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Liu Qingfu was overjoyed to find that the goods had been successfully transported and asked Su Ning and others to transport the goods again.

However, the second transport was not so smooth, as Su Ning and his men were intercepted by the Central Army.

"Stop the car! Inspect!"

Commander Hu of the Central Army looked coldly at Su Ning and the others, and the guard's voice was like a sharp knife piercing Su Ning's eardrums.

Su Ning immediately reined in his horse and watched as the soldiers pounced on the convoy like wolves and tigers, roughly tearing off the tarpaulins covering the goods.

Old Wu's hand stealthily reached for the short knife at his waist, Heiwa's forehead was covered in beads of sweat, and Niu Tianci squinted, his gaze shifting back and forth between Suning and the goods.

"Sir! No contraband found!" The soldier's report stunned everyone.

Commander Hu frowned and personally jumped onto the carriage to re-inspect the carriage.

He opened the wooden boxes labeled "Chuanbei" and found that they contained only dried medicinal herbs.

Su Ning remained calm, knowing that this group of Central Army soldiers was destined to return empty-handed...

Only he knew that the ten chests of opium were lying quietly in the spatial world he had brought with him.

“Strange…” Commander Hu jumped off the carriage and looked at Su Ning meaningfully. “What’s your name?”

"Sir, my name is He Futang, and I am the son-in-law of the Liu family in Fenglei Town."

"Oh? Then tell me, where did you hide the opium?"

Su Ning bowed and said, "Sir, you are wise. Our Liu family is in the legitimate business of medicinal herbs."

Commander Hu suddenly leaned closer and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "He Futang, you got lucky this time, but you won't be so lucky next time."

"..."

"Let them through!" Hu Qiankuan waved his hand and let them pass.

After the convoy got back on the road, Heiwa finally couldn't help but ask, "Futang, what happened?"

"Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask," Su Ning interrupted coldly, glancing at Niu Tianci's thoughtful expression out of the corner of her eye.

Su Ning nodded meaningfully to the other party, indicating that he would have a deal with Niu Tianci next.

Old Wu spurred his horse closer and whispered, "Fu Tang, this is suspicious. I personally saw the Tang family stuff things into the goods..."

Su Ning smirked coldly: "Old Wu, have you ever heard of the 'disappearing act'?"

"Fu Tang, you can conjure people up?"

“In the West, this is called magic, and I am the great magician.”

"..."

……

Meanwhile, a mysterious group of "bandits" attacked Fenglei Town, and they were none other than the town's most dangerous garrison regiment.

When the first gunshot pierced the night sky of Fenglei Town, Liu Qingfu was checking account books in the Liu family's study.

He suddenly looked up, and the brush in his hand fell onto the rice paper with a thud, spreading ink everywhere.

"What's going on?" he demanded sharply.

The butler stumbled in: "Master! Something terrible has happened! Commander Ma's barracks has been attacked, and a large number of armed bandits have appeared at the entrance to the town!"

"What? When did bandits become so formidable?"

Liu Qingfu's expression changed drastically, and he pushed the butler aside and rushed into the courtyard.

Flames shot into the sky in the distance, and gunshots rang out in rapid succession, like popping beans.

What's even more terrifying is that the gunfire wasn't from homemade guns and cannons, but from standard-issue rifles!

"Quickly! Gather all the servants! Lock the gates tight!" Liu Qingfu shouted hoarsely, then suddenly remembered something, "Where's Wei Zhengxian? Have him take some men to protect the warehouse!"

Liu Daquan rushed over in a panic: "Father! Zhengxian is missing! Second Sister isn't in her room either!"

As the father and daughter were talking, the gate suddenly collapsed.

A group of well-trained "bandits" dressed in plain clothes rushed into the courtyard. The leader was a man in his early thirties with a scar across his face and carrying two guns.

Liu Qingfu forced himself to remain calm and stepped forward: "Good sir, let's talk this out! I, Liu, still have some influence in Fenglei Town..."

Scarface sneered and raised his hand to fire a shot.

The bullet struck Liu Qingfu precisely at his feet, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Boss, the front and back yards are under control." At this moment, a "bandit" ran over to report.

Scarface looked around: "Search! Leave no one alive!"

Liu Qingfu finally realized that this was not an ordinary robbery by bandits, but a premeditated massacre of an entire family!

He knelt down with a thud: "Hero, spare my life! I, Liu, am willing to offer up all my wealth..."

"boom!"

Scarface pulled the trigger, and Liu Qingfu immediately had a bloody hole between his eyebrows, falling backward.

Liu Daquan let out a piercing scream, and the next second he was also shot dead.

The gunshots continued in the Liu residence for a full hour.

As the last scream abruptly ceased, Scarface wiped the barrel of his gun: "Have you found Liu Erquan and Wei Zhengxian?"

"No. The second young lady of the Liu family's wheelchair was overturned by the well in the side courtyard, and she has disappeared. A secret passage leading out of town was found in Wei Zhengxian's room."

Scarface's face darkened: "Keep searching! We need to find them alive or dead!"

"Yes!"

……

Three days later, at the He family ancestral graves.

Su Ning knelt before his father's grave and personally burned a stack of paper money.

The firelight illuminated his sharply defined profile, making the scar appear particularly menacing in the interplay of light and shadow.

“Father, Liu Qingfu is dead.” He said softly, his voice eerily calm. “He died at the hands of ‘bandits,’ shot in the head, without even leaving a last word.”

The ashes of the paper drifted in the wind, like a flock of black butterflies.

"Don't worry, this isn't enough." Su Ning took out a bottle of baijiu from his pocket and slowly poured it in front of the tombstone. "Wei Zhengxian ran away, but he can't go far. I will find him and make him pay for his crimes in blood."

I heard the sound of a dry branch snapping behind me.

Su Ning didn't turn around, but simply said, "Old Wu, have you found out?"

Old Wu emerged from behind the tree, his expression complex: "Fu Tang, that group of 'bandits' is indeed no ordinary people. They all use Hanyang rifles, and their tactical maneuvers are even more standardized than those of the regular army."

Does anyone know who sent them?

“We can’t find anything for now. However…” Old Wu hesitated for a moment, “Wei Zhengxian fled to Tongguan and sought refuge with Commander Hou.”

A cold glint flashed in Su Ning's eyes: "Commander Hou? The one who helped Liu Qingfu annex our salt mine back then?"

Old Wu nodded: "Exactly. Young master, this matter is probably not simple. I suspect..."

"What do you suspect?"

"I suspect that the people who wiped out the entire Liu family are the same group who harmed our family back then." Old Wu lowered his voice. "Liu Qingfu... might just be a pawn."

After a long silence, Su Ning suddenly smashed the empty wine bottle against the tombstone.

Glass shards flew everywhere, refracting a rainbow of colors in the sunlight.

"Then let's find out who played the chess game, one by one."

……

In the ruins of the Liu family home, a side room miraculously escaped the fire.

When Su Ning pushed open the door, Liu Erquan was sitting by the window, sunlight casting dappled shadows on her pale face through the dilapidated window frame.

Hearing the sound, she didn't turn around, but simply said softly, "You've come."

“You knew I would come.” Su Ning locked the door behind her.

The wheelchair slowly turned, and Liu Erquan faced Suning directly.

She was dressed in rags, her right arm wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, but her eyes remained sharp as knives.

“My father is dead.” Her voice was unusually calm. “My eldest sister is dead. Of the thirty-seven members of the Liu family, apart from me and Wei Zhengxian who escaped, none survived.”

Su Ning walked to the table and poured himself a cup of tea: "Please accept my condolences."

"You did it." This wasn't a question, but a statement. The teacup hovered at her lips, and Su Ning raised an eyebrow: "Where's the evidence?"

“No evidence is needed.” Liu Erquan suddenly pushed his wheelchair closer. “Those ‘bandits’ came at just the right time, right when you were leaving with the goods. Their methods of killing were too professional…”

Su Ning put down his teacup, leaned down to meet her gaze, and said, "Erquan, you overestimate me. How could a son-in-law who married into the family have such great abilities?"

"He Futang!" Liu Erquan suddenly grabbed his collar. "Look at me! Tell me it wasn't you!"

The two breathed into each other's mouths, and Su Ning could smell the faint scent of blood and medicine on her body.

He slowly pried her fingers apart: "Liu Erquan, when your father killed my whole family, did he ever give them a chance to explain?"

These words were like a bucket of cold water.

Liu Erquan released his grip, and the wheelchair moved back a few inches: "So... it really is you."

Suning remained noncommittal and turned to walk towards the door.

The moment he opened the door, Liu Erquan's voice came from behind him:

"He Futang, I will never let you get away with this."

Suning paused for a moment.

……

Liu Erquan's lover, Qiu Xin, came to the Liu family to visit him. Liu Erquan told her about his doubts and tearfully expressed his suspicions about Su Ning.

Just then, Su Ning appeared with Lao Wu, Heiwa, and others, and directly captured Qiu Xin.

Liu Erquan hysterically glared at Su Ning and yelled, "He Futang, what are you doing?"

At this moment, Qiu Xin was pinned to the ground by Heiwa and was so frightened that she wet her pants.

However, Su Ning silently accepted the wood-chopping knife handed to him by Lao Wu and chopped it down directly at Qiu Xin's left hand.

"Ah... He Futang, I'm going to kill you..."

"He Futang, what exactly do you want?"

"Liu Erquan, I don't believe the bandits stole all the wealth. Tell me, where is your Liu family's treasure vault?"

"He Futang, you're dreaming! I will never..."

However, at this moment, Su Ning raised his machete again and chopped off Qiu Xin's right hand.

"Ah...kill me! Just kill me already!"

"you……"

"Liu Erquan, is your beloved dying?"

"I'll talk! I'll talk!"

This usually arrogant and domineering woman lay sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, staring in terror at Su Ning, who was like a devil before her.

It turns out that the Liu family had another house in Fenglei Town, where most of their wealth was buried in the cellar.

"Old Wu, take some men and move everything out of the house in the east of the city."

"Yes!"

At this moment, Su Ning once again raised his woodcutter's knife and killed Qiu Xin with one blow, causing Liu Erquan to stare wide-eyed in heartache.

"He Futang, I will haunt you even as a ghost."

“Heiwa, give Liu Erquan some dignity and arrange for her to hang herself.”

"Okay! I'll make arrangements right away."

Su Ning knew that Liu Erquan was a truly vicious woman, and keeping her around would only bring disaster.

So Su Ning had no choice but to harden his heart and deal with her. Besides, it was awkward to put up with this viper-like woman every day.

Soon, Lao Wu and his men retrieved a large amount of gold and silver from the house in the east of the town, and Su Ning also obtained the funds for the next stage of development in an open manner.

"Fu Tang, everything concerning the Liu family has been resolved."

"Hmm, Lao Wu, do you remember Niu Tianci, the guy we met?"

“I remember! The brigade commander who joined the Central Army in the roadside search.”

"I plan to use this gold and silver to donate for an official position."

"What? Donate an official position?"

"That's right! We live in a chaotic world now, with wars everywhere. We must have the strength to protect ourselves."

"But……"

"Old Wu, listen to me! You won't go wrong."

"All right!"

Then Su Ning, along with Lao Wu and Heiwa, took all the gold and silver to find Niu Tianci, and this time they were going to start a completely different story.

At the same time, Wei Zhengxian also fled Fenglei Town in a hurry, and then called Commander Hou, with whom he had a kinship, begging Commander Hou to save him.

"Commander Hou, this is Wei Zhengxian, help me!"

What happened in Fenglei Town?

"Fenglei Town has been attacked by bandits. Commander Ma's garrison has been wiped out, and the entire Liu family has also been killed by the bandits."

"What? Where did such a powerful bandit come from? Even Wang Sanchun doesn't have that kind of strength, does he?"

"I don't know! This band of bandits is well-equipped; they seem like regular soldiers in disguise."

"Strange! Who could have done that?"

"Commander Hou, you have to save me!"

"Alright! Come find me in Tongguan, I promise you won't be treated badly."

"Thank you, Commander Hou! Thank you, Commander Hou."

……

At this moment, Su Ning brought Lao Wu, Heiwa, and others to Niu Tianci's place and first gave a brief explanation of the situation in Fenglei Town.

Then Su Ning had Lao Wu and Heiwa open the two treasure chests they had brought, revealing the extremely tempting gold and silver valuables inside.

"He Futang, what do you mean by this?"

“The Liu family has been wiped out by bandits. This is the last bit of savings the Liu family has, so I want to donate money to get an official position so that I can protect myself.”

"Oh? What do you want to do?"

"Commander Niu, how is the commander of the Fenglei Town garrison regiment?"

"That's certainly possible! But this amount of gold and silver isn't enough."

"Commander Niu, isn't there still a long road ahead?"

"Yes, you must pay me one thousand silver dollars every month for the next year."

"clear."

"Commander He, I can only allocate one battalion to you."

"Commander Niu, this is already a great thanks to you. From now on, I, He Futang, will definitely be your most loyal henchman."

"Haha, okay! I'll take you to get your equipment."

"Yes! Brigadier."

In this way, Su Ning transformed into the commander of the Fenglei Town Garrison Regiment, and also had a regular army garrison battalion under his command.

Next, I can go back to Fenglei Town to recruit soldiers and horses. At that time, I will definitely become the local tyrant at the junction of three provinces.

Of course, Su Ning had no intention of becoming a warlord; he was only doing this to protect himself in the chaotic world.

"Fu Tang, you've suddenly become the regimental commander?"

"That's right! From now on, Fenglei Town will belong to us brothers."

"This is truly incredible."

"Old Wu, Heiwa, and Laiyun, you'll both be battalion commanders from now on. Just recruit soldiers in Fenglei Town."

"Haha, that's great! We're all battalion commanders now."

...(End of chapter)