Chapter 159: It's My Turn Now

"Is what you say true?"

If the civil and military officials of Xichuan had been replaced, it would be one thing if it were just one or two, but if the number were large, how could it be possible for no one to notice at all?

Do you really think the Black-Clad Guard, spread across the world by the imperial court, are just freeloaders? Those secret agents, both in the open and in the shadows, are everywhere.

No matter how one listens to Wumian's words, they sound like a fantasy, making it hard to believe. Yet, his expression shows not a hint of falsehood, which makes one have to believe him.

"Lord Shen, every word I have spoken is true. The reason this matter could be kept hidden is that even those who replaced others do not know they are actually stand-ins!"

"Oh? You mean to say that they themselves have no suspicion about their own identities, believing they are the original people?"

"Yes, and precisely because of this, their thoughts and actions are completely flawless."

"And what is even more surprising is that their way of interacting with others is as if they had taken over the original owner, completely identical."

"Otherwise, it would be absolutely impossible to hide it until now. But while rivers and mountains may change, a person's nature is hard to alter; just like He Yuan, his true nature is something that cannot be hidden no matter how one tries."

Speaking of which, Wumian remembered He Yuan again. That Governor who appeared to be a gentleman on the surface, but was actually greedy for wealth and lustful, with insatiable demands.

Such a person, when he first came to Tingfeng Pavilion, although the greedy expression on his face only flashed for a moment.

Yet Wumian saw it at a glance; this was definitely a person of the same kind. Nature is something that cannot be hidden!

"My Lord, in fact, He Yuan has always thought that he only succumbed to temptation and fell later on."

"It was because he became a Governor of a region, and after gaining high position and great power, his eyes were blinded by influence."

"Sometimes, he even lamented that the days of being an honest official in the past were not as carefree as now, saying he was truly stubborn and conservative before. Now he has figured it out: he wants to eat, drink, play, and live a carefree life!"

"But in fact, he did not fall, nor did he 'figure it out'; rather, his nature was always like this. Having no flaws is his greatest flaw."

At first, Wumian also just thought He Yuan was a hypocrite. His reputation was good on the surface, but he was actually harboring filth in secret; he had seen too many such people, they were everywhere.

But later, He Yuan was almost completely obedient to Mu Shang, which is why he began to investigate He Yuan's past.

As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy; he wanted to investigate the other party's experiences in minute detail to ensure he could keep this Governor firmly under his control.

There are countless people who have fallen under Mu Shang's pomegranate skirt; investigating He Yuan's past experiences was absolutely easy.

But the results of the investigation shocked him somewhat: this guy, who was clearly an old lecher, looked greedy and lustful, and was also as timid as a mouse, cherishing his life and body!

Such a person was the very model of a corrupt official, a hypocrite among hypocrites.

But the He Yuan of the past was an honest and upright official, known for his integrity and impartiality, with clean hands and a backbone of steel!

He even dared to open fire on the nobility and high-ranking court officials in the imperial court for the sake of the common people, forcing them to bow their heads and apologize to the poor.

How many people hated him to the bone, trying every possible way to find traces of his illegal activities to slap his face hard, yet they all gained nothing.

At that time, He Yuan was truly worthy of being called a man of high moral character, a great and loyal patriot.

But Wumian did not see any of these traits in the current He Yuan of Xichuan, which inevitably makes one suspicious.

Even if he had fallen, there should have been a process.

If He Yuan were truly like that, his greedy and insatiable nature could not be hidden no matter how much he tried to cover it up. Those nobles and high-ranking court officials who hated him to the bone would have beaten him to death long ago; how could he have been left until now?

How could the one in the imperial palace be at ease entrusting a region as Governor to a scholar from a humble background like He Yuan? Wasn't it because of his iron backbone and unwavering loyalty?

In other words, he was one of their own, so the support for Xichuan and He Yuan had always been unsparing.

But they did not know that He Yuan was no longer He Yuan; all the support was like a meat bun thrown at a dog—never to return—and most of it went into He Yuan's own pocket.

"My Lord, my Tingfeng Pavilion has been established for a long time and has gathered much information. I fear that not only the civil and military officials in various places, but even the heroes of the Jianghu may have been replaced in large numbers."

"I imagine Lord Shen should understand by now why the imperial court sent you here; it is because the court's control over this place has dropped to the lowest point!"

"Not only does He Yuan pay lip service to the court's orders while acting against them, but most of the civil and military officials in Xichuan do the same. Once or twice would be fine, but every single time—how could the court not notice!"

"So before Lord Shen came, the court also sent many experts to investigate, but they all went and never returned, and not even a shred of news was sent back."

Looking at Shen Yu with trepidation, Wumian laid out everything he knew. Part of it was heard in Tingfeng Pavilion, and part of it was his own speculation.

Now, in order to survive, he said everything he knew, hoping that Shen Yu would see his value.

Only those with value are worthy of living, and can live!

"Lord Shen, Xichuan has effectively become a separatist territory, and it is a separatist territory with countless experts and unfathomable depths!"

"To take back Xichuan, one must either be determined and pay a painful price to launch a campaign, or there must be someone strong enough to directly sweep through this place!"

"And Lord Shen, who is strong enough and has no obsession with power, is the best candidate!"

"And the most important point: Lord Shen has a deep hatred for corrupt officials. They believe that as long as Lord Shen understands the current Xichuan, he will absolutely not sit idly by!"

"Under the governance of these Xichuan civil and military officials, the once-prosperous Xichuan has seen corpses littering the fields in recent years, and the people are living in misery. Corrupt officials are as numerous as crucian carp crossing a river—countless and impossible to kill off!"

"I fear that if this continues, with the boiling resentment of the people, Xichuan will fall into complete chaos!"

"Understood!" Nodding, Shen Yu understood immediately; it turns out the imperial court sent him to take over Xichuan to act as a firefighter.

They are not afraid of Xichuan becoming Shen Yu's private territory, because according to precedent, Shen Yu has absolutely no interest in that.

Besides, if he really had that thought, as long as he asked, would the court dare not give it? Try not giving it!

What Shen Yu is most interested in is wielding his blade to hack people—hacking those corrupt officials and killing those bandits.

Corrupt officials and bandits—these exist in Xichuan, and it has reached the point where they are almost impossible to kill off.

These Xichuan civil and military officials are deliberately blocking information, so outsiders cannot perceive the changes in Xichuan. Without coming to Xichuan, one will never know the true situation here.

But once Shen Yu notices, he will definitely be interested.

Once the imperial court's transfer appointment comes down, even if Shen Yu refuses, he will inevitably become interested in Xichuan; what the court actually needs to do is just make him pay attention to Xichuan.

As long as he is interested and pays a little attention here, he will be able to perceive the difference in Xichuan, and then he will go on a killing spree in Xichuan, hacking away all those who hold positions but do not perform their duties.

The imperial court just hopes he will kill; the more he kills, the better. Shen Yu does not have suitable officials to replace them, but the imperial court does.

With this back and forth, Xichuan is theirs again; the plan is truly quite brilliant.

"Wumian, do you know who is actually controlling all of this behind the scenes?"

"This... this, this lowly one does not know!" Lowering his head, Wumian felt a bit guilty, but in order to survive, he still braced himself and said.

"In fact, even He Yuan and the others do not know they are being controlled. To this day, they think they are the original masters, and have no idea they are just stand-ins."

"But the person behind the scenes must have a massive scheme; this lowly one even suspects that their goal is not just to control these people!"

"Furthermore, their plan may have already begun."

"My lord, my Tingfeng Pavilion can gather countless pieces of information; as long as it is something you wish to know, I can inquire about it for you. Please believe me, I will certainly be able to be of help to you!"