Chapter 73: An Old Friend Comes

Xiang Weiyuan forcibly suppressed his rising fury, knowing further circumlocution was useless, and said coldly, “Surely it’s not as the General claims? Shayang Village is merely dozens of li away—why not send one or two trusted men to take a look? Three hundred militia fought for months and saw not a single grain or copper coin. How can this possibly be justified? Even if you harbor personal grudges, shouldn’t you set them aside before the lives of common folk?”

Liao Jingwu flew into a rage, his brows snapping up as he barked, “Do you think I’m the kind to let private grudges override public duty? Every day I face thousands of Liao barbarian cavalry—do you think I have time to fuss over a few farmers? If I had to run off for every petty matter like this, and the Liao barbarians happened to strike, who would bear the blame? If you weren’t a disciple of Tai Chu Palace, I could execute you on the spot for slandering me! Do your duty, and stay quietly guarding your little patch of land!”

Xiang Weiyuan hadn’t expected Liao’s Assistant Regional Commander to turn on him so abruptly; he realized Fang He Tong had deeply offended him.

Since words had reached an impasse, Xiang Weiyuan no longer held back, saying coldly, “Tai Chu Palace has arrived—our military supplies and rations will be resolved on our own. But if General Liao has no intention of resolving this here, then this matter won’t end. I’ll escalate it layer by layer until someone finally acts.”

At this point, Liao Jingwu dropped all pretense, sneering, “Go ahead and report me—I’d like to see where you’ll get to! Let me tell you plainly: from top to bottom, every inch of Ning Commandery bears the surname Xu! Even within Tai Chu Palace, many bear the Xu surname. Besides, no matter where you take this, imperial law stands firm—on the grounds of mismatched rosters and conscripting the elderly and weak, I can refuse approval outright. What can you do? Change the law? If you want my approval, there’s only one way: make that man Fang come here and kowtow to beg my forgiveness! Beyond that, even gods can’t help! Since the Immortal Master intends to escalate this layer by layer, you must be very busy—I won’t detain you. Someone, show the Immortal Master out!”

With words exhausted, there was no point in further discussion. Xiang Weiyuan rose and departed.

After Xiang Weiyuan left, Liao Jingwu’s fury vanished instantly. A nearby captain said, “General, that boy is still a Tai Chu Palace disciple. If he returns and tells his superiors lies, it might cause trouble.”

Liao Jingwu snorted coldly, “What trouble? These people come here merely to polish their reputations—they’ll be gone soon enough. Besides, I’m not without backing. Even if Tai Chu Palace investigates, it’ll only be minor matters of petty embezzlement. I’ve earned enough military merit to protect myself—what can they do to me? As for that stubborn mule Fang He Tong, I can easily dig up seven or eight faults in him. Even if he kneels and begs me, I still won’t approve! One day, I’ll kill him—and he won’t even know how he died!”

Xiang Weiyuan returned to Shayang Village, his chest heavy with suppressed rage. Whether Ren Youwei or Liao Jingwu, both offered hollow excuses, hiding behind the law. Even though Xiang Weiyuan had read every historical text, it was useless—what was needed to break this deadlock was not legal knowledge, but power and influence.

After this round of visits, Xiang Weiyuan finally understood that the local government was beyond reliance. In truth, with Tai Chu Palace as backing, rations were no problem; his journey had merely sought justice for the three hundred militia. He hadn’t gained justice—only a belly full of bitterness.

The grain still lasted half a month. Xiang Weiyuan planned to exchange all the Liao barbarian heads for military supplies the moment Tai Chu Palace’s supply airship arrived. If Ren Youwei and Liao Jingwu wouldn’t provide rations, he’d provide them himself. As for the extra profits others made by skimming off the head counts—he couldn’t control other places, but at least on this front gate of Quyang County, no one would ever again squeeze a single copper coin from him.

As the saying goes, cutting off someone’s livelihood is like killing their parents. All Xiang Weiyuan could do now was make those men know the money was here—but they couldn’t touch it, even though they’d once profited from it. Beyond that, he intended to amplify the spectacle: when submitting the heads, he’d accumulate more than usual, perhaps even inviting the County Magistrate and his assistant to witness the ceremony.

Though history books couldn’t grant Xiang Weiyuan power, they held no shortage of cruel, cunning tricks.

As soon as Xiang Weiyuan returned to Shayang Village, he saw dust rising in the distance—a troop of riders galloping swiftly. The hoofbeats thundered—clearly human cavalry.

In moments, a dozen riders arrived before Shayang Village. All wore deep blue armor, each one a perfected Body Refinement cultivator. Two riders with red plumes atop their helmets were even Dao Foundation cultivators. They surrounded a handsome, radiant young general, like stars encircling the moon.

The young general rode forward and called out loudly, “Is this the defense zone of Tai Chu Palace’s Xiang Weiyuan? Is Brother Xiang here?”

Xiang Weiyuan climbed onto the wall and said, “I am Xiang Weiyuan. Who is your honored senior?”

The young general’s eyes brightened. Without any visible motion, he leapt into the air and landed before Xiang Weiyuan. His armor glowed faint gold, ancient in design yet unostentatious, its aura deep and profound—clearly a top-grade magic treasure. His spiritual power surged vast and majestic, regal and imposing. A brilliant golden light glowed at his dantian, unmistakably not an ordinary Dao Foundation cultivator, but one of Heavenly Tier—or higher.

He studied Xiang Weiyuan from head to toe, then slowly smiled and said, “Xiang Weiyuan! It really is you! I’m Li Zhi—we haven’t seen each other since Feng Yuanjun, and it’s already been ten years!”

In a flash, Xiang Weiyuan remembered the boy who, years ago, had died whispering poetry he couldn’t finish.

Years had passed, and Li Zhi was now a towering, dignified figure—only slightly shorter than Xiang Weiyuan, still tall among common men. Overjoyed to see his old friend, Xiang Weiyuan ordered Li Zhi’s men admitted into the village, then invited him to sit in the ancestral hall, with Fang He Tong joining them.

Li Zhi had only arrived at the front lines yesterday; his own defense zone lay across another county. But upon hearing Xiang Weiyuan was nearby, he’d ridden out early this very morning to meet him.

Once seated in the ancestral hall, Li Zhi smiled and said, “Brother Xiang’s position here is rather cramped.”

Xiang Weiyuan sighed, “Cramped isn’t the issue—I’ve just seen the local government. Compared to them, I’d rather deal with the Northern Liao.”

“Oh? What happened?”

Xiang Weiyuan, still simmering with frustration, gave a concise account of the past two days. Li Zhi listened, then laughed, “Brother Xiang, you’ve lived high in Tai Chu Palace, untouched by these lowly officials—you can’t outmaneuver them. To handle these seasoned bureaucrats, you can’t play by their rules. This matter is simple—leave it to your elder brother.”

Li Zhi ordered one of his Dao Foundation squad leaders to bring a stack of invitations. He selected one and instructed, “Send someone to Quyang County’s government office. Say that tonight I’ll attend Governor Sun’s banquet, and two elder brothers will join me.”

After the squad leader left the hall, Li Zhi smiled, “I arrived yesterday—every minor official in the commandery sent invitations. Perfect timing: since Brother Xiang and Brother Fang’s matter is at hand, tonight we’ll dine with County Magistrate Sun Chaoen—and settle Brother Fang’s case along the way.”

(End of Chapter)