Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 94: Killing the whole family
Young Master Wang has been apprehended.

Everything is resolved.

In fact, the moment Xin Yue defeated Wang Shen, Song Shi'an's grand plan was already complete.

After so many years of oppressive rule in Wuleili, the only person who could be loyal to him, or rather, the only one who could issue orders and was feared by the city's residents, was Wang Shen.

This is why when Wang Gongzi's father died, he didn't feel any sadness at all; his mind was filled with thoughts of replacing his father.

Because Wang Shen's life was just too good.

He couldn't enjoy his father's happiness at all.

Old Wang is dead, so naturally all that's left for Little Wang is a deer penis.

The rest of the people did not want to be labeled as rebels.

"Tie him up and gag him," Song Shi'an immediately ordered.

"Yes!" The butler's mind worked very quickly, and he instantly joined Song Shi'an's camp.

The militiaman who rode up to deliver the message was also startled and froze, his horse's legs trembling as he stood there, completely bewildered. It wasn't until Song Shi'an spoke up and ordered him, "Go, open the city gates!"

"Yes!"

Having received the order, the man now had a direction.

He turned his horse around and galloped out of the corridor.

Unlike some cities, Wulei is generally quite small. If it were the size of an official post station like Jimingyi, it would already be considered a very large castle.

This place is only about half the size of Jimingyi, covering an area of ​​over 100,000 square meters.

It's only three hundred meters from here to the city gate.

Even though the road was narrow and winding, the warhorses only took half a minute to reach the city gate.

"Open the gate!" the cavalryman shouted.

The entire Wulei tribe was considered one of their own. And as a messenger cavalryman, he held a relatively high position within this bandit group's power. Therefore, his orders represented the orders of the prince.

The city gates were opened quickly.

Upon seeing the city gates open, all the Wei-branded cavalrymen rushed towards this direction.

"They've gotten in? What do we do?!" someone asked.

"Everyone get off the city wall, do not shoot arrows, do not draw your swords, wait for the cavalry to enter the city!"

Once the order was issued, the state of combat readiness was immediately lifted.

The two hundred light cavalrymen filed in instantly, their hooves thundering as they pounded the ground. Everyone in the city hid inside their houses, unlike before when they had no courage to even breathe on Song Shi'an and Xin Yue.

"Why were all these soldiers let in?"

"Does the prince mean this?"

"It could only be the will of the princes; otherwise, who would dare to do this..."

The people in the city were filled with fear and dread.

The future is full of uncertainty.

"Master!"

A dozen or so cavalrymen rushed into the corridor outside the main hall, dismounted, and met with Song Shi'an.

"Go and arrest everyone in Wang Shen's family." After giving the order, Song Shi'an looked at the righteous steward who was holding Young Master Wang and casually said, "He will take you there. Remember, don't let a single one escape."

"Yes, absolutely not a single one will be missed!"

The manager gave a loud, assertive reply.

If he were to lead the way, he would definitely do a perfect job.

After all, those who guide others are more afraid of retaliation than anyone else.

Of course, he will definitely expand the scope of the search and take care of those who are not Wang Shen's relatives but whom he doesn't like.

The traitors were far more hateful than the Japanese.

But it doesn't matter.

This city is mine now.

"You two stay here. The rest of you, notify the remaining brothers to replace all the guards with our men."

After Song Shi'an made the final arrangements, only he and Xin Yue remained in the hall.

And two Wei-class cavalrymen guarding the entrance.

"You're amazing."

Looking at Xinyue beside him, he revealed a smile of longing.

The blood of the prince bloomed on her face like a crimson flower. Her light pink gown was irregularly stained, turning into a deep crimson; she was like a ghost from purgatory, bizarre yet beautiful.

So beautiful it stirs the heart.

"It was just the simplest form of murder."

Xinyue lifted one side of her skirt, untied the bandages binding her legs, and then put the bamboo knife back into its sheath.

"No, you're really amazing. I feel at ease when you're here."

Song Shi'an felt that her potential was far more than that.

"Thank you."

Because of the constant flattery, Xin Yue became unusually uncomfortable, so she changed the subject and asked, "What's next?"

“Next, let’s obediently execute the entire Wang family,” Song Shi’an said.

The phrases "honestly and obediently" and "execution of the entire family" together in one sentence made Xin Yue sense some psychological abnormalities in this man...

"Then, they packed up Wang Shen's head and sent it to His Highness."

Xiao Wei, it's up to you now.

.........

"Your Highness! It was sent by Lord Song!"

In Shuofeng City, a cavalryman presented Wei Wusheng with a bundle of linen stained dark black.

Upon seeing this, Wei Wusheng breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed completely.

"Shi Anta did it."

The biggest traitor was thus captured without lifting a finger.

At least, nearly a thousand lives were saved.

He easily took control of a small city.

"Open it." Despite feeling physically nauseous, Wei Wusheng still spoke up when faced with the package.

So the soldiers in front of them untied the burlap sack.

And so, holding the bottom with both hands, she raised her 'head' to show it to Wei Wusheng.

Frowning, Wei Wusheng revealed an expression of extreme disgust and revulsion: "Really ugly."

“Traitors are all this ugly,” Zheng Tong echoed with a laugh.

“Traitors will all die,” Wei Wusheng said with hatred.

"Your Highness, Lord Song has performed such a great service. It shouldn't be a problem for us to take advantage of this to coerce the other rebel factions!" Zheng Tong said excitedly. "He is truly brave. Who would have thought that this city was captured in half a day because of an assassination attempt?"

The reason these Wulei's owners dared to act so recklessly was simply because they had strong city defenses.

In total, there are tens of thousands of civilians.

However, Wei Wusheng did not have enough energy to remove them one by one.

Therefore, we can only kill the biggest and most evil one among them. This will serve as a deterrent to the rest, the lesser evil ones.

If the battle becomes too fierce, lasting ten days or half a month, and some troops are lost, the remaining soldiers will not surrender—you have the guts to kill us all before Ji Yuan arrives.

But things are different now.

I took it down in half a day. If you dare to resist, I'll give you a Maserati!
"Next, we need to take down those coerced accomplices."

Wei Wusheng looked at the severed head with an arrogant air.

.........

Outside Shuofeng City, in a mountain village on the outskirts of the county.

Although the entire Northern Liang region is a valley and the most grain-producing area in Liangzhou, it is not entirely flat and devoid of mountains. It simply lacks the massive mountain ranges that carve the land apart.

This resort is situated on the mountainside of a low hill. The scenery is delightful, and from this vantage point, one can also see the Chishui River flowing continuously not far below the hill.

In the open space outside the court, eleven representatives of powerful thieves gathered together, each with a face filled with fear.

Because there is no banquet here.

Yes, there were only a few dozen soldiers carrying weapons.

Since arriving, I haven't seen the Sixth Prince and have been detained here.

Could it be that this whole scheme was specifically set up to kill them?
How is it possible!

We lowly servants don't deserve it!
Or are you trying to use us to blackmail your family for food?

Like I said before, we deserve it too!
Just as everyone was utterly bewildered and uneasy about being dragged into this situation, a soldier suddenly announced loudly, "His Highness the Sixth Prince has arrived—"

Upon hearing this voice, everyone turned to look. Then, upon seeing the person clad in armor who appeared extremely noble, they all knelt down and prostrated themselves.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

Everyone said in unison.

Wei Wusheng walked past them, went to the front, placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, and casually said, "Get up."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

The crowd slowly rose, then lowered their heads, avoiding direct eye contact with the prince.

Even for a servant of a powerful family, there is an absolute need to show reverence to the gods.

"Who is Xu Ji?" Wei Wusheng asked.

Upon hearing this, a young man in his early twenties stepped forward and stammered, "Your Highness, I am Xu Ji."

"What is your current position?" Wei Wusheng asked.

"Your Highness, I do not hold office," Xu Ji said, then added softly, "Yes, I only passed the imperial examination last year."

“Then you are now the Assistant Magistrate of Qi County,” Wei Wusheng declared.

Upon hearing this, he looked up in astonishment, somewhat incredulous. But instinctively, he immediately knelt down to express his gratitude, exclaiming with wild joy, "Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Highness!"

A scholar who had passed the county-level imperial examinations was promoted directly to the position of a county magistrate of the eighth rank, becoming the second master of a county with tens of thousands of people. What a leap that was!

The others were also surprised.

But once everyone realized what was going on, they understood the reason.

The Sixth Prince asked each of the major clans to send someone who could speak with authority. The rest were basically sent as stewards, not even the kind of high-ranking stewards who were like family retainers. Only the Xu family sent their second son.

Naturally, he received a reward from the Sixth Prince.

"I am very busy, so I will keep this brief."

After Wei Wusheng finished speaking, several people grabbed the two men in plain clothes and brought them over.

The crowd looked them over, and some of them seemed vaguely familiar.

"Isn't this a servant of a noble family?"

Ordinary servants wouldn't recognize them, but these were the kind of messengers who specialized in relaying messages. If there was communication between several major families, they would become familiar with each other after a few times.

"These two are Wang Shen's men, and they are relaying a message to Ji Yuan on his behalf."

When Wei Wusheng uttered these words, everyone turned deathly pale.

This is a crime of treason that warrants the extermination of nine generations of one's family!

Some of them were trembling with fear because their patriarch had also contacted Ji Yuan.

"This is a letter he wrote to Ji Yuan."

Wei Wusheng casually tossed it at one of the people's feet: "Pass it around and see if anyone recognizes Wang Shen's handwriting to confirm if it's him."

These people then read the letter together.

The more you look at it, the more frightened you become.

The more I looked, the more I felt like I was going to die.

"Is it Wang Shen?" Wei Wusheng asked casually.

“Yes…yes.” One of them nodded. “This is Wang Gong’s…no, Wang Shen’s courtesy name!”

"If you recognize all the characters, you must recognize the person."

After Wei Wusheng finished speaking, someone placed the head on a wooden tray and presented it to him.

"...Yes, it's Wang Shen!"

"Dead, dead?!"

"This...this is him!"

"Wasn't he still alive just a few days ago...?"

These powerful bandits were completely dumbfounded.

How did a perfectly healthy person end up with their head here?
"He wanted to become Ji Yuan's official."

Wei Wusheng sneered, then suddenly raised his voice and said, "Does your master also want to be an official under Ji Yuan?"

Upon hearing this question, everyone knelt on the ground, trembling, and some even experienced leg cramps on the spot.

"Raise your head," Wei Wusheng ordered.

Slowly, everyone looked up.

Then, a stove was seen being moved over. At the same time, a person was carrying a large pile of mailboxes.

One of them even recognized that one of the letters was written by himself on behalf of the head of the family!
My heart was pounding, just like during an earthquake; my fear had reached its peak.

“Not only Wang Shen wrote to Ji Yuan, but others did too. Most of them were letters from Ji Yuan to your family head that I intercepted. However, I didn’t read a single one.”

Wei Wusheng looked at everyone with disdain and said coldly, "This time Wang Shen dared to ignore me, so I read his letter. I also killed all his family members. I took over the entire Wulei in less than half a day."

Was it breached in just half a day?

There are at least three thousand people in Wang Gong's Wulei!
How could it be so fast!
"With a formidable enemy at hand, it's understandable that you have reservations. But I have given you my orders, and anyone who dares to disobey will be killed."

Wei Wusheng's tone was icy, sending chills down everyone's spines.

"I haven't read these letters, and I won't," Wei Wusheng waved his hand and said, "Burn them."

Then, the mailboxes were all thrown into the fire.

The representatives of all the powerful clans wept and kowtowed repeatedly on the spot, expressing their gratitude for the Sixth Prince's great kindness.

Who is clean?
No one is clean.

It's enough that those in positions of power don't care if you're dirty!
"After you return, report everything that happened today to your patriarchs. Then, I will send troops to take over all the Wulei," Wei Wusheng ordered. "If there is any resistance, leave no one alive."

"Yes!" Everyone had no choice but to agree.

If you don't agree, you'll die right now.

However, such an agreement is only a temporary measure.

Wei Wusheng was very clear that these people lacked a sense of security.

Even if I burn all these letters, they might not believe that I won't retaliate afterward.

Without Wulei, without soldiers, they are lambs to the slaughter.

So, what will happen?

They fled north.

With a population of over 20,000 and a large amount of food, sending it to Ji Yuan would be quite a problem.

Therefore, a combination of kindness and severity should be applied.

“After I take over Wulei, your money will remain untouched, but your food will be requisitioned, and I will move you to a safe place.”

As he spoke, Wei Wusheng pointed to the Chishui River below the mountain.

Everyone turned to look over there.

"My word is as good as gold. But I swear by the Chishui River."

With a firm gaze, Wei Wusheng solemnly declared, "If Shuofeng is defeated, equal fertile fields will be designated in Nanliang and returned to the powerful clans. If Shuofeng wins, every inch of land belonging to the powerful clans will belong to them again."
-
I finished writing this chapter after staying up all night; it's four thousand words long. I'll have another four thousand words tomorrow during the day.

Brothers, I'm begging for monthly votes at the beginning of the month!

(End of this chapter)