Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 43 The sky may be high, but the emperor is not far away!

two days later,

Xuanfu.

It’s a dark and windy night!

Sun Yingyuan glanced at the head of the Eastern Depot beside him, who had ample experience in confiscating property. The head of the depot knew that this young man would become a favorite of the emperor in the future, and smiled obsequiously before nodding.
Upon seeing this, Sun Yingyuan immediately led his most elite team to Tian Shichun's bedroom in the back residence.

"boom!"

There was a loud bang.

The bedroom door was smashed to pieces by two burly soldiers using a battering ram.

"who?!"

On the bed, Tian Shichun was startled awake from a sweet dream. He sat up abruptly and saw several gleaming steel knives pointed at him.

"Who?" Tian Shichun sobered up halfway instantly. "Who are you... what do you want? Are you planning a rebellion?!"

The slender horse from Jiangnan beside him was already terrified, its face pale, and it covered its head tightly with the blanket, letting out a sharp neigh.

"Take it."

Sun Yingyuan uttered two words calmly.

Two eunuchs from the Eastern Depot rushed forward like hungry wolves. Tian Shichun tried to resist, reaching out to touch the sword hanging by his bedside.

But it's too late.

A guard slammed the back of his knife into Tian Shichun's wrist, and with a "crack," Tian Shichun's wrist snapped!

The intense pain caused Tian Shichun to let out a scream that sounded inhuman.

Another guard stuffed his mouth shut with a tattered cloth that he had somehow torn from somewhere.

The whole process was clean, efficient, and effective.

Sun Yingyuan looked at Tian Shichun, who was being dragged off the bed like a dead dog, and felt no emotion whatsoever.

This is just the beginning.

"Search!" he ordered. "Search and seal all account books, letters, gold, and silver in the mansion! Leave no one alive!"

Meanwhile, in more than a dozen other corners of Xuanfu Town.

The same arrests are being carried out simultaneously.

The guerrilla general of Xuanfu Town was in his concubine's bed when he was blocked by the men of the Eastern Depot.

The military commander in charge of provisions was gambling all night with several merchants, and he and his gambling money were all arrested.

The guard in charge of the armory was in his secret room, drooling over the gold he had just received, when he was immediately subdued by soldiers who broke down the door.

The officers in Xuanfu, who usually acted arrogantly and domineeringly, couldn't even organize a decent resistance.

They are like a pack of lazy dogs locked in a cage.

When the hunter carrying a butcher's knife walked in.

There's nothing they can do but wail.

……

General's Residence.

The tea had gone cold.

Wei Zhongxian remained seated as steady as Mount Tai.

Hou Shilu felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles, every minute and every second was torture.

Just then, an eunuch from the Eastern Depot appeared outside the hall like a ghost. He didn't look at Hou Shilu, but went straight to Wei Zhongxian's side, bowed and whispered a few words.

"Well done." Wei Zhongxian nodded, his face still bearing that kind smile.

He turned his head and looked at Hou Shilu, whose face had turned deathly pale.

"General Hou," he said slowly, "are you satisfied with this reward we've given you?"

Hou Shilu was struck dumb.

What border patrols, what visits to old friends?

It's all fake.

This nobleman is here to kill.

Moreover, the person who killed him did so right under his nose, right under the nose of the general.

"Factory...Factory Master..." His voice was hoarse with extreme fear, "What...what exactly is going on?"

Wei Zhongxian smiled.

That was the cruel yet triumphant laugh of a cat after catching a mouse.

He no longer tried to hide it.

Wei Zhongxian unleashed his sinister, ruthless, and all-powerful aura without reservation.

The temperature in the entire main hall seemed to drop several degrees instantly.

"What's going on?" Wei Zhongxian said coldly. "General Hou, do you really not know?"

"Your subordinate, Lieutenant General Tian Shichun, colluded with Shanxi merchants to smuggle weapons, sell border intelligence, embezzle military pay, and misappropriate military rations! Each and every one of these acts is enough to warrant the extermination of his entire clan!"

"Your guerrillas, commanders, and garrison officers are all rotten to the core! They've turned Xuanfu into their own private bank!"

"And you, Hou Shilu, as the Commander-in-Chief of Xuanfu, are you completely unaware of this, or do you know but dare not, are unwilling to, or even welcome it?!"

With the last sentence, Wei Zhongxian's voice suddenly rose, like a sharp knife piercing Hou Shilu's heart.

Hou Shilu trembled all over and could no longer sit still. He knelt down with a thud, his whole body shaking like a leaf.

"Please spare me, Your Excellency! Please spare me, Your Excellency!" he kowtowed incoherently. "This humble general...this humble general is guilty! This humble general failed in his duty!"

"Oversight failure?" Wei Zhongxian looked down at him, his eyes full of disdain. "You think you can get away with just one sentence, 'oversight failure'?" "Hou Shilu, listen carefully."

"His Majesty has asked me to pass on a message to you."

"The sky is high, but the emperor is not far away!"

Hou Shilu collapsed to the ground, his face ashen.

Wei Zhongxian wasn't trying to scare him!
"Get up." Wei Zhongxian's voice returned to calm. "His Majesty is kind-hearted and considers your past military achievements."

"Tomorrow, you will come back to Beijing with us."

"Explain everything you've seen, heard, and thought to His Majesty in its entirety."

"Whether you live or die depends on your own fate."

This is not a matter for discussion.

It is an order.

Hou Shilu knew that he had become a tiger with its teeth pulled, and what's more, he didn't have the guts to rebel!

He could only kowtow.

"This humble general... obeys the order."

……

It was dawn.

The drill ground in Xuanfu was packed with people.

Tens of thousands of soldiers from Xuanfu Town were urgently assembled. They looked confused and whispered among themselves, not knowing what major event had occurred.

A temporary platform was erected in the center of the training ground.

On the high platform, Tian Shichun and the dozen or so captured officers were bound like dead dogs and knelt in a row.

They were all disheveled, their faces filled with despair.

Sun Yingyuan, clad in full armor and holding an imperial edict, stood in the center of the high platform.

Behind him was the newly formed army that had just drawn blood.

They still carried the lingering stench of blood, but their eyes had become incredibly resolute and sharp.

"By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees:!"

Sun Yingyuan unfolded the imperial edict and read it aloud.

His voice echoed throughout the entire training ground.

The imperial edict listed the numerous crimes of Tian Shichun and others, each one eliciting angry gasps from the soldiers below the stage.

When they heard that the embezzled military pay had all been used by Tian Shichun and others to purchase land and keep beautiful women, they were shocked.

The entire training ground erupted in cheers.

"Kill him! Kill him!"

"Kill these corrupt officials!"

The sentiment is indignant.

Just then, accompanied by Hou Shilu, Wei Zhongxian slowly walked up to the high platform.

The moment he appeared, the entire training ground fell silent.

All the soldiers looked at this legendary figure with awe.

Wei Zhongxian walked to the front of the stage and waved his hand.

Soldiers immediately brought up dozens of huge crates.

The box was opened.

In an instant, golden and silver light stung everyone's eyes.

Those were mountains of gold ingots and silver coins.

"Soldiers!" Wei Zhongxian shouted in his distinctively shrill voice, "These were all confiscated from the mansions of corrupt officials like Tian Shichun, as well as from the shops of those who betrayed the country for profit!"

"Some of this money should have been your hard-earned cash! It was your military pay meant to support your families!"

"Today, His Majesty has issued a decree!"

"All withheld military pay shall be paid in double the amount!"

"This is a gift from His Majesty!"

Wei Zhongxian suddenly waved his hand.

"Give me money!"

The soldiers below the stage were taken aback at first.

A deafening cheer erupted immediately.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

"Long live! Long live! Long live!"

The roar, like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami crashing, soared straight into the sky.

At that moment, they forgot their fear of Wei Zhongxian.

All that remained in their hearts was their sincerest gratitude and support for the young emperor who, though far away in the capital, had managed to seek justice for them!
The morale of the troops was instantly restored.

The situation in Xuanfu Town has been temporarily brought under control.

Looking at the excited and fervent faces below the stage, Wei Zhongxian's cloudy eyes flashed with a complex and unfathomable light.

(End of this chapter)