Chapter 566 Zhou Deyong and Chang Hai
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Li Shiyue's thunderous and overwhelming methods, like the coldest wind, swept through the entire Jian'an City in an instant.
When the news that Cai Hua, the garrison commander of Zhenjun, had been beheaded by Li Shiyue reached the city, the officials who had dealt with Huang Wanchang and Cai Hua—from Feng Gui, the Prefect of Jian'an, Du Hui, the Sima of Jian'an, and Wan Kai, the Chief Secretary of Jian'an, to the various military advisors—all turned pale on the spot. Their hearts felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, chilled to the bone.
They originally thought that Li Shiyue's previous treacherous banquet at the Mirage Pavilion was just a show of force by a new official. They never expected her to be so ruthless and decisive. After spending half a year secretly investigating the truth, she showed no mercy when she took action!
Cai Hua, the garrison commander, was killed without hesitation, right there in the garrison camp, in front of all the garrison soldiers, his head was beheaded!
Besides the officials in Jian'an City who were terrified, the merchants who had been "extorted" by Li Shiyue were also filled with lingering fear.
Only then did they realize that Li Shiyue's demands for money and grain were probably not just out of greed, but also a test and screening of them!
Whoever gives readily might find temporary peace;
Anyone who hesitated or harbored resentment back then would probably have been written down by Li Shiyue in his little notebook! To be settled later!
They are vengeful and will kill anyone who wrongs them!
This is the latest understanding of Li Shiyue among the people of Jian'an.
An atmosphere of fear and insecurity pervaded the entire officialdom of Jian'an, as well as the prominent merchants in the city.
Grain merchant Zhou Deyong was restless at home. He had not only been reluctant to pay her, but had also secretly cursed Li Shiyue as a "female demon".
Moreover, while Huang Wanchang was alive as the Prefect of Jian'an, the Zhou family had many "cooperations" with him.
Huang Wanchang was beheaded the day after Li Shiyue entered Jian'an City;
It took half a year for Cai Hua to be beheaded by Li Shiyue.
With Cai Hua's head falling to the ground, Zhou Deyong felt that the Xuanjia Army would break down the Zhou family's gates and drag him out to be beheaded as well.
"No! We can't just sit here and wait to die!"
Driven by extreme fear, Zhou Deyong made a decision—run!
He instructed his trusted steward overnight to pack up the most valuable gold, silver and valuables in the house, preparing to leave the city at dawn under the pretext of collecting grain, and head to Jinzhou, so that he could escape far away.
However, all his actions were already under the close surveillance of the spies that Sun Xiaoliu had sent out.
The very next day, the Zhou family steward and many of the Zhou family servants quietly drove out the back gate in several carriages loaded with valuables. Just when they thought they had gotten away with it, a squad of Xuanjia soldiers appeared out of nowhere and blocked their way at the back gate.
Sun Xiaoliu dismounted with a cold smile. He looked at Zhou Deyong, who was peeking out of the carriage, and called out loudly, "Hey, where are you going, Mr. Zhou?"
Zhou Deyong was already uneasy because of Cai Hua's death and didn't sleep well all night.
Finally, dawn broke, and he thought he should hurry up and leave Jian'an with his valuables, leaving behind Li Shiyue, that female demon.
As a result, before he even stepped out the door or reached the intersection, he met Sun Xiaoliu, the head of Li Shiyue's trusted personal guards!
Zhou Deyong, who could become a great merchant, was certainly not stupid. The moment he saw Sun Xiaoliu, he knew he was doomed!
The Zhou family had been under surveillance by Li Shiyue's men for a long time!
And Zhou Deyong wasn't the only one who didn't sleep well last night.
Chang Hai, the military advisor of Jian'an, was also terrified by Cai Hua's death and couldn't sleep a wink all night.
Although Chang Hai did not directly collude with the Japanese, as the military advisor and Huang Wanchang's deputy, he was aware of many sordid things, especially Huang Wanchang's trafficking of innocent people, and he even participated in the profit sharing.
He had considered reporting Huang Wanchang to higher authorities, but even when he went out of the city gate, the guards would relay the message to Huang Wanchang.
Moreover, his entire family, from his elderly mother to the youngest child, lived in Jian'an City.
What could he do?
At that time, from top to bottom, the officials in Jian'an, whether by choice or by coercion, were all involved in those dirty deeds to varying degrees.
There were also some stubborn and inflexible officials among them;
But in the end, not only did these officials fail to send the evidence out of Jian'an City, they also all met with accidents one after another!
They're either dead or insane;
Even their families did not escape Huang Wanchang's clutches; one large family was burned to death in a fire that suddenly broke out at night.
There were also families who encountered villains while traveling and were all killed;
There were also cases where, for reasons unknown, members of the family would die one by one.
With so many cautionary examples before us, which official in Jian'an City would dare to disobey?
Dare not to go along with them?
How dare we not collude with each other?
Chang Hai knew that when he actually signed his name on the household registration document that Huang Wanchang asked him to sign, one day in the future, the truth would come out.
That would be the day he, Chang Hai, went to the underworld.
Now, with Cai Hua, the second official in Jian'an to be beheaded by Li Shiyue, as an example, Chang Hai knew that he could not escape his guilt and that it was time for him to go to the underworld.
At the same time, he had nowhere to escape.
Therefore, while living in constant fear and sighing at home, Chang Hai wrote a petition (resignation letter) after much thought, intending to resign from his official post in the hope of giving his family a better life.
Just as he was bracing himself to go to the governor's mansion to deliver the petition to Li Shiyue, Li Shiyue's order arrived first.
It wasn't the Xuanjia Army soldiers who came to arrest people, but a messenger.
Li Shiyue gave Chang Hai a simple order: to immediately take charge of recruiting new soldiers and recruit 1,000 qualified new soldiers within three months to strengthen the Zhenjun and Xuanjia Army.
When Chang Hai received the order, he froze on the spot, unable to come to his senses for a long time.
They won't arrest me? And they want me to manage recruitment?
Chang Hai was initially incredulous, but he quickly came up with a reason for Li Shiyue's actions.
Chang Hai felt that Li Shiyue's deeper meaning was to give him a chance to redeem himself through meritorious service!
Li Shiyue estimated that within the past six months, everything that needed to be investigated and could be investigated had already been thoroughly investigated.
She knew their background very well, but Jian'an's most pressing problem right now was the invading Japanese pirates!
Therefore, at this crucial juncture when personnel are needed, Li Shiyue could not possibly kill all the officials who had been involved in Huang Wanchang's sordid affairs to some extent.
Killing the ringleader Huang Wanchang is enough to establish authority.
Killing the accomplice Cai Hua will make everyone obey!
As for Chang Hai, a capable and well-known official who had been forced to compromise his principles in the past and is now terrified, showing him kindness and using him would be more valuable than beheading him.
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