Xuanqing Guard

Chapter 340: Chapter 340: Implementation

After his cultivation broke into the Gathering Spirit Realm Fifth Layer, Shen Hao himself didn’t feel anything special—in fact, he hadn’t even gotten used to the Fourth Layer when he suddenly jumped to the Fifth, which left him feeling a bit floaty.

Of course, the increase in strength was obvious, and he knew it best himself.

Just for breakfast, he wolfed down two pounds of meat pies, three bowls of sweet soy milk, plus a bowl of noodles with minced sauce. His appetite made Brocade and Silk and Hong Chou beside him shoot curious glances at Shen Hao’s stomach, probably wondering how he managed to stuff in so much food.

Honestly, even after eating so much, Shen Hao was only seventy percent full. He noticed that as his cultivation advanced, so did his appetite. Other cultivators experienced this too, just not as obviously as he did.

He had barely set foot in the Public Office when Wang Yiming arrived, holding a Copper Rod in his hand.

"Sir, a new order from the Governor just arrived."

"Hm?" Shen Hao noticed that besides the signature stamp, there was no special confidentiality marking on the Copper Rod, which meant the order wasn’t secret.

He took it and unrolled it; his eyes narrowed, then a smile spread across his face.

"Heh, good! Finally, it lands!"

"Increased Resource Allocation Document for the Black Banner Camp of the Xuanqing Guard of Jia Da Fengri City (Pilot)"

The sealing stamps weren’t just from the Jingxi Town Governor’s Office, but also from the Commander’s Office. Besides Jiang Cheng’s handwritten signature, the very first name was "Pang Ban."

It was obvious Wang Yiming had already read this order. The clauses written there made excitement bloom across his face, even though he’d already heard from his boss that something like this was on the way. Still, now that it was official, it was time to be proud.

Before, the Black Banner Battalion was just of General Flag strength, allowed a discretionary half-rank promotion. That alone made plenty of people green with envy. Now, with this pilot document, things were absolutely going to blow up!

"This is an announcement. Go through the process," Shen Hao said as he marked the Order with his Waist Token to show he’d read it. Per Xuanqing Guard rules, these types of announcements had to be stamped and posted publicly.

"Sir, shouldn’t we notify Households Commander Kuang beforehand?" Wang Yiming instantly realized he’d overstepped as soon as he finished speaking.

But Shen Hao didn’t mind, simply paused mid-sip of tea, turned, and grinned at Wang Yiming, "No need. This is a Black Banner Battalion affair; it won’t interfere with the rest of the Xuanqing Guard’s operations at all."

"Understood, I’ll get right on it."

Not long after, Wang Yiming returned the original after stamping copies, then personally went to post the stamped announcement on the wall by the entrance of the Thousand Households Station.

The commotion outside was clear proof that this pilot document had set off a firestorm within the Xuanqing Guard. However, Shen Hao ignored all that, taking the original order to scrutinize it line by line.

It was basically the same as what he’d listed in the pilot proposal earlier, just with a few coordinated adjustments; overall, no big changes. Still, one clause made Shen Hao’s brow gradually furrow.

"In special circumstances, the Black Banner Battalion may handle special cases with special measures, and can be granted temporary cross-jurisdiction investigative authority by the Commander’s Office."

That clause—Shen Hao was certain—wasn’t put in by him.

Was it Jiang Cheng who added it? Shen Hao immediately dismissed this idea, because Jiang Cheng hadn’t hinted to him beforehand at all—it was unlikely.

That left only the Commander’s Office, a level above the Town Governor’s Office, as the culprit.

Glancing at the "Pang Ban" at the end of the document, he was sure he’d found the answer.

If Pang Ban was the one who added it, it all made sense. At first glance it seemed nothing, but with a bit more thought, Shen Hao realized there was a lot hidden in that one line—loads of room to maneuver. In fact, it looked like that was the real reason this pilot got approved so quickly.

Is this the old "make a show on the main road while sneaking by the back alley" trick?

Shen Hao had a premonition; besides this document, there soon would be more orders coming his way.

Just as the thought came to him, the gatekeeper knocked, saying a note from the Governor’s Office had arrived, for Shen Hao’s personal signature.

In his head: "Just as expected."

He let the person in, took the order—in it just a few words, an uncompromising summons for him to appear at the Governor’s Office tomorrow morning, Jiang Cheng had business to discuss in person.

"Looks like they really do want to throw the ball back in my court, huh?" Shen Hao scratched his head, feeling vaguely like he’d set a trap for himself.

It’s like eating spicy hotpot—smells great beforehand, but once you start swallowing it’s all about your tolerance, and when you’re on the toilet the next day, your constitution will be tested further.

Now Shen Hao was just like the guy about to dig into the hotpot, not sure how much he could endure, and still unsure whether he’d get diarrhea later.

But the "chopsticks" serving up the dish—Pang Ban—had already handed him this pilot document; time to see what he would do with it.

No, wait, actually it might not be up to him at all. Otherwise, why would Jiang Cheng’s order have followed right on its heels, and with words like "must" in it? He probably wanted to tell him face-to-face what moves to make next.

Shen Hao thought this was pretty funny. He knew he’d started this mess himself. If he failed to shift the trouble upwards, that’s just bad luck. But Jiang Cheng must be feeling pretty conflicted, too—isn’t he being dragged into the boat now?

His thoughts were interrupted by the rising racket from outside.

It wasn’t that anyone was making a scene at his door, but apparently, quite a few people outside were arguing—swearing and shouting, with some real bite behind their words.

"What’s going on out there?"

The gatekeeper nervously replied, "Sir, it’s noisy out there, people are saying... um... things about favoritism and unfairness—stuff like that. I don’t really understand."

The gatekeeper didn’t dare say more, but Shen Hao understood perfectly. Just envy, nothing more—they didn’t dare make a ruckus up top, but instead gathered near the Black Banner Battalion encampment to yell and vent for psychological comfort.

Normally, Shen Hao would just turn a blind eye—if folks were upset but incapable of change, blowing off steam was harmless. Anyone with a bit of political sense wouldn’t take it to heart, at least wouldn’t pick a fight face-to-face.

But today was different.

"Go bring Wang Yiming here."

"Yes, sir." The gatekeeper looked as if pardoned from torture and hurried to fetch Wang Yiming, head down in relief.

When Wang Yiming entered and saluted, his face didn’t look good.

"Sir, may I ask what you need from me?"

"You heard the ruckus outside?"

"Yes." Wang Yiming’s sour face came from arguing with some of those men earlier—he found them pretty unreasonable.

"Go out there and write down the names of the ones shouting the loudest. Do it right in front of them and then hand the list to the brothers downstairs—find something for them to do. Haven’t you complained to me a few times that the guys in the Thousand Households Station are all rusting away? Then have them do an internal inspection! These folks have so much time to cause a fuss here, so at the very least, they’re possibly slacking off or derelict in duty, right? Investigate them. Who knows, maybe you’ll find something else while you’re at it?"

This, you personally oversee. There must be results—it can’t be just for show. Any blowback, send it my way."