Chapter 109: Chapter 93: Annihilation, Harvest
In Changshan County, the name "Chen Sheng" was now synonymous with the power of life and death, an authority that could not be defied.
What terrified the other minor and mid-sized powers of Changshan County even more was that two of the Three Clans of Changshan were now gone, and the sole survivor, the Yang Family, had clearly submitted to Chen Sheng.
’So, will this ruthless Commander’s butcher’s knife turn on us next?’
For a time, all the other factions were scared into silence. The desire to curry favor with Chen Sheng, which they had toyed with before, now burned with an unprecedented and desperate urgency.
Countless people wracked their brains, desperate to secure a guarantee for their own survival.
However, Chen Sheng kept to himself and rarely made public appearances, leaving them no way to make contact.
Out of desperation, many had no choice but to turn to the newly ascendant Yang Family. They prepared lavish gifts, hoping to beg Patriarch Yang Yi to put in a good word for them with Commander Chen and convey their willingness to submit in exchange for being spared.
.....
"HAHA, Commander Chen, you’ve worked hard."
Inside the County Office, after Chen Sheng returned with his troops and handed a preliminary list of the spoils to Lin Shou and Wu Kuang, the former immediately grew incredibly enthusiastic. Even the resentment he’d felt for being forced to submit to Chen Sheng had largely dissipated.
In all his years as an official here, he had never seen so much wealth.
He knew, of course, that Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang would take the lion’s share of the wealth on the list, but even the remainder was a treasure trove that made his eyes burn with greed.
’Wiping out clans is truly the fastest way to get rich.’
In contrast to Lin Shou’s wild joy, Wu Kuang was far more composed. After all, he had already received a windfall from the Gao Family’s assets and had built up a degree of resistance to such shocks.
He simply smiled and said,
"I trust the operation against the Huang Family went smoothly?"
After a moment’s thought, Chen Sheng explained the entire situation with Xu Shenzhi and Han Ling’Er. After all, he had defeated them in public, and their surrender of the Innate Spiritual Qi was hardly a secret.
There was no need to conceal anything.
Upon hearing Chen Sheng’s account, Wu Kuang’s expression grew solemn.
"The Xu Family from the Prefecture City... Disciples of the Iron Sword Sect..."
Lin Shou, who was standing to the side, spoke up.
"The Xu Family has some roots in the Prefecture City, but they’re nothing to be afraid of. If County Captain Wu and I were to write a report to our superiors, I’m sure they would know how to handle it. The Iron Sword Sect, however, is another matter."
As one of the top Jianghu powers in Ning’an Prefecture, Lin Shou was well aware of the Iron Sword Sect’s strength. Even the Prefecture Government Office was reluctant to provoke them, to say nothing of little Changshan County.
"They interfered with a Government Office operation to suppress bandits. The evidence is irrefutable, and I’ve had them sign a confession. As for what comes next, I’ll leave that to you, County Magistrate Lin and County Captain Wu."
Seeing their grave expressions, Chen Sheng immediately revealed this crucial piece of information.
Hearing this, Lin Shou visibly relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.
"Well, in that case, they got what they deserved. With a signed confession of such a crime, I doubt even the Iron Sword Sect can complain."
Wu Kuang glanced at Lin Shou and nodded.
"Exactly. Since that’s the case, we’ll simply report the truth to our superiors."
’Eliminating the local magnates was an order from the top of the Prefecture Government Office anyway. The paltry Xu Family can’t stir up any trouble. And while the Iron Sword Sect is a thorny issue, those two were just ordinary Inner Sect Disciples.’
’Why would the Iron Sword Sect raise a storm over them?’
’He probably wouldn’t even need to call in his favor with Envoy Nie at the Jingwu Bureau.’
"Commander Chen," Lin Shou began, his eyes drifting back to the list, "since we’ve decided how to handle the official business, what about...?"
Wu Kuang looked at Chen Sheng and gave a slight nod. After a brief pause to think, Chen Sheng laid out the terms.
"Aside from the portion we must turn over, we’ll divide the rest into ten shares. County Captain Wu gets three shares, I will take three, and County Magistrate Lin gets one. The remaining three shares will be distributed among the soldiers.
What do you think, County Magistrate Lin?"
"That’s perfectly acceptable."
Although Lin Shou would have liked more, he knew he hadn’t contributed much to the effort. Getting even one share was a stroke of incredible luck, so he had no grounds for complaint.
"Haha, Lin, was I right about what I said before?"
Wu Kuang added with a laugh.
"I will use this tea as wine to toast you both." Lin Shou stroked his thick beard, his narrow eyes glinting shrewdly. "From now on... I’ll do whatever the two of you say."
"HAHAHA! Excellent..."
