Chapter 31: Transfer Order Mission

Ever since he lost the ability to cultivate martial arts, Young Master Tao’s greatest concern was how far Zhang Yuan could go in both the martial and official worlds.

Perhaps, Zhang Yuan had become the vessel for his own aspirations regarding martial cultivation.

As the carriage returned to the city, Zhang Yuan quietly disembarked, wandered through the marketplace for a few laps, and then stepped into a shop called "Wang Family Woodworks."

"Zhang Yuan?"

"It’s been quite a while since you last visited me."

As Zhang Yuan entered the shop, the middle-aged man in his forties sitting behind the counter stood up, his face filled with pleasant surprise.

With a tall, thin frame, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, dressed in a plain green cloth robe, he looked exactly like an ordinary shopkeeper.

Who would have thought that the Chief Officer of the Black Ice Platform in Luyang Prefecture, holding a sixth-rank martial post, would be shrinking himself into a small shop to act as a shopkeeper?

Luyang Prefecture was a middle-tier prefecture; the Prefect, the Prefectural Academy Chancellor, and even the commander of the garrison outside the city were only of the fifth rank (regular or junior).

A regular sixth-rank Chief Officer of the Black Ice Platform was already among the top ten high officials in the entire prefectural city. Furthermore, due to his special status, he held supervisory authority over the prefectural government officials, making him even more feared and respected.

"Business has been bleak lately, Manager Wang? No one is buying this large nanmu cabinet?"

"Didn't you say last time you were going to convert it into a coffin?"

Zhang Yuan looked around, reaching out to pat a wooden piece placed in the hall.

This fellow Wang Qinian truly was a carpenter by trade; this "Wang Family Woodworks" was a business meant to deflect suspicion, but he had turned it into a legitimate enterprise.

Among the woodworking shops in the city, his business was the best.

"Converting this thing into a coffin... not just anyone can sleep in it. The coffin lid—"

Wang Qinian walked over with his hands on his hips, joining the conversation. Halfway through his sentence, his eyes lit up.

"Coffin, coffin, rise in rank and wealth! You kid don't usually visit; is there some good news?"

Seeing that there was no one else in or around the shop, Wang Qinian gave a light cough.

Immediately, a young man dressed in shop assistant's clothing emerged from the backyard, bowed slightly to Zhang Yuan, and then stood by the shop door.

Wang Qinian gestured for Zhang Yuan to follow him to the backyard.

Upon reaching the backyard, seven or eight young men stood up.

They all possessed agile physiques, clearly possessing martial cultivation.

"Captain."

"Greetings, Captain."

Several of them clearly recognized Zhang Yuan and hurriedly bowed with cupped hands.

Zhang Yuan nodded in greeting, then followed Wang Qinian straight through the backyard to a courtyard filled with piles of timber.

Passing through that courtyard, they reached a quiet, secluded small yard.

This area had already crossed through two streets.

"Speak. Do you have clues regarding a case?"

Upon entering the small yard, Wang Qinian turned to face Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan nodded and recounted the events he had encountered while attending Old Master Zheng's funeral earlier today.

Then, he shared the information and deductions he and Young Master Tao had formulated.

"Yesterday, Teacher Tao sent Tao Hong to say that if we can find a way to transfer Black Tiger's identity, an opportunity will arise." A look of pleasant surprise flashed in Wang Qinian's eyes as he stroked his hands together. "I was just wondering how to find a practitioner of the Xiantian Realm to replace you."

With his hands behind his back, a smile appeared on his face as he paced the yard.

"The bandit problem in Jiulin County has always been severe. If we can sweep them out this time, it will be a good thing."

"Also, regarding the matter of the pulley, I have received top-level orders. This is a top secret; the identity of the spy must be uncovered thoroughly."

Stopping his steps, Wang Qinian looked at Zhang Yuan: "Give me a few days, and I will find out who is behind the Kong family."

"It will also take time to mobilize the Black Cavalry, and you will need time to train them once they arrive in Luyang Prefecture."

Rubbing his hands together, Wang Qinian grinned widely.

"Damn it, this time, I'm going to lead the Black Cavalry into a charge no matter what."

"By the way, as long as I'm not at the very front of the charge, it's fine if I'm not the vanguard, right..."

If Wang Qinian wanted to advance further, he needed sufficient merit.

Toward Zhang Yuan, who could bring him merit, he was extremely polite.

Moreover, he knew even better that Zhang Yuan was a powerhouse of the Xiantian Realm.

The Great Qin valued martial arts, and the strong were respected; a Xiantian Realm expert deserved respect wherever they went.

"I have already submitted a report for you, requesting that you go to the Prefectural Martial Academy for cultivation."

"Once the approval comes through, you will surely make a name for yourself at the academy."

"My Black Ice Platform is currently quite dormant; we need someone to restore its prestige."

Wang Qinian whispered these instructions as he saw Zhang Yuan out.

——————————————

Having a rare free afternoon, Zhang Yuan carried his whistle-baton to the Martial Guard Office for his duty.

He had never been negligent in his primary responsibilities.

Privately, he had even told Young Master Tao that once he married and had children, he intended to pass this position in the Martial Guard down to his son.

However, at the time, Young Master Tao had remarked that he was simply eager to get married.

"Brother Yuan!"

Inside the office, Feng Cheng, who was on duty wearing a black official robe and holding a long goose-feather saber, looked delighted upon seeing Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan walked over and patted Feng Cheng on the shoulder.

"I heard about what happened last night. You help play matchmaker for now; if it works out, I'll treat you to drinks."

"Don't worry about Chen Wu; I've got his back."

His words made Feng Cheng's shoulders tremble with excitement.

"Understood, I understand."

Zhang Yuan nodded and walked into the office with his whistle-baton.

Upon reaching the main hall, the short-bearded official in black sitting at the head had already stood up.

"Erhe, you've come at the right time. I was just worrying about something."

His name was Hu Yang, one of the eight black-robed commanders of the Luyang Prefecture Martial Guard Office, and a former colleague of Zhang Yuan's father.

Since Zhang Yuan took over the post, Hu Yang had helped him with many things, guiding him to become familiar with the Martial Guard Office.

A Martial Guard leader held a seventh-rank position, but this seventh rank was different from that of a seventh-rank military sergeant.

A sergeant was an official, whereas a Martial Guard commander was a clerk.

Clerks were one grade lower than officials.

A seventh-rank official was merely the beginning of a career, but a seventh-rank clerk was often the end of the road.

In the sixteen commanderies of Great Qin, each commandery governed nine to twelve prefectures. A Prefect held a fifth-rank or junior fifth-rank position, while subordinates such as Vice-Prefects, Judges, Investigating Officers, and Military Advisors held ranks ranging from regular sixth-rank to junior sixth-rank.

A sergeant was a seventh-rank official under the jurisdiction of the Registrar, and the seven departments—Merit, Granary, Household, Land, Military, Law, and Soldiers—all had seventh-rank participants.

Only a prefectural government had such a configuration; the next level down, the county government, only had a junior seventh-rank County Sheriff.

Having reached the rank of seventh-rank black-robed leader, Hu Yang had essentially reached his ceiling. At his age in the office, his primary thought was how to retire with stability and honor.

"There is bandit suppression on the Guangji River in Yong'an County, and they are requisitioning two squads of our Luyang Prefecture black-robed guards for reinforcement."

Hu Yang shook the slip of paper in his hand and shook his head. "My squad and Old Fifth Qi's squad have been drafted."

The Luyang Prefecture Martial Guard Office had over three hundred guards divided into eight squads of forty men each.

Of course, some squads were larger, while others were understrength.

"I recall you've been arranging the wedding for Third Brother Fengting recently, Uncle Hu," Zhang Yuan said, taking the slip and glancing at it. "I'll lead the men. It's not far; we can be back in three to five days."

Like the commanderies, the prefectures of Great Qin were also divided into upper, middle, and lower tiers. An upper prefecture had twelve counties, a middle prefecture had nine, and a lower prefecture had seven.

Luyang Prefecture was a middle-to-upper tier prefecture, consisting of nine counties and thirteen towns.

The prefectural government usually did not interfere in county affairs, but when it came to requisitioning troops or requesting the arrest of bandits, they would step in.

In a single county, the combined number of soldiers and bailiffs was rarely more than a hundred, and sometimes they truly could not suppress the outlaws of the martial world.

"Good, good, very good." Hu Yang took out his identification token and handed it to Zhang Yuan.

"Erhe, all I want now is to live peacefully and hold my grandchildren. Once this mission is over, you can take over my position when you return."

"You are still young, and you have such a reputation in the martial world," Hu Yang glanced toward the hall entrance and lowered his voice. "I heard the Black Ice Platform intends to reclaim supervisory authority over the Martial Guard Office."

"Once the Martial Guard returns to the Black Ice Platform's hierarchy, a seventh-rank Martial Guard leader will be equivalent to a seventh-rank martial official. The future would be vast."