I'll Treat Your Hemorrhoids Later

Huiyao isn't small geographically. While Le Yu hadn't seen a detailed national map, based on the scale of a simplified one, he estimated Huiyao was roughly the size of East Asia in his previous life.

Compared to its vast territory, Huiyao's administrative divisions were quite crude. The nation was split into nine large administrative regions, which were then subdivided into prefectures, counties, and townships. It was as if the entire country was overlaid with a nine-square grid, and every administrative unit within each square was counted as part of one administrative region—it was almost farcical.

They weren't so much administrative regions as they were war zones.

Even the Kinai District, a centrally governed administrative region deep within Huiyao's heartland, had imperial guards like the Blizzard Guard, the Gendarmerie, and the Palace Guard Department protecting the Yan Capital. As for the eight administrative regions bordering other territories, each had a border army, and every army had a history spanning hundreds of years, even becoming a source of pride and aspiration for the local people, much like the Coastal Army was for the Radiant People in Star Engraving.

Coupled with Huiyao's large population and its industrial revolution-level productivity, each administrative region was naturally a state within a state. They had battle-hardened troops, full granaries, and a populace entirely within their borders. Add to that the current situation—the old emperor's death internally and the rebellion in the Skyline District externally—it would be a disservice to the opportune timing, geographical advantage, and popular support if ambitious individuals didn't revolt or rebel.

Therefore, it was perfectly normal for Lu Zhong, Ding Yi, and others to harbor rebellious thoughts and attempt to overthrow the Radiant Court.

It's the emperor's turn, and next year, it'll be mine.

Don't blame your humble servant for being inhumane, it's just that the throne is too tempting...

Le Yu didn't know why the Radiant Court had such a crude administrative division, but the court wasn't truly a White Lotus, allowing border region forces to endlessly expand. Before the Skyline rebellion, the court still held absolute power in appointing administrative personnel and implemented a three-year evaluation system to assess the performance of high-ranking regional officials. This led to transfers, promotions, and demotions, preventing these officials from cultivating their own power bases.

In addition, the court implemented an extremely peculiar policy: separate governance.

The highest leader of each administrative region was the Magistrate. However, at the same time, each administrative region had a centrally managed prefecture directly under the court's control, and the Magistrate could not interfere with the administrative affairs of this directly controlled prefecture. Generally, the centrally controlled prefecture in each region was often the most developed city in terms of culture, economy, politics, and industry!

This meant that while the Magistrate wielded immense power, he could not lay claim to the strongest prefecture within his jurisdiction! The Magistrate could consult and cooperate with the Prefect of that prefecture, but if the Prefect didn't cooperate, the Magistrate had no authority to issue forceful commands!

This was the court's overt strategy: if the Magistrate harbored ill intentions, the centrally controlled prefecture would be a thorn in his side. Moreover, these centrally controlled prefectures often accounted for 20% to 40% of the entire region's size, making it impossible for the Magistrate to ignore them.

If the centrally controlled prefecture, with its massive resources, harbored ill intentions, the Magistrate could then command other prefectures and counties to surround it. Furthermore, due to the immense size of the centrally controlled prefecture, it would create a "siphoning" effect on surrounding areas. While not necessarily hostile, other prefectures and counties would unlikely align with the centrally controlled prefecture. Compared to rebellion, which was a risky endeavor, quelling a rebellion and confiscating the assets of the wealthy seemed far more cost-effective.

The worst-case scenario was if both the Magistrate and the centrally controlled prefecture harbored ill intentions simultaneously.

However, the struggle between Magistrate Lu Zhong and Prefect Ding Yi showed that the court's policy was effective—Ding Yi, who controlled the strongest prefecture, would never submit to Lu Zhong, and Lu Zhong, who governed the Morning Wind District, would undoubtedly try to bring the Star Engraving Prefecture under his control.

If both parties harbored ill intentions, they would inevitably be unable to reconcile and would end up fighting each other.

Inside the Zhou Family residence, the Statistics Department agents exchanged glances. Old Master Zhou's words were like a bucket of cold water poured over them.

Could Prefect Ding truly defeat Administrator Lu?

If they took sides so early, and Administrator Lu won later, their Statistics Department would definitely be purged.

They had vaguely heard that Lan Yan was Prefect Ding's student. But their relationship with Prefect Ding was merely an employment one. And those who could work in the Statistics Department naturally had no strong principles or aspirations; those with aspirations had long been kicked out. Most of the remaining people were unscrupulous individuals, willing to sacrifice their reputation just to climb the ladder, so naturally, they had little loyalty.

If following Prefect Ding truly led to a dead end…

At this thought, many agents quietly lowered their Firearms, their faces hesitant as they looked at their captain and vice-captain. Chen Fu's expression remained unchanged, but he was looking at Le Yu, apparently planning to say, "Me too," after Le Yu made his stance clear.

Bang!

Suddenly, a shot rang out, blowing a hole in the ground in front of Old Master Zhou.

"Traitor! Still trying to incite discord and slander Director Lan even when death is at your doorstep!" Ai Lili pointed her Handgun at Old Master Zhou and personally walked over with handcuffs. "Let's see if you're still so stubborn when you get to the Statistics Department!"

Old Master Zhou trembled but still stubbornly retorted, "If you arrest me, there will be no turning back! Administrator Lu and I are old classmates and friends! Whatever you do to me, Administrator Lu will surely retaliate tenfold with a Recompense Ritual!"

Almost forgot there was a Lan Yan fan here… Le Yu chuckled, "Old Master Zhou, why are you speaking so loudly? Are you afraid others won't know you're trying to sway the Statistics Department? I never thought you'd be so loyal to Lu Zhong, willing to sacrifice your life to Sow Discord between the Statistics Department and Prefect Ding, even if it means no escape. Is this the legendary 'death spy'?"

Le Yu's reminder brought the Statistics Department agents back to their senses—so many people were watching, and Old Master Zhou's words would soon be on the desks of Prefect Ding and Director Lan. Lu Zhong's danger was far away, but if they performed poorly, Lan Yan's punishment was right in front of them!

"Every word I say is true! Don't say I didn't warn you!" Old Master Zhou was anxious. He didn't want to say these things in public, but if he were truly arrested and taken to the Statistics Department, he would surely be tortured. Lan Yan would never listen to his nonsense, but these Statistics Department agents still had a chance to be persuaded: "Give us a way out, and when Star Engraving Prefecture falls, I guarantee your lives—"

Bang!

Le Yu directly picked up a Handgun and fired a shot at Old Master Zhou. The bullet grazed Old Master Zhou's ear, taking off a layer of his scalp.

Old Master Zhou immediately fell silent, his legs turning to jelly as he knelt on the ground, allowing Ai Lili to arrest him.

"Good shot," Chen Fu whistled, directing other agents to make arrests. "I've never seen you practice with Firearms before, I didn't expect you to have this skill."

No, I assure you Qian Yuliu definitely doesn't have this skill.

Because I was aiming at the floor in front of Old Master Zhou…

Le Yu looked at the Handgun. Heaven knows why the bullet flew upwards when he aimed downwards; perhaps the recoil was too strong. He didn't expect Qian Yuliu to be so weak in Firearms, costing Le Yu the chance to be an ADC.

"Ai Lili, Zhou Guangshi, take five people to escort the prisoners back to the Statistics Department. The rest of you, follow me to the next 'jungle farm'."

"Jungle farm?" Chen Fu was initially confused, then suddenly understood: "You mean hunting those wealthy merchants like wild game, right? Let's go, let's go jungle farming!"

As they returned to the armed truck and were about to get in, Le Yu suddenly felt something and looked at Chen Fu beside him.

"What… huh?!"

Before Chen Fu could finish speaking, he felt his head struck by an unknown object. He cried out, clutching the wound in pain, and looked around: "What hit me just now?"

"A pebble. It hit you and then flew off to the side."

"Who threw the pebble?"

"Maybe a crow wanted to grab a pebble to drink water, but it didn't hold on tight, so the pebble fell from the sky and hit your head?"

Chen Fu thought for a long time after getting into the truck, still unable to understand why a crow would grab pebbles to drink water. Le Yu sat in the passenger seat, tucking the pebble into his dark blue jacket. He pulled out the silk cloth that had wrapped the pebble, on which was written Yin Yinyin's WeChat message for today:

「Come treat your hemorrhoids later.」

Damn, no wonder he wasn't afraid of this pebble hitting anyone else!