Chapter 663 - 473: Seize the Land from the Rich and Divide the Fields

Hex Chengpi was also deeply disappointed in his heart.

He had already prepared everything; all he needed was for them to speak the truth.

If they couldn’t even do that for themselves, then what was he working himself to the bone for?

"Since..." Just as Hex Chengpi prepared to say, since no one would come forward, he would let Master Shen go.

An oppressive voice filled with anger suddenly sounded: "Commander, I accuse him. This old guy is not a philanthropist at all; he is a thorough liar, a devil!"

From the crowd, a nondescript middle-aged man stepped forward.

His voice trembled slightly, and he wavered as if he could barely stand.

His face carried an unmistakable tension, clearly indicating that he was indeed very frightened at this moment.

"What nonsense are you spouting? Everyone knows in the surrounding ten miles that our Shen Family is known for our good deeds!"

"Commander, you must not believe the nonsense of this mud-legged peasant. He’s surely holding a grudge against our family and is intentionally retaliating."

As he spoke, Master Shen glared with fierce eyes at the other, as if to devour him whole.

That might have been fine had he not done so; perhaps feeling Master Shen’s malice, the man who dared to step forward suddenly felt no fear.

"Commander, I swear to heaven, every word I say is true, and if I lie, let my whole family die a miserable death!"

Mr. Zhang panicked: "You..."

As soon as he opened his mouth, Hex Chengpi’s cold voice interrupted: "Shut up, or I’ll kill you now."

The sinister scar on Hex Chengpi’s face moved with his words, making him look particularly menacing.

In front of him, even Master Shen dared not make a scene. After all, this person was not like those regular soldiers; he seemed truly capable of murder.

Rebuking Master Shen, Hex Chengpi tried to put on a kindly smile, speaking to the common folk who stood forward: "Do not fear, whatever grievance you have, I will see to it. But the prerequisite is that you must speak the truth."

"Tell me, what is your name, and what grievance do you have?"

"Commander, my name is Zhang Laoshu." He met Master Shen’s venomous gaze without fear and spoke.

"I live in Zhang Family Village, three miles outside the city, with a family of seven and a few acres of barren land. Life is not good, but it’s barely manageable."

As he spoke, Zhang Laoshu’s expression grew more and more agitated: "But two years ago, the Shen Family came to us suddenly, wanting to buy our land."

"Although they gave money, the price was only thirty percent of the market rate. The reason being, they claimed our land was not good farmland, so the price was already quite high."

"Commander..." Zhang Laoshu choked up: "Even if our land is not good, it still feeds our whole family. If we sell the land, how will we live?"

"Naturally, my father refused outright."

"Initially, we thought nothing of it, but not long after, the Shen Family’s thugs came to our door."

"Those people were ruthless cultivators, torturing our family to a fate worse than death, yet no apparent injuries could be found on our bodies."

"My father, mother, elder brother, and sister-in-law didn’t survive that night. If I hadn’t happened to be visiting my wife’s family, I might also have..."

At this point, Teacher Zhang was choking nearly to the point of inability to speak a full sentence.

He wiped away a tear: "I went to report to the authorities, but the officials took the Shen Family’s money and ignored whether we lived or died."

"My relatives’ bodies were left to rot at Yi Manor, with no one to care, so I had no choice but to bury them."

"We didn’t dare return to the village and could only eke out a living in the city. Commander, please, you must give us justice."

Hex Chengpi’s eyes were cold: "Is what he says true or false? This is your last warning; do not lie to me. I will verify what has been said through others."

"If I discover anyone dares to deceive me, I’ll have them torn to pieces."

The chilling aura almost completely weighed upon Master Shen, making him feel breathless.

Even so, Master Shen stubbornly said, "Commander, please see clearly; this is but the baseless claim of a troublemaker, without any evidence."

"Our Shen Family is large and prosperous; how could we kill and rob for just a few acres of poor land? Commander, think about it, it’s utterly unreasonable."

Zhang Laoshu angrily shouted: "Bah! You shameless old thing, who doesn’t know the true nature of you, Shen Gongji?"

"True, our land wasn’t good, but your Shen Family forcibly claimed our land not to farm, but to build a road."

"I still have the land title deeds. Commander, give me some time, I’ll go fetch them now. I still have the deeds, yet the land has already been turned into a road—doesn’t that count as evidence?"

Saying this, Zhang Laoshu prepared to fetch the titles.

Those killer and robber types hadn’t found these. When he realized it, he hid them secretly.

The purpose being, of course, so that one day, he could get his revenge personally.

Zhang Laoshu originally had no hope; even though the Shen Family wasn’t a noble house, they were indeed formidable here in Linjiang City.

At the very least, a regular citizen like him could never shake them easily.

He had never expected the Rebel Army to take Linjiang City and still see to it that the unfortunate commoners get justice.

After some hesitation, Zhang Laoshu decided to take one last risk.

Master Shen was nearly frantic; he couldn’t even recall who Zhang Laoshu was.