"Another purge?"
Huang Yuntao secretly swallowed among the crowd. He had known this would happen.
The chief steward doted on the heir more than anyone, and this assassination attempt on Lin Yi had clearly enraged Northern Liang's chief steward. Although the heir had not been hurt, the chief steward would never let the matter rest.
Sure enough, the chief steward actually wanted to purge Northern Liang again. It was simply too ruthless.
Huang Yuntao had seen the list just now. Aside from some underworld forces, quite a few of those on it were connected to the Ran Clan. It went without saying who was being targeted.
He did not rush to state his position!
But the others could not hold back and began trying to dissuade the chief steward. If the killing continued like this, Northern Liang City would probably be gripped by fear.
"Chief steward, things have only just been quiet for two days, and now you want to start another massacre. Isn't that going too far?"
"If this goes on, Northern Liang will never know peace."
"That's right. The assassins have basically been wiped out now. Why take your anger out on others, chief steward? Let it go."
Although the people on the list had little to do with them, Northern Liang needed to stabilize now. If the chaos continued, it would be very bad for Northern Liang's development.
Most importantly, if this went on, sooner or later it would be their turn.
"Let it go?"
A cold sneer flashed in Wang Ziwen's eyes. His face darkened as he said, "Do you know what consequences Northern Liang would face if our heir were assassinated?"
"The world would think Northern Liang has grown old, that we can't even protect our heir. Do you know what the consequences would be?"
Hiss!
When they heard this, everyone's pupils contracted. In an instant, they understood the chief steward's concern.
The barbarians of the Northern Region and the nations of the Western Regions!
If word of this spread, it might indeed undermine the Prince of Northern Liang's prestige, causing others to look down on Northern Liang and even covet its lands.
After all, how could a feudal lord who could not even protect his own son continue to suppress the barbarians and the Western Regions? The world would only think the Prince of Northern Liang had grown old and that anyone could bully him. That would be a terrifying thing.
If ambitious people emerged among the Western Regions and the Northern Region's barbarians, they would surely wage war again, potentially plunging Northern Liang back into the flames of war.
With such terrifying consequences, how could they let it go so easily?
"This..."
Everyone was at a loss for words. If Northern Liang really did fall into purgatory again, they would all be sinners of Northern Liang.
They could not bear the weight of that sin.
"Hmph!"
Wang Ziwen glanced at them, then turned directly to Xu Zhong and said in a deep voice, "Xu Zhong, I'm entrusting this matter to you. Make sure the world knows that Northern Liang's blade is as murderous as ever!"
"This subordinate obeys!"
Xu Zhong nodded slightly and, without lingering, turned and left to mobilize the army.
Heavens, he had called on Great General Xu Zhong!
Everyone's faces went ashen. Xu Zhong had thirty thousand men under his command. Why had the chief steward suddenly become so bloodthirsty too? He was far more ruthless than the heir.
"Damn it!"
Ran Zijin was also among the crowd. As he looked at the list, his face darkened to the extreme.
Not only were several of his businesses on the list, but even the gangs backed by Lin Rusong were on it. It seemed Wang Ziwen already knew he was preparing to deal with those gangs.
Otherwise, he would never have touched the Prince of Northern Liang's forces. He was clearly striking first to gain the upper hand, leaving Ran Zijin no chance at all.
On top of that, several of his own businesses had been dragged into it. The loss was simply too great.
Even the immensely wealthy Ran Zijin looked furious at this moment. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Wang Ziwen, you've gone too far. Don't you want to protect your own? Let's see if you can protect him for a lifetime."
He was riding a donkey while reading a songbook-they still had plenty of time ahead!
He no longer cared that Wang Ziwen was the chief steward. He swept out, flicking his sleeves. Wang Ziwen had clearly slapped him in the face, and he did not want to stay there any longer.
"Hmph, I hope you know what's good for you!"
Wang Ziwen watched him leave with a cold sneer.
If this fellow did not have the emperor's will behind him, Wang Ziwen would not have let his Ran Clan off so easily this time. At the very least, he would have skinned a layer off them.
Gulp!
Everyone had watched the clash between the two big shots, and they were frantic with anxiety. After all, when immortals fought, mortals suffered.
They could not afford to offend either side!
One after another, they found excuses to leave. They had to make preparations early to avoid being dragged in any deeper, or the consequences would be unthinkable.
In the end, only one person remained, still sitting steadily in his seat.
Huang Yuntao, governor of Yongzhou!
Wang Ziwen could not help laughing. "Huang Yuntao, what are you still doing here? Haven't you been very busy lately?"
"Hmph, that's going too far, chief steward. Haven't I been busy dealing with all those troublesome matters for the heir? You open your golden mouths and order people killed, and I'm the one who has to wipe your backsides afterward!"
Huang Yuntao spoke with considerable resentment.
These past few days, he had been dealing with the aftermath of the heir's purge of Northern Liang. It had kept him so busy his head was spinning, and he had endured plenty of grievances.
Now that the chief steward wanted to do it all over again, he was naturally unhappy.
"Hahaha!"
Wang Ziwen burst out laughing and said in mock reproach, "You old fellow, you got the benefit and still act hard done by. If the heir hadn't helped you get rid of those people, you might never have had a chance to take them down in your lifetime. That would have been the real trouble, wouldn't it?"
He and Huang Yuntao were old acquaintances.
This fellow was notoriously crafty. If the heir's purge of Northern Liang City had not benefited him, how could he possibly have taken action?
In fact, Yongzhou was the place most affected by the existence of these forces in Northern Liang City. After all, these unstable elements could erupt at any moment, and if something happened, wouldn't he, the governor of Yongzhou, be the one left holding the blame?
Now that the heir had wiped them all out in one go, he must have breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Hahaha, worthy of the chief steward. I knew I couldn't hide it from your eyes." Huang Yuntao laughed heartily and did not deny it. It had indeed benefited him.
After the two talked for a while, they finally got to the point.
Huang Yuntao picked up the list, pointed to the names of several gangs and said, "These gangs all work for the prince. Why are you getting rid of them too?"
"They've been targeted!" Wang Ziwen said with a smile.
"By whom?"
"The Ran Clan!"
"I see!"
Understanding dawned on Huang Yuntao. The Ran Clan had its sights on these gangs, so this was the Ran Clan's counterattack. But now that the chief steward had taken the initiative to purge them, it was a cicada shedding its shell, allowing them to avoid losses.
It seemed the old fox Ran Zijin's calculations had come to nothing.
Worthy of Wang Half-City. He had seen through the Ran Clan's counterattack so quickly and even tripped them up again while he was at it. There was no one else like him.
He could not help laughing. "In that case, Ran Zijin must be furious. Not only did he fail to scheme against the prince, but the chief steward also carved a few more cuts into him. He must be going mad."
"Hmph, it's good to teach them a lesson, lest they keep thinking they can throw their weight around in Northern Liang!" Wang Ziwen said with a cold sneer.
Huang Yuntao knew perfectly well that the prince's tolerance for the Ran Clan had reached its limit. Sooner or later, he would make a move against them. Great General Xu Zhong's earlier warning to the heir had been a signal.
But this meant he would have to help wipe their backsides again.