Brocade Robe Unparalleled

Chapter 38 Regaining Power
Annam Prefecture.

Southern Garrison Command.

The town magistrate, Li Qianzhang, stood barefoot on the ground wearing only his undergarments, holding a telescope in his hand, his face ashen.

He was woken up from a deep sleep.

The commander sent a message late at night, and he ran over barefoot without even having time to put on his shoes.

I thought it was some important task from above, but it turned out to be an accountability visit.

The commander showed him no mercy and asked him directly whether he was the governor of the Jingye Division or the governor of the Shen family.
Even through the telescope, he could feel the commander's anger.

The commander specifically mentioned the Shen family, which means something must have happened in Sizhou.

To this day, he is still completely unaware of what has happened in Sizhou.

Not long ago, at the request of the Shen family, he arranged for Shen Qingya, the third young master of the Shen family, to serve as a centurion in the Jingbian Division of Sizhou. In order to make it easier for Shen Qingya to take power, he also instructed Zhou Tai, a chiliarch, to help him seize power.

Only a few days have passed, what trouble has Shen Qingya gotten into that has even alarmed the commander?

Li Qianzhang's face darkened, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Send a message to the Qianzhou Thousand-Household Office and ask Zhou Tai what exactly happened in Sizhou!"

The telescope is priceless, and the quota is limited. The town government can only contact the lower-level centurions through the thousand-household offices.

One of his entourage asked uncertainly, "Now?"

It's past midnight now...

Li Qianzhang slammed his hand on the table and roared, "Right now!"

If even the town's magistrate couldn't sleep, why should his subordinates?

"As ordered!"

The attendant hurriedly ran out and soon returned with a copied note. Li Qianzhang snatched the note, glanced at it, then clenched his fist and couldn't help but shout angrily, "Useless!"

As a centurion of the Jingbian Division, he was trapped inside the division and dared not come out. He had completely disgraced the division. No wonder the commander was so angry!

He'd be angry too!
If I had known Shen Qingya was so incompetent, I would have just made him a deputy centurion; he wouldn't have done something so shameful.

Although the commander didn't say much, he was clearly very dissatisfied with the situation at the Sizhou Border Defense Command.

If Shen Qingya makes any more mistakes, I'm afraid I'll be implicated as well.

Out of consideration for the Shen family, he couldn't really do anything to Shen Qingya.

Li Qianzhang suppressed his anger, rubbed his temples, and said weakly, "Send a message to Zhou Tai, telling him to go to Sizhou personally and handle this matter properly..."

……

Sizhou.

Lin Xuan and A Luo ate breakfast together before leisurely arriving at Jingbian Division.

The whole thing went even more smoothly than he had planned.

Originally, figuring out how to escalate the conflict and direct the tension towards Commander Shen would require testing the acting skills of both the Tian and Yang families.

Unexpectedly, Shen Baihu cooperated so well, the transition of the conflict was extremely smooth, without any trace of acting.

Stepping into the gate of Jingbian Division, Lin Xuan could clearly sense that something was amiss. A magnificent horse with a bright coat stood in the courtyard of Jingbian Division. Lin Xuan recognized the horse; it was none other than Commander Zhou's mount.

Only those who cultivate the Zhenyue Gong to the seventh level, which is equivalent to a third-rank martial artist, can fly.

Throughout the entire Jingbian Division, and even the Jingye Division, only the Commander possesses such power.

When Lin Xuan entered the duty room, Zhang Hu and Chen Bao were whispering to each other. From their conversation, he learned that Commander Qianhu had arrived at Jingbian Division early in the morning and had just ordered someone to summon Commander Wu back. He was currently talking to the two commanders.

In the main hall of Jingbian Division.

Holding an official document, Commander Zhou slowly read aloud: "Shen Qingya, a centurion of the Sizhou Border Pacification Division, mishandled the conflict between the chieftains, which damaged the prestige of the court. Considering that he is new to the post, he will not be severely punished for the time being. Wu Xianren, the deputy centurion, has made meritorious efforts in mediating the conflict and is hereby commended. From now on, all personnel, intelligence, and financial matters within the division will be decided jointly by the two of you, ensuring stability and preventing any further incidents!"

After reading it aloud, he glanced at the two men and said, "Commander Shen, Deputy Commander Wu, did you both hear what the town magistrate said clearly?"

Although Commander Zhou did not say it explicitly, his implication was clear enough: Shen Qingya would no longer hold absolute power within the Jingbian Division, and Wu, who had been sidelined for some time, would regain the power that belonged to him.

A few days ago, it was Commander Zhou who made Commander Wu hand over his power.

Today, it was Commander Zhou who returned the power of Deputy Commander to him.

Shen Qingya stood in the hall, his face extremely pale, but he could only grit his teeth and say, "I heard you clearly." Wu Baihu remained calm, bowed slightly, and said in a steady voice, "This subordinate obeys."

Commander Zhou nodded in satisfaction and said, "Deputy Commander Wu has been in Sizhou for many years. He is experienced and has a deep network of connections. Commander Shen, in the future, when you encounter important matters involving local chieftains and the people's sentiments, you should consult with Deputy Commander Wu more often and not act rashly again."

Shen Qingya felt his face burning, and he forced himself to endure the humiliation, replying stiffly, "I will follow your instructions, Commander."

Commander Zhou shook his head and said, "This is also the intention of the town magistrate."

Shen Qingya lowered his head even further and said in a hoarse voice, "Yes."

Commander Zhou looked at him and instructed, "You're new here. Sizhou is not like the capital. When dealing with those chieftains, you should focus on appeasement. Being too forceful will backfire. As the commander of the Jingbian Division, you must remember that you should not seek merit, but rather avoid making mistakes..."

Shen Qingya completely ignored what Commander Zhou was saying, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "I have some official business to attend to, please excuse me..."

After saying that, he turned and walked out.

Every extra moment he stayed there felt like an extra moment of humiliation.

After Shen Qingya left, Commander Zhou glanced at Commander Wu with a half-smile and murmured, "Impressive tactics..."

Wu Baihu seemed not to understand Zhou Qianhu's words and asked in confusion, "What did you say, sir?"

Commander Zhou waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. It's your ability to get back to this position. I won't gossip about it. Commander Shen is too young, so it's normal that he can't beat you..."

Wu Baihu chuckled inwardly. Young?

Compared to Lin Xuan, Shen Qingya is not young at all...

In terms of methods alone, he's not even worthy of carrying Lin Xuan's shoes.

Commander Zhou stood up and said, "Alright, I have some important matters to attend to in Qianzhou. I'll head back now. I don't care how you and Commander Shen argue here, but you must be careful. If things get out of hand, it won't be good for anyone..."

Commander Wu clasped his hands in a fist salute and said, "Your subordinate understands."

Watching Commander Zhou leave, Commander Wu took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

This breath seemed to release all the pent-up frustration of the past few days.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he even felt that the bottleneck in his cultivation that had been bothering him for so long had loosened up a bit.

Over the past month, he has experienced the highs and lows of life, and his mindset has changed imperceptibly.

Lin Xuan taught him that no matter what adversity he was in, he should never give up.

Lin Xuan played a crucial role in his return to the Jingbian Division.

Wu Baihu slowly walked into the courtyard, and a figure happened to walk out of the door of a guardhouse.

Their eyes met, and they smiled at each other.

it is more than words.

……

night.

Inside Lin Xuan's room.

The man in black robes looked at him, his tone full of surprise: "You actually did it!"

Lin Xuan shook his head and said, "Shen Baihu's background is still too powerful. This matter is enough to demote and transfer an ordinary Baihu, but he didn't even suffer the slightest punishment..."

In his previous life, he had personally witnessed how a shrewd deputy managed to oust the newly appointed top leader in less than a month using this method, thus successfully taking over the position himself.

The man in black comforted him, saying, "For a mere flag officer like you, to have accomplished this is already quite remarkable. There's plenty of time ahead..."

Lin Xuan glanced at the man in black robes without making a sound.

The black-robed man's attitude towards me lately is completely different from before.

Previously, he never considered his own interests, only cared about the result and not the process, and would threaten him with Gu worms at the drop of a hat.

Could it be that this time, he stopped being a passive bystander and took the initiative, thus changing the black-robed man's opinion of him?

However, the encouraging tone, combined with his hoarse and aged voice, sounded awkward no matter how you looked at it...

(End of this chapter)