Chapter 161: I, Lin Yu, Revolt!

"Do you know?" Lin Yu sneered as he continued, "I offended the Foreigners in Shen City, burned the Eastern Consulate, and blood‑soaked the Eastern Concession. Guess why?"

Zhou Special Envoy stared at him, unable to speak.

"Because they run amok on our land, because they beat and scold our people like dogs!" Lin Yu's voice rose sharply, "Everything I do is to make the people of this land stand tall, to let them know that in this city there are still people who dare to stand up for them!"

He slammed a fist into the wall: "And what about your court? Just because a few Foreigners went to the capital to complain, just because of the deep‑seated fear of Foreigners, you send people to eliminate me. Ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous!"

Lin Yu turned, a cold light flashing in his eyes: "A court like this has any hope left? A bunch of useless people who only grovel to Foreigners have no right to rule this land."

"You... you..." Zhou Special Envoy trembled all over, "You traitor! A great‑scale rebel!"

"Since you lot only know how to kneel, let me overthrow this court!" Lin Yu's voice echoed in the interrogation room, "Starting with Shen City, I will raise the banner of righteousness, let sparks spread across the land! Let those Foreigners know that on this soil there are still people who refuse to kneel!"

He stepped toward Zhou Special Envoy: "Tell your court, from today onward, I, Lin Yu, am their rebel, their insurrectionist! I will make those Foreigners see what a Great Dry iron‑blooded son is! What it means to dare call for a new sun and moon!"

Zhou Special Envoy, trembling under Lin Yu's aura, could only keep repeating: "Traitor... traitor... you great‑scale treacherous traitor......"

Lin Yu looked down from his height: "You lot will never understand. Sometimes loyalty to the ruler is the greatest disloyalty; serving a court like this is the biggest betrayal of this land!"

In the interrogation room, Zhou Special Envoy's curses grew weaker, while Lin Yu's silhouette became ever taller in the dim light.

"Speak," Lin Yu inhaled deeply, "Which Foreigners filed a complaint against me in the capital?"

Zhou Special Envoy suddenly lifted his head and spat a mouthful of blood at Lin Yu: "Dream on!"

Lin Yu slowly wiped the blood foam from his face, his gaze turning unusually cold. He looked at the cigarette in his hand and suddenly gave a chilling grin: "Lord Zhou, you should know I despise anyone who pretends to be tough in front of me."

As he spoke, he stepped toward the wooden frame, the cigarette flashing red in the darkness. Zhou Special Envoy watched the ember draw nearer, suddenly realized something, and began to thrash wildly.

"No! You can't......"

Before the words finished, Lin Yu had already slammed the burning cigarette onto Zhou Special Envoy's left eye. A piercing scream instantly filled the interrogation room, and Zhou Special Envoy writhed like a dying dog.

"Feng An." Lin Yu tossed the cigarette butt to the ground and shouted without turning his head.

"At your service." A figure stepped out of the shadows.

"Use your methods to pry open this court envoy's mouth." Lin Yu's voice was terrifyingly calm, "I want to know every Foreigner's name who filed a complaint against me in the capital, the forces behind them, and......" He paused, "how the court intends to deal with me."

"Yes." Feng An replied respectfully, "I will make him speak."

Lin Yu turned toward the door, then suddenly stopped: "Remember, I need precise intelligence. As for whether he can survive......"

"Understood." Feng An's voice carried a hint of ferocity.

Lin Yu pushed the door open and left. Behind him, Zhou Special Envoy's voice suddenly turned terrified: "No! Don't! I speak! I'll say everything......"

Before the words finished, a hair‑raising scream rang out from the interrogation room. Lin Yu stood in the corridor, lit a new cigarette, his face expressionless.

In these chaotic times, mercy only emboldens the enemy.

Since the court and those Foreigners are forcing him onto a dead end, he'll show them what true ruthlessness is.

The scream echoed in the corridor as Lin Yu's figure gradually vanished into the darkness.

An hour later, Feng An appeared in Lin Yu's office. He still carried a trace of blood on him, holding a confession stained with blood.

"Sir," Feng An said respectfully, "Zhou Special Envoy has fully confessed."

Lin Yu set down the document in his hand and signaled Feng An to continue.

"This time the pressure on the court was brought by three people," Feng An opened the confession, "'Du Bian Yuan Tai of the Eastern Mitsui Trading House, Director General Lei Nuo of the Public Administration Bureau in the French Concession, and Senior Councillor Williams of the Works Bureau in the British Concession.'"

"Oh?" Lin Yu narrowed his eyes, "Just those three?"

"Yes." Feng An continued, "These three have long been extremely dissatisfied with your hardline stance. Especially after the Wu Teng Qianqiu incident, they believe your actions seriously threaten the concessions' privileges."

Lin Yu sneered, "Privileges?"

"In their view," Feng An's voice carried a hint of anger, "the people of this land are only fit to kneel, not to stand up and resist like you. They fear your actions will affect other places, causing more people to stop willingly being their slaves."

"So they jointly pressured the court?"

"Yes. They threatened the court that if you aren't dealt with, they would recall the ambassadors of various nations and cut off trade with Great Dry." Feng An said through clenched teeth, "And the court was actually frightened by them."

Lin Yu stood and walked to the window: "What kind of person is Zhou Special Envoy?"

"His original name was Zhou Min'an, a secret agent of the Court's Zhan Gan Department." Feng An flipped through the confession, "'This time he came to Shen City under a secret order from the Zhan Gan Department's supervisor, ostensibly to investigate the murder of an Eastern merchant, but in reality to covertly probe your background.'"

"'Zhan Gan Department......' Lin Yu murmured the name, "Seems the court is truly scared."

"Sir," Feng An asked cautiously, "And those three Foreigners......"

Lin Yu turned, a cold glint in his eyes: "Since they want me dead, send them on their way first. Prepare, I will make those Foreigners in Shen City know they've crossed the wrong person."

"Yes!" Feng An turned and left, his footsteps fading down the corridor.

Lin Yu sat back in his chair, fingers lightly tapping the desk. Du Bian Yuan Tai, Lei Nuo, Williams—good, he'll settle each of those accounts one by one.