In a southern town of Qingming, countless displaced refugees gathered on an open ground outside the settlement. In the center of the clearing stood a raised platform where three men knelt, each flanked from behind by a brawny executioner.
A cultivator atop the platform channeled his Dao power so that the tens of thousands present could hear every word with crystalline clarity. He first read out the identities of the three men—all deacons of the Zhao merchant caravan—and their crimes: conspiring with insiders to embezzle grain from the porridge stations, an offense punishable by death. Now that their guilt had been established, they were to be beheaded here and now.
The moment the supervising officer finished speaking, three heavy broadswords came swinging down, and heads rolled!
The refugees erupted in thunderous cheers, scrambling and jostling forward in a frenzy to dip the steamed buns in their hands into the fresh blood and eat them. The Dao Foundation cultivators tasked with maintaining order had to expend considerable effort just to hold them back.
Even so, Wei Yuan gained over a thousand strands of azure qi.
The supervising officer then proclaimed that more than a dozen accomplices from the caravan were still undergoing interrogation; no matter who they were, as soon as their crimes were proven, they would be executed one by one, with zero leniency!
The crowd burst into another wave of deafening cheers, and Wei Yuan gained several hundred more strands of azure qi.
With karmic luck pouring in steadily, even Wei Yuan could no longer remain calm. He flew straight above the southern town to observe the scene in person. After watching for a while, Wei Yuan estimated that today's harvest of karmic luck was already the absolute limit that these thirty-odd thousand refugees could provide.
Wei Yuan had long made a careful study of the Dao of karmic luck and had achieved modest success in it, possessing particularly deep insights into how karmic luck was generated among refugees. Then, with the assistance of the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, he had pushed this research a small step further. Naturally, Wei Yuan felt that the primary credit for these findings still belonged to himself.
According to the classification of the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, refugees were divided into three major categories.
First: honest and easily duped. People of this sort were few in number, but they contributed karmic luck with remarkable ease.
Second: honest but hard to fool. These made up the vast majority of the refugees, otherwise known as the mindless mob.
Third: neither honest nor easily duped—the so-called unruly rabble.
This division into three categories was not without reason.
The first type was the easiest source of karmic luck, yet inherently scarce; after all, in times of chaos, they tended to die rather quickly. If one happened to be kindhearted on top of that, there was virtually no way they would survive all the way to Qingming.
When the supervising officer declared that the remaining accomplices would also be beheaded, it was primarily this first category who contributed karmic luck. They readily believed all kinds of empty promises and were easily stirred to fervent excitement.
The second category, the mindless mob, was the largest in number. Though difficult to deceive, they were accustomed to huddling together and following the herd, rarely bothering to think for themselves. Even if there was a volcano ahead, if everyone else jumped in, they would jump in too. Hence, this sort of person was also the mainstay for filling the front lines on a battlefield.
Yet once their hearts were won, their loyalty would not waver easily, making them the primary source of human karmic luck in the future.
The third category needed little explanation. A long-term research project of the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World was to identify members of this third group as quickly and accurately as possible, and then send them straight to the front lines.
Wei Yuan's original plan had been to behead all the convicted culprits from the caravan over the next two days, leaving the lesser accomplices to be dealt with gradually.
Seeing the situation on the ground, however, coupled with the influx of new refugees arriving every day, Wei Yuan did not want to pass up the readily available karmic luck from the first category. Thus, he altered his plan: he would execute only two men a day, drawing the process out over seven or eight days to finish them all.
With this adjustment, he would gain roughly two thousand additional strands of azure qi. For anyone in Qingming who earned the chance to forge a Dao Foundation through military merit, Wei Yuan planned to bestow a strand of azure qi upon them, which would significantly increase their odds of success. Perhaps this was just another form of taking from the people to use for the people.
Wei Yuan intended to save that young nobleman for the very last execution, reaping a massive harvest in one go.
In fact, under interrogation, the whole story had become quite clear. The young nobleman was merely the nominal boss; in truth, he had sloughed off most practical affairs onto the supervisors and deacons beneath him.
Embezzling the relief grain had been concocted jointly by several managers, who then approached him together, extolling only the benefits while glossing over the risks. In the end, the young nobleman slapped the table and approved it, settling the matter. And if trouble arose, this young nobleman would be the one taking the fall from above.
From beginning to end, the young master had barely understood what was happening, much less the potential consequences.
All the managers had told him was that even if something went wrong, it would be just like in Zhao—a little pull and a bit of silver would smooth everything over. After all, it was only a few hundred thousand jin of cheap grain; at worst, they could just return the grain and pay a modest fine.
And the young master had actually swallowed it whole.
What they did not know was that all the interrogation records had been collated, aggregated, and analyzed within the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, laying bare the full picture of the entire affair.
Yet with the facts laid out before him, Wei Yuan found it all the harder to comprehend.
The fact that these managers could engineer such a scheme, and pull it off nearly seamlessly, showed genuine talent. Yet their motive for pushing it so aggressively was merely to skim a cut for themselves, netting just over a hundred taels of immortal silver each.
Merely for this tiny bit of profit, they had, if not ignored, then deliberately downplayed the risks and consequences, cajoling the young nobleman into giving the green light.
Wei Yuan could not understand it at all. How could they jeopardize the safety of the entire caravan for such a pittance? Did those managers truly value a hundred taels of immortal silver in their own pockets more than a business worth tens of thousands of taels to the whole caravan?
That useless playboy might think Wei Yuan couldn't touch him, but those managers had certainly studied Wei Yuan. Even if they hadn't known beforehand, they should have deduced just how ruthless Wei Yuan's methods would be once provoked. Yet in the end, they still chose to lead the young nobleman to make that call.
In an ordinary interrogation, people would naturally assume this incompetent scion was the mastermind, and the others merely his lackeys.
Only through the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World unravelling the threads layer by layer did Wei Yuan discover that these lackeys were the true instigators, cleverly concealing themselves while shifting the brunt of the blame onto the foolish noble.
Throughout the history books, many nations were just like this. When a sovereign was foolish, the ministers below would collude to block information and hoodwink their monarch, leading him into making disastrous decisions. In the end, the civil officials swallowed the profits, while the foolish ruler bore all the infamy.
From merchant caravans to whole nations, countless precedents existed. Wei Yuan faintly caught a glimpse of Qingming's future as well.
Fortunately, Wei Yuan's cultivation was advancing smoothly, and his future was long. As long as he did not die, no one in Qingming could stir up any real trouble. But Wei Yuan suddenly recalled that he was already two hundred and eighteen years old—not truly young anymore.
The several minor incidents over recent days were independent of one another and had been resolved once dealt with.
Yet they were harbingers of future trends. One could well imagine what tempestuous waves and fierce clashes would erupt once Qingming relaxed its wartime footing.
Weighed down by heavy thoughts, Wei Yuan continued his war preparations. Several days passed in this manner, until the day for executing that young nobleman drew near.
At this point, Li Zhi and Cui Yu came together to find Wei Yuan, both having arrived to plead for the young nobleman.
Upon asking for details, Wei Yuan learned that although Li Zhi and Cui Yu had come together, they were actually acting on behalf of different parties, each offering a price to ransom the young nobleman's life. The offers were ten thousand taels of immortal silver and five hundred thousand jin of grain, respectively.
Both offers were exceedingly generous. In the merit point system of the Palace of Grand Beginning, even a late-stage Heaven Foundation cultivator couldn't fetch such a price.
Wei Yuan flatly refused, not even entertaining any bargaining, and declared with resolute finality: "A government cannot stand without trust! I intend to use this man's head to let everyone know the consequences of violating Qingming's laws!"
Li Zhi said helplessly, "And where are these laws of yours?"
"They're about to be—er, they will be promulgated before long." Laws were no small matter; they could not be drafted overnight, requiring all kinds of ramifications to be carefully weighed. That was why Wei Yuan caught himself and changed his tune: they could not possibly be rolled out in the short term, yet he had no desire to follow the laws of Great Tang or the Nine Kingdoms.
Cui Yu understood the real motive now and said, "You just want to execute someone to establish your authority. Fine then, I'll go turn that party down."
Li Zhi refused to give up, pressing on: "Doing this will only have a temporary effect, but it will antagonize the aristocratic clans throughout Zhao—the losses far outweigh the gains. Besides, 'punishments do not extend to senior officials, nor to their kin'—that is customary practice. If you think the price is not enough, I can go ask for more. Moreover, this is a prime opportunity to win over a few nobles to our side, which would serve as some measure of check against the King of Zhao."
Wei Yuan shook his head. "This isn't a question of money; it's a matter of principle." At that very moment, Wei Yuan was already calculating how much karmic luck executing the young nobleman would yield.
Knowing Wei Yuan's mind was made up, Li Zhi had no choice but to leave with Cui Yu.
They had barely stepped out when a voice, both gentle and authoritative, suddenly sounded in Wei Yuan's ear: "Domain Lord Wei, would you come out for a talk?"
Wei Yuan felt a jolt in his heart. This was a Scenery Command technique!
Yet with the Yin-Yang bullet in hand, Wei Yuan naturally had no fear of an ordinary Scenery Command cultivator. Thus, he stepped out unperturbed to meet the caller, curious to see what eminent figure had arrived.
A hundred li inside the domain stood a man with untied hair and loose robes. His eyes were an unusual pale amber, and his whole demeanor was uninhibited and untamed, yet simultaneously reserved and restrained, blending two conflicting temperaments into one. As for his looks, they naturally inherited the legacy of the Zhao Li clan, handsome in the extreme.
Upon seeing Wei Yuan, he introduced himself straightforwardly: "Li Xiange, Marquis of Ping'an of Great Zhao."
"Wei Yuan of the Palace of Grand Beginning greets the Marquis of Ping'an." Wei Yuan offered a salute. Although he didn't understand why a mighty Scenery Command figure was only enfeoffed as a marquis, proper etiquette had to be observed.
Li Xiange waved a hand. "There is bad blood between us right now, so no need for such formalities. Let's get down to business: I've come to ransom that worthless brother-in-law of mine."
The moment Wei Yuan heard the title Marquis of Ping'an, he had known what this was about. He immediately said, "This... brother-in-law of yours broke the law. According to law, his entire clan should be exterminated. Wiping out nine generations of kin is hardly realistic, but beheading is unavoidable. Therefore, Marquis of Ping'an, please turn back—"
Before the final word could even leave his mouth, the Marquis of Ping'an let out a cold laugh and cut in: "Two hundred thousand refugees!"
Wei Yuan's heart gave a violent thump. Why wasn't this Marquis of Ping'an playing by the rules? This, this, this...
Fortunately, his composure was superb. Keeping his face completely impassive, he said, "Out of the question."
"Two hundred and fifty thousand."
Wei Yuan shook his head.
"Three hundred thousand!"
Wei Yuan still shook his head.
"Two hundred and eighty thousand."
Wei Yuan almost doubted his own ears. Why had the number gone down? He instantly grew anxious.
The Marquis of Ping'an said nonchalantly, "From now on, my offers will only get lower each time, until the deal falls through. Right then, twenty-six—"
"Two hundred and ninety thousand!" Wei Yuan cut him off at once.
"Deal!"
The Marquis of Ping'an immediately tossed over a storage pouch. Inside were treasures radiating brilliant beams of light—spirit treasures, every single one of them!
He said, "The spirit treasures inside will serve as collateral. Release my brother-in-law right now so I can account for myself back home. Within ten days, I will deliver all the refugees to you. Once you receive them, return the spirit treasures to me."
Wei Yuan made a quick estimate; this bag of spirit treasures was worth at least a million taels of immortal silver. He immediately said, "Please wait a moment, Marquis of Ping'an."
His figure flickered away, and a moment later he returned holding the young nobleman by the collar, handing him over to the Marquis of Ping'an.
Taking the young nobleman, the Marquis of Ping'an remarked, "Decisive and not a shred of hesitation. Very good, you have the makings of a ruthless hegemon!"
Wei Yuan quickly said, "After you return, might I ask the Marquis of Ping'an to keep this quiet for three days?"
"Why?"
Looking somewhat sheepish, Wei Yuan said, "I'd like to turn two more small profits."
The Marquis of Ping'an paused, then burst into hearty laughter. "As you wish." With a sweep of his wide sleeves, he drifted away into the distance.
Returning to the main peak, Wei Yuan had Li Zhi and Cui Yu summoned back and said, "Let's talk about the ransom again. Go ask those two parties if they can offer a bit more. Add just a little, and we have a deal."
Li Zhi and Cui Yu were utterly astonished, unable to understand how everything had changed so drastically in the time it took to eat a meal.
Wei Yuan cleared his throat lightly and said, "I've already released the man just now. The other side agreed to keep it secret for three days, so we need to act fast."
Cui Yu was profoundly shocked. "Weren't you just saying this was a matter of principle?!"
Wei Yuan coughed a few times, looking slightly abashed, and said, "It truly is a matter of principle... but the offer was just far too much."
Chapter 508