With a million soldiers, the empress begged me not to rebel

Zhao Dezhu was already pale with fear.

Like a stray dog, he kowtowed and begged for mercy, without any trace of his previous arrogance.

Lu Yan frowned in disgust and kicked him away like a stone in the way.

The people cheered and praised Lu Yan as an upright judge.

Lu Yan enjoyed the feeling of being the center of attention.

He knew in his heart that he did this partly for the people and partly to vent his anger.

On the other side, Chen Qingwan went on a secret visit.

She changed into ordinary men's clothes and wore a hat to cover her beautiful face.

She observed the Qingshui County army calmly, her brows furrowed.

These soldiers were listless and their training was lax.

The queue was crooked and looked like a complete rabble.

Compared with the army under Lu Yan's rule, there is a world of difference.

"Look at the Qingshui County army, it's totally vulnerable."

"If the enemy really attacks, Qingshui County will probably be conquered in an instant."

Chen Qingwan lowered her voice and spoke with a hint of worry in her tone.

Qiao'er also changed into men's clothes and followed Chen Qingwan.

She curled her lips and said venomously:

"That's right, these cowards, if a real fight breaks out, they'll probably run faster than rabbits."

"They are nothing like Lu Yan's special forces, each one of them is so majestic and powerful that they can defeat ten enemies with one."

Chen Qingwan nodded slightly, and began to doubt the memorial from the Qingshui County Magistrate.

Although Lu Yan is greedy for money and lustful, he is good at governing.

The soldiers and generals of Shannan County were able to fight ten enemies at once and were not afraid of the enemy's attack at all.

At this moment, Chen Qingwan noticed that a large group of people had gathered in front of the county government office, and the place was bustling and noisy.

She walked over curiously to see what was going on.

"Have you heard? Lord Lu raided Zhao Dezhu's house and distributed all the looted gold, silver, and treasures to us!"

"Is this true? That bastard official Zhao Dezhu finally got his comeuppance!"

"That's right, Lord Lu is such a good official!"

The voices of the people talking reached Chen Qingwan's ears.

"Qiao'er, go and find out what's going on." Chen Qingwan ordered.

Qiao'er took the order and left. After a while, she came back and told Chen Qingwan the news she had heard.

"Your Majesty, Lord Lu not only confiscated Zhao Dezhu's property, but also distributed all his ill-gotten gains to the people."

"Now the people worship him as a living Buddha."

Qiao'er described it vividly, with a hint of excitement in her tone.

She was shocked.

I didn't expect Lu Yan to be so bold.

I haven't issued an order to punish Zhao Dezhu yet, but he executed him first and reported to me later.

At this time, Lu Yan brushed off the non-existent dust on his sleeves.

He walked out of the county government office with a refreshed look on his face, as if he had just come out of a bathhouse.

At the door, Lu Fei, Zhang Xun and Han Sheng had been waiting for a long time.

They were all in high spirits, with the words "please give me praise" written on their faces.

"Get the job done!"

Lu Yan waved his hand with an air of commanding the whole country.

"Go back to Shannan County!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a "young man" wearing a conical hat and men's clothes walked over.

Following behind her was a pretty "servant" who was also dressed in men's clothes.

"Miss Chen, how is it going?"

Chen Qingwan took off her hat, revealing her pretty face, and said lightly:

"Master Lu, you're in a good mood. Did you clean up the mess of the Qingshui County Magistrate so easily?"

"No, no," Lu Yan waved his hand, pretending to be modest.

"It's just a simple favor. But Miss Chen, why don't you return to the capital instead of running to this remote place?"

Chen Qingwan did not answer, but looked at Lu Yan deeply and said:

"Lord Lu, are you going back to Shannan County? How about we go together?"

Lu Yan readily agreed: "Better to obey than to be respectful!"

The group set out on the journey back to Shannan County in a mighty procession.

On the way, Chen Qingwan and Qiao'er were always curious about Lu Yan's actions.

"Lord Lu, why are you distributing Zhao Dezhu's property to the people? Aren't you afraid of being investigated by the court?"

Chen Qingwan asked in confusion.

Lu Yan smiled mysteriously and said:

"Miss Chen, you don't understand. This is called 'taking from the people and giving back to the people.'"

"I'm doing this to help the people get rid of this evil. How could the court hold me responsible?"

Qiao'er curled her lips aside.

"Just keep bragging! I think you're just trying to win people over!"

Lu Yan laughed and did not refute, but just looked at Chen Qingwan meaningfully.

He thought to himself, so what if I could win people’s hearts?

As long as it can benefit the people and let them live a good life, what's the harm in winning their hearts?

Moreover, the will of the people is more important than anything else.

Chen Qingwan took in every change in Lu Yan's expression.

Lu Yan seems cynical, but he is actually a meticulous and thoughtful person with deep thoughts.

After returning to Shannan County, Chen Qingwan asked the secret guards to go back and issue orders to punish Zhao Dezhu.

As for the charges, they were naturally corruption, abuse of power, and exploitation of the people.

Anyway, Zhao Dezhu is not a good person. Even if Lu Yan hadn't done this, he would have fallen sooner or later.

The next morning, Shannan County was shrouded in a thin layer of fog.

After breakfast, she took Qiao'er straight to the county government office.

Plan to discuss previous cooperation matters with Lu Yan.

"Morning, Master Lu,"

Chen Qingwan was still dressed in men's clothes, but without the cover of the hat, she looked even more heroic.

"Did you sleep well last night?"

Lu Yan yawned, with tears still lingering in the corners of his eyes, obviously not fully awake yet.

"Thanks to Miss Chen, I slept well. It's just that the bed in Shannan County is a bit hard, and it hurts my old waist so much that it almost breaks."

"Lord Lu is so young, what's the point of talking about an old waist?"

Qiao'er couldn't help but interrupt, with a hint of sarcasm in her tone.

"I think you were sleepwalking last night?"

Lu Yan glanced at Qiao'er.

"What do you know, little girl? This is called lumbar muscle strain, an occupational disease, do you understand?"

Chen Qingwan coughed lightly, interrupting the bickering that was about to begin between the two.

"Master Lu, let's get down to business. How's the soap we worked on earlier going?"

"Soap," Lu Yan stretched.

"Of course there are enough. Miss Chen, just go ahead and sell it. I guarantee you'll make a killing."

"In addition to soap, I also want to bring milk tea back to Beijing to sell,"

Chen Qingwan paused and added.

"And those things you mentioned earlier... things like chili sauce, take them all with you."

Lu Yan raised his eyebrows and looked at Chen Qingwan with a smile.

"Miss Chen has a big appetite, aren't you afraid of indigestion?"

Chen Qingwan glared back at him without showing any weakness.

"My digestion is very good, so Sir Lu, please don't worry about it."

"Okay, since Miss Chen is so sincere, I can't be stingy."

Lu Yan waved his hand.

"Except for soap, all goods will be split 50-50. How about that?"

"Deal!" Chen Qingwan agreed readily.