Chapter 141: Aborting the Mission

As Chen Hao walked toward the door, Xuanyuan Jian said coolly, "You have merely gained the opportunity to learn the 'Emperor’s Art' special skill; it does not mean the skill is yours yet. Five hundred million is already an astronomical price; one should not be overly greedy."

Chen Hao turned his head, glanced at Xuanyuan Jian, and retorted, "There is a saying: don’t let the eunuchs worry more than the emperor. Whether I can learn this skill is my own business; do you really need to trouble yourself with it?"

Chen Hao left without looking back. Xuanyuan Jian watched him depart with a cold expression, then glanced at Liu Bang beside him. "Your friend has quite a personality."

Liu Bang, sweating profusely, replied, "Young Master Long, he probably doesn’t know your true identity, and since he doesn't want to give up on the Emperor’s Art, his attitude was a bit stiff..."

Xuanyuan Jian waved his hand dismissively. "No need to explain. I am a man who distinguishes clearly between favors and grudges. This has nothing to do with you; it is this Chen Baxian who doesn't know what's good for him."

Liu Bang quickly added, "Young Master Long, perhaps I should try to persuade him to apologize to you. Please give me some face and don't hold it against him."

Xuanyuan Jian replied calmly, "I won't waste my energy on a small-time character. Even if he were polite to me, as long as he refuses to transfer the opportunity to learn the Emperor’s Art, I will still find ways to compete with him. Further talk is useless."

In the game, obtaining an A-rank special skill is a rare, once-in-a-lifetime chance. There are only ten A-rank political strategy skills in the China region, and the only one whose acquisition method players have managed to deduce is the Emperor’s Art. Acquisition methods vary; for instance, Chen Hao’s "Galloping Horse" was a level-up reward. For players who aspire to become leaders, missing this opportunity would make the prospects of obtaining an A-rank political skill significantly bleaker.

Therefore, Xuanyuan Jian would not give up as long as even a sliver of hope remained. Since Chen Baxian had seized the initiative, he would have to find a way to sabotage it.

Liu Bang soon understood the logic. As he said his goodbyes to leave, Xuanyuan Jian said coldly, "I keep my word. You set up the meeting with Chen Baxian, so I owe you a favor. I will help you secure that land in the East City. If you feel loyal and choose to leak my plans against Chen Baxian to him, I won't blame you, but that land deal is off."

Liu Bang shook his head. "Thank you for your kindness, Young Master Long! I intend to focus entirely on developing in the game; I have no plans to develop that plot of land in the East City."

Xuanyuan Jian looked surprised. "Even if you don't inform him, someone as clever as him will surely guess that I will try to sabotage his mission. Is it really worth giving up a benefit already in your hands?"

Liu Bang smiled slightly. "If you hadn't told me about this, I might have played dumb. But since I know, it wouldn't be fair to my friend to keep silent."

"Haha! They say the young master of the Liu family is loyal; I believe it now. Among the Four Young Masters of Kyoto, you are the only one who counts. I stand by what I said: tell your friend, I don't blame you, but I will not give up on the Emperor’s Art."

Xuanyuan Jian was not a fool. He had adopted an arrogant stance before Chen Hao because he suspected someone willing to sell headquarters construction blueprints might be blinded by greed. Facing such a person, one must exert pressure to avoid being extorted. Only after testing him did Xuanyuan Jian realize the man truly had no intention of selling the skill.

Logging out of the game and entering the virtual meeting room, Xuanyuan Jian summoned over a dozen elites and ordered them to monitor Chen Baxian’s movements at all times. On the other side, Liu Bang found Chen Hao and told him about Xuanyuan Jian’s intention to sabotage his mission. Chen Hao laughed, "This is human nature. I refused to transfer the skill, so it's normal for him to try and block my progress to find his own opportunity. Brother Liu Bang, won't you face retaliation for leaking this to me?"

Liu Bang shook his head. "Xuanyuan Jian has a high status, but he has always been fair. He won't do anything to me. You don't need to worry about me. Instead, worry about yourself; if he intends to stop you in-game, the mission difficulty will likely increase significantly."

Chen Hao pondered for a moment. "It's fine! Even if he sabotages the mission, the skill won't fall into his hands. At worst, I’ll just spend a bit more time on it."

If Xuanyuan Jian arranged for people to interfere, the system would generate a two-way mission. However, since the mission rewards would remain unchanged, the system would automatically lower the difficulty in other areas to compensate for the man-made challenge. Thus, Xuanyuan Jian’s meddling would have little impact. After Liu Bang left, Chen Hao took a carriage to Yongshun County, removed one hundred silver dollars from his satchel, wrapped them up, and headed toward the county government office.

Chen Hao found a yamen runner, slipped him two silver dollars, and said quietly, "Could you please inform the County Magistrate that an outlander named Chen Baxian requests an audience?"

The runner accepted the money calmly and said coldly, "Wait here."

The runner went to the back hall to report to Magistrate Shi Hong. Shi Hong asked listlessly, "Have you heard of this Chen Baxian? Is he a local squire?"

The runner knew what the Magistrate meant; if a squire came to request a favor, a generous amount of silver was inevitable. If it were just a common farmer, the Magistrate wouldn't be interested—this official was picky about his bribes.

The two silver dollars Chen Hao had given him played their part. The runner shook his head. "Not a local squire, but an outlander. I observed this outlander to be quite extraordinary; he likely has considerable wealth."

Shi Hong stroked his beard. "I have been an official here for several months but have never met an outlander. Since one is visiting today, I shall meet him to demonstrate my benevolence toward the people!"

Chen Hao followed the runner to the back hall and bowed to Shi Hong. "The commoner Chen Baxian pays his respects to the County Magistrate."

Shi Hong glanced at Chen Hao and said indifferently, "Enough. Why have you come to see me?"

Chen Hao presented the package of silver dollars. "I have heard that you love the people like your own children and wish to renovate the county school. I wish to contribute my humble effort and have brought 100 silver dollars as a donation."

Shi Hong took the money, looking impressed. "Baxian, you are truly noble. I have been worrying about the repairs for the school; your arrival has solved my urgent problem. Tell me what you need; I will certainly take care of a progressive squire such as yourself."

Chen Hao said respectfully, "The bandit Zheng Laosan of Poison Dragon Mountain is wreaking havoc in the countryside. My uncle’s entire family was brutally murdered by him. I hope you can dispatch the patrol battalion to eradicate these bandits and restore peace to the land."

Shi Hong was taken aback. This request was unexpected. He had assumed the money was for a lawsuit, not a campaign against the bandits of Poison Dragon Mountain.

The bandits were a thorn in Shi Hong’s side. His predecessor had lost his position after two failed bandit-suppression campaigns that resulted in heavy losses. Therefore, Shi Hong sought only to avoid mistakes rather than achieve glory; he had reported that the bandits had accepted amnesty and dispersed, and he dared not send the patrol battalion to engage them.

Shi Hong weighed the heavy silver in his hand and sighed. "Baxian, it is not that I lack the will, but those bandits are extremely vicious. The county patrol battalion lacks training; it is truly difficult to eradicate them. We must take it slow."

Chen Hao smiled confidently. "Your Honor is right. In the past, these bandits were indeed formidable, but now it would be easy to wipe them out and gain great merit."

Hearing that it would be easy to gain merit, Shi Hong’s eyes lit up. "Pray, tell me more."

Chen Hao explained the relationships between the three bandit leaders of Poison Dragon Mountain and laughed, "The third-in-command, Li Dahu, frequently visits the brothels in the county. If he were captured, coerced, and tempted—especially since he is dissatisfied with Zheng Laosan—he would surely be willing to act as an inside man for the government. If you then lead troops to surround Poison Dragon Mountain, victory would be certain."

Shi Hong pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "This is a major matter. I must consider it carefully. I will give you an answer tomorrow."

"The bandits of Poison Dragon Mountain are harming the neighbors everywhere. Eventually, the truth will come out. I hope you decide soon. I take my leave!"

Chen Hao left the county office. The players watching from the shadows soon reported to Xuanyuan Jian, who arrived at the county office shortly after. Through subtle questioning, he learned of Chen Hao’s purpose and deduced that the key to the Emperor’s Art was the eradication of the Poison Dragon Mountain bandits.

Xuanyuan Jian produced three hundred silver dollars. "Since taking office, you have adopted a policy of benevolence, and the people of Yongshun County live in peace. If we provoke the bandits and they retaliate, I fear it will end like it did for Magistrate Wang—not only failing to eradicate them but suffering from their depredations. I am willing to donate 300 silver dollars to help you train the patrol battalion. Once the training is complete, we can surround and eliminate them. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

Shi Hong, already hesitant about attacking Zheng Laosan, saw the 300 silver dollars and his eyes narrowed into slits. "Wise words. I was nearly misled. Xuanyuan, rest assured, I will not start a war until the patrol battalion is fully trained."

Xuanyuan Jian and Shi Hong had a pleasant conversation and even shared dinner at the office. Upon leaving, Xuanyuan Jian ordered his ten elite players to infiltrate Poison Dragon Mountain as bandits. If Chen Baxian attacked, these elites would help the bandits defend; if Chen Baxian failed his mission, these players—having gained Zheng Laosan’s trust—could act as inside informants. It was a perfect plan that served two purposes.

Chen Hao did not know Xuanyuan Jian had visited the office. The next day, when he sought an audience, Magistrate Shi Hong said coldly, "Baxian, clearing out bandits is my duty, but the patrol battalion is untrained and cannot handle such a task. Now that you outlanders have shown such righteousness—with your donation of 100 dollars for the school and Xuanyuan Jian’s donation of 300 dollars to prepare the battalion—I am certain that the day the training is complete will be the day Zheng Laosan is destroyed. Please be patient and wait."

Chen Hao frowned. Xuanyuan Jian’s swift intervention put him under pressure. He could offer more money to bribe Shi Hong, but he chose not to. Even if he could win Shi Hong over, Xuanyuan Jian would simply outbid him. Competing with Xuanyuan Jian in wealth was foolish.

However, if he could not persuade Shi Hong to deploy the battalion, he could not defeat the bandits, and the Emperor’s Art mission would remain incomplete. With no better options for now, Chen Hao took his leave, prepared to plot a new course.