Chu Chen was amused by their instant betrayal, thinking they were truly talented and would make excellent guides.
After a moment of contemplation, Chu Chen flicked his fingers, sending streaks of spiritual energy into their bodies. He also secretly intercepted a strand of their vital energy.
Then, as they trembled with apprehension, he spoke, "I have just cast a control spell on you. If you disobey, I can make your lives a living hell!"
"We wouldn't dare!"
"Amitabha, this humble monk never speaks falsely."
"How could I dare harbor any deceit before Prime Minister Chu! From today onward, you are my father, Mu Daocheng!"
"..."
The others stared speechlessly at Mu Daocheng, who remained unperturbed, his face etched with sincerity.
"Scram! I don't have such an unfilial son!"
"Ah, father, your scolding is most correct!"
"If you dare utter such nonsense again, I'll kill you first!" Chu Chen declared, his anger rising.
This silenced Mu Daocheng, who dared not mention being a father again, and he slumped dejectedly, looking at the ground.
"This is no place for questioning. Gather your people and follow me back to the county yamen."
"Yes!"
Upon receiving the order, Mu Daocheng and the other two turned and sternly berated their disciples, commanding them to follow. Then, with obsequious bows, they trailed behind Chu Chen.
"These people... are they not ashamed?" Princess Xinyue, who walked beside Chu Chen, was utterly dumbfounded and whispered to him.
"In the martial world, people are accustomed to shifting with the wind, speaking differently to different people, and even to ghosts. If they weren't like this, they probably wouldn't have lived to this age. Those with backbone among their peers would have been beaten to death long ago," Chu Chen said with a casual smile.
"Uh~ then people in the martial arts world are truly pathetic." Princess Xinyue couldn't comprehend their mindset and could only lament the decline of morality.
Mu Daocheng and the others, following behind them, were a realm higher in martial arts than Princess Xinyue, allowing them to easily overhear her whisper. However, they paid it no mind, their faces not even twitching.
Face? Could face be eaten? It all depended on who you were facing. When completely outmatched, clinging to dignity was simply seeking death. The martial world wasn't just about fighting; it was about human relationships. Those who could yield, yielded. Facing a stronger opponent was not shameful.
They returned to the county yamen with Mu Daocheng and his group. After the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the fervor of the common folk outside the yamen had subsided.
At this moment, Zhang Chengzhu and An Xian, along with a host of county officials and members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, returned to the yamen.
"Your subordinate Zhang Chengzhu and An Xian, pay respects to Prime Minister Chu! Greetings to His Highness the Fifth Prince!"
Chu Chen raised his hand, "Rise."
"You are excused," Princess Xinyue said coolly.
"Thank you, Prime Minister Chu, thank you, Your Highness!"
After completing their salutations, Zhang Chengzhu and the others looked at Mu Daocheng and his group with murderous intent.
Especially Commander Zhou, who spoke with fury, "Prime Minister Chu, it was these very people who, with their disciples, charged at us outside Lianshan County in Xiashan Prefecture! They pursued us until we fled here in disarray. A hundred brothers suffered heavy casualties, with less than thirty standing here unharmed! Of the four hundred soldiers who accompanied us, only a few dozen remain!"
"Your subordinate implores Prime Minister Chu to hand these people over to me! I want to kill them to avenge my brothers!"
Before Chu Chen could respond, his gaze turned cold as he looked at them.
Mu Daocheng and the others broke out in a cold sweat and immediately knelt on the ground.
"Prime Minister Chu! It was all the fault of Earl Chengguan! He forced us to do it. We didn't want to rebel against the court or you, Prime Minister Chu! We just wanted to be law-abiding citizens! But Earl Chengguan wouldn't allow it, he threatened us with his army and held a knife to our throats. We were forced into it!"
The three pleaded repeatedly, banging their heads on the ground as they spoke.
Chu Chen remained unmoved, watching them until the ground was worn and their foreheads were bloody. Only then did he say, "Speak. What is this Earl Chengguan all about?"
"Yes, yes, yes~" Mu Daocheng and the other two rejoiced. The fact that he was asking them questions meant they still had value and their lives were temporarily safe.
Thus, Mu Daocheng and the other two, speaking one after another, completely sold out their mastermind behind the scenes and revealed everything they knew.
Earl Chengguan, whose real name was Chi Cheng, held the official rank of a Third Grade Earl, with a fiefdom of one hundred households (two villages). His actual position was the Zhongwu Zhonglang General of the Western Frontier, a powerful Earl commanding ten thousand troops in the Western Frontier.
He was male, fifty years old, and hailed from a prominent local clan in Lianshan County, Xiashan Prefecture. He rose to prominence by following the current Empress in quelling the rebellion of the various princesses, earning military merits and being enfeoffed after the war. He had been guarding the Western Frontier with Marquis Zhenning to this day.
With the noble status of an Earl, a fiefdom in his hometown, and command of ten thousand troops, his clan had undoubtedly developed at an astonishing rate.
In the sixth year of the current Empress's reign, Earl Chengguan's family land holdings grew from an initial three thousand five hundred mu, barely enough for a prominent clan, to ten thousand mu, reaching the peak of a powerful clan.
If not for the need for generations to accumulate heritage and foundational texts for noble families, they might have directly entered the ranks of esteemed aristocratic families.
Even so, the Chi family had not abandoned their continuous growth. When they attempted to annex more land and possess over ten thousand mu, they were jointly suppressed by the aristocratic families and ultimately failed.
After three years of recuperation, in the tenth year of the Empress's reign, the Chi family shifted their focus to developing into a powerful gentry. Relying on Earl Chengguan's influence, they forcibly bought and sold shops in the local area, controlled material production and technology, monopolized local trade routes, formed their own merchant fleets, and engaged in extensive commerce.
Over the next three years, by the current thirteenth year of the Empress's reign, the Chi family had successfully transformed, becoming the sole powerful gentry in Shanjun, their family immensely wealthy with cellars full of silver.
Logically, the Chi family, having successfully transitioned, should not have clung so tightly to their land holdings and insisted on concealing them.
But they were not satisfied with being a powerful gentry. Gentry families could only prosper for three to five generations; how could they achieve the eternal glory of aristocratic families?
To become an aristocratic family, in addition to accumulating heritage and foundational texts, one needed sufficient land to control the population and the local grain supply, as well as extensive connections and influence.
Therefore, the land survey offended both the aristocratic families and the Chi family, who aspired to become one.
The land being surveyed meant they could no longer conceal their land holdings. The inability to conceal land holdings also meant the inability to conceal population. With tiered taxation, they would have to pay more grain tax, resulting in a significant loss of grain revenue.
The Chi family, being a powerful gentry with numerous shops and commercial assets, would have to pay so much more under the tax reform. Combined, this would mean the Chi family losing nearly half of their annual income. Accustomed to their arrogance, how could they tolerate this?
"Well done, Chi family! Well done, Earl Chengguan!"
Chu Chen's expression turned cold. He was already contemplating how to deal with Earl Chengguan and the Chi family.
Such a family, being both a prominent clan and a powerful gentry, absolutely could not be let off the hook, as it would lead to endless trouble for the local populace.