The Heavenly Court is gone, I don't want to be a True Lord.

With Lu Zhuo present, the merits were quickly determined after the garrison submitted its briefing.

Although it cannot recruit more people into the Six Doors, it can at least allow these patrol guards to gain some benefits in their respective government offices, and it is a real qualification to deal with demons.

In this world, demons and monsters are rampant, and both the government and the martial arts world place great importance on a martial artist's experience in dealing with them.

These matters would also be reported to the Lin family. After the Lin family verified the merits of the battle, they would bestow rewards, which would then be distributed by Zuo Qi to the patrol guards below.

Zuo Qi was not stingy either; of the three hundred taels of silver bestowed by the Lin family, he distributed one hundred taels.

The guards were quite happy. They hadn't expected that by following Zuo Qi, they wouldn't have to worry too much about safety and could even reap many benefits.

Time flies.

Five days passed in the blink of an eye.

The last secret in the wind was meaningless; Zuo Qi had little interest in the conversation between the bandits.

early morning.

In the backyard of the garrison, Zuo Qi slowly stood up, frowning as he looked towards Yuncheng.

More than a month has passed since I parted ways with Shang Yingying, and I still haven't sensed any sign that the Five Luo Supreme Lord's Divine Tablet has left Yuncheng. I also don't know how things are going on with Shang Yingying.

The weather has warmed up a bit these days, and he doesn't know what the situation is like in the city. He intends to go into the city to intercept the opportunity that the mysterious organization placed in the Xu family's ancestral home.

That organization is mysterious and unpredictable. If they want to use that opportunity to win over Xu Yi, who possesses the Life Bone, then it must be a treasure.

Just as I was thinking this, a sound suddenly came from outside.

"Brother Qi, Master Li is here."

Zuo Qi quickly got up and went out to greet him.

When Li Gang saw the three of them, he smiled with satisfaction, "I read the briefing from a few days ago. You didn't disappoint Miss."

Zuo Qi smiled and said, "It's all thanks to Master Li for passing on his skills."

"That was also Miss's permission."

After Li Gang finished speaking, he suddenly changed the subject, "A few days ago, a captain from the Six Doors sent a message, summoning you three brothers to guard Baoyue Lake."

Although the turmoil around Embracing Moon Lake has subsided for the time being and the floating corpses and demons have stopped appearing frequently, the rules of the demon's lair in the lake are still unknown, so the danger of guarding Embracing Moon Lake is unimaginable.

Zuo Qi frowned and looked at Li Gang, clearly realizing that something was amiss with this recruitment.

"There's a centurion in the Six Doors named Liu Chong who seems to have some issues with you. He suspects you have ties to the Xu family. The reason he put you and your two brothers on guard duty at Baoyue Lake is because of this man's suggestion to Commander Du."

Liu Zhong?

It was a very unfamiliar name; Zuo Qi was certain he had never met this person before.

Zuo Qi pondered for a long time, but he didn't think Liu Chong would be a member of the Xu family.

As a Five-Refining Thousand-Household Commander and a Forging God expert, Du Youxin had Liu Chong's deep trust, making it highly unlikely that Liu Chong was a member of the Xu family, especially considering that Du Youxin had once taken Liu Chong to meet the Town Governor Du Daozhen.

Given Liu Chongsi's cultivation level as a centurion, it's easy to imagine how difficult it would be to deceive someone like the garrison commander Du Daozhen.

Even if it really is someone from the Xu family who infiltrated the Six Doors, they would have bigger plans and would not reveal their true colors by dealing with him.

Liu Chong's suppression was achieved through official means, which should have nothing to do with the Xu family; otherwise, he would have acted even more recklessly.

Moreover, he knew Du Youxin's name. Since Liu Chong followed Du Youxin, given the life-and-death feud between Du Daozhen and the Xu family, Liu Chong could not possibly be a member of the Xu family.

If an undercover agent could truly infiltrate to Liu Zhong's level, then Du Youxin would be nothing but a fool.

So after thinking it over, Zuo Qi could only think of Qin Chen, the only person he had offended in the city.

Lin Yulian once told Lin Yujun that Qin Chen's origins were unpredictable and his background mysterious. Perhaps Liu Chong knew something about him and was trying to curry favor with Qin Chen.

Li Gang glanced at Zuo Qi with interest. "Miss thinks so too. She even asked me to ask you if you've offended anyone else in the city besides Qin Chen."

Unexpectedly, the two of them had the same idea.

……

In the morning light.

The wind is getting warmer.

In the kitchen, Lin Yujun was busy preparing herbal medicine, with the prescription and proportions laid out on the cutting board beside her.

"Brother Zuo, this is a prescription I obtained with great difficulty after consulting Elder Yuan of Miaoshantang some time ago. It can relieve cultivation fatigue and allow people to cultivate for a little longer each day. Why don't you try it and see how it tastes?"

in the courtyard.

The melting snow covered the ground with black mud, and the bluestone slabs were damp. The north wind swept through, stirring up the withered branches, which danced back and forth, with some falling from time to time.

Zuo Qi came in from outside, still covered in dew, clearly having just returned from outside. Hearing Lin Yujun's voice, he quickly walked into the kitchen.

"Why are you here so early? You don't need to come every day."

Lin Yujun looked at Zuo Qi with a smile and said sweetly, "I can't sleep."

He quickly prepared the medicine and brought it to the table. "Brother Qi, drink this before you go on duty. I'm going to study now."

Zuo Qi watched the girl's retreating figure, a smile appearing on his face.

It has been three days since we returned to Fushan City, and to our surprise, the happiest person in the manor is Lin Yujun.

She didn't know that Zuo Qi was being suppressed by Liu Zhong; she was just happy to know that Zuo Qi had returned to the city.

Neither Lin Yuchan nor Zuo Qi would tell her about Liu Zhong's affairs.

Lin Yujun's medicine did have some effect, slightly extending Zuo Qi's daily cultivation time, simply because the prescription was good enough and the medicinal materials were of sufficient age.

One pot would probably cost twenty taels of silver.

This guy's living off a woman...

The three returned to the city. Since they all held official positions, and specifically those of the Tian Ce Mansion, it was not appropriate for them to continue living in the Lin Mansion. So, Zuo Qi spent 1,300 taels of silver to buy three small courtyards next to He Xiao's former courtyard.

It is indeed Fushan City, and living here is not easy. The housing prices are more than four times those at the East Wharf.

After drinking the medicinal soup, Zuo Qi went out.

When the three arrived at their encampment by the lake, sixty junior officers with swords were already lined up at the entrance of the temporary drill ground, waiting for them.

There are thirteen such garrisons along Baoyue Lake, each with a commander and three officers.

For every five outposts, there will be a centurion in charge.

The person in charge of the entire Moon Embracing Lake Demon Nest is a thousand-household commander.

Fortunately, it was Tang Yu, who, because of Lu Xun, was practically one of their own.

In order to appease Lu Xun, Tang Yu did not set up a commander at Zuo Qi's stronghold, but entrusted Zuo Qi and his two companions with full responsibility.

"Greetings to the three flag officers!"

The sixty low-ranking officials, each with a sword, were all strong and robust, standing tall and proud. Almost all of them were top-level experts in the first stage of cultivation, and occasionally a few officials with more than 30 points of life force could be seen.

After assigning tasks and dismissing the minor officials, Zuo Qi and the other two entered the room.

Ni Heng then spoke up, "Brother Qi, you asked me to train birds to follow Liu Chong. Sure enough, he knows Qin Chen. Unfortunately, the birds are too unintelligent and cannot understand their conversation. However, Liu Chong is quite respectful to Qin Chen. Da Hong heard him say 'Your Excellency, Minister' when he got close."

The Minister of Personnel?!

The six ministers in the imperial court?

Or perhaps the more nearby one, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat who oversees the three prefectures of Tai, Feng, and Yun?

According to He Xiao and his colleague's investigation, Qin Chen spends his days in seclusion and rarely leaves the City Guard Division.

"Brother Qi, Liu Chong has a family in Fushan City. He has four women, three sons and two daughters. His second son, Liu Gongming, has outstanding martial arts talent. He is a disciple of Qu Baihu of Zhenyuan Prefecture. He is sixteen years old and is Liu Chong's favorite. Half a month ago, Liu Chong even held a second training banquet for him. He is a womanizer and has been frequenting the neighborhood since he was young."

He Xiao's eyes flashed, revealing a hint of ruthlessness.

They were born into scoundrels and thugs; it wasn't their style to bring trouble upon their wives and children.

Zuo Qi narrowed his eyes and sighed, "Isn't it too cruel to let Commander Liu's own son drown in Baoyue Lake?"

"When young people go out drinking and carousing, anything can happen, right?"

"Younger than us, with such high talent and a powerful background, it would be a real pity if he died."

He Xiao said softly, his tone full of apprehension.

He was even more cautious than Zuo Qi. Offending one person was equivalent to offending their whole family. Since he had offended them, the whole family naturally had to be dealt with properly.

The saying "misfortune should not extend to family members" is merely a euphemism for not being able to completely eradicate a threat due to incompetence or various fears.

In both the martial arts world and the imperial court, when facing an enemy, who would speak of the so-called "misfortune should not extend to family members"?