Chapter 146: New Identity

Wen Gu's sudden return to the city aroused much suspicion among the city's prominent families; some wanted to go and question or probe him in person, but they found no opportunity, as Wen Gu went straight to Zhao Fu upon returning to the city.

Why was Xiao Zhao in such a rush to have Wen Gu return to Xinzhou City?

Because Lao Zhao had sent a secret letter, which was also an urgent letter—Pei Jun was injured!

Patrol Guard Envoy Pei was too sharp and pursued too relentlessly; he encountered a counterattack during his secret investigation, but fortunately, he was experienced and handled it appropriately.

The injury was not fatal, but it certainly required time to recuperate.

The Patrol Guard Division had one chief and two deputies, the three major figures with real power: the deputy Cheng Xu had made a mistake and was demoted, the chief Pei Jun was injured and half-incapacitated, and the remaining deputy could not hold things up alone.

Even if the one remaining could hold up, Lao Zhao would not feel at ease, so Wen Gu was urgently recalled.

Zhao Fu.

Wen Gu and Lao Zhao spoke in private.

Lao Zhao first sought to understand the course and details of what happened in Shuo City.

"This time, it really is thanks to you!"

When Lao Zhao received the news, he was also shocked, and furthermore astonished that there were actually so many moles hidden among the close guards!

If Wen Gu had not been there at the time, Zhao Shaozhu would definitely have perished there.

Wen Gu asked about Pei Jun's injuries: "How is Patrol Guard Envoy Pei recovering?"

Lao Zhao's face turned somewhat serious, and he shook his head slightly: "He needs quite a few days to heal. He is currently at a military ward in the Outer City District; if you have any questions later, you can go and consult him."

Lao Zhao paused, then added: "Keep the matter of Pei Jun's injury confidential for now."

Over the past two years, the pressure Pei Jun exerted had been quite strong; if people knew Pei Jun was injured, Lao Zhao worried that some people's intentions would become restless.

Setting other matters aside for the moment, Lao Zhao brought up the main topic of the day: "Do you know why Cheng Xu was demoted?"

Wen Gu said: "I only know he bungled his errand."

As the former second-in-command of the Patrol Guard Division, he must have committed a major error and failed in his duties to be demoted.

In order not to stray too far from the center of power, Cheng Xu fought to make amends, which was why he ran off to the post station to "break new ground."

Now that Cheng Xu had successfully taken the first step and was turning it into "expanding territory," every step from here on out would be a merit!

When Lao Zhao mentioned Cheng Xu, there was dissatisfaction, but also satisfaction; however, this was not the main point he wanted to discuss with Wen Gu.

Lao Zhao's expression turned a bit colder and grew more profound: "He was investigating the whereabouts of those missing military supplies!"

For the past ten-plus years, the Zhao Family had always known about the corruption problems at the border.

Before, there was no way to deal with it, but after the chaotic times, once they controlled Xinzhou, Lao Zhao quickly kept his eyes on these things to investigate, only to discover that there was still a massive deficit!

"The embezzled provisions and supplies, the resold weaponry and construction materials—a large portion of them cannot be traced!"

Even if there were errors, this error was far too vast, so Lao Zhao keenly sensed that there was a problem within it!

Wen Gu understood.

Military supplies—

Daily necessities! Weapons and equipment!

That must be an extremely massive quantity, and it was very likely still hidden somewhere in Xinzhou!

In the current world, where everything was in short supply, if one could find a batch of military supplies, many of Xinzhou's plans could be carried out smoothly.

Otherwise, Lao Zhao would not have kept his eyes fixed on this matter, investigating in secret for so long.

Cheng Xu had made a serious error when investigating this back then; if he hadn't immediately requested to go to the Defense Post to break new ground, he likely would have lost Lao Zhao's trust entirely.

After that, Lao Zhao continued to pursue the investigation, pressing step by step.

Perhaps the assassination in Shuo City was also because of this; Lao Zhao kept wanting to investigate the missing military supplies, and the person behind it felt they were about to be exposed, so they impatiently plotted an assassination targeting Zhao Shaozhu.

If the other party had the patience to wait a while longer, the success rate would have been higher and it would have been easier, but the other party could not wait!

Wen Gu pondered for a moment and asked: "Do you want me to continue investigating the military supplies?"

"No, you do not need to take over this matter," Lao Zhao said quickly.

Wen Gu was still young, lacked experience, did not understand many of the intricacies, and had never come into contact with information in this area.

Lao Zhao did not intend to put too much pressure on Wen Gu. He had longer-term expectations for Wen Gu and was willing to give him time to grow and be tempered.

As for the military supplies, once Pei Jun's injuries improved, he would let Pei Jun continue the investigation.

He had recalled Wen Gu mainly to stabilize the situation.

Currently, of the three major figures with real power in the Patrol Guard Division, one and a half were incapacitated.

When Cheng Xu was demoted, the position of Deputy Envoy had remained vacant.

This candidate needed to be absolutely trusted, possess sufficient ability and responsibility, and have already achieved merit and have a certain reputation.

Lao Zhao was cautious by nature, and now he was even more so.

He hesitated for a long time among several candidates, and it was not until the Shuo City incident occurred and Zhao Shaozhu gave a push that Lao Zhao finally settled on Wen Gu.

"Although Pei Jun was injured during this process of clearing out internal strife, the ones who needed to be executed have mostly been executed. The possibility of encountering death-sworn assassins outside is greatly reduced, and this wave of turmoil in Xinzhou will soon subside."

Lao Zhao was also afraid that Wen Gu would be under too much pressure, so he was steadying his mindset.

Wen Gu nodded calmly: "Understood."

The two chatted more about the new job, and Wen Gu suddenly remembered something else and asked: "Can I bring one more person?"

The Patrol Guard Division involved many secret matters, so Lao Zhao had always been extremely cautious regarding positions in the Patrol Guard Division that were prone to involving secrets.

It was impossible for Wen Gu not to know this, but since he had brought it up, he must have his reasons.

If there was truly something special about it, it was not impossible.

Therefore, Lao Zhao was not angry and asked: "Who?"

After Wen Gu finished talking with Lao Zhao, he went to have a meal with Lady Shen before leaving Zhao Fu and riding his horse back.

On the way, someone he knew greeted him: "Ward Chief Wen is back?!"

"I heard some news recently, and seeing Ward Chief Wen return safely today, we are relieved!"

"Yo! Ward Chief Wen, when will you have some leisure time for us to share a couple of drinks?"

Wen Gu responded to their enthusiasm very amiably.

He thought to himself that in two more days, their form of address would change, though he wondered if they would still be able to maintain such enthusiasm when they saw him again at that time.

He was about to have a new identity, one that counted as high-level real power in Xinzhou.

A change in an important position was indeed a bit rushed.

Follow the procedure?

In the territory of a warlord, with a military institution personally established by the Great Leader, what complex procedure was there to follow?

There was no need for numerous high-ranking officials to deliberate, nor was there any imperial edict; there were no conventional procedures at all—

Oh, that wasn't quite right.

Lao Zhao had said that the next issue of the Xinzhou Times was about to be printed, and an emergency news insert would publicly announce this important appointment.

Returning to the ward he was familiar with, Wen Gu did not go back to Jingxing Fang first, but instead went to the Qingyun Temple across the way.

The main structure of the Danguan had already taken shape, and since Qingyi Daozhang was willing to spend money on it, the renovation was progressing rapidly.

Having not seen it for a while, the Qingyun Temple had gained a bit more of a mysterious and profound Daoist charm.

Inside the room.

A young Daoist acolyte walked through the door; his steps were very steady, yet they had a kind of rigid steadiness.

With an exceptionally solemn expression, he bowed stiffly: "Master!"

Qingyi Daozhang, who was just about to draw a talisman, glanced over casually. Just as he withdrew his gaze, his intuition told him something was wrong, and he looked up again.

What's the matter? Why so serious? Is this overcorrecting?

"What is it?" Qingyi Daozhang asked.

"Ward Chief Wen is here," the young Daoist acolyte said in a low voice.

Qingyi Daozhang:?!!

You should have said so sooner!

Quickly putting away the talisman paper, Qingyi Daozhang skillfully took out the additional task list Wen Gu had left behind, steadied his expression, and said, "Invite him in."

He wondered to himself if Wen Gu had discussed any major matters at Zhao Fu.

He had anticipated many scenarios where he would be made things difficult for, yet today Wen Gu did not mention the task list, but instead spoke of the Defense Post.

"The first Defense Post is officially named Lishan Station; it is said that there is a hill nearby where a master once passed through and named it Li Mountain."

Qingyi Daozhang's heart stirred slightly, but he did not show it on his face: "It seems the station was built very successfully. As the one who proposed it, Ward Chief Wen, you will surely gain more prestige. Congratulations in advance!"

Wen Gu smiled and continued: "My cousin praised the station for being difficult to attack and easy to defend, with a hollow interior and a clear exterior; the site selection was also excellent."

Qingyi Daozhang's smile faded.

Wen Gu did not stay long and soon took his leave.

Inside the room, Qingyi Daozhang's expression shifted, and he whispered: "Listening to your words is like receiving a hundred lashes—"

"

"

Bah!

Disgusting!

Bad luck!!

The Daoist Priest cursed in a low voice. He didn't know if he was talking about Wen Gu, the Zhao Family, or someone else.

He immediately performed a ritual to dispel bad luck and recited a passage of the Heart-Calming Mantra before he finally steadied his mind and sat back down.

His face took on a look of solemnity.

"Li Mountain, Lishan Station, Li—"

His mind raced.

Although Gou Shusheng could be a real dog sometimes, the information in what he said was still quite substantial.

Qingyi Daozhang immediately cast a divination and took out his tools to calculate.

He only made a rough calculation of the location of Lishan Station.

Although Xinzhou's first station was said to be a pilot project, it was certainly highly valued, and the selection of the location would be very particular.

It had to account for both Feng Shui and auspicious meaning.

But Qingyi Daozhang had not participated in the site selection for Lishan Station at all, nor had he looked at the Feng Shui for that place.

Then, who did it?

There was a peer!

The Zhao Family had been protecting the other party all along, yet they had raised the profile of Qingyun Temple so high.

Using me as a shield?

Qingyi Daozhang instantly thought of various conspiracies.

A drop of cold sweat slid down.

Sitting there quietly for a good while, he suddenly thought of something, his expression relaxed abruptly, and he smiled silently.

Ha!

So what if there is a peer?

I, the Daoist master, grow stronger when facing the strong! I become more courageous with every setback!

Back to the Zhao Family.

As I said, among those in power holding heavy authority, how many don't care about such things? Regardless of whether they believe in Buddha or follow the Dao, they must pay attention to this aspect!

Especially those who have grand designs!

The Zhao Family is clearly ambitious!

Qingyi Daozhang gradually grew excited.

It is not scary for the boss above to have ambition; what is scary is if the boss's ambition is not strong enough!

A shield is a shield; when trouble comes, just get it done!

It can also prove one's own strength!

I, this Daoist Priest, not only look at Feng Shui and perform Dharma Assembly, but I also know Alchemy!

Qingyi Daozhang was now somewhat grateful to Wen Gu; the contribution made earlier really boosted his status.

When it comes to Feng Shui and geomancy, I might not be able to compare. But when it comes to pill refining, you, that secretive peer, can you compare to me?

The mud plastered on the walls of the Defense Post was all refined by me!

What do you have to compare with?

I, this Daoist Priest, have a track record that can be checked!!

Inside Qingyun Temple, Qingyi Daozhang was invigorated all by himself.

On the other side.

Wen Gu returned to Jingxing Fang and first called Cheng Zhi over for a talk.

With that leak-proof memory of his, Secretary Cheng is an excellent talent when placed in the right position.

An irreplaceable talent!

He wanted to transfer to the Patrol Guard Division, and he intended to take Cheng Zhi along with him.

Cheng Zhi's memory is indeed a coexistence of crisis and opportunity.

He had obtained special permission from Lao Zhao, but Wen Gu still had to have a chat with Cheng Zhi.

Therefore, he called Cheng Zhi over for a private talk and also explained the pros and cons involved.

Cheng Zhi did not say a word, eager to pack his bags and leave immediately.

What pros and cons? Could that little bit of danger scare me off?

Cheng Zhi's will was extremely firm.

In the past, his family ate chaff and vegetables, scrimping and saving to send him to the academy, preferring to starve to death just to leave him the last glimmer of hope—what was it all for?

The obsession of several generations of his family!

He wanted to advance too badly!!

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