Chapter 1 Unease

"Sigh, Yingdu hasn't been peaceful these past few years. Did you hear? A few days ago on Old Imperial Road, they chopped off over a hundred guards' heads from the Prince's Manor. The Yingdu government yamen had to bring in water carts to wash away the blood, but the smell still hasn't dissipated."

In a teahouse on Yingdu's front street, two merchants were drinking tea.

"Tch, what do you mean the smell hasn't dissipated? It's not like it's rancid pig offal. How much of a smell can human blood have?"

"Sigh, brother, my heart has been uneasy."

"That's strange. You're doing your business. Besides, right now, just from here to Fengxin City, you can take people and goods, make a round trip, come back to Yingdu and distribute them again. It's just a matter of small profits or big profits; there's no way you'll lose money.

So, what are you panicking about?"

"You know, I just bought a house in Yingdu, but seeing how this place seems to have some kind of trouble every year, it really makes me feel uneasy."

"That's also strange. Last year, Marquis Pingxi led troops into the city once, and it seemed like many families were ruined and many people were arrested, but those were just young masters.

Today, the new Prefect entered the city, slapping the Prince's face, and the people who died were from the Prince's Manor. The many people poisoned at the banquet the other day, every single one of them, were bigwigs.

Young masters and bigwigs suffering, what does that have to do with you?

Your business hasn't reached that level, you haven't accumulated that much wealth, and you haven't even changed the color of your skin, yet you're already worrying that you won't be able to live a peaceful life after you become a master yourself?

I say, are you going too far?"

"What you say makes sense."

"What do you mean makes sense? That's just how it is. Since the Yan people have occupied the land, how can they not clean it up? Don't think that Yingdu will shed a little blood this year and a little blood next year. Frankly speaking, it's also because it avoided a blade back then. But you can avoid the first day, but you can't avoid the fifteenth. The blood that should be shed will always be shed, and the debts that should be repaid will always be repaid."

"Um... Brother Li, that payment of yours, I'll have to delay it again. I'm a bit short on funds these days."

"Damn it, why are you so unreasonable!"

……

Poisoning at the banquet, assassination of the prince, confinement on Stone Mountain, Prince's Manor guards beheaded in the street;

One politically impactful event after another, but for this great city that had just recovered from war, it didn't seem to have any effect.

At least,

The streets were still bustling.

Although there were still many refugees outside the city, there was a city wall separating them. Inside the city, it was really a "prosperous scene."

Zheng Fan returned to Yingdu, but not by leading his personal guards in a blatant display of force. Instead, he, Sword Saint Chen, and He Chunlai entered the city in plain clothes.

Entering without fanfare was to save face for the new Prefect.

Now, Zheng Fan's status was different. If he announced his intention to enter the city in advance, there would inevitably be another welcoming ceremony, which would undoubtedly dilute the bloody aura that Xu Pangpang (Fatty Xu) had finally gathered.

Yingdu, in the future, was after all Xu Wenzu's main stage. The Marquis's Mansion was currently powerless and temporarily unable to interfere too much in Yingdu's affairs, at most planting a few more nails.

His quiet return was, in effect, giving Xu Pangpang a boost.

See?

Even the world-renowned Marquis Pingxi has to bow his head before our Prefect!

Friendship, in fact, is built up bit by bit like this.

The four found a shop in the city, ate lunch, and Marquis Zheng returned to the tavern where he resided. Later, he sent someone to hang up his flag, informing the eyes in this city that were watching him, that he, Zheng Fan, had returned.

Not long after returning, just as the bathwater was prepared and Marquis Zheng hadn't even had time to take off his clothes, he was informed that the new Prefect, Xu Wenzu, was requesting an audience.

He had given Xu Pangpang face, and Xu Pangpang immediately returned the favor. Although Zheng Fan didn't care about this, he had to say that Xu Wenzu's actions were indeed very comforting.

Tea and pastries were served,

Xu Wenzu, upon entering, casually loosened his official robe. In this world, the official robes of most countries are probably designed with more emphasis on aesthetics than comfort.

To be precise, overly fancy clothes are definitely uncomfortable to wear.

There was still no small talk;

Perhaps to show how good their relationship was, both tacitly skipped the preliminaries.

"Zheng, my brother, I've been checking the accounts lately."

"Oh? Any discoveries?"

During the war against Chu, Yingdu served as a material transit point, with massive amounts of money, grain, and laborers passing through every day.

Zheng Fan had helped Tian Wujing manage the army's mundane affairs for a while. In fact, the army's food and money losses were often a confusing mess that was impossible to calculate. This, however, first excluded the factor of corruption.

Even if everyone was clean and honest, the hundreds of thousands of troops' food, drink, and waste disposal at the front line, as well as various military equipment, warhorses, medicinal materials, etc., were simply impossible to sort out.

Often, a certain department would shout that they were short of something, and Zheng Fan would give them a 60% discount and send them a note.

Perhaps the soldiers below also knew that you would give a discount, so they would often report more than they needed. Anyway, after sending it over with a 60% discount each time, they never replied saying it wasn't enough, which made Zheng Fan wonder for a while if he should give another discount?

As for Yingdu, with so much grain, so much loss, so many laborers, so many bureaucrats involved, it would be a real miracle if the accounts were clear.

However, some things could still be seen in the accounts.

For example,

Earlier, the money and grain for Xuehai Pass was sufficient.

Sufficient here meant that the Ministry of Revenue came down with a note that was already more than others, plus the Sun family's handling in Yingdu, and then it was actually sent to them. Leaving aside the losses, the money and grain sent to Xuehai Pass could be two or three times that of troops of the same size.

It was roughly equivalent to others having a dry meal and a bowl of porridge, barely maintaining the strength to wield a knife, while Xuehai Pass could have meat every now and then.

However, Zheng Fan wasn't worried that Xu Wenzu would use this to attack him. First, in the Ministry of Revenue, he was the number one henchman of the Sixth Master Party, and it wouldn't make sense not to eat a little more.

In this world, the dumbest leader is the kind who, while shouting that you're my person, still avoids suspicion and treats everyone equally.

Obviously, Little Sixth wasn't like that.

As for the Sun family, he was now a Marquis, and it was only right to eat and take more. Moreover, Xu Wenzu had done similar things to him in Nanwang City back then. When distributing military supplies, prisoners of war, and barbarian soldiers, Xu Wenzu could be said to be extremely biased towards him.

"Zheng, my brother, I understand the principle that clear water has no fish, but the problem is, there's a thick layer of oil floating on these accounts."

"Too thick?"

"Isn't that right?"

"How thick?"

Xu Wenzu hesitated for a moment, reached out and pinched his stomach, and said:

"As thick as my two layers of fat."

"How many layers of fat do you have?"

"Counting my chest, five layers."

"That's okay." Zheng Fan raised his head in confusion, "It doesn't seem very serious."

"But, my brother, think about it, you're fighting at the front, and they still have the energy to save a little for themselves in the back. What's that all about? Can you tolerate it?"

"Can't tolerate it." Zheng Fan said with a smile, "But it's not easy to attack using these accounts."

In political struggles, you can bring someone down and then convict them of corruption, but it's best not to use corruption to attack people.

This thing is an indiscriminate attack and can easily make things difficult to clean up.

Xu Wenzu smiled,

And said:

"How could I? I plan to organize the accounts and present them to His Majesty."

Xu Wenzu was an old fox in the officialdom after all, so naturally he didn't need Zheng Fan to remind him of this. Presenting the organized accounts to the Yan Emperor was actually the most effective way to let His Majesty know more clearly how the bureaucrats and nobles who had surrendered to Yingdu were "devoting their efforts" to Great Yan.

Coupled with the current situation of Great Yan's fiscal deficit and food shortage, it was enough to enhance this negative perception effect even more.

In the end, the Prefect was governing the people on behalf of the Emperor. As long as he had the Emperor's support, Xu Wenzu would be able to do whatever he wanted in Yingdu more freely.

This was actually Xu Wenzu's own governance strategy.

"Well, that's a good method."

Zheng Fan picked up his tea and took a sip. If it was just to talk about this matter, and to respond to his quiet return to Yingdu, it should already be enough.

But Xu Wenzu immediately lowered his voice again,

And said slowly:

"There's one more thing that's somewhat related to you, Brother Zheng."

"Brother, please speak."

"The accounts have been smoothed over, but who am I? The court's records, the local records, the records at the city gate, the records at the exit, the records at Wangjiang Ferry. No matter how good you are at accounting, you can't really make things disappear out of thin air, right?

Back then, during the campaigns against Qian and Jin, the Northern and Southern Marquises, and hundreds of thousands of Zhenbei Army and Jingnan Army, I was the one who supported the logistics. Then, I cooperated with the First Prince for another year, and there were no mistakes."

Xu Wenzu was indeed worthy of pride, because he really had the ability to be a Xiao He (a famous logistician).

In fact, if it wasn't for the need to respond to possible military adventures from the three borders of Qian during the campaign against Chu, Xu Wenzu might have been the most suitable candidate to be stationed in Yingdu at that time.

It's just,

Something didn't sound right,

Marquis Zheng put down his teacup,

Shouldn't he be the biggest rat?

What,

Was Xu Pangpang really going to settle accounts with him?

Was he out of his mind?

"Brother."

"Hmm."

"Gong Wang's department is under your command, right?"

Gong Wang?

Zheng Fan immediately understood. Xu Wenzu must have discovered the matter between him and the Sun family long ago, but he skipped it. What he found was Gong Wang's department.

Gong Wang's and Gongsun Zhi's departments were placed on the westernmost side of his territory. So, was there a problem with Gong Wang's side?

"Brother, we're family. Although the court now intends to treat Yan and Jin as one family, I know you have a broad mind, because you've been using barbarian soldiers for a long time.

But,

They're not our people.

Mao Mingcai may know that there are some shady dealings going on in Yingdu, but as long as the supplies were transported to the front line at that time, he would turn a blind eye for the sake of the overall situation.

But he probably doesn't know that someone is feeding Jin camp on the sly under his nose."

Xu Wenzu patted his belly,

And said:

"You say that these guys in Yingdu, if they're a little greedy, eat a little, that's harmless. Who doesn't have a wife, children, and concubines to support?

But if you say that they don't know what the consequences would be if they reached their hands into the army, even the Jin camp, once things were exposed, hehe, I don't believe it.

They know, but they still did it, risking such a great risk. Tell me, what are they plotting?

Can Gong Wang be trusted?"

"His son is still with me."

"Heh, in this world, there are many filial sons who send their fathers to paradise early, and there must be fathers who treat their sons like weeds that can be thrown away at will..."

Zheng Fan suddenly looked at Xu Wenzu,

Xu Wenzu was stunned,

And then understood,

He immediately slapped his mouth a few times,

He had cursed the Yan Emperor along with them, committing a great taboo.

"Brother Zheng, this is the real purpose of my visit this time."

Zheng Fan nodded,

And said:

"I will handle this matter."

"Good." Xu Wenzu scratched his head, "What do you think should be done about the Prince's Manor next?"

"The Prince's Manor is a banner. I'm not saying to pull this banner out. That has to be decided by His Majesty. But if you, brother, want to avoid being tied up, you have to at least knock him down.

Situ Yu is still young and can't make any waves. The Empress Dowager is just an ordinary woman, but unfortunately, there are a group of people surrounding the Prince's Manor.

Anyway, a slap has already been landed, so let's give them another one."

"Well, that's the logic. Brother Zheng, what do you think we should do?"

"I heard that those Prince's Manor guards were killed by an officer of the Patrol Division named Ran Min?"

"Yes, that person is quite clever. I have to say, I saw a bit of you in him back then."

"It seems his reputation among his subordinates is also good."

"Yes, he's someone who can do things, and he also wants to stand out."

Zheng Fan nodded,

And said:

"Alright, then let's give him another chance to stand out."

……

Ran Min's home was in Second Street in the western district of the city. He had bought a small house here. In fact, he could live in the Patrol Division yamen, but there were many people in the yamen. In modern terms, it was like a staff dormitory, so the living conditions were naturally not very good.

Usually, after getting off work, he would return to this house.

Opening the door,

Ran Min saw a young woman setting the table.

"Sir, you're back. I'll bring out the dishes."

"Mm."

Ran Min sat down at the dining table.

This young woman's surname was Liu. She was originally a refugee who sold herself to bury her father. He paid for her father's burial, and naturally, she followed him and became his concubine.

She was skilled, did good needlework, and cooked very well.

"Sir, try this dish."

"Mm."

Ran Min picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.

Madam Liu sat next to him, smiling as she watched him eat.

She really liked him. This man could bring her a great sense of security. In her eyes, he was the person her father had finally pointed out to her, someone she could entrust her life to.

After the meal,

Madam Liu said, "Sir, I'll go get water for you to wash your feet."

"Good."

"Wait for me, sir."

Madam Liu went to the kitchen stove to get hot water.

At this moment,

Footsteps came from the courtyard. They were subtle, but Ran Min was a martial artist after all, so naturally he heard them.

He immediately drew his saber and pushed open the door, coming to the courtyard.

As the officer of the Patrol Division, he had offended many people in the past two years, so he naturally had many enemies. In addition, he had just personally visited the Prince's Manor to extinguish their prestige and tarnish their face a few days ago, so Ran Min was extremely cautious these days.

In the courtyard,

A man in black appeared.

The man in black was holding a sword.

"Who are you, may I have your name?"

The man in black pointed to the west side,

And then,

Realizing that the place was on the east side,

He pointed in another direction,

And said very seriously:

"I come from the Prefect's Mansion."

"Lord Prefect? Lord Prefect sent you to find Ran Min, what for?"

"The Prefect told me to stab you with a sword."

"The Prefect wants to kill Ran Min?" Ran Min couldn't believe it. Was he going to be discarded like a used donkey? That shouldn't be!

"No, not to stab you to death, to wound you, and then you release that signal whistle, call for people, and then let them come after me. I'll lead them to the Prince's Manor.

This is called, diverting the trouble eastward."

"Is that so?"

Ran Min suddenly understood, and then said, "But how can Ran Min trust you?"

The visitor shook his aura, and immediately, an aura close to a fourth-rank swordsman was revealed.

The man in black said:

"Based on my wanting to kill you, there's no need to waste words."

Ran Min showed a bitter smile,

And said:

"Ran Min understands, Ran Min understands. Please draw your sword."

"After I stab you, I'll wait for your people to chase after me in the alley in front of the street."

"Okay, Ran Min will remember."

"It will be a little painful."

"Ran Min has been on the battlefield. As long as I can do things for Lord Prefect, even if I sacrifice my life, Ran Min will not hesitate, let alone this little bit of pain?"

"That's too fake."

"……" Ran Min.

"The feeling of speaking is far worse than his."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Take the sword."

A bit of cold light came first,

Stabbing Ran Min's chest,

Then pulling it out, and then slashing a sword on Ran Min's right arm.

The chest wound was well measured, not touching the organs, because it would be too unprofessional if there was no injury here; the arm wound did not touch the meridians, but tore open enough cuts to bleed and pretend.

Ran Min staggered back two steps.

The man in black nodded, seemingly very satisfied with his masterpiece, and then said:

"I'll be waiting in the alley in front of the street. Call your people."

After saying that,

The man in black flashed past the courtyard wall.

………

"Whoosh!!!"

A piercing and sharp whistle sounded,

In an instant,

Two teams of Patrol Division soldiers patrolling nearby immediately rushed over. They all knew that their officer's outer residence was here, and many of them had gone to the officer's house to eat the food made by the officer's young wife.

"Bang!"

The courtyard door was kicked open from the outside,

The Patrol Division soldiers rushed in,

"The assassin just ran away, he went to the front street, ah ah ah ah!!!!!"

The officer's voice came from inside,

The Patrol Division soldiers saw,

At this time, their officer was sitting on the threshold, covered in blood, seriously injured;

In his arms,

He was still holding the already dead Madam Liu,

And wailing loudly!