Chapter 70: Seeking Talented Individuals

“Bah! So what if he’s had a few years of schooling? Does he really think he’s another Xiao He or Zhang Liang?” someone grumbled irritably. Li Youliang favored settling matters by force, and had gathered many wandering swordsmen around him. But to accomplish great deeds, he also needed strategists, so he placed particular value on Bie Shan.

“Get to work! People who’ve had an education really are better than you. If you’ve got guts, put down your blade and pick up a brush!” someone else mocked himself, clapping his companion on the shoulder and telling him to go put up the notices.

As soon as the announcement was posted, all of Liangzhou was incredulous. Had the Prince of Changle lost his mind? In the past, not only would he have executed anyone who killed his man—even so much as dirtying the street in front of the prince’s manor could earn a savage beating. Yet today, he was offering an official post to the killer.

No one believed a word of it. All that talk about seeking talent was nonsense—they all knew he was only after money. Everyone waited to see if that beggar would show up to his doom. Of course, deep in their hearts, some also hoped Li Youliang had truly changed and become a wise ruler.

When the sun hung low on the horizon, a ragged beggar stepped into the governor’s residence. Some who saw this couldn’t help but worry—once inside, who knew if he’d come out alive?

In the main hall, Meng Baolai stood tall, casting a sidelong glance at the swordsmen before addressing Li Youliang with pride: “I hear you’re offering riches and honor, my lord. That’s why I’ve come.”

A flicker of displeasure passed through Li Youliang’s eyes—such insolence in his presence was clearly a sign of disrespect. He was about to order his men to cut Meng to pieces when Bie Shan exclaimed with delight, “I never imagined a hero would come forth so boldly! Tell us, what skills do you possess? If you truly have talent, the prince will not begrudge you wealth and rank.”

After meeting the Turkic envoy, Bie Shan had even more confidence in Li Youliang. Dreaming of founding merits, he was now doing his utmost to help Li Youliang gather talent.

“Hmph, of course I have ability. The so-called heroes under the prince’s command are nothing but rabble. Even if they attacked me together, none could last more than a few moves,” Meng Baolai declared, not bothering to glance at the assembled swordsmen. These people dared call themselves heroes? The lord had said a true hero serves the nation and its people—like Guo Jing in the tales, defending the city for decades. That was a true hero.

“Very good! Since you’re so confident, you all should have a match with this stalwart fellow,” Li Youliang laughed heartily, relishing the spectacle.

“I’d like to see just how tough you are,” a sturdy man wielding a cudgel stepped forward, sneering at Meng Baolai and beckoning him to the center.

Meng Baolai paid him no heed. When Cai Cong trained the new army, Meng trained alongside the others, and to avoid being outdone, he’d pushed himself even harder in secret. Cai Cong had even taught him a lethal fighting art, devised solely for killing.

As the cudgel crashed down, Meng narrowed his eyes, a cold smile on his lips. He twisted aside, narrowly dodging the blow, then curled his fingers into a fist and struck the man’s neck. The man collapsed instantly, clutching his throat and struggling to breathe.

“Pathetic. The rest of you, come at me together,” Meng Baolai said disdainfully, withdrawing his fist...

At the inn, Yu Wenshi could not focus on his reading, his anxiety mounting. He summoned one of Meng Baolai’s men and asked, “Are you certain Hero Meng will be safe? Even in Chang’an, Li Youliang was infamous for his cruelty.”

“As long as the Prince of Changle doesn’t immediately order Meng to be killed, even if trouble arises, our boss has an eighty percent chance of escape. I only fear... I only fear he’ll call for the executioners right away. If that happens, no matter how skilled Meng is, he won’t escape death,” the subordinate replied, worry etched on his face. They often drilled how to escape from a besieged compound, but could such a brutal man truly become a lord eager for talent?

“I’m beside myself with worry. I shouldn’t have agreed to let Hero Meng test the waters. If the prince has no intention of rebelling, Meng is doomed. You may go. Keep watch on the governor’s residence, and report any news at once.”

Yu Wenshi sighed, settling in for a sleepless night. This night was crucial. If Meng Baolai walked out alive the next day, it would mean Li Youliang had restrained his violent nature and was gathering talent to prepare for rebellion.

When the sun was high, Meng Baolai swaggered out of the governor’s residence in a scarlet robe. The night before, he had single-handedly defeated all the prince’s swordsmen, earning Li Youliang’s delighted proclamation, “This is my dragon among men!” and immediate appointment as his military aide.

In his chambers, Li Youliang smiled as he asked Bie Shan, “Now that I have you, a strategist as shrewd as Zhang Liang, and Meng, a warrior who can stand against thousands, with the Liangzhou army at my back and Turkic support outside, do you think it’s time to rebel?”

“Absolutely not! Though you command the formidable Liangzhou army, you have no just cause. The people of the realm will not answer your call. Isolated, you’ll be crushed by Li Shimin’s armies,” Bie Shan urged. The Liangzhou troops were renowned for their ferocity, but against the tiger-wolf legions of Tang, they would be torn apart.

“What is there to fear? The Turkic Khagan, Jieli, will send troops to aid me. All I must give is a little grain,” Li Youliang laughed heartily. “A little grain for a Turkic army, and I have the chance to seize the throne—what a bargain!”

“Those who are not our kind cannot be trusted!”

“Enough. No more. News from Chang’an says Li Shimin has sent someone to replace me as governor. If I don’t act now, shall I wait until my command is stripped away?”

Li Youliang spoke impatiently. Bie Shan was competent in everything but far too timid, always fearful. If not for his abilities, Li Youliang would have killed him already.

Seeing Li Youliang’s impatience, Bie Shan opened his mouth but fell silent in the end.

“Come to the barracks and see for yourself the might of my army. Then you’ll be rid of your cowardice,” Li Youliang said proudly. Bie Shan shook his head helplessly, but having chosen this path, there was no turning back.

In Chang’an, all was peaceful. Even if Li Youliang rebelled, the city’s prosperity would not be affected overnight. Cai Cong’s days were uneventful—teaching advanced knowledge at the academy when he had time, otherwise attending lessons at the palace and dealing with the Li family’s demands.

As for the Zhang and Liang families, they were finished. Their businesses had been crushed by Cai Cong; in a short time, unsold goods had piled up, and even liquidation could not move them. The neighboring shops weren’t in it for profit—damn them, who sells a broadsword for half the wholesale price, or fine silk clothes for next to nothing? Worst of all, anyone who bought from the Zhangs or Liangs would be blacklisted from the neighboring store.

The clerks from those shops had fought countless times, but Cai’s men were ruthless—fighting as if their lives depended on it. Rumor had it that if one of them was crippled, the boss would give him easy work with high pay; if killed, the boss would support his entire family.

Now, Cai’s clerks looked forward each day to another brawl, hoping their rivals would attack. But who dared? If they were killed or maimed, their families would starve.

Cai Cong, having finished his lecture at the academy, left amid respectful farewells from the crowd. Xu Jie looked proudly at the scholars and representatives of other schools. When they’d first arrived, all had noses in the air, but in the end, each was won over by the lord’s talent.

“Hold your head down. They’re all good teachers, shaping young minds. No need to be arrogant,” Cai Cong said with a smile.

“Heh, but I can’t help it. Remember how full of themselves they were at first? Now when you lecture, they all shamelessly sit with the students to listen. Just thinking about it is so satisfying.”