Chapter 50: Black Cavalry (Please keep reading)

The God-Slayer in Black—this title had not been mentioned by anyone for many years.

Only then did the commoners gathered at the entrance remember the stories of years past: how, during the confiscations and exterminations of clans, wherever the black-clad guards passed, the ground ran red with blood.

Stories were merely the silence of reality.

The stories, it turned out, were true.

Anle坊 was originally a gathering place for wealthy families and great clans. Many servants sent by these prominent households retreated with pale faces, pushing through the crowd to rush back to their homes.

Such a massive event just carried out by the Martial Guard Office naturally had to be reported immediately.

Furthermore, if any household had any connection to the Tang family, they had to sever those ties as quickly as possible.

Who knew if the Martial Guard Office would go on a killing spree and exterminate another family?

The iron-clad Martial Guards at the entrance of the Tang residence began to form ranks and depart after completing their mission.

The alleyway, which had been tightly blocked, instantly cleared a path.

All the onlookers stood by the roadside, watching the iron-clad guards march forward, not even daring to breathe heavily.

The iron armor paired with the scent of blood released an invisible, chilling aura that made people's backs go cold.

"Chen... Chen Wu..."

A call from not far away made Chen Wu turn his head.

A youth wearing a cyan scholar's robe and possessing a delicate face saw Chen Wu covered in blood; he covered his mouth, his eyes turning red.

"It's nothing, it's just the blood of rebels."

Chen Wu gave a wide grin and moved forward with the great tide of men.

"Ha, what a brave man!" someone cheered.

"Indeed, the sons of our Great Qin should be this valiant!" someone shouted loudly.

As the commoners watched the iron-clad guards march on, respect filled their eyes.

Walking beside Chen Wu, Feng Cheng had a complex expression and muttered, "That girl, she didn't even ask if her own brother was injured..."

...

Luyang Prefecture was neither large nor small.

For a prefectural capital, having fewer than five hundred thousand permanent residents indeed meant it was not a massive city.

But as a border city, Luyang Prefecture governed the surrounding counties and served as the center of power, economy, and the military.

The news of the Martial Guard Office wiping out the Tang family in Anle坊 spread throughout the entire city within an hour.

Of course, this hour began counting from the moment the black-armored guards marched out of the Tang residence, with corpses laid out before the gates.

According to the rumors of the onlookers, the Tang family had carried out over a hundred corpses; the only survivors were scattered women, children, and the elderly.

The last time the Martial Guard Office had engaged in such slaughter was over ten years ago.

In recent years, one only saw the black-clad guards in the city; one had almost never seen the sight of a tide of iron-clad armor marching through the streets.

It wasn't until this massacre in Anle坊 that many people remembered how the term "Imperial Hounds" came to be.

It was when the Martial Guard Office was confiscating property and exterminating clans that those families facing imminent doom would utter that curse.

For two consecutive days, the Martial Guard Office was exceptionally busy, scavenging the Tang family's wealth, sealing shops, and clearing land holdings.

On the streets, squads of black-clad guards could be seen running at any time, slapping seals onto various shops or properties.

"Isn't this the old Hu family shop? How did it become Tang family property?"

"No wonder Hu the Third hasn't been seen; it turns out his business was seized by the Tangs."

"The Tang family truly deserves to die..."

The animosity between great families and commoners was irreconcilable; no one was immune to hating the rich.

Seeing shops being sealed one by one and shopkeepers dressed in fine silks being hauled away, the commoners clapped in delight.

The evidence against the Tang family required no detailed investigation.

The illegal weapons hidden in the Tang family warehouses, the smuggling ledgers, and the transaction records with Northern Yan—including many pieces of Northern Yan military equipment—sealed the Tang family's guilt.

Even Qian Mu and He Jin were quite surprised; they had originally prepared to fabricate heavy crimes against the Tang family, but now that was entirely unnecessary.

At the Prefectural Office, in the Judge's Hall.

Clerks compiled various dossiers and placed them on the long desk before the Judge, He Jin.

"Three thousand six hundred acres of land, thirty-two shops, two breweries, and two mines; the converted value is at least one hundred thousand taels of silver."

"Two thousand three hundred taels in liquid assets, and other jewelry and items valued at over eight hundred taels."

"Just one Tang family is this wealthy. If we confiscated a few more families, *cough, cough, cough*—"

For ordinary people, life was difficult; a single tael of silver could sustain them for months.

Yet a city family like this could amass over a hundred thousand taels of property.

How much wealth had been scraped from the heads of so many commoners?

Within the dossiers, there were dozens of instances of the Tang family using coercion and force to seize property and conduct forced sales.

"I will hand over the information that can be made public to the Prefect. In the past two days, citizens have already come to the office to cry injustice. The properties seized by the Tang family should be returned where they should be, and confiscated where they should be. If we can do something for the people, our hearts will be more at ease."

"Old Qian, this time, it looks like you're going to strike it rich."

Looking at the dossiers in his hand, He Jin spoke in a low voice, a strange expression on his face.

Hearing He Jin's words, an irrepressible smile appeared on Qian Mu's face.

Originally, he was to be transferred to a commandery to serve as a rank six official—a promotion in name but a demotion in reality.

But now, at the last moment, he had achieved such a great merit.

With this merit, it would be impossible for him to be assigned to the idle post previously arranged when he went to the commandery.

This time, it was a true promotion.

"A pity that the head of the Tang family, Tang Wenshang, actually fled to escape punishment." Qian Mu showed a hint of regret as he looked at Zhang Yuan beside him.

"That fellow has some tricks up his sleeve; you must be careful in the future."

The fact that Tang Wenshang had abandoned his post and fled before the Black Ice Platform could capture him showed his decisiveness.

Furthermore, someone must have leaked information to allow Tang Wenshang to escape before the Black Ice Platform's Black Riders arrived.

Since this person had not been brought to justice, the credit for this case was diminished, and for Zhang Yuan and the others, it represented an additional potential threat.

The hatred of clan extermination was something Tang Wenshang would absolutely harbor.

Zhang Yuan was also curious as to why the Black Ice Platform had failed to catch Tang Wenshang.

Given the circumstances at the time, it should have been impossible for Tang Wenshang to escape.

Leaving the Prefectural Office, he went straight to Wang Qinian's woodworking shop.

As soon as he entered, he saw Wang Qinian sitting behind the counter with his head hanging low.

"Zhang Yuan, I have failed you..."

Seeing Zhang Yuan, Wang Qinian let out a long sigh.

The so-called "failure" was not just losing the credit that was within reach, but also botching the entire operation.

"I thought that by leading the Black Riders, there would be no mistakes. As it turns out, that old thief Tang had received a tip-off in advance and ran."

"The undercover Black Ice Platform agents in Jiulin County said that the higher-ups have already traced information regarding the resale of weapons and collusion with the Northern Yan Northern Guard in Jiulin County. They have been tracking it; this move against the Jiulin County Magistrate was meant to bring Tang Wenshang's line to the surface to catch the big fish..."

And then, he, Wang Qinian, let him run.

The big fish, naturally, could not be caught.

"Zhang Yuan, I spent ten years to reach this position as the Black Ice Platform Chief Officer of Luyang Prefecture."

"I thought my family's ancestral graves were smoking with good fortune—that my ancestors were protecting me and that I, Wang Qinian, could take another step forward."

"I didn't expect..."

"I've calculated it. Based on this mistake, I'm going to be stripped of everything and sent back to being an undercover agent."

Regarding Wang Qinian's predicament, Zhang Yuan could only express sympathy.

Perhaps, just as he said, it was all fate.

"Since you're here, I'll take you to see the Black Riders." Wang Qinian stood up and shook his head.

"Those guys are incredibly arrogant; they don't respect me at all. It remains to be seen if you can keep them in line."