Yefutidaolu

Chapter 391 Social Order
After they finished speaking, they turned around and walked calmly toward the simple office building, as if the brief tension had never happened.

The dragon glanced at Li Jun, and seeing him nod, it lowered its massive head again, closed its vertical pupils, and the suffocating pressure in the courtyard slowly subsided.

The aroma of tea replaced the smoke of gunpowder.

The room was simply furnished with a table, two chairs, and a set of rough porcelain teaware.

Li Jun personally lifted the bubbling iron kettle on the stove and poured boiling water into a teapot containing coarse tea leaves. Instantly, a slightly bitter yet mellow tea aroma filled the air. He skillfully filtered out two cups of clear yellow tea and pushed one of them to the front of the table.

"Master, please."

Gao Jian picked up his teacup, blew on it to cool it down, and took a sip.

The tea flavor is quite strong, far less refined than the drinks in the capital or even the Dragon Palace, but the water is good, very nice.

Li Jun didn't immediately press for answers. Instead, he held his teacup and looked calmly at Gao Jian, as if waiting for something.

Gao Jian then spoke up, saying, "After I left, I also experienced a lot of things."

He began to narrate.

Upon entering the Imperial Academy in the capital, he discovered the affairs of the Netherworld. In order to solve the problem of human trafficking in the capital, he directly blocked the entrance of the academy and set up a sign, claiming to be "invincible." In one day, he defeated eighteen elites of the academy, thus interrupting the business and gaining a foothold.

He was sent to Liangzhou by imperial decree, but he was met with the deeply entrenched and incompetent Liangzhou aristocratic families who treated the common people like dirt.

With lightning speed, he slaughtered all the high-ranking members of the Liangzhou aristocratic families! Afterwards, instead of seizing the benefits for himself, he used the power of the oppressed Qilin tribe in the area to restructure the order, turning Liangzhou from the private property of the aristocratic families into a place where people could breathe.

Due to the calamity of the Netherworld, he was trapped on the edge of the Yellow Springs. Surrounded by countless ghosts and filled with deathly aura, he not only did not succumb, but instead stirred up the Netherworld with his enlightenment, attracting the attention and favor of the Netherworld's giant, Yuan Lu, and thus escaped.

Further east, face the supreme Dragon King, break through the bottleneck, and ascend to the seventh realm.

Each of these events, taken individually, is legendary and astonishing. But when strung together, a clear thread emerges—no matter where he was or what forces he faced, Gao Jian's goal never wavered. His arrogance in the capital, his carnage in Liangzhou, his resilience in the Netherworld, his adventures in the East Sea… the core remained constant.

Li Jun listened quietly, his initial doubts gradually replaced by shock, realization, and deep admiration.

These experiences were too unbelievable, but he didn't seem to doubt their authenticity. He knew Gao Jian's character and knew that the other party had no reason to deceive him about such things.

After all, it's actually quite simple to verify.

After a long silence, Li Jun took a deep breath, picked up the teacup in front of him, and solemnly toasted Gao Jian with tea instead of wine: "Master... you are still the same master. Before... I was petty and judged you with my own narrow mind."

Gao Jian picked up his teacup and gently clinked it against his, saying calmly, "It's alright. If it were me, I would also be wary. The world is treacherous, so it's always good to be cautious." He then changed the subject, his gaze falling on Li Jun, "So, where did all these encounters of yours come from? This Qilin, this Jiaolong, and your cultivation level."

Upon hearing this, Li Jun smiled, a smile tinged with emotion and a sense of vicissitude: "My story... is a long one. But it has to be told." He took a sip of tea, gathered his thoughts, and began to recount his tale.

After Gao Jian swiftly annihilated the Zuo family, tearing a rift in Cangzhou, he vanished and headed to the capital. What he left behind was a leaderless boatmen's gang, who had already begun to understand the changes that power and organization could bring, and Li Jun, who was entrusted with a heavy responsibility, feeling both apprehensive and ambitious.

In the beginning, thanks to Gao Jian's remaining influence and Li Jun's own skill, the boatmen's gang was able to maintain the situation and even expand their influence. But this didn't last long.

Li Zoufang's faction, stationed in Cangzhou to "rectify the officialdom," quickly took notice of this uncontrolled grassroots force.

They came to our door, and their attitude wasn't bad; in fact, it was quite "gentle."

They revealed their identities—subordinates of Li Zoufang, the Minister of Revenue of the Divine Dynasty, ordered to rectify the administration of Cangzhou and restore order to the local area. They expressed their hope that the boatmen's gang would "cooperate" with their work.

The so-called "cooperation" does not mean involving the boatmen in governance, but rather—returning them to their original positions.

They believed that all living beings are born from heaven and earth, and each should live according to their own destiny.

Boatmen should do boatmen's work. This is the proper way of "sons inheriting their fathers' profession," a classic principle, a sage's teaching, and an unchanging law for all ages. They promised to ensure that all boatmen received their "due" treatment and that the excessive oppression and exploitation of the past would never happen again. In their view, this was "benevolent governance," this was order.

They say, "Heaven and earth give birth to people, and each person should have their own work; while living in this world, one should do one's best every day."

"Your ancestors were boatmen, and it is only right for sons to inherit their profession. This is the great principle of the classics, the clear rule of the sages, and a model to be passed down to future generations, an unchanging example for all ages!"

"Be content to be boat trackers, and we will ensure that you enjoy the life that boat trackers deserve and will never again be oppressed by powerful families as before."

"Nothing is more important to the state than the fundamental principles of social order. If these principles are disregarded, how can the state be at peace? If everyone fulfills their responsibilities, the world will naturally be at peace!"

If everyone stays in their place and performs their duties, the world will naturally be at peace. Let the boatmen go back to pulling the boats, let the craftsmen go back to their work, let the farmers go back to farming, let the scholars go back to studying and becoming officials... Everything returning to the "right track" is what they understand as "rectification" and "order".

In fact, in order to maintain this kind of "stability" in their minds, they began to support the old aristocratic families of Cangzhou who had been suppressed by Gao Jian, trying to bring them back to their original positions, because in their view, the aristocratic families governing the local area was also part of the "social order".

These remarks and actions thoroughly enraged Li Jun and his brothers who longed to change their fate!

They risked their lives to fight and struggle, finally managing to escape the mire and see a glimmer of hope in breaking free from the shackles of fate. Now, they were told: "You've done a good job, but now please go back to the mire. We'll give you a cleaner mire?" Were they boat trackers before, destined to be boat trackers for life? If they couldn't change their fate, what did their previous struggles and sacrifices amount to? A profound sense of humiliation and anger almost consumed Li Jun.

He naturally refused, attempting to argue and resist. But in the eyes of Li Zoufang and his officials who represented "court law" and "social order," this was ungrateful behavior and a troublemaking tactic.

Gentle persuasion quickly turned into cold suppression.

Thus began Li Jun's life on the run.

He survived countless meticulously planned assassinations, fleeing in disarray amidst flashing swords, and brushing shoulders with death was commonplace. He had no choice but to survive in the cracks between the various forces in Cangzhou, using his understanding of human nature and familiarity with the underground rules of Cangzhou, like the most astute gambler, betting all his chips, struggling to maneuver in the infighting, and searching for that faint glimmer of hope.

The most dangerous time was when he was forced to flee beyond the border of Cangzhou and enter that desolate land that was said to be "dead and silent," with a harsh environment and the presence of nomadic people from beyond the Great Wall.

There, he narrowly escaped death, nearly perishing in the sandstorms or under the blades of the barbarians. But it was also in that desolate land that he encountered the first opportunity to change his fate—he met the auspicious Qilin beast that he would later call "Rui Rui".

Carrying the power of the auspicious Qilin beast and a glimmer of hope, he secretly returned to Cangzhou, attempting to retaliate.

However, the suppression by Li Zoufang's forces far exceeded expectations. He suffered another heavy blow and was seriously injured in an encirclement and annihilation operation, falling into the turbulent Baishan River.

He thought he was doomed, but was swept away by the undercurrent to a strange, extremely hidden place at the bottom of the river, exuding an ancient aura. It seemed to be a forgotten hatching nest or sacrificial site of the Baishan River dragon clan. There, he discovered a dragon egg that was about to wither, with a strong aura of a true dragon and the essence of three generations of water transport remaining beside it.

Perhaps it was a coincidence of fate, or perhaps it was the guidance of the auspicious Qilin, but the seriously injured Li Jun accidentally touched the dragon egg. The peaceful and auspicious energy that he had picked up from his time with the Qilin, as well as his own indomitable and tenacious life force, unexpectedly activated the faint consciousness in the dragon egg that originated from the spiritual energy of the water vein and longed for life.

The dragon egg hatched, and a young dragon with a natural resistance to sword energy and nascent intelligence was born, instinctively regarding Li Jun as its closest companion.

Li Jun used the remaining water essence in the nest to heal his injuries, and his cultivation broke through to the fifth realm in the midst of the crisis. Meanwhile, the young dragon was frantically absorbing the surrounding power and growing rapidly.

When he reappeared in Cangzhou with a nascently powerful dragon and an auspicious unicorn.

With the absolute advantage of high-end military force, coupled with Li Jun's superb skills honed in his escape and struggle, and his accurate grasp of the hearts of the common people, he quickly integrated the forces of the outer city and decisively defeated Li Zoufang's representatives in Cangzhou and those old aristocratic families who attempted to counterattack, seizing control of the canal transport in one fell swoop.

Instead of carrying out a bloody purge, he used the immense public support of the outer city and the deterrent power of the two strange beasts to forcefully implement his own order—revitalizing the outer city.

At the same time, he shrewdly submitted a memorial to the capital, paying heavy taxes in exchange for the court's tacit approval, thus characterizing the internal struggle as a "change of power."

However, he knew that the situation was only initially stable. The powerful families in the inner city remained deeply entrenched, and although Li Zoufang had temporarily retreated, he would not give up easily. True peace in Cangzhou was far from being achieved. He was busy consolidating his gains, digesting the spoils of war, and dealing with the undercurrents, but he never expected that Gao Jian would return at this delicate moment.

After Li Jun finished speaking, he let out a long sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders. He picked up the slightly cooled tea, drank it all in one gulp, and smiled with a complex expression, carrying the weariness of weathered storms and a hint of self-mockery: "What a coincidence... If you had returned a few months earlier, you would probably have seen me as a stray dog. If you had returned a few months later, perhaps I would have already completely taken control of Cangzhou, or... my body would be cold."

He raised his head, his gaze becoming clear and firm again, and looked at Gao Jian: "Now, you know everything, Master."

Gao Jian listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously tracing the rough rim of the teacup. Li Jun's experiences, with their twists and turns, and his legendary miraculous escapes from the brink of death, were in no way inferior to his battles in Liangzhou and Donghai.

As the aroma of tea wafted through the air, the two remained silent, yet both understood the hardships the other had endured along the way.

The two sat in silence for a while, the aroma of tea gradually fading away. Only the faint sounds of canal boatmen's chants and the humming of mechanical beasts coming from outside the window hinted at the world outside that was being changed.

“It seems,” Gao Jian finally spoke, his voice calm yet carrying a heavy weight, “that the ‘rectification’ our Minister Li wants is not quite the same as what we want.”

What he wants is to restore the "social order," for everyone to be in their proper place, and for stability to override everything.

Whatever their reasons, Gao Jian and Li Jun were both breaking down their established "positions" and attempting to redefine "order".

Li Jun nodded heavily, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes: "It's more than just different! They don't even consider us human beings! In their eyes, we should be crawling in the mud for generations! To even think about looking up at the sky is considered a great act of rebellion!"

Gao Jian put down his teacup, stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the simple yet vibrant outer city scene.

“Yes,” he said softly, as if speaking to Li Jun, yet also as if speaking to himself, “So, this path is destined to be difficult. But you did very well, even better than I imagined.”

He turned around and said, "Li Jun, tell me, do you still want to continue down this path? You may be facing not only the powerful families of Cangzhou, but also pressure from the Ministry of Revenue."

Without the slightest hesitation, Li Jun stood up abruptly, his chest heaving slightly with excitement. He pointed out the window, his voice resolute:
“Yes! Why wouldn’t I want to?! Look, boss! The water outside is clear! The children don’t have to run in the stinking ditch anymore! The boatmen don’t have to tie their lives to a rope anymore! Everyone can eat their fill and live in houses that don’t leak! For this! Don’t even mention the Ministry of Revenue! Even if the King of Heaven himself came, I, Li Jun, would dare to challenge him! This life was a gift, and I can always give it back!”

Looking at the dark-skinned, fiery-eyed young man before him, who seemed to radiate light, Takami finally revealed a genuinely pleased and appreciative smile.

"Alright!" He patted Li Jun's shoulder heavily. "Then let's work together to... tear a little more apart the sky over Cangzhou!"

Li Jun nodded heavily, as if he wanted to say something.

However, reason quickly suppressed his ambition, and he asked instead, "But, I'm thinking, but... Master, you've been able to settle down in the capital, and I'm afraid Lord Li Zoufang has put in a lot of effort. If we really turn against him, the price will be quite high."

"Leaving aside Lord Li's principles, he is a good person. If you turn against him, you will be attacked from both sides."

(End of this chapter)