In a chaotic and famine-stricken era, I picked up an empress to be my wife.

Before nightfall.

Zhu Shigui's convoy arrived in Qingyang County once again!

Along the way, he saw many people returning to their homes, and the entire Qingyang County was about to return to its former prosperity.

Zhu Shigui stroked his mustache, his face full of smugness.

Once Qingyang County returns to its former glory, he can seize the credit again, make another fortune, bribe his way up and down the ranks, and get promoted!

"Who goes there!"

The soldiers guarding the city then took their way.

"Where are your dog eyes? Don't you recognize me, Magistrate?" Qian Guangzhi roared arrogantly from his horse.

At this time, the soldiers guarding the city, although dressed in the uniforms of the city's garrison, had been replaced by people from the mass grave.

They had been notified long ago that if Zhu Shigui returned, they should immediately go and inform Shen An!

"Oh, so it's Zhu Shigui. You wait while I go and report!" The soldier's words were laced with disdain.

Qian Guangzhi was furious and was about to lash out.

Zhu Shigui's voice came from inside the sedan chair: "We are the officials of Qingyang County, there is no need to argue with a mere soldier."

"Hmph, see how magnanimous our master is? He'll spare you for now!" Qian Guangzhi said arrogantly.

The news quickly reached Shen An's ears.

At this moment, Shen An and Liao Bing sat together, discussing the future development path of Qingyang County.

Upon hearing that Zhu Shigui had returned, Liao Bing gritted his teeth in hatred: "Damn it, how dare he come back!"

Shen An threw his head back and laughed. He had been worried that Zhu Shigui would escape and never come back, but now that he was back, it suited his wishes perfectly.

"Someone, summon Magistrate Liu!"

Liu Wenyuan arrived quickly. Upon learning that Zhu Shigui had returned, Liu Wenyuan was very excited. He couldn't wait to ask, "Officer Shen, now that Zhu Shigui is back, shouldn't you let me find a chance to wipe out his entire gang?"

"I'm here to tell you this. I'll bring them back to the county office, and you need to kill them all! Afterwards, you can say that you killed them because you hated them for escaping!" Shen An coldly instructed, "I won't give you any help throughout the process; you'll have to find a way to kill them yourself."

"Then can I at least have a crossbow?" Liu Wenyuan asked. "Afterwards, I'll say I stole it, and I promise you won't be implicated in anything."

"That's exactly what I've been waiting for!" Shen An stretched out his hand, and Zhao Long handed the crossbow he carried with him to Liu Wenyuan.

"But we can't just take action as soon as he arrives," Liao Bing suddenly said.

"Why?" Liu Wenyuan asked.

"County Magistrate Liu, have you forgotten? What about when Zhu Shigui forced you to cooperate with Black Dragon Village?" Liao Bing reminded him.

Liu Wenyuan was quite surprised: "How did you find out about this?"

"I heard it from others. Some people praised you as a loyal and righteous man. You formed a grudge with Zhu Shigui because he asked you to cooperate with the Black Dragon Stronghold bandits," Liao Bing replied. "From what I know of Zhu Shigui, he's a man who plans things strategically. The fact that he wants you to cooperate with the Black Dragon Stronghold means that the Black Dragon Stronghold members are also his men. If we only kill them and not the bandits, their power will remain! They will still be our enemies!"

Liu Wenyuan instantly flew into a rage: "That makes sense! How come I didn't think of this connection before? Then let's take them to the county government office, find out where Black Dragon Stronghold is, and then make our move!"

"There's no need to summon him to the county office; we can just take action at the city gate!" Shen Xiaoqi, dressed as a constable, approached. "This constable can do it!"

Previously, Zhang Meng and other constables were killed by Shen An. After entering the city, Shen An arranged for the able-bodied young men from the mass grave in Qingtian Village to become constables.

Shen Xiaoqi thought the constable's uniform and the knife looked cool, so she joined in and has now taken Zhang Meng's place.

"Xiao Qi, no matter what, Zhu Shigui is a local official and one of Li Huaiyi's men. We can't just take action against them in public. Otherwise, if word gets back to Li Huaiyi, it will be very bad for us. We need to continue to develop in a low-key manner!" Shen An explained, then looked up at the city gate and chuckled, "Then let's go and greet Magistrate Zhu."

"Liao Bing, Liu Wenyuan, remember this: as long as there are other people around, I am the head constable. You two are the current leaders of Qingyang County."

"yes!"

Fifteen minutes later.

Liao Bing and Liu Wenyuan led dozens of men to the city gate in a grand procession to welcome Zhu Shigui back.

Seeing this, Qian Guangzhi immediately congratulated Zhu Shigui: "Grandpa, you see, these people are still wary of you!"

"Let's see how things go first," Zhu Shigui said, squinting as he stepped out of the sedan chair.

"We pay our respects to Your Excellency, the County Magistrate!"

Liao Bing and Liu Wenyuan immediately stepped forward and bowed.

"Deputy General Liao, County Magistrate Liu, you have worked hard in this battle against the Western Barbarians. You truly are worthy sons of our Great Liang!"

Zhu Shigui wiped his eyes, looking deeply moved: "Although I have been rescuing people, I am already aware of your heroic deeds. I will definitely report this to the military governor in the future and request that you two be commended!"

It must be said that Zhu Shigui was very good at playing the game of officialdom; with just one sentence, he placed himself in a high position.

He claimed it was someone else's merit, yet he reported it to them, turning his escape into saving someone else's life and exonerating himself with a single sentence!

Shen An felt that he should learn Zhu Shigui's methods, because he might be able to use them in the future.

Liu Wenyuan's acting skills were clearly inferior to Liao Bing's. Upon hearing this, his expression was not very pleasant. Liao Bing, on the other hand, pretended to be excited and said, "Haha, then thank you very much, Magistrate Zhu. I have already ordered the county office to be cleaned and prepared with wine and dishes to welcome you back."

"Vice General Liao, you're too kind. Go back now. I've been missing the county government office while I was rescuing the people."

Zhu Shigui smiled with satisfaction, waved his hand, and his men followed him into the county town.

But he also noticed that the yamen runners had all been replaced.

How can we allow others to control the land where we lie?

As soon as he entered the city gate, he stopped and asked, "Where are Zhang Meng and the others?"

"Reporting to the magistrate, Zhang Meng and the others were not seen when the war started. They probably learned about the war through special channels and fled in advance."

Liao Bing stepped forward and replied, "Later, seeing that the county government had no constables and could not guarantee the flow of people within the county, I and Constable Shen selected a group of good men to fill the gap in constables."

"The constables must be carefully selected and pass through layers of assessment. They will be dismissed tomorrow, and the county will recruit new ones!" Zhu Shigui ordered.

"Okay, I'll have them disperse tomorrow and recruit new people as you wish," Liao Bing said cooperatively.

Zhu Shigui was very satisfied with Liao Bing's reaction. He could tell that these people were wary of his relationship with Li Huaiyi.

This allowed him to once again experience the benefits of having powerful connections, and his guard was noticeably lowered.

Soon, the group arrived at the county government office.

Looking at the place he had lived in for several years, Zhu Shigui felt like a king returning home. Nothing had changed, everything was still there.

This is still Zhu Shigui's territory!

Once inside, he immediately wanted to sit in the chair reserved for the county magistrate.

But before he could sit down, he discovered that Shen An had already sat down.

Before Zhu Shigui could react, Qian Guangzhi pointed at Shen An's nose and began cursing, "You damned bastard, how dare you sit in my chair? You're tired of living, get down right now!"

With a loud bang, the county government gate was slammed shut.

Zhu Shigui was a shrewd strategist, and the moment Shen An sat down, he realized something was wrong.

When the door was closed, Zhu Shigui realized that the situation here was completely different from what they had been told.

These guys might be going to make a move against him!

Zhu Shigui immediately brought up Li Huaiyi: "Regardless of the actual situation here, just remember one thing: daring to oppose me, Zhu Shigui, is tantamount to opposing the military governor Li Huaiyi. He is not only a powerful regional official but also commands a large army; he is not someone you can afford to offend! Open the county government office immediately, and I will pretend this never happened!"

"Grandpa, what do you mean? Are you saying these bastards are going to attack us?" Qian Guangzhi really didn't want to believe it.

"Otherwise, why would they close the door? These people are too arrogant and have no idea what kind of existence they've provoked!" Zhu Shigui said with great momentum.

"Excellent, excellent! As expected of a magistrate who has controlled Qingyang County for several years, you are indeed far superior to a fool like Qian Guangzhi, the registrar!" Shen An stood up and clapped, saying, "But what you said isn't entirely correct; there's one point you've overlooked!"

Zhu Shigui looked Shen An up and down again: "I underestimated you. It seems you are the leader among them."

To rise from a lowly corpse carrier to their leader certainly requires some skill.

However, regarding your point about overlooking something? This county disagrees! Tell me, where exactly was overlooked?

"Your Excellency, how could this good-for-nothing be their leader? What kind of tricks are they up to!" Even now, Qian Guangzhi still couldn't believe that a mere corpse carrier could command the loyalty of Liu Wenyuan and Liao Bing!

He puffed out his beard and glared at Liao Bing and Liu Wenyuan: "Whatever tricks you're playing, you'd better stop now! Otherwise, if word gets back to the military governor, you'll all be dead!"

"Xiao Qi, shut him up!"

Before Shen An could finish speaking, Shen Xiaoqi sprinted forward and knocked Qian Guangzhi to the ground.

Before Qian Guangzhi could utter any threats, Shen Xiaoqi pressed down on his body and began to beat him severely.

Zhu Shigui remained calm. He had powerful backers and the Black Dragon Village as a safety net, so he had no reason to be afraid of the scene before him.

He continued, "Shen An, just say it!"