Calculations 93, Part One (Thanks to Alliance Leader San Bao Ai Ba Ma)

The State Yamen.

The portrait of a tiger with piercing eyes and a white forehead covered the entire wall of the yamen's main hall.

In the center of the main hall, Prefect Chen Anzhi frowned, holding a document in his hand and showing hesitation.

Chen Anzhi was an official transferred from another province. He was gentle in nature and had excellent coordination skills. Since arriving in Tanyang, he had gotten along well with all sorts of forces.

In just ten years, Tanyang's business has flourished.

Unfortunately, things don't always go smoothly.

Now these troublesome things have all come together at once.

The trouble caused by the uprising in Seven Counties has not yet been properly dealt with, and mountain bandits are still rampaging in the forests.

The Moon Chasing Blade is here again.

Chen Anzhi pinched his long beard that reached his chest, then suddenly paused, opened his hand, and saw that another beard hair had fallen into his palm.

He sighed.

"Brother Anzhi, are you still troubled by the matter of the Moon Chasing Blade?"

Outside the lobby, Chief of the Ministry of Justice Li Ran slowly walked in carrying a jar of wine and sat down in his assigned seat.

Although Li Ran is now over forty, she still looks about the same as someone in their early thirties because of her naturally superior physique and abundant blood and energy.

Its physique is robust and strong, resembling that of a brown bear.

"Brother, the matter of the Moon Chasing Blade involves many people. People from Central Capital, Lower Capital, Great Capital Dadu are all involved. With pressure from all sides, I can't cooperate, and I can't refuse to cooperate either," Chen Anzhi said helplessly.

"Why do you care so much? Just do what the State Governor does. Spirit Person he's not worried, why are you?" Li Ran said bluntly.

"You don't know the hidden story." Chen Anzhi shook his head. "The Moon Chasing Blade involves a huge secret. A secret known only to the higher-ups of the Spirit Person. They've kept it a secret for so many years, and they would never allow anything to go wrong."

"Hey, I get it." Li Ran smiled, as if she had also thought of something. "The monsters among those Spirit Person."

"They are the cornerstone of the Ling Ting's suppression of everything, so not even the slightest danger or threat can be allowed to arise." Chen Anzhi nodded. "Therefore, if the Moon Chasing Blade were to leak secrets to me..."

Li Ran fell silent.

There was a similar example before.

On that occasion, the Ling Ting dispatched a large army of elite troops to besiege the city, and top experts from the Snow Rainbow Pavilion suppressed it, completely annihilating the city.

Of the 360,000 people, none were spared.

Although it is just an isolated case, it shows that we should not underestimate the determination of those in power to keep secrets.

"So who deliberately leaked the information this time?" Li Ran asked again.

"It's not that I want to leak secrets, but someone wants Jingying dead. Huang Yuzhen is just a bodyguard arranged by someone else, here to repay a favor. The real trouble is with Jingying."

"She may hold secret clues about what happened back then," Chen Anzhi sighed.

"What about the Moon Chasing Blade?" Li Ran frowned.

"She is the key that Jingying. Others think the clues are all in the Moon Chasing Blade, but the real key is actually her," Chen Anzhi explained.

"I've said all this in the hope that you'll understand when you're handling things: don't get too close at this time, and it's most important to protect yourself. Anyone who gets involved in this matter will find it difficult to extricate themselves later."

Li Ran nodded knowingly.

Such high-level power struggles are the most troublesome; they are unclear and unpredictable, and the slightest misstep can lead to the confiscation of one's property and the extermination of one's entire clan.

"I have already strictly ordered my men not to get involved."

"That won't work. You can not issue a transfer order, but if you don't put in any effort, it will still cause resentment. The key is that as long as you don't personally issue the transfer order, it will be fine, right?" Chen Anzhi suggested.

Li Ran immediately understood.

This case requires both our efforts and demonstration that we are following orders.

On the other hand, we must ensure that no mistakes are made and no secrets are leaked.

Otherwise, the entire Tanyang leadership would be in danger.

Finding the right balance is quite tricky.

After putting that matter aside, the two chatted for a while about other recent important matters concerning Tanyang.

Just as they were getting into the conversation...

Suddenly, a Messenger Officer rushed into the hall and knelt on one knee.

"Report! An urgent order from the Prefectural City!"

The Messenger Officer raised a rolled-up piece of cloth with both hands to announce the order.

The prefect Chen Anzhi and Li Ran quickly got up, walked around the desk, picked up the proclamation, and gently unfolded it.

The fine handwriting on it caused Chen Anzhi's expression to change slightly.

"What's wrong?" Li Ran, seeing this, sensed something was amiss.

"It's an urgent order from Magistrate Shangguan, instructing me to fully cooperate with Ouyang Jianrong. I must provide manpower and resources as needed!" Chen Anzhi frowned. "This Ouyang is quite capable."

Magistrate Shangguan Shi was his mentor. If it were anyone else, even his superior, Chen Anzhi, as a high-ranking official in a city, far from the emperor's reach, might not have cared.

After all, this depends on the faction behind it.

But now, Magistrate Shangguan Shi is his backer, and the people behind him are speaking directly to him.

Chen Anzhi was at a loss and could only look at Li Ran with a troubled expression.

"This is troublesome."

"At this point, we have no choice but to cooperate." Li Ran nodded. "It would be best to hand over the transfer authority. This matter is tricky, and regardless of success or failure, it will be very disadvantageous for us. It would be best to let them transition to another location."

"This is the only way."

*** Pingya Temple.

Zhang Rongfang casually flipped through the documents in his hand.

All of these documents were written with washable ink, making it very convenient to erase and rewrite them at will.

This is the information he requested, corresponding to his own level.

"Can't find it?"

With his own authority, he was only able to access such a small amount of superficial information.

Information about the Moon Chasing Blade is extremely scarce.

Huang Yuzhen did come out.

"Unexpectedly, this Huang Yuzhen extraordinary. He has Superior Martial Arts to the extreme, and is a disciple of the Lingsong Mountain Man. Six years ago, in a place called Xiashi County, he defeated the Wind Swordsman Zhao Silong. His martial arts, swordsmanship, movement techniques, and hidden weapons are all nearing their peak. He is very likely Ninth Grade!"

Zhang Rongfang put down the documents in his hand, his face showing shock.

"My lord, the secrecy level of the Moon Chasing Blade is too high. Even you cannot mobilize it, which shows how dangerous this matter is. It would be best if we did not intervene," Qing Su said in a deep voice from behind.

After Wuji's death, she took over his position and took control of the vacated resources.

Thus, he became one of the three Owl Rank leaders of the White Eagle Lineage.

On the other side, the Owl Rank Red Haze seemed eager to prove itself to the new leader.

He stepped forward and hurriedly said, "My lord, Huang Yuzhen is extremely strong. Based on his battle record, I have determined that he is at least a Seventh Grade expert. Moreover, his movement technique is also extremely fast."

"The grade is just a rough estimate," Zhang Rongfang shook his head.

"Victory or defeat is not just about rank."

He looked at the two of them.

Where is Huang Yuzhen now?

"In a place called Hundred Silver Valley outside the city. This place has a natural ability to deceive, so the advantage of numbers cannot be utilized. It is very suitable for hiding and concealing oneself." Red Haze had obviously done a lot of work.

"What about that Special Envoy Ouyang Jianrong?" Zhang Rongfang asked again.

"This person comes from the Snow Rainbow Pavilion and is extremely strong; he cannot be judged solely by his rank." Red Haze paused.

"The martial arts of the Snow Rainbow Pavilion are mostly Superior Martial Arts, and some are even said to be unique skills. If you master one or two unique skills, it is not uncommon for you to kill someone even if you are one or two ranks higher."

Therefore, even if you possess extraordinary strength, you must be extremely careful when dealing with people from the Snow Rainbow Pavilion.

"A unique skill. This unique skill is even more powerful than Superior Martial Arts?" Zhang Rongfang had never heard of it before.

"Indeed, the conditions for practicing extraordinary skills are usually very demanding, and only those with specific physiques and comprehension can learn them. But once mastered, their power is extremely astonishing."

Furthermore, his unique martial arts skills are only one factor. Ouyang Jianrong also needs to be wary of the special equipment he may possess.

Red Haze whispered, "Experts from the Ling Ting often possess excellent equipment and hidden trump cards. Therefore, they are extremely dangerous."

"I understand," Zhang Rongfang thought to himself.

But he was more concerned about the secret technique.

"Where can this kind of unique skill usually be found?"

"The Ling Ting has top-tier sects and gangs, but not many. Famous ones include the Extreme Mysterious Yin Finger of the True One Sect and the Pure Heart Exchange Jade of the Confucian School, both of which are unique skills. But very, very few people can master them."

"Even mastering just one or two moves of such a supreme martial art would be incredibly powerful," Red Haze explained.

After all, he was over thirty years old, and his experience and understanding far surpassed that of Qing Su standing beside him.

"That's enough," Zhang Rongfang nodded. "You can go now."

Red Haze glanced at Qing Su beside her and nodded. "This subordinate takes his leave."

She turned around, lightly touched the ground with her toes, and her figure in a light red bodysuit quickly disappeared into the night.

"My lord, our men have received information that the Lin Family and the Black Ten Sect are investigating you."

Unlike Red Haze, she had only just taken over and her power was not yet consolidated, so Zhang Rongfang did not put her in charge of overly secretive intelligence investigations.

He was simply tasked with observing the Black Ten Sect and the Lin Family.

Both of these forces could potentially cause him trouble.

"They're still investigating me?" Zhang Rongfang pondered for a moment. "As long as they don't find out about the Yang Family, we don't need to worry about anything else."

Let's deal with my problem first. Tell me, how can I possibly benefit from this whole "Moon Chasing Blade" incident?

Qing Su pondered for a moment.

"I believe that we should first inform the Xu Family and exchange agreements, and then cooperate with Special Envoy Ouyang Jianrong to quickly capture Huang Yuzhen."

Based on previous intelligence, Ouyang Jianrong was almost Mad Demon with seizing the Moon Chasing Blade.

If we were to exchange this for it, we might gain even greater benefits.

"He's a special envoy, why would he be willing to cooperate with a mere Ninth Grade official like me?" Zhang Rongfang raised an eyebrow.

"Then it is up to you, sir, to demonstrate your importance. If the mission cannot be completed without you, then I am sure you, sir, will be willing to cooperate with you," Qing Su said in a deep voice.

Zhang Rongfang nodded slightly.

The Golden Wing Tower's actual combat force consists of only a dozen or so people. Although these dozen or so are all experts of the Third Grade or above.

However, their numbers are extremely small. And given their positions, directly deploying them as thugs is the worst approach.

These are all members of the Zheng Lou; the information they provide does not require exchange.

The members of the Deputy Tower are solely responsible for providing intelligence, but this intelligence requires the exchange of resources and money.

The treatment enjoyed by these two types of members is also completely different.

Therefore, the best approach is to leverage information asymmetry to unlock more benefits.

"Good suggestion. If it succeeds, I'll credit you," Zhang Rongfang agreed. "Next, continue to observe the movements of the Black Ten Sect, the Lin Family, and Sea Dragon. Once I have some free time, I'll deal with them properly."

The Black Ten Sect is a colossal entity spanning the Great Ling Realm; we must deal with it with caution.

The Lin Family is also connected to the Tianxuan Palace behind them, which is the head of the True One Sect and also a powerful force.

Once they find out that he is the murderer who committed the previous killing, Zhang Rongfang understands the trouble that will ensue.

That's why he's so eager to enhance his power and influence.

Only by having sufficient influence can one completely resolve and avoid such troubles in the future.

When he gains enough power, the matter of the Black Ten Sect will no longer be a matter for the entire cult, but merely a personal feud between him and Annuowa.

Similarly, the same applies to the Lin Family.

It could even become Lin Hong's personal grudge.

"Okay, I don't have much free time these days, so I try to go out less at night, as it might attract attention."

If you need anything, you can hire someone to drop a wad of paper into my house. The message should be translated into code.

Zhang Rongfang gave his instructions.

"Understood!"

Zhang Rongfang nodded, and immediately his figure flashed, his clothes fluttering as he disappeared into the night, heading back towards Tanyang.