533: Chapter 267: Group 25 (Please Subscribe) 533: Chapter 267: Group 25 (Please Subscribe) May 13th, Jiangnan County, East State Martial Arts Tower.
Although there is a “tower” in its name, it is actually a complex consisting of a main building approximately six stories high, flanked by two three-story pavilions on the east and west.
On normal days, the central main building is the busiest area, teeming with people at the entrance,
but today, the atmosphere here is oppressively tense, and deadly silent.
Most of the rooms inside the tower are empty, giving off an air of extreme desolation.
Even those few who are working inside are silent and move gently, doing their best to avoid speaking or making noise.
On the fifth and sixth floors, the residence and public hall of the Fourth Grade Divine Mechanism Scholar, Wang Chaoyang—the East State Martial Arts Tower Master—are tightly shut.
The tower’s scribes and editors all choose to work elsewhere if they can.
They move cautiously and noiselessly, intentionally avoiding the central main building, whether deliberately or not.
Inside the entire East State Martial Arts Tower, only Xie Zhenqing appears composed.
She stands on the third floor of the East Hall, looking at the six-story main building with a slight sense of triumph and mockery.
“Tell the people below there’s no need for such precautions, they can resume working normally.
All cramming into the East and West Halls or taking work home, what does that look like?
Who are they performing for?”
Xie Zhenqing actually finds the current scene quite amusing.
She knows that these lower-level scribes and editors are putting on an act, intentionally doing it for her benefit to show that they stand in opposition to Wang Chaoyang.
However, if this situation continues, it will inevitably lead to a major decrease in the efficiency of the East State Martial Arts Tower’s operations.
The problem is that Xie Zhenqing has already been ordered by the Assistant Minister of Rites to take full control over the East State Martial Arts Tower’s day-to-day affairs.
Therefore, she cannot just let it be.
If something goes wrong with the East State Martial Arts Tower in the future, she will be the one to take the blame.
“Your subordinate obeys,” replied the voice behind her.
Dong Lishan, who stood behind Xie Zhenqing, could not help but smile wryly.
“However, Tower Master, if you say everyone is just putting on an act, that’s not entirely true.
This time our East State Martial Arts Tower has really messed up.
Not only have we made a fool of ourselves in Jianghu, but we’ve also been verbally chastised by the Assistant Minister of Rites.
Everybody indeed detests this new Tower Master and does not wish to work with him, let alone get close.”
Dong Lishan had been transferred to the East State Martial Arts Tower by Xie Zhenqing just nine days previously.
Dong Lishan was initially hesitant.
After all, it’s better to be a chicken’s head than a phoenix’s tail.
He had been the Tower Master of the Xiushui County Martial Arts Tower for less than half a year, and he had not yet had his fill of the position’s perks.
Moreover, the infighting within the East State Martial Arts Tower was severe—it was clearly a huge pitfall.
But a few days ago, the situation in East State changed drastically.
Xie Zhenqing sincerely valued him, her former subordinate, and was prepared to entrust him with a significant deputy role.
After some thought Dong Lishan went with the flow and came over.
Hearing this, Xie Zhenqing let out a cold laugh.
“What use is their aversion at this time?
I said it before; we could have waited a bit longer, delayed things to see how they played out.
How many people in the entire building would have ended up siding with me in the end?
Wang Chaoyang was in such a rush to publish a supplementary issue; how has that turned out?
Less than ten days after the release, the East State Inspection Department revoked the warrant for Chu Xisheng’s arrest.”
Dong Lishan thought to himself that the situation was indeed troublesome—who could have expected that merely ten days later, the Iron Banner Gang would undergo a transformation, becoming righteous citizens helping the court quell a rebellion?
And that Governor Sikong Chan of Xiushui County along with a multitude of Xiushui scholars were executed by the court as traitors?
This made the East State Martial Arts Tower the laughingstock of the entire Dongzhou Martial World.
Not only was the supplementary issue from the Martial Arts Tower a topic of discussion in every teahouse and tavern across the eight provinces of East State, but the joke also spread beyond the state’s borders.
The Ministry of Rites and the Discussion Martial Arts General Building were thunderously furious.
As if losing face once over Chu Xisheng was not enough, they had to suffer a second time, severely damaging the Martial Arts Tower’s credibility and influence.
And for Xie Zhenqing, it was this disheartenment that led her to transfer him from Xiushui.
At that time, most inside the Tower were opposed to Xie Zhenqing’s defection.
Dong Lishan heaved an inward sigh.
“Tower Master, we’ve prepared the new supplementary issue and can proceed to print it.
Do you wish to review it once more?”
“No need, let them print and distribute it as soon as possible,”
Xie Zhenqing waved her hand, thinking that she had overseen this issue by herself—all the articles were finalized by her personally.
What more was there to see?
“This issue is part of the Martial Arts Tower’s efforts to rectify chaos.
The sooner we release it, the better.
Otherwise, we’ll only become a bigger joke to those outside.”
The key point was that it was only May 13th—there was still a month until the next issue of “Debating Martial Arts” was due for release.
They had to publish another supplementary issue to mitigate the impact.
All this trouble was caused by Wang Chaoyang.
At that moment, her expression grew more serious.
“Has there been any new development with the Iron Banner Gang and Chu Xisheng?
What’s the situation in Xiushui and Xunyang Counties?”
“The Iron Banner Gang has been quite active.”
Dong Lishan replied with a calm demeanor, “Chu Xisheng is reorganizing the Iron Banner Gang with great vigor.
He has incorporated ‘West Mountain Hall’ into the Headquarters and expanded the size of both the ‘Iron Banner’ and ‘Xuanfeng’ Halls.
Additionally, he has established ‘Divine Shooting Hall’ and ‘Chongzhou Hall.’
Each Tangkou has been expanded to two thousand members, making a total of ten thousand; all of them are elites whose cultivation has entered the grade, and it is said that there are more than 4,000 among them with Eighth Rank cultivation.
The Iron Banner Gang is also spending heavily to collect medicine for their members to practice the Emperor’s Secret Technique.
Soon, the Headquarters of the Iron Banner Gang will possess a direct force of over ten thousand men, with combat power rivaling that of the border army.
Coupled with the Outer Hall gang members, the number will nearly reach seventeen thousand—a force capable of dominating both land and water in East State, becoming the foremost great gang within the territory!”
Xie Zhenqing’s eyebrows knitted slightly,