Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

In the side hall of the Fifth Division of the Censorate, in the office of the deputy director of the Plum Blossom Division.

Yan Wenjiu was so frightened that he became somewhat agitated.

He never expected that Zhai Xingyuan would be so audacious as to want to kill Zhou Silang.

The conflict between the Luo family gang and Zhou Silang was merely a power struggle involving the transition between the old and new generations and the reshuffling of power. The two sides were irreconcilable, and open and covert struggles were inevitable, but there was no need to kill people.

Moreover, the officials serving in the Tower of Swords all have their own rules to follow. Those who break the rules will face the First Lady's bloody punishment and pay a terrible price. No one is exempt.

Since the First Lady assumed the position of City Lord, she has been living in the inner courtyard of the City Lord's Mansion. For many years, she has not formally convened a grand court assembly with civil and military officials, and the City Lord's main hall has remained empty to this day.

However, even under these circumstances, the First Lady still maintained firm control over Sword Tower City through the Council Chamber.

This is not just about relying on the military might of the First Taibai.

It also benefited from the First Lady's skill in manipulating power.

The First Lady tacitly condoned the existence of factional disputes, using them to establish a balance of power among the various factions and prevent any one faction from becoming too powerful and jeopardizing her authority as the city lord.

This delicate balance prevents all parties from taking any rash actions or challenging her.

Moreover, the open and covert struggles between various factions not only helped the First Lady to understand the dynamics of the government and the public.

They might also reveal each other's secrets to the First Lady during their power struggles.

In exchange for the First Lady's support, it facilitated the First Lady's monitoring of the overall situation.

First ladies can use factional struggles to eliminate or contain potential threats.

If a faction becomes too powerful, the First Lady will support its rivals to weaken that faction's influence.

By engaging in factional infighting, the First Lady was able to remain uninvolved, reduce her responsibility for decision-making errors, and at the same time avoid direct involvement in the conflict, thus maintaining her detached position.

To some extent, factional infighting can motivate officials to work harder to win the First Lady's favor, improve administrative efficiency, and fear being exploited by their rivals if they perform poorly.

Factional struggles also distract officials, keeping them busy attacking each other and preventing them from uniting, thus consolidating the First Lady's absolute rule.

The First Lady acts as a mediator in factional struggles, bestowing favors on the victors and cultivating forces loyal to her; while the losers, perhaps grateful for the First Lady's magnanimity, deepen their dependence on her, forming a cycle that solidifies the First Lady's rule.

In the struggle for power and profit, officials from different factions can fight each other and use all sorts of means to bring down their opponents, whether it's dismissal, imprisonment, or deportation.

However, one must know when to stop and never let a defeated opponent be killed or their entire clan wiped out.

This is about giving others a way to survive, and also giving yourself a way to survive.

Because in the ever-changing Sword Tower City, no one can remain in power forever.

Officials only seek power.

There are times when one rises to power and gains influence, and times when one steps down and loses power.

When they rise to power, they cultivate their own faction, eliminate their rivals, and ruthlessly destroy their opponents.

So when someone abdicates and loses power, their enemies will also try to destroy them.

Everyone fears being purged by their opponents when they lose power, so they only become more ruthless in their attacks.

If this continues, everyone will only be focused on killing their rivals, and no one will be willing to work for the Sword Tower. The fighting will only become more intense and cruel, with families dying one by one and factions being destroyed one by one.

Sword Tower City, with its millennia-long heritage, will ultimately decline due to internal strife, the loss of talent, and chaotic governance. In a desperate situation, one faction might even resort to a bloody and brutal coup.

Therefore, the officials serving the Sword Tower will abide by the rules and will not cause the death or extermination of enemy officials.

If an official is ignorant of the rules and foolishly breaks them, trying to kill an opposing official, as well as his faction and family, then afterwards he will be suppressed by all the officials of the Sword Tower.

The First Lady would also take the opportunity to kill this ignorant fellow.

Now Zhai Xingyuan wants to take advantage of the situation in the wild to kill Zhou Silang.

This is simply power-hungry, insane, and lawless.

Zhai Xingyuan is bold and decisive, and Yan Wenjiu doesn't dare to cooperate with him.

Zhai Xingyuan held two dragon balls in one hand and played with them. He noticed Yan Wenjiu's unusual expression out of the corner of his eye, so he asked coldly, "Master Yan, I only asked you to kill someone for my teacher. Are you unwilling?"

“Deputy Director Zhai, Teacher Luo has been incredibly kind to me. I would do anything for Teacher Luo, even if it meant facing mountains of knives and seas of fire. However, shouldn’t we discuss such a serious matter as killing Zhou Silang with Teacher Luo before making a decision?”

When Yan Wenjiu replied, he emphasized the word "deputy," reminding Zhai Xingyuan that he was only a deputy supervisor and should not act on his own initiative. The supervisor of the Fifth Division was still Luo Bingyi, not Zhai Xingyuan.

Zhai Xingyuan remained calm and said slowly, "You know that Teacher Luo is not in good spirits and needs to rest and recuperate. Besides, Teacher Luo has already given us instructions, so there is no need to ask for further instructions."

Yan Wenjiu was taken aback and asked blankly, "What instructions? I don't know anything about this."

Zhai Xingyuan's eyes gleamed as he played with two dragon balls in his palm. He slowly spoke, "Do you still remember the instructions our teacher gave us? Our teacher told us to do what we were told to do and not to violate the laws of the Sword Tower."

Yan Wenjiu frowned and said, "I remember, but what does this have to do with whether or not Zhou Silang is killed?"

Zhai Xingyuan gave him a foolish look and started to lie, "Doing it as you see fit means acting according to circumstances."

"Without violating the Sword Tower Laws, think about it, under what circumstances can you bring down Zhou Silang without violating the Sword Tower Laws? That would only be in the wild. If you're not in Sword Tower City, the Sword Tower Laws won't apply to you."

Yan Wenjiu's expression changed drastically: "Teacher Luo actually foresaw that Zhou Silang would leave the city?"

Zhai Xingyuan continued his persuasive speech, "Don't underestimate our teacher. Our Teacher Luo has reached such a high position without any background or connections. Why would he talk nonsense to us? There must be a deeper meaning behind it."

"Go ahead and do it. Once we get rid of Zhou Silang and make room for the deputy commander, Teacher Luo will be promoted, and I will be promoted as well. Then this position will be yours."

Yan Wenjiu licked his lips, already somewhat swayed by the words: "But Zhou Silang is, after all, the city lord's son and Qiu Chengde's beloved disciple. If he were to die a violent death in the wilderness for no apparent reason, this matter would be difficult to resolve amicably."

Zhai Xingyuan said confidently, "It's alright, don't be afraid. Zhou Silang has risen to his current high position because he has grudges and entanglements with more than just one or two families. There are countless people who want him dead."

"If Zhou Silang dies in the wild, the first family to suspect will be the Python Sparrow royal family. Don't forget that Zhou Silang killed Huangfu Yunzheng of the Python Sparrow royal family ten years ago, and that matter was ultimately left unresolved."

"All you have to do is kill everyone at the scene, destroy the evidence, and make it a headless cold case."

"If we really investigate the first one, it will take forever."

"Don't worry, it's not going to be our turn."

Upon hearing this, Yan Wenjiu felt reassured and was completely convinced: "Alright, Manager Zhai, tell me what to do."

Zhai Xingyuan held two dragon balls in his hands, a hint of wisdom flashing in his eyes: "It's best not to use our own people to get rid of Zhou Silang. After all, it's a matter of great importance, and the fewer people who know about it, the better."

Yan Wenjiu nodded repeatedly, agreeing with Zhai Xingyuan's point.

Zhai Xingyuan suddenly asked, "I remember ten years ago Zhou Silang put Gu Daozhao and his group in prison, right? How many of them are still alive now?"

P.S.: I'm not feeling well today. My legs are numb and my arms hurt. I don't know why. That's all for today's update.