Chapter 1536: Head-to-Head Confrontation

Daring to stand firm even in front of the Goddess Temple's Head Overseer and Deputy Overseer? This young man is truly a tough nut to crack!

Although what he said was not wrong at all.

These temple officials, relying on the Goddess's prestige, enjoy free allocations from the national treasury and the adoration of believers nationwide, all while meddling in domestic affairs. For every issue, they claim "offending divine majesty" and constantly cause trouble for King Yao's court.

At that moment, King Yao even felt a slight sense of satisfaction.

"Unreasonable? Your Majesty, is *he* being unreasonable, or am *I*?" He Lingchuan corrected himself, his face radiating righteousness. "No matter how much talk there is, everything boils down to 'reason'! To undertake such a massive project and complete it well, the most crucial elements are proper procedures and clear rules. If the rules are chaotic and unclear, and the procedures vague, a two-year project could easily drag on for ten!"

They spoke to him of propriety, but he spoke to them of reason.

Why?

Because deities do not speak reason; they only inflict punishment.

Given the "great error" he had committed and his offense against the Venerable Heaven, if not for the protection of nine hundred palace guards around him, the temple might have quietly sent its soldiers to seize He Lingchuan first, and then slowly argued the matter with King Yao.

Not to mention he was just a commoner; in the past, the temple had indeed done the same thing to offending officials.

Yet, in today's court, He Lingchuan insisted on arguing based on reason and convincing others through logic.

Not because reason was on his side, but because power stood behind him.

As soon as the words "ten years" were uttered, King Yao's face twitched.

"Today someone complains I moved their stone; tomorrow someone else will claim we're digging up their ancestors' graves. If just anyone can come out and point fingers, hindering this project, then I truly cannot complete it. Your Majesty, you'll have to find someone more capable."

King Yao was struggling to maintain his composure. This young man even dared to challenge *him*?

"You dare to be so arrogant and presumptuous in front of the throne and the Head Overseer? I can't imagine how unrestrained you are in private!" Deputy Overseer Xiao flew into a rage, and his next words came out without thinking: "Explain yourself clearly right now: why did the West Forest Temple immediately collapse the moment the new city construction ran out of golden disc stones?"

His anger bristled, and he accidentally blurted out what he was truly thinking.

Head Overseer Liang had intended to speak, but upon hearing these words, he could only shut his mouth and instead gave him a reproachful look.

This was not good.

As expected, He Lingchuan immediately seized on this point and spoke eloquently: "Isn't it precisely because the West Forest Temple was on the verge of collapse and already a dangerous building that the new city's temple needed to be built urgently? Otherwise, which temple project is given a mere five or six-month deadline? How long did it take to construct the West Forest Temple back then? It was no less than thirty years, wasn't it!"

Others couldn't even get a word in: "Since Deputy Overseer Xiao implied—no, that's not right, since Deputy Overseer Xiao *accused* us of collapsing the West Forest Temple, then you must have collected detailed evidence, right? Please present it in court, otherwise you're slandering us and attempting to obstruct the project's progress!"

Evidence of the West Forest Temple's collapse? Heh, not even immortals could produce that.

Why did he specifically target Deputy Overseer Xiao? Because unreasonable people are the easiest to provoke into a rage.

Once enraged, they lose their composure and expose their weaknesses.

Seeing Deputy Overseer Xiao speechless and choked up, He Xiao was almost about to shout, "Guards!" Head Overseer Liang had to step forward himself: "No matter how much this foreign merchant boasts, it is unequivocally confirmed that the West Forest Temple's stone materials were misappropriated. Your Majesty, how should this matter be handled?"

He had no intention of getting entangled with He Xiao; he immediately addressed King Yao.

King Yao stroked his long beard, a solemn expression on his face. "Speaking of how to handle this, we must address the practical issues."

You Rongzhi listened on the side, dumbfounded, but quickly recovered and interjected, his words earnest: "The new city's temple has indeed been fully planned, and we have already informed Head Overseer Liang and Deputy Overseer Xiao. It can be occupied in six months."

He Lingchuan immediately followed up: "In six months, problems like internal flooding, ground subsidence, collapses, and injuries to temple residents can all be resolved once and for all, and all you divine officials will no longer have to live in fear."

Deputy Overseer Xiao said with a cold face: "Since a temple is to be built in the new city, why weren't these materials from the West Forest Temple transported there first and properly stored?"

"They can't be transported there," He Lingchuan stated straightforwardly. "No roads have been built yet. That area is still dense mountain forests; how would stone materials weighing tens of thousands of jin be transported up the mountain?"

You Rongzhi, having obtained King Yao's permission, opened the sandbox in the imperial study, revealing the outline of the entire capital's eastward expansion project.

The others looked and, as expected, the location You Rongzhi pointed to was a stretch of green hills.

They couldn't complain that He Lingchuan had chosen a poor location. Ever since the West Forest Temple's subsidence problem became increasingly prominent, subsequent temple constructions preferred to be built on high ground, overlooking the residences of high officials and nobles, which provided a sense of elevated pleasure.

The terrain in the new city was relatively flat, and small hills were hard to find. He Lingchuan had been thoughtful in arranging this location for them.

But as He Lingchuan said, no roads had been built on the mountain yet. How could building materials weighing tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of jin be transported up there?

The previous project to clear Loushan Mountain was rushed, utilizing both primal energy and mystic crystals, so it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a waste of manpower and resources. The temple construction was not on a tight schedule, so it should naturally wait until the roads were built before commencing.

He Lingchuan continued: "I have inquired with two mines; they will deliver two batches of golden disc stones within three months. Combined with the remaining stone materials from the West Forest Temple, the materials for constructing the new city's temple will be entirely sufficient."

So the facts were very clear: the current new city construction lacked stone materials, and the temple would not begin construction anytime soon. Therefore, this project diverted the dismantled building materials from the West Forest Temple. In three months, the mines would deliver new golden disc stones, and the road up the mountain would also be completed. He Lingchuan would then order the stones transported up the mountain to begin building the temple.

If done step-by-step, this process could certainly work. King Yao knew this well, as did You Rongzhi, because the capital's eastward expansion project had always operated this way under He Xiao, and it had been very smooth and efficient.

At that moment, You Rongzhi stared at the shifting expressions of the few people, and several thoughts flashed through his mind.

Whose side should he take?

How should he express himself?

What stance would King Yao want him to take, and what words would he want him to say?

Looking at King Yao's slightly furrowed brows, You Rongzhi understood. He, the chief project official, stepped forward and said clearly: "Purely from a procedural point of view, there is nothing wrong with what He Xiao said. The project has always been handled this way."

When the Misty Lake Villa lacked materials, it dismantled surrounding abandoned mansions.

When the model demonstration district lacked building materials, it dismantled surrounding villages and the old district of Tianshui City.

When the rush construction of the Huan Table lacked golden disc stones, He Xiao naturally targeted the most readily available materials.

This method was the most efficient.

Of course, You Rongzhi's support for He Xiao was a necessity of the situation.

What else could be done? Things had come to this point.

He understood King Yao's intention.

Deputy Overseer Xiao, enraged, laughed instead: "You clearly misappropriated West Forest Temple stones, yet you claim the procedure is flawless? You Rongzhi, you're confused! Since this project is entirely under your management, what you should do is dismantle the Huan Table, return the West Forest Temple stones, and then beg forgiveness from the Goddess!"

He Lingchuan almost wanted to applaud him.

This fellow just kicked the ball back to King Yao.

To dismantle or not to dismantle? Just say what to do.

King Yao also found it tricky.

If not dismantled, there would be a suspicion of offending the divine.

If dismantled, the Huan Table would be torn down just after being built, wasting time and effort and drawing public criticism. Furthermore, several foreign delegations were about to visit; would they be shown a pit in the ground then?

King Yao sighed inwardly. Just as he was about to speak, Deputy Overseer Xiao pointed at He Lingchuan again and said sternly: "This person acts one way in public and another in private, offending the divine. He must be taken back for investigation!"

He increasingly suspected the collapse of the West Forest Temple was He Xiao's doing.

Head Overseer Liang remained silent, observing King Yao's expression and awaiting his reply.

He Lingchuan spoke again, preempting King Yao: "Which divine rule have I violated?"

Deputy Overseer Xiao said coldly: "Outward obedience and inward rebellion, offending the Goddess! Which part of that do you not understand?"

"What about the specific regulations?" He Lingchuan sneered. "There must be a procedure to follow before you can claim I've broken it, right? Otherwise, why arrest me? Just based on your confused accusations?"

The Soul-Snatching Mirror in his arms also let out a sigh: "Will that old King Yao sell you out?"

It always felt that King Yao also harbored ill intentions toward its master.

He Lingchuan's face showed anxiety, but inwardly he was relaxed.

Deputy Overseer Xiao's demand was outrageous; raising it would only further escalate the conflict. King Yao could not possibly allow He Lingchuan to be detained at this moment.

As expected, King Yao waved his hand: "The nature of this matter is indeed serious, and He Xiao certainly acted without due consideration. However, as a foreign merchant, he is unfamiliar with our country's conditions and the temple's regulations, so a momentary oversight is understandable..."

Well then, with King Yao's words, the crime was directly downgraded to "oversight"?

How could such a good thing exist? Deputy Overseer Xiao sneered. Just as he was about to speak, he received a glance from Head Overseer Liang and immediately swallowed his words.

King Yao cleared his throat and said to You Rongzhi and He Lingchuan: "You two may withdraw for now."

You Rongzhi immediately said, "Your Majesty..."

King Yao waved his hand: "Go quickly."

Qiu Long, standing behind him, also gave You Rongzhi two winks. Only then did You Rongzhi feel relieved, and he withdrew with He Lingchuan.

The two walked in silence. Only after passing Jade Spring Palace did You Rongzhi let out a long sigh: "You've really stirred up a hornet's nest this time."

He Lingchuan stiffened his neck, still looking a bit defiant: "Minister You, I haven't broken any law!"

"You've offended the temple, and the one confronting you is the Head Overseer under the Venerable Heaven God," You Rongzhi replied. Talented as he was, this young man was ultimately a bit too arrogant and didn't understand the circumstances of Yao.

You Rongzhi's choice of the word "offended" was quite clever, as it implicitly stated that the temple's arrests operated on a "presumption of guilt," requiring neither concrete evidence nor definite reasons. As long as the temple deemed someone guilty, they could usually be taken away.

He Lingchuan immediately asked, "Minister You, will I be convicted and imprisoned?"

"Well..." Based on You Rongzhi's understanding of King Yao, He Lingchuan wouldn't be. But how could he give He Xiao such a guarantee?

He could only say, "I'll wait for news with you."

A palace attendant led them to sit in the corridor of Jade Spring Palace: "Please wait here to be summoned."

Having said that, the attendant quickly slipped away.

This place was bitterly cold, especially at midnight; the ground was covered with a layer of white frost.

If a living person sat here all night, the next morning they would either be paralyzed or turn into an ice sculpture.

Clearly, King Yao harbored much resentment towards them and wanted them to suffer a bit here.