After crossing Lingyun Lake, Dingzhou City was not far away.
In less than a day, he arrived outside Dingzhou City.
Dingzhou City was fairly prosperous. Vendors cried out their wares all along the streets, while restaurants were packed to the brim with guests.
Within the willow-lined lanes stood pleasure quarters such as brothels and courtesan houses.
Without lingering, he arrived at Dingzhou City's Pacification Office.
Though the Jinyiwei Pacification Office was not as imposing as the one in the capital, it was still respectable. Two Jinyiwei guards stood watch at its entrance.
"Stop. Who are you?"
The two Jinyiwei guards looked Lin Xiao over and asked with furrowed brows.
"I am Lin Xiao, transferred from the capital to take up a post in Dingzhou."
"From the capital?"
The two Jinyiwei men swept their eyes over Lin Xiao, then one curled his lip. "Wait here. I'll go report to my lord."
After speaking, the Jinyiwei man turned and ran into the Pacification Office. The other guard stopped paying attention to Lin Xiao and resumed his watch.
A quarter of an hour passed. Then another.
Before he knew it, dusk was nearly upon them, yet no one inside had called for him to enter.
Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes at the gates of the Pacification Office and turned to leave.
Who are they trying to give a show of force to? Since they won't see me, I'll leave. If he doesn't report for duty, someone will have to answer for it when those above hold them accountable.
Just as he was about to go, a burst of hearty laughter rang out from within the Pacification Office.
"Ah, Little Banner Lin, forgive us for keeping you waiting. Lord Pacification Envoy has been busy with official duties today, and once he got busy, he forgot about your matter. He only just remembered and immediately ordered me to invite you in."
Lin Xiao showed no displeasure and replied with a smile, "Lord Pacification Envoy handles ten thousand affairs each day. It is only natural for a nobody like me to be forgotten. Official business comes first, official business comes first."
"Little Banner Lin is no nobody. You are someone His Majesty favors. Though you are only a Little Banner now, you may well become a great figure whose favor even I will have to seek someday."
"The Flying Fish Uniform and Embroidered Spring Blade bestowed by the Emperor—throughout the entire Dingzhou Jinyiwei, no one else has received such an honor."
The newcomer was a middle-aged man clad in a Jinyiwei Thousand-Household uniform, chatting politely with Lin Xiao.
"You flatter me, Lord Thousand-Household. No one can say what the future holds. At the very least, I am only a Little Banner now and do not deserve such courtesy from you."
"Mm. Little Banner Lin, let us hurry. Lord Pacification Envoy is still waiting inside."
"Let's go."
The two strode into the Pacification Office.
Along the way, many Jinyiwei looked at Lin Xiao with curious eyes.
Hearing that Lin Xiao had come from the capital, they were all curious.
Of course, where there was curiosity, there was also jealousy.
"A wet-behind-the-ears brat—what right did he have to receive His Majesty's reward? I bet he only stumbled into a little merit by blind luck and happened to catch His Majesty's eye."
"Once he spends some time in Dingzhou, he'll probably realize he has no real ability. By then, His Majesty certainly won't value him anymore."
"Isn't that so? Let's wait and see."
Lin Xiao's expression remained unchanged amid the whispers around him.
Along the way, the Thousand-Household had been observing Lin Xiao. Seeing that Lin Xiao showed not the slightest change in expression at the pointing and murmuring around him, the contempt in his heart lessened somewhat.
That composure and depth alone set him apart from ordinary people.
Inside the main hall of the Pacification Office.
A dignified, imposing middle-aged man sat in the seat of honor.
Seeing Lin Xiao being led in, he said indifferently, "You are Lin Xiao?"
"Reporting to Lord Pacification Envoy, this subordinate is Lin Xiao."
"Mm. Before you arrived, I received word from the capital. Though you came from the capital, you must still follow the rules. In the Ding Province Garrison Command, one Thousand-Household oversees two Hundred-Households."
"One Hundred-Household oversees four Chief Banners, one Chief Banner oversees four Little Banners, and one Little Banner oversees ten guards."
"You will serve under Thousand-Household Wang Chuang."
"Remember, you must not be absent from duty without cause. You must answer roll call every day and must not break the rules. Otherwise, even if you came from the capital, I will still punish you."
"Rest assured, Lord Pacification Envoy. This subordinate understands."
"Mm. You may go."
Lin Xiao nodded and turned to leave.
After Lin Xiao departed, the Pacification Envoy asked the Thousand-Household, "What do you think of this man?"
The Thousand-Household pondered for a moment. "He has both cunning and depth. As for his strength, I cannot see through it."
"Innate Seventh Stage. Go attend to your duties," the Pacification Envoy said casually.
"Innate Seventh Stage?"
The Thousand-Household was inwardly shocked.
At such an age, with such strength—it was no wonder the Emperor valued him.
He was simply a peerless genius.
Even compared to those freaks in the top ten of the Hidden Dragon Rankings, he would not be inferior.
"Yes, Lord Pacification Envoy."
After the Thousand-Household left, his heart was still shaken.
This Lin Xiao was apparently not as simple as he seemed.
If he could grow, reaching the Great Grandmaster Realm in the future was within expectation.
Yet after the shock faded, he did not dwell on it too much.
Though Lin Xiao currently appeared to be a peerless genius, Dingzhou was a place where dragons and snakes mingled. There was still the possibility of dying young; it would depend on whether he was fortunate enough.
A genius could only be called a genius after he had grown. If he could not grow, everything was empty talk.
Following the directions, Lin Xiao arrived at the Thousand-Household Office under whose command he would serve.
The moment he entered, he saw a burly man sitting in a grand armchair inside the Thousand-Household Office, wolfing down watermelon.
Watermelon juice sprayed everywhere, while two Hundred-Households stood beside him.
After Lin Xiao entered, no one in the entire Thousand-Household Office paid him any attention.
Only after Wang Chuang finished his watermelon and wiped his mouth with his sleeve did he say, "Who goes there?"
Lin Xiao cupped his fists. "Lin Xiao."
"Oh, you are the Little Banner who just arrived from the capital today."
"Lord Pacification Envoy should already have told you the rules."
"Since you are new, familiarize yourself with the work of the Pacification Office first. However, there are no vacant rooms left in the office, so you can only rent a place outside and stay there temporarily."
"Oh, and you were originally allotted ten guards, but the office is short-handed at the moment. I can only assign you two guards for now. I have already chosen them for you."
"Xue Shan, Chang Le."
Upon hearing the two Jinyiwei guards Wang Chuang had assigned to Lin Xiao, everyone in the Thousand-Household Office wore strange expressions.
Those two were quite something.
One was an old fox, while the other never fit in. Both were troublesome characters who gave people headaches.
With those two subordinates, Lin Xiao would not need to do anything else. He could spend every day nursing a headache over them.
Everyone knew perfectly well that this was an obvious act of suppression.
Who told Lin Xiao to come from the capital? He was never going to be welcomed here.
"Many thanks, Lord Thousand-Household. I can handle the lodging matter myself."
Lin Xiao was quite happy with that arrangement. In any case, he was not accustomed to living with others.
Moreover, he carried the system's secret. If anyone discovered it someday, he would have to silence them.
Arriving at the office assigned to his Little Banner unit, he began reviewing the files.
The Jinyiwei had many affairs to handle. Intelligence gathered each day had to be compiled and submitted, and there were also many temporary missions to carry out.
He first needed to learn about the affairs of Dingzhou's martial world before he could begin working.
After all, if he wished to pacify Dingzhou, how could he know himself and know his enemy without first understanding the situation?
An hour later, night had already fallen.
One case caught Lin Xiao's interest.
A Flower Plucking Bandit had run rampant through Dingzhou for over ten years, yet the Jinyiwei had never managed to capture him.
According to the records, this Flower Plucking Thief's qinggong was exceptionally powerful, and he acted with extreme arrogance.
He specifically targeted daughters of prominent families.
Before every crime, he would send a flower and inform that household exactly when he would make his move.
Though those wealthy and powerful families made preparations, they were never able to catch the Flower Plucking Thief, and he succeeded every time.
"Ding! System mission issued: Capture the Flower Plucking Thief. Mission reward: Heaven and Earth Converging Yin-Yang Great Compassion Ode (max level), five mission points."
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