Chapter 581: Petition....
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Upon seeing Su Bin’s fox-like smile, Qin Zhenzhen had a realization.
“I’m guessing the Dragon Phoenix Hall probably has more than a third of the spoils, doesn’t it?”
The members of the Dragon Phoenix Hall were known for their cunning and scheming, much like their masters. Their roles as spies in the mountains suggested they held a strategic position.
Su Bin chuckled, “You know me well, wife!”
Qin Zhenzhen gave him a knowing look. “I knew it. It’s impossible for you not to snatch the lion’s share first.
In orchestrating this encirclement, Su Bin had taken substantial risks, particularly by destroying the Public House’s training base. The loss incurred was the Public House’s funds, and if they chose to retaliate, Su Bin might face severe consequences.
However, observing Su Bin’s confident demeanor, Qin Zhenzhen understood that he had likely devised a plan to address any repercussions.
“Have you thought about handling the aftermath?” she inquired.
Su Bin looked self-assured. “I’ve had it all figured out, and it’s foolproof.”
When distributing the hero invitations, he had simultaneously submitted a memorial to the emperor, detailing the situation in Shanglin and the audacity of the bandits. He requested the emperor to dispatch troops to encircle and eliminate the bandits.
Su Bin was aware that the Public House would likely suppress this memorial and keep it from reaching the emperor, as they were hesitant to send troops to Shanglin. If they had been willing, the troops would have been deployed long before.
Initially, Su Bin was uncertain about the exact reasons behind Shanglin
Prefecture’s dire state. He speculated that it might have been abandoned by the Public House as a form of punishment for disobedient officials, given the rampant banditry.
However, he later discovered that the Public House had more ambitious plans—to transform the bandit nest into their training base.
Following the submission of the first memorial, Su Bin composed a second one. In it, he analyzed the challenges of encircling and suppressing the bandits, acknowledging the imperial court’s difficulties in dispatching troops. Nevertheless, he revealed a recent death threat from the bandits, demanding his resignation under threat of harm to his entire family.
As a steadfast imperial official, Su Bin felt a duty to fulfill the emperor’s expectations and prevent the continued devastation of Shanglin Prefecture by bandits. While understanding the complexities the imperial court faced, he stressed that his confrontation with the bandits had escalated to a life-and-death situation.
Choosing not to explicitly outline his plan to widely distribute hero posts and engage righteous individuals from the martial arts world to eliminate the bandits, Su Bin added an additional memorial after the three factions entered the mountains. Only then did he report the matter of inviting the martial arts world leader and heroes to the emperor.
By the time the memorial reached the capital, the bandit nest had already been dismantled. When representatives from the capital arrived, the spoils of war had been distributed, with only the captured bandits handed over to the Imperial Court.
Examining the captives, it became evident that the individuals Su Bin had invited inadvertently stumbled upon the nest of the descendants of the previous dynasty and the covert base of the Public House.
Naturally, the Public House possessed the means to manipulate or erase any confessions unfavorable to them.
Even if the Imperial Court learned about the distribution of the spoils, there was little they could do. Attempting to reclaim the loot would undoubtedly lead to public criticism, accusing the Imperial Court of shamelessness.
Refusing to dispatch troops was already a contentious decision, and attempting to recover the spoils would further damage the Imperial Court’s reputation. Moreover, the recovered spoils might not even suffice to cover the compensation for potential casualties if an encirclement were to occur.
In such a delicate situation, the Imperial Court found itself in a challenging position..