Elder Shi and Bai Changfu saw Qin San Lang’s cold smile and remembered his reputation as King Yan in the county, and it scared them into a cold sweat.

Zhang Zhong had already led several soldiers from the Military Office over, with two loud bangs, they kicked at the knees of both men, knocking them to the ground. They then took out ropes, quickly tied them up, and stuffed coarse burlap into their mouths, preventing them from speaking.

Then they dragged them to the stone pillars and soon tied them to the stone pillars, one on each side.

"Mmm mmm mmm!" Elder Shi and Bai Changfu finally came to their senses at this time, and they mmm’d at the villagers kneeling on the ground, trying to incite them to cause a commotion and rescue them.

The villagers were stunned... Company Commander Qin is arresting people, Company Commander Qin is arresting people!

Clang clang clang!

A sound of a copper gong rang out, it was the soldiers from the Military Office striking the copper gong.

The villagers were startled awake by the sound of the copper gong.

The soldier striking the gong shouted loudly: "Company Commander Qin has something to say. Those who don’t want to be tied up should quiet down and listen!"

The crowd, seeing Elder Shi and Bai Changfu being arrested, realized that Company Commander Qin would not allow them to cause trouble, and was indeed arresting people, so even though many things were on their minds, they dared not speak first and quieted down.

Only when they had quieted down did Qin San Lang step forward and point at Elder Shi: "Look at this Elder Shi of Xianggui Town. Although he is dressed in rags, his body is full of fat, and his face is even glowing with health. Such a physique can only be maintained by wealth at home."

Then he took out a piece of paper, reporting Elder Shi’s family fortune.

The villagers were shocked upon hearing: "Yes, it is indeed a wealthy family!"

Qin San Lang nodded and asked: "Do you still think his family can’t afford to pay taxes? His family can clearly afford to pay taxes, why stir you up to cause trouble? Just to borrow your hands to disrupt the county government and gain benefits from it."

Then he pointed at Bai Changfu: "This is a person from Bai Village outside the county, who used to work for Elder Shi in the past. He brought a group of vagrants to help Elder Shi cause trouble this time. If I don’t arrest them and let them cause trouble, you’ll be convinced and eventually storm the county government to smash things."

Qin San Lang looked at the confused villagers and said: "As long as you dare to rush in and smash things, even if you can afford to pay taxes, you’ve already violated Criminal Law, and the whole family will be implicated!"

The villagers were shocked by this and looked at those who came with Elder Shi and Bai Changfu to cause trouble, rushing over to question them: "Tell us, is what Company Commander Qin says true? Do you really want to use us as tools, let us smash the county government so you can gain benefits?!"

Most of these people were from Bai Village and were frightened by these words. Someone pushed the villagers surrounding them away and bolted, while others couldn’t escape and were pinned to the ground by the villagers.

Unable to escape, those pinned down had no choice but to push all the blame onto Elder Shi and Bai Changfu: "Dear villagers, dear elders, we’ve also been deceived by Elder Shi and Bai Changfu. They said as long as everyone caused trouble and stormed the government to teach Lord County Magistrate a lesson, the Lord wouldn’t dare collect so many taxes... Even if he doesn’t give us tax remission, he’ll ask the Zheng Family for money to pay the taxes for us. The Zheng Family is a noble family, and they’re wealthy!"

However, this was just Elder Shi’s deceit, who was nothing more than a pawn. Behind him stands the wealthy Old Master Gao of Xianggui Town.

Old Master Gao, originating from running a gambling house, is well adept at shady dealings. Knowing that the people couldn’t afford the high taxes, he devised a plan for Elder Shi to lead the villagers into the government to cause chaos. When the villagers were arrested, they would need silver to bail themselves out, at which time they would buy their land at low prices and make a profit.

And once someone starts selling lands or daughters cheaply, other villagers who can’t afford the taxes will start selling people and land as well. They could continue purchasing people and land at low prices, and upon resale at high prices, they could make a hefty profit.

Old Master Gao’s idea sounded perfect, but his tricks were anticipated early on by Master Ouyang and Qin San Lang.

Qin San Lang was watching vigilantly to prevent someone from taking advantage of the chaos and entice the villagers into selling land cheaply. Seeing Elder Shi and Bai Changfu whispering secretly, he sensed something was off and had You Ping investigate, which indeed turned up some issues.

When Elder Shi and Bai Changfu started to take action, Qin San Lang was relentless in apprehending them.

"You despicable scum, to come up with such a vicious method to harm us—are you even human?!" The villagers were furious upon learning the truth, holding down those who couldn’t escape and beating them up.

Don’t underestimate the fists of these old men and women. If it weren’t for Qin San Lang stopping them, there might have even been fatalities.

"Tie them all up and throw them into prison." Qin San Lang glanced at the nearly lifeless Bai Village men beaten severely, showing no sympathy for them.

"Yes." Zhang Zhong and the others were quick in their actions, soon tying up more than ten people from Bai Village.

Not far away, Elder Shi’s son and Old Master Gao’s housekeeper saw this and turned pale in fright, hurriedly hiding away.

Elder Shi’s son pulled the housekeeper’s hand and said: "Housekeeper Gao, that King Qin isn’t a vegetarian. Now that my father has been caught by him, you better find a way to save him."

"Save him?" The housekeeper Gao shook off Elder Shi’s son’s hand and sneered: "Your family messed things up; better think about how to compensate for our master’s losses first. As for saving your father, figure it out yourself; don’t come looking for the Gao family."

He further warned: "Remember, tell your father to keep his mouth tightly shut. Regardless of what the government asks, he mustn’t admit anything. If he implicates the Gao family, don’t expect your family to continue living in Xianggui Town!"

After saying this, he glared fiercely at Elder Shi’s son and turned to leave.

Elder Shi’s son was dumbfounded. How did a good money-making deal turn into this?

Elder Shi’s son panicked, unable to save Elder Shi himself and not daring to offend Old Master Gao, also fearing that his father would implicate him, so after hesitating for a moment, he turned and ran.

"Father, don’t blame me. As long as you’re the only one involved, it’s enough. I’ll pretend I was never here and take my leave first!"

Nonetheless, You Ping and the others had long noticed him, but they did not pursue him. As long as Elder Shi and Bai Changfu were caught, the Gao family wouldn’t escape.

Whether to act against the Gao family depended on Lord County Magistrate’s decision. They were merely working under orders and didn’t meddle in the government’s affairs.

At the government gate, the villagers pleaded tearfully with Qin San Lang, saying they were deceived and unaware of the vicious plans of Elder Shi and Bai Changfu.

Qin San Lang’s expression remained unchanged, replying: "Regardless of whether you were deceived, in times when such evil men are rampant, you should remain vigilant. I cannot always save you."

He further stated: "Regarding the tax issue, it is the Emperor’s decree, and County Magistrate Zheng cannot defy it. But rest assured, Lord County Magistrate is already thinking of ways to assist you. However, if you continue to cause trouble and anger Lord County Magistrate, don’t blame him for handling matters officially and not helping you resolve the tax issue!"