Fang Zhiyi acted even more like Song Jiang than Song Jiang himself. Whenever the Emperor bestowed rewards, he would bring them out to share with everyone. He constantly treated his subordinates to meals and generously opened his purse for those facing financial difficulties.
His former title of Playboy had now been wiped away, and everyone started calling him the Gold-Scattering Taibao.
It still carried a bit of a wealthy, spoiled heir vibe, but to Fang Zhiyi, this title was much better than the one its original owner had.
Because of these maneuvers, Fang Zhiyi's power was expanding further. Now, nearly half of the Imperial City Department was under his control. Although he still held the modest rank of a Manager, the lowest-level clerks reported any news to him first before sending it up the chain.
So when Fang Zhiyi heard that Emperor Huizong of Song was going to meet with Li Shishi soon, he frowned slightly.
"Great opportunity! How about we send someone to ruin this meeting, make Song Jiang suffer a hidden loss, or just detain him directly?" Little Hei got a bit excited.
To his surprise, Fang Zhiyi shook his head. "We leave it be."
"Leave it be?"
"Did you forget who our main opponent is?"
Little Hei paused for a moment, suddenly remembering. "That transmigrator?"
"Right... his current opponent is also Song Jiang... Although this dark-skinned fellow is quite annoying, from the imperial court's perspective, he is a qualified hound... So not only can I not stop him, but I also have to help him."
Saying this, Fang Zhiyi turned to order his subordinates. "Find out who is responsible for arranging the meeting, and replace them with our people as much as possible."
The subordinate did not hesitate, nodded, and headed out.
"Come back! Why are you so excited when I haven't finished speaking?"
The subordinate hurriedly ran back.
"Remember, no matter who you see going in that night, pretend you didn't see them, and absolutely do not make a fuss."
"My Lord, is this..." The subordinate habitually wanted to ask, but remembering Fang Zhiyi's temper, he shut his mouth. In short, whatever the Lord arranged, they would do; they wouldn't suffer for it!
Fang Zhiyi's maneuvering made Song Jiang's audience with the Emperor go extremely smoothly. The resistance he had imagined did not appear at all. Furthermore, with Li Shishi's help, Song Jiang vaguely felt that this was a sign from heaven.
He revealed his identity and his desire for amnesty to Emperor Huizong, who praised him highly.
This meeting achieved unprecedented success and further strengthened Song Jiang's desire for amnesty. He decided that upon his return, he would make a move against that eccentric Shao Jiang, lest he ruin the grand plan.
Little Hei was doing his best to conceal his aura, so Fang Zhiyi was also unclear about the opponent's movements and could only rely on deductions. Meanwhile, he also stepped up his own actions. There were some highly experienced veterans in the Imperial City Department who had never bought into his act, only holding back from falling out with him out of fear of Gao Qiu.
They sneered at Fang Zhiyi's sycophancy and his efforts to win people over, not even looking him in the eye. However, what they didn't expect was that Fang Zhiyi's methods of winning hearts were far more terrifying than they imagined.
"My Lord, everything you asked for is here." A few minor officials of the Imperial City Department stood before Fang Zhiyi.
Looking at the several booklets placed on the table, Fang Zhiyi nodded slightly.
It was bad enough that these old fogeys occupied the latrine without doing their business, but they actually wanted to put on airs in front of him?
Were they crazy?
Soon, evidence of crimes committed by several high-ranking officials of the Imperial City Department was presented on Emperor Huizong's dragon desk through various channels. Coupled with Gao Qiu's embellishments, the Emperor flew into a rage. Several supervisors of the Imperial City Department were successively imprisoned or exiled. The other officials who were not implicated lived in constant fear, and someone finally realized who was targeting them, immediately changing their attitude and even personally visiting Fang Zhiyi.
But Fang Zhiyi still maintained his generous and loyal demeanor, thumping his chest and promising louder than anyone else. In the blink of an eye, he promoted his trusted aides to those vacant positions. Some officials even had to voluntarily request retirement to give up their positions just to protect themselves.
A strange situation emerged in the Imperial City Department. The higher-ranking supervisors acted cautiously around Fang Zhiyi, a mere manager. Without his nod, they didn't even dare to make a move. The highest commander of the Imperial City Department, the Superintendent, became a commander without an army. He tried to impeach Fang Zhiyi before the Emperor for forming factions for selfish purposes, but in return, he only received a severe scolding from Emperor Huizong.
"Do you take We for a three-year-old child? Him, forming factions? He is clearly utterly loyal! He, a minor manager, recommends those capable men with more seniority than him to higher positions while willingly remaining a minor official himself, and you say he's forming factions? Nonsense!"
The Superintendent was scolded so badly he couldn't lift his head. Meanwhile, Gao Qiu, who was at the side comforting the Emperor, sighed with emotion in his heart: this adopted son of his was simply a talent among talents! His future prospects were limitless!
But Gao Qiu also never expected that Fang Zhiyi's first move after secretly taking control of the Imperial City Department would be to extend an olive branch to Cai Jing. Using the special functions of the Imperial City Department, Fang Zhiyi provided Cai Jing with a lot of intelligence on his rivals. After Cai Jing repeatedly gained the upper hand in court struggles relying on the intelligence provided by Fang Zhiyi, he reciprocated by frantically putting in a good word for Fang Zhiyi in front of Emperor Huizong. Gao Qiu was left dumbfounded, even feeling as if Fang Zhiyi was Cai Jing's adopted son, not his own.
And while Gao Qiu was still bewildered, he accidentally discovered that even a eunuch like Tong Guan was on good terms with Fang Zhiyi. Gao Qiu was completely numb.
Was this still that ignorant and incompetent Gao Lian? Why did it feel like this kid had turned on some kind of cheat?
The winds of the entire imperial court were blowing in a bizarre direction. Two months later, the original Superintendent of the Imperial City Department claimed illness and returned to his hometown. Amidst the flattery and recommendations of the crowd, Fang Zhiyi reluctantly took the seat of the Superintendent.
Little Hei's eyes twitched as he watched. "No, no, wait a minute, why do I feel like you're on track to become the Nine Thousand Years Lord?"
Fang Zhiyi chuckled. "Pretty much, but I don't want to be a eunuch."
"Good thing you're a transmigrator, otherwise I'd suspect someone like you placed in ancient times would definitely be a menace."
"Is this your first day knowing me?"
Gao Qiu also found that he increasingly couldn't see through this adopted son. It could be said that Fang Zhiyi now had a place in the imperial court and was no longer that Gao Yanei who only knew how to run amok. But his growth also made Gao Qiu feel a bit of trepidation.
However, out of partiality for his adopted son, Gao Qiu still spared no effort in supporting Fang Zhiyi's actions.
So when Fang Zhiyi earnestly proposed to Emperor Huizong the request to purge the internals and select the elite, Gao Qiu also supported it.
"Your Majesty, the current Imperial City Department has become corrupt. To maintain Your Majesty's authority and protect the safety of the imperial city, I wish to reform the Imperial City Department, turning them into the sharpest blade in Your Majesty's hand!"
Fang Zhiyi's loyalty was practically written all over his face, and Emperor Huizong, who already considered him one of his own, readily agreed without even waiting for Gao Qiu to speak.
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
