Scheming to Kill Ning Chuan, Crushing Colleagues

"Lord, Shopkeeper Li, even the brothers from the Joint Defense Camp have been arrested by the Imperial Guard and thrown into the Heavenly Prison!"

"The Lord's warhorses and all his resources have been confiscated!"

"Not only that, but they're framing our brothers for stealing warhorses, calling it treason and threatening to execute their entire clans!"

The man slammed his hand on the ground, his heart filled with grief and indignation.

"What? The Imperial Guard? Who did this?"

Ning Chuan was furious. The organization behind him had completely gutted his operation.

He looked at Zhang Chao, his gaze unfriendly.

Zhang Chao spread his hands.

"It was Ma Dayuan who led the men!"

Seeing Ning Chuan's rage, he patted Ning Chuan's shoulder and said earnestly:

"Brother, we need to plan this carefully. If we can get Lord Leng to intervene, this matter will be easily resolved. It all depends on your standing with Lord Leng!"

Ning Chuan pondered the events of the day.

As soon as he entered the city, the Black Tiger Gang came to arrest his sister-in-law. Who had tipped them off?

Now the Imperial Guard had arrested Shopkeeper Li and the others, and confiscated the warhorses he had seized from the bandits.

These two incidents happening back-to-back, he was certain the Straw Bag Strategist was behind it all!

The County Yamen and the Imperial Guard were at odds. The Straw Bag Strategist was using the internal conflict of the Imperial Guard to deal with him.

This was a plan that both escalated the internal conflict of his enemies and precisely targeted Ning Chuan, a single move with multiple benefits.

"Once I'm free, I'll deal with that old geezer!"

"First, I'll beat the shit out of him, then I'll hack him to pieces!"

Ning Chuan suppressed his anger, patiently telling his sister-in-law not to wander off, and then strode furiously towards the Imperial Guard.

"How dare you arrest my people and confiscate my belongings!"

"Ma Dayuan, I'll see if you have three heads and six arms!"

Seeing Ning Chuan's murderous intent, Zhang Chao, afraid he would act impulsively, shouted from behind.

"Brother Ning, find Lord Leng first, don't be rash!"

"Brother Ning!"

"Brother Ning!"

Ning Chuan ignored him, worried about the safety of Shopkeeper Li and the others.

He had heard that no one ever came out of the Imperial Guard's Heavenly Prison. Even if they were lucky enough to get out, they would be crippled if not dead.

Entering the Imperial Guard headquarters, he headed straight for the Heavenly Prison.

Zhang Chao watched Ning Chuan's retreating back, knowing he couldn't stop him. He gritted his teeth.

"No, I have to report this to Lord Xiao Lian!"

The Imperial Guard colleagues, seeing Ning Chuan storming in aggressively, became curious.

"Who is this kid? He looks unfamiliar."

"I heard he's a colleague recommended by Lord Leng!"

"Oh, someone from Lord Leng's faction. What's with the aggressive attitude?"

"He's going to the Heavenly Prison!"

Someone with inside knowledge, their eyes gleaming, had already gone to report to Ma Dayuan.

At this moment, the Imperial Guard's Heavenly Prison was overcrowded.

From the shopkeeper to the clerks of the Qingshi Chamber of Commerce, and over fifty men from the Qingshi Town Joint Defense Camp, all were imprisoned here.

Most of them had already fainted under torture, while a small portion were still awake, their eyes filled with terror.

"Please, my Lord, have mercy on me!"

"My Lord, I didn't steal any warhorses!"

"My Lord, you can't do this!"

Those who were still conscious shook the bars and knelt on the ground, begging for mercy, crying their hearts out.

Shopkeeper Li and Zhang Dashan were covered in blood, tied to a tree trunk as thick as a man's embrace.

Their clothes were in tatters, their bodies covered in wounds, and they had fallen unconscious, clearly having been singled out for special treatment.

Seven or eight Imperial Guards were busy inside the Heavenly Prison, ignoring the cries of the crowd.

These Imperial Guards, in groups of two, would unfold a document, while the other would take the unconscious person's hand and press it onto the document to make an imprint.

The ink on the documents was still wet, and each one detailed Ning Chuan's crimes.

"On the outskirts of Qingshi Town, colluded with bandits to kill over ten civilians!"

"Resisted arrest at the Qingshi Town inn, killing dozens of imperial officers on the street!"

"Stole over 400 warhorses from the city defense army, and over 500 sets of standard armor and weapons, colluded with bandits, and plotted rebellion!"

"Raped and murdered over ten village women in Hanshan Town, an unforgivable crime!"

Any one of these crimes was enough to cost Ning Chuan his head.

Not to mention, the combined total in these people's hands was dozens of them.

After a period of busy work, everyone handed the documents with their thumbprints to a member of the Imperial Guard.

This Imperial Guard was tall, with a full beard, and a pair of small eyes that glinted with malice.

This man was Ma Dayuan's favored subordinate, his number one general, the Captain known as Mad Tiger, Wang Meng.

Wang Meng took the stack of indictment documents and gasped as he read them.

"Haha... so many crimes, I'm trembling just looking at them. Ning Chuan is dead for sure this time!"

"The person personally recommended by the Cold-faced Girl committed such heinous crimes. No matter how powerful his backing, the crime of negligence can't be avoided!"

"As soon as this matter is reported, the Cold-faced Girl will have to slink back the way she came!"

"Hahahaha... Ning Chuan's crimes are too numerous to count!"

A thin man beside him quickly stepped forward, his face showing a fawning expression, revealing a pair of large buck teeth as he smiled.

"Captain Wang is right. Once the Cold-faced Girl is driven away and Lord Ma successfully takes his position, it will be only natural for Captain Wang to be promoted to Squad Leader!"

"At that time, I hope Lord Wang will offer guidance!"

Wang Meng felt pleased, becoming even more arrogant. He patted the thin man's shoulder.

"Of course, of course!"

The others followed suit, offering a round of flattery, making Wang Meng even more carried away.

"Hahahaha..."

Wang Meng's triumphant laughter echoed through the Heavenly Prison.

"Is framing someone for crimes this amusing?"

Wang Meng's eyes narrowed. At some point, a young man had appeared before him.

The young man was flipping through a stack of documents in his hand. Looking at his own hands, they were now empty.

Upon closer inspection, this person was wearing an Imperial Guard uniform. It was Ning Chuan, the very subject of the indictments.

His heart immediately relaxed, then surged with anger as he pointed at Ning Chuan.

"Ning Chuan? How dare you snatch my documents!"

"You've come at the right time! Seize him, snatch the documents back, and strip him of his Imperial Guard uniform!"

Ning Chuan ignored Wang Meng and opened the documents to read them.

"Holy crap, they've framed me with so many crimes!"

"Damn it, they're not leaving me any room to maneuver, trying to kill me!"

Ning Chuan's anger flared. Just then, the seven Imperial Guards behind Wang Meng rushed forward. Ning Chuan casually delivered a series of powerful kicks.

"You bastards, die!"

With a series of crackling sounds, all those who rushed forward were sent spinning in place before staggering and falling down.

Wang Meng's pupils contracted. His heart filled with dread, his scalp tingled, and cold sweat broke out on his back.

"Ma Dayuan has doomed me!"

"How can this brat be so powerful!"

Even with these colleagues attacking together, they were no match for him, yet Ning Chuan had knocked them all down in an instant.

And it looked effortless.

He pointed at Ning Chuan, no longer daring to fight back, only managing to retort verbally.

"You, you, add another charge to the indictment: snatching indictment documents, resisting law enforcement, and assaulting colleagues!"

Ning Chuan disdained to deal with such a minor character. He reached out a large hand and grabbed Wang Meng by the neck.