Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

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Cao Chun himself seems to be grumpy and opinionated, but pretty solid overall. He agreed with our investigation resolution the worker conflict. It was Jin Tae the apprentice who didn't think it worth doing in the first place. The Ministry guards at our meeting with Jaromila seemed alert and dutiful at least?

If anything, our Zheng boy is more untested at the moment, and putting Cao Chun's eyes on him might put some soft influence balance to both sides.

Though, if we were hoping for another MoI deal hint, it does sound likely to distract from that...

If there are Ministry folk about Cao Chun hasn't vetted personally, Zheng Fu might be an interesting complicating factor to test them with.

I like the idea of presenting them to each other as a challenge to them to "play nice and don't mess up what I've got going here, succeed and we can see about doing more together"

[X] Bring Zheng Fu on and go to talk to the Ministry with him along.
 
I sort of feel like... ask? I mean, I feel like "ask" should be an option here
That's the same as bring the Zheng into the meeting. After all, the point of not informing the MoI of Zheng involvement is to keep the Zheng involvement secret.

Also Ling Qi can't just not answer the dude she's already talking to right now in front of her face. That would be rude to do to someone offering his help for free.
 
You know, I get the impression that Cao Chun is capable of basically reading Ling Qi everytime they interact and every time she proves to be genuine he gets just a bit less combative. As the time passes it seems he is more and more willing to play along until she either succeds or fail by her own merits.
This would also means he is fully aware that Ling Qi(and us) considers the MoI to be up there with the Western territories and Xia Ren as the most likely ones to mess everything up for her, and the idea that he can see that just amuses me
 
[X] Bring Zheng Fu on and go to talk to the Ministry with him along.

I have seen a couple arguments about keeping Zheng as a safekeep in case some MoI agents are involved with the sabotage.
I guess that's an actual possibility, but Cao Chun certainly isn't part of it. If a MoI agent is involved, it's without his knowledge.

In that case, having Zheng Fu acting alone would only make it easier for the saboteur to plant discord and discredit any of his findings.
Getting more eyes into the MoI's activities is a better way of uncovering any shaddy movements of their agents.

Though my guess at the moment is that the culprit is Meng Deming, Meng Dan's uncle.
I think he wasn't such a compromise choice as we were led to believe.
 
[X] Bring Zheng Fu on and go to talk to the Ministry with him along.
Edit:
Though my guess at the moment is that the culprit is Meng Deming, Meng Dan's uncle.

Seems a reasonable direction to look.

For reference:
-4: Greatly Disliked- The organization will oppose you whenever doing so is both possible and matches with their other goals
Weilu Reactionaries (25% of the Meng)
Yan Renshu (personal scale, though implies cooperation with the underground)

-3: Disliked- Members will be poorly disposed toward you and the organization may invest in making your life difficult
Celestial Hills region (I assume this number is for Lower Nobility)
Imperial Conservatives (20% of the Luo, 10% of the Wang, 50% of the Diao, 40% of the Jia, 20% of the Bao)

I don't really see these being quite significant to act on their own for major sabotage like we've been seeing. They might turn a blind eye or help someone else, but the -4s aren't people they would work with.
 
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I mean...
Those quotes that I've pulled together make it rather clear that they do, in fact, care about a lot more than just foreigners and their cultivations methods

So I'm not sure what you're saying here

Like there is literally multiple quotes right there about how they police the Empire's nobles for "unvirtuous and crass" behavior
Or how they are responsible for ensuring that people pay the Empire's taxes properly and root out economic malfeasance
Or how they were outright responsible for reforming the Empire's tax code
Or how they're constantly working to prevent any backsliding back into the era when any random Cultivator with enough luck and Talent would destabilize the local government and set up some kind of petty bandit kingdom or pull a Xianxia protag and try to become the next Sage Emperor
The thing about the MoI policing the nobility for demonic cultivation is that it's an inherent part of hierarchy, and therefore any culture like the Peaks that reveres it, for normal people higher up in it to see their lessers as resources to be consumed(see also the way normal Imperials treat spirits weaker than them). Emperor An's methods, that of just killing anyone who does this stuff, is almost certainly going to result in either a total purge of either nobility or the MoI in the long run, or natural selection kicking in to make the demonic abuses more hidden. I suspect this is one of the truths the MoI's intended White cultivator broke his cultivation in rejecting.
 
I can't believe no one brought up the most important point: new husbando option! With us putting the Sect behind us and not seeing Moon Senpai anymore, we need a new rough and tumble bad boy to pair with Ling Qi's newfound high society propriety!

[X] Bring Zheng Fu on and go to talk to the Ministry with him along.
 
I can't believe no one brought up the most important point: new husbando option! With us putting the Sect behind us and not seeing Moon Senpai anymore, we need a new rough and tumble bad boy to pair with Ling Qi's newfound high society propriety!

[X] Bring Zheng Fu on and go to talk to the Ministry with him along.

Am I recalling correctly that the Zheng don't do marriage and they're all about open relationships?
 
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