Survival skills maxed out, I feed my wife and daughter by catching fish and shrimp

Tong Shaoming's expression changed slightly. "Chen Changfan, what are you going to do? Are you planning to use violence against me again?"

"Using violence? There's no need for my master to take action. Any one of us can twist your head off!" The hot-tempered Fang Chang was not bluffing. Each of them was extraordinary. Before they even made a move, they had already shocked the followers so much that their legs went limp.

"I am the official appointed by King Ning. How dare you be so presumptuous? Don't you take King Ning seriously?" Tong Shaoming directly brought up King Ning, trying to intimidate the guys in front of him, but these people seemed unmoved.

King Ning?

Look at Yongzhou, which is under the jurisdiction of Prince Ning. What a mess it has become.

Prince Ning didn't come when they were suppressing bandits before, and he didn't come when Qinghe County was attacked. But now he wants to give orders. What a joke!

Although these people did not say it, they had already seen through Prince Ning's true face in their hearts.

Facing the pressure brought by the group of extraordinary people, Tong Shaoming's forehead was already covered with fine beads of cold sweat. He suppressed his fear and looked at Chen Changfan in the middle as if for help. He forced a smile and said, "Master Chen, there is no need to be overly nervous. His Royal Highness Prince Ning is only performing a routine enthronement ceremony and has no other intentions."

Although he tried his best to maintain the dignity of the left chief secretary of the vassal king, his tone had softened a bit, his eyes flickered, and he was secretly thinking about how to resolve the current deadlock.

Chen Changfan snorted coldly, his eyes sharp as a knife as he stared at Tong Shaoming. "A routine enthronement? Fine! Then please, Master Tong, forget all the empty titles and tell me directly, how much gold and silver, how much fiefdom, is His Royal Highness Prince Ning planning to give me this time? Or, perhaps, a direct reward of grain, fodder, and horses?"

Chen Changfan's gaze was so bright and piercing, as if it were real, that Tong Shaoming couldn't even look at it directly.

Tong Shaoming swallowed and forced a smile: "Lord Chen has misunderstood. His Royal Highness Prince Ning's enthronement is intended to commend your achievements and has no other intention." He secretly groaned in his heart. How could he not know Prince Ning's true intention?

On the surface, it is to confer official titles, but in reality it is to divide the interests. Where are these rewards?

But he couldn't make promises out of thin air, nor could he directly ask for spoils of war, so he had no choice but to continue negotiating: "Lord Chen has a strong army and powerful horses, so I think he wouldn't care about those worldly rewards. His Royal Highness Prince Ning cares about you, so he ordered me to confer titles and honors on you heroes. What's the most important thing for a hero? Naturally, leaving their names in history. What do you think, is that right or not?"

"It's your uncle!" Fang Chang shouted angrily and took a step forward suddenly, shaking the ground. Tong Shaoming was frightened and his body swayed. Chen Changfan glared at the latter, and the latter immediately calmed down.

And he gradually lost his patience.

"Master Tong, I don't like beating around the bush. Just tell me directly. How much do you intend to ask for when King Ning sends you here?"

Chen Changfan directly revealed his cards. Tong Shaoming turned pale and stammered, "Sir, this..."

"Just tell me directly. If you keep hesitating, I'll kill you."

Chen Changfan was not afraid of King Ning who was behind Tong Shaoming, but was afraid of the eighth-level transcendent under King Ning's command. If the other party did not press him too hard, he could endure it for some time. If the other party directly asked for a huge demand, he would have no choice but to break off relations with him.

Tong Shaoming took a deep breath and finally said through gritted teeth, "His Royal Highness Prince Ning said that the water in Shuibo County is very deep and the people there are difficult to govern. He hopes that Lord Chen can hand over the control of Shuibo County to Prince Ning himself. In addition, he must pay five million taels of silver to Prince Ning's Mansion every year as a security fee for governing Shuibo County."

"Hand over control rights? Security fees?"

Chen Changfan was so angry that he laughed.

How can there be such shameless people in the world?

It was clearly me who worked so hard to suppress the bandits and conquer Shuibo County, but this Prince Ning didn't even send a single soldier, and now he actually wants to have jurisdiction over Shuibo County, and I have to pay tribute to him out of my own pocket?

"Go back and tell Prince Ning that Shuibo County is under my control and in perfect order. If Prince Ning really wants to do something for the people of Yongzhou, he might as well focus on those evil cultists in Xuanyuan County. From now on, the affairs of Qinghe County, Shuibo County, and Heishan County will no longer require Prince Ning to worry about them."

As soon as Chen Changfan finished speaking, Tong Shaoming's face suddenly changed. He could tell that Chen Changfan had quietly taken control of the three counties of Yongzhou. If King Ning tried to make a move again, he was afraid that the next response he would get would be a knife.

"Chen Changfan has only recently emerged as a prominent figure, yet he's already built up such a strong influence. It seems Prince Ning's wishful thinking has failed... But come to think of it, a ruthless man who can lead his troops directly to the bandits' lair can't be a simple person."

Tong Shaoming sighed inwardly, knowing that this trip would be in vain. He stopped talking nonsense and quickly led his men out, driving away with the dozen or so empty cars.

He was originally a messenger, and since the talks had broken down, he naturally didn't dare to stay any longer. There was no need to risk his life for a few hundred taels of salary.

……

After watching Tong Shaoming leave in a panic, everyone felt relieved.

When Tong Shaoming first arrived, he was so arrogant, with the words "King Ning" carved on his face. But after meeting his master, he was so scared that he ran away in panic. It was really satisfying!

However, Fang Chang felt a little unsatisfied and thought that the corrupt official should be killed. However, he did not dare to intervene since his boss had not given the order.

"My Lord, that Prince Ning is such a piece of shit! We fought so hard to conquer this kingdom, and he wants to take it away just by talking!"

Old Wei was so angry that he cursed a few times, and was echoed by several people.

"There are many people in this world who like to gain something for nothing, and they regard this as their own ability. If the Prince of Ning just stays as a vassal king, it's fine. But if he dares to reach out, I don't mind chopping his hands off!"

The reason why Chen Changfan let Tong Shaoming go back today was to see if King Ning would be more restrained. If he still wanted to get something for free or even wanted to take action, then he should show his sword to him.

"Sir, Prince Ning is a prince after all. If you chop off his hand, Emperor Wuqing will definitely cause trouble for you." Fang Chang scratched his head.

"You fool, the boss was just using a metaphor. If King Ning sends troops to attack us, we will destroy them all!" Yuan Lang said speechlessly.

"Do we really have to become direct enemies with Prince Ning?" Shen Wanwu, who has always been cautious, couldn't help but feel a little worried.

He looked at everyone, hesitated for a moment, and reminded:

"If we really go to war with Prince Ning, there's no guarantee that the imperial court won't send troops to support us. Even if we can defeat Prince Ning, can we defeat the Great Wu Dynasty?"

Shen Wanwu's concerns were not unreasonable, and everyone fell into deep thought.