Taking advantage of any opportunity is a skill many cunning old foxes possess. By accompanying his wife back to her parents' home, Qin Mu gained ten more disciples, all of whom were grandsons of Li Shentong and Li Shenfu.
Fortunately, the princess's mansion was large enough to accommodate more than thirty people, so it was no problem at all. Thus, Qin Mu resumed his life of teaching and imparting knowledge.
Whether it's Taoist or Confucian classics, they are always so profound and difficult to understand. They contain a lot of the original authors' insights and reflections, and with their concise language, it is even more difficult to comprehend their meaning.
Fortunately, Qin Mu wasn't the type to get stuck on details. If he didn't understand something, he wouldn't bother with it. He would just read it more often and eventually gain his own insights.
Moreover, the more he reads, the more enjoyment he finds in it, so he often finds great pleasure in it.
Compared to reading and understanding principles, teaching and educating people is also quite interesting, and more importantly, it is very useful for improving one's self-cultivation.
Qin Mu's teaching method has always been laissez-faire; he never questions their choices. Those who want to learn can learn on their own, and those who don't understand can ask questions and exchange ideas! Everyone can benefit from this.
The difference this time was that he brought out pills refined with righteous energy. These people were related to him in some way, and he wouldn't mind nurturing those with potential and a good attitude. As for those who were just coasting along, he'd ignore them as long as they didn't cause trouble!
Of course! With Qin Mu's current strength and prestige, no one is foolish enough to challenge his authority. When they were in the Qin family, they were all obedient.
Almost all of Qin Mu's acquaintances of the same age in Chang'an had gone out, so he was too lazy to go out. He spent his days teaching his son, playing with his child, and reading books, leading an exceptionally leisurely life. Li Shimin did not want to send Qin Mu out, but Chang'an also needed someone to guard it, and manpower was currently tight. Having another trusted confidant would be the best thing.
"Sigh! His Majesty just can't stand me being too idle." Qin Mu couldn't help but complain as his leisurely life was interrupted.
"Hehe, the capable should do more work." Ma Zhou, whom I hadn't seen for a long time, was still as thin as ever, but his eyes were more piercing, and his whole demeanor had changed a lot.
"Congratulations on your promotion, Prince Bin." After thinking it over, Qin Mu realized that Ma Zhou must have been promoted, which was why he was being used as a scapegoat.
"Congratulations, congratulations! With Huai Dao back in charge of the Six Doors, the security in Chang'an will definitely improve a lot. You don't know, there are just too many things happening in Chang'an, big and small. Young masters are constantly causing trouble, but the problems are usually minor, so they're arrested and then released; there are also too many thugs and ruffians, and you can't catch them all." Ma Zhou couldn't help but complain. As the head of the Six Doors, even the most trivial matters gave him a huge headache. It wasn't that he couldn't handle them, but his methods were too gentle, so they weren't as effective in deterring people.
"Hehe, I love it when people cause trouble," Qin Mu grinned.
"Well, I've got quite a bit of news about the things you asked me to keep an eye on. I'll hand them over to you this time." Ma Zhou said, opening a hidden compartment in the wall and taking out a large roll of things and a booklet, which he then handed over.
"Thank you for your hard work," Qin Mu said with a smile.
"Alright, I can relax for a few days now," Ma Zhou said, stretching.
"Hehe, I'm afraid we'll be even busier," Qin Mu said with a smug smile.
“At least there aren’t that many things that require my decision-making,” Ma Zhou said with a smile.
"Alright! You have a point." Qin Mu spread his hands.
After chatting for a few minutes, Ma Zhou left gracefully. In any case, Qin Mu was very familiar with the Six Doors and didn't need Ma Zhou to introduce him.
After Ma Zhou left, Qin Mu summoned the people from the Six Doors.
"My lord!"
"Nonsense, he should be called a Duke now."
"Yes, yes, Your Excellency!"
Elders from the Six Doors kept bowing to Qin Mu with excitement.
"Alright, I'm now the chief constable of the Six Doors. Call all the brothers back immediately; I have a mission to assign," Qin Mu said with a smile.
"Yes!" This was a very loud voice. You should know that working under Qin Mu is very comfortable. Not to mention the income, just look at how many experts have emerged from the original Six Doors. They were all trained by Qin Mu.
"Also, please invite the leader of the Bad People over here for me."
After passing on the order, Qin Mu began inspecting the Six Doors again. After all, he had been away for so long, and he had to see what changes had occurred.
When Qin Mu took over the Six Doors, he was not alone. More than thirty students were brought in to work for free, along with two hundred and ten skilled warriors from various tribes.
"Big Brother!" Qin Huaiyu walked in excitedly, followed by two hundred people from the ten tribes dressed in warrior attire. Over the years, they had lost the rustic air they had when they first arrived in Chang'an. During this time, following Qin Mu's orders, Qin Huaiyu not only provided them with new clothes but also ensured they had plenty of food, drink, and entertainment, allowing them to become familiar with Chang'an.
"Please wait a moment, there are still some people who haven't arrived yet," Qin Mu gestured.
"Brother Qin!" Qin Mu had barely finished speaking when a voice filled with surprise and joy rang out.
"Yanran, what brings you here?" Qin Mu asked in surprise.
"Hmph! Why can't I come? Do you hate seeing me?" Xiangli Yanran wrinkled her delicate nose and said, pretending to be angry.
"Hehe, how could that be? If I had known you were in Chang'an, I would have looked for you long ago."
"That's more like it. I just arrived in Chang'an, and my family has all moved to the mountains. I don't want to go there," Xiangli Yanran said with a satisfied smile.
"I'll have to trouble you all again this time." Qin Mu smiled and gestured to the Mo family members behind Xiangli Yanran.
"It's no trouble at all. It's our honor to be able to help you, Lord." The Mo family members, dressed in plain clothes, hurriedly cupped their hands in thanks.
From the time Qin Mu arrived in Chang'an, he had been cooperating with the Mohists. Qin Mu also provided great support to the Mohists, which led Li Shimin to discover the strength of the Mohists. Over the years, many members of the Mohists have entered officialdom, but their development has been relatively smooth.
"Chief Constable!" Not long after, the leader of the Bad People arrived. He was Liu Hongji's former subordinate and knew Qin Mu. He also knew that the Liu family and Qin Mu had a very good relationship.
"Alright, everyone's here. I heard things' been a bit chaotic in Chang'an lately. I'm giving you a mission: arrest all the troublemakers and petty thieves. And shut down all those brothels and gambling dens that don't follow the rules! These experts will cooperate with you." Qin Mu issued the order in a few words.
"Here you go!"
"As for the operation, proceed according to your control. Huaiyu, take your men to those troublemaking young masters' gathering places and keep watch. Arrest anyone who causes trouble. Now, everyone change your clothes!" Qin Mu waved his hand and said.
"Yes!" Qin Huaiyu responded excitedly and immediately told people to change into flying fish robes.
Countless people rushed out of the Six Doors, and after exiting, they split into groups and headed in different directions. The people on the road reacted differently to this, some were surprised, some were excited, and some were inquiring about the news.
Arrest them! Keep arresting them! When the Six Doors and the Bad Guys get moving, no thug or rogue in Chang'an will escape. After all, they are the real local bullies. They don't usually arrest people because they're too lazy to care.
Arresting these thugs isn't the main goal, of course. The main purpose is to interrogate them and investigate those underground forces. They'll have information about some of their clandestine activities.
Once they were brought back, they began interrogation, and the Six Doors (a government agency) immediately sprang into action.
"Sir, sir, I'm just a hoodlum, you don't have to arrest me like this, do you?" The hoodlum pleaded with the constable as he was locked in the dungeon.
"Brother Zhang, Brother Zhang, it's me, Xiao Liu! I've been behaving myself lately!" someone shouted hurriedly upon seeing an acquaintance.
"Speak! If you provide information about other people's crimes, we'll release you." The same words were coldly uttered by the constable. Over the years, the constables of the Six Doors had become very familiar with interrogation work.
"Sir, I don't understand what you mean."
"Hmph! Our chief constable now is Duke Qin, the infamous Iron-Faced Ruthless. This is a crackdown operation, don't tell me you didn't know."
"Ah! Another crackdown!" a local thug wailed.
"good!"
"Sir, sir, I'll talk, I'll talk! I know where there are clandestine gambling dens!" the thug shouted immediately. He had been sent to a labor camp back in the day, so he naturally knew how many people had been arrested during the crackdown.
As the interrogation continued, more people were brought back. Like a snowball rolling downhill, it only took one day for Chang'an to become quiet again the next day. Everyone seemed to have become more civilized and spoke more politely.
Qin Mu's method of handling such cases was also very simple and brutal. Ordinary thugs and ruffians who provided information were punished by being made to sweep the streets of Chang'an; those with more serious crimes were made to clean the river channels and sewers; and those with even more serious crimes were in dire straits, at the very least being sent to mining and logging.
Beside the Wei River, on the original site of Qin Chang'an!
"Take the map, arrest anyone you see, don't let a single one escape. Anyone who dares to resist, kill them without mercy!" Qin Mu coldly ordered as he looked at the opened hole in the ground.
What Ma Zhou gave him at that time was a map of the underground city of Chang'an, which he had obtained through years of investigation by his undercover agents. This was also the reason why the Six Doors had not targeted underground forces for so many years.
Qin Mu personally descended into the underground cave. After walking for a while, the cave gradually opened up, and as he continued downwards, the terrain became increasingly complex, including an underground river with a rapid current. After clearing out several hidden enemies, he then faced another checkpoint, which he successfully overcame despite a surprise attack from numerous experts.
Finally, we arrived at a city wall. It was clear that it was the original wall of Chang'an, not a later construction that was simply being used. Fortunately, Chang'an was not a heavily fortified city back then, so the wall wasn't particularly tall.
A large number of people were mobilized this time, including 1,000 constables from the Six Doors, 5,000 Right Martial Guards borrowed from the army, and nearly 40 top experts. The Mo family led the way to sabotage the traps, the experts cleared out the hidden agents, and there was also a map, so so far, the progress has been very smooth.
"Attack!" Qin Mu waved his hand, and the people behind him silently rushed forward.
Most of the people living here are from underground forces who have been harming the Tang Dynasty for many years. Qin Mu has no good feelings towards these guys. As the soldiers entered the city, the outcome was no longer in doubt. The only concern was whether the leaders would run away.
Things went smoothly at first, and the attack was unstoppable, but problems soon arose.
"Reporting to the Chief Constable! There are over a thousand enemies ahead, they look like an army." A constable rushed to Qin Mu's side to report.
"Take me there!" Qin Mu perked up and waved his hand, saying that he had been waiting for the enemy's main force to appear, but encountering a force of over a thousand people was still quite unexpected.
He quickly arrived at the front, and upon seeing the scene, Qin Mu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. There were indeed over a thousand people ahead, all clad in armor, unlike any other martial arts force; they looked exactly like an army. They were well-trained, with coordinated unit types, equipped with swords, shields, bows, and crossbows.
"Hmph! What a wolf in sheep's clothing! They've actually gathered an army near Chang'an. This is clearly an attempt to rebel," Qin Mu sneered.
"Brother Qin, let me go!" Fang Yi'ai said impatiently, carrying his axe.
"Take them up," Qin Mu nodded, and then 100 heavily armored guards stepped out from behind him.
Fang Yi'ai was also wearing heavy armor, all forged from ore from the volcano. The Bu brothers hadn't returned because they had volunteered to stay and guard the mine. One can imagine how high-quality the ore was.
Fang Yi'ai led a hundred heavily armored soldiers, each carrying a double-edged axe, and charged towards the enemy.
The arrows landed on them, but were deflected.
With a swing of the axe, the man and his shield were cleaved in two.
Qin Mu's personal guards are all those who couldn't reach the top level. They were trained by him and are extremely loyal, only lacking in aptitude.
Before long, reinforcements from other places arrived, and under the leadership of many top experts, the enemy's thousand-plus soldiers were truly no match for them. However, the enemy also had many top experts, and they couldn't be defeated in a short time. Perhaps knowing that they were doing something that would involve the extermination of nine generations of their families, the soldiers fought back desperately.
"Qin Huaidao!" A handsome young man led his men to Qin Mu's vicinity, his face contorted as he glared at Qin Mu and shouted through gritted teeth.
"That's right! It is I, the official. And who are you? How dare you gather a crowd to rebel!" Qin Mu shouted coldly. He was certain he didn't recognize the person in front of him, but he was somewhat surprised that the other party could recognize him at a glance, considering that he had only been in charge of the Six Doors for three days.
The crackdown on Chang'an was merely to clear out the informants of the city's underground forces and force them to shrink their influence, making it easier to wipe them out in one fell swoop.
"Haha! Haha! Rebellion? How ridiculous! I just want to take back what rightfully belongs to me from Li Shimin," the young man laughed loudly.
"Hmph! The corrupt officials of the previous dynasty still dare to stir up trouble. They really don't know what's good for them." Qin Mu snorted coldly.
"Enough with the nonsense, Qin Huaidao, you lackey of Li Shimin, I truly regret not killing you sooner." The young man pointed his sword at Qin Mu and cursed.
"Want to die? I'll grant your wish." Qin Mu's face darkened, and then with a flick of his wrist, a white jade-like brush appeared in his hand, which he began to write in mid-air.
"Kill!" the young man shouted, unleashing a burst of sword energy.
With a loud "bang," a large, dark sword appeared in front of the sword energy, shattering it.
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