Chapter 42: Destroying One’s Own Kin

After listening to Li Laoqi, Li Gui sneered, "Heh, back when I was impoverished and destitute, none of these close relatives were anywhere to be found. Now they want to claim kinship with me? They must be out of their minds!"

"I won't see him. Just go ahead and chop the fellow's head off!"

"This..." Li Laoqi hesitated, genuinely not daring to kill this person.

Although the Great Chieftain had declared he did not recognize this family connection, what if he changed his mind and regretted it someday in the future? What would happen then?

Especially since their Great Chieftain was a man who killed without blinking an eye; if he happened to be in a bad mood later and vented his anger on him, wouldn't his death be thoroughly unjust?

"Perhaps Big Brother should still meet him, just in case he truly is a blood relative. With such a powerful clan to assist us, wouldn't Big Brother's endeavors be like a tiger adding wings?"

"Like a tiger adding wings, my foot!" Li Gui spat on the ground and sneered contemptuously, "Clans like that are only adept at latching onto people to suck their blood. If I wanted to exploit my kinsmen for personal gain, then using him might be suitable."

"If I acknowledge this relationship, the moment I kill any gentry in the future, these flies will buzz around endlessly, driving me out of my mind."

"Especially that old fly, talking all day about how it's for your own good, while actually full of calculations and relying entirely on his seniority to bully others."

"If you ignore him, he'll push his luck and climb all over you."

"If you strike him, he'll raise a ruckus everywhere, accusing you of disrespecting your elders until you're utterly sickened."

"What use do I have for relatives like that?"

"Since you don't dare to do it, I'll go take care of it myself."

Naturally understanding what Li Laoqi was thinking and unwilling to make things difficult for him, Li Gui picked up his axe and strode toward the main hall.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Li Laoqi hurried after him with quick, small steps.

The main hall of the Li Family Manor was vast, even larger than the assembly hall of Yushan Stronghold. Its interior was decorated with exquisite carved beams and painted pillars, presenting an air of utter splendor and luxury.

Yet at present, this magnificent room was drenched in blood, with corpses scattered about haphazardly every few paces.

The hall had already been arranged to resemble a mourning parlor. A huge floral wreath, elegiac couplets on both sides, and a massive purple nanmu coffin resting in the center matched the corpses covering the floor perfectly, without the slightest sense of incongruity.

The men of Yushan had already seized the place, surrounding the perimeter. At the very center sat an elderly man clad in fine brocade and silk robes, exuding a considerable air of authority. The people clustered around him were either dressed in mourning garments or martial attire, clearly indicating their distinct statuses.

Seeing Li Gui stride in with a massive axe, his entire body stained crimson like an Asura emerging from hell, everyone involuntarily shrank back and retreated behind the old man in the center.

Lean upon his cane and supported by the people behind him, the old man slowly stood up and smiled at Li Gui:

"This must be the Great Chieftain of Yushan Stronghold, the heroic Li Gui himself, am I right?"

"As it happens, I checked the family genealogy a few days ago and discovered that our two branches are fifth-degree close relatives, both belonging to the Lis of Yishui."

"If we trace back the generation ranks properly, I am actually your..."

Too lazy to listen to his nonsense, Li Gui walked right up to him, raised his axe with one hand, and sent the old man's head rolling to the ground.

"You wretched bird!"

"What status does your grandfather hold, that scum like you even dare to claim kinship with him?"

When the old man's head rolled around on the floor, a smile still lingered on his lips. He had never imagined that Li Gui would refuse to even let him finish speaking before striking him down.

The elderly clan head had originally intended to use the clan's ability to help him secure an imperial amnesty and support his advancement in officialdom as bait to persuade Li Gui.

He had even considered various scenarios, preparing to reason with him logically, appeal to his emotions, and overawe him with threats... Convinced he had anticipated every possibility, he simply never expected that Li Gui wouldn't listen to a single word he had to say.

When a scholar meets a soldier, reasoning is impossible.

All the drafts he had prepared in his mind were utterly useless and vanished into thin air the moment Li Gui severed his head with a single axe stroke.

Once a person is dead, no plan matters anymore!

Seeing the elderly clan head so casually hacked to death, his corpse slumping back into the chair with blood gushing from his neck, everyone completely lost their minds.

After a moment of frozen silence, a cacophony of shrieks and weeping erupted as the crowd fled in all directions.

With a wave of Li Gui's hand, his subordinates immediately brandished their spears and drove the group back.

While they didn't dare to kill all of these people, preventing them from escaping was well within their power.

Watching Li Gui pursue the crowd and swing his axe as if slaughtering sheep or chickens, instantly butchering every single one of their so-called "kin," the bandits felt a chill in their hearts and weakness in their legs.

This Great Chieftain was truly a malevolent star descended to earth; he killed people as effortlessly as eating and drinking. Those who fell to their knees begging for mercy received no pardon whatsoever—instead, they died even faster.

When Li Gui finished slaughtering everyone, he waved his hand and commanded, "Assemble, search the manor, and take all the grain and valuables."

Nodding hastily, Li Laoqi sprinted off to transmit the orders.

Before long, all the bandits reassembled into formation and began systematically plundering the wealth.

It had to be said that the Li Family Manor truly lived up to its reputation as a powerful local clan. Grain was piled as high as mountains within the estate, weapons, armor, and arrows were too numerous to count, and there were even several warhorses.

Because the Yushan faction had been active throughout Yishui County, most gentry families had been unable to gather their grain, but these powerful clans relied on their strong military force and remained completely unaffected, leaving their storehouses packed to the brim.

Now, however, all these goods belonged to Yushan Stronghold, falling squarely into Li Gui's possession.

There was simply too much loot. Even if every cart in the Li Family Manor were brought out, it wouldn't be enough to haul it all in one trip; multiple journeys would definitely be required.

Fortunately, there were no threats remaining in the surrounding area, so even small transport groups would be safe.

Li Gui divided his men into two teams: one stayed behind at the Li Family Manor to guard the captives and recruit able-bodied men willing to join the stronghold, while the other loaded the carts and transported the grain, weapons, and equipment back to the stronghold first.

With the tasks assigned, Li Gui found himself with free time. He simply chose a warhorse and began practicing his horsemanship by himself.

His equestrian skills had been mediocre, barely sufficient to manage riding. However, with the assistance of destiny's momentum, mastering it was effortless.

By dusk, most of the goods had been transported, and Li Gui's horsemanship had reached an accomplished level.

Destiny operated with such unyielding reason.

Escorting the final batch of valuables alongside all his men, Li Gui returned to the stronghold.

Following the usual custom, rewards were first distributed to all the stronghold brothers, followed by the customary celebratory banquet.

Amidst the flush of wine and lively atmosphere, Li Gui stood up, clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention, and spoke in a booming voice:

"Brothers, ever since Chieftain Zhu Fu joined the stronghold, he has rendered consecutive outstanding services. First he sneaked into the government army camp to scout, and later he lured local gentry like Li Qing away from their manors, making our stronghold's two major victories possible!"

"I have always rewarded merit accordingly. I hereby promote Chieftain Zhu Fu's seating rank to second place. Do any of you brothers have objections?"

A group of bandits cared little about who served as chieftain. Aside from a few individuals like Huang Silao and Li Laoqi whose expressions turned ugly, the rest raised their wine bowls and shouted in unison, "No objections!"

Li Gui paid no heed to the expressions of the two men.

Over these past few days, Li Gui had increasingly felt that the pair lacked decisiveness, often hesitating and showing cowardice in their actions.

Take today's affair with the Li clan head, for instance. If Zhu Fu had been present, he certainly wouldn't have indulged in so much idle chatter; if Li Gui ordered someone killed, he would have dared to execute it personally without harboring any misgivings.

Moreover, their abilities were truly limited—their martial prowess was mediocre, and their administrative work was poor, leaving them with practically no cultivation potential.

Li Laoqi possessed a certain talent for intelligence and could serve as Zhu Fu's deputy in the future. As for Huang Silao, he would likely fall behind eventually and become a marginal figure in the stronghold.

Still, since they were old brothers who had followed him from the very beginning, he would at least reserve a chair for each of them.

Even Mount Liang had its share of freeloaders; what harm was there in having a few connected cronies at Mount Yushan?

It was just that their seating positions would inevitably have to be pushed further down.