Start from the thief

Chapter 163: Land Sword Immortal?

The salt tax of the Tang Dynasty was six million taels per year, and nearly five million taels came from the southeast. About half of it went to the court, and the remaining half was held in the hands of major famous families using various overt and covert means.

"Two months ago, Wang Yan, the Salt and Iron Commissioner, was reported by the Imperial Counselor and imprisoned. It was discovered that he had embezzled a total of 1.4 million taels of salt tax while in office. This lucrative position suddenly became vacant, so everyone came here just to fight for this piece of meat."

"For such a big deal, I think the eldest brother should do it himself. Let us do it. To be honest, Senior Brother Sun, my cultivation is very low."

Zhao Yushu was a little nervous. The famous thief Yu Shu in Dongdu worked very hard for several years to earn himself more than 10,000 taels of money to save his life. If he joined the academy, he could easily earn hundreds of thousands of taels a year. If he could get the position of Salt and Iron Commissioner, he would have to go even higher.

And now, something with such huge profits is being handled by a mere fourth-level heaven master and two ordinary people. How can the dean and the eldest senior brother have the confidence? And I, who was promoted to the fourth-level heaven master on the way, was only at the second level when I left Dongdu.

No matter how you look at it, I'm just here to make up the numbers.

Zhao Yushu narrowed his eyes and said, "Brother Sun, don't tell me that you and Sister Lin are just two ordinary scholars."

Sun Wuyang laughed: "If we were in the academy, we would just be ordinary scholars."

"In Jiangning?"

"To be honest, Junior Brother, Shanshan and I got married last year. My father is one of the eight major salt merchants in Guangling, and my father-in-law is currently the Water and Land Transport Commissioner of Jiangning County. If there is a chance, I can try to be the next Salt and Iron Commissioner."

Okay, these two are the children of the academy’s spokesperson. However, the academy really did not avoid suspicion and allowed these two to come in so openly.

Two ordinary people with strong backgrounds are the vanguards, and there are unknown numbers of monks operating secretly behind them. The academy must have a backup plan. Sun Wuyang probably said that he needed to do something to save his own face. It would not be surprising to see an inside scene in a struggle of this level. He was indeed just making up the numbers.

No matter what, the main purpose of coming to Jiangning is to find an opportunity to get rid of Wang Shaolin under the pretext of doing business. If I am lucky, I will kill Duke Yue as well, so that these high and mighty dukes will remember that everyone has only one life, and next time they write a letter to talk nonsense, they can pat their head on the neck.

"Brother Sun, I know nothing about this. Just treat me as a thug. What do I need to do now?"

"Tomorrow, I will write a letter. You need to see someone first."

"Who?"

"The new Salt and Iron Commissioner is Wang Yan."

Old Zhao didn't expect that he would actually be asked to do something, and to meet such a person.

"What's wrong with him?"

"He is Prince Fu's man."

Zhao Yushu narrowed his eyes and asked, "Who does the Remonstrance Doctor work for?"

"That's the problem. The Imperial Counselor is nobody's man."

So this is a conspiracy where no one knows who the winner is?

"Brother Sun, I heard a saying before, if a minister has no faction, then he is the emperor's man."

"That makes sense, but we can't speculate. We want the truth, otherwise we might fall into someone's trap. Shanshan and I are directly related to each other, so it's not convenient for us to come forward. Everyone else is hiding in the dark. Only you, Junior Brother Zhao, no, Mr. Six, are the most suitable."

Zhao Yushu was a little confused: "I am also from the academy."

"Yes, but you are Mr. Six, a man of distinguished status. Even if everyone knew, no one would dare to say that you came here for the money."

"Ha, I thought I was here to make up the numbers, but it turns out I'm here to silence them. You can dislike me but you can't kill me. I like this identity. Okay, I'll go tomorrow. Where is he?"

"Of course it's in the prison."

That night, Zhao Yushu met Sister Lin Shan, the daughter of the Transport Envoy. Coincidentally, Lin Shan also had a long sword on her back that was the same shape as Sun Wuyang's. If he guessed correctly, the two must have practiced a set of sword techniques together.

As if she had seen through Zhao Yushu's thoughts, Lin Shan took off her long sword and said, "Wuyang and I have known each other since childhood, and we are both very interested in swordsmanship. Our parents paid a high price to invite a master from Mount Shu to teach us. Junior brother, if you don't mind, would you like to have a simple exchange of ideas?"

Sun Wuyang's eyes suddenly lit up, revealing an eager expression: "Of course, Junior Brother, you can't use your cultivation, and Shanshan and I have always been a pair of swords, Junior Brother, don't blame us for being unethical and bullying the weak with our numbers."

Zhao Yushu really wanted to see what the truly advanced swordsmanship was like. The old man had said before that he would give him a local-level sword manual. Did he mean that he thought he had a talent for swordsmanship?

Well, I also have the possibility of becoming a land sword immortal.

If the old man were here, he would definitely wave his hand and say: There is no such possibility!

They did it right away. The three of them found an open space behind the Taoist temple. The sun had already set, and several Taoists lit lamps and torches for illumination while also acting as spectators. Not everyone had the opportunity to see the Sixth Master of Tianji Pavilion taking action.

Sun Wuyang and Lin Shan drew their swords at the same time, assumed identical stances, and said in unison: "Junior Brother Zhao, please teach me!"

Zhao Yushu did not use the four magic weapons, but borrowed a long sword from the Taoist priest. Well, it was not very convenient. The most commonly used weapon before, besides Madam Xu, was the fire-patterned horizontal sword. The uses of the knife and the sword are still different.

There are more than twenty sword moves, including pointing, stabbing, chopping, hanging, lifting, clouding, wiping, pulling, collapsing, strangling, blocking, framing, supporting, intercepting, pulling, piercing, lifting, holding, hugging, sweeping, chopping, blocking, and cutting. Each school and faction specializes in different things. For example, Mr. Qin, who was killed by Zhao Yushu and Lan Lingfang Sanniang together, mainly uses the chopping and collapsing moves.

But Sun Wuyang and Lin Shan only know how to stab.

Sun Wuyang attacked from above and Lin Shan attacked from below. The two of them were like two butterflies flying among flowers, flying up and down. The swords in their hands were like the stings of wasps, as fast as lightning.

Although he didn't use his skills, Zhao Yushu was forced to show off his skills in the first encounter, otherwise he would have experienced what it means to be killed as soon as he landed.

Even at the speed of a flash, he was still hit so hard that he could only dodge. Not to mention fighting back, he didn't even have the chance to parry.

In the eyes of the onlookers, they only saw Zhao Yushu waving a long sword as fast as a phantom but madly, while the other two people kept stabbing and retracting their swords. The fire reflected by the swords stung their eyes, but they could not hear the sound of the long swords colliding.

"Stop fighting!" Zhao Yushu suddenly stopped, and the two swords also stopped at the same time, with the tip of one sword pointing at his left eye, and the other pointing at his dantian.

The terrifying thing is that although he did not deliberately use his spiritual power to protect his body, even the passive spiritual power had a good defense. The two swords stopped before his vital points, causing the four magic weapons to automatically sound an alarm. If the two of them did not stop, it would be impossible to kill him, but they would definitely be able to hurt him.

"Do you believe me when I say I don't know how to use a sword?"

Sun Wuyang and Lin Shan looked at each other and tried to suppress their laughter: "Xin, we'll know once we make a move. So what is Junior Brother good at? Sword skills?"

"Uh, footwork. I'm better at running."

"···"

After making a fool of himself, Lao Zhao blushed and asked to go back to his room to rest, using the excuse of being tired from the journey. Sun Wuyang secretly told Lao Zhao that he would take him for a stroll on the Qinhuai River one day when Lin Shan was not around.

The two of them gave each other a look that you understand, said good night to each other and went back to their rooms. Sitting on the bed, Zhao Yushu remembered that he had forgotten to ask one thing: Why don't you live in Jiangning Academy?