Can't a girl be a traitor like Cao Cao?

The prefect pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Good...good...it seems that heaven is helping us."

As he spoke, he glanced sideways at the man with the mustache.

"You know exactly what to do, right?"

"I know that perfectly well."

The prefect nodded, revealing an expression that showed the boy was teachable.

Then, he thought of the highly skilled leader of the Dongting Water Gang.

Since he claims to be invincible with his Blood Spear, and has the assistance of a group of guild leaders...

Presumably... those martial arts figures in the Hui family mansion wouldn't be a match for him either...

-

The next day, after Hui Shi and her party woke up, they went to various places in Xiangshui County to contact the powerful families and clans, under the arrangement of Hui Sanmei, to discuss the matter of fighting against the river gang bandits.

However, for some reason, the response was somewhat unsatisfactory.

Few people responded.

This left the Hui family members somewhat frustrated, as they didn't quite understand why this was the outcome.

But she still reported the news to Hui Sanmei.

Hui Sanmei was also somewhat undecided at this point, but thinking of what Chi Junlin had said before, she felt that the one who tied the knot must untie it.

So he went back to Chi Junlin and told her about the situation.

At this moment, Chi Junlin was teaching Liuli and a few other children swordsmanship in the courtyard, but Wenren Tianxia was not there; he seemed to have gone out on other business.

Hui Sanmei's expression became somewhat strange after she saw Chi Junlin.

Because she suddenly remembered what happened last night.

Previously, after Chi Junlin left, she slept with Hui Zhilan.

Just like when they were young, the two sisters lay on the bed hand in hand, talking for half the night.

However, as they grew older, the couple's energy levels did decline. In the middle of the night, Hui Sanmei was so tired that she fell into a deep sleep.

It was at that moment that she vaguely heard the sound of water splashing beside her, as if it had rained outside.

And in a daze, I saw two pale figures overlapping each other.

It seemed that Hui Zhilan was doing something with someone right next to him again in the middle of the night.

When she groggily woke up, she heard Hui Zhilan's barely suppressed, soft breathing.

Upon seeing that Hui Sanmei had regained consciousness, Hui Zhilan quickly explained that Lin Jun had come to treat her illness.

Hui Sanmei was too tired at that time, so she didn't think much and fell asleep again.

But after waking up in the morning, the more I thought about it, the more something felt off.

Even if you need medical treatment, why do you have to come in the middle of the night?

And what illness are they trying to cure that requires them to make such strange noises?

Chapter 249 Real Suppression or Fake Suppression?

Hui Sanmei was not a novice wife after all, and there were some things that could not be hidden from her.

She did indeed sense that her sister had an unusual relationship with that youthful-looking disciple, Lin Jun.

Could it be true, as I suspect, that my sister has lost interest in men?

And he's in a loving relationship with another woman...?

However, standing in front of Chi Junlin at this moment, Hui Sanmei was too embarrassed to bring up the matter.

After all, Chi Junlin is now the Hui clan's biggest helper.

So he could only suppress his curiosity and, with a hint of surprise, tell Chi Junlin about the other clans in Xiangshui County who were unwilling to help fight the river bandits.

Chi Junlin seemed to have expected this, nodded, and replied, "I understand."

Hui Ziheng, who had come with Hui Sanmei, frowned and said with some dissatisfaction, "The matter of clearing out the Water Gang is clearly beneficial to them, but now they insist on staying out of it and refusing to help. I really don't know what they're thinking."

Which of their families hasn't been killed by river bandits? Do they feel happy just seeing the bandits' power?

Upon hearing this, Chi Junlin laughed and said, "To be honest, we are the only ones who have a grudge against the Water Gang right now. And with no government intervention, who knows if the bandit suppression operation will even be successful?"

Before the situation became clear, they were also afraid that rashly forming an alliance with us might provoke retaliation from the river bandits.

Choosing to remain on the sidelines now is only natural.

Hui Sanmei saw that Chi Junlin was calm and collected, seemingly having a plan in mind, but she was slightly doubtful.

He then asked, "Miss Lin Jun, do you already have a plan?"

Chi Junlin nodded and said, "It's not difficult to get the other clans to settle their minds and form an alliance with us now. We just need to make it a done deal."

Hui Ziheng then asked curiously, "What do you mean by 'final outcome'?"

Chi Junlin replied, "Leaving no other options but bandit suppression, isn't that the final decision?"

Hui Ziheng was still somewhat confused and didn't quite understand.

Hui Sanmei, however, had already grasped the meaning of Chi Junlin's intention.

So he asked, "What would Miss Lin Jun like us to do next?"

Chi Junlin thought for a moment and said, "Let's hold a banquet. Invite the leaders of the various clans in Dongting to come."

The imperial court announced that it would inform the clans of Xiangshui County about the efforts to quell the floods in Dongting Lake and invited them to a banquet to discuss how to suppress the bandits.

Hui Ziheng was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "In the name of the imperial court? What if the local officials don't agree?"

Chi Junlin glanced at him and then smiled, “Then send an invitation to the county officials as well.”

"Just say that the Xiangshui clan wants to discuss the suppression of bandits in Dongting Lake and will host a banquet for the court officials. Wouldn't that suffice?"

Hui Ziheng was stunned upon hearing this.

Then he touched his head.

"Can this still happen?"

-

Later today.

Xiangshui County, Hongyan Tower.

As the county with the largest ferry crossing on the shore of Dongting Lake, Hongyanlou in Xiangshui County has always been regarded as a top-class restaurant for entertaining high-ranking officials and dignitaries.

Relying on the abundant resources of the South and the fertile land of Dongting Lake, the restaurant offers a variety of delicious and colorful dishes, which are highly praised by merchants from all over the country.

Setting up a high-class banquet here would cost at least tens or hundreds of taels of silver.

If there are more guests and the dishes are more upscale, a single meal could cost a wealthy family a year's worth of income.

However, at this moment, the guests sitting in the banquet hall on the top floor of the restaurant did not pay any attention to the exquisite dishes in front of them.

At this moment, those sitting in the banquet hall, apart from the Hui family, were naturally representatives of various clans and powerful families from Xiangshui County.

However, at this time, several seats at the main banquet were still empty.

Having been at the banquet hall for so long, he still hadn't arrived, leaving everyone waiting.

Such a grand procession naturally belonged to the imperial officials stationed in the prefecture.

The county officials had not yet arrived, and the Xiangshui clans were already somewhat anxious.

In their view, Hui must have made contact with a high-ranking official in the prefecture, otherwise he would not have invited them to discuss the matter of suppressing bandits in the name of the imperial court.

Before the county magistrate arrived, the group discussed the matter for a while. Then, an elderly man dressed as a wealthy man took the lead and asked Hui Shi and her party, "Second Master, please tell us the truth."

Was this bandit suppression operation a genuine effort or just a pretense?

Sitting on the side of the Hui family, the people at the head of the table were naturally Second Master Hui and Third Sister Hui.

However, besides these two Hui clan leaders familiar to the people of Xiangshui County, there was also a spirited woman dressed as a swordsman in red sitting to the side.

The questions asked by the Xiangshui clan were difficult for Master Hui and Sister Hui to answer, because it was Chi Junlin who suggested that the Hui family host the banquet.

So the two of them turned to look at Chi Junlin.

Upon hearing this, Chi Junlin smiled and retorted to the old man, "What if it's a real attack? What if it's a feigned attack?"

The members of the clan were all stunned upon hearing this.

Although they were not very familiar with this woman in red, since she was now sitting next to Hui Sanmei and occupying the main seat, she must be on Hui's side.

So the old man patiently explained, "If it's a true suppression, then naturally all the clans will contribute money and manpower, with each household sending out able-bodied men. Then the prefectural government will step in, offering generous rewards to gather fishermen and commoners to formally carry out the bandit suppression on Dongting Lake. However..."

Seeing the old man's troubled expression, Chi Junlin countered with, "But what?"

Then another middle-aged man continued, "However, in all the years of bandit suppression, we have never achieved anything. On the contrary, once the bandit suppression efforts have passed, those river bandits will make a comeback and carry out cruel revenge on Xiangshui County."

Therefore, when we heard that the Hui family was really going to fight those river bandits to the death this time, we also had our doubts.

After all, we'll all be making a living on the waterways in the future. If we really offend that water gang this time, we still have wives, children, and elderly parents at home...

As the middle-aged man spoke, he also looked ashamed and dared not look directly at Hui Shi and his group.

The others nodded in agreement, all feeling that the task of suppressing bandits was a hot potato and daring not to get involved.

Hearing their behavior, the Hui family members looked rather embarrassed.

After all, they have indeed broken ties with the Water Gang, but the other clans of Xiangshui County, who are closely connected by water, are forced to watch the Hui clan perish.

How can this not be disheartening?

Hui Ziheng had the worst temper and was about to question them immediately.

But then Chi Junlin waved his hand and asked in a gentle tone, "Since everyone is unwilling to truly suppress us, what about a feigned suppression?"

Upon hearing this, the old man continued, "This fake suppression... naturally means that each of our major clans contributes money to create the momentum of suppressing bandits."

Then, they made an agreement with the river bandits. After gathering their forces, they would beat a gong and shout a signal, handing over the money for suppressing the bandits as a tribute to buy peace. This would prevent them from causing trouble for merchant ships entering and leaving Xiangshui County.

It's like warding off disaster and misfortune...

Upon hearing the old man's answer, Chi Junlin couldn't help but laugh.

He then nodded repeatedly, saying, "This is a good idea. It buys peace with money. No one has to die."

It seems that everyone is thinking the same thing right now, isn't it?

Chapter 250 My Revenue Sharing with the Water Gang (30/70)

All those present were prominent figures in Xiangshui County; how could they not hear the sarcasm in Chi Junlin's words?

They all blushed and dared not meet the eyes of the Hui clan members.

Chi Junlin showed no change in expression, but continued to ask, "The person who came up with this method must be a talented individual."

Was this idea from people from Xiangshui County? Who initially proposed it?

Upon hearing Chi Junlin's question, the old man explained, "This matter was proposed by Lord Mao Qingyan, the Prefect of Xiangshui County. He has served as the Prefect of Xiangshui County for more than ten years, so it is no exaggeration to say that he is a native of Xiangshui County."

Previously, he had been the one to arrange contact with the members of the Water Gang. With his help over the years, the Water Gang had not carried out large-scale attacks on fishermen and merchant ships for many years.

The Prefectural Magistrate is indeed a good official who brings benefits to the region…

"Yeah yeah……"

The clan members nodded repeatedly, seemingly agreeing with the old man's words.

Upon hearing their words, Chi Junlin seemed to understand something and nodded with a smile.

At this moment, seeing the solemn expressions on the faces of the Hui clan members, the old man comforted them, saying, "You can rest assured, the Hui clan and our Xiangshui clan have been through thick and thin together for many years. We will not turn a blind eye to the Hui clan's misfortune."

If this conflict between Wyeth and the Water Gang can be resolved with money—

Even if the Hui family's wealth is insufficient, we are willing to contribute our own funds!

"Yeah yeah……"

"No interest..."

How could Hui Ziheng possibly hold back when he heard these spineless cowards say such things?

He immediately put on a gloomy expression and sneered, "There's no need to go to such trouble. My Hui family is simply going to spend all our wealth to fight those river bandits to the death."