Chapter 399 - 237: Gathering

Chapter 399: Chapter 237: Gathering

Zhang Luzhong hurriedly stopped him, his voice low. "Lord of the Prefecture, what do you plan to do?"

"Are you going to side with those scholars, or with the Taiping Bureau?"

"Siding with either of them would be inappropriate!"

"Lord of the Prefecture, you should leave the city at once to inspect the farmland. As far as anyone is concerned, you aren’t in the city at this moment!"

Li Dangsen came to his senses. This was trouble Su Mu had stirred up. If he were to intervene now, he would end up offending both sides.

The best choice was to stay out of it and let Su Mu handle the mess he had created himself.

"Master, you’re right. Let’s go! We’ll leave the city at once! No... In fact, I have been outside the city for several days now," Li Dangsen declared.

...

「Songjiang Prefecture Taiping Bureau.」

The clamor of shouts and drums echoed from outside the Government Office.

Yang Yungzhong and the other Taiping Captains gathered in the main hall, their faces tense.

Su Mu’s gaze swept over the crowd, and he sighed to himself.

’In terms of cultivation, Yang Yungzhong and his men are actually quite decent.’

’The Taiping Bureau’s promotion standards are clear, after all. To become a Taiping Captain, you either need sufficient achievements or a cultivation at the Rebirth Realm.’

’The Taiping Captains in the Songjiang Prefecture Taiping Bureau were mostly promoted based on their strength.’

’But compared to the Taiping Captains from the Hujue Pass Taiping Bureau, or even the Wuling City Taiping Bureau, the flaws of Yang Yungzhong and his men were all too obvious.’

’They’ve had it too easy and lack practical experience.’

’Demons rarely appear in Xiangzhou, so they seldom have the opportunity to fight them.’

’To put it bluntly, you could count on one hand the number of people in the Xiangzhou Taiping Bureau who had actually seen a demon.’

’That’s why they’re in a panic over a few rabble-rousing scholars.’

’If this were a Demon Tide, who knows how they’d fall apart.’

’These men need to be trained.’

’I’ll have to drill them hard later,’ Su Mu thought. ’How can you be Taiping Captains if you’ve never even seen a demon?’

"Is someone instigating them?"

Su Mu looked toward the Government Office entrance and spoke slowly.

"We can’t be sure yet."

Yang Yungzhong said quickly, "Sir, regardless of whether someone is instigating this, there’s not much we can do to them."

Su Mu gave him a puzzled look.

"These scholars all hold academic honors," Yang Yungzhong explained. "And they’re only demanding an explanation. They haven’t harmed anyone, so we can’t just use force."

"Disturbing the Taiping Bureau is reason enough," Su Mu said coolly. "Give them the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Tell them to disperse on their own. Otherwise, arrest them all. A night in the cells will clear their heads."

"Sir, you can’t!"

Yang Yungzhong said, "Many of their teachers are officials at court. If we do this, it will damage your reputation and future prospects, Sir..."

"Since when is the future of the Taiping Bureau decided by Civil Servants?" Su Mu said coldly.

Yang Yungzhong was stunned. He hesitated, then said, "But there are several hundred of them..."

"If the Taiping Bureau’s cells are full, use the Government Office’s. If the Government Office’s cells are full, use the Inspection Bureau’s," Su Mu said.

Yang Yungzhong and the others gasped. ’The Governor is actually serious.’

Seeing Su Mu’s resolve, Yang Yungzhong had no choice but to accept the order.

He was now witnessing firsthand just how unyielding the new Governor was.

’This style is completely different from any of the previous Governors of Songjiang Prefecture.’

’These scholars have really picked a fight with the wrong person.’

...

"In broad daylight, under the clear sky, does the Taiping Bureau intend to act with such impunity?"

At the entrance of the Taiping Government Office, a young man shouted excitedly, "Let me tell you, I will not stand for this! We will not stand for this!"

"That’s right! We will not stand for it!"

The several hundred scholars roared.

The scene was like ten thousand ducks quacking, and the cacophony was giving Yang Yungzhong a headache.

"The Wenren Family is known for its charity, the Zhang Family builds bridges and repairs roads, and the Li Family gives porridge to the needy! What have they done wrong?"

"By what right did you arrest them?"

"This is blatant robbery, corruption, and a perversion of justice! You must give us an explanation!" one of them shouted.

"An explanation! An explanation!"

The crowd roared in agreement.

"We won’t leave until you give us an explanation! We, the scholars of Songjiang Prefecture, will absolutely not allow you to frame the innocent and loyal!"

The scholars’ faces were all filled with fanatical expressions.

"You can cut off our heads, but you cannot silence the truth! Even if you kill us, we will get to the bottom of this with the Taiping Bureau!" a young man declared, filled with righteous indignation.

"Get Su Mu out here! If he doesn’t give me an explanation today, I’ll bash my head against your Taiping Bureau gates until I’m dead and your names will be cursed for eternity!"

"Su Mu, come out! You were brave enough to do this, so be brave enough to face the consequences! You dared to frame the great families of Songjiang Prefecture, so why don’t you dare come out and explain yourself?"

"Do you have a guilty conscience? If you don’t explain yourself, we’ll go to the Xiangzhou Capital City, and then to the Da Xuan Capital City! Surely there is somewhere in this great Da Xuan empire where justice can be found!"

"Everyone, charge! Make Su Mu give us an answer! He can’t just do whatever he wants in Songjiang Prefecture! He’s just a Martial Artist!"

Before the words had even faded, the hundreds of scholars began to charge the Taiping Government Office.

Yang Yungzhong and his men quickly formed a line with their long sabers to block them from storming the Government Office.

These scholars didn’t cultivate the Martial Dao; their bodies were frail.

With their strength, Yang Yungzhong and his men could have easily knocked them to the ground, even bare-fisted.

But none of them dared to strike, fearing they might accidentally kill one of the scholars.

Still, a mob of several hundred people, even ordinary ones, surging forward was an imposing sight.

When the scholars saw that Yang Yungzhong and his men didn’t dare to fight back, they grew even more arrogant. A few of them even started throwing punches at the Taiping Bureau officers.

Their feeble punches were no more than a tickle to men of Yang Yungzhong’s caliber.

The blows did little damage, but the humiliation was immense.

Yang Yungzhong’s face flushed with anger. "If you don’t back down, don’t blame me for what happens next!"

"Don’t be afraid! The Taiping Bureau isn’t all-powerful! We are scholars! We have the right to participate in matters of the state!" the crowd jeered.

The Taiping Captains were pushed back, stumbling in disarray, and someone managed to shove open the main gates of the Taiping Government Office.

Just then, a single drop of rain fell from the sky.

Before anyone could react, more drops began to fall.

In an instant, a Water Dragon surged out from the cracked-open gates of the Taiping Government Office.

SPLASH!

The several hundred men were instantly soaked to the bone. The force of the current sent them stumbling backward.

Even Yang Yungzhong and his men were caught in the deluge.

Amid the splashing, Su Mu’s figure slowly emerged.

He glanced at Yang Yungzhong and his men.

They all lowered their heads in shame.

"Stand aside. I’m fining each of you three months’ salary. Your future performance will be under observation," Su Mu said coolly.

"Yes, sir." Yang Yungzhong and his men moved to the side, their faces burning with shame.

As proud Taiping Captains, they had almost let a group of scholars, who were too weak to even truss a chicken, storm the Taiping Government Office. They were thoroughly disgraced.

"You wanted to see me?"

Only after punishing his own men did Su Mu turn to the scholars, his face an emotionless mask.

"Su Mu—"

A young man scrambled to his feet, pointed at Su Mu, and began to shout.

SLAP!

With a sharp crack, the clear, five-fingered imprint of a hand appeared on the young man’s cheek as he was sent flying sideways.

"I am a Fourth-Grade Governor. What rank are you to dare address me by my name?"

"Since your parents failed to teach you any manners, I will," Su Mu said coolly. "Does anyone else wish to speak?"

"Su—"

another young man shouted. "By what right did you arrest members of the great families? You claim they collude with the Pure Land Sect, but do you have any proof?"

"Without proof, you’re just abusing your power to settle a personal score!"

"You have shattered the peace of Songjiang Prefecture! You are an enemy of Da Xuan!"

"You should resign and beg for forgiveness!"

SWISH!

A flash of white light streaked through the air.

A head flew high into the air, a pillar of blood fountaining toward the sky.

The eyes on the severed head were wide with disbelief.

The entire square fell deathly silent. A few moments later, the headless corpse collapsed to the ground with a heavy THUD.

"Does anyone else wish to speak?"

Su Mu’s gaze swept over the crowd. "If not, Yang Yungzhong, put all of them in stocks for three days of public humiliation."

"You’ll join them. You’ve thoroughly disgraced the Taiping Bureau."