"Hehe! It's alright! This won't affect our friendship." Qin Mu smiled and nodded to the Baili siblings. They had been through thick and thin together these past few days.
"Thank you for your understanding, Brother Qin!" Baili Bing said, bowing with gratitude.
"Sit down and watch the show!" Qin Mu said, gently patting Baili Bing's shoulder.
"Alas! Their long reign as local tyrants has made them forget how insignificant they are!" Baili Bing sat down, shook his head, and sighed.
Not understanding why he was so emotional, Qin Mu smiled without saying a word, quietly drinking his tea and watching the aristocratic families bustling about in the distance.
Those people are probably setting up a large formation to attack the entrance to the secret realm. The exact reason why the secret realm has an entrance is unknown, but it is the weakest point in the entire secret realm.
After waiting for more than an hour, another group of people came from afar. This group rode fast horses, dismounted, and quickly went to the other group.
"Boom! Boom!" The bloodthirsty energy gathered together and continuously attacked the open space. What was originally a hillside was now just a mound of earth, and the soil that had not yet been compacted was once again flying up.
"Bang! Bang!" More than a dozen figures fell from the sky. Qin Mu could see clearly that it was Ouyang Jingbian and the others rushing out of the secret realm. However, they did not fall into the lake, but instead landed on land.
Among those who fell out were men in black, but they were quickly killed or subdued.
Ouyang Jingbian and the others were in a much worse state than Qin Mu and his group, especially Nangong Ling, who had to be carried away.
"Brother Ouyang! Miss Ouyang! It's so good that you're alright!" Seeing the Ouyang siblings approaching, Baili Bing hurriedly went to greet them.
Ouyang Jing picked up the teapot, poured himself three cups of tea, drank them, and then smiled and said, "It's so good to see you all again."
Qin Mu nodded to Ouyang Jingbian, then poured a glass of water and handed it to Ouyang Qian, saying, "Miss Ouyang, have some water and rest for a bit."
Ouyang Qian wasn't in much better shape either; her clothes were stained with blood and torn in more than one way.
"Thank you!" Ouyang Qian said, then elegantly drank it down.
"Excuse me, let's change our clothes." Ouyang Jingbian was even worse off than his sister, his clothes were practically beggar's clothes.
"Please make yourselves at home!" Qin Mu nodded.
More than a dozen tents had already been set up nearby, and the Ouyang siblings chose two and went inside.
Qin Mu was slightly surprised when Ouyang Qian reappeared. She was wearing a tight-fitting leather armor that accentuated her curves. Such tight clothing was something he had never seen in this world before. Even in brothels, the girls dressed more revealingly.
However, as Qin Mu's gaze shifted downwards, a question suddenly occurred to him, and he couldn't help but reveal a strange smile.
It was a pair of tight leather pants. In a world where pants were mostly worn under dresses, it was considered short-sleeved leather pants and a blouse. Most people might find it strange, but Qin Mu certainly wouldn't, because it was very similar to clothing in another world.
Qin Mu wanted to laugh because he remembered a question that had never been answered: If you fart while wearing leather pants, will your pants bulge?
Seeing Qin Mu looking at her strangely, with a half-smile, Ouyang Qian thought something was wrong and hurriedly looked down at herself.
"I don't have any suitable clothes at the moment, please excuse me." Ouyang Qian stopped gracefully, sat down next to Qin Mu, and deliberately straightened her back, smiling slightly.
"Hmph!" Baili Rou snorted coldly and looked up into the distance. She had always disliked Ouyang Qian, feeling that she was deliberately pretentious; if it weren't for the fear of damaging the relationship between the two families, she probably wouldn't have given her a friendly look.
"Boom!" Another loud noise rang out, and smoke filled the air, as if a mountain had been split open and rocks had been shattered.
"Oh! Oh oh!" came a burst of excited shouts.
Qin Mu and the others couldn't help but stand up and look ahead. As the dust settled, a huge gate of light appeared on the hillside.
Members of the well-prepared aristocratic families quickly stepped forward and set up array plates one by one to stabilize the gate to the secret realm.
After waiting for half an hour, a group of about 500 people were ready and lined up to enter the secret realm.
Qin Mu twirled the folding fan in his hand, a playful smile appearing on his lips. His eyes darted around slightly before he sat down and began to drink tea again.
Knowing they had been working hard these past few days, someone brought them food. Qin Mu ate it without a care in the world.
"Boom boom boom!" A series of sounds came, from soft to loud.
That was the sound of warhorses galloping, and on a large scale. Ouyang Qing stood up with a serious expression and looked into the distance with Ximen Linxian and the others.
Feeling the ground shake, Qin Mu put down his chopsticks, looked back, and his smile deepened.
The Tang Dynasty banner fluttered in the wind, followed by a dense array of cavalry.
The cavalry stopped 500 meters away, and then more than a dozen men on horseback continued forward.
"Who are you people?!" Ouyang Qing asked, his face ashen.
Ignoring Ouyang Qing and the others who came to greet him, the newcomer dismounted and walked towards Qin Mu. At this moment, Qin Mu had already stood up.
"Greetings, Prefect! (Chief Constable!)"
"Please, everyone, no need for formalities!" Qin Mu raised his hand to indicate, then smiled apologetically at Baili Bing and the others who looked bewildered.
"This humble general, Gao Kan, has been ordered by Governor Zhang to lead a thousand troops to the prefect's camp to receive orders!" a young general said, clasping his hands in greeting.
"This humble general, Pei Xingjian, has been ordered by General Qiao Shiwang to lead 500 soldiers to the prefect's camp to receive orders!" Another, younger general introduced himself with clasped hands.
"The entire Six Doors have come as ordered!" Han Chen, Huang Sanjian, and the others said, clasping their hands in greeting.
"Thank you all for your hard work!" Qin Mu returned the greeting with a fist and palm salute.
Han Chen and the others were summoned by Qin Mu, mainly to deal with Temujin's organization, but they unexpectedly had an effect.
As for Gao Kan and Pei Xingjian, they were troops stationed in Longyou by the imperial court, and were sent by Feng Duan to rescue Qin Mu after he learned of Qin Mu's disappearance.
"Brother Qin!...You...you..." Baili Bing pointed at Qin Mu, then at the troops not far away, unsure of what to say.
To his somewhat straightforward new friend, Qin Mu smiled apologetically and said, "Brother Baili, everyone! I'm truly sorry for deceiving you. Let's get to know each other again! I am Qin Mu! I am temporarily serving as the Chief Constable of the Six Doors in Shuozhou."
"Qin Huaidao of the Six Doors!" Nangong Ling exclaimed in surprise.
"Exactly." Qin Mu smiled and nodded.
"It's alright! It's alright! I understand." Upon hearing that Qin Mu was a member of the imperial court, Baili Bing nodded in understanding. He knew that the imperial court and the powerful families of the Northwest were not close.
"So it's Chief Constable Qin, how rude of me." Ouyang Qing forced a smile and bowed.
"No need for such formalities, Patriarch Ouyang!" Qin Mu returned the greeting.
"Who the hell is being polite to you!" Ouyang Qing cursed under his breath. He knew things were going to get complicated. Not only did the imperial court know about the secret realm, but they had also sent troops. The key point was that he had previously wanted to place Qin Mu under house arrest.
In the city, the powerful families certainly wouldn't be afraid of Qin Mu and his group, not even under normal circumstances. However, most of their experts had gone beyond the Great Wall, and Yumen Pass had been reinforced with a large number of troops. Although he knew Qin Mu wouldn't, and wouldn't dare, attack the powerful families, this was the wilderness!
"I never imagined that Young Master Qin was a prefect! How rude of me! Why don't you come to Tianshui Prefecture to rest for a while, so we can apologize?" Ximen Linxian said with a smile and clasped his hands in greeting.
It's said that you can't hit a smiling face, but Qin Mu didn't have that awareness. He shook his head and said, "I'm really sorry, I appreciate everyone's kindness! But I have important matters to attend to!"
"This..." As soon as Qin Mu finished speaking, Ouyang Qing and the others' expressions changed drastically. It was obvious that the important thing Qin Mu mentioned was the secret realm.
"Officer Qin, this isn't quite right! The secret realm is in Tianshui!" Ouyang Qing said with a stern face, his usual smile gone.
"Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the emperor! Tianshui is also the land of the Tang Dynasty! What's wrong with that?" Qin Mu asked coldly.
“I…” Ouyang Qing was choked and speechless. He could not object to Qin Mu’s words, after all, even aristocratic families would not dare to openly turn against the imperial court.
"Guards!" Qin Mu ignored all that and shouted in a deep voice.
"Your subordinates are here!" Gao Kan and the others stepped forward, clasped their hands in greeting, and expressed their admiration and appreciation for Qin Mu's toughness.
"Feng Duan! Pei Xingjian!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
"You two will lead a thousand men to seal off the secret realm! Anyone who dares to trespass will be killed without mercy!"
"Here you go!"
"Everyone else, follow me into the secret realm!"
"Here you go!"
As soon as Qin Mu gave the order, the army immediately sprang into action.
"Brother Baili! Would you be interested in accompanying me on another trip to the secret realm?" Qin Mu asked with a smile.
"That is exactly what I wish for!" Baili Bing smiled and replied with a cupped hand.
"Let's go!" Qin Mu waved his hand and led the way into the secret realm.
"They...they! How dare they do this!" Ximen Linxian pointed at Qin Mu and the others, his fingers trembling with anger as he watched them enter the secret realm.
“Of course they dare! Unless you want to turn against the imperial court!” Ouyang Qing was not so agitated and said calmly.
"Brother Ximen, don't get agitated! Getting angry won't help!" Nangong Gang comforted him.
"Hmph! Use a master to take down that Qin fellow! Let's see what they dare to do!" Ximen Lin sneered, his eyes flashing with a fierce light as he looked into the distance.
“They’re not idiots. If they dare to do it, they’re not afraid! Unless they really turn against us, there’s no other way,” Ouyang Qing said, shaking his head.
"Are we just going to stand by and watch?" Ximen Linxian said, unwilling to give up.
"Calm down! Such a large secret realm, what can two or three thousand people do? Can they move the mines? Or hunt down all the beasts? Let them help develop it, what's wrong with that! This is Tianshui! It's just that it's impossible for us to monopolize it." Ouyang Qing said, stroking his short beard.
"What's your idea?" Ximen Lin asked first.
“One option is to unite all the powerful families in the Northwest to resist the imperial court and share the secret realm; the other is to cooperate with the imperial court to develop the secret realm together,” Ouyang Qing said.
“Of course, we should unite all the powerful families! The secret realm is on our territory, so even if it's developed, we'll take the lion's share!” Ximen Linxian immediately said.
“I disagree! On the contrary, I think it’s better to cooperate with the imperial court!” Nangong Gang said.
"Why?" Ximen Lin asked, frowning.
"The imperial court will certainly not use forceful measures to avoid offending the powerful families! So we will still benefit the most. Moreover, with the imperial court blocking our way, other powerful families will have no way to gain an advantage," Nangong Gang explained.
“I also agree with cooperating with the imperial court!” Ouyang Qing nodded and said.
"I still object. Let's discuss it together after the exchange meeting," Ximen Linxian said, still unwilling to admit defeat.
"It's too late! By the time the exchange meeting ends, the news will definitely spread. They'll all flock to us, and the imperial court probably won't be able to refuse them," Ouyang Qing said, shaking his head.
Ximen Lin didn't say anything more, just snorted and fooled himself.
Knowing that he was tacitly agreeing, Nangong Gang asked, "Then what do we do? Wait for that guy surnamed Qin to come out and talk?"
“No! We’ve offended that Qin guy, he might not agree. Besides, this kind of young man is impetuous and arrogant, he probably wants to monopolize the secret realm. We should go find the nearest high-ranking official in the court! And it has to be someone who can speak for you in the court.” Ouyang Qing shook his head and said.
"Who are you looking for? Zhang Gongjin, the governor of Shuozhou?" Nangonggang asked.
“That’s right! Neither the imperial court nor Zhang Gongjin wants trouble in the Northwest. And there’s Qiao Shiwang! He’s the closest imperial troops to us! With his support, things will be much easier,” Ouyang Qing said.
“Alright! I will go to Shuozhou myself! I'll leave things here in your care.” Nangong Gang nodded and said.
"I'm sorry to trouble you, Brother Nangong."
"Hmm!" Nangong Gang nodded, then ordered someone to bring horses and left with a few people.
Although Feng Duan saw some people leaving, he did not stop them and continued to arrange the defense in an orderly manner.
On the other side, Qin Mu entered the secret realm. This time, he appeared not far from a mountain, where many people from aristocratic families were watching Qin Mu and his group in surprise.
More and more people entered the secret realm, while the members of the aristocratic families retreated warily.
Looking around, Qin Mu ordered, "General Gao! Take men to select a location and set up camp!"
"Yes!" Gao Kan clasped his hands in response and immediately led his men into action, ignoring the members of those aristocratic families.
"Han Chen! You lead a group to find medicinal herbs! Huang Sanjian, Zhang Yi, you lead a group to set traps at the edge of the forest! Prepare to hunt wild beasts!" Qin Mu ordered again.
He had just given a brief introduction to the secret realm, so the crowd immediately sprang into action.
"Why did you bring them along?" Qin Mu asked, pointing to the people who had stayed behind.
Besides his two hundred most elite constables, he was accompanied by three hundred men also dressed in flying fish robes, but these were the men who studied with Qin Mu.
"Didn't you say you were bringing all the people from the Six Doors out?" Xi Junmai asked innocently.
"Alright! Let them go with Han Chen to find medicinal herbs! Have someone protect them." Qin Mu said with a frown. Since they've come, it wouldn't be good to send them back again. Although they're not strong in combat, they're still manpower.
The people from the Six Doors quickly dispersed, advancing in groups, some heading towards the mountain, others towards the edge of the forest.
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