Brocade Robe Unparalleled

Chapter 31 Conflict
The atmosphere at Jingbian Division today is completely different from that of the past.

In the past few days, the people of Jingbian Division have learned from several senior banner officers why Commander Shen was targeting Deputy Commander Wu in this way.

Logically speaking, even if a new official takes office and makes a strong first impression, they wouldn't do it so fiercely, showing no mercy whatsoever.

When Shen Baihu first arrived, he completely broke off relations with Wu Fu Baihu because the two belonged to different factions in the imperial court.

Wu, the deputy centurion, belonged to the Grand Secretary's faction, while Shen, the centurion, belonged to the Qingliu faction.

The current Grand Secretary, as the head of the civil officials, enjoys the Emperor's utmost trust and wields immense power, practically controlling everything. Meanwhile, the Qingliu faction, led by the Second Grand Secretary and including many high-ranking officials from the Cabinet and the Six Ministries, also possesses considerable influence and is capable of rivaling the Grand Secretary.

The Qingliu faction secretly referred to the Grand Secretary's faction as the "traitorous party," believing that they controlled the government and brought disaster to the country and its people.

The Grand Secretary's faction was also dissatisfied with the faction of the Qingliu faction constantly opposing them, and the two parties were engaged in open and covert struggles in the court, with constant conflicts.

The conflict in the Jingbian Division, which appeared to be a struggle between the chief officer and his deputy, was in fact nothing more than an extension of the power struggle in the capital.

Clearly, in the southwest, the Qingliu faction wielded even greater power.

Under orders from above, Deputy Commander Wu was suppressed to the point of having no power to resist. In the past few days, he has been staying at home on sick leave and has not come to the Jingbian Division even once, seemingly having given up completely.

Most of the banner officers and guards of the Jingbian Division were quite dissatisfied with Wu, the deputy centurion.

In the past, Wu Baihu would only give the lucrative positions in the department to his trusted confidants. His confidants would get all the meat, while the others wouldn't even get a sip of soup.

Later, when Lin Xiaoqi came to power, they were finally able to have a taste of meat soup.

I thought that since Commander Shen was a member of the "pure and upright faction," life under his command would be much more comfortable.

Unexpectedly, this so-called "pure stream" is even more corrupt than the "traitorous party."

In the past, escorting caravans was considered an external mission. As long as the caravan got this job, they would receive generous rewards. After giving Wu Baihu their share, they could still keep a lot for themselves.

But now, escorting caravans has been listed as an internal duty of the Jingbian Division by Commander Shen.

There was no extra pay for internal duties. They worked themselves to the bone, endured wind and rain, and risked their lives, only to receive the most basic salary. Everyone was full of resentment, but no one dared to say anything.

Huang Yue was the one who lived the most comfortable life within the Jingbian Commandery.

This guy rose to power by betraying Deputy Commander Wu and became Commander Shen's confidant.

He not only designated the most prosperous and affluent area in the city to himself, but he also took a cut of the taxes collected by other banner officers from their respective areas. Even the banner commander in charge of Huangyue had to give him some face.

In the Jingbian Division today, apart from the mysterious Commander Wenren, Huang Yue is undoubtedly the most powerful person second only to Commander Shen.

Jingbian Division.

Inside a separate duty room.

Huang Yue sat in a chair with his legs crossed, taking a sip of the fine tea that the Sizhou tea merchant had given him. Two of his men stood on either side of him, fanning him with fans.

Just then, a figure rushed in, wiping the sweat from his brow, and said, "Sir, I've found the girl you asked me to investigate!"

Huang Yue lowered his legs, sat up straight, and narrowed his eyes slightly: "Speak..."

After a moment, Huang Yue stroked his chin and sneered, "So that's why Lin Xuan stood up for her. Turns out she's his mistress. Ha, without Commander Chen and Commander Wu, let's see how you fight me..."

He gently beckoned, and the man immediately came closer. Huang Yue whispered a few words in his ear, and the man was taken aback at first, then said hesitantly, "Sir, this, I'm afraid..."

Huang Yue's face darkened: "Just do what I tell you to do. Don't forget who's in charge of the Jingbian Division now!"

The man nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, I'll take care of it right away!"

Huang Yue snorted: "Trying to be a hero and save the damsel in distress? I'll show you that you can't protect anything..."

……

Lin Xuan, Zhang Hu, and Chen Bao sat in the same duty room, chatting idly.

As banner officers, they did not need to go out on patrol every day like their guards. If they did not want to make any extra money, they could even spend the whole day practicing and sitting on duty at the Jingbian Division.

At one point, Lin Xuan heard a commotion coming from the courtyard outside.

"Hey, Huang Xiaoqi brought someone back..." "It's a pretty girl!"

"What did this girl do to deserve being arrested and brought here?"

Sizhou has local government offices. Generally, the Jingbian Division will only intervene in special cases that the local government cannot handle, or that are related to the Tusi (chieftain) or spies.

A beautiful young woman was brought to Jingbian Division, which immediately caused a small sensation.

Hearing the discussions outside, Lin Xuan thought of something, his heart sank, and he immediately got up and walked quickly into the courtyard.

Sure enough, as soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he saw A'Luo with her hands in shackles, being escorted by several Jingbian guards, and walking towards the prison.

And walking at the very front was Huang Yue.

"A-Luo, my sister!"

"Huang Yue, what are you doing!"

Zhang Hu and Chen Bao followed Lin Xuan out of the duty room and saw this scene, both of them angrily spoke up.

Huang Yue crossed his arms, satisfied with their reaction, and said calmly, "It's nothing. We've just captured a woman suspected of being a spy from Nanzhao and plan to bring her back to the department for questioning. What, do you have a problem with that?"

"You fart!"

"How could Sister A Luo be a spy from Nanzhao!"

Zhang Hu and Chen Bao were furious. This was Huang framing them and it was blatant revenge!

Upon hearing the noise, many figures also began to emerge from the other duty rooms.

After hearing just a few words, they guessed the reason for the matter.

One of the tasks of the Jingbian Division is to capture spies. Anything related to spies must be handled seriously, and Huang Yue's reason is quite justified.

His feud with Lin Xuan was common knowledge among the Jingbian Division.

Once he took power, the first person he wouldn't let go of was naturally Lin Xuan.

However, his methods were far too despicable.

This further fueled the public's contempt for him.

Huang Yue curled his lip and said, "Nanzhao spies don't wear the word 'spy' on their faces. How do you know she isn't? This person's background is unknown. There are so many empty houses in Sizhou, yet she chose to rent the one next to Lin Xiaoqi's. I have reason to suspect that she did this to get close to Lin Xiaoqi and gather confidential information from the Jingbian Division..."

He looked at Lin Xuan and said with a playful expression, "Lin Xiaoqi, I'm doing this for your own good. I believe you can understand, right?"

Before Lin Xuan could say anything, the hot-tempered Zhang Hu rushed out from behind Lin Xuan, grabbed Huang Yue by the collar, and yelled, "Understand your mother's ass!"

Two flag officers rushed out from behind Huang Yue and grabbed Zhang Hu's shoulders tightly. Huang Yue broke free and sneered, "Everyone saw it, Zhang Hu attacked first..."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly threw a punch at Zhang Hu's face.

Zhang Hu and Chen Bao spent all their time with Lin Xuan, and Huang Yue, hating them as much as Lin Xuan did, had long disliked them as well.

Zhang Hu was held down by two banner officers and was unable to break free and fight back.

Chen Bao stepped forward, about to make a move, but someone was faster than him.

boom!
The other fist, carrying a strong wind, collided with Huang Yue's fist.

Click...

With a slight cracking sound, Lin Xuan stood still, motionless.

Huang Yue plopped down on the ground, clenching his fists tightly, sweat pouring down his forehead.

He stared at Lin Xuan with utter shock.

He broke through to the next level only a few days later than Lin Xuan, so how could Lin Xuan be so much stronger than him!
Was my bottle of bone-tempering liquid diluted with water?

(End of this chapter)