Moral Benchmark - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Before I transmigrated, I was a fragile college student. I passed out from sheer exhaustion during an eight-hundred-meter run, and when I woke up, I had become the most insignificant one among Jiang Ming’s many strategists.

So how did I become the greatest strategist in the world in just two short years? Mainly by having absolutely no morals. Yes, you read that right. Mainly by being unscrupulous.

In a time of chaos, if I had been kind, I would have died a thousand times over. I knew I could never go back, so all I wanted was to survive.

And Jiang Ming was a famously tyrannical ruler on the Nine Provinces Continent, so the two of us were a perfect match.

“Who is a perfect match with you?” Jiang Ming looked at me, his face cold as he spoke in disgust.

Every time I said he and I were a perfect match, he had to refute it.

He was already using me, so wasn’t it obvious how brutal he was? After all, I couldn’t exactly be considered a good person either.

“We have marched a hundred li, and we are only one step away from taking the three passes. However, the army is short on provisions. Do any of you have a plan to overcome this crisis?” Jiang Ming sat above us and looked down at the crowd. His voice was not loud, yet it carried an authority that inspired awe without anger.

At his words, I stood and bowed respectfully. “My lord…”

“Sit down.”

Before I could even get a word out, he waved his hand and told me to sit down, not even wanting to hear me finish. How absurd.

“My lord, this one isn’t immoral!” Afraid he wouldn’t believe me, I made sure to emphasize it.

After hearing that, Jiang Ming looked at me with faint suspicion. In the end, after what seemed like a long internal struggle, he finally made up his mind. “Then tell me.”

At his words, I straightened and said in a clear voice, “In the battle of Tongyun, although our army won, our casualties were heavy. Some of our soldiers died, while others had limbs amputated. To avoid waste, I believe we can use the soldiers’ severed limbs or corpses to lure rats, then divide the rats among the troops for food.”

As soon as I said this, the surroundings fell instantly silent. The other strategists all stared at me as though they had just seen the Grim Reaper.

Jiang Ming did not answer me right away. Instead, he took a light sip of tea before looking at me and saying slowly, “You have become rather benevolent lately.”

“I have recently taken to Buddhism, so my proposals have also become somewhat gentler.” I bowed to him and spoke with great modesty.

Yes, he thought I wanted to cook the soldiers and eat them. Compared to that, I was indeed much kinder now.

“This plan is feasible,” Jiang Ming said calmly, leaning back against his fox-fur cloak.

When the strategists below heard this, although they all felt there was something improper about it, their lord had already agreed, so naturally no one dared to object.

Still, one chivalrous soul spoke up. “My lord, our bodies, hair, and skin are gifts from our parents. The dead should be allowed to rest in peace for the sake of filial piety. Moreover, if the body is damaged, I fear they may struggle to enter reincarnation. This plan must not be used!”

“That makes sense. In that case, I have another plan that can preserve the corpses intact.” Seeing this, I stood again and spoke with great enthusiasm.

At my words, Jiang Ming raised his eyes slightly. After a few seconds of silence, he asked only one question. “Is it immoral?”

I thought about it seriously, then gave my answer. “A little.”

“Then shut up!” He looked away from me and rejected me outright without even thinking.

Again. Rejecting me outright again. Did he think I wanted this job that badly? Please. He was such a poser.

I was dissatisfied. “My lord, if you won’t use me, then why not let me go so someone else can? That way, my overflowing talent won’t have nowhere to shine.”

“I may choose not to use you, but I absolutely cannot allow anyone else to use you,” he said, lips parting slightly, his words crisp and decisive.

That couldn’t help but remind me of when I had first arrived. Those strategists had said the same thing. They said that not using me and not having me at all were two different things, so they urged Jiang Ming that he absolutely had to keep me.

I curled my lip. Tch. Jealous much?

He was clearly jealous of my talent, which was why he refused to adopt my suggestions. This girl was not coming in tomorrow. I was skipping morning court.