Promise!

Chapter 174, Covert Operation

The person dressed as a scholar in a blue robe was none other than Zhuang Jin.

If the Fei family, the Yao family, and Sikong Rui knew this, they would be greatly alarmed. They had arranged for people to keep watch at all the outposts along the route from Yunnan Prefecture to Linji County, and they had not overlooked the docks in Linji County either. Their people had even examined Zhuang Jin's portrait... all in an effort to keep track of Zhuang Jin's movements...

But now, Zhuang Jin, who they thought was still on the way and had only traveled halfway, has appeared here without anyone noticing!
The story begins on the very first day. Zhuang Jin instructed his attendant Yue Song to create the illusion that he was still on the ship, using the pretense of repairing the plank road while secretly making his way away.

With his Meridian Opening Realm, it wouldn't be difficult for him to evade ordinary people and Qi Condensation martial artists on the ship. To be on the safe side, he even disguised himself and changed into his current attire.

Afterwards, Zhuang Jin transferred to a speedboat and traveled through the night.

The Shen family arranged that ship with comfort in mind, without rushing or stopping along the way. It has indeed only traveled halfway, but this fast ship sacrificed comfort, running day and night without stopping, and going at full speed, which is why it is here now.

Zhuang Jin arrived at the county government office and handed over a letter and a silver ingot: "I am a distant relative of Magistrate Teng. I am passing through your county and have come here..."

Seeing that Zhuang Jin was exceptionally talented and not an ordinary person, and was also generous, the gatekeeper figured he was not an imposter and dared not be negligent, so he immediately went in to report.

Zhuang Jin stood at the door waiting. Everything he said was true; the letter was real, and the kinship was real.

Because of their intertwined interests, neither the Fei nor the Yao families were trustworthy this time. Zhuang Jin didn't trust either the Fei or the Yao families, and instead set his sights on the third party, the Linji County Government.

Before setting off, Zhuang Jin wanted to do another favor by using the connections of Fu Shousong and Qiu Yizhi to obtain a token to introduce him to Teng Yuansong, the magistrate of Linji County. However, Qiu Yizhi said that Zhuang Jin was going to great lengths and that he had better channels.

It turns out that the wife of the Ninth Young Master Shen Xuqing was the daughter of the Chief Prisoner of the Prefectural Government. She shared the same surname and clan as Teng Yuansong, the Magistrate of Linji County, and they were within the fifth degree of kinship... From this perspective, there really was a somewhat roundabout kinship relationship.

After receiving the news from Qiu Yizhi, Zhuang Jin went to see Shen Xuqing. Shen Xuqing's wife, who had previously attacked Ni Ying and now saw Zhuang Jin become a Tongmai Gongfu, had long wanted to ease tensions. Upon hearing the purpose of the visit, she immediately contacted her family and wrote a letter, which was the same letter that Zhuang Jin had previously held.

……

A short while later, a plump, middle-aged man with narrow eyes and wearing a black fox fur hat came out. It was Teng Wensong, the magistrate of Linji County, who warmly greeted him: "Cousin, it's been a long time! Please come in!"

'This fat guy took advantage of me.'

Zhuang Jin thought to himself, but on his face he said sincerely, "Cousin, please go first!"

After some polite exchanges, the two finally entered the room hand in hand. Once inside, they arrived at a quiet room. They dismissed the servants and, after verifying with their martial arts intuition that no one was there, spoke.

"Master Zhuang is indeed as cautious as rumored. The Fei family, the Yao family, and the members of the Medicine King Gang probably never expected that Master Zhuang would come to my Linji County today, and even come here!"

"The magistrate of Teng County is not as good as the rumored clay figure magistrate. He is muddle-headed, greedy and lustful... Now that he is like this, many people probably wouldn't believe their eyes."

Upon meeting, the two immediately recognized one thing: neither of them was a fool.

This is crucial.

This determines their future relationship, who will be in charge and who will be subordinate, or whether it will be a partnership of equals: Currently, their backgrounds are similar, one backed by the government, the other by the Shen family; their strengths are comparable, Teng Yuansong is at the Tongmai lineage level, and Zhuang Jin is openly at the same level; finally, they are both confirmed to be cunning and resourceful…

Only then can we sit at the same table and have an equal conversation, saving us the energy of testing each other and the possibility of being fooled by those idiots outside.

"I'm here to investigate a case, and I'll be stationed here permanently as the county magistrate, so I'll inevitably have to deal with Magistrate Teng... This time, I hope to utilize the county government's intelligence network and some of their manpower... The Fei family and the Yao family, both powerful families, must have something going on. In return, after the investigation, I'll find some of the ill-gotten assets of the problematic family..."

Zhuang Jin is generous with other people's money and makes promises without hesitation.

"not enough!"

Upon hearing this, Teng Yuansong shook his head slightly, his narrow, fox-like eyes narrowing: "Linji County is too small, and the Fei family, the Yao family... have too much power... In my opinion, the only heroes in this county are you and me!"

"Magistrate Teng has quite the appetite!"

Zhuang Jin understood what the other party meant: to purge the Fei and Yao families, two powerful families, or to purge the middle and upper management while keeping puppets in the open.

A thought flashed through his mind, followed by more details: 'This Linji County is merely a temporary refuge for me, a place where I'll lie low for several years. If I really do this, when I leave in the future, the county government will likely become too powerful!'

"Everyone outside says I'm greedy and lustful. If I didn't have a big appetite, how could I live up to this reputation for greed?" Teng Yuansong said, getting up and going to the bookshelf. He opened a hidden compartment and took something out.

This is evidence that the Fei family secretly betrayed the location of the Yao family's medicinal herb warehouse, and speculation that two days ago, Fei Yuanlong, the patriarch of the Fei family, dismissed his servants, possibly to meet with Sikong Rui, the deputy leader of the Medicine King Gang; as well as evidence that the Yao family intended to cooperate in the looting, and analysis of their collusion with the Medicine King Gang...

Have both the Fei and Yao families, two prominent families, run into trouble?

Zhuang Jin nodded slightly and looked across at the other side, realizing that he had underestimated Magistrate Teng.

Originally, his lowest expectation was simply to rely on the county government's intelligence network and do it himself. He didn't expect that this Magistrate Teng had already done most of it, saving him a lot of trouble. It was also clear that the other party was very different from the rumors and had deeply infiltrated the Fei and Yao families.

'This person was prepared for all this; they probably planned it all along, waiting for me to cooperate!'

Zhuang Jin gave the other person a deep look: "I came here today on my own initiative, but it seems I've been taken advantage of."

"Haha, it's more like a perfect match, a union of lovers!"

Teng Yuansong returned to what he had said earlier: "Greed requires skill, and you and I happen to possess this skill... Zhuang Gongfeng, if Heaven bestows it upon you and you do not take it, you will suffer the consequences!"

Zhuang Jin understood what the other party meant. Although the other party was the magistrate of Linji County and had the government behind him, the Fei family and Yao family, two powerful families, were backed by the Shen family, a powerful clan in the prefecture. This person was not easy to deal with... However, one magistrate of Linji County was not enough. Adding him would be more than enough.

"Now only one thing remains. Does Master Zhuang have the courage to do it?"

“Magistrate Teng, don’t try to provoke me. I will investigate the contents of this document. If it is true, then we might as well carry out a thorough purge of the Fei and Yao families this time!”

Zhuang Jin had originally planned to target one major household, and now it's just a matter of going from one major household to two, so there's not much difference.

'From my own perspective, this will also make my future spiritual practice smoother...'

As for purging both powerful families and leaving the county government without checks and balances after he leaves, resulting in one family becoming too powerful, that's still a long way off. Who can predict what will happen in the future?

Teng Yuansong was surprised to hear Zhuang Jin say this. He had only planned to eliminate some people from the Fei and Yao families, but he didn't expect Zhuang Jin to be so ruthless... It was clear that the Shen family trusted and authorized Zhuang Jin to do even more.

'That's interesting!'

He also re-evaluated Zhuang Jin, a smile appearing on his face: "Zhuang Gongfeng has great courage, and I can't hold him back. We still need to cooperate sincerely this time."

Having decided to target the two major clients, the next step is to figure out how to do it.

"The martial artists of the Fei and Yao families are distributed in a '人' shape. The total number of martial artists of the seventh level and above from both families is no more than the number on two palms. After the middle and upper management are purged, they can be easily controlled... However, with what we have now, it is not enough... In addition, taking action against one family may alert the other..."

Zhuang Jin narrowed his eyes, pondering his plan.

“What Master Zhuang said makes sense, but we can take a look at these first.”

Teng Yuansong handed over another document: "This is evidence of the evil deeds of two powerful families, too numerous to count... When Fei Yuanlong, the patriarch of the Fei family, was injured by a red python in his youth, he was poisoned by fire and had to use a secret method to replenish the virginity of a young girl every month... Fei Zecheng, the eldest son of the Fei family... The Yao family, another powerful family, is no less..."

"Magistrate Teng!"

"Lord Zhuang!"

After Zhuang Jin read it, he and Teng Yuansong spoke at the same time, both wanting to say something.

"What I'm trying to say is that when dealing with these evil spirits and heretics, there's no need to talk about chivalry or honor!"

"What I want to say is that to deal with evil people, you have to be more evil, more despicable, and more shameless than they are!"

The two exchanged a glance, then clinked their glasses amidst laughter. The tea reflected the fiery sunset clouds outside the window, blazing fiercely as if to burn everything to ashes.

……

(End of this chapter)