Martial Cultivator

The officials who had entered the inn hall were not actually the ones who truly held authority in Dragon Horn Commandery.

The leading civil official was only a Vice Prefect, the second-in-command of the commandery. In theory, he was not the one who could make final decisions, because above him there was a Commandery Governor who held real authority.

As for the armored man, his rank was even lower. He was merely a commandant, and within the state army he was not considered a particularly important figure either.

These two people were clearly not representative of the commandery’s officialdom.

Lu Qingling looked at that Vice Prefect of Dragon Horn Commandery and frowned. “The reputation of the Divine Capital Lu Family is not that great, but within Great Liang, my Lu Family only follows one principle: we do not violate anything explicitly written in the Great Liang Law.”

The implication of her words was already very clear: if you want to detain our goods, fine, then produce a legal basis. Show where in the Great Liang Law this is supported. If there is no such provision, then it cannot be done.

Hearing this question, the Vice Prefect did not become angry. Instead, he kept a stern face and said, “What situation are we in now? This is a time when the imperial court’s survival is at stake. At a moment like this, still clinging rigidly to the Great Liang Law is nothing but stupidity!”

He then looked at Lu Qingling, his tone softening quite a big, “Miss Lu, we also know the Lu Family’s business spreads across all of Great Liang. This little bit of silver is truly insignificant to you. Why cling so tightly to it? This is the time to share the imperial court’s burden. If we cannot get through this crisis, what use will larger businesses be afterward?”

In truth, this Vice Prefect was quite skilled at official conduct, alternating pressure and persuasion with a seasoned bureaucrat’s ease. If Lu Qingling had been a naive newcomer to the world, she would have likely swallowed this loss by now.

But although Lu Qingling was not old, she had traveled the world for many years. Her mind was firm and steady, not something an ordinary woman could compare to. Looking at the Vice Prefect, she shook her head and said, “The Lu Family is indeed not short of this bit of money, but we will not hand it over like this. It is not a matter of money.”

The Vice Prefect froze for a moment, then grew somewhat irritated. This time, the task of collecting taxes from local wealthy merchants in Dragon Horn Commandery had been fully assigned to him. But having served here for over a decade, he knew better than anyone how difficult this job was.

As expected, after so long, he had only managed to collect about twenty to thirty percent. Not only was the prefectural office constantly sending urgent notices, even the Commandery Governor was sending people every few days to ask him how things were going.

Fortunately, someone later gave him a suggestion: Dragon Horn Commandery’s geography within Yellow Dragon Prefecture was quite favorable. Many merchant caravans traveling to and from the Divine Capital, or heading north and south, had to pass through here. Since so many merchants were passing through, why not target them instead? If enough were accumulated, perhaps the shortfall could be made up.

The moment he heard the Lu Family’s goods were passing through, he immediately became energized. Although the Lu Family was a prominent family in the Divine Capital, compared to other great families, it was actually relatively easy to pressure. The Lu Family did not have any high-ranking officials in court, no prominent ministers among its descendants. A family like that, no matter how wealthy, was not truly threatening.

In this world, whether now or in the past, one thing had always been clear: when choosing between wealth and power, power would always come first.

Wealth without power merely meant money being earned for others.

Since the Lu Family had no high-ranking officials to rely on, as long as they framed things properly, there would be little they could say in response. As for whether they would retaliate afterward, and how, they did not matter to the Vice Prefect. The most important thing was solving the immediate problem.

Otherwise, if he lost his official hat, there would be no talk of anything in the future at all.

Moreover, all the things he was doing would not put a single coin into his own pocket. Everything would be sent directly to the Divine Capital. He simply did not believe that, after learning of this, the current Crown Prince who was in power would truly execute him.

What he was doing, no matter which dynasty or under which monarch, would count as a steadfast loyal subject in turbulent times.

After taking a deep breath, the Vice Prefect glanced at the Commandant beside him. The latter thought for a moment before chiming in, “Miss Lu, at a time of national crisis, standing by and doing nothing will have people pointing fingers at your backbones!”

Lu Qingling said calmly, “Given the imperial court’s current situation, the Lu Family will naturally not stand idly by. But whether we contribute money or do anything else, that is the Lu Family’s own business. There is no reason for you to place a blade at our necks and force us. This young woman does not know which article of the Great Liang Law is Vice Prefect relying on, but you must understand this: this Great Liang is not a place where you can cover the sky with one hand!”

The Vice Prefect frowned, too lazy to argue further, and simply said, “If Miss Lu truly refuses to contribute, then this shipment will not be able to leave Dragon Horn Commandery!”

However, as soon as he said this, the young man suddenly stood up and looked over with a smile. “Please wait, Your Excellency, Vice Prefect!”

The Vice Prefect paused, looking at the pale-faced young man. He had noticed him when he first entered, but had not paid him much attention, since the young man had not said anything. Now that he suddenly spoke up, it startled the Vice Prefect.

Despite his sickly appearance, the young man walked over in a few steps and leaned closer to the Vice Prefect, smiling as he said, “Your Excellency, may I borrow a moment of your time to speak privately?”

The Vice Prefect hesitated and was about to instinctively refuse. But after sizing the young man up, he eventually nodded. After that, Lu Qingling saw the young man she had picked up on the road go aside with the Vice Prefect, the two of them chatting and laughing for quite a while.

At first, the Vice Prefect’s expression was not very good. Later, it relaxed. Then it turned tense again, and by the end, it became completely relieved.

This left Lu Qingling somewhat dazed.

Almost an hour later, the Vice Prefect finally walked over again, looking apologetically at Lu Qingling. “Miss Lu, what happened earlier was my mistake. I apologize to you now. I hope Miss can be magnanimous and let this matter pass. As for the goods, they will be returned immediately. Miss may leave whenever you wish.”

Lu Qingling looked at the young man in confusion. The latter gave a slight nod.

Only then did Lu Qingling nod as well.

A situation that had seemed on the verge of breaking into conflict was resolved in just a few words from that young man. Even after the Vice Prefect left the inn, Lu Qingling still had not figured out what had happened. She looked at the young man with curiosity and asked, “What sort of noble family background do you come from? Is there someone in your family holding an official position in court, and not a low one at that?”

The young man glanced at Lu Qingling and sat back down again, smiling as he said, “Miss Lu has quite the discerning eye, but your mind doesn’t seem all that sharp?”

Lu Qingling was not offended by his teasing tone. After sitting back down, she carefully studied him and laid out her reasoning. “They were not afraid of the Lu Family because the Lu Family has no high-ranking officials in court. Yet they retreated after just a few words from you. That can only mean you have an even more formidable background. But since you have such a background, why not simply escalate the matter and have his official position stripped?”

The young man was not in a hurry. After listening to her long explanation, he finally spoke slowly, “The Great Liang Law does not say anything like that. And I also don’t have the impressive background you think I do.”

The young man rubbed his head and smiled. “What I just told him was simply that Lu Xin is your younger brother, and your younger brother happens to have a friend called Chen Chao. As for what kind of reputation Chen Chao has, he probably knows it better than I do. In Great Liang’s official circles, there’s probably not a single person right now who dares to openly provoke him.”

Lu Qingling frowned. She had not expected that this would be the final answer, but after thinking about it, it was actually quite normal. That Lord Warden Commander of Great Liang had a very famous reputation, so famous that few people would want to face this terrifying number one military official of the present age.

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