Chapter 1399 - 702: Resentment (Part 2)
"I hope you can keep this matter a secret and spare me. I would be immensely grateful. From now on, no matter what happens, I won’t trouble you again, and I won’t stop these villagers if they want to learn Daoism."
The town mayor pleaded desperately with Lin Beichen to let him go.
Looking at the mayor pleading in front of him, Lin Beichen felt no difficulty in his heart and didn’t wish to escalate the conflict further. He only wanted to fulfill his wish smoothly. Since the mayor had realized his mistake, Lin Beichen intended to be magnanimous this time.
He gazed at the mayor and slowly said, "I can let this matter go and not mention it in public, but I want to see your actual actions."
The mayor, delighted, quickly asked, "What requirements do you have? Just say them, and if I can do it, I will go all out."
Lin Beichen nodded with satisfaction and continued, "Since the mayor is so kind-hearted, when I first came to the town, I saw some pitiable beggars who were really struggling."
"I hope the mayor can do good deeds at home and provide porridge to the villagers so that everyone can witness your kind actions. What does the mayor think?"
Upon hearing this, the mayor’s heart trembled, but he had no choice since Lin Beichen held something against him. He looked at Lin Beichen confidently and replied, "No problem, I’ll start working on it as soon as I get home."
"I will complete it satisfactorily, rest assured."
Seeing that the mayor agreed, Lin Beichen felt quite comforted. True to his word, the mayor began providing porridge to the villagers as per Lin Beichen’s request after returning home.
However, the mayor was extremely displeased with Lin Beichen and now, being forced to provide porridge to the villagers, a seed of hatred was planted in his heart. He wished he could eliminate Lin Beichen at once and let that secret disappear forever.
Days of being held by someone at gunpoint were really hard to endure, leaving the mayor worried at all times. He kept pondering over how to resolve this issue and, after much thought, felt that Lin Beichen’s presence posed a great threat to him.
To relieve himself and no longer feel threatened, the mayor made a daring decision. He planned to find someone to quickly remove Lin Beichen, making him disappear from his sight forever, so he could finally be at ease.
Lin Beichen was utterly unaware of the mayor’s thoughts and did not expect him to be so sinister and malicious, wanting his life.
After the mayor left, Lin Beichen began setting up the Mountain Protection Array for cultivation in the Daoist Temple to ensure its safety. Just after arranging the Mountain Protection Array, the mayor sent people over.
These people were unaware that Lin Beichen had placed a Mountain Protection Array, and when they rushed into the Daoist Temple, they were stopped outside by the array, unable to enter. Let alone assassinating Lin Beichen, the scene before them was shocking to Lin Beichen.
Initially, he didn’t believe the mayor would do such a thing, but the scene before him left him with no choice but to believe. It was only then that Lin Beichen realized the mayor’s sinister and malicious nature, understanding his methods and intentions.
This made Lin Beichen very angry. If not for the Mountain Protection Array blocking them outside, who knows what consequences might have occurred. Zhou Yi was also shocked by the events in front of him, looking at Lin Beichen and asking, "Was all of this done by the town mayor?"
Lin Beichen nodded affirmatively and said, "That’s right, I believe all his previous actions were just an act."
"He wasn’t genuinely remorseful but instead wanted to kill to silence and make sure what he did would never be known."
"That’s just too vicious, isn’t it?" Zhou Yi found it unbelievable.
Lin Beichen displayed a slight contemptuous smile, watching as the mayor’s people returned empty-handed. Since learning about this matter, Lin Beichen was deeply unhappy.
This issue had to be resolved quickly. Lin Beichen initially thought the matter could be settled peacefully, but he didn’t expect the mayor to stir things up again, causing so much trouble. He’s been uneasy about this issue.
He believed that since the mayor didn’t succeed this time, he would try every possible way to target him until he was silenced. This made Lin Beichen extremely angry, and he decided to use this incident to properly punish the mayor.
To let him realize the consequences of his actions and understand that some things are beyond him. Once something is done wrong, one must bear the consequences; otherwise, the matter cannot be settled.
Lin Beichen kept thinking about how to punish the mayor to make him thoroughly understand his mistakes, stop being hypocritical, and resolve the enmity between them, avoiding actions that harm others without benefiting oneself.
Zhou Yi also realized Lin Beichen’s intentions and said no more, for no matter what decision Lin Beichen made, Zhou Yi would support him, being his right-hand man and helping him handle everything well.
They only hoped the Daoist Temple could remain peaceful, providing everyone with a safe and comfortable learning environment, to promote Daoism and let more people know its benefits. This was their shared goal.
The mayor’s conspiracy was uncovered, yet he hadn’t noticed the approaching danger. Instead, he cheerfully held a grand feast at home.
"Hurry up; the feast is about to begin. Make sure everyone’s alert. Don’t make the mayor unhappy." The housekeeper shouted haughtily.
"Yes, housekeeper, right away." replied the servants.
"Keep your eyes open; today is a special day. Stay sharp." The housekeeper stood aside, monitoring the busy people.
The servants bustled back and forth, busy with vigor. The scene was grand, the atmosphere lively.
At this moment, Lin Beichen suddenly recalled the mayor’s previous wrongdoing of abducting local women, and a thought sprouted in his mind: "Use this matter to punish the mayor, make him remember, and stop doing such despicable things."
So, Lin Beichen said to Zhou Yi, "Zhou Yi, go and arrange for the mayor’s abduction incident to be spread around."
"Understood, I’ll deal with it now." Zhou Yi accepted the order and left.
Under Zhou Yi’s arrangements, the matter soon spread widely, and the villagers quickly became aware of it.
"Have you heard? The mayor’s scandal has been exposed."
"Yes, it’s unbelievable. This sanctimonious guy is utterly deranged."
"We can’t let him off, it’s too disgusting." The villagers discussed fervently, the public anger instantly ignited.
They never thought that someone once considered virtuous and respectable would commit such vile acts.
The villagers gathered, completely surrounding the mayor’s house, demanding an explanation from him.
They wanted to see how the mayor would explain this matter and give everyone an account.
Upon hearing this, the mayor was terrified. His scandal had spread to the villagers’ ears, and they wouldn’t let it go easily. He had no idea what methods they would use to deal with him.
In utter helplessness, the mayor only wanted to escape quickly, find a safe place to lie low.
However, his home was surrounded so tightly that not even a fly could escape, let alone him, a living person.
The mayor thought of countless ways to escape but failed repeatedly, making the villagers even angrier.
They came in front of the mayor, loudly questioning, "Why did you do such a thing?"
The mayor was unable to answer, and seeing that the matter was indeed his doing, the villagers’ anger was evident, disregarding years of friendship.
Some villagers even began to manhandle the mayor, wanting him to experience despair.
The mayor, trembling with fear, knelt and begged for mercy, "Please spare me; I promise never to do such heinous things again."
"I will wholeheartedly turn to goodness, atoning for my deeds, and only ask for a way out from you."
The mayor begged piteously, already beaten black and blue by the villagers.
The villagers, looking at the pitiful mayor, questioned loudly, "Now you speak nicely, but when you did these things, didn’t you think there would be today?"
"And didn’t expect this matter to be exposed, and that you’d have such an outcome, right?"
"If not for you using power to cover the sky with one hand, how could we have been fooled so badly by you?"
The villagers couldn’t forgive the mayor, feeling he was deceitful and untrustworthy. Thus, they didn’t believe his promises and didn’t intend to forgive him easily.
They just wanted to vent their anger, and so, the mayor was beaten to death by the villagers in his home.
The mayor lost his life over this, and Lin Beichen felt a bit heavy-hearted. He thought that if he hadn’t spread this matter, maybe the mayor wouldn’t have lost his life.