Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 184

Tian Mi is a woman, and in Tian Du and Tian Zang's minds, she certainly cannot be the leader of the knights. Tian Hu, though a bit reckless, might actually be...

Even if they weren't particularly bright, the two of them could serve as Tian Hu's advisors!

However, judging from the boss's tone, he didn't think much of Tian Hu, and they didn't mention the above considerations.

After much deliberation, Tian Du gritted his teeth and said, "Even if the Tian family has no one left, the Zhu family can take over. Zhu Tangzhu is an old farmer, while Lu Wei has only been a member of the farmer's family for ten years."

“Azang, Adu, you are both my confidants, among the people I trust most.” Tian Guang sighed again, then his expression suddenly turned serious, and his voice became louder: “But who should succeed as the leader of the chivalrous sect is my business as the leader of the chivalrous sect, not something you can interfere with!”

"Do you understand?"

Chapter 206 Traitor to the Farmers

In the secret room of the government workshop in Jing County, six exquisite metal tokens were neatly arranged on the table.

These are all imitations of the Shennong Decree, intended to serve as the basis for the Shennong Decree rewards to be issued next year.

Actually, if we really wanted to be frugal, making five would have been enough. Since the token itself was issued by Lu Wei, Gonggongtang would naturally know what was written on it.

But a play needs to be done completely, and besides, Jing County is very wealthy and doesn't lack a brand of metal forging.

The current focus is on what to write on the sign to achieve results that benefit Gonggongtang and even the farmers.

Holding a fine-tipped brush in one hand and toying with a much lighter card than the mother card in the other, Lu Wei reaffirmed his thoughts:

He had already heard that the war in Wei had not started this year, so the general trend of the world next year would be Qin attacking Wei.

The tragedy of flooding Daliang was bound to happen eventually. Wei would not be able to hold out for more than a few months, and the Qin army would plan to continue its attack on Chu after Wei.

This means that the Azure Dragon Plan, which aims to unify the world, is coming to an end.

Changping Jun will stand at the forefront of the anti-Qin movement, while the Farmer's Clan must not get involved in this mess. Time is on Lu Wei's side, and the next leader of the Farmer's Clan will lead the Azure Dragon Plan.

As for next year's Shennong Decree, the Farmer's Clan is currently strong enough to remain neutral for the time being. Just as Xiaoshengxianzhuang focuses on scholarship, the Farmer's Clan can also be busy within Dazeshan.

Now we have to consider the power of the State of Chu. Among the six schools of the Farmer's School, only the Shennong School has significant interests in the State of Chu.

At most, there is also the Siyue Hall, which, due to the internal strife within the peasantry, needs to maintain constant alignment with the Shennong Hall.

However, the main strength of the Four Mountains Hall is in the State of Wei. The upcoming flood of Daliang will cause devastating losses to the Four Mountains Hall. The key is how the Four Mountains Hall will save itself. They will not be able to help the State of Chu at that time.

Therefore, this Shennong decree is intended to divert the Zhu family's attention from Shouchun.

"We need the help of the ancestor Shennong."

A hint of disrespect flashed across Lu Wei's brow as he picked up his brush and filled the back of the palm-sized token with neat characters...

Using some unexpected event to make the disciples of the Farmer's Sect worry about the headquarters is an excuse that outsiders can't find fault with at all. This unexpected event will definitely attract enough attention from everyone in terms of form.

After using his internal energy to evaporate the ink, Lu Wei rang the bell that was connected to the outside of the secret room via a long wire. A moment later, Amu walked in, carrying a bronze box.

"You personally carve the words on it."

Stack the six tokens together and put them into the copper box. Amu nodded firmly in response to his boss's order.

The news of Shennong's decree is top secret. The fewer people who know about it, the less likely it is to be exposed. The only confidant that Lu Wei can trust most in Jing County is Amu.

Amu was initially puzzled by the words on the order, but since his boss didn't explain, he wouldn't ask any further questions.

The Shennong Decree is merely a vessel; even the commands inscribed upon it are only part of the plan...

Without the necessary preconditions, the text on the Shennong Decree would certainly seem very incomprehensible.

Leaving Jing County, as he caught the first snowflakes of the new year falling from the sky, Master Lu knew it was time to return to Daze Mountain...

...

Shortly after the snowfall, people from Fanxian County to the west sent local specialties as gifts.

Wu Rui was aware of the instability in the north and the impending war, and the local chieftain accelerated the process of the joint self-defense plan between the two counties.

Yan Shen and Xiao He can handle this matter properly, so the head of the hall need not worry about it. He only asked the county to prepare a carriage to return to headquarters.

Compared to the large caravan that came with them, the return journey was much more sparse.

After considering all possibilities, Yan Shen suggested sending a team of disciples to escort Hall Master Lu. After all, a larger team would avoid many small-scale robbery problems.

Lu Wei wasn't afraid of being robbed, but it was always better to avoid unnecessary trouble, so he didn't refuse the accompaniment of the ten escorting disciples.

Unexpectedly, it was precisely the presence of these ten disciples that attracted the attention of a large group of Yue thieves determined to pull off a big heist, who then set their sights on their carriage convoy.

The leader of this band of thieves had a simple plan: the target was a total of four carriages, each escorted by ten mounted guards. There must be treasures inside the carriages, and even if there weren't, the nearly twenty horses were worth the cost!

Moreover, there are no powerful or influential people in such a remote place. The thieves have a total of about thirty people. They are sure to make a good robbery!

The Yue people were fierce and brave. They had dug a trap beforehand and had several bows and arrows. They suddenly attacked, and with only ten guards, they could only form a defensive formation of twenty-four to protect the carriage.

At this moment, the flaws of the Earthly Twenty-Four Formation were exposed: it was an offensive formation, and a siege formation at that, so its defensive capabilities were really insufficient.

To avoid accidentally injuring the horses, the Yue people did not fire all their arrows at once, but even so, one of their sharpshooters managed to wound two disciples from the Farmer's side.

Hearing their own screams, the people in the carriage had no choice but to take action.

Snow Maiden and Xiao Yan'er, each wielding Jade Soul and Startling Salamander respectively, charged out, heading straight for the Yue leader and the archer.

Lu Ni casually picked up an ordinary standard-issue longsword and stood on the roof of the lead carriage, closely monitoring the Yue people's formation and providing cover for the two of them.

The appearance of two beautiful women and a little girl caught the eye of the Yue chieftain, but before he could utter any foul words, he saw the white-haired woman and the girl swiftly decapitate two thieves with a single sword stroke, then lunge towards him...

The minor incident quickly passed. With Duanmu Rong in the farmer's caravan, even though the Yue people's arrows were poisoned, the disciple's injuries were not serious.

The only purpose of this gang of thieves was probably to make ten-year-old Yan'er's sword, besides the white crane, stained with the death of its own kind for the first time.

------

The convoy arrived at the headquarters of Dazeshan. This time, Lu Wei took the Shuangjiangling route, which was the closest to him, so the first hall master to know that he had returned was Situ Wanli.

But barring any unforeseen circumstances, the other halls will soon receive this information as well.

Because the convoy's speed had been deliberately controlled, they arrived at dusk, and less than two hours later, after dark, Zhou Wen came to meet him privately.

"The situation became increasingly tense, yet you disappeared for a whole year."

Zhou Wenping, who had been sitting in the Daze Mountain disguised as the leader of the Lieshan Hall, couldn't help but complain in his calm tone.

Due to the secluded nature of Mirror Lake, he was unable to find Lu Wei himself for the past year, and Tian Guang's whereabouts were also frequently changing. Furthermore, many things could not be communicated through letters, so Zhou Wen had to consider and deal with certain plans of the Luo Wang organization all by himself over the past year.

Many of these actions involved Tian Guang and Lu Wei, and since he couldn't communicate with them, he had to rely on improvisation.

"The farm is operating smoothly, which means that my disappearance this year has not had a significant impact."

Lu Wei smiled and poured tea for the other party, listening quietly to Zhou Wen's summary of Luo Wang's plans over the past year and his conversation with Xia Kui Tian Guang at the end of last year.

However, the part about investigating the cover-up was temporarily covered up by Zhou Wen; this is a side story.

"If Luo Wang is going to officially target Xia Kui, then our plan needs to be brought forward."

Lu Wei fell into thought, and Zhou Wen continued to reveal another subtle piece of information: "The day before yesterday, I received the latest order from Luo Wang. They have obtained intelligence from somewhere and are certain that the Xia Kui is hiding in Daze Mountain. They have ordered me to search for him with all my might."

"The order stated that, in order to help with my mission, they would send a special assassin to 'assist' me in completing my plan against Tian Guang."

"Judging from the current situation, the assistant should arrive in the next few days."

Zhou Wen said emotionlessly, "Today is our last private meeting. The next plan... can only be achieved through absolute trust between us."

"Lu Wei." He called out the hall master's name, and their eyes met: "Will you firmly believe in me?"

Reflected in his pupils, which held a strange glint of emotion, Lu Wei shook his head without hesitation: "Of course not..."

...

At the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), Tian Meng, returning from Gonggong Hall to Lieshan Hall, had a gloomy expression. Just as he passed Qiufen Ridge, a man dressed entirely in black robes appeared in front of him with his back to him in the blink of an eye.

"How did he say?"

Zhou Wen was not surprised by this; on the contrary, he seemed quite familiar with the visitor: "Our plan can now be put into action."

"Don't rush, let's wait for the reinforcements to arrive." The man in black remained motionless: "You can't deal with Tian Guang by yourself."

The man in black chuckled as he finished speaking: "The life and death of a peasant hero requires the mutual supervision of two peasant traitors to prove that you are completely desperate."

"Was the person who assisted me Wu Kuang?" Despite being called a 'traitor to the peasants,' Zhou Wen's expression remained unchanged as he asked in a deep voice.

"Wrong, he has now been given a special sword called the Cold Cicada." The man in black robes unfastened the sword from his waist and tossed it behind him: "And don't forget your sword, Autumn Toad!"

"You should have discarded your original names long ago. The true assassins of the Luo Wang only have sword names."

“I’ve remembered.” Zhou Wen gripped his identification badge tightly, his fingers turning white. “Once I’ve taken this step, there’s absolutely no turning back. And then there’s the competition for the title of Farmer’s Hero…”

"That was your plan, wasn't it?" The man in black interrupted him, suddenly turning around to let Zhou Wen see the face beneath the cloak in the moonlight.

"A net that can penetrate anywhere in the world. With the power of the Net, you know what you need to do."

"Yes, I understand better than anyone..."

...

Disappearing for a year was definitely the right thing to do. Upon my return, it was as if the fuse for all the troubles had suddenly gone off, and the lit fuse was connected to a 'bomb' that could shake the world.

The leisurely life had only just ended on the first day, and the taut bowstring was already showing signs of breaking.

Recalling the contents of his two-hour private conversation with Zhou Wen, Hall Master Lu couldn't help but raise his hand and rub his temples repeatedly.

'It's at least five years earlier than I expected...'

'Zhou Wen's credibility...'

Knock knock. At the beginning of the morning, someone knocked on the window of the main hall where Lu Wei, who hadn't slept all night, was staying.

He gripped the hilt of the Devouring Sea Sword at his waist, staring at the window that opened automatically. A figure emerged from outside, a smile on his face, and stood face to face with him: "You've already noticed something's wrong, haven't you?"

"Perhaps you should give me an explanation before I answer?"

"Lord Xia Kui!"

The visitor was none other than Tian Guang, the chivalrous leader of the farming family who was used to sneaking through windows.

Chapter 207 The Sixth Elder's Earthly Twenty-Four

"You want to blow up the statue of Shennong outside the Tomb of the Six Sages!"

As Tian Guang examined a Shennong Order tablet, he looked up at Lu Wei in shock, deducing from the tablet's commands what the boy was about to do.

The latter replied with a matter-of-fact expression: "It wasn't me who blew it up, but rather that a thunderstorm in early summer might accidentally damage one of the ox horns on the Shennong statue."