Chapter 68 - 48: Can Save, Can Kill
「Guangping County Town, Inspection Bureau.」
"Director, there’s been no word from Lord Ma for two days. I’m afraid something has happened to him."
The iron ball in the hand of Shi Guanyun, Director of the Guangping County Inspection Bureau, who was seated at the head of the room, instantly shattered into dust. "Where has Ma Xingjian been these past few days?"
"Director, Ma Xingjian was following the list you provided, secretly assassinating the young Martial Artists of those neutral factions to frame the Four Seas Gang. But as for who exactly he was targeting, Lord Ma never disclosed the details."
The subordinate kept his head bowed, a troubled expression on his face.
Shi Guanyun’s expression was grim. Ma Xingjian was arrogant and difficult to manage, but he currently had no better candidates.
The idea to assassinate the young Martial Artists of the neutral factions and frame the Four Seas Gang had come to him after the fall of the Wang Family.
A few days ago, the uncle and nephew of the Wang Family were killed. The investigation revealed that the culprit was a Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist.
Normally, he would have had his men conduct a thorough investigation to find this Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist. But with the Four Seas Gang becoming so aggressive, the Inspection Bureau simply didn’t have the energy to deal with personal feuds between Martial Artists.
Searching for the killer would be tantamount to pushing this Third-Time Skin Smoothing perpetrator into the arms of the Four Seas Gang.
Therefore, he ordered his subordinate to stage the scene and pin the murder on the Four Seas Gang.
The pretext was that the Wang Family had refused to join the Four Seas Gang, and in their displeasure, the gang had sent someone to annihilate the entire family.
This way, at the very least, those who were still wavering, those who didn’t want to take a side, and those who wished to remain independent would, for the safety of their own families, choose to join the Inspection Bureau.
The results of this maneuver were better than he had imagined. Once the news spread that the Wang Family had been destroyed by the Four Seas Gang, several families that had been planning not to take sides chose to join the Inspection Bureau.
Having tasted sweet success, Shi Guanyun wanted to replicate this method.
Since that Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist wasn’t going to strike again, he would arrange for a different one to do so.
However, the matter had to be kept secret. If it were ever leaked, the repercussions for the Inspection Bureau would be endless.
For this reason, he had personally traveled to another county to recruit Ma Xingjian. Within the entire Inspection Bureau, only he and a few trusted subordinates knew Ma Xingjian’s true identity.
Ma Xingjian was supposed to contact his confidant every three days to report his activities.
Yet, it was now the fourth day, and Ma Xingjian still hadn’t shown up. Moreover, no young Martial Artists had been assassinated in the past three days. It seemed Ma Xingjian was indeed most likely dead.
"Keep a close watch on Ma Xingjian’s family."
Shi Guanyun ordered coldly. He had considered the possibility of Ma Xingjian failing and had taken control of his family for that very reason. As long as they held his family, Ma Xingjian wouldn’t dare reveal the truth, even if he fell into enemy hands.
And if worse came to worst, even if Ma Xingjian did tell the truth, he could just turn the tables and claim that Ma Xingjian was a member of the Four Seas Gang, intentionally framing the Inspection Bureau.
...
「Sanshan County.」
As he entered the basin at the junction of the three mountains and stepped into the territory of Sanshan County, Lin Yan immediately noticed the difference between the people here and those in Guangping County.
Even the common folk were tall and sturdy, and hunters with quivers on their backs were a common sight.
The Tang Family also had an apothecary in Sanshan County Town, but Lin Yan was headed for the mountainous region in Sanshan County where the Tang Family grew their medicinal herbs.
When he arrived at the mountainous area belonging to the Tang Family, he saw a row of wooden houses at the foot of the mountains. Deeper in, past the houses, were several courtyard compounds.
The Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist from the Tang Family who had been in charge here was a middle-aged man. He was very pleased to see Lin Yan arrive. "I’ve been guarding Sanshan County for ten years and have been begging the Boss to transfer me back, but he never agreed. Now that you’re here, Brother Lin, I can finally go back and get some proper rest."
Lin Yan just smiled. ’I don’t know if he’s telling the truth or not.’
’Back when I was guarding Qingtian Town, there was a certain understanding between the guards and the herb farmers. And here in Sanshan County, they’re growing even more precious medicinal herbs. I refuse to believe there isn’t any profit to be skimmed.’
"The Boss said that you, Brother Zhang, have been in Sanshan County for ten years and have truly rendered meritorious service through hard work. I’m new here, so I’ll follow all of your original arrangements."
As soon as Lin Yan said this, the smile on Zhang Xin’s face grew even wider.
’He had guarded Sanshan County, and the illicit profits were naturally substantial. What he feared was that the Boss didn’t trust him and had sent a replacement to audit the old accounts. Furthermore, most of the other Martial Artists responsible for guarding this place were his men. If Lin Yan decided to make any changes, their lives would likely become difficult.’
Now, with Lin Yan’s declaration, he could finally relax.
"Brother Lin, you must be weary from your journey. Please, go and bathe first. Tonight, I will host a welcome banquet for you and introduce you to the other Martial Artists who guard this place."
Lin Yan naturally agreed. But no sooner had Lin Yan left through the front door than several figures slipped in through the back.
"Lord Zhang, how did it go?"
"This man doesn’t seem to be here to audit the books for the Boss."
Zhang Xin took a sip of hot tea. Only then did the men who had just entered let out a sigh of relief.
"But don’t think you can bully him just because he’s young. Anyone who can reach the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing at his age is no fool. The proper ’tributes’ must not be forgotten."
"You speak wisely, My Lord. We would never dare to be disrespectful."
The men exchanged glances. They had already discussed this among themselves: as long as the newcomer wasn’t here to audit the books, not only would they give him the full share they had been giving Lord Zhang, but they would also add an extra ten percent on top.
The reason was simple: this Lord Lin was far too young.
Having reached the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing before the age of twenty, he was surely focused on breaking through to the Fourth-Time of Skin Smoothing. For that, the more silver coins, the better.