Chapter 24: Coercion

Boom!

Under everyone's gaze, Shen Qing violently smashed the wooden chest onto the ground.

The sturdy wooden chest, under his force, instantly shattered into pieces.

Crash...

A large amount of copper coins and silver ingots scattered on the ground, shimmering under the sun.

The Tian Family member, Shen Family member, and other hunters from Hongshan Village gasped in astonishment.

They were all commoners without any connections, always living life on the edge, when had they ever seen so much money?

Now, a chest full of money was laid out in front of them, giving them a tremendous shock.

Everyone stared intently, their hearts filled with greed.

Seeing that the time was about right, Shen Qing bellowed with full breath, "The Chen Family has always had a saying that if a family loses a man and is left with only widows and orphans, they would offer to hold a banquet under the guise of arranging a funeral, and then eat up all the meat and grain of that family."

"We always called this 'eating out the family' in secret."

"Now that Chen Yuan's family is all dead, everything in this house has become unclaimed property, and should rightfully belong to whoever sees it. We should also 'eat out his family,'" Shen Qing said with a highly seductive voice, "Everyone is free to take."

The onlooking crowd immediately became restless.

Shen Er watched Shen Qing standing at the doorway, appearing completely composed.

For some reason, he felt increasingly unfamiliar with him.

Since when had the Shen Family produced such a character?

Seeing that no one dared to make a move after a while,

Shen Qing said with cold sarcasm, "What's the matter, no one dares?"

Shen Er couldn't fathom Shen Qing's purpose, but he knew that as a member of the Shen Family, especially as Shen Qing's uncle, he could not detach himself from today's events no matter what.

Rather than let others gain from it, it was better to benefit his own family—he gritted his teeth and shouted, "I'll take it!"

Shen Er ran to Shen Qing and in front of everyone, began stuffing silver ingots into his pockets directly.

Other Tian Family members looked at each other and quickly joined the fray, frantically grabbing money.

At this point, those who were still watching could no longer hold back.

"This money was all sucked from us by Chen Youguang and his people, it was originally ours," someone exclaimed.

"Why not take it if it's free!" others chimed in.

Once someone took the lead, like a breached dam finding an outlet, they all rushed forward in droves.

Seeing the people rushing forward, Shen Er, with the silver ingots, ran behind Shen Qing and stood protectively behind him.

At this moment, those at the back, realizing they couldn't squeeze in, looked up at the house. They bypassed the crowd grabbing money at the door and charged inside.

Other people reacted and rushed in as well.

Fearing they would miss out and end up with nothing, they started grabbing whatever they saw.

Some even called over their families, took up hoes to dig at the walls, sparing not even the stone bricks from Chen Youguang's family home.

The villagers, usually so harmonious, now resembled locusts, leaving nothing in their wake.

Although the year-end was still some time away, Hongshan Village seemed to have plunged into a frenzied ocean, with everyone losing their senses.

Rumble!

After several days of communal effort, the walls of the Chen Youguang's family home collapsed.

In just the time it took to brew a pot of tea, the seemingly decent Chen Family home had been reduced to a ruin.

If not for Shen Qing standing at the doorway, these people likely would have disassembled the Chen Family's front door as well.

By this point, most of the villagers had been swept up in the affair.

Seeing that the time was about right.

Shen Qing shouted loudly, "Fellow villagers, today we eliminated Chen Youguang's family and also divided the Chen family's wealth. What if those Chen family members who were close to Chen Youguang become dissatisfied and go to the county town to cause us trouble?"

"According to the laws of Great Zhou, we have no connections in the county town, I fear we will all be held accountable."

The villagers, who had been basking in joy, exchanged glances and licked their dry lips.

Suddenly, someone in the crowd yelled, "If we don't do it all, let's not stop halfway. Kill those few families as well, and then no one will come looking for trouble again."

These hunters, accustomed to living in the mountains year-round, were not the forgiving type. With the lure of benefits, the intent to kill was also aroused.

Seeing someone take the lead, Shen Qing took the opportunity to continue, "Fine, let's not stop halfway then. Everyone, follow me to exterminate a few more households."

Having said that, Shen Qing charged toward the households of the Chen family members with a fierce momentum.

Shen Qing remembered that a few Chen family members were very close to Chen Youguang, and they had always been arrogant and domineering in Hongshan Village, with a terrible reputation.

There was some sort of grievance with each household.

Bang!

The crowd smashed open the door of one of the households and stormed in.

Immediately, screams could be heard.

In Hongshan Village, almost every household had hunters, and when they really got into a fight, they were incredibly ruthless.

Shen Qing stood outside the door without going in, looking on expressionlessly.

"I haven't yet truly practiced martial arts, and my Qi-Blood hasn't even reached Great Perfection. If someone from the county town simply sent a real martial master, I wouldn't stand a chance."

"So, I must nip all dangers in the bud and unite the entire Hongshan Village as one. Only then can I be truly safe."

"Give me some time after this. When I control my Qi-Blood and find support in the county town, becoming a real martial master, none of this will be a problem."

"Now is not the time for womanly kindness."

Shen Qing's eyes were downcast, looking at everything before him, his heart clear, as he suppressed the hesitation that had just begun to emerge.

With Shen Qing's intentional and unintentional influence, the hunters of Hongshan Village had completely let loose.

Almost every family had gained some benefit or been tainted with blood.

At this point, everyone was in the same boat; no one would betray Shen Qing anymore.

As evening approached, the bodies of Chen Youguang and other Chen family members were buried in the back mountains, and all matters finally settled.

After this event, Shen Qing's reputation for ruthlessness spread throughout Hongshan Village, and his status soared almost immediately.

Everyone looked at him with a new sense of respect, unlike the disdain of the past.

He returned home.

Shen Qing put down his bow and his spirit finally relaxed.

Not long after arriving home, Shen Qing heard the sound of Shen Xiaoshan calling at the door.

"Brother, are you home?"

"Coming."

Shen Qing walked over and opened the door.

Seeing Shen Qing, Shen Xiaoshan felt as if a fierce aura was rushing toward him and instinctively stepped back, an unfamiliarity seeping through.

Realizing his own reaction, he hurriedly said, "Grandfather is calling you over, he said he has something to ask you."

Shen Qing knew it most likely concerned today's events.

He agreed without refusal, "Alright, I'll go right over."

As he was about to leave, Shen Qing remembered something.

He took out the cotton-padded clothes his aunt had made from inside the house, put them on, and confidently stepped out after closing the door behind him.