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

Leaving the council chamber, Butler Qiu accompanied him to the outer courtyard.

Butler Qiu said, "Qingfeng, you must understand Madam's good intentions."

"Just like today's discussion about who will manage the five major workshops, they fought tooth and nail, each wanting to get their hands on the workshops. If you insist on taking over today, Madam, you will be completely unable to cope."

"The lady cherishes talent and intends to make good use of you."

"But you've had it too easy. If you were put in a big role, you'd be attacked from both the open and the hidden.

“With Madam here, no one in the Sword Tower will dare to kill you, but they can hide in the shadows and disgust you to death. They will use all sorts of dirty tricks on you. If you don’t have a strong heart, how will you face all of this?”

"The reason I'm having you take notes now is partly to toughen you up and make you more resilient to hardship."

"On the one hand, it's to let you get in touch with the core people and things of the Sword Tower, so that you can have a deep understanding of the real situation of the Sword Tower. In the future, when you are assigned to important tasks, you will be able to advance and retreat freely and handle things with ease."

"Finally, it will give you enough time to focus on your cultivation."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qingfeng clasped his hands and bowed, saying, "Master, Qingfeng understands."

Butler Qiu nodded with satisfaction: "This young man is teachable."

Zhou Qingfeng has indeed succeeded in his career advancement.

However, the situation and the people involved have also undergone tremendous changes.

Those who accompanied them were not minor figures; they were all important people who could influence the fate of the Sword Tower.

The five major workshops are a lucrative piece of meat that brings in a fortune every day, and all the big shots are eyeing them. With the madam in charge, no one dares to touch them, but if the madam were to send someone else to manage them, they would fight to the death for this piece of meat.

It is not suitable for Zhou Qingfeng to take over the five major workshops at this time.

The First Lady is determined to hone Zhou Qingfeng's skills, but she will take it one step at a time.

Choose the right target, the right event, and the right timing.

If they mess things up, they could really ruin the first rising star.

Over the next three months, he considered choosing a day to leapfrog into the next realm, but Butler Qiu stopped him.

Although one can leapfrog to a higher realm with just a hundred coins, that applies to ordinary cultivators.

For a genius like Zhou Qingfeng, who has the opportunity to reach the pinnacle.

We can't rush it like this, but there's no need to drag it out for too long either.

Two thousand coins of magical power are the best way to leapfrog into higher realms.

Zhou Qingfeng is still quite far from reaching the two thousand coins mark, so he suppressed the urge to leapfrog to the next level and focused on cultivating with medicine to improve his magical power and physical strength.

Occasionally attend core meetings of the Sword Tower, take notes, and become familiar with the core figures of the Sword Tower.

Over time, we were able to chat for a bit when we met, and our network of contacts grew wider and wider.

During this period, an excuse was found to transfer Jin Wei to his side as a bodyguard.

The new director of the Night Watch Division gave Zhou Qingfeng face and tacitly approved.

The days passed in a dull and monotonous way.

It's definitely agonizing; there's nothing you can do, and you have the ability but nowhere to use it.

Anyone else would probably have gone mad in the mansion to vent their anxiety and frustration.

Or perhaps he couldn't resist asking his wife to do something for him.

But Zhou Qingfeng didn't; he only used this opportunity to temper his mental strength.

A gentleman hides his weapon in his body and moves when he waits for time.

September is already coming to an end.

Early in the morning, Zhou Qingfeng cast a divination for himself.

[Auspicious divination: Today's meeting will be auspicious.]

Zhou Qingfeng knew immediately that the time had come.

The City Lord's Mansion, the Inner Courtyard, the Water Garden, and the Council Hall.

The lady didn't come, but Butler Qiu did, and he brought a message.

With his hands behind his back, Steward Qiu said indifferently, "The Madam has ordered that bandits are rampant in Jianta, robbing caravans and looting manors year after year. Now, Zhou Qingfeng, a member of the Council of Councilors, is ordered to lead troops to suppress the bandits and eliminate the bandit threat!"

After speaking, Butler Qiu looked at Zhou Qingfeng behind the desk: "Zhou Qingfeng!"

Zhou Qingfeng immediately stood up, walked around the desk, clasped his hands and bowed: "Here."

Steward Qiu said, "Madam appoints you as the centurion of the bandit suppression force. You may draw men from the manor protection team and the city defense army as needed, with a maximum of one hundred men. You are to set off from the city within seven days!"

Zhou Qingfeng immediately responded, "Yes."

These hundred people are not ordinary people, but an army composed of cultivators.

One hundred cultivators—that's a force not to be underestimated.

The bigwigs present exchanged silent glances, all knowing that the First Lady was giving Zhou Qingfeng a chance to make a contribution.

This opportunity is not available to everyone.

There are many capable and qualified people, and many talented people who can suppress bandits, so why should Zhou Qingfeng be chosen?

Besides, bandits are nothing compared to the demons and monsters roaming the outside world.

It's nothing more than the First Lady being biased, favoring Zhou Qingfeng, this young genius, and doing everything she can to give him opportunities to make a name for himself. This favor, privilege, and treatment are simply enviable.

Mao Erlang said with a smile, "Congratulations, Commander Zhou, you're about to make another great contribution."

"Congratulations, Commander Zhou, you can finally show your skills." The other six big shots congratulated him with smiles, and no matter what they thought in their hearts, at least on the surface they were all smiling.

Zhou Qingfeng smiled and clasped his hands in return, seemingly to the best of his ability, but in reality, undercurrents were already swirling.

Do these guys really want to watch me achieve new successes?

The cake is only so big. If I eat it all, then someone else will eat less. What will happen to the person who eats less?

Anyone with a brain knows this is the beginning of trouble.

However, Zhou Qingfeng is not afraid of trouble. He will seize any opportunity to stand out and take credit for any achievements.

If you should fight for something, you should fight for it; not only should you fight for it, you should fight for it with dazzling brilliance.

With the madam absent today, the meeting was just a formality; everyone chatted casually and then dispersed.

Zhou Qingfeng invited Butler Qiu to a small gathering at the Zhou residence.

"Master, please have some tea." Zhou Qingfeng respectfully offered the tea.

Qiu Chengde nodded, took a sip of his drink, and said, "Qingfeng, this bandit suppression is just a facade."

Zhou Qingfeng raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself that it was indeed not that simple.

"Have you ever heard of the Renxin School?" Qiu Chengde asked.

Zhou Qingfeng recalled: "I've heard of it, the number one evil sect, the eternally indestructible Renxin Sect. Isn't it said that there are very few people in this sect? Could it be that this bandit suppression is related to the Renxin Sect?"

Qiu Chengde shook his head and said, "It's hard to say, which is why I sent you to investigate around the country under the guise of suppressing bandits, to see if there are any unusual situations in the villages. Of course, your main task is still to suppress bandits."

Zhou Qingfeng clasped his hands and bowed, saying, "Understood, Master."

Qiu Chengde put down his teacup, stood up, and patted Zhou Qingfeng's arm: "Keep up the good work! Your master has high hopes for you. This is a great opportunity. Make new contributions, and your wife will definitely reward you handsomely!"

"Oh, by the way, Ye Tingxiu and Xiao Hongyun will be traveling with you. Although they are not as talented as you, they are still capable people. They should be given opportunities. This is Madam's wish."

“My disciple, those who achieve great things must have a broad mind and be tolerant of others. They are your opponents today, but they will become your good helpers in the future. You must unite them and manage them, do you understand?”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qingfeng immediately understood: "Understood."

Zhou Qingfeng personally escorted Qiu Chengde to the gate of the mansion and watched him leave in a carriage.

Jin Wei walked out of the mansion with his hand on his sword, clasped his hands and said, "Congratulations, Commander-in-Chief, on taking command of the army!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qingfeng smiled without saying a word, turned around and walked back to his study. Shui'er silently ground the ink beside him, while Jin Wei stood in front of the desk waiting for orders. Zhou Qingfeng picked up his brush and prepared to write the conscription order.