Firmament Sword

Li Hong was a little confused at first. Then, he looked at Xu Luo with a strange expression and sighed, ”Most people rack their brains trying to earn more military merit. But you... you’re racking your brains trying to stir up some trouble to get rid of it. The Hongcheng Wei Family is really out of luck, running into you, Boss.”

Xu Luo waved his hand dismissively. ”If they weren’t courting death, no one would be targeting them.”

As he spoke, Xu Luo looked at Li Hong and asked, ”By the way, you’ve graduated from the academy now. What about Liang Ziyi and the others?”

Li Hong gave a wry smile. ”Boss, you really don’t know much about our academy. Liang Ziyi, Xiahou Xian, Liu San, Xiaotian, Xu Lingtian, and Ling Luoxi have all applied for graduation. They were all conferred the title of Viscount and given military ranks. Liang Ziyi and Xiaotian joined the army and stayed with the Southern Army; they’re officers now. Xiahou Xian went to the Northern Military Department. Liu San, Xu Lingtian, and Ling Luoxi have all returned to their respective families. The glory of the Martial Soul Squad is enough to benefit their families for several generations. When they left, they all regretted not being able to get together with you, Boss.”

Li Hong continued, ”Huangfu Chongzhi and his group were also granted titles, but they all chose to return to True Martial Academy.”

At this, the smile on Li Hong’s face turned a little bitter. He said softly, ”Actually, we wanted to go back to the academy too, to keep following you in the future, Boss. But the families behind each of us wanted us to return and serve them as soon as possible. In their eyes, our achievements are already conspicuous enough. On the other hand, with the current political situation at court... you know how it is, Boss. They don’t want us to get too deeply involved with you...”

Xu Luo nodded silently. Li Hong was speaking from the heart, and there was nothing Xu Luo could say.

After a moment of silence, Xu Luo smiled and said, ”It’s alright. We’re all still brothers. I understand your difficulties. After all, when it comes to struggles between great families like this, one wrong move can get you utterly destroyed. Your choice was a wise one.”

”No, Boss. If that day ever truly comes, whether it’s me, Xiaotian, Liang Ziyi, or the others, we will all return to your side without a second thought.” Li Hong was getting emotional, a rare sight for him. He looked at Xu Luo seriously and said, ”All our wealth and status, you gave it to us, Boss. If a day comes when you need us, we’ll stand by your side even if it costs us our lives!”

Xu Luo’s expression also grew serious. He looked at Li Hong and said earnestly, ”It’s enough that you brothers feel this way. But I can’t let you do that. Besides, the day you’re all worried about will never actually come.”

The two of them didn’t continue the conversation on this topic. By now, any discerning person could see that the civil and military factions at court were fighting fiercely.

The core figures of the Military Merit Group were mostly stationed outside the capital, and the Civil Servant Group, led by Prime Minister Wei Feng, had been sparing no effort to suppress the Military Merit Faction. And right now, it looked like the Civil Servant Group had the upper hand.

If not for the recent war, the Civil Servant Group’s arrogance would likely have been even more rampant.

Just then, the trusted subordinate Li Hong had sent away earlier came riding back on a fast horse. From a distance, the horse dared not advance any further. The aura of the giant black tiger made its legs go weak, and it didn’t dare to get any closer.

The man dismounted and trotted over, handing a large envelope to Li Hong. He glanced fearfully at Xu Luo beside Li Hong and the terrifying giant black tiger behind him, then said, ”Master, what you asked for is all in here.”

Li Hong nodded, dismissed the man, and handed the envelope to Xu Luo with a smile. ”The Wei Family has done a lot of things in Hongcheng over the years to incur the wrath of both heaven and man. I just had my people look into it, and in this short amount of time, they’ve already dug up this much. Open it and see. Is it enough to take down the entire family?”

Xu Luo was slightly taken aback, then looked at Li Hong with a hint of admiration. ”You’re much more ruthless than I am!”

Li Hong chuckled. ”If you don’t kill a snake, you’ll get bitten. The Old City Lord is getting on in years. He can’t be bothered to manage Hongcheng’s affairs, nor does he dare to. But I’ve long found them to be an eyesore. This family has lorded over Hongcheng for years, and their reputation among the common people is abysmal. The populace holds a deep-seated resentment for the Wei Family. If we can use your hand to eliminate them, I believe the people of Hongcheng will be grateful to you, Boss.”

Li Hong made no effort to hide his intentions. Xu Luo could only respond with a wry smile and roll his eyes at him.

Then, Xu Luo opened the large envelope, pulled out the documents inside, and began to read. Soon, his brow furrowed.

After reading a few pages, Xu Luo’s face had turned ashen. He gritted his teeth. ”This Wei Family... they’re completely lawless!”

”Indeed. On my first day as Deputy City Lord, the Old City Lord told me that Hongcheng has two great tigers, one black and one white. The black one is the Wei Family. They’re lawless and dare to do anything. The white one is the Xia Family. They’re the new power in town, and their background isn’t as illustrious as the Wei Family’s, so they still operate with some restraint. But he said that as time goes on, who’s to say if both of Hongcheng’s tigers won’t turn black...” Li Hong sighed, his expression heavy.

”The Old City Lord certainly sees things clearly, but it’s a shame he doesn’t have enough power. Otherwise, the Wei Family could never have become so arrogant,” Li Hong said.

”In the autumn of Cangqiong Calendar year 1388, the Wei Family’s young master, Wei Shan, took a liking to an antique in a curio shop. When his demand for it was refused, he left in a rage. That very night, the shop owner’s entire family of nine was brutally murdered in their home... The whole curio shop was burned to the ground, but strangely, no trace of any antiques was found at the scene afterward...”

”In the spring of Cangqiong Calendar year 1389, the Wei Family lost a bid against the prominent Zhang Family of Hongcheng for a plot of land in the central square. A few days later, the Zhang Family began to suffer one mishap after another. First it was their servants, then members of their branch families. Left with no choice, the Zhang Family had to ’gift’ the plot of land to the Wei Family, and only then did they avoid the disaster of having their entire clan wiped out...”

”In the spring of Cangqiong Calendar year 1389, a lesser son of the Wei Family was beaten for harassing a respectable woman. That night, the woman’s entire household of thirteen was exterminated...”

”In Cangqiong Calendar year 1390... the Wei Family’s young master, Wei Ning, had an old man killed on the street over a simple argument. When the old man’s son tried to retrieve the body, he was beaten to death by the Wei Family’s vicious servants...”

”Cangqiong Calendar...”

Their track record was abysmal, their sins piled high. The evils committed by the Hongcheng Wei Family were simply too numerous to count.

But what Xu Luo found most intolerable was one particular entry: ”In Cangqiong Calendar year 1388, the Wei Family’s young master, Wei Ning, came across a pregnant woman on the road. Noticing her fair skin and beautiful face, he abducted her and took her back to his home for his own lewd pleasure. The woman’s husband, a military officer in Hongcheng, went to the Wei residence to demand her return, but the Wei Family’s martial artist guards broke all four of his limbs. They propped him up in a room and forced him to watch as his own wife was defiled... The pregnant woman’s suicide attempt failed. Instead, a humiliated and enraged Wei Ning cut open her abdomen, took out the infant, and right in front of the couple... called for a large dog...”

Another entry was enough to make one’s hair stand on end in fury: ”In the winter of Cangqiong Calendar year 1391, a young beggar girl soiled the fox-fur coat of a young lady of the Wei Family while begging. The enraged young lady ordered her to be captured on the spot, taken back, and turned into a living wax statue...”

”Beasts!”

Reading this, Xu Luo felt his stomach churn as a furious rage ignited in his chest.

”Just how many vile things have they done?” Xu Luo’s eyes were bloodshot. He looked at Li Hong and gritted his teeth. ”And you’ve managed to stay calm through all this...”

”What could I do? In a fight, the forces under my command are no match for them. In terms of power, they are a branch family of the current Prime Minister, Wei Feng... What else could I do besides silently collect evidence of their crimes and hope that one day, when Wei Feng falls, they would be dealt with as well?”

Li Hong said with a look of helplessness.

”Sorry. I know it’s not your fault,” Xu Luo said apologetically. ”I got too emotional. Is there solid evidence for all of this?”

Li Hong nodded. ”Don’t blame yourself. When I first saw this information, I was even more furious than you are. I wanted nothing more than to storm the Wei residence and slaughter those beasts.” Li Hong sighed. ”But after calming down, I realized that if I did that, I would only die a wrongful death and accomplish nothing of value. For eighty or ninety percent of the incidents recorded here, the evidence is long gone. The Wei Family is ruthless and vicious. They exterminate entire families at the slightest provocation, so where would any evidence be left?”

At this, a bitter smile appeared on Li Hong’s face. He sighed, ”Actually, these matters are more or less an open secret in Hongcheng. The Wei Family’s fearsome reputation is enough to stop a baby from crying...”

”The Wei Family?” An icy killing intent flashed in Xu Luo’s eyes.

The two arrived at the Wei Family’s gate. The Wei Family had already been informed that Xu Luo and Li Hong had left the Xia residence shortly after entering and were heading straight for them.

Thus, just as the two arrived before the Wei Family gate, the main doors swung wide open. A refined-looking middle-aged man, surrounded by a crowd of people, walked out. Upon seeing Xu Luo and Li Hong, the man beamed and clasped his hands in greeting. ”What auspicious wind brings Vice City Lord Li here today? Your presence at my humble home truly makes it shine!”

He then turned his gaze to Xu Luo, his attitude becoming even more enthusiastic. He said with pleasant surprise, ”And if I’m not mistaken, this... must be the young hero who dominated the entire southern war, Young Master Xu Luo? Haha, for Young Master Xu to grace our humble home is a tremendous surprise! Please, both of you, come inside!”

Xu Luo and Li Hong exchanged a look, both of them baffled by the man’s attitude.

’They were here to cause trouble!’

’Not to be guests!’

Besides, after reading about all the evil deeds the Wei Family had committed in Hongcheng over the years, Xu Luo was already filled with a towering rage. There’s a saying, ”you don’t hit a smiling face,” but for this group from the Wei Family, Xu Luo wouldn’t spare them even if they knelt on the ground and begged for mercy, let alone just smiled.

”Who are you?” Xu Luo asked, his expression cold, as if he hadn’t seen the middle-aged man’s smile or enthusiasm.

A young man beside the middle-aged man said with a displeased look, ”This is the Chief Steward of our Hongcheng Wei Family, Wei Ning!”