287: Chapter 204 Various Reactions (Please Subscribe)_4 287: Chapter 204 Various Reactions (Please Subscribe)_4 Lin Shi even felt a bit awkward about his previous remarks.
Iron Madman, however, laughed and patted Lin Shi on the shoulder, “Old Lin’s goodwill is understood by a brother.
But for now, help me think about how to deal with the Seventeen Linked Wharves.
The situation in West Mountain has already settled.
I intend to gather my brothers immediately and head north, wiping out a few wharves of the Seventeen Linked Wharves and opening several branches upstream while teaching Ren Longshou a lesson on how to behave.”
He looked down at the swirling blood energy on his armor, “I’ve finally gathered so many brothers and pushed this Iron Futing to its limit.
It can’t all be for nothing, can it?”
This time, to prepare for the battle in West Mountain, he once again mobilized his clan, gathering two hundred warships and nearly twenty thousand men.
Iron Madman even risked damaging his Magic Artifact by using over a hundred lives to drive Iron Futing to its strongest state.
But just as he was about to make his move, he received a message from West Mountain.
Wen Family Castle had been taken, and he no longer needed to worry unnecessarily.
Iron Madman did not want his full-strength strike to miss.
He could only shift his target and let the Seventeen Linked Wharves bear the brunt.
Meanwhile, in the West Courtyard of the Xiushui County Office,
Prefecture Governor Zuo Tianlu sat in the pavilion in the courtyard, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief.
Zuo Qingyun had also seen the token his father had received.
His mind at ease, he sat across the stone table, gently waving his folding fan, supremely carefree, “Who was it that said earlier?
They said one should be discerning when choosing allies.
Chu Xisheng won’t last long, his end is here, he surely can’t keep his West Mountain Hall and that canal.
He might even lose his life at Wen Family Castle.”
Prefecture Governor Zuo Tianlu glanced at his son.
He wanted to argue and rebuke, but he was at a loss for words for a long time.
Before the reality, any word he could say would be unstable, only provoking his son’s ridicule.
Zuo Tianlu thought this was simply unbelievable.
He couldn’t understand how Wen Family Castle could lose, how it could be taken in just an instant?
The corners of Zuo Qingyun’s lips curled up, “Right, didn’t you also say that Shangguan Shen Hao and Commander Shen Zhou are elites among men, that Chu Xisheng stood no chance against them, so what now?”
Prefecture Governor Zuo Tianlu still did not utter a word, his face gloomily taking a sip of wine.
The fact was that the Sheen Family’s influence in West Mountain was about to be eradicated by Chu Xisheng.
Seeing Zuo Tianlu’s expression, Zuo Qingyun felt an immense pleasure, thoroughly delighted.
It was the first time he had seen his old father speechless because of him.
“Forget it, I can’t be bothered to talk anymore!” Zuo Qingyun stood up, fanning himself as he walked towards the gate,
Prefecture Governor Zuo Tianlu slightly furrowed his brow, “Boy, where are you going?”
“Of course, to West Mountain Hall to drink and celebrate with Little Chu,”
Zuo Qingyun, without turning back, sneered coldly, “Father dear shouldn’t think now that I’m drawing trouble for the family, should he?”
He swaggered through the grand gate of the West Courtyard, heading towards the stables.
Prefecture Governor Zuo Tianlu watched Zuo Qingyun’s departing figure,
but did not speak to stop him until Zuo Qingyun mounted his horse and galloped away.
He laughed mockingly at himself, gently shaking the wine pot in his hand and then suddenly drank all the wine in it.
This time, he, Zuo Tianlu, really misjudged—
However, it was fortunate that Qingyun could have such friends.
Zuo Tianlu then stood up and walked toward the county government.
In that moment, he swept his sleeves, instantly removing the wine stains and traces from his robe, refreshing his entire demeanor.
Zuo Tianlu’s expression was invigorated, showing no signs of inebriation.
Now that Chu Xisheng had won, he had to fulfill the promises he made to him.
—Even if only for his own wayward son, he also had to help Chu Xisheng clear all the potential official obstructions.
At this time, Chu Xisheng, leading several thousand men, was sweeping through the northwest direction of West Mountain Town.
The battle between West Mountain Hall and Wen Family Castle was not only about this year’s taxes and involved the canal but also determined the rise and fall of forces in the West Mountain region, affecting everyone.
All the local tyrants and major households in West Mountain could not help but pay close attention to this battle.
When Wen Family Castle fell and the West Mountain County Army dispersed, Yunhe Manor was trampled, and the Northern Town Dan Family was forced to surrender.
These news spread across all of West Mountain in a very short time.
This caused those local tyrants who had conspired with Wen Tiance and others planning to jointly resist taxes to tremble with fear and be filled with terror.
Therefore, when the knights of West Mountain Hall arrived, conveying Chu Xisheng’s commands, almost all the local tyrants immediately mobilized their house soldiers and joined the main forces of West Mountain Hall without hesitation.
Some of the major households on the southeastern side didn’t even wait for the knights of West Mountain Hall to arrive before they voluntarily raised troops.
They were all afraid of responding too slowly and angering Chu Xisheng, leading to a catastrophic disaster for their families.
The facts were exactly as they had foreseen.
Along the way, two households that were unwilling to send troops, intending to defiantly hold their ground, were promptly crushed by West Mountain Hall.
These two households were not foolish for not recognizing the situation; they had simply been too deeply involved to turn back.
Even if they surrendered, the two households thought Chu Xisheng would not spare them, so they resolved to resist to the end.
However, their families had already been sent ahead to Xiushui County in an attempt to rely on the Sheen Family and Shangguan Family to rise again in the future.
And just as Chu Xisheng finally saw those West Mountain bandits,
his forces had already swelled to over three thousand seven hundred men.
The house soldiers of these local tyrants were all fairly competent, all possessing Ninth Grade cultivation.