In front of a valley about twenty li from Suzhou City, a manor without any special features was quietly waiting for dusk to descend.
With the arrival of dusk, the night gradually fell. Four hundred black horses held coins in their mouths and cloths under their hooves as they quietly surrounded the manor like the Grim Reaper of the night.
What followed was a bloody battle. The Black Knights outside the garden shot fire arrows into the garden, and the people inside were lighting their own fires.
Smoke signals rose, lives were lost, and the garden was destroyed.
…
…
The Black Knights were the Fifth Bureau of the Overwatch Council. It was the most powerful department, but there was no one in the yamen. They always waited outside Jingdou for Chen Pingping's transfer. It was not until later that the Overwatch Council gained a young commissioner that the Black Knights split into two. Half a thousand followed Fan Xian. From this, one could see how much Chen Pingping valued Fan Xian.
Last year, when Fan Xian went on a diplomatic mission to Northern Qi, the Black Knights had escorted him all the way to the border. Furthermore, at Wuduhe, they had successfully annihilated the army that Shang Shanhu had sent to rescue Xiao En.
The Black Knights who had been on standby in Jiangbei finally had a place to use their skills today. However, the deputy commander of the Black Knights who was riding at the foot of the mountain did not have any excited expression.
To them, this was just a simple task.
The commander of these 400 Black Knights was the deputy commander of the Fifth Bureau, surnamed Jing Wuming.
Jiang Jing sat steadily on his horse and looked at the raging fire in the garden. His right hand slowly pressed against his face and took off the black mask that covered his face, revealing a pale face and a pair of cold and emotionless eyes under the mask.
The mission the commissioner had given them had been completed. However, they had not expected that this unremarkable garden would have such a powerful martial force that even the Black Knights had suffered some damage. The most terrifying thing was that everyone in the garden seemed to know that they had only one path to death. They fought with all their might. Not a single person surrendered.
Jiang Jing did not know who was in the garden. He was only carrying out the commissioner's orders. Furthermore, the people in the garden had set fire themselves. Some evidence that could not see the light of day had probably long been destroyed.
He grabbed the rope, and the horse's hooves clattered as it slowly approached the burning garden. The cavalrymen under him were treating the wounded and cleaning up the scene. His eyes were filled with killing intent as he watched all of this. Suddenly, his eyelids twitched.
The five riders burst out of the fire, flickering with black flames, as if they were the Ghost Death Cavalry of the netherworld.
Other than the knights in black armor, there were also a few people who were tied up like rice dumplings.
Jing Jing pressed his right hand on his face again and put on the black mask again before the five riders arrived. His thin lips slightly opened and a cold voice rang out. He was a little surprised and a little surprised, "Alive?"
The five riders rode to his side and reported, "These five people are hiding in the well and have surrendered."
Even though Jiang Jing was cold, there was an additional unexpected joy in his heart. The corners of his lips twitched and revealed a cold smile. "The commissioner should be happy."
With this garden's desperate resistance and the plan to burn indiscriminately, it was indeed not easy to capture them alive. Jiang Jing looked at the five captives tied up on the horse and felt a little strange in his heart.
"Back to Suzhou."
The surface of the black mask reflected the golden flames. It looked extraordinarily colorful and had a chilling aura.
Under the mask, Jiang Jing coldly gave the order. Outside the garden, the neighing of horses tore through the silence of the dark night in the valley. The horses' hooves clattered slightly before they formed up again. In unison, they became three black torrents and circled around the burning manor. They swept diagonally across the road at the foot of the mountain and disappeared into the night.
Not long after the Black Knights left the mountain like ghosts and entered the plains, they ran into Deng Zi Yue and his group, who had come to receive orders, and received the commissioner's latest order.
Jiang Jing was silent for a moment and arranged for a small group of riders to escort the captives to Jingdou. The remaining hundreds of night death gods did not enter the city. Instead, they quietly found a place to cross the river and returned to the camp in Jiangbei.
— — —
After Deng Zi Yue reported back to Hua Garden, Fan Xian only nodded his head to indicate he understood. In his study, he finished writing a secret memorial to the Emperor and handed it to a subordinate in the Council to quickly send it back to Jingdou. Then, he went alone to the main hall of Hua Garden.
Bright lanterns hung high in the main hall, illuminating it brightly.
In particular, the chest of snowflake silver was lying quietly in the chest, reflecting an alluring light.
Fan Xian glanced at the chest of silver and shook his head. Sighing, he sat on a chair beside the chest and thought to himself that silver was indeed very useful.
One hundred thirty-eight thousand eight hundred and eighty taels of silver were neatly stacked up in the chest.
Fan Xian couldn't resist glancing at it again and sighed again. In the end, he gave up on the thought in his heart.
Facing Ye Liuyun, that feeling of helplessness and powerlessness actually made Fan Xian angry. Of course, he did not feel any unnecessary self-pity or humiliation. Not being able to defeat a Great Grandmaster was a matter of justice. However …
He knew that no matter how his life developed in the future, there would come a day when he would face a Great Grandmaster. Even if it wasn't Ye Liuyun, Sigu Jian or that person in the Palace, he would still have to face them head on.
However, Ye Liuyun had cut the building in half with one strike and that powerful aura that filled the heaven and earth. It all made Fan Xian clearly realize that the current him was completely helpless against someone of the Great Grandmaster level.
It was the same logic as the Ming family being completely helpless against him.
A Great Grandmaster was too powerful, so powerful that he could ignore the encirclement of normal martial power. No wonder the Emperor had always been lukewarm toward the Ye family. No wonder Ku He was able to support that pair of orphans and widows. No wonder an idiot like Sigu Jian could protect Dongyi.
Fan Xian thought to himself and sighed. He began to miss his dear Uncle Wu Zhu.
Immediately, he overturned his thoughts. He only had one life. He couldn't always rely on his uncle to resolve his worries and remove difficulties. Particularly, Wu Zhu couldn't have any advantage when facing these Great Grandmasters. From the depths of his heart, Fan Xian didn't want Uncle Wu Zhu to take risks.
…
…
Then, how could he kill a Great Grandmaster?
Under the company of a chest of silver and a hall full of lights, Fan Xian sank into deep thought. In an instant, he had already simulated many scenarios and themes in his mind. What kind of place of certain death and certain killing opportunity would he have to create in order to kill a Great Grandmaster on the spot?
His palm unconsciously patted the chest. Suddenly, he stood up and yelled in a loud voice, "Meeting! Meeting! "
As he yelled, he walked toward the back of the hall.
The commissioner had called for a meeting, so no one dared to slight it. The upper-level officials the Overwatch Council had placed in Hua Garden, all of the members of the Qinian Unit, and the seven Tiger Guards all gathered in the conference hall.
Fan Xian's butt had just landed on the chair when he couldn't resist laughing and scolding, "Help Sir Lin back to play."
He glared at the Third Prince, who had come to watch the spectacle, and Da Bao, who had run in at some point, and had the serving girls help these two back.
Glancing at the number of people present, he shook his head and said, "Invite Shi Chanli and Sang Wen over as well."
The subordinate accepted the order and left. In a moment, Shi Chanli and Sang Wen also arrived in the hall. Shi Chanli often helped his teacher handle some affairs, so he was not unfamiliar with this kind of meeting situation. On the contrary, Sang Wen's gentle face was filled with hesitation and shock. She thought, The imperial envoy was discussing the important matters of court. What was she, a singer, doing here?
"The theme of today's meeting is very simple. Everyone, open your minds. If you have any strange ideas, be bold and say them."
Fan Xian rubbed his temples and said with a headache, "I really can't think of anything by myself."
Tiger Guard Gao Da glanced at him and saw the commissioner's worry, but he didn't know what he was worried about. In a low voice, he said, "Sir, please give your orders."
"Brainstorm, brainstorm, brainstorm," Fan Xian forced a smile and said. "Everyone, come and help come up with ideas."
Everyone looked at him curiously, not knowing what ideas he wanted them to come up with.
Fan Xian said very seriously, "What do you think it takes to kill a Great Grandmaster?"
…
…
The discussion hall immediately became silent. All the subordinates looked at each other. Sang Wen was so shocked that she pressed her slightly wide lips together into a small cherry mouth. Shi Chanli had a strong urge to turn and leave.
What was this discussion about?
How could one kill a Great Grandmaster?
If someone could actually think of a way, then the first thing the Qing Kingdom and Northern Qi would do was to send people to kill Sigu Jian according to the law. Then, the two countries would first divide the wealth of Dongyi with the noble women of the vassal states.
Of all the people in the hall, Deng Zi Yue's position was higher and he was closer to Fan Xian. Looking at his expression and the strange expressions of his colleagues, he carefully said, "Sir … were you injured by the sword qi?"
Fan Xian immediately cursed angrily, "I didn't injure my brain!"
He didn't care how shocked his subordinates were. In any case, he forced everyone to come up with ideas. For a moment, the people in the discussion hall were forced into a corner. They could only pick some absurd ideas to come up with. As they came up with ideas, everyone felt uneasy. A Great Grandmaster was revered by tens of thousands of people. He was a god-like figure. Yet, they had to follow the Commissioner's orders and think of how to harm him.
However, the Overwatch Council was, in the end, a sinister yamen flowing with black water. After saying a few words, everyone let go of their courage and felt a strange sense of pleasure. Meeting to discuss how to kill a Great Grandmaster … Even if they couldn't kill him, just thinking about it was exciting enough.
Someone opened the discussion by saying that they could not defeat a Great Grandmaster. If they wanted to defeat him, first of all, they had to weaken his power and increase their own. They suggested using poison.
Someone immediately retorted that a Great Grandmaster's martial power had reached perfection. Once poison entered the body, it would immediately turn into a puddle of snow water and be useless.
Someone suggested that they should choose a medicine that stimulated the body's inherent qualities. It was not an external poison, but it could move the body's emotions or energy in a short time. Naturally, it would weaken afterward.
Fan Xian coldly interrupted, "That's an aphrodisiac."
Someone else said that if one wanted to take a person's life, one had to first disturb their will. If one wanted to kill someone, one had to first make them crazy. They should construct some special scene to intensify the Great Grandmaster's emotions and make his mind sink into confusion.
Fan Xian nodded with great approval. In his heart, he was cursing Ouyang Feng's craziness.
Deng Zi Yue thought for a while and suddenly slapped the table. "In reality, it's not difficult. As long as we think of a way to set up a trap so that the opponent can't escape easily, we can use the Sixth Bureau's crossbow camps to surround him and release them in order without stopping or resting. We can exhaust his true strength. Even if we have to use tens of thousands of crossbow arrows, we have to weaken the opponent's body and Qi. Then, we can use the Fifth Bureau's Black Knights to charge. After all, a Great Grandmaster is not a god.
Fan Xian looked at him and asked, "How many people do you think will die with this plan of yours?"
Deng Zi Yue calculated and reported, "The Sixth Bureau's crossbow camps will probably all be destroyed. There should still be 10 percent of the Black Knights alive."
Fan Xian shook his head and said, "I want to kill people, not send my own people to their deaths."
Deng Zi Yue excitedly said, "If we can actually succeed, it doesn't matter how many people die."
Fan Xian raised his brows and smiled coldly. "Then, how can you make the opponent not move and not escape? Just stand there and let you shoot and rush as you please? He's not a scarecrow … "
Deng Zi Yue was silent.
The brainstorming continued. The ideas everyone came up with became increasingly preposterous and nonsensical. Some people suggested becoming kidnappers, others suggested playing with an avalanche, and others suggested doing something to the latrine.
Then, the rebuttals also arrived. First, Sigu Jian did not have any family. His family had all been killed by him. At the same time, Dongyi never saw snow all year round. As for the last suggestion, everyone snorted disdainfully and couldn't be bothered with it.
Fan Xian watched this scene with cold eyes and felt slightly at ease. This seemingly preposterous discussion was actually to lessen the shock in his subordinates' hearts at the Baoyue Brothel incident. Ye Liuyun's sudden appearance had, without question, created a powerful shadow in their hearts. Even Gao Da's face had difficulty showing its original determination.
Taking such a group of subordinates to do things, he couldn't allow them to be immersed in such inappropriate emotions.
That was why Fan Xian would openly and openly ask everyone to discuss how to kill a Great Grandmaster. After a few rounds of discussion, it was clear that the fear suppressed in the depths of everyone's hearts had lessened greatly. Other than excitement, it could be said that they had swept away the shock they had received during the day. The effect was good.
Of course, the people in the discussion room did indeed bring up some effective methods. No one knew if Fan Xian would use them in the future. As for his subordinates taking Sigu Jian as their imaginary enemy, it was somewhat unexpected to Fan Xian.
The people of the Qing Kingdom would never think of dealing with Ye Liuyun.
Because they were in the honeymoon period with Northern Qi, because of Fan Xian's relationship with Haitang, and because the young lady of the Fan family had now become Master Ku He's last disciple, the subordinates would not blindly discuss how to kill Ku He in front of the Commissioner.
It was that pitiful Sigu Jian again.
…
…
The discussion lasted until the candles were extinguished. After everyone dispersed, they continued to whisper among themselves in the garden. They were excited by the Commissioner's daring action and couldn't help themselves.
Fan Xian shook his head and called Sang Wen over. "Baoyue Brothel is half-destroyed. It will take at least half a month to repair. What arrangements have been made for the girls in the brothel?"
When they first went to evacuate the neighborhood, the guests in Baoyue Brothel had all left. The girls had also been evacuated to a safe area. It was not until now that Fan Xian had the leisure to worry about his brothel business.
Sang Wen replied respectfully and cautiously, "The girls have been temporarily placed in other brothels. The bosses are very easy to talk to and have all taken them. However, staying in other brothels for a long time is not a good thing."
Fan Xian nodded. In all of Suzhou, there was no one who didn't look at his face. Those brothel bosses were probably more than happy to help take in their own girls.
"Then, let Shi Chanli take the lead on the matter of re-cultivation. You can rest for a while." Fan Xian suddenly thought of something and raised his brows. A glimmer of ruthlessness appeared on his handsome face. "Put away all of the detailed bills. When I return to the capital next year, I will find someone to collect on them."
Sang Wen made a sound of acknowledgment.
Fan Xian asked, "You don't have to live outside. Hua Garden is big. Spend a few days with Sisi and help look after my brother-in-law."
Sang Wen smiled innocently and covered her mouth, not saying anything.
"What is it?"
"Miss Haitang also said the same thing," Sang Wen said with a light laugh. "Those two girls have also been brought to the garden."
Fan Xian was startled. Only now did he understand that she was talking about the two leading ladies of Baoyue Brothel, Liang Diandian and Ma Suosuo. He couldn't help but be surprised at Haitang's meticulousness. Liang Diandian had not officially opened her cards, so it was indeed not appropriate for her to live in another brothel. As for Ma Suosuo …
That was the Great Prince's mistress. He had to take good care of her.
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