Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Corpse-Dumping Alley was located in the poorest and most remote part of Yunwu County City.
The polished black wheels of the carriage rolled over the pitted ground, the jolting motion making the County Governor feel nauseous.
What displeased him even more was that the people on the street were all clutching the items they had received, ecstatic with joy; not a single person spared him a glance.
None showed the slightest hint of awe or respect toward him, their County Governor.
These emaciated Commoners, dressed in rags, did not even take the initiative to clear the path ahead.
This County Governor hailed from a prominent family in the northwest and had spent four million coins to purchase the position of County Governor.
As an official with a rank of four hundred dan, his annual salary was sixty thousand coins.
To recoup the cost of buying his office, the County Governor had exerted every ounce of his exploitative abilities during his tenure, scraping a layer of skin off the entire county.
In the eyes of the County Governor, Yunwu County was his personal property, bought and paid for.
Things bestowed by the heavens should naturally belong to him as well, to be distributed at his discretion.
With such a mindset, Han Lie’s distribution of water and food felt like he was slicing flesh directly from the Governor’s body.
The County Governor was so incensed that the veins on his temples throbbed. He resorted to the most foolish response possible.
Standing atop his ox-drawn carriage, he ordered the accompanying soldiers to drive away the common people who had come to receive relief.
When he caught sight of Han Lie, his fury reached its peak.
The County Governor pointed at Han Lie from a distance and unleashed a torrent of angry rebukes.
The street grew increasingly quiet.
Han Lie sat atop a scrawny yellow-brown horse.
He watched the County Governor without any expression, failing to dismount and beg for forgiveness in fear and trepidation as the Governor had expected.
The County Governor’s chest heaved violently. He looked left and right before demanding, “Where is Dong Hong?”
Han Lie did not answer. Instead, he rested a hand on his Ring-Pommel Saber and raised his voice, projecting it across the crowd. “The county has grain but refuses to release it, leaving countless citizens to starve to death!”
“The Supreme Deity has shown mercy to save the world. I am merely acting as an agent of the Supreme Deity’s will. How can you call that ‘audacious’?”
He deliberately spoke at a high volume, exposing the fact that the county possessed grain but had never provided relief in front of everyone.
The surroundings fell into a deathly silence in an instant.
Zhang Family Second Son stood among the crowd.
Upon seeing a great figure like the County Governor, he had instinctively lowered his head in fear.
But Han Lie’s words dispelled the terror in his heart, replacing it with a towering rage.
His mother’s face flashed through his mind, and he seemed to see his father and elder brother in a daze…
The County Governor, who loved sweets and fatty meat above all else, lost his composure under the gaze of countless eyes.
He felt as though the string of iced grapes he had eaten an hour ago was about to be vomited up from his stomach along with his racing heartbeat.
He said hurriedly, “Han Lie, stop talking nonsense under the banner of a god!”
Hearing this, Han Lie drew his blade with a sharp ring and swiped the edge across his palm.
“I, Han Lie, swear to Heaven and Earth: if there is a single word of falsehood in what I say, let the deity strike me down with Heavenly Punishment!”
The County Governor’s face twitched neurotically. Just as he was about to argue further, the sky and earth suddenly darkened.
A gargantuan shadow appeared on the horizon, enveloping the entire Yunwu County City.
Deep red blood flowed from the wound on Han Lie’s hand.
He shouted, “I ask the Supreme Deity to bear witness!”
A moment later, the Divine Shadow that blotted out the sun actually nodded.
Yunwu County City erupted in an uproar.
The god who had cast down water and food to save the world had confirmed Han Lie’s words.
He was indeed acting on the god’s will.
There really was grain in Yunwu County that was not being released.
The Lord County Governor had sat idly by while countless people died in hunger, bitterness, and despair.
If the Divine Shadow had not appeared in the sky, the County Governor might have had a shred of room to argue.
But now, large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, yet his entire body felt cold.
“Quick, turn around!” The County Governor slapped the driver’s shoulder hard, intending to flee this place of trouble.
But since Han Lie had started this, he would not let him escape. He questioned loudly once more, “The County Governor said just now that the items bestowed by the Supreme Deity should be presented as tribute to Luoyang.”
“May I ask, have you come here to snatch food from the mouths of the starving?”
The County Governor didn’t dare to answer. He urged the driver incessantly, “I command you, turn around immediately and take me back to the manor!”
But the coachman did not move. He slowly turned his head, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the County Governor.
Famine did not discriminate; it didn’t just skip over certain individuals. One of the coachman’s young daughters had recently starved to death.
Amidst the County Governor’s curses, the coachman shrugged his shoulder to shake off the official’s hand and leaped down from the carriage shaft, making his stance clear.
The County Governor hurriedly called for the County Soldiers to protect him.
However, the soldiers were all Garrison Soldiers recruited from the local area. This famine-stricken land was their home.
They stood rooted to the spot, acting as if they were deaf.
Terrified, the County Governor tried to retreat back into the ox-cart’s cabin.
Suddenly, a stone the size of a chess piece flew out from the crowd, striking him squarely on the cheekbone.
Standing outside the box, Qin Ying saw everything clearly.
The person who threw the stone looked very familiar.
It was the child Han Lie had rescued from the Human Meat Shop, still wearing Han Lie’s outer robe over his shoulders.
Beside the child stood a one-armed old man who was equally familiar.
In the sudden silence, the old man covered his mouth and shouted in a sinister tone, “No one is allowed to steal our life-saving grain!”
Having struck their blow and shouted their piece, the pair glanced toward Han Lie before quietly vanishing into the crowd.
Their actions and words, however, completely threw the situation into chaos.
By the time the County Governor regained his senses, a reprimand barely forming on his lips, another stone struck him.
This time, it hit his temple.
Blood flowed down his round face like a crimson thread.
The County Governor was dazed by the blow. He had never imagined these lowly Commoners would dare lay a hand on him.
“You filthy wretches-”
*Thwack!*
The rest of his words were smashed back into his mouth by another stone. The County Governor’s right eye turned blood-red.
When he looked up again, a rain of stones was flying toward him.
In that lethal storm of rocks, bones snapped and tendons tore.
The County Governor’s mangled corpse fell from the carriage shaft. The black ox pulling the cart bolted, and the massive wooden wheels ground over his body.
Outside the box, Qin Ying felt a wave of nausea at the sight of the squashed, pudgy little figure.
She shifted her gaze to Han Lie and asked, “Was this your doing?”
It was a masterful move-killing with a borrowed blade.
Hearing her speak so suddenly, Han Lie realized he had been seen through. Just as panic began to rise in his heart, he heard her add with a hint of approval, “Well done. Keep going!”
Han Lie’s heart instantly settled.
The Supreme Deity did not seem to mind his underhandedness.
***
As the crowd’s fury peaked, Han Lie stepped forward once more.
He had already gained many supporters as the leader of the grain distribution, thanks to his upright yet approachable nature.
After taking his oath and receiving the recognition of Qin Ying, the ‘deity,’ his prestige was immense.
He rode out and shouted a few commands, and the scene quickly stabilized.
The fragmented remains of the County Governor lay on the ground. The County Soldiers who had accompanied the official tacitly placed themselves under Han Lie’s command.
The County Governor was dead, but the grain distribution continued.
A short while later, the officials and registrars from the Commandery Governor’s Mansion were also driven out by the soldiers to work.
Those who were arrogant and looked down on Han Lie for his background as a common soldier underwent an instantaneous change of heart after being held at knifepoint and forced to look at the County Governor’s corpse.
With the cooperation of these officials, Han Lie successfully took over the Armory, which housed weapons and armor, as well as the Granary.
Seeing the mounds of grain and fodder piled high in the Granary, Han Lie clenched his teeth so hard they nearly cracked.
Outside the box, Qin Ying looked at the tiny grains of husked millet and thought of the narrow, dark alley piled with the bodies of those who had starved to death.
She pursed her lips, feeling a momentary flash of regret.
She should have found an acne needle earlier and poked that pudgy little man to death herself.
After a pause, she said, “Gather the Artisans and doctors. I’ve brought some medicine for you all.”
“Artisans?” Han Lie asked instinctively, unsure of the connection between medicine and craftsmen.
Qin Ying’s tone was subtle. “You’ll understand in a moment.”
It was about how to take the medicine.
And… how to use the Enema Solution!