Chapter 38: Splendid

"Huh?"

Zhongli Wanxue’s pretty face flushed slightly. Struggling to maintain her composure, she feigned shyness and said, "Th-this... how could I possibly trouble you..."

"Then do you plan to walk back by yourself?" Liang Xiao looked at her with a half-smile.

Her heart skipped a beat. Terrified that Liang Xiao might just vanish before her eyes, she stammered, "I would be most grateful if Lord Liang could escort me back..."

A short while later, the hundreds of guards and soldiers brought by Liang Xiao had taken control of the entire street.

The members of the Fierce Dragon Gang were still utterly terrified, unable to collect their thoughts or figure out what to do.

This was Gou Ming, the leader they took the most pride in—the very man whom even Yuan Bailong had to treat with utmost respect and supply with the finest food and wine!

And just like that, he had been executed by Liang Xiao right in the middle of the street?

Finally, they recalled the recent rumors.

On the very day Liang Xiao took office, Yuan Bailong had also been summarily executed by him in public!

There were simply too many government soldiers present, every single one of them tall, robust, and clad in heavy armor, showing not a shred of leniency. Compared to the old garrison of Peixian, they were worlds apart.

The gang members completely lost any remaining courage to resist...

In the open-air carriage, Zhongli Wanxue sat beside Liang Xiao, her heart in turmoil and her breathing slightly erratic.

This was the very first time in her life that she was sharing a carriage with a man, yet she found herself utterly incapable of raising even a fraction of resistance. She truly had no way to deal with Liang Xiao!

In truth, she was considerably taller than the average woman, but sitting side by side with Liang Xiao, she still found herself a whole head shorter than him...

Out of the corner of her eye, she occasionally glanced at Liang Xiao and noticed that he was intently observing the livelihood and conditions of the people along the road.

Only then did she realize that the common folk were noticeably much more at ease than usual, unlike the days of Yuan Bailong's reign when people walked the streets in constant fear.

Now, patrolling bailiffs and jogging garrison troops could even be seen on the streets.

He was the one who had brought hope to Peixian!

Recalling Liang Xiao's recent actions, Zhongli Wanxue shared a deep sense of agreement.

Liang Xiao had used thunderous methods to sanction the two most lawless figures in Peixian. It might have seemed reckless at first glance, but in truth, it was precisely the most correct course of action!

Just as he had said, without severe punishments, it was impossible to govern a chaotic era!

Zhongli Wanxue's feelings became somewhat complicated.

It was all Situ Luoyue's fault for making her afraid to display her martial arts in front of him.

Yet, if he were to properly marry Situ Luoyue and settle down in the capital hereafter, she would likely never have another chance to cross paths with him...

"Lady Zhongli, your guards are all extraordinary people."

Liang Xiao's soft, gentle voice pulled Zhongli Wanxue back from her wandering thoughts.

"Ah?" Zhongli Wanxue was slightly startled, then explained, "They were assigned by my mother to protect me..."

By now, she didn't dare to initiate conversation with Liang Xiao, nor could she have expected that his first words would be about her guards.

"Are they of good character?" Liang Xiao asked again.

"Excellently good. They are all fiercely loyal, fearless in the face of danger, and just now they even wanted to fight to the death with Gou Ming," Zhongli Wanxue said with a proud expression.

Liang Xiao pondered for a moment and sighed, "Lady Zhongli, I have a favor to ask of you."

Zhongli Wanxue raised a delicate eyebrow. "Lord Liang, please feel free to give your orders~"

"I am new here, and you understand the situation well enough. The county office is hardly safe, and since I am often away and unable to look after Zifang and Ningyan at the same time, might I send Ningyan to your estate first and trouble you to take care of her for a while?"

Liang Xiao spoke with earnest sincerity.

Zhongli Wanxue pursed her lips slightly as a strange, unfamiliar sensation welled up in her heart.

That damned feeling of jealousy!

Ningyan was precisely his personal maid, whom Liang Xiao had introduced to them that very night.

"It seems Lord Liang cares deeply for this Miss Ningyan?" Zhongli Wanxue began to probe indirectly.

"She has been arranged by my mother to serve me since she was a child. During the years I spent away studying and learning martial arts, she was the one who endured hardship alongside me. To my mother and me, she is no different from family. It's only because she always insists on the strict boundaries between master and servant that she has continued to call herself a maid, serving diligently without a single complaint."

"But as you know, I now have numerous enemies, and in the future, I will inevitably face bloody storms head-on. How could I let her fall into danger?"

Sensing the deep sentiment in Liang Xiao's words, Zhongli Wanxue replied, "I'm afraid she won't be willing to leave her young master."

"I will explain it to her. Do you agree?" Liang Xiao asked.

"Of course." Zhongli Wanxue nodded slightly, secretly rejoicing in her heart.

Are you kidding?

This was such a wonderful opportunity to win favor with his close people; how could she possibly miss it!

She had already convinced herself that she would be Liang Xiao's wife in the future, so establishing a good relationship with this maid, Ningyan, was extremely necessary.

After Liang Xiao expressed his thanks, Zhongli Wanxue had a flash of inspiration and said, "Then as a reward, when there are no outsiders around, might I call you Young Master Liang..."

"No problem at all. I will remember this favor," Liang Xiao said without a moment's hesitation.

Only then did Zhongli Wanxue purse her lips with a secret smile.

She had nearly been exposed by him today!

Fortunately, there was now an unexpected blessing.

In the leading carriage clearing the path, Zhongli Wanxue's female guard held her mistress's precious sword and fell into a deep silence.

Back in the courtyard of the county office, Ningyan was already weeping tears of sorrow.

"I beg the young master not to abandon Ningyan..."

Looking at the utterly aggrieved young girl, Zhongli Wanxue's heart nearly broke, and she quickly interjected, "Young Master Liang, how about this—I can spare some of my guards to take care of Miss Ningyan?"

Liang Xiao shook his head. "The main point is that the county office might not be safe, after all, this isn't the Liang estate. Furthermore, I still need to dispatch several trusted guards to your residence to ensure nothing goes wrong. Ningyan, once I make sure the county office is secure enough, I will naturally come and bring you back home."

Ningyan wiped away her tears, cursing herself for being a burden.

Seeing this, Zhongli Wanxue quickly offered soft words of comfort.

"Miss Ningyan, your young master cares about you a great deal. Once you come to my estate, it's not like you won't see him anymore. I will often bring you to see your young master~"

By the end of her sentence, Zhongli Wanxue felt an inward surge of delight.

Look at that, she had secured yet another opportunity to frequently interact with him!

Ningyan looked up at Zhongli Wanxue, a thought stirring in her heart.

If she could help bring about a match between the young master and this Lady Zhongli... wouldn't that be wonderfully splendid?

"The young master must keep his promise..."

Ningyan choked back her sobs, feeling much better inside.

She would just treat this as executing a mission; at least she was finally of some use to the young master!

"Yes, yes, yes. Ningyan is the best girl." Liang Xiao finally smiled with peace of mind and agreed wholeheartedly.

Noticing Liang Xiao's tender concern for Ningyan, Zhongli Wanxue couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.

It seemed she needed to take a cue from Ningyan and learn to be well-behaved instead of constantly brandishing swords and spears...

Zhuo Zifang and the others quickly learned of Gou Ming's death.

Master Bookkeeper Wang exclaimed in shock, "County Magistrate! Th-that Gou Ming is very likely the younger brother of the Black Cloud Stronghold's chieftain! I mentioned this to you earlier!"

Liang Xiao smiled faintly. "Isn't that just perfect?"

*Perfect?*

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Was this setting the stage to suppress the bandits?

The strength of the Black Cloud Stronghold was unfathomable!

Had it not been for their wariness of the imperial court, the Black Cloud Stronghold would likely have already captured Peixian and the surrounding counties long ago!

The news of Gou Ming's death quickly spread across more than half of Peixian, alarming all the prominent clans in the region.

When Wu Wenting heard the news, he was struck by a mixture of shock and fury.

"How dare this insolent brat?!"

When Liang Xiao executed Yuan Bailong, Wu Wenting could still interpret it as retaliation against the Sima family for supporting Situ Luoyue.

Yet he never imagined that Liang Xiao would dare to touch the Fierce Dragon Gang and even kill Gou Ming.

"Send—send word to Chieftain Gou immediately! Gou Ming has actually been executed by Liang Xiao as well!!"

Wangjiang County.

Liang Xiao's trusted aide, Liang De, brought two imperial court runners and two guards from the Liang estate. Handpicking the finest carriage and traveling under the cover of the stars, they finally arrived in Wangjiang County to pay a visit to Magistrate Dong Sheng.

"Y-you, what did you say? Lord Liang executed Yuan Bailong??"

Upon learning the situation, Dong Sheng was struck dumb with shock.

Had Liang Xiao completely lost his mind?