Chapter 163: Promotion

Two great merits!

Liang Qu's heart is thumping.

Seven days out, exchanging for two great merits—it's truly worth it!

In this way, the range of choices in the Great Merit Exchange Book is much, much larger.

It's good to have someone above.

If it were an ordinary leader, how could they calculate investigating the case and eradicating it as two separate things?

"Many thanks, Big Brother Xu!"

"What you did, why thank me? I don't have the ability to forcibly give great merits; if I investigated it myself, I wouldn't be able to handle it."

Xu Yuelong lowers his head and catches sight of the great bow leaning to the side.

"This bow, I haven't seen you use it before?"

"Confiscated." Liang Qu cups his hands. "It was originally used by Liu Jie. I was quite interested, so I tried it out."

"Want it?"

Liang Qu scratches his head, says nothing, just smiles.

"Haha, brat, let me teach you something."

Xu Yuelong slaps the booklet onto Liang Qu, tapping the hard shell of the booklet with his index finger, making a thumping sound.

"Does your booklet say Liu Jie used a bow?"

Liang Qu shakes his head: "No."

Xu Yuelong points to the brief report on the table: "Does the brief report have it?"

"Even less."

The booklet is a form of packaging; the top and bottom are hard shells, and the paper inside is accordion-folded, like a folding fan, long and narrow, easy to hold in one hand, convenient for carrying and recording.

When officials receive a major task, they get a booklet.

The task content and the process of handling it—these important experiences must all be recorded on the booklet, very detailed.

Many officials serve as officials for a lifetime, and there will be a thick stack of booklets at home, which can be considered a kind of alternative life record.

There is nothing on the booklet, and even less on the brief report.

This meaning...

Liang Qu's brow twitches slightly.

"Since there is nothing, then this bow was clearly brought by you to deal with Liu Jie, but it wasn't used, right?"

Xu Yuelong points to the account book on the side and whispers, "How the bow came to be, let's not talk about it for now. Even if it was really ordered by Liu Jie, do you think he would record this expense in the account book?"

Liang Qu nods silently.

He thought he needed to hand it over first and then apply for it before this bow could belong to him. He didn't expect it to be so simple.

It's just...

"Will doing this leave evidence..."

The two commanders of the River Patrol Office—Liang Qu has a fresh memory of the other one's high-and-mighty attitude.

The two factions have had a bad relationship since their grandfathers' generation, and their fathers' generation were even enemies. Doing this, will it really not leave evidence for the other side?

"You don't need to be so timid. Actually, those above know, otherwise why would raiding a house be a fat job? However, you are right, this is indeed evidence."

"Then..."

Liang Qu is even more puzzled. He could have handed it over first and then taken it back, right?

It's not urgent for a day or two.

"So I'll teach you the second thing: don't think about being a perfect person. Leaving some insignificant evidence for yourself is a good thing."

Leave some insignificant evidence for yourself?

Liang Qu's eyes flicker, and he takes out several silver notes from his bosom.

"This is..."

"Silver notes used by the Whale Gang to bribe me. They said there was no record, I don't know if it's true. Originally there were three thousand taels, but most of it was destroyed by Liu Jie's blade aura.

Now only one thousand two hundred taels remain, and there are two three-hundred-tael notes inside that are quite badly damaged. I don't know if they can be used."

The silver notes have all been soaked in water, but the paper used for silver notes is very special; it is "mulberry bark paper" mixed with "waste official document paper."

It both achieves the purpose of destroying official document files and changes the color of the currency paper, making it a special blue-gray-yellow, very thick. Soaked in water and dried in time, it didn't deform much.

Xu Yuelong says: "Keep them too. One thousand taels of silver is not much. If it were an ordinary superior, you would have to give seven percent away. I don't need it; you keep it for yourself.

However, this is your first major task, remember to buy something later to honor your master."

Liang Qu nods. He feels that with Xu Yuelong's status and wealth, he should really think so, not just being polite.

"Many thanks, Big Brother Xu!"

"I already said, what you did, you don't need to thank me. If you really want to thank, then I should thank you. Opportunities to make Wei Lin embarrassed are rare!"

While speaking, Xu Yuelong has already passed Liang Qu by one position, sitting in his seat, personally picking up an ink brush to write the brief report.

This is an excellent opportunity.

He wants to send a message back immediately, sending people to the surrounding counties to check the situation, whether they have organizations similar to the Whale Gang like Fengbu County.

With such a big stir, it's impossible to completely hide it from Wei Lin, but with the first-mover advantage, he can at least occupy more than seventy percent of the credit.

Wei Lin is arrogant and violent, a real martial arts maniac, a person who doesn't care about his life when fighting. Few people among his peers dare to spar with him.

Purely in terms of strength, it's not that he can't beat him, it's just that crazy energy—Xu Yuelong is a bit afraid of him.

The Xu family's previous two generations could steadily suppress the Wei family, but it just happened that his generation is afraid...

Credit or not doesn't matter, it's mainly wanting to see Wei Lin eat dirt.

Seeing Xu Yuelong busy, Liang Qu patrols around to ensure the Whale Gang members aren't slacking off.

Gold and silver are moved out of the house box by box, and the women are also huddled in a corner, trembling.

The Whale Gang's wealth is more than imagined. Saying three thousand taels was all when bribing on the painting boat was just a tactic.

At least the gold and silver moved out amounted to several thousand taels.

The Liu Jie brothers weren't that stupid, knowing the other party was coming for money and still exposing their fat intestines waiting for people to squeeze out oil.

Suddenly taking out three thousand taels was bleeding, but it hadn't reached the point of hurting their bones and muscles.

Outside the headquarters building, neat footsteps are mixed in the sound of rain.

A group of officials wearing soap-colored uniforms file in.

Not long after, they file out again. The clerks who are usually majestic stand guard in the rain outside, having no chance to intervene at all.

Xu Yuelong finishes writing the brief report, rolls up the paper and stuffs it into a wooden tube, disappears after a few flashes, and reappears a moment later.

Liang Qu doesn't know what kind of communication method Xu Yuelong used, but astonishingly, before midnight, Ran Zhongshi leads a few people over.

He spent more than a day traveling from Pingyang County to Fengbu County; how many hours is this?

Xu Yuelong steps forward quickly.

"How is the situation?"

Ran Zhongshi takes off his straw raincoat and says, panting slightly: "The entire Huaiyin Prefecture has thirteen counties. We don't have enough manpower, so we focus on the six counties along the river. They have the most fishing population and are most likely to raise pests. I have already sent people over, and I believe there will be results soon."

"Have the people from the Three Judicial Departments been notified? I need them to do the finishing work, detain the gang members; I don't trust the people in the county government."

"Already notified. I sent an urgent message, and it is estimated that their people will arrive tomorrow noon."

"Good!" Xu Yuelong raises his hand in a salute. "Tonight and tomorrow, thank you all for your hard work!"

"Don't mention it!"

Everyone responds with a salute and then disperses, leaving only a martial artist Liang Qu doesn't know to watch over the Whale Gang members.

Xu Yuelong looks at Liang Qu.

"You've worked hard today, go down and rest. When we go back and report the credit, there will definitely be two great merits, and maybe you can be promoted another level, becoming a regular eighth-rank."

While speaking, the martial artist on the side shows envy.

He had already understood the whole process when he came, and he really didn't expect that a small spirit monster matter could involve two great merits, and even a promotion.

What kind of luck is this?

"Then I'll go first."

Liang Qu gets up. He is indeed very tired; after a great battle, he rushed to the Whale Gang without stopping, and hadn't rested from morning until midnight.

Not to mention he wanted to leave a few hours ago.

In the better part of the day he spent at the Whale Gang headquarters, the fat catfish and the others swam in the waters of Fengbu County and found something very peculiar. ===== CHAPTER 164 =====