Chapter 285: Transcendent Qing (22)
The Green Forest proclaims itself the rightful master of every mountain under heaven.
At least, that’s what they claim.
To the Son of Heaven—acknowledged ruler of all the Central Plains—this would be laughable. But His Majesty is far too lofty to waste emotion on the idiotic boasts of petty mountain bandits. Maybe that’s why there haven’t been many campaigns to wipe them out.
As long as these thugs didn’t rob the government’s storehouses, the authorities rarely bothered sending soldiers after them. After all, the army of the Central Plains is entrusted with the great mandate of defending the realm—not the pitiful duty of public order.
Public order was for the worms. The dirty, low-born masses, who bred like rats and multiplied with little help from anyone. The imperial court, the ministries—none of them had ever truly concerned themselves with such people.
If even half the energy the authorities once spent on hunting down martial artists—before the Heavenly Martial Emperor came—had gone into wiping out the bandits, the Green Forest never would’ve grown into this monster.
But the emperor's priorities were clear.
When Shaolin offered famine relief to the people, their temple was nearly shelled to rubble for their insolence. But mountain bandits preying on commoners? That was beneath the court’s notice.
Had Qing been interested in history back when she was still living in her hometown (not that anyone like that actually exists), she might’ve discovered that the rulers of Zhongyuan have always been oddly indulgent toward bandits.
But Qing didn’t know.
Hell, she barely knew Murim history, let alone the real stuff.
And honestly? That made her completely normal. Ordinary people don’t spend their time thinking about history.