(There are only two chapters today.)
There was a side room in the Huaiyang Pass Protectorate Manor. Rumor had it that there were a bunch of petty officials gathered there. They were all insignificant officials who were neither learned nor trained in martial arts. However, the Protector-General would often enter this side room. Other than that, this side room was rarely visited.
Contrary to what the outside world had imagined, the side room was not desolate. There were only a few old pedants gathered together and sighed. On the contrary, it was very lively. Many young faces had appeared, making the room seem particularly lively. There were maps hanging on the east and west walls of the room. There were maps of the borders of Beiliang and the two provinces of Beimang. The maps on the two walls were the same. The only difference was that they were old. The east wall was old, while the west wall was new.
There were two people sitting at a table in the room. There was always a person standing at the table with a brush in his hand, in charge of recording some words. The tables were piled with Beimang records and secret files. Many of these things were probably not even available to the Southern Dynasty's Ministry of War and Ministry of Revenue. The reason why the east and west walls were divided into old and new ones was a suggestion made by a junior in the room. Since the enemy's commander-in-chief, Dong Zhuo, had been biding his time and did not show any signs of mobilizing troops, Beiliang might as well investigate the changes in the two provinces of Beimang that bordered Liang Mang over the past few years. They circled the cities and towns that had increased their military strength in recent years, as well as the new courier routes that had been opened at great expense. They also focused on finding out the training grounds at the Beimang border over the years. The young man who gave this suggestion was surnamed Yu. It was said that he was an idle scholar who had gone to Liang Mang to seek refuge in the yamen, where he could not get enough money. Only then did he enter the room through his connections. There were six or seven other miscellaneous officials who entered the room at the same time as Yu. Some of them were sons of generals who had studied the military and were born with a scholarly air. There were also some who had similar backgrounds as Yu. They were all scholars from other provinces who were picked up by others. Their ambitions were higher than the sky, but their lives were thinner than paper.
Most of the older seniors in the room were frustrated people who had not made a name for themselves in the officialdom. They had one thing in common: their necks were hard and their knees were even harder. They did not know how to bow and bend their knees. Usually, they liked to drown their sorrows in alcohol. Once they drank too much, they would naturally be unable to control their mouths and talk about the state affairs. Then, one day, they would suddenly be taken to the border by the Whispering Room's spies. They did not even have the chance to say goodbye to their families before they disappeared into thin air. At first, they were scared witless, thinking that they were going to be beheaded by the temperamental Great Demon Chu. Later, they found out that they were just helping to analyze the situation of the war. Gradually, they calmed down. However, although they had become guests of the Protectorate General and were working for the Protectorate General, they did not have any official rank or salary. They were neither in heaven nor on earth, so it was not a pleasant job. Fortunately, these people had long worn away their ambitions in the officialdom. They were able to endure the dull and tedious work in the room. In addition, Lord Chu Lushan's reputation was too frightening. Every one of them was cautious and conscientious. They were afraid that one day, Chu Lushan would feel that they were officials who did not want to work hard without complaint. Then, with a crack, their heads would be chopped off.
The outsiders who often came in and out of the room were all people who had walked out of the Fu Shui Room. They constantly sent strange things to the people in the room. There were documents on the recent promotions of the Ministry of War, reports from the Ministry of Revenue on the amount of grain that had been lost in various places. There were even papers of different textures, specific details such as which beacon and which relay road had been repaired were written down. These Fu Shui Room spies came and went hurriedly. When they entered the room, they did not say a word. They put down the secret records and silently left, their eyes never looking sideways. In the words of Sir Hong, who was temporarily in charge of the room, they were ruthless people who killed without blinking and slept without closing their eyes. The older ones, like Sir Hong, believed in doing more and speaking less. At most, they would occasionally sigh with emotion. As for the young man called Yu Dezhi, he was even more like a newborn calf that was not afraid of a tiger. He dared to speak freely in the room. The young scholar Li Yu and Zhao Ying, whose father was the county magistrate of Lingzhou, had a great argument two days ago about whether the Beimang Army should be attacking Liuzhou or not. The argument was so earth-shattering that even Sir Chu was alarmed.
At dusk, Sir Hong, whose eyesight was not good, even though he was sitting by the window, where the light was the best, he still lit an oil lamp. When he turned his head, he heard the sound of light footsteps that he was used to. Turning his head, he saw an extremely young and tender Fu Shui Room spy. After entering the room, he handed over a letter to Wang Guifang, who was in charge of receiving the item. Sir Hong no longer feared these people who had once made all of the Beiliang officials feel their hairs stand on end. It was not that Sir Hong was bold, but after all, he was working for the Protector-General. It was no different from having a golden protective talisman stuck to his forehead. What was there to be afraid of? However, it was impossible for Sir Hong to have a good impression of these people. It was not just him. Most of the people in the room did not want to have anything to do with the Fu Shui Room.
Sir Hong inadvertently discovered that after his old friend Wang Guifang and the young spy walked out, he revealed a carefully concealed expression of disdain and bad luck. He used his fingers to pinch the document and quickly placed it on the young man Yu Dezhi's desk.
Sir Hong stood up and pretended to look at the map on the wall. When he passed by Yu Dezhi's desk, he saw that it was a page that had been casually torn off by someone. Most of it was soaked in blood, but the blood had already dried.
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