Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 169 Closing the Net
The population of Yueqingli suddenly decreased by 40%, which was definitely a major event that could cost the head of the village.

Le Zheng was extremely confused and trembling as he said, "I guess he fled to another place because of the battle a few days ago."

Cao Qiu sneered, "I've just asked the locals, and there aren't that many people fleeing the war these days."

Le Zheng was sweating profusely, and with a thud he fell to his knees. He said in a trembling voice, "Young Master, it is true that over a hundred people from our village have disappeared last year. I have already reported this to the township governor, but have yet to receive a reply. I also have no idea where these people have gone. I hope Young Master will understand."

Yan Yi's expression turned stern, and he said in a cold voice, "Last year, there was neither war nor epidemic. Could it be that more than a hundred people grew wings and flew away? You, the elders of this village, are still sitting here in such a big situation!"

As soon as these words were spoken, not only Le Zheng was racking his brains, but all the officials in Yicheng Township knelt down, and their fearful eyes glanced at the recently dried bloodstains on the ground from time to time.

The residents around looked at each other in bewilderment. Following the lead of a few people, more than a hundred people knelt on the ground one after another, with sad faces and crying.

"Please, Young Master, make the decision for us!"

"Please, young master, save my wife!"

The cries were mournful and echoed among the houses, making people feel sad.

Yan Yi gestured for a resident in his twenties to stand up and asked, "What's your name?"

The villagers still had tear marks on their faces. They wiped their faces with their sleeves and said, "My Lord, the people are happy and at peace."

Yan Yi nodded slightly and asked, "Just now you said that you wanted me to rescue your wife. Do you know her whereabouts?"

Le Ping subconsciously glanced at Le Zheng and said vaguely, "My wife disappeared last September when she was weaving shoes to sell at the nearby Donghun Pavilion."

"Xiaomin's younger sister also disappeared in Donghunting."

"My elder brother also went to Donghun Pavilion and has not been heard from since."

Twenty or thirty villagers rushed to speak.

Yan Yi looked around and asked, "Is the head of Donghun Pavilion here?"

Seeing no one answer, he turned to Xie Wu, the governor of Yicheng Township, and shouted sternly, "Tell me what's going on! If I hear you say 'I don't know' again, I'll be executed!"

Xie Wu was so frightened that his soul was about to leave his body. He said with a mournful face, "Young Master, it's not that I don't want to speak out. It's really that if I say it, my entire clan might be wiped out."

Yan Yi's expression grew increasingly impatient, and he sneered, "What a disaster that will wipe out our entire family! Drag this man away and execute him!"

Xie Wu hesitated to speak, remaining silent until he was dragged away by two soldiers. Suddenly, he heard a cold voice: "If you know the truth and don't report it, your entire clan will be exiled!"

Xie Wu was startled and struggled desperately, shouting, "Young Master, I am willing to speak, I am willing to speak!"

When he was dragged back to Yan Yi, he seemed to have lost all his strength and slumped to the ground, muttering, "The Zhao family has a manor in Donghunting. Those missing people might have been bought by the Zhao family."

Yan Yi looked at Le Ping and asked, "Did the Zhao family buy your wife?" Le Ping gritted his teeth, a look of determination flashing across his face. He suddenly knelt on the ground and kowtowed to him, saying, "Young Master, I have never seen anyone from the Zhao family, and my wife was definitely not bought by them. In fact, many people here know that the Zhao family has always enjoyed abducting people into slavery, known as 'selling people themselves.' Everyone has long suspected this, but they are afraid of the Zhao family's power and dare not speak out. I dare to say this: Young Master has only just taken over Qiantang, but the Zhao family has been entrenched there for a hundred years. All previous lords have been helpless against the Zhao family. While Young Master is here, the Zhao family may have restrained themselves. If one day Young Master is gone, anyone who dares to provoke the Zhao family will be wiped out!"

Yan Yi's face darkened. What he heard most in the past two days was how powerful the Zhao family was, like a dark cloud covering the sun, enveloping Qiantang.

The secret report submitted by the Procuratorate also bluntly stated that Zhao's "followers and minions are spread all over the village and streets. If they disobey him, they will be whipped at the least and their families will be destroyed at the worst. Zhao Rui himself holds an important position, and most of the Qiantang officials are his followers. The power of the Zhao family is like Mount Tai pressing down on the top of the head, suppressing Qiantang. Even when Zhu Zhi was in power, he was still wary of him."

It was precisely because of this information that Yan Yi was quite cautious in his approach to dealing with Zhao. He first ordered people to collect information about Zhao's followers, and then planned to create public resentment against Zhao during his inspection tour of the village, so as to eliminate Zhao in one fell swoop and minimize the aftermath.

But he never expected that the power of the Zhao family would reach such an appalling level.

The village chief would rather die than report the Zhao family. Even the common people, knowing that their relatives' disappearances were related to the Zhao family, could only pretend to be ignorant and dared not speak out.

In the eyes of the common people, Yan Yi was just a passing visitor, while the Zhao family was the deeply rooted tree. After Yan Yi conquered Qiantang, he did not punish the Zhao family, which gave the people the false impression that the Zhao family would remain standing.

Yan Yi knew that only by destroying the Zhao family could he become the true master of Qiantang.

He helped Le Ping up, his eyes sharp as a knife: "Today I will make the decision for you. Do you dare to kill the Zhao family's people and find your wife?"

Le Ping was shaking with excitement, shouting, "How dare you! I just said those words, disregarding life and death. If I hadn't cared about my mother's safety, I would have gone to fight Zhao to the death. Today, Young Master, please make the decision for me. My life belongs to you!"

"Okay!" Yan Yi patted his shoulder and ordered Fan Yan beside him: "Go to Donghun Pavilion!"

Fan Yan clasped his fists in response and quickly divided his troops into three groups of 300 men each. One group headed straight for Donghun Pavilion, while the other two groups rushed to the other two township pavilions.

At the same time, more than 20 riders rushed to all directions of Qiantang and delivered the military orders that had been prepared long ago.

A net has been laid for the entire Zhao family and is about to be closed.

Quan Rou's heart trembled. Judging from Yan Yi's posture, it was obvious that he had already made a thorough plan. This time, Zhao Shi was afraid that no one would be able to leave Qiantang alive.

He had also made some guesses about how Yan Yi would deal with the Zhao family.

For example, when Qiantang fell, Yan Yi could have used the power of the city to directly eliminate the Zhao family. However, this would have easily left a reputation as a tyrannical and brutal clan.

When he heard that all the passes, important roads and small paths were filled with garrisons and that some people had begun to secretly collect information about Zhao's followers, he thought Yan Yi was about to take action. After returning home, he immediately ordered his clansmen to stay indoors and not cause trouble in the near future.

Unexpectedly, after waiting for two days, Yan Yi still did not take action.

Only then did he realize that this guy didn't want to be tainted by any stigma at all. He actually took the stage himself, wrote and performed a play, intending to use public outrage to destroy the Zhao family in one fell swoop and minimize the negative impact.

The sun shone on his body, bringing warmth. However, Quan Rou felt a chill all over his body. He looked at the murderous soldiers around him and the excited people. The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. In a voice that only he could hear, he murmured, "Zhao's death was not unjust."

(End of this chapter)