Your skills are excellent, and now I have them too.

Chapter 126 One Bait, Two Fishing Methods

"Meng Qing, Meng Qing, you are still too young. Compared to your father, you are still too green. You are afraid of being tricked, so you hold back. Little did you know that I did not use any fortune teller at all. This is called being too clever for your own good."

Song Qingfeng stood in the operations command room of the Zhou Army camp, looking at the real-time map. He was surrounded by his confidants and even his colleagues from the Secret Party.

Ma Yuejian and several other opportunistic officers sat dejectedly in a corner, filled with unease.

The state army has been largely brought under control, and has been divided into several groups to take control of the television station, the security bureau, grain depots and armories, as well as important transportation hubs.

The few who would rather die than betray their loyalty to the emperor have already been sent to meet the previous emperors.

For Song Qingfeng, today's actions were not difficult at all, and could not even be called a coup, because he was the actual controller of Wanxiang Continent. How could he stage a coup for himself?

If Sui Chaoyu could infiltrate and become the boss, so could he.

A well-known corrupt artist once said that to be an official, one must blend in with the world.

This is the only thing Song Qingfeng has done over the years.

He makes money for everyone, so everyone pitches in to promote him, then installs their cronies and replaces him in important positions.

If you can't replace someone, then try to find a good-for-nothing like Ma Yuejian.

Most importantly, apart from embezzlement, corruption, and power-money transactions, he did nothing else, so he had no suspicion of being a member of any faction. He seemed to be a single-minded, pure, and detached corrupt official who had no interest in anything sophisticated.

To say what effect this had, it was to corrupt the continent of Myriad Realms like an evil god.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for a governor to control the state army so easily.

"grown ups!"

A subordinate stepped forward and said, "No Linglong Guard descent was detected."

"Oh? Did I give them so much time that they didn't have time to send out the coordinates? Or did I overestimate them, and there wasn't an undercover agent at all?"

Song Qingfeng was somewhat surprised, but not much. "Have the ships blocking the exit of the Void Sea taken off?"

"Ready and taking off."

"Okay, continue with the plan."

Song Qingfeng waved his hand; he didn't need to give orders, because the people around him were all comrades in the secret society, and they knew...

What should I do?

"Ha, with such a vital transportation route as Vientiane blocked, what will you do next? Will you withdraw the armed guards from the front lines? How will you adjust the supply lines? If the plans are disrupted, those radical elements of the merchant faction will make their move, and I'll get half the credit for it."

There was a hint of fanaticism in his eyes; as long as he had this achievement, he could obtain a copy of Shang Jun's Secret Manual.

Before the alarm went off.

Lu Zhao misjudged one thing.

Killing the Linglong Guards was only Song Qingfeng's secondary objective, something he did incidentally. His main goal was to blockade Wanxiang Continent, a crucial transportation hub.

It's no wonder Lu Zhao couldn't think of it; after all, he's not that crazy.

When he loudly told Sui Chaoyu his judgment, Old Sui was completely stunned and covered the phone.

"What is it?"

"Stop talking nonsense, report first!"

Lu Zhao glanced back and saw that a chaotic battle had broken out at the delivery location for unknown reasons, while things here were not so urgent.

However, Sui Chaoyu didn't let go of the phone: "Do you know what you're saying? Are you sure?"

"I'm 90% sure."

"What if it's one in ten?"

"We are only responsible for reporting the situation on site; the decision-making process is up to the higher-ups."

Sui Chaoyu was taken aback: "That's true, you're more professional than me."

So he first threw out his most important conclusion over the phone, and just then Lu Zhao rushed over and rattled off his own judgment.

"what?"

Nangong Qingye opened his squinty eyes wide; he never expected to hear such a thunderous reversal.

While on the phone, he kicked open the courtyard gate and rushed into the secluded little room, disregarding etiquette and barging in.

In less than three minutes, Ling Dongxun, Ji Ye, Zhao Baiyu, and the extra Fang Pangzi all appeared in the room.

"Mr. Ji, prepare to contact Li Changying immediately."

A few days ago, Li Changying had already secretly entered the Void Sea with Xin Li through the channels of the Military Supervisors Temple, leading the Qingming Guard and the Linglong Guard into a state of combat readiness.

Ji Ye understood the seriousness of the problem and took out a walnut-sized, curved, emerald-green jade stone from a small safe.

Upon seeing this thing, Nangong Qingye's eyes widened. This thing is called a jade pendant, which is extremely precious, but its value cannot be measured in money. It can only be said that even Meng Qing, who is currently carrying out this kind of mission, only has this one chance to use it.

Its function is very simple: communication.

It is impossible to communicate between the inside and outside of the Void Sea through normal means. Only by using the Jade Pendant and the secret techniques of sorcerers can people on the ground directly contact the Azure Sea Guards and the Exquisite Guards in the Void Sea.

Besides, jade pendants are also an important raw material for real-time communication across star systems. In occasions such as the emperor's speech or a public conscription, it is necessary to rely on jade pendants to achieve live broadcast across the entire star system. However, the cost is enormous, and even the emperor is reluctant to part with it. Unless it is an extremely important event, it will not be used lightly. Even Ji Ye and Meng Qing only have this one piece, which is a strategic resource to be used in critical moments.

Ji Ye needs to communicate with Xu Hai, which requires a short period of preparation. During this time, they can discuss how to handle the newly obtained information.

"The intelligence is only Lu Zhao's side of the story. If it's wrong, wouldn't that delay important matters?" Zhao Baiyu hesitated.

Meng Qing knew this was no small matter. He pondered for a moment and said, "I've already thought about it, and it makes sense logically. Song Qingfeng is a traitor. Like Sui Chaoyu, he has been an undercover agent for a long time, having entered the upper echelons, but has remained dormant."

The arms deal is a live bait. I want to lure him, and he wants to lure me. If we fall for it and quickly send the Linglong Guard and Qingming Guard to the desert, without heavy equipment support, they will quickly take control of the counties and prefectures within the continent and surround us.

"We've descended without supplies, and the conditions in the desert are even more treacherous. We're at a huge disadvantage. If the Shang rebels send more skilled fighters, they might even annihilate us."

"Then why don't we just stay put?"

Fatty Fang couldn't help but say something, then felt a bit scared; his level was far below Meng Qing's.

"It's not that simple."

Meng Qing shook his head slightly. "The transaction clues he deliberately revealed were not only bait, but also a 'tool'."

"A tool for hesitating to harm the innocent?"

"Yes, he's been calculating this for a long time. Once the Linglong Guards are mobilized to the front lines and they discover Shang Ni's whereabouts along the way, they will immediately begin an investigation."

He knows my habits. During the investigation, I am wary of my secretary's cunning methods and keep the number of people involved to a minimum to avoid alerting the enemy. In doing so, I might be blinded by the smuggling issue, allowing him to confidently make arrangements throughout the continent over the next few months.

If nothing unexpected happens, he should have already taken control of the middle ranks of the state army. Ma Yuejian is a man who is strong on the outside but weak on the inside, and he has probably been sidelined.

Therefore, we cannot remain inactive under any circumstances. On the one hand, if he completely controls Wanxiang Continent and blocks the exit of the Void Sea, it will be more than ten times more difficult to fight back. If something like this happens right under our noses, we will all be implicated. On the other hand, hehe..."

"Once Song Qingfeng makes his move, the first thing he'll do is blow up the Military Supervisor's Office. Minister Zhao, you're from the capital, and the risk of him turning you against us is too high; he simply won't try. So this is the only place he doesn't control. Whether he knows we're here or not, he'll immediately declare the Military Supervisor's Office a traitor."

At this point, Meng Qing seemed to think that claiming an institution directly under the emperor's control was a rebel was too idiotic, so he changed his reasoning: "He will announce that the Military Supervisor's Temple has been occupied by the rebels, and then launch a saturation attack with heavy firepower. Once they are all blown up, that will be the end of it. In short, we have no room for compromise and must fight to the death."

Fatty Fang: Am I supposed to risk my life too? Wasn't I supposed to be here mainly to prevent leaks and maybe lend a hand on the side...?

Just then, the alarm sounded throughout the city, and his heart skipped a beat.

Now it was clear that Lu Zhao's intelligence was correct. Thanks to this intelligence, everyone knew what had happened immediately.

Meng Qing calmly said, "Next, he will declare a state of emergency across the entire continent, falsely claiming to exercise his discretionary power in accordance with the law, to take control of all military and political affairs within the continent, and to kill the leading opponents. However, this will take some time; we have at least half an hour."

"Ready!"

Ji Ye knelt on the ground, and a circle of talismans had been set up around Chuan Yu.

A faint blue light shone, and Li Changying's figure appeared in the formation.

Meng Qing said expressionlessly, "Li Changying, listen to my command. Immediately lead the Linglong Guard and Qingming Guard to carry out a strong attack and rapid siege. Target: the Zhou Army camp. Behead the Shang rebel leader, Song Qingfeng."

Holy crap.

Li Changying, unaware of the previous events, was so angry at this unexpected turn of events that she laughed.

But it doesn't matter. He only has one creed: obey orders and kill whoever he's told to kill.

"Received. Execute the traitor Song Qingfeng. Long live the Emperor!"