Chapter 638: Be a Good Person (II)

Chapter 638: Be a Good Person (II)

“I understand the minister’s meaning.” The beguiling woman nodded. “But if Li Hao wishes to run... Countless ruthless wolves prowl the wilderness outside the royal city! He’s worse off than us in one aspect—he cannot easily set foot outside the city. He’s dead if he does!”

Everyone had to put on a show of adhering to the rules when inside Skystar City confines. It was one thing to act from the shadows, but on the surface, no official personnel would attack Li Hao. If the young man left the royal city, however, then all bets were off! All sides would want a bite of such rich meat.

“Therefore, if he wants to just run like he did before, he’d be dead wrong! That’s one point. The second is that as the vice commander of the Night Watchers, if he damages buildings or kills innocent civilians during his clashes, I think we’d have the responsibility and obligation to demand an explanation from the Night Watchers. They would need to explain themselves to the dynasty!”

“Well said!” Minister Liu applauded loudly. “You hit straight at the pain points! That’s right, compared to the Colosseum, Li Hao’s greatest difficulty is not us, but that he leaves the city or harms civilians. That will limit him in what he can do!

“Hou Xiaochen wants to use Li Hao to intimidate us, but he’s made the wrong move. There’s more restraining factors on the boy than us!”

Li Hao was strong, but there was also too much trouble facing him. Being hobbled as he was, it was hard for him to bring the same level of battle strength to bear as he demonstrated in the east.

“But we still must remain alert!” He laughed and transmitted to the woman, “Send a kill order to Celestial—not just Celestial, but Red Moon or Yama will do as well. Additionally...”

“...alright, that’s enough for now. Dismissed!” He waved off everyone after giving a few mental orders. Minister Liu thought further after everyone was gone and headed to the rear of the ministry headquarters.

A few secret passages later, he came up to a secret room.

“Father.” He waited outside instead of entering the room.

“Do you think all of this is still not a guarantee of success in killing Li Hao?” A voice traveled out moments later.

“That’s right!” The minister wasn’t shy about his reservations. “Someone like Li Hao isn’t easy to kill! He wields two divine weapons and Hou Xiaochen will also make moves at critical moments. The latter is not weak as even I am not assured of triumphing over him.

“It won’t actually matter if we truly lose the Colosseum. If we must, we’ll just keep a lower profile and accumulate fewer riches. But in current circumstances, displaying such a stance will cause more than the loss of a single Colosseum. Father, you understand that as well.”

“Ai!” sighed an aged voice from the secret chamber. “We are imprisoned by fame and wealth in the end!”

Minister Liu didn’t respond. Indeed, they were all imprisoned by fame and wealth because they were mortal! The first generation of ministers all had grand aspirations and vision, but what of them now?

They’d become evil dragons in other people’s eyes. The passage of time and changes in their position, as well as other factors, had caused the nine ministries to lose their original purpose and no longer seek reforms. Reality was quite sobering at times.

“You’ve sought me out for a reason,” sounded the aged voice again. “What do you wish for me to do?”

“When it comes to Li Hao, we have to kill him in a split second!” Minister Liu thought for a moment. “I’d like to borrow... an Arcanus talisman!”

An Arcanus talisman!

......

All sides were readying their preparations. Those within the Nine Dragons Pavilion were about to leave after eating and drinking their fill. The group bumped into guests from the other private rooms as they departed their room. Whether or not it was coincidence, that was difficult to say.

Hou Xiaochen nodded at the others coming their way and bent at the waist. “Greetings to the various ministers!”

Quite an assembly had left the other rooms. Some nodded smilingly back at him, others ignored him. The latter assessed the Night Watcher trio and quickly left.

“Good luck!” Yet others flashed radiant smiles brimming with meaning. “The security of Skystar depends on you. Do well!”

“......” The various ministers left as well. Li Hao quickly scanned their faces and committed them to memory. He then looked at Hou Xiaochen for clarification.

“Those were the ministers of Internal Affairs, Examinations, Judiciary, and Foreign Relations.”

“Are they the weakest four ministries?” Li Hao asked lightly. The other three of Armed Forces, Inspectorate, and Administration had always struggled with each other over who was number one.

Finance and Commerce were renowned to be rich. Finance was wealthy due to provincial tax revenue and a trading company under their banner. Commerce’s income didn’t come from taxes, but from the various business conglomerates and small-to-medium enterprises. It was difficult to say which was wealthier. These days, money represented strength.

“Stop being so full of yourself,” Hou Xiaochen laughed. “As weak as they may be, they’ll beat you like you’re a child!”

“I am a child,” Li Hao chuckled. “How old am I and how old are they?”

“Oh, you!” Hou Xiaochen shook his head. “Forget it, let’s go. It’s enough for now that people know your face.”

Li Hao nodded. It was time to go back. As for where he would live... who knew? He would follow Hou Xiaochen for now. He turned to the manager. “Is my droplet of Water of Life packed up and ready to go?”

The manager fidgeted uncomfortably. You’ve really got a thick face!

“That... ah... requires one hundred thousand stones in payment,” she had no choice but to say.

“Didn’t Minister Liu say he was treating?”

“Ah... when he left... he said... he said...”

“Chubby went back on his word??” Li Hao blinked and couldn’t help but curse. “He’s one of the nine ministers and reneges on his word to treat us to dinner??”

Heavens above! What kind of person was this? He said to put it on his tab, but regretted his generosity. The hell man!