Seeing this, the wicked man was secretly pleased, knowing that his words had worked. He then said sternly, "Our Qin state is currently going through a turbulent time. Those who spread rumors may not be the desperate people like you."
"Now that my Qin state has just incorporated the people of your two states, as the saying goes, 'the tallest tree in the forest will be felled by the wind.' If trouble arises, there will surely be people who will take advantage of this opportunity to kick you when you're down and rob you when you're in trouble."
"I hope you will consider this carefully. I, the Grand Commandant, will let bygones be bygones and not pursue those who speak nonsense. I only hope to find out who started this and find out which force is behind it all!"
At this point, many astute individuals suddenly realized that this was a deliberate act by someone.
"Grand Commandant, are you saying there are spies from other countries...?" At this moment, Zhang Ke, standing in the center of the crowd, was like a sharp sword, directly pointing out the truth.
Upon hearing this, the wicked man's lips curled into a sly smile, thinking to himself: Zhang Ke is really a clever fellow! As the Grand Commandant of Qin, his status and words represented the entire Qin state, so it was naturally inconvenient to say some things too bluntly.
Looking at Zhang Ke, as an ordinary citizen, his stance has always been on the side of the people. By making his point clear, he is undoubtedly helping himself, while also making those ignorant people understand the evil husband's intentions more clearly.
"They have ulterior motives! They have ulterior motives!"
"I knew it! Notices have been posted in the city every day, telling us to wait patiently for the court's arrangements. But before any news has arrived, these rumors have spread like a plague. How can the information be so readily available?"
"..."
A series of shouts of sudden realization and cursing came from the crowd like surging waves.
The wicked man, with a stern expression, said in a stern voice, "You all know that I, the wicked man, am... well... always decisive and unconventional. If you riot and cause chaos, I will certainly use thunderous methods to suppress you..."
"Wouldn't this indirectly confirm the rumors, indirectly alienate the court from you, and reignite the bloodshed?"
These words not only made the wicked husband extremely embarrassed, but even Tie Niu next to him felt ashamed, after all, Anyi City had suffered a lot of torment from the wicked husband in the past.
After a brief period of unrest, countless people stepped forward and recounted where they had heard the rumors and whether they had actually spread them.
Tie Niu immediately summoned his staff to take notes, so that they could trace the source of the rumors later.
As time went by, the general outline has been pieced together.
"Grand Commandant, my name is Black Dog. I've already spread this news privately. You can kill me if you want, but I beg you to spare my family and friends!"
At this moment, a ragged, dark-faced man stepped forward from the crowd. His expression was resolute. "I worked odd jobs at the Zhang family's house in the city. I overheard the Zhang family talking about this matter with Dr. Sun, the blacksmith's assistant, and others."
"They said they needed to spread the news as soon as possible that Qin was disregarding the lives of the people of Han and Wei..."
The Zhao spies hidden in the crowd changed their expressions drastically, their eyes filled with fear. They were spies, but they were also human, and humans are afraid of death. They were very clear about the evil man's methods and ruthlessness.
Standing in the crowd, a portly man immediately shouted angrily, "Black Dog, I've always treated you well. You're just after my daughter, and because you can't have her, you're plotting to harm me?"
“Yes, your mother has been ill for a long time and needs medicine. Every time, I try my best to save money for you. Why do you still want to harm me?” An old man dressed as a doctor with a white beard also chimed in angrily.
"......."
The wicked man had already anticipated that such a situation of turning the tables or taking advantage of the chaos would arise, so he instructed his soldiers to temporarily remove the quarreling people, along with those who were reporting and those who were being reported, from the crowd to prevent any trouble from arising later.
At this moment, the most important thing is to find out who is behind this, rather than getting entangled in these pointless disputes.
The wicked man's sharp, hawk-like gaze swept across the crowd once more. His voice seemed to come from the deepest hell, cold and piercing: "This Grand Commandant's word is law, and there is no room for doubt. The crime of gossip will be set aside for now; we will only pursue the culprit."
"If anyone is accused but fails to confess beforehand, he shall be punished in the same way and his entire family shall be exterminated!"
"Of course, if the accused cannot prove their innocence, or if it is found that they have taken the opportunity to harm others, this Grand Commandant will make you taste the cruelest punishment in the world."
"I hope you will all take good care of yourselves."
As soon as he finished speaking, a man with a flustered expression squeezed out from the crowd. "Sir, I am also one of the servants in the Zhang family. I did see these people gathered at the Zhang family's mansion that day, and they rarely interact with each other."
"Back then, Black Dog had mentioned this matter to the four of us who were also doing odd jobs, and after I got home, I kept quiet... and told the neighbors..."
The wicked man's eyes were like torches as he stared directly at the man: "Very well, this can be considered corroboration for Black Dog. Don't bring up your loose tongue anymore. This Grand Commandant will let bygones be bygones. Do you have anything to add?"
The man's body finally stopped trembling. "I remember... the rumor spread throughout the city the next day. At first, I thought it was a few of us who spread it..."
“But that night I was on duty and saw Doctor Sun and a few others sneaking into Zhang’s mansion. Out of curiosity, I peeked over the wall, but they were speaking too softly and I only caught a few snippets of their voices.”
The wicked man's eyes lit up, and he immediately exclaimed with delight, "Tell me, what did they say?"
The man swallowed hard and said, "All I heard was that Your Majesty... spread the word... taking advantage of the chaos... uniting the three tribes... Qin."
Upon hearing this, the wicked man's face grew even darker. He turned towards the direction where Zhang the landlord and the others were and said coldly, "The truth has come out. Why don't you confess quickly?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the soldiers surrounding Zhang Dahu and the others drew their swords from their waists, their eyes flashing with murderous intent.
"Heh heh, you wicked man... kill me if you want, do you think I'm afraid of you?!" Zhang the landlord suddenly roared.
Seeing that he was no longer pretending, the villain's lips curled into a smile. He raised his hand and beckoned with his finger, and the soldier drew his sword and slashed without the slightest hesitation.
The head, with its eyes wide open in anger, rolled to the ground, silencing the crowd instantly.
The wicked man's smile widened, his eyes, filled with a sharp killing intent, fixed on Physician Sun. "Old man, will you talk or not? If you do, I, the Grand Commandant, will spare your life and ensure you live peacefully until your grave."
Fear flickered in Sun Langzhong's eyes, but he remained silent.
Without hesitation, the wicked man pointed at the towering, imposing man standing beside him, and the soldier beheaded him with a single, swift stroke of his sword.
The blood spurting from the severed neck drenched Sun Langzhong's face, completely shattering his mental defenses. "I'll talk... I'll talk."
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