Star Trace Gate

Chapter 942 The Vanished Huge Amount of Star Source, Forced Bribery

After leaving the supply depot, Ren arrived at the garrison headquarters alone.

Beifeng Town is a crucial gateway and strategic location to the north of Tiandu. However, after Tianzhao Temple captured it, they only managed to loot and count a little over 20 million Star Sources – an absurdly low amount. Furthermore, at yesterday's banquet, Wang Anquan had subtly hinted at something, saying he also had some valuable items at home that needed to be verified…

Therefore, Ren also planned to use the pretext of checking the accounts to see what Wang Anquan wanted to do by inviting him to his residence, and also to test the man's temperament and try to figure out his thoughts.

Upon entering the garrison's compound, after Little Bad King explained his purpose, a servant immediately led him towards the reception hall. They had barely gone halfway when Wang Anquan, with a face full of obsequiousness, came out to greet them.

"Oh my, what a sir! I was just about to send someone to the supply depot to fetch you to come to my residence, but Madam said it's your first day in office and you must be quite busy, so I thought I'd bring you over tonight... Haha, but that's fine too. I'll have the servants prepare some food and wine for lunch, you can eat here, I guarantee it'll be more comfortable than at the supply depot." Wang Anquan was extremely enthusiastic, and when he spoke, he kept a very low profile, constantly nodding and bowing, showing no signs of unfamiliarity or embarrassment.

As the saying goes, life experience is the best teacher. The once reckless man who dared to challenge the Crown Prince and the Divine Court has now lost all his military bearing after experiencing numerous setbacks and surrendering the city. All that remains is the humble feeling of a person in a chaotic world, neither high nor low, struggling to survive, his spine crushed.

Ren smiled slightly and said politely, "Wang Zhenshou, you are older than me, so you should address me as your elder brother. There is no need to be so polite with me, and you don't need to call me 'sir' anymore. Just call me Zhenyi."

"Haha, very good, very good. From now on, I will call you Brother Zhenyi. In the yamen, I will do whatever you ask. In private, we brothers can take care of each other. We don't seek great wealth or endless opportunities, but only hope to find a place to stand in this chaotic world." Wang Anquan's words were very eloquent, both affirming Ren Ye's official position and his support for his work, and then privately bringing the two closer.

"Of course, of course," Ren Ye replied with a smile, and then followed Wang Anquan to the reception room in the front courtyard of the garrison headquarters.

The two entered, and servants brought them fruits and snacks, and after brewing hot tea, they sensibly closed the door and left.

Inside the room, the doors and windows were tightly closed, and the aroma of tea filled the air. There was a sense of tranquility throughout, where one could confidently and boldly plot any event.

Wang Anquan sat on the right side of the square table, his eyes darting slyly at Ren Ye's expression before he picked up the teapot with both hands, pouring tea for Ren Ye while asking with a smile, "Hehe, Brother Zhenyi, how did your trip to the supply depot go today?"

"Oh ho, so you can tell I'm having a rough time. You obviously know the inside story..." Ren thought for a moment, then followed up with the other person's words: "Alas, to be honest, Brother Wang, since I took office today, everything has really gone wrong, and I'm filled with resentment."

"Hmm? Brother Zhenyi, what's wrong? Tell me quickly, and I'll help if I can." Wang Anquan pushed the teacup in front of Ren Ye with both hands.

Ren Ye had a long face and droopy eyelids, deliberately showing an expression as if his best friend Lao Liu had died. He sighed and said, "After taking office today, I first checked the accounts of the treasury of Beifeng Town. But after checking, I found that the total amount of Star Source in the general account was only a little over 20 million... Moreover, the amount of various confiscated rare treasures, military equipment and supplies was also pitifully small."

"This humble monk simply doesn't understand. The Northern Wind Town, a vast and important city under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Capital Divine Court, couldn't possibly have only this much wealth after the war!"

“Brother Wang, let me tell you… with these current account figures, how can I possibly report back to the temple? If I were to hand over these accounts, the temple would surely be furious. Although I would certainly be punished for incompetence, I am only a newcomer here and know nothing about the situation. So, the ones who will truly suffer are the Garrison Command and the Martial Monk Supervisory Office. After all, the Garrison Command handed over these account books, and then the Martial Monk Supervisory Office reviewed them. If these account figures are too outrageous, the higher-ups will definitely investigate these two offices first.”

"Alas, it is nothing for this humble monk to suffer a little grievance, but if... Brother Wang is implicated, then I will truly feel guilty."

Little Bad King spoke warmly, seemingly genuinely considering Wang Anquan's best interests, but in reality, he was subtly sarcastic, first and foremost absolving himself of any responsibility. The implication was that since he had just arrived, he certainly hadn't falsified accounts, but for a surrendered general like Wang Anquan to only report an income of over 20 million Star Sources was definitely unacceptable.

Therefore, this is tantamount to threatening Lao Wang to his face, as if saying: "You better explain this to me right now. If you explain it well, I'll do whatever you want; but if you don't explain it well, I'll report you to the authorities immediately."

Wang Anquan was a cunning old fox, and he naturally understood what the other party meant. So he immediately put on a widowed expression and lamented pitifully, "Brother Zhenyi, to be honest, if I had a choice, I would never have touched this job of inventorying the property of Beifeng Town. I would have stayed as far away as possible. You are a smart man, and you should know that the most difficult thing in the world is to 'seek the truth' when it comes to money."

Ren sensed the hidden meaning in his words and asked calmly, "What do you mean by that?"

“Brother, let me ask you, what’s the word you see most often in this ledger?” Wang Anquan asked seriously.

Ren recalled for a moment and then said truthfully, "The most common words were suspected and ominous."

"Then why do the words 'suspected' and 'ominous' appear most often?" Wang Anquan's face showed an extremely helpless expression, and he quickly added, "Because everyone knows that Beifeng Town is an important town under the command of Tiandu, and the various government offices there must be full of wealth and countless rare treasures...!"

"You know, I know, everyone knows. So tell me, after this city falls, which place will suffer the most?" he coaxed, craning his neck to ask again.

Ren didn't reply to this, but simply picked up his teacup and took a sip.

“Let me tell you, after this city falls, there are only two places that will suffer the most.” Wang Anquan held up two fingers very realistically: “One is the place where money is hidden; the other is the place where babies are born. After this city falls, we can’t say what the big shots will see… but the lower classes will see only wealth and lust.”

"If I remember correctly, the ledger records the opening of the Fulong Pavilion's treasury by the Martial Monk Supervisory Office as May 4th. But what actually happened? The instant the city of Tama fell, someone had already sent out monk soldiers to loot the treasury, and not just one. After they finished... they even had a huge fire set off...!"

"So, you see, I dare not offend the people who sent out these monk soldiers; and the monk soldiers who were sent out can't possibly admit what they did. So what can I do? I can only fucking... write down the suspected and ominous ones in the ledger."

"Otherwise, if I, a surrendered general, were to take this matter seriously, wouldn't that be tantamount to courting death?"

Wang Anquan said with a mournful face, "Brother, I've been in the order for decades. I've been arrogant, proud, and honest. Now I've shaved my head and become a surrendered general. I've summarized my life experience into eight words: 'Discern right from wrong and act in accordance with the trend.'"

"What does it mean to discern right from wrong? It means to distinguish what the majority wants to do and what they have already done. What does it mean to go with the flow? It means that after identifying what everyone is going to do, you shouldn't foolishly jump up and sing a different tune. You should go with the flow, even if you know it's wrong, you should still stand on the side of the majority. If you can't do that, then you will be crushed to pieces...!"

Well, this old Wang isn't exactly a pushover either. I just finished threatening him, and he's already turned the tables and started threatening me... Ren Ye instantly understood what the other person meant, and knew that he was warning him that when it came to accounts, he should take the side of the majority, not disagree, and certainly not be too insistent on the facts.

In Wang Anquan's account, it was clearly mentioned that someone sent monk soldiers to plunder the treasury of Fulong Pavilion. So who was this person? Was it Niu Dali, who held military power? Well, judging from Niu Dali's previous behavior, this person was audacious and cruel, and was indeed capable of doing such a thing.

Furthermore, after Wang Anquan ordered the garrison to complete the statistics and hand over the account books, Niu Dali also had the martial monk supervisors approve them directly. How could he not know that the account of more than 20 million star sources was too outrageous and too absurd?

He certainly knew, but instead of pursuing the matter or conducting a thorough investigation, he wholeheartedly agreed that Beifeng Town should only have that much money.

After making a certain judgment in his mind, Little Bad King asked with feigned doubt, "Brother Wang, you have always been the garrison commander of Beifeng Town, so you should know... how much Star Source was stored in this city before it fell, right?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Anquan replied without hesitation, "Although I am the garrison commander and have a lot of military and political affairs to handle, I am not primarily responsible for the statistics and allocation of money and grain within the city. This is a rule established by the Divine Court in earlier years, which stipulates that finances must be separated. Therefore... I only remember the approximate amount in the treasury, but if a larger amount is to be withdrawn, it requires approval from several government departments."

"How many?!" Ren asked curiously.

“Recently, wars have been breaking out in various places. I remember that just last month, the Divine Court allocated a huge amount of Star Source specifically for military affairs. The treasury's balance should be over two hundred million... but I don't know the exact amount. Although I have the right to know and check, the treasury sometimes lies to me because if there's a shortfall, they have to find a solution themselves,” Wang Anquan replied frankly.

Upon hearing this, Ren Ye's expression betrayed his astonishment, and his eyes gleamed as he exclaimed, "More than two hundred million?!"

"Yes." Wang Anquan nodded.

"Oh." Ren Ye looked thoughtful, then suddenly asked, "These two hundred million Star Sources are such a huge amount, it's impossible... that they were all lost in the suspected and ominous ones, right? Even if someone is profiting from the war, they wouldn't dare to be so thorough, would they? Secretly taking ninety percent and keeping only one ten percent for the public good, aren't they afraid that my temple will send people to investigate thoroughly?!"

"I think someone secretly tampered with the money, without anyone noticing... making all of those two hundred million seem suspicious and ominous."

His words were loaded with veiled threats, continuing to intimidate Wang Anquan.

Across the table, Wang Anquan broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing this, his voice almost trembling with tears as he said, “Brother!!! I can’t say whether others have tampered with things… but I, your brother, really wouldn’t dare to do anything underhanded in this matter! Think about it, I’m just a surrendered general who turned against his side in battle. To put it bluntly, the Divine Court will never tolerate me again, and the Tianzhao Temple won’t treat me like a human being. Even a nobody from the Martial Monk’s Mansion dares to speak sarcastically and make veiled insults in front of me now… In this situation, do you think I have the guts to tamper with the general accounts!”

“I have two sons, a wife who I finally managed to fatten up to over 200 pounds, and some relatives who follow me. These people are my absolute motivation for becoming a traitor. If I didn't care about them... wouldn't I have run away long ago? Why would I be stuck here, watching other people's faces and living like a lapdog?!”

Wang Anquan spoke emotionally, his eyes even glistening with tears: "Of these two hundred million star resources, some were lost in the suspected and unknown events, but others... were probably taken away by those damned civil officials during the siege! You must know, when I opened the gates to surrender the city, Beifeng Town was in complete chaos, and the monks of Tianzhao Temple couldn't possibly have taken over all the government offices here in an instant... If there was resistance, then there must have been people fleeing. Beifeng Town has six large teleportation arrays... Even the Heavenly Venerable probably doesn't know the exact whereabouts of these two hundred million star resources."