After having breakfast with her family, the day was already bright, the sun was shining, it was a beautiful morning.

Su Tan'er's work schedule was often tight. After a comfortable morning, she had a series of things to deal with. It took about ten minutes to walk from her home to the No. 1 Courtyard of the General Staff Department, which served as the center of Heden County. Hong Ti followed her all the way. Yun Zhu and Jin'er would accompany them for a while, and then go to the school on the other side - they were teachers in the school, and sometimes participated in the entertainment activities of the political department.

Among Ning Yi's wives and concubines, Hong Ti was relatively older, had a good temperament, and probably had the most difficult past. Tan'er respected her and respectfully called her "Hong Ti Jie (Sister Hong Ti)." Hong Ti had already married into the family and, as usual, called Tan'er "Jiejie (Sister)."

Such addressings were a little confusing, but the relationship between the two had always been good. If there were no outsiders on the way to the General Staff Department, they would chat all the way. But usually there were people, and the deputies who wanted to report on their work today would often go to the door of the house during breakfast to wait, in order to save the next ten minutes - most of the time this work was done by the chief housekeeper Xing'er, and there was also another woman who worked as a secretary, named Wen Xianying, who was responsible for summarizing the information passed up and reporting it to Su Tan'er.

Today, the one who followed was Juan'er.

After the two talked and communicated briefly, Juan'er went to the other side of the mountain to deal with other matters.

A few minutes later, Tan'er and Hong Ti arrived at the yard of the General Staff Department and began to handle the day's work.

Buai, Heden, and Jishan counties were originally just small counties with a combined population of no more than 30,000. After the Black Flag came, including the military, administrative, technical, and commercial personnel and their families, the population expanded to more than 160,000. Although the General Staff Department was named the General Staff Department, it was actually mainly composed of the heads of various departments of the Black Flag. It was here that the operation of the entire Black Flag system was decided. Tan'er was responsible for the overall operation of administration, commerce, and technology. Although she mainly oversaw the overall situation, she was really too busy in the early two years. Later, Ning Yi remotely presided over the reform and cultivated a group of students, which made her a little easier, but she could not relax.

When the routine morning reports and complex paperwork here began, Juan'er arrived at the intelligence department on the other side. The Black Flag's intelligence department was originally a branch of the Bamboo Lodge (竹记). Earlier, it inherited traces of the Secret Investigation Division (密侦司). Later, it cooperated with the Bamboo Lodge's commercial and propaganda departments to operate. At this time, it was completely independent, but still had close ties with the political department and the commercial department.

On the one hand, a large amount of information from the outside world was gathered here: the situation in the Jin Kingdom, the situation in the Great Qi, the situation in the Wu Dynasty... After sorting it out, a part was handed over to the political department, and then made public to the army, so that everyone could understand the current trends of the world, the dire straits everywhere, and what might happen next through dissemination, deduction, and discussion; another part was handed over to the commercial department for summarization and operation, to find possible opportunities and bargaining chips.

In addition to this, specific intelligence work naturally included the internal affairs of the Black Flag, the confrontation with spies from the Wu Dynasty, the Great Qi, and the Jin Kingdom, and the cleaning up of the internal affairs of the Black Flag Army. Now in charge of the General Intelligence Department was Chen Haiying, one of the three former leaders of the Bamboo Lodge. After Juan'er met with him, the planned action began.

The person in charge of the Heden County operation was named Chen Xing, one of Ning Yi's disciples. He was originally enthusiastic about the logic, reasoning, and causality taught by Ning Yi. He once founded the "Ink Society (墨会)" in the army and competed with Luo Ye. Later, he did not embark on the path of an inventor, but joined the action department of the intelligence department. Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), he received an order and then assigned tasks to his subordinates.

When this team set off from the intelligence department as if it were a routine training, the messengers heading to Jishan and Buai had already sped off on the road. Soon after, Zhuo Xiaofeng, who was in charge of espionage in Jishan, and Luo Ye, who was a military judge in the Buai military camp, would receive orders, and the entire operation would gradually unfold in these three places...

At Si Shi Yi Ke (9:30 AM), Su Tan'er finished the morning meeting with a group of staff and walked towards her office room, she looked up and saw a hot air balloon floating overhead.

************

The hot air balloon floated in the sky.

By the road at the foot of Heden County, Chen Lao Er (Old Chen the Second), who ran a porridge pancake shop, looked up and saw two hot air balloons in the sky. One hot air balloon was in the east and the other in the south, drifting with the wind.

Most of the people eating at the porridge pancake shop were members of the nearby Black Flag administrative department. Chen Lao Er had good craftsmanship, so his porridge pancake shop had many regulars. Today, it was past breakfast time, and some people were still eating something here, eating and drinking, laughing and talking. Chen Lao Er brought two bowls of porridge out and placed them in front of a table, and then put his hands on his hips and vigorously shook his neck: "Hey, that Kongming lantern..."

The Black Flag member who wanted porridge looked back: "Lao Chen, that's a hot air balloon, it's not the first time you've seen it, don't you understand?"

"It's just a Kongming lantern, I would make them when I was a kid." Chen Lao Er grinned, "But this is really big, why is it being released today?"

"Maybe they see the weather is good today, and they're releasing it to dry."

The administrative staff member smiled, and Chen Lao Er also smiled. People came and went in the markets around here. After a while, another group of people came: "Lao Er, is there anything to eat? Eight bowls of porridge, sixteen cakes, pack them up, we have a mission."

The group of people came in black military uniforms, fully armed. Chen Lao Er nodded, "There aren't many cakes left, why are you coming at this time, and there's porridge, how are you going to take it away on a mission?"

"Find something to pack it in, what else do you have..." The eight people walked into the shop, and the leader came over to check.

"Or I'll give you the pot, how far are you going to take it..."

"A pot... what else do you have..."

"You don't know what I have here..." Chen Lao Er said, still trying to test what mission the other party was going on. A knife was already placed on his neck, and several people walking around him also drew their knives. Someone took away the sharp weapons around Chen Lao Er.

"You... what, what are you doing... are you arresting the wrong person..." The middle-aged porridge pancake shop owner trembled.

"The net is closing, admit it." The leader of the Black Flag members pointed to the sky and said in a low voice.

Chen Lao Er's body was still trembling, like the most ordinary honest merchant. Then, with a "Ah—" sound, he pounced up. He wanted to break free from the restraint, but as soon as his body jumped up, three people around him pounced on him at the same time, pressing him firmly to the ground, and one of them violently dislocated his jaw.

The surrounding Black Flag political affairs personnel looked at this scene: "Which side is that from?"

"Brother, it's confidential."

"Oh, it's either the Great Qi or the Wu Dynasty anyway..."

"It's a pity for a good bowl of porridge..."

People were talking about it, but some people were whispering to each other in private: "There was Tian Hu's matter a few days ago. A few days ago, I heard that outside Xiangyang City, a group of Jurchens were defeated. At this time, the dark guards are closing the net. What's going on?"

"...It can't be true, can it?"

Having stayed in the central area of the Black Flag for so long, many people had keen insights. Since the end of the Xiaocang River Blood Battle, the Black Flag Army's dormancy carried a sense of grief and indignation. The main reason was the disappearance of Mr. Ning. The outside world said he was dead, and the Black Flag internally said he wasn't dead. However, it was an indisputable fact that the inside had long regarded Su Tan'er and others as widows.

It was impossible not to have internal discussions about this matter, but although Mr. Ning had never been seen again, most people still unanimously believed that Mr. Ning was indeed alive. This was a tacit understanding that the Black Flag internally took the initiative to maintain. For the past two years, the Black Flag has been cautiously rooted in this lie, carrying out a series of reforms, the transfer of the center, the decentralization of power, etc., etc., seemingly hoping that after the reforms were completed, everyone would continue to operate without Mr. Ning.

Until Tian Hu's power was subverted, the Black Flag's external actions encouraged the internal, and news about Mr. Ning's return also vaguely spread in the Chinese Army. This time, people with knowledge regarded it as a beautiful wish, but at this time, the dark guard's closing of the net obviously revealed thought-provoking information.

The hot air balloon floated across the sky, and the soldiers in the gondola used binoculars to survey the county below, holding colored flags in their hands, ready to send flag signals at any time.

Outside a courtyard on the mountainside, Chen Xing knocked on the courtyard door. After a while, someone came to open the courtyard door. It was a middle-aged man with a scar on his face, with an aura of heroism between his brows, but with a bit of scholarly air. A child of about seven or eight years old was standing not far away: "Dad." The child saw Chen Xing and shouted.

Chen Xing smiled: "Chen Jing, how is your study with Uncle He?"

"I'm practicing boxing." The child named Chen Jing cupped his fists and saluted, appearing particularly sensible. Chen Xing and the man surnamed He both laughed: "Brother Chen should be on duty at this time, why are you here?"

"Passing by, come to see him. Also, I have something serious to tell Brother He."

The man surnamed He, named He Wen, smiled at this time, frowned, and then spread his hands: "Please come in."

Chen Xing entered the courtyard and walked straight to Chen Jing not far away: "You child..." As he spoke, when he walked to the side, he grabbed his child and threw him violently. This change was sudden, and Chen Jing "Ah—" screamed and was thrown over the wall next to him by Chen Xing. The child fell outside and was obviously caught. He Wen's figure swayed slightly. He was a master of martial arts, and he seemed to want to use extremely high qinggong to sweep away in that instant, but he finally didn't move. The courtyard door next to him slammed shut.

Chen Xing turned around, spread his hands, and exhaled: "Look, I didn't bring weapons."

There was still a smile on He Wen's face. He stretched out his right hand, spread it out, and on it was an iron caltrop with thorns: "Just now I could have hit Xiao Jing." After a moment, he sighed, "I had doubts a few days ago, and I was even more suspicious when I saw the hot air balloon just now... You put Xiao Jing here to paralyze me."

Chen Xing cupped his hands: "You and I have a life-or-death friendship, but we have different paths, and I cannot lightly let you go. Please understand."

He Wen smiled, put his hands behind his back, and walked towards the courtyard: "I felt many years ago that Ning Liheng's set of ideas was too whimsical and impossible to succeed. I still think so now. Even if Gewu (格物, Investigation of Things) can really change that productivity and allow everyone in the world to have books to read, it will inevitably be difficult to succeed next. Everyone can speak, everyone wants to speak, and the whole world is full of scholars. Who will farm the land? Who is willing to be a lowly profession? You are moving too fast, and it will not succeed." He shook his head, "It will not succeed."

"If we don't do it, we will have to return to the original Wu Dynasty world. Or, go to the Jin Kingdom world, where the Five Barbarian Tribes wreak havoc, and the Han Dynasty perishes, is that good?"

"For thousands of years, only Confucianism can achieve great things. There is a reason for that. In Heden for three years, I saw Mr. Ning use the 'Four Classes of People (四民)' to define 'Human Rights (人权)', and use commerce, contracts, and greed to promote Gewu, and use Gewu to lay the foundation for the people's intelligence. It seems beautiful, but it only has a simple skeleton and no flesh and blood. Moreover, Gewu requires wisdom, it requires people to have a heart for laziness. Developing it will conflict with the so-called 'Four Classes of People'. This road is difficult for you to follow." He shook his head, "It won't work."

Chen Xing was silent for a moment, and cupped his hands: "Brother He had such thorough thoughts a long time ago, why didn't you say it earlier? The Political Bureau cannot accept such discussions. What we are doing is originally an earth-shattering event. If there are problems, we can all work together to solve them."

He Wen laughed loudly: "It's not that they can't accept such discussions, what a joke! It's just that they absorb those who have objections, lock them up, and only release them after they find a way to refute them..." He laughed for a while, and shook his head again, "To be honest, Ning Liheng is a genius, and I, He Wen, am ashamed of my inferiority. Just looking at Gewu, the efficiency of papermaking is now ten times higher than before, which is indeed an earth-shattering feat. The human rights he talks about, the prospect of making everyone a gentleman, is also desirable. If he were a Confucian teacher, I would follow him, as a small soldier, to create eternal peace. But... what he does is in line with Confucianism, and there is a possibility of success. Since he assassinated the emperor, there has been no hope..."

"Now, people with knowledge can only destroy the Black Flag and absorb the ideas from it in order to revive the Wu Dynasty and create an unprecedented era of peace..."

As he said, he shook his head and lost his mind for a moment, then looked at Chen Xing, his eyes becoming serious again: "You are closing the net today, could it be that Ning Liheng... is really not dead?"

Chen Xing cupped his hands: "Please Brother He surrender and avoid unnecessary casualties. If Mr. is not dead, with Brother He's talent, I think you will definitely be able to see Mr. and state your thoughts to him one by one."

He Wen put his hands behind his back, looking at him, his eyes gradually turned cold, and he couldn't see too much emotion. Chen Xing knew that this person was both literary and martial arts, and he admired him quite a bit in terms of martial arts knowledge. Chen Xing was quite shocked when he realized that He Wen had inextricable ties with the Wu Dynasty, but at this time, he still hoped that this matter could be resolved relatively peacefully.

It wasn't that he felt that He Wen could escape, but if such a master of both literary and martial arts really went all out, he and his subordinates would probably not be able to hold back and would only be able to kill him.

Outside the courtyard, a team of people with weapons, bows, and crossbows silently surrounded the area...

At the same time, a short melee broke out on a small road on the other side of the hillside.

The cleanup of Heden was still in progress. When the Jishan operation began under the leadership of Zhuo Xiaofeng, it was nearly noon. The cleanup of Buai began at noon quarter. Large and small actions, some were silent, some caused small-scale crowds, and then disappeared into the crowd.

While Luo Ye led the soldiers to carry out the operation in the Buai military camp, Su Tan'er and Lu Hongti had a simple lunch together. Although the weather had turned cooler, there were still low cicada sounds echoing in the yard, the rhythm monotonous and slow.

After lunch, representatives from two merchant teams were led over to meet with Tan'er to discuss two business deals. The news of the Black Flag overthrowing Tian Hu's forces had caused ripples in various places, so that there had been frequent intentions for various businesses recently.

At Shen Shi San Ke (4:30 PM), Su Tan'er was buried in checking the account books when Juan'er walked in from outside and placed a piece of intelligence on the corner of the table.

Tan'er looked up at her, Juan'er nodded slightly, and then turned around and went out. Tan'er looked at the intelligence on the corner, put her hands on her legs, looked for a moment, and then sat forward, lowered her head and continued to flip through the account books.

The meeting was at five o'clock. Officials and secretaries from various departments came to give a routine report on today's events - which meant that today's events went smoothly, otherwise this meeting could last until night. After the meeting, it was not yet time for dinner. Tan'er returned to her room, continued to look at the account books, made records and plans, and wrote some things. She didn't know why, but it was quiet outside. The sky gradually darkened. In the past, Hongti would come in and call her to dinner, but not today. When the sky darkened, there was still the sound of cicadas chirping. Someone came in with an oil lamp and placed it on the table.

Tan'er lowered her head and continued to write, the lamp light flickering, quietly illuminating the small area of the desk. She wrote and wrote, and didn't know when the pen in her hand suddenly stopped. Then she put the pen down, continued to write a few words, her hand began to tremble, and tears fell on the paper. She raised her hand and supported her eyes.

On a chair not far away, someone was watching her.

"Hi, Su...Tan'er..." The man spoke in a low voice. For some reason, it was like their first meeting in that house many years ago. That time, they were both very polite and unusually unfamiliar. This time, it was slightly different: "Hello..." He said words that were not common in this era.

Tan'er lowered her head and didn't look over there: "Ning Liheng...Xianggong (Husband)..." She said: "Hello..."

At this time, the starlight outside had already risen. In the small county town at night, the lights flickered, and people were still walking outside, talking to each other, greeting each other, just like an ordinary night where nothing special had happened...

Peaceful and tranquil.