The Mighty Lord Teng!
Imperial Daughter Ji An had been offended, and she directly ordered for someone to be killed without even blinking, and the one killed was one of the Teng family’s personal troops. The remaining ones that had been knocked to the ground revealed looks of horror. When they looked at Feng Yu Heng once more, it was as though they were facing King Yama. With just a few words, a person’s head fell. Even Prefecture Guard Teng Ping was not this quick to act, right?
Someone that was slightly less injured began to crawl backward while on the ground. Feng Yu Heng did not stop them and said: “Going back to report is also fine. Just tell Teng Ping that the person was killed by this imperial daughter. As for the identity of the dead, don’t impudently refer to yourselves as Ji An Prefecture’s soldiers. You’re just the Teng family’s people. My Ji An Prefecture does not want scum like you. Go and tell your master that this is the result of opposing Da Shun.”
Seeing her agree to let them go, the injured ones acted as though they had been granted a pardon. Regardless of how severely injured they were, they did all that they could to crawl as far away as possible, fearing that they would lose their lives if they crawled slowly.
Feng Yu Heng could not be bothered with paying them any further attention. She just had the people at her side call for the citizens to get up then said in a sharp voice: “There’s no need for everyone to worry. Since ancient times, evil has never triumphed over good. You are Da Shun’s citizens. Da Shun’s court will guarantee you safety within its borders. As for the Teng family, since they refuse to acknowledge themselves as people of Da Shun, they are rebelling. Today, this imperial daughter has made an appearance, which represents the court dispatching troops to suppress them. Even if Ji An Prefecture must be attacked, I will take it down, but the people that left Ji An Prefecture in such a bad condition must pay. Do not worry, a lowly Teng family and a mere thousand troops are not enough for a battle. Since you have lined up, go ahead and get examined. I will be going to the government office.” As she spoke, she turned and said to Li Zhu: “There’s no need for you to come along. Go back and call 20 comrades to stand guard outside Hundred Herb Hall. If there are any people related to the Teng family that come to cause trouble, kill them all!”
She had given the order, and Li Zhu gave a salute before returning to fetch some soldiers. Wang Lin had also brought people to clean up the corpse and the blood. The corpse was taken out of Yu Zhou City and thrown in a ditch in the mountains.
Feng Yu Heng bid farewell to the citizens then quickly went to see Qian Feng Shou.
Word of what had happened in front of Hundred Herb Hall reached Qian Feng Shou’s ears. Faced with this matter relating to the Teng family, this was the first time that he did not feel helpless and afraid. The person was killed by Feng Yu Heng. This made Imperial Daughter Ji An’s intentions clear. She wanted to take back Ji An Prefecture! She wanted to fully use her power to fight with the Teng family to the end! This was the result that the people of Yu Zhou had been waiting for for many generations. This was something that he, Qian Feng Shou, had dreamed of seeing realized.
But he was a bit worried. After all, he was clear on the number of troops that Feng Yu Heng had brought. The Teng family’s personal army numbered around one thousand! That was why Qian Feng Shou’s first words to Feng Yu Heng upon her arrival at the government office was: “Yu Zhou City has 500 soldiers and horses. They will all be given to imperial daughter to use!”
Feng Yu Heng nodded and did not act reserved, saying to Qian Feng Shou: “Bring out the Teng family’s family register. I’ll take a look. Is it here or in Yun Province?”
“Family register?” Qian Feng Shou was stunned then shook his head, “There isn’t. When this lowly official took over the position as Yu Zhou’s prefect, I have never seen one. Apparently, the Teng family’s family register has not been in Da Shun for a few generations. Yun Province does not even have one kept.”
“Oh?” Feng Yu Heng raised an eyebrow, “Then are they not an unregistered household in Da Shun?”
Qian Feng Shou thought for a bit then said: “They shouldn’t be considered one, right? At the very least, they are not one of Da Shun’s unregistered households. I heard that the Teng family established a family registry in Ji An Prefecture long ago. It’s not just their Teng family. All of the people living in Ji An Prefecture were erased from Da Shun’s registers and entered into the one inside the fief. From that moment on, they became Ji An Prefecture’s people. They are not related to Da Shun.”
“Does Da Shun not care about this? Have you never reported it to court? Has Yun Province’s prefect never intervened?” Feng Yu Heng just could not understand, “To become independent with just a few words, could it be that the laws of Da Shun’s courts really are just decorations?”
“Imperial Daughter, please calm your anger.” Qian Feng Shou quickly replied: “There’s nothing that this lowly official could do. Speaking of, it’s a matter from many decades ago. It’s not like this lowly official never inquired with Yun Province’s prefect about this after taking over this position, but the Yun Province’s prefect was truly helpless. He had once said to this lowly official that he had sent a report to the court when he had taken over, but the report was suppressed. Since then, there has been no news. Ever since that time, every report relating to the Teng family, regardless of how many were sent, would disappear like a stone dropped in the ocean. It’s clear that there’s someone protecting them inside the capital. Since we are not officials in the capital, we cannot attend court. Aside from sending reports, there’s nothing else that we could do. Eventually, there was no longer anyone that could do anything about the Teng family.”
Feng Yu Heng frowned upon hearing this. It was very clear that the Teng family had a pillar of support in the capital since the last generation, and that support had quite a great deal of influence. It was such that they could suppress reports. In this generation, it was the eighth prince, but who could it have been for the previous generation? But she had no desire to investigate too hard. Even if she did investigate, it was pointless. Either way, she had already come, thus she could not allow an existence like the Teng family to continue existing. It would be best if she, Feng Yu Heng, reclaimed her territory a bit quicker.
“Bring along the soldiers guarding the city and immediately begin closing up all of the Teng family’s businesses!” She put on a cold expression and gave the order to Qian Feng Shou, “If there is anyone that obstructs you, kill them all.”
It was once again the order to kill, and this caused Qian Feng Shou to tremble with fear. He felt that the young girl before him was exuding a force that could not be ignored. Even from five paces away, he could feel the awe of this force. But he was still a bit hesitant. Seal up all of the Teng family’s businesses! The Teng family had more than just one or two businesses in Yu Zhou. He had calculated it once before, and there were more than 18. The people even called them the 18 levels of the underworld in secret. Even as the prefect, he would go out of his way to take routes that would avoid those shops. Now, however, he needed to lead people to seal them up. Why did he still feel a bit worried?
Feng Yu Heng could see what Qian Feng Shou felt and could not help but shake her head, “Lord Qian, Deputy General Qian Li has never been as hesitant as you are. If there is even the slightest bit of fear toward the enemy, there is no other outcome on the battlefield aside from death.”
Qian Feng Shou trembled then remembered that his son had once sent a letter that said Imperial Daughter Ji An, Feng Yu Heng, was not a normal girl. With expert martial abilities, even His Highness the ninth prince had no choice but to admire her. Not the slightest bit of pettiness that was usually found with young girls could be seen with her. This girl was one of the most magnanimous people out there. With strange abilities, the archery skills and formations came from her. On the battlefield, she was like a man that charged into battle. Standing at the ninth prince’s side, she was a perfect match.
Qian Feng Shou gritted his teeth and no longer hesitated, saying: “This lowly official has received the order.” Without any delay, he set out to retrieve his troops.
As for the soldiers that had been seriously injured, when Feng Yu Heng’s group had left, they sought out their comrades that were inside Yu Zhou City. They were carried back, and they complained about their leader having his head cut off. Through gnashed teeth, they wanted to report to Prefecture Guard Teng to have him support them and get revenge.
However, who knew that the current prefecture guard’s manor was presently a mess. How could he possibly care about these matters?
Starting from the previous night until the evening, Teng Ping had been enjoying himself in that small courtyard without ever coming out. he had clearly only called for two of his favored men, but for some reason, all of the men and concubines in the manor gathered in that courtyard. The servants wanted to stop them, but it was as though the two men in the room had gone crazy. They expressed an extremely warm welcome to those that came.
Seeing as Teng Ping had done such a thing in the past, calling seven or eight people at once, the servants believed that he had become excited this time and was preparing to go even further, thus they did not stop them. They knew about their master’s hobbies, and they understood that if they stopped them now, it was possible that they could lose their heads. Thus all of the men and concubines were let inside. The sounds of pleasure coming from inside the room were relentless, and they were such that even the old woman in the manor could hear them.
The servants were secretly envious; however, who knew that they did not stop for all night or during the day. It was only in the afternoon that some concubines crawled out of the room without any concern for appearances and begged for help. The servants saw that blood was flowing from the women’s lower regions and knew that something had happened. They quickly went to the front yard to call the doctor that had been kept in the manor.
However, who knew that with the three doctors coming, they would go in and desperately run back out a short while later. One has lost their clothing, one had lost their pants, and the other could not escape. Not long later, the screams of that doctor could be heard coming from inside along with the sound of Teng Ping’s wicked laughter.
The faces of the two doctors that had escaped turned pale, as they quickly informed the housekeeper of the Teng manor: “Quickly! Quickly call someone that can make a decision! Who knows what happened with Lord Teng. If this continues, he will pass away! Quickly! Not a single moment can be wasted!”
The housekeeper turned around and ran off, thinking to himself, who could he go and call? Would he call for the old woman or the madam? Thinking a bit, the old woman was too old, and her own body was about to fall apart. How could she possibly handle this sort of shock. What if she came and ended up like the doctor that could not get away…? He shook his head and did not dare to continue down that line of thought; however, he began to wonder why his master had suddenly become like this. Could it be that the medicine produced by those doctors was too strong, and he could not tolerate it? Looking at it like this, even if this could be suppressed, those favored men and concubines could no longer be kept. They would need to be kicked out, and a new batch would need to be brought in.
While thinking about this, he headed toward Madam Teng’s side. When he reached the front of the courtyard, he saw a group of maidservants and grannies standing in the yard. Only then did he urgently say: “Quickly! Bring me to see the madam. There’s an urgent matter to report!” While he spoke, he began to rush inside. At this time, it was time for dinner. He was the housekeeper, and he would often come to the madam’s side to report about the situation in the manor. Since he had a few encounters with the head madam that could not be mentioned, he did not think anything about it.
He thought that he would give the servants a shout from the outside then go in; however, who knew that a group of maidservants and grannies would block the entrance. No matter what was said, he would not be allowed a single step inside…