TEFSCBSS Chapter 112

Chapter 112: A New Board Game — Warring States

Su Li kicked Prime Minister Su out right after dealing with his disgusting little show.

She stared at the half-eaten bowl of noodle soup in front of her, still fuming. Damn it—first thing in the morning and she had to deal with something so revolting, she lost her appetite.

Still, no matter how bitter, tired, or angry she was, food shouldn’t be wasted.

So, she forced herself to swallow the rest of the noodles and even drained the broth. The food stall owner watched her with a gratified smile as she stretched her back and headed back to her script shop.

Just moments ago, inspiration had struck—she’d come up with a new tabletop game that was sure to draw in a new crowd!

She’d call it Warring States!

Since arriving in this world, Su Li had learned enough about its history and current state to realize it was quite similar to the early multi-state period of ancient China, though the names of the nations and people were all different.

The philosophies of Confucius, Mencius, and the Hundred Schools had survived, but everything diverged after the Qin Dynasty.

The second Qin emperor’s reign ended in chaos. A man rose out of nowhere to reunify the lands, but fate played a cruel joke—he was killed by a seemingly insignificant person.

The unified nation fractured again, never to reunite.

Now, the land was split between four major powers in the east, west, south, and north, with countless small states scattered between—calling them “nations” was generous. Most were more like dependent territories.

Fortunately, Su Li lived in Yin, one of the four major countries. The capital remained relatively stable.

But what did any of that have to do with her?

She was just a regular person. Being able to live peacefully in this world was already a blessing. Expect her to stir up political upheaval like some time-traveling heroine and unify the realm?

She didn’t have the talent or the ambition for that.

More importantly, she valued her life.

Wasn’t living well enough?

That said, while she couldn’t change the world order, she could use that knowledge to write scripts and create board games!

Warring States was born from that very idea.

At the beginning of the game, players had no factions. They started by randomly choosing a small village on the map to develop, building up their forces, culture, and eventually forming a nation.

Then came world wars, competing for resources with other players.

It was destined to be a long, strategy-heavy game, just like the simulation-building games she played in her previous life, like Civilization.

What could be more fun than creating your city-state civilization from scratch?

Well… maybe hacking zombies in a horror game.

cough Anyway, for this new project, Su Li did something rare: she called in every capable person she could reach.

Now gathered around the long table were Wang Qingmu, the Gu siblings, Wan Niang, Zhao Wen, and Master Wufei with his ever-serene expression.

Wang Qingmu? Oh, he wasn’t there—off attending some event.

Butcher Liu? Busy performing Oscar-worthy deception in a round of Werewolf with the customers.

Su Li stood at the head of the table, looking serious.

“Everyone, this game will break the public’s outdated view of our script shop!”

“Who says games are just about trickery and deceit?”

“Who says all you need is acting skills to win?”

“This game will overturn those stereotypes. Here, only your talent, tactics, and strength will lead you to victory!”

Wufei: Who said that? Everyone always praises the shop’s games…

Wan Niang: Boss is right! I share her vision!

Wang Qingmu and the Gu siblings: No idea what Su Li is talking about, but it sounds powerful—as if launching this game will earn them eternal glory. They’re almost convinced.

Only Zhao Wen looked dead inside, thinking, What crazy thing is Su Li up to now? Please don’t make me take the fall for this one…

His panda eyes said it all—he’d been beaten so badly by his dad, even his mother couldn’t recognize him.

Without caring about their varied reactions, Su Li quickly passed out the materials for the game.

Unit types, map realism, achievement systems—pages of detailed planning.

She sighed. Without computers or the internet, having to explain everything verbally was exhausting. No wonder those logic-heavy games she used to play felt so mentally taxing—it was because her boss back then was too cheap to pay for a proper system.

…

Time passed quickly. In the meantime, there had been two more small competitions, and the script shop’s “candidates” had gained a bit of fame among the locals. Each day when they visited the city center to work, the townspeople even gifted them little offerings, like eggs.

Of course, these were all people raised by the script shop. They refused to accept a single needle or thread from the commoners.

As the Xi Building Script Shop rose in popularity, attracting more and more visitors, Prime Minister Su and Su Yao both looked increasingly sour.

Su Yao even tried to stir the pot by spreading rumors, but nowadays, the general public had seen so much drama they were walking lie detectors—like they’d all watched 800 episodes of Detective Conan.

What did those rumors say?

That Su Li bully men and women alike as a child?

Well, the moment someone tried to spin that tale at a tavern, someone at the next table pulled out pen and paper: “Which year? What month? Who did she bully? What’s their family situation? Where do they live now?”

A barrage of questions left the liar speechless. He had no choice but to flee in humiliation, leaving behind a crowd of Xi Building players basking in collective pride. What kind of amateur smear campaign is this? Don’t insult us, we’re ranked on the Profound Leaderboard!

Then came a second wave of gossip: that Su Li disrespected her elders, picked on Su Yao, argued with Prime Minister Su, clung shamelessly to the Third Prince, flirted with young lords, and dreamed of snagging the Second Prince, a prime candidate for crown prince.

Before the rumors even reached Su Li, they were already dismantled.

What a joke! With how she was glued to the script shop every day, writing scripts and developing new games like a one-woman factory, where would she even find time for romance?

Private rendezvous? Pfft!

Let’s be real: Wang Bokao nearly pressed his whole face to hers during a game of Werewolf. Zhao Wen, with his split personality, treated Su Li like she was his resurrected ancestor, avoiding her at all costs. And the Gu siblings? One pretended to be a blind fortune teller outside the shop, and the other followed Wufei around like a shadow, on the verge of shaving his head and becoming a monk.

Romance? What romance?

Su Yao’s attempts to smear Su Li with rumors failed three times in a row. She was practically coughing up blood.

She couldn’t understand it. Weren’t rumors supposed to be terrifying? Why did they not affect Su Li?

Her face twisted with hatred. Even her maid Cui Zhu trembled at the sight.

After a long silence, a sharp gleam appeared in Su Yao’s eyes.

If rumors couldn’t destroy Su Li, then she’d go for an open scheme.

The diplomatic envoy was arriving soon.

She’d see how Su Li could walk away unscathed after publicly assassinating a member of the envoy.