Chapter 144: Situation Analysis

"Brother Du, absolutely not!"

Liu Zheng was startled and hurriedly helped him up.

In his eyes, Du Biao had always been a very straightforward and magnanimous person. Especially back in Loulan, if not for the help of Du Biao's old friend Mire, Liu Zheng didn't know if he could have returned alive. Therefore, he actually had a good impression of Du Biao and felt a sense of attachment to him. If it had been Yang Ke, whom he had just met, Liu Zheng wouldn't have felt much. But today, this action by Du Biao truly made him feel a bit distressed.

Du Biao said miserably: "Brother Liu, the life and death of the Baiya Army..."

Then he explained how Yang Ke had just discovered the problem with the account books.

This made Jiang Xuan, Zheng Yueru, and even Hu Xi'er listen in amazement.

Liu Zheng even slapped the table, his eyes flashing with sharp light: "Is it really so!"

Then he looked at Yang Ke and asked: "Second Leader Yang, when did you discover this?"

Yang Ke gritted his teeth, his face full of heartache, and roared: "Drag him in!"

Then, the burly Rantu was seen dragging a thin man, who had been beaten until he was covered in blood, and after a cold snort, he threw him onto the ground and shouted in a muffled voice: "You traitorous thing, if it weren't for the Second Leader keeping you, I would have torn you to pieces long ago!"

The man knelt on the ground, kowtowing in despair.

Yang Ke said: "This person is the accountant specifically responsible for the Baiya Army horse farm. No matter how many people are involved in this horse farm, the accounts are all under his management. I had always trusted him, but I didn't expect..."

Du Biao kicked him: "Speak, where is the real account book!"

The man rolled on the ground three times, his face full of terror. When he raised his head again, he actually bit his tongue hard, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out.

"No!"

"You dare..."

Everyone was shocked, but it was already too late. The man bit his tongue and committed suicide, losing his breath instantly.

Yang Ke and Du Biao's faces turned livid.

Liu Zheng also frowned.

Yang Ke waved his hand, Rantu spat at the corpse and dragged him out again.

Yang Ke sighed and said: "Discovering the trickery in the account books was a matter of yesterday. This accountant surnamed Wang was very clever at bookkeeping. There was not the slightest discrepancy in income and expenditure, but he turned the account book upside down, making it impossible for anyone to make sense of it."

Liu Zheng asked curiously: "Is there only one account book for the war horse trade?"

Yang Ke gave a bitter smile: "Young Master Liu, people in the martial arts world naturally keep secrets. The more account books there are, the less at ease the buyers feel. We only keep one secretly. It is to prevent a day like today; if a predicament arises, once the account book is produced, the whole world will come to help!"

Liu Zheng nodded.

The Baiya Army was still very clever. No matter which Feudatory King came to buy war horses, they kept an account book. This was a matter of course; what could those Feudatory Kings do? However, if they wanted to buy war horses from here, it was equivalent to leaving leverage in the hands of the Baiya Army. If the Baiya Army were in danger—like the current Baiya Army, having suddenly lost fifty thousand troops, with various forces eyeing them covetously—how could those Feudatory Kings dare not come when the Baiya Army asked for help?

If you don't come, the account book could appear in anyone's hands, and that would be a massive upheaval!

If a Feudatory King engages in a private arms race, no matter how old the Emperor is, he can still finish you off!

No wonder...

Only then did Liu Zheng understand. No wonder that when the Baiya Army announced the War Horse Fair, heroes from all walks of life flocked to attend. It turned out the interests involved were so intricate.

Many Feudatory Kings were even already on their way to attend in person.

This move by the Baiya Army was indeed very clever. If it were just this War Horse Fair, with so many Feudatory Kings coming to support the Baiya Army, perhaps this crisis could really be overcome.

However, now...

Liu Zheng pondered for a moment and said: "You mean... this real account book is in the hands of the Great Leader?"

Du Biao shouted: "It must be so. The Great Leader went to Qingzhou this time to welcome the Prince of Wei!"

"Prince of Wei?"

Liu Zheng took a deep breath and exchanged glances with the others. In the Longyang Dynasty, this Prince of Wei was not comparable to the Prince of Lu or the Prince of Liang. He was a true great warlord! He controlled thirty thousand troops in Qingzhou, had many soldiers and generals, and held his ground in one region.

If the world were truly in chaos, this Prince of Wei, who could be called the number one hero of the world, was the Feudatory King who posed the greatest threat to the imperial family.

Furthermore, the Prince of Wei was indeed surnamed Wei, which meant he was a king of a different surname!

Such a king of a different surname had not the slightest sense of belonging to the imperial family, so the threat he posed to the imperial family went without saying.

Du Biao said anxiously: "Brother Liu, the Baiya Army is in danger!"

"If the Great Leader, for the sake of some future, colludes with this Prince of Wei, then the Baiya Army will truly be finished!"

Yang Ke also looked anxious.

Liu Zheng agreed deeply.

The foundation of the Baiya Army's existence was, firstly, war horses, and secondly, keeping their word! The habits of the martial arts world allowed others to trust them, so the Baiya Army became a tacitly permitted existence at this Baiya Horse Farm.

However...

If this account book, which was of great importance, were to be made public, the prestige and credibility that the Baiya Army had built over decades would vanish in an instant. At that time, it would not just be the Baiya Army that collapsed, but this entire system!

Liu Zheng rubbed his temples.

This matter was really getting complicated.

What did this Prince of Wei want with this account book?

Suddenly, his whole body shook, and his face turned pale.

The Prince of Wei was also waiting for the world to fall into chaos!

At such a delicate moment, if he really had this account book in his hands, he could use various excuses to send troops against other Feudatory Kings! Under the pretext of "protecting the King and clearing the court of evil officials"!

What a calculation!

What a Prince of Wei!

Liu Zheng asked urgently: "Could the account book have already been handed over to the Prince of Wei by the Great Leader?"

However, as soon as he finished speaking, he gave a bitter smile: "That should be impossible. The account book only has the greatest benefit when kept in Baiya!"

Your Baiya Army is clever, but is that Prince of Wei a pushover? If you really took the account book to the Prince of Wei, he would kill you on the spot and watch the Baiya Army be devoured by the heroes; that would best serve the Prince of Wei's greatest interests!

A single account book instantly made the situation complicated.

Liu Zheng felt a bit helpless.

No wonder the Imperial Envoy, the Crown Prince, and the Third Prince were also leading armies toward Baiya Prefecture.

It must be to curb the Prince of Wei... and this real Account Book must also contain information fatal to the Prince of Wei!

It is yet another multi-cornered entanglement of interests, with multiple parties keeping each other in check.

Pulling one hair affects the whole body!

Liu Zheng pondered for a moment, took a deep breath, and asked, "What do you two mean..."

He deliberately looked at the two of them and chuckled, "Are you planning to make a move against the Great Leader?"

The two of them changed color simultaneously upon hearing this and said in unison, "Absolutely not!"

Yang Ke cupped his hands and said, "Young Master Liu, the three of us are sworn brothers; we once took an oath that although we were not born on the same day, we would die on the same day! Although our eldest brother has been a bit muddled this time and disregarded the prestige of the Baiya Army, he is still our eldest brother. How could we commit such an act that would enrage both man and god!"

Liu Zheng could not understand: "Then what do you intend to do?"

The two looked at each other, and Du Biao gritted his teeth fiercely and said decisively, "An item as important as the Account Book must be kept by the eldest brother; he loves playing these mysterious games the most..."

"So..."

He looked at Liu Zheng with a pleading expression: "Second Brother has a plan, but it requires Brother Liu's help!"

Several people looked over at the same time.

Liu Zheng was also truly very curious.

Not wanting to harm Wei Shao, yet wanting to get the Account Book back—how could such a thing be easy?