was the same age as the Zhenbei Prince’s heir but a generation senior, died a dishonorable death, single-handedly leveling the generational gap between the imperial line and the Zhenbei line. A child emperor ascended the throne, with the Empress Dowager ruling as regent.
The Zhenbei Royal Residence had guarded the northwest for generations. This year, there was a great drought, and the barbarian tribes had united to attack the pass. Their assault was ferocious, as if they were determined to trample Jingbei City. The Jingbei Army had fought bitterly for nearly two months, but the court’s provisions were nowhere to be seen. To make matters worse, when the adult men of the Zhenbei Royal Residence went out to battle to boost morale, they were somehow ambushed and wiped out in one fell swoop.
Ji Changqing rubbed her brow. This story wasn’t complicated at all. It sounded like a conspiracy between internal and external forces to utterly destroy and discredit the Zhenbei Royal Residence. With the barbarians at the gates, if Jingbei City couldn’t hold, the Zhenbei Royal Residence’s century-old reputation would be ruined, even if their entire family perished.
Now she was in the thick of it, one of the intended victims. If she didn’t want to die, she had to find a way to break this deadlock and survive.
“We can’t count on the imperial court for now,” Ji Changqing said bluntly, not mincing her words at all. “We can only rely on ourselves.”
The generals’ expressions shifted slightly. It seemed they were mentally prepared for this. Just as they were about to ask more, Ji Changqing dismissed them. “Cease hostilities for three days. Hold the city gates.”
With all the men of the Zhenbei Royal Residence dead, regardless of who was behind it at court, there was definitely a traitor among the generals. Since she didn’t know who to trust, it was best to return to the royal residence first. A residence that large was bound to have some shadow guards and death commandos. She needed to get them under her control first.
She would also use the time to practice her Physique techniques and strengthen this body.
She said three days, but Ji Changqing ended up staying in the royal residence for ten. She took control of the shadow guards and death commandos, sending a few out to monitor the generals, especially the two who were supposed to be coordinating with the men of the Zhenbei Royal Residence on the day of the battle. At the same time, she was absorbing the original owner’s knowledge of military strategy.
Thanks to her Big Sister, she could still practice the Physique techniques. Combined with her extravagant use of the Zhenbei Royal Residence’s collection of fine medicines accumulated over the years, she managed to roughly double her strength in ten days. In this cold weapon era, that was enough for her to single-handedly charge the barbarian king’s main tent.
She was also grateful for the original owner’s genius. As the princess of the Zhenbei Royal Residence, her family had intended to pamper her. However, the original owner was extremely interested in the art of war, so the Zhenbei Prince and his heir naturally taught her. But while the original owner was a divine military strategist, skilled in riding and archery, her personal combat ability was only at the level of an ordinary person. Thus, she mostly acted as a military advisor to her father and brothers, rarely making public appearances.
Now that Ji Changqing was here, she inherited the original owner’s knowledge of military strategy. She just needed to slowly integrate it, and combined with her own martial prowess, it was a perfect match.
Otherwise, she really would have died on arrival.
After ten days, the generals, who could wait no longer, rushed over as soon as they received the summons. During these ten days, although Ji Changqing had not shown her face, she had sent out written orders, guiding them in small-scale battles. They had won victory after victory, seizing a considerable amount of supplies from the enemy. Even so, if they couldn’t repel the enemy army, their provisions wouldn’t last more than a few days.
Ji Changqing wasted no time on pleasantries and quickly began to issue orders. Starting from noon that day, they would gradually divide their forces, carry enough dry rations, and advance stealthily to designated locations to rest for the night in preparation for a major battle the next day.
The great battle ten days ago and the series of small victories in the days since had greatly increased the generals’ confidence in their princess. Even though they couldn’t quite grasp her plan, the situation in Jingbei City was desperate. They would follow the princess down this path to the bitter end.
Three days later, the Jingbei Army, outnumbered three to one, dealt a crushing defeat to the allied barbarian forces, slaying their commander and annihilating nearly twenty thousand enemy soldiers.
Ji Changqing became famous in a single battle.
Get instant access to all the chapters now.
Comments
Post a Comment