I can only beat noobs.

Chapter 207 Am I blind?
The system of the Great Jin Dynasty was one of separation between civil and military affairs. Although the Six Doors were the head of the local government, they were only in charge of military affairs. Civil officials, namely the governor's office, were responsible for matters of people's livelihood.

The governor was essentially the deputy to the commander of the Six Doors.

Of course, the Six Doors government at the state level is very large, and naturally it needs officials in charge of logistics, who are considered to be civil servants.

Young men from prominent families like Gu Xianyu were often assigned to clerical positions; this was almost an unwritten rule.

Chen Ming had already heard about this from Wu Zhenhang.

He had already decided what position he wanted, and he believed that the higher-ups at the Six Doors would give the Gu family some face.

Sure enough, he successfully became a fifth-rank prison warden.

This was the position he had always dreamed of.

Back in Qingfeng City, when he was a seventh-rank official, he used his connection with Zhao Xiyan to spar with prisoners in the Six Doors prison, experiencing the benefits of a surge in experience points for the first time.

He once considered joining the Six Doors and becoming an official in the prison.

Unexpectedly, it has now come true.

……

Under the guidance of the civilian official, Chen Ming completed the onboarding procedures and went to see his superior, but he couldn't find him; the person wasn't there.

All they saw was an old man with white hair, dressed in the uniform of a fifth-rank military officer, dozing off. Hearing that a new colleague had arrived, he perked up, looked at him, and laughed, "It's actually a young master, how rare!"

"Old Zhang, he's in your care now. Take him around and show him around."

The civilian official abandoned the person and left, as if he didn't want to stay a moment longer.

The old man remained seated and said, "It's a prison; we can visit it another time. And what is this young master's name?"

Gu Xianyu.

Old Zhang looked him up and down and asked, "From the capital?"

Chen Ming asked curiously, "How did you guess that?"

"There is no prominent family with the surname Gu in Xia Prefecture. Someone as handsome and elegant as you could only be from the capital."

"Old Zhang truly has keen insight."

Old Zhang laughed heartily and said with some pride, "I don't have any other strengths, except that I've been in the government office for a long time and I have some discernment."

After chatting for a few minutes, Chen Ming asked, "Where's our warden?"

"He didn't come today."

"When will he be available so I can go and pay him a visit?"

"You'll have to wait a while. Lord Ruan only comes once a month on the first day of the month. And this first day of the month has just passed."

Chen Ming said in surprise, "This works too?"

Old Zhang laughed and said, "What's wrong with that? Lord Ruan has long since given up on the position of warden. The fact that he comes once a month is already out of respect for Lord Duan."

"..."

Chen Ming was at a loss for words, sensing that his superior was probably not a simple person.

Lord Duan is likely referring to that top-ranking red-robed official.

Old Zhang added, "However, if Lord Ruan knew you were here, he would probably be very happy."

"Why?"

"Lord Ruan, like you, also comes from the capital."

"what?"

……

Chen Ming discovered that this prison, the highest-ranking of the six-door prisons in Xiazhou, had a pitifully small number of officials.

The highest-ranking warden only comes once a month.

The positions of two deputies have been vacant for a long time.

There were six prisons under the jurisdiction, each responsible for one of the three areas. However, three of the prison guards rarely came to work.

Therefore, the daily operation of this prison depends entirely on the two wardens.

One of them is Old Man Zhang.

The other one was younger, but also over sixty, and his surname was Li. He was off work today, so he didn't come.

Now there's another one, Chen Ming.

Each warden had five jailers under his command, all of whom were seventh-rank officials. These were the people who actually did the work. All the affairs of this vast prison had to be handled by these people personally.

The job of a jailer is to manage these jailers.

Around noon, Old Zhang gathered all the prison wardens together to introduce the new warden, Gu.

Then, he arranged for five people to come under his command and become his direct subordinates.

Of the five people, four were men and one was a woman. They were all in their thirties or forties, and each had a calm expression, clearly indicating that they came from a junior management background.

The five men bowed to him and said, "Greetings, Lord Gu."

Chen Ming could tell that their respect for him was only superficial. This wasn't surprising, given that he had been parachuted in and was so young.

"Alright, everyone get back to work."

He didn't give a lecture; he went straight to an explanation.

He used to hate it when his boss did this when he was working. Now that he's a boss, at least he hasn't become the kind of person he used to hate the most.

……

For the next few days, Chen Ming went to work at the prison every day to familiarize himself with the environment and understand the scope of his authority and responsibilities as a prison warden.

Then he understood why the three wardens didn't want to come to work.

Being a prison warden is really just a steward. His main job every day is to receive orders from the government office, which official wants to interrogate which prisoner, and to handle a bunch of procedures when new prisoners are sent over.

Furthermore, if prisoners are tortured after being interrogated, it must be ensured that they do not die. If they do die, the perpetrators will be held responsible.

This position offers almost no opportunities for recognition; you do dirty and tiring work every day and are often the scapegoat. Few people would want to do this lousy job.

That evening, Chen Ming treated his five men to drinks and asked them, "How did you end up being transferred here?"

These past few days, he's taken them out to eat every day to familiarize them with the prison's operating system. He's gotten to know them quite well now.

"I failed to complete a task and was demoted here." "I offended someone."

"Me too, I was naive back then..."

"My boss tried to drug me, so I had my testicles removed." This was her only female subordinate. It's clear that those who can stay and work in the prison are no ordinary people.

Finally, only one person remained to speak, and this person was also the least talkative subordinate.

Chen Ming called out his name and asked, "Deng Wei, what about you?"

Deng Wei smiled and said, "I asked to come here."

"Why?"

"This is the safest place."

"insightful."

Chen Ming toasted him, and Deng Wei was somewhat flattered. "Thank you, sir."

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Chen Ming parted ways with them and left.

On the way back, the feisty female subordinate Lei Chun suddenly said, "I think this Lord Gu is a bit different from other officials."

Deng Wei said, "He is indeed quite different. There aren't many people like him who come from such a noble background and are so approachable."

Another person said, "It's a pity he won't stay here for long."

The others remained silent.

They've all worked here for quite some time and have seen many scions of prominent families thrown into this prison. They usually leave after a few months or half a year.

Or they could just slack off like those three wardens and the warden, holding a nominal position but rarely coming to the prison.

How long can this Lord Gu hold out?

……

When Chen Ming returned to Jiang Wushuang's residence, it was already dark.

He was greeted by his maid, Xiao He, who had arrived in Xiazhou City the day before yesterday with the servants of the Jiang family.

He asked, "Where is Wushuang?"

"It seems that Young Master Jiang has gone out."

"Go ask him where he went."

"Yes."

Xiaohe went to ask the Jiang family, of course.

She returned shortly afterward, saying she was going to visit a friend and would probably be back very late.

Chen Ming frowned, unable to help but feel a little worried.

He hadn't seen Jiang Wushuang since he reported to the Six Doors. Every time he returned, Jiang Wushuang was gone. When he left in the morning, she was already gone.

Before coming to Xiazhou City, he said he was there to kill people.

In the past few days, Chen Ming has learned about the strength of the Six Doors in this city and the situation in Xiazhou City, so he is very worried.

Xiazhou City has two behemoths: the Six Doors and the Eight Righteous Men.

Let's not even talk about the Six Doors; they might not even get involved in feuds within the martial arts world. The Eight Righteous Men, however, are known for their meddling; that guy named He Zhixing in Wanlei City was a prime example.

Among the eight righteousnesses, there are eight righteousnesses in total. The most representative of them are the three branches of suffering, killing, and life.

The lineage of Kuyi practices asceticism, so its disciples are all ascetics who wear old clothes, live in dilapidated houses, and eat simple foods like vegetables and tofu.

Some of the disciples looked like beggars.

The Killing Righteousness School believes in stopping killing with killing. Its members, upon learning of a murder, will go to great lengths to find and kill the killer, thus warning the world not to kill!
The Shengyi lineage is entirely different. They believe that all beings are equal and that everyone has the right to learn martial arts. Therefore, they teach martial arts to talented people everywhere.

It must be said that there are many extremists in the Eight Righteousness Sect who act extremely radically, and these people also wield great power.

The current state of affairs in Xiazhou is largely due to the influence of the Eight Righteous Men.

Xiazhou City has always been the stronghold of the Eight Righteousness Sect. It would be extremely dangerous for Jiang Wushuang to kill someone here. If she were found by members of the "Kill Righteousness" Sect, she would surely die.

The members of the "Kill Righteousness" sect have always acted without restraint, even killing people who were killed by members of the Six Doors. In Xia Prefecture, they are an absolute force that strikes fear into the hearts of many.

Chen Ming decided to find an opportunity to talk to Jiang Wushuang. Revenge is something that can wait, and there's no need to risk your life just to kill someone.

……

That night, Chen Ming was meditating on the visualization diagram in his room, immersed in its artistic conception, when suddenly he heard a reminder, "Young Master!"

The sound seemed to come from another world.

His mind returned to normal instantly, and he gripped the "Broken Army Sword" beside him warily. Soon, he heard some commotion in the courtyard.

He pushed open the door and saw Jiang Wushuang, half of her body stained with blood, the "Dragon Abyss Sword" in her hand dim and lifeless, barely supporting herself.

It was clear that he was seriously injured.

Xiaohe was about to go over and help him up.

Chen Ming swiftly picked up Jiang Wushuang and carried her back into the house, instructing her, "Xiao He, keep watch outside. If there's any movement, notify me immediately."

"Yes." Xiaohe stayed outside.

Chen Ming first took Jiang Wushuang's pulse, and judging from the pulse, his condition was extremely bad. A destructive force was raging through his body, destroying his life force.

The person who made the move must be at least a second-rank expert!

Jiang Wushuang had a sword wound near her chest on her shoulder, from which blood was flowing continuously.

We must stop his bleeding first.

Chen Ming put him on the bed and tore his shirt open with force.

His expression suddenly changed drastically, and he weakly cried out, "No—"

He wore a silver ornament around his neck, strung on a red cord, which had been severed by the sword energy. Chen Ming tore it off as well.

He felt something dazzling his eyes, and when he looked closely, he saw (·)(·)!

Chen Ming was dumbfounded. Wasn't he a man? How could he have such a thing?
He looked up at Jiang Wushuang's face and saw that her features were exquisite, her skin was like jade, and every part of her face exuded feminine charm and beauty.

She is clearly a woman, and a stunning beauty who is no less beautiful than Su Zhining and Yu Haitang!
"Was I blind before? Why did I think she was a man?"

(End of this chapter)