Zhan Lan abruptly stopped in her tracks, turned around holding Little Black, and smiled at Mu Yan, "Does the Seal Keeper have any other matters?"
"Leave what's on you." The man's voice was icy cold, devoid of any emotion.
The two made eye contact, and Little Black whimpered.
Zhan Lan knew what he meant; restraining her heartache, she took out the pouch from her waist, ready to pour out the gold beans inside.
"Throw it here," Mu Yan raised his chin slightly.
Zhan Lan rolled her eyes, This dog official! A scoundrel!
She only took a tiny bit, and the mighty Seal Keeper sees even this?
Zhan Lan threw the pouch over, Mu Yan caught it, and Zhan Lan pitifully hugged the ragged Dugu Yan.
Hugging the injured Little Black trembling in her arms, she indeed looked utterly pitiable.
Bai Chen couldn't bear it and signaled to Mu Yan with his eyes as though saying, "Hey, that's the woman I fancy, be humane!"
Yet Mu Yan remained indifferent and continued to extend his exceedingly handsome hand, adding, "Is there more?"
Zhan Lan innocently said, "No more, Lord Seal Keeper."
After that, she remembered something and handed over the gold beans from Dugu Yan's pocket as well.
Their fingers touched momentarily, and Zhan Lan quickly withdrew her hand, trying to leave.
But she felt a suffocation, her collar grabbed from behind.
"Do I need to personally strip and search you?" Mu Yan's voice came from behind Zhan Lan.
Zhan Lan cursed internally, "Damned man!"
She took out three silver notes from her sleeve and slapped them onto Mu Yan's hand.
Mu Yan's lips curled up slightly, "As expected, extorted it out."
Damned man! Zhan Lan took a deep breath and left without turning back, taking the three children with her.
Zhan Rui didn't understand what happened, still smiling with starry eyes and waved at Mu Yan, "Goodbye, handsome brother!"
Zhan Lan tugged on Zhan Rui's hand; two rows of Iron Armor Guard in Xingtian Department uniforms consciously cleared a path for them.
They left the Huang Mansion.
Zhan Lan sighed, initially thinking about fishing in troubled waters and taking a bit of silver from the corrupt official's house, now left penniless again.
The Li family might feel guilty towards the Zhan Family, reluctantly not using the General Mansion's silver.
Thus, they hardly had any money all year round.
Zhan Lan suddenly felt a pinch in her chest, touched it, and her mood instantly brightened.
How could she forget, she also had a considerable income from the pawnshop today!
Enough to support Dugu Yan and Little Black!
After all, in her previous life, Little Black loyally protected the master, repeatedly safeguarding Zhan Heng and Zhan Rui with strong fighting abilities, its only flaw being its voracious appetite for meat like hers.
However, these silver taels could only temporarily alleviate the present dire straits; without silver to recruit troops and buy horses, how could one easily seek revenge alone!
It seems, she still needs a livelihood that continuously brings in money.
In front of the Huang Mansion's ancestral hall.
"Hey, handsome brother, haha, our Seal Keeper seems a bit different today, huh?" Bai Chen laughed meaningfully.
Mu Yan glanced at him, "Bai Chen, next time I handle a case, don't appear!"
Bai Chen immediately shut his mouth.
A man in blue came forward, his shoes stained with some blood, and bowed before Mu Yan, "Master, the Qingshan Gang has been completely wiped out!"
Mu Yan answered indifferently, "I know, what about Huang Chizhong?"
"According to Lord Seal Keeper, Huang Chizhong was caught trying to escape through an underground passage and is now waiting in the main hall," another Iron Armor Guard said.
"Lead the way!" Mu Yan strode forward, and several followed immediately behind him.
Before long, Mu Yan sat down in the main seat of the Huang family's hall, completely ignoring the frightened Huang Chizhong pleading nonstop.
"Seal Keeper, please spare my life, I can give you all my treasury silver."
Huang Chizhong's head knocked on the mahogany floorboards with a thud.
Mu Yan leaned back in his chair, a wicked smile on his face: "Huang Chizhong, you've got quite the appetite there. Just now this Seal Keeper checked your secret silver vault, which is far greedier than mine!"
"Lord Mu, all that was meant to honor you, this old man here never dared to spend it!" Huang Chizhong was in tears.
Usually, he never skimped on gifting Lord Mu, but now that his misdeeds had come to light, Mu Yan the scoundrel wasn't protecting him!
Compared to treachery, Mu Yan was truly the number one vile schemer in Nanjin!
Listening to Huang Chizhong's complaints about his struggles, Mu Yan fiddled with the pink purse he got from Zhan Lan. On the purse was a mandarin duck?
No, a duck? Or another type of bird?
Mu Yan curled the corners of his lips. Did she embroider this with her spear?
He lazily raised his head and said, "Bring Huang Lian up."
Shortly after, Huang Lian was forced to kneel next to his father, his face bearing a clear red whip mark, as if his face had been split open in the middle.
Mu Yan pinched the purse, noting the aftereffects of Lan's whip were quite strong.
"You and your son have colluded with the Qingshan Gang, committing all sorts of evils - murder, banditry, abducting children, taking bribes for cases... each one is enough for ten deaths." Mu Yan put away the purse, and descended step by step down to the two of them.
The Huang father and son duo, due to Mu Yan's pressing approach, felt the intense pressure and were as quiet as chickens, daring not to retort.
Mu Yan slapped evidence of their crimes onto Huang Chizhong's cheek and coldly said: "You make me seem not so much the villain, which displeases this Seal Keeper!"
"Please, spare me!" Huang Lian regretted profoundly, knocking his head with a thud.
"This Seal Keeper can't stand anyone being more treacherous than me, do you think you deserve to die?" Mu Yan's voice was soft but it terrified the two to near soullessness.
Huang Chizhong thought grimly: it seems today Mu Yan isn't planning to let the Huang Family go!
He stood up trembling with rage and said: "Seal Keeper, my life and death are judged by His Majesty, are you assuming yourself as His Majesty now?"
Huang Chizhong, middle-aged and not tall, stared up at Mu Yan defiantly.
Mu Yan was a head taller than him, looking down at Huang Chizhong's stiff face with icy eyes.
The room went silent, the temperature suddenly dropped, and the Xingtian Department personnel all drew their weapons.
Mu Yan's hand clenched Huang Chizhong's neck, lifting him up.
His wickedly handsome face bore a smile, his voice cold as millennium-old ice, "Who does this Seal Keeper wish to kill? Who dares to stop me!"
"Let's see, who has the power to stop me!"
The entire room fell into a deadly silence, the murderous aura making the Huang father and son think of where they might bury themselves.
Huang Chizhong fluttered his short legs in mid-air, his face completely red, his eyeballs nearly popping out.
He forgot, what kind of person Mu Yan was!
Even the Emperor himself would dare to confront him, and the Emperor could do nothing but let him be!
"Lord Mu, I was wrong, I was wrong..."
Mu Yan set Huang Chizhong down, and a white handkerchief was immediately handed to him.
Mu Yan disdainfully wiped his right hand, tossed the handkerchief away, and drew the sword from an Iron Armor Guard, plunging it into Huang Lian's abdomen.
Huang Lian's eyes widened in disbelief as he watched blood spurt from his belly.
With Huang Lian's scream, Huang Chizhong broke down in tears, "My son!"
He finally realized the terror of Mu Yan, who killed as if slicing through melons, not even blinking an eye.
Only when he witnessed Huang Lian's blood spread across the floor and dying on the spot did Huang Chizhong realize that speaking to Mu Yan in such a manner was simply seeking death.
But why did Mu Yan kill his son first?
Could it be just because of the child abductions!
Huang Chizhong cried his heart out; he had only this legitimate son, and Huang Lian could not have children, so he kidnapped more than a dozen children, using their blood as medicine.
Half a year later, when these children's parents had lost hope of finding them, people from the Qingshan Gang would immediately sell off these children.
Mu Yan coldly watched as Huang Chizhong despondently collapsed to the ground.
He took a small purple flower from his sleeve, bent down and placed it in Huang Lian's staring eyes.