Chapter 947: Despicable and Shameless

Editor: Henyee Translations

All the officials in the county town were dragged away. Tang Jinghong led his men into the county government office to temporarily handle the administration, as there was much to restore and rebuild.

The residents who had been hiding at home for fear of going out now flooded the streets in celebration. Some even set off firecrackers, rejoicing that the county was finally seeing the dawn of a new day.

Tang Jinghong posted a notice calling all the scholars and examination passers in the county to come and work at the county office. Those who proved capable would be directly appointed to official positions.

With the influx of these intellectuals, the military officers in the county office finally got some relief.

After dealing with the affairs of the county, Tang Jinghong personally led troops to the village, following the map drawn by Jiang Zhanglin, heading towards the plains where the villagers had been forced to clear land.

The troops arrived in front of a waterfall…

Tang Jinghong dismounted. “Find the mechanism!”

The village chief had not disclosed the location of the mechanism to Jiang Zhanglin because he didn’t know it himself. When the villagers were taken to work, someone would open the mechanism, and only after they passed through, it would be closed again.

Several deputies spread out to search around the waterfall.

They didn’t find the mechanism but overheard a conversation…

Tang Jinghong gestured, and all his soldiers immediately crouched down.

“The wasteland is cleared, we can kill the villagers now.”

“Kill them all? Wouldn’t that draw Tang Jinghong’s attention?”

“Let it draw his attention. As long as he doesn’t discover this place, it’s fine.”

“That’s true, we’ve been working for two years to clear it, it’s been tough.”

Tang Jinghong raised his crossbow and silently shot two arrows, hitting both men in the back.

Four soldiers advanced and captured the two men, bringing them before Tang Jinghong.

Seeing Tang Jinghong, their faces turned pale, “You, how are you here?”

Tang Jinghong smiled slightly, his tone icy, “Why can’t I be here?”

The men’s struggles weakened.

Tang Jinghong pointed towards the waterfall, “Open the mechanism. I can make your deaths quick, or else, you know there are many ways in the military to make someone wish for death.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Now inevitably caught, one of them pointed to a pile of three stones, “Remove the stones, dig underneath, and just press down.”

Tang Jinghong signaled to Meng Shengdong.

Meng Shengdong came forward, tried the mechanism as instructed, pressed down, and a whooshing sound followed.

Tang Jinghong shouted, “Everyone down!”

A barrage of arrows flew towards them, causing a terrifying noise that lasted for some time before stopping.

Tang Jinghong stood up, “Take good care of him, let the other watch.”

Furious, Meng Shengdong began to torture one of the men personally, thrusting a knife into his shoulder blade. The man screamed in agony, his face turned away by the soldiers to force him to watch.

Meng Shengdong twisted the knife handle slowly, “Trying to drag us down with you? Sadly, you underestimated our general’s adaptability!”

Another stab into the man’s thigh, “I told you not to play tricks, you didn’t listen, now you’ll feel the pain.”

“Ah—” The man passed out from the torture.

Soldiers splashed him with waterfall water to wake him up, then continued the torture.

The other, unable to bear it, broke down shouting, “I’ll help you open the mechanism, I’ll help…”

The soldiers guarding him looked at Tang Jinghong, who nodded, and they let him go.

The man went under the waterfall, moved the stone washed by the waterfall, and with a series of mechanical sounds, the waterfall was diverted, revealing a stone cave.

Meng Shengdong asked for permission, “General, let me check inside first.”

Tang Jinghong thought for a moment, “I will go myself, you stay here to respond.”

Meng Shengdong insisted, “General, I will go with you.”

Tang Jinghong assigned the response duties to another close soldier and entered the cave with Meng Shengdong.

Upon entering, Tang Jinghong drew his sword, alert.

The cave was lit, not dark, and somewhat damp. They proceeded cautiously.

Meng Shengdong took the lead, then suddenly stopped, “General, there seems to be some rustling noise.”

Tang Jinghong swung his sword, cutting through flesh and blood, and something fell to the ground—it was a venomous giant python.

Meng Shengdong was shaken, “General, they even placed a python here!”

Tang Jinghong instructed Meng Shengdong to follow behind. They didn’t walk far when light began to fall from above, and a subtle scent of danger filled the air.

Tang Jinghong signaled, and they quickly backed up against the stone walls, moving cautiously forward.

Upon peering out…

They saw rows of black-clad figures standing outside the cave, each armed with a crossbow. Exiting now would make them live targets.

Tang Jinghong and Meng Shengdong retreated.

Meng Shengdong cursed the enemy’s cunning under his breath. The man who had activated the killing mechanism must have signaled these men, “General, what do we do now?”

“Our objective is to destroy the opium poppies…” Tang Jinghong scanned the surrounding mountains, looking for a possible route into the plains.

The terrain of the plains was bordered by mountains on three sides and water on one, making any approach difficult.

“Send a scout to find a route into the plains from the surroundings.”

“Yes, General.”

Inside the plains.

A subordinate asked, “Master, what do we do now?”

The man in charge stared grimly at the cave entrance and said in a deep voice, “Send a signal for reinforcements.”

“Yes, Master!”

A pigeon flew up into the sky…

Tang Jinghong, with a flick of his sleeve, shot a sleeve arrow, bringing down the pigeon.

The man saw this and his expression darkened to near thunderous levels, “Tang Jinghong!”

“Those who surrender now, I will spare your lives. If you resist, you will only face death,” Tang Jinghong’s voice, amplified by internal energy, reached everyone’s ears.

Some people exchanged looks, and the man immediately killed the one who seemed uncertain, “Those whose hearts waver deserve to die!”

Suddenly, no one dared to look around anymore.

Tang Jinghong spoke again, “If you don’t want to die, consider killing your leader as proof of your submission. I assure you, you will not be harmed.”

The crowd was once again shaken…

The man listened to Tang Jinghong’s words and spat blood in anger, “Tang Jinghong, even as a great general, how could you stoop to such deceit and trickery?”

Tang Jinghong responded, “In warfare, deceit is a tool. If it works, it’s good.”

The man scoffed, “True to the reputation of a great general, adept at the art of war.”

“Thank you!” Tang Jinghong replied. “Act now if you wish to live. Otherwise, once the army closes in, you won’t even have the chance to surrender!”

This remark made everyone tense…

“Despicable and shameless!”

“Am I more despicable and shameless than you?” Tang Jinghong retorted coldly. “You know full well the harm opium poppies cause, yet you persist in evil, harming both yourselves and others. When it comes to being despicable and shameless, who can surpass you?”