Getting Things Done

Internal strife isn't unique to sects.

In some ways, the power struggles within the imperial court were even more intense.

Because the Great Yan was too vast, the imperial court's territory was far larger than that of a single sect, and the entanglements of interests were far more complex.

Especially in recent years, the turmoil in the imperial court has been almost one wave after another.

In his memory, Xu Yuan's most direct impression came from the Imperial Music Bureau).

Starting five years ago, the top courtesans at the Imperial Music Bureau) were being replaced rapidly every month.

Today a Censor's wife appears, tomorrow a Vice Minister's daughter will appear.

Xu Yuan estimated that he would see many exorbitantly priced new courtesans in the Imperial Music Bureau during his return to the Imperial Capital.

Three months ago, the previous Minister of Ministry of War and Ministry of Revenue had their homes confiscated.

This is the highest-ranking official whose property has been confiscated in recent years.

Xu Yuan was unaware of the details, but he knew that in the decades since the emperor ascended the throne, thanks to the efforts of the emperor and his father, most of the stubborn old forces of the previous dynasty had been purged.

In other words, the key officials in the court now are basically the Prime Minister and the emperor's own people.

Now, the heads of the two most important departments, the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue, have had their homes raided.

In the past, officials of this rank were mostly transferred, and at worst, they were allowed to retire and return to their hometowns. Even if there was infighting, it was kept within a controllable range, and those who died were mostly lower-ranking officials.

But now they've simply raided their home.

This is a deadly attack.

As a former playboy, Xu Yuan didn't know which side these two officials were on in private, but regardless of whether they were from the prime minister's faction or the emperor's faction, it already showed that the infighting in the court was gradually intensifying.

These people serve as cautionary tales for the Prime Minister's Estate.

Given the current size of the Prime Minister's Estate, the "releasing military power over a cup of wine" approach is no longer feasible. At this point, it's a matter of either advancing or retreating, and taking a step back would mean falling into an abyss.

After he finished speaking, there was a moment of silence.

A hint of unconcealed hesitation appeared in Xu Xinyao's beautiful eyes.

Although he was explaining to Ran Qingmo, she knew that a large part of what her Third Brother said was meant for her.

To shatter the illusions in her heart.

Ran Qingmo, standing to the side, didn't think as much as Xu Xinyao. After a moment of silence, she asked:

"But if war is inevitable, why bother with a marriage agreement?"

Xu Yuan pondered for a moment, then shook his head and smiled:

"This marriage is a disguised alliance."

Ran Qingmo looked puzzled.

"Is this kind of alliance useful?"

"It's no use."

Xu Yuan denied the binding force of the marriage contract without hesitation. "Signing such an alliance, which can only cover up contradictions, is just a pretext to tear it up later."

If marriage alliances could ease tensions, there wouldn't have been so many wars between those dynasties and nomadic tribes in my past life.

But after a pause, Xu Yuan added:

"But both the emperor and my father need this."

Ran Qingmo looked at Xu Yuan, blinking her eyes as if trying to figure out the reason, but ultimately she still couldn't understand.

She didn't understand why they should go to such lengths to do something that had no binding force.

Xu Yuan looked into her eyes:

"The conflict between the emperor and my father has been growing stronger over the past few decades, and it is likely to escalate if things continue like this. But we cannot afford to break off relations now; we still need to rely on each other's strength."

"With this marriage, under the current circumstances, if conflicts arise, we can communicate through this marriage. After all, the princess and I are both direct relatives, and we will more or less consider each other before the relationship truly breaks down."

"You can interpret this as a signal or a sign that both parties want to reconcile."

Upon hearing this, Ran Qingmo looked down at the Ink Sword in her hand:

"Oh"

Xu Yuan noticed her gaze:

"What's wrong?"

Ran Qingmo shook her head:

"Nothing."

Xu Yuan's eyes curved into a smile as he leaned closer to her ear:

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"."

Sensing the man approaching, Ran Qingmo raised her deep eyes and glanced at him before lowering them again:

"... a little."

"."

Xu Yuan was taken aback and subconsciously stopped in his tracks.

The two women didn't wait for him and continued walking towards the main hall of the County Office, their slender figures receding further and further into the distance.

After a long silence, Xu Yuan's lips curled slightly, but he immediately sighed and quickly followed.

"Actually, you don't need to feel uncomfortable."

Ran Qingmo glanced at him sideways, her eyes still showing some disappointment. "Oh."

Xu Yuan thought for a moment, then said in a low voice:

"I'm serious, because you're special to me."

"..." Ran Qingmo stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening slightly as she stared at him.

Seeing this Xu Xinyao, who was in the midst of the chaos, subconsciously turned her gaze over. She temporarily put aside her complicated emotions and looked at the Sword Sect's chief disciple and her Third Brother with a hint of curiosity in her eyes.

Xu Yuan glanced at her, waved his hand, and signaled her to get lost.

Xu Xinyao pouted, but showed no intention of leaving.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan let her have her way.

Ran Qingmo's beautiful eyes welled up with emotion, but she ultimately lowered her gaze and silently walked forward.

"." Xu Yuan.

Xu Xinyao poked Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan turned around.

Xu Xinyao mouthed the words:

Aren't you going to offer some comfort?

Xu Yuan rolled his eyes at his Fourth Sister and said:

"It's no use."

Xu Xinyao looked speechless and sighed.

Xu Yuan's eye twitched.

Although Ran Qingmo is a bit slow on certain things, she is not stupid. More importantly, the rhetoric of shifting blame from her previous life has virtually no effect on her.

Xu Xinyao didn't say much to Xu Yuan, but quickly followed and walked alongside Ran Qingmo, whispering some words to her.

Inside the main hall of the County Office,

Colonel Wang had already removed his military uniform, now dressed in a brown cloth robe, with traces of blood seeping from the surface. He was rubbing his temples vigorously, while an adjutant stood beside him, quietly reporting to him on various matters within the city.

"The list of fallen brothers has been compiled. Here is the list: 5,369 dead, 2,765 missing."

"We temporarily conscripted laborers within the city to clear the rubble and corpses from the streets, but it was still too slow."

"The city's medicinal herb reserves are almost depleted; many people probably won't survive the night."

As the adjutant continued to report on the various matters, his tone suddenly turned slightly somber:

"Also, the martial arts apprentices in those merchant caravans and chivalrous groups have started to become somewhat unruly."

Upon hearing this, Colonel Wang, who had been keeping his eyes open, lowered his hand, his voice sounding somewhat weary:

Tell me more.

The adjutant paused briefly upon hearing this, then said in a low voice:

"The city walls on the west and south sides of the city have been destroyed, and a large residential area there has become ruins. Now that the Demon Beast tide has receded, many people have returned home to retrieve their valuables, but some martial arts practitioners have already taken these valuables. In the ensuing conflict, some people have been killed."

"More importantly, the beast cores and materials left behind by the Demon Beast outside the city are also being gradually devoured by the caravan."

"."

After a brief silence, Colonel Wang suddenly slammed his palm down on the desk in front of him.

The table was snapped in two by Colonel Wang's palm strike.

"These damned bastards! They're good for nothing but causing trouble and incompetence in defending the city. Now they've shown up, how dare they?!"

Having said that, Colonel Wang let out a long breath and gave a cold smile:

"This matter is not a problem. Let's keep them calm for now and let them hurry up and clean up the corpses in the city. As for the Demon Beast cores and materials, let them take as much as they can. When reinforcements arrive, make them return everything with interest! If they don't return it, none of them will leave the city!"

Upon hearing this, the adjutant clasped his hands in a salute:

"Yes, General."

Colonel Wang hesitated for a moment, then added his instructions:

"Remember, we're just turning a blind eye; we don't want to reach an official agreement with them."

"Yes."

"Is there anything else?"

The adjutant thought for a moment, then whispered:

"General, Doctor Cheng just sent word that we've run out of Cleansing Powder. If this continues, I'm afraid an epidemic will break out soon."

Upon hearing this, Colonel Wang hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice:

"Then get people out of the city as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, the adjutant gently shook his head and said:

"General, Doctor Cheng said that simply transporting it out might not be enough; it has to be burned."

"Burn?" Colonel Wang frowned.

"."

The adjutant glanced around, then leaned close and whispered in Colonel Wang's ear:

"Set up a cordon within the city and burn all the corpses in the south and west of the city."

Upon hearing his adjutant's words, Colonel Wang simply asked:

"If we burn it, are you sure it will stop the plague from breaking out?"

The adjutant shook his head. "It only reduces the chances."

Colonel Wang lowered his eyes, his calloused hands gently tapping the armrest of the chair. After a long while, he said in a low voice:

"Go and organize people to clear out this area."

"General Wang!"

The adjutant interrupted Colonel Wang, his tone slightly more forceful. "Even considering the losses, there are tens of thousands of Demon Beast cores and materials. If we sell them all, it would be enough for our Shengshan County to re-engrave array patterns, or even train a new army."

Colonel Wang nodded and said:

"I know."

"Then why?"

Colonel Wang looked at his adjutant and forced a smile:

"With people gone, Shengshan County is truly gone. With such heavy casualties, the imperial court will surely provide disaster relief. Go and make preparations."

The adjutant didn't move.

Colonel Wang frowned:

"Li Chengqi, do you want to disobey orders?"

The adjutant gently shook his head and whispered:

"General, we only have about two hundred men available right now, which is far from enough. If we order something like this to be done, the merchant caravans and chivalrous groups in the city won't agree."

Colonel Wang grinned coldly:

Do you think they dare to rebel?

The adjutant shook his head:

"They wouldn't dare, but they would dare not exert themselves. With the people we have now, we simply cannot complete such a large project."

"."

Colonel Wang remained silent for a moment, then finally sighed helplessly, "Go down, leave me alone for a while."

The adjutant paused for a few moments, then clasped his hands in a respectful salute and said:

"General, you should rest. I'll be leaving now."

Having said that, he turned and walked out of the main hall, leaving Colonel Wang alone sitting in front of the broken document.

After a while,

Colonel Wang bowed slightly, picked up the list of the dead and missing from the ground, and carefully flipped through it page by page.

The soft rustling of pages turning echoed in the silent main hall.

Looking at the names on these lists, some familiar and some unfamiliar, his fists clenched tighter and tighter.

He had been in Flourishing Mountain ever since he joined the army.

Twenty-seven years.

From Xiao Wang, to Brother Wang, and then to Uncle Wang.

He had met all the people represented by these names on the roster. He had crossed paths with many of them. Some called him General Wang, some called him Uncle, and some came back from the market excitedly to tell him that they had found a bargain that day and could make a good profit to improve the military camp next year.

Now, they have become just a few words on this list.

Colonel Wang couldn't treat these young people as mere numbers like those in higher positions, because they had once been a group of living, breathing people in his eyes.

Page after page, as he turned to the last few pages, Colonel Wang's breathing gradually became difficult.

A strong sense of suffocation almost enveloped his entire body.

"Wanxiang Sect"

A deep, almost guttural sound, like teeth grinding, echoed in the silent main hall of the County Office. The veins in his hand holding the roster bulged, but the burly middle-aged man still couldn't bear to destroy it.

After an unknown amount of time, Colonel Wang slowly picked up the brush from the ground, dipped it lightly in the spilled ink, opened the roster, and wrote his name on the last page, at the very last row.

After doing all this, Colonel Wang leaned back in his chair and chuckled softly, a relieved laugh.

He's going to the Myriad Wanxiang Sect to seek justice.

Even knowing that this trip would most likely end in death, the brothers in the military camp, the dead civilians, and the dilapidated Shengshan County all deserve justice.

Thinking of this, Colonel Wang casually placed the roster on the ground.

At this time,

"Colonel Wang, what do you want to do?"

A low voice sounded beside him.

Colonel Wang's pupils contracted slightly, but he quickly relaxed, recognizing the familiar voice. He slowly rose and turned to look.

"Young Master Zhou, when did you arrive?"

Behind him stood a handsome young man in blood-stained clothes, who looked at him calmly.

Xu Yuan remained silent upon hearing this, calmly glancing at him before slowly walking over and picking up the roster from the ground. He opened it, flipped through it for a moment, and upon seeing the names on the last page, sighed softly.

"Actually, you didn't need to do that."

Colonel Wang remained silent.

Xu Yuan looked at him and asked:

"You don't believe the imperial court would target the Wanxiang Sect?"

Colonel Wang shook his head:

"It's not that I don't believe it, but I've lived in the Xize Continent for so many years, and I know everything around here like the back of my hand. Taking action against the Wanxiang Sect would involve a lot of things. If Shengshan County were really gone, perhaps the imperial court would take action against the Wanxiang Sect for political purposes, but given the current situation, that's highly unlikely. Shengshan County needs disaster relief and reconstruction."

Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow and sighed softly:

"You're right, the imperial court indeed won't take action against the Wanxiang Sect."

Colonel Wang smiled and looked down at his calloused hands:

"So, someone has to do something."