Chapter 48: Fight Our Way In

Wang Shanxiu looked at Huang Hai with a half-smile.

"Huang Hai, are you really planning to fight him to the very end?"

"Hmph! What? Could it be that you, Young Master Wang, are so willing to hand over the territory in your hands?" Huang Hai sneered.

Lu Feng flicked the folding fan in his hand and said, "Huang Hai is right. None of us have ever met that son of the Grand Preceptor. Besides, when His Majesty selected personnel back then, he never mentioned that someone else would be sent later."

"Now that this Jiang Li has suddenly popped up, I simply cannot trust him."

"Exactly!" Huang Hai sneered. "Regardless of whether his true identity is Jiang Li, even if it really is him, should the three of us combined be afraid of the Grand Preceptor's Estate?"

"Furthermore, the moment I received the news, I sent men to contact the people from the Zhang family who were on the city walls that day."

"They actually said that Jiang Li brought fewer than ten people with him. Don't you find that suspicious? Jiang Tian wields thirty thousand troops in the palm of his hand!"

"Now that his son has come here, even if he had brought a force of ten thousand, I wouldn't have doubted it in the least, but he actually brought fewer than ten people. Do you seriously believe him?"

Wang Shan nodded heavily. "Indeed, what Huang Hai says makes sense. This fellow's origins are unknown. We must not let matters rest tomorrow. At the very least, we must hold the inner city!"

"Right, the inner city must never be lost!" Lu Feng said decisively.

"As for those good-for-nothings in the outer city, let them be. But no one is stepping foot into the inner city!" Huang Hai's expression turned icy as he stood up and strode away.

Lu Feng also rose to his feet. "Wang Shan, farewell."

"The attitude of the Lu family is crystal clear. Meat that has already reached my mouth will never be spat out."

With those words, Lu Feng turned and left.

Wang Shan remained seated in his chair. After a long while, he finally stood up.

"Interesting. Let's see just how much weight this Jiang Li actually carries."

——

Meanwhile, outside the city gates, amid a patch of tall weeds, a pitch-black native peered stealthily toward the distant city before turning and running off.

A short while later, in a nearby forest, Wild Bull slammed his fist violently against a tree trunk.

"Damn it! To think he still managed to get away."

"Chieftain, let's head back. They've surely entered the city by now, there's nothing more we can do."

Wild Bull narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the distant fortress, his emotions exceptionally complex. Because of that bastard Jiang Li, his tribe had been burned to ashes, and to top it all off, he hadn't even managed to capture Qin Lang.

Crucially, he still hadn't obtained the Flower of Paradise that he valued above all else.

Not even the phrase "losing the army and suffering a setback" could begin to describe this. It was an astronomical loss, enough to bankrupt one's ancestors ten times over.

A swarthy native looked on anxiously.

"Who says there's nothing we can do?" Wild Bull turned around and let out a cold snort.

"Don't you forget, that massive fire was, more likely than not, the handiwork of Jiang Li. And that fire didn't just consume a single tribe of ours."

"I'd love to see how Jiang Li intends to withstand the wrath of a hundred tribes!"

Swish!

Inside a courtyard, Jiang Li, now changed into a set of clean clothes, lazily leaned back in his chair.

"Mad, what's the situation like in the city right now? Fill me in."

Mad immediately set down his teacup. "Brother Jiang, it's simple. Let me give you a brief rundown."

"When this city was founded, it was divided into an inner city and an outer city."

"Right now, the inner city is occupied by Wang Shan of the Wang family—a man of meticulous mind—along with Lu Feng of the Lu family, who is even more insidious and vicious, and Huang Hai of the Huang family. Though this fellow isn't quite as clever as Wang Shan and Lu Feng, his martial prowess is formidable, putting him on par with the other two."

"As for those occupying the outer city, they do exist, but to you, Brother Jiang, they are completely insignificant—mere peons."

"To put it simply, Brother Jiang, you only need to deal with the three individuals I just mentioned: Wang Shan, Lu Feng, and Huang Hai. Once you handle those three, this city will essentially change its surname to yours."

Jiang Li nodded in agreement. Since he had come here, this small city was bound to be conquered.

"Understood, perfectly clear. Aren't they just three little brats? Watch how I handle them tomorrow!"

With that, Jiang Li closed his eyes and began to doze off.

[New habitat located. Mission completed.]

[Mission rewards have been distributed to the storage space. The host may retrieve them at will.]

"What the hell! System, bro, it's been half a day already, your reaction time is way too slow. Are you running on a 2G network?"

"Can't you upgrade to 5G? Even 4G would do! Dragging your feet and handing it over only now—I am seriously speechless. You retarded system are just absolute trash!"

Before Jiang Li could finish cursing inwardly, the system's voice rang out once more.

[System loading complete...]

[As the lord of a city, within your own territory, you are the undisputed boss.]

[New Mission: Severely punish the subordinates who show you disrespect.]

[Mission Deadline: Three days. Exceeding the time limit will be regarded as voluntarily forfeiting the mission.]

[Mission Reward: Hybrid rice (a batch of mother seeds, Grandfather Yuan's edition).]

"Holy crap!" Jiang Li bolted upright.

Ever since binding this idiotic system, this was the very first time it had issued a quest so perfectly suited to his current situation.

Moreover, the mission reward was practically heaven-sent!

Hybrid rice seeds, specifically Grandfather Yuan's version. With this stuff, how many people could be kept from starving?

"Brother Jiang, why are you so excited?" Mad looked at Jiang Li in utter bewilderment.

He had been lying there peacefully, only to suddenly shout "holy crap" and sit straight up. Was the guy seeing ghosts or something?

"Ahem, Brother Mad, don't be startled. I just thought of something happy." With that, Jiang Li lay right back down.

Early the next morning, the well-fed and rested group gathered together.

"Young Master Jiang, is there anything I can help with today?" Zhang Changfen asked ingratiatingly.

If Jiang Li could manage to suppress those three fellows—Wang Shan and the others—today, he would practically become the emperor of this realm. It was only natural to cozy up to him now.

Even in the worst-case scenario where Jiang Li failed to suppress them, he, Zhang Changfen, wouldn't lose anything either.

"Nothing needed at all. Just follow along and watch the show," Jiang Li said with a wave of his hand, leading the group straight out.

The interior space of the city was decent enough, and a quarter of an hour later, they finally reached the inner city.

However, the inner city lacked any bustling shops or peddlers. To put it bluntly, it was an isolated fortress where money didn't circulate very well.

"Tsk, there isn't even a decent tavern or restaurant. The level of development is way too low," Jiang Li muttered, shaking his head.

"Indeed, we really ought to have a few more eateries," Chu Chunqiu said with a wide, naive grin.

Jiang Li slanted a glance at him. "Chu Chunqiu, what do you plan to do once we settle down?"

"Anything is fine, as long as I can eat my fill," Chu Chunqiu replied with an honest smile.

Jiang Li nodded. "Then how about I teach you financial management and shop investment?"

"Probably not a good idea. Sounds awfully difficult," Chu Chunqiu said, scratching his head.

"Then how about I teach you independent entrepreneurship and factory-based wealth creation?" Jiang Li offered another suggestion.

After a moment of thought, Chu Chunqiu shook his head again. "Young Master, I'm afraid I'm not cut out for that."

Jiang Li took a deep breath. "Splendid. You have a saber and a crossbow. Up ahead is the City Lord's Mansion—once we storm it, we won't have to worry about food and drink anymore!"