The Great Seminary

Chapter 239 Who else would you rather me?
Zhang Gui, oblivious to Lü Zhenduan's menacing gaze, slowly stood up.

He announced in a deep voice:

"Da Lü, who else but me can handle this!"

Lu Zhenduan didn't understand what he meant and looked bewildered.

Zhang Gui explained:
"Didn't you just say that someone should clean up the mess on Fresh Velvet Island?"
"Who else but me can do this!"

Lu Zhenduan was startled. "I... I don't think that's what I said."

"That's not important. What's important is that if not me, then who?"

“Don’t joke around, Dragon and Tiger.

The reason I returned to Zhihai Town to find you this time is firstly because I feel that there are tens of millions of corpses buried on Xianrong Island.

This should be of great benefit to you, so I'm just reminding you.

Secondly, after Tao Shennu leaves, it is likely that Prince Zhen will not be able to hold on for long.

Of course, the Cheonje people are almost all dead now.

I saw with my own eyes that even children as young as ten years old went to the battlefield.

If Emperor Hezheng hadn't moved the capital to the south and stabilized the situation, preventing Prince Zhen's "temporary capital" from having the opportunity to recruit—or rather, to deceive, coerce, and forcibly conscript new soldiers—it would have been a different story.

It's really hard to say who will survive...

"You've been rambling on and on, but what exactly is 'two'?"

With a new goal in mind, Zhang Gui lost patience for idle chatter and waved his hand, asking:

"Secondly, King Jin's 'temporary capital' suffered a defeat, and it was only after the Cheonje people and Wonsan's troops recovered that things started to improve."

They will definitely harass the southern coast again.

This kind of human bomb doesn't require elite troops; instead, it's better to use the old, weak, sick, disabled, or inconspicuous people.

So I'm here to remind you to be very careful.

Then I decided to stay in Zhihai and not leave.

Zhang Rui was shot through the head by a hail of arrows and died.
The head of the "coroner" team, Han Li, who worked for you, Zhang Wei, is also dead.

Even a woman of unparalleled beauty like Zhao Pujun was poisoned to death by Eunuch Yan, the personal eunuch of Prince Zhen, on trumped-up charges after the disappearance of Goddess Tao!
When a person is in a hopeless situation, the more noble their status and the more kind and generous they usually are, the more unpredictable they become.

Sometimes he's manic, sometimes he's energetic.

I didn't understand at first, but I gradually figured it out.

They couldn't bear to die!

Having been born into such a fortunate family, dying would certainly be a hundred or a thousand times worse than for the average person.

So, heartbroken by his own actions, he indiscriminately killed others…

Feeling that Lü Zhenduan's words were becoming increasingly rambling and tedious, Zhang Gui stopped him:
"Okay, okay, okay, Lao Lü, I understand what you mean."

Don't worry, I never intended to take you to Fresh Velvet Island in the first place.

Now it seems that your mental state is clearly unsuitable.

But I really have to thank you for reminding me.

Well then, according to you, Prince Zhen's 'temporary residence' is about to be destroyed.

Then wouldn't the 'Nine Cities of Heavenly Creation' in the East Inner Sea truly be mine?

I'll allocate some start-up capital and manpower for you; go and take over.

It's okay if we get rejected; we'll take it one step at a time.

At this critical juncture, establishing a foothold overseas is far more secure than staying in the East.

It's a fallback plan.

Lü Zhenduan was also an ambitious person; otherwise, he wouldn't have followed Prince Zhen out of the capital.

They're just scared by the cruelty of this 'world of great strife' and want to be 'cowards'.

But if we can do something and earn a future while ensuring maximum safety, then...

Why wouldn't he be happy to do that?

“Since the Crown Prince is willing to entrust me with such a great responsibility, I am truly willing to give my life and die for him.”

Abandoning the previous tone of treating guests and hosts as equals, Lü Zhenduan's expression changed, and he responded respectfully.

Such a remarkable ability to change one's expression as easily as turning the pages of a book truly reflects the demeanor of students from the Imperial Academy, the premier academy in the land, during the Ming and Song dynasties!

Time flew by, and more than ten days passed in the blink of an eye. Zhang Gui had already arrived at Fresh Velvet Island.

They cleaned up their remains, which had been left in mass graves and buried in the soil during their absence.

Having reaped all these 'benefits,' it's equivalent to earning back the 'profits' from this trip to Fresh Velvet Island a hundredfold or a thousandfold.

He secretly sneaked back to Sichuan-Shenyang Port, taking advantage of the deep night.

By wielding divine authority and leveraging the power of the 'circulation' rules governing capital elements, he acquired the fourth fish-dragon mechanical warship.

What's astonishing is that even though such a massive ship, as large as a mountain, disappeared, everything at the dock remained as usual.

Clearly, none of the soldiers on night duty were actually on duty, or rather, there were no soldiers on night duty at all.

Even more absurdly, despite having three giant lighthouses, Chuanshen, the largest port on Xianrong Island, was completely devoid of light.

"When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter; when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter—this saying is truly apt."

Zhang Gui, who had originally been smearing ink on his face and activating the 'Zongheng Ruyi' divine energy within his body, was sneaking around to steal the boat.

He stood confidently in front of the berth, muttering to himself with a sigh.

He couldn't help but recall the first time he came to Sichuan to visit Hong Kong with Zhang Rui, who came from the "Huangce" rank of "Beijing Soldier" and was once one of the "Three Hundred Tiger Guards" of the Prince Zhen's Nine Bestowments.

He couldn't help but sigh again, his mind racing as he thought:

"Zhang Rui is a good trainer."

More importantly, as a seasoned captain of the Flower Dragon Cavalry, he was very familiar with the characteristics of this powerful army.

When he was drunk, he even said that training the Flower Dragon Knight would be a piece of cake.

He's a real talent.

If it weren't for his truly special background, which made it difficult to act rashly, I probably would have already recruited him and made him a general of the True Dragon Kingdom.

After sighing, he leaped up and walked on air.

They sped all the way back to the coroner's office outside the gate of Seoul, Gyeonggi Province.

I drew water from the well in the yard and washed myself clean.

He went back to his main room to light the brazier and rest for a while, only to find that the copper basin in the room had been stolen.

Zhang Gui could only crawl into the cold, hard bed.

Fortunately, he had already accomplished the 'important task' he wanted to take care of. Feeling relaxed, although he felt tired, he still slept soundly until dawn.

I put on my fur coat and went out feeling refreshed.

I walked for a while on the empty stone-paved streets of Seoul.

Zhang Gui discovered that a breakfast shop that was open yesterday was now closed.

I could only keep moving forward, wandering aimlessly.

I was hoping to find a restaurant that was still open.

After walking for a long time, I didn't see any of the open shops, but I did run into a stunningly beautiful acquaintance.

Good morning, Mr. Shen.

"Your Highness, it's been a long time."

Shen Shijing, who was walking blankly on the road, forced a smile and nodded at Zhang Gui.

Seeing her expression and considering her current situation, Zhang Gui, not wanting to cause trouble, gave a dry laugh.

"Really? Haha, I have something to take care of, so I'll take my leave now."

"What business does the young master have to attend to?"

Upon hearing this question, Zhang Gui knew that trouble was brewing.

After thinking for a moment, I said bluntly:

“Fairy Shen, let’s not talk about who has done whom a favor or who has helped whom.”

To put it simply, with my meager strength, it's impossible for me to shake the overall situation of Fresh Velvet Island.

It's no use trying to drag me down with you.

Besides, I'm not one of those fools who get all excited and have excessive energy when they see a stunning beauty; there's absolutely no way I'd agree to your request.

So it's better not to say anything.

Everyone looks more presentable now.

(End of this chapter)