Chapter 88

Fu Qingyang has arrived?

Pang Zhisshi's eyebrows twitched, and he suddenly stood up.

Xiahou Tianyuan pondered and said:

"Who is this Fu Qingyang?"

The Fu family is a lineage of spirit realm practitioners, one of the dominant forces of the White Tiger Army, and a towering presence in the entire Five Elements Alliance.

The Fu family also controls vast assets overseas, making them a notorious big capitalist.

In terms of family influence and wealth, the Xiahou family falls far short of the Fu family.

Pang Zhisshi thought for a moment and said:

"This person is extremely arrogant, with extraordinary talent. I heard that during his Extraordinary stage, he once faced a Saint-level evil professionist, fought to the death, and managed to hold out for the duration of an incense stick, which is nothing short of a miracle.

"Fu Qingyang has been dispatched to Songhai for less than a year, and I haven't had much interaction with him. But from the limited times we've met, he is arrogant, but not a hothead."

Xiahou Tianyuan immediately felt relieved and smiled:

"It's good that he's not a hothead. His family, the Fu family, and the White Tiger Army have many business dealings with the Xiahou family. For the sake of an ordinary person, I doubt he would risk a falling out with us."

Pang Zhisshi remained silent, having already heard the chaotic footsteps approaching the office, and there were quite a few people.

Xiahou Tianyuan's face turned cold as he looked at the open office door.

A group of people appeared in his field of vision, led by a man in a crisp white suit, strikingly handsome, with a stylish short ponytail.

On his left was someone with messy hair and squinting eyes, and on his right was the one who had ruined his plans and become his enemy, Yuanshi Tiancao.

At this moment, Yuanshi Tianzun was fawning over Fu Qingyang like a lackey.

You won't be smug for long... Xiahou Tianyuan's face darkened.

"Captain Fu!" Pang Zhisshi approached, smiling.

"What brings you here with such a grand entourage?"

Fu Qingyang glanced at Xiahou Tianyuan:

"To arrest someone!"

Pang Zhisshi's smile remained unchanged:

"Who?"

Fu Qingyang didn't want to elaborate, and the lackey, Zhang Yuanqing, spoke up at the right moment:

"Solid evidence, we need to detain him legally."

"Xiahou Tianyuan is suspected of kidnapping and endangering social stability."

Pang Zhisshi's face darkened, and he coldly snorted:

"Is this your place to speak?"

He turned to Fu Qingyang and smiled again:

"Captain Fu, Xiahou Tianyuan has already been arrested in my jurisdiction for assault. As for the kidnapping, he has confessed. According to the rules, this is already a case in Fenghua District."

Fu Qingyang said coolly:

"Do you want to talk about rules? Let me tell you, the victim's family reported the case to the Kangyang District Spirit Realm Walkers Squad this morning. My people killed the kidnappers and rescued the hostage. If we follow the rules, I have more authority than you."

Pang Zhisshi shook his head:

"I have already arrested him and cannot hand him over. If it goes to the Elder Council, I still have the upper hand."

He knew that Fu Qingyang had the upper hand, so he came up with this plan to use the rules to counter the rules, to create a deadlock.

In official matters, one must know how to use the rules.

Xiahou Tianyuan chimed in:

"Captain Fu, I have already turned myself in and am willing to accept punishment. What do you mean by being so aggressive?"

Seeing that Fu Qingyang didn't respond, he smiled:

"Hand him over, and I'll still call you brother."

"Speaking of which, the Fu family and the Xiahou family have business dealings, and we are old acquaintances."

Xiahou Tianyuan's meaning was clear: Are you really going to risk a falling out with the Xiahou family over an ordinary person?

Fu Qingyang didn't even look at him, focusing on Pang Zhisshi and said coolly:

"I'm not here to negotiate."

Pang Zhisshi frowned:

"Then what are you here for?"

Fu Qingyang opened his inventory, summoned a black banner, and with a flick of his wrist, it nailed into the table in front of Xiahou Tianyuan.

Xiahou Tianyuan's body trembled, and he collapsed onto the sofa, his muscles twitching and spasming. His face was furious, but he couldn't move.

"Fu Qingyang!"

Pang Zhisshi was enraged and demanded:

"Are you going to fight me?"

He placed his hands on his chest, and a green glow spread out, rippling through the office.

Cracks appeared on the floor and walls, and thick vines grew, sealing the windows and doors, turning the office into a wooden cage.

Pang Zhisshi coldly snorted:

"Nobody will leave here today."

Vines sprouted from his skin, extending and writhing like tentacles, forming a vine armor.

Fu Qingyang pulled out a bronze sword from his inventory, three feet and two inches long, with a rusted blade and eight faces.

Is he going to fight? A Saint-stage Walker in such a confined space, will it affect us? Zhang Yuanqing's heart raced.

He immediately looked at Guan Ya, Ling Gou, Bai Long, and others, but found that these veteran Walkers were calm and composed.

Too calm, did I overestimate the power of a Saint-stage? Zhang Yuanqing was puzzled.

He had heard from Li Dongze and Guan Ya that Fu Qingyang was exceptionally talented and the most promising candidate to become an elder in this generation of the Five Elements Alliance.

But hearing about it and experiencing it are different.

Now, Zhang Yuanqing had a clear understanding.

Indeed, a prodigy.

No wonder Guan Ya and others were so calm.

Xiahou Tianyuan, slumped on the sofa, turned pale at the sight.

Fu Qingyang didn't look at Pang Zhisshi, walked to the coffee table, pulled out the black banner, and put it back in his inventory.

Xiahou Tianyuan immediately jumped up, his voice trembling:

"Fu Qingyang, I am a direct descendant of the Xiahou family. Are you really going to oppose the Xiahou family?"

Fu Qingyang raised the hilt of his sword and struck his head.

Xiahou Tianyuan leaned back to avoid the blow.

Bang!

His head was hit hard, and he lost consciousness, his last thought being:

I clearly avoided it...

Fu Qingyang turned and left:

"Take him away!"

Official Forum

Repost: [Shocking! Xiahou Tianyuan suspected of kidnapping and endangering social stability, arrested by Captain Fu of Kangyang District]

By evening, a post from the Taiyi Sect's official forum sparked heated discussions among the Five Elements Alliance Walkers.

The post detailed the incident: Yuanshi Tianzun of the Kangyang District's Second Squad received a report from the victim's family, who claimed that Xiahou Tianyuan had kidnapped their family member using despicable means.

The righteous Yuanshi Tianzun, enraged, took action, enduring great hardships to kill the bandits and rescue the hostage. Subsequently, Fu Qingyang led a team to arrest Xiahou Tianyuan.

Notably, the poster was named Yuan Ting.

"Bandits? Ha, the Xiahou family is becoming more and more lawless."

"The Xiahou family has always been like this. Which spirit realm lineage is gentle and humble? But this time, they've picked a fight in Songhai and met their match."

"Captain Fu doesn't tolerate such behavior. It's about time they were punished. The Xiahou family has been ignoring the rules because of their connections with the upper echelons."

"Be careful what you say, or your colleagues might come to check your water meter at night."

"This Yuanshi Tianzun is interesting, I like him."

"Young people are always full of zeal, but I'm afraid he'll be retaliated against by the Xiahou family. Kidnapping an ordinary person is a big deal for a wild Walker, but it might not affect Xiahou Tianyuan much."

"If the Xiahou family retaliates against Yuanshi Tianzun, it's a declaration of war against us. I'm just worried about their underhanded tactics. I wonder how this will play out."

"The Xiahou family is already working on it. I heard that several Songhai executives have reported Captain Fu, requesting a meeting to judge him."

"Judge him? On what grounds?"

"I know this. Our district's Pang Zhisshi was injured by Captain Fu."

"This..."

Zhang Yuanqing finished his dinner, read through the forum comments, and quietly closed the screen.

The dinner table was unusually quiet that night. His aunt and cousin were on night shifts, leaving only his grandparents and him at home.

Before dinner, his uncle came over to challenge the successor to a dance-off but was chased away by his grandmother.

The two dancers weren't embarrassed, but his grandmother was.

"I wonder if Captain Fu can handle this..."

Zhang Yuanqing lay in bed, waiting for the meeting results.

After arresting Xiahou Tianyuan, the pressure came. Under Xiahou Xin's influence, officials with ties to the Xiahou family, including Five Elements Alliance executives and Taiyi Sect team leaders, called Fu Qingyang one after another.

Some tried to persuade him, others begged for mercy.

Guan Ya mentioned that the Fu family also called Fu Qingyang, asking him to release Xiahou Tianyuan, but the family elders didn't take a stance.

Actually, the one with a stake in this matter was him, not Fu Qingyang.

But the Captain took the responsibility.

Guan Ya's explanation was: You're his subordinate, he will definitely protect you!

Zhang Yuanqing was moved and said: Captain Fu is so loyal?

Guan Ya replied: No, he's just full of himself.

Chapter 80

In a high-end villa, on the second floor.

Fu Qingyang held a glass of wine, sitting on the balcony, enjoying the cool breeze.

Across the round table, Ling Jun squatted on a single sofa.

"You're not giving me any face."

"Oh, so you were part of the cover-up for Xiahou Tianyuan."

Ling Jun was furious:

"Fine, I thought you were Yue Fei, but you're Qin Hui."

He picked up a piece of melon with a toothpick and ate it, sighing:

"That kid, he'll be your lackey in the future."

"You have a good way of winning people's hearts, Fu Qingyang."

Fu Qingyang frowned:

"I call it leading by example."

He didn't like the utilitarian term "winning people's hearts" but didn't bother to explain.

Ling Jun, squatting on the sofa, held his phone and checked the time:

"The meeting starts in five minutes. Have you thought about how to handle them? The Fu family elders haven't held you accountable, which is good, but they won't back you up either."

"Without the Fu family, those guys won't fear you. After all, you're just an executive."

Ling Jun winked:

"Need my help? Just call me big brother."

Fu Qingyang coldly replied:

"You don't really want to help me."

Given his character, he would never call anyone big brother, and Ling Jun knew this, so his offer was insincere.

Ling Jun sighed:

"Kidnapping won't be enough to bring down Xiahou Tianyuan. Xiahou Chi is still in Songhai, and he's Xiahou Tianyuan's grandfather. As long as he's around, Xiahou Tianyuan will be fine."

Xiahou Chi is the one who fought the Palace Master of Zhishe Palace.

Fu Qingyang didn't argue; it was the truth.

He glanced at his watch, stood up, and walked to the study:

"I'm going to the meeting."

In the study, a tall and slender maid had already turned on the computer and logged into the meeting software. The Five Elements Alliance has a rule: small meetings are held offline, large meetings online.

Large meetings are easily leaked, and a misstep could lead to an "atomic bomb" from evil professionists. Of course, the annual performance review of the Taiyi Sect and the Five Elements Alliance's leader meetings are exceptions.

When the time came, the executives logged in one by one.

The computer screen showed that 22 people were in the meeting, and two-thirds of the Songhai branch executives were present.

This meeting was called by several Songhai branch executives, and similar meetings happen a few times a year in Songhai.

Usually, the elders call the meetings, but if there's a difficult decision, executives can submit a request for a large meeting.

The theme of this meeting was to handle the case of Xiahou Tianyuan, a direct descendant of the Xiahou family, and Pang Zhisshi's accusation of Fu Qingyang's malicious harm to a colleague, as well as Fu Qingyang's accusation of Pang Zhisshi's corruption and dereliction of duty.

Everyone's microphones were muted.

Elder Teddy, who chaired the meeting, said sternly:

"I'm giving you fifteen minutes. I want a result in fifteen minutes."

The highest level in the Songhai branch is the five elders, followed by the major district executives, and then the spirit realm walker squads.

As one of the five powerful elders, Elder Teddy didn't care about the life of a spirit realm lineage's direct descendant and didn't want to waste too much time on this matter.

"Pang Wudi, you speak first." Elder Teddy opened Pang Zhisshi's microphone.

"Elder, I arrested Xiahou Tianyuan for assault in my jurisdiction, following the rules. Fu Qingyang led a team to forcibly enter my office and almost killed me. According to the Five Elements Alliance's rules, harming a colleague is punishable by death."

Several executives immediately typed in support, demanding severe punishment for Fu Qingyang.

Elder Teddy then opened Fu Qingyang's microphone:

"Fu Qingyang, what do you have to say?"

"Everything I have to say is in the report," Fu Qingyang said coolly.

Elder Teddy said sternly:

"Is it true, then?"

"You know I didn't lie."

"You knew Xiahou Tianyuan had already turned himself in, yet you still tried to take him, ignoring the Five Elements Alliance's rules. Is that true?"

"No," Fu Qingyang's tone was cold.

Elder Teddy muted him and asked Pang Zhisshi:

"Pang Wudi, tell me, why did Xiahou Tianyuan confess to kidnapping in your jurisdiction? Did your noble image make him submit?"

Pang Zhisshi replied:

"Xiahou Tianyuan knew he was wrong, so he turned himself in."

Fu Qingyang snorted.

Elder Teddy's tone turned cold:

"This is an internal meeting, so I won't mince words. Before Xiahou Tianyuan turned himself in, the hostage had already been rescued. His surrender was for self-preservation. This is my judgment. Fu Qingyang has reported you for corruption and protecting criminals. Pang Wudi, you better give me an explanation."

"There is no such thing," Pang Wudi said sternly.

"Can you stand up to an investigation?" Elder Teddy snorted.

Pang Wudi fell silent.

The frequency of other executives typing decreased significantly.

Elder Teddy continued:

"Since both of you are at fault, let's split the blame. The Black Wuchang case will be investigated separately. I'll deal with your issues later. As for how to handle Xiahou Tianyuan, I want to hear your opinions."

Immediately, seven or eight executives requested to speak.

"Elder, Xiahou Tianyuan kidnapped the family member of a Zhishe Palace member. Although he was wrong, he had no intention to harm. It was to lure out the target. He can be leniently punished."

"Elder, Xiahou Tianyuan is a direct descendant of