Chapter 1401

Xue Zongwu even glanced behind the gate and found two places in the bronze array board in the gate tunnel that hadn't been repaired—he had discovered this the last time he entered the city.

It could be seen that for the past six months, Mangzhou hadn't repaired the city defense array.

Anyway, Mangzhou is in the hinterland of the Yao Nation and wouldn't be attacked, and this kind of big array could run normally even if three or four boards were broken, so the local government became lazy.

Xue Zongwu shook his head; if it were his subordinates, their heads would have been chopped off long ago.

Mangzhou was as prosperous as ever, with shops lined up in the market, exquisite mansions by the lake, and imposing temples in the city; the young men and women in spring clothes were no different from before.

Compared to the capital Tianshui City, Xue Zongwu liked Mangzhou more. Living here was equally debauched, but one could be less restrained and a bit more wanton.

Because Mangzhou is almost the only way for western officials to enter the capital, there were many nobles wandering in the city now. Xue Zongwu rode in a carriage, bringing personal guards to swagger through the streets, and officials he met on the road all had to bow to him.

Xue Zongwu nodded casually and passed by them without even saying a word.

His destination, of course, was Little Peach Shanzhuang.

After his mentor and father-in-law Qi Yunsheng retired from Green Ridge Mountain, King Yao passed through Mangzhou and personally went to visit him, staying at Little Peach Shanzhuang for three days.

A figure respected even by the monarch naturally thrived in the Yao Nation.

Mangzhou was bustling with traffic now, but at least half of the flow was at Little Peach Shanzhuang. Officials and wealthy merchants passing through Mangzhou would all send visiting cards to the Qi mansion.

There were limited high and steep mountain peaks in Mangzhou; Little Peach Mountain was lush with trees, but its overall height was only a hundred zhang (over 300 meters), just a small hill compared to other famous mountains—except for the northern peak which rose to two hundred zhang—and the mountain road was built wide and flat, accommodating three carriages side by side.

This mountain road was no longer as quiet as it used to be, with carriages coming and going from time to time.

Like other mansions, the Qi mansion's courtyard wall was a zhang and a half high, deeply hiding the red and green of the garden, not to be seen by outsiders.

When Xue Zongwu arrived, the Qi mansion immediately opened its big gate to welcome this important minister.

After all, it was a visit to his mentor and father-in-law, so Xue Zongwu found it inconvenient to bring his full set of men and swagger in. He followed the convention and picked out a few deputy generals and elite personal guards, leaving the others to wait at the rest pavilion outside the gate.

Little Peach Shanzhuang often had powerful figures visiting, so two rows of houses were built halfway up the mountain, called the rest pavilion, providing food, lodging, and grain. If officials visiting had too many attendants or guards, they could leave their people and horses at the rest pavilion and go to pay the visit themselves.

The sky was getting dark, and the Qi mansion was already brightly lit.

Xue Zongwu walked ten zhang into the big gate; the evening wind blew, bringing faint laughter.

It seemed the Qi mansion was full of distinguished guests tonight.

The so-called "great hermit hides in the city"; after Qi Yunsheng retired, there were no taboos for officials and nobles to interact with him, and he was actually busier than when he was the Chief Elder of Green Ridge Mountain.

The servant leading the way faced him, bowing almost to the floor: "The master has instructions; as soon as you arrive, please go to the Nourishing Heart Hall."

"Nourishing Heart Hall?" Xue Zongwu was familiar with this villa and didn't need others to lead the way. However, with distinguished guests gathered tonight, the host Qi Yunsheng should be greeting guests; why would he see him in the Nourishing Heart Hall? Qi Yunsheng had three small dojos in the villa, and the Nourishing Heart Hall was one of them, and also the closest to the banquet hall and garden. Little Peach Shanzhuang was too big; Qi Yunsheng meeting Xue Zongwu here could still take care of other guests later.

Xue Zongwu was slightly surprised, but followed the turn and went to the Nourishing Heart Hall. The deputy generals and personal guards followed closely behind, not leaving an inch.

Along the way, a few more officials bowed and greeted him.

His wife had passed away many years ago, but he still interacted closely with his father-in-law Qi Yunsheng; those in the know all understood why.

The Nourishing Heart Hall was not far from the banquet, but the dense vegetation filtered out the noise. It was quiet and elegant here, very suitable for cultivation and thinking, and of course, very suitable for conversation and secret discussion.

Xue Zongwu knew that Qi Yunsheng meeting him here must have something important.

Turning around a cluster of dwarf ferns, light shone ahead; the Nourishing Heart Hall had arrived.

Xue Zongwu raised his hand, and the personal guards dispersed into the forest, no longer following.

Walking into the Nourishing Heart Hall, Xue Zongwu saw Qi Yunsheng standing by the window with his hands behind his back, and immediately said: "Mentor, are you well!"

"Come in, close the door."

Qi Yunsheng closed the window himself.

Once the barrier was placed, the noise outside suddenly disappeared.

"How have you been recently?"

The things that happened at Frost Creek couldn't be brought to the table, so Xue Zongwu only said: "Everything is going smoothly."

Qi Yunsheng pointed to a thin wooden box on the table: "Yesterday morning, someone quietly put this thing in the ear room of the villa's big gate."

"This is?"

"Open it."

Xue Zongwu opened the box and saw a square book lying inside, the style very familiar.

Could it be?

He hurriedly picked it up, but the further he flipped, the uglier his face became.

This was an account book, and he could recognize the handwriting on it at a glance:

Qian Yu!

His account manager Qian Yu died inexplicably at Frost Creek, and this was Qian Yu's account book!

Qi Yunsheng asked meaningfully: "Is there anything I should know?"

"This is my account book, originally stored in the Frost Creek government office. This year I sent Qian Yu to check the accounts as usual, but he was robbed and killed first; at the same time—" Xue Zongwu licked his lips. "Someone sneaked into the government office's account room, rummaged through boxes and cabinets, took away several account books, and set a fire, burning half of the old accounts."

He shook the account book in his hand: "This is one of them. Heh, truly a diversion!"

Qi Yunsheng's brows knotted: "Are these account books trouble?"

Xue Zongwu nodded helplessly.

"What's going on?"

"This is the list of actual accounts. Tong Huan said that if Tianshui City sends someone to rebuild the accounts, these lists are the basis for verification. If they don't match..."

"You are just too greedy!" Qi Yunsheng slapped the window lattice. "I warned you long ago, sigh!"

This son-in-law is decisive and resourceful, but has one biggest weakness, which is the word "greed"!

"Greed" is a big pit; once you fall into it, you will only get greedier. He believed that the "some" Xue Zongwu mentioned must be a shocking number, a trouble that would be hard to recover from once made public.

Hearing his complaint, Xue Zongwu pursed his lips and didn't make a sound. The dead old man kept himself so clean, without thinking about how much wealth the Qi family had obtained through him, Xue Zongwu, over the years! He was in the front, Qi Yunsheng was hidden behind the scenes, and their family assets had all increased several times! In terms of insatiable greed and ruthless means, how could he compare to this father-in-law? Pfft, they all knew each other's roots, what was the old man pretending to be noble in front of him for? If he, Xue Zongwu, was a fierce tiger, Qi Yunsheng was a cunning old wolf!

"There are red line markings in the book." Qi Yunsheng had looked at it beforehand.

Xue Zongwu was startled upon hearing this, and when Qi Yunsheng pointed it out to him, he couldn't help but bite his teeth tightly.

Besides the tricks in the accounts, this account book actually used red lines to mark Garrison Commander Huang's items.

Xue Zongwu's "official business" with Garrison Commander Huang was all official business on the surface, and every transaction had records to check. The tricks inside were exceptionally hidden, and one couldn't see any problems just by checking the account book itself.

But the trouble was that Qingyang's liquidation of Garrison Commander Huang had mastered detailed evidence. One or two of the materials corresponded with this account book, and there were loopholes! Garrison Commander Huang was beheaded more than half a year ago, and Xue Zongwu had destroyed most of the materials related to him, only recently remembering that there were a few accounts at Frost Creek! He ordered Qian Yu to rush to destroy the accounts and redo them, who knew such an accident would happen?

Now Qian Yu is dead, but one of the missing account books was sent to his father-in-law.

This is clearly a message:

The person who stole the account book wants to tell him that from his whereabouts to the evidence, everything is under their control.

Qi Yunsheng asked him: "How many account books were lost in total?"

"Not clear. Other materials were burned, so it couldn't be verified."

"Then the other party has at least several more books." Qi Yunsheng pressed his brows. "Are you thinking the same as me?"

Xue Zongwu's voice was strained, spitting out two words: "Qingyang!"

A series of his troubles started from Qingyang taking office as the Grand Regent of the Yao Nation.

"The old witch from Beijia spent a few months figuring out the political situation, and recently she has become more and more aggressive, even provoking the King in public!" Xue Zongwu said in a deep voice. "She sent me this account book, what do you think?"

"Perhaps she wants to tell you that although Garrison Commander Huang died early, the clues haven't been broken, and she can still find you." Qi Yunsheng sighed. "Garrison Commander Huang died, it's truly a pity. He was a smart person and handled things cleanly."

If He Lingchuan were here, he would be able to hear a clue.

"She wants to demonstrate to me?"

"No, more than that." Qi Yunsheng analyzed. "If it were just to demonstrate, she wouldn't need to send the account book to you; she would only need to announce your crimes in court and take it out as evidence." Qi Yunsheng continued, "I think she wants to blackmail you or win you over."

"Blackmail me? Win me over?" Qi Yunsheng's idea coincided with Xue Zongwu's. "What does she want me to do?"

"The Yao Nation is so big, the court is so complex; relying only on her and the few hundred people she brought, she can't control it at all, and still needs the support of powerful local forces... like you." Qi Yunsheng waved his hand. "Don't sneer yet, this is the best strategy."

"What about the middle strategy?"

"If you are unwilling to change your tune, she can at least make you wary and not dare to stand toe-to-toe with her." Qi Yunsheng continued, "If even this doesn't work, there is the worst strategy: announce the evidence in court, make the monarch and minister lose heart, and make you notorious; this can also weaken the King's power."

Xue Zongwu gritted his steel teeth: "This old witch is truly vicious!"

He has conquered cities and lands abroad, with fierce means, and has the name of "fierce god."

But that was abroad, outside the Yao Nation! Abroad, no matter how he acts, it's a prestige, and returning to the country is a hero. He knows very well that Yao Nation people simply won't pay attention to the Flash Gold Plain, simply won't care about the lives of others, and are even proud when they hear of his thunderous means.

But in the country, if he is reported by Qingyang for harming national interests and seizing people's interests, and every item is made public, that is a loss of reputation!

(End of chapter)