Chapter 272 Attacking Wei
Sometimes living is really a cruel thing; because there are too many things that we have to do.

Just like Wang Yao, he is now facing a difficult choice; facing a brother who has shared weal and woe with him and is loyal to him, should he ruthlessly kill him in order to save himself?
The answer is obvious; it is difficult to do.

Before coming to this alien world, Wang Yao was from a country of etiquette, with the teachings of Confucius and Mencius as its heritage, and he himself was a traditional child deeply influenced by orthodox Confucianism. Therefore, even today, although he has seen the darkness of this world, his inner benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness still restrain his behavior invisibly, so that he will not become a selfish person.

But on the other hand, Wang Yao also believed that Zhuge Liang's concerns were actually correct.

What he did in the highlands of Wu State was indeed likely to have violated the taboos of being a minister. Especially Zhang Fei, who had always discriminated against "outsiders" like them, was already very dissatisfied with his promotion to the commander-in-chief. Who knows if Zhang Fei would take this opportunity to report him to Liu Bei? To put it bluntly, the top leaders might even be prepared to deprive him of his military rank, and in order to find an excuse, they would certainly track down his past whereabouts. Once Fei Yi accidentally revealed his tracks and told about Zhang Shao, the consequences would be disastrous.
Zhang Shao’s matter is like a sword of Damocles hanging over Wang Yao’s head, and it is ultimately a huge hidden danger!

But even so, although he understood the reason, Wang Yao still found it difficult to make up his mind because he felt uneasy in his conscience.
What is the so-called conscience?
The best answer Wang Yao has ever heard is: Conscience is a triangular thing in my heart. If I don't do bad things, it will be still; if I do bad things, it will start to move, and every corner will hurt me; if I keep doing bad things, every corner will be smoothed, and I won't feel any pain.

If he went against his moral principles and killed Fei Yi this time, there would be no turning back for him.

By the time Wang Yao returned to the pavilion unknowingly, the sun was already high in the sky.

Arriving at Luna's bedroom on the second floor, Wang Yao saw that the girl was still resting, so he gently sat down at the head of the bed, silently looking at her snow-white sleeping face which was brighter than the white sheets.

The soft hair that fell to one side due to gravity quietly covered the girl's long eyelashes, her lightly closed eyes, and her slightly open rosy mouth. As her body slowly rose and fell, she gently exchanged air with the outside world, probably telling of her inner peace and comfort at the moment.

At this moment, Wang Yao's noisy heart calmed down for no reason; he thought, as long as she was by his side, his heart would never cool down.

Unable to help but raise the corners of his mouth into a knowing smile, Wang Yao gently scratched her smooth face with his fingertips with a look of pity on his face.

"Uh, stop bothering me and let me sleep for a while."

A sticky sound immediately murmured out from the girl's mouth, whose eyes were still tightly closed. However, she seemed to vaguely sense that Wang Yao's breath was a little strange. Luna then opened her eyes, and at a glance, she saw the gloom in Wang Yao's eyes.

"What's wrong with you?" Luna asked softly, rubbing her sleepy eyes, somewhat puzzled.

Looking at the girl's extremely clear eyes, Wang Yao hesitated to speak. He didn't want this kind girl to be troubled by such a dirty thing, so he smiled and shook his head and said, "It's okay."

"You're smiling so bitterly and you still say you're fine?" Luna couldn't help but roll her eyes at Wang Yao, then sat up from the bed and asked, "What happened?"

Under the girl's serious gaze, Wang Yao was silent for a moment before he said, "I'm just a little confused, as if I've reached a crossroads in life. Girl, what do you think is the right thing to do in life? Should we stick to our principles or succumb to the mainstream?"

"You said it too obscurely. I don't really understand." Luna scratched her head, not quite understanding what was going on. "But I seem to understand what you mean. How should I put it? In fact, it doesn't matter what choice you make, and there is no need to worry about right or wrong. I think, as long as it can move you from the bottom of your heart, it shouldn't be a bad thing!"

Wang Yao widened his eyes and looked at the girl in front of him with some surprise.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Luna felt a little embarrassed by being stared at, and subconsciously grabbed the quilt to cover her delicate body.

"It's just a little unexpected. I didn't expect you to speak so eloquently now." Wang Yao rubbed the girl's head with emotion and fell silent again.

Yes, what the girl said is actually very right; things that can move you are mostly not bad things, and for you, they are the right things.

So, in the afternoon, Wang Yao met Fei Yi at the east gate of Jingzhou. Without much greeting, he asked straight to the point: "Fei Yi, now that you are a captain of a thousand men, will you still obey my orders?"

Fei Yi, who was originally wondering why Wang Yao suddenly wanted to see him, couldn't help but feel a little puzzled when he heard this. But even so, he still knelt on one knee in front of Wang Yao with a solemn expression: "Master Yao, you have been so kind to me. In this life, I swear to follow you to the death, and I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"

"I don't need you to go through fire and water." Looking at Fei Yi's extremely serious expression, Wang Yao immediately said: "But I want you to leave Jingzhou now." "Wait a minute, leave, leave Jingzhou?!" Fei Yi was dumbfounded.

In fact, Fei Yi originally thought in his heart that Wang Yao might be planning to eliminate some people again, just like the assassination of Zhang Shao in the canyon battlefield. But he never expected that Wang Yao actually asked him to leave Jingzhou!

As the saying goes, a real man sheds blood but not tears. However, when Fei Yi thought about how glorious the Seventh Main Force was in the past under the leadership of Wang Yao, he couldn't help but feel a surge of heat in his eyes: "General, did I do something wrong?"

Wang Yao did not speak. He just used his thumb to flick the guard of the famous sword Siming in his hand from time to time. With each flick, the sharp blade jumped out of the scabbard a little, and then fell back into the scabbard under the action of gravity. The blade rubbed against the scabbard back and forth, making a hissing sound like sharpening a knife.

Fei Yi said in a hoarse voice: "Since I was promoted to the rank of captain, I miss my former companions even more. I have been training the troops day and night, and I have been thinking all the time that one day you will lead me to fight back to the Wei highlands and avenge my former comrades! Now, how can I be willing to leave before I have avenged my great vengeance? Sir, if I have made any mistakes, you can punish me, but please do not drive me away!"

Looking down at the tearful soldier, Wang Yao's heart also began to sour. He would never forget that when he, a captain of a thousand men, led several centurions and named the troops in the military tent "Abusing the Five Dogs on the Opposite Side".
However, precisely because of this, he could not let Fei Yi stay. He could not be as decisive as Zhuge Liang, so he could only let Fei Yi leave like this. At least he could still survive.

Before he knew it, Wang Yao had put down the famous sword in his hand.

"Do you still remember that we assassinated Zhang Shao in the Canyon Battlefield?" Wang Yao whispered in a low voice, seeing Fei Yi's complicated expression, "Although we have done it very secretly, it was you who called Zhang Shao out from the high ground. If we really investigate it, I'm afraid you can't escape the blame."

Fei Yi felt a chill in his heart: "Are you saying that someone wants to investigate this matter?"

"I don't deny that there is such a possibility." Wang Yao patted Fei Yi's shoulder earnestly and said, "I believe in your loyalty to me, but I am still afraid that you will suffer unnecessary hardships because of this. Therefore, you must leave the legion and leave Jingzhou. There are only you and me left in the former Seventh Main Force. I don't want you to have an accident."

As he spoke, Wang Yao took out 20 gold coins that he had put in his bag, handed them to Fei Yi and said, "These gold coins are enough for you to live in another place. Keep them."

Today is a sad day, at least for Fei Yi.
But even though he was extremely unwilling, Fei Yi still took the money bag from Wang Yao. Just like before, he always believed in Wang Yao, because he knew that Wang Yao could have killed him to silence him, but Wang Yao did not do so. Just based on this, he was already satisfied.

"General, please, please take care of yourself!" Fei Yi knelt deeply in front of Wang Yao and kowtowed three times with tears in his eyes. Then he stood up and walked away, looking back every few steps.

Wang Yao watched Fei Yi's figure walking further and further away until he finally left the east gate. In a trance, he felt as if he had bid farewell to a past event.
Just as Wang Yao was sighing to himself, a familiar voice sounded from behind him.

"Just now when you were playing the sword guard, there was a hint of murderous intent in your eyes. I thought you were going to kill that soldier."

Wang Yao turned around and saw Zhuge Liang had quietly appeared behind him, or maybe he had been lurking around him.
"What? You're not here to kill us all, are you?" Wang Yao narrowed his eyes slightly.

"No." Zhuge Liang shook his head: "Even I can't accurately predict the future, so I respect your choice. Just try to choose a way that you won't regret."

Wang Yao was slightly stunned.

Not sure if it was an illusion, Wang Yao found that Zhuge Liang had changed a lot now. At least in many decisions, Zhuge Liang would obey his wishes. He was no longer as controlling as when they first met, and he would not let him say anything and would say everything himself.

"Then why did you come to me?"

Zhuge Liang looked at Wang Yao deeply.

"Your Majesty plans to send troops to attack the Wei Kingdom in the north in two days."

(End of this chapter)