Under One Person: The Sea Emperor Who Shattered Heaven and Earth

Before those key members could even finish begging for mercy, Jiang Zhen's figure blurred, and he grabbed at the air with both hands. There was no bloody tearing, only an extremely muffled "humming" sound. The bones of the several burly men vibrated slightly and made a series of fine cracking sounds, instantly collapsing like mud.

"How many waves has this been, Lao Zhou?"

“This is the fifth wave. I told you not to pity them, you traitorous dogs.” Zhou Tiedan spat fiercely at the corpses.

Because of their secret instigation and mischief, even some of the brothers he brought from the Demon Capital Hall were injured, and he had been unhappy for a long time.

"They don't know how to be polite."

"Alright, Lao Zhou, I'll leave the rest to you."

"Yes, sir. By the way, boss, what about those bastards who are currently locked up in the warehouse?"

"Drag him out and behead him!"

……

The next morning, dozens of fine heads were prominently displayed on the three largest flagpoles in front of the gate of the Huaihe River rudder at Fengyangkou.

Zhou Tiedan gathered the original members of the Huaihe River Gang, while the members of the Modu Hall stood by with weapons to maintain order.

Then Jiang Zhen personally stood on the command platform at the dock, addressing the thousands of canal workers below. His voice, amplified by the vibrations, boomed like thunder:

"From today onwards! Anyone who dares to hoard wealth or incite mutiny will be killed! Anyone who dares to betray their own people or collude with foreign enemies will be killed! Anyone who dares to withhold wages from the lower classes or oppress their fellow countrymen will be killed!"

After saying this, he glanced at Zhou Tiedan and left to make other preparations. Next up on stage was a smiling Zhou Tiedan.

"Gentlemen."

"Look how kind-hearted our leader is! He has such a compassionate heart, so why are some of you so ungrateful?"

"I believe everyone heard what the gang leader just said, and understood it clearly. But I know that most of you don't know many words. But that's okay. The gang leader is merciful, but I can't just stand by and watch you bully him like this! Thinking of disobeying him day after day."

"So it's best if you can remember what the leader said. If you can't, just remember mine. It's only six words in total, so it's easy to remember."

"Disobey and you'll be beheaded!"

The scene of thousands of people fell into a deathly silence, so profound that even the sound of the river lapping against the shore could be clearly heard.

"Did you hear me? Answer me!"

Zhou Tiedan roared, and the men from the Demon Capital Hall, weapons in hand and fierce expressions on their faces, stepped forward.

The crew of the Huaihe River ship immediately answered loudly, "Yes, we heard you."

From then on, no one in the entire Huaihe River detachment dared to speak loudly anymore. After all, Zhou Tiedan led his men on high-intensity patrols every day and killed more than a dozen people, which made the takeover of Bai Fu proceed extremely smoothly.

A month passed in the blink of an eye, and Jiang Zhen's second telegram also stirred up a second hurricane.

Compared to the deathly silence during the last January appointment, this time, Bai Fu would submit secret letters to Jiang Zhen's desk in the lobby of the Huaihe River Depot every day, which were secretly sent from various corners.

"Boss, this is a letter from Qingliu Hall. They say they are willing to follow your lead. From now on, they will take 30% of the annual toll fees to feed the brothers, and hand over the remaining 70%."

"This is a small branch at Xiaguankou. Their deputy branch leader personally delivered the roster..."

"This is……"

……

Bai Fu took notes and reported back.

Jiang Zhen looked at the pile of letters on the table and said to Bai Fu, "Tell them all that I, Jiang Zhen, am not trying to exploit them. As long as they don't break my rules and accept my orders, that's fine."

"Those big bones haven't moved, have they?" Jiang Zhen tapped his fingers on the table.

Bai Fu nodded solemnly: "Yes. Zhao Yuan of the Grand Canal is on high alert, but has not yet made a statement. And... there is Master Sun, who is entrenched in the Yangtze River area."

Bai Fu drew a circle on the map and said in a deep voice, "This Master Sun is nicknamed 'Big Smoker Sun.' The biggest business of his fleet is opium. They are all scourges that poison our compatriots."

"Opium is extremely profitable, and everyone involved in the Yangtze River trade is involved in it. Some, like Sun the Opium Pipes, control the Yangtze River shipping and transport goods to all parts of the country to reap profits, while others, like ordinary workers like Cao, distribute them to surrounding villages..."

Upon hearing the word "opium," Jiang Zhen's eyes instantly turned icy cold.

In this era, opium was more than just a business; it was a malignant tumor that drained the last vestige of vitality from China. Jiang Zhen had previously witnessed many families in Shanghai torn apart by this substance, with men withered and women sold into slavery.

"Those who bring disaster to the country and its people deserve to be killed without mercy." Jiang Zhen slowly stood up, the air around him rippled with barely perceptible tension due to his anger.

"Boss, the main problem with Sun Da Yantong is that he has foreign backing," Bai Fu warned. "And the Sun family's ships are equipped with a large number of heavy firearms..."

"Its firepower is even greater than that of Qian Laofei."

"What a joke! Do we need to be mindful of outsiders' opinions when we're doing things in our own home?" Jiang Zhen scoffed.

"And there's also recent news that Zhao Yuan of the Grand Canal and Sun Dayantong of the Yangtze River... have joined forces." Bai Fu held another intelligence report, his expression grim.

"Oh? These two old foxes have actually teamed up?" Jiang Zhen smiled contemptuously and continued to look through the nautical chart in his hand.

"Yes, they also jointly issued a telegram, saying that our Shanghai branch had broken the centuries-old rules of the Canal Gang and used conspiracies to kill Qian Laofei. They said they would join forces to punish us and clean house."

"A coalition?" Jiang Zhen stood up, walked to the window, and said dismissively, "At best, it's just a superficial show. If they could really unite, it would save me trouble. I could just take them all down at once. I don't need to worry about them for now."

"Are there any other branches that have come forward to show their obedience?"

Bai Fu shook his head and said, "No, now the people who come to invest are mostly the small hall masters from Qian Laofei's original area, or those from the nearby Huai River basin. But now they only dare to secretly submit their letters. It seems they want to bet on both sides. As for the others, they probably want to wait and see first."

"I understand. In that case, there's nothing more to say." Jiang Zhen clenched his fist tightly, and a blinding white light shone through his fingers.

"Since they all want to see, then I'll let them see clearly."

"Boss, what are you doing...?"

"Let's go big."

"Isn't that what they're waiting for? Don't they think they're safe by hiding behind the ship formation and machine guns, behind Sun and Zhao? Aren't they just thinking of watching from the sidelines, waiting for me, Sun the Smoker, and Zhao Yuan to suffer heavy losses, and then profiting from it?"

"The next target is Sun Dayantong, that cancerous tumor. No need to worry about him. This time, I'm going to make them see clearly and feel what it means to have a fishbone stuck in their throat! There's no good end for those who sit on the fence. If they don't obey my orders every day, they'll wake me up from nightmares every time they sleep!"

Chapter 30 A Life Well Lived (4000 words)

The river breeze at Fengyangkou ruffled Bai Fu's meticulously styled hair, and it also stirred up his emotions.

After hearing Jiang Zhen's astonishing words about "a fear that makes one feel like they have a fishbone stuck in their throat," Bai Fu, who had already bowed and taken his leave, revealed for the first time an emotion called "bewilderment" in his shrewd eyes.

He walked out of the hall in a daze, crossed the threshold, and took about a dozen steps, but then stopped abruptly.

Bai Fu turned around and looked at Jiang Zhen's broad back.

He sighed again and turned back.

Jiang Zhen was deep in thought, staring at the densely marked river defense map, when he heard footsteps returning behind him. He turned around and asked in confusion, "Master Bai, is there anything else?"

"...Xiao Zhen."

The two words were spoken very lightly, even trembling slightly, yet they struck like a heavy hammer blow.

Jiang Zhen was stunned.

Ever since he displayed his terrifying power capable of splitting the sky and shattering the earth, ever since he flattened the Huaihe River helm with a single punch, ever since he nominally assumed the position of the so-called "gang leader," those around him either feared him like a demon god or revered him like a deity. Even the easygoing Zhou Tiedan and other men who were close to Jiang Zhen in the Demon Capital Hall were now trembling with fear over how to address him.

Nowadays, only Master Feng would call him that in private. Now, Bai Fu, who is the first to call him "gang leader" and is the most disciplined, has actually uttered this long-lost title, which makes Jiang Zhen feel complicated.

"Master Bai...you go ahead."

"Is there something troubling you with all this? Is there something you're having trouble with, or is there anything I can help you with?"

Bai Fu shook his head and said:

"It's no trouble at all, and besides, these are things I should do."

"only……"

Bai Fu looked at Jiang Zhen, his eyes full of confusion: "Xiao Zhen, I, Bai Fu, have always prided myself on my ability to judge people. Back in Shanghai, I thought you were a golden carp in a pond, destined to become a dragon sooner or later. But now I don't understand you anymore, I really don't understand you."

He took a step closer, pointed to the dock outside the window still shrouded in the somber atmosphere brought by Jiang Zhen, and said in a low voice: "I don't know why you are under so much pressure, why you are so radical. The pressure you are under is too great, so great that it frightens me."

"Even now that you've killed Qian Laofei and taken over the Huaihe River Gang, your brow has never been furrowed. Why? The Japanese are wolves in sheep's clothing, but although our China is now filled with various military leaders, it is still a great nation of hundreds of millions of people. The one in the south is no pushover either. Why are you acting so aggressively? Even... even somewhat recklessly?"

Bai Fu took a deep breath, his eyes filled with worry: "The way you're doing this, it feels like you're driving yourself to your death."

"I don't know what you're obsessed with, but I'm worried it will become your inner demon... making you sink deeper and deeper..."

A deathly silence fell over the hall.

Jiang Zhen looked into Bai Fu's sincere eyes and his throat moved slightly.

What should he say?

Should we tell this elder what kind of hell will appear on this land in the future? Should we tell him what kind of inhuman and horrific atrocities these wolves in sheep's clothing will commit?

Tell him what kind of war quagmire the Japanese will drag this land into? Tell him how many people will be displaced.

It's estimated that not many people will believe this, and some might even say that he boosts the morale of others while diminishing his own.

Jiang Zhen couldn't help but think of those times when countless heroes and heroines sacrificed themselves to drive out the invaders.

“Master Bai,” Jiang Zhen spoke, his voice hoarse and heavy, “what do you think the Japanese want? Is it territory? Is it reparations? Is it a concession?”

Bai Fu was taken aback: "Throughout history, all that great powers have sought is profit."

“Wrong.” Jiang Zhen suddenly raised his head, his eyes burning with the karmic fire of the future. “What they want is to destroy our country and exterminate our race, to wipe out our descendants. They don’t want to be the masters; they want the word ‘Huaxia’ to disappear from this land. They want to boil our bones into oil and use our flesh and blood to build their foundation.”

Jiang Zhen walked to the window, his back to Bai Fu, his voice becoming faint and desolate:

“Master Bai, you may not understand, but I do. Why am I, Jiang Zhen, going to such lengths to break up and rebuild these scattered gangs? Why am I so eager to get involved in what you see as a quagmire of war? Because if we don’t hurry, it will really be too late.”

He paused, his tone revealing sincerity:

"Master Bai! If possible, I sincerely hope... I hope that not only you, but all people in the world, and even future generations, will never understand why I acted this way."

"I hope that future history books will only briefly mention this invasion by the Japanese, saying, 'There were Japanese pirates who invaded, but they were quickly wiped out.' Ideally... ideally, future generations would think that my current crazy behavior is nothing but a pointless worry." As he said this, Jiang Zhen's voice lowered slightly, seemingly carrying a hint of helplessness.

"If such a wish can truly be fulfilled, then my life, Jiang Zhen, will not have been in vain."

Jiang Zhen turned around.

"To be born as a human being is already difficult enough. To be born as a human being a second time is even more difficult than ascending to heaven." Jiang Zhen's voice was soft, but every word was as firm as iron. "There are some things that I can only ask for in this life. I must do them, do what I can do, and change what I can change."

Listening to Jiang Zhen's words, Bai Fu remained silent for a long time, but he understood that Jiang Zhen was still the same Jiang Zhen he knew, and nothing had changed.

"Chief." Bai Fu bowed his head again, this time bowing more deeply than ever before, and his address returned to that respectful word, but his tone carried a resolute determination to give his life for the cause.

"Bai Fu accepts the order. I will arrange everything perfectly from now on. You just go and charge ahead. As for the rear... as long as I, Bai Fu, have a breath left, I will never let you down."

Jiang Zhen quickly lifted him up and clasped his hands in greeting.

"please!"