Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

Time flies, and half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

The factory on the outskirts of Nanjing has already started construction.

Shen Lang treated the still-slave workers extremely well: they were provided with three meals a day and paid three taels of silver every three months, with alchemists receiving an extra two taels.

To speed up the project, Shen Lang even ordered Jiang Mengxuan to release all the prisoners held in death row for labor reform.

The working hours for ordinary workers are 10 hours a day (5 shichen), and anything beyond that is considered overtime.

Prisoners receive no pay and work at least 14 hours a day. Their only benefits are three meals a day plus a midnight snack.

The ugly face of capitalists is on full display.

But everyone worked incredibly hard, daring not to slack off in the slightest.

That's because Shen Lang also made a promise: once the factory is fully completed, everyone can be freed from slavery, and their wages will be discussed separately.

As for those labor camp inmates, they get a one-hour reduction in sentence for every day they work. Those who make special contributions get a half-day reduction for every day they work. Even death row inmates can live to a ripe old age by working.

The amount to be paid upon the official commencement of the work was unknown to ordinary craftsmen, but it was clear to the thirty alchemists.

Each person was guaranteed a minimum of fifty taels of silver per month. Their main military duties were to develop chemical products such as alloy steel, guncotton, mercuric fulminate, caustic soda, and sulfuric acid, and incidentally, to formulate gunpowder to the most suitable proportions.

It wasn't that Shen Lang was unaware of the forging methods of military steel, but this was a fantasy world, and everything had to be adapted to the current environment based on the existing foundation.

To transform an agricultural society controlled by a group of martial artists into an industrial one, it would be too much to do alone; one must rely on the strength of the group.

Watching tens of thousands of almost free laborers working day and night on the construction site, the factory foundation gradually took shape. Shen Lang stretched and was very satisfied with the current progress of the project. He planned to go home and draw up the design drawings.

"Commander Shen, please have some tea."

Su Yun handed a cup of freshly brewed chrysanthemum tea to Shen Lang.

Thanks to Shen Lang's help, his mother was temporarily out of danger.

Moreover, by managing the factory under Shen Lang's guidance, he didn't have to do anything and could earn an extra five taels of silver per month as basic extra income, which also stabilized things at home.

Shen Lang took the drink, took a sip, and said, "These next few days, you guys continue to keep an eye on things at the construction site."

You should already be familiar with the specific supervision process. If you have any questions, just let me know using the telepathic message.

Remember, whatever you do, don't make a mistake.

We're short-staffed right now, so you'll all need to be extra careful with everything.

When the project is completed, I won't be stingy with your share.

Su Yun: "Don't worry, Commander Shen, we're here to make sure everything is arranged perfectly for you."

"Ah."

Shen Lang responded and turned to walk into Jinling City.

However, upon returning to his own front door, he was taken aback by the scene before him.

In front of their own courtyard gate, there was a pile of garbage, and the gate itself had been broken open.

"Who did it?"

Shen Lang turned around and looked at the neighbors he was passing by.

When these people met Shen Lang's almost murderous gaze, they instinctively turned their faces away, not daring to meet his eyes.

Just as he was about to grab someone to question them, a mocking whistle sounded behind him.

A man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like face, who looked like he wouldn't live past three chapters, was squatting by the roadside, holding a dog leash, and waving arrogantly at Shen Lang.

Beside him were three thugs, shirtless and carrying control tools, shaking their bodies as they tried to appear very individualistic.

Looking at these people's behavior, the first impression that came to Shen Lang's mind was that of the gangsters who stood at the school gate when he was in junior high school, extorting money from students leaving school.

They look impressive, but they're actually a bunch of weaklings. Ding Zhen and Kun Ge could easily take on three of them.

Seeing that Shen Lang hadn't moved, Karami immediately became impatient: "Hey, come here, I'm calling you, are you deaf or something?"

Shen Lang smiled slightly and quietly walked to Karami's side.

Before Karami could speak, he asked directly, "Did you do this?"

Karami slowly stood up: "Brother, I was asked to do this. It's your fault for offending such a powerful figure. Oh, and he asked me to pass on another message to you."

As long as you're in Jinling City, don't expect to have an easy time. Hehehe, well, you'd better watch yourself.

After saying that, Karami turned to leave.

But the next moment, an iron hand grabbed the back of his neck and, before he could react, performed a backflip and spun him 180 degrees, slamming him heavily to the ground.

"Ah~"

With a scream, Karami felt a piercing pain in his back.

Immediately following, another series of punches landed squarely on the ground, and the other three thugs also fell to the ground with their limbs on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Then the person behind you must not have told you who you've offended."

As soon as Shen Lang finished speaking, he stomped on Karami's fifth leg and broke it.

"Ah, no, my Kun'er~"

Karami let out a bloodcurdling scream, causing the onlookers to instinctively clench their legs.

"Tell me, who ordered you to do this?"

"I... I'd rather die than tell..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang nodded: "He's a real man."

After saying that, he took out a pair of iron finger guards from his pocket and put them on his right palm.

"I hope you can hold on to the very end."

boom--

One punch, and blood splattered.

Karami's cheeks were instantly covered in blood and gore.

boom--

Another punch, and Karami's face was completely shattered, with faint white teeth marks still visible.

Bang bang bang bang bang——

After several more punches, Karami's face was completely caved in, no longer resembling a human.

He died on the spot under Shen Lang's torture.

This scene made the rest of the Karami tremble with fear, and they all lost control of their bowels and bladders, creating a stench that filled the air.

Finally, after Shen Lang realized that his opponent had stopped breathing, he shook his head and said, "Tsk tsk tsk, I haven't even used my strength yet, how come you've already fallen? Forget it, let's move on to the next one."

After saying that, he turned his gaze to the other three Karami.

"It was Prefect Zeng who sent us."

With just a glance, the remaining three thugs unanimously revealed the mastermind, fearing that if they were a moment too late, they would suffer the same fate as Karami.

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang sneered: "Why would he do that?"

One of them hurriedly said, "Lord Zeng said you made him lose face and suffer huge losses. If we don't vent this anger..."

We'll be ridiculed by our colleagues. We must make you understand who really calls the shots in the capital, Lord Shen. We're forced into this situation.

Please, have mercy on us this time!

After saying that, the three of them knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Shen Lang repeatedly.

One of them cried out, "Lord Shen, I have a three-year-old mother, an eighty-year-old daughter, and a father with facial paralysis. If I die, they won't be able to live!"

Another person even exaggeratedly opened their mouth into an "O" shape: "Lord Shen, please spare us this time! I just got my sister-in-law pregnant!"

"Children can't be without their fathers! Children without fathers will definitely be bullied in the future! Ah~ please, Lord Shen, let us go—"

Seeing the three of them crying and sniffling, Shen Lang lost interest in pursuing the matter further and simply shouted:

"Stop crying! Clean this place up before sunset. If I come back and it's not to my liking, hmph..."

After saying that, Shen Lang's eyes were incredibly sharp as he got up and walked towards the west district.

"Since you want to play with me, then I'll play along and see who gives up first, hehe..."

Meanwhile, inside the dungeon of Weiyang Palace...

"Ah~ Why, Your Majesty~"

"Stop fighting~ Stop fighting~"

Zhao Ang was hung in a small dark room and was being whipped by a group of cruel officials. He was covered in blood.

Jiang Mengxuan sat quietly outside the small dark room, ignoring the painful sounds coming from inside, and simply looked at the project progress report that Shen Lang had sent over.

Only when the groans inside the dark room ceased and the door opened did he calmly close the book.

A jailer, holding a leather whip, approached Jiang Mengxuan and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, Zhao Ang has fainted."

"Wake him up with water, then continue the torture."

Jiang Mengxuan replied calmly without looking up.

"As ordered!"

The jailer obeyed and returned to the small dark room.

The sound of cold water splashing onto the body rang out, followed by another piercing wail.

Jiang Mengxuan remained unmoved by this, continuing to peruse the reports line by line.

She never showed mercy to those who spread rumors and slandered Shen Lang, committing the crime of deceiving the emperor.

Not to mention that Shen Lang's position in Jiang Mengxuan's heart is already extremely important.

The key to the prosperity of the State of Chu rested on his shoulders.

What if Shen Lang runs away if we don't give him a satisfactory explanation?

Therefore, regardless of his motives, Zhao Ang, such a despicable person, must be severely punished.