Luo Lan hummed softly, his gaze dark and heavy.
Ye Shang followed behind him: "This battle won't be easy to fight, General. Do you have any good strategies?"
Luo Lan's expression remained indifferent. He didn't answer, only strode forward without pause.
Once-bustling streets were now chaos and filth, thick with the stench of blood mixed with strange odors, forming an even more peculiar smell. The entire city was shrouded in an inexplicable, unsettling gloom.
From an alley in the distance came clamor—cries for help from men and women, mingled with the frenzied cheers of onlookers.
Beneath the eaves of a tavern ahead lay a child of seven or eight, nothing but skin and bones from hunger. Soon a burly man emerged from the tavern, grabbed the child, and carried him inside.
Through all this, Luo Lan turned a deaf ear. He walked quickly, and soon entered the county office.
Inside, several burly men were already seated.
Each man had one or two young women beside him, and some even had handsome young men attending to them. The once solemn hall was awash with debauchery.
When they saw Luo Lan enter, the men greeted him with lewd grins. "General, you're back!"
"Haha, Secretary Ye is here too. Heh, I got a fresh young boy today. Want to try him?" a bearded man said bluntly.
Another burly man teased, "Right, right. Since Secretary Ye doesn't care for women, maybe he prefers men?"
The bearded man laughed uproariously. "Or maybe Secretary Ye's on the bottom?"
Ye Shang's eyes flashed coldly. He stepped forward and kicked over the table in front of the bearded man. "Who the hell do you think you are, daring to speak of me like that?"
Enraged, the bearded man grabbed the fallen table and swung it at Ye Shang's head.
This newcomer had earned the General's favor from the start, more than those who had followed the General from the beginning—how could anyone swallow that?
Even more infuriating, the guy always acted so aloof: he didn't eat human flesh, didn't toy with women, didn't toy with men. Standing next to him always made them feel like mud, somehow inferior. Why should that be?
And the General indulged him. He wouldn't eat human flesh, so the General saved the city's scarce food for him.
Gasps echoed through the hall.
In the nick of time, with a loud crack, the table was split in two by a large blade.
Ye Shang gripped his sword with both hands, his eyes fierce, and swung toward the bearded man.
The bearded man was startled and grabbed the woman beside him, shoving her forward.
He never expected Ye Shang would dare strike him right in front of the General.
Though they resented Ye Shang, they knew his skill well—none of them could match him. Otherwise, they'd have knocked him down long ago.
Ye Shang shifted his blade from a slash to a thrust.
Blood splattered. The tip of the sword pierced the bearded man's palm, still gripping the woman.
The woman, splashed with a few drops of warm blood, screamed in terror.
"Enough. Just teach him a lesson." Seeing Ye Shang about to strike again, Luo Lan spoke at the right moment.
Ye Shang paused. He pointed his sword at the bearded man and sneered, "Speak recklessly again, and I'll take your dog's life."
Fear and venom flickered in the bearded man's eyes, but he dared not retort.
"Haha, Secretary Ye's swordsmanship is impressive. Everyone, carry on," a pale-faced man said, smoothing things over.
Another man, around twenty, chimed in with a laugh, "That's right, that's right. Let's keep drinking, everyone."
These two were Ji Xin and Li Qian, who had risen up with Luo Lan and enjoyed his deep trust.
The others naturally honored their lead and laughed off the incident.
Servants quickly brought in a new table.
The bearded man's wound was bandaged.
Soon, the atmosphere in the hall revived.
Luo Lan raised his cup, glancing around at everyone. "Qu Shilang has returned to Wuqin. He'll probably lead an attack on our Lin County within a couple of days."
The festive mood faltered. Some looked panicked, others stunned.
But a few stirred with ferocity. "What's there to fear? If General Qu shows up, even better—we'll kill him and make a feast of him!"
Luo Lan smiled. "Then I invite you all to join me in slaughtering them down to the last man, avenging the Han people they've abused and killed."
He knew perfectly well what kind of men he'd taken in, but there was no denying it—some of these brutes were fearless enough to die.
As long as they fought the Manyi barbarians, he didn't care who they were.
As for those who couldn't bring themselves to kill, they were fit only as slaves or—rations.
"Right! What's so great about General Qu? One head, two eyes, same as anyone else. Screw him!"
"Kill, kill, kill—take revenge!" The hall's fervor rose again.
Under the influence of alcohol and incendiary words, their savagery was unleashed.
Among them, many showed signs of stiff facial muscles, even twitching. But living on the edge of life and death every day, no one paid attention to such details.
Before the "banquet" ended, Ye Shang excused himself.
Luo Lan nodded, watching Ye Shang's retreating figure with an unreadable expression.
The bearded man's eyes flickered coldly, but his face remained boisterous. "Our Secretary Ye really doesn't treat us like brothers. Doesn't give us face. Always leaving early."
The burly man shook his head. "Ah, Secretary Ye is a man of talent. Different from us."
The bearded man pretended indifference. "Right. Only the General can compare with him."
Ji Xin's gaze turned cold, but he forced a smile. "Secretary Ye is indeed talented, but that's because our General recognized his ability."
"However," he added, "when it comes to swordsmanship, he's no match for the General."
Luo Lan glanced at him, tilted his head back, and drained his cup, saying nothing.
When Ye Shang returned to his assigned quarters, servants immediately hurried to attend him.
He waved them off. "Leave. I don't need you here."
The servants bowed low and withdrew, leaving only five people inside.
Three of them immediately went outside to stand guard.
"How is it? Did you deliver the letter to Qingming?" Ye Shang asked in a low voice.
Qingming was the bandit chief of Wutou Mountain, in charge of several dozen men—the contact point for Lin County and the surrounding areas.
"Mm. Delivered," Wen Ping nodded.
Ye Shang's eyes were full of mockery. "The ordinary folks in the city are almost all eaten up. Hah. Is he saving people or killing them?"
Wen Ping gazed at the dim sky outside the window, melancholy creeping in. "Yes, I want to go home."
Ye Shang patted his shoulder. "Soon. Just..."
Wen Ping shook his head. "Most of the people in this city have eaten human flesh. The Lord probably won't take in such people."
Ye Shang let out a quiet sigh, driving away some of the pent-up anger. "But there are still some in the city who haven't eaten human flesh. Perhaps those people can be saved."
