Xiangli Yanran was one of the earliest friends he made in this world. Although they had only been apart for a month, Qin Mu was still very happy to see her again. As the saying goes, "Isn't it a joy to have friends coming from afar?"

Qin Mu was overjoyed when the Xiangli family arrived. Firstly, it was a friend's visit, and secondly, he was planning to design a mechanism. Although neither of them were experts in mechanical arts or divination, the Mohists were certainly more knowledgeable than he was.

“We just arrived in Chang’an and came straight here. How about it, Brother Qin, you won’t be unwelcoming, will you?” Xiangli Yanran asked with a smile.

"Haha! How could I not welcome you? I couldn't be happier!" Qin Mu said with a smile.

Qin Mu remembered that the Mo family had businesses in Chang'an. The fact that someone would come to the Qin family to see him showed that they valued this friend.

As expected, Xiangli Yanran and her companion went to the Mo family's residence and politely declined Qin Mu's invitation to stay. However, they did not refuse Qin Mu's kind offer to welcome them with a meal.

Xiangli Yanran was extremely satisfied with the hot pot and braised dishes, exclaiming that she was late. After the meal, Qin Mu mentioned asking them to help with the mechanism, and Xiangli Yanran readily agreed.

"Brother Qin, don't worry, leave the setting up of the traps to me. This is something our Mo family excels at. There are quite a few people in Chang'an; I'll call a few over for you," Xiangli Yanran said confidently.

Xianglizuka looked at his niece speechlessly. She had just sent her family away without even asking about the benefits.

What frustrated him even more was that Xiangli Yanran continued, "Brother Qin, didn't you still need to make clothes and weapons? You can leave those to us."

"Thank you so much! Just let me know how much it costs." Qin Mu was overjoyed that he had found a solution so quickly.

"We're friends, just pay the cost!"

Xianglizuka was so angry he wanted to crawl into a hole. You don't even know the quantity, yet you agree to only charge the cost. If it's for 10,000 or 20,000 people, wouldn't that mean Mo Chang'an has worked for nothing all year?

"Why don't we invite the forgers to come to my side? Since the Yuchi family and the Crafts Bureau are here to help, we can work together on the forging, and the materials will be easier to transport," Qin Mu asked.

Qin Mu said this because most of the forging materials were remelted from broken weapons in the Heavenly Mystery Tower, and transporting these things around was somewhat inconvenient.

“Great! That would save us trouble and prevent us from interfering with their own work.” Xiangli Yanran nodded in agreement without hesitation.

Sōrizuka's lips twitched, and he thought to himself, "If you take all the people away, what kind of work will we have left?"

Qin Mu was very interested in setting up the Six Doors, and he took Xiangli Yanran upstairs to introduce it to her. With Xiangli Zuka present, she also offered many suggestions, which helped Qin Mu quickly draw up the layout plan.

As the sun set, the Qin family held a family banquet. Qin Qiong, as the host, naturally had to entertain the guests, especially since the Mo family members were of high status.

"It's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early!" Yuchi Gong's tall figure strode into the hall. As Qin Qiong's good friend, he and Cheng Zhijie never needed anyone to announce their arrival.

"Uncle Yuchi, were you injured by the assassins?" Qin Mu asked in surprise, looking at Yuchi Gong's bruised eyes. Yuchi Gong and Cheng Zhijie had each fought against two top assassins, but Qin Mu hadn't seen them face-to-face when the assassins retreated.

"Yeah! I got punched by accident." Yuchi Gong's lips twitched, feeling the veins on his forehead throbbing, and he couldn't help but grit his teeth as he spoke. In reality, he was roaring inside, "I've fallen for that brat's trick again!"

The story begins at a restaurant. As the big boss and host, while treating them to a meal, he remembered how Yuchi Gong had so bluntly revealed that he owned a restaurant, so he wanted to get revenge. Just then, a joke came to mind, and he said, seemingly unintentionally, "I've heard that women's butts are always cold."

He was just muttering these words to himself, but his voice was a bit loud, and Yuchi Gong happened to hear them. Coincidentally, after Yuchi Gong returned home, he went to find his wife, wanting to spend some time together. After all, he was still a bit nervous about the assassination attempt, and now that things were over, he wanted to vent.

As he embraced his wife, his large hand inadvertently touched her round buttocks. Qin Mu's words flashed through his mind, which startled him. He then couldn't help but mutter to himself, "Isn't it said that women's buttocks are always cold?"

These words enraged someone, leading to a full-blown brawl at home, which resulted in Yuchi Gong's current state. Amidst the thousands of troops, the rarely wounded Duke of E once again appeared before everyone with dark circles under his eyes.

Qin Mu was deliberately bringing up a sore spot. Qin Qiong knew that Yuchi Gong wasn't injured; he had just gone home and ended up like this—the reason was obvious. He couldn't help but chuckle, but fortunately, there were guests present, so he forced himself to hold it in and greeted them with a smile, "Jingde's here! Please have a seat!"

Without any ceremony, Yuchi Gong pulled out a chair, plopped down, glared at Qin Mu, and then said, "I've already selected them for you! Five hundred and sixty men, ready to join the Six Doors at any time, just waiting for your orders!"

"Jingde, you've worked hard! I'd like to offer you a toast!" Qin Qiong said with a smile, raising his wine cup.

Now Yuchi Gong has learned his lesson and will no longer drink as much as before. He will only raise his cup in a toast, take a sip, and then put it down.

"Mu'er, when do you think would be a good time to summon them?" Qin Qiong asked.

"How about five days from now?" Qin Mu replied after a moment's thought. Five days later would be right after the restaurant opened, which would free up his time.

"Isn't this too hasty? Can we stay at the yamen?" Qin Qiong asked.

“We can definitely find a place to stay. Let’s set up tents first. The weather isn’t cold anyway. If we get them together soon, they can help with the repairs at the government office, and we can also arrange some other tasks for them,” Qin Mu replied.

"Alright! Let's settle on this. You take care of things at the yamen. I'm just a figurehead; the final execution is up to you. Whether you can impress people depends on yourselves." Qin Qiong nodded in agreement.

"You can do whatever you want with this, we will fully support you, but you must handle it well and not tarnish our reputation!" Yuchi Gong reminded them.

The restaurant was beautifully decorated, and with Qin Mu's performance, Yuchi Gong felt reassured enough to agree to Qin Qiong's request to let Yuchi Baolin join the new government office. Although it currently appeared to be only a department slightly higher than the Bad People's Bureau, with only fourth or fifth-rank officials below Qin Qiong as the leader, it was still a force to be reckoned with, directly commanding military power.

It was Yuchi Gong and Cheng Zhijie's decision to stand up and protect Qin Mu and his group. If they performed well, they could continue; if not, they would only be relegated to minor official positions. This was also a chance for them to prove themselves. After all, it was much easier than going to the battlefield.

After the drinks, the party ended, and Xiangli Yanran also left. Qin Mu then seized the time to devise plans for the Six Doors. Although he was only interested in establishing the Six Doors, he also wanted to make it a great success.

Nowadays, regardless of the department, the people are actually afraid of it. They don't want the Six Doors to become a violent organization that only knows how to kill and arrest. Nor do they want the Six Doors to bring a bad reputation and atmosphere. So there is much more that needs to be done.

According to Yuchi Gong, this was an initial selection of 560 people. Regardless of their strength, Qin Mu believed that the Six Doors placed greater emphasis on character. Therefore, their self-discipline was extremely important.

Moreover, the Six Doors are involved in investigating cases, which requires a deep understanding of the forces in Chang'an, not only the overt forces but also the underground ones. This also needs to be investigated and understood. The Six Doors, being newly established, must first cultivate a certain image, which is another issue. There were too many things to consider, and it wasn't until midnight that Qin Mu turned off the lights and began to meditate.

"Yanran, when did you arrive?" Early in the morning, Qin Mu went to find Yuchi Baolin to explain some things. When he returned, he saw Xiangli Yanran riding a rhinoceros and strolling around the garden.

"Big brother! Sister Yanran is so amazing!" Qin Yuling exclaimed excitedly as Xiangli Yanran carried her off the rhinoceros.

Upon seeing Qin Mu, the rhinoceros came over and nuzzled his large head against him repeatedly.

"You little rascal, you went to the rolling pond first thing in the morning!" Qin Mu chuckled, patting its single horn.

When Qin Mu gently nudged it, the rhinoceros obediently turned away. As soon as it turned around, it shook its big head and then knelt down beside the flower bed.

Qin Yuling rushed over happily, took out a handful of beans from her pocket, fed them to the rhinoceros, and then climbed back onto the rhinoceros's back from the flower bed.

Since arriving at the Qin family home, the rhinoceros is closest to Qin Yuling. Every day, she tries to find ways to feed it beans, so it loves to let Qin Yuling ride on it. Now it knows to lie down by the flower bed so that Qin Yuling can ride on it smoothly.

With the bull's broad back and the rhinoceros's intelligence, Qin Mu was no longer worried and let them go.

"I just arrived. I heard you went out, Brother Qin, and I was just about to go look for you," Xiangli Yanran said with a smile.

"Oh! Is it urgent?"

"It's what I promised you yesterday: I'd find you people! I've already found twenty advanced blacksmiths. Also, you need to give me the blueprints for the clothes you want to make!" Xiangli Yanran replied.

"Oh! So fast! Thank you so much, I'll go get it for you right away!" Qin Mu said with delight, and then quickly ran upstairs.

Seeing Qin Mu's delighted expression, Xiangli Yanran was also very happy. She smiled sweetly and followed him.

"Qin Huaiyu, who is this person? He's so powerful!" Li Dejiang asked, rubbing his arm.

"She's my brother's friend. She came yesterday. I didn't know she was so capable. She doesn't look much older than us," Qin Huaiyu said with a wry smile.

"It's all that fool Yuchi Huan's fault. He knew how powerful she was, seeing her carrying such a big sword. Yet he still went and provoked her," Cheng Huaibi said angrily.

"What does this have to do with me? Don't you all want to spar with her too?" Yu Chi Huan said, glaring. However, his eye sockets, like his father's, were covered in blood, making him look completely intimidating.

The five little ones were whispering under the big tree. Luo Tong wiped his nose with a handkerchief and obediently squatted to the side to listen. He hadn't had a chance to intervene earlier, but seeing his older brothers get beaten, he felt their pain as well.

It turned out that as soon as Qin Mu left, the kids started acting up again, engaging in playful fighting under the guise of sparring. Just then, Xiangli Yanran arrived. Thinking they were playing house, she squatted to the side, watching with great interest, and even offered her critique at the end. Of course, her tone wasn't very friendly; she just said things like, "Your performance is pretty good."

The little guys couldn't stand this insult, especially since the girl was only a little girl, not much older than them. So Yu Chi Huan suggested they have a friendly spar.

Out of boredom, Xiangli Yanran let them all come at her together. The ending was predictable: each of them took several hits before they obediently squatted to the side and watched Xiangli Yanran ride the ox.

For a few little kids, there's no difference between boys and girls; the only difference is who's better. Otherwise, they wouldn't be thinking of sparring with Xiangli Yanran.

Xiangli Yanran didn't take this to heart at all. Beating up boys was something she had done countless times since she was a child, and she was used to it. As long as they showed hostility towards her, there was nothing to say, she would beat them up first as a sign of respect.

"Brother Qin, does your Six Doors still need people?" Xiangli Yanran took the blueprints, tucked them into her waistband, and asked.

"Yes! Of course we want to join. Could it be that someone from your Mo family is willing to join? That would be wonderful!" Qin Mu asked in surprise.

“Me? I’m willing to join!” Xiangli Yanran said, pointing to herself.

"You? No, no!" Qin Mu hurriedly shook his head upon hearing this.

"Why can't I!" Xiangli Yanran asked, her eyes wide.

Qin Mu knew that Xiangli Yanran held a high position in the Xiangli family, so how could he allow her to join the Six Doors, since the Six Doors also had its dangers?

“It’s dangerous here. We have to deal with some vicious people all year round. And this is a case investigation, so we’ll have to see all sorts of disgusting corpses!” Qin Mu said, glancing discreetly as he spoke of extreme hunger.

"What's the big deal! I've seen my fair share of corpses, and you've already witnessed my strength in the secret realm. I promise I won't hold you back," Xiangli Yanran hurriedly assured her.

"No, you're still too young. How about we wait a few more years?" Qin Mu shook his head in opposition. Although Xiangli Yanran had ability and background, she was still just a little girl, and joining the Six Doors was somewhat inconvenient for her. Qin Mu was also worried that this was just a passing fancy for her, and that she might not want to stay after joining the Six Doors, which would be bad. After all, it was a government department, not something to be taken lightly.

"Brother Qin, please say yes! I promise I'll obey your orders!" Xiangli Yanran said coquettishly, tugging at Qin Mu's arm.

"Alright! I'll arrange for you to be a guest silver-ranked constable for now! If you really want to stay in the future, I'll give you a formal constable status and an official position in the imperial court. What do you think?" Qin Mu asked after thinking for a moment.

"Great! Great!" Xiangli Yanran nodded happily. Status wasn't important; what she really wanted was a government official position so she would have a reason to stay in Chang'an for a long time.

"Huai Dao!" A familiar voice rang out. Princess Changning entered the room, then looked at Xiangli Yanran, who was holding Qin Mu's arm, frowned, and asked warily, "You have guests? Whose young lady is this?"

Seeing a beautiful woman enter, staring at her with an unfriendly expression, Xiangli Yanran sensed hostility. Especially the emphasis on the words "little girl" made her, who was about to let go, tighten her grip on Qin Mu's arm again. She smiled and looked up, asking, "Brother Qin! Is this your guest? Why don't you introduce her to me?"

"Hehe! Hello, little sister! I am Huai Dao's good friend. Welcome to visit me." Princess Changning asked with a smile as her mind raced.

In that instant, she understood. In Chang'an, there were very few people who didn't know her, and even fewer she didn't know, especially someone carrying a large sword. She guessed he was from outside Chang'an. "You're showing affection by holding Qin Mu's hand, so I'll just say 'Welcome to visit,' asserting my dominance."