I Really Am Busy, I'm Not Lying to You

After hearing the number Zhao Xing gave, Ling Yuan calmed down.

Because it's simply impossible.

The figures Zhao Xing provided not only exceeded the standards set by Cloud City in previous years, but also surpassed the regulations for Commandery-level County.

Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice; if you can't do it, you can't just kill yourself.

Zhao Xing continued, "Given the true situation in Cloud City, I know that this number is putting you in a difficult position."

"But the past is the past, and the present is the present."

"I can guarantee that the Heavenly Craft Workshop will receive a sufficient amount of materials in the future. This is a major policy of the imperial court. Anyone who dares to obstruct it is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot."

"Furthermore, there will be personnel adjustments. In the past, coming here was tantamount to exile. But now it's different; ambitious individuals will be vying to come here and become officials!"

"If even with sufficient materials and manpower, I still cannot fulfill my requirements, then dismissal is not the only solution."

Zhao Xing rose from his seat and slowly walked down the steps. "I have said all I need to say. Gentlemen, go ahead and inquire or do your work. There is no need to see me off any further."

The officials present were deep in thought. Ling Yuan pondered for a moment, then immediately jogged out to catch up with Zhao Xing.

The superior forbade it, but we couldn't really refuse to send it.

Moreover, he had more to say.

"Lord Ling, didn't I say I wouldn't allow it?" Zhao Xing said, but stopped in his tracks.

"My lord, if the materials and manpower are all available, I will do my utmost, even if it means sacrificing myself, to achieve the required quantity! Not only will it meet the needs of the Agricultural Supervisorate's war preparations, but it can even supply a batch of equipment to the Shennong Inner Treasury!"

"Oh?" Zhao Xing raised an eyebrow. Ling Yuan was quite quick-witted, figuring things out so fast. "Weren't you looking rather troubled just now?"

Ling Yuan said in a low voice, "My lord, I have something to report."

"Speak."

Ling Yuan said, "Although Cloud City has been plagued by war for many years, as you said, it has not been harassed by barbarians on a large scale in the past ten years."

"Since the seventh year of New Splendor Era, although officials have been frequently transferred and many people have tried to leave, the various departments of Heavenly Craft Workshop have been almost fully staffed most of the time, and materials have been issued in full."

"Only..."

"Just what?"

Ling Yuan gritted his teeth and said, "However, the average number of materials that can reach Cloud City over the past 10 years has only been one-third!"

"There should have been forty-nine people who came to see you today, but only fourteen of them, including myself, actually showed up. This is because Cloud City has other official business and has been sent to the Phoenix Cry Mountain Range for mining. I cannot mobilize them."

"I understand." Zhao Xing waved his hand. "I'll give you Heavenly Timing to audit the warehouse accounts. I won't force you to audit the accounts before your term of office. As for the accounts during your term, audit them thoroughly and carefully."

"You should know who can use it and who can't. Immediately manufacture weapons according to the military regulations. Not only for agriculture, but also for defense and attack. Use as many materials as you have and get things moving. Submit the accounts to me in seven days."

Ling Yuan replied, "Yes, I will do it even if it costs me my life! I'm just afraid that my and my brothers' lives won't be enough."

Zhao Xing laughed. Ling Yuan was still afraid and wanted to get some honest advice from him.

He boarded the Arrowfish Flying Boat and entered the small materials warehouse on board.

Ling Yuan was puzzled, but seeing that the flying boat had not yet taken off, he waited quietly.

Fifteen minutes later, the seven straw figures came down.

Then, one after another, straw men jumped off the flying boat.

Soon, fifty straw figures stood around Ling Yuan.

"Is this... the Straw Man Art?"

Ling Yuan was startled.

Because Zhao Xing used only the best materials, which were at least cut from third-tier plants, and some parts even used fourth-tier materials.

Zhao Xing jumped down again and nodded to Long Xiao.

The latter immediately understood.

With his hand behind the straw figure, Long Xiao paused for at least half an incense stick's time as he passed each straw figure.

Twenty days have passed since I first met Long Xiao at Locust Willow Courtyard.

Along the way, Zhao Xing kept practicing the Long Xiao Dharma Protector Straw Figure, and now it has reached the mid-stage Seventh-Turn level.

"These are all the Skyflight Dharma Protector Straw Figure I created."

"The combination of the two techniques is of the highest quality. Combined with the sword cultivation method of the Valiant Commandant Long Xiao, and protected by the straw dolls, no one below the Seventh Grade can harm you."

"Even Seventh Grade martial artist, if they are not above his level, will not escape death if they are stabbed by his sword energy."

Zhao Xing's Flying Art is perfected, and the Dharma Protector Straw Figure's power depends mainly on the cultivator's realm. After the Seventh-Turn, Zhao Xing can barely retain the two sword energies of Long Xiao.

Who is Long Xiao? He is one in a million among martial artists! He is also a rare swordsman among martial artists. He obtained an incomplete sword technique from an ancient tomb, and through his own study and summarization, he gradually perfected it. In the future, it became the famous "Divine Firmament Sword Art", a top-level martial art that martial artists would kill to learn.

Even with fourth-tier materials and the drafter's skills reaching the Seventh-Turn, Zhao Xing could only retain two "Geng Metal Sword Qi" from the Long Xiao!

The Flying Straw Puppet is both a fighter and a runner.

"What? Even Seventh Grade Refining Qi can die?" Ling Yuan's eyes were filled with shock.

This was beyond his comprehension, after all, he simply did not understand the extent to which those geniuses could go.

The idea of storing sword energy inside a straw doll was already eye-opening, since he had never even heard of Dharma Protector Straw Figure before.

Shouldn't the Straw Man Art only be used to scare away birds and beasts? Now this so-called Dharma Protector Straw Figure actually claims to be able to kill ordinary Seventh Grade.

But looking at Zhao Xing and Long Xiao, it didn't seem like they were faking it at all.

Because after Long Xiao finished imbuing the fifty straw figures with sword energy, he was noticeably weakened.

"No problem, is this enough? If not, Lord Zhao and I will add a few more for you!" Long Xiao laughed heartily, but his hands behind his back were actually trembling.

"That's enough, that's enough." Ling Yuan quickly bowed and said, "This humble official will certainly not fail in his duty!"

"Let's go." After giving the order to the Skyflight Dharma Protector Straw Figure, Zhao Xing piloted the flying boat away.

The intermediate-level Straw Man Art, especially the Dharma Protector Straw Figure, is unlike the beginner-level Straw Man Art. It has no distance limit and can be used even in an offline state.

The Dharma Protector Straw Figure that Old Chen gave him was meant to last forever, accompanying him on his trips to the countryside. Later, he even kept it for Gui Niang to use.

Of course, if the distance is too far, Zhao Xing's brain-computer interface will not be able to sense the status of the Dharma Protector Straw Figure. Whether it is destroyed or still exists, it will only be known when it gets within a certain distance.

"Damn it, I'm exhausted." Long Xiao quickly rummaged through a Wen Bamboo Box and pulled out a few fruits to replenish his energy. "You little brat, you really made me suffer for Appear in Public as a Saint. Creating fifty Dharma Protector Straw Figure in one go almost drained me dry!"

Zhao Xing looked at Long Xiao's trembling hands and couldn't help but laugh, "Who was just saying, 'Should we get a few more?'"

After eating a few fruits, Long Xiao let out a satisfied sigh and leaned back against the box, "You've already said that, how can I say no?"

"Even if it means being completely drained, we have to keep going."

"Damn it, you're even more ruthless than Old Chen. At least he treated me like a human being. You bastard, you're just using me, Valiant Commandant, like a beast of burden."

Long Xiao cursed and swore.

I thought that leaving Old Chen and becoming Zhao Xing's protector would make things easier.

Crying won't make you feel any better at all.

"Calm down. I just think you're brilliant and capable, big brother. You can handle it perfectly well. Old Chen also said that this is a good training for you."

"Hmph, of course I'm wise and mighty," Long Xiao said smugly. "Do you think just anyone deserves the title of 'valiant'?"

"As for training, well, I guess... it's just a bit tough," Long Xiao sighed. Why isn't there a way to get stronger quickly without getting tired?

"You should hurry up and recover; we need to go to the County Office tomorrow," Zhao Xing said.

"What are you going to the County Office for?" Long Xiao asked.

"The only people he can get transferred from Ling Yuan, the head of the Heavenly Craft Workshop, are the Cloud City County. However, here the magistrate also serves as the county lieutenant."

"Ling Yuan didn't spell it out, but the meaning was clear: the Cloud City County transferred the people from Heavenly Craft Workshop to do private work, and all materials entering and leaving Cloud City had to be reviewed and signed by this magistrate, so it's very likely that he embezzled them."

Long Xiao said, "It's really strange. Cloud City, a Commandery-level County, is often at war, but the position of county lieutenant is vacant, and the county magistrate has taken on the role of county lieutenant. I don't know how much this guy has embezzled to feed his superiors and create a situation where he has absolute power."

Zhao Xing pondered, "I haven't seen him yet, so it's hard to say. I'll go back to the Agricultural Supervisorate first and visit this Cloud City County tomorrow."

"The Cloud City County is named Shao Wanjie, and he is Official Seventh Rank, Upper."

"He was originally a military officer, but later became a civil Civil Official, a county magistrate."

"He took office in Cloud City twelve years ago. At that time, the position of county magistrate was not vacant, and he was only Lower Seventh Rank, Junior."

"However, he was promoted every three years, eventually rising to the Official Seventh Rank, Upper."

After returning, Zhao Xing had a chat with Bao Wenshan.

As the saying goes, "An elder in the family is a treasure." Bao Wenshan has stayed in Cloud City for more than a hundred years and knows the Cloud City like the back of his hand.

Upon hearing his introduction of Shao Wanjie, Zhao Xing couldn't help but ask curiously, "Given the situation in Cloud City, how could he have risen so high? Three ranks in ten years, and even holding the position of county lieutenant—that's practically a Sixth Rank official. It's quite rare. Did he make some significant contribution to Cloud City?"

Bao Wenshan scoffed, "Contributions? He has indeed made quite a few contributions, but all of them were made for those above him."

"As soon as Shao Wanjie took office, he started to make money. In Cloud City's Five Offices, there was no one he didn't take advantage of, except for the temple."

"Whether it's the quotas allocated from above or the taxes paid below, he has to go through them all."

"At first it was just petty corruption, but later it became big corruption, and he ended up taking the lion's share!"

"He also frequently used personnel from various departments for personal tasks, treating officials at all levels as his private army!"

Zhao Xing flipped through the accounts submitted by Zhang Zhong and shook his head as he read them.

Among the missing items noted by Zhang Zhong, many accounts were quite suspicious; one page showed full payment, while the next page showed a shortfall.

What's the reason?

The land taxes collected by the Agricultural Supervisorate were first sent to the County Office warehouse for storage, statistics, and verification, and then transported to the prefectural city at the end of the year.

However, the County Office's granaries were plagued by fires, earthquakes, and flooding every year.

Well, Cloud City's terrain is treacherous, so this explanation makes sense. After all, this place is frequently breached, so a warehouse fire isn't a big deal.

Then there's the transportation from Cloud City to Fucheng, mostly by waterway. Shao Wanjie always sent people to transport goods by water, and every year there were ships that drowned.

Don't ask, the answer is that the boat capsized on the Canglan River, resulting in heavy losses of money and food. It was caused by a natural disaster, not by human error.

That's what they say, but natural disasters, shipwrecks... isn't that just subtly shifting the blame to the Agricultural Supervisorate and the Heavenly Craft Workshop?

Ling Yuan, the head of the Heavenly Craft Workshop, should have been Seventh Grade, but under Shao Wanjie's manipulation, he was only Official Eighth Rank Eighth Grade. He also served as the head of the Agricultural Supervisorate) for several years.

Didn't the previous Waterways Magistrate and Workshop Manager provide any feedback?

Feedback is useless; Shao Wanjie has a very strong background, and there's a chain of interests behind him.

If we can't solve the problem, can't we at least solve the problem of the person who raised it?

As a result, some were transferred or demoted, leaving Shao Wanjie with absolute power.

After feeding the people above him, he not only rose through the ranks but also nominally held the position of county magistrate, effectively controlling the four departments excluding the Divine Temple.

There wasn't much money left to make in Cloud City, so this person started trying every possible way to make money elsewhere.

Ling Yuan's Heavenly Craft Workshop is short-staffed because most of them have been transferred to the Phoenix Cry Mountain Range to explore for minerals.

So the question is, just how powerful is this person's background?

Bao Wenshan pondered, "I've heard this man boast before. He claims to be a disciple of the Prince of Liang King, and his direct superior is Prefect Liu Junliang, a Fifth Grade official. Liu Junliang recommended him for many of his promotions."

"In addition, he was originally a member of the Black Dragon Guard, the private army of the Liang King, and it is said that he once served as a deputy commander, but it is unknown whether this is true."

Zhao Xing was taken aback. "Liang King? You mean Prince Liang Ji Mingxian of Lüliang Province?"

Bao Wenshan nodded. "Exactly."

"No wonder he's so arrogant." Zhao Xing suddenly realized, recalling the deeds of this Liang King.

Prince Liang Ji Mingxian, was a rare first-rank prince. He was the ninth son of Wen Emperor and the younger brother of Di Yi, born of the same mother!

In the early stages of the Renewal Era and opening up of the country, Prince Liang Ji Mingxian served as the commander-in-chief of the three armies for a period of time at the end of the war, and later he took charge of the establishment of the Nine Heavens Responding Origin Prefecture.

He was deeply favored by Emperor Jing. When the war was almost over, Ji Mingxian was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the three armies and presided over the establishment of the Nine Heavens Responding Origin Prefecture. Such a move of picking the fruits of others' labor was clearly driven by selfish motives.

However, this seemingly humble and gentle Liang King, who had received countless honors, actually harbored ambitions. Divine Might Marquis Yang An of Divine Might voted against Prince Liang Ji Mingxian's succession as commander-in-chief of the three armies.

Choosing the wrong side has serious consequences. Originally, Yang An was to be promoted to the first-class Divine Might Marquis based on his merits, and the central government had already prepared the reward. However, after the Liang King took office, he deliberately made the Divine Might Army make a mistake and took the opportunity to demote Yang An to the third-class county marquis. The Divine Might Army was also disbanded, and its core members were scattered, leaving only the title.

However, this Liang King, who was showered with countless honors and was deeply loved, for some unknown reason, rebelled in alliance with the Southern Barbarians and sectarian sorcerers at the end of the Jingxin Calendar.

"It seems that Shao Wanjie was promoted from a vassal to Vassal, but he could not possibly have become the commander of the Black Dragon Guard. At most, he was just a lowly soldier."

Bao Wenshan asked in surprise, "How do you know?"

Zhao Xing said, "The Black Dragon Guard is one of the three elite forces of Liang King. If Shao Wanjie is a retired commander, there is no way he would be assigned only as a Seventh Grade Civil Official and sent to a godforsaken place like Cloud City."

Bao Wenshan cupped his hands and said, "You know more, sir."

Zhao Xing certainly knew a lot. In his previous life, he had served in the Black Dragon Guard of the Liang King and even rebelled with this Liang King. At the time, he didn't know what was going on and thought that this man was a wise ruler. He joined the Liang King's army with his brothers, hoping to take a shortcut and gain merit by following the emperor.

I originally thought he was some kind of "Prince of Yan," but when the battle actually broke out, he turned out to be the "Wen Emperor Jianwen." He was wiped out in just two and a half years, and even the Outer Sects and the Southern Barbarians who helped him called him a complete idiot.

Looking back, it became clear that Emperor Jing was fishing, luring this young man into a trap, but unexpectedly, he actually rebelled.

Even though he actually caught one, Emperor Jing was heartbroken. The Liang King Rebellion was also one of the important factors that led Emperor Jing to hastily end the Jingxin Calendar and begin to focus on having children.

"What does Your Excellency intend to do? If Shao Wanjie doesn't leave, Your Excellency's efforts to control the floods will be like dancing in shackles," Bao Wenshan.

"What to do? Report it, of course." Zhao Xing picked up the ledger and went out.

Shao Wanjie only had a white glove, and he didn't have much to do with Liang King. He could easily take it off if it got dirty or filthy, and no one could report him. But Old Master Zhao was different.

He had originally planned to meet with Shao Wanjie to discuss things further, but now it seemed there was no need to.

Unexpectedly, just as Zhao Xing was about to write a letter, Shao Wanjie sent someone to the Agricultural Supervisorate.

"The county magistrate was busy with official duties yesterday, but upon learning of Lord Zhao's new appointment today, he immediately hosted a banquet at his residence to welcome Lord Zhao back." A middle-aged scholar handed over the banquet invitation.

"I am also very busy with official duties. Please tell Lord Shao that I really cannot go." Zhao Xing did not even look up.

The middle-aged scholar said calmly, "Zhao Shennong has just taken office and may not even know everyone yet. How could he be so busy with official duties? My master is acting out of pure sincerity."

After finishing the official document, Zhao Xing blew on the ink and said very sincerely, "I am really busy, I'm not lying to you."

"Look, the sins of your master are too numerous to be recorded in this one memorial."

Middle-aged scholar. "..."