In the thirteenth year of the Tianbao era: I became Yang Guozhong's eldest son.

The night grew deeper and deeper.

The sound of the night watchman's clapper came from afar on the front street; it was already past midnight.

Just then, a slight rustling sound came from the top of the wall.

The sound was extremely faint, almost drowned out by the wind, but to Pei Zhao, who constantly walked the line between life and death, it was as clear as thunder.

"They're here," Pei Zhao said in a low voice.

Chen Ye and Lu Cheng instantly gripped their weapons tightly, their muscles tensing.

"Whoosh!"

A dark figure leaped down from the wall like an owl and rushed straight for the warehouse door.

He was faster and more agile than last time, clearly having come prepared.

However, this time, he didn't get a chance to get even a step closer to the warehouse.

Pei Zhao, like a tiger that had been lying in wait for a long time, suddenly leaped out of the shadows.

The horizontal blade in his hand carried a sharp gust of wind as it aimed directly at the lower body of the dark figure.

The shadowy figure clearly hadn't expected the county government office to be so heavily guarded, but he reacted extremely quickly, his body rising three feet into the air to narrowly avoid Pei Zhao's fatal blow.

At the same time, he flipped his wrist, and two bone-piercing nails shot towards Pei Zhao's face like venomous snakes spitting their tongues.

"A mere trick!" Pei Zhao sneered, brandishing his sword in front of him in a flurry of motion, striking the bone-piercing nail away with two crisp "clangs".

Using the force of the recoil, the dark figure tumbled in the air and landed steadily on the ground.

He didn't try to approach the warehouse again, but stared intently at Pei Zhao, a hint of seriousness flashing in his eyes.

"Who are you? Why have you repeatedly broken into the county government office at night?" Pei Zhao pointed his sword diagonally and shouted in a deep voice.

The shadowy figure remained silent, merely staring coldly at Pei Zhao.

He was dressed in black, his face covered with a black cloth, revealing only a pair of piercing eyes.

"Not going to talk? Then I'll beat you until you do!"

Lu Cheng roared and brandished his thick-backed longsword, crushing everything in his path like a chariot.

Chen Ye also attacked from the side, his spear like a dragon, blocking the black figure's retreat.

The three of them instantly engaged in a fierce battle.

Amidst the flashing swords and clashing blades, Pei Zhao grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed.

The shadowy figure's martial arts style was insidious and ruthless, with every move potentially fatal.

He did not use the long weapons commonly found in the military, but rather a pair of short and powerful Emei daggers.

The Emei dagger in his hands was like a living thing, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, making it impossible to defend against.

Moreover, his movements were extremely unpredictable, moving like a ghost between the three of them. Even when facing the combined attack of Pei Zhao, Lu Cheng, and Chen Ye, he was not at a disadvantage.

"This person is definitely not an ordinary military expert!" Pei Zhao thought to himself.

Just then, the dark figure suddenly feinted, forcing Lu Cheng back, and then used the momentum to leap backward for about ten feet.

Instead of continuing the fight, he reached into his robes, pulled out a round black ball, and slammed it to the ground.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the black sphere exploded, and a thick plume of white smoke instantly billowed out, obscuring everyone's view.

"Watch out for hidden weapons!" Pei Zhao shouted, swinging his sword to protect himself.

When the white smoke dissipated, the dark figure had vanished without a trace.

"He got away again!" Chen Ye stomped his foot in exasperation.

Pei Zhao didn't speak. He walked to where the shadowy figure had been standing, squatted down, and carefully examined the ground.

A few drops of bright red blood were left on the bluestone slab. Clearly, the dark figure had been injured in the melee.

"Brother Pei, look!" Chen Ye suddenly pointed to the wooden door of the warehouse and exclaimed.

Pei Zhao looked in the direction Chen Ye was pointing and saw a finely crafted throwing knife stuck in the heavy wooden door of the warehouse.

A note was also nailed to the end of the throwing knife.

Pei Zhao stepped forward, pulled out the throwing knife, and took the note.

The note contained only four words.

"Take care of yourself."

The handwriting was messy and carried a strong sense of sternness.

Pei Zhao's eyes instantly turned cold.

These four words are not a warning, but a declaration of war.

The Tian family and the Hu family, or rather the force behind them, have completely broken off all pretense of civility.

They were no longer content with engaging in underhanded tactics; they wanted to take real action.

"Give the note to the young master." Pei Zhao handed the note to Chen Ye. "Tell him that the situation in Yaozhou is about to change."

……

The next morning.

Yang Xuan stared at the note on the table and the military tag from the Zhechong Prefecture, his face turning terribly grim.

"My lord, this note..." Cui Shen stood aside, wanting to speak but then stopped himself.

"This is telling me that they not only have money and food, but also knives." Yang Xuan sneered, crumpled the note into a ball, and threw it on the ground. "That old fox Tian Boyong is trying to use the military to test my bottom line."

"Young master, now that they've revealed their hand, shouldn't we make plans as soon as possible?" Uncle Wen said worriedly, leaning on his cane. "We must spend those two thousand strings of cash as soon as possible and exchange them for weapons to protect the county government."

Yang Xuan nodded and turned his gaze to Pei Zhao.

"Pei Zhao, take the silver notes and go recruit men for me immediately. Don't recruit in the county town; recruit in the villages outside the town, in the black market, and in the camps of desperate refugees. Take in any man who is willing to fight and obey orders. I need to build a force capable of fighting against the Tian family's retainers and the remnants of the Zhechong Prefecture as quickly as possible!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Pei Zhao knelt on one knee, his voice firm and powerful.

"Cui Shen." Yang Xuan looked at Cui Shen again.

"exist."

"Take Afu and go to the city to find me some craftsmen. Whether they're blacksmiths, carpenters, or those who know how to operate salt wells, as long as they have real skills, bring them all over. Tell them the county government will pay them double wages and guarantee their safety."

"Yes!" Cui Shen accepted the order and left.

Yang Xuan stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the sky outside.

The rising sun was obscured by thick clouds, and the sky was overcast, as if foreshadowing an approaching storm.

"Tian Boyong, you want to play? Then I'll play along with you properly." Yang Xuan muttered to himself, his eyes flashing with a wolf-like ferocity. "I want to see if your local bully's territory is tougher, or if my blade, Yang Xuan's, is sharper!"

……

The Tian family mansion.

Tian Boyong sat in his armchair, listening to his subordinates' report with a furrowed brow.

"What did you say? The men we sent last night failed?" Tian Boyong slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly, glaring at the man in black before him. "Those were elite troops retired from the Zhechong Prefecture, how could they not even handle a few county yamen runners?"

The man in black lowered his head, not daring to look Tian Boyong in the eye.

"Uncle Tian, ​​please calm down. Yang Xuan has a few tough guys under his command who are highly skilled in martial arts and very alert. They spotted our men as soon as they approached the warehouse."

Tian Boyong took a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the anger in his heart.

"Yang Xuan, that little bastard, we underestimated him," Tian Boyong said through gritted teeth. "It seems we need to teach him a lesson; he won't know who's in charge in Yaozhou!"

"Uncle Tian, ​​what should we do next?" Hu Rong asked cautiously from the side.

Tian Boyong sneered, a ruthless glint in his eyes.

"Isn't Yang Xuan rich? Doesn't he want to recruit soldiers? Fine, I'll show him that money can't necessarily buy life!"

Tian Boyong turned to the man in black.

"Go, inform One-Eyed Dragon of Black Wind Stronghold. Tell him that if he can intercept and kill those newly recruited men of the county government outside the city, I, Tian Boyong, will offer a reward of five hundred strings of cash!"

"Yes!" The man in black accepted the order and left.

Hu Rong gasped upon hearing this.

Black Wind Stronghold was a notorious band of thugs that occupied the area outside Yaozhou City. They committed all sorts of evil deeds, and even the government troops couldn't do anything about them.

Tian Boyong's decision to use this force against Yang Xuan is a complete betrayal, a move aimed at Yang Xuan's death.

"Uncle Tian, ​​won't this...won't this make things too big?" Hu Rong asked with some concern.

"Make a scene?" Tian Boyong sneered repeatedly. "Yang Xuan has already stepped on our heads, what are we afraid of making a scene? As long as he's dead, Yaozhou will still be our territory!"