No one expected this...
The Azure Dragon Spell, the culprit behind the conspiracy speculated by everyone and even considered the Genesis of this fog, has now been smoothly placed in the hands of an apprentice from the Yin-Yang Academy.
If the high-ranking figures of various factions knew that this top-tier technique inheritance that had caused the commotion was merely a dowry someone had used to marry a concubine, their eyes would probably pop out of their sockets.
Of course, it was fortunate that this fog caused many misunderstandings; otherwise, neither Chen Qing nor Chen Ying would have survived until tomorrow.
Chen Qing, with the perspective of a designer looking down on the world, failed to understand how a high-level technique, which would depreciate in just a few dozen days after a version iteration, could cause such a huge uproar in the world.
Before Chen Ying could even recover from her shock and confusion, she had already taken Wei Gongcheng to arrange and plan the next steps.
" Lord Chen..." Wei Gongcheng stared blankly at Chen Qing, who was still scribbling on the map. "Is that really the Azure Dragon Inheritance?"
"Hmm..." Chen Qing continued drawing without looking up.
"Do you know what that means?" Wei Gongcheng's voice trembled slightly.
Although he was young, he had heard about the fierce battle fought by the Fei Family back then!
" Mu Hongqing can't protect Chen Ying's Azure Dragon Spell at all!"
Hearing this, Chen Qing looked up in confusion. "She's already a member of the Chen Household, why do we need Mu Hongqing to protect her?"
Wei Gongcheng: "..."
"Alright, don't worry about those little things, come here..." Chen Qing beckoned, gesturing for Wei Gongcheng to come closer.
It's nothing...
Wei Gongcheng had a lot to say, but seeing Chen Qing's painting distracted him.
It's a very exquisite painting. It's not that Chen Qing's paintings have a strong artistic atmosphere, but rather that they are very meticulous, creating a layered urban distribution map using fine brushwork.
"Sir, you studied engineering?" Wei Gongcheng asked curiously.
Engineering mechanics was first emphasized during the reign of the King of Qin a century ago. At that time, the King of Qin gathered a large number of top craftsmen from all over the world, broke through many technologies, and created a nearly invincible army. It was also from that time that various forces began to value craftsmen.
Now that the Great Jin Dynasty has been established, although private engineering is strictly prohibited, all the major aristocratic families are secretly cultivating engineering talents. The Yuchi Household has them, and naturally the Wei Household does too.
From this perspective, Chen Qing was indeed not born into a commoner family. In his opinion, his outstanding engineering design skills alone surpassed those of many of the Wei Household members who specialized in this field.
"I know a little..." Chen Qing said vaguely, "What do you think?"
"I don't really understand this..." Wei Gongcheng frowned, but upon closer inspection, his heart skipped a beat. "My lord... is this Liuzhou City?"
It feels very similar, but also feels quite different.
This is the Liuzhou Underworld City!
"Ah?"
"Take this home and take a close look at it. Write it down; you'll need it soon."
Wei Gongcheng blankly accepted the blueprints. Underworld City? What was that?
Chen Qing looked at Wei Gongcheng's bewildered expression and sighed softly.
In his original plan, the establishment of the Underworld was to be implemented at least a year after his term of office, once the door gods and Mountain God had gathered enough faith and the people of Liuzhou had become accustomed to the existence of deities. After all, the Underworld system required a huge Power of Divine Investiture and had a slow return, so it needed a certain mass base to be implemented.
However, the arrival of the items from the sea ahead of schedule forces him to prepare in advance, which increases the risks significantly. But if it succeeds, the establishment of the Lesser Reincarnation System will represent the true formation of the Divine Path power, and his own strength will undergo a qualitative leap, giving him the confidence to face this inexplicable version disorder.
Of course, the most important thing is to withstand the initial turmoil.
"Before Fatty left, he gave you all the household registration records, right? Do you understand the general situation?"
Wei Gongcheng was still confused by the Underworld blueprints when he was taken aback by the question, feeling somewhat out of sync with the other person's train of thought, but he still nodded and said, "I've basically seen them all, so I have a general understanding of them."
My lord, the prefect, has invested all his money in real estate and doesn't even have enough to hire an accountant. It's tough on that Xiaopang surnamed Zhou. I couldn't bear to see him suffer, so I helped him out. I never expected that the chubby guy would stick to me like that and wouldn't leave, relentlessly pestering me to take on a lot of paperwork and miscellaneous tasks...
Are there many young and middle-aged people?
"Huh?" Wei Gongcheng thought for a moment and said, "It's alright. Most of the older folks are still quite scared. Those who dare to come back are mostly ambitious young men. After all, when the docks get busier, the most valuable people are the porters."
"Oh, I see. Approximately how much?"
"The news has been spreading really fast lately; there are probably over a thousand young and middle-aged men who have returned to try and find work."
"Only a thousand..." Chen Qing took a breath. "General Wei, if you recruit these young men into soldiers, how many days would it take you to train them?"
"What?" Wei Gongcheng was taken aback by the question, "My lord wants to train the troops?"
"Hmm..." Chen Qing nodded. "The Provincial Governor has given me the right to temporarily recruit soldiers. You saw the terrible state of the military camp before, so we need to take precautions to protect ourselves."
"Self-preservation?" Wei Gongcheng twitched. Those who died tragically in the military camp were all Yuchi Feihong's personal guards. Which one of them wasn't capable of fighting ten against one on the battlefield?
Besides, you yourself said that it was Yuchi Feihong himself who made the attack. What use would recruiting some temporary militia be?
"Well, that's roughly the idea..." Chen Qing said vaguely, "If General Wei were to train them, how many days would it take to train elite troops?"
"What do you take elite troops for, sir?" Wei Gongcheng laughed angrily. "A few days? From recruits to battlefield training, it might take three years to select one in ten to become elite troops. A few days? You must be joking, sir!"
"Alright, let me put it another way," Chen Qing said seriously, "General Wei, can you train a group of soldiers who dare to kill in just a few days?"
"What exactly is Lord Chen trying to do?" Wei Gongcheng couldn't sit still any longer. The other party didn't seem to be joking at all. If he wanted to compete with Yuchi Feihong for military power, he didn't need to train soldiers to kill people. For a civil official to train such a private army is a crime of treason!
"General Wei must have sensed it too; something's happened in Liuzhou." Chen Qing sighed and explained, "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Now that General Yuchi's whereabouts are unknown, I am the prefect of Liuzhou and have a duty to defend this territory. General Wei, you can understand, can you?"
"We can request troops from Nanming Prefecture!" Wei Gongcheng, frowning.
"We can't apply..." Chen Qing pointed outside. " Nanming Prefecture is probably in dire straits right now."
"What?" Wei Gongcheng was so shocked that he tried to stand up, but his legs were numb, so he could only stare wide-eyed and hold onto the chair. "Sir, what exactly happened?"
"It's still uncertain," Chen Qing could only say evasively. "The most urgent task is to hold Liuzhou. General Wei, please answer my question."
Upon hearing Wei Gongcheng looked at the other person suspiciously for a long time before finally saying:
"If you just want to train your fighting spirit... a suitable battlefield would be quick, maybe a few days at most, but the attrition rate would be quite high!"
"There will be no shortage of battlefields..." Chen Qing sighed softly.
Upon hearing this, Wei Gongcheng gave Chen Qing a deep look. Sure enough, something big was about to happen, and this guy seemed to know what was going to happen, just like when he first learned about the Thousand-Faced Fox!
"The people of Liuzhou are now well-fed and clothed, and if we want to recruit soldiers, especially those who kill, we will offer generous rewards!"
Chen Qing: "Each person shall receive ten taels of silver per month, three meals a day, with meat at each meal!"
"Are you serious, sir?" Wei Gongcheng's eyes twitched. The Yuchi Household was considered quite generous, and they only treated their personal guards this way. Wasn't this excessive treatment for recruiting militia?
Besides, can you even afford to raise it?
"I'll have Gu Bei and the others recruit people later. I'll leave the training to you, General Wei."
Wei Gongcheng took a breath and finally nodded. "If it is only for your own protection, I will do my best!"
Chen Qing smiled and looked at the other party. He understood Wei Gongcheng's thoughts. Although he was now crippled, he was still loyal to the court.
But there's no rush, let's take it slow...
"By the way, where's Chen Ying?"
"You only remembered her now?" Wei Gongcheng rolled his eyes. "I thought you'd forgotten, sir. I glanced over when I came over just now, and Miss Chen wasn't in the courtyard anymore. I reckon she's probably already out of town!"
"Leave the city?" Chen Qing frowned. "What for?"
"What do you mean, 'what are you going to do'?" Wei Gongcheng said with amusement, "Having received such a generous gift from you, sir, if I don't slip away now, when will I?"
"Not so easy!" Chen Qing laughed upon hearing this, "But you've sworn a blood oath, you can't go back on your word!"
"Go back on your word?" Wei Gongcheng looked at Chen Qing strangely. It would be normal for you to go back on your word, right?
"She didn't say she wouldn't keep her promise. Fine, she'll be your concubine, but..." Wei Gongcheng's tone shifted, and he said quietly, "She didn't say she wouldn't leak the technique. Have you considered, sir? Would she give the technique to Mu Hongqing? After all, this is a betrothal gift, Mu Hongqing is practically Chen Ying's family. If she gives the technique to Mu Hongqing, it wouldn't be considered betrayal!"
"Give it if you want..." Chen Qing said nonchalantly, "It's just a betrothal gift anyway, how she wants to spread the word is her business, as long as I can use it."
Wei Gongcheng was stunned again. He couldn't possibly find anyone as generous as this guy in front of him, even if he searched the whole world. Those were the Four Saints Spell; couldn't this guy take them a little more seriously?
Speaking of which... my own younger sister seems to be of marriageable age, right?
"What worries me most is that she wants to go towards Nanming..."
Upon hearing Wei Gongcheng finally smiled, "In the end, you're still afraid that she'll go to Lord Mu now, aren't you?"
"Huh?" Chen Qing immediately gave a wry smile, "If she could find me, she'd be laughing her head off, okay?"
What does Your Excellency mean?
"She can't get out..." Chen Qing shook his head. "But she might run into the Shen Family."
Chen Qing frowned deeply at this thought, because he remembered something: in the Shen Family... there was someone who had been bitten!
Two pieces of great joy!
The first thing is that the Three Rivers has been secured!
Thank you so much for your support and love, everyone!
The second thing is that we reached over a thousand monthly votes yesterday! Hahaha, I didn't expect to enjoy a lucky draw before even being listed on Mofang. I'm truly flattered and grateful for your support!
I noticed in the comments section that the two chapters yesterday were considered Mofang. Well, after reviewing Mofang, I realized that those two chapters, using the Mofang Azure Dragon Spell as a starting point, laid the groundwork for the basic forces involved in this incident. I thought they were two very smooth chapters, but I didn't expect them to cause dissatisfaction among some readers. Hehe, I'm very sorry for the experience. Mofang will actively improve and strive to satisfy more readers.
And so, thanks to everyone's support, Mofang 'm so grateful to be featured on Three Rivers. I'll post my Three Rivers message before it gets recommended, so I won't say more now. Mofang 'm off to write some more, as I'm preparing for a big release. And once again, thank you so much!!