Chapter 87 Suppose I am a demon from Xuantian Sect, how would you respond, Lao Chen?

After listening to what Chen Shijie said, Zhao Xing couldn't help but admire him.

Gui Niang had no official status with him and was just his lover; it was not his turn to be in charge of the public security of Nanyang County, and the job of the Minister of Agriculture was just to encourage and promote agriculture.

He could have just left and been promoted back to the army to be his military minister.

But he was willing to take risks and set up a trap to attract the Xuantian Sect to attack him.

Serving Gui Niang and the people is a sign of affection and responsibility, while suppressing bandits and killing enemies is a sign of courage and confidence!
Lao Chen, you are a real man!
After thinking about it, Zhao Xing knew what he should say. Lao Chen said so much to him, which showed that he was in love with him.

"Actually, I came here this time because of Xuantian Sect."

"Oh?" Chen Shijie raised his eyebrows, "You mean..."

"Yes, since I got the almanac for warding off evil, there have been three major disasters and several minor disasters. They all happened after the Lesser Heat, during the period when the county and the East Lake Army jointly searched." Zhao Xing said slowly.

"Then why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"My reason is the same as yours." Zhao Xing said, "I am just a small clerk. I have already taken some precautions by distributing the Thousand Miles Transmission Token and the Almanac for Avoiding Evil. As a small Ju Yuan Rank 3 clerk, can I really send an entry-level expert to protect me?"

The almanac for warding off evil is not omnipotent. It shows very little information and can only tell you at which time and in which direction there may be problems if you do something. Please note that it is a possibility, not a certainty.

Just like ordinary people use it, today is a good day to start a business, build a house, and avoid cutting wood, traveling, and funerals. How is it good, and to what extent? How is it taboo, and who will be involved? There are too many possibilities.

"I didn't report it for a simple reason."

"First, it would be useless even if I reported it. The higher-ups will still deploy it as they wish. They can't go to such lengths just because of a small clerk like me."

"Second, the higher-ups are paying attention and want to know more information, so they want me to cooperate as bait. This is certainly beneficial to the government, but it is full of dangers for me."

Zhao Xing spoke frankly and bluntly.

He was afraid of being sacrificed.

Who can guarantee that all the people above are good? That’s not what I mean.

But what if someone is greedy for credit and acts recklessly?
Even if we take a step back, everyone has done nothing wrong in their positions, and they are all selfless positive people.

There are dangers in doing this itself.

Based on Zhao Xing's understanding of Xuantian Sect, he felt that he should not have said it at that time, so as not to cause trouble. He just needed to be vigilant and avoid it.

The Xuantian Sect is not some petty thieves or mountain bandits, it is an evil sect that has been passed down for thousands of years.

"Then why are you talking about it now?" Chen Shijie asked with interest, "Are you inspired by my courage?"

"No." Zhao Xing said mercilessly, "After I opened the mountain, the harvest was too great. I got 42 spiritual treasures by myself. If Xuantian Sect is not blind, they will definitely move my capture order forward."

Zhao Xing’s reasons were exactly the same as Chen Shijie’s. He also guessed that his weight on the Xuantian Sect’s list had become more important.

In addition, he also has important family and friends, including Zhao Ruide, Zhao Zheng, and even Mrs. Cai, Zi Yu, and Qian Dong, and he does not want to be involved.

"Giving them a good beating and destroying their hideout in Gucheng is what I want," Zhao Xing said. "The Xuantian Sect is powerful, but it's harder for a big fish like this to stay hidden than for small fish and shrimp."

"Once you wipe out a den, it's unlikely to revive within ten or twenty years."

Chen Shijie nodded slightly: "You said you have little influence in the government, if you were me, what would you do?"

Zhao Xing said slowly: "That depends on how important you are."

Chen Shijie thought for a moment and said, "You consider me as a seventh-rank official. Since you even know that Bixia Yuanjun's water book was originally on Zixiao Island, you should know the power of a seventh-rank official."

Zhao Xing said: "Don't think highly of me. I just like to read miscellaneous books, old editions of county chronicles, county reports, and ancient clan rumors. These are not difficult to buy."

Chen Shijie said, "Just chat casually. Now we are just chatting privately. There is no need to be shy about anything. Whether we are right or wrong, only you and I will know."

Zhao Xing pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay, if you insist on me talking, then I'll chat for a while, but I want to see the latest official report first, as well as the approximate strength of the various armies and departments in Nanyang County. In addition, as long as it is information related to Xuantian Sect, let me see it."

"After watching, let's have a sand table exercise. Do you have a sand table for Nanyang County?"

Chen Shijie raised his eyebrows. He just wanted to chat casually, but he didn't expect Zhao Xing to be serious about it.

Seeing Zhao Xing's expression, he also became interested: "Yes, yes, yes, I am a military agriculture officer, come with me."

He took Zhao Xing across the parade ground and came to the back hall.

Chen Shijie was indeed a killer. He actually transformed the back hall into a small marching hall.

In the center is a diagram sand table, which is a fourth-level treasure that can simulate many kinds of terrain and landforms in proportional scale.

Just place the map on the sandbox base and it can be restored.

There are even clouds floating above the sand table, and even the weather is recorded!

"It's still a fourth-level upper-grade map? Hmm? This map... is of the six Pingman counties in the upper reaches of the Canglan River? No, where is Xi'er County? Why has it become a scorched earth?!"

Chen Shijie was surprised and said, "You have good eyesight. You can recognize it at a glance... Now I really believe that you have seen a lot of things."

"As for Xi'er County City, it has disappeared in my deduction, but of course it still exists in reality."

Chen Shijie waved his hand, and a scorched area on the sand table suddenly recovered.

"You know how to use the sand table, right?"

"Not very good." Zhao Xing said against his will. He didn't dare to reveal too much. You read a lot of books, so it's one thing to know, but it's too strange that you know how to use the most important weapons in the army.

"It's written in the military strategy, you can look it up yourself." Chen Shijie pointed at the messy documents, "I almost forgot, Gui Niang is still waiting for me in the side hall... You take a look first, I'll be back soon."

After saying this, Chen Shijie turned into a gust of wind and left.

Zhao Xing looked at the marching hall by himself.

In addition to the illustrated sand table, there are also many straw men in the hall, but the straw men are made very small, miniature, almost the size of a palm.

In addition there are drums for breaking into battle, orders for a forced march, and various military flags.

These things all emit a faint glow and are of high quality.

"How many high-ranking officials has Old Chen served before? He can't be a seventh-rank official, right?" Zhao Xing walked to the table and began to look through the documents.

The content is very mixed, it contains everything.

"Detailed Explanation of the Training of the Halberd Soldiers", "The Fiery Battle Formation of the Five Elements Camp", "A Hundred Explanations of the Mechanisms of the Equipment Camp", "Strategies of the Minister of Agriculture", "Strange Beasts: Bones and Golden Toes", "Hundred Battles: Geographic Advantages", "Seventh-level Grain and Grass"...

There are books on and below Lao Chen's big table.

As a qualified military minister, Lao Chen's reading volume and magic skills are several times that of a civil minister.

"Old Chen is okay." This was Zhao Xing's inner evaluation.

He didn't look through anything else, but instead looked for information and intelligence related to the Xuantian Sect.

"In the winter of the 241st year of Cheng Kang, the demons of Xuan Tian Cult started a riot in Dao Yuan Zhou. The demon bandit Wan Hua Zhen Jun used evil magic to corrupt and control a garrison of 47 officers and soldiers in Qing Long Prefecture, intending to cause massacres in the prefecture city and spread the disaster to 14 counties. Fifteen days later, he was killed by Wu Hou Zhou Jue..."

"In the spring of the 249th year of Cheng Kang, the demons of Xuan Tian Sect robbed two dragon-headed ships transporting cave materials at Wanchuan Mountain in Dayuan Prefecture, and tried to distribute them to the people of the seven counties of Dayuan Prefecture to spread the belief in evil gods... Three days later, the demon bandit 'Master Fazhen' and the two evil gods were killed by the leader of the Night God Guard 'Andinghe' and Dayuan Zhenjun."

"In the summer of the 257th year of Cheng Kang, the demons of Xuan Tian Sect attacked Minghu Taoist Temple, causing 420 casualties..."

"The 261st year of Chengkang..."

……

Chengkang was an era name before Jingxin.

It is now the fifteenth year of Jingxin, and the distance is not far.

Chen Shijie was searching for information about the activities of Xuantian Sect in the past hundred years.

"They were put out every time, and the bandits were killed quickly, but they would jump out from time to time to cause trouble." Zhao Xing looked at the information.

The trouble with the Xuantian Sect lies here. Those they send out to cause trouble are all powerful people who are about to reach the end of their lives.

I was about to die anyway, so nothing mattered and I acted like crazy.

Even if I was killed, it wouldn't hurt.

In most cases, the Xuantian Sect did not seek to seize land or treasures. As long as it could disgust the Great Zhou and spread the word of its existence, it would have achieved its goal. The purpose was to leave seeds of fear in the hearts of the people and let them know that the Xuantian Sect existed.

Faith is not necessary, fear is also the nourishment of evil gods.

"Starting from the Jing New Year, they changed their strategy and started kidnapping people everywhere. This is a new round of planning." Zhao Xing compared the intelligence with his memories of his previous life.

At the same time, he was also thinking about how to strike the right balance while reminding Chen Shijie.

Don't let yourself appear to be unusual.

Chen Shijie was gone for more than an hour before returning.

When he returned to the back hall, he seemed to be in a low mood. It was obvious that Gui Niang was the person he really cared about.

Zhao Xing had no intention of finding out about Chen Shijie's private affairs, because he felt that love affairs were really troublesome. Even a tough man like Lao Chen was influenced by a woman. It would be better for him to just focus on the body and not the heart in the future.

"How do you see it?" Chen Shijie asked.

"Not bad." Zhao Xing put down the document in his hand.

"Then let's get started."

Zhao Xing came to the illustrated sand table and replaced the map of Nanyang County.

"Om~"

The sand table trembled slightly, and the sand table, which was about ten meters long and four meters wide, began to change.

New mountains, rivers and hills appeared on it, and soon, even the weather in different places was formed.

Zhao Xing found the location of Gu County on the sand table and then injected his vital energy into it.

Gu County suddenly enlarged and occupied the entire sand table.

"Suppose I am a member of Xuantian Sect, hiding anywhere in Gu County except Gucheng, and now I want to capture you, the ninth-rank minister of agriculture in Gucheng. The first thing I need to consider is the timing."

Zhao Xing's opening remarks made Chen Shijie slightly stunned, because he asked Zhao Xing to consider the matter from his perspective, but he didn't expect that the other party would directly think from the perspective of Xuantian Sect.

"What kind of timing?" Chen Shijie asked.

"Sunny month, sunny day and sunny hour are best," said Zhao Xing.

Chen Shijie frowned: "To avoid the temple's surveillance?"

"Yes." Zhao Xing pointed at the direction of the temple in Gucheng. "The first month, the third month, the fifth month, the seventh month, the ninth month, and the eleventh month are the yang months. I looked at the intelligence and found that whenever the Xuantian Sect dispatches its ghost clones, it must be in these months."

"And it's a Yang moon and a Yang day."

"During these special time periods, the monitoring ability of the temple's Yin God will be weakened."

“Although the power of the ghosts hidden in the Xuantian Sect will also weaken, it is also attenuated. It is beneficial to act in this time period.”

Chen Shijie nodded, this is indeed the truth.

When everyone has an advantage, it is equivalent to nothing for the Xuantian Sect, because their ghosts cannot defeat those in the Great Zhou Temple anyway.

But if everyone is at a disadvantage, it will be an advantage for the Xuantian Sect, because the monitoring power of the Yin God in the temple will be weakened.

You can get some free time without anyone noticing.

Of course, they would eventually be discovered, and they would not be able to defeat the enemy, but the time between 'action-discovery' would be greatly extended.

And this period of time is the time when Xuantian Sect takes action.

Zhao Xing said, "If I were planning to capture you, I would definitely wait until November."

"Why, isn't September still a few days away?"

"It's too late." Zhao Xing shook his head and said, "I want to arrest you, not kill you."

"The remaining few days are not enough for me to get you out of the Great Zhou territory."

"Nanyang County is 18,000 miles away from the border of the Great Zhou. The Xuantian Sect is not a citizen of the Great Zhou. If we want to take people out, we must keep a low profile and cannot use magic power, so it will take some time."

"Indeed." Chen Shijie nodded. "If I want to set up a plan, it should be in November, preferably at the beginning of the month. Go on."

"After confirming the time, we still have to look at the specific situation." Zhao Xing pointed at the map and said, "If you stay in the county town, even with the strong protection of the temple, I will have no chance. The Xuantian Sect cannot take you away from the city."

It is impossible to attack a county temple by force, at least not in the Zhou Dynasty at that time.

"Then how can I give you a chance to catch me?" Chen Shijie asked.

"You will definitely have the opportunity to leave the city at least twice in November," Zhao Xing said, "One is the beginning of winter, and the other is the light snow."

"As the chief of the Ministry of Agriculture, you must be present for the Beginning of Winter assessment. Although there is no assessment for the Minor Snow solar term, you will also go to the towns and villages to check whether the solar terms in various parts of Gu County are normal."

"That's right." Chen Shijie nodded. "During the Minor Snow solar term, there is a high possibility of a snowstorm. I must ensure that everything goes well. It makes sense to dispatch at these two times."

"After considering the timing, I have to consider the manpower issue." Zhao Xing said, "Gucheng is a top-class county, and its various county government departments, including the Sikou Guard, Wubanfang, and Xunjiansi, as well as the Donghu Army stationed by the East Lake, must all be taken into consideration."

"You are a ninth-rank official. If I want to capture you, I need to prepare at least seven eighth-rank officials."

Chen Shijie shook his head and said, "You must have made a mistake. I asked you to treat me as a seventh-rank cultivator. Xuantian Sect doesn't know my strength."

Zhao Xing said calmly: "Even if I didn't know, I still had to prepare so much. And it's not difficult to find out that you are the military minister of agriculture."

"It would be great if I could capture you quietly."

"If something unexpected happens, a few of us here will stay to cover our retreat and distract attention."

"After I capture you, I will quickly perform the Disguise Technique, Seal the Soul and Lock the Essence, and turn you and me into ordinary people."

"Then we will rely on the support of ordinary believers and the use of carriages, horses, and boats to get out of the territory of the Great Zhou."

Zhao Xing reduced the map of Gucheng and enlarged it to the entire Nanyang County.

He tapped his finger on the map and said, "Nanyang County has many waterways. As long as you can get on a boat on the Canglan River and go downstream, you can reach a border town thousands of miles away in less than a day. Then, if you climb over the mountains and use magic, you can fly as high as the sky."

Chen Shijie smiled and asked, "That's ideal. First, tell me where in Gucheng you think the best place to set up an ambush would be."

Zhao Xing zoomed in on the map of Gucheng and then tapped on a few places: "Gucheng is a superior county and a major grain-producing county in Nanyang County. The concentrated grain production areas of Gucheng are in Shanggu Town, Laoliangcang Town, Bashuiwan, Sanpo Chong, and Pingtang Town."

"If you want to see it, you must go to these places, right?"

Chen Shijie took a look and nodded in agreement: "Yes, ensuring the people's harvest is the top priority of the Ministry of Agriculture. These eight places are important grain-producing areas. I may go there, no, I will definitely go there!"

Zhao Xing said: "At this point, it's just a matter of choosing one from eight, because any place can be used to launch the action, and the location is pretty much the same."

Chen Shijie smiled and nodded: "Yes, your analysis makes sense."

Seeing him like this, Zhao Xing knew that Chen Shijie had thought of all these things, and even more comprehensively.

But for the sake of Lao Chen's safety, he still said a few more words: "The people used by Xuantian Sect for action have always been regardless of life and death, and do not talk about cost-effectiveness, because the dead men they send out for action are all about to reach the end of their lifespan."

"So I said preparing seven eighth-grade ones is still considered too few, there may even be more."

Chen Shijie tilted his head and asked, "You didn't mention the officials and clerks from other departments at all, you only counted the forces to capture me. If we really take action, there will definitely be fewer people assigned to deal with me, and Xuantian Sect can't possibly have so many people."

When Zhao Xing saw Chen Shijie's expression, he knew that he had made the mistake of empiricism.

Because the Xuantian Sect had previously carried out looting, they not only captured the Minister of Agriculture, but also people from other professions, including petty officials and officials.

But Zhao Xing worked back from the results and knew that the main target of Xuantian Sect was the Si Nong profession, because they captured Si Nong and brought him back for brainwashing and training, and then created natural disasters in the territory of Da Zhou.

"If I were the leader of Xuantian Sect, I would think that arresting you would be enough." Zhao Xing said in a seemingly argumentative tone, "Lord Chen is from the military agriculture department. You are so prestigious that even officials from the sixth rank come to support you. If I arrest you, wouldn't it be better than arresting ten or a hundred officials from other professions?"

"Wouldn't it cause a greater sensation?"

"Or maybe, Sinong is their main target, and the others are just incidental and dispensable?"

Chen Shijie's face became solemn. The previous analysis was all within his expectations.

But now Zhao Xing's seemingly unintentional words reminded him that if this really happened, then was he still underestimating the Xuantian Sect?

(End of this chapter)