Chapter 114 - 98: Accelerating the Demise of the Li Family

Chapter 114: Chapter 98: Accelerating the Demise of the Li Family

This was an outcome that the Li and Liu Families could never have anticipated, no matter how many times they ran through their predictions.

Before this, no matter how they schemed or how many times they re-evaluated the situation, they could never have predicted such a turn of events.

In a single night, not only was the Water Monkey that had plagued the Canglan River for years vanquished, but the other two dreaded Great Demons lurking in the river’s depths were also eradicated.

When the news arrived, Li Chongshan was in his study, deep in thought over a map.

The tip of his brush froze, and the dark ink bled across the paper, creating an ominous stain.

As for Liu Zhenyue, he had just picked up a game piece when the secret report was delivered.

His fingers trembled, and the white jade piece fell with a soft CLACK, scattering the carefully arranged stones across the board.

Both the Li and Liu Families understood what this meant.

The Lu Family was using the most direct and brutal method to declare to all the powers along the Canglan River that these waters had a new master.

A swift and decisive strike, leaving no room for negotiation.

It gave these old, established powers no time to maneuver.

What would happen next was all but predictable.

Either they could cling to the corpse of the old order and sink to the bottom of the river with it, or they could turn and pledge their allegiance to the new master. Everyone had to make a choice.

And choices always came at a price, requiring a pledge of fealty of sufficient weight.

And what would this pledge be?

Naturally, it would mean turning their blades against their former allies—against the Li and Liu Families.

And stabbing them viciously in the back.

Li Chongshan and Liu Zhenyue could picture the coming scene with their eyes closed.

The Lu Family would completely lock down the Canglan River, severing the trade routes of Lou Mountain and Xiao Mountain Counties.

The merchants and their backers who depended on the waterway for their livelihood would inevitably cry out in protest.

Public resentment was like a pile of dry kindling, just waiting for a spark.

When that time came, everyone would want to kick them while they were down and claim a piece of the pie.

How long the Li and Liu Families could last would depend entirely on the depth of their resources and how much blood they could afford to shed.

When Li Chongshan had first resolved to push Lu Jing’an into the position of Director of the Water Patrol Bureau, had he ever imagined it would come to this?

If he had known this move would trigger such a backlash, one that would destroy his family’s century-old foundation, he would have rather had the Li Family take the position themselves.

But alas, there were no "what ifs" in life.

「Lou Mountain County. The Liu Family’s ancestral home.」

Inside the drawing room, Liu Zhenyue could no longer maintain his composure. He lost the unshakable calm befitting the Patriarch of a century-old Noble Family—the kind of man who wouldn’t flinch if a mountain collapsed before him.

Veins pulsed on his forehead as he violently swung his arm.

He swept the priceless, polychrome tea set from the Huanghuali wood table!

CRASH!

The sharp sound was deafening.

Shards of fine porcelain and fragrant tea littered the floor. In the light filtering through the carved window lattice, the luster of the glaze instantly faded, just like the light rapidly dying in his eyes.

It was a reflection of his family’s all-but-certain, shattered fate.

「Yin Mountain Pier. 11:00 AM.」

The sky was clear, and a breeze was blowing.

The Water Monkey, limbless and listless, was pushed to the center of a wooden platform in an open space on the pier, imprisoned in an iron cage.

As the harsh midday sun beat down on the creature, which had long dwelled in the river’s murky depths, it immediately let out a pained, guttural growl, thrashing its mangled torso wildly.

It slammed against the iron bars, making the cage rattle and CLANG.

The onlookers, intimidated by its hideous appearance and mouth full of jagged teeth, gasped and fell back half a step like a receding tide.

But once they were certain the cage, forged from solid iron, was secure and that the Demon Beast could not escape, their fear was quickly replaced by a simmering mix of curiosity and hatred.

The sound of pointing and murmuring was interspersed with the sobs of those who had lost loved ones and the curses they had suppressed for years.

The reporters, who had been waiting for some time, were not about to miss a spectacle like this.

Flashbulbs erupted in blinding bursts of white light, and the CLICK-CLACK of camera shutters was as dense as falling rain.

Even with the high cost of film, they wished they could capture every single moment.

The sight of a live Demon Beast captured and put on public display was likely a once-in-a-lifetime event.

"Director Lu has arrived—!"

The clear announcement cut through the clamor of the crowd.

All eyes turned toward the source of the voice.

A contingent of Water Patrol officers in crisp, dark-blue uniforms and polished military boots cleared a path.

Through the opening, a tall, imposing figure approached with a calm, unhurried gait.

It was none other than Lu Jing’an.

His uniform today was impeccably pressed, and the handsome features beneath the brim of his cap were almost piercingly sharp.

Sunlight glinted off the insignia on his epaulets and collar, reflecting a cold, hard light.

The crowd parted automatically wherever he passed.

Soon, cries of "Lord of Heaven!" and "Lu Qingtian!" rose and fell in waves, a roar that surpassed the crashing of the river.

The reporters’ lenses instantly swiveled, focusing on the new director—a man who, despite his extreme youth, had already stirred up a storm on the Canglan River.

Lu Jing’an remained calm, taking the seat of honor on the platform with the straight, unyielding posture of a pine tree.

The deputy director of the Water Patrol Bureau then stepped forward and unfurled a neatly written manuscript. On behalf of the director, he began his announcement to the public and the media.

The speech had been penned by the bureau’s finest wordsmith and polished under the guidance of Secretary Hu.

Its prose was naturally forceful and its logic clear.

It began by enumerating the bloody debts accumulated by the three Great Demons over the years: how they had plagued the river, devoured people, destroyed ships, and brought ceaseless turmoil to both banks.

It vehemently condemned the recent tragedy at the Lou Mountain County pier, each word heavy with sorrow.

This stirred a wave of sorrowful and indignant sobs from the crowd.

Then, the tone shifted to lavish praise on Director Lu Jing’an for accepting his post in a time of crisis.

With the stalwart support of Secretary Hu and the life-and-death efforts of the entire Water Patrol Bureau, he had first purged the Water Bandits, then devised an ingenious strategy to lay Water Mines.

In the end, he had annihilated all three Great Demons in one fell swoop, even capturing the main culprit, the Water Monkey, alive.

Thus far, the proceedings had gone exactly as everyone expected.

However, the deputy director’s voice suddenly rose, his tone turning sharp.

"However, while Director Lu and the rest of us were on the front lines, risking life and limb to rid the people of this menace!

"...there were those who, to satisfy their own selfish desires."