Chapter 136: Establishing Rules

In the year Jia Chen, during the Yi Hai month, on the Wu Yin day, a disciple of the Mingguang Sect openly entered homes to bully men and oppress women; Captain Tan Hu led troops to punish the ruffian by castration.

In the year Jia Chen, during the Yi Hai month, on the Geng Yin day, the Blood Tiger Gang smuggled people; Captain Tan Hu led troops to escort them to the government office.

In the year Jia Chen, during the Yi Hai month, on the Wu Xu day, it was rumored that Qingfeng Villa colluded with the Salt Gang; Captain Tan Hu led troops to investigate.

Li Rui flipped through the patrol log.

The more he read, the more stunned he became.

Tan Hu was truly a fierce general—he had stormed through every dragon's den and tiger's lair in Qinghe City.

And he still hadn't died!

Either he was bold and meticulous, or Ning Zhongtian had cleaned up his mess.

Li Rui suddenly understood why Ning Zhongtian had assigned him to the Running Tiger Cavalry.

If Tan Hu kept playing like this, he might one day trigger a disaster.

Qinghe City was full of hidden tigers and dragons; some people even Ning Zhongtian dared not offend.

The imperial court was powerful, but its power lay in its size.

Who was the imperial court?

No one was the imperial court.

Thus, most officials still needed to maintain decent relations with the martial world.

Even the Annan Army frequently interacted with local martial factions.

The word "zhen" in Annan Zhen meant pacification—it aimed to make these martial factions serve the court faithfully, not to slaughter them all.

Therefore, dealing with martial sects required great skill.

One must not grow too distant, nor be dragged under by them.

This balance had to be mastered precisely.

Li Rui closed the patrol log and rubbed his temples, head aching.

"Rash."

"Absolutely no sense of discipline!"

Was a Mingguang Sect disciple bullying men and oppressing women a matter?

It was.

But could you just castrate him outright? If you truly wanted to castrate him, couldn't you find a secluded place? Why publicly humiliate the Mingguang Sect?

With no face left to save, the Mingguang Sect would inevitably turn hostile.

I heard the Mingguang Sect had a sixth-rank vice-sect master stationed in Qinghe—Ning Zhongtian must have smoothed it over.

As for Qingfeng Villa colluding with the Salt Gang:

If you truly meant to act, just storm the Salt Gang and wipe them out. Why target Qingfeng Villa and provoke them?

Don't you know the young master of Qingfeng Villa passed the imperial examination as third-place Metropolitan Graduate and now serves as a scholar in the Hanlin Academy? He'll emerge as a high-ranking official.

As for the Blood Tiger Gang—they deserved to die!

Li Rui quickly categorized the troubles Tan Hu had caused.

Broadly speaking, they fell into two types: those needing repair and those not.

The criterion was even simpler:

Those Tan Hu could defeat and those he couldn't.

The Mingguang Sect and Qingfeng Villa clearly belonged to the latter.

Once categorized, matters became much easier; Li Rui realized that although Tan Hu was reckless, he was truly formidable—very few seventh-rank cultivators could match him.

This stemmed from his innate Diamond Body.

Unless facing a Liujin expert who had condensed qi into form, Tan Hu crushed them all.

No wonder Ning Zhongtian still treasured Tan Hu despite all the trouble he caused.

Such men were rare—used well, they became invaluable fierce generals.

Finished sorting.

Looked up.

It was deep night.

Li Rui set down his brush, clarified his thoughts—what came next would be far easier.

"Xiao He, go rest. Tomorrow, come with me."

"Yes!"

Liang He had been grinding ink beside Li Rui the whole time.

Li Rui suddenly remembered: "By the way, don't tell General Tan Hu about this yet."

Liang He, already at the door, turned back: "Yes, Hall Master."

Li Rui stepped into the courtyard and saw Yang Yong and Wang Zhao chatting under a tree.

Seeing Li Rui return,

Yang Yong rose: "The dishes aren't cold yet. If you didn't come, Xiao Zhao and I would've eaten already."

Laughing, he hurried into the room.

Soon after, he brought out four dishes.

Still warm.

Li Rui's heart warmed: "If I'm not back by You Hour, eat without me."

Wang Zhao smiled warmly: "Master, it's fine—we're not hungry."

Li Rui invited them to sit.

They ate.

Only then did he return to his room, perform a set of fist forms to digest his meal, then sat cross-legged on the mat and began circulating qi.

Having lived this long,

Li Rui believed the most important thing was habit.

Details determine success or failure—and even lifespan.

Small things seem insignificant, yet accumulated over time, they yield tremendous effects.

As a child, he thought elders' rules were tedious and pointless; only in old age did he understand their wisdom.

One hour later,

Li Rui completed thirty-six circuits of the Dragon Soaring Through Nine Skies diagram.

Then he pulled the quilt over himself and slept.

The next morning,

Li Rui rose early and trained in the courtyard.

He held a wooden sword.

His form glided like a dragon through the yard, steps light, blade moving with his body—unpredictable, impossible to defend against.

Since creating the Changchun Art, his swordplay had changed drastically.

Li Rui switched back from heavy sword to light sword.

A return to simplicity.

As for the legendary theories of light sword, heavy sword, wooden sword, and using all things as weapons, Li Rui had not yet reached that realm.

"Time to get a new sword."

He glanced at the heavy sword leaning in the corner.

As his realm changed, his weapon naturally needed updating.

But Li Rui's realm had grown too fast, accelerating the pace of weapon replacement.

Otherwise, this sword forged at the official workshop would have lasted a decade for an ordinary person. After finishing his sword practice,

Yang Yong and Wang Zhao stepped out of the house.

"Old Li, the congee is ready—just about to serve."

Yang Yong had grown accustomed to Li Rui's daily fist and sword practice; as he spoke, he dashed into the kitchen.

Soon after,

A bowl of steaming meat congee was brought out.

Sprinkled generously with scallions—looked especially appetizing.

Li Rui hadn't become extravagant with his status; he still ate simple congee every morning.

Food serves two purposes: to fill the stomach, and to nourish the body.

The more precious the ingredient, the better it isn't—eat seafood every meal and your stomach won't improve, only gout will come; plain home cooking is far more comfortable.

Thus, the food in Li's residence, though with extra meat, was far from luxurious.

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Even daily meat meals were considered the height of luxury in ordinary households.

After finishing the congee,

Li Rui picked up a standard Annan Army longsword, strapped it to his waist, and stepped out.

As for why he didn't carry the heavy sword:

Mainly because the person he was meeting today would find it improper to arrive with a back-sword; hanging the heavy sword at his waist would require pants too strong to bear it, and holding it in hand was worse—he'd be mistaken for a challenger coming to provoke a duel.

The Running Tiger Cavalry's camp was farther than the weapons depot.

But it was only a tea's walk away.

Li Rui soon arrived at the camp.

He happened to see Tan Hu training several soldiers of the Running Tiger Camp.

Military training differed from martial cultivation; it focused more on coordinating formations to achieve combined strength, multiplying power far beyond mere numerical addition.

In the training ground.

Tan Hu stood at the front, gripping a serpent spear about eight feet tall, equal to his height, while thirteen Running Tiger cavalrymen lined up in a single row behind him.

The formation kept shifting.

Sometimes forming a long snake, sometimes closing into a circle.

Yet every change flowed effortlessly, perfectly smooth.

Li Rui slightly narrowed his eyes.

"The key to a formation lies in the pivot point—the eye of the formation—Tan Hu. Tan Hu is a martial cultivator who has cultivated qi, using true qi to concentrate all their strength into one, circulating it among them."

In essence,

the mystery of formations ultimately rests on the person at the pivot.

At minimum, one must be at least a Sinew-Refining cultivator for the formation to work; otherwise, it's merely a well-drilled ordinary army.

But here, with Tan Hu as the pivot, true qi flows rapidly through each man.

As long as the speed is fast enough, the enemy perceives every soldier as enhanced.

When necessary,

Tan Hu can gather all their blood and qi to boost his own combat power to its peak.

In short, the applications are countless.

Li Rui was not in a hurry; he simply stood aside, watching quietly.

Tan Hu had many flaws.

He acted recklessly, impulsively.

But his strengths were equally clear: not only was his personal martial prowess undeniable, his skill in leading formations ranked among the best in Anning Guard.

Li Rui had seen formations before.

But none as fluid as the Running Tiger Cavalry before him were rare.

Half an hour later,

Tan Hu finally finished training. He turned to Li Rui: "Brother Li, want to spar?"

Li Rui shook his head: "No need, Brother Tan. I'm leaving town today—I'm taking Xiao He with me."

"Understood."

Tan Hu grinned: "Xiao He, you go with Brother Li."

Liang He, hearing the order, happily ran toward Li Rui.

Soon,

Li Rui led Liang He out of the camp.

They stepped onto the street.

Another scene entirely.

Qinghe had expanded more than fivefold since before; the old town had become merely a corner, while the new streets were far wider, rivaling even the prefectural capital.

It was truly impressive.

The establishment of a guard battalion and the construction of a new city had drawn many from Anning Prefecture and even Yunzhou.

The population had more than quadrupled.

Pedestrians bustled along the streets, carriages and horses filled the roads—a scene of prosperity. Rumor had it government tax revenues had surged.

Li Rui led Liang He straight down the newly built Zhuque Avenue.

Zhuque Avenue was the main thoroughfare of Qinghe's new city, running north to south.

Those who owned storefronts or mansions along Zhuque Avenue were among the elite.

Li Rui finally stopped before a grand mansion.

Green tiles and blue bricks described old homes; the new residences were mostly bright gray, elegant and dignified.

He looked up.

A massive plaque hung above the gate.

"Qingfeng Mountain Villa."

Li Rui calmly led Liang He up the seven stone steps.

"Halt! Who are you?"

At that moment, two young men in dark blue short-sleeved martial attire appeared behind the gate.

Li Rui chuckled: "Anning Guard patrol officer, Li Rui."

Those chosen as gatekeepers were sharp and perceptive.

Upon hearing Li Rui was an Anning Guard officer, the young men instantly switched to smiling faces.

"Ah, Patrol Officer, please come in, please come in."

Li Rui and Liang He were courteously led into a courtyard.

A small yard surrounded by green bamboo, serene yet bright; though not opulent, every detail revealed thoughtfulness.

"Qingfeng Mountain Villa truly lives up to its reputation as a renowned family of Anning Prefecture."

Especially compared to some families in Qinghe, their depth was unmistakable.

This was precisely why Li Rui's past-life self despised new money and favored old money.

Li Rui had just sat down,

when a man's voice called out: "Officer Li, congratulations!"

(End of Chapter)