Chapter Forty: This is a Hot Potato Not to be Touched!

Inside the yamen of Qinghe Town, Chen Jun sat in a chair, legs crossed, holding a cup of tea. He glanced at the corpse of Jiang Changhong on the floor and looked back at Lei Yan.

"Lei Yan, surely you realize how grave the consequences are now that he has been assassinated?"

Lei Yan calmly lifted his tea cup and took a sip. "Official Chen, of course I do. However, Jiang Changhong was derelict in his duty by leaving Qinghe Town without authorization. I hadn't even had the chance to hold him accountable before he was killed. I am quite troubled by this as well. Perhaps you could have the yamen staff exert some effort and track down the culprit who killed him?"

Chen Jun frowned. If it were that easy to find the killer, would he still be here wasting breath with Lei Yan? Jiang Changhong's death was too sudden; even he had no evidence at the moment.

The only thing...

Chen Jun placed his tea cup on the table and said airily, "Do you remember when I first arrived, and Jiang Changhong filed an anonymous report accusing Li Ping'an of the Huwei Battalion of colluding with the barbarians?"

Lei Yan's expression turned stern, and he stared intently at Chen Jun. "What are you trying to do?"

Chen Jun sneered, his fingers tapping rhythmically on his knee. "Lei Yan, you must understand one thing. Sometimes, it doesn't matter who the real culprit is. What matters is having a culprit on the surface to give everyone an explanation. Li Ping'an had a grudge against Jiang Changhong; killing him in a fit of rage over past grievances—haven't we handled cases like this before?"

Lei Yan took a deep breath. At this moment, he understood Chen Jun's plan. He intended to make Fatty Li the scapegoat!

Lei Yan slammed his hand onto the table, causing the wooden surface to crack with shocking force. "Chen Jun, you want Li Ping'an to take the fall? Not a chance!"

The surrounding soldiers changed color, their hands instinctively moving to the hilts of their swords. Chen Jun glanced at the soldiers and waved them off. They stepped back, watching Lei Yan warily.

Chen Jun clapped his hands and stood up. "General Lei, I think you have misunderstood something. I am not here to negotiate with you, but to inform you, do you understand?"

Chen Jun walked up to Lei Yan, patted his face, and scoffed. "After serving as a general of the Xilin Army in Qinghe Town for a few years, do you really think you're someone of importance? Let me tell you, in the eyes of those above, you are nothing. With a single letter from me, your position as general can be stripped away at any moment."

Lei Yan narrowed his eyes, swatted Chen Jun's hand away, and placed his own command sword on the table. "Official Chen, since you’ve put it that way, then I shall oblige you!"

"You want the command of the Xilin Army, don't you? Take it!"

Seeing the command token Lei Yan placed on the table, Chen Jun's brows locked together. Something was wrong. Although he had come to Qinghe Town specifically for this authority, Lei Yan's reaction was far too compliant. It was completely different from what he had expected. There must be a trap!

Chen Jun picked up the command token and, looking in the direction Lei Yan had left, said in a deep voice, "Find out why Lei Yan surrendered the command so easily!"

At this, Chen Jun's trusted lieutenant bowed slightly. "My lord... is it possible that if the barbarians launch a full-scale invasion in half a month and Qinghe Town falls, the blame will fall squarely on the one holding the command? This Lei Yan is clearly taking this opportunity to toss a hot potato into your hands."

Chen Jun froze, his mouth twitching. If his subordinate hadn't pointed it out, he would have forgotten what Su Mu had told him earlier. If Qinghe Town fell, even with the Chancellor backing him, he would lose his head upon returning to the capital!

Chen Jun clenched his fists, his face turning deathly pale. "A clever move, Lei Yan! You dare to set me up? Then don't blame me for being ruthless! Without the command, I want to see how you survive in Qinghe Town!"

...

In the courtyard, Fatty Li looked at Lei Yan, who was burying his head in a jug of wine, and sighed softly. "Old Lei, there was no need to fall out with the Inspector because of me. Others only see the barbarian invasion as a crisis, but they don't know that if you successfully defend Qinghe Town, it will be a monumental achievement! Given your record, once you are recalled to the capital, you would certainly be heavily rewarded!"

Fatty Li knew clearly that the price Lei Yan had paid for him was too high.

Lei Yan shook his head and took a long swig from the jug. "Fatty Li, for all these years, I have done my best to maintain Qinghe Town, and the Xilin Army has become one of the top eight frontier armies. But today, I realized one thing: in the eyes of those powerful officials, we are nothing but their hired blades! If the blade doesn't listen, they can replace it whenever they please."

Fatty Li shook his head, looking at Lei Yan with a solemn expression. "Old Lei, I used to think the same way. But a couple of days ago, that fellow Su Mu told me something that left a deep impression on me."

Upon hearing Su Mu's name, Lei Yan became interested and looked at Fatty Li curiously. "What was it?"

Fatty Li cleared his throat and looked directly into Lei Yan's eyes. "The reason those powerful officials in the Great Liang are so secure and reckless is simple! In their eyes, the world is driven by profit. As long as they offer enough sincerity, the barbarians will naturally negotiate a peace. As long as there is a peace treaty, they can continue to sleep soundly."

Lei Yan was shaken to his core. Indeed! This was why the Great Liang had been constantly retreating all these years. Ceding territory and paying indemnities! The Great Liang had accepted almost every unequal peace treaty. It turned out that in the eyes of those people, this was always the way. Self-deception!

A flicker of ruthlessness flashed in Fatty Li's eyes. "So, we must teach them a lesson! Only when they feel their own lives are threatened will they realize that peace is impossible! Only then will they be willing to pay the price and finally look at us properly."

Lei Yan exhaled deeply, his mood lightening significantly. After hearing Fatty Li's words, he understood everything! Qinghe Town... would surely fall in half a month! And when that happened, Chen Jun's fate would be self-evident! The Xilin Army would once again be leaderless, and those big shots would finally realize who was truly best suited to lead it!

"Old Li! That kid is interesting! Call him back immediately; I want to drink with him until we drop!" Lei Yan said heroically.

Fatty Li curled his lip, gesturing toward Jiang Hongluan and the others nearby. "Drink until you drop? I'm afraid you'll have to get in line! Besides, you're an old man, don't join in the fun!"

Just as Fatty Li finished speaking, a soldier ran in, panic-stricken. "General! It's bad! A major incident!"

"The barbarians have sent an envoy to negotiate!"

Hearing this, Fatty Li and Lei Yan exchanged a look and jumped to their feet.

"What?"