Chapter 87

Watching Lady Chen and her group, along with Yuwen Luoluo and the others, walk into the inner courtyard of the Zongfan Academy, surrounded by towering pillars, the bell for official business was struck. Like a disturbed beehive, the originally quiet and solemn, empty steps were suddenly filled with many people. After a brief negotiation and indication, they surrounded the group and welcomed them inside.

My journey and mission have come to a temporary end. It's time for me to deal with my personal matters. At least, I need to handle some loose ends before the relevant authorities find me.

"For a short while... you will have to follow my orders."

"Yes..."

Dressed in the casual attire of attendants, with inner armor, dozens of mounted guards carrying bags of weapons responded.

"The first stop, Qingquan Street in the Lower City's Huawei District..."

The so-called Huawei, Fuxu, Liede, Dashui, Ruishi, Pingshi, Baitian, Datong, and Shimen, among the twelve districts of Guangzhou, are actually satellite towns that have expanded and extended over generations outside the walls of the old city's five cities. These areas are composed of numerous towns and neighborhoods with different functions and focuses, distributed according to geographical trends.

Therefore, each district is comparable in size to a first-class county, lacking only the rural outskirts known as the suburbs. This also divides Guangzhou into two concepts: a broad and a narrow geographical definition.

As the delta of the Pearl River and a fertile estuary region with alluvial soil, successive generations have vigorously developed water conservancy projects, using rivers and lakes to store water for irrigation, building embankments for reclamation, and continuously expanding arable land to increase production, supporting a growing population and supplying nearby regions.

Over the past few hundred years since the Qianyuan era, the proportion of cash crops such as sugarcane, silk, and fresh fruits has even surpassed that of rice.

At the same time, this region has a long history of mining and smelting, which has directly led to the development of advanced handicrafts and related industries. The long-standing prosperity of shipbuilding and maritime trade has further accelerated the cycle of productivity and the accumulation of industry and technology.

Therefore, this is a bustling metropolis with a thriving economy and abundant resources, capable of satisfying even the most demanding needs and desires. As long as you have enough money and background, this place is a terrestrial paradise that makes one forget to return, where there is nothing you cannot find.

The long-standing brick and pottery industry, combined with the strong advocacy of the first Guangzhou Grand Governor, Song Jing, and the accelerated renewal and replacement after repeated fires, has ultimately transformed this place into a city filled with porcelain towers and brick buildings, adorned with various rare or exotic imported building materials, forming a city of flowers.

Even for outsiders, the ground of a secluded alley or the walls of ordinary homes are often decorated with beautiful patterns made from broken ceramic pieces, a testament to the historical depth and sense of superiority.

On Fuping Street, at "Tian Gong Hao," under the sign I wrote myself,

Bang! With a gunshot, a heavy lead ball shattered a confident and composed face, like a smashed watermelon, into red and white fragments and paste, embedding itself in the glossy black wood counter without losing momentum.

This also stirred a crowd of people huddled together, generating a variety of colorful expressions.

No matter how eloquent he was, no matter how righteous and confident he appeared, no matter how much he had labored and contributed in the past, he is now just a headless corpse. Yes, I have one less nominal distant relative and a former business partner.

This way, the last obstacle that was obstructing my review of the accounts and archives is gone. I also gained the expressions of relief and deep respect from others, as well as the swift and efficient on-site response.

"Hmm... go tell those people that I have returned."

I announced the first step in reclaiming everything with a public shooting. Here, I am no longer isolated and helpless; I have my own power and resources, though I don't know how much remains.

This is also a signal, the beginning of a cleanup and takeover. Within the specified time, those who are unwilling or unable to come will never need to come again.

Unless they plan to hide in the dark sewers and eke out a miserable existence for the rest of their lives.

Otherwise, no matter how much they plead or beg, explaining their hardships, the bottom of the river where fish swim or the surface of the water covered with water lilies will be their ideal place to settle...

This is the most appropriate action I can take, given the current situation and the mixed memories and identity of the native inhabitants.

I am not a judge and do not need to adhere to perfect procedural justice. I only need to decide their fate based on the current situation.

Although I am not strictly a qualified manager, I at least know how to use people and balance power, along with some key arrangements. Therefore, even though my father-in-law has tried to insert a group of relatives and cronies into the fief in my absence, the key positions and operations have remained on track, not deviating too far.

Of course, if I really didn't return, things would be different.

However, since I, with a high-profile escort, reclaimed some old items stored in Qingquan Street, including some deeds, account books, and deposit slips, the rest is just a technical issue and a matter of detail.

Then, I met Wudi Ping, the man who, after the Luoyang incident, continued to travel south with a few fellow sufferers to fulfill his promise. After more than a year, he has been tanned by the sun of Guangnan.

Initially, he only held my token as proof of my safety, using an alias to join as a common guest. After all, for a well-connected and wealthy fief heir, it is quite common to keep some idle people around for daily assistance.

Then, they used this leisurely identity to continue their activities, conducting some investigations I had entrusted to them, which also served as a form of covert training and evaluation. Now, they can finally be put to proper use.