The next day, the ten temporary Mountain Chieftains were all gathered in the conference hall.
Chen Fei, Ji Sixiu (female), Shi Man, Yang Zhaoqing, Dan Dandan (female), Ding Jie, Jiao Yongtian, Niu Ligong, Gu Ping, and Ning Zailai. Seated high up on his throne, Miao Yi swept his gaze across the ten temporary Mountain Chieftains.
These ten temporary Mountain Chieftains had contributed greatly to the transformation that Raincloud Manor had undergone over the past half a year. Every single one of them had done their best, and Miao Yi was quite satisfied with their performance. On the other hand, Yan Xiu had put in a lot of effort when choosing his candidates, and he wasn't disappointed at all.
The year-end conference was open for discussion, and it could be considered a summary of the year's work.
Ding Jie stepped forward, cupped his fists and reported: "Your humble servant accuses Yang Zhaoqing. When he launched a sneak attack on my troops, he used a despicable trick to poison the water source of my troops. It was an unfair victory!"
Dan Dandan also stepped forward and cupped her fists. "I also accuse Yang Zhaoqing. He actually hired a group of Loose Cultivators to act as his eyes and ears in his territory, preventing our troops from getting close. This is unfair to both sides. Yang Zhaoqing used people outside of the rules. Please punish him, Manor Head!"
Even Chen Fei stood up and complained with a black face, "I also complained to Yang Zhaoqing. We had already agreed not to fight with swords and weapons, but only with wooden sticks. However, during the battle, my men rushed forward with wooden sticks while Yang Zhaoqing led his men to fight with swords and spears. It was an unfair victory!"
Miao Yi was stunned. He could imagine the situation at that time. Chen Fei led his troops and charged over with wooden weapons, while Yang Zhaoqing's side suddenly revealed their real weapons and counterattacked, instantly killing Chen Fei's troops and forcing them to flee.
Apart from Chen Fei, Miao Yi didn't have much of an impression of the others. Miao Yi couldn't help but look at Yang Zhaoqing in surprise as he gained a new understanding of this guy. He asked, "Yang Zhaoqing, how do you explain this?"
"I don't need to explain anything!" Yang Zhaoqing stepped forward and cupped his fists. "I only remember the Manor Head's decree saying that I am temporarily acting as the Mountain Chieftain of Mount Spiritual Longevity. I have the authority to act on my own, and if anything happens, the Manor Head will take care of it! What's more, they can also use the methods I used, and no one is restricting them. If they defeat me, I will only reflect on myself and think of a way to win them back. I will not complain to the Manor Head in the main hall! If the Manor Head asks this lowly one to guard Mount Spiritual Longevity, and this lowly one allows Mount Spiritual Longevity to be lost, then the Manor Head will not be able to defend it. That was my greatest sin! "
Miao Yi asked, "How many loose cultivators have you hired?"
Yang Zhaoqing cupped his fists and said, "Replying to Manor Head! Not many, only about eighty. "
The group of Mountain Chieftains immediately rolled their eyes. More than eighty wasn't a lot? Right now, everyone's subordinates have been reduced by half, and you've gained another mountain of troops.
Miao Yi furrowed his brows and asked, "More than eighty people. Can you afford to raise so many people?"
"Actually, you don't need to spend any resources to raise them. All you need to do is provide them with food and water …" Yang Zhaoqing seemed a little hesitant, wondering if he should reveal his trump card. However, when he met Miao Yi's questioning gaze, he finally revealed the truth, "Actually, I didn't hire them. I captured them."
"Captured?" Miao Yi asked curiously, "Where did you capture so many loose cultivators from?"
Yang Zhaoqing replied, "I gave the order to all the Caves under my command. Send people to stand guard at the side of the roads or outside the cities. The moment they discover a cultivator riding a dragon steed or entering the city to purchase goods, they are to be immediately stopped and interrogated. As long as they are a loose cultivator, they are to be immediately charged with a crime and be punished to serve Mount Spiritual Longevity for a year. If they dare to escape, then threaten them with immediate arrest. So far, no loose cultivator has dared to oppose the officials. They are only to serve for a year. It's not too difficult. Those loose cultivators are quite cooperative! "
Not to mention the others, even Miao Yi was a little dumbfounded. 'They can play like this? This is obviously bullying the loose cultivators because they don't dare to oppose the officials! '
Yang Zhaoqing cupped his fists and said, "I only captured them to serve as my eyes and ears. Everyone can testify that during the battle, I did not allow those loose cultivators to participate in the fighting without permission! "
Miao Yi looked at Yang Zhaoqing and secretly clicked his tongue in wonder. He didn't expect such a talent to appear under his command. His gaze swept across the other Mountain Chieftains, who seemed to be deep in thought. 'Based on this guy's intelligence, it's only fair that you lose.' He immediately pointed at Yang Zhaoqing and said, "He has already made his threat clear. You can use any means necessary to defeat him. As long as you can defeat him, he will be convinced and won't complain about you."
Everyone was speechless. Since the Manor Head had said so, he was obviously on Yang Zhaoqing's side.
"However, I must make one thing clear first. You cannot use any means necessary to break the current rules of the Celestial Nation and Traversing Water Palace. Otherwise, even I will not be able to protect you if something happens!" Miao Yi warned.
"As you command, Manor Head!" The group of Mountain Chieftains cupped their fists and accepted the order.
Miao Yi then looked at Yang Zhaoqing and asked, "How are your wins and losses over the past six months?"
Yang Zhaoqing replied, "Twenty-eight battles. I've fought against the other nine mountains, and I have yet to lose a single time!"
His words were reserved, yet domineering! In other words, he had never lost a single battle. In other words, he was invincible. No wonder so many people had come to participate! Miao Yi's eyes flashed with amazement as he looked at Yang Zhaoqing in a new light. At the very least, he had won and lost in the past, but this man before him was even more impressive than he was back then!
'Damn it. Are all those with the surname Yang this powerful?' Miao Yi thought to himself. He couldn't help but think of South Edict Manor's Yang Qing.
"I think everyone should just accept their losses! Since I can be your witness now, let's settle our debts! "Miao Yi chuckled as he sat on his throne.
The ten Mountain Chieftains below him immediately went back and forth. The stakes for each battle weren't high, just ten low-grade Orbs of Will. To the Mountain Chieftains who each controlled their vassal cities and earned over a hundred Orbs of Will in a year, coupled with the commission they received from their subordinates, it was still within their means. However, if they lost too much, they definitely wouldn't be able to bear it.
Yang Zhaoqing was the biggest winner of the battle. In fact, he was even stronger than Chen Fei, winning all twenty-eight battles and earning two hundred and eighty Orbs of Will in one go. The other Mountain Chieftains were green with envy.
In the end, Miao Yi turned around and took out his harvest. Out of the thousands of Orbs of Will that had been handed over to him, he took out another six hundred orbs and distributed them to the top three victors of this battle. Then, he divided the orbs into three, two, one, and distributed them to the top three victors of this battle.
In other words, Yang Zhaoqing had earned another three hundred low-grade Orbs of Will just from this alone. The other Mountain Chieftains were extremely envious of Yang Zhaoqing's public display of gratitude. They all thought that Mount Spiritual Longevity had really struck it rich this time. Yang Zhaoqing returning to Mount Spiritual Longevity and rewarding his subordinates for their contributions was a sight to behold. He would definitely be able to quickly gain the support of his subordinates and solidify his position and prestige in Mount Spiritual Longevity. Next time, he would definitely be even more motivated to fight with the other Mountains.
However, Miao Yi's actions made Mu Tailai and the others in Raincloud Manor's headquarters itch. Should they request the Manor Head to make them a Mountain Chieftain? That would be much more lucrative than being an Envoy.
It wasn't that Miao Yi was being generous. It was just that his ten years of harvest had already been confiscated. The thousand Orbs of Will from his vassal cities were definitely going to be handed over to Suppressing Tenth Hall. As for the harvest that was handed over to him by his subordinates, there was no need for him to give it to his superiors. Thus, he might as well give it all to his subordinates.
After the tributes were over, Miao Yi didn't do anything like Yang Qing did back then. He had fought enough for the next half a year. He didn't ask the Mountain Chieftains to escort him to Suppressing Tenth Hall either. There was no need for that either. If he couldn't even protect the tributes with all the transcendent artifacts he had, then it wouldn't matter how many people he brought with him.
Even though Raincloud Manor no longer favored gift-giving, it was still unavoidable for his subordinates to do favors for him. Miao Yi couldn't possibly completely cut off his subordinates' source of income. After all, the Envoys under his command only earned around a dozen Orbs of Will a year at most. It would be hard for them if they didn't give them some gifts. If he were to cut off this source of income as well, then those Envoys would definitely not work for him anymore. In fact, they would definitely rebel against him behind his back.
Naturally, the Mountain Chieftains had to busy themselves with their tasks. Qian 'Er and Xue' Er received quite a bit of it. The two of them each received around thirty Orbs of Will from their subordinates. Basically, each Mountain Chieftain gave two orbs each. This time, Yang Zhaoqing was a little more generous. He gave ten orbs to each of his Aunties, which was almost equivalent to the annual income of a cave. Naturally, Yan Xiu also received quite a bit.
In the eyes of the two Aunties and Yan Xiu, this amount of filial piety wasn't much. In fact, it wasn't even worth mentioning compared to what Miao Yi had given them. However, everyone knew that to his subordinates, this was already a considerable amount of filial piety. After all, he still had his subordinates to support. Every single Orb of Will had to be spent meticulously.
Miao Yi smiled when he heard this. 'It looks like Yang Zhaoqing isn't a stubborn person after all. He has a bright future ahead of him!'
Miao Yi's subordinates dispersed. He also selected Mu Tailai and Hu Defu to accompany him, and together with the tributes, they headed straight for Suppressing Tenth Hall.
Along the way, they met up with Zhao Fei and Sikong Wuwei, and the three of them continued on their journey.
For the past half a year, the three of them had mostly focused on cultivating, so they rarely contacted each other. They couldn't help but ask about each other's families. When they found out that Miao Yi's subordinates had been training their troops by killing each other, the two of them immediately praised him for his brilliant idea.
When they arrived at Suppressing Tenth Hall, the three of them paid their respects to the Hall Master, handed over their tributes, and then stayed in Suppressing Tenth Hall for the night. There was no need for them to visit the three Advisors anymore.
Once all the Manor Heads had arrived and handed over their tributes, they naturally gathered in the grand hall to discuss the merits and demerits of the past year. Surprisingly, no one mentioned the incident where the three Manors massacred Tranquil Sun Manor. Only the Hall Master reprimanded them in public.
Even Miao Yi and the others found this strange. 'Why didn't the three Advisors take advantage of this opportunity to reprimand them?'
However, just as they were about to disperse, trouble finally arrived. Seated high up on his throne, Hall Master Shen Huaixin said, "If there's nothing else, you may all leave."
At this moment, Xu Jinsong decisively stepped forward and cupped his fists, saying, "I accuse the three Manor Heads of Raincloud Manor, Thousand Lake Manor, and Mulberry Cloud Manor!"
Everyone turned to look at Xu Jinsong, grumbling to themselves. 'I knew this wouldn't be over so easily. It's finally here.' Those who had nothing to do with them began to relax and watch the show unfold.
Shen Huaixin calmly asked, "What's the matter?"
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