Chapter 13: Lord Yan's Plan
The Xuanming Sect's headquarters in Caozhou was a temporarily borrowed three-story house, which served as the command post for the current campaign to suppress the former Tang rebels.

The governor's office only sent an assistant officer as assistance, and from him, Xiao Yan learned that there were two battalions of guards outside the city that could be mobilized at any time.

The nearly one hundred men he brought with him could only wait outside the gate because the place where they were accommodated was also outside the city.

There's not enough room for so many people to stay here.

Xiao Yan folded his arms across his chest and was led inside by the assistant officer.

Next to him, the leader who had been silent for a long time wanted to catch up, but was glanced at by Xiao Yan.

The leader stood there, somewhat confused.

Ji Ruxue coughed and followed in, carrying Xuan Jingtian, whose face was covered.

At the same time, the two ghost soldiers who had been following behind the two also caught up.

The assistant officer glanced at the leader and led them in.

The latter was thrown outside, and his face hidden behind the mask turned red with anger. His eyes were red as he stared at Xiao Yan's back until he could no longer see him.

……

"According to the captain, there are not many rooms in this house." The assistant officer led the way in front, glanced at Xuan Jingtian who was escorted by Ji Ruxue, and laughed softly: "But the commander heard that the captain captured the Saint Ji of Huanyinfang, so he ordered this official to prepare a few new upper rooms next door..."

"This leader has no complaints about this. He just wants to know how the current situation against the rebels is going."

"Everything is under control, but I don't know many of the inside stories. You should listen to the arrangements of Yuansheng Yanjun later. And the commander noticed that there seemed to be spies from Qi and Jin in the city, so you may need to cooperate more."

The officer smiled and said, "This kind of thing can only be done well by a professional like the captain."

Xiao Yan didn't comment, but didn't respond.

But the assistant officer immediately understood and took out a gift list from his sleeve.

"After the task is completed, the commander-in-chief will give you a generous reward."

Seeing this, Ji Ruxue, who was standing by, stepped forward and took Xiao Yan into her arms.

The latter then smiled and said to the assistant officer: "Since Lord Zhu has invited me, I will do my best to eliminate the thieves."

The two of them smiled at each other, and everything was said without words.

As the local governor, Zhu Hanbin naturally did not want the Xuanming Sect branch in Caozhou to become too powerful. Otherwise, it would weaken his influence in the court. Now that he had Xiao Yan, a foreign aid who seemed capable enough, he would naturally try to win him over.

By then, Xiao Yan, as the head of the Huizhou branch, would not be able to interfere with Zhu Hanbin's promotion or return to Huizhou, and the two sides could also establish a good relationship because of this.

The two hit it off immediately and everyone was happy.

After the conversation, they went to the main hall.

Inside the hall, there were several figures sitting in rows, making a lot of noise.

But it is worth mentioning that they all showed their true colors at this time.

The assistant officer immediately withdrew, causing Ji Ruxue to feel a little nervous.

The ghost soldier following behind whispered to Xiao Yan, "The first one on the left is the leader of Yanzhou, the first one on the right is the leader of Caozhou. The one in the hall is the Yuansheng Yanjun Jiang Yuanxin..."

The latter nodded slightly, then asked them to wait outside and went in alone.

In fact, everyone in the hall had already seen them, but no one came out to greet them; they were just making a lot of noise.

It seems that it is just a matter of who will be the main force and how the credit will be distributed.

Xiao Yan didn't need them to call him. He just found a seat and sat down with his legs crossed.

Because of this, the noise in the hall gradually subsided.

Across from him, the leader of Yanzhou looked at him coldly and said with a strange smile, "I heard that the leader of Huizhou has made great contributions. Do you look down on us now? It's okay to look down on us, but even if Yuansheng Yanjun is here, you won't pay homage to him?"

Sitting in the main seat, Jiang Yuanxin squinted his eyes and gently blew the hot tea in his hand without making a sound.

As the famous Yuansheng Yanjun, this man had a thriving beard that almost covered his entire face. And because he practiced a Yang-attributed technique, in this extremely cold season, he only wore a leather arm cover, exposing most of his right chest and abdomen.

At the same time, he also had a copper belt with an iron ox ring around his waist, which made him look very arrogant and strong. Just sitting there gave people a sense of oppression.

I have to say, this guy does have some aura.

But Xiao Yan didn't even put down his legs, he just smiled coldly and said: "As a fellow helmsman, why should I pay homage to him? You are willing to be a dog, I am not interested."

“How dare you!” The leader of Yanzhou was stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage. He patted Zhuo Qishang and said, “Are you looking for death?!”

The leader of Caozhou, who was hiding aside waiting to watch the show, was also surprised. As a leader, he had never known that the man from Huizhou would be so bold.

As for the leaders brought by the two men, they were not even qualified to interrupt.

Xiao Yan glanced at them sideways and slowly placed his hand on the hilt of the knife.

The leader of Yanzhou was extremely angry. This person didn't even bother to reply to him!

"enough!"

Seeing that the atmosphere in the hall was about to become tense, Jiang Yuanxin slammed the teacup heavily on the table.

He suppressed his anger, squinted his triangular eyes and looked at Xiao Yan, saying: "Since the leader of Huizhou has made great contributions, it is normal for him to be a little arrogant. What he said is right. We are all leaders, so how can there be a distinction between superiors and subordinates?"

The Yanzhou helmsman's face turned red, and he sat back cursing.

But Jiang Yuanxin suddenly changed the subject and said, "However, since the Hades Emperor established this position of Lord Yama, he wants me to gather the forces of all the branches in Qi and Lu. This time, I should lead the suppression of the former Tang rebels. I hope you can cooperate with me."

The helmsmen of Cao and Yan states and a number of leaders immediately agreed, "That's how it should be."

Jiang Yuanxin looked at Xiao Yan who did not respond, and with anger suppressed in his stomach, he said in a deep voice: "Does the leader of Huizhou have any objections?"

"I heard that the rebels are in the Yanzhou area, so why do you need to summon me?"

"This is exactly what I am focusing on. This group of rebels are actually the former Tang Dynasty's Bad People. From the information in the church, these Bad People should be quite powerful. I also suspect that they have already colluded with Qi and Jin countries, and want to repeat the Li Tang and hinder your majesty's great cause. Therefore, we have to gather the strength of the four rudders to overthrow them in one fell swoop!"

"Don't worry, Lord Yan. According to my subordinates... I checked the files and found that this bad guy disappeared without a trace thirty years ago. Even if there are still some remnants, they are just some chickens and dogs." The leader of Yanzhou bowed to Jiang Yuanxin and said with a smile: "Lord Yan alone is enough to deal with them. What's more, the five Lord Yans gathered in Caozhou this time. These rebels are like an egg hitting a stone..."

After saying this, he glanced at Xiao Yan and sneered secretly.

The five Lords of Hell all have the same surname of Jiang. They are brothers who followed Zhu Wen and the Underworld Emperor from a very early time and are highly valued by the sect. When the other four arrive, we will see if he dares to be so arrogant!
Did he really think that the credit for capturing Saint Ji was his alone? !
Xiao Yan wrote down all the information and asked calmly, "Since this is the case, do you have any strategy for now?"

"It's natural."

Seeing that Xiao Yan seemed to have given in, Jiang Yuanxin pulled his big beard and smiled proudly, "I have sent someone to Yanzhou with the bad guy's token, using Jiyin King Li Yu as bait to lure them to Caozhou to show up. When the time comes, Governor Zhu will also cooperate with us to catch them all in one fell swoop!"

"When will we do it?"

"Starting tomorrow, Caozhou will be lifted from the ban, but I have already placed spies everywhere. As soon as they show up, they can be captured immediately!"

Jiang Yuanxin bared his big yellow teeth and said confidently, "Let's use Li Yu as bait. There's no guarantee that the people from Huanyinfang and Tongwenguan won't take the bait. When the time comes, we'll kill everyone who comes!"

"Good plan. Whenever you need me, just call me."

Xiao Yan bowed, stood up from his seat, and was about to leave.

"Wait a minute."

Jiang Yuanxin called him, but his eyes were looking far outside the hall, focusing his attention on Xuan Jingtian outside.

He narrowed his eyes, pulled his beard and said, "Since the leader of Huizhou has captured this Saint Ji, you can leave her here for now. When I send someone to escort her to Bianliang, I will also ask for your credit and will not take away any of your credit."

At the same time, he did not forget to add: "According to convention, this matter should also be the responsibility of Lord Yan."

"Feel sorry."

Xiao Yan didn't buy it and said, "I caught someone, so Lord Yan won't have to worry about it."

Having said this, he strode out.

Inside the hall, Jiang Yuanxin glared at Xiao Yan's back. In a moment, the ceramic teacup in his hand was crushed to pieces.

The captain of Yanzhou and the captain of Caozhou looked at each other below.

Everyone knew that the person in front of him was the most lustful among the five Yama Lords. And the nine holy ladies of Huanyinfang were all extremely beautiful according to rumors. Although he could not see their faces from a distance just now, he still knew that the rumors were true.

But on this point, Xiao Yan didn't give Jiang Yuanxin any face at all.

Thinking of this, the leader of Yanzhou started to slander: "This guy is so ungrateful. With such a small achievement, he is so proud of himself! If he is really given the opportunity to be promoted, I am afraid he will have a different attitude towards Lord Yan..."

Jiang Yuanxin had a gloomy face and immediately exerted force in his hands, and the broken pieces of the teacup turned into powder in an instant.

He sneered and said, "After this is over, let me see how I will punish him!"

(End of this chapter)