The manager hurriedly replied, “Sir, my master hopes that you can be magnanimous. When the punishment is enough, we can let Guo Haishen go…”
Hearing this, Magistrate Lin exclaimed in surprise, “We’ve already captured him, why are you letting him go?”
“My status is low, but I don’t know. My master will definitely explain it to you…”
The butler could only smile apologetically.
Magistrate Lin snorted and slapped the arm of his chair lightly. He coldly commented,
“This official has captured someone but then has to release him after. Do you think the authority of the government is just empty words?”
Plonk!
The butler immediately knelt down and said in fear, “I don’t dare, I don’t dare! My lord, please understand that my master doesn’t mean that!”
Magistrate Lin immediately stood up and left, throwing down this sentence,
“In three days, I’ll go to the banquet and ask your master to explain his intentions.”
After the magistrate left, the butler dared to stand up and heave a sigh of relief. In reality, he was not flustered at all. It was all just an act.
Magistrate Lin had agreed to capture Guo Haishen back then, already showing that he cared not about the innocence of a commoner or if he had been wronged. It did not matter to him whether he captured him or let him go… But his actions this time were only to knock some sense into these wealthy families and also to ask for more benefits.
It was not the first time the butler had interacted with this local Magistrate Lin. He knew that this magistrate liked to put on airs, but he was actually not soft-hearted when it came to accepting money.
What did he mean by letting his master explain clearly? Naturally, he meant that he wanted something in exchange…
…
In a certain restaurant in the city, five burly men dressed as officers were drinking and eating meat, chatting casually.
The other customers in the shop did not dare to approach the five officers and all sat in remote corners instead.
These five officers each had their own positions in the army. Among them, there was an instructor with the surname Hu, a cadet with the surname Xie, two infantrymen with the surname Dong and Xue, and a commander with the surname Deng.
The five of them were not all colleagues and were not from the same faction.
However, most of the people in the An Lin Prefecture knew the five of them. It was precisely because when they captured Guo Haishen a few days ago, these five people were experts specially transferred by the government to hold the line. They had defeated Guo Haishen and made a name for themselves.
It was also because of this fate that the five of them got to know each other. Sometimes, they would gather for a drink, and sometimes, they would spar with each other. They would always talk about the battle to capture Guo Haishen.
Instructor Hu stuffed a piece of meat into his mouth and chewed as he sighed, “That Guo Haishen is known as the Iron Arm Azure Dragon in the Green Forest. He’s indeed very tough. Unfortunately, he was drunk at that time and was in a daze. He only used 70% to 80% of his abilities, but it wasn’t enough.”
Xie Jie touched the scar on his neck and said unhappily, “No matter how amazing he is, wasn’t he still taken down by us?”
The wound on his neck was caused by Guo Haishen. He had almost died.
Beside him, Dong Du’s face was flushed from alcohol. He stuck out his tongue and said, “In my opinion, Guo Haishen is only famous, but his martial arts is actually mediocre.”
Commander Deng frowned and replied,
“Don’t talk nonsense. We just have the advantage in numbers. If we fight him alone, you won’t be his match. I can only fight him for 30 to 40 rounds at most… Sigh, it’s really a pity that we don’t have a chance to fight such an expert alone. Unfortunately, he provoked the wrong person. His hard work and skills will probably be wasted. It’s really not worth it.”
Xue Du nodded and clicked his tongue, “This person doesn’t know what’s good for him. He got himself into trouble. Why should we pity him? The name of the Iron Arm Azure Dragon will be extinct in the martial world from now on.”
Hearing this, the few of them felt a little emotional. No matter how big a reputation one had, it was only a fad that could disappear at any time.
At this moment, Instructor Hu thought of something and smiled.
“Speaking of which, another powerful person has appeared in the Jing Prefecture recently. He’s known as the Death Beckoning Yama King. It’s said that he has the ability to fight 100 people alone. I wonder if it’s true.”
“Heh, such rumors are always exaggerated. You actually believe in this?” Dong Du snorted.
Xie Jie shook his head and said indifferently, “That Guo Haishen also had the martial arts to go one against a hundred. Didn’t he still get captured by us? So what if this Yama King can really fight a hundred alone? If he’s surrounded by hundreds of people, he will still die on the spot.”
Commander Deng added as well,
“Death Beckoning Yama King? He sounds like a madman. If he’s really capable, I’ll definitely teach him a thing or two!”