A brothel.
Qingyun Tower.
Inside, beautiful women filled the place, and everyone who came and went was dressed in finery.
In one private room, Meng Cao lay in a woman's arms, his roving hands wandering all over her body, drawing soft, breathless moans from her.
"Lord Meng, you're so wicked!"
the woman panted.
Meng Cao leered and gave her a squeeze. Just as he was about to speak, a knock came from outside.
"Lord Meng!"
Hearing the familiar voice, he immediately sat up and waved for the woman to leave. Then he said, "Come in!"
As soon as the words left his mouth,
Zhang Yongda entered with a fawning smile.
"How did it go?"
Meng Cao asked.
"Just as you ordered, I've already told that kid about it."
"He knew it was a trap, but he still agreed."
"I also brought it up with Brother Sun."
"He didn't give me a definite answer, but judging by his reaction, he seems to have accepted it."
"We'll just wait until we go to capture the bandits, then take care of that kid first."
"To be safe, I've also found someone to strike at the crucial moment and make sure that kid from the He Family doesn't come back alive."
"Lastly, I'll be following along in secret."
"With three safeguards in place, no matter how capable that kid is, there's no way he'll escape."
Zhang Yongda replied respectfully.
Meng Cao nodded.
"Nicely done. You've thought this through perfectly. This time, even if that kid turns into an eagle, he won't fly out of my palm."
"The only road ahead of him is death."
"Of course." Zhang Yongda's face was all ingratiating smiles.
"With you making a move, Lord Meng, how could it possibly fail?"
"Once that kid from the He Family is dead and that fool He Ping is kicked out of the Town Martial Division, they'll naturally beg you to spare their family."
"When the time comes, all you'll need to do is lift a finger. He'll persuade his wife and respectfully send her to your room, where you can dote on her as you please."
At that, Meng Cao chuckled.
"Not bad."
"When that time comes, no matter how chaste and spirited a mare she is, she'll still submit to my virility."
Zhang Yongda hurriedly agreed.
Then, just as he was about to take his leave,
Meng Cao gave a light cough.
"Xiao Zhang, you've done well with this. What reward do you want?"
"Working for you is reward enough, Lord Meng. It's this lowly one's honor!"
Zhang Yongda's mind raced.
"Good!"
Meng Cao laughed heartily. "I'm glad you feel that way. The next time a good position opens up in Sinei, I'll make sure to reserve it for you first."
"Thank you, Lord Meng."
Zhang Yongda's grin nearly split his face.
"But..."
At the change in tone, Zhang Yongda's heart tightened.
Meng Cao smiled. "I've been a little lonely lately. Has your sister-in-law been busy these past few days? Why not send her to my home, so she can share a few cups of fine wine with me?"
Zhang Yongda: "..."
Three days later.
In the woods outside the city.
A group of ten had gathered, all of them members of the Town Martial Division.
Apart from He An, two others were Town Martial Division runners whose names weren't on the official register.
He had seen them during roll call, so he remembered them a little.
With no one at home to pull strings for them, they had been assigned to the toughest post.
The front line of the capture operation.
Besides them,
there were seven more minor officials from the Town Martial Division, including Sun Wangxian.
"Brother Sun!"
He An greeted him with a smile.
The latter narrowed his eyes and studied He An.
"Sir!"
Just then, a burst of hoofbeats came from the distance.
Several uniformed men from the Government Office dismounted.
"Captain Sun!"
The man at their head cupped his fists in greeting.
Sun Wangxian nodded. "Captain Wang, how did the investigation go? Are you sure those people are still in these woods?"
"We are."
Captain Wang pointed toward the woods and explained, "Though they're remote, a few households are scattered through them."
"Some of the locals saw those bandits from a distance while gathering medicinal herbs."
"They thought the men were acting suspiciously, so they went down the mountain to report it."
"After comparing the details, we're certain it was that same group."
"To avoid alerting them, I didn't send my men to investigate."
"But the person who reported them said the bandits are likely hiding in a ruined house halfway up the mountain."
"That's the only place in these woods where they could hide."
"Good!" A smile appeared on Sun Wangxian's face.
"Captain Wang, we have you to thank for this. We never would have found the bandits' hideout so quickly without your help."
"They've killed so many people, leaving everyone in Fangcheng on edge."
"Now, we can finally bring this to an end."
"If we handle this well, the Centurion and the County Governor will remember our contribution."
"After all, if nothing unexpected happened, these people were the remnants of the Salvation Cult who escaped!"
At that,
everyone grew excited.
Especially the minor officials from the Town Martial Division.
They knew exactly what Sun Wangxian meant.
Sometimes, winning the favor of one's superiors was worth far more than a few rewards.
Captain Wang understood the implications as well and chimed in:
"Captain Sun is right. The County Governor has been following this case closely. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent us to assist you."
Normally,
Martial Artists who broke the law with their skills were the Town Martial Division's responsibility. The Government Office rarely got involved.
Only when something especially serious happened,
like the Salvation Cult,
would the Town Martial Division and the Government Office work together on a case.
One was the Town Martial Division's Centurion; the other, the ruler of an entire county.
Such an impressive lineup left many of them brimming with excitement.
They wanted to make a good impression during this mission, so they could secure a brighter future for themselves.
But just as everyone was eager to get started,
Sun Wangxian's expression turned grave, and he glared at them with furious eyes.
"Brother Sun, what's wrong?" Everyone looked confused.
Just as Captain Wang was about to ask,
Sun Wangxian suddenly spoke.
"Everyone, this matter concerns all of our futures. It's incredibly important to every one of us."
"But I've heard that someone intends to use this opportunity to turn on one of our own."
"I will never allow that."
"I don't care who it is or what reward you're hoping to get. For now, you'd better all behave yourselves."
"Otherwise, don't blame me for showing no mercy. I'll personally clean house on behalf of the Town Martial Division."
His gaze swept coldly over the group.
In an instant,
several people's expressions changed.
Watching this, He An was filled with curiosity.
Sun Wangxian was clearly speaking up for him.
But the thing was, he and Sun Wangxian barely knew each other, and the same was true of his elder brother.
If so,
why was the man helping him?
Could it be Brother Wu's arrangement?
Before you continue