Chapter 48 Besieged on All Sides

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“If you are truly as capable as you claim, then tell me this: why are you not stationed at the Embroidered Uniform Guard headquarters in the city? Why remain on the mountain instead?”

Xu Feng was not so easily deceived. Most people would have been blinded by delight in such circumstances, but he was still capable of thinking calmly.

As a newly established organization, they certainly possessed opportunities, but they also faced considerable risks.

Even away from the capital, peace was far from assured. As for the headquarters in the capital itself, the situation there was likely even more difficult.

“There is naturally a reason. Gusu City is crawling with spies from the Six Fan Gate and the martial world. I came here to accomplish something, not to waste my time dealing with them.”

Though Red Lotus was a woman, she too harbored ambitions of achieving distinction and building a career. Otherwise, she would never have joined the Embroidered Uniform Guard and exposed herself to the dangers of operating in the outside world.

According to her, Gusu City had long since become the domain of the Six Fan Gate. Xu Feng had personally experienced enough to know that the situation was probably even worse than Red Lotus imagined.

The Purple-Clad Constable who had once come to hunt him down had openly stood alongside the martial wanderers.

There had been no attempt at concealment whatsoever. This meant they were not afraid of exposure. No wonder the emperor had established an entirely new organization.

There might still be people within the Six Fan Gate who clung to their principles, but there could not be many of them.

Even those who managed to preserve their integrity at first would gradually decay as time passed.

“I have a feeling that if I follow you, I will be going hungry every few days. There are dozens of Purple-Clad Constables in Gusu City alone. Are you sure you can handle them?”

Red Lotus rose and paced around the room, carrying herself as though the heroes of the entire realm were beneath her notice.

“The Six Fan Gate has operated for many years and gathered countless experts from the martial world. In terms of open strength, we are indeed inferior to them. But you must understand that an army’s strength lies in its quality, not its numbers.”

“Every member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard obeys orders without question, and all of them were selected with the utmost care. Some even came from the military. On top of that, His Majesty holds us in high regard. They would never dare harm us openly.”

That was Red Lotus’s true source of confidence.

Xu Feng weighed the advantages and disadvantages. In the end, he did not turn and leave. This meant that he intended to accept the assignment. Now that he had already come into conflict with the Six Fan Gate, he could not rest easy until this festering tumor had been completely removed.

The Human Emperor Banner was Xu Feng’s greatest secret, as well as the key to raising his strength and attaining supreme power.

Under normal circumstances, he could not slaughter people indiscriminately in the outside world. Such actions would inevitably attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

With the protection of the imperial court and the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he could nourish the Human Emperor Banner under the banner of punishing evil and upholding justice. It would be far safer that way. Both sides would be getting exactly what they wanted.

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Red Lotus needed Xu Feng to work for her wholeheartedly, while Xu Feng intended to use his position to improve his strength as much as possible.

“You are not going to assign me any men? I am your Deputy Hundred-Household Officer, after all. You cannot expect me to command an army of one.”

Red Lotus had been speaking with great enthusiasm moments earlier, but when she heard Xu Feng’s question, an embarrassed look appeared on her face. In theory, a Hundred-Household Officer commanded ten Banner Commanders.

Yet she had only just managed to gather her own people. Where would she find extra manpower to give Xu Feng?

“Do not tell me you have no one.”

Xu Feng made as if to get up and leave. Red Lotus hurriedly stopped him, afraid that the hard-won recruit she had finally secured would slip away.

“Do not go. How about this? I will give you two Banner Commanders. You can find the rest yourself. As long as their backgrounds are clean and they obey orders, that will be enough.”

So the imperial court merely provided the salaries, while everything else had to be handled personally. Xu Feng even suspected that whether those salaries would arrive on time each month was itself questionable.

From his conversation with Red Lotus, Xu Feng could already tell that the situation at court had probably reached the point of no return.

The emperor’s circumstances could only be more difficult than theirs.

Apart from the founding emperor, who could suppress the great nobles and the scholar-officials, every other emperor, barring some unforeseen change, could do little more than preserve a superficial balance.

The Kingdom of Wu during the Three Kingdoms era was a perfect example.

When Sun Ce had first fought to establish his realm, the great clans of Jiangdong could do nothing but charge into battle before him. Yet once power passed into Sun Quan’s hands, he spent his entire life maintaining a balance among them.

In some respects, Sun Quan had been a remarkable man. Xu Feng had rather liked him when he first read the Records of the Three Kingdoms.

“There is no need to assign me any men specifically. Just place me under your command. When we go on missions, however, you must arrange for people to assist me.”

It was such a simple request that Red Lotus agreed without the slightest hesitation.

“That will not be a problem.”

“Now tell me about the mission. Why did you travel all the way from the capital to Gusu? Surely you did not truly intend to occupy a mountain and declare yourself king.”

Gusu was a major city, but it lay relatively close to the frontier. If Xu Feng’s guess was correct, then something must have gone wrong with the fighting there.

“The Feng family truly has no idea how fortunate they are. They have a treasure like you in their own household, yet they still went looking elsewhere and married their daughter to Zuo Jincheng.”

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How could Red Lotus fail to realize that Xu Feng had most likely already guessed the truth? She concealed nothing from him and told him the entire story of the frontier situation.

The imperial forces had suffered repeated defeats along the frontier. The several major cities near the front lines were bound to have problems. Red Lotus had brought her people there to investigate whether anyone was collaborating with the enemy.

Her identity was unusual, and the emperor had agreed almost immediately. Sending her there served another purpose as well: it was a warning to those people. They were to stop causing trouble, or the imperial court would not let them off.

“So, your backing is quite formidable?”

Red Lotus was roughly the same age as Xu Feng, yet she had already become a Hundred-Household Officer of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Xu Feng did not believe she could have risen so quickly without powerful support.

“Of course. My father is the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and my elder brother is its Chief Commander. I am a true descendant of the establishment. Follow me, and your future will be limitless.”

For Xu Feng, this was good news.

No wonder Red Lotus’s reports of merit could reach the emperor directly. Her connections truly extended to the heavens. Yet this also meant that the entire organization, from top to bottom, belonged to Red Lotus’s faction. It showed just how difficult the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s circumstances were: they were standing alone, with no one to rely on but themselves.

“In that case, I shall be counting on you from now on, Miss Red Lotus.”

Xu Feng unexpectedly offered her a flattering remark. Red Lotus broke out in gooseflesh and hurriedly told him to stop.

After the joking ended, both of them became serious.

Red Lotus had arrived in Gusu City more than half a month earlier, yet she had made no progress at all. No matter which direction she investigated, someone would intervene to stop her.

Some of her subordinates had even been taken prisoner by the opposing side.

They did not dare kill anyone openly, nor did they dare attack Red Lotus directly. But through all kinds of methods, they had made it nearly impossible for her to take a single step in Gusu.

“You were too impulsive. They have operated here for many years. How could it possibly be easy to uncover information in secret?”

Red Lotus was still far too young.