Unlike the Hu family's exploitation of Green Mountain Town, the Xi family had always been benevolent towards the citizens of Jiacheng. Their ruthless side was only shown to families that might threaten the Xi family's position, which was one of the reasons why the father and son were actually well-regarded.
Even the Hu family's own clansmen received little leniency, acting subserviently before Hu Shaomeng.
This was because, before successfully joining the Fishing Sea Tower, without such measures, Hu Shaomeng could not obtain sufficient resources to support his cultivation.
When granaries are full, people know etiquette; in the cultivation world, it was the same.
Of course, Xi Zichu had feelings for this city and its domain that he walked upon.
Those years of admiration and closeness could melt even an iron heart.
So when he saw a dying patient being casually thrown onto a cart behind a medical clinic, piled together with several corpses, he felt somewhat angry.
Especially since this was done by soldiers of the City Guard Army. They were practically the Xi family's private soldiers. In a sense, they also represented him.
A straw mat covered these several corpses as the wheels rolled forward.
Everything appeared hasty, perfunctory, and absurd.
"Move aside."
A young soldier shouted coldly.
At that moment, Xi Zichu happened to be passing by, stopping at the alley entrance.
He was directly in their path.
"What are you doing?" Xi Zichu asked.
This was not a pleasant task.
No one wanted to do such work, so the two soldiers pushing the cart were in bad moods.
"Dragging them to the mass grave. If you dare cause trouble, we'll bury you with them!" one said.
"This person isn't dead yet!"
Xi Zichu stepped forward and pulled away the straw mat.
"Looking for death!" The two City Guard soldiers immediately drew their swords!
But their blades were pressed back.
Xi Zichu stared at the unrecognizable face at the top of the cart, his heart in a storm!
Although this person was not yet dead, he was beyond cure. Because he was infected with plague.
Even though the East King Valley practiced both medicine and poison without hesitation to kill, research into "plague" was also strictly prohibited.
Even though countless powerful killing techniques could be developed from "plague," a completely foreseeable direction, no one dared to attempt it openly.
Setting aside whether it harmed the natural order, once exposed, the world would unite to destroy it. Even the East King Valley could not bear such consequences.
What shocked Xi Zichu was that this person, including those corpses beneath him, had all been afflicted with plague.
Yet they were merely wrapped in a straw mat and sent to the mass grave.
If the escorting soldiers became even lazier and didn't even bury them, the consequences...
And such a major event, whether as a cultivator from the East King Valley or as the young master of the Xi family, he knew nothing about!
The dying patient looked hopelessly into Xi Zichu's eyes, his lips moving slightly, but no sound came out.
Xi Zichu spread his five fingers, and a Flower of Devouring emerged from the ground, swallowing all the corpses on the cart... including this person who had not yet completely become a corpse.
"Do you know what disease this is?" He turned to ask the soldiers with some sorrow.
"Who are you?" one of the soldiers asked.
Facing a strong person who had demonstrated supernatural power, he still maintained a warrior's courage.
Such soldiers were the result of the Xi family's cultivation over generations. Xi Zichu should have felt proud.
But at that moment, he had no such mood, simply wiping his hand across his face to reveal his true appearance: "It's me."
The two soldiers looked at each other.
Then they reported: "Young Master! We don't know either. Master Liu only passed down the order that anyone with this disease should be sent to the Northern Suburb mass grave for unified burial and disposal."
"How long has this been going on?"
"We truly don't know. I was only transferred here the day before yesterday, responsible for handling corpses in the nearby streets, mainly this medical clinic."
Another soldier interjected: "I heard rumors in the army that it may have started as early as April... but now, it seems to be getting worse."
Xi Zichu's face turned very ugly, and he left without saying a word.
...
When Jiang Chen arrived at Jiacheng again, nothing seemed to have changed.
The gate guards still wouldn't reduce the entry fee by a single coin, nor would they dare to overcharge.
The streets were still bustling with people, a peaceful and prosperous scene.
Regarding the Xi family, Jiang Chen didn't have particularly good feelings, but neither did he have much hostility.
The treasure-seizing competition was fair game, and the Xi family's compensation was sincere enough. In the end, they even lost an elder at the Soaring Dragon realm without making a fuss, showing proper aristocratic bearing.
If the Xi family didn't plan to oppose him afterward, he also didn't intend to make enemies of them.
What he needed to do was consolidate the Chongxuan family's businesses throughout the State of Yang, increase efficiency, and provide a continuous supply of resources for Chongxuan Sheng. This couldn't be achieved just by killingthe whole way.
He had no intention of visiting the city lord's mansion. He remembered the small courtyard where Xi Zichu had invited him to meet last time, so he planned to go there and wait for Xi Zichu. Before that, he wanted to visit several major medical clinics in Jiacheng to check the situation.
If the two deceased in Green Mountain Town had indeed been infected with a disease, then a city as large as Jiacheng should have similar cases.
Moreover, with the quality of physicians in a major city, patients who could only wait to die in Green Mountain Town might be able to be cured in Jiacheng.
With someone like Xi Zichu, a cultivator from the East King Valley, Jiang Chen was very confident in Jiacheng's medical standards.
While walking, he heard a commotion.
Looking into the distance, a squad of armored soldiers was escorting a prisoner's cart, heading in his direction.
When a prisoner's cart passed through the streets, it was like a rat crossing the street, with everyone shouting to beat it.
Not to mention a tall, burly man loudly reading out this person's crimes—
"There is a physician named Sun Ping.
Bold as brass, spreading demonic lies!
Seeking huge profits, exaggerating patients' conditions.
Within one street, everyone is in danger;
Within one room, people are anxious.
The prisoner's cart passes through the streets, to be executed at the South Gate.
Publicly displayed as a warning to others!"
It was written clearly and shouted loudly. Everyone understood perfectly.
This young physician named Sun Ping, in order to make some illicit money, deliberately exaggerated patients' conditions, causing panic among the people, and thereby reaping huge profits.
"Despicable!"
A rotten egg smashed into the prisoner's cart with a splat.
The black and yellow egg mixture trickled down the black hair of the criminal Sun Ping.
This sound was like a battle drum, instantly triggering a "charge" and sounding the "call to war."
Hands reached out from the crowd one after another, like a relay, continuing the justice!
Countless rotten cabbages and rotten eggs rained down into the cart like a storm.
People were flushed with anger, filled with righteous indignation.
"This black-hearted thing! Just knows how to take our money!"
"So young yet so wicked, what will become of him in the future!"
"Still dare to spread rumors!"
"Truly beast-hearted!"
Finally, all the voices of justice merged into a torrent.
Merged into a single voice shouting—
"Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!"
...
Jiang Chen stood outside the crowd, looking into the prisoner's cart.
That criminal named Sun Ping in the cart, wearing prisoner's clothes, hands cuffed and chained, neither crying out injustice, nor making excuses, not even avoiding the filth thrown at him.
But in his young eyes, tears flowed.
Le Wen