Xiao Ning nodded and said, "The sudden change just now was caused by an event in the Heavenly Realm. It was the celestial phenomena caused by Sun Wukong's havoc in the Heavenly Palace and his great battle with the Buddha!"
Then he sighed and said, "So you're really unlucky, kid. You just happened to run into Sun Wukong's havoc in the Heavenly Palace, and you were also affected by the aftermath of the battle. A few broken stones from the Five Elements Mountain fell from the sky and landed right on your central camp!"
"Tsk tsk tsk, that's why I said you're truly the unluckiest time traveler in history!"
After saying that, Xiao Ning shook his head, feeling sorry for Wang Mang.
Speaking of Wang Mang, he is quite famous in history. He is a legendary figure and has been jokingly referred to by many netizens as the most likely time traveler in Chinese history.
The Wang family, in which Wang Mang transmigrated, was a powerful maternal relative family that held sway over the court at the time. Nine of its members were enfeoffed as marquises, and five served as Grand Marshals, making it arguably the most prestigious family in the Western Han Dynasty.
Many members of the clan were generals and marquises, and they lived extremely extravagant lives, indulging in sensual pleasures and competing with each other.
Wang Mang was an exception; he was a man who kept to himself, lived a simple life, was humble, and was diligent and studious.
He served his mother and widowed sister-in-law, raised his elder brother's orphaned son, behaved with propriety and had a strict style. He served his uncles and elder brothers at home and made friends with virtuous people outside.
In conclusion, Wang Mang was an outlier in this large clan, a moral exemplar in the eyes of the world, and his reputation spread far and wide.
In October of the first year of the Suihe era of Emperor Cheng of Han, Wang Mang, at the young age of 38, finally rose to the highest position among the officials, surpassing his peers to succeed his fourth father as regent, becoming the fifth member of the Wang family of Yuancheng to ascend to the throne of Grand Marshal.
Subsequently, through his efforts, within a few years, he rose from "Duke of Anhan" to "Prime Minister, Regent, Acting Emperor, and Acting Emperor".
Until December of 8 AD, Wang Mang officially replaced the Han dynasty in Chang'an, the capital of the Han dynasty, deposed Ruzi Ying (Liu Ying) and made him the Duke of Ding'an, establishing the Xin dynasty and the era name "Shijian Guo". He also renamed Chang'an as Chang'an.
After 214 years of rule, the Western Han Dynasty finally came to an end, a period known in history as "Wang Mang's usurpation of the Han throne".
His first half of life could fill a web novel of tens of millions of words. The protagonist goes through a series of typical plots, including time travel, dormancy, rise, momentum, and success, and finally establishes a new dynasty, ascends the throne, and becomes emperor, with power and prestige that extends to all corners of the world.
Logically speaking, this should be the end of the story.
However, the plot took a 180-degree turn at this point.
Fate played a cruel joke on Wang Mang!
Although Wang Mang was reckless, in the latter half of his life he encountered an even more brilliant opponent: Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu.
This person is a legend among legends. It can be said that even the most outstanding talents cannot compare to him. He is hailed as a great magician and the chosen one of the planes!
In official history, during the Battle of Kunyang, sand and stones flew and lightning struck, causing Wang Mang's army of beasts to go out of control. Liu Xiu then led three thousand daredevils to defeat Wang Mang's 400,000 troops, and even Wang Mang himself was hacked to pieces.
Damn it, Wang Mang, being a time traveler, didn't even know to eliminate his opponent beforehand, and in the end, the situation turned out exactly the same as in the history books. This kid is too useless!
What the hell is this?!
Therefore, Xiao Ning really didn't know what to say.
Historically, after Wang Mang died, not only was his body not intact, but his head became a royal treasure of the Eastern Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties.
I don't know why, perhaps it was just to intimidate those who came after, or perhaps it was a way for the victors to show off!
In any case, Wang Mang's head became a treasured possession of the Eastern Han Dynasty's imperial family.
It was a treasure, much like a national treasure, carefully preserved in the imperial palace treasury.
Damn it, to have fallen to this level is a disgrace to time travelers!
"What... Sun Wukong wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace..."
Wang Mang was struck dumb by Xiao Ning's words.
Then, pointing at the sky, he shouted, "Fuck you, you damn monkey, you rotten monkey!"
At that moment, Wang Mang was thinking, "What the hell!"
Calculate the area of psychological trauma!
Wang Mang was furious!
If it's a natural celestial phenomenon, then you can only blame your own bad luck and unfortunate fate; you can't blame others.
However, upon learning the truth, he immediately cursed at the heavens.
Forget about imperial majesty and self-cultivation!
After cursing for a long time, Wang Mang finally got old and his strength couldn't keep up. His mouth was dry and he had to stop and obediently shut his mouth.
"Fellow villager, what should I do? Please teach me!"
Wang Mang, his mind in turmoil, stared intently at Xiao Ning in front of him, his eyes filled with hope.
Wang Mang lived in this world for 68 years, yet he knew absolutely nothing of the truth. But this fellow countryman from Earth knew everything perfectly well. He must have a very important background or extraordinary abilities.
Wang Mang may not have any other skills, but his ability to curry favor with powerful figures is an innate talent. If he doesn't do it now, when will he ever get another chance?
"Why are you looking at me like that? I can't beat a monkey. Let alone a monkey, I can't beat any god from heaven!"
Seeing Wang Mang staring at him with gleaming eyes, Xiao Ning quietly took a step back and shook his head, saying, "You're on your own, kid. I can't help you!"
"Hey, no matter what, we're fellow countrymen from Earth. Even if you don't care about the monk, you should at least give me a hand. I'll... grant you a fiefdom and appoint you as a king of a different surname, how about that?"
Wang Mang looked at Xiao Ning pitifully, with some dissatisfaction.
"And another thing, I'm already sixty-eight years old, can you please stop calling me 'youngster' all the time? It sounds really awful!"
Wang Mang was embarrassed to be called a "youngster" by someone pointing fingers at him.
"Hehe, although I look young, I've lived for hundreds of years. Calling you 'young man' isn't a mistake!"