#213 - One day, the whole world knows

Five days later.

As the saying goes, "Ten years of cold window, no one asks; once fame is achieved, the world knows."

Now, this saying is both appropriate and inappropriate when applied to Wei Changtian.

Firstly, he clearly did not experience the "ten years of cold window" process.

Secondly, before the Spring Dragon Poetry Meet, the name "Wei Changtian" was definitely not unknown, albeit for the infamous title of "Killer Minister."

However, disregarding the first half of the saying, the latter half, "once fame is achieved" and "the world knows," is indeed true.

The rising star of the Great Li literary world who came from afar to challenge the event.

The poetry duel between Su Wu and Shen Ran.

Wei Changtian, who composed nine peerless poems in a row, turning the tide.

The Spring River Flower Moon Night, which triggered successive anomalies and even converted a true dragon.

Liu Jia and Yan Shuyuan's ambush and revenge.

The suddenly appearing wandering monk from the Buddha Lotus Temple.

The corpses littered on the banks of the Sun and Moon Lake.

If there were a saying for "gossiping" in this world, then this Spring Dragon Poetry Meet, which brought together literary duels, timeless poems, political strife, bloody violence, and many other elements, would definitely be the biggest gossip that the people of Great Ning had indulged in in recent years.

And as everyone knows, the speed of gossip's spread can even exceed the speed of light.

Therefore, in just five short days, everything that happened at the Spring Dragon Poetry Meet had spread throughout the thirty-six states, truly reaching the point where "the world knows," and bringing about a series of overt and covert changes to Great Ning.

The officials, wealthy households, and merchants belonging to the Liu and Wei families began to gather their forces, preparing to cope with the upcoming all-out war between the two families.

In the brothels and theaters all over the country, the girls holding their zithers no longer sang anything else, opening their mouths to uniformly recite "Spring River surges with the sea level."

The Great Ning envoy set off for Great Li, demanding that the latter hand over Shen Ran, who had "insulted the dignity of the superior nation."

The more astute merchants had already begun to quietly hoard goods, preparing to make a killing in the upcoming chaos.

The impact of the Spring Dragon Poetry Meet was so great that it almost affected everyone in Great Ning, and for Wei Changtian himself, the most obvious thing he could feel right now was the group of literati and scholars who were guarding the entrance of his alley every day.

"Back! Back!!"

In Fortune Lane, dozens of Mirror Hanging Department officers wearing tiger-蛟 uniforms stood in a row, blocking the entrance of the alley.

And opposite them were hundreds of scholars wearing feather fans and silk scarves, their expressions fanatical.

"We only want to visit Young Master Wei! If he doesn't want to see us, we will leave on our own! But what is the meaning of the Mirror Hanging Department blocking us here!"

"Exactly! This is my name card, quickly take it to Young Master Wei!"

"This is mine!"

"And mine!"

"."

Amidst the dissatisfied questioning, name cards were thrown at the feet of the Mirror Hanging Department officers like snowflakes, covering the ground in a layer in the blink of an eye.

Ordinary people might be afraid of the Mirror Hanging Department, but these scholars didn't care much.

After all, most of those who came here to seek an audience with Wei Changtian were children, scholars, or well-known literati, relying on their official titles and not believing that the Mirror Hanging Department would dare to do anything to them.

And the Mirror Hanging Department really couldn't do anything to them.

It was impossible to distinguish the backgrounds of these people, and besides, they had not violated any laws, so they couldn't just drive people away or take them away without any explanation.

In any case, the Mirror Hanging Department was an official institution, and at the very least, it had to have a justifiable reason for doing things.

But there were some people who didn't need such a reason.

"Da da da da!"

Suddenly, a burst of rapid footsteps came first, followed by a large group of fierce-looking men in various clothes pouring in from the end of the street.

As soon as these people appeared, they went straight to the group of scholars, ignoring the Mirror Hanging Department officers standing next to them, and directly started fighting with their fists.

"Ah! Why, why are you hitting me!"

"You villain! Do you know who I am?! Ah! Ouch, ouch, ouch! Hero, spare me, hero, spare me!"

"Bandits committing violence in the street! The Mirror Hanging Department is turning a blind eye! I, I will go to the yamen to sue you!!!"

"Ouch! My hand! My right hand that can write poetry, paint, and seduce women! ! !"

From the superficial point of view, this person was even their colleague.

"Brother Chu!"

The centurion wearing a silver-threaded tiger-蛟 uniform took a step closer, clasped his fist at Chu Xianping with some restraint: "Thank you so much today!"

"Brother Liu, you have worked hard too."

Chu Xianping also clasped his fist in return, his eyes sweeping over the dozens of Mirror Hanging Department officers.

"Brothers, from now on, the Mutual Aid Society will be guarding this place, which is what Young Master Wei wants."

"Yes, yes, yes! Then we will have to trouble Brother Chu!"

When the centurion heard that it was arranged by Wei Changtian, he naturally didn't dare to say much, and after exchanging pleasantries, he hurriedly led the Mirror Hanging Department away.

As soon as they left, the Mutual Aid Society members also dispersed, hiding and disguising themselves around, secretly observing the situation of the people coming and going.

And after that, all the scholars who came admiringly were "persuaded" to leave one by one, and if they refused, they would immediately be met with fists and feet, and there really was no longer the chaotic situation that had just occurred.

It seemed that dealing with these scholars, bandits were indeed more effective than the government.

"Alright, you guys keep an eye on this place, remember not to allow any unfamiliar faces to enter the alley."

After watching for a while nearby, Chu Xianping gave a few more instructions to his subordinates before preparing to leave.

As the helmsman of the Mutual Aid Society, he had a lot of things to deal with on weekdays, so of course it was impossible for him to stay here all the time.

"We understand! Helmsman, don't worry!"

Everyone echoed in agreement, expressing that they would never allow even a fly to disturb Young Master Wei's peace and quiet.

However, just at this moment, a black carriage suddenly sped out from the end of the road, and it seemed that it was also heading for Fortune Lane.

"Stop the car!"

Before Chu Xianping could speak, several agile men jumped up, actually preparing to directly snatch the reins from the coachman's hand.

But this coachman was not a vegetarian either, one hand firmly grasping the reins, while the other hand quickly struck out several palms in the air.

"Bang bang bang!"

A series of muffled sounds exploded, and the several men who went to stop the car were instantly sent flying back.

Fifth rank!

A coachman actually has the fifth rank!

Chu Xianping's eyes narrowed slightly, but his body did not move, and he didn't even say a word.

Because it was not necessary.

It seemed that this situation had been rehearsed long ago, and although the other Mutual Aid Society members watched as several companions were knocked away in one move, they did not hesitate or panic in the slightest. In the next moment, they took out their weapons and formed a small formation at the entrance of the alley.

With this kind of reaction speed, some people would probably believe that they were the most elite imperial guards in the entire Great Ning.

"Da da da!"

The black carriage did not stop, continuing to rush straight towards the entrance of the alley.

The distance between the two sides was getting closer and closer, and in an instant, only less than ten zhang remained.

Seeing that a firefight was about to break out, just at this moment, the person in the car and Chu Xianping shouted almost simultaneously:

"Stop the car!"

"Disperse the formation!"