The video takes us to ancient times; Li Er transforms into the Tongtian Emperor of Shu Han.

Did Liu Bang bring anyone with him?

"I will bring Zifang along to participate in this challenge!"

Liu Bang did not hesitate.

"I want to let those Sima clan members know who the mastermind behind all the scheming and intrigue is!"

Zhang Liang: “…”

Before and after, it was all either intrigue or scheming.

So, Your Majesty, is this how you see me?

"Your Majesty, aren't you being too confident?"

Boss Cao couldn't help but remind him.

"Scheming and backstabbing are only effective when the two sides are relatively evenly matched, right?"

"Cao Mao was essentially a puppet in that situation. If he played too many tricks, wouldn't that only hasten Sima Zhao's usurpation of the throne?"

"You must know that even a skilled cook cannot make a meal without rice."

The other party has the power to cripple you at any time, and you have no power to match them except to draw your sword, board the carriage, and rush out of the palace gate.

What are you going to use to scheme against each other?

"Hmph, do you think I'm dead? When it comes to vying for power and manipulating people's hearts, I'm also an ancestor of the Sima family!"

Liu Bang scoffed dismissively.

At the same time, a subtitle appeared on the sky.

[Challenge Participant: Liu Bang; Assisting Challenger: Zhang Liang.]

【The challenge begins! 】

In an instant, both Liu Bang and Zhang Liang experienced a sudden blackout.

When I opened my eyes again, I was already in the deep palace.

"Holy crap, Zifang, how did you... become like this?"

Liu Bang was about to discuss the next steps when he was startled by Zhang Liang, who was dressed in guard armor.

"I have no idea. When I opened my eyes, I was already in the appearance of Li Zhao."

Zhang Liang smiled wryly.

"Never mind, it won't have much of an impact."

Liu Bang quickly accepted the outcome.

"Zifang, I have some ideas for breaking the deadlock, but I need to hear your thoughts on how to do it."

Zhang Liang thought for a moment before slowly speaking.

"The difficulty of this situation lies in the fact that the Sima family has absolute power. However, when everyone knows Sima Zhao's intentions, no one stops him or tries to take his place. Instead, they are all waiting for the usurpation to happen."

There is something fishy about this matter.

"You must understand that in Cao Wei, the Sima family alone is not enough to withstand the combined forces of other powerful families."

What he meant was obvious.

After all, even if the Cao family was weak, if they didn't promise these powerful families enough benefits, then they had no reason to just watch the Sima family sit on the throne.

To put it bluntly, this throne is not something that Sima Zhao alone can sit on!

The other powerful families were able to tacitly accept the Sima family's usurpation not only because they themselves lacked sufficient strength, but more importantly because...

After the Sima family usurped the throne, the benefits they were promised were not much less than those promised upon ascending the throne, but they were not far off either.

This point was also mentioned in the immortals' inventory.

The repeated concessions to powerful clans allowed them to grow stronger, which was the root cause of the eventual decline of imperial power, directly leading to the War of the Eight Princes and indirectly causing the Five Barbarian Invasions!

"Zifang and I have indeed thought the same thing!"

“While the other aristocratic families may not be able to contend with the Sima clan individually, if they could join forces, the Sima clan alone might not be enough to contend with them!”

Liu Bang slapped his thigh, his face full of excitement.

This was the solution he envisioned to break the deadlock.

Drive away the pack of wolves and devour the vicious tiger!

There are no absolute enemies or absolute friends in this world.

Now those powerful families can sit idly by and watch the Sima family seize the Cao Wei territory. If they are given enough benefits, they can definitely turn into sharp blades to stab the Sima family!

"But the problem now is that when they have no power, no real benefits, and no hope of His Majesty seizing power, any promises they make are just empty shells. They won't believe them, or even listen to them."

Those prestigious families weren't fools either.

On the contrary, they are smarter than anyone else.

At present, Liu Bang has no power whatsoever, and even his life is in the hands of the Sima family.

Under these circumstances, trying to fool the powerful families into betting on him is simply wishful thinking!

"Based on the immortals' assessment, who do you think are the people who can be won over?"

After pondering for a moment, Liu Bang turned to ask.

"Queen Mother."

"Guanqiu Jian".

"Wenqin".

"...Zhong Hui?"

"These people are all questionable. I will spend the next two days moving around Cao Wei more, and take the opportunity to see which aristocratic families have enough ambition and ability."

Zhang Liang casually rattled off a few names.

The Empress Dowager, needless to say, derived her power from the imperial authority of Cao Wei from beginning to end.

As long as Cao Wei existed, she was the Empress Dowager.

Once Cao Wei falls, she will become a laughing stock.

Those whose interests are intertwined should be the easiest allies to persuade.

As for Guanqiu Jian and Wen Qin, regardless of their true reasons for rebelling, their slogans alone are enough to determine that they are at least enemies of enemies.

Zhang Liang was confident he could persuade the two men if he could get in touch with them.

They held military power and were able to force Sima Shi to personally lead troops to attack them, so they must be formidable.

If we can win over these two, it will be of great help in any subsequent actions.

Then comes Zhong Hui, whose fate remains somewhat uncertain.

Zhang Liang included this person simply because, in the previous list of incompetent rulers, when Shu Han was about to fall, Jiang Wei used a divisive tactic to incite Zhong Hui to rebel.

Although everyone's thoughts may differ at different times, this at least means that Zhong Hui was neither a die-hard loyalist to the State of Wei nor to Sima Zhao.

To turn the tide, the first thing to do is to win over these people and have enough power to stand up to the Sima family.

Only when they see hope will those powerful families listen to what you have to say.

"Guanqiu Jian's son is a hostage in the capital. Zifang, you should find a way to contact him. You can decide for yourself how to do it."

"Wenqin will stand with Guanqiu Jian and deal with the latter. As for the former, there is no need to say more."

"The Empress Dowager is entrusted to me, and Zhong Hui..."

When it came to the last name to be assigned, Liu Bang hesitated briefly before speaking.

"You can try to get in touch with Zhong Hui, whether it's to discuss articles or to flatter him, get close to him, but don't reveal anything."

"With Zifang's abilities, there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

He has a very good eye for people.

Zhong Hui was an extremely proud man.

Such a person will not be devoted to any person or any force.

But getting him to turn against them is equally difficult.

At least for now, he is still a member of the Sima family, and Liu Bang doesn't think he can be persuaded to abandon his evil ways and embrace the light.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured that Liang will not reveal any information until everything is absolutely certain."

"After all, His Majesty's safety is the most important thing. Liang's existence, besides offering some ideas, is more importantly about helping His Majesty make mistakes."

Zhang Liang had a very clear understanding of himself.

He is indeed capable of, and quite adept at, scheming and backstabbing.

However, when it comes to imperial skills and the ability to control people's hearts, he was not as good as Liu Bang.

In this challenge, the real key to victory or defeat lies with Liu Bang himself!