“...As the saying goes, a man who gives no thought to the future is sure to find sorrow near at hand. Replaying the events of the recent past, I feel a constant unease. Of course, it might also be due to the overwhelming number of things happening, which have muddled my mind...”

On the twentieth of May in the capital, the Jurchens had departed nearly half a year ago. The trees lining the roads were lush with leaves, pedestrians bustled to and fro, merchants hawked their wares, and figures moved like weaving threads. Iron Eagle spoke as he sat down with Zong Feixiao at a table in a small private room above a restaurant.

As the Chief Constable of the Ministry of Justice and a renowned master of martial arts, Zong Feixiao was a towering figure, a head taller than Iron Eagle. Due to his exceptional external martial arts, he had no hair on his head, giving him a fierce and intimidating appearance, but in reality, he was a man of great detail hidden beneath a rough exterior. Iron Eagle had collaborated with him several times, including the escort of Fang Qifo to the capital, during which they had both been outmaneuvered by Ning Yi. Therefore, they shared a common ground in their conversations.

Time was short, and both men had numerous official duties to attend to. As Iron Eagle poured wine, he recounted the recent events in the capital related to Ning Yi. In fact, since the Jurchens' retreat, the situation in the capital for the past six months had largely revolved around the rise and fall of Right Minister Qin's faction. Ning Yi, caught in the middle, had managed to survive in the cracks and crevices. Even to Iron Eagle, the situation was far from a simple matter that could be explained in a few words.

Ten days had passed since Qin Si Yuan's death. Occasionally, scholars in the capital would still mention him during their impassioned speeches, but overall, the matter was over, the treacherous minister had been executed, and most people had begun to look forward. Looking back now, many things became clearer.

"...Ning Yi is often underestimated by the officials in the capital due to his background. However, he has shown great resourcefulness under the Right Minister. Looking back at last year when the Jurchens came, he directly went out of the city and later played a significant role in the 'clear fields and empty houses' strategy, as well as the Xia Village battle. If the Right Minister hadn't suddenly fallen, he wouldn't have suffered such a setback. To save Qin Si Yuan, he even managed to mobilize the Lüliang cavalry. From his arrangements, it seemed that he originally intended to leave, but now he appears to have changed his mind. Whether it's for Old Qin's death or for other reasons, if this man rises again, neither of us will have an easy time..."

Constables who frequently patrol the greenwood often make many enemies, but the grudges of the greenwood are not comparable to those of the court. If such an adversary gains power, the consequences would be dire, and Iron Eagle didn't need to elaborate. Zong Feixiao had almost harmed Su Tan'er during the process of taking over the Secret Intelligence Division (密侦司), and he was not unprepared for the current situation.

"During our previous encounter, I had a sense of his capabilities. In fact, before the Bozhou incident, I had already placed people inside the Bamboo Records (竹记)." Zong Feixiao frowned as he spoke, "However, the Bamboo Records previously relied on the Right Minister's faction and the Secret Intelligence Division. Some of their internal affairs were difficult for outsiders to know, and my people had never been able to penetrate the core of the organization. But in recent days, I have observed that the Bamboo Records seem to be heading back to the capital. Word has spread from above that the new Big Boss is now Prince Tong Guan, and whether the Bamboo Records changes its name or not, it is no longer a problem."

"I think that it's mostly riding on the coattails of someone else's power. Although Ning Yi has some dealings with Prince Tong Guan, I don't think he has a significant position in the Prince's mansion."

"He was originally from Qin Si Yuan's faction. Even if he surrenders, would Prince Tong Guan immediately trust him? But with Prince Tong Guan's influence, Ning Yi's business affairs will certainly be unimpeded. Moreover..." Zong Feixiao hesitated slightly before finally saying, "Brother Tie, you and I have seen many high officials fall, haven't we?"

"Indeed," Iron Eagle nodded. "Quite a few."

Sitting there, Zong Feixiao smiled, "That's right. We are both familiar with the aftermath of such officials' downfalls. Their children and staff, some are spared, or they manage to latch onto other high branches and live peacefully. However, after experiencing such events once or twice in their lives, their spirits are broken. Among these people, there are not a few that you and I have caught and released, only to have them come back seeking revenge. But how many of them can truly succeed? At most, they can flaunt their power in front of the jailers who mistreated them, but beyond that, it's often difficult."

"After all, even if these people save their lives, their status will always be met with suspicion and disdain. Now that the Right Minister's case has just passed, even if Ning Yi has a full of enthusiasm, he must have exhausted all of his means after mobilizing the cavalry, right? He might have some benefits to offer the Prince, but would the Prince not guard against him? Would he really trust him and give him important positions? Therefore, he is now someone who wouldn't dare to make trouble or cause unnecessary problems..."

Zong Feixiao paused here, "You and I are both Chief Constables. Taking a step further, from the greenwood to the officialdom, would only be considered insignificant low-level officials. But in our current positions, there has never been a shortage of people asking us to do things. As for Ning Yi, taking a step further, he would become a person of the Prince's mansion. He never held us in high regard when he was in the Right Minister's mansion, let alone now that he's in the Prince's mansion... Hey, to be honest, he's now wearing shoes, while I'm barefoot. What if I touched his woman? If he was willing to go all out and fight me to the death, I might not survive, but would he gain anything? I don't believe it."

A cold smile crept across his fleshy face as he picked up a piece of rice cake and threw it into his mouth, "Since ancient times, the fierce fear the stubborn. Since coming to the capital, I have been prepared. If he really wants to cause trouble, he doesn't need to come looking for me. I will go looking for him first. At worst, we'll die together. He has a big family and many women. I want to see if I'm afraid of him or if he's afraid of me. Brother Tie, don't you think that's right?"

Iron Eagle also smiled and raised his cup, "Actually, I'm not really afraid of too many things. It's just that since we've already become enemies, and now is his weakest moment, we have to find an opportunity to get rid of him. In my opinion, after this major event, Ning Yi will either truly settle down, or if he wants revenge, his first target will definitely not be you or me. If he has bigger ambitions, his target might be the Qi family."

"Qi Yan," Zong Feixiao nodded.

Iron Eagle said, "The Qi family has great influence in the north. In fact, the Great Brightness Sect (大光明教) is practically under their protection. In the capital, Qi Yan has close ties with Grand Tutor Liang Shi Cheng, Minister Li Bang Yan, and even Grand Preceptor Cai. The Great Brightness Sect suffered a great loss. If Ning Yi hadn't turned to Prince Tong Guan, the Qi family might have already retaliated. But right now, the situation is tense. Ning Yi has just joined the Prince's faction, and Prince Tong Guan won't allow anyone to touch him. Once time passes and he loses his position in the Prince's heart, the Qi family won't let this go. Judging from Ning Yi's past actions, he will never sit idly by and wait for his death."

Zong Feixiao nodded, thought for a moment, and then laughed, "The Great Brightness Sect... According to rumors in the greenwood, Lin Zongwu wanted to go north and fight the Heart Demon, but he was chased by cavalry to the edge of the Yunliang River outside Zhu Xian Town. Most of the experts in his sect were lost. He went to the Qi family to vent his anger, never expecting that his gathering in the north would attract an army. The Qi family was also dumbfounded. Hehe..."

"Ning Yi spent a fortune to save Qin Si Yuan, but it was a step too late. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been so busy. But speaking of which, Lin Zongwu won't let him off easily." Regarding the mobilization of the cavalry that day, the higher-ups dealt with it lightly, but Qin Si Yuan's death still sparked many actions below, including the fall of several mid-level officials and the arrest of people from the greenwood. The higher-ups' understatement led to a small wave of blood and gore.

As the two men spoke, birds chirped in the treetops outside the window. Looking out through the window, they saw Ning Yi and his party getting out of a carriage and entering a cloth shop not far away on the street. Iron Eagle raised his chin.

"After Qin Si Yuan's death, it is said that he left behind evidence of crimes committed by many people, as well as various family secrets, originally intended as a basis for his comeback. Now, he must have handed them over to Prince Tong Guan to use the tiger to devour the wolf and borrow a knife to kill. That's why he gained Prince Tong Guan's protection. But fortunately, the military faction has always been domineering. If there's a real dispute, these things might not be necessary. Prince Tong Guan might also be able to see through his schemes."

"Strike while the iron is hot," Zong Feixiao nodded, "I'm too lazy to guard against a thief for a thousand days. If those few people who have infiltrated the Bamboo Records truly discover any information, I will know what to do."

"These things are just to inform Brother Zong. Brother Zong naturally knows how to handle them. Although I have many things to do here, I'm still keeping an eye on him. Does Brother Zong know why?"

Zong Feixiao thought for a moment, "I heard that Liu Xigua, Chen Fan, and others have entered the capital. Fan Chong had a brief encounter with them."

"Yes. Ning Yi is ruthless and has many enemies. He personally beheaded Fang Qifo's people, creating a never-ending feud. Now that Overlord Saber (霸刀) has entered the capital, although we don't know what he's planning, he will definitely kill Ning Yi if given the opportunity. I'm watching from the sidelines. If Liu Xigua and the others kill him, I can then arrest those people."

"Hehe, that would be a good outcome," Zong Feixiao smiled, "Actually, this person has made enemies with the Qi family, the Great Brightness Sect, the remnants of Fang's bandits, countless noble families, and people in the greenwood. It's truly not easy for him to have survived until now. Now that the Right Minister has fallen, I really want to see how he will survive in this crack."

The two men then continued to joke and laugh for a while, ate some food, and then left.

As Zong Feixiao said, the fall of the Right Minister exposed the fact that Ning Yi had made many enemies. Even with Tong Guan's protection, Bamboo Records had to be careful. Zong Feixiao had decided to nail down the enemy if he had the opportunity, but he was not worried about the overall situation.

He had returned to the capital this time to share the burden of some cases involving the greenwood, the assassination of Qin Si Yuan, and the Great Brightness Sect - of course, the Great Brightness Sect had not entered the capital, but because Qin Si Yuan's murder in the capital region had caused a bad influence, several officials related to the Qi family were affected. This was a deliberate suppression by the emperor to show his authority.

Of course, this was also the consequence of losing ground in this confrontation. If Lin Zongwu had killed Qin Si Yuan, then killed the Heart Demon, or obtained Qin Si Yuan's legacy, Lin Zongwu might still be wanted, but the Great Brightness Sect would have taken the opportunity to enter the capital. The officials associated with the Qi family would not have been so miserable, because that would have meant that their prospects were looking up. But now that Tong Guan had gained the advantage, the Qi family, Liang Shi Cheng, and Li Bang Yan's faction had been humiliated, and several officials had been thrown into prison. Although the charges were different, these people were all related in some way to the task of improving the Yellow River defense line.

This was the officialdom. When power changed hands, the struggle was the most intense. In the greenwood, the Ministry of Justice had arrested quite a few people. That night, Zong Feixiao interrogated prisoners all night. The next afternoon, he led his men out of the Ministry of Justice to investigate the homes or hideouts of several criminals. At noon, he went to the home of a greenwood person, which was located in the Three Scholar Lane (三槐巷) on the west side of Bianliang. The home of that greenwood person was simple and dilapidated. After her husband was arrested, only a woman remained. After everyone investigated for a while, they interrogated the woman for a few sentences before leaving. Soon after leaving, Zong Feixiao sent away his followers and returned.

The reason the greenwood person was arrested was because he was suspected of secretly believing in Manichaeism and the Great Brightness Sect. Zong Feixiao called the woman back into the room, closed the door behind him, and the sound of a woman's cries briefly came from the room, but after a few slaps and beatings, there was only begging left. After Zong Feixiao ravaged and vented his anger in the room, he hugged the woman and comforted her for a while, left a few pieces of broken silver, and then left with satisfaction.

That afternoon, he contacted two informants who had infiltrated the Bamboo Records to inquire about the situation. After sorting out the movements of the Bamboo Records, he did not find anything unusual. In the evening, he went to a brothel and spent half the night there. At dawn, he went to the prison of the Ministry of Justice, brought out the woman's husband, tortured him, and killed him silently.

In the capital, half a year after the Jurchens' rampage, many problems had emerged. The lack of manpower, the multitude of affairs, and the constant influx of people from all walks of life into the capital. The area concerning the greenwood had always been the private domain of several chief constables. The higher-ups would not interfere too much: anyway, these people usually fought, killed, and acted lawlessly. Since they made a living out of breaking the law, then they died, that was all. Zong Feixiao was very familiar with these things after many years in the Ministry of Justice. He would not have done this in the past, but during this period, there was no problem.

After such pastimes, he slept for a while, and in the morning he continued to try cases. In the afternoon, he went to Three Scholar Lane again and abused the woman in the room. Although the woman was poor and neglected to dress up, she felt pretty good after being stripped naked. Zong Feixiao loved the way she cried and screamed, so he went there several times in the following days, and even had the idea of taking her as a concubine and raising her somewhere.

Many major events occurred in the capital. For the power of the Yellow River defense line, there were many disputes at the top. Officials had accidents every two days. Now, only half a month had passed since Qin Si Yuan's death, and not many people remembered him. The affairs of the Ministry of Justice were different every day, but after doing them for a long time, the nature was actually the same. While Zong Feixiao was responsible for cases and beating various forces, he also paid attention to the Bamboo Records. There were still no new movements, but the flow of goods was more frequent, but this was necessary for the Bamboo Records to reopen in the capital.

On May 27th, Zong Feixiao had several more cases on hand. One was a case where two groups of greenwood heroes fought in the streets and injured passers-by, which required Zong Feixiao to knock them down. Another was a case where two greenwood heroes duelled, chose the courtyard of Lu the rich, and wanted to fight on the roof of the other's mansion. They wanted to separate the victory and defeat, but also to avoid the capture of Lu's family. These two men were indeed skilled, and as a result, Lu reported the case. Zong Feixiao spent a lot of effort that afternoon and arrested the two men.

After escorting the two foreign knights back to the Ministry of Justice, Zong Feixiao saw that there was nothing else to do, and went to Three Scholar Lane again, forced the woman to cook a meal, and in the evening, led seven arresters out of the capital and went to a small hill on the west side of the capital.

That place was not far from the capital, and was called Hugang (护岗), which was originally prosperous because of the nearby post station, forming a residential area with more than a dozen shops. When the Jurchens came, it was once destroyed, but now it has been rebuilt. A large courtyard of Bamboo Records was also located here, and it had been initially rebuilt and used.

After arriving on the hill, Zong Feixiao asked the other seven arresters to eat something first, and agreed on a general time to meet again. He walked out of the hill, turned a corner, and went to a house about a hundred feet away.

Because of the previous destruction by the Jurchens, the house was now built of simple bamboo and wood. The room was dark, and it looked like there was no one there. After Zong Feixiao went in, someone spoke in the darkness. This was a routine meeting, but when the person in the room spoke, Zong Feixiao had become terrible.

His burly figure came out of the room. The sky had no starlight. In the distance, a slightly higher place was the lights of the Hugang market. Zong Feixiao looked around, then took a deep breath, and quickly but silently went to Hugang.

After walking more than ten feet, there was a sudden, subtle sound from behind, far away, and it was unknown whether it was an animal running or someone being knocked to the ground. Zong Feixiao did not look back. He clenched his teeth, his eyes bursting open, and ran away. As soon as he took the first step, a figure broke through the wind from the surrounding darkness. In the darkness, the figure was like a dragon and snake rising to land, and a flood surged!

Zong Feixiao suddenly drew his steel whip with his right hand and hit the rushing figure. With a 'puff', the grass stalks flew up. It was actually a scarecrow pierced by a spear, but he was skilled in martial arts, and he was even known as the "God Beating Whip" (打神鞭) in the world. At the same time as the scarecrow exploded, the steel whip also swept across the spear that was刺来的, and at the same time, someone pounced over! A long whip swept across, entangled Zong Feixiao's left hand, and the blade of knife rushed out silently!

The long whip stretched out, pulling the distant dark figure on the left to the ground, and the person who rushed from the right was also knocked away. Zong Feixiao's body brushed past a hunchbacked swordsman, his head was still spinning in the air, and his stout body rushed out five steps like a chariot, before falling to the ground motionless.

The hunchback in the darkness picked up the head, put it in a bag, and other figures came over. They gathered beside the headless corpse and looked at it. Zong Feixiao used double whips, but he only drew a single whip just now. His left hand was holding a firework arrow, still maintaining the gesture of wanting to launch it.

Not far away, the lights on a street in Hugang were still shining. The seven arresters were eating and drinking there, waiting for their superior to return. In the darkness, there were figures silently passing by.

These arresters never returned to Bianliang City.

At the same time, on the north bank of the Yellow River, the fires were burning. The civilians and soldiers were transporting earth and stone to the dam. On the one hand, the summer flood season was approaching, and people had to start strengthening the dams. On the other hand, this was the preliminary project to consolidate the Yellow River defense line in the future. The eyes of the court were gathered here, and high officials came to inspect the area every day.

A little further north, in the old residence of the Qi family, a great Confucian named Qi Yan had lost his temper. In the darkness of night, he was still buried in writing letters, and then let trusted family guards and staff go to the capital to handle matters.

In the capital, Li Gang walked out of the room, sat for a while, and watched the courtyard of the staff member still lit, his eyes with a sense of humiliation and tragic. But his hands clenched into fists, and after a while, he thought of something and went back to the room to deal with official business.

Qin Hui was entertaining guests. In the light of night, he was talking happily with the two people who had come. In the court, the rumors of him succeeding the Right Minister were getting louder and louder, but he knew that Li Gang was about to step down, and he was considering whether it was possible to directly take over the position of Left Minister.

In the Prince Tong's mansion, Tong Guan was discussing various things with Tan Zhen and others. Li Bingwen was also below. Now, the most important things for the Prince of Guangyang's mansion were two things. First, Li Bingwen and others truly controlled the Wu Rui Camp. Second, since the Yellow River defense line was made to prevent the Jurchens, it should be directly controlled by the army. Last time in Taiyuan, Tong Guan understood the army's combat power and abandoned the city. This time, he hoped to be able to truly and completely do one thing without any restrictions.

"The things left by Old Qin after his death are still useful. I hope to use him well. If the Yellow River falls, Bianliang will be unlucky."

"That Ning Liheng is unpredictable, but he wants to use this to borrow a knife to kill. Wang Ye must guard against it."

"I naturally know. Ning Yi has no other way to think of. He hopes that I will use this to target others. I want to use it to do good things. The important thing is that this is from the bottom of my heart, so why care about his little wish. Tomorrow I will ask people to say hello to Li Bangyan's mansion. If he does not step down, I will no longer tolerate him."

As a general of the Wu Dynasty, he had become accustomed to pig teammates, and he had also had enough of pig teammates. This time, the Wu Dynasty was in danger, and he hoped to turn the tide, which would also be his last glory.

Everyone had things to do. Between the roads and waterways radiating from the capital, thousands of people were gathering towards the capital for various reasons. During this period, there were thirteen teams. They started from the same place, and then gathered towards the capital in different ways. At this time, these people were either镖师, or merchant teams, or craftsmen who were travelling together. The fastest team had already passed Xuchang, 150 miles away from Bianliang.

This was a large merchant team composed of more than 200 people. At this time, they were camping in the mountains. On the grassland at the end of the camp, there were two young men talking in a low voice.

"Xiao Feng brother, what does the capital look like?"

"How would I know?" A young man named Zhuo Xiaofeng with a short beard on his jaw replied.

"Brother Xiao Feng, have you been to Hangzhou?"

"Hangzhou is not the capital."

"I have been in the mountains since I was a child, and I have never seen any big places. After listening to you, I have long wanted to see it. Fortunately, I was brought this time. It's a pity that I didn't stop to take a closer look at the several big cities we passed along the way..."

"If you nag again, I won't take you."

"Well, I won't say it." The simple and honest young man from the mountain closed his mouth, and the two sat for a while. Zhuo Xiaofeng only looked at the sparse stars in the sky on the grass. He knew a lot, and he spoke with reason. His martial arts were also good, and the young people in the mountains admired him more. After a while, the other party opened his mouth again in a low voice.

"Brother Xiao Feng, I will ask you one question. This time, when we go to the capital, we can see the teacher who taught you the skills, right?"

Zhuo Xiaofeng's eyes condensed: "Who told you this?"

"Someone in the team...someone in the team is saying that I...I heard it in private."

"Who said it!?" Zhuo Xiaofeng stood up, "Did you take the ban to heart? Take me to find someone right away!"

"Xiao...Brother Xiaofeng...actually..." The young man was frightened and stammered, Zhuo Xiaofeng frowned: "This is not a joke! Immediately! Right now!"

The stars in the sky were dim, and the two walked into the camp one after the other, causing a small commotion, and then calmed down.

The warm wind in summer had a reassuring feeling. On this land, the lights were sparse or continuous. After the Jurchens left, it was finally possible to calm people down. Countless people were rushing around, and countless people were doing their own thing, but it was also the essence of this world. In the capital, Tie Tianying was in Fanlou (矾楼), talking happily with a staff member from Liang Shi Cheng's mansion.

In Ning's mansion, which was not much cared about, Ning Yi was sitting in front of the desk in the same warm yellow light in the study room, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the table, calculating many things that had been calculated since the news of Su Tan'er's drowning came, and many loopholes and contingency plans that needed to be checked and supplemented.

Zhu Biao came in from outside the door.

"I just killed Zong Feixiao outside the city..."

Ning Yi looked at him, slightly puzzled, and then looked at him squarely, frowning.

"Why kill him, you are meddling..."

Zhu Biao leaned over and whispered the reason to him in his ear. Ning Yi didn't say much anymore. In the light, his brows were furrowed even tighter, and he tapped the table for a while.

"Adding branches outside the festival, you guys..."

He ordered some things, Zhu Biao listened, nodded and went out. The lights at night were still quiet, stretching out in the city, waiting for a new day and more things to happen.

The next day, Tie Tianying learned about Zong Feixiao's disappearance. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of people were still approaching the capital every moment, waiting for the moment of gathering...