Winter had not yet passed, but spring was still cold.
The capital's Qiaolong Street was surging with people, white steam rising from it. At the busiest part of Qiaolong Street stood a magnificent and grand restaurant, its eaves arched and arched, and rows of large red lanterns hung down from it. A hubbub of voices could be heard from within.
"Captain, I offer you a toast!"
"Captain, I offer you a toast as well!"
"I, Iron Hook, rarely admire anyone, but I admire Captain. What is a young hero? Captain is one! "" Hahaha, Iron Hook, does Captain need you to admire him? So many brothers, who doesn't admire Captain? "
"Captain saved my life. In the future, anyone who dares to oppose Captain will be my enemy!"
"Come, come, come! Let's not talk so much nonsense. Everyone, let's offer a toast to Captain. Whether our feelings are deep or shallow will depend on this cup of wine. "
"Hahaha, baldy, screw off! Captain will get drunk from just one cup, don't mess around! "
… …
On the second floor of Drunken Star Manor, many people were drinking to each other, their faces flushed red as they surrounded a young man with a composed expression far beyond his age, constantly toasting him.
Although this young man was young, his expression was experienced, and he would not refuse any of the toasts. However, he seemed to be very self-disciplined. Each time he drank, he would only take a small sip, lightly moistening his lips before moving the cup away.
Thus, even though he was' one against many ', this young man still stood tall. He did not make himself too drunk, but he did not lose his poise.
This was the first time they had gathered since returning from overseas after a cold winter. Everyone attached great importance to it, and almost all the crew members who had participated in the overseas mission had come.
"That's right, on the ship, when are we going out to sea again?"
The atmosphere at the table was so lively that one of the crew members who had been hired by the ship couldn't help but ask. This question echoed everyone's thoughts. In an instant, everyone put down their wine cups and looked fervently at Wang Liang on the host's seat.
Each overseas mission had been fraught with danger, encountering thunderstorms, hurricanes, and all kinds of weather, as well as the treacherous hearts of men.
The conspiracy was cunning, and many people died along the way. However, they also reaped rich rewards from it.
Even so, everyone still hoped that they could set off once again and head out to sea.
"Speaking of this, this is also the reason why I've gathered all of you!"
Wang Liang's eyes darkened as he slowly put down his cup.
"I've decided that after a while, I'll set off again for overseas!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire room fell silent.
Everyone was stunned, even the mercenary expert boatman who asked the question had a dull look on his face. Everyone remembered.
When they had parted last time, Wang Liang had made it clear that there would be no more operations for the next four to five months.
He had only brought this up as a casual question, wanting to know an exact time. He had no hope that Wang Liang would actually do it.
Will set out again.
Boom!
After a brief silence, the room burst into a deafening cheer.
"Great!"
"Captain has been waiting for you to say that for a long time."
"Remember to call me, Copperhead, when the ship departs. No matter where Captain goes, I, Copperhead, will follow you wholeheartedly. "
"Exactly! That's right! No matter where Captain goes, we'll follow! "
… …
In the room, everyone's faces were flushed with excitement, happier than they would be during a festival.
Although Wang Liang was still young, whether it was storms, thunderstorms, massive waves, submerged reefs, shoals, or internal strife, Wang Liang had used his own performance to win over the crew, leading them time and time again out of the most perilous of situations.
On the ocean, human strength was minuscule, and no martial artist could contend against the might of nature. The ability to deal with dangerous situations and lead everyone out of danger was even more important than powerful martial strength on the vast ocean.
Thus, this was why everyone relied so heavily on Wang Liang.
On a ship brimming with people, no single person was indispensable. Only Wang Liang's existence was irreplaceable.
Without him, without the sea charts he had drawn, they wouldn't even know how to find those archipelagos.
— — In the boundless ocean, there were no coordinates.
Wang Liang said nothing. As he sensed the love and passion of the people around him, his eyes couldn't help but fall into a daze.
As expected, I still belong to the ocean!
Wang Liang quietly thought to himself.
When he returned from overseas, he had originally told Wang Chong that he was going to rest for a long time. But after spending an entire winter at home, Wang Liang suddenly felt like his heart was empty.
His life in the capital was easy, free, and comfortable, but deep in his heart, Wang Liang had not obtained the relaxation he had hoped for. On the contrary, he felt empty, like he had lost something.
After thinking for a very long time, Wang Liang finally understood what it was that was missing from his soul.
It was the ocean!
It was the sea breeze of the endless ocean, the salty seawater, the endless thunder, the storms, and the shouts of war cries.
Those veteran sailors had once said that if one spent more than a month on the ocean, the ocean would become a part of one's life.
Wang Liang had originally not believed this.
But now, Wang Liang believed it.
After this adventure, Wang Liang suddenly understood that the ordinary, easy, and comfortable life of the capital was not what he wanted.
What he wanted was the excitement, the danger, the endless nature, the endless ocean, and the feeling of fighting against himself.
It was also in that moment that Wang Liang suddenly realized something.
From now on, his life would probably never be peaceful again.
"… This is the life I want!"
As Wang Liang listened to the cheers of the sailors around him, he felt like something was slowly awakening in his body.
His lips slowly curved into a smile.
He liked this feeling of his blood boiling. Only when he was surrounded by this group of sailors who shared weal and woe with him could he
Feel like he had come back to life.
These thoughts flitted through his mind, and Wang Liang quickly regained his composure.
"Don't get happy too early!"
Wang Liang smiled.
"It will take at least two months from the time of preparation to the time of departure. The fleet needs to be repaired, and we also need to add new ships. Clothes, food, ropes, canvas, water … these are all things that need to be taken care of. We will need to spend at least half a year on the ocean, and none of these are small numbers. "
"That's fine. What does Captain need us to do?"
The crowd began to talk, the mood extremely enthusiastic. As long as they could go out to sea, waiting was nothing.
"This is also why I called all of you here. Last time, we weren't prepared enough. So this time, no matter what, we must carefully discuss the matter and make the necessary preparations. But this is not something I can handle alone, so I need everyone's help, "Wang Liang said.
"Be at ease, Captain.
Whatever you need us to do, Captain only needs to say the word. "
Everyone's necks flushed as they loudly called out.
"Boom!"
Just when the gathering was at its most lively, a massive boom came from below, interrupting everyone's voices.
And then there was a hubbub.
"What's going on?"
Everyone put down the restaurant and began to frown.
This restaurant was one of the best restaurants on Qiaolong Street. Before this banquet, everyone had already instructed that unless there was something special, no one was to disturb them.
This was definitely not normal.
"What's going on? Didn't we already say it? Tell them not to disturb us. "
"Call their manager over and ask him!"
Everyone had unhappy looks on their faces. Anyone who was disturbed at a private gathering like this would be unhappy.
Only Wang Liang vaguely sensed that something was wrong. But before he had time to think, the thump of footsteps interrupted his train of thought.
"Sorry, sorry!"
The restaurant manager came faster than expected. A few moments later, a middle-aged man with coarse skin and dressed in blue silk appeared at the top of the stairs, in front of everyone.
He lowered his waist and bowed. As he apologized, he kept apologizing, "I'm sorry, but I'm sorry.
"Honored guests, I am truly sorry. Today, this small restaurant has been reserved, so I ask that all of you leave! … "
Whoosh!
Hearing the shopkeeper's first words, the expressions of everyone in the hall on the second floor suddenly changed. Someone had clearly reserved the entire restaurant and was beginning to chase them away.
"What kind of joke is this? It's already good enough that we're not chasing people away. Who would dare to chase us away? "
"Shopkeeper, do you know when we arrived?"
"Are you joking? You don't know how many people we have here! "
… …
To be suddenly chased away in the middle of a lively atmosphere, everyone was furious. Wang Liang had been able to keep his composure.
But at this moment, he couldn't help but feel angry at this rude request.
The Wang Clan was a clan of ministers and generals. Given the Wang Clan's current status, if they wanted to reserve a restaurant, they could easily kick out others.
But Wang Liang had not done so. For this first gathering since the beginning of spring, Wang Liang had only reserved a portion of the tables on the second floor, leaving the first and second floors open.
Wang Liang was not a tyrannical person. But the fact that the other party had immediately chased them away without saying a word made Wang Liang somewhat angry.
"Manager, just who are you …"
Wang Liang patiently said, but before he could finish, he was interrupted.
"It's me! — — "
A rude, domineering, and overbearing voice with a strong smell of sheep drifted from the staircase. Before the voice faded away, bang! A battle boot wrapped in bronze armor landed on the second floor of the restaurant with a loud bang.
At this moment, the earth quaked and the entire restaurant seemed to tremble!
Everyone in the restaurant suddenly changed their expressions!
… …
Chapter 440: The Spirit Vein Mountain
Atop the spirit vein mountain, all was silent.
At the top of the mountain, a magnificent palace stood in the midst of the white mist. In the study in the center of the hall was an extremely exquisite iron desk, carved with flowers, birds, insects, and fish.
On the other hand, Wang Chong sat behind his desk, cultivating as he worked.
It had been more than half a month since he had defeated Xu Yi-qin in the game at the Chess Hall. When Xu Yi-qin appeared at Deflecting Blade Manor as promised, Wang Chong had put aside his affairs and shifted the focus of his work from Deflecting Blade Manor to the spirit vein mountain.
Wang Chong's entire focus was on the affairs of the southwest. This involved hundreds of thousands of soldiers, as well as Mengshe Zhao, Ouzan, and the Tang dynasty. There were too many problems to resolve in a short period of time.
Wang Chong could only slowly think of a solution.
"The Eagle, have you prepared the letter to Annan Protector-General Xianyu Zhongtong?"
"It's ready! In addition, your subordinate has also prepared a gift that has already been delivered to the Annan Protectorate headquarters. "
"Mm, our relationship with Xianyu Zhongtong must be handled well. In the future, we will have many areas where we will need to interact with him. "
"Your subordinate understands."
"In addition, prepare an additional one million taels of gold and have them sent to the southwest overnight. Give them to Zhang Shouzhi!"
"This … Milord, but we've already given him two to three million taels of gold. This is already much higher than our original plan. That city is a bottomless pit! "
"I have my own plans. Just do as I say! In addition, help me arrange a meeting with Lord Zhang of the Bureau of Military Personnel … "
"Yes, Young Master, your subordinate understands!"
… …
Through The Eagle, Wang Chong issued one order after another.
"Young Master, Young Master, it's bad! … "
At this moment, a loud shout shattered the tranquility of the mountain.
Peng!
Before Wang Chong and The Eagle could react, the door to the palace was slammed open, and a Wang Clan guard scrambled in.
Upon seeing this guard, Wang Chong and The Eagle frowned.
"What happened? Why are you in such a panic??"
Wang Chong said in displeasure.
This guard clearly wasn't a guard from the spirit vein mountain. Wang Chong remembered that the guards of the clan strictly forbade trespassing on the spirit vein mountain.
Moreover, this sort of panic wasn't something that Wang Chong liked.
But the guard kneeling on the ground didn't seem to notice Wang Chong's expression at all.
"Young Master, bad news! Young Master Liang has been beaten! "
The guard was sweating profusely, and his first words caused Wang Chong and The Eagle to pale. But before Wang Chong could begin, the guard's second words made Wang Chong's mind sink into his bones.
"… Young Master Liang is heavily injured, and it's unknown whether he's dead or alive. His entourage had also been beaten up and injured. They couldn't find Young Master's contact information, so they sent me to inform Young Master. "
After saying this, the guard kneeled on the ground and became motionless.
"What?!!"
Wang Chong slammed the table, and with a loud bang, he stood up from his seat.
"How could this be? The capital is at the feet of the Son of Heaven. Just who would dare to heavily injure him? Moreover, he has so many people at his side, so how could he be injured? "
Wang Chong's expression was one of utter shock. His cousin Wang Liang had played an extremely important role in his plans. Many plans could not be carried out without him.
More importantly, his cousin Wang Liang was his relative, and Wang Chong trusted him completely. This was something that no one else could replace.
But what shocked Wang Chong even more was the truth that the guard had told him. Wang Liang had actually been beaten, and heavily injured at that. Wang Chong clearly remembered that he had placed quite a few guards at Wang Liang's side, and he had also subdued quite a few experts on this overseas trip.
A normal person would never be able to get close to him, much less heavily injure him.
"Just who is this person?"
Wang Chong's mind was in turmoil.
In a place like the capital, the Wang Clan was rather inconspicuous. But the Wang Clan was a clan of ministers, so it was already quite good that they did not bully ordinary people. To think that someone would dare to humiliate the Wang Clan, and in a place like the Son of Heaven!
At this moment, Wang Chong was furious!
"This subordinate does not know. I only heard that it was a group of Hu, and their leaders were some Four An Brothers. "
The guard kneeled on the ground as he spoke. But before he could finish, The Eagle interrupted him.
"You're talking about the Four An Brothers?"
"You know of them?"
Wang Chong turned to The Eagle.
"Yes! These are the Hu nobles who have appeared in the capital in the past month. The Four An Brothers are four Hu. It's said that they happened to meet on the way to the capital, and because they all share the surname An, they became sworn brothers. And because each of their clans has someone who is a Hu general of the Imperial Court and holds an important position on the Imperial Court's border, they have some influence in the capital, and even more influence among the Hu.
"Because our circle doesn't have much interaction with the Hu, and gongzi only asked me to investigate the southwest, northwest, Yao Clan, King Qi, Deflecting Blade Manor, and the spirit vein. Thus, I decided to take matters into my own hands and not tell gongzi about it. However … "
The Eagle paused for a moment, then continued.
"Those four surnamed An are An Wenzhen, An Xiaojie, and An Yaluoshan. I didn't investigate the last one, but it's said that he's related to the Imperial Court's Lanzhou envoy …"
"Boom!"
Before the Eagle could finish speaking, he saw Wang Chong's body tremble, a look of extreme shock on his face as if he had received a massive blow.
The Eagle had followed Wang Chong for so long, but he had rarely seen this sort of reaction from Wang Chong. His eyes were wide open, and all the blood in his body seemed to rush to his face. The veins on his forehead bulged, making for a terrifying sight.
"The Eagle, what did you say the names of those people were?"
Wang Chong appeared to be extremely agitated, but his voice was abnormally calm, so calm that it was impossible to tell where his emotions were coming from.
The extreme agitation of his emotions and the extreme calmness of his voice formed a stark contrast. Even the Wang Clan guard on the ground sensed the strangeness of Wang Chong and raised his head in shock.
"An Wenzhen, An Xiaojie, An Yaluoshan …"
Before the Eagle could finish speaking, he heard the clattering of metal. The only empty metal table in the room was almost instantly knocked aside by a powerful force. The Eagle only saw a blurry shadow flash past his eyes, and then Wang Chong was gone.
"Pass on my order. Mobilize all the guards of the Wang Clan and have them all move out. Pass on my order to Deflecting Blade Manor. Have Li Siye, Miyasame Ayaka, and Wei Anfang all move out. Mobilize all the guards of Deflecting Blade Manor!
"Summon Steel Arms. Have him put down what he's doing and return immediately!
"Summon Luo Tong and inform The King of Song. I need all their help!
"Summon Zhao Jingdian, Sun Zhiming, Zhuang Zhengping, and Chi Weisi! Send someone to the Huang Clan and tell Huang Qian-er to return immediately!
"Tell all the great clans in the capital that we're on good terms with to send their best experts. Tell them that our Wang Clan owes them a favor!
"Gather all the forces we can!"
"Hurry!"
… …
With these last words, Wang Chong had already vanished down the mountain.
In the hall, the Eagle and his guard were dumbfounded.
"Boom!"
Almost at the same time that Wang Chong left, a dazzling bolt of lightning flew over the spirit vein. Dark clouds roiled in the sky, and fierce winds howled.
With Wang Chong's final order, the entire capital began to quake. The entire Wang Clan was like a precise machine, rumbling as it began to operate.
Countless experts swarmed out of the Wang Clan Residence, the spirit vein, Deflecting Blade Manor, the Zhang Clan, the Huang Clan, and the other great clans that were on good terms with the Wang Clan.
All the guards and experts in Deflecting Blade Manor had been mobilized.
On the spirit vein, Zhao Jingdian, Zhuang Zhengping, Chi Weisi, and the others, who had been cultivating and absorbing spiritual energy this entire time, swiftly left the spirit vein the moment they received Wang Chong's order.
At the same time, all the Imperial Army instructors that Wang Chong had summoned left the spirit vein.
Even the residences of the Wang Clan and Wang Chong's big uncle, Wang Gen, were suddenly emptied, becoming so quiet that it seemed like no one was around.
For the first time in a very long time, the four heavily guarded areas of the capital, which were like the dens of dragons and dens of tigers, were emptied of guards.
This situation even affected some of the great clans of the capital. Many clans had dispatched their experts upon receiving Wang Chong's request.
No one knew what was going on, but they all felt a deep sense of unease from these frequent movements. This was the scent of an approaching storm.
The great clans that had lived in the capital for a long time were used to the Wang Clan's low profile and modesty. They had never seen such a large-scale mobilization before.
"The heavens are about to change!"
In the garden of the great clan, the head of a great clan raised his head to the gloomy sky, deep concern in his eyes.
The roar of a tiger could be heard by all beasts; when an elephant raised its foot, even snakes and insects would retreat.
The Wang Clan was abnormally inconspicuous, so inconspicuous that people often forgot about its existence, that it was one of the top-class clans of the empire.
But the Wang Clan was still a publicly acknowledged clan of ministers and generals in the empire. Wang Chong's order was like a primer, guiding the colossus that was the Wang Clan to slowly rise from the depths of the water and reveal itself before everyone.
… …
"This is the omen of a star of peril!"
At almost the same moment that Wang Chong left the spirit vein mountain, in the depths of the Imperial Palace, a fierce gust of wind blew from a violet platform to the north of Taiji Palace.
It was an extremely gorgeous purple platform, with orbits and orbits on it, as if they contained some kind of special power.
If one looked down from the sky, one would see that this violet platform was a massive 'compass', and this compass was inlaid with mysterious symbols.
This was the stargazing platform!
It was the oldest building in the Imperial Palace.
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