knife

Chapter 188 The Third Force

The earthen walls, the blue-tiled roof, and the bamboo fence made the simple house seem utterly unworthy of the boldly written signboard of the Censorate that Yuan Tong was currently hanging above the door.

Zhang Ruo's government office has officially opened for business.

As the Vice Censor-in-Chief and Inspector General of the Pass appointed by the imperial court, he naturally could not set up his own office in the core area under the jurisdiction of the Anxi Protectorate. This would obviously be unfair and would raise questions from the Andong Protectorate.

Of course, this is the official explanation, and it's a statement that everyone can accept.

As long as an official is ambitious and has even a sliver of opportunity, no one will willingly submit to others.

Moreover, it's someone like Zhang Ruo.

Developing a third power outside the Great Wall is what he wants to do most right now.

He chose Duxian County as the location for his official residence.

Duxian County has an interesting location. It is situated between the two protectorates of Andong and Anxi, but it is slightly closer to the Anxi protectorate, and nominally belongs to the Anxi protectorate.

Because a tributary that flows into the Qingshui River passes through here, although it is either dry or frozen for more than half the year, water is always precious and can always nurture endless vitality in the surrounding area.

Therefore, although Duxian County is small, it has more than a thousand households and a population of nearly 10,000. The vast majority of them live near the county seat.

Others who live alone are either from large, established families who can generally protect themselves, or they are individuals with somewhat mysterious identities.

Compared to some prosperous places inside the Great Wall, this population size is only that of a large village, but outside the Great Wall, it is already considered a very good place.

The Inspectorate is now severely understaffed.

Zhang Ruo originally had a guard of about a hundred men, which was assigned to him by Li Dachui and was led by the brothers Yuan Rong and Yuan Tong. After Zhang Ruo made a trip to Xuanwu, this guard of about a hundred men was split into two. One half was led by Yuan Rong and stationed at the Xuanwu port, while the other half was led by Yuan Tong and continued to follow Zhang Ruo.

This number of people is definitely not enough. Yuan Tong suggested recruiting in places like Tai'an City or Baoping City, but Zhang Ru wanted to wait a little longer.

He did not want all his subordinates to be people from the Anxi Protectorate.

Expanding the workforce can only be done slowly, gradually selecting people you can completely trust to join.

It wasn't that Zhang Ruo was ungrateful; it was just his most instinctive reaction as an official.

No one wants to be anyone else's vassal. No matter how grateful Zhang Ruo is to Xiao Changche and Li Dachui, he doesn't want a casual remark to reach their ears the next day.

Moreover, Zhang Ruo regarded Xiao Changche and Li Dachui as comrades who could fight against Bei Yuan and hold back Linghu Ye. In fact, deep down, he was also wary of the possibility that Xiao Changche and Li Dachui might become the second Linghu Ye.

If you want to become the third force, you naturally need a force that truly belongs to you.

Just because it's not there now doesn't mean it won't be in the future.

Zhang Ruoke didn't believe that outside of Guanwai, besides Linghu Ye's people, there were only Xiao Changche and Li Dachui's people.

There will always be people who don't want to choose them.

Just like Cai Ming of Xuanwu Prefecture, who did not want to become a complete vassal of these two parties, he became a better partner.

Yuan Rong stationed himself at Xuanwu Harbor. He proposed the plan, and Cai Ming seconded it. Regardless of what Li Dachui and Xiao Changche thought, they could only agree.

However, it seems that they don't care much about developing their own strength.

"Scholar, do you mean that the Protectorates of Andong and Anxi will send people to congratulate us tomorrow?" Yuan Tong was somewhat unsure, because the purpose of Zhang Ruo's actions was all too clear, even to him, a political novice, let alone seasoned officials like Linghu Ye and Li Dachui.

Linghu Ye didn't care. Anyway, he and Zhang Ruo had never gotten along. Now that Zhang Ruo had done this, it was pushing Li Dachui and Xiao Changche out as well. Linghu Ye couldn't be happier.

If you want to be a loyal subject, then so be it.

Ideally, we should also completely offend Xiao Changche and Li Dachui; that would be even better.

Making a name for oneself outside the Great Wall is no easy feat.

Zhang Ruo looked at the plaque that gleamed in the sunlight with satisfaction and smiled, "I don't know if Xiao Changche and Li Dachui can come, but Linghu Ye's side will definitely send someone. Once Zhenwu City comes, the local forces that are affiliated with Zhenwu City will also come. And since Xuanwu Cai Ming has decided to join forces with me to maintain his independence as much as possible, he will definitely send a heavyweight figure as well."

“Protector Xiao is currently suppressing bandits in the Black Domain, and Deputy Protector Li has been elusive lately, impossible to find. But I think Chief Secretary Mao and the others will definitely come, right?” Yuan Tong said somewhat anxiously. “Scholar, speaking of our expenses, we still rely on Bao Ping City! Zhenwu City won’t provide them, and although the imperial court has promised, nobody knows when they will arrive; it might just be an empty promise. If Bao Ping City also cuts off supplies, we’ll be in trouble!”

"Don't worry!" Zhang Ru patted his shoulder and laughed, "There won't be a shortage of money. Zhenwu City will send money, and Cai Ming will also send money. They won't let me be completely controlled by Baoping City because of financial problems!" Yuan Tong looked at Zhang Ru, opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

Zhang Ruo laughed and said, "Are you trying to say that Zhang Ruo's actions are somewhat ungrateful and like someone who kicks away a bridge after crossing it?"

Yuan Tong smiled sheepishly: "Scholar, please don't blame me for being ungrateful. From the perspective of us Jianghu people, we seem to have really let down Protectors Xiao and Li!"

Zhang Ruo nodded: "How could I blame you! That's just how it is. But for the safety of Great Qin, I have no choice but to do this, even if people scold me, I have to endure it. But I think Protectors Xiao and Li can understand me."

“We always seem to side with Anxi, don’t we?” Yuan Tong couldn’t help but ask.

“That’s true now!” Zhang Ruo said. “At the same time, we also need to work hard to develop our own strength. In the future, if Linghu Ye is defeated by Xiao Changche and Li Dachui, we will have to help Linghu Ye again.”

"In other words, no matter who is in power outside the pass, they can only stay outside the pass and must never enter the pass!" Yuan Tong said. "This is the most important key point of your work."

Zhang Ruo nodded. "That's right! Yuan Tong, this is politics. It goes back and forth, and there are never any true friends. Even if there are, they sometimes part ways because of political differences. And someone like me doesn't deserve to have friends."

After saying this, Zhang Ruo seemed a little sad and stepped inside.

Looking at Zhang Ruo's long shadow reflected on the ground, Peng Tong shook his head.

politics?

Do they really not even deserve to have friends?

But I think Protector Xiao and Protector Li are quite a good match!

Those who share the same ideals and goals will surely have true friends.

Linghu Ye's rebellion was certainly unrelated to Scholar Zhang.

Why did Scholar Zhang have to be wary of both Protector-General Xiao and Protector-General Li?
Could it be that these two also have plans to enter the country in the future?
If that day ever comes, what should I choose?

worry!
Although his brother had followed Scholar Zhang from Chang'an, he truly admired Protector Xiao and Protector Li, believing them to be truly upright men!
If Zhang Ruo felt unwell or unhappy, she could go inside and sit down to drink a cup of tea, or take a nap to relieve her frustration. But Yuan Tong couldn't do that.

He also had to go and discuss the arrangements for tomorrow's celebration with the magistrate of Du County. According to Scholar Zhang, there would likely be quite a few guests coming tomorrow, and they would all be of high status. Although Du County was simple, it could not afford to be negligent and become a laughing stock.

The magistrate of Du County was a member of a prominent local family, a man in his early thirties. He didn't think highly of Zhang Ruo and was quite dissatisfied with Zhang Ruo's choice of his place as his residence.

After all, he used to be the boss in Duxian County. Neither Linghuye nor Xiao Changche had the tacit understanding to send troops there. When the tiger is away, the monkey is king. He was enjoying himself immensely, having won favor with both sides.

But now that Zhang Ruoyi has arrived, his status has plummeted.

So during this time, this guy was just going through the motions without putting in any real effort, and even resorted to some underhanded tactics. However, in Zhang Ruo's eyes, his tricks were child's play and easily neutralized. As for using force, Yuan Tong only showed a couple of moves before the so-called experts that this local bully relied on withdrew their heads.

A peak seventh-grade expert might not seem like much to Li Dachui and his group, but outside the Great Wall, a family with even one expert at the Xuan Yuan level or above could be considered a force to be reckoned with.

Talk to this guy about the guests who might come tomorrow, so he can broaden his horizons and cooperate with me to do a good job of receiving them tomorrow.

That guy was from a small town and lacked experience. He couldn't see the benefits Zhang Ruo's presence here could bring him. He just felt uncomfortable because a god was now above him.

In Yuan Tong's view, this guy wasn't completely evil; at least he didn't incite the local people to stage a mass incident, which is what makes him the most difficult to deal with.

Based on this point alone, Yuan Tong felt that it was still worth trying to win this guy over.

After all, being able to bring in a local bigwig as a partner is a good thing for someone who will be staying here long-term.

Lost in thought, Yuan Tong arrived at the only large house in the county town built of blue bricks and forcefully knocked on the iron ring of the black gate.

Just as Yuan Tong entered the home of the magistrate of Du County to discuss tomorrow's work, dozens of guards escorted a carriage to the newly established residence of the Inspector General.

Just as the guards at the gate stepped forward to ask questions, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a woman wearing a veil emerged from the carriage.

"Miss Qingyun?" The guard, who had seen Zhang Qingyun before, exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the woman stepping down from the carriage, "What brings you here?"

“Tomorrow should be the happiest day for Father since he came to the Northeast. How could I not come to congratulate him?” Zhang Qingyun said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)