Bloody Suppression

The next day, Dongfang Mao climbed out of bed and stretched his limbs, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Just then, Tsunade also slowly stirred awake. The moment she opened her eyes, she cast a resentful glance at Dongfang Mao.

Seeing this, Dongfang Mao gave a sheepish laugh.

"Sister Tsunade, you can't blame me. I told you yesterday that I wouldn't be able to withstand the temptation."

Upon hearing this, Tsunade was overcome with shame and anger. She reached up to rub her swollen lips, her brows knitting together slightly.

Although she had already rinsed her mouth several times, she still felt a strange lingering taste, and she immediately glared at Dongfang Mao.

"You little bastard, don't ever ask me to do that kind of thing for you again!"

Hearing this, Dongfang Mao couldn't help but mutter to himself, If you weren't willing, could I have forced you to open your mouth? Why is it all my fault now?

Of course, Dongfang Mao dared not say such things while Tsunade was currently in such a temper.

At the same time, he did not respond to her words. Just kidding—after two lifetimes, having finally tasted a bit of meat, how could he possibly give it up now?

He would never agree to such an unreasonable demand.

"Ahem, Sister Tsunade, I'm heading to the front hall for a meeting."

With that, he jumped off the bed, grabbed his shoes, and vanished in the blink of an eye.

"That little bastard!"

Watching Dongfang Mao's retreating figure, Tsunade couldn't help but grit her teeth.

But as her emotions gradually calmed, memories of last night's shameful scene flooded back, and a crimson flush climbed up her porcelain-white neck, spreading to the tips of her ears.

She couldn't help but look down at her own ample bosom, lifting her hands to weigh them, and bit her lip as she whispered softly.

"Are they really that good to touch? You held onto them all night without letting go..."

Walking along the corridor, Dongfang Mao caught the scent of flowers and grass drifting through the courtyard. His steps were light, and a satisfied smile played on his lips.

However, when he reached the corner, he saw Yasuke and Kyuzo approaching together.

The smile on Dongfang Mao's face instantly froze.

Yasuke was wearing a green headscarf and a cyan robe, with a fake beard of unknown origin hanging from his cheeks.

Kyuzo was also wearing a black headscarf and a loose, dark gray robe, with a fake beard glued to his face, walking with the bold, measured strides of a dragon or tiger.

The two men, dressed in such bizarre fashion, saw Dongfang Mao and their eyes lit up. They hurried over and knelt on one knee with a "Bang!", cupping their fists as they shouted in unison.

"Zhu!"

"Zang!"

"Greetings, My Lord!"

Dongfang Mao's eyelid twitched.

"Get up. You two are..."

The pair stood up nimbly, chests puffed out and heads held high.

"Hehe, I am imitating the Saint of War!"

"And I am imitating the Marquis of Heng!"

Looking at these two clowns, Dongfang Mao felt his temples throbbing violently.

"Enough, 'Saint of War' and 'Marquis of Heng', give it a rest."

Dongfang Mao waved his hand impatiently.

"If you have time to dress up, you'd be better off finishing the raids. How are those families coming along?"

"Governor, the raids are complete, and we have had the accountants tally everything up."

As he spoke, Yasuke pulled a dark blue booklet from his robes.

"Oh? That fast?"

Dongfang Mao raised an eyebrow and took the booklet to look through it.

He saw that the confiscation of the three main families and the thirteen smaller, deeply affiliated families had yielded a total of 740 million ryo in cash.

There were approximately 2,890 tons of grain, valued at roughly 100 million ryo.

There were also 981 crossbows.

4,781 swords and spears.

931 sets of armor.

The goods, textiles, tea, iron, copper, ore, salt, and other items were countless, with an estimated total value of around 1.3 billion ryo.

Seeing this, Dongfang Mao was secretly stunned by the wealth of these families, while simultaneously feeling fortunate that they had managed to infiltrate the city and launch a surprise attack.

He had to strike while the iron was hot and deal with these families in one go; otherwise, if he gave them time to react, it was hard to say how difficult it would be to take Tsukimiura later.

At this moment, his face flushed with excitement, and he burst into hearty laughter.

"Good, good, good! You two will lead your troops to the warehouse to collect equipment later. I want every single one of them armed with blades and clad in armor."

"Yes!"

Yasuke and Kyuzo were instantly stirred with excitement upon hearing this. Previously, only ten percent of their men had armor, and fifty percent were equipped with blades or spears.

Many others had been empty-handed.

Even then, they had still managed to conquer Tsukimiura.

If everyone were fully equipped with weapons and armor, what kind of combat power would they possess?

For a moment, both men began to let their imaginations run wild.

Suddenly, Dongfang Mao thought of something else. He glanced at their attire and then spoke.

"The two of you should head to the Ministry of Works later. Tell Zhengxiong to forge a Green Dragon Crescent Blade and a Zhangba Snake Spear for you."

The two men exchanged a look and couldn't help but grin from ear to ear.

"Thank you, my Lord!"

After the two clowns left, Dongfang Mao rushed to the Ministry of Finance without a moment's delay.

He met with Luzhen immediately; with the support of this massive amount of money and grain, their plans could be made more detailed and implemented much more smoothly.

In the period that followed, Dongfang Mao was so busy he barely touched the ground.

He was so occupied that he didn't even return to his bedroom, choosing to sleep directly in his office instead.

This even caused Tsunade, who had loudly declared she would no longer let Dongfang Mao act recklessly, to come over and drop hints, asking when he intended to return to rest.

Dongfang Mao could only offer a bitter smile in response. How could he not want to go back and spend some time with Tsunade?

But over these past few days, as the policies discussed with Luzhen were officially rolled out, the entire Tsukimiura had exploded.

It was no longer just a matter of undercurrents; every day, riots and armed protests broke out in various parts of the city.

At the same time, many people gathered in front of the Governor's Mansion, hurling insults and curses.

Some of the more extreme ones even pulled out knives and committed ritual suicide in public, shouting, "Loyalty to the Daimyo!" before they died.

This left Dongfang Mao both furious and overwhelmed. Fortunately, now that the entire New Martial Army was fully armed, their combat effectiveness had reached a new level.

For those causing trouble, the light punishment was being thrown into prison, while those who dared to stage armed riots were ruthlessly suppressed.

The most serious cases were those who committed ritual suicide.

Such people were the greatest threat to Dongfang Mao's rule, and he viewed them as thorns in his side.

Needless to say, if they loved ritual suicide so much, he would send their entire nine generations down to keep them company.

In this world, while the extermination of clans happened from time to time, the practice of wiping out nine generations for the crimes of one person was simply unheard of.

During this period, the execution ground in the city market saw an endless stream of heads being severed every day; the executioner's blade was rolled and dulled time and time again.

Wails and cries echoed there daily, blood completely stained the streets red, and a thick, pungent scent of gore hovered over Tsukimiura, refusing to dissipate.

The entire city was gripped by panic; whenever they saw the Night Patrol Bureau in their jet-black brocade uniforms moving out, the citizens were terrified to their very cores.

Hearing the shrill, mournful screams of those being dragged from their homes, everyone trembled in fear.

After this series of bloody purges, the city finally began to stabilize.

Even the die-hard elements dared not stir up trouble anymore; they could only lock themselves in their homes, enduring the high-pressure policies of the Governor's Mansion and groaning in misery.

On the other hand, others, tempted by Dongfang Mao's butcher's blade and the benefits of his policies, finally couldn't hold back. They gradually broke through their internal shackles and began to make contact with the Governor's Mansion.

Although there were not many such people yet, it was enough to make Dongfang Mao feel a sense of relief, feeling that all those heads he had chopped off had not been in vain.

PS: The data for yesterday's two chapters wasn't great. Are there any "poison points" (frustrating tropes)? Tell me, guys, and I'll look into fixing them!