Dapeng's Time Travel Life

Zhang Peng paced back and forth in his study. The night outside the window grew deeper and deeper, as thick as ink, just like his current state of mind. Upon learning that someone had colluded with underworld forces to harm him, he was not afraid at all. Instead, he quickly calmed down, his mind racing as he pondered a countermeasure.

"Your Highness, why don't we bring more guards and send more people to secretly protect us when we go out? Let's see if those people dare to make a move then," the steward suggested worriedly from the side.

Zhang Peng stopped, his gaze resolute: "This can only be a passive defense, not a way to completely solve the problem. I must take the initiative and wipe them out in one fell swoop."

After careful planning, Zhang Peng spread the word that he would be visiting a manor south of the city in three days to inspect the reformed farmland irrigation system. In reality, however, he had already laid a trap around the manor, waiting for the enemy to walk right into it.

Three days later, Zhang Peng, accompanied by a small group of guards, pretended to head towards the manor. Along the way, he remained calm, but his eyes warily observed his surroundings. As they reached a narrow valley, suddenly, a sharp whistle pierced the silence.

"Watch out, there's an ambush!" Zhang Peng shouted, drawing his sword at the same time.

As soon as he finished speaking, a group of men in black emerged from the woods on both sides of the valley. Wielding sharp blades, they surged towards Zhang Peng and his companions like a tidal wave. Upon closer inspection, Zhang Peng recognized the men in black as agile and well-coordinated assassins, clearly highly trained martial arts masters.

"Brothers, kill!" Zhang Peng commanded, and the guards immediately engaged the men in black in a fierce battle. Zhang Peng's swordsmanship was swift and deadly; each swing of his sword created a whistling sound, and the men in black fell one after another before him. However, the men in black outnumbered him, and new enemies kept pouring in from all directions, gradually turning the tide against Zhang Peng and his men.

"Your Highness, this can't go on. We have to think of a way to break through!" a guard shouted anxiously.

Zhang Peng knew he couldn't panic. While desperately fending off the enemy's attacks, he observed the battlefield situation. Suddenly, he noticed a slight opening in the enemy's encirclement at the southeast corner.

"Follow me! Break through from the southeast corner!" Zhang Peng shouted, leading the charge towards the southeast corner. The guards followed closely, and with all their might, they finally broke through the enemy's encirclement.

However, the men in black had no intention of letting them go easily and continued their relentless pursuit. Just as Zhang Peng and his men were starting to tire, the sound of rapid hoofbeats suddenly came from afar. Zhang Peng was overjoyed, knowing that the reinforcements he had arranged in advance had arrived.

"Brothers, reinforcements are here! Charge back!" Zhang Peng turned and launched another attack on the men in black. With the support of the reinforcements, the situation quickly reversed. Seeing the situation was dire, the men in black scattered and fled.

Zhang Peng seized the opportunity, leading his men in a relentless pursuit, cornering the men in black. After a fierce battle, the men in black were finally wiped out.

After the battle, Zhang Peng looked at the devastation on the battlefield, but felt no joy. He knew that these men in black were merely pawns being used, and the mastermind behind them had yet to be revealed.

Zhang Peng ordered his men to thoroughly search the bodies of the men in black, and finally found a token with a special mark on one of them. He held the token and fell into deep thought.

“Your Highness, the mark on this token looks like the symbol of some martial arts gang,” a guard said.

Zhang Peng nodded slightly: "I know this gang; they've always opposed the imperial court. It seems this incident is indeed related to certain forces within the court."

Upon returning to the capital, Zhang Peng immediately launched an investigation. Through various channels, he finally discovered that the mastermind was actually a high-ranking official of the third rank in the imperial court. This man had formed cliques and engaged in corruption and bribery. The implementation of reforms had severely damaged his interests, which was why he had taken the risk of colluding with underworld forces to assassinate Zhang Peng.

Zhang Peng reported the investigation results to the Emperor, who was furious and immediately ordered the official to be dismissed and investigated. With the official's downfall, the resistance to reform was greatly reduced.

After this life-or-death struggle, the reforms finally saw the light of day. Significant progress was made in the rectification of officialdom across the country, with corrupt officials falling from grace one after another; farmland irrigation construction was also proceeding in an orderly manner, and people's lives were gradually improving.

Standing atop the city wall, Zhang Peng gazed upon the bustling cityscape of Beijing, his heart filled with a myriad of emotions. He knew the road to reform was long, but as long as it brought benefits to the people, he would resolutely continue on that path.