Chapter 66

Of course, he recognized who had come.

This composed and young-faced man in white was none other than Tang Gu, the lowly servant whom he had once looked down upon and, following the orders of "Iron Sword" Du Pengfei, had cut his rations.

However, who would have thought that in just a few short months, the situation would change so drastically, and the other party would leap from being an outer court disciple to entering the inner court and becoming an inner court disciple...

If the other party had been just an ordinary outer court disciple, he wouldn't have cared, but when he heard that Tang Gu had become the top disciple of the outer court and successfully entered the inner court, his heart instantly panicked, and he almost packed his bags and left on the spot.

However, he ultimately couldn't bear to give up the glory and status he had worked so hard to achieve, and he still harbored a glimmer of hope, preparing to leave only when Tang Gu made a move.

However, Tang Gu, to avoid the Du family's pursuit, went directly to the Ancient Python Mountains and only returned after several months. Upon his return, he immediately participated in the inner court competition, leaving no time to deal with him.

This made him mistakenly believe that Tang Gu had forgotten about the matter. Plus, he had been so busy collecting rations that he had almost completely forgotten about the incident where he had offended Tang Gu.

No one could have expected that he would see Tang Gu again today. The purpose of Tang Gu's visit was obvious. He secretly glanced at the black token with a flame engraving on the counter. When Manager Wei Ji recognized what the token was, his heart trembled even more, and he regretted it so much that his intestines turned green.

That was the inner court inspection token, which had the power to inspect the outer court, correct all errors and deficiencies, and even transfer or demote all outer court managers.

In other words... possessing this token was like having life and death power over them, especially for someone with a notorious record like him.

He didn't need to be investigated to know what his fate would be.

He crawled forward on his knees, hugged Tang Gu's leg, and wept bitterly, slapping his own face as he cried: "Envoy, Envoy... Envoy, I know I was wrong... Last time, I was blinded by greed, but it's not my fault. It was all Iron Sword Du Pengfei's doing. He said that if I cut your rations, everything would be mine... That's why I did it...

Envoy, please spare my life. I'm willing to work like a horse and repay you. I'll return all the stone coins I owe you... no, five times, ten times, a hundred times... just spare me this once!"

"Huh. Is that so?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Gu smiled slightly, his heart enlightened. He finally understood why he had been willing to follow Du Pengfei's orders back then.

However, he didn't bother with him, simply pulled over a chair, sat down, and didn't ask him to get up, saying coolly, "Wait a bit. We'll wait for one more person, and then we'll deal with your matters together."

"Ah, yes."

Hearing the faint rejection in Tang Gu's words, Manager Wei Ji felt like a deflated balloon, his face full of despair.

He didn't know who they were waiting for and didn't dare to ask. The entire outer affairs hall fell into an eerie silence.

All the disciples watched the several bright red handprints on Manager Wei Ji's fat face, secretly thinking how hard he had hit himself. They all felt a sense of relief and tried to suppress their laughter.

After a while, footsteps were heard outside.

Before the person arrived, a middle-aged man's voice was heard cursing: "Who's so desperate to dare order me to come here and disturb my rest? If there's no good reason, I'll flay you alive!"

As the voice faded, a man in his forties, wearing a light yellow manager's robe and with a sinister face, walked in. As soon as he entered, his sharp eyes scanned the room and noticed the strange atmosphere, but no one answered him.

In front of him, a young man in white sat in a redwood armchair, while Manager Wei Ji, who handled affairs in the outer affairs hall, knelt before the young man, his face still tear-streaked and swollen.

Several disciples secretly glanced over, surprised: "It's actually Manager Wang Zhenwu."

"Brother Ye sent for Manager Wang too. This will be a good show!"

They all knew about the grudge between Wang Zhenwu and Tang Gu and remembered the drama that had played out in this outer affairs hall. No one left.

Wang Zhenwu didn't recognize Tang Gu. He had only heard Tang Gu's name from his nephew. Although Tang Gu had been expelled from the outer court by him, he had never seen such a lowly servant and didn't bother to remember so many people, so he was a bit confused when he first entered.

However, the outer affairs hall was always their territory, where they could act as they pleased without anyone daring to challenge them. When had a young man in white, whom he had never seen before, ever overpowered them? He walked forward, pointed at Tang Gu's nose, and shouted loudly, "Who are you, with such audacity? Do you dare to cause trouble in the outer affairs hall? Do you think I won't immediately call the enforcement hall?"

"..."

The entire outer affairs hall fell into a deathly silence. Even Wei Ji couldn't help but look at him with pity, and everyone watched him with strange eyes.

Finally, Wang Zhenwu sensed something was wrong. He turned his head and looked at the kneeling Wei Ji, whose face was swollen and red, and asked, "Manager Wei, who is he?"

Before Wei Ji could answer, seeing the main person finally arrive, Tang Gu didn't bother with formalities and stood up from his chair, shouting, "Enough, Wei Ji, Wang Zhenwu, I am here to announce an order!"

Saying this, he turned, reached for the black token with a flame engraving on the table, and held it in front of the two men: "The inner court inspection token! Wei Ji, Wang Zhenwu, kneel and listen to the order!"

"Ah!"

Seeing the black token with the flame engraving in Tang Gu's hand, Manager Wang Zhenwu, in his light yellow robe, was stunned. His heart trembled with a bad premonition, and he knelt down with a thud: "I greet the Envoy!"

"Hmph!"

Tang Gu snorted coldly, took out a piece of white paper, and announced, "After investigation... Outer court manager Wei Ji, who accepted bribes and privately withheld benefits, has caused significant damage and is guilty of serious crimes.

Therefore... starting today, his position as outer court manager is revoked, and all illegal gains are to be returned to the disciples... Afterward, his cultivation will be abolished, and he will receive thirty lashes. If any other crimes are discovered, they will be punished severely!"

"Yes."

Wei Ji, who was fat, trembled uncontrollably after hearing this, his face losing all color. He took the white paper with a gray face: "Thank the Envoy!"

Beside him, Wang Zhenwu's body shook, feeling a sense of foreboding, knowing that it was his turn next.

Sure enough.

Tang Gu reached out, took out another piece of white paper, and continued reading, "After investigation... Outer court manager Wang Zhenwu, who failed to distinguish right from wrong, believed slander, and arbitrarily expelled outer court disciples.

He also allowed his nephew Wang Zheng to bully the outer court disciples and provided him with the forbidden drug 'Spider Poison Pill,' affecting the outer court competition and damaging the thousand-year tradition of fairness in our martial academy, causing significant damage and having a terrible attitude, is guilty of serious crimes.

Therefore... starting today, his position as outer court manager is also revoked, his cultivation is abolished, and he will receive forty lashes. His nephew is expelled from the academy and will never be re-admitted... If any other crimes are discovered, they will be punished severely!"

"Yes..."

Wang Zhenwu finally knew who the young man in white was. His face turned pale, and his body trembled violently, almost falling to the ground.

"You are so cruel, so cruel, so cruel... I will never let you go, even if I become a ghost..."

However, Tang Gu only gave him a cold look and said, "Wang Zhenwu, you still haven't accepted the order. Do you want to defy it? As an outer court manager, you should know that when the martial academy inspection token is issued, defying the order is a greater crime and can result in immediate execution!"

"Yes."

Hearing this, Wang Zhenwu wilted, losing all his spirit. He collapsed to the ground and trembled as he took the white paper from Tang Gu.

The white paper with black characters and a red seal, bright and eye-catching, seemed like a white tiger that had swallowed him whole.

PS: Second update, more to come.

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