From the Dragon and Tiger Cavalry to Hunting Sins and Becoming Saints

Chapter 63 Prediction 2

In Gaoyang County, at the county government office, inside a specially cleaned prison cell.

The county magistrate, who had lost nearly ten pounds compared to two months ago, was leaning against a cushion, reading a book in the sunlight streaming through the window. He watched as 014 was led into his cell by a jailer. Once the jailer was out of sight, he smiled bitterly and said:

"Spare me, sir. I'm just a nobody. I can give you my life if I want, but if I get involved in your infighting and fighting, my whole family will die."

"I'll accept whatever charge you assign me, as long as it doesn't implicate my family. I'll sign and put my fingerprint on it right here."

014 kept his hand close to the small, exquisite hand warmer, a faint smile still on his face. He pulled up a chair, sat down where the sun shone, and said with a beaming smile:

"I know, so the first thing I did upon taking office was to put you in jail. That way, no matter what happens in the future, you can deny knowing you were in jail."

"It's just embezzlement and bribery, and the amount isn't that large. With your track record in Gaoyang County, no one will die; at most, you'll just be dismissed from your post. I'm so understanding, shouldn't you reciprocate and do me a favor?"

The magistrate's haggard face shifted for a moment before he slowly put down the book and said:

"What do you need my help with? The county soldiers and constables have intricate connections with the local powerful families in Gaoyang County. What I know is probably, no, certainly not as clear as what the Dragon Tiger Guards know. If you want to know something, just ask them directly. Why bother asking me?"

"That's why I came to find you—because everyone in the county government has intricate connections with the Qi family."

014 said calmly, "When I was studying at the Abyss Academy, I once heard a saying: 'All the world's hustle and bustle is for profit.' As long as the benefits are sufficient, the transformation between friends and enemies can happen in an instant."

Upon hearing this, the magistrate's mind began to stir. Although he had been imprisoned by 014, the other party had not deprived him of his rights, except that he could not move freely or leave the prison.

His rights are not much different from before.

He was aware of what was happening outside.

Thinking this through, the magistrate paused for a moment: "The transformation between friend and foe can happen in an instant. Are you trying to persuade me to turn Li Hong and Sun Youfu against their cause?"

With the Dragon Tiger Cavalry in hand and the county government completely under their control, aside from routinely reviewing some tedious paperwork, his only remaining value as the local official was dealing with these gentry and powerful families.

"You're half right. I want you to win over Sun Youfu. As for Li Hong, he's not good enough. Well, to be more precise, it's not that he's not good enough, but that he doesn't meet my criteria for winning him over."

"Standard?"

"This is a matter of personal privacy, and I am not at liberty to answer it."

One reason I tried to persuade Sun Youfu to defect was that he was a technically skilled person, and it was not easy to train someone who was familiar with the properties of medicinal herbs and could artificially cultivate precious medicinal herbs in the mountains and forests.

Although I could request manpower from higher authorities after taking over a mature medicinal herb field, the latter is clearly a better option than taking over the Sun family's assets completely unscathed.

Secondly, as the only local gentry whose main force and focus are in the mountains and forests, dealing with demons, turning him to the side would allow the Tiger Cavalry to learn the specific information about the demons' lair in the mountains and forests.

This would allow us to more likely wipe out the demons in one fell swoop, while also effectively reducing our casualties.

Thirdly, based on my review of the records of these local gentry in the Longhu Tiji Archives of Gaoyang County, if my profile based on this information is correct, Sun Youfu is a person with character flaws.

By catering to their preferences, I have a high probability of turning their strategy around.

"Well, based on my understanding of Sun Youfu's interactions, in my impression, he doesn't have the personality flaws you mentioned. Instead, he's a worldly-wise and insightful person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have dragged so many people in the county government into this mess."

The magistrate said with a wry smile.

"That's not something you need to worry about. You just need to agree to be my intermediary. I'll tell you when to meet Sun Youfu, what to say, what conditions to agree to, and what requests to make."

014 said, placing a case file in front of the county magistrate. "This is the original file about your bribery that I took from the Dragon Cavalry Archives. As long as you agree to my conditions and help me for a limited time in the future, it will disappear into thin air."

"My lord, what you're doing seems to be against the rules. The files in the Dragon Tiger Cavalry's archives shouldn't be deleted so easily. Your actions are far more serious than me taking a little money."

"so what?"

014 asked, "If I can submit a satisfactory answer to the superiors, no matter how unconventional I am, they will only praise me for being unorthodox. If I cannot submit a satisfactory answer to the superiors, no matter how well I follow the rules and regulations, I will still receive a comment that I am useless."

A dozen minutes later, the cell door opened, and 014 slowly walked out.

"My lord, what are your orders?"

Fu Que stood upright in the sunlight. Half an hour earlier, he had received orders to wait outside the county jail, as the celestial official wanted to see him.

"Your name is Fu Que?"

"Yes, sir."

"Did you set up the fishermen's mutual aid association?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then there's no problem. There's something I need you to do."

014 looked Fu Que up and down. The young man with the sharp eyebrows in front of him was neither humble nor arrogant, and he was very concise.

Fu Que maintained a respectful attitude, but a dark ripple appeared in his lowered eyes. Even though he had already learned from the others in the Tiger Den that the Heavenly Official, who was to take the martial arts exam, had arrived, this was the first time he had met this person who had taken the entire county to play with.

What else is there to say? Just use True Sight to identify it. But this time, the ever-effective True Sight was met with a closed door. A swirling cloud of golden-red mist completely enveloped the other party, making it impossible to see anything clearly.

"Please speak."

Fu Que concealed his unusual behavior and spoke as calmly as possible.

"Under my orders, last night you recruited into the Fishermen's Mutual Aid Association's gang, attacked the Qi family's important businesses in Gaoyang County, and killed many of their people."

These guys are probably already meeting somewhere, plotting how to deal with me. Before their combined attack comes, while the county soldiers still have some time, I want you to take some men and do a few things.”

014 seemed oblivious to Fu Que's unusual behavior and spoke calmly.

"Please speak."

Fu Que disagreed.

Hey, he thought it was something serious. Now that he has the power of temporary elements, aside from the highest mountains, with his current abilities as a painter, he can do whatever he wants in Gaoyang County.

"First, they collect protection money; second, they vandalize and rob shops; third, they force people to buy and sell."

"what?"

I really like one of Fu Que's lines, huh?