My lord, spare his life!

pungent?

Fan You said, "Yuan Yi is probably mistaken."

Zhang Yang's personality is difficult to describe using descriptive vocabulary. Her behavior is completely inhuman, and she rarely displays the joys, sorrows, or anger expected of someone her age. Her most common expression is "expressionless." However, her strengths are also obvious.

After gradually training and getting to know him, Fan You unexpectedly discovered that this lord was more humane than any other faction leader in the market.

Putting the facts aside, this ruler barely passed the test.

Du Guan: "Did I misjudge him?"

Fan You: "Her personality... once you meet her in person, you'll find it hard to describe how fiery she is. She... it's hard to put into words."

He seemed to dislike Zhang Yang verbally, but Du Guan also knew Fan You to some extent. If he weren't somewhat satisfied, this junior wouldn't have been so tactful. The more he acted this way, the more curious Du Guan became. The moment this thought crossed her mind, her face suddenly turned deathly pale.

Fan You: "Is Yuan Yi feeling unwell?"

Du Guan calmly replied, "It's all because of this 'Descending Star'."

They forcibly put shackles on people!

However, what is more painful than being shackled is that the shackles are not locked. With just a flick of the finger, there is a chance to break free completely, but no one in the world will do so, because this is both a shackle and the only protection that all living beings have.

Without these shackles, even surviving is a luxury. They deserve only to be crushed into the mud, along with their cherished relatives, who will die without a burial place.

"After all these years, I've gotten used to it." Du Guan calmed her mind, and color returned to her face. She keenly sensed the faint aura of kinship surrounding Fan You. "You—you too—"

"Of course, no one can be lucky all their life."

Du Guan: "..."

That wasn't what she wanted to ask. What she wanted to ask was that she seemed to smell the scent of a lustful demon. However, apart from being somewhat listless, Fan You didn't show any signs of the decadent, depraved nature of a lustful demon. This meant that Fan You hadn't truly chosen to fall into depravity yet.

Fan You abruptly changed the subject.

"I've been thinking of finding someone to help me these past few days. Now that Yuan Yi is here, we can postpone this matter until the lord returns after finishing his business." Although Zhang Yang hasn't officially appointed anyone, Fan You is already using his superior status to order around Du Guan and the clerks of the old prefectural government office. Fortunately, with Du Guan around, the selection and screening of these clerks became much simpler, nipping potential problems in the bud.

Du Guan: "..."

Just a second ago, she was wondering how many things could possibly happen.

The next second, she retracted her previous statement.

"You mean these are the things to do next?"

Everyone assumed that Zhang Yang and his companion's plans to abolish the business monopoly and forcibly dismantle the checkpoints demanding tolls were already incredibly audacious. But compared to the current arrangements, they were merely appetizers. The most shocking measure was the forced disarmament of private armed forces within Tianyue's territory. Did they really dare to do that?

Each family that wants to retain a certain number of retainers and followers has two options: one is to honestly pay high taxes to these people who do not engage in production, and the other is to completely submit to the prefectural government and provide the prefectural government with backups of the accounts for maintaining armed forces.

At the same time, any armed action must be applied for and reported.

Du Guan suspected that if this decree were to be issued, the local strongmen within Tianyue would immediately cause a huge uproar, and it wouldn't be impossible for them to gather their forces and storm the prefecture.

"My lord recently learned the saying, 'Scholars use their writings to disrupt the law, and knights use their martial arts to violate prohibitions.' He feels that both the pens of scholars and the swords and spears of warriors need to be controlled. If either side is indulged, the laws and regulations under his rule will be challenged, which is the root of chaos and turmoil. Since that is the case, it is natural to control it from the root. This is the result of my strong persuasion."

Fan You was also helpless.

Zhang Yang's reckless thought process always exceeded his expectations.

The lord initially intended to completely ban civilian armed forces. Anyone capable of wielding star power would have to register with the prefectural government. Fan You naturally knew how suicidal this move was. If she were to unify the world one day and control all the armed forces, she could do this without any problem. But right now, she wasn't even a shrimp, and didn't even have the qualifications to compete with other warlords.

Both sides compromised, prioritizing restraint. Even so, Fan You could anticipate the uproar that would ensue if the news leaked.

Du Guan: "No, no, this is inappropriate! Lord Zhang's words are indeed reasonable, but not now, not at this moment!"

"Don't worry about her."

Firstly, Zhang Yang is not easily soluble in water.

Secondly, she was confident she could kill one if one came, or two if two came. Her own strength was her lifeline.

Du Guan: "..."

Looking at these words, my scalp tingled.

Some regret coming here instead of choosing to return to their ancestral home.

She now wanted to back out. Given Fan You's ruthlessness, he probably wouldn't let her whole family leave safely, because she knew too much. She swallowed hard, skimming through the entire charter, glancing over tax reform and land reform with a cursory glance.

But compared to the explosive content mentioned above—

These are no pushovers either.

"To accomplish this, a fortune is indispensable."

The subtext is: Do you two have the money to cover your losses?

"My lord lacks everything, except money."

There's absolutely no need to worry about finances.

"Yuan Yi, I have something to show you." Fan You turned his wheelchair, signaling Du Guan to follow. He opened a wooden box and took out a brightly colored, fluffy, and soft blanket. "What do you think of this?"

Du Guan had never seen a blanket made of such material before. Just by holding it in his hand, he knew how soft and warm it was to the skin. The plush was delicate and thick, and even the most exquisite royal offerings could not compare to it.

"Where did this come from?"

"It's what my lord gave me, I'm preparing..." Fan You whispered, drawing Du Guan closer to his ear. The two spoke in hushed tones for a while, before Du Guan's furrowed brows finally relaxed. If the plan proceeded as Fan You envisioned, even those seemingly outrageous schemes weren't impossible to accomplish?

Du Guan pressed further, "Does Your Excellency truly possess such a vast fortune?"

"If that's not enough—" He twitched at the corner of his mouth, recalling the unethical plan Zhang Yang had casually mentioned earlier. "The lord said we could push it forward vigorously, create hype for something, and artificially elevate it to a divine status. Once people believe in its value, we can reap the rewards."

Du Guan: "Isn't this a bit too unethical?"

Fan You: "..."

What's even more despicable is that Zhang Yang also said that if there were no more rewards to give, he would use this thing to reward meritorious officials.

Fan You: [How can I reward them? They're not stupid.]

Zhang Yang uttered a remarkably hypocritical statement: "For example, if the whole world believed in Taoism, we would praise the robes and ritual implements of Taoist priests; if they believed in Buddhism, we would praise the relics; if everyone loved playing chess, we would praise the unique chess pieces and chessboard… When everyone believed in the value they brought, how could we not use them to reward those who made significant contributions to expanding the territory?"

When something is given extremely high value in a secular sense, it can even influence secular aesthetic preferences.

Based on her observations of the samples, this approach is feasible.

A typical example is players hoarding cosmetic items.

If an item's appearance is driven up to an exorbitant price, those who initially thought it was unremarkable will begin to appreciate its highlights and affirm its beauty. Conversely, if an item with a very appealing appearance is priced halved, the observers will find it unremarkable after seeing it many times, and not as beautiful as the expensive one.

The appearance is still the same.

Its value changes, and so does how others perceive it. When everyone recognizes its worth, it's worth that much money.

Fan You: [...]

His intuition told him that this was not only immoral but also extremely dangerous.

"Pooh--"

"When did this mad dog become so dangerous?"

Guan Zong spat out a mouthful of blood, a piece of intestine hanging from his mangled wound in his waist and abdomen. He couldn't care less about that for the moment; all he knew was to move faster and faster to shake off the menacing figure that was following him like a shadow. Guan Zong looked extremely disheveled at this moment, with several cuts on his face, and his chest and back covered in cuts.

The longest line runs almost diagonally from the shoulder to the lower back.

The armor, formed from condensed star power, was faintly visible.

This is clearly a sign of exhaustion.

No matter how fast he ran, the blood dripping from his feet betrayed his whereabouts. Just when he was exhausted and thought he was a little safer, he caught a glimpse of a blurry figure out of the corner of his eye. Focusing his gaze, he saw the figure closing in on him—it was the mad dog.

Guan Zong's defenses have been breached.

"You'd better give me a quick death!"

Because every time this mad dog caught him, it left a wound on his body. Like a mad dog, and also like a cat catching a mouse, it doesn't eat it, it just plays with it. Only after playing with the mouse until it's exhausted and dead will this cat slowly and leisurely enjoy its spoils.

The young man asked, "On what grounds?"

Why give an enemy you can't stand a quick death?

Isn't this a reward for these people?

He wanted the other person to die in utter despair and agony.

The young man stared at Guan Zong with gloomy eyes, asking as if chatting with an old friend, "How come your strength has declined so much?"

Guan Zong choked, almost unable to catch his breath.

"You want to know?"

"think."

"Then come closer to your brother—"

The young man plunged a gun into Guan Zong's neck, pinning him firmly to the wall behind him. Satisfied with the sight of Guan Zong's face contorted in agony, he softened his tone: "Now you can talk. Be careful, too much movement could cut you."

The young man gripped the gun barrel with one hand while leaning forward to listen. He was extremely careful with his shot. This shot neither severed Guan Zong's throat nor damaged any major blood vessels; at most, it would cause him to bleed more. But if Guan Zong disobeyed, the outcome could be unpredictable.

Guan Zong coughed up blood while laughing.

"You're still so easy to fool."

The young man showed no anger at being mocked.

He simply straightened up expressionlessly, his right wrist about to exert force. In his eyes, Guan Zong's neck was more fragile than cloth; he wouldn't need to use much strength, the spearhead could sever his throat.

"I know you're just as lucky as that bastard, getting killed time and time again, and each time managing to survive. But don't worry, even if you hide in a ditch, I'll still find you and tear you to pieces." With that, he started to act.

however--

Even faster than him severing Guan Zong's throat was a golden light!

The earthen wall behind Guan Zong exploded with a roar. Before the smoke billowed out, a hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him backward abruptly.

The spear tip that had been embedded in Guan Zong's neck was pulled out, and two muffled groans sounded one after the other. One was from Guan Zong, and the other was from the young man who disregarded the golden light and chose to take it head-on.

Guan Zong lost too much blood and his reaction speed was extremely slow.

After a long pause, he asked uncertainly, "My lord?"

He initially thought it was the Eastern Bandit who wanted to join forces with him.

Zhang Yang stared at Guan Zong's head, confirming that his health bar hadn't reached zero yet, and knew he had arrived just in time; the rescue mission should not fail. So, he confidently tossed the man behind him.

Guan Zong fell and was left dizzy and disoriented.

What made his hands and feet even colder than the blood loss was Zhang Yang's words.

"Stop the bleeding yourself."

Guan Zong: "..."

He felt that stopping the bleeding was no longer enough to save him.

He grimaced as he got up, raising his hand to guide the stellar energy within his meridians to his palm, which he then placed on the wound on the side of his neck. Instead of abandoning Zhang Yang and running away, he sat down to meditate and asked a question that had piqued his curiosity: "How did my lord know I was here?"

Zhang Yang coldly swept a sliver of light across his face.

"Didn't you send me a distress signal?"

The system log notifications were keeping her awake.

Zhang Dami quietly approached Guan Zong from behind, bent her head slightly, opened her mouth, grabbed Guan Zong's collar, and threw him behind her, clearly intending to take the wounded man and run if things went wrong. Guan Zong didn't want to resist, and indeed didn't have the strength to resist, so he closed his eyes and chose to lie flat.

"When will I—"

Guan Zong paused for a moment.

He remembered the drop of his own blood that he had given to Zhang Yang.

This is their only connection.

However, he had never heard of such a method that could establish a subtle connection, allowing the lord to sense his danger from hundreds of miles away.

Even if it is possible—

Zhang Yang actually came to rescue him all by himself?

This realization shocked Guan Zong so much that his eyes widened, and he seemed to freeze up, as if he had encountered some incomprehensible problem.

"Is my lord showing concern for me?"

Zhang Yang: "..."

She felt Guan Zong was talking too much nonsense. It's just a quest; who would have genuine feelings for an NPC who's ordering them around?

Guan Zong, however, was lost in some strange speculation.

The name on the head changed from yellow to green.

Zhang Yang: "..."

At this time, the smoke and dust caused by the blasting of earth slowly dissipated.

Zhang Yang also saw clearly who the enemy who had chased and killed Guan Zong, leaving him barely alive, was. He hadn't realized it until he looked closer; the face seemed vaguely familiar.

"You are...wait, Easter Egg Bro?"

It really was the Easter egg guy I met in the Dongfan Mountains.

The reason I didn't recognize him at first glance was because the young man had changed into casual clothes, a different outfit from his previous military uniform. The black and gold-patterned round-neck suit made him look very neat and handsome, and even seemed a bit younger. In addition, he had changed his hairstyle.

It jumped from the wolf type to the dog type.

Since the guy with the Easter egg didn't attack first, Zhang Yang was distracted and started asking around.

"Do you two have a grudge?"

Guan Zong: "..."

Yet another person seduced by youthful appearances.

And what exactly is "Easter Egg Bro"?

Even more chillingly, the young man released his aura lock on Zhang Yang after Zhang Yang appeared. Knowing the young man as he did, Guan Zong interpreted this as a sign that the young man was about to let him go, because he had found a more interesting prey: "I am his elder brother."

"Is it a watch? Or a pet?"

Guan Zong said, feeling aggrieved, "My own!"

Zhang Yang: "...???"

??(?w?)

Zhang Yang actually knows quite a lot. After all, every single one of the people he observed was a modern-day Jia Xu. They had few righteous schemes, but plenty of crooked and unorthodox ones.