When Yang Ge came out of the Yongtai Granary, the sky was already showing the first light of dawn.
He calculated the time, wanting to finish the job before daylight and then let the imperial guards clean up the mess with those useless people from the county government, preventing the situation from getting out of control.
But as he approached the Fengyu Granary, he smelled a strong burning odor!
A bad premonition suddenly rose in his heart, and he hurriedly jumped onto the ridge of the tallest nearby loft to look out.
He saw a raging fire at the Fengyu Granary, with countless villagers in various disheveled clothes surrounding the flames, running around persistently with wooden basins and buckets to extinguish the fire…
The moment he recognized the location of the fire, a tingling sensation climbed to the top of Yang Ge’s head, and his whole body broke out in goosebumps.
"How can people, how can they…"
He clenched his fists tightly, his back teeth grinding audibly as he squeezed out the words one by one, his eyes slightly reddened by the reflection of the firelight.
Even if he thought with his toes, he could guess that the fire must have been set by the people from the Fengyu Rice Shop themselves.
Villagers?
Villagers would only loot the grain, not set fire to it!
The reason why the people from the Fengyu Rice Shop set fire to the grain is also very simple.
Zhang Mazi looted grain to fight for a way out for the people of Lu Ting.
The Fengyu Rice Shop set fire to the grain to leave no way out for the people of Lu Ting.
As long as Lu Ting was out of grain, they would still have the final say!
With the three major grain firms in Luting County already losing their influence, setting fire to the grain not only demonstrated their resolute attitude but also prevented the rise of a second Zhang Mazi in other territories.
You all like looting grain, don’t you?
Well, we like burning grain!
If you dare to loot,
we dare to burn!
In the end, you still have to listen to us obediently…
This move to pull the rug from under the feet also served to warn others by making an example!
Yang Ge understood these dirty thoughts.
But he was still furious!
How could people’s hearts rot like this???
Wasn’t it the Fengyu Rice Shop that started the wrongdoing?
Why, after doing wrong, can they still be so self-righteous and unrepentant?
Did you push the people of Lu Ting to a dead end, yet not allow them to resist?
Even if they resisted, they never thought to hurt anyone!
They just wanted to survive...
Why wouldn’t you let them off?
Why must you push them to hell?
Even beasts know not to harm their kind.
You bastards are compatriots!
How can you be so cruel?
Countless intense thoughts clashed in Yang Ge’s mind.
His head ached terribly, repeatedly gripping his long knife, then releasing it, gripping it again, and releasing it…
Thirty-six years of harmonious social education were somewhat failing to suppress the murderous impulse surging in his heart at this moment!
After a long, long time, he finally completely let go of the knife handle.
He took a deep breath, and said to himself slowly and deliberately, "Fengyu Rice Shop, the Li family, very well, very well, If you want to play, I’ll play with you to the end!"
Having spoken, he cast one final glance at the fierce flames beside him, turned, and leapt down from the attic, hurrying toward Drum and Bell Alley.
...
"You’re finally back!"
Seeing Yang Ge enter in his true appearance, Fang Ke finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Yang Ge’s face was ashen. "What’s the situation now?"
Fang Ke quickly replied, "My lord, the county office and the three major grain merchants are urging us to intervene, to quell the riot and capture the bandit Zhang Mazi at once!"
Yang Ge sneered. "Since when do we, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, take orders from them?"
Fang Ke dared not say anything, but he muttered in his heart, ’Didn’t we take their money?’
Yang Ge asked, "Where are the members of the Li family now?"
Fang Ke answered, "They are all at the county office!"
Yang Ge took out a nine-tubed mask from his bosom and handed it to him, "This was found at the Li family’s house. Arrest all members of the Li family within Luting County without exception!"
Fang Ke took the nine-tubed mask and asked cautiously, "My lord, isn’t this a bit too hasty?"
Yang Ge did not answer but continued to ask, "Where is Yu Gang, the head of the Li family’s guards?"
Fang Ke thought for a moment and replied, "He’s not at the county office!"
Yang Ge said softly, "Find him, kill him, and place this object on his body. Isn’t that less hasty?"
Fang Ke glanced at him and whispered, "Dead without proof?"
Yang Ge remained unfazed. "It’s a swift resolution to chaos!"
Fang Ke pondered for a while and then whispered softly, "My abilities are limited; please instruct further, my lord."
Yang Ge commanded, "Lead men to arrest Yu Gang… try to handle the matter more thoroughly!"
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"I’ll draft an official document right away to be sent to the capital, defining today’s events as the three major grain merchants fighting amongst themselves for the market!"
"How the Li family clears their own suspicion afterward is not our concern, but we must first get the three major grain merchants busy and in disorder!"
"When they are busy and in chaos, we will have the time and the opportunity to deal with them!"
Fang Ke understood some parts and immediately replied, "Understood, with both human and physical evidence, Yu Gang is Zhang Mazi!"
Yang Ge shook his head, "That’s excessive, you only need to prove that Yu Gang is related to Zhang Mazi. Also, think of a way to frame the Li family as the organizers of the riot!"
Fang Ke pondered briefly and quickly clapped his hands, "That’s easy. I’ll go capture a few of the Li family’s guards right away and let the public identify whether they are the organizers."
Yang Ge looked at him. "Is that enough justification to take down the Li family?"
Fang Ke replied with a bitter smile, "It’s surely enough, but if we do this, wouldn’t it explicitly tell those behind the Li family that it’s us, the Luting Embroidered Uniform Guard, who are opposing them?"
Yang Ge sat back in his chair, took a sip of tea to calm himself, and then said, "What those behind the Li family think depends on how we handle things and to what extent."
"As long as we handle things thoroughly, they can’t find fault with us, and they will suspect whether someone else is trying to trip them up."
"Although the three major grain merchants are in cahoots for profit, I don’t believe they are an impenetrable unity, impenetrable to wind or water."
"If we make a big enough splash, those behind the Li family will prioritize self-preservation and abandon the Li family to create a firebreak for themselves."
"After all, the Li family is merely a front. If they lose the Li family, they can still turn to the Zhou family, the Wu family, the Zheng family..."
"How people at the top fight is a matter for them to consider!"
"We’ll bite off only as much as we can chew..."
"Just handle the Li family!"
Fang Ke still felt that the plan was somewhat rough but, seeing Yang Ge’s cold gaze, he dared not argue further, only bowing with clasped hands, "I understand, my lord. I will not disappoint you."
Yang Ge waved his hand. "Just get on with the matter of the Li family. I will have Gu Tong deal with settling the situation."
Fang Ke bowed and left the hall.
Shortly after, Gu Tong quickly entered, bowing with clasped hands, "I report to my lord…"