Crown Prince of the Empire, I quit!

Because they failed to transfer the smuggled goods in time, many of these wealthy businessmen and landlords were caught red-handed.

He was convicted on the spot by Changsun Huo's men and handed over to the local governor Cao De for handling.

Their property was also confiscated.

Some people have worked hard for many years and finally become wealthy businessmen.

Overnight, all the family wealth was gone, and they fell to a point where they were even worse off than ordinary farmers outside the city.

Such a rapid turn of events also quickly hit Chu Ying's business.

Qi Yuanhuang learned the news early on and asked someone to convey the situation to Chu Ying, asking him to be careful.

Hua Yunhong's counterattack was much faster than expected.

At this moment, Lu Fang and the others could only keep a low profile.

The good situation that had been established has now turned into a situation where Chu Ying has to fight alone.

"Boss Chu, they've all stopped their attacks. How about we run away first?"

At this time, the followers of the Datong sect who followed Chu Ying were also a little scared.

Hua Yunhong's notoriety spread far and wide, not only in the Shenmu Kingdom, but also many people outside had heard of this man's brutal methods.

Anyone who can control such a huge dynasty is definitely not a good person.

But it was this terrifying existence that Chu Ying, under Qin Ming's orders, had to challenge.

Listening to their words, Chu Ying's heart was also shaken.

He has been preparing for the worst these days.

But I always believed in my heart that Qin Ming should have a way.

So he wanted to wait for Qin Ming to send another letter. If there was really no other way, it would not be too late to retreat.

I thought it would be okay to wait a few days.

What he didn't expect was that Hua Yunhong acted so quickly.

Before the people arrived, all the shrimps and crabs on the market had basically been cleared out, leaving them no chance of survival.

If Hua Yunhong arrives next, the only people he needs to deal with are Chu Ying and Tongbao Pavilion.

Even at this moment, Chu Ying still hadn't received any news from Qin Ming.

Do I really have to leave first this time?

Just as he was feeling guilty, several believers came rushing back from outside the mountain on horseback.

"Boss Chu, this is bad. Our warehouse has also been implicated, and a batch of smuggled goods has been seized."

"Some wealthy businessmen were arrested and still owe us money for their goods."

"Fortunately, I didn't bring all the goods they wanted a few days ago, otherwise I would have suffered a huge loss this time!"

When the news came back, everyone started talking about it.

A few days ago, Tongbao Pavilion said it wanted ten times the amount of goods. Now it seems that it is wise to maintain the original supply.

After all, Tongbao Pavilion is in a difficult situation and can't even save itself.

“We’ll take back as much as we can.”

"Besides investigating smuggling, has Changsun been involved in any other activities?"

Chu Ying gritted his teeth and spoke.

They have made a lot of money recently, so even if they lose money on this batch of goods, they will still make a profit.

But as a businessman, he set a goal for himself, and if he fails to make the expected profit, he will lose money.

Since we have suffered a loss, we should first mitigate the loss and get back as many goods as possible.

"Chang Sun may have arranged for Lu Fang to pursue Fang Yuanjian's troops, seemingly intending to tie Fang Yuanjian up."

"Lu Fang..."

Chu Ying knew who Lu Fang was. It was he who arranged for people to go to Shuilian County to dig the tunnel a few days ago.

"According to what you said, Lu Fang didn't bring many people with him?"

"Yes."

"okay I know."

Chu Ying thought for a moment and decided to make some preparations in advance.

After writing a letter, he called a cavalryman and said:

"Go and give this letter to General Liu, and be quick."

"Yes!"

As Chu Ying took action, Changsun Huo, who was far away in Shuilian County, had already arrived at a courtyard in the city.

There is a hole on the ground in the backyard here.

It was pitch black below and there was no end in sight.

But the eldest grandson may know where this path leads.

"Who dug the hole?"

Chang Sun Huo turned to look at Lu Fang's deputy general Sun Wansuo.

Because they were worried that Lu Fang would run away with his men and would not be able to bear the responsibility.

When Changsun was mobilizing troops for him and asking Lu Fang to entangle Fang Yuanjian, he used some conventional methods in the military camp.

For example, he detained Lu Fang's confidants and replaced most of the troops with his own men.

Sun Wansuo was detained here because his eldest grandson Hu needed to know the situation, so he was dragged here.

Hearing what the other party said, he scratched his head awkwardly and spoke haltingly.

"This...we are still investigating."

This answer obviously did not satisfy the eldest grandson.

He turned his head and stared at Sun Wansuo with a sharp gaze.

"Let me ask you, how long has it been since this happened?"

"About... ten days."

Snapped!

Suddenly, the eldest grandson slapped him in the face.

Sun Wansuo suddenly felt a burning pain on his face and his head was dizzy. He swayed in his position and almost fell.

He covered his face and took two steps back in fear.

The eldest grandson roared:

"A bunch of good-for-nothings! Lu Fang is a waste, and you are a waste among wastes!"

"Now tell me, was this road dug by Fang Yuanjian or someone else?"

Sun Wansuo carefully recalled every detail of what happened and thought for a long time before speaking.

"It shouldn't be Fang Yuanjian. His men have been under our strict surveillance and have never left the mountain. His Highness equipped us with the Thousand Machine Stick so that we can catch him off guard. General Lu and I dare not let our guard down."

"But they appeared suddenly at that time, without showing any signs before."

Hearing this, Changsun Hu immediately narrowed his eyes and waved behind him.

Several people in black robes stepped forward, went down to explore the cave for a while, and soon climbed up. They walked respectfully to the eldest grandson and said:

"General, this is a tunnel dug by the mechanical shovel."

These people are the eldest grandson or those specially called here. They are local talents who understand mechanical engineering and have unique vision.

After getting more information, Chang Sun continued to ask:

"If they want to dig through this road within two weeks, how many shovels, manpower and resources will they need?"

"Probably less than a thousand mechanical shovels are needed. As for the number of people... we don't need too many either. After all, the passage is so narrow, probably a few dozen people will be enough. With such a small number of people, it's not easy to be discovered."

"Is it possible that Fang Yuanjian arranged for someone to come here and dig secretly, and you didn't find it?"

Changsun Huo turned and looked at Sun Wansuo.

Sun Wansuo was startled. He said firmly:

"Impossible, this is absolutely impossible!"

"We have set up dozens of checkpoints. Fang Yuanjian is far away in the mountains at the border. No matter how many people there are, we will find them when they go back and forth."

"That means there's something wrong with Cao De's internal affairs. This old guy is becoming more and more incompetent."

The eldest grandson may be Hua Yunhong's confidant and has strong ability to handle affairs.

The clues were clarified in just a few words.

Sun Wansuo was stunned for a moment and said in surprise:

"what do you mean……"