After all that fighting, he didn't even make it past the main gate of Black Dragon Stronghold.
The Hu Family had swallowed all of Black Dragon Stronghold's gold, silver, and treasures, so naturally, Su Mu didn't get a share.
But Su Mu hadn't returned empty-handed.
The chieftain and second-in-command of Black Dragon Stronghold had been at their own doorstep and weren't carrying anything valuable, giving Su Mu no chance to loot their bodies.
However, Su Mu did find a silk-wrapped package on Xing Zhao Fu.
'He even carried this on his person when leaving the city to suppress bandits. It must have been very important to Xing Zhao Fu. It should be something good.'
Su Mu muttered to himself, carefully opening the silk-wrapped package.
'Deeds?'
Inside the silk package was a ledger. As Su Mu flipped through it, a few sheets of paper fell out.
He picked them up to take a look, but his face fell with disappointment.
Residences in the Inner City were incredibly valuable; any one of them cost several hundred taels of silver.
And money alone wasn't enough to buy one.
They were good assets, but to Su Mu, they were practically useless.
First, their origins were illicit. Second, not just anyone could enter the Inner City.
As he was now, he couldn't even get through the gates of the Inner City. Wanting to live there was nothing short of a fool's dream.
It would be impossible to cash these in, even if he wanted to.
He casually flipped through the ledger again. It contained records of Xing Zhao Fu's illicit earnings and bribes over the years.
The contents were a real eye-opener for Su Mu.
During his years as a constable, even in his least profitable year, Xing Zhao Fu had taken in over a thousand taels. The amount of silver he gave out annually was equally astonishing.
After flipping through it a few more times, Su Mu tossed the ledger directly into the brazier, watching as the flames consumed it.
He hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he didn't throw the deeds in. Instead, he rewrapped them in the silk cloth and stuffed them under his bed.
'What if one day he became qualified to enter the Inner City?'
...
「Half a month passed in a flash.」
The annihilation of Black Dragon Stronghold failed to cause a single ripple in South City.
The common folk toiled day in and day out just for food and clothing. Who would care about a gang of bandits outside the city?
What surprised Su Mu was that, even within the South City Bureau, it was as if the annihilation of Black Dragon Stronghold had never happened.
It seemed no one even cared about Xing Zhao Fu's death.
As for the position of constable, it was being temporarily filled by a squad leader named Zhao Ji.
That Zhao Ji had no past conflicts with Su Mu, so naturally, he didn't give him a hard time.
Su Mu clocked in on time and patrolled the streets every day. His life became peaceful and leisurely.
Before he knew it, he had accumulated 200 Identity Points.
One day, Su Mu had just returned from patrol when Zhao Ji, the acting constable, suddenly sent someone to summon him.
"Greetings, Constable."
Su Mu said with a cupped fist salute.
It was a case of "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours." Although Zhao Ji wasn't the official constable yet, he certainly wouldn't refuse the title.
Sure enough, a smile spread across Zhao Ji's face, and he nodded slightly.
He sized Su Mu up, feeling slightly puzzled.
He had no particular impression of this Su Mu, only remembering that on the rare occasions they met, the junior constable was always extremely respectful.
'I wonder why Lord Sima has summoned him.'
"Xiaosu, I heard you came from a refugee background?"
Zhao Ji asked, patting Su Mu's shoulder, "Do you have any family in Wuling City?"
"To answer the constable, I have no family in Wuling City."
Su Mu replied, shaking his head.
"I see."
Zhao Ji said thoughtfully, a pensive look on his face, "Lord Sima wants to see you. Do you know why?"
"Lord Sima wants to see me?"
A look of shock crossed Su Mu's face. "Constable, I've always been diligent in my duties, never daring to slack off in the slightest. You have to speak for me."
Zhao Ji looked at Su Mu. Seeing that the panicked expression on his face didn't seem fake, he said with a smile, "Don't be nervous. Lord Sima seemed to be in a good mood; I doubt he wants to punish you. Go on, go see the Sima. If anything happens, I'll vouch for you."
Su Mu bowed in acknowledgment, left Zhao Ji's squad room, and crossed several covered walkways to the office where Sima Hu Yuxing usually worked.
After being announced, Su Mu waited for a full hour before he finally stood before Hu Yuxing.
"I know all about what you did."
Hu Yuxing said, getting straight to the point.
"Lord Sima, what are you saying? Your subordinate does not understand. I am just a humble junior constable who only knows how to do his job. I don't know what matter the Sima is referring to."
Su Mu said.
Hu Yuxing watched him for a long moment before speaking slowly, "You're very clever. That's good. The Outer City is a chaotic place; only clever people can live long here."
"I haven't rewarded you for the Black Dragon Stronghold matter. Are you resentful?"
"Black Dragon Stronghold? What about Black Dragon Stronghold?"
Su Mu asked blankly, "Hasn't Black Dragon Stronghold already been crushed by the Hu Family's young master? What else could there be?"
"Haha!"
Hu Yuxing gave Su Mu a meaningful look, then suddenly burst out laughing. "Su Mu, do you want to be a squad leader?"
Su Mu knew this was Hu Yuxing's way of buying his silence.
'This was how the great families operated. If everyone was like Xing Zhao Fu, killing people to silence them at every turn, how many people would they have to kill?'
'Even if they didn't care about the lives, it would be a hassle, wouldn't it?'
'For a great family like this, any problem that could be solved with silver wasn't a problem at all.'
'As long as the benefits were sufficient, Su Mu didn't mind the Hu Family taking credit for his deeds. Besides, with his current status, even holding the achievement of killing the three leaders of Black Dragon Stronghold would be useless.'
'In this world, you couldn't get promoted on merit alone; you needed strength to back it up.'
'Besides, killing the three leaders of Black Dragon Stronghold had been a fluke. Even if his merits did get him promoted to constable, his current strength was insufficient for the position. He would be completely unable to suppress the unruly gangs of South City.'
'In short, as long as the benefits were good enough, anything was negotiable.'
"I once heard it said that a soldier who doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier."
Su Mu said with a serious expression, "I imagine a constable who doesn't want to become a squad leader is not a good constable."
"Haha."
Hu Yuxing laughed loudly again, this time with a bit more sincerity. "Su Mu, do you know why I can be the Sima of South City?"
Before Su Mu could answer, he continued, "Because my surname is Hu! I am a descendant of the Inner City Hu Family, so even if I don't practice the Martial Dao, I can still be the South City Sima. You want to be a squad leader? That's just a matter of a word from me. In fact, with a single word, I can even make you the constable of South City."
Su Mu was slightly stunned. 'This is beyond my expectations. Hu Yuxing is being this generous? Offering to make me constable right away?'
'Should I refuse? Or should I accept?'
'For a moment, Su Mu found it difficult to choose. Being constable was definitely a good thing, but his strength wasn't sufficient right now. It'd be easy to fail spectacularly...'
"But, on what grounds?"
Just as Su Mu's mind was racing, Hu Yuxing continued, "Your surname isn't Hu, so why should I promote you?"
Su Mu looked at Hu Yuxing, his expression immediately twisting in conflict.
A certain saying about a man who'd drifted for half his life came to mind...
"I have a handmaiden in my estate who is about your age and quite comely. You also happen to be unmarried. I intend to betroth her to you as your wife. What do you say?"
Hu Yuxing said, abruptly changing the subject.
Su Mu's mind raced, and he instantly understood Hu Yuxing's meaning. Handmaidens from great families were either the master's private playthings or were gifted as wives to household servants and household guards.
'Hu Yuxing... he was trying to make him pick a side.'
'If he agreed, he would become one of Hu Yuxing's lackeys. Even though his surname wasn't Hu, he would be considered one of the Hu Family's people and would naturally be entrusted with important duties and promoted.'
'Su Mu had thought he would need to pick a side one day, but he never imagined that day would come so soon!'
'He was just a junior constable! Why was he being forced to make such a choice?'