Chapter 436 - 366: A Letter from Weishui, a Storm in the Commandery

"That’s right. Feng Chengxiu of the Qiankun Bureau has a status that’s even a notch above the Lord Governor’s. Without having righteousness on his side, the Lord Governor can’t easily speak up!"

"Speak up!? Why should he speak up? It’s not just that it’s difficult for him to speak—even if it were easy, he shouldn’t! In this matter, Chen Ping’an was the one in the wrong from the start! His methods were too extreme, causing this disaster! This is a good opportunity to teach Chen Ping’an a lesson! To make him change his reckless ways!"

"Wait... everyone, don’t you think Chen Ping’an had his reasons? Put yourselves in his shoes. If someone came to the Garrison Commandant’s Office, provoked us like that, injured one of our trusted subordinates, and declared they were going to arrest us... I doubt we would have handled it any better than Chen Ping’an did!"

Though some words were spoken in Chen Ping’an’s defense, they were quickly drowned out by other voices.

"No! I would definitely handle it better than Chen Ping’an! If something like that happened, I would act with reason and evidence, explain the cause, and report it to the Weishui Garrison to let the higher-ups decide!"

"Exactly. Our patience and restraint for the sake of the bigger picture is something a mere Chen Ping’an could never comprehend!"

"That’s right!"

"You’re all just saying that because you couldn’t have beaten Tong Jin..."

"You! What nonsense are you spouting!?"

"Measuring the heart of a gentleman with the mind of a villain! What an absurd accusation!"

"Isn’t it true, though?"

"Shut up!"

"..."

...

Within the Weishui Garrison, besides those who were dissatisfied with Chen Ping’an’s actions, many also supported him. Generally speaking, the middle and lower ranks mostly admired his conduct, seeing him as a charismatic superior who wasn’t afraid of authority and dared to stand up for his subordinates.

However, some in the middle and upper echelons had quite a few complaints about Chen Ping’an’s behavior. This was especially true for certain factions. Because of Chen Ping’an, the Qiankun Bureau had recently increased its scrutiny, putting them under immense pressure and causing them significant losses. This had them hopping mad! They couldn’t wait to push Chen Ping’an out to appease the Qiankun Bureau’s anger.

After all, it’s better for a friend to die than for me.

Besides the Garrison Commandant’s Office, the major powers of Weishui County City were also paying close attention to this matter. But with no personal stakes involved, they were mostly content to watch the drama unfold.

"Hahaha, Mang Blade Chen Ping’an has finally hit a steel plate this time!"

"How so?"

"You don’t know!? The man from the Qiankun Bureau who died... his background is anything but ordinary!"

"What kind of background!?"

"I’m not clear on the specifics, but it’s the kind that even the Lord Governor of our Weishui Garrison has to treat with caution!"

"HISS... Then doesn’t that mean..."

"Hush! Those who know, know. Saying more is pointless!"

"Hahaha, now there’s a good show to watch!"

"..."

For a time, the matter of Chen Ping’an’s review became the biggest news in Weishui County City since the Beicang Town turmoil. Of course, since it involved the upper echelons of the Garrison Commandant’s Office, the common folk who spent their days in the streets and alleys had no chance of hearing about it.

For them, their daily food, clothing, and expenses were the most important matters in the world.

Time quickly passed to the sixth day, the day before Chen Ping’an’s formal review. Both the Qiankun Bureau and the Garrison Commandant’s Office had already made comprehensive preparations for the next day’s proceedings.

「Qiankun Bureau.」

"How are the preparations for tomorrow’s review coming along!?"

Feng Chengxiu said coolly, looking at the report in his hand.

"Reporting to Lord Feng, everything is ready. The relevant evidence has been compiled clearly. In addition, over the past few days, this subordinate has visited several places to gain a more detailed understanding of Chen Ping’an’s life. Tomorrow’s accusations and questions for Chen Ping’an will be exhaustive!"

A man in black stood before Feng Chengxiu, reporting with the utmost respect.

"Good! Tomorrow, we will leave Chen Ping’an speechless and solidify his reputation as arrogant, reckless, and lawless! You may leave. Go over everything one more time in detail!"

"Yes, Lord Feng!" The man in black clasped his hands in a salute, then took his leave.

As he watched the man in black depart, a cold expression appeared on Feng Chengxiu’s face, a harsh glint flashing in his eyes.

’For me, the most urgent task is to quickly investigate Cao Yingxiong’s death. Tong Jin’s death, while important, isn’t enough for me to kill Chen Ping’an myself, considering the bigger picture. I’m using the grand Orthodox Dao, leveraging this incident to attack him and strip him of that official skin he wears!’

’Getting this far is enough! It’s not that I’m letting Chen Ping’an off easily. It’s that for what comes next, I don’t need to act personally.’

’I’ve already written a letter about Tong Jin’s death and had it sent by express courier to Lord Tong.’

’With Tong Jin dead, Lord Tong surely won’t sit by and do nothing!’

’My motion for impeachment tomorrow is nothing more than handing Lord Tong a knife. Everything I’m doing follows the procedural logic of the system; nothing is out of line.’

’Once Chen Ping’an is stripped of his official standing, it will be all too easy for Lord Tong to kill him! Without that official skin, Chen Ping’an loses the protection of the Garrison Commandant’s Office’s position.’

’Setting aside the positions of the Qiankun Bureau and the Garrison Commandant’s Office, his only living junior was killed. For Lord Tong to strike out in grief and anger is perfectly justifiable, both by reason and emotion. With his junior dead, Lord Tong would only be doing what any senior would do!’

’Without the sanctuary of the Garrison Commandant’s Office’s position, Chen Ping’an’s death would, at most, mean one less prodigy on the Rising Star Chart. It wouldn’t cause any waves.’

’And taking a huge step back, even if it did cause some minor waves, with Lord Tong’s status, he could easily quell them.’