Chapter 114: A Great Slaughter, the Impeccable Old Bureaucrat (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"Speak," Pei Shaoqing spat out coldly.

The village head's eldest son wailed, "Tian Erni serves a Fox Immortal, and the Fox Immortal wants to eat human hearts. Over these past two years, she has tricked many people into the village. We helped kill them and bury the corpses, and she would regularly send silver to the village."

Hearing this, the group of Jing'an Guards were first struck with shock, then became ecstatic and eager for action.

"There's actually a Fox Demon! I hear that monsters are treasures from head to toe; if we catch it, we'll be rich!"

"Do you even know how to talk? It's the Lord who will be rich!"

"Hey! You're the one who doesn't know how to talk. If the Lord is rich, doesn't that mean we're rich too? Honestly."

"It's over! It's over! Everything is over!" The village head's face turned ashen, and he wailed in a breakdown, tears streaming down his face.

Pei Shaoqing gave the order, "Stop everyone!"

"Yes!" More than ten Jing'an Guards behind him immediately spurred their horses out, waving their whips or sabers like a pack of wolves hunting, chasing down the fleeing villagers.

"Don't run! Stop! Get back here!"

"Ah! Don't catch me! I don't want to die!"

"My Lord, spare me, my Lord! I just wanted to earn some extra money to support my family, I never killed anyone! I only helped dismember the bodies, spare me, please spare me!"

With the mixed sounds of scolding, screaming, and crying behind him, Pei Shaoqing looked down from his horse at the village head's eldest son and asked, "Where is Tian Erni now?"

"I truly don't know that; she last returned three days ago." The village head's eldest son shook his head repeatedly.

Pei Shaoqing frowned, then asked another question: "How often did she return in the past?"

"It wasn't fixed. She came back more frequently a year ago, but in the last year, she only returned about once a month." The village head's eldest son confessed everything truthfully.

Pei Shaoqing slowly let out a breath and said, "How many corpses have you helped her dispose of in these two years?"

"Countless, at least a hundred for sure. They were all chopped up and buried in the fields," the village head's eldest son replied.

Wang Peng muttered to himself, "No wonder the crops in the fields were so lush, no wonder your lives were so prosperous; it was all blood money."

The entire village had participated in killing and burying the dead, or at the very least were aware of it; it was enough to make one's scalp tingle.

"How does the Lord intend to deal with us?" Just then, the village head stood up and asked in a hoarse voice.

Pei Shaoqing said indifferently, "You villagers have aided the tyrant in his evil, a crime that cannot be pardoned. You shall pay with your lives."

"There are three or four hundred people in Tianjiaba. Excluding the old, weak, women, and children, the remaining two hundred or so all participated! Does the Lord mean to kill everyone?" The village head pointed behind Pei Shaoqing and said with a loud laugh.

Pei Shaoqing looked back; the villagers had all been rounded up, a dark, dense mass of people, their faces now filled with fear, unease, and various other emotions.

He looked back at the village head, "What do you mean?"

"Does the Lord not know that the law does not punish the masses?" The village head's chest heaved violently as he pointed at himself, "As long as the Lord spares the villagers, I am willing to bear this matter alone. If not, we are not lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Does the Lord really intend to force us law-abiding people into becoming rebels?"

These words were both soft and hard, full of warning.

"Father!" the village head's eldest son exclaimed upon hearing this.

"Shut up! You've doomed the whole village! Father will use this life to pay for it!" the village head roared at the top of his lungs.

The village head's eldest son clutched his head and wept in agony.

"That's right! At worst, we'll rebel against their mother!"

"Exactly! You officials kill people as easily as killing dogs, so what if we killed a few?"

"We have the numbers, we aren't afraid of them!"

Some of the villagers began to chime in boldly.

"My Lord, Tian Erni is not here, and we haven't even seen a shadow of that Fox Immortal. What evidence do you have that what my son just said is true, and not the ramblings of a madman?

Do you dare to kill everyone based on this? Can you bear the responsibility of forcing us into rebellion? This old man is willing to use his remaining years to settle this matter; I hope the Lord will think thrice." The village head leaned on his cane, trembling all over, and spoke with resounding force.

"Good, good, good! Good, very good!" Pei Shaoqing suddenly burst into laughter. With a *clang*, he drew the Mo Tan Precious Sword from his waist, reined in his horse to look around, and shouted sternly, "So, not only have you aided the tyrant in his evil and allowed a Demon to eat people, you even harbor thoughts of rebellion! You deserve to die! You deserve to die! Come, men, hear my order: kill all the able-bodied men, suppress the rebellion!"

Damn it, the old bastard even dared to threaten me.

Never seen a ruthless man before, have you?

The village head was struck as if by lightning, standing frozen on the spot.

"Kill!"

"Follow the Centurion, wipe out the rebel army!"

Chen Zhongyi immediately charged into the fray on horseback, sword in hand.

Three or five Jing'an Guards rode their horses on the perimeter to intercept any who tried to escape, while the remaining dozen or so followed Chen Zhongyi into the crowd, starting a massacre.

*Squelch! *

Sword light shimmered, blood dripped.

The villagers were caught off guard, and even if they had been prepared, they were no match for the Jing'an Guards.

"Ah!"

"Don't kill me! No! I admit... ah!"

"My Lord, spare me! Spare me! I never thought of rebelling, I know I was wrong... ah!"

Blood splattered everywhere, severed limbs flew, and one corpse after another fell to the ground like stalks of grain cut by a sickle.

Wang Peng was stunned.

Wait, is Lord Pei always this savage?

"Stop! Stop! My Lord, quickly tell them to stop!" The village head came to his senses, threw himself onto the ground, and hugged the leg of Black General, begging bitterly.

Pei Shaoqing sneered, using the tip of his sword to lift the village head's chin, mocking, "Over a hundred killed, and you'll bear it alone? An old bastard with one foot in the grave, do you think you're worthy? And you even dared to threaten this official? You're courting death!"

"My Lord, this old man knows he was wrong! Please, Lord, tell them to stop, I will persuade them to confess, I will persuade them to confess!" The village head was a mess of snot and tears.

He had originally thought that since Pei Shaoqing was young, he could intimidate him a little and then sacrifice himself to let the other party finish their mission and earn merit, but he hadn't expected the man opposite him to be a god of slaughter.

Pei Shaoqing looked back, coldly watching the slaughter until he estimated that enough had been killed and the remaining few were easy to control, then said, "Stop!"

"The Lord has ordered! Stop!"

The Jing'an Guards sheathed their swords one after another, but by then, over a hundred corpses were already lying in heaps, the dirt road had been dyed red with blood, and the stench of blood was overwhelming.

"The child's father! Sob sob sob!"

"My child! My poor child!"

The miserable wailing of the victims' families echoed in succession.

They were so happy when they were spending the silver earned from murder and corpse destruction, so now they are crying just as bitterly.

Pei Shaoqing looked at Wang Peng and said, "Go notify Hundred-Household Zhou immediately to send men to arrest these unruly people and throw them into the dungeon for interrogation, and have him arrange for men to lie in ambush around the village to see if Tian Erni will return."

This could also be considered giving Hundred-Household Zhou a share of the credit.

In any case, he was rising too fast; even if he monopolized the great merit, he couldn't be promoted further, so it was better to do a favor for Hundred-Household Zhou as compensation for poaching his capable general.

That's right, just as Hundred-Household Zhou thought, Pei Shaoqing borrowing Wang Peng was like Liu Bei borrowing Jingzhou—a one-way trip with no return.

"Understood!" Wang Peng's face was full of awe; after responding, he channeled his light-body technique and stepped across the rooftops, flying toward the outskirts of the village.

Because the ground was now covered in corpses and bloodstains.

Pei Shaoqing looked at Chen Zhongyi, "Arrange for a few men to stay behind to guard them and wait to hand them over to Hundred-Household Zhou's men; the rest will follow me to the Iron Sword Sect first."

With Tian Erni absent, staying here was useless; he believed Hundred-Household Zhou could handle the remaining matters well.

"Yes!" Chen Zhongyi immediately went to make arrangements.

Pei Shaoqing lowered his head to look at the village head, his tone indifferent as he said, "After you enter the dungeon, don't forget to confess that you were bewitched by the Fox Demon and intended to rebel."

Otherwise, wouldn't I have killed so many people for nothing?

"Yes, yes, yes." The village head wiped his tears with a mournful face and replied; they had originally used rebellion to threaten the other party into compromising, but now they had truly become rebels.

Pei Shaoqing smiled contemptuously, pulled the reins to turn the horse, and gently squeezed its flanks with his legs, "Black General, let's go."

"Neigh—" Black General lifted its two front hooves and let out a cry, then accelerated into a wild gallop.

Clatter, clatter, clatter... The rapid horse hooves landed on the mud soaked with fresh blood, splashing up sprays of red.

…………………………

Pei Shaoqing had not yet arrived at the Iron Sword Sect.

Hundred-Household Zhou had arrived at Tianjiaba one step ahead.

Looking at the corpses and blood covering the ground, everyone was deeply shocked; it was actually quite rare for the Jing'an Guard to see such a scene of mass casualties all at once.

After all, they were not an army facing off on a battlefield.

"The Baron of Pingyang has a rather heavy murderous intent!" A General Flag struggled to swallow his saliva, his throat feeling a bit dry.

Although he had heard the situation from Wang Peng before coming, seeing it with his own eyes was a different feeling.

Zhou Li took a deep breath, recalling Pei Shaoqing's smiling face in his mind, and couldn't help but shiver, "Do exactly as the Baron of Pingyang said."

"Understood!" Two General Flags went to direct the work.

Zhou Li added, "Wang the Mounted Scout, stay behind."

"My lord!" Wang Peng stepped forward and saluted.

Zhou Li dismounted, patted his shoulder, and said with a chuckle, "I had originally intended to hand the recently frequent missing persons cases over to you; once solved, I would promote you to Small Flag. Now it seems these cases are inseparable from these unruly people, so it counts as you having solved them. I will have someone send your request for merit to the Thousand-Household Office tonight."

Wang Peng was incredulous; Zhou Li had promised him the Small Flag position for two years, and he was actually going to give it to him!

"This subordinate thanks you for your promotion, my lord!" After realizing what happened, he knelt down on the spot to thank him, his face flushed with excitement.

"Get up, get up." Hundred-Household Zhou bent down with a pleasant expression to help him up, smiling as he helped him brush the dust off his body, "In my eyes, you have always been a fierce general, and I have high hopes for you.

It's a pity, though, that the Baron of Pingyang has taken a liking to you. Although I am reluctant, I cannot hinder your future. I intend to take this opportunity to petition the Thousand-Household lord to transfer you to the Tongzhou Hundred-Household Office so you can work well under the Baron of Pingyang from now on."

Only then did Wang Peng realize that the person he should thank for his promotion wasn't Zhou Li, but the Baron of Pingyang! The essence of Zhou Li suddenly being good to him was to curry favor with the Baron of Pingyang.

"Yes, my lord, rest assured. Once I go to Tongzhou, I will certainly not lose face for you, nor will I fail the Baron of Pingyang's great kindness, and I will never forget my roots," Wang Peng replied.

The Baron of Pingyang was truly his noble benefactor! His talent scout!

It would not be an exaggeration to repay him with his life!

Zhou Li was very satisfied with his response and said happily, "A man cannot be without a good horse. I have prepared one for you; it certainly cannot compare to the Dragon Blood Treasure Horse bestowed upon the Baron of Pingyang by the Emperor, but it is definitely a fine steed. I guarantee you will like it, Mounted Scout Wang."

"My lord..." Wang Peng subconsciously wanted to decline.

"Listen to me finish." Zhou Li raised his hand to interrupt him and continued, "Your mother is old, and her eyes are not very good. The older elderly people get, the more they miss their home.

Don't let her follow you around; I have already sent someone to help her move into a separate courtyard and arranged for servants to take care of her. You just work hard in Tongzhou; I will look after everything here at home, so you have absolutely nothing to worry about."

Wang Peng's heart was a mix of emotions. Originally, he had harbored resentment toward Zhou Li's deliberate suppression, and even if he had been promoted to Small Flag, that resentment would only have lessened slightly.

But at this moment, he suddenly found that it was really hard to hate this fat man in front of him.

After all, although the other party had always encroached on his merits in the past, he also gave some small favors as compensation, not completely taking advantage of him for free. Now, he was promoting him, giving him a horse, and providing a house and servants to settle his elderly mother.

He even took the initiative to send him to Pei Shaoqing's side for a better future without any obstruction.

He wasn't the type of person who was particularly extreme or malicious, so how could he hate him?

"Go do your work." Seeing Wang Peng standing there in a daze, Zhou Li didn't say anything about expecting gratitude or repayment; he smiled, put his hands behind his back, and turned to leave.

What does it mean to be a flawless old bureaucrat?

Meanwhile, tens of miles away, Pei Shaoqing finally arrived at the Iron Sword Sect, traveling through the night.

(End of chapter)