Chapter 1525: Wu Chang Objects

What did he mean, "that's enough"? Shao Pingbo remained impassive. He had come in person; how could "that's enough" possibly be enough?

With a turn of his hand, he produced a Blackwater Terrace token. "Blackwater Terrace is conducting business. I ask that those uninvolved not interfere."

He had always possessed a Blackwater Terrace token. Blackwater Terrace had never taken it back, which was partly due to Taishu Xiong's wishes. Taishu Xiong had always hoped Shao Pingbo would come out and handle affairs, while Blackwater Terrace had also kept men stationed at the Shao residence. Among the people accompanying him now were Blackwater Terrace personnel.

The two cultivators exchanged a glance, visibly wary. One reminded him, "Superintendent Shao, this is a matter within their family. If you invoke Blackwater Terrace's authority here, you're using public power to settle a private grudge."

Shao Pingbo gave an "oh" and put the token away. "A family matter? Fine. Then we'll treat it as a family matter. This is my younger sister's household, which makes it our family matter. I ask that the two of you not interfere."

The other man said, "Superintendent Shao..."

Shao Pingbo cut him off. "Enough. Whatever happens, I'll take responsibility. Later I'll give Elder Taishu, who is stationed at the palace, an explanation myself." He lifted his chin toward the men pinning the two on the ground. "What are you waiting for?"

Several cracks rang out. Hao Qi's and Hao Yunsheng's legs were either wrenched until the bones broke or stamped apart beneath a boot.

"Ah..." The two let out a burst of shrill screams.

None of the men accompanying them dared move. Shao Pingbo had already spoken: anyone who tried to interfere would have his own limbs broken as well.

And they could not have stopped it anyway. Quite a few of Shao Pingbo's guards were cultivators.

Taishu Huan'er could not bear to watch and turned her face away. She had never known this was her husband's true style of handling affairs.

The two men, groaning and drenched in cold sweat from the pain, were finally released. Shao Pingbo strolled over and looked down at them from above. "You have one day. Everything you've swallowed, return it honestly. I haven't yet settled the account of your harboring a former imperial consort of the State of Wei. By this time tomorrow, if even one item is missing, don't blame Blackwater Terrace for confiscating your estates on charges of colluding with the enemy! Once you enter Blackwater Terrace, I guarantee you won't come out alive. Throw them out!"

He was not afraid of offending these two, nor was he worried that acting this way would stir up any real trouble. Given his current relations with the court officials, no one would offend him for the sake of two insignificant men. Nor would he give them another chance for revenge. Once they had coughed up what they had taken, sooner or later both men would die violent deaths. Some "remnants of Qi" would see to that.

And so the two men, sweating from pain and moaning endlessly, were dragged away and thrown out. Their attendants fled after them in disgrace.

The two Jin cultivators assigned to the princely residence exchanged another glance, then also withdrew as though the matter had nothing to do with them. All they needed to do was report what had happened. How it should be handled was for those above them to decide.

What followed finally looked like a family reunion. Shao Sansheng, tears in his eyes, paid his respects to the Young Mistress and introduced Taishu Huan'er to everyone in the household.

Hao Zhen's two sons also called Shao Pingbo "Uncle." The two boys looked at him with open admiration. After seeing the decisiveness and killing intent with which he had handled matters, it was only natural for boys their age to feel immensely satisfied.

They had no idea that years earlier, when Shao Pingbo had been clearing a road for Shao Liuer, he had once considered having them killed.

Shao Liuer's own son was already old enough to run all over the place and loved climbing trees. Naturally, Shao Pingbo saw the little fellow too and gave him a meeting gift.

As for Hao Zhen, from beginning to end he remained very quiet. He answered only when directly asked something.

When it was time to leave, Shao Liuer led Hao Zhen's two sons to see them off at the gate. Before parting, Shao Pingbo reminded his sister, "If anything happens in the future, don't keep silent. Send someone to contact Old Shao."

Shao Liuer obediently answered, "Mm."

Shao Pingbo then turned and reminded Taishu Huan'er, "When you have time, come visit often. Don't let things become too distant."

Taishu Huan'er smiled and linked arms with Shao Liuer. "We're one family. Of course we'll visit one another often. Do I need you to tell me that?"

Husband and wife took their leave. Shao Liuer stood watching the carriage disappear, her expression extraordinarily complicated.

At last, she had escaped the situation that had nearly driven her mad. She felt as though a great burden had been lifted. If Hao Qi and the others had continued tormenting them like that day after day, it truly would not have been a life fit for human beings.

After this, she finally understood something clearly: if her family wanted to live safely in Jin, they could not do without this elder brother's protection.

Inside the carriage, Shao Pingbo was likewise flooded with emotion. This time, Shao Liuer had called him "Elder Brother" quite a few times and had even encouraged her son to grow closer to him.

Brother and sister reconciling was exactly the result he had wanted. It was also why he had watched Hao Qi and the others pressure them for so long without intervening.

Yet there was no real joy in his heart.

Liuer was no longer the Liuer she had once been, no longer the girl whose love and hate were clear-cut and who had been willing to die for a man. Life had worn away her edges. She had bowed before reality. Even in her words, for the sake of protecting her husband and children, there had been a faint sense that she was taking the initiative to curry favor with him.

Perhaps that was a good thing.

But it also meant he had failed to protect the purity she once possessed.

Taishu Huan'er, on the other hand, was delighted. She had discovered that this younger sister-in-law was not difficult to get along with at all and was even quite close to her. A stone had fallen from her heart, and she chattered nonstop about where she would take Shao Liuer and the others to have fun next time.

...

Rumors that Jin intended to move its capital had begun spreading. At the same time, officials throughout Yan were wondering whether the Regent intended to move the capital as well, because Shang Chaozong showed no sign of relocating his seat to Yanjing.

Even Shang Yongzhong, Grand Marshal of Yan, seemed intent on staying in Nanzhou Prefectural Capital rather than leaving.

Every day he ran to Shang Chaozong's side. He was often seen around Meng Shanming and Lan Ruoting as well.

He understood his own position very clearly. Grand Marshal of Yan? He held no real military power. He only had that office for as long as others said it was his; they could strip it away at any time. There was simply no comparing him with Meng Shanming and Lan Ruoting.

Meng Shanming in particular now carried truly decisive weight in Yan's military establishment after Shang Chaozong became Regent. Shang Yongzhong therefore went to seek Meng Shanming's instructions frequently.

He also had a legitimate reason not to return to Yanjing. Zijin Cave, Xiaoyao Palace, and Lingjian Mountain were in the middle of a massive readjustment of their interests. Yan's forces were being transferred on a large scale. Although Shang Yongzhong lacked genuine authority, as Grand Marshal he still knew the details of many matters. He could draw up comprehensive reports for Shang Chaozong's side and remain here to help transmit military orders to the various provinces.

In this way, it became perfectly natural for him to stay.

After spending enough time around Shang Chaozong and his people, he finally understood the Regent's intentions.

Shang Chaozong had no intention whatsoever of moving his seat to Yanjing.

First, Shang Jianxiong's roots in the capital ran too deep. If Shang Chaozong moved to Yanjing, he would inevitably have to transfer a large number of trusted troops and retainers there, which would disrupt the existing military deployment.

Second, Nanzhou now occupied a crucial position, sitting precisely between Yan proper and the territories occupied from Qin. Strategically, it was even more important than the capital.

Finally, they had operated in Nanzhou for many years and felt secure here. It was also convenient for responding to Jin's eastern campaign should it come.

He was only Regent of Yan, not Emperor. Why spend enormous manpower and resources moving all the way to the capital for no good reason?

Once Shang Yongzhong understood what this side intended, he immediately ordered people to purchase a residence for him in Nanzhou. At the same time, he sent word to his family telling them to relocate there as quickly as possible.

The moment he took the lead, the officials at court understood what was happening.

They began running toward Nanzhou as well, moving their entire households. The whole civil and military apparatus of the court gradually began shifting toward Nanzhou.

Land prices in Nanzhou Prefectural Capital immediately soared.

...

At Qiyun Sect, Lan Daolin and Du Wuxu arrived together.

Wu Chang appeared to receive them. There was no need for courtesies between the three. He simply asked, "What is it?"

Standing by the railing with his hands clasped behind his back, Lan Daolin said, "You can't have missed the scale of the upheaval in Yan."

Wu Chang said, "What are you trying to say?"

Du Wuxu said, "Shang Chaozong now controls all military and civil authority in Yan. If he integrates Yan's strength, it will hinder Jin's eastern campaign. Can't you see that?"

Lan Daolin added, "Shang Chaozong is skilled at commanding armies. He will indeed be an obstacle to Jin's eastern campaign."

Wu Chang said, "He will. So what?"

Lan Daolin said, "Have Misty Pavilion step in. Invite Shang Chaozong and the other principal figures to Misty Pavilion, then find an excuse to eliminate them."

Wu Chang said, "I oppose that."

Du Wuxu said, "You're the one who wanted to use Jin's strength to sweep all under Heaven. Now an obstacle has appeared, and you're also the one opposing its removal. What exactly are you trying to do?"

Wu Chang said, "Do you take everyone beneath Heaven for idiots? If you think our intentions still aren't obvious enough, why don't you simply kill the principal military figures in Han and Song as well? Then every sect beneath Heaven will know we intend to strip away their interests. They'll band together, rush to the front lines, and resist Jin. Will that make you happy? Then the hidden Nascent Soul cultivators will start slipping into Jin's army to launch surprise attacks and create chaos. Can we stop them? The result will be that Jin loses the ability to sweep the states one by one. Then what the hell was the point of all this? If that's what you want, we might as well go back to searching for a needle in the sea and forget this whole detour through Jin. Think clearly. The momentum is not on our side right now, but openly and secretly, none of the factions dare choose a side. If we force cultivators beneath Heaven into being used by those people, and they begin assassinating Misty Pavilion personnel whenever they feel like it, how many people do we have for them to kill? Can we keep every subordinate tied to our belts forever just to protect them? Or do you intend for the three of us to be the only ones left in the end, running around every day killing this person and that one? With people sabotaging us from behind, do you think killing people alone can make everyone obedient? If only the three of us remain, can the three of us even find the people we're looking for?"

Lan Daolin said heavily, "They may already know what we're trying to do."

Wu Chang said, "Then what do you propose? Don't forget the other side still has the Holy Rakshasa, Luo Fangfei, and more than ten Nascent Soul cultivators. We're in a passive position. For now, we can only take things one step at a time."

Du Wuxu said, "Their objective is obvious. They're defeating us one by one. I expect they've already set their sights on the three of us and are waiting for a chance to eliminate us separately!"

Wu Chang said, "That still requires them to be capable of killing us. The fact that they haven't acted means they lack confidence. So long as we steady ourselves, don't panic, and stop giving them opportunities to exploit, they can do nothing to us."

Lan Daolin said coldly, "Can you really guarantee you won't be exploited? How did that old hag die?"

Wu Chang said, "Before, we had no idea Luo Fangfei would suddenly appear. Now we must account for the possibility of Luo Fangfei and the Holy Rakshasa joining forces. The three of us cannot continue fighting among ourselves."

Lan Daolin glanced at Du Wuxu. "Luo Fangfei appeared, and this fellow still went ahead and killed Luo Qiu!"

Du Wuxu replied impassively, "How was I supposed to know Luo Fangfei had the strength to fight you head-on? I never saw how strong she was. Everything comes from your mouth. Whether it's true or false—or whether you're harboring some scheme of your own—only you know."

[End of Chapter 1525]