New and dark light years

Chapter 484 Even an honest official should treat his family better.

Li Lin smiled and shook his head.

Turn into an insect? Only a fool would do that.

Zheng Hu continued, “Governor, you can think about how much your family and you yourself have paid to become an immortal. As for us immortals, as long as we take all living things in the world as medicine, we only need a dozen or so years to achieve an immortal body.”

Li Lin ignored Zheng Hu and instead looked at the several martial arts figures beside him.

At least three of them already looked quite interested.

Li Lin withdrew his gaze and said to Zheng Hu, "But you didn't say... even if you become a Gu Immortal, you will still be controlled by someone."

"no!"

"No?" Li Lin laughed. "Otherwise, why would you kill your own companion? Otherwise, why would you want to eat the mother worm on your companion's body? And if the worm in your heart bites me, I will definitely be controlled by you. At that time, I won't even have the freedom to resist, unless I eat the mother worm on another Gu person's body like you, right?"

Upon hearing Li Lin's words, the surrounding martial arts practitioners immediately came to their senses.

Those feelings of attraction disappeared.

No one wants to have their body controlled by someone else.

Zheng Hu stared at Li Lin in shock: "How did you know!"

"Guess."

Li Lin was just bluffing, but he didn't expect the other party to be so easily fooled.

This is normal, since Zheng Hu is currently a prisoner, and his mental strength and willpower are not even half of what they used to be.

He's probably trying everything he can to survive now.

Unexpectedly, he didn't get a single chance to use his skills.

The look of desperation on Zheng Hu's face had faded, and he said, "Governor, please ask me anything else you want to ask, and I will answer you."

"Where is your master... approximately located?"

"Which one do you mean?"

"There are two?"

Zheng Hu nodded slightly: "One is the God Lord, who is high in the heavens."

The crowd's expressions changed.

Li Lin frowned and said, "That giant centipede that flies!"

"Hehe!" Zheng Hu finally regained his confidence: "You're right, the other one is the Gu Immortal."

"Are you rebelling against the Gu Immortal?"

Zheng Hu looked at Li Lin with a terrified expression: "You're really scary."

"Is there anything else you need to tell me?"

"That's all." Zheng Hu closed his eyes.

Li Lin nodded and said to the guards beside him, "Drag him to a secluded place and behead him. Take some oil with you and make sure to burn his body to ashes."

"Yes!"

Several guards took Zheng Hu away.

Zheng Hu did not struggle.

Li Lin's gaze fell on the group of martial artists, and he said, "The reward I promised will be substantial, and someone will hand it over to you when you leave. However, gentlemen, I have some matters I would like to ask for your help with."

Several people said they dared not.

An Tusen cupped his hands and said, "If you have any instructions, sir, we will certainly not refuse."

"I have already had a hundred copies of my talisman insect-repelling method printed, which will then be distributed to the counties and towns under the actual jurisdiction of my Cangwu Road and handed over to the Spirit Hunters. If any other heroes in the martial world are interested in the talisman method, they can go to the Spirit Hunters to borrow it and copy it."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't a difficult task; it was just a matter of saying a few words, so they naturally agreed.

Li Lin also sent them a copy.

These people lost interest after a few glances.

Because... only Anterson among them can read.

The vast majority of people in the martial arts world are actually illiterate.

Their martial arts skills were all taught by their senior masters or elders in their families.

Therefore, the method of making talismans was accepted by An Tusen.

However, Li Lin's 'disdain' for them was not unexpected.

Few people are aware of the danger posed by Gu people.

Then, the group of martial artists left, receiving the silver and Vitality Pills promised by Li Lin before departing.

There was no deduction whatsoever.

They were overjoyed.

Three days later, Li Lin led the assembled 20,000 troops of Jin County to Guicheng.

When we arrived in Guicheng, the city gates were still tightly closed.

At this moment, the prefect standing on the city wall was an old man.

He looked down at the densely packed soldiers below and laughed, "Alright, you can surrender now."

The middle-aged military officer beside him chuckled, "Sir, are you really willing to tie your own hands?"

The old man glared and bristled, saying, "What do you mean I tied my own hands? You're the one who tied me up!"

The middle-aged military officer laughed heartily: "Then we'll have to trouble the prefect."

"Alas, this is the only way," the old man said helplessly. "When the nation is weak and the world is corrupt, several extraordinary talents will inevitably be born. They will fight to the death, but it is we hardworking oxen and horses who will suffer."

The middle-aged military officer took a rope and tied up the prefect.

He then said to the people next to him, "Raise the white flag and surrender."

At this moment, Li Lin was in his command tent, examining a topographical map, discussing with Xiao Chunzhu, Ji Bo, Guo Yuan, and several other commanders how to capture the great city.

Unexpectedly, Captain Wu walked in and said in a strange tone, "Sir... the gates of Guicheng are open. The military commander of Guicheng Prefecture has come out with the prefect bound."

"Hmm?" Li Lin was a little puzzled: "This scene feels somewhat familiar to me."

Xiao Chunzhu said, "Because Beishan County is in the same situation."

Ji Bo said from the side, "Could it be a scheme?"

Li Lin laughed and said, "You'll know once you go and see for yourself."

A group of people came out of the commander's tent, then rode to the front line, where they saw a middle-aged man in lamellar armor with an old man in civil official's robes tied up.

However, both of them looked very well and were still talking, and there seemed to be no resentment between them.

Moreover, behind the two men stood a large number of soldiers, estimated to be nearly a thousand. None of them were armored or carrying weapons.

Seeing this, Xiao Chunzhu said, "They really have surrendered."

The young man, Ji Bo, immediately cupped his hands and said to Li Lin, "Congratulations, sir. The Chief Supervisor of Guicheng is definitely afraid of you. Last time when Lord Xiao came, they still dared to resist. But as soon as you arrived, they bound their hands and abandoned their weapons to welcome you."

Li Lin shook his head: "The reason for this is probably not that simple."

After speaking, Li Lin rode his horse up to the two men, dismounted, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am Li Lin, the military governor of Cangwu West Road. You two are Prefect Wan of Gui County and Commander Hao."

Hao Sen cupped his hands and said, "It is indeed I, your humble servant."

Prefect Wan, standing nearby, chuckled and said, "Governor, may I be freed from my restraints?"

Li Lin was very close to the other person at this moment, and he could tell that the rope binding the other person was not tied tightly.

He understood and nodded, "Of course."

Prefect Wan laughed heartily, and with a gentle pull, the rope came off.

It was clearly an act, but I suppose the other party meant no harm. "Lord Li must have some doubts," Prefect Wan said with a smile. "Please come in, I will clear things up for you."

Li Lin nodded, and then about a hundred personal guards followed him into the city with the two of them.

Along the way, Li Lin noticed that the streets of Guicheng looked quite lively.

Half an hour later, in the backyard of the government office.

Li Lin sat in the main seat, Prefect Wan sat on his left, and Hao Sen sat on his right.

Not far in front of them, there were more than a dozen people kneeling.

One of the men, a handsome-looking man, glared at the group with a menacing look.

While drinking tea, Li Lin asked, "Who are these people?"

"Fang Zhaoke, a member of the Fang family in the capital, is the prefectural magistrate of this county."

Li Lin raised an eyebrow and asked, "The Fang family?"

"Yes," Prefect Wan said, cupping his hands. "I have been in Gui County for ten years, and for nine of those years I have been controlled by this man. If it weren't for the fact that you, the military governor, had previously controlled the surrounding counties and cut off his henchmen and connections, it would have been almost impossible for me to capture him."

Li Lin nodded: "In other counties, I have indeed discovered that many corrupt officials are backed by the Fang family."

At this moment, the kneeling middle-aged man tried to stand up, but was struck on the sole of his foot by a water-and-fire stick from behind by the yamen runner, which knocked him back to his knees.

He shouted at Li Lin, "Governor, don't listen to the slander of these two villains. I have worked diligently for the court, and even if I haven't made any great contributions, I have certainly put in a lot of hard work."

"Does hard work equate to corruption, tyranny, and unbridled behavior?" Li Lin sneered.

Then Li Lin looked to the side and said, "Prefect Wan, but your own backside isn't exactly clean either."

"Does that mean I'm a lecherous and fickle woman, and insatiably promiscuous?" Prefect Wan remained calm.

Li Lin raised his eyebrows.

Prefect Wan clapped his hands, and a dozen or so women walked out from the side.

These women were all quite beautiful, and they had a very good complexion.

They approached Li Lin, bowed gracefully, and then stood aside, blushing.

"This is the only way I can save them. They haven't been bullied in my household. Seven of them have already married my guards or servants. I've adopted the others as my goddaughters and am thinking about how to marry them off. I'm getting old and can't take it anymore."

The women burst into laughter.

Chief Inspector Hao stood beside him, his face beaming with smiles.

Not far away, Fang Zhaoke looked utterly shocked.

Li Lin believed him for the time being, and then asked, "Then why did Prefect Wan tie his own hands and put on a show today?"

“I am about to retire,” said Prefect Wan. “But if I open the city gates wide and welcome you in, I will surely be secretly punished by the court when I return to my hometown. If I am taken away by Commander Hao, I will have a better end and can go home to be a leisurely schoolteacher.”

Li Lin understood what the other party meant.

His gaze fell on Fang Zhaoke, who was not far away, and then he smiled and said, "But Prefect Wan, you have given me quite a bit of trouble."

The Fang family!
At this moment, Fang Zhaoke shouted to Li Lin, "Governor Li, we can be considered relatives. My nephew Fang Fengyi married the eldest daughter of the Huang family, and you also married the eldest daughter of the Huang family. We can barely be considered brothers-in-law, and also relatives."

Li Lin sighed and stood in front of the other person.

"so what!"

Fang Zhaoke looked at Li Lin and said, "You can't harm me. You should go after Prefect Wan. We're family, understand?"

Li Lin put his hands behind his back and looked at Fang Zhaoke: "Actually, there's no need for Prefect Wan to tie you up. Once I enter the city, I'll deal with you the same way."

"Why!" Fang Zhaoke looked at Li Lin, full of confusion: "You are not the kind of upright official who cares about the world. If you were, you wouldn't have killed the Crown Prince. Our Fang family can help you. Whatever you want to do, we can secretly support you."

“Gui County will be my territory from now on. You and your lackeys have made a mess of this place, and you still say you'll help me?” Li Lin turned around and said to Prefect Wan, “I'll handle this man.”

"I couldn't ask for more." Prefect Wan bowed happily.

As the prefect, he was not required to perform the proper official etiquette, but Li Lin had taken all the blame, allowing him to remain clean of any wrongdoing. This was an immense favor, so performing the etiquette was nothing.

Fang Zhaoke's eyes widened.

Li Lin said to his personal guards, "Drag them away and hand them over to Xiao Chunzhu."

"Yes!"

"You can't do this! You can't do this!"

The piercing screams gradually faded into the distance, followed by the cries of numerous women and young children.

Li Lin sat back down in the main seat and asked, "When does Prefect Wan plan to leave?"

"tomorrow?"

"So fast?"

"If we don't hurry, I doubt I'll make it back to my hometown alive." Prefect Wan smiled slyly, looking like an old fox. "I can't afford the Fang family's counterattack. I'll hand over my resignation to the military governor tomorrow, and you can submit it to the Secretariat for me."

Li Lin smiled and said, "No problem. I'll try to use the harshest language possible, so please don't take offense."

"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter anyway, I can't escape the label of being lewd."

After saying that, all three of them burst into laughter at the same time.

Xiao Chunzhu acted quickly, and he got the job done in just half a day.

This includes confiscating property, liquidating assets, and... beheading.

Fang Zhaoke and his two sons were beheaded at Caishikou, while his wife and daughters were driven out of Gui County and exiled to the north.

The next morning, Li Lin, dressed in his everyday clothes, came to the North Gate to see off Prefect Wan.

Hao Sen also came.

The procession of Prefect Wan included two horse-drawn carriages, several handcarts, and some servants, totaling more than twenty people.

Li Lin also saw a beautiful young girl who was lifting the curtain of the carriage and looking at him.

When Li Lin turned his gaze away, she shyly lowered the curtain.

"Governor, I'm offering my granddaughter to you as a concubine. Would you be willing to accept her?" Prefect Wan approached.

Li Lin said helplessly, "Stop teasing me, Prefect Wan."

Hao Sen laughed and echoed from the side.

"Haha... I'm telling the truth." Prefect Wan shook his head helplessly, then bowed deeply: "Thank you both for seeing me off."

Li Lin clapped his hands, and several guards pushed a cart over.

Judging from the wheel tracks on the cart, you can tell that it was carrying something heavy.

"Governor, what does this mean?"

Li Lin laughed and said, "When I make money, I never forget my friends. This ill-gotten wealth was confiscated from the Fang family. It's already in the treasury, so it's clean now."

"That's unacceptable."

"After serving as prefect for ten years, he returned to his hometown with less than a hundred taels of silver. That's too shabby. Even an honest official should treat his family better."

Prefect Wan's eyes reddened slightly: "Thank you."

“It is only right.” Li Lin looked at the military officer beside him: “Commander-in-Chief Hao also has a copy, which will be delivered to the military camp this afternoon.”

Hao Sen clasped his hands in a deep fist salute and bowed his head in respect: "Thank you, sir."

Everything was harmonious on Li Lin's side.

But in the Fang family, it was not like that.

Fang Fengyi tore a piece of paper to shreds and cursed, "That scoundrel Li Lin has gone too far!"

Huang Ling stood to the side, her face filled with anger: "I told you long ago, he's a jinx, here to bring us bad luck."

(End of this chapter)