Gao Wu: My freshman internship was a battle on the front lines.

Chapter 135 Performance Review Meeting

The person who arrived was Ye Feng.

When he pushed the door open and came in.

Cao Keyuan and Director Zhou were still there, sighing and lamenting.

Cheng Daxiong and Xiong Chumo sat opposite each other, both with expressions of watching a good show.

"What's wrong with you all? Why do you all look so gloomy?"

Ye Feng sat down on the sofa, picked up a bottle of cola, and took a big gulp.

"What happened?"

Cao Keyuan glanced at him but didn't say anything.

What could he say?

Saying, "I'm afraid you, Ye Feng, will be snatched away by someone else"?

"It's nothing, let's just chat."

Director Zhou chuckled awkwardly.

"How's it going on your end? What did Master Ouyang say?"

Ye Feng put down his cola, his expression relaxed.

"It's settled."

"The matter of the puppet production workshop."

"Jiangcheng and the Daoyuan branch jointly invested, and I contributed my technology as equity; the profits will be split equally among the three."

Cao Keyuan's eyes widened in surprise.

The three companies will split the profits equally!

Jiangcheng got one-third for nothing.

You don't have to pay anything; you can just sit there and wait to get your share of the money.

"And another thing," Ye Feng continued.

"The Dao Academy will always send a half-step seventh-level Venerable to guard the workshop."

Cao Keyuan was truly speechless this time.

A Venerable One at the Half-Step Seventh Rank, offering to guard Jiangcheng's gates for free?

Where can I go to seek justice?

Jiangcheng didn't even have a sixth-tier hero before.

Now there are not only three sixth-order rank members, but also...

They also got a half-step seventh-level expert to oversee things for free.

This is like a windfall.

"The profits from this puppet production workshop are quite substantial." Ye Feng smiled as he looked at Cao Keyuan's dumbfounded expression.

"The most important thing is that with this relationship, the Dao Academy will not sit idly by if Jiangcheng encounters any trouble in the future."

Cao Keyuan sat there, remaining silent for a long time.

He remembered that he had just been worried that Ye Feng would be taken away by someone.

They're still saying things like "throwing meat buns to a dog means they're gone forever."

He was still there with a long face, saying, "I should have known better than to come."

Looking back now, I realize how narrow-minded he was.

"Ye Feng is nostalgic," Cao Keyuan muttered to himself, his tone carrying a sense of relief.

"He always thinks of his hometown in everything he does."

"Jiangcheng is so fortunate to have him!"

He leaned back in his chair, his mind already racing with thoughts of tomorrow's performance review meeting.

I wonder what kind of expressions those bastards will have when they see Jiangcheng's achievements this year?

Jiangcheng used to be ranked last every year.

When he, the garrison commander, went to report on his duties, he acted like a thief, afraid of being seen.

This year is different.

This year, he's going to stand tall and show those who used to look down on Jiangcheng what's what.

"Tomorrow's performance review meeting," Cao Keyuan said, a slow smile spreading across his face.

"I wonder how many people will be blinded by its brilliance."

……

The next day, the Shanhe Prefecture held a performance review meeting.

The performance review meeting was held in the grand hall of the Shanhe Prefecture City Lord's Mansion.

Once a year.

The city lords, garrison commanders, and chiefs of the Night Watch of the eight major cities of Shanhe Prefecture were all present.

The auditorium is very large and can seat several hundred people.

There was a row of long tables on the stage.

Zhao Gongming, the lord of Shanhe Prefecture, sat in the center, flanked by his deputies and heads of various departments.

Below the stage were seating areas divided according to the Acropolis, with each of the eight Acropolises occupying a section, clearly separated.

The eight characters "rivers, lakes, seas, mountains, and rivers are beautiful" correspond to the names of eight garrison cities.

River City, Sea City, River City, Lake City, Mountain City, Sichuan City, Brocade City, Embroidery City.

As is customary, Jiang Cheng's seat is always at the very back, in a corner.

In previous years, Cao Keyuan had strong opinions about this arrangement.

He had no objections this year.

It doesn't matter where you sit.

Because he's the most awesome this year!

Today he sat at the very back, legs crossed, looking very calm.

Director Zhou sat next to him, also appearing calm and composed.

In previous performance review meetings, both of them looked worried and distressed.

This year is different.

After holding it in for over a decade, I can finally hold my head high!

Before the conference even officially started, the audience was already buzzing with discussion.

"Hey, look, what brings Master Ouyang here today?"

A middle-aged man pointed to a seat in the front row, his face full of surprise.

Following his finger, everyone looked and indeed saw an elderly man with white hair sitting there.

Ouyang Nan.

Dean of the Taoist Academy Branch!

The number one weapon refiner in Shanhe Prefecture!

Seventh-tier psychic!

He never attended the annual performance review meetings.

The Taoist temple held a detached position and did not get involved in the power struggles of the prefectural city.

He never bothered to attend such occasions.

"Who knows?" The person next to him shook his head.

"Has this old man taken the wrong medicine today?"

"Does the Daoist academy have some major project to collaborate on with the City Lord's Mansion this year?"

"No way? When has the Dao Academy ever given the City Lord's Mansion a second glance? Their war puppets are highly sought after."

"Exactly! He's the only one in the entire Great Xia Dynasty that has it! Even the branch campuses of other Daoist academies can't manufacture it!"

In another corner, several officials of the Acropolis huddled together.

The topic shifted from Ouyang Nan to Jiang Cheng.

"I wonder how Jiangcheng is doing this year."

An official shook his head, his tone tinged with schadenfreude.

"We've been last every year, and this year we'll probably be at the bottom again."

"Someone next to me chimed in."

"Being at the bottom is certain; it just depends on how bad the numbers are. Jiangcheng lost 3,000 soldiers last year, and this year it'll probably be even more!"

"Shh! Keep your voice down, Garrison Commander Cao is here!"

Someone tugged at their sleeves.

Several people turned around and glanced back; Cao Keyuan was sitting in the last row.

The official breathed a sigh of relief and continued in a low voice.

"Sigh, to be honest, it hasn't been easy for Commander Cao. He's been suppressed by those powerful families, and it's quite an achievement that he's been able to stay in that position for so many years. Anyone else would have been ousted long ago."

"I heard something big happened in Jiangcheng." Someone else came over, looking mysterious.

"The city lord of Jiangcheng colluded with the Heavenly Demon Clan with those aristocratic families, but was wiped out by Commander Cao and his men."

"I've heard about it too," a bespectacled official next to him nodded.

"It seems to have been done by a young man named Ye Feng. He's at the fifth level of cultivation, yet he killed a sixth-level Heavenly Demon Envoy."

"A fifth-tier fighter killing a sixth-tier fighter? You're kidding me." The official scoffed, his face full of disbelief.

"The difference between fifth and sixth rank is a whole major realm. You think you can just kill them? Have you seen or heard too much about this?"

"I watched the live stream that day!" the man exclaimed anxiously.

"It's true! Millions of people were watching the live stream in Jiangcheng that day! That one strike instantly killed a late-stage sixth-tier Heavenly Demon Envoy! You didn't see it, the sword light, the aura—it made your legs go weak just looking at it through the screen!"

"Alright, alright, keep your voice down," the bespectacled official tugged at him.

"The conference is about to begin."

The man still looked unconvinced.

"Why would I lie to you? It's true! Go back and watch the replay yourselves. That Ye Feng is no ordinary person. He has the cultivation of a fifth-tier cultivator and the combat power of a sixth-tier cultivator, or even higher. You didn't see him kill those sixth-tier Heavenly Demons, one by one, like cutting melons and vegetables."

The people nearby looked at each other, half believing and half doubting.

"I think I've heard about it too," an elderly official who hadn't spoken until now suddenly said.

"My third son does business in Jiangcheng, and he happened to be in the city that day. He said that the entire city was shrouded in a blood-red light, and everyone thought it was all over."

"Then a young man descended from the sky and cleaved that so-called Heavenly Demon Envoy in two with a single stroke."

"Sigh, no matter what, Jiangcheng suffered heavy losses this time." The bespectacled official sighed.

"I heard that hundreds of millions of people have died or been injured, and the city is almost completely destroyed. It's already quite remarkable that Commander Cao was able to hold out."

"Yes, I reckon we'll be last again this year." The fat official shook his head.

"So what if I'm last? As long as I'm alive, that's all that matters."

The group of people chatted amongst themselves.

Cao Keyuan sat in the back row and heard every word of these words.

A slight smile played on his lips. He said nothing, picked up the teacup in front of him, and slowly took a sip.

Director Zhou pushed up his glasses and said in a low voice, "Let them talk. They'll be shocked."

He is very confident about this year's results.

He glanced at the city lords and garrison commanders of the garrison in the front row.

What I was thinking was...

Just you wait and see. This performance review meeting is going to be quite a show.

Beside them, the garrison commander of Hecheng came over and asked with a grin.

"Old Cao, how's Jiangcheng this year? Not bad, right?"

Cao Keyuan glanced at him and replied, "Not bad."

"So what if it's alright? Stop hiding it. It's not the first time we've been last, what's there to be afraid of?"

Cao Keyuan smiled.

"There's going to be a good show soon."