Chapter 58: 58, three days

Chapter 58: Chapter 58, three days

Cao County.

Liu Family.

Liu Shuanghe, clad in a green robe, sat solemnly at the head seat, his brow furrowed tightly as he emotionlessly listened to the news of Liu Changzhi and Liu Ruqing’s incident in Ping’an County.

This was a critical juncture for the Liu Family, and yet, such a troublesome affair had unexpectedly arisen, truly enough to make one’s head spin.

The elder standing respectfully before Liu Shuanghe also wore a very grave expression.

“What is the background of this Chen Yuan?”

...

After a moment of silence, Liu Shuanghe asked coldly.

“According to the information we gathered, Chen Yuan doesn’t have any notable background, and his strength is not particularly extraordinary. The reason he could become the arrest officer of Ping’an County is entirely due to Li Mingqi’s support.”

“Li Mingqi…” Liu Shuanghe’s gaze turned shadowy and uncertain. Cao County and Ping’an County were not far apart; having had dealings with this County Magistrate, he knew that Li Mingqi’s roots were in the Prefecture City, and he was not a trivial character.

“It’s a pity that the Huang Family fell so quickly; otherwise, with the Huang Family around, Qing’er and Changzhi wouldn’t be in danger.”

Liu Shuanghe sighed deeply.

“Master, the young master…”

Before the elder could finish, a beautiful woman dressed in red gauze rushed in from outside, her face showing a hint of urgency as she asked:

“Master, what happened to Qing’er?”

Liu Shuanghe’s brow furrowed:

“How do you know about it?”

“You still have the mind to care how I know. I’m asking you, did something happen to Qing’er in Ping’an County?” The woman’s brow creased as she raised her voice.

“Yes, Qing’er and Changzhi have been taken into the County Government of Ping’an County,” Liu Shuanghe said gravely.

“What? County Government?” The woman suddenly exclaimed urgently.

“Who, who dares to take Qing’er!”

“Shut up!”

Liu Shuanghe knitted his brows and rebuked sharply.

“Liu Shuanghe, you… you’re not going to save Qing’er, and now you’re shouting at me? Don’t you realize what kind of place the government office is? If anything happens to Qing’er, I…”

“Slap!”

Liu Shuanghe slapped the woman, his voice severe:

“It’s all because of the arrogant daughter you raised. She had the audacity to falsely accuse an arrest officer in broad daylight. It’s absolutely lawless!”

The woman fell to the ground, her gaze vacant, as if dazed by Liu Shuanghe’s slap. Only after a moment did she come to her senses:

“Master, you must save Qing’er.”

Liu Shuanghe exhaled deeply, ignoring the woman on the ground, and said to the elder in front of him:

“Uncle Yun, please send a visiting card to Li Mingqi, saying that I wish to visit him personally…”

“Yes.”

…

…

On the second day after Chen Yuan had taken over Zhu Sihai, the Beihai Gang began to make their move. Due to the lack of interference from the government, within just a day, they had wiped out two significant gang forces, taking over most of the territory in the north of the city under the Beihai Gang’s influence.

Chen Yuan also briefly reported the matter to Li Mingqi, who after a long silence, did not object. After all, Chen Yuan had indeed handled the situation beautifully, solving the issue with the Beihai Gang without much ado.

The monthly tribute of two hundred silver was no less than what the Huang Family used to give.

So, they had tacitly agreed to Chen Yuan’s decision for the Beihai Gang to completely dominate North City.

For this reason, County Magistrate Wu Qingfeng even made a special trip to Li Mingqi, warning him to pay attention to balancing powers and to prevent the gang’s influence from overpowering that of the government.

Previously, the reason why the Beihai Gang had not completely monopolized North City was due to County Magistrate Wu Qingfeng’s obstruction.

Beyond that, within the County Government, there were other forces eager to get a piece of the action.

No one knew that Chen Yuan himself had also taken a hefty share from the dealings with the Beihai Gang, as middlemen like him were usually necessary in such interactions.

If a government official colluding with a Jianghu force for mutual benefit was exposed with evidence, it wouldn’t be a trivial matter; it would result in the loss of one’s official hat—a severe punishment.

In the blink of an eye, three days quietly passed, and Chen Yuan had exchanged the silver given as compensation by Zhu Sihai for the Wang Meng incident for six Tiger Bone Pills from the County Government, swiftly completing his fourth Blood Refining.

His strength once again soared.

When Chen Yuan pricked his skin with a silver needle, one could closely observe a strand of golden light hidden within his blood.

Nine Blood Refinings, and Chen Yuan had completed half of them in just one month—a claim no one would believe if it were made public.

Having become an arrest officer just a few days ago, he was able to exchange for six Tiger Bone Pills and even allowed Wang Ping, who had joined the County Government for just over a year, to pick out a Saber Technique, which also led to criticisms of Chen Yuan’s reputation within the County Government.

But… Chen Yuan didn’t care.

So what if he had pursued personal gain or profited from his position?

With Li Mingqi around, Chen Yuan was fearless.

The monthly tribute of two hundred taels of silver did not come for free; Li Mingqi had to protect him.

Appreciation alone was not enough; interests bound them together.

During those three days, other than refining his blood, Chen Yuan devoted himself to the cultivation of the Six Harmonies Saber Technique. With a few days of exploration and Zhao Nanshan’s previous explanations, Chen Yuan basically achieved a thorough understanding.

The Zhao family’s Six Harmonies Saber was divided into the External Three Harmonies and the Internal Three Harmonies. The Internal Three Harmonies, where the heart aligns with intention, intention with Qi, and Qi with strength, allowed for saber strikes as fierce as a tiger, with a powerful and compelling momentum.

The External Three Harmonies were simpler—hand aligns with foot, elbow with knee, shoulder with hip—relying on hands, eyes, and body movements.

With Chen Yuan’s solid saber skills, he basically got the hang of it after a few practices.

However, the true essence of the Six Harmonies Saber lay in the Internal Three Harmonies, and that could not be mastered in just a few days.

Chen Yuan had previously promised Zhao Nanshan to preserve the Sanhe Boxing Club in three days, and naturally, he could not go back on his word. Actually, Chen Yuan also knew in his heart that even if he didn’t go, the Sanhe Boxing Club wouldn’t suffer much.

After all, Zhao Nanshan had once been a master of the Gang Condensation Realm, but as the saying goes, even a thin camel is larger than a horse. So even though he was almost broken, dealing with one or two Bone Refining Martial Artists would not be an issue.

Chen Yuan, accompanied by a group of Government Officials, headed straight for City East. Along the way, Chen Yuan passed by the ruins of the Huang Family and gazed at it for a moment—the Marrow Cleansing Spirit Pearl he had obtained had significantly aided him.

He had also learned after becoming an arrest officer and reading the County Government’s archives that consuming too many elixirs not only led to drug resistance but also to the accumulation of elixir toxins in the body, which would eventually bring disaster.

Yet, Chen Yuan needed the aid of elixirs to rapidly boost his cultivation in a short period.

Therefore, he was very fortunate.

The Marrow Cleansing Spirit Pearl not only purified his body once, expelling impurities, but to this day had not completely dissolved, emitting a faint sense of coolness, ridding his body of elixir toxins.

Thus, Chen Yuan dared to take elixirs without restraint, unafraid of damaging his foundation.

In that moment.

Inside the Sanhe Boxing Club, a martial arts competition was taking place.

Even though the three martial arts halls in the city intended to ostracize the Sanhe Boxing Club, they did not want to be too obvious about it, as that too could lead to criticism. Their method was through martial contests.

The martial masters from the halls would compete, and the weakest would leave Ping’an County.

“Master Ye, try to attack his center line!”

A spectator who was a martial master shouted.

———–

Thank you to book friend Mu Siyu for the generous reward of five hundred point coins!