The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 45 Chance Encounter
In Dashuo, there are a few things that cannot be touched.

For example, the Ming Cult, for example, rebellion.

If you touch it, you will die and your whole family will be wiped out. If the earthworms are split vertically, or if the yolk of an egg is shaken apart, your whole family will be wiped out.

Generally speaking, the imperial court would not deliberately target a certain underworld force unless it did something outrageous. But the Ming Cult was different. No matter who was in charge or whether they had committed any crime, the imperial court had only one attitude towards it - kill them.

No matter how big and powerful the Jianghu forces are, they are just entities that can be destroyed. Ten top masters cannot stop three thousand cavalry.

But the Mingjiao is different. It is a religion, a thought, an thought that seeks outward and has its own methodology.

This is very dangerous.

The Red Turbans, the Yellow Turbans, Fang La, Sun En, Lu Xun, Xu Hongru... there are too many examples to count. With so many precedents, it is no wonder that the court has such an attitude towards the Ming Cult.

Especially the incident of Ji Tianrui going to Miaojiang that year was a major case that caused a huge uproar.

You are a professional rebel, and you go to Miaojiang to learn witchcraft - what do you want to do?
It's like a dog that can't stop eating shit and runs towards a dry toilet.

What you should be thinking about now is not "catching it in the act", but kicking it in the face before it runs in - this is called self-defense.

Almost all of the Jinyiwei went south and killed him in Miaojiang, and also killed most of the Mingjiao leaders.

It was also from then on that the Ming Cult went underground and became a taboo topic in Dashuo.

Now that the words of Zuo Lishan colluding with the Ming Cult came out from the Jinyiwei's mouth, Gao Ling knew that what she should think about now was not how to kill Zuo Lishan.

But the question is how to keep as many disciples of Taishan Sect alive as possible.

"Your Excellency... Sir..." Gao Ling spoke softly.

"Elder Gao, you don't have to be so polite." Li Miao spread his hands: "It's no use being polite."

"But you don't have to think so badly of me and the court. I do want to destroy the Taishan Sect, but I have other plans. As for the people of the Taishan Sect who are not involved, I will keep them alive to work for the court."

"As for who will live and who will die... then you have to pray that Zuo Lishan behaves himself these days and doesn't drag others down with him."

Mei Qinghe heard this from behind, opened her eyes, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Hey——" Li Miao had already heard the changes in Mei Qinghe's breathing and heartbeat. He knew what she was going to say, so he raised his hand to stop her.

"If the Five Mountains Sword Sects cannot succeed, they will just be robbing grass and hunting rabbits. I'm here now. The remaining four sects that hang out with the Taishan Sect all day will also have to pay a price."

"If we catch up, we catch up. You are just unlucky."

"The rules for this matter have been set in Shuntian Prefecture and cannot be changed."

Mei Qinghe's eyes darkened and she kept silent. Gao Ling also looked disheartened.

"Alright, ladies. Looking sad won't solve any problems. Just do your job well, and I can save a few more lives."

"That's it for now, let's eat first."

It was already sunset, and it was time for dinner. Li Miao got up and went out with Gao Ling and Mei Qinghe to find something to eat.

Li Miao had extorted a lot of money from Xu Siyuan, the commander of Pingshan Guard, so of course he would pick out the best and most expensive food for meals. Having stayed in Tai'an City for a few days, he also knew where to find delicious food, and he took the two of them to a restaurant with ease.

After entering the door, the waiter stepped forward and recognized this generous guest, and greeted him warmly: "Sir, you are here again."

"The private room upstairs is still empty, and the chef is also free now. As usual, pick some fresh ingredients of the day and ask the chef to make you a dozen of his signature hot dishes and five or six cold dishes?" Li Miao smiled and said, "You're sensible." He took out some change from his pocket and put it in the second hand.

The waiter smiled happily, turned around and led the three people to a private room to sit down, served some snacks and tea, and then hurried to the kitchen to order the menu.

As soon as he left, the atmosphere in the private room became heavy.

Gao Ling was concerned about the safety of Taishan Sect and was afraid that Zuo Lishan would do something wrong. Mei Qinghe tampered with the internal energy passed down to her by her master, and Huashan Sect was involved in something related to the Ming Cult.

Both of them lowered their heads and remained silent, looking depressed.

Li Miao thought to himself: "Well, I am destined to have no one to chat with when I eat." He could only eat the snacks by himself to relieve his boredom.

Just at this moment, there was a commotion downstairs and more than a dozen people came in.

A loud voice said, "Just bring as much food as our number!"

When Mei Qinghe heard this man's voice, her face changed.

Li Miao saw Mei Qinghe's reaction, and after a brief thought, he roughly knew what was going on. He smiled and used his ear skills to listen to the conversation of the group of people downstairs.

Let's not talk about the nonsense these people were saying, such as "the weather is good" and "I'm so tired", but let's just talk about one table with fewer people, who started chatting after sitting down.

A young man said, "Master, we are only half an hour away from Taishan Sect. Why don't we just go there directly? Why wait all night in Tai'an City?"

An old female voice said, "Who would visit someone after dark? If you visit someone after dark, it means you're seeking revenge. When you're out there, you have to follow the rules."

The young man said aggrievedly, "Yes, Master."

After a while, he said again: "I don't know where Senior Sister is now. I was counting on her to show off her power to us at the Five Mountains Alliance Conference..."

The old woman sighed: "Alas... I know what she is doing..."

"I originally wanted to take her there after the Five Mountains Alliance Meeting to settle the past, so that she wouldn't have any more accidents due to her lack of experience in the martial arts world."

"Who knew she couldn't wait and went down the mountain by herself."

"From what I heard in the past few days, she has already done it. She may have already rushed to join us."

"It's just that... I'm afraid Sect Leader Zuo won't let it go easily. He'll use this as an excuse to pressure us again..."

Hearing this, Li Miao already had an idea in his mind, and he stood up and said to Mei Qinghe, "Let's go, Xiaomei."

"Since we've already met, why not introduce him to me today?"

After saying that, he went downstairs and walked towards the table. Mei Qinghe and Gao Ling followed closely behind him and walked to the table together.

The owner of the old female voice looked to be around fifty years old, with half white hair, well-maintained, and few wrinkles on her face. She had a straight back and a serious expression, with her long sword on the table, ready to be drawn at any time.

At this moment, she watched Li Miao walk up to her, frowned, and was about to ask about his purpose, but when her eyes caught sight of Mei Qinghe, she was stunned.

A young man at the same table stood up and said in surprise: "Senior sister! You really came to see us!"

This group of people were none other than the Huashan Sword Sect who had come to attend the Five Mountains Alliance Meeting.

The old woman is the leader of Huashan Sword Sect, Mei Qinghe’s master, and “Baiyun Sword” Liu Baiyun.

(End of this chapter)