Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
After slapping the supervisor from the manufacturing bureau, the officer from the Transportation Office even pointed at his nose and started scolding him. His spittle landed on the face of the supervisor as he bawled, “Do you know what the Transportation Office does? Go ask around if you don’t know. Within the Great Han Empire, all the carriages and ships that run on the ground and sail across the water are governed by our Transportation Office. Needless to say, you will not be able to do anything even if I set your lousy workshop on fire, let alone breaking one of your lousy windows. Truth be told, the Transportation Office shall expropriate half of the four-wheeled carriages that are produced in this manufacturing bureau in the future. Whatever is in this courtyard now should not be pulled away as they have all been expropriated by us. I will reside here after this and my words will be the law here, do you understand?”
The courtyard was quite a distance away from the spring processing workshop. The officers here had no clue about what was going on in the spring processing workshop, so they continued bluffing in the name of the Transportation Office.
The supervisor of the manufacturing bureau who got slapped across the face was the first to notice Yan Lqiang leading a group of people in their direction. When he saw Yan Liqiang coming forward them, he ignored the burning pain on his cheek and hurriedly bowed to Yan Liqiang, “Greetings to the Qiyun Protectorate General!”
The officer who had slapped the supervisor only turned around slowly after hearing the greetings. When he saw Yan Liqiang approaching emotionlessly, the officer raised his eyebrows, then swept his gaze across the white ash spear in Yan Liqiang’s hands and the people following him. A small disdainful smile appeared on his face as he smirked, “What are you trying to do by bringing so many people over? Are you trying to scare someone with your spear? I am going to tell you the rules around here today, you are the one by the surname…”
Before the officer of the Transportation Office could even finish his words, Yan Liqiang thrust the spear into his mouth. The shiny bloody spearhead protruded from behind his head.
The supervisor and the weaponsmiths were all stunned. The officers who were laughing loudly on the four-wheeled carriages were also stunned and it took them a while to actually process the situation. Two other officers intended to draw the sabers on their waists, but the moment their hands touched the handle of their sabers, Yan Liqiang turned the spear in his hand and pierced their throats in just a flash. Their bodies were picked up from the carriage before being tossed onto the ground.
“Holy sh*t…” The remaining two officers’ legs turned into jelly from the shock of seeing three of their colleagues dead. One of the officers’ legs gave way while the other turned around and tried to escape. Regardless how fast that person was, he was no match against the speed of the spear in Yan Liqiang’s hand.
“Ooof…” The white ash spear stabbed the man in the middle of his back. The spearhead pierced through his chest and was instantly retracted. That man only managed to take two steps before collapsing on the ground.
“Supervisor Zhu, are you alright?” Yan Liqiang retracted his spear and asked the supervisor.
“Yes…Yes, I am alright!” Supervisor Zhu looked at Yan Liqiang and touched his reddened face. His expression was indescribable — he was shocked, emotional, and also a little scared. “My lord, t-those people were from the Transportation Office.”
“The Transportation Office? I don’t know anything about that. I only saw a group of wretched people impersonating officers. They’re not that rare these days!” Yan Liqiang smiled coldly.
“Our manufacturing bureau is not a place for those bastards to show off and do as they please. Regardless of who they are, as long as they dare come to our manufacturing bureau looking for trouble, then they are courting death!” Yan Liqiang looked at the person who was kneeling on the ground as his legs gave way earlier. He had a wet patch on the crotch of his trousers. Yan Liqiang ordered his soldiers, “Break his legs and lock him up…”
Two soldiers immediately rushed over. One of them raised the metal baton stick in his hand while the other raised the back of his blade, then smashed the man’s lower shins. He let out a blood-curdling scream, held his broken legs, and rolled on the ground. He was then dragged away like a dead dog. The arrogance that he had vanished completely.
Yan Liqiang continued to march on with his men to the Iron Transportation Hall.
Two minutes later, after clearing out a few bastards along the way, Yan Liqiang arrived in front of the Iron Transportation Hall. Two officers from the Transportation Office stood arrogantly in front of the Iron Transportation Hall with their hands on the handles of the sabers on their waists. Their attitudes were like that of a host warding off strangers.
“Who are you and what are you doing?” One of the officers stared at Yan Liqiang and shouted as he saw Yan Liqiang heading toward them with a group of people.
Yan Liqiang did not open his mouth to reply to him. Instead, he used the white ash spear to answer him.
In the blink of an eye, there were two more corpses at the entrance to the Iron Transportation Hall.
“All of you go and check if anyone escaped. I only need Shi Dafeng and Shen Teng to follow me inside!” Yan Liqiang issued his orders and passed the white ash spear to the soldier beside him before he led Shi Dafeng and Shen Teng into the Iron Transportation Hall.
The main hall was just beyond a screen wall near the entrance. There was no one there at the moment, but Yan Liqiang knew that Qian Su should be with the Vice Transport Commissioner at the reception pavilion, a convenient place to discuss private matters. Hence, he headed directly to the reception pavilion at the back.
The moment Yan Liqiang was outside of the reception pavilion at the back of the Iron Transportation Hall, he heard Qian Su’s angry voice, “Lord Zhong, don’t you think that this is too much? I am not the only one who has a say in this manufacturing bureau. However, I am unable to agree to what you just requested!”
“Hehe…” The arrogant chuckles echoed in the room before an extremely cold voice followed, “That wasn’t a negotiation; it was an order from Lord Jiang, the Transport Commissioner. An internal strife has broken out among the Shatu Seven Tribes. They wrote a letter to the imperial court a few days ago, requesting them aid in clearing out the Dark Wood Tribe to restore order in the Gulang Plains. The Ministry of War has already sent an official written letter to the Northwestern Transportation Office to request Lord Jiang to prepare for the transport of funds and food. According to the rules and regulations of the Great Han Empire, Lord Jiang has the rights to expropriate and allocate all the carriages and ships within the northwestern border to transport the required army provision and military supplies. Naturally, this manufacturing bureau which is producing four-wheeled carriages, is no exception. At this very instant, I have already taken over this manufacturing bureau. All incoming and outgoing funds or carriages are to be approved by me. It does not matter if you agree or disagree, a small manufacturing bureau like yours dares to defy the laws of the imperial court? Can you afford to shoulder the responsibility if this affects the imperial court in deploying troops to the Gulang Plains? Do you not fear capital punishments and clan exterminations?”
That was a strong death threat toward the end of the conversation.
“This manufacturing bureau is the property of the Qiyun Protectorate and he is in charge of it. According to the rules and regulations of the Great Han Empire, the Northwestern Transportation Company has no right to interfere with the matters of the Qiyun Protectorate!” Quan Su replied coldly.
“Hahaha, what is this nonsense about the Qiyun Protectorate? Didn’t it go into extinction many years ago? We are now within the border of Gan Province which belongs to the Great Han Empire and our Northwestern Transportation Office has the right to take control over it. All in all, the Qiyun Protectorate is non-existent. Wasn’t this manufacturing bureau a weaponsmiths quarter before? Also, where is your Qiyun Protectorate?
“Since His Majesty personally conferred the title of Qiyun Protectorate, the Qiyun Protectorate definitely exists. Unless Lord Zhong doubts His Majesty’s edict?
“I talked so much to you because I think highly of you. Otherwise, you are just an insignificant Quartermaster in the Weaponsmiths Quarter who doesn’t even qualify to stand in front of me. Are you waiting to be forced into this?” The voice had turned frosty with anger.
“Like I said, the only one who can have the final say is the Protectorate General. I can’t do anything about it. Lord Zhong still needs the Protectorate’s approval to take over the control of the manufacturing bureau!” Qian Su’s voice remained calm.
“There’s no problem with it. You can inform Yan Liqiang to meet up with me after I have taken over the manufacturing bureau.”
By then, Yan Liqiang had reached the entrance of the reception pavilion. He pushed open the door and entered the room.
There were two people sitting in the room, separated by a tea table between them. Qian Su’s face was full of anger, both of his hands were curled into fists and resting on his knees. The obese man who sat across Qian Su looked like a pig. He was wearing a dark red official robe with a teacup in his hands. His tilted his head as his lips curled into a disdainful smile. He cast a glance at Qian Su through his squinted eyes as he brought the teacup to his lips.
When Yan Liqiang made his entrance, Qian Su was shocked as he quickly stood up.
“Impudent! Who are you? How dare you come into this place…” That fatty’s mind went blank for a while before getting furious.
Yan Liqiang silently walked in front of that fatty, then delivered a hard slap across his face.
The fatty sprayed out a mouthful of blood mixed with a few broken teeth. The force of Yan Liqiang’s slap actually knocked a man weighing about two hundred jin out of his chair. The fatty made a 720-degree somersault in the air before smashing heavily into a wall that was three meters away. He fell with a loud crash, broke the table and other items like vases beneath it, then passed out without even making any sound.
