In the thirteenth year of the Tianbao era: I became Yang Guozhong's eldest son.

"Then, according to Your Excellency's opinion, what should I do?" Yang Xuan asked calmly.

"It's very simple." Liu Wen's lips curled into a smug smile. "From today onwards, the prefectural government will dispatch a 'Salt Tax Inspector' to be stationed permanently in Yanjing County. All salt production, accounting, and distribution at Qing'ao Well must be signed and sealed by the Inspector to be valid. As for the portion of the profits you previously promised to the prefecture..."

Liu Wen paused, his tone becoming extremely domineering.

"The Prefect believes that a 20/80 split is more reasonable. The prefecture government takes 80%, and your county government keeps 20%. After all, the county government is just an administrative office; the prefecture government should bear the bulk of the burden."

20/80 profit split!

They even want to send an inspector to seize power directly!

This is blatant robbery!

Standing behind Yang Xuan, Cui Shen and Pei Zhao were so angry that their faces turned ashen.

The foundation they built with their lives on the line, the people of the prefecture want to take 80% of it with just a few words, and they want to completely hollow out the county government, turning it into a puppet for them to make money!

"Lord Liu, I'm afraid this is against the rules?" Yang Xuan's tone remained calm, but his eyes turned cold.

"Rules? In Jiannan Circuit, the governor's word is law!" Liu Wen lashed out with his whip. "Yang Xuan, don't think you can blackmail the prefecture just because you have that old account book. Let me tell you, if things really escalate, the Tian family will certainly die, and you, the county magistrate who abused your power and privately recruited soldiers, will also be buried with them!"

"I'm giving you only three days to consider. If you don't hand over the account books and control of Qing'ao Well after three days, this Yanjing County will have a new master!"

After saying this, Liu Wen didn't wait for Yang Xuan's reply. He suddenly turned his horse around and led a hundred state soldiers into Yanjing County. They went straight to the largest inn in the city.

……

The county government office study.

"This is outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!"

Cui Shen paced back and forth in his study, cursing loudly, "These corrupt officials in the prefecture pretend to be deaf and dumb when they're taking bribes, but now that they see we've cut the meat, they want to come and take the pot! My lord, we absolutely cannot let them!"

Pei Zhao's face was also filled with murderous intent: "My lord, give me a hundred men, and tonight I'll lead them to chop off that corrupt official surnamed Liu's head!"

"Nonsense!" Yang Xuan shouted coldly, interrupting Pei Zhao's reckless words. "He is the Prefectural Chief Clerk, representing the Governor. Killing him is tantamount to openly raising the flag of rebellion. When the imperial army marches in, we will all die!"

"Then what can we do? Are we just going to stand by and watch them take away Qing'ao Well? Watch them steal the money our brothers risked their lives for?" Pei Zhao asked unwillingly.

Yang Xuan sat in the armchair, gently rubbing his temples with his fingers, lost in thought.

Liu Wen's arrival disrupted his plans.

He originally thought that by using 50% of the profits and that old ledger, he could temporarily appease the people in the state and buy himself a few months to grow and expand.

However, he underestimated the greed of these corrupt officials and overestimated Zheng Yuan's influence in the prefecture.

The governor directly issued an order, and the chief clerk personally led troops to exert pressure, intending to crush him with an absolute bureaucratic machine.

If they were to resist head-on, although the county government now possessed some military strength, it would be absolutely no match for the garrison of an entire prefecture.

If he compromises and hands over the Qing'ao Well and the account book, then Yang Xuan will become a toothless tiger. Not only will all his previous efforts be in vain, but he won't even be able to save his own life and Yanhe's life.

Dilemma.

This is a dead end.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

Afu stumbled and crawled into the study, covered in sweat and looking flustered.

"My lord! Something terrible has happened!"

"What's the matter that you're in such a panic?" Cui Shen scolded.

"A murder! Someone's dead!" Ah Fu gasped for breath. "A body was found in the back alley of Liu's Cloth Shop in the south of the city. The dead man is... an old salt worker from Qing'ao Well named Wang Quan!"

Yang Xuan suddenly stood up.

"How did he die?"

"He was beaten to death, not a single piece of his body was intact." Afu swallowed hard. "And... and there was a waist tag belonging to a Tian family servant left at the scene."

Did the Tian family kill the salt worker?

Yang Xuan's eyes narrowed slightly, as if a lightning bolt had flashed through his mind.

"Let's go check it out!"

……

The back alley of Liu Ji Cloth Shop in the south of the city had been sealed off by the county government's bailiffs.

A large crowd of onlookers gathered around, pointing and whispering amongst themselves.

Yang Xuan, along with Pei Zhao and Cui Shen, arrived at the scene, pushed through the crowd, and walked to the body.

The deceased was an elderly man in his fifties or sixties, wearing tattered salt worker's clothes, covered in blood, a truly gruesome sight.

Not far from him, there was indeed a waist tag engraved with the character "田".

"Your Honor, this Wang Quan is a veteran of Qing'ao Well. I heard that he's been secretly contacting other salt workers these past few days, trying to elect a representative to the county office to sue the Tian family for withholding their rations and wages. I never expected..."

An old neighbor who knew the deceased mustered his courage and spoke to Yang Xuan, his tone filled with grief, indignation, and fear.

Yang Xuan squatted down and carefully examined the wounds on the corpse.

The fatal wound was to the head, caused by a blunt force trauma.

Strangely, the corpse's hands were clean, without any signs of struggle or fighting, as if it had been killed in a single blow without any warning.

"My lord, this Tian Boyong is too arrogant! How dare he commit such a crime at this time!" Cui Shen said indignantly. "Let's go to the Tian family and arrest him!"

"Wait a minute."

Yang Xuan stood up, a chilling glint in his eyes.

"This waist tag was dropped too deliberately. Even if Tian Boyong were stupid, he wouldn't leave a tag with his name on it next to the corpse after killing someone."

"Does my lord mean... someone framed him?" Pei Zhao was taken aback.

"Who killed him is not important." A cold smile suddenly appeared on Yang Xuan's lips. The madness with which he found a way out of a desperate situation made Cui Shen and Pei Zhao shiver involuntarily.

"The important thing is that the person who died was a salt worker from Qing'ao Well, and now the whole town believes that it was Tian Jiagan who did it."

Yang Xuan turned his head and looked at Cui Shen, his tone becoming extremely decisive.

"Cui Shen, immediately draft an official document. It should state that a murder has occurred in Yanjing County. The local tyrant Tian Boyong ordered his servants to beat an honest salt worker to death in the street, causing great public outrage and indignation!"

"Pei Zhao!"

"exist!"

"Gather all salt guards and immediately surround the Tian family mansion! No one is allowed to enter or leave!"

"My lord, what are you doing…" Cui Shen exclaimed in alarm, "Liu Changshi is still in the city. If we make a move against the Tian family at this time, he will definitely seize the opportunity to cause trouble, and may even mobilize the state troops to suppress us!"

"I want him to make trouble!"

A mad flame burned in Yang Xuan's eyes.

"Doesn't the prefecture want Qing'ao Well? Don't they want 80% of the profits? Then I'll stir up all the water in Yaozhou into a boiling pot!"

"Issue my order: sound the county government drum! Summon all the common people, merchants, and salt workers in the city who have been oppressed by the Tian and Hu families to the county government gate!"

"I will use this murder case to incite a popular uprising in front of Liu Wen!"

"Doesn't Liu Wen like to talk about official etiquette? I'd like to see if his official authority can suppress the anger of tens of thousands of people in Yaozhou City in the face of overwhelming public opinion!"

Yang Xuan's tactic of "borrowing a corpse to revive the soul and incite popular uprising" was extremely dangerous.

If one is not careful, one will play with fire and get burned, and be accused of inciting rebellion and have one's entire family executed.

But this is also his only way to break the deadlock against the powerful state government!