Wu Long arrived in the inn that Wei Yuanjie was occupying.
In the innermost courtyard of the inn, the prince was sparring against a swordsman, one of the many who followed Duan Feng from the Boundless Mortal World. The others were also locked in spars, as the whole scene slightly resembled a Martial Arts Sect.
The blind swordsman himself, was sitting in a ditative pose a bit further in the courtyard, occasionally comnting on one spar or another.
"It’s hard to tell if he’s looking or not", Wei Yuanjie grumbled under his nose after a remark by Duan Feng, a comnt that made the blind swordsman to chuckle.
As Wu Long entered the courtyard, the latter rose, raising his hand to stop the others from sparring.
"Hahaha, you don’t have to stop midway on my behalf, I could’ve waited till you’re finished", Wu Long chuckled.
"I wouldn’t dare show such discourtesy to you, Master Wu", Duan Feng shook his head.
"I appreciate your sincerity, though there really is no need to stand on ceremony with ", Wu Long replied in a lighthearted tone, turning to Wei Yuanjie, "You seem to be enjoying your ti"
"Hah, I have to find a way to, since soone’s too busy to mind ", the prince made a smirk while folding his hands over his chest.
"Co, let’s have a talk", Wu Long chuckled, inviting Wei Yuanjie inside.
As they walked, the latter still made remarks about being neglected for all this ti, though it was obvious he was content with his life in the Silver Wing City.
He was free to roam the city at any ti he liked, talking to anyone he wanted to talk to, tasting various foods in the street stalls, enjoying freedom he never had.
And most of all, he mingled very well with Duan Feng’s little group.
At first, he was just curious how strong could a blind swordsman really be, asking for a spar. And then, realizing he was no match for Duan Feng, he tried his luck with his followers, who were really more like Duan Feng’s disciples.
He quickly learned that he was no match for them either.
However, the swordsn recognized not only his talent, but also his passion to learn, and more than anything, his likable character.
Not to ntion, as soone who at so point was interested in arts, he had sothing in common with the painter, starting to learn from him as well.
Thus, the more he spent ti among the group, the more he started to blend in, to the point he started to feel a bit like a part of it.
Wu Long watched this transformation of a sheltered Imperial Prince into a wandering swordsman with both amusent and a subtle joy. It was like watching soone break out of a shell they were forced into, shedding years of restrictions and control, making their own first steps to learn the world. A developnt Wu Long liked to see.
At the sa ti, he had to remind Wei Yuanjie of his situation, to ground him in reality of who he was at the mont, in order for the young prince to not use this environnt as an escape, which carried the risk of making the connections he makes superficial in nature.
He had to be aware of, and eventually be prepared to face, the clash of his reality and this new life and identity he was building.
And Wu Long’s words when they sat for a talk with so tea, did just that, "There’s been a slight change in the Imperial Palace"
Wei Yuanjie’s face froze, and then showed light concern, "Did Mother learn we got rid of the bodyguards?"
"Possible, or rather, quite likely, but that’s not the main news", Wu Long smiled, adding "Relax, it’s not really that bad"
And just as Wei Yuanjie sighed with relief, already opening his mouth to laughingly say sothing like "Don’t scare like that"...
Wu Long continued, "Simply put, everyone knows you’re here on this continent, and since outwardly, you’re working hard establishing the authority of the Wei Dynasty on behalf of your sister, that is what they think you’re doing here: effectively working against your brothers"
Wei Yuanjie froze with half-open mouth that half-ford a smile.
"That’s way worse!", he exclaid in light panic.
"Hmm, it just ans we might be getting so interference here, maybe they’ll send an Imperial Ambassador, who’s likely to be of Imperial Descent, perhaps an uncle of yours or so other distant relative", Wu Long shrugged his shoulders, speaking in a neutral, unconcerned voice.
"...", Wei Yuanjie’s expression continued to pale, speechless at this lack of urgency in Wu Long’s deanor despite the content of his words.
"It’s sothing that would’ve happened sooner or later, Yuanjie", Wu Long calmly noted, "We might’ve left the Imperial Capital, but we are nowhere near far away from the Wei Dynasty’s area of influence"
These words caused the prince to first clench his fists, and then sigh, understanding that what Wu Long was saying was true.
"What are our counterasures? Is there anything you need for to do?", he asked, regaining his cool, causing Wu Long to show a content smile.
"We have the advantage, since we made the first move", Wu Long explained, "And the other side is playing catch-up"
"We hold the initiative... so we need to continue to make moves that allow us to keep controlling the initiative...", Wei Yuanjie replied with a thoughtful expression, understanding Wu Long’s line of thinking.
The latter nodded, "Yes, and to do so, at least a large portion of our moves, would have to compel them to make actions in response. Which is why we need to clearly establish their motives"
"To not make moves that they can ignore...", Wei Yuanjie interpreted Wu Long words, speaking slowly while thinking, "Hmm, in case of my brothers and those behind them including Mother... the motive would be to gain credit that they could use in the battle of succession"
"Almost", Wu Long nodded, "They also need to prevent others from gaining credit, and the closer their rivals are to gaining credit, the more their focus shifts to sabotage rather than gaining credit themselves"
"So the fact we started ahead of them, ans we shifted their main goal. They no longer prioritize gaining the achievent I am officially here for, for themselves... but are more focused to sabotaging , and preventing from gaining it instead...", Wei Yuanjie traced his chin, and then showed a confused, "But isn’t that more troubleso to deal with? It ans they’re going to ddle in the dirties way possible"
"It depends on how you look at it", Wu Long shrugged his shoulders, "When you define the goals for your opponent, you control their movents, and if you do it well, can even limit the ways in which they try to achieve those goals, which gives you even greater control over them. It’s all about controlling where your opponent focuses their attention. The fact we’re here first, allows us to choose what’s going to be an ’important battleground’, and divert all their efforts there, while we can be doing sothing completely different in the background"
Wei Yuanjie gave Wu Long a slightly strange look.
The forr knew that the latter was soone who orchestrated a lot of things in the Imperial Capital, and thus was no stranger to sches and conspiracies.
But, the way Wu Long nonchalantly said those words made Wei Yuanjie feel a deep chill crawl up his spine. A sudden thought ca to him in that mont, ’Whoever finds himself opposing this man, is utterly and completely screwed...’
Reviews
All reviews (0)