Chapter 571: Outsmart

Three days after meeting with Lei Sitong and his group, Yan Liqiang returned to Huanglong County. He then stayed at the manufacturing bureau and the Lu Clan for a day each before having a secret discussion with Qian Su and Old Master Lu.

On the 21st, Yan Liqiang returned to Yan Fortress and during the morning of the 22nd, news shocked the entire Pingxi Prefecture.

The news came from the archery academy. It was said that Yan Liqiang was showing off Overdrive Arrow, his secret ability with a hundred-picul bow and an arrow. For some reason, everything seemed fine when he shot the first two arrows that struck the marker five kilometers away, but just as Yan Liqiang was about to shoot the third arrow, his face changed abruptly. There was a crack from his body that caused him to spit blood before falling to the ground. This sent the entire archery academy into chaos.

News of Yan Liqiang’s cultivation going wrong and his heavy injuries soon spread throughout the prefecture.

That night, Pingxi Prefectural Governor came over to Yan Fortress to check on Yan Liqiang’s condition. It was shortly after that news broke out from the Prefectural Governor’s Office; Wang Jianbei confirmed that Yan Liqiang rushed his cultivation too quickly by taking a shorter path. In turn, it left subtle traces of damage on his body. When Yan Liqiang was attempting to perform that technique, his vital Qi ran wild, causing half his meridians and muscles to be shocked by the bow before the vital Qi turned on him. This brought him to the brink of death.

Before the day was even bright on the morning of the 23rd, the pale-faced Yan Liqiang was wrapped tightly and left on a black carriage before all the servants of the Yan Clan. Then, the hundred students from the archery academy rode off, escorting his carriage out of the Yan Fortress with their rhinodrake steeds and strong bows on their backs.

A few days later, the students returned to the Yan Fortress and news regarding Yan Liqiang was leaked once more. He was heavily injured so he went to Mount Azure Dragon to cultivate in search for a master and sacred medicine as a cure. Nobody knew the exact location of Yan Liqiang, only that he would return once his body was healed.

Just before he left, he ordered the manufacturing bureau and the woolen mill to let Lei Sitong take over management duties for the time being. He also ordered for 100,000 taels of silver to be used in support of the Gan Provincial Army along with 100,000 arrows per year in support of the journey the imperial court’s army would be making to the Gulang Plains to expel the Black Ram people.

This happened so quickly that when the news of Yan Liqiang falling into Qi Deviation and going into Mount Azure Dragon to recover spread throughout the entire northwest, all people were in shock and pity.

No one doubted the authenticity of the events that had transpired. It was said that the few thousand students of the archery academy saw Yan Liqiang spit blood. How could it be fake? Then, the Prefectural Governor and a few famous doctors in Gan Province could testify. Many people also saw Yan Liqiang being escorted from Yan Fortress. Some even saw students escorting Yan Liqiang at Mount Azure Dragon. All the news formed a complete chain of evidence.

Meanwhile, Yan Liqiang donated some of his wealth in support of the imperial court as well as the country in their efforts to fend off the Black Ram people. The fact that he did this while he was still heavily injured made people respect him even more.

…

One noon a week later after Yan Liqiang’s incident, a squad of fifty cavalry ferociously appeared outside Yan Fortress.

Seeing them, the guards wanted to go up but the cavalry came up without hesitation. The leader raised his whip and whipped a guard to the floor. He then glared at the guard and roared arrogantly, “I’m the personal guard of the Anxi General. I was ordered to come to Yan Fortress to send an emergency military order. Who dares to stop me?”

Just as the guard hesitated, the leader took his cavalry into the fortress, knocking aside merchants on the street as they charged straight ahead in front of the Yan Residence.

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“The Anxi General has an emergency military order. Let Qiyun Protectorate General Yan Liqiang come out and accept the order!” the leader yelled at the guards of the Yan Clan condescendingly from his horse.

The cavalry didn’t get off at all. They just stared coldly at the Yan Clan’s gate.

After just waiting for a few seconds and seeing that the Yan Clan people still hadn’t come out, the people on the horses began cursing.

“F*cking hell, this Yan Liqiang has such a big attitude. He still hasn’t come out?!”

“If he still doesn’t come out, we’ll charge in and burn this manor!”

“How dare this Yan Liqiang, a mere Qiyun Protectorate General, dare to have an attitude in front of the Anxi General?”

Just as these people were cursing louder and louder, Steward Zhou ran out of the house while panting. “Military lords, I’m here, I’m here…”

“Bastard, who are you?!” Seeing the attire of Steward Zhou, the leader’s face changed. “Where is Qiyun Protectorate General Yan Liqiang? Get him out now to accept the Anxi General’s emergency order. If you don’t take things seriously, we’ll behead you!”

“Military lord, I’m the head steward of the Yan Residence. Young Master Yan isn’t at home!” Steward Zhou wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Then where is he?”

Steward Zhou could only repeat what happened to Yan Liqiang. Hearing this, the soldiers were dazed. They’d been sleeping on the roads and barely ate just so they could get here as early as possible. How was it possible that such events transpired?

“Doesn’t Yan Liqiang have a father? Where is he?” the leader asked.

“With the young master’s accident, the old master is sick with worry and had to leave Yan Fortress to accept treatment at Pingxi City!”

Not a single Yan Clan member was here. They didn’t even see Yan Liqiang, so how could they pass down this order?

The leader impetuously spun around a few circles at the Yan Residence’s gate. Looking at the wide open gate, he grit his teeth and turned. “Let’s go. We’ll go to the Yan family’s woolen mill!”

The squad changed directions and headed to the Yan Clan’s woolen mill.

At the square outside the woolen mill, they encountered a black-faced Gong Tieshan. Gong Tieshan waved his hand and four to five hundred Gan Province soldiers with shiny crossbows appeared to surround the cavalry before pointing the crossbows at them.

“Piss off!” Gong Tieshan spat on the ground and looked coldly at the cavalry. He used his carrot-sized finger and pointed at the leader with a face full of contempt. “I don’t care if you’re some personal guard or not. The woolen mill is under the protection of the Provincial Governor and the Gan Provincial Army. I’ve been ordered to protect it. The Anxi General has no right to order me, and his orders aren’t the Emperor’s orders. If you want to go in, show me Lord Lei’s order if you can, or you can let Young Master Yan take you in. Otherwise, go back to wherever the f*ck you came from. If you don’t… I may know who you guys are but not the arrows of my men.”