Chapter 248: County Office Must Eradicate Black Water Village

Ning Jinli smiled and nodded, "Exactly, all of them."

Hei Er was so happy he almost fainted, hurriedly grabbing Hei Da's arm to steady himself.

Afterwards, under Xiao Qidi's organization, the siblings Hei Da and Hei Er led dozens of subordinates, methodically unloading Moth Wing Grass from the ship and then loading the grain onto the ship.

They worked until nightfall; the over‑ten‑ton haul of Moth Wing Grass was finally all offloaded.

The people of Black Water Village rowed their boats carrying today's grain, jubilant, back to Luan Chuan Bao.

The facts proved this operation worked.

Ning Jinli immediately consulted the special‑operations team to adjust the follow‑up plan, deciding to have the Black Water Village folk help and jointly build several large warehouses.

The special‑operations team drafted a construction plan; Ning Jinli transmitted tools, materials and supplies, and the Black Water Village people carried out the building.

In the next few days, the Black Water Village folk worked hard picking Moth Wing Grass, while Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi paid them grain each day, gradually increasing the provision of tools.

That made everyone overjoyed.

Just picking grass could yield the kind of grain they had only dreamed of, plus all sorts of farming implements they had never seen but were very useful.

Hoes, shovels, sickles, and the like were simply far superior to the ragged weapons they used for raids.

Without risking their lives to raid for survival, they could fill their bellies and have handy labor tools; the people of Black Water Village grew more and more enthusiastic.

Ning Jinli also sent the harvested Moth Wing Grass straight to the pharmaceutical department.

The medical company was managed by Lu Jue Ming, so efficiency was naturally not lacking.

Moreover, after learning the situation, Shangguan Ying directly delivered a full set of equipment for producing Bi Si slow‑release agents and dispatched a team to assist with production.

This major affair concerning Huaxia Guo's social welfare finally made significant progress.

From now on they only need to keep the operation running; both sides are racing against time, aiming to break the Shanbotan Country's absolute monopoly on Bi Si slow‑release agents worldwide.

In doing so, they could thwart Shanbotan Country's plan to double the price starting next January, and in the long run, no longer be choked by Shanbotan Country's blood‑sucking on Huaxia.

Xiao Qidi saw the Moth Wing Grass matter as a solution, estimated that Lin Sui's envoy to You Country should soon have results, and therefore returned first to Great Mystic City.

Ning Jinli continued to teleport supplies on the Black Water Bay side.

——

On the other side.

In the capital of Ze Country, several ministers who had just finished their court duties hurried to a luxurious noble's residence to report the morning's events to the host.

"Lord En Ze, His Majesty mentioned the Xing Marquis and the Xing General."

"It seems His Majesty feels the previous punishment was too severe and is hesitating whether to lessen the penalties, after all that father‑son pair is the cornerstone of the Great Ze army…"

Sitting before them was a white‑haired elder in splendid robes, exactly the person they called Lord En Ze.

Lord En Ze sipped tea lightly and said, "What do you think?"

The ministers quickly replied that impeaching the Xing father‑son pair was their doing, they certainly could not let the Xing family rise again, and they also knew that the Xing family urging His Majesty to reform was a grave disrespect to Ze's noble class; as ministers they were fully aware.

Lord En Ze nodded satisfactorily, "Rest assured, His Majesty only remembers the Xing family's past merits. Whether they are a cornerstone or not, without those two, can Great Ze not find a decent commander? I will later recommend a candidate to His Majesty, giving him a calming pill."

At that moment, a servant hurried over and whispered a few words into Lord En Ze's ear.

Lord En Ze slightly frowned and told the ministers, "I have other matters to attend to; you may leave without escort."

The ministers hadn't even settled into their seats, but they politely bowed and took their leave.

When they departed, the servant immediately brought two men in black to Lord En Ze's presence.

"We attend, Lord En Ze!" the two black‑clad men knelt, prostrating themselves.

Lord En Ze granted them seats and asked them to report the situation.

Upon hearing that the Xing family might have a survivor escape, he sprang to his feet, eyes blazing, "Aren't you the best assassins of Great Ze? How could a survivor remain!"

The two black‑clad men hurriedly knelt again.

"Your servant reports, the circumstances were beyond our expectations."

"Everything had gone smoothly; even the Xing General's head was severed, yet unexpectedly the heavily‑pregnant Lady Xing and the steward Fu Bo, the two weakest, slipped away."

"We immediately launched a pursuit, and unexpectedly a young girl and a young man appeared midway."

"That girl was only fifteen or sixteen, yet exceptionally cunning, rescued Lady Xing and Fu Bo, and the man beside her wielded extremely high martial skill, causing us great trouble."

"In the end, we chased them all the way, watching them flee into Black Water Bay…"

"Our other five brothers also chased, and then… just like those people, never emerged again."

After hearing these detailed accounts,

Lord En Ze squinted and asked, "What about the rest of the Xing family's heads? Have they all been brought back?"

The black‑clad man answered respectfully, "All have been brought, already handed over to your men, now being verified one by one."

"Hmm… the corpses?"

"All corpses have been destroyed, please rest assured."

Regarding this, Lord En Ze was fairly satisfied, but the thought of missing Lady Xing and Fu Bo left him uneasy.

Though one was a heavily‑pregnant woman and the other an elderly man, without support they could not survive.

Yet a rescue had occurred, which was another matter.

"What is Black Water Bay?" Lord En Ze asked.

The black‑clad man explained that it was a remote area, close to rivers with countless tributaries forming a vast swampy forest.

Many years ago the place still had many fishing villages, but as the rivers flooded it gradually became barren, occupied by a band of water bandits.

"I think I have heard of it," Lord En Ze said, "Then which county does Black Water Bay belong to?"

The black‑clad man replied, "It seems… it belongs to Din County's jurisdiction, but it is far from the county seat, so the local officials ignore it."

Lord En Ze paced back and forth, continuing to inquire about the water bandits of Black Water Bay.

According to the black‑clad man's description, that band of water bandits was extremely ruthless, numerous, and since Lady Xing, Fu Bo and the mysterious rescuers entered Black Water Bay, they should not be able to get out.

Lord En Ze's face darkened, "Could it be that those water bandits rescued them?"

The black-clad men immediately said, according to the investigation, the Xing family has no connection whatsoever with the Black Water Stronghold; this possibility is slim to none, basically it can be confirmed that it was just two completely unrelated people who, seeing injustice, stepped in to help, and then, because they were being chased, panicked and took any route, ending up fleeing into Black Water Bay.

They said this to dispel Lord Enze's doubts and worries; otherwise they would be held responsible.

If Lord Enze punished them for mishandling the task, or ordered them to go deep into Black Water Bay to look for Lady Xing and Fu Bo, they would surely die.

Lord Enze fell into silence, turned back to his seat and sat down slowly, closing his eyes to ponder.

The two black-clad men knelt on the ground, not daring to raise their heads, nor to breathe heavily.

After a long while, only when they were soaked in cold sweat did Lord Enze slowly speak: "Only you two remain?"

That question came out rather abruptly.

But the two still answered truthfully, saying they were seven in total, and the other five had likely perished in Black Water Bay.

"Well... your brothers have suffered heavy losses; I truly feel uneasy and must reward you well."

"We, the humble, thank Lord Enze!"

The two black-clad men were overjoyed, kowtowing repeatedly.

Lord Enze summoned the steward and a few servants, and in front of the black-clad men instructed: "Take them away, arrange the best rooms for them to rest, and find a few beautiful women to keep them company; under no circumstances must you neglect them."

Hearing this, the two black-clad men grinned from ear to ear, thanked him profusely again, and then left with the servants.

Just as they had left, Lord Enze made a throat-cutting gesture to the steward.

The steward understood immediately and followed after them.

Not long after, the two black-clad men's bloody heads were delivered to Lord Enze's feet.

Lord Enze asked the steward, "Have the heads brought back by these two been verified?"

The steward replied, "All have been verified; aside from missing the heads of Lady Xing and Fu Bo, the rest of the Xing family are correct."

"Good..." Lord Enze lightly kicked the two black-clad men's heads, "Take them away and destroy them both. In half an hour, come to the study to see me."

"Yes."

The steward picked up the heads and hurried away.

Lord Enze entered the study, took out a square silk cloth half a foot on each side, pondered a moment, picked up a brush and wrote swiftly on it, then after finishing stamped it with his seal.

He then placed it beside the candle to dry slightly, rolled the silk cloth, slipped it into an exquisite small bamboo tube, capped the tube, and finally sealed it with wax.

When he had finished, exactly half an hour had passed.

The steward entered the study on time.

Lord Enze handed the letter to the steward, ordering: "Send someone to deliver it to the magistrate of Marsh County's superior, the Prefect, with 800-li urgency; there must be no delay."

——

Two days later, in the dead of night.

The Marsh County magistrate, asleep, was shaken awake by a servant.

The magistrate flew into a rage, shouting, "Courting death! You dare disturb my official's sweet dream! Get out, and you'll receive twenty blows yourself!"

"Sir! The Prefect has sent someone to see you!" the servant urged, "Please get up quickly, don't keep the Prefect waiting!"

The Marsh County magistrate instantly woke up, hastily put on his clothes and ran to the main hall.

He saw someone already waiting in the center of the main hall; at a glance the magistrate recognized him as indeed a close aide of the Prefect who directly supervised him.

The magistrate broke into a smile, about to step forward and exchange a few pleasantries.

The other party waved a hand and said, "No need for pleasantries; have your people withdraw first."

Seeing the other's solemn expression, the magistrate did not dare to be negligent and hastily dismissed those around him.

The Prefect's aide produced a bamboo slip from his bosom, saying, "This is the anti-bandit document issued by the Prefect; please have a look."

"Anti-bandit?" the magistrate took it, glanced over, seeing only formal procedural wording; the details would still need to be asked of this aide, so he wondered aloud, "My Marsh County has always been peaceful and tranquil—where would bandits come from…"

The Prefect's aide said, "The Black Water Bay area is under your jurisdiction, right?"

The magistrate's face changed slightly, he forced a smile and said, "Years ago that place was called Black Water County, but due to natural disasters it gradually became unmanaged, and later it was nominally incorporated into my Marsh County's territory—but—"

"As long as it's your territory, that's enough," the Prefect's aide interrupted, "The Prefect has issued an order: you must spare no expense to exterminate the water bandits entrenched in Black Water Bay completely!"

The magistrate and everyone were stunned.

I thought the higher-ups were just going through the motions for some reason, but I never expected they were actually serious.

"How am I supposed to wipe them out cleanly!" the magistrate said with a worried, bitter face, "In Black Water Bay there is a gang of villains calling themselves the Black Water Stronghold! Their numbers reach eight or nine hundred… oh no, over a thousand! Perhaps they now have two thousand men, and even if I count all my underlings—county officers, constables, and soldiers—it's still not even a fraction of theirs."

"In any case, this is the commandery governor's order—handle it yourself!" the governor's confidant said, then turned and left.

The magistrate plopped down on the ground, holding the bamboo-slip documents, his whole body as if he'd lost his soul, muttering, "What on earth is this… all fine and dandy… suppressing bandits… it's over, I'm done for…"

He panicked for a moment, then gradually calmed himself, climbed to his feet and shouted, "Prepare the sedan! Prepare the sedan! Take me to the county office, and summon the advisor for me!"

That night, deep into the night, the magistrate and the advisor pondered in the county office until dawn.

The two of them barely came up with a feasible plan.

Since the higher-ups gave neither money nor manpower, the only option was to seize able-bodied villagers within the county and levy an anti-bandit tax; after all, the magistrate couldn't be expected to fund the suppression himself.

At daybreak, the tax order was disseminated by the county officers, while the constables all mobilized, seizing any male they saw, sparing none unless he was old, weak, sick, or disabled.

In an instant, panic spread throughout the county town as the populace fell into turmoil.

Li He and Fang Hui still didn't know what was happening; they hid in the roast-chicken shop, peeking out through the crack in the door.

One could see a group of county officers behaving like bandits, rushing in at the sight of a door and looting everything they could, while additionally, bands of three to five constables would seize any male they encountered.

Fang Hui muttered a curse, "Are these damned lot gone mad? They've started openly robbing the common folk!"

Li He's expression was grave, yet he still tried to joke to comfort him, "Don't be afraid—your place is just as bad as mine; we're both dirt poor, there's nothing worth stealing."

Fang Hui asked, "What about the silver you have left, and the things Sister Jingli gave you…"

Li He's face shifted slightly, then he pondered, "I've hidden everything in that ruined temple; under normal circumstances, even dogs wouldn't go there, so the officials wouldn't think to search it, would they?"

"Open up, open up!" a few county officers arrived in front of the roast-chicken shop and slammed on the door, making it bang loudly.

Li He and Fang Hui hastily clamped their mouths shut.

At that moment, Sun Captor Head walked over, said something to the few County Officers, and the County Officers only then went to the next shop.

Li He opened the door a little, "Sun Captor Head, what's going on?"

Sun Captor Head looked around, hurried into the shop, then closed the door again, "Higher‑ups issued an order, telling our county to suppress bandits; the County Office lacks money and men, so we have to do it this way. You two kids… aren't even ten yet?"

Li He and Fang Hui quickly shook their heads.

Sun Captor Head said: "That's still relatively safe. Now they only capture strong men between sixteen and forty, but I advise you both not to appear unless necessary; if another Captor Head catches you and claims you're sixteen, it'll be hard for me to protect you. All right, I'm going back to arrest people; you two be clever!"

After speaking, Sun Captor Head hurried away.

"Ha…" President Fang exhaled, "We still managed to avoid a disaster."

Li He suddenly's face turned pale, "Oh no!"