Chapter 55: Make Him Crawl Over Here

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“How are we supposed to deal with the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Do you think you can persuade Zhan Honglian, or do you have some way to make them abandon the case and return to the capital?

“If anyone else had come, Huang Wenzhong might still have tried to negotiate with them. Unfortunately, the Embroidered Uniform Guard answered only to the Emperor, so all his connections at court were useless.

“Besides, he could not simply make a move against them. That would be little different from rebellion. If Zhan Honglian died on his territory, no one could withstand the wrath of the imperial court.

“Thus, the entire situation had reached an impasse.

“My lord, why not take a step back?” Wang Qingshan said unhurriedly. “I have heard something that may be of use to you.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“There is nothing we can do about Zhan Honglian, but we can approach the other hundred-household commander—the one named Xu Feng. He is a native of Gusu. I heard that he distributed all the silver he received among his men. Perhaps we can find a breakthrough through him.”

Wang Qingshan was the current head of the Wang family. As the saying went, county magistrates came and went, but county assistants remained like iron pillars. As a local powerbroker, it was impossible to conceal such information from him.

The Wang family wielded even greater influence than the Feng family, and they had a hand in nearly every profitable business in Gusu.

“You have a point. Make contact with him first and see whether he can be brought to our side. If so, the Embroidered Uniform Guard will be nothing to fear.”

Xu Feng’s public distribution of silver had been a scheme that killed two birds with one stone. It had won him a group of capable subordinates while leading his opponents to believe they had found a weakness. Little did they know that the weakness was merely bait he had cast out.

The next day, Wang Qingshan indeed came to pay a visit.

“Who goes there?”

Xu Feng sat boldly in the principal seat, making no effort to show the slightest regard for his visitor. Wang Qingshan could not help looking down on him.

He took Xu Feng for nothing more than a nouveau riche. After all, Wang Qingshan knew Xu Feng’s origins perfectly well. Before earning his merits, he had been merely a lowly live-in son-in-law.

“My name is Wang Qingshan. My lord would like to invite the two of you to the county office for a meeting. The Embroidered Uniform Guard has only just arrived. Whether we wish to investigate something or attend to any other matter, we require someone’s cooperation.”

“My lord is willing to lend a hand. Whatever your requirements may be, you have only to state them.”

Wang Qingshan adopted an exceedingly humble posture and tried to persuade them with every appearance of sincerity.

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He looked like a man who was easy to deal with, but Xu Feng was not deceived by his outward display.

Unfortunately, he had not discussed the matter with Honglian beforehand. Seeing how cooperative the visitor appeared, Honglian was immediately prepared to agree.

“That would be excellent. So long as you are willing to cooperate, everything can be discussed.”

Xu Feng could only hurriedly give Honglian a meaningful glance. Though she did not understand what he meant, she handed control of the situation over to him.

“What is your opinion, Lord Xu?” she asked.

Xu Feng was naturally not so agreeable. He smashed the teacup in his hand onto the table.

“You are merely a lowly county assistant. What standing do you have, and who do you think you are to ask for my opinion?”

“You keep invoking your ‘lord.’ If he wants to negotiate, let him come here himself!”

They had already killed someone. From this point onward, they could not afford to relax their attitude in the slightest or give their opponent any opportunity. They had to remain consistent from beginning to end.

Only then could they force the other side to reveal a weakness.

Up to this moment, Huang Wenzhong had not shown himself. He had merely sent Wang Qingshan to summon them. If the two of them went over so readily, would that not place them beneath the other side?

“The Embroidered Uniform Guard’s hundred-household office is a sixth-rank institution directly subordinate to His Majesty. A seventh-rank county magistrate should have come to pay his respects as soon as we arrived, yet he has delayed for so long and still refuses to appear.

“His airs are greater than the heavens! And now he sends a mere county assistant to summon us. Have you failed to take the Embroidered Uniform Guard seriously, or have you failed to take His Majesty seriously?”

Xu Feng’s words were utterly merciless. He berated Wang Qingshan from the moment he opened his mouth. At the same time, Honglian understood what he meant.

This was a trap. Even if the other side truly intended to cooperate, they could not take the initiative and visit them. Whoever went to pay a call first was bound to be looked down upon.

If their guess was correct, once they paid that visit today, news of it would spread throughout the entire city by tomorrow.

Through a moment’s carelessness, Honglian had nearly fallen into the trap the other side had prepared. Fortunately, Xu Feng had seen through it, and they had not been deceived.

“It seems your lord has no sincere intention of cooperating. Since that is the case, we shall conduct ourselves according to official procedure. Get out!”

Seeing that he could not bring them back with him, Wang Qingshan felt utterly helpless.

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He had assumed that Xu Feng would be easy to deal with, which was why he had even prepared a gift of silver. Xu Feng had accepted the money, yet had done nothing in return. Wang Qingshan could not help cursing him inwardly for having no regard for the rules.

Unfortunately, the situation was stronger than the man. Even though Xu Feng had ignored convention, Wang Qingshan could do nothing about it and could only compromise.

“You are right to reprimand me, my lord. I shall return at once and report your wishes to my lord. I shall take my leave.”

When Huang Wenzhong saw Wang Qingshan return alone, he had already guessed the outcome.

“What is it? They refuse to cooperate?”

“My lord, that Xu Feng is nothing but a nouveau riche. The moment he gained a little authority, he could not wait to flaunt it. He refuses to come here and even declared that you must go to him personally.”

Hearing this, Huang Wenzhong’s face turned livid. He had known that this path would not be easy.

The entire city of Gusu was watching the Embroidered Uniform Guard. If he personally went to pay a visit, a great deal of unfavorable news would inevitably spread, and those who had placed themselves under his protection would only grow more anxious.

“You fool! Did you fail to prepare a gift?”

“How could I, my lord? Do you not trust the way I handle matters? Before I went there, I arranged for five hundred taels of silver to be delivered. He accepted the money, yet still refused to do anything for us.”

Wang Qingshan was furious as well. It was the first time he had encountered someone like this—utterly shameless, a complete tough-skinned rogue. Yet he understood better than anyone that such a person was the hardest to deal with.

One could never know where the other man’s next move would land. It would come without the slightest warning.

“Xu Feng is a clever man,” Huang Wenzhong said. “He probably saw through our intentions. This was an entirely transparent stratagem, and he knew perfectly well that we could do nothing to him. That is why he dared to act so boldly.”

Huang Wenzhong was an old hand in officialdom. How could he fail to see Xu Feng’s intentions? In his view, the man was certainly not the simple-minded nouveau riche Wang Qingshan had described.

“Then, my lord, are we going?”

“Go! How could we not? Otherwise, would he not accuse me of deceiving my superiors? We have already lost the upper hand, however, so we cannot go with great fanfare. Make the necessary preparations. Once the sun has set, we shall pay him a visit.”