leonardwarren Chapter 67 begins
Chapter 67 begins
"Is it him?"
Qi Tianfang's gaze swept over the upright martial arts examinees in the training ground, circled around, and finally landed on the young man sitting at the head of the table on the high reviewing stand, surrounded by the county government officials.
There was some disbelief in his eyes. These past few days, he had driven them to the brink of despair, resulting in the deaths of many people. He had commanded the county soldiers and the imperial guards like beasts of burden.
He was just a young man around twenty years old, who was still wearing a cloak in the June heat and had a pale face.
How is this possible? When did someone who is powerless be able to possess such power in the extremely hierarchical and martial-minded Great Zhao?
"Old Qi, as we discussed before, after Li Hong and Sun Youfu enter the county government office, if there is no news from them and the county government office pretends to be dead, we will immediately spread rumors that all officials in Gaoyang County are corrupt, the imperial guards are degenerate, and they are protecting wanted criminals."
A kind-faced local gentryman dressed in fine silk robes whispered to the side.
He was one of the members of the monopoly chamber of commerce organized by the Qi family. Having tasted the sweetness of success, they were naturally unwilling to give up their businesses. After receiving Qi Tianfang's order, they immediately instructed their subordinates to spread rumors.
Rumors spread like wildfire in Gaoyang County, forcing Chenming and Pang Hai to lead the Dragon Cavalry and most of the county soldiers out of the county to suppress the bandits in full view of everyone.
Four or five days have passed since they left.
"Four or five days have passed since the main force of the Dragon Cavalry and the county soldiers left, and our informants who followed them have not yet reported any news, which means they are still going in circles because of the clues we planted."
"Should we take advantage of the Tiger Cavalry being severely damaged and the Dragon Cavalry and county soldiers being absent, and have our men infiltrate the training ground to create chaos, and then...?"
Qi Tianfang snapped out of his daze, looking at the squire with a complex expression, who had a hint of malice in his eyes, and said speechlessly:
"Let alone whether we can accomplish this under the watchful eyes of everyone, with so many experts watching both on and off the stage, do you think it's so easy for you to cause chaos? And even if we could succeed, if that person really kills us, that would be truly fatal."
The fact that this official was sent to Gaoyang County prompted our backers to send their own people as well. This is a covert power struggle within the imperial court, where everyone is relying on their abilities to determine the winner and divide the territory. Both sides are using local forces from Gaoyang County.
The principle is to fight without breaking down, to avoid directly tearing apart relations, to leave room for both sides, and to try to avoid internal strife within the court.
But if you kill him, then what comes next won't be a high-ranking official in charge of supervising the military affairs, but the Flying Scale Army sent to quell the rebellion. If a high-ranking official sent down by the imperial court to supervise can be killed, what are the county government officials and the Dragon Tiger Cavalry good for?
Was Gaoyang County really still under the jurisdiction of Da Zhao? They would have directly surrounded the area and killed people. How did the tens of thousands of people who died in Ganzhou die back then? Have you forgotten?
Do you think Gaoyang County is more important than Ganzhou or something? Or do you think those soldiers of the Flying Scale Army will give you the opportunity and time to distinguish right from wrong?
"But what if he keeps watching us like this? Although the Dragon Cavalry and the county soldiers have gone out, they will come back sooner or later. Our arrangements will not delay them for long. Once they return, Gaoyang County, at least the inner county, will be impregnable again."
"Then how are we supposed to do business? Don't forget, they've also taken over gangs that are at odds with us and are constantly challenging us."
The local gentry said somewhat anxiously, "We can't kill them, so when will we know who won and who lost?"
He doesn't care about the power struggles above; he has so many employees who need to eat. They've done what you say, so as the boss, you need to show some attitude and come up with solutions to the problems.
If you can't solve this, who will still respect you as their leader?
"Who knows? Maybe when one side—we who are the pawns, or the Imperial Guards and the county soldiers—are all wiped out, that will determine who wins and who loses."
Qi Tianfang said quietly.
The local gentry wanted to say something more, but when he realized that Qi Tianfang had already turned his head away from him, he gave up.
It was only because he had suffered a great loss of strength and the current situation was not optimistic that he needed to win people's hearts that Qi Tianfang chatted with the local gentry who was speaking. Otherwise, Qi Tianfang would not have even bothered to glance at someone like that person.
"It's probably impossible for the main force of the Dragon Cavalry and the county soldiers to return."
"So that's why the Dragon Tiger Guards have been watching us expand our power so recklessly these past two months. It turns out it's all to close the gap between us and this Heavenly Official. Now we'll see how the one behind us uses us as pawns."
Qi Tianfang thought to himself silently.
Although he didn't have much evidence, he felt that his guess was pretty close to the truth. Thinking about this, he suddenly felt a little discouraged. He had worked hard for decades and thought he had finally built up some wealth, but it turned out that his every move was being monitored by others.
Even the rapid development these days was intentionally orchestrated by others. This disparity is still hard for him to accept, and he feels a sense of anger and helplessness at being caught up in it.
But he quickly adjusted his mindset; it concerned the life and death of his family, so he had no choice but to be careful.
"Waaaaah!"
Suddenly, a powerful horn sounded.
Immediately following, the deep, flowing sound of horns rang out one after another, each one louder and more urgent than the last, growing ever more frequent and resounding in everyone's hearts, making the already solemn atmosphere in the arena even more imposing and austere.
After suppressing the noise and drawing attention back to the venue, the bugle call gradually subsided, and the entire place fell silent, with only the black military flags fluttering in the wind.
Peng Chi glanced at 014, who was sitting in the main seat. Historically, the opening ceremony of the martial arts exam was always overseen by the Heavenly Official.
"Why are you looking at me? Do you expect me to say a few words with my physique? Mr. Jing, would you please go ahead?"
Although 014 is a celestial official, he is physically weak and incapable of even killing a chicken. Asking him to preside over the opening ceremony would be considered unreasonable and disruptive. Peng Chi is deliberately making things difficult for him.
He was somewhat speechless, but he could understand Peng Chi. After all, so many Tiger Cavalry had died under his orders, and he was not allowed to use force. So, he didn't dwell on the matter and instead let Zhou Jing handle it.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Jing stood up without saying a word. Despite being a woman with a beautiful figure, she walked with an imposing gait as she stood in front of the stage.
His gaze, visible beneath the straw hat, swept over every candidate present with equal disregard: "Those who can participate in the martial arts examination should all know the rules, so I'll just emphasize one point."
Military law is applied in the military examinations; anyone found to have committed fraud will be dealt with according to military law.
Having said that, without waiting for the audience's reaction, she suddenly channeled her inner energy, letting out a clear roar like the thunderous sound of a tiger or leopard: "The exam begins!"
Others might just think Zhou Jing was showing off, using her inner energy to boost her morale, but Fu Que's eyes nearly popped out. In his true vision, Zhou Jing was no longer composed of black and white lines, but rather real flesh color.
This was the first time he had ever seen flesh-colored lines in a black-and-white world.