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Chapter 685: The Strange Assassination
Chapter 685: The Strange Assassination
September 25, 2017
For the past few months, Lu HaiKong had basically not paid any attention to matters outside the Three Provinces.
However, his lack of involvement did not mean that others weren't managing those affairs.
Xi Zhicai's intelligence organization had already extended beyond the Three Provinces long ago. Although they had limited time to establish a strong presence in such a short period, they still managed to gather some intelligence about the situation outside the Three Provinces.
So, after the incident with the Northern Seclusion Hermit, when Lu HaiKong wanted to gather information about those outside the Three Provinces, an Enchanter was directly brought before him.
This Enchanter was a rare scholar among the Lone Wanderers, and he had been active for several months. In just over a month, he had visited various counties in Bing Province and met with dozens of aristocratic families.
Interestingly, around the time of the Northern Seclusion Hermit incident, this man suddenly disappeared without a trace.
All signs indicated that during that time, he should have been in the vicinity of Beifeng.
Based on this information, this man was undoubtedly connected to the current situation outside the Three Provinces and might even be the mastermind behind the livestock market incident in Shuofang Prefecture.
"Interesting, very interesting. I've only been absent for a few months, and such a remarkable figure has appeared in Bing Province."
A cold light flashed in Lu HaiKong's eyes, and he said, "Moonshadow, give you all the resources you need. I want to meet this man!"
After Lu HaiKong's order, Moonshadow immediately got to work.
Lu HaiKong himself issued the command and then set the matter aside to focus on his busy schedule.
Although he was infuriated by the assassination attempt, he wouldn't devote all his attention to revenge at this time. For him, development was the top priority!
Even though the Lone Wanderers had withdrawn from his territory, it didn't mean that Lu HaiKong's development would come to a halt. After all, the representatives of the Enchanter Lords were still there, and their cooperation had just begun.
It was estimated that in the following months, Lu HaiKong would remain busy, as the arms trade wouldn't decline just because the Lone Wanderers had left. He still had many orders from the Enchanter Lords.
However, Lu HaiKong's busy work schedule didn't last long before he had to pause. Soon, he had to stop working because the person he wanted to meet appeared before him.
This person arrived surprisingly quickly, catching Lu HaiKong off guard.
On the second day after the Northern Seclusion Hermit incident, this man showed up.
What's more interesting was that he wasn't brought by Moonshadow but had come to visit openly and aboveboard.
Under these circumstances, Lu HaiKong met this man in the Lord's Hall (Hall of Gathering Righteousness) in Beifeng City.
The man wore a long, water-blue robe and a matching scholar's hat. He held a fan in his hand and wore a calm and indifferent smile.
Even more intriguing was the classical aura that emanated from this scholar. If it weren't for the fact that he was known to be an Enchanter, Lu HaiKong might have mistaken him for a top historical official.
"Student Changsun Hong, I've had the honor of meeting you, Lord Lu," the scholar said with a solemn bow as Lu HaiKong scrutinized him.
At that moment, Lu HaiKong suddenly felt an inexplicable sensation, as if this scholar might not have come with ill intentions.
Shaking off this inexplicable feeling, Lu HaiKong approached Changsun Hong, his sharp eyes fixed on Changsun Hong's eyes. "Why did you come to see me?"
"I want to present you with a grand gift," Changsun Hong said calmly.
"What kind of gift?" Lu HaiKong's eyes narrowed, and a hint of disdainful smile appeared on his lips.
"Me."
Changsun Hong stood up straight, and a faint yet proud aura emerged.
Seeing this, Lu HaiKong's eyes narrowed involuntarily!
...
...
Changsun Hong's meeting with Lu HaiKong lasted for a full five hours, and no one knew what they discussed during that time.
What was known was that after Changsun Hong left, he disappeared completely, and no one knew where he went. It was as if he had never appeared at all.
After that day, Lu HaiKong never mentioned Changsun Hong again, as if he had never met him in the first place.
From then on, Lu HaiKong's life returned to its original track.
While Lu HaiKong was busy with various tasks, he also increased his interactions with the Enchanter Guild, seemingly scouting and preparing to cultivate talents from within their ranks. However, he didn't seem to have any success.
On the other hand, Xi Zhicai had made significant progress in talent acquisition. After returning to Bing Province, he not only resumed his original intelligence work but also took on an additional role that was of utmost importance to Lu HaiKong.
After Xi Zhicai returned to Bing Province, Lu Hai Kong quickly gathered six thousand intermediate-level talented individuals and used the 【Group Talent Upgrade Token】. With six thousand advanced talented individuals, Lu Hai Kong's command gained another institution called the 【Talent Cultivation Academy】.
It was clear that this institution was for cultivating administrative talents, and currently, there was only one teacher, Xi Zhicai, in this academy.
Months passed, and the 【Talent Cultivation Academy】 had already produced three batches of students, basically able to produce one batch every month.
After these students graduated, they were quietly assigned to the grassroots level in various counties, tempering them through this method.
The dispatched students didn't seem to have strengthened Lu Hai Kong's control over the three counties much, as it hadn't been long since they left, and even if they could truly grow, it would likely take a long time, so they couldn't be considered talents yet.
The real talents were kept in the 【Talent Cultivation Academy】. From having only Xi Zhicai as the teacher at the beginning, the academy now had a dozen assistant instructors. According to Xi Zhicai, these assistants would soon be able to become teachers themselves.
Although they might not become exceptional teachers, they could at least pass on Xi Zhicai's teaching materials. In the future, each session of the 【Talent Cultivation Academy】 could expand from several dozen students to several hundred, even if the teaching cycle might need to be extended. Still, the output of talents could increase several times over.
In the 1619 book, there was no mistake in this version!
At this rate of development, Lu Hai Kong would soon be able to cultivate a large number of junior administrative talents, making things much easier for him.
Of course, all this was based on the premise of stable development. The stability Lu Hai Kong desired was something others consistently refused to grant.
Not long after the Northern Seclusion Hermit Incident, trouble arose again in Lu Hai Kong's territory, this time involving Wang Jun!
As the lord of Beifeng City, Wang Jun had always been its busiest resident. Even though Lu Hai Kong had recently reformed and been helping out, Wang Jun's workload hadn't decreased much.
After all, Lu Hai Kong was mainly busy with the affairs of the Outsiders, while Wang Jun had always been in charge of Beifeng City's construction.
Recently, Wang Jun's most hectic work was the city's construction.
As a young, even infantile city, despite having a comprehensive plan during its construction, adjustments were always necessary based on actual conditions after its establishment and the settlement of hundreds of thousands of residents.
Moreover, Lu Hai Kong had previously kept Wang Jun 'locked' in the City Lord's Mansion (Hall of Gathering Righteousness) for a long time to handle various affairs to prepare for the Artifact Auction and the arrival of the Hermits.
However, trouble arose as soon as Wang Jun was released. While reviewing work, he encountered an accident and suddenly collapsed.
Although Wang Jun was always accompanied by a Bandit Guard, and even the captain of the guards was a rather outstanding member of the Fire Character Camp, no one could clearly understand what had happened when Wang Jun suddenly collapsed. They could only raise the alert to the highest level, send Wang Jun to the Lord's Hall, and dispatch reinforcements.
Lu Hai Kong, who was originally discussing business with an Outsider lord, immediately dropped everything and returned to the Hall of Gathering Righteousness upon hearing the news.
However, by the time Lu Hai Kong returned to the hall, Wang Jun was already at death's door, barely clinging to life.
Seeing this, Chen Ping, who was by Lu Hai Kong's side, quickly stepped in to provide treatment. Still, the universally effective 【Revive】 had little effect on Wang Jun.
Wang Jun's vitality only increased slightly, and he remained on the verge of death.
Upon seeing Wang Jun's condition, Lu Hai Kong became furious. He immediately dispatched the best physicians and sent out heavy troops to investigate the entire city.
However, days passed, and neither the physicians nor the investigation yielded any positive news.
Wang Jun remained at death's door, unable to be saved, but not dying either. The physicians could only say he was poisoned by something special but couldn't provide a cure.
The investigation also turned up no traces of the assassin.
What's more, Wang Jun's situation seemed to signal the beginning of a series of incidents, as one victim after another appeared, all with the same symptoms as Wang Jun, clearly the work of the same person.
This situation made Lu Hai Kong furious!
"Fine, fine, fine! If the tiger doesn't show its might, do you think I'm a sick cat?"
(End of Chapter)
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