Prelude to Bloodshed

Xiao Long, the head of the Inspectorate, held a crucial position at this moment.

It wasn't because of his high status: he was the seventh commander of the family, yet his position was above the other six commanders.

It wasn't because of his great power: he was independently responsible for inspection matters, not controlled by the Commanders' Office or President Commander Yang Minghua.

Nor was it because he was usually fair in his dealings, enforced the law like iron, and was highly respected and admired by everyone in the family.

It was simply because the thousands of military police troops controlling the meeting hall were entirely under his command! Whichever side he leaned towards, thousands of fully armed elite military police would stand with them. In a conflict, no matter how skilled or powerful you were, you wouldn't be able to resist.

Moreover, everyone had undergone security checks before attending the meeting and was completely unarmed, making them no match for the numerous, well-armed, and organized military police.

All eyes were on Xiao Long, seated in the front row, to see how he would react to Shirakawa's accusation.

Sterling's face turned ashen; he had already guessed Xiao Long's stance: how had Di Lin's sword been brought into the meeting hall?

Xiao Long's stern face was ashen, like a mask. Facing everyone's expectations, he slowly said, "There was no murder, no need for investigation, and the accusation is not accepted."

A murder had just occurred right before his eyes, with two bodies still lying there—and he claimed "no murder existed"! At this moment, everyone understood Xiao Long's position—as long as the Inspectorate Chief said "no murder," then even if there was one, it would cease to exist.

Yang Minghua's face was already contorted with anger. He could no longer maintain his composure or manners—he truly hated Shirakawa. Everyone else had yielded, yet this foolish woman was still causing trouble—he gave Di Lin a second glance.

Di Lin grinned menacingly and advanced towards Shirakawa: it looked like the tragedy of Flag Bearer De Ke was about to be repeated.

Zichuan Xiu, Roger, and Chuan immediately stood up abruptly, blocking Di Lin's path.

Seeing Zichuan Xiu, Di Lin hesitated and stopped, somewhat at a loss.

Sterling, however, was intently watching Lei Xun's every move, fearing he would repeat his past actions and launch a sneak attack again.

With a command from Xiao Long, a group of military police armed with crossbows and spears surged into the hall, surrounding Zichuan Xiu, Sterling, and their group. A row of arrowheads pointed at them...

Tensions were high, the atmosphere extremely tense, ready to explode at any moment!

Ge Yingxing's gentle voice sounded at the opportune moment: "Inspectorate Chief Xiao Long believes there is no need for an investigation—I, however, disagree. This matter warrants an investigation! I propose we take a vote. Those who believe an investigation is necessary, please raise your hands!" As he spoke, Ge Yingxing not only raised his hand but also stood up on the podium.

His words were skillfully phrased. By merely suggesting a vote on "whether an investigation is necessary," he didn't directly accuse "Yang Minghua is the murderer," thus not pushing Yang Minghua and his faction too hard and leaving them an exit.

Officers from the Far East Army in the audience immediately stood up and raised their hands in agreement: they had long been enraged by Yang Minghua's atrocities but had not dared to speak up due to the lack of leadership. Now, inspired by Ge Yingxing's prestige, they dared to step forward.

The Far East Army was the family's largest military corps. At this moment, the number of people standing in the hall accounted for almost half, and Yang Minghua's face changed drastically.

Ming Hui, the Border Defense Army Commander, who was also seated on the podium, looked at Yang Minghua with a cold smile: "I also agree with Ge Yingxing's opinion!"

Fang Jin, the Black Flag Army Commander, stood up without saying a word, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty: the people who were killed were all members of the Black Flag Army, his subordinates, so he was naturally filled with grief and indignation.

Even Imperial Guard Commander Pigu, who was widely believed to be senile, trembled as he stood up to protest!

A wave of synchronized standing swept through the audience, almost everyone stood up, and angry gazes were directed at Yang Minghua on the podium—his arrogance and brutality had ignited public outrage! Even among Yang Minghua's direct subordinate corps, the Central Army, many stood up to protest.

At this moment, the only ones still seated on the podium were Yang Minghua's confidants, Lei Xun and Luo Minghai.

They were facing a vast sea of anger.

On Zichuan Xiu's side in the audience, countless officers from the Far East Army, Black Flag Army, Border Defense Army, Imperial Guard Army... whether familiar or not, stepped forward to stand with them. Unarmed, they fearlessly used their chests to block the soldiers' arrows. They formed human walls, surrounding Shirakawa, preventing the military police from getting close, their eyes silently challenging the soldiers with crossbows: "Come on, shoot! Do you dare?"

Faced with this surge of anger, the well-trained elite military police of the family also began to retreat.

Sterling was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes, and he said to Zichuan Xiu, "Justice is on the side of the people!"

Zichuan Xiu, however, replied sarcastically, "Yes, justice is like a little girl who's afraid of ghosts—she only dares to show up when she has enough companions. I rarely see justice acting alone."

Facing this sea of anger, Yang Minghua realized for the first time how insignificant he was—he made a gesture to Xiao Long in his rage: he drew his palm across his neck, the meaning clear: Kill!

Inspectorate Chief Xiao Long, however, was considering: this was no longer a matter concerning just one person from the Far East Army or the Imperial Guard. If he took action against these over a thousand senior officers from various corps, representing almost the entire armed force of the family, the consequences would be dire, and the subsequent retaliation would be extremely brutal. As the commander of such a massacre, he would have no place to hide in the entire world. Moreover, among these thousand-plus people, there were many experts, and his military police might not necessarily win... It was simply not worth getting involved in this mess with Yang Minghua.

He sighed and ordered the military police to withdraw, then left himself.

A cheer erupted from the hall, with someone shouting, "Yang Minghua—get out!"

Immediately, hundreds of voices joined in: "Yang Minghua—get out!" The momentum was immense.

Yang Minghua stood up, trying to find who was shouting and intending to intimidate them with his authority: but as he looked around, he saw only faces fearlessly looking directly at him, eyes filled with anger...

He glanced back at the figures on the podium: Ge Yingxing wore a half-smile, seeming to enjoy hearing Yang Minghua being cursed; Ming Hui didn't even look at him, turning his head away; Fang Jin's eyes were filled with the fire of hatred; Luo Minghai's usually icy expression showed some unease; only Lei Xun leaned in and whispered, "Sir, the Central Army is still in our hands! Please believe in our loyalty!"

Yang Minghua nodded, gritted his teeth, and also left the hall. Lei Xun, Di Lin, Luo Minghai, and others followed him out.

The hall erupted in cheers! Everyone was so delighted, it seemed as if Yang Minghua had been completely defeated, but they forgot that the seventeen thousand strong Central Army still controlled the entire Imperial Capital.

After leaving the hall, they discovered a pervasive sense of unease: troops were moving hastily along the streets, fully armed, all under the banner of the Central Army. The usually quiet and peaceful Imperial Capital had become filled with a murderous aura.

The mounted police of the Ministry of Public Works loudly announced along the streets: "By order of the Commanders' Office, a curfew and martial law are in effect in the Imperial Capital tonight! Residents are strictly forbidden to go out after 8 PM, or they will be shot without exception!"

Pedestrians hurried to get out of the way, creating a scene of chaos and panic...

Ge Yingxing, surrounded by a large contingent of guards, approached Zichuan Xiu and Sterling: "Sterling, Ah Xiu, I need to return to Far East Valen immediately. Do you want to come with me?"

Zichuan Xiu and Sterling exchanged a glance. Zichuan Xiu said firmly, "No, sir, we are staying."

Ge Yingxing was not surprised at all; this answer was within his expectations. He extended his hands to them: "Someone will lose their head in the Imperial Capital tonight—take care!"

Xiao Long and Sterling tightly clasped Ge Yingxing's thin yet warm hands, a wave of warmth washing over them: it was Ge Yingxing who had protected them once again today. This frail, sickly man was truly the pillar of the family, a priceless treasure! Now he had to rush back to the Far East, not out of a desire to cling to life or fear of death, but to gain control of the army and better fight Yang Minghua. Just as Xiao Long and Sterling chose to stay, their actions were all fueled by a passionate loyalty to the family!

"Sir, your journey will be arduous. Please take good care of yourself!" Xiao Long said sincerely.

Sterling also said gratefully, "I can never repay the life-saving kindness you've shown us. Please take good care on your way!"

Ge Yingxing smiled, "We will meet again, definitely!" His gaze fell upon Shirakawa beside them, "This young lady has great courage—you two must take good care of her tonight!"

Witnessing the heroes' courage and camaraderie, Shirakawa's eyes were already brimming with tears. She could only bow deeply to Ge Yingxing to express her gratitude for saving her life.

Watching Ge Yingxing's cavalry disappear into the distance, Xiao Long asked Sterling, "Where do we go now?"

"To Central Park to see Di Lin!" Sterling replied, his face already showing a hint of anger.

Di Lin had already arrived and appeared impatient.

Seeing Sterling's aggressive, accusatory demeanor, Di Lin spoke first, "If you were in my position, what would you have done?"

Xiao Long and Sterling were both stunned, unable to answer.

"At that time, the only option I had was to kill that talkative Flag Bearer. Otherwise, Yang Minghua would have immediately suspected me, and all our years of hard work would have been in vain."

"When we stood in front of Shirakawa, why didn't you kill us too, so Yang Minghua would trust you even more?" Sterling said coldly.

Di Lin sighed, "For my safety and everyone's safety—he had to die!"

Sterling said sarcastically, "For your own benefit—you can slaughter loyal family members?"

Di Lin did not hesitate, "As long as I can live—I can kill everyone in the world!"

The two could no longer speak, both turning away in anger, "Hmph!"

Xiao Long didn't know which side to take. Rationally, he knew Di Lin's actions were necessary, but emotionally, he found it hard to accept Di Lin's cold-blooded indifference after killing someone.

He tried to mediate, "Alright, alright, now is not the time to argue. Sterling, if we keep arguing, the dead won't come back to life—at most, we can offer incense to him on holidays and the first and fifteenth of the month."

Xiao Long then said to Di Lin, "This is all your fault—Yang Minghua asked you to teach De Ke a lesson, why didn't you just stab his butt or thighs—why did you have to stab him in the chest!!"

Sterling and Di Lin couldn't help but chuckle.

Di Lin sighed helplessly, "I can kill everyone in the world—except you two." For someone as proud as him, this was already a form of admitting defeat and apologizing—in fact, every time the three of them argued in the past, Sterling always won, and the other two would yield, because Sterling always stood on the side of justice.

"How is your situation now?"

"I've brought back fifty thousand Far East soldiers. They absolutely obey me—if I shout 'kill,' they'll charge at anyone, even the King of Heaven. They are stationed just outside the Imperial Capital!"

"Can your army enter the city?"

"No! City defense is handled by Lei Xun's Central Army. There's no reason for us to be unable to enter—in fact, Yang Minghua has already ordered me to lead troops to pursue and kill Ge Yingxing!"

Sterling said with disappointment, "Can't enter the city... then it's useless. Can we force our way in?"

Di Lin said irritably, "Try attacking the Imperial Capital, which has strict defenses and a garrison of 170,000, with your fifty thousand men."

"No, it's useful," Xiao Long revealed a sly smile. "I have a method, what do you all think?" ...

"No wonder people say Ah Xiu is the most troublesome!" Di Lin nodded with satisfaction. "As expected of the family's top strategist, this little brat is truly cunning!"

Sterling hesitated, "But this plan doesn't align with Lord Zichuan Canxing's 'Lancer' plan, and it's too risky. The probability of success is not high..."

"Bah! What plan are we still rigidly adhering to? Everyone's going to be finished tonight. A sliver of hope is better than sitting around and waiting to die!"

"Alright," Sterling also made up his mind, "Then let's go f*** it!" He uttered a rare profanity.

Di Lin, "As soon as the sun sets, the Central Army will seal the city gates—we'll start our operation then!"

They all turned to look at the sun: bathed in the blood-red sunset, the entire Imperial Capital was dyed a vibrant red...

Sterling said firmly, "This is a good omen—a righteous army will surely win!"

Di Lin sneered, "Whose blood will stain the long streets of the Imperial Capital tonight?"

Xiao Long murmured, "That definitely won't involve me—I'm anemic, I don't have that much blood to splash on the roads as paint! I heard Yang Minghua has high blood pressure though..."