Under One Person: I Opened the Age of Mythology

Chapter 435

Yang Jian put away his three-pointed double-edged sword and looked at Nezha sternly, with a hint of ridicule in his tone:

"The monkey asked me to appease those stubborn old men, why didn't he come himself? He is much better at this kind of thing than I am."

Nezha shrugged and said with a smile:
"The monkey is busy dealing with the arrested immortal officials and can't spare time. Besides, if you put your cold face there, who would dare to make trouble for those stubborn old men?"

Yang Jian snorted coldly and tapped the hilt of the knife with his fingers:
"Don't give me that crap. I don't believe you're praising me like this just to make me work willingly. Tell me, Monkey, do you have anything else to say?"

Nezha put away his smile and said seriously:

"Monkey asked you to draw up a pacification plan first, focusing on the immortal officials who were transferred during the reform. They have grievances in their hearts, and if they are not dealt with in time, it may affect the stability of the Heavenly Court. After you draw up the plan, give it directly to Monkey for review, and he will add some details."

Yang Jian nodded, frowning slightly:
"Those stubborn old men, especially those who have been transferred, will definitely be unwilling to accept this. Just appeasing them may not be enough. We have to give them some tangible benefits, otherwise they will not easily cooperate."

Nezha agreed:
"That's right. Monkey mentioned this, too. He hopes you can handle it flexibly and promise to fight for some reasonable interests for them if necessary, such as retaining some power or providing a better position arrangement."

Yang Jian shook his head thoughtfully:

"These old stubborn people are very cunning, and it's probably hard to convince them with benefits alone. I have to think carefully about how to make them willingly cooperate with the reform."

Nezha patted Yang Jian on the shoulder, with a bit of trust in his tone:

"Yang Jian, you have always been resourceful. Monkey and I are both relieved to leave this matter to you. Please prepare a plan as soon as possible. The sooner we can resolve this matter, the smooth progress of the reform of the Heavenly Palace will be achieved."

Yang Jian nodded, turned and walked towards his study, waving his hand without looking back:

"Okay, I know what to do, just go do your thing."

Nezha looked at Yang Jian's back, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, thinking to himself:
"With Yang Jian's help, this matter is settled."

That night, Yang Jian sat at his desk, writing quickly on the jade slip with the pen in his hand.

He was thinking as he wrote, and he would stop from time to time with a frown on his face, as if he was weighing the pros and cons of something.

It was not until late at night when everyone was asleep that he finally put down his pen, breathed a long sigh of relief, and put away the jade slip.

The next morning, Yang Jian came to the Qitian Palace with the prepared plan.

Sun Wukong was sitting at the desk, holding a scroll in his hands. When he saw Yang Jian coming in, he looked up and asked:

"Is the plan ready?"

Yang Jian nodded and handed the jade slip to Sun Wukong:
"Monkey, take a look, is there anything you need to add?"

Sun Wukong took the jade slip and read it carefully, tapping his fingers lightly on the table, sometimes his brows relaxed, sometimes he nodded slightly.

After a moment, he closed the jade slip and looked up at Yang Jian with some approval in his eyes:

"Yes, it's very thoughtful. However, I suggest adding some details to the plan. For example, we can take some tough measures against those immortal officials who have a tough attitude, implying that if they don't cooperate, they will face more severe punishment."

Upon hearing this, Yang Jian's eyes flashed with admiration:
"Monkey, this is a brilliant move of yours. For those stubborn people, appeasement alone may not be enough. Appropriate deterrence is also necessary."

Sun Wukong smiled slightly, picked up the red brush and added a few strokes on the jade slip, then handed the jade slip to Yang Jian:

"That's it. You should implement it as soon as possible."

Yang Jian took the jade slip, turned and left the Qitian Palace, and began to implement the plan.

He first met with the immortal officials who had been transferred and interviewed them one by one.

Whenever an immortal official came to his residence, Yang Jian would always ask them to sit down first, personally pour them a cup of tea, and say in a calm tone:

"This reform is the general trend of the Heavenly Court, but we also know that your job transfer has indeed caused you a lot of trouble. We are not targeting anyone, but for the long-term development of the Heavenly Court. If you are willing to cooperate with the reform, we will do our best to fight for your reasonable interests."

Most of the immortal officials looked unhappy at first, and some even spoke coldly:

"Yang Jian, stop being so hypocritical. We were transferred and we are already angry. No matter how nice your words are, they can't change our situation."

Yang Jian was not angry, but smiled faintly, picked up the teacup and took a sip, his tone still calm:

"I understand your grievances. But have you ever thought about what will happen to the future of Heaven if you continue to obstruct reform? What will happen to your descendants? Reform is certainly painful, but without reform, Heaven will only become more and more bloated and eventually decline."

Seeing that the immortal officials' expressions had relaxed somewhat, Yang Jian continued:
"We don't want to completely deprive you of your power, but we hope that you can continue to serve the Heavenly Court in your new position. If you are willing to cooperate, we can strive for a better position for you, and even retain some of your original power."

With Yang Jian's persuasion, the attitudes of those immortal officials gradually softened.

Some immortal officials even took the initiative to ask:

"Yang Jian, you make it sound so easy, why should we believe you?"

Yang Jian smiled slightly, took out a file from his sleeve and handed it to the immortal official:

"This is your new position arrangement. Take a look at it. If you are satisfied, we can implement it as soon as possible."

The immortal official took the file, read it carefully, and finally showed a look of satisfaction on his face:

"Okay, I'll trust you for now, but if you break your promise, don't blame me for being rude."

Yang Jian nodded, his tone serious:
"Don't worry, I, Yang Jian, always keep my word."

In this way, Yang Jian appeased the transferred immortal officials one by one, and most of them expressed their willingness to cooperate with the reform.

However, there are still a few immortal officials who take a tough stance and even openly express their opposition.

Faced with these diehards, Yang Jian was no longer polite.

He directly sent his heavenly soldiers to invite those immortal officials to the Law Enforcement Department and said in a stern tone:

"This reform was ordered by the Great Sage himself, and no one is allowed to obstruct it. If you continue to refuse to cooperate, don't blame me for being ruthless."

When the immortal officials heard this, their faces suddenly changed, and some even shouted angrily:
"Yang Jian, don't go too far! We have served the Heavenly Court for many years, how can we allow you to bully us like this?"

Yang Jian sneered, his eyes like knives:

"The reform of the Heavenly Court is an inevitable trend. Anyone who obstructs it will be severely punished. If you don't want to be expelled from the Heavenly Court, you'd better cooperate obediently."

Seeing Yang Jian's tough attitude, those stubborn immortal officials felt unwilling but did not dare to continue to contradict him.

One of the immortal officials suppressed his anger and said coldly:
"Yang Jian, we have noted what you did today. The reform of the Heavenly Palace was the intention of the Great Sage, and we have no objection, but if you abuse your power, someone will come after you in the future!"

Yang Jian remained unmoved, his eyes still stern:

"Right and wrong will be judged by the public. If you have any opinions, you can write to the Heavenly Court, but obstructing reform is absolutely not allowed."

The immortal official snorted coldly, said nothing more, and left with a flick of his sleeves.

Yang Jian looked at their backs and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew that although these stubborn immortal officials were temporarily suppressed, they would never give up.

He turned and walked into the Law Enforcement Department, recorded what had just happened, and then sent someone to pass the news to Sun Wukong and Nezha. At this time, Sun Wukong and Nezha were discussing the next action in the Qitian Hall.

After receiving the news from Yang Jian, Nezha frowned slightly and said in a low voice:

"Monkey, although Yang Jian has temporarily suppressed those diehards, I am worried that they will secretly collude and obstruct the reform again."

Sun Wukong nodded slightly and tapped his fingers on the table:

"Yes, these stubborn immortal officials will not give up easily. We must act quickly and completely eradicate their power."

A hint of ruthlessness flashed in Nezha's eyes, and his voice was low:

"Monkey, I think we should take action directly and capture all these stubborn immortal officials to completely eliminate the hidden dangers."

Sun Wukong pondered for a moment, his eyes deep:

"Although this will help us cut the Gordian knot, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction within the Heavenly Court. We must act cautiously and not alert the enemy. Yang Jian has already appeased most of the immortal officials, and the remaining diehards are only a minority. We only need to monitor them secretly and wait for them to show their hand, then take them down in one fell swoop."

Nezha nodded, his tone firm:
"Okay, I will arrange some personnel right away to keep a close watch on those stubborn immortal officials."

Sun Wukong smiled slightly and patted Nezha on the shoulder:

"Go ahead, and be careful."

Nezha took the order, turned around and left the Qitian Palace and went straight to the Law Enforcement Department.

He dispatched a dozen of his trusted celestial generals to closely monitor the activities of those stubborn immortal officials to ensure that they could not escape or continue to sabotage.

At the same time, Yang Jian also received a secret order from Sun Wukong and began to mobilize the troops of heaven, preparing to capture all the people involved in the case in one fell swoop when the time was right.

Yang Jian stood on the high platform of the Heavenly Soldiers' Camp, his eyes were like torches, and his voice was deep and powerful:
"Everyone, this mission is of great importance. It concerns the reform and stability of the Heavenly Court. Once I give the order, you must act quickly and capture all the immortal officials involved in the case. There must not be the slightest mistake!"

The heavenly soldiers responded in unison:
"I will obey the orders of the true king!"

Yang Jian nodded with satisfaction, turned and walked aside to discuss the specific details of the action with several trusted generals.

Based on the list provided by Nezha, they analyzed the position, strength and possible hiding place of each immortal official one by one and worked out a detailed capture plan.

A few days later, Nezha's trusted celestial general brought news that those stubborn immortal officials were secretly colluding and preparing to launch a large-scale obstruction operation in the near future.

Nezha immediately informed Sun Wukong and Yang Jian of the news. After discussion, the three decided to act in advance.

That night, Yang Jian personally led the heavenly soldiers and generals and went to the residences and offices of those stubborn immortal officials according to the plan made in advance.

The operation was swift and secretive. In less than half a day, all the immortal officials on the list were arrested and escorted to the Heavenly Court Law Enforcement Department.

In the main hall of the Law Enforcement Department, Sun Wukong, Nezha and Yang Jian stood on a high platform, looking down at the immortal officials who were being escorted.

Sun Wukong's eyes were stern and his voice was loud:

"Everyone, you are arrested today because of your own fault. The reform of the Heavenly Court is an inevitable trend. Anyone who tries to obstruct it will be severely punished!"

Those immortal officials lowered their heads, their faces filled with regret and fear.

Nezha took a step forward and said coldly:
"Your actions have seriously threatened the stability of the Heavenly Court. You will be judged according to the Heavenly Law and will not be let off lightly."

Yang Jian stood aside, staring at the immortal officials with a sharp gaze, and said coldly:

"Everyone, if you have any reservations or resistance, don't blame me for being rude."

Upon hearing this, the immortal officials all knelt on the ground and begged for mercy:
"Great Sage, True Lord, Third Prince, we know we are wrong, please forgive us!"

Sun Wukong sneered and waved his hand:

"Take him away and interrogate him carefully."

The heavenly soldiers and generals responded immediately and escorted the captured immortal officials away one by one.

Soon, peace returned to the hall.

Sun Wukong turned around and looked at Nezha and Yang Jian, a trace of relief flashed in his eyes:
"You have made great contributions in this operation. The reform of the Heavenly Court can finally proceed smoothly."

Nezha smiled slightly, with a hint of pride in his tone:

"Monkey, next we just need to continue to monitor the interior of the Heavenly Court to ensure that no forces that hinder the reform will appear."

Yang Jian nodded, his eyes still stern:
"Yes, we still need to completely eradicate the forces behind these immortal officials in order to ensure the long-term stability of the Heavenly Court."

Sun Wukong pondered for a moment, his eyes deep:

"I leave this matter to you. Please proceed with caution."

The three of them smiled at each other, with tacit understanding in their eyes.

Yang Jian nodded slightly, turned and left the hall.

Outside the palace, the sun was shining brightly, but it could not dispel the gloom in his heart.

Although this operation seemed to be successful, it only removed the tip of the iceberg. Behind those diehards, there must be a more powerful force manipulating them.

While thinking, Yang Jian slowly walked towards the archives of heaven.

He needed more information to find out the details of these stubborn immortal officials and the forces behind them.

Arriving at the door of the archives, Yang Jian showed his token and the guard respectfully opened the door and let him in.

Inside the archive, scrolls are piled high and the air is filled with the smell of ancient paper.

Yang Jian skillfully flipped through the files, looking for information related to the arrested immortal officials.

He read every document carefully, not allowing any detail to be overlooked.

His fingers gently stroked across the yellowed paper, his brows were furrowed and his eyes were deep.

After several hours, Yang Jian finally found the clue.

He discovered that some of the arrested immortal officials had had contact with a force called the "Netherworld Palace".

This force is elusive and acts secretively. It has always been hiding in the dark and has never been discovered.

However, the fragmentary information recorded in the archives is enough to prove its existence and power.

Yang Jian was secretly shocked. What kind of organization is this Netherworld Palace?
He was able to secretly control the immortal officials in heaven and tried to obstruct the reform.

Without any hesitation, Yang Jian immediately launched an investigation into the Netherworld Palace and reported the situation.

After some investigation, he discovered that the roots of the Netherworld Palace actually led directly to the underworld. His face became solemn and he immediately discussed it with Sun Wukong...

(End of this chapter)