Lan Yu hurriedly dismissed Li Liang. Tang 77 looked at the man lying on the ground like a lump of mud and asked with a frown, "What happened?"

Lan Yu quickly changed the subject: "He said something he shouldn't have, let's ignore him. Were you frightened on the way?"

Tang 77 smiled and said, "Brother Lan Yu, I'm not a hothouse flower, you don't need to worry about me!"

Lan Yu chuckled self-deprecatingly: "That's right, I always treat you like a child, but we 77 are already adults!"

Tang 77 smiled wryly. Lan Yu's feigned cuteness was really childish. In his eyes, Lan Yu was still a little kid.

Tang 77 quickly changed the subject, saying, "Congratulations, Brother Lan Yu, on reclaiming the city. Should I also kneel down and address you as Lord City Lord?"

Lan Yu sighed and said, "Even 77 is teasing me. I am just carrying a mission. I can't bear to see the family's foundation and my father's efforts destroyed in a day, and I can't bear to see the people of Lanling living in dire straits."

As Lan Yu spoke, she suddenly grabbed Tang 77's hand and said, "77, Father said that I should be a benevolent monarch, but I have stepped over the corpses of countless people to get to this point. Do you think Father will blame me?"

Tang 77 looked at the 17-year-old boy and felt very sorry for him. In his own time, the boy was still a big boy at that age, enjoying his youth and sweating on campus under the protection of his parents and teachers.

He had already experienced the loss of his parents, the destruction of his country, and the betrayal of his loved ones. Now he had to shoulder the rise and fall of the entire city-state. He was always calm and decisive, but it turned out that he was also afraid and under pressure.

Looking at the handsome but helpless little puppy in front of her, Tang 77 felt an overwhelming urge to protect him.

With a loving expression, she took Lan Yu's hand and patted it, saying, "You've done very well. If you don't step over their corpses to reclaim Lanling City, they will continue to drink the blood of the people!"

"Is 77 not afraid of me anymore?" Lan Yu asked out of the blue.

Tang 77 said smugly, "What kind of scene haven't I seen?" Actually, she was a little scared when she was only halfway there. She had always thought that "rivers of blood" was just an exaggerated description, but she didn't expect it to be true.

Tang 77 patted Lan Yu on the shoulder with a mature air and said, "From now on, you must strive to be a good city lord and ensure that the people of Lanling live in peace and prosperity!"

Lan Yu felt ashamed. She was someone who had walked through the world of swords and shadows, how could she be so pathetic, even less capable than a little girl?

He was suddenly filled with strength and hope, and excitedly grabbed Tang 77's hand, saying, "77, with your words, I feel reassured. Although Lanling City is beset by internal and external troubles, I, Lan Yu, will definitely make Lanling prosperous and stable again."

Next, Lan Yu began to purge the remaining followers of Qin Xiao in Lanling. Qin Xiao had taken the lead in indulging in pleasure, and officials in Lanling and other affiliated counties followed suit. Not a single official was not corrupt.

Countless rare treasures were found in the palace, and the gold in the residences of officials of all ranks was piled up like mountains.

Lan Yu ordered that any official who embezzled more than one hundred taels of silver should be executed.

An advisor suggested, "The law does not punish the masses. In recent years, no official has been without corruption. If we kill all the previous officials, it will only ruin the city lord's reputation for benevolence and wisdom, and he will be labeled a tyrant!"

Other officials echoed this sentiment, saying that since the city lord had recently captured the city, he should grant a general amnesty and adopt a policy of appeasement.

Lan Yu's eyebrows shot up, and he said with a chilling aura, "I am a tyrant. Not only will those corrupt officials be beheaded, but from now on, any official in my dynasty who embezzles more than 100 taels will be executed immediately. If anyone has any objections, they can take off their official robes and establish their own dynasty."

The officials exchanged bewildered glances, praising the "wise city lord" while secretly thinking that all crows under heaven are black, and even this Blue City Lord had become so ruthless.

Lan Yu also demanded a large-scale crackdown on corrupt officials, which pleased the people greatly, while the officials trembled with fear, feeling a chill run down their spines. They knew they might lose their heads at any moment with such a tyrant.

Lan Yu ordered the Ministry of Revenue to inventory the national treasury and register the confiscated property, the Ministry of Personnel to formulate laws, the Ministry of Works to inspect the city's public facilities and come up with repair plans, and the Ministry of War to study defense plans...

For a time, everyone was complaining. Being an official was extremely frustrating. There were no benefits, but a huge amount of work to do, and the possibility of losing one's head at any time. As a result, some people became passive and reluctant to work.

General Liu was so angry that he gritted his teeth, picked up his broadsword, and was about to go and cause trouble for those officials.

Tang 77 quickly grabbed him and said, "Uncle Liu, you mustn't do that. If you go like this, it will only backfire, and they will be even less willing to work properly."

General Liu, his beard bristling and eyes wide, said, "If they disobey, behead them! They eat the emperor's food, so they must be loyal to the emperor. How can we allow them to slack off every day!"

Tang 77 hurriedly advised, "We can't cut any more. Do you think they're watermelons? Lan Yu's initial iron-fisted approach was not only because they deserved their punishment, but also to make an example of them. If you kill the monkeys now, who will do the work for us?"

General Liu was disheartened: "They're not doing their job properly either!"

Tang 77 left Uncle Liu and said to the helpless Lan Yu, "We've gone too far now. We need to find a way to motivate them. Simply suppressing them will only make them feel disheartened!"