Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 356 - 230 No Regrets_3

Chapter 356: Chapter 230 No Regrets_3

But before the battle began, the series had already displayed in detail the unstoppable might of the Jin soldiers as they advanced southward, and set the scene with images of the defending troops at Niu Zhu Pier fleeing upon hearsay and the soldiers lacking the will to fight. Thus, when Zhao Binfu finally took the stage and turned the tide, it was all the more shocking.

By the second episode, it was the players, alongside Yu Jiaxuan, winning against Jin soldiers with matchlock guns.

And amidst the vigorous fighting, the timely appearance of Yu Jiaxuan’s poetry offered the series a grand conclusion.

"Think back then, with iron cavalry and golden armor, their presence swallowing miles like tigers!"

With each resounding line of poetry, the Jin soldiers were beaten into a complete retreat.

And with this, the series was finally drawing to a close.

Wang Wenchuan couldn’t help but sincerely exclaim, "What a line—iron cavalry and golden armor, their presence swallowing miles like tigers!

"I had not thought that a hundred years later, my Qi Dynasty would still have such talented individuals.

"Since the Qi Dynasty continues to produce talent, I suppose it must have reclaimed Yan and Yun long ago by now?

"No, wait, isn’t Niu Zhu Pier... on the Yangtze River?"

Only then did Wang Wenchuan suddenly realize something was amiss.

Previously, he had only noticed the victories of Zhao Binfu and Yu Jiaxuan, but he had overlooked the location of the battle, which was already deep within the Qi Dynasty’s territory along the Yangtze River.

The emergence of such talents, yet the original resolve to reclaim Yan and Yun has now become merely holding the line along the Yangtze River...

Why does it seem we are moving backwards instead of forwards?

After a moment of silence, Wang Wenchuan asked, "If that’s the case... it’s likely that the Qi Dynasty ultimately perished, didn’t it?

"But I don’t know whether it fell to regional warlords or..."

Meng Yuan paused slightly, then said, "Historically, Yu Jiaxuan was not put to good use. He once said, ’The enemy will surely perish in sixty years, yet after their fall, the worries for Huaxia will grow.’ Sadly, his words became a cruel prophecy.

"Sixty years after the fall of the Jin, the Northern Barbarians rose to power and destroyed Qi, marking what later generations referred to as the ’Sunken Divine Land’ during the great dark era.

"Fortunately, in the future, people drove out the barbarians twice and rebuilt the Huaxia civilization. However, the demise of the Qi Dynasty in its waning years, along with the end of the Song Dynasty, ultimately brought inconceivable calamities to the culture of Huaxia, causing posterity to sigh and feel heartache whenever they reflect upon it."

Wang Wenchuan, with a sorrowful expression, sighed, "How could such a thing happen..."

Clearly, this news hit him like a bolt from the blue.

It can only be said that, as a historical figure learning of later events, there’s both joy and sorrow.

Of course, Wang Wenchuan also admired the talent of Yu Jiaxuan and the bravery of Zhao Binfu, but the thought that even with such talent emerging, they were still unable to save the Qi Dynasty from falling to foreign powers was simply too much to bear.

Before the Qi Dynasty, the powerful Liang Dynasty fell to regional warlords. And, since ancient times, although foreign tribes posed a great threat to the Central Plains dynasties, they had never truly managed to completely subjugate the Central Plains and trample the Huaxia civilization underfoot.

Therefore, for the scholars of the Qi Dynasty, led by Wang Wenchuan, the imaginable scenarios for the fall of the Qi Dynasty included regional warlordism, peasant uprisings, and battles among various warlords...

What they had not considered was that Qi would actually perish at the hands of foreign tribes, plunging the Divine Land into oblivion.

Had Wang Wenchuan been living in that era, aside from dying unyielding in captivity, he would have had no other option.

Meng Yuan said, "In fact, the downfall of the Qi Dynasty was predetermined from the very beginning. The fate of a dynasty often closely depends on its founding monarch.

"And as a dynasty founded on illegitimacy, with a ruler who ultimately lacked breadth of vision and failed to make use of the virtuous or to capitalize on the valor of the generals, defeat after defeat is hardly surprising."

Wang Wenchuan made no response.

He did not know how to reply to Meng Yuan’s words.

Even though Wang Wenchuan might certainly have his own thoughts about the emperor, as a subject of the Qi Dynasty, it was tough for him to criticize the monarch of Qi openly and even more inappropriate to discuss the legitimacy of its rule.

After all, as a man of antiquity, even with forward-looking thoughts, he was ultimately bound by the limitations of his time.

"Regardless, being able to witness all this leaves me with no regrets."

Wang Wenchuan sighed, "Although my life is full of regrets, knowing that future generations will give me a fair assessment makes all my toil and tireless questing worthwhile."

Meng Yuan respectfully bowed, "Eternal glory to you, Lord Jing."

Wang Wenchuan returned the bow, and then, he looked toward the distance.

The scenery around him rapidly changed, as if he was back at Flying Peak, back to his youth.

"Fear not the clouds that block your eyes; it’s because I stand at the very top."

The fog swirled, burying the slice of history from the Qi Dynasty era, along with Wang Wenchuan, back into the river of history.

The audience in front of the screen also felt their emotions undulating, not knowing what to say for a long time.

Throughout history, the fate of those who sought to reform has generally been similar.

To really do something, to really not let the clouds obscure your vision, you must stand high enough.

But upon reaching the summit, might you find the heights too cold to bear?

Wang Wenchuan indeed stood at the highest point, but that also meant that whether he succeeded or failed, his actions would leave a bold stroke in history: admired through the ages if successful, scorned for eternity if not.

Even so, he still ascended the peak without hesitation to fulfill his mission.

In the future, there will be countless people like Wang Wenchuan, doing what they know to be impossible.

This series now comes to an end.

...

Soon after finishing the series, the audience began a heated discussion.

"Ah, even watching it again, the feelings are hard to settle."

"Yu Jiaxuan and Wang Wenchuan, both heroes with unfulfilled lofty aspirations. Although in the game they finally have a good outcome, when I think about the real historical events, it still easily raises my blood pressure."

"This series is pretty good, though it’s a bit of a mix, but the style really fits ’Dark Sand.’ It showed Lord Jing three different possibilities, made him fully understand why his reforms failed, I guess that means he died without regrets."

"The part with the flintlock guns against the Jin soldiers was so thrilling. Although similar plots can be found in many novels, seeing such a grand scene depicted realistically in a series is still very exciting!"

"This is the charm of the ’Dark Sand’ game, it can not only reproduce the actual historical events but also show different historical possibilities as long as the players work together and perform accordingly!"

"I wonder what the next instance will be like? Really looking forward to it."

"Meng Yuan’s final comment must be a teaser from the officials using his voice, right? The fall of the Qi Dynasty was doomed from the establishment of the nation. The reason why Qi never had a truly great and insightful ruler was fundamentally due to the problems present at the founding of the dynasty, and those maladies continued to persist..."

"The next instance is ’Eight Thousand Miles of Cloud and Moon,’ this time there should be a lot of parts for General Han Fuyue, right? Moreover, it seems like it will somehow be integrated with the historical slice of the Qi Emperor. I wonder if we can play as the infamous emperor?"

"I have a question, why is it Meng Yuan both times?"

"Because he’s the best actor and orator, that’s probably why he was chosen, right?"

"Afterward, other people should be able to join too, right? Who knows, let’s look at the official announcement."

...

Watching the discussion among the audience, Meng Yuan expressed his sentiment to the Coordinator, "Twice might be excusable, but there cannot be a third or fourth time. Having hosted twice has already raised suspicions, it’s time to find someone else.

"I think Chuge should be up to the task. Plan the flow in advance and let him take over next time."

The Coordinator narrowed his eyes slightly, "You, the official Resetter, are getting more and more perfunctory. You were already coasting through the instance conquests, and now you’re even prepared to let the players take over the movie production."

Meng Yuan felt unhappy, "How can you say that? This is clearly the voice of the people! More players should take on a significant role in the movie!

"Okay, I’m going off to plan the new instance now. This time we must deal a fatal blow to the demons and recapture the entire Qi Dynasty!"

Meng Yuan buried himself into the Trial Illusion, busily getting to work.