Cultivation: I Can Reincarnate Into Various Worlds
Chapter 38. Sky Prison Leaking Water (Asking for More Reads)

Chapter 38: 38. Sky Prison Leaking Water (Asking for More Reads)

If it were the early years of the Dynasty, Xu Xing’s strategy might have gone wrong. With a wise Emperor in place, the Civil & Military Officers below would not easily defy his will, and the state’s violent machinery would operate at high speed under their command until they found the two fugitive officials and a group of rebels.

But by this time, Fengxi Country had already experienced fourteen Emperors and was in the 21st year of Chongming.

Political strife was rampant in the Court, and there was widespread corruption from top to bottom.

Just the large number of private slaves owned by the nobles in Shenjing could not withstand the scrutiny of the Imperial Court.

The Night Patrol Department’s efforts to conduct a city-wide search would definitely face resistance from the Court. At the very least, the authority to search the city rested with the 5 cities’ commander. This commander was subordinate to the Ministry of War and not under the control of the Night Patrol Department’s Command Envoy.

To search the city, they must first obtain the support of the 5 cities’ commander. These were two sets of teams, each restraining and restricting the other.

Therefore, the easiest point for the Night Patrol Department to focus their hunt was the city gates of Shenjing, for both entry and exit.

Leaving Shenjing at this time would truly be a life-and-death situation.

「 」

At night, during the fourth watch.

In the southwest direction of Shenjing, where the Sky Prison was located.

Suddenly, a burst of fire erupted, its glow reflecting off the sky, turning half of Shenjing’s heavens red, like fiery sunset clouds.

The Common People in Shenjing were alarmed and came out to look into the distance.

"Mr. Xu?"

"What is going on?"

Heavenly Kun King, Gui Yishou, and others gathered in the living room of the Flat House, looking at Xu Xing, their words filled with confusion.

They had not ordered anyone to set the Sky Prison on fire.

How could the heavily guarded Sky Prison suddenly catch fire?

"The Sky Prison is missing two fugitive officials: myself and General Chang," Xu Xing stated.

"This is a major crime!"

"As the saying goes, officials protect each other."

"If any of you have ever worked in an official government office in Shenjing..." At this point, a hint of a smile touched Xu Xing’s lips. "You should have heard the saying, ’The Taicang has little auspiciousness, and the Ministry of Revenue has many rats and ants.’"

"Please explain in detail, Mr. Xu..." Seeing Xu Xing enter the Living Room, Heavenly Kun King invited him to sit down and pressed for clarification.

In terms of status, he was only an ordinary farmer before rebelling, while Xu Xing, though currently a fugitive official, possessed a natural air of authority from his former position. After Xu Xing joined Mount Siming, Heavenly Kun King felt a sense of inferiority to him... Awe of officials was deeply ingrained in them.

"Gladly."

Xu Xing accepted readily and sat down. "The term ’auspicious’ refers to the ’auspicious vats,’ which are used for fire prevention. The Taicang is a large warehouse the Imperial Court uses to store grain. Officials in charge of the Taicang often sell the grain, replacing new grain with old, good quality with inferior, and using smaller measures to dispense while receiving with larger ones...

"Over time, the Taicang incurs significant losses. To conceal this seamlessly, they might deliberately cause a fire, burning down a section of the Taicang. The warehouses burned often have suspiciously little water in their ’auspicious vats,’ making it difficult to extinguish the fire effectively...

"In ancient mansions, every courtyard had such a water vat, called an ’auspicious vat,’ for fire prevention.

"The Ministry of Revenue, which manages finances, grain, and household registration, is also prone to corruption. It’s easy for officials there to embezzle funds by simply making small alterations to the ledgers. Over time, these officials also fear audits. So, they might deliberately keep rats and ants in their offices to let them chew on the account books..."

He explained the origins of this saying in detail.

Authority and credibility are established step by step. As the designated chief strategist of Mount Siming, he had to continually leverage this ’information gap.’ This would make Heavenly Kun King and the others develop a knowledge dependence on him, thereby gradually establishing his authority in this domain. It was similar to Pavlov’s dogs, slowly forming a conditioned reflex. Training people... isn’t much different from training dogs. Not everyone has experienced an information explosion or received a formal education. The rebels on Mount Siming generally had low literacy levels.

"So that’s how it is..."

"There are so many hidden schemes in this..."

The crowd suddenly understood.

"According to Mr. Xu..." Gui Yishou spoke up, "The fire at the Sky Prison tonight must be because we swapped out Mr. Xu and General Chang. The Prison Officers, fearing exposure, deliberately set the fire to cover up their negligence."

Gui Yishou, before joining their cause, was a Jianghu trickster who had roamed widely and amassed considerable experience. With Xu Xing’s few hints, he quickly connected the dots and understood the reason for the fire at the Sky Prison.

"In that case, we should be able to leave Shenjing soon!" Heavenly Kun King was not slow-witted; he immediately grasped the key point.

The Sky Prison fire was a cover for the Prison Officers’ dereliction of duty.

In other words, on paper, "Xu Xing" and "Chang Ji" were already dead. Even if the Night Patrol Department was still secretly hunting for the real pair, the intensity of the search would be significantly less than it was during the day.

They might even... give up the search entirely!

After all, if the order to hunt down these two continued, then who were the two fugitive officials who supposedly died in the Sky Prison fire?

Malicious arson is a major crime. Maliciously setting fire to the Sky Prison to cover up other crimes? That’s a major crime within a major crime.

"Correct. We’ll wait a few more days, then leave the Capital." A smile touched Xu Xing’s lips.

He had never imagined that escaping the Sky Prison and evading arrest would be this easy. Although he had meticulously planned it, on closer reflection, the plan’s smooth execution owed much to the "assistance" from the officials of the Chongming Dynasty. The entire Imperial Court is rotten from top to bottom. Not only can they not unite their efforts, but they also bicker and obstruct one another. Among the grandees in the Court, there are undoubtedly astute individuals like Han Sui. Yet, it’s precisely because these people are too clever—seeking no merit, only to avoid fault, and daring not to take responsibility—that he was able to escape the Sky Prison so smoothly....

However... Yunniang...

Xu Xing’s gaze silently turned southward.

「 」

Shenjing, Night Patrol Department Headquarters.

"Commander-in-chief," a Baihu in a flying fish robe reported, hurrying into the main hall and kneeling on one knee. "By the time our subordinates arrived, Zhao Yunniang had already left. According to Han Taipu’s retainers, she was heading to Jiangnan and is likely already on a boat..."

"Duchuan Post? Station Post?" Commander Liu muttered, seated on the main chair, a captivating beauty in his arms. His large hand slipped into her bodice, kneading wantonly a few times, his expression tinged with displeasure. "This Han Sui... Did he deceive me, your Command Envoy?"

With the Night Patrol Department’s capabilities, investigating Zhao Yunniang’s escape route wasn’t difficult. However, the process required time. Han Sui’s false leads caused the Tiqi to waste considerable time, preventing the Night Patrol Department from apprehending Zhao Yunniang.

"Ouch!" the beauty in his arms cried out, her willow-leaf brows knitted in pain. "My lord..."

"Commander-in-chief," a voice announced from the doorway. "Han Taipu has sent you a box of pastries."

At this moment, another figure appeared at the door—it was Steward Sun, Han Sui’s housekeeper.

"Pastries?" Commander Liu chuckled darkly. "Heh... I’d like to see what game he’s playing."

He withdrew his hand from the beauty’s bodice and took the pastry box offered by one of his underlings.

The pastry box was made of carved red lacquered wood, looking quite luxurious. He opened the box to find nine compartments. Apart from the center one, which held a flaky pastry, each of the other eight compartments contained a different valuable item: a filigree gold ball, a silver peony, a jade ornament, and other such treasures.

Steward Sun, having been granted entry, bowed to Commander Liu and stated, "My Old Master says: ’When entrusted with a task, one must carry it out with utmost loyalty!’"

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