48: It's reasonable for a clerk like me to know a few moves of Bajiquan, right?

"Didn't you eat for days or something?"

Lu Qianyuan and Tang Jingzhong held bowls of wine, staring blankly as Mo Yingqi devoured an entire large pork hock at lightning speed. Wiping his hands, Mo Yingqi finally looked at them: "It's not that I haven't eaten, it's just... forget it, I can't explain it clearly."

He had indeed eaten, but each time he hadn't yet filled his stomach before... However, Mo Yingqi wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but despite all the commotion, he felt no other abnormalities in his body apart from normal fatigue. He even suspected, perhaps it was just his imagination, that he was becoming more energetic.

He had heard his master mention before that there were techniques of sexual union that could nourish Yin and supplement Yang, but the thought made Mo Yingqi dismiss the idea. How could that be? Even his master had only heard of such things, let alone not being an immortal; how could such things exist?

(Note: No cultivation, no cultivation, no cultivation...)

None of that was important. The main point was... he was genuinely hungry. After finishing one hock, he picked up a large bowl of shrimp noodles and continued eating.

"Good heavens, how much did the pavilion pay you?" Lu Qianyuan couldn't help but swallow. "How about I give you my bowl too? How are you a consort acting like a starving ghost!"

"It's not for outsiders to know." Mo Yingqi wiped his mouth, then actually took Lu Qianyuan's bowl and began eating from it. "Has there been any news from the yamen recently?"

"You're certainly not polite..." Lu Qianyuan suddenly regretted letting him eat. "What news could there be? Pacification Commissioner is as quiet as if he's dead. I thought he'd send people from the Southern Division to deal with us, but there's been no movement at all."

"He won't make a move against us rashly; he needs a reason, right?" Mo Yingqi wasn't too surprised by this. "Grand Chancellor Zhou will probably retaliate from the imperial court sooner or later. Once that starts, I estimate Pacification Commissioner will make a move against us. Don't think he wouldn't dare make things difficult for me; although I'm the future consort, I'm essentially just a seventh-rank minor official."

"At most, he'll give you a hard time, and he'll have to consider how not to offend The Two Highnesses." Tang Jingzhong picked up his wine cup and took a sip. "The two of us might not be so lucky. Commander Qianhu plans to promote you all, and I'll probably be promoted soon too. How could Pacification Commissioner allow Commander Qianhu to promote his own people again?"

"The Emperor will definitely keep the Pacification Bureau in his hands, but it's unclear what The Emperor intends to do now." Mo Yingqi put down his chopsticks and poured himself a cup of clear tea. "They're forcing the Xu Family to either hand over the person or hand over power, and we've been slow to react..."

In truth, The Emperor really wanted to promote Fang Bowen directly to Commander; his abilities were certainly sufficient. But the problem was, there was still a Pacification Commissioner above him. Promoting him rashly, what would the Pacification Bureau internal staff think?

As the most important supervisory judicial agency of the Daxing Dynasty, the appointment of this Commander required even more caution and prudence. Not to mention, the current Pacification Commissioner was Grand Chancellor's man; as soon as such a proposal was made, there would likely be a flurry of memorials and disputes.

Such back-and-forth would only delay things further. Especially since Fang Bowen was already Eunuch Fang's nephew, no matter how outstanding his abilities, this connection alone would be enough for the Censorate to make a big fuss.

"The Emperor could just ignore everything and resolve it directly, couldn't he?" Lu Qianyuan slammed his wine cup onto the table. "Even for Little Mo, no matter how much we subordinates do, we're just pawns. Why go to all this trouble?"

"Old Lu, you've had too much to drink." Tang Jingzhong patted him. "The imperial court isn't a vegetable market where the loudest voice gets the goods. If The Emperor could act like that, we wouldn't need to risk our lives for him... Although all three of us have selfish motives, to some extent, we are The Emperor's people."

"I understand the logic, but I just can't stand it anymore!" Lu Qianyuan poured himself another cup of wine. "Although that damn rogue was beaten and is now recuperating in bed, Marquis of Anding will definitely protect him. How much longer do I have to wait to avenge my sister?"

"Then take a knife right now, rush into the Marquis of Anding's mansion, and kill him directly." Mo Yingqi rubbed his brow. "Then wait for your mother and your uncle to be retaliated against by the Xu Family. You'll be satisfied, but do you not care about them at all?"

Lu Qianyuan had always harbored a fire in his heart. It was still the same sentiment: if he were alone, he would truly sacrifice his life. Even if he couldn't kill Xu Fengzhang, he would at least bite off a piece of him, making him suffer for a lifetime.

"You have family, and capital does too, so we must be even more careful." Mo Yingqi sighed softly. "Can we find any informants in the Southern Division?"

"How could we? That side is even more tightly sealed, we don't even pee in the same latrine as our Northern Division usually does." Tang Jingzhong waved his hand. "Now, Pacification Commissioner can only control the Southern Division the most, I'm afraid..."

The three suddenly fell silent. Mo Yingqi looked up at the ceiling and nodded to the two. Lu Qianyuan said nothing, merely gently placed his hand on the wild goose feather saber beside him.

On the rooftop, a person dressed in night clothes slowly leaned down, seemingly wanting to lift a tile to peek inside. Unexpectedly, a crossbow bolt shot from behind him. The person had no reaction at all, instinctively tilting his body away upon hearing the wind behind him.

However, to his surprise, a second, then a third crossbow bolt shot over, each aiming for a vital point.

The person's foot slipped, and he tumbled off the roof. Relying on his excellent agility, he flipped in mid-air and, though he stumbled upon landing, he was safe for the most part.

However, before he could stand firm, the door was suddenly pushed open. Lu Qianyuan, gripping his wild goose feather saber with both hands, leaped up, and the saber, whistling through the air, chopped directly down towards the person's head!

The man in black pushed off with one leg, springing backward. The blade of the wild goose feather saber almost grazed his black face mask, nearly exposing his true identity to everyone.

But just as he dodged, a figure suddenly caught up to him, then slapped him heavily on the chest. The person, having landed a blow, delivered another palm strike. The man in black suppressed the churning in his chest and reached out to block, but the person's arm was like a snake, deftly evading his block and quickly changing moves, then slapping him across the face.

"Tsk, didn't pull it off."

Tang Jingzhong frowned, then shook his hand, looking at the man in black as usual: "That face mask is quite secure. Could it be someone we know?"

"Aren't you... a Clerk?"

The man in black's pupils contracted, seemingly unable to believe that Tang Jingzhong was also a martial artist, and not a weak one at that!

"Not bad, I'm still a bit weaker than these two." Tang Jingzhong slowly assumed a stance. "As a Clerk, I've learned Bajiquan since childhood. That's very reasonable and logical, isn't it?"