My lord, spare his life!

"What are you doing?" The door was pounded on loudly. The steward opened the door but was immediately pushed aside by a group of ruthless thugs wielding knives. He couldn't stop them. Guards and servants who tried to intervene were easily knocked away. The steward, panicked, shouted, "This is no place for you thieves! If you know what's good for you, leave now!"

Upon hearing the news, the servants rushed over and formed a human wall in twos and threes.

The leader finally stopped.

He raised his head, his expression arrogant: "Hundred Ghost Guards, apprehend the thieves!"

Upon seeing his own people arrive, the manager suddenly felt emboldened and shouted, "What do you mean by 'catching thieves'? You're trespassing!"

Hundred Ghosts Guard: "The horse farm has lost a horse. As long as your household returns all the stolen goods you have hidden, the lord will treat you leniently."

The person in charge of the outer courtyard was taken aback by the question.

They did indeed acquire a horse of excellent quality and appearance, but these horses were purchased by the head of the household. How did they become stolen goods? No, no, no, we can't trust what this thug says.

The Hundred Ghosts Guards were too lazy to waste time with a manager.

The leader raised his hand and said, "To the stables."

After saying this, the steward blocking the way was pushed aside.

How could the other servants possibly stand up to the battle-hardened Hundred Ghost Guards?

They were beaten so badly in just one exchange that they were knocked to the ground, clutching their wounds and groaning in pain, unable to get up.

"I said we're here to apprehend thieves, don't interfere with our official duties."

The group headed straight for the stable.

The family's stable was very spacious, crammed with over twenty tall, young horses, all with agile and well-proportioned physiques. The group of Ghost Guards stared, practically unable to move. The leader, possessing better composure, regained his senses and said, "Take the stolen goods back!"

The manager almost fainted.

"What stolen goods? You're robbing us! Robbery!"

The commotion in the outer courtyard also reached the inner courtyard.

A middle-aged man, appearing to be in his forties, arrived surrounded by servants and guards. Upon seeing the chaotic scene at the stable, his face turned extremely grim. The steward couldn't recognize these men, but he guessed they must be under the command of Zhang Boyuan, who had recently risen to prominence.

With a tense expression, he stepped forward to demand an explanation.

The soldiers of the Hundred Ghosts Guard, all loyal to Guan Si, looked down on everyone, including this middle-aged man. Faced with his arrogant question, he retorted unhappily, "Apprehending thieves and recovering stolen goods? Do you really want to oppose my lord and obstruct official business?"

Is it meaningful to repeat yourself like a wheel?

These people really can't understand human language.

He immediately waved his hand: "Take all these horses away!"

These words made the middle-aged man's vision go black.

You know, no matter how bad a horse is, it's something ordinary people wouldn't dare dream of. If it's even slightly better in quality and has a purer bloodline, the price skyrockets. The horses in his stable are among the best in the stable, and each one is quite young.

"Master, something terrible has happened—" Just then, a steward of the estate rushed in from outside, so anxious that he lost two shoes in his haste. "A group of thieves came this morning and stole all the horses on the estate—"

Zhuangzi's words came to an abrupt end.

The middle-aged man's vision went black, and he completely lost consciousness.

When he woke up again, he was still burning with anger. Ignoring his wife's cries and attempts to stop him, he stormed up to the prefectural government office demanding an explanation.

Not only were the horses that pulled the cart gone, but even the donkeys had vanished.

He could only instruct the steward to prepare a sedan chair.

Upon arriving at the prefectural government office, they found several other sedan chairs parked at the entrance.

Several acquaintances wore expressions of unanimous fury. When asked why they had come, they all turned out to be victims whose horses had been stolen from their homes. The group exchanged bewildered glances, their hearts filled with mixed emotions.

"How could Zhang the thief do such a thing?"

What's the difference between robbing someone at their door and being a bandit?

The family that lost the most horses had over 400 horses stolen.

Such a great loss was intolerable even for Zhang Yang, whose notorious reputation preceded him. The middle-aged man felt slightly better upon hearing that his losses weren't the greatest, but a hint of schadenfreude also crept in. There were other victims as well; he wouldn't have to fight alone, which gave him a degree of security—no matter how ruthless Zhang Boyuan was, could he really kill them all? Probably…not, right?

"Their eating manners were truly unsightly."

"After all, it's a background that can't be brought to the table."

They want to snatch up anything good they see and keep it for themselves.

"Do you think this might be Zhang the thief's way of showing his power?"

Before they could finish speaking, two more families arrived.

The group exchanged glances, feeling uncertain.

Before leaving, the Sun family sold off many good items to them at low prices, the most profitable of which was the horses from the Sun family's horse farm. Apart from some horses used by the Sun family themselves, the rest of the warhorses from the Sun family's horse farm were sold elsewhere through trade routes, where they commanded high prices.

They bought the goods at a low price, planning to resell them at a higher price after the trouble subsided, making a fortune in the process. However, before they could even finish their plan, robbers came knocking. If they admitted defeat, even the wealthiest among them would be severely weakened.

Based on Zhang's past behavior, the other party will definitely try to seize the land again!

Just then, the tightly closed gates of the prefectural government building opened.

The oppressive atmosphere that swept over them made everyone's faces turn pale, as if they were being stared at by countless greedy, lustful wolf eyes.

The young man in the wolf fur coat scanned the crowd: "Go in."

No one dared to answer or take the first step.

They felt that the familiar gates of the prefectural government were no longer just gates, but gaping maws that were about to swallow them whole, chewing and spitting out their blood and bones.

They hesitated, and the young man's eyes grew colder.

"Why are you blocking the doorway if you're not going in? Are you looking to die?"

Thinking of the horse that had been forcibly taken from their homes, a moment of anger overwhelmed their fear, and someone cupped their hands and asked, "May I ask your name?"

"Guan Si, Commander of a Hundred Ghosts."

Everyone's face turned pale instantly.

The thieves who broke into their house called themselves the Hundred Ghosts Guard.

Suppressing their emotions, they finally met the legendary Zhang Boyuan. Young, outstanding, and handsome—that was everyone's first impression. He simply sat leisurely, yet his face illuminated the somewhat dim room, making the simply furnished flower hall appear luxurious. However, thinking of the evil deeds he had committed, they felt that while his face was beautiful, it was also thorny and poisonous.

They bowed and greeted each other, then took their seats in turn.

They didn't exchange pleasantries and went straight to the point.

"This morning, a group of villains claiming to be Zhang Jun's Hundred Ghost Guards injured the servants of the manor, stole several horses, and left. May I ask if their identities are genuine? If they are imposters, I request that Zhang Jun send someone to eliminate them and clear their name."

These words, while forceful, also gave Zhang Yang a way out.

As long as the horse is returned, they will act as if nothing happened.

Zhang Yang peeled the skin of a soft peach, cut it into pieces with a dagger and used them as toothpicks to put them into his mouth: "They are people I sent, not imposters."

The speaker choked for a moment, seemingly not expecting Zhang Yang to be so shameless, admitting it without even trying to defend himself.

"I implore Mr. Zhang to return the horses."

Zhang Yang, finding the dagger troublesome, returned it to Guan Si and began gnawing on it with his teeth: "What do you mean by 'returning'? I took my things back from you, and you want me to 'return' them? Is there no justice or law left?"

Upon hearing this, everyone knew that Zhang Yang intended to rob them by force.

Despite being mentally prepared, I was still furious.

"How could these horses belong to Zhang...Jun?" In his haste, he almost blurted out "Zhang the thief," but thankfully he managed to correct himself at the last moment. If he had actually called this guy a thief to his face, given his current behavior, they would definitely not have made it out of the prefectural government building alive.

Zhang Yang retorted, "How can you prove it's yours?"

"Of course, these are all horses that were purchased legitimately."

Zhang Yang asked, "Do you have the transaction contract?"

Some of them, anticipating a potential problem, brought a copy of the contract—the agreement for the warhorse trade. Two copies were made, one for them and one for the Sun family. They feared that once the turmoil subsided, the Sun family might renege on the agreement.

With the contract written, both parties were at ease.

Zhang Yang: "Let me see it."

The man hesitated, worried that Zhang Yang might shamelessly destroy the contract, leaving no evidence against him. Then he thought again: others also had contracts, and he had more than one; how could Zhang Yang deny everything? In a flash, he understood.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Yang did not shatter the contract scroll.

She carefully read through the contract.

The contract also bore the fingerprints and signatures of the buyer, seller, and witnesses. Aside from not having had time to register it with the prefectural government, the paperwork was flawless. After reviewing it, Zhang Yang returned the contract, his face expressionless as he questioned, "How dare you! The evidence is conclusive, yet you still dare to say these horses aren't stolen goods?" His words caught everyone off guard.

The man who retrieved the contract examined its contents in disbelief, fearing Zhang Yang had tampered with it. When he discovered the contract was still original, he felt relieved and gained the confidence to argue with Zhang Yang: "We admire Mr. Zhang, but that doesn't mean you can distort the truth and call a deer a horse! This is clearly my legal proof of purchasing the horse; how has it become 'ironclad evidence'?"

Zhang Yang said, "Are you still trying to deny it?"

"I have done nothing wrong, but I am simply stating the facts."

Since that's the case, Zhang Yang didn't stand on ceremony: "In that case, let me ask you, who does the horse farm belong to now?"

"It naturally belongs to Mr. Zhang."

"Were these horses from a horse farm?"

"really."

Zhang Yang pulled out the horse farm ledger she had prepared beforehand: "You admit that these horses belong to the horse farm and were purchased from it. So let me ask you, how much does a horse cost? If you can't answer that, I'll tell you, a poor-quality horse from the horse farm costs at least five gold coins, and when it's expensive, it can cost thirty to forty gold coins. A horse of average quality can cost one or two hundred gold coins, and a horse of superior quality starts at five hundred gold coins."

The best quality horses all possess a high purity of star beast bloodline, and their endurance and speed are unmatched by ordinary horses. Horses of even higher quality are worth thousands or even tens of thousands of gold coins. These fine horses are generally used as breeding stock in horse farms for propagation; very few actually appear on the battlefield, making them extremely rare and highly sought after.

"Take another look at the contract. Is the price reasonable? Selling a horse of average quality for the price of an inferior horse—is the Sun family blind and doing charity, or have you secretly stolen horses from the horse farm, or are you in cahoots with the Sun family, a conspiracy?"

A horse of average quality is priced at ten gold coins.

Is this how you do business?

Don't think you can bully her just because she's an NPC.

Today, they must give an explanation!