Among a group of underdogs from similar backgrounds, Liu Yuan's fortune was quite good. Although the first half of his life was spent toiling at the bottom, surviving several near-death experiences, once he hit rock bottom, a new path opened up. He leaped from an obscure minor official to a rebel leader, even possessing a vast territory. While there were several bigger leaders above him, this very fact made Liu Yuan less conspicuous and temporarily saved him from attracting more enemies.

Sometimes, life's opportunities are wondrous. Ninety-eight percent of it comes down to luck, but no one can deny that personal ability also plays a part.

Had Liu Yuan's character been more simple and crude, or had he coveted a greater prize of victory at the time and taken the initiative to follow Wu Guang and the others to attack Xingyang, success would have been uncertain, and he would have absolutely missed out on Yingchuan Commandery.

Ultimately, the reason Liu Yuan could sit here now was the reward for all his efforts in the preceding period.

But no matter how capable Liu Yuan was, he wasn't omnipotent.

For instance, right now, this newly appointed Governer was staring at the mountain-like pile of documents on the desk before him, his eyes wide, so worried that his hair felt like it was standing on end.

Fighting in battles before was one thing. He had served in the army and had experience with it all. In war, one needed to be bold yet meticulous. A high level of education wasn't unimportant, but rich practical experience was enough to compensate for a lack of strategic knowledge.

But governing a region was different. He couldn't even recognize all the characters. Faced with this pile of scholarly documents, his head felt a size larger, and he had no idea where to start.

Liu Yuan's origins determined his inherent limitations. He was well-versed in the ways of the world and could even use them to educate Liu Zhen because he had eaten several decades more worth of meals in this era than Liu Zhen and had accumulated several decades more wisdom from life. These things didn't need to be taught; they were all gained through his own perception.

Now, another huge obstacle stood before him. The bitter fruit of not studying hard in his youth was becoming apparent. Moreover, he was not from a noble family, nor had he undergone systematic training for officials. Besides An Zheng, he only had Xu Zhongfang. An Zheng's level of education was decent, at least much better than his, but he had previously been just a minor clerk in charge of a warehouse in the county. He was just as clueless about these local affairs, not much better off than Liu Yuan himself.

Thus, Liu Yuan now faced the predicament of being ignorant in all matters and having no one to use.

Should I go find Second Brother to discuss this?

Liu Yuan rubbed his head, pushed the annoying documents forward, and was about to get up when he saw a figure appear outside the door.

"Ah Zhen?"

"Is Father busy?" Liu Zhen stood at the doorway, not entering rashly.

"No, come in." With Liu Yuan's understanding of his daughter, he knew Liu Zhen would definitely not come here to cause trouble for no reason. "Is something the matter?"

Liu Zhen didn't answer the question. Instead, she walked over, knelt behind her father, and began to gently massage his shoulders. "Father seems worried. Are some trivial matters troubling you?"

Her strength, of course, couldn't be that great; it felt more like a tickle on his body. However, his daughter's thoughtful and filial gesture was like a basin of icy water poured over Liu Yuan's agitated heart, calming him down considerably.

"Yes!" Liu Yuan let out a long sigh and finally couldn't help but vent to his daughter.

It was from her father's words that Liu Zhen finally learned the whole story.

From ancient times to the present, to prevent the emergence of local despots building up their own power, any dynasty with a modicum of capability would try by all means to stop local forces from growing too strong. Just as in the Qing dynasty, the power of a province was divided among the Viceroy, Governor, and Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, the Qin dynasty more than two thousand years ago had similar positions.

It was true that the Governer was the highest administrative official of a region with the greatest power, but there were two other officials who were not under his jurisdiction and did not require his appointment: the Commandery Commandant and the Supervising Censor.

The Commandery Commandant managed the troops, the Supervising Censor monitored the officials, and the Governer managed daily government affairs. The three formed a stable iron triangle that maintained the local rule of the Qin dynasty.

It had to be said, Liu Yuan's luck was truly excellent. When he took over Yingchuan Commandery, there were only a Governer and a Supervising Censor here, no Commandery Commandant. This was because just half a month prior, the former Commandery Commandant had died in office from illness. Due to the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang affair, and with the current emperor being an unreliable sort, the position of Commandery Commandant was temporarily held by the Governer. This was an expedient measure, but Yingchuan Commandery had not welcomed a new Commandery Commandant by the time Liu Yuan's army arrived at the city. The current Governer was named Song Xie, a Gentleman of the Palace and not from a military background, so he was not skilled at leading troops. Otherwise, it would have been absolutely impossible for Liu Yuan to take Yingchuan Commandery so smoothly.

And it was precisely because the news of the former Commandery Commandant's death from illness was only half a month old that Chen Sheng and his group had not yet received the information. Otherwise, it would never have been Liu Yuan's turn to pick this fruit of victory.

But this alone was not enough to demonstrate Liu Yuan's luck.

Don't forget, as just mentioned, the local iron triangle, besides the Governer and the Commandery Commandant, also included a Supervising Censor.

And who was this Supervising Censor? An old acquaintance of Liu Yuan.

His surname was also Song, but he was unrelated to the former Governer. The reason he was called an old acquaintance of Liu Yuan's was that he had once been the County Magistrate of Changshe County.

Back then, for Liu Yuan to become a Prison Warden and a County Commandant, though Assistant Governor Wu's contribution was indispensable, it would have been impossible without the County Magistrate's appreciation and permission.

And that unlucky Commandery Commandant who had just recently died was this Supervising Censor Song's younger brother.

After all that, it turned out everyone was an old acquaintance.

When Liu Yuan's army arrived at the city, Governer Song was still hesitating whether it was better to fight to the death or open the city gates and surrender. As it turned out, at the critical moment, this Supervising Censor Song helped Liu Yuan out.

He said earnestly to Governer Song: "If Qin Shi Huang were still alive, I wouldn't try to persuade you; we could just die in battle together. But this current Qin Er Shi is truly unreliable. Have you heard the news coming back from Xianyang? He poisoned his own elder brother, persecuted Chancellor Li Si, and he might have even had a hand in Qin Shi Huang's death. How can such a person be a good emperor? Even if we must die, we should die for a worthy cause. The world is in chaos, everyone is rising up against Qin. He who understands the times is a wise man. Even if there were no Liu Yuan today, there would be a Zhang Yuan or a Li Yuan tomorrow. The troops in Yingchuan Commandery alone are absolutely insufficient to resist. I think we should just go with the flow and not needlessly sacrifice the lives of our entire families."

It was precisely these words that made Governer Song completely firm up his decision. He opened the city gates and welcomed Liu Yuan in. Not a single shot was fired from beginning to end. Liu Yuan's men were completely unscathed, and he smoothly took control of the two thousand Qin soldiers stationed in Yingchuan Commandery.

Hearing this, Liu Zhen couldn't help but marvel at her father's incredible luck.

However, the developments that followed were not so satisfactory.

Although Liu Yuan had told Xu Zhongfang that "all personnel matters will follow the old regulations" and that he would absolutely not interfere, in reality, it wasn't that simple. Because right after he took over Yingchuan Commandery, the officials who originally belonged to the Qin dynasty all went on strike.

Actually, it wasn't that they were doing it on purpose.

One must understand that the world still belonged to the House of Ying. With Liu Yuan entering the city so menacingly, being neither an official appointed by the court nor some saint descended from heaven, without a proper title, one's words lack authority. Should everyone listen to him or not?

The original head of Yingchuan Commandery was the Governer. Now, this new Governer held both military and administrative power, making everyone tremble with fear and afraid to say anything. Of course, because of the tyranny of Qin, and this being the former territory of the Han State—where the King of Han was the master just one or two decades ago—the vast majority of people had no concept of loyalty to the Qin dynasty. But they certainly couldn't develop any sense of belonging to Liu Yuan right away either.

And what about Liu Yuan himself? After he arrived, he was completely in the dark, ignorant of everything. He hadn't even issued a single decree. Of course, a "golden finger" scene where he exudes overwhelming charisma and everyone submits to him was even more impossible.

Since Yingchuan Commandery was no longer under Qin's rule, but their new Governer didn't tell them what to do, everyone naturally engaged in passive resistance, too lazy to do anything, just passing the days as they came.

This was the predicament Liu Yuan now faced.

The world outside was not a time of peace. There certainly wouldn't be a year or half a year for Liu Yuan to slowly explore and learn. If Liu Yuan didn't quickly take firm control of Yingchuan Commandery and make this force work completely for him, then when the Qin army arrived at the city, or when a larger force from the rebel armies attacked, Liu Yuan could only meekly hand it over. And for the people of Yingchuan Commandery, it would just mean their top boss had changed again, making no difference.

In this dire situation, Madam Zhang just had to court death, bothering Liu Yuan with trivial matters of the inner courtyard and even holding him back. Of course Liu Yuan wouldn't have any kind words for her.

If he didn't rise to the occasion, everyone would be finished, okay?

Then, on the road to the Yellow Springs, they would truly be a couple sharing adversity.

After hearing all this, Liu Zhen finally understood why her father was so worried and irritable.

It wasn't that he didn't want to do anything, but that he simply didn't know what he should do.

There was no one around him who could offer any advice.

It had even come to the point of venting to his daughter. How tragic!

Her father being in trouble meant the whole family was in trouble. But Liu Zhen, in both her past and present lives, had no experience governing as a local official. Thus, she could only take a different approach and try hard to think of an idea for her father.