Chapter 781: Such Unruly People

"Your Excellency, we just lost our tempers! Your Excellency, we’ll never do it again..."

"Your Excellency, spare us..."

Realizing the gravity of the situation, the rioters dropped to their knees and began to kowtow.

Sun Shiming was in a bind, facing a crowd of several hundred. If it had been a dozen or so, he would have simply had them taken back to the magistrate’s office. But the magistrate’s office couldn’t possibly hold this many people.

For a moment, he was at a complete loss.

"Boss Gu, what... do you propose we do with them?"

"They pay for the damages, and we’ll let this go. If they can’t pay," Gu Shuo’s voice was frigid, "I’ll take their lives."

Sun Shiming was stunned. The destruction was so extensive, and so many fishing boats had been damaged... Even if he sold this entire crowd, it wouldn’t be enough to cover the costs.

"Boss Gu, can’t you just put them to hard labor, or something? Taking their lives... isn’t that a bit..."

"My apologies. I am a merchant. The only things I care about are money and life. The fortune I lost today is more than enough to buy all their lives. In fact, you could say they’re getting a bargain."

"This..."

Sun Shiming turned and bellowed at the crowd, "You wretched fools! You’ve brought this upon yourselves! If you have the money, you can buy back your lives. If you don’t, then prepare to die!"

’He couldn’t get involved in this!’

No matter how you looked at it, the fault was entirely their own.

The crowd froze, terror seizing their hearts.

"Boss Gu, the port has collapsed, the fishing boats are damaged, and our seafood distribution has been disrupted. The sum of these initial damages is an estimated two hundred thousand taels. The daily seafood turnover is estimated at one hundred thousand taels. If rebuilding the port takes the projected twenty days, the total comes to two million taels." The assistant handed the itemized list of damages to Gu Shuo.

’Two million taels?’

The rioters were dumbfounded. Even if they sold everything they owned, all of them together couldn’t come up with that much money.

Gu Shuo gave a look.

The assistant handed the list to Sun Shiming. "Your Excellency, here is the list. Please take a close look."

The hand Sun Shiming used to hold the list trembled. Two million taels... Even if he sold his own mansion and the magistrate’s office, it wouldn’t be nearly enough.

’Wretched fools, absolute fools!’

’Of all the things to do, why did they have to go and smash the port and the docked ships? How could they be so stupid!’

"Impossible! How could it be that much...?"

"They must have faked the numbers! Dayu City’s daily seafood trade isn’t worth nearly that much."

Someone in the crowd muttered in disbelief.

"Too much?" the assistant said, his expression stern. "These prices were calculated using the lowest possible rates. If we did a detailed accounting, the total would be far higher than this. If you don’t believe me, His Excellency Sun can investigate the daily volume and prices of the seafood moving through the port."

Sun Shiming understood the situation perfectly. Most of these people were residents of Dayu City. Several hundred of them...

"Boss Gu, is there any other solution?"

"Men die in pursuit of wealth, just as birds die in pursuit of food."

The meaning was clear: without money, there was no room for negotiation.

Hearing this, Sun Shiming knew he was out of options. Now, money was the only thing that mattered.

The commoners had heard him loud and clear, and they had no doubt that Gu Shuo meant what he said.

If they couldn’t produce the money, they would surely die today.

"I... I want to see Old Prince Feng."

"I want to see Old Prince Feng, too..."

A few people staggered to their feet from within the crowd.

Sun Shiming’s expression soured instantly. "You commit such an outrageous act, and now you want to see the old Prince? You are the ones who destroyed the port. The old Prince would never take responsibility for your selfish deeds. You’re on your own."

"No, it wasn’t us... It was all Old Prince Feng! He was the one who incited us to destroy the port!"

"Your Excellency, it was Old Prince Feng who made us do it! If anyone should pay, it’s him! It has nothing to do with us."

"Your Excellency, we want to see the old Prince!"

"We want to see the old Prince...!"