Fortunately, Miao Yi didn't disappoint him. Miao Yi stood on the steps of the City Guard Palace's rear hall, smiling as he watched Linghu Douzhong approach.
He knew who Miao Yi was, and so did Bluemoon, who stood beside Miao Yi. Linghu Douzhong tore off his disguise, and so did his entourage.
As he approached, Miao Yi didn't put on any airs. He quickly walked down the steps and cupped his fists in welcome, "Marshal Linghu has come from afar. I didn't welcome you from afar because I didn't want outsiders to see me and cause trouble. Please forgive me, Marshal!" At the same time, he cupped his fists at Linghu Douzhong's entourage.
Linghu Douzhong also cupped his fists politely and humbly said, "A defeated general doesn't deserve the title of Marshal. Greetings, Governor."
The two of them were polite and humble when they met, but they both knew that the main issue was whether or not they could sit down and talk together.
"Please!" Miao Yi gestured for the entourage to take a seat, then walked up the steps with Linghu Douzhong. Linghu Douzhong then cupped his fists at Bluemoon. As for the others, there was no need to be humble.
Bluemoon still didn't know what Miao Yi was up to. When she saw Linghu Douzhong running over, she was a little taken aback and didn't understand what was going on.
Fu Qing was also taken aback. 'So this is Marshal Yin, Linghu Douzhong?' He couldn't help but sigh at the situation. After not hanging out with Miao Yi for so many years, he realized that the gap between them was getting bigger and bigger. Even someone like Linghu Douzhong was being so courteous. He couldn't describe his feelings at all. At the same time, he was determined to follow Miao Yi. Otherwise, he would be hiding here like a child playing house.
Yang Zhaoqing didn't know what was going on at first. He only found out when Miao Yi asked him to send someone to receive Linghu Douzhong.
Miao Yi and Linghu Douzhong sat down at the tea table in the main hall, with their own people standing on either side. The tea that was served was just for show. Linghu Douzhong and the others didn't dare to eat anything here. What if they had done something?
Miao Yi didn't say anything after saying "please". He slowly sipped his tea, and occasionally looked up with a smile, waiting for the other party to speak. 'You're the one begging me, not the other way around.
Linghu Douzhong was puzzled, but he had to admit that Miao Yi was courageous. This guy actually dared to meet him without checking him. Was he certain that he wouldn't dare to do anything rash?
"I wonder if the Viceroy has considered the matter?" Linghu Douzhong finally spoke first.
"Well said!" Miao Yi nodded and put down his teacup. "Since the Marshal has come to cast his vote, it is an honor for me. How can I not accept it?"
Linghu Dou Zhong's body leaned slightly towards him, observing his expression. "So, Governor is willing to carve out a foothold for us in the Netherworld?"
Only then did Bluemoon and the others realize that Linghu Dou Zhong and the others were probably unable to establish themselves in the eastern army and wanted to go to the netherworld. But how could they agree to this? The things involved in this matter were too troublesome.
Seeing that the other party didn't mention anything about becoming his subordinate, Miao Yi figured that he still had some hope of fighting for it. Miao Yi decided to go straight to the point and nonchalantly said, "I do have the intention, but I can't do anything about it. We're all sinners after all. Someone needs to watch over us."
Linghu Dou Zhong glanced at his subordinates, then cupped his fists towards Miao Yi and said, "We are willing to serve under the Governor and listen to your commands."
Bluemoon and the others felt their hearts skip a beat. What was going on?
Miao Yi wasn't in a hurry to agree. Instead, he asked, "Does the Marshal know of my difficulties?"
Linghu Dou Zhong feigned ignorance and said, "I don't know. I'd like to hear the details!"
Miao Yi also looked at Linghu Dou Zhong's subordinates and said, "Ying Jiuguang can't escape the charge of treason. What status do you all have? Sinners! Even if it's not treason, it's still considered assisting in it. If you were to help everyone maintain your current rank, forget me, I'm afraid even His Majesty wouldn't be able to do it. It would be inexcusable if such a heavy crime wasn't severely punished. I'm afraid the ministers of the imperial court would be the first to object. If they were to open their mouths, what would happen then? You have to give the people of the world an explanation! "
Linghu Dou Zhong sighed. "Sigh! I have no choice. But now that things have come to this, it's too late to say anything. I wonder what kind of explanation the Governor wants us to give? "
Miao Yi gave him a sidelong glance and said, "We might be one family in the future, so there's no need to beat around the bush. If His Majesty doesn't give the people of the world an explanation, I won't be able to take you all in. Assisting in treason is a heavy crime. It won't be justifiable if you aren't severely punished. Why don't you all be demoted to a lower rank? This way, it'll be easier for me to report this to the Heavenly Court. His Majesty will also be able to give the ministers of the imperial court an explanation.
Don't you think so, Marshal? "Linghu Dou Zhong exchanged glances with his subordinates. With a serious expression, he asked," How far do you want to demote us? "
Miao Yi's finger circled around the rim of his teacup as he calmly said, "With the Marshal's status here, no matter how I demote you, I won't be able to go overboard. I still have the position of Underworld's Vice Domain Chief reserved for the Marshal. As for the others, I'm guessing most of you will be relegated to the ranks of foot soldiers."
Linghu Dou Zhong's expression darkened. Demoting him from Marshal to Vice Domain Chief was a little too much.
Unexpectedly, Miao Yi continued, "What I'm talking about are all deputy positions. To put it bluntly, I want to remove all of you from your military authority!"
One of Linghu Dou Zhong's subordinates couldn't hold it in any longer. He abruptly stepped forward and said, "Governor, aren't you going a little too far? If that's the case, won't we be at your mercy?"
Miao Yi scoffed. If the other party was being polite, he would be polite as well. If the other party wasn't being polite, then he wouldn't have anything nice to say either. He looked over and said, "You're being too harsh with your words. I only have a few subordinates. How many do you have? The people below me are all your former subordinates. If you want to cause trouble, who knows who will be the one at the mercy? What does this have to do with whether you have military authority or not? To put it bluntly, if it weren't for His Majesty's orders, I wouldn't have wanted to cause this trouble at all. Also, it's not that I'm going too far, but if you continue to hold on to your military authority, do you think Marshal Teng, Marshal Cheng, or anyone else will feel at ease? If you want to give the Heavenly Court an explanation, then you should at least look like one. What's wrong? Aren't you even willing to put on a show? You've made up your mind to come to the Nether Hell and take me down, haven't you? I'll say it here today. The Nether Hell is my territory. If I don't agree, His Majesty won't be able to interfere. No matter how many people you send, I can still annihilate you all the same. If you don't believe me, you can try! There's no need to try. If I don't agree, then don't even think about entering. I'm not even afraid of Ying Jiuguang. Do you think I'll be afraid of you? "
Fu Qing was secretly speechless when he heard this. Xing stared at Miao Yi with a glint in his eyes. Bluemoon's eyebrows twitched when she heard this, but she felt that it was a little interesting. At least he didn't disappoint her by coming to the Nether Hell.
On the other hand, Yang Zhaoqing's expression was unperturbed. Naturally, he had his reasons for following Miao Yi so loyally.
Linghu Dou Zhong's expression was very ugly, but he still raised his hand and gestured for the subordinate who couldn't hold back his anger to retreat. He turned back and said decisively, "Fine! We agree! "
There was no other way. Besides, it was just as Miao Yi had said. The fifty million troops were all their direct subordinates. If something really happened, they wouldn't know who to listen to. Do you think you can control us with just those few people? Let's wait until we stand firm and get through this crisis first.
"Don't agree too early." Miao Yi turned to look at him and said, "Thousands of celestial streets have been breached. Each celestial street is equivalent to ten shops. I'm guessing that the Xiahou Clan has more than ten thousand shops that have been looted. It should be the work of the Marshal's subordinates. I want this fortune!"
Linghu Dou Zhong laughed bitterly and shook his head. "It's not that we don't want to give it to you. Governor, just look at my remaining subordinates and you'll understand. Most of them carried me away. Do you think those who didn't follow Heavenly King Ying on this trip will still come looking for us? I reckon they'll either defect to Teng and Cheng, or run away with the fortune. This fortune might be better than their lifetime's salary. At least it's better than them coming to the Nether Hell to get their salary, right? Even if we offer ourselves to the Southern, Western, and Northern Armies, we'll still be able to protect ourselves. "
Miao Yi frowned. It looked like he wouldn't be able to get his hands on this fortune.
Unexpectedly, the general sitting below him said, "Forget about them. We've contacted our shops along the way and found out that the people in charge of the shops are probably aware that the properties under our names are going to be confiscated by the Heavenly Court. Many of them have already taken the goods from the shops and joined those big shots. Some even ran away with their belongings. When they find out that we've been demoted by the Governor, I reckon those who've been watching from the sidelines won't show themselves again. As the saying goes, when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter! It's a good thing that they're gone. I'm afraid we won't be able to support them in the future. "
Bluemoon sighed inwardly. She was the one who felt this the most. When Miao Yi looked over, she nodded at him, but then whispered to herself, "Black market …"
Miao Yi turned back and said, "Don't tell me that you only have the manpower on the surface and don't have any help in the dark. I want a list!"
Linghu Dou Zhong chuckled. "We can't support them without our properties. Does Milord want to help us?"
Miao Yi didn't care at all and continued to demand an exorbitant price. "Also, hand over all your properties in the black market!"
Everyone's faces darkened. Linghu Dou Zhong slowly stood up and said in a deep voice, "Governor, if that's the case, then there's nothing left for us to talk about. We all have families to take care of. How are we going to survive on the meager salary from the Nether Hell Presidential Manor?"
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