Volume 2, Chapter 89 – Confrontation

“Watchman?” Huang Qian’s eyes widened. In this moment, the Xu Zhe standing in front of him felt completely at odds with that usual kindly old-man image of his.

Especially his eyes—where was that old, cloudy look he usually had?

Right now they were like a hawk’s: dark, restrained, and gleaming cold.

“Watchman, I don’t understand what you’re saying!” Huang Qian went on, while quietly resting his hand on the Black-Mane Sword.

That was an old habit of his.

If he rushed out in a hurry, he might forget his phone, but this old friend he never left behind—even if he got up in the night to take a piss, he had to sling it on his back.

Xu Zhe didn’t waste any more words with him. He simply reached a right hand toward him, and at once Huang Qian felt the air all around compress, as if something had locked onto him and wouldn’t let go.

“Hm!?”

Boom!!!

A thunderous bang cracked in midair—it was the demonic power he’d raised to counter-attack being effortlessly shattered by Xu Zhe. Their clash didn’t even form the telltale “membrane of demonic aura.” The demonic power Huang Qian had gathered simply broke apart, turning into translucent purple-red shards.

“Clang!”

The Black-Mane Sword tried to leap from its scabbard, but the instant the blade cleared halfway, every motion in Huang Qian’s body froze. Vines of eerie demonic origin wrapped around his wrists, ankles, and especially his throat, purple fire crawling along them. The moment he moved, they would tighten viciously.

“Watchman.” He could only cut his solemn gaze sideways toward Xu Zhe. “I don’t understand what you mean!”

He couldn’t beat Xu Zhe. He’d confirmed that long ago.

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Whatever doddering old man Xu Zhe might look like, Core realm was Core realm. It simply wasn’t the same as Condensing the Aspect.

Why had he dared chase Zhou Jing’an all the way to the Longhua Temple area?

Because Xu Zhe had been riding the sword in the air behind him, that was why!

He’d always respected Xu Zhe—a little because of Xu Zhe’s “kind old man” temperament, and more because of the strength he possessed.

But he’d never imagined this Xu Zhe would raise a hand against him—and without asking a single question, just coming straight in to take him down!

What was he trying to do?

No matter how he turned it over in his mind, only one word came up for Huang Qian:

Mutiny.

“I’ve chosen to side with Yao Qingyuan.” Xu Zhe stopped hiding anything, stating the truth very bluntly. “Originally we were going to wait a little over another week before making a move, but Zhou Jing’an couldn’t wait. That means here in the Chilong Circuit, we have to move ahead of schedule.”

Yao Qingyuan?

Huang Qian’s face changed. He ground out, “Watchman, don’t let that bastard mislead you… He’s obviously still hung up on that chance he almost had back then… He’s furious about the Empress Dowager’s choice! If you go along with him, who knows what kind of chaos you’ll stir up!”

Xu Zhe didn’t respond. Huang Qian pressed on: “Watchman, you haven’t forgotten the Imperial House’s decrees, have you? Starting five years ago, they’ve sent at least three every year, all demanding that you and I coordinate with the State Chancery to strengthen the army and the defenses. And compared to the northern border and the east, the south is already considered peaceful. Who else is there that needs guarding against?”

“That shows the Imperial House has long known exactly who’s been stirring up trouble! How could the surrounding states not have contingencies ready?”

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He tried to persuade Xu Zhe to “turn back before it’s too late,” but as soon as he finished, he saw Xu Zhe’s shoulders give a tiny shake—and then the man simply threw his head back and laughed.

“Hahahahaha… Commandant, Commandant, you’re so naïve!”

When he’d laughed enough, Xu Zhe raised a hand and pointed at Huang Qian.

“That’s right. Judging by the decrees, Yujing has known for at least five years that the Prince of Nanling was harboring a rebellious bone. Even someone as straightforward as you can see the Prince of Nanling and the Imperial House have ‘never gotten along.’”

“To eliminate this hidden danger and keep the realm peaceful, you’ve poured in who knows how much effort. You even reached out to your in-laws and comrades in the Western Ze Army to exchange information, all just to find proof that the Prince of Nanling was plotting rebellion!”

Huang Qian said nothing, because he had done all that.

“And it wasn’t just you. Zhang Daoming did the same. So did his direct superior, Lu Xueling.” Xu Zhe spoke unhurriedly. “You’re all good men, loyal and courageous officials. Each of you has been doing what you could to protect the land and its people.”

“But what came of all your efforts?”

“You’re a blunt man, not good with paperwork. You came to me to ghostwrite two hundred and five remonstrating memorials. Did you get a single reply to any of them?”

Huang Qian’s expression shifted, bruised purple and green rising under his cheeks.

It was harsh, but it was true.

From what he knew, it hadn’t just been him running around over this. Plenty of people, whether he knew them or not, had submitted memorials to Yujing at the time.

Because five years ago there’d been a major turning point: the Prince of Nanling’s Manor had, under the banner of land reclamation, increased its infiltration and control over the Western Ze Army.

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To soldiers like them, that was a terrifying signal.

The southwest region was barren and sweltering, crawling with demonic beasts, yet wedged between several neighboring countries. Compared to the northern border and the east, the pressure of defense there was actually lighter—but that didn’t mean you could just “reclaim land” as you pleased.

There were at least a million demonic beasts hidden in those towering, dense southern jungles!

Land reclamation? With just that Yao Qingyuan?

He was obviously just using the pretext to grab power.

“You all worked hard. But no matter which high official you appealed to, the best answer you could get was ‘we’ll discuss this later.’ Everything else was shelved under the excuse of ‘the process is too complicated.’” Xu Zhe spoke while slowly shaking his head.

“Because it is complicated,” Huang Qian said. “Watchman, you may be Core realm, but you’re counted as a civil official. You don’t understand—when military officers file remonstrations, the procedure is very—”

“This time when they rolled out the New Affairs, Qingyun Pharmaceuticals sent over plenty of people who’ve been abroad.” Xu Zhe cut him off. “Do you know how they look at procedures like this?”

“They say that if a set of procedures is so complicated and difficult to carry out that it’s horribly inefficient, then either the results it produces would shake everything to its core… or the people who designed it simply don’t want you going through it.”

Huang Qian’s eyes went wide. It felt like he’d been hit by lightning.

“So now do you understand why I said what I did?” Xu Zhe sighed.

“The Prince of Nanling is going to rebel. Yujing knows it.”

“Your biggest mistake was thinking that person up there was simple, thinking you could play the loyal minister, the babysitter… But did it ever occur to you that this is exactly what Yujing wants to see?”

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“The Prince of Nanling’s Manor is like a nail driven in over here. If he doesn’t rebel, where are you going to find an excuse to get rid of him?”

“Don’t forget what his relationship with the Imperial House is.”

“If you demand that the Imperial House kill him off before he makes a move…”

“What then? You planning to make the Imperial House unfilial?”

“This is wrong… Impossible…” Huang Qian was shaking at his words; he didn’t even know if it was from anger. “How could it be like this? What about the people of those two states and eight circuits—”

“What about them?” Xu Zhe snorted. “Take here for example… The Chilong Circuit was left for the New Affairs as a test field. From that moment on, every commoner in the Chilong Circuit had already been written off—and that happened with Yujing’s tacit approval.”

Boom!!!

Huang Qian’s body swayed, and the fingers gripping the Black-Mane Sword slowly loosened.

“All the rivers and mountains of the Nine Provinces belong to White Jade; all three thousand dojos are halls of White Jade.”

Xu Zhe murmured the line of verse softly.

“Commandant Huang, I respect you. Otherwise I wouldn’t have said this much.”

“Whether you’re willing to work with me or not—give me a straight answer.”