National Division

Chapter 66 Punished According to the Law! (Seeking monthly votes and continued reading!)
At this moment, the sky was covered with dark clouds, a cool breeze suddenly rose, and a light drizzle began to fall.

Xue Zhihua blinked, turned to look at the young man, and asked, "What suggestions do you have?"

Shen Xian said, "We will set up a Demon-Slaying Ranking to reward meritorious service. Those who have made contributions can exchange them for elixirs, divine weapons, and the right to view cultivation techniques. Those listed on the Qilin Ranking will enjoy certain discounts when exchanging these items. The Qilin Gazette will feature a special profile of each person in each issue to make them famous."

He now sees himself more as a policymaker than a martial arts master vying for rankings.

He wouldn't deliberately compete for anything, like the Qilin Ranking or the three ranks of A, B, and C.

His true ambition is to become the master of the Qilin Pavilion.

With the help of royal elixirs, cultivation techniques, and divine weapons, he will collect all the martial arts in the world for his own use, and once his cultivation reaches a certain level, he will then guide all the martial artists in the world.

Upon hearing this, Xue Zhihua's eyes lit up, and she praised, "In this way, it will surely help to eliminate evil and demons."

Shen Xian asked, "Is the Qilin Pavilion just ahead?"

Before them, beneath the left gate tower, stood a soaring pavilion with upturned eaves, its walls piercing the clouds. Surrounding it were government offices, and officials and clerks dressed in either blue or green robes moved about.

Xue Zhihua also snapped out of her reverie after Shen Xian's words and said, "It's just ahead. I'll take you in. It's about to rain."

With that, he led Shen Xian quickly into the Qilin Pavilion.

Above the stone steps, in the corridor, armored soldiers stood guard with swords. Upon seeing this, they stepped forward with solemn expressions, saying, "The Qilin Pavilion is a restricted area; unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter."

"I am Xue Zhihua, commander of the Vermilion Bird Division." With that, he showed the token in his hand to the armored soldiers.

"Greetings, Master Xue."

After the soldiers bowed, they made way for them.

Xue Zhihua and Shen Xian were able to enter, passing through a ceremonial gate and stepping into the pavilion.

The room was spacious, with the walls either covered with paintings and calligraphy or filled with books.

Beside the bookshelves were rows of desks, where some officials dressed in low-ranking robes sat.

Among them, an official wearing a seventh-rank robe, with gray hair and slightly frosty temples, quickly stepped forward. Upon seeing Xue Zhihua, he hurriedly ran forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Lord Xue, may I ask what business you have come to the Qilin Pavilion?"

In the past, Xue Zhihua often came to Qilin Pavilion to read books. The guards outside might not recognize her because of the rotation, so how could the Pavilion Master not recognize her?
"Minister Song, I am here by the Empress Dowager's decree to take Scholar Shen of the Zhaowen Academy on a tour. Where is your Chief Scholar in charge?" Xue Zhihua asked, glancing at her fourth aunt.

The person in charge of the Qilin Pavilion was a scholar from the Zhaowen Pavilion, under whom were the Left and Right Pavilion Assistants, twelve judges, and various civil officials such as scribes, clerks, and scribes.

Qilin Pavilion was a quiet and unassuming government office. Apart from officials admiring the portraits of the thirty-six meritorious officials on the top of the pavilion, few people came to visit.

Song Ge Cheng replied with a smile, "Replying to Lord Xue, Scholar Zheng is reading upstairs. I will go and report to him immediately."

With that, he turned and left.

Xue Zhihua first led Shen Xian to a table for guests to sit down, where a minor official served them fragrant tea.

Before long, a middle-aged official wearing a dark green official robe and a two-winged hat appeared. He was thin and wiry, of medium height, and jogged up to us. He said, "This humble official, Zheng Guanying, greets Scholar Shen and Lord Xue."

When the subordinate mentioned the scholar of Zhaowen Pavilion, this scholar Zheng was a little puzzled, as he did not remember when there had been a scholar named Shen in Zhaowen Pavilion.

At this moment, some officials in the pavilion also craned their necks to look curiously, their eyes mostly on the young man next to Xue Zhihua.

Xue Zhihua's beautiful face was radiant and captivating. She said, "Scholar Zheng, the Empress Dowager has issued a decree."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Guanying paused, bowed deeply, and said, "Your subject awaits Your Majesty's decree."

Those who had been secretly listening to the commotion all stood up, lifted their official robes, and knelt to await the imperial edict.

Otherwise, if the gods were to become acquainted with each other, it would be seen by others as disrespect for the Heavenly Queen, which could lead to the confiscation of property and the extermination of the entire family.

Xue Zhihua said, "The Empress has decreed that Shen Xian, a scholar of the Zhaowen Pavilion and the commander of the Vermilion Bird Division, be put in charge of the Qilin Pavilion to gather martial artists from all over the world and establish the Demon-Slaying and Evil-Pacifying Divisions."

"Your Majesty, we obey your decree. May Your Majesty live a thousand years!"

Led by Zheng Guanying, all the officials, big and small, in the Qilin Pavilion shouted in unison.

No one would doubt that Lord Xue in front of them would forge an imperial edict.

Shen Xian stepped forward, helped Zheng Guanying up, and said gently, "Scholar Zheng, we are officials in the same department, so we should look after each other in the future."

I don't know if this Scholar Zheng is from the Zheng family of Xingyang, but judging from his demeanor, he probably isn't.

If he were from a prominent family, he wouldn't still be serving as an official in the Qilin Pavilion at this age.

Zheng Guanying stood up, a broad smile on his face, and said, "Of course, of course."

As Zheng Guanying stood up, many officials behind him also rose to their feet. Shen Xian said, "I have been ordered by the Empress Dowager to oversee the Qilin Pavilion, gather the martial arts talents of the world, and quell the evil spirits. I hope that Scholar Zheng and all the other ministers can work together to accomplish this great task and restore a bright and clear world to the land."

Everyone said yes.

After Shen Xian finished speaking with everyone present, Xue Zhihua took over the conversation and said, "Scholar Zheng, let's go to the pavilion first and talk about the situation inside."

Zheng Guan responded with a "yes" and led the two to the second floor of the Qilin Pavilion.

……

……

Dali Temple, government office
After leaving the palace, Wang Shence went to the Dali Temple to find Zhou Liang, who had just finished his official duties and was sitting in a rattan chair.

After noon, the sky gradually darkened, and candles were lit on the long table.

This Minister of the Court of Judicial Review had a thin face, small eyes, a slightly pointed chin, a dark and mysterious complexion, and deep nasolabial folds.

He was looking at the book recently handwritten by the Imperial Censor Lai Jing.

By the light of the candle, the three large characters "Luo Zhi Jing" are clearly visible.

"Crash..."

The orange candlelight flickered, and outside the window, spring rain began to fall in a light drizzle, pattering against the eaves, the artificial hill, and the water vat.

Meanwhile, the advisor Diao Fenglai waited respectfully for Zhou Liang to ask him questions.

"Who in the court informed Prince Qing of his rebellion?" Zhou Liang sighed.

Diao Fenglai asked cautiously, "Sir, could it be the Ministry of the Central Secretariat and the Ministry of War?"

Zhou Liang tapped the rattan chair lightly with his fingers and said, "It's not impossible, but we have no evidence. We can't get anything out of Prince Qing, not even a confession."

Diao Fenglai's face turned fierce: "Sir, when does the Dali Temple need evidence in handling cases? As long as he's arrested and tortured, he'll have no choice but to confess!"

"Isn't Prince Qing helpless?" Zhou Liang stood up and sneered, "These instruments of torture from the Dali Temple are fine for dealing with scholars who have never seen blood, but they can't deal with the tough bones of a martial artist."

As he spoke, he walked to the window with his hands behind his back.

He wanted to secure the position of Minister of Justice, and this case had to be handled exceptionally well; otherwise, his path from the Ministry of Justice to the Council of State Affairs would be cut off.

Diao Fenglai slowly caught up, "My lord, I heard that the Censorate has sent people to arrest the steward of the residence of the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, Le Sijian."

"Lai Jing, that old fox, is trying to frame a high-ranking official," Zhou Liang sneered disdainfully.

Perhaps because he was a disciple of the Legalist school, Zhou Liang, despite his ruthless methods, was not capable of making false accusations without any evidence.

Just then, a minor official announced from outside the door, "Sir, General Wang has arrived."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Liang immediately stood up and said, "I will go to greet him."

With that, he and his advisor Diao Fenglai went to the side hall.

At this moment, Wang Shence stood up, a faint smell of blood emanating from him. He cupped his hands and said in a deep voice, "Lord Zhou."

Zhou Liang asked impatiently, "What did Her Majesty say?"

"The Empress is furious and has already ordered me to execute the Water Gate Guerrilla General and his guards who released the women of the Yu family." Wang Shence said solemnly, "The Empress has another decree to track down the Yu family's escaped relatives and bring them to justice."

Zhou Liang nodded and said, "I suspect that the Yu family has sought refuge with their in-laws."

Wang Shence asked in surprise, "What do you mean?"

Zhou Liang explained, "That blind girl was engaged to the Shen family of Lanxi. After leaving Luodu, although the world is vast, there was no place for a blind girl to stay. She could only seek refuge with her in-laws."

A look of recollection crossed Wang Shence's face. After a moment, he asked, "The Shen family of Lanxi, is it the same Shen family that Shen Lin, the Junior Supervisor of the Secretariat?"

Zhou Liang said, "However, it should not be the direct line. The Shen family of Lanxi in the capital is the direct line, but there is another line. I ordered my subordinates to investigate, and it should be in Guhe County, Anzhou, where the person is serving as the county magistrate."

Wang Shence said coldly, "Then we should capture this person."

Zhou Liang said, "Send the criminal officers of the Dali Temple to Guhe County, Anzhou to arrest them. If the magistrate of Guhe County dares to harbor a criminal wanted by the imperial court, he will be punished according to the law!"

At this moment, Zhou and Wang were unaware that the Shen father and son had already forgotten about them.

(End of this chapter)