Chapter 182 - 182: 178: Platform
Chapter 182 - 182: 178: Platform
laugh in his eyes, teasingly.
Just as Gong Zheng said, if it weren’t for the fact that he wanted to use him, why would he go to such lengths to chat with him and set up a plan? He wished he could split the day into two, yet he was still waiting for Gong Zheng at Yunxuan that already explained a lot.
However, Gong Zheng’s performance disappointed Tang Luo. Mi Shen had indeed brought ten Transcending Mortal warriors along, but among the Peak Transcending Mortals, there was only one. As long as Gong Zheng avoided their sharp edges and moved through the crowd, protected by his Spiritual Armour, and with his Peak Transcending Mortal abilities, he should have had no issue holding his ground.
But he was severely injured, even his breath was somewhat weak, which showed that his combat instinct was poor and inappropriate for major use.
Yet, since the other party could guess why he wanted to use him, Tang Luo decided to give him a chance, and asked, “What do you think, why do I want to use you?”
If his combat ability was lacking, then he should make it up with some sort of plan. If he was weak both physically and mentally, then he wouldn’t be of any use.
Upon hearing Tang Luo’s question, Gong Zheng, with a steady heart, responded, “I have always been a petty person who deals with trivial matters. My martial prowess is insignificant, my schemes are ordinary. The only thing I can be proud of is my information-gathering methods. I suppose you want me to rebuild the Righteous Gang.”
Despite his limited talents, he had self-awareness. Tang Luo nodded. Although it was not precisely accurate, it wasn’t far off. He didn’t value the other s intelligence capabilities, but reestablishing the Righteous Gang was indeed one of his plans.
Seeing Tang Luo’s slight nod, Gong Zheng assumed that he had guessed correctly and said through gritted teeth, “As long as the Young Master can protect my wife and daughter, I am at your disposal.
Listening to these words without context, he felt strongly like a villain. Tang
Luo shook his head, mocking himself at this thought.
However, a martial artist who is self-aware and values his family can be used after all. Therefore, he stopped pretending. He took a token out from his bosom and said, “In the West City, I own a property called the Star Pavilion. Today, you take my token to the Star Pavilion and find Manager Hua. He will arrange everything for you. Rebuild the Righteous Gang next month.” Gong Zheng respectfully received the toke but a few thoughts still remained unresolved. Tang Luo had killed Li Shaoyuan and he wondered how Mi Hou would let him go. Then there was the reputed young prodigy from the Mi Clan who only needed a mansion to gather a force of ten teams of martial artists. This hung over him like a sharp blade. Hence, he asked, “Young Master, what about Mi Shen…?”
“As long as you stay in Xiling City, they will not dare to take action. You just need to be careful of their mansion causing trouble.” Tang Luo laughed lightly. Xiling City was indeed an exceptional city. You could kill or fight anyone outside the city, but it was a rule that clans could not fight to the death within the city.
This rule was established by the Tang and Mi Clans, thus it should be maintained by the two clans. Although Tang Luo didn’t think much of it, he did release a mission to forcefully invade the young master’s mansion and kidnap people. Mi Shen, being the young Clan Master of the Mi Clan, would never violate this rule.
As long as Gong Zheng took his wife and daughter to the Star Pavilion, it would clearly show that Gong Zheng was his subordinate. Within Xiling City, even if Mi Shen harbored a deep hatred, he wouldn’t dare act. Considering his character of being a person who would take revenge on the slightest insult, the other party should understand this very well.
What Gong Zheng needed to be cautious of was only Mi Hou. Having lost his most important strategist, it wasn’t likely that Mi Hou would just take it lying down. Although Mi Hou couldn’t do anything to him, he would certainly cause trouble for the Righteous Gang. Tang Luo worried that Gong Zheng wouldn’t be able to handle Mi Hou’s harassment for one month. It would be a great waste if the Righteous Gang hadn’t been revived by then and only resulted in more problems.
Gong Zheng, naturally, couldn’t understand the intricate clan politics and didn’t dare to ask more, so he nodded in agreement.
“Alright, take your wife and daughter to go.” Tang Luo poured a glass of water and said.
The matter of Gong Zheng’s leave was just minor. His energy was now all focused on the clan meeting tomorrow. Thirteen letters from clan elders and only four receipts of agreement made him worry about tomorrow’s affairs. Although the responses from the elders weren’t as expected, the head of the Clan School and the primary elder of the clan were willing to support him, which gave great reassurance to Tang Luo.
There were a total of twenty-one votes in the Xiling Political Congress, including thirteen clan elders, three sub-clan representatives, the head of the Clan School, the primary elder, and the clan master, who himself held three votes.
As a clan elder of the Tang Clan, he has the right to attend each meeting and propose bills but has no voting rights. This is a certain balance against the clan elders.
No proposal raised by the clan elders has ever been passed in the history. It doesn’t mean that the Congress discriminates. Instead, the proposals from clan elders tend to benefit the few and harm the many. They seem to aim for clan benefits, but in fact, cause the clan to lose more.
The main reason for this occurrence is that the elders of the clan are mainly selected for their contributions to the family. Although they hold esteemed positions, the majority of them are scholars and warriors. Their considerations for participating in politics are still based on academic theory, which cannot be implemented.
To put it bluntly, none of these voters are beneficiaries. Why would they vote for you? True, it’s for the prosperity of the family. But without small families, there are no large ones. The method of sacrificing the small to benefit the large, how could it pass a proposal? The so-called small and large families are not determined by the number of individuals, but by the strength.
The so-called way of people is to serve the abundant with the deficient! How could the strong damage their own interests to share power with the commoners? Even if such a strategy exists, it’s not a proposal, it’s a handout. What Tang Luo prepared for this time, beyond the exchange of interests, the most crucial aspect is that his proposal does not harm the interests of the clan. Not only that, he aims to find gains for the clan within the laws. And these latter two points are more crucial than the former one.
Whatsmore, the high-ranking individuals cultivated by the elite education of clans may compromise for the sake of benefits. However, once they find that the benefits obtained are not proportionate to the costs, betrayal in the midst of conflict is very likely to occur.
Dining Hall of the Tang Clan
The time Tang Luo returned to the residence was exactly mealtime. So he walked directly into the dining hall, but didn’t find his father, Tang Sen. Only his mother, younger brother, younger sister, and a loosely grinning cousin were there.
“Where is father?” Tang Luo asked.
While serving him soup, Xu Shuhui complained, “I don’t know what mission he received these past few months that keeps him busy late into the night. He only returns home at midnight.”
Tang Luo nodded without further words, sat in his seat, and began to eat with the bowl of soup his mother handed him.
Seeing that he was being ignored, Cousin Xu tried harder by vigorously blinking his eyes at Tang Luo. His look full of merit-seeking was almost laughable.
“Cousin, if you have something to say, just say it. Stop blinking.” Tang Luo sighed, put down his chopsticks, and asked.
His words piqued everyone’s curiosity. Xu Shuhui turned to look at her nephew and asked, “Lao Ying, do you have something to discuss with Luo Er?”
Xu Lao Ying blinked, cleared his throat and said, “It’s not a big deal. I will start taking challenges tomorrow and I want my cousin to stand up for me.
“To stand up for someone” usually means that the defender, who is about to take a challenge, will find a close friend to fight as a warm-up, also signaling the opening of the subsequent duels.
Although this cousin of his isn’t very advanced in spiritual power, he is agile and has a considerable reputation in Xiling. Having such a person to stand up for him would not discredit the Xu Clan in Yuanzhou.
Considering their relationship, Tang Luo should not reject, at least that was Xu Lao Ying’s plan. Now everything for the event is ready, just waiting for a person to stand up.
“I am busy.” Tang Luo responded curtly.
Xu Lao Ying was taken aback and pressed on, “How can you be too busy? It’s not like you have to fight in many rounds.”
That’s exactly what you don’t understand! It’s about my spiritual power! Tang Luo thought irritably but replied aloud, “Tomorrow I will be proposing at the Clan Assembly, and then there is the Secret Arts Pavilion Conference on the first day of the month. I have no time to stand up for you.”
Upon hearing this, Xu Shuhui turned pale and asked anxiously, “So soon?”
She was taken aback. She didn’t expect that her son’s proposal would be put on the agenda so quickly, and she couldn’t help but worry..