Chapter 393: What Old Seven Left Behind

What happened after that had nothing to do with Wangchuan anymore.

After accepting the Acting Hall Master token, Wangchuan was immediately arranged by Gang Leader Luo Tiancong to hurry to the nearest dock and return to Sanhe Commandery by water.

Thus, his journey to the Capital came to an end.

Wangchuan could tell that Luo Tiancong was feeling rather anxious.

Perhaps he hoped that Old Seven and Yin Xingtian would take up their new posts as soon as possible and deal with the crisis in Heitu Commandery and Shenyu Commandery.

Or perhaps he wanted to ensure that Sanhe Commandery, whose situation was currently stable, would not be taken advantage of in their absence, shaking the foundations there.

Sitting inside the cabin of the southbound Caobang vessel, Wangchuan held the Acting Hall Master token in his hand, his heart burning hot.

He had thought that a minor figure like himself, even after taking third place in the third-rank martial tournament, would never catch the eye of the great figures above.

He had thought that this trip to the Capital would be nothing more than a month-long excursion, that he would learn two cultivation methods and then slink back in obscurity.

Who would have thought...

That just as he was leaving, a blessing from heaven would fall straight into his hands.

Acting Hall Master of Sanhe Commandery!

Back then, Old Seven had first received the identity of Acting Hall Master, and then, within only a few short months, he had smoothly been made official.

Yin Xingtian and Old Seven would, once they established themselves firmly in Heitu Commandery and Shenyu Commandery, never come back.

As long as he made no mistakes while holding the seat of Acting Hall Master in Sanhe Commandery, then his future position as the true Hall Master of Sanhe Commandery was all but set in stone.

Hoo.

Wangchuan put away the token and slowly let out a foul breath, calming his emotions.

From now on, everything in Sanhe Commandery Hall would be decided by his word alone.

That was no small amount of power.

Wangchuan forced his surging emotions to settle, little by little, and then began carefully sorting through the priorities ahead of him.

The businesses of the Four Helms, Three Islands, and Seven Mines under the Sanhe Commandery Hall had to remain stable. That was the first priority.

“Then there’s keeping the pressure on the Beggar Sect. Under no circumstances can I allow their influence to rise again.”

“And as for the Five Poisons Sect, I need to stay on guard there as well and make sure they don’t revive from the ashes.”

“And finally...”

“I have to handle my relationship with the Six Gates properly.”

“With Constable Captain Yu and Constable Captain He helping out, Caobang’s intelligence network can be supplemented, and future operations will have more safeguards.”

“And then there’s Divine Physician Shen. Medicine King Valley has its own intelligence channels and methods. Those have to be used well too.”

Sitting in the cabin, Wangchuan quietly made plans for the Hall.

After one full day and night of travel, Wangchuan’s thoughts became clearer and clearer. He felt no trace of sleepiness. By the time the ship entered Sanhe Commandery, Caobang disciples had already arranged for boats to come out and receive him.

Wang Yuehui, Lin Jiahe, Chen Ergou, and Zhao Heiniu had brought more than two hundred elite Caobang men to welcome their Hall Master home.

“Hall Master!”

“Congratulations, Hall Master!”

“Congratulations on your promotion, Hall Master!”

The people in Sanhe Commandery had already received the news.

However, it had not yet fully spread. For now, it was limited to the upper ranks of Sanjiang Studio and a small handful of people within the Sanhe Commandery Hall.

Wangchuan stood on the prow.

The river wind blew against his face.

His robes snapped in the wind.

“Back to the Hall!”

With that single order, five great ships surrounded him like stars encircling the moon and sailed grandly toward the prefectural seat of Sanhe Commandery, while every vessel they passed yielded the waterway.

Chen Ergou, Zhao Heiniu, Wang Yuehui, and the others came to Wangchuan’s side.

As they did, they recounted what had happened in the Hall.

Yesterday, after receiving the carrier pigeon message, Old Seven had immediately begun making arrangements and deployments, instructing them to wait at the Hall for the Acting Hall Master’s return and formal assumption of office.

Old Seven had left Sanhe Commandery by ship that very night. When he departed, he took only Cui Mingjue and a dozen elite fighters with him, including five of the third-rank martial artists who had been recruited during the tournament.

When Wangchuan heard this, he did feel some regret over the loss of five third-rank fighters, but when he considered that Old Seven’s side would be facing a hard battle, he let it go.

The situation in Sanhe Commandery was far safer and more stable by comparison. Back then, the Hall had been able to remain stable with nothing more than a group of second-rank martial artists. Now, under his command, he at least had several third-rank fighters.

“Oh, right, Hall Master.”

“When Old Seven left, he left this key for you. He said he prepared some good things for you in his courtyard.”

Zhao Heiniu handed over a key.

Wangchuan took it and sighed with complicated emotion.

Old Seven’s residence was spacious and grand, with a pavilion in the courtyard.

He still remembered how, the first time he had entered to meet Yin Xingtian, he had been tense and frightened beneath the immense pressure.

Who could have imagined that now, he himself would become the master of that courtyard?

Before long, they arrived at the Main Helm dock.

The people there had sharp eyes. Though they did not know that Old Seven had already left office, the moment they saw Deputy Hall Master Wangchuan appear, a group of Caobang disciples immediately came to clear the area, shouting the nearby boats and laborers aside.

“Hall Master!”

“We greet Hall Master!”

“We welcome Hall Master back!”

A group of Caobang disciples respectfully bowed below.

The moment Wangchuan stepped onto solid ground, he knew it was now his turn to rule Sanhe Commandery Hall.

“Notify every person in charge of the Four Helms, Three Islands, and Seven Mines to come to the Hall for a meeting.”

“Yes!”

Chen Ergou accepted the order.

The main force moved in great procession all the way back into the prefectural hall.

Wangchuan first made a trip to Old Seven’s room.

There, he found the locked cabinet Old Seven had left for him.

The entire cabinet was packed full with six layers of Heart-Piercing Crossbows.

Each layer held five.

Thirty in total!

At Capital prices, a single Heart-Piercing Crossbow cost one hundred taels of gold, which meant this batch alone was worth three thousand taels of gold.

But Wangchuan valued the meaning behind them even more.

This batch of Heart-Piercing Crossbows could directly threaten fifth-rank martial artists.

In addition, he found a letter.

It was written in Old Seven’s hand.

In it, Old Seven had explained the various mechanisms and traps arranged throughout the room.

There were more than a dozen Heavy Repeating Crossbows, covering nearly the entire bedroom.

The letter even left behind detailed instructions for how to operate them.

Old Seven clearly knew that, once he left for Heitu Commandery, he might never come back.

So he had entrusted everything here to Wangchuan without holding anything back.

Wangchuan was deeply moved.

“Hall Master.”

“The various Helms and the people in charge have all arrived.”

He did not know how much time had passed before Chen Ergou’s voice came from the doorway.

Wangchuan gathered himself, locked the cabinet again, and stepped out of the bedroom.

In the discussion hall, all fourteen people in charge were already standing solemnly in wait.

The God of Wealth, Lin Cunxin, was seated, but the moment he saw Wangchuan, he immediately rose and cupped his fists.

“Hall Master!”

“Hall Master!”

Everyone called out in unison.

Wangchuan walked toward the seat of highest authority.

Stepping across the giant bear pelt, he sat down in the place of honor reserved for the Hall Master of Sanhe Commandery.

The giant bear pelt spread all the way from the Hall Master’s seat downward, imposing and magnificent.

The moment he sat down, the system prompt sounded:

“Ding!”

“You have taken office as Acting Hall Master of Sanhe Commandery and are now responsible for all matters of Sanhe Commandery Hall.”

“Sanhe Commandery Reputation has advanced from ‘Somewhat Notable’ to ‘Household Name.’”

That made perfect sense.

The Hall Master of the Caobang’s Sanhe Commandery Hall was indeed a household name.

The system sounded again:

“Ding!”

“Jianghu Reputation increased by 50 points.”

“Your position in the Jianghu Reputation Rankings has shifted. Current rank: [ranking].”

Simply by returning to assume the role of Acting Hall Master, both his Jianghu Reputation and Sanhe Commandery Reputation had risen at the same time, pushing him forward by tens of thousands of places in the Jianghu Reputation Rankings.