Starting with helping Zhao Kai ascend the throne in the snow

After delivering provisions to Danyang County that day, Shen Qing's journey to Wu County was also smooth. After encouraging Pan Yang, he rushed back to Kuaiji County without stopping and finally returned three days before the martial arts examination.

Outside Kuaiji City, Shen Qing looked at the huge arena that had been set up in the east of the city and the surging crowds around it. A sense of unease rose in his heart; there were just too many people.

As Shen Qing looked around, he saw an endless line of martial artists carrying swords and knives. They were cheering loudly around the ten arenas, where martial artists were fighting. Every time they clashed, cheers erupted from the crowd. Disciples dressed in the attire of the Dongyue Sword Pool stood beside the arenas, maintaining order.

"Holy crap, where did all these martial arts people come from?" Shen Qing stared dumbfounded at the surging crowd, completely bewildered. He had no idea where so many martial arts people had come from. They were dressed in various styles, some even with the faces of Western Region barbarians and the attire of the Nanzhao Kingdom. It was a complete hodgepodge of martial arts figures.

According to his original calculations, there were at most a few thousand martial artists, but the current situation, even without counting, roughly indicates a scale of no less than ten thousand. Something must have gone wrong.

Just then, hundreds of armored soldiers, armed with weapons, patrolled the ten arenas in sequence, ordering the surrounding crowd to maintain order. On a high platform erected beside the arenas, the human-cat Han Shengxuan stood aloof, his hawk-like eyes coldly surveying the martial artists below. Everyone whose gaze swept over him involuntarily trembled, feeling a chill run down their spines.

"Brother Shen, you're finally back." Just as hundreds of soldiers emerged from the crowd, Zhao Kai, the leader, saw Shen Qing and his grain transport team and rushed over with great joy.

Because there were so many martial arts practitioners, there were bound to be grudges and entanglements among them. They would often fight each other after meeting. Therefore, all the local militia in Kuaiji City were rotated into patrol teams to patrol day and night to maintain order. With the added support of Han Shengxuan's fearsome reputation, they were barely able to suppress these people.

Zhao Kai volunteered to lead a team of soldiers to help with patrols because of a shortage of manpower.

Although he is the King of Yue, he rarely shows his face, and not many people know his identity. With the Golden Armored General following him, there is not much to worry about regarding his safety.

"What exactly happened to Zhao Kai?" Shen Qing asked hurriedly after seeing Zhao Kai.

"There are too many people around here, let's go back to the prefectural governor's mansion and talk about it there," Zhao Kai said to Shen Qing, looking at the noisy scene around them.

Shen Qing nodded and immediately ordered the 10,000 shi of grain to be escorted to the treasury. He then followed Zhao Kai toward the prefectural governor's mansion, intending to find out as soon as possible why so many martial arts practitioners had come.

Inside the prefectural governor's mansion, Shen Qing learned from Zhao Kai's general description that the number of martial artists outside the city had reached an astonishing 20,000. Most of them came from Liyang, while some martial artists came from places like the South China Sea, Nanzhao, and Beimang. Even some martial artists from distant Western Regions came curiously from merchant caravans.

"Damn, this can't be right. Otherwise, a martial arts competition held in a small Yuezhou wouldn't be able to attract so many people," Shen Qing muttered to himself.

Shen Qing was right. The martial arts examination held in Yuezhou wouldn't have attracted so many people originally, but everything changed after Zhao Dun intervened. Zhao Dun might have wanted to avenge the incident in the capital, which is why he sent people to disrupt the Yuezhou martial arts examination. However, as the emperor of Liyang, his every move was being watched by various forces across the land.

As soon as he made his move, the attention of other vassal kings and major powers was also drawn to him, creating a herd effect. With the help of everyone, even martial artists from several neighboring countries were attracted to the scene, thus creating the unprecedented prosperity in Yuezhou.

Like flowers in full bloom, or oil being poured on a raging fire, Yuezhou may seem prosperous at present, but it's all just a facade. The influx of so many martial artists is a huge ticking time bomb. If Yuezhou can handle things well, all will be well; but if these lawless individuals are angered, the entire Yuezhou will descend into chaos. The destructive power of 20,000 skilled martial artists would be far more difficult to deal with than a barbarian invasion.

"Brother Shen, now that you're back, you should take over this hot potato. I really can't handle it." After explaining the situation, Zhao Kai couldn't wait to pass the buck.

The arrival of these martial artists gave Zhao Kai a major headache. They'd attack anyone they didn't like, even if the food wasn't to their liking. "You're from Northern Mang, I'm from Li Yang, let's fight..."

Every day, martial artists were fighting, and all sorts of information was reported to him, making it difficult for Zhao Kai to eat and sleep. He lost several pounds and truly experienced the hardships of being in power.

Even with his best efforts and Han Shengxuan's personal intervention, he only managed to make these martial artists more restrained, which was merely a temporary fix and not a fundamental solution. He believed that with the convening of the martial arts examination, various problems would inevitably arise.

"Zhao Kai, what's the current arrangement for these martial arts figures?" Shen Qing pondered for a moment before asking Zhao Kai.

"Arrangements? What arrangements?" Zhao Kai asked, bewildered.

"How did you solve their food and lodging problems?" Shen Qing looked at Zhao Kai in shock, then asked incredulously, "You didn't do anything, did you?"

Zhao Kai nodded with an awkward smile. Facing so many people from the martial arts world, he hadn't even managed to handle the security issues, let alone worry about their food and lodging. He then cautiously said, "Aren't there a few inns and taverns in the city? I think they must have eaten there."

Shen Qing rolled her eyes at Zhao Kai, her face full of disdain, and said, "Zhao Kai, you idiot! There are only a few inns and taverns in the city. How can they possibly accommodate so many people from the martial world? Now I understand why Kuaiji City is in such chaos. You... I'm speechless..."

Shen Qing then urgently summoned several local militiamen to learn the details. He learned that those who could stay in the inns and taverns in the city were all prominent figures from major sects or top experts in the martial arts world. Some martial artists with decent wealth found some houses in the city to stay temporarily, and their meals were prepared by the locals.

The remaining down-on-their-luck martial artists either found empty houses in the city to spend the night, or made do with dilapidated temples and monasteries outside the city, while others used the sky as blankets and the ground as beds. Their meals consisted of petty theft, stealing bird eggs, catching fish, and hunting wild game in the forest, each displaying their unique skills and fully demonstrating that cats have their ways and mice have theirs.

However, this caused great suffering to many people in the city. They were constantly losing things, and since the city government was not operating and was only being managed by the military government, there was no way to report to the authorities. Even if they contacted the patrol team, the matter would be dealt with hastily. This caused the people in the city to lose confidence in the Yue King's Mansion.

"Look at the mess you've made!" Shen Qing was almost laughing in anger after learning the details. He had been racking his brains to help Zhao Kai win over the people and stabilize the region, but this guy was causing trouble behind the scenes, failing at even the most basic things, and causing public support to plummet.

"Brother Shen, please calm down. I'm just inexperienced. I need you to take charge and turn the tide..." Zhao Kai hurriedly flattered Shen Qing, displaying the perfect image of a sycophant.