The words that appeared in the air were like graffiti, crooked and with very complicated strokes. But soon those words emitted a milky white light, and then a hundred soldiers appeared out of thin air.
The soldiers that appeared this time were just like the previous ones, their bodies solid, like physical entities, and their weapons were the same, like real weapons radiating spiritual energy. When the weapons were wielded, ordinary soldiers were no match for them, and even experts could only fight to a draw. However, Qin Mu's righteous energy was also consumed more, losing 30% at once.
With Qin Mu's blessing, the enemy, despite their desperate resistance, kept retreating, and the young man was firmly blocked by the illusory soldiers.
"Qin Huaidao, you despicable man, if you have the guts, come here yourself, and I will kill you! Kill you!" The young man roared furiously as he brandished his sword.
Qin Mu looked at the young man, and suddenly a thought struck him. He frowned and stared at him intently for a while before waving his hand and saying, "Go, capture him alive. Once you catch him, gag him."
"Yes, sir!" The remaining two guards, carrying axes, also rushed forward.
"Yanran, capture him alive and break his filthy mouth!" Qin Mu personally struck out with a palm strike and shouted loudly.
With Qin Mu taking action himself, the young man, who was already struggling to defend himself, suffered even more. He had just dodged a sword when he was struck by a palm.
"Pfft!" The young man spat out a mouthful of blood.
This guy was like a madman, glaring with fury, and swung his sword.
"Die!" Fang Yi'ai suddenly broke through the enemy lines. Seeing someone attacking Qin Mu, he roared, leaped up, and swung his axe down.
"Leave a survivor!" Qin Mu exclaimed in alarm.
Upon hearing Qin Mu's words, Fang Yi'ai tilted his axe and swung it at Qin Mu's weapon.
With a crisp "clang!", the young man could not withstand the force of the house's remnant, and the sword was cleaved to the ground.
As soon as Fang Yi'ai landed, he loosened his grip, dropped the axe, spread his arms, hugged the young man, and then raised his arms upwards, locking the young man's neck with a strong lock.
"Waaah! Waaah!" The young man pulled hard on Fang Yi'ai's arm, his face turning red, but he couldn't budge Fang Yi'ai at all.
Fang Yi'ai was taller than him; he was practically suspending the young man in mid-air.
"Alright, Yi'ai, don't kill him!" Qin Mu said as he walked over.
"Cough cough!" Fang Yi'ai released his arm, and the young man, with his feet firmly on the ground, immediately covered his throat and coughed.
After Fang Yi'ai let go, he reached out and grabbed the young man's arm, twisting him behind his back.
"You... Qin..." The young man glared angrily at Qin Mu in front of him, about to curse.
Unfortunately, before he could speak, Qin Mu swiftly reached out and dislocated his chin.
"Woo... diligent... row... path..."
"Take him away! Don't let anyone approach him, and don't let him commit suicide!" Qin Mu said, waving his hand.
"Here you go!"
Qin Mu gave the order, and naturally someone carried it out, dragging and lifting the animal away.
As soon as the young man was arrested, more and more people began to flee, and a chase ensued.
The underground city is vast and the terrain is complex, so this war is destined to be a long time coming. However, Qin Mu is not in a hurry. His goal is to completely eliminate this biggest cancer in Chang'an.
The requirement for the underground city is to leave no one alive. Everything that is alive must be captured, and anything that can be destroyed must be destroyed. They must be interrogated on the spot, and the secret passages must be searched. The Mo family is also helping. On the surface, there are large armies guarding the area within a ten-mile radius. It can be said that not even a rat can escape.
Groups of people were taken away, along with supplies, and more than ten secret passages of varying sizes and over forty secret cellars were discovered. After interrogation, Qin Mu was astonished to learn that the underground city had actually been secretly unified, though on the surface the old situation was maintained.
The once dark underground city was now fully illuminated by the firelight. The dilapidated city walls had been demolished, all the underground tunnels had been blocked, and the roads had been destroyed. Only then did Qin Mu lead his men to retreat to the surface.
"Yiai, you personally guard these dozens of people. No one is allowed to approach them. Take them back and lock them all in the lowest level." Qin Mu pointed to a group of people whose mouths were gagged and ordered. They entered the underground area on the afternoon of the first day and came out on the afternoon of the second day. Without even having a meal, Qin Mu briefly explained the mission, then picked up the young man, rode the unicorn rhinoceros, and headed straight for the palace.
"Your subject, Qin Huaidao, pays his respects to Your Majesty."
"Didn't you go to clear out the underground city, my dear minister? It seems to have gone smoothly," Li Shimin said with a smile.
"Your Majesty, the suppression mission has been completed. However, I have discovered that some people have actually formed an army with the intention of rebelling. I dare not act on my own, so I have brought the bandit leader to Your Majesty for your decision," Qin Mu said, bowing.
"Outrageous! How dare they form an army near Chang'an? They deserve to die! Bring them in. I want to see who has the guts to do this!" Li Shimin said angrily, his face turning cold.
"Yes, sir!" Qin Mu responded, then walked out of the imperial study and brought in a disheveled man from outside. He threw him to the ground with a "plop."
The young man rolled on the ground, stared at Li Shimin with his eyes wide open in anger, and made a whimpering sound.
When Li Shimin saw the young man, his expression suddenly changed drastically.
"Your Majesty, this fellow claims to be a prince from the previous dynasty. I was so angry that I went too far and didn't have time to interrogate him."
"You've done very well, my dear minister. I will personally interrogate you." Li Shimin understood the meaning behind Qin Mu's words, his expression softened, and he nodded in satisfaction.
"Your Majesty flatters us. The underground city has been completely destroyed, and this scourge will no longer exist. However, we have captured too many criminals, and the Six Doors are short-handed. We are afraid we cannot handle all the interrogations. We would appreciate it if Your Majesty could send some people to help us."
After listening to Qin Mu's words, Li Shimin, who had calmed down, quickly figured out the situation. Qin Mu said that the former prince was hinting that the young man's true identity had not been exposed, and that asking for help meant that those who knew him had been arrested. Li Shimin then asked how to deal with the situation.
"Yes! Bring all those bandit leaders to the palace. I will arrange for them to be interrogated. As for the others, since they are suspected of treason, they shall be dealt with according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty." Li Shimin looked at Qin Mu approvingly.
"Your Majesty, I believe that since the Underground City dares to rebel, there is no need for interrogation. They should all be exiled to the mining area and spend their entire lives in the mines. We should also arrange for a Black Ape tribe to guard them. What do you think?" Qin Mu asked respectfully.
"Yes, this is the best course of action. Make the arrangements, my lord." Li Shimin was very satisfied with Qin Mu's words, which alternated between interrogation and non-interrogation. He was also pleased with Qin Mu's arrangements, since according to the law, most of them would be exiled to the frontier. Although far from the Central Plains, he was still somewhat uneasy. Keeping them confined in the mining area was certainly the most suitable option, especially with the Black Apes guarding them—that was a stroke of genius. Li Shimin knew that the Black Apes were reliable and obedient, but they didn't understand much of the Central Plains dialect.
"Yes, Your Majesty! I will take care of it immediately."
"Okay, go ahead and get busy," Li Shimin said, waving his hand.
Qin Mu took two steps back before turning and leaving the imperial study. As he walked out, he felt a slight sense of relief. In the underground city, he had noticed that the young man bore a resemblance to Li Shimin, which was why he had him captured alive. Judging from Li Shimin's behavior, it was clear that the man was indeed a member of the Tang Dynasty royal family.
It was a tricky situation. He didn't want to know about the royal family's scandals, so he tried to avoid contact with them as much as possible. The people he caught were all stuffed into the mining area.
With the order given, everyone except those to be handed over to Li Shimin was taken away, and Qin Mu even had Fang Yi'ai personally escort them.
Although no one understood why Qin Mu handled the situation so roughly, no one objected.
"Haha! Let's start taking inventory now!" Xiangli Yanran said happily.
"Go ahead! Take whatever you like," Qin Mu said generously with a smile.
These underground forces have been entrenched in Chang'an for several years, or even a hundred or two hundred years. They control the city's underground, including black market transactions, human trafficking, gambling dens, brothels, and assassins. They have amassed a vast fortune. When the search was conducted, Qin Mu was shocked. The wealth was several times greater than what he earned from wiping out an entire race in Yazhou.
Gold and silver treasures were piled up like mountains, and copper coins filled thousands of boxes—the kind of solid wooden boxes big enough to hide a grown man. There were tens of thousands of bronze artifacts, and countless medicinal herbs and ores. As for the less valuable items like cloth, they were simply given to the soldiers to distribute.
Qin Mu stood guard at the Six Doors, waiting for the inventory to be taken. After all, there was too much wealth, and it was hard to guarantee that some people wouldn't be tempted, while others might not be able to resist.
"Your Majesty, what brings you here?" Upon seeing Li Shimin dressed in plain clothes from afar, Qin Mu hurriedly went to greet him.
"Did you also stay up all night, my dear minister?" Li Shimin gestured for Qin Mu to rise.
"Your Majesty, you have been busy all night, so naturally we dare not rest," Qin Mu said with a smile.
"Hehe, Huai Dao, you've learned to flatter too." Li Shimin, who had been a little annoyed, relaxed considerably and pointed at Qin Mu, laughing along.
"Your Majesty, this way please." Qin Mu gestured with his hands clasped.
"Oh, my dear minister, do you have any good news to share with me?" Li Shimin asked curiously. The Six Doors had seized a large amount of wealth, but Li Shimin was unaware of this, as he was busy dealing with the troublesome matters Qin Mu had entrusted to him.
The two entered the detention area, passing by the guards. When Li Shimin saw the things in the square, his eyes widened instantly.
"What is this?" Looking at the neatly stacked items, with hundreds of people counting them, Li Shimin turned to Qin Mu and asked.
"These were all seized from the underground city, and we're counting them now," Qin Mu explained.
"Haha! My dear minister, you are truly my lucky general." Li Shimin couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Greetings, Your Majesty! May Your Majesty be well!" Hearing Li Shimin's laughter, the others looked over. Most of the Six Doors members had met Li Shimin before and immediately bowed down.
"All soldiers, rise. You may continue." Li Shimin gestured, then turned to the others and said, "Go and summon all those in the Ministry of Revenue who are currently unemployed, and have them help with the inventory."
Upon hearing this, Qin Mu couldn't help but roll his eyes. Li Shimin wasn't really asking for help; he clearly just wanted to pocket the wealth as soon as possible. Fortunately, what he wanted to hide had already been moved to the Heavenly Mystery Tower. Of course, he wasn't doing this for himself; he only took some gems that could be used to set up formations. As for medicinal herbs and ores, they naturally belonged to the Six Doors.
Li Shimin was so happy he couldn't stop grinning. He kept looking through the pile of treasures, like a dragon examining its own treasures, excited and protective of its food.
Qin Mu originally wanted to avoid seeing him, but with Li Shimin there, he couldn't bring himself to leave, mainly because he had no excuse. Fortunately, not long after, Changsun Wuji, the Minister of Revenue who was in charge of Li Shimin's finances, arrived.
"Duke Zhao, I'll hand this over to the Ministry of Revenue," Qin Mu said impatiently, then handed the man over so they could take over from Changsun Wuji.
Changsun Wuji, who arrived in a hurry, was completely bewildered. He took the thick stack of books from Qin Mu's hands before realizing what was happening and bowed to Li Shimin.
"Ahem! This was confiscated from criminals by the Six Doors. Fu Ji, register it and put it into the national treasury." Many ministers had arrived, and Li Shimin immediately put on a calm expression and said.
"Your subject obeys the decree!" Changsun Wuji hurriedly bowed. Then he began to direct the people to take inventory, while he himself lowered his head to look through the booklet in his hand.
Upon looking at it, Changsun Wuji felt a headache coming on. The first page listed 13,210 bronze artifacts. Following the direction the presenter was pointing, he saw bronze artifacts occupying a large area. Over 10,000 pieces wasn't a lot, but there were many small items! Those that could be recorded were at least too big to fit in a pocket, piled up to the brim, covering a large area; all sorts of strange and wonderful things were displayed there in a dazzling array.
"Ahem, my dear minister, you've worked hard." Li Shimin offered a dry compliment as they left the courtyard. He didn't know how to reward Qin Mu properly. A duke in his early twenties—aside from members of the royal family, he was unique. Crucially, he had only recently been promoted and ennobled, and this was yet another two great achievements. Not to mention capturing his trusted nemesis, Li Chengdao, the spoils alone were equivalent to a year's tax revenue for the entire country, and this happened when Qin Mu was most desperate for money.
A helping hand in times of need is always something to be remembered. While an extra sum of money is welcome when you have it, it can't compare to receiving a large sum when you're in dire need. In Li Shimin's mind, Qin Mu was a lucky general, a timely rain, a lifesaver—the kind who saved his life multiple times. On several occasions, when he faced difficulties, he suddenly felt relieved, and problems that were originally insurmountable became easy to handle.
"It is my duty to share Your Majesty's burdens," Qin Mu replied humbly.
"Do you prefer the South or the North, my dear minister?" Li Shimin asked after a moment's thought.
"The south, the climate is warmer." Not understanding why Li Shimin asked this, he thought for a moment and replied.
"You're familiar with the South Seas, aren't you?" Li Shimin asked again.
"I know a little bit, but I'm not quite sure what the current situation is," Qin Mu replied, following behind Li Shimin.
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