Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies
Chapter 54 - 53: The Death of Wang Mazi (Please Follow)

Shen Qing wasn't worried about Tian Xiaohu betraying him to the government office.

The government office in the county city, honestly, was even more corrupt than he was.

They would grab any penny they could and avoid any trouble possible.

If they couldn't avoid trouble, they would still grab a penny before taking action, ensuring they weren't at a loss.

As for fairness and integrity, the government office didn't care at all.

As long as they fulfilled their annual tax obligations to the Great Zhou Court, they couldn't care less if people lived or died.

When things went wrong, the Four Great Eastern Families would clean up the mess for them.

The Great Zhou Court was not ruling the world alongside these commoners.

Apart from that, the relationships in the village were also delicate.

They liked to play tough inside the village, but when facing outsiders, they stood extremely united.

When one person had trouble, the entire village helped.

Anyone who made a name for themselves in the city always had family brothers or fellow villagers around them.

Tian Xiaohu and he came from the same village. If he did such a "heinous" thing, the customs and traditions here would teach him a lesson.

His family only had him left, and he held no status in the village or connections in the county city.

Tian Xiaohu wasn't a fool, knowing how to choose.

In the afternoon, many people were leaving the city, and the streets were bustling.

Yet, as they moved away from the city gates, the crowd from the city thinned and scattered.

They continued passing through the shantytown for about forty-five minutes, and when they almost reached Seven Turns Alley, Shen Xiaohu suddenly exclaimed, "Look over there!"

Hearing this, Shen Qing and Tian Xiaohu looked up in the direction Shen Xiaohu was pointing, their faces showing surprise.

In the alley of the shantytown, shadows crisscrossed.

A row of bodies hung under the eaves, with ropes creaking as they swayed in the cold wind.

The surrounding air seemed frozen, and a bloody stench wafted from the alley.

The face covered in pockmarks of the body in the center bore the expression of terror and unwillingness at their last moments.

Passersby on the street quickened their pace, afraid of disturbing the scene.

Shen Qing glanced at it, realizing this was the alley where he had previously killed Old Ba Zi, suspecting it might be related to him.

A shantytown resident passed by on the street, and he reached out and casually grabbed someone to ask, "What's going on here?"

"None of your business..." The person he grabbed was a half-grown boy, who replied impatiently.

However, he abruptly shut up as he spoke.

Shen Qing, who had killed many, had a piercing gaze filled with an elusive murderous aura.

The half-grown boy felt as if even breathing was becoming difficult.

Shen Qing's grip on his wrist tightened as if about to snap his bones, and the intense pain made him hesitate to move.

Under his gaze, Shen Qing slowly took out two large coins from his pocket and waved them.

The half-grown boy realized he was unlucky today, having encountered a tough customer, and immediately lowered his head, saying, "It was Boss, it was Boss who carried out traditional justice and killed Wang Mazi and his gang."

"Boss?" Shen Qing frowned and asked.

"He's a hero in our area. Old Ba Zi and Wang Mazi, those fellows, all lived under Boss's rule."

Shen Qing continued, "What traditional justice did Wang Mazi violate to warrant Boss's execution?"

"Wang Mazi caused the death of Old Ba Zi in an internal fight, which was taboo. Now, among Wang Mazi's men, the dead are dead and the escaped have fled; most of them ended up here." The half-grown boy nodded toward the row of Wang Mazi's bodies.

"Sir..." The half-grown boy looked at Shen Qing pitifully, hoping for mercy.

Shen Qing released his grip and casually tossed the two large coins.

Then, he flicked the whip, urging the horse-drawn cart forward while keeping a thoughtful eye on Wang Mazi's corpse.

This Boss was also ruthless, someone to be cautious of when encountered in the future.

The newly freed half-grown boy glared at Shen Qing with resentment.

Shen Qing's arrogant demeanor just now had greatly displeased him, causing him to lose face.

"The damned bastard, I'll gather my people and take you down..."

He spat thick saliva on the ground, cursed a few times, then bent down to pick up the two large coins from the ground.

Whoosh!

At that moment, an arrow flew through the air, piercing his hand and nailing it to the ground, making him scream out in pain.

"Ah!"

Tian Xiaohu stepped down from the cart, approached with a cold expression, and glanced at him indifferently, maintaining a silent and immense pressure that almost drove the half-grown boy to mental collapse.

With a thud.

The half-grown boy seemed unable to support himself and sat on the ground with a thump.

Ignoring the wound on his hand, he pulled out the arrow, threw it aside, and crawled away rapidly.

Tian Xiaohu picked up the two large coins from the ground and gently flicked the blood-stained feathered arrow back to Shen Qing.

"These people are cheap, they fear power but not virtue. Show them some strength, and they dare open a dyehouse. You have to make them afraid of you."

Shen Qing replied with a soft hum, releasing his hand from the bow.

He heard everything, and if Tian Xiaohu had not acted, he was ready to shoot an arrow himself.

But he wasn't aiming for the boy's hand...

After leaving the shantytown, there were significantly fewer pedestrians on the official road.

Shen Qing hesitated no longer, lifted his hand, and cracked the whip with force.

Snap!

The crisp sound of the whip echoed behind the old horse.

Being whipped, the old horse immediately galloped forward.

In the chilly winter of December, the sky after the Shen Hour was leaden gray, and the cold wind cut like a knife.

The cart carrying Shen Qing and the two others jolted along the official road, the wheels creaking dully over the frozen ground, racing toward the direction of Hongshan Village, veiled in light snow in the distance.

Snowflakes scattered when passing through branches, landing on the three's brows and coarse cloth garments, quickly turning into cold droplets.

Tian Xiaohu and Shen Xiaohu wore bulky cotton robes, clutching the cart's edges tightly, their knuckles turning pale from the cold.

Occasionally, they exhaled white breath, which the cold wind shredded traceless.

However, Shen Qing, holding the reins, had a rosy complexion and did not feel the cold.

The old horse behaved like an obedient maid in his hands, allowing him to command and maneuver at will.

After running for about an hour, the old horse's stamina seemed depleted, and its speed naturally slowed.

Shen Qing felt a stirring, a gleam flashed in his eyes as if ink had dripped into water, rippling with waves.

In his vision, a line of ink-like text emerged.

[Skill: Driving Skill (Entry Level)]

[Progress: 101/100 Points]

[Status: Can be Improved]

[Note: The art of driving lies in practice makes perfect, continuous practice can enhance skill progression, mastering the driving essentials. In the future, driving can be stable and fast, as effortless as controlling an arm, leaving dust behind.]

Shen Qing chuckled softly.

Unexpectedly, from driving these past days, he had entirely filled the driving skill progress.

Feeling a movement of spirit, Shen Qing chose to break through.