Chapter 995

First Volume, Chapter 995: You Are Qin Feng

After giving his instructions, Liu Ming cast an unobtrusive glance at Qin Feng; seeing no sign of intervention from Qin Feng, he felt reassured—his arrangements at least aligned with Qin Feng's intentions.

After the soldiers departed, Liu Ming regarded Zhou Dasheng with keen interest.

"Those involved in logistics aren't just your Zhou family—why are all the names you reported surnamed Zhou? Are others' hands spotless, while only your Zhou family is worthless trash?"

Zhou Dasheng wore a mournful face and pleaded, "Every time we collect materials from the county yamen, we each transport them away ourselves. As for whether others embezzle supplies privately, I have no knowledge of it."

"I've already told you everything I know. I beg you, Your Excellency, spare my dog's life."

"I have an eighty-year-old mother above me and infants crying for milk below. I beg Your Excellency to show mercy beyond the law."

Liu Ming ignored Zhou Dasheng's pleas. After a moment of thoughtful silence, he gave a firm order: search every person involved in the distribution of materials; anyone found embezzling supplies shall be executed on the spot.

After giving his orders, Liu Ming patted Ning Hu's shoulder, signaling he was done—everything else was now Ning Hu's responsibility.

Ning Hu had been impatiently waiting; the moment Liu Ming signaled, he lifted his foot and kicked Zhou Dasheng square in the face.

Thud!

With a muffled crash, Zhou Dasheng toppled backward onto the ground.

Ning Hu was still not satisfied; he shouted, "You dog, the Marquis entrusted you with distributing materials out of respect—yet you schemed behind his back, tarnishing his reputation!"

"Those who don't know might think the Marquis deliberately hoards supplies and manipulates matters of people's livelihood!"

"Those who abuse power for personal gain usually stay quiet and act discreetly. But you? You turned into a bully, parading through streets, cursing in alleys, even daring to slander the Marquis! If you're not dead, heaven itself is unjust!"

Ning Hu's roar echoed through the scene—his words were meant for Zhou Dasheng, but also for every bystander present.

When Ning Hu reached to drag Zhou Dasheng up, he found no reaction at all.

Faking death?

Ning Hu sneered, raised his foot, and stomped hard on Zhou Dasheng's knee; the force was so great that a chilling "crack" echoed from the joint.

The kneecap was crushed outright by Ning Hu's foot.

Yet Zhou Dasheng still showed no reaction. Ning Hu frowned slightly, crouched down, checked his breath and pulse, then confirmed: Zhou Dasheng was dead…

The hearts of the onlookers had already risen to their throats; not a single person dared to breathe.

They had seen cruelty before, but never such brutality—Ning Hu had kicked Zhou Dasheng to death with one kick.

Ning Hu didn't dwell on it. He dropped Zhou Dasheng's body, stood, and swept his sharp gaze across the crowd, locking onto Old Man Zhou.

The instant their eyes met, Old Man Zhou collapsed in terror, sitting on the ground, wailing and pleading without end.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

Old Man Zhou kept slapping his own face.

"I'm blind! I deserve to die! I'm no good…"

"Ning Commandant, have mercy on this old man's bones—spare me! I'll never dare again!"

"These old bones only blabbed out of momentary spite; even if I wanted to do evil, I lack the strength."

"Ning Commandant, I admit my fault!"

Ning Hu paid no heed. No matter how Old Man Zhou screamed or wept, it stirred not a shred of pity in Ning Hu.

After all, Ning Hu had fought through thorns and blood, slaughtering countless men on the Battlefield.

In Ning Hu's eyes, whether a man was sixty or seventy, or sixteen or seventeen, made no essential difference. Or rather, good and evil were not judged by age.

Just as Ning Hu stepped toward Old Man Zhou, a light voice spoke.

"Let it go. No need to take issue with an old man."

At those words, Ning Hu obeyed instantly and let Old Man Zhou go.

In an instant, every gaze in the crowd turned to Qin Feng.

The bystanders glanced between Ning Hu and Liu Ming, then at Qin Feng—and suddenly realized: this unremarkable young man must be Qin Feng!

"Heavens!"

"The Marquis Qin?!"

"This man is the Marquis Qin?"

Some timid bystanders cried out in shock, eyes wide with disbelief.

Who was Qin Feng? A terrifying figure whose wrath could wipe out all of Di.

Not just commoners—even court ministers bowed in reverence before him; one misstep could cost them their heads.

To the people, Qin Feng and the Di King were indistinguishable—both were tyrants whose coughs made the land tremble.

Yet Qin Feng, though not slight, was far from imposing; he bore no resemblance to the legendary Marquis Qin who charged into battle, fierce and invincible.

Even children knew that strength on the Battlefield depended most on physical power—those with extraordinary strength were always broad-shouldered and burly.

Like Ning Hu, this mighty tiger of a general.

Had one not seen it with their own eyes, they could never imagine that Qin Feng, the legendary warrior who never lost a battle, carried such a frail, scholarly air…

The Wang-surnamed man had always taken Qin Feng for a County yamen clerk; upon learning his true identity, his legs turned to water and he nearly collapsed.

Qin Feng grabbed the Wang-surnamed man's shoulder and said irritably, "What are you afraid of?"

The Wang-surnamed man swallowed hard and stammered, "Your Excellency, I… I…"

Too stunned to form a coherent sentence, he could barely speak.

Qin Feng had said all he needed to say; he simply patted the Wang-surnamed man's shoulder: "Don't worry. One thing at a time. Though your brawl with the Zhou family had cause, violating curfew is unforgivable. Before nightfall, report to the County Yamen to receive your punishment—someone will deal with you then."

Qin Feng ignored the stunned Wang-surnamed man and turned to Old Man Zhou, deliberately giving Liu Ming a glance.

Liu Ming immediately understood, a faint smile crossing his face.

Qin Feng outwardly spared Old Man Zhou—claiming the old man had already begged for mercy, and he didn't want to appear murderous. But the old man still had to die.

Publicly spared, but privately, Liu Ming would find a way to ensure Old Man Zhou died of natural causes.

No matter how mild Qin Feng's temper, he would never allow someone to publicly slander and humiliate him without consequence. Would the world really offer such a gift?

As the pillar, one cannot rely solely on "authority," nor solely on "benevolence"; only by combining both, meting out rewards and punishments clearly, and balancing strictness with leniency, is this the true path.