I chose one of four options at the start, and I chose the number one clan in Lingnan.

Lin Ting sat in the armchair in his grandfather's study, where several red candles were lit, their flames flickering in the wind.

My second great-uncle, leaning on his cane, sat on a chair at the lower end of the table, wiping away tears.

"Grandpa, without water and food, the villagers can't hold on," the second uncle muttered.

"Our water tank is empty, and the water trucks can't get in. In two more days, the children won't even have a drop of water to drink."

Lin Ting ignored his second uncle's nagging and focused his attention on the system panel in his mind.

Yesterday, the ancestral graves were saved, and tens of thousands of clansmen gathered, causing the "Clan Prosperity" on the system panel to surge by three thousand points.

Lin Ting clicked the "Intelligence Database" option with his mind.

The system displayed a line of black text: To exchange for leverage over high-ranking officials in the county, one thousand prosperity points are required.

Lin Ting clicked "Confirm".

With the prosperity level deducted, a thick brown paper bag appeared out of nowhere on the table.

Lin Ting picked up the paper bag, tore open the seal, and inside was a stack of printed A4 paper and a dozen high-definition photos.

The top page had the county magistrate's son's name written on it: Zhang Yu.

Lin Ting flipped through the documents in his hand. Zhang Yu used his father's power to buy up state-owned factory buildings in the county at low prices and then resell them to foreign companies at high prices, pocketing kickbacks in the process.

Even more damning is that Zhang Yu had been accepting bribes from the Zhao Group for a long time, totaling as much as 23 million yuan.

The document contains a specific date: on a certain day of a certain month of a certain year, Zhang Yu received two million yuan in cash from Zhao Laosi at a certain club.

The photo clearly shows Zhang Yu embracing a woman, with two large boxes of banknotes at his feet.

Every account, bank statement, and overseas account transfer record is clearly documented in the documents.

With these things, Zhang Yu and his father had to go inside and operate the sewing machine.

"Grandfather." The second uncle stood up, walked to the middle of the study, and knelt down.

"Let me go. If Young Master Zhang wants to beat or punish me, I will accept it. The livelihood of 100,000 people cannot be ruined in our hands."

Lin Ting put the documents back into the brown paper bag.

Just as he was about to speak, a red warning box suddenly popped up on the system panel.

The warning box filled his entire field of vision, and Lin Ting looked at the text on it.

"Warning: An abnormal loyalty level has been detected among a core member of the clan, indicating betrayal."

Lin Ting clicked on the details.

Text update: Lin Jian, a member of the Xiaotang family. Yesterday afternoon at 3 PM, he accepted 400,000 yuan in cash from Mr. Zhao.

He leaked the information about the herb-gathering path in the back mountain to the Zhao Group, which allowed Zhao Laosi to bypass the village's sentry post and drive an excavator up to the ancestral graves. Current loyalty: 0.

Lin Jian.

Lin Ting looked at his second uncle kneeling on the ground. Lin Jian was his second uncle's youngest son and a key member of the filial piety hall responsible for the sacrificial rites and patrols on the back mountain.

No wonder Zhao Laosi's men were able to bypass the spies on the front mountain without anyone noticing yesterday; it turns out there was a traitor in the family.

Lin Ting stood up, walked to the study door, and pushed open the wooden door.

Lin Fei and several young men stood guard outside the door.

"Fei-zai," Lin Ting said.

"Grandpa." Lin Fei stepped forward.

"Go and fetch Lin Jian, and bring him to the study," Lin Ting instructed.

Lin Fei nodded and led his men out of the courtyard.

Second Uncle got up from the ground and sat down, holding onto a chair.

"Grandpa, what do you want with Jianzai? He had an upset stomach last night and is lying at home." Second Uncle wiped his eyes.

Lin Ting returned to his armchair and sat down.

"Second Uncle, please sit down first. We'll talk when Lin Jian arrives." Lin Ting picked up the iced tea on the table and took a sip.

Second Uncle sighed and fell silent. The room fell quiet, broken only by the occasional soft crackling of the candle.

Half an hour later.

Footsteps sounded outside the courtyard.

Lin Fei pushed open the study door and ushered a man in his thirties into the room.

The man was wearing a floral shirt and plastic slippers. He also had a toothpick dangling from his mouth. This was Lin Jian.

After entering the room, Lin Jian first glanced at his second uncle sitting next to him, and then bowed to Lin Ting.

"Grandpa, you wanted to see me?" Lin Jian rubbed his hands together, his eyes darting around the room.

Lin Ting put down his teacup.

"Yesterday, Zhao Laosi led his men up the mountain, but none of the sentries at the village entrance noticed them."

"Did those eight excavators grow wings and fly up there?" Lin Ting looked at Lin Jian.

Lin Jian took a step back.

"How would I know? Those people are very cunning; they probably sneaked up from some back alley," Lin Jian chuckled.

The second great-uncle chimed in from the side: "Grandpa, Jianzai was home all day yesterday, he doesn't know about this."

Lin Ting opened the drawer next to him.

He took out a bundle of 100,000 yuan in cash and threw it on the solid wood table. This 100,000 yuan was evidence of embezzled funds that the system had just attached.

Bundles of banknotes slammed onto the table with a dull thud.

When Lin Jian saw the 100,000 yuan, his legs started to tremble.

"Yesterday afternoon at three o'clock, at the unfinished building north of town. You took Zhao Laosi's money and drew the herb-gathering path in the back mountain that only family members know about on a piece of paper and gave it to him." Lin Ting stared at Lin Jian.

Lin Jian bumped into the door frame.

"Grandpa, don't make false accusations. I didn't do it. You're trying to find a scapegoat." Lin Jian shouted at the top of his lungs.

Second Uncle stood up and pointed at Lin Jian: "Jian, is what Great-Grandpa said true?"

"Father, I didn't! Grandfather is framing me!" Lin Jian refused to admit it.

Lin Ting pushed the brown paper bag on the table aside.

"Fei-zai," Lin Ting called out.

Lin Fei walked in from outside the door.

"Bring Lin Jian's phone over and check his call history and WeChat location from yesterday," Lin Ting instructed.

Lin Jian clutched his pocket, turned, and ran out.

Lin Fei took a step forward and kicked Lin Jian in the back of the knee. Lin Jian knelt on the ground, struggling desperately.

Lin Fei grabbed Lin Jian's arm and took his phone out of his pocket. He then grabbed Lin Jian's thumb and pressed it on the screen to unlock it.

Lin Fei opened his phone, looked at it for a while, and then looked up.

"Grandpa, he really did go to the unfinished building yesterday afternoon, and there are also records of his calls with Zhao Laosi's men." Lin Fei slammed his phone heavily on the table.

Second Uncle walked up to Lin Jian, raised his hand, and slapped Lin Jian across the face.

"You beast, you sold the ancestral graves!" The second uncle raised his cane and smashed it down on Lin Jian's body.

Lin Jian raised his hand to block the cane and pushed his second uncle away.

Second Uncle fell to the ground.

Lin Jian covered his face and decided to stop pretending.

"Dad, what did I do wrong? Zhao Laosi gave us 100,000 yuan. How much money can our family earn in a year?"

"Grandpa insisted on fighting to the death, and now the whole village is without water and electricity. Everyone is going to starve to death. Is it wrong for me to take the money?" Lin Jian shouted loudly.

"With this 100,000 yuan, you're buying the ashes of the Lin family's ancestors, and the lives of 100,000 clansmen," Lin Ting said.

"That's still better than being trapped here to die. You're just a pathetic clan chief, and you really think you're some kind of local emperor."

"If Young Master Zhang says one word, we're all doomed." Lin Jian cursed, pointing at Lin Ting.

"You think you can bring down Young Master Zhang by taking a tattered envelope to the provincial capital? He has connections in the province!"

Our Lin family can't beat them! You're pushing the entire clan into a fire pit!

Lin Ting looked at him: "Whether the Lin family can win or not is not up to you. But you betrayed the clan, and that debt must be settled today."

Lin Ting stood up.

He picked up the brown paper bag on the table, took out several copies, and put them into an envelope.

Lin Ting handed the envelope to Lin Fei.

"Fei-zai, take this and leave the village via the back mountain path. Go to the provincial capital tonight and personally hand it over to the provincial discipline inspection commission's complaint box," Lin Ting instructed.

Lin Fei took the envelope and put it in his pocket.

"Understood." Lin Fei turned and ran out of the study.

Lin Ting looked at Lin Jian on the ground.

To repel external threats, one must first secure internal stability. If the internal corrupt elements are not thoroughly eliminated, this army of 100,000 people cannot be led.

Lin Ting walked out of the study and stood on the steps of the ancestral hall courtyard.

The night breeze blew through the courtyard.

Lin Ting looked at the several Zhongtang disciples standing in the courtyard and gave an order.

"Beat the drums, open the ancestral hall!"