Tale of Zhen'er

Interlude

Murong Jūn through the years

  Li Zhēn first caught his attentions when the young scholar managed to outwit his spies and break the blockade in efforts to alert the Zhou Empire of their mounting militarisation. Eventual events proved the futility of those efforts, but Murong Jūn sincerely respected such brilliant mind. And the tenacious loyalty within.

  That tenacity and brilliance brings him countless headaches afterwards. There were times he would've gladly wring the scholar's neck, had his troops managed to land their hands upon the wily savant.

  No matter, there'll be times enough for remonstrations afterwards. He must remember to set words so that the scholar would be kept alive.

'Good men are known by their enemies'.

  It would be a pity if one such as Li Zhēn slipped through his fingers merely because of being on the opposite side.

~***~

  Such a stubborn fellow! Never before had a Murong faced with this sheer amount of obstinacy!

'Better an open enemy than a false friend'

'The wise learns more from his enemies'

  It seems strange, but never before had he felt such liveliness than the times he was crossing swords and pitting wits against this most mullish of person.

~***~

  There are times when he felt that Heaven was toying with Murong Jūn. 

  His beloved siblings' unexpected deaths.

  The Xing kingdom windfall, following the Zhou emperor's rampant perfidy.

  The almost systematic decimation of the Murong clan, through bad luck or foul play.

  His prodigious son.

  The crown princess' maternal mortality.

  His seamless accession to the throne.

  His father's death.

  The assimilation of the Zhou Empire during the Xing expansion.

  And now, he's watching the newest trick sent by Heaven, unfolding before his very eyes. The one he sought to be a bosom ally, turns out to be a woman!

  This Li Zhēn truly has played them all for a fool!

  What a grand jest Heaven had sent.

  For good or for ill, that is yet to be seen.