Starting with helping Zhao Kai ascend the throne in the snow

"Young Master Li, you're too kind. By the way, who was that person just now?" Shen Qing skillfully changed the subject, easing Li Yibai's embarrassment.

"Reporting to Lord Shen, this man is called Thousand-Faced Butterfly Liu Yong, a notorious womanizer who claims to be able to pass through a thousand flowers without getting a single petal on him. Not long ago, he committed more than ten crimes in Lujiang City, and many innocent women fell victim to his clutches, ending up committing suicide out of shame and indignation. After receiving a request for help from Lujiang City, our Dongyue Sword Pool sent me to deal with him. However, this man is not only skilled in lightness skills, but also proficient in disguise. It took me seven days to locate his whereabouts. I then chased him all the way here before finally capturing him." Li Yibai pointed to the corpse in the distance and said indignantly.

"Liu Yong?" Shen Qing said with some surprise upon hearing Li Yibai's words.

"His name is Liu Yong, Liu as in willow tree and Yong as in brave and fierce. What's wrong, Lord Shen? Is there something wrong with it?" Li Yibai asked, puzzled.

"It's alright. I used to know someone named Liu Yong. I thought it was just a coincidence, but his name is Yong in 'forever'." Shen Qing waved his hand. He was startled when he first heard the name, thinking it was Liu Sanbian, the one who could sing Liu lyrics wherever there was water.

Shen Qing then learned a crucial piece of information through a conversation with Li Yibai: the reason why Lujiang County was more stable than other counties was because it was recognized in the martial arts world as the sphere of influence of the Dongyue Sword Pool. Therefore, few foolish martial artists dared to cause trouble in Lujiang County, otherwise they would be seen as provoking the Dongyue Sword Pool and would suffer their retaliation.

As a prestigious sect with a history spanning hundreds of years, the Dongyue Sword Pool has intricate connections with many powerful and wealthy families within the prefecture. Perhaps tracing back a generation or two, they were even fellow disciples. Therefore, when Lujiang Prefecture descended into chaos, the local elites turned to the Dongyue Sword Pool for help. Hundreds of Dongyue Sword Pool disciples were dispatched throughout the prefecture to protect these powerful families. It was precisely because of the Dongyue Sword Pool's presence that Lujiang Prefecture largely maintained stability, unlike other prefectures in disarray. Of course, some petty theft was inevitable, and even murder and arson occurred occasionally, but overall, peace and stability prevailed.

"It seems that the foundation and influence of the Dongyue Sword Pool are even stronger than I imagined." This was Shen Qing's first impression of the Dongyue Sword Pool after talking with Li Yibai.

However, after seeing Dongyue Sword Pool disciples like Li Yibai working hard to maintain local stability, Shen Qing slowly formed an idea in his mind: once Lujiang County was completely stable, he would personally visit Dongyue Sword Pool.

After learning that Shen Qing was the person in charge of taking over Lujiang County, Li Yibai volunteered to stay and accompany him. However, whenever he had free time, he would go to Li Chungang to ask him for advice on swordsmanship, and his true intentions were quite obvious.

Perhaps it was because Li Yibai had good talent and character that Li Chungang would occasionally give him a pointer or two, which made Li Yibai excited and exclaim that he had benefited a lot.

With Li Yibai leading the way, the journey became much easier. As a disciple of the Dongyue Sword Pool, he was a valuable asset wherever he went, and even his food and lodging were taken care of by wealthy families along the way. Therefore, it only took them less than two days to reach Lujiang City. Shen Qing then instructed Yang Long to send men to take over the city's defenses, while ordering 200 prisoners to clean up the military camps within the city. He also sent out notices to reassure the people and announce the arrival of the Yue King's Mansion.

Meanwhile, after receiving Shen Qing's letter, He Zhu sent people to spread the word in the restaurants and teahouses where people in the martial arts world liked to gather that the martial arts examination would be held in Kuaiji City in a month.

Like a stone thrown into still water, the news of the upcoming martial arts examination in Kuaiji City spread rapidly throughout the martial arts world, far exceeding Shen Qing's expectations. It quickly reached Yuezhou and eventually spread throughout Liyang via traveling merchants. Furthermore, spies hidden in Liyang relayed the news to Northern Mang, Nanzhao, and the Western Regions.

Subsequently, without Shen Qing's knowledge, the number of martial artists pouring into Yuezhou increased rapidly. Whether they were genuinely participating or just there to watch the spectacle, countless martial artists, swords and knives, rushed towards Yuezhou.

The once remote Yuezhou suddenly became the most bustling place in the martial arts world, with the streets full of martial artists carrying swords and knives. It's no exaggeration to say that if you threw a stone, you would definitely hit a martial artist.

According to the original plan, Shen Qing expected 4,000 people to come to participate in the martial arts selection in Kuaiji City, but the actual situation far exceeded his expectations. By the time Shen Qing found out that the matter had blown up, the number of martial artists who had flooded into Kuaiji City had reached nearly 20,000.

The reason this happened was that Shen Qing underestimated the martial artists' desire for excitement in recent years. Since Xu Xiao's conquest of the martial world, martial artists had been forced to bow their heads under the military might of the Li Yang Dynasty. As a result, few major events occurred in the martial world, and only the martial arts competition held every ten years provided them with some entertainment. However, this was merely scratching the surface and only made them more eager to participate. Therefore, upon learning that Yuezhou was holding a martial arts competition, many curious individuals traveled from afar to attend.

Of course, this is only one aspect; the other two are the novelty of the martial arts examination and the generous rewards.

As the saying goes, curiosity killed the cat, and the same is true for people; everyone has a curious streak. Rumors about the martial arts examinations were rampant, and this novel system naturally attracted a lot of attention. Many people wanted to see what exactly these so-called martial arts examinations were all about.

As for the generous rewards, needless to say, this was the first time the martial artists had ever heard of being able to become an official after winning a martial arts competition.

It's important to understand that throughout history, while the martial arts world and the imperial court have rarely intersected, they have always maintained intricate connections. Many in the martial arts world may seem to despise martial artists who join the court, calling them lackeys, but this is simply because they haven't joined them. Their opinions are often influenced by their own interests, a classic case of sour grapes.

In feudal times, officials were the undisputed top of society. Whether they were civil or military officials, they were a position that many people in the martial arts world longed for but could not attain. Many people seemed to mock them, but in fact, they were also filled with envy and jealousy.

Whether it was the current Li Yang Dynasty or the Nine Kingdoms of the Spring and Autumn Period, official positions were firmly controlled by powerful clans, and few people from humble backgrounds could rise to prominence. It was precisely because of this that the soldiers of the land revered Xu Xiao, the King of Beiliang, who came from humble origins, as a god and worshipped him from the bottom of their hearts.

Although Zhang Julu has been constantly adjusting national policies in recent years in an attempt to open a channel for people from humble backgrounds to the upper class, such actions are tantamount to digging up the graves of powerful families and will inevitably be met with their full-scale counterattack.

In this environment, the channels for an ordinary person or a low-level martial artist to obtain an official position are extremely limited. Many people, despite being very talented, can only be trapped and die in the martial arts world or in the countryside.

Therefore, the emergence of the martial arts examination, a competition for official positions, was tantamount to opening up another path to the upper echelons. Even a minor official position would be extremely attractive to martial artists at the lower levels.

This is why everyone criticizes officials, yet everyone wants to become an official.

This led to an interesting phenomenon: many martial artists, on their way to Yuezhou, talked to each other about wanting to see what the Yuezhou martial arts examination was all about, and said they wouldn't participate. But once the selection process began, it turned into a huge face-slapping moment.

Just as the martial arts examination was gaining immense popularity and becoming the hottest news in the Li Yang Dynasty, the main cities of the other four prefectures of Yuezhou were also smoothly taken over. Subsequently, each prefecture began recruiting local militia according to plan to maintain order within the city. Once the local militia had completed their training, they would then be deployed to the counties below.

Shen Qing looked at the letter Zhao Kai had sent, which stated that all six main cities of Yuezhou had been safely taken over. He breathed a long sigh of relief. From the withdrawal of the imperial army to the subsequent barbarian invasion, Yuezhou had been in turmoil for far too long. With this, the Yue King's faction had finally achieved initial control over Yuezhou. From now on, Yuezhou would write a new chapter under his and Zhao Kai's leadership.