Chapter 132 – The Task Is Complete, Drawn into the Mass Grave’s Ghost Domain - Part 2
Four days later.
Viewed from above, many of the households in Autumnlake County had their doors shut. A group of lightly armored soldiers went door to door, knocking loudly and shouting.
“Open up! Time to pay taxes!”
“You used to pay the Mountain Gang, but now things have changed—you pay us!”
“Open this door!”
If a resident opened up, the soldiers would barge in and seize anything of value—calling it tax collection or labeling it suspicious property that needed to be confiscated. If they found a young woman in the house, they would leer at her. Though they might not grab her right away, they had plenty of ways to coerce the family into giving her up. Only then would they relent.
Some officers were even more brazen. If they found a beautiful girl, they’d haul her off on the spot, claiming she might be part of the Mountain Gang remnants and needed to be investigated. Everyone knew what fate awaited her.
As for families who refused to open their doors, the soldiers simply kicked them in.
Scenes like these played out across the county, everywhere you looked. The local people lived in constant fear but had nowhere to run, forced to endure this torment. The soldiers behaved this way because their superiors allowed it.
Zhao Xiantong, once a Red Lotus Rebel, now lorded over these newly conquered territories with his men. In his mind, they deserved to reap the spoils together, using Autumnlake’s wealth to reward their efforts.
At that moment, the short man was soaking in a bath, women draped on either side of him. A tall young woman stood in front, forced to endure his every whim.
By now, Zhao Xiantong was convinced more than ever that returning to enjoy a fief of his own was the right call. The Central Plains might be more prosperous, but it was also more dangerous; one wrong move there could be fatal. It was far safer here, and besides, having reached sixth rank, he figured his 200-year lifespan entitled him to some pleasure.