By then.
After rendering meritorious service, the Martial Scholars would return to Shannan Dao, rise several ranks in succession, and win Governor Wang's favor—their status would no longer be that of mere Martial Scholars.
Marrying off his daughter would not be a loss.
Under a heavy reward, brave men were bound to emerge.
Very soon.
Three or four Martial Masters voiced their willingness to obey the authorities' arrangements and join Wu Yun Tower as undercover agents.
At this moment, Wei Tu looked toward Fu Zhizhou, the Martial Master who had previously taken the lead in refusing. Seeing that he remained unmoved, Wei Tu finally set aside his worries.
A reward of a hundred gold.
Marrying the Prefect's legitimate daughter...
Even these two additional rewards offered by Prefect He failed to move Wei Tu.
He still remembered the warning he had given himself while training martial arts at the Shan Family.
—Using the Martial Way to earn rank and raise one's status was fine, but one must remember to avoid contention and strife, and preserve one's life.
He had a bright future ahead of him. There was no need to fight others to the death over trivial matters.
At this moment.
The rewards offered by the Prefectural Yamen.
Though generous in Wei Tu's eyes, risking his life for them would truly be unwise.
Wei Tu recognized all dozen or so Martial Masters who had entered the hall. They were all renowned participants in the Dao examination's martial selection.
Fu Zhizhou in particular was a favored contender to take first place in this year's martial selection.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Wei Tu walked to Fu Zhizhou's side. Using Wei Fei's earlier method, he poked the Martial Master's elbow and asked, "Martial Master Fu, do you still hold to your earlier thoughts? Wei feels the same..."
Prefect He had increased the rewards. If any Martial Master still failed to appreciate the favor and refused this assignment...
The consequences were easy to imagine.
That would mean offending the father-mother official of an entire prefecture, a Marquis of a Thousand Li.
Thus, if Wei Tu wanted to refuse this matter, he needed to find several people to join with him and exert pressure together, reducing Prefect He's resentment toward him.
Fu Zhizhou reacted somewhat similarly to Wei Tu. When he saw an unfamiliar person behave this way, his brows furrowed slightly.
But after hearing Wei Tu's latter words, his brows immediately relaxed, and his gaze toward Wei Tu gained a measure of friendliness.
"Fu shares Martial Master Wei's thoughts. I refuse this matter."
"First, with more than a dozen people plotting together, the risk is too great. Even if you and I both come from clean backgrounds, possess promising futures, and have relatives in the local area, so we would not dare leak the secret... there is still risk..."
"Second, Fu has no interest in the rewards."
"Third, Prefect He... has only one year left in his post at Qing Feng Prefecture."
After pondering for a moment, Fu Zhizhou pulled Wei Tu into a corner of the hall and lowered his voice.
"Wei's thoughts are the same as Brother Fu's." Seeing that they were kindred spirits, and that Fu Zhizhou had frankly revealed his own thoughts without reservation, Wei Tu changed his form of address and called him "Brother Fu."
Hearing Wei Tu call him Brother Fu, a faint smile appeared on Fu Zhizhou's face. He too changed his form of address, calling Wei Tu Brother Wei.
The two addressed each other as brothers.
At this point, by joining hands to refuse Prefect He and withstand the pressure together, they had become comrades in the same trench.
Moreover.
They held the same rank.
They were both Martial Scholars of this year's examination.
They already had the bond of fellow examinees.
"We should bring in a few more people—best if we can gather four or five." Fu Zhizhou said.
At this.
Wei Tu nodded and did not refuse.
The more people who refused, the less danger and pressure he and Fu Zhizhou would face.
"Martial Master Wei Fei..." Wei Tu swept his gaze across the hall. Seeing that Wei Fei was one of the few Martial Masters who had not gathered around Prefect He, he walked to Wei Fei's side and explained the matter he and Fu Zhizhou had discussed.
"Fine."
"Count me in."
Wei Fei did not hesitate for long before directly nodding in agreement.
A short while later.
Fu Zhizhou also brought over a friend from the same county, walking toward Wei Tu and Wei Fei.
This Martial Master was named Kou Liang, and he too was a formidable figure in this year's martial selection.
"Four people—nearly one-third of the Martial Masters present."
Wei Tu's eyes flickered as he gained confidence in refusing Prefect He.
With rank behind them.
(The Prefectural Yamen could hardly interfere with the Dao examination results.)
Even if Prefect He bore a grudge against them, he could do little to Martial Scholars like them. At most, when they took up posts as martial officials, he could pull some strings and assign them to remote places.
Compared to the dangers of going to Wu Yun Tower, that was naturally not worth mentioning.
"The four of us, speaking together to refuse Prefect He, will surely incur resentment..."
"After we leave the Prefectural Yamen, we shall become sworn brothers."
"When any one of us is in trouble, we will help one another!"
As the Martial Master who had previously taken the lead in refusing Prefect He, and also the one with the best martial selection results, Fu Zhizhou naturally became the leader among the four.
Fu Zhizhou glanced around at Wei Tu and the other two, his expression solemn as he spoke in a deep voice.
"Good!"
"After we leave, we shall become sworn brothers!"
Wei Tu and the others were moved by his words. After pondering briefly, they all nodded.
Fellow examinees, fellow townsmen, and fellow disciples were the people most likely to form factions for private gain.
At this moment, the four of them each had friends from the same county, and all were Martial Scholars of this year's examination... Before Prefect He, forming a faction for private gain was only natural.
Prefectural Yamen.
Rear residence reception hall.
"Martial men value profit. The ancients truly did not deceive me." Glancing at the many Martial Masters clustered around him, Prefect He revealed a faint smile, thinking that the overall situation had been decided.
So long as one person was tempted and agreed, the others would follow one after another. This was experience he had accumulated over many years in office.
As for one or two thorns, afterward he could entice them with profit and menace them with words, and they would naturally obey obediently.
However—
Just as Prefect He was basking in satisfaction, four Martial Masters strode over in unison with their heads high and chests out. They clasped their fists in salute and spoke words that displeased him greatly.
"Prefect He, the four of us were born slow-witted and clumsy, and are unsuited to go to Wu Yun Tower as undercover agents. We ask that Prefect He permit this."
Wei Tu and the others said.
In an instant.
The entire hall fell silent.
Every gaze in the hall—Prefect He's, the Martial Masters', and those of the other servants and maids—converged upon Wei Tu and the four men...
Aside from Prefect He's astonishment, everyone else's gazes were filled with surprise, as though they could scarcely believe it.
Prefect He's expression darkened slightly, and he looked coldly at Wei Tu and the other three in the hall.
One person refusing would have been one thing.
When herding sheep, there was always one beast that ran wild and refused to obey.
Let alone people.
But—
Four people speaking out together, with identical words, was another matter.
It was obvious they had coordinated beforehand!
"The ancients said: if a ruler is not discreet, he loses his ministers; if a minister is not discreet, he loses himself..."
"Prefect, gathering us Martial Masters here—more than a dozen people—is truly too many. If there should be... a risk of the matter being exposed..."
"As for a matter that could cost our lives, please forgive us for being unable to obey."
Fu Zhizhou took the lead and spoke.
"Fu Zhizhou?" Prefect He clearly knew Fu Zhizhou. He carefully scrutinized him several times. Though he said nothing, everyone present could sense his fury.
Official authority was like a mountain!
With more than a dozen Martial Masters discussing this matter together, did he not know there was a risk of the secret leaking?
But it was precisely by doing so that he could avoid "making a mistake" in this matter.
If the operation failed or the secret leaked in the future, those investigated would be the other Martial Scholars who had come here together, and it would not implicate him, the Prefect.
At most, he would merely have been lax in handling affairs.
One year later.
He would leave office and be transferred elsewhere.
Who would care about Wu Yun Tower's mess?
PS: There are foreshadowing threads in the plot...
Regarding Prefect He, some readers have said that having more than a dozen people risks leaks. All I can say is... you do not understand how officials operate. Does Prefect He want intelligence from Wu Yun Tower? He is giving Governor Wang an explanation, showing that he has handled the matter.
More than a dozen people plotting together—these people all have clean family backgrounds, and they are all reserve martial officials, so the risk of leaks is small. Even if the undercover operation fails in the future, he can find reasons to shift the blame here.
This is an official's shrewdness.
Before you continue