Chapter 00104: How Do You Prove You Are You
# How Do You Prove You Are You?
Chapter 104
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 104: How Do You Prove You Are You?
She looked utterly terrified, her body trembling uncontrollably.
The man couldn’t tell if she was genuinely foolish or just pretending.
After all, he had encountered village women with the most bizarre thought processes.
He decided to intensify his threat: “Remember this, both of your children are in our hands! If you dare get close to that family again, I’ll kill one of them right in front of you!”
Madam Zhu’s voice quivered, “Please, don’t hurt them!”
“Be obedient, and we’ll let you all go tomorrow morning!” After the threat, he quickly followed up with a carrot. “If you behave, everything will be fine.”
Madam Zhu nodded frantically.
At that moment, the sound of crunching gravel came from the village path as a group of people approached.
The leader waved at Madam Zhu, “Hey, Madam Zhu, what a coincidence!”
The two turned to look.
It was the eldest son of the corrupt official, He, followed closely by two guards, putting on quite the show.
Seeing his cheerful face, Madam Zhu felt a surge of relief, tears nearly spilling from her eyes.
But she forced a smile and greeted him, “Young Master He, how nice to see you.”
“I was just taking a stroll after dinner and ended up here,” He Lingchuan said casually as he walked forward. “Your village has such beautiful scenery. Would you mind accompanying me for a walk?”
“I…” Madam Zhu was about to speak when the fat man, unable to stand it any longer, pulled her close to his chest. “This is my wife.”
He Lingchuan pointed at him and asked Madam Zhu, “Is this an outsider?”
Madam Zhu’s eyes curved slightly, but she remained silent.
Before the fat man could react, He Lingchuan laughed it off, “Just a joke, don’t take it seriously. What should I call you, brother?”
“Wang,” the fat man replied, remembering Lu Han’s instructions.
He forced a smile, “Young Master He’s presence brings honor to our humble home.”
“From your house, you can see the lake. It’s quite nice,” He Lingchuan commented, then suddenly tossed something shiny toward the fat man.
Wang instinctively caught it and realized it was a small silver ingot, worth about five taels.
What was this?
“You’re lucky. I’ll be staying here tonight,” He Lingchuan said, hands behind his back, chin tilted up. “Why don’t you go prepare the bed?”
Wang’s eye twitched, and he stood there, stunned.
Under normal circumstances, he would have already exploded in rage and chopped off this brat’s head!
But Lu Han had told him to endure!
He forced himself to swallow his anger, “Your accommodations have already been arranged.” In fact, Lu Han himself had arranged it.
“It’s too far. I want to chat with the family,” He Lingchuan said.
Ever since he realized that this guy was also a bandit, he had been paying attention to the accommodations arranged for him in the village.
He noticed that they had placed him as far as possible from He Chunhua and his wife’s residence—one in the west, the other in the east, forming a perfect diagonal.
These guys were planning to divide and conquer.
“What, not enough?” He Lingchuan saw Wang standing there motionless and pulled out a few more taels of silver, shoving them into his hand.
It was the same way he would tip a waiter in a theater.
The moment he did this, Wang’s temple veins twitched.
He Lingchuan was on guard, but the man clenched his jaw, clearly suppressing his anger once more, and said hoarsely, “Come in.”
He wanted to drag this kid inside and beat him senseless, but the two guards were following closely behind.
He wasn’t afraid of losing a fight, but he worried about making too much noise.
When would they finally get rid of these scoundrels!
Wang turned and entered the house.
Madam Zhu glanced at He Lingchuan and followed him inside.
Only then did He Lingchuan see the unmistakable fear and anger in her eyes.
If these men pretending to be villagers were bandits, then she must be an innocent civilian, right?
He Lingchuan looked around and noticed idle men everywhere, either eating from bowls or sitting at their doorsteps, picking at their feet and enjoying the breeze, all while keeping an eye on him.
￥￥￥￥￥
Meanwhile, Lu Han was sitting in the village chief’s house, gnawing on a duck leg.
The ducks raised by the Spirit Lake fed on local water plants and snails, their skin thick with a layer of white fat.
When roasted over a fire, the golden oil and aroma soon filled the air.
A sprinkle of pepper and a dash of salt made it a feast.
As he ate, Lu Han observed the village chief’s family.
The old man and woman, along with a few smelly men, weren’t much to look at.
But the grandchildren, who had already been taken away by the bandits, were only three or five years old, their skin so tender it seemed like you could squeeze water out of them.
Thinking of those children made the meat in his mouth taste even better.
Just as he was enjoying his meal, a lackey slipped in and reported, “Boss Lu, I’ve got some news! That corrupt official surnamed He is heading to Xiazhou to take up a new position as the governor.”
“What governor?” Lu Han initially didn’t pay much attention, but then it clicked, and his eyes lit up. “You mean the governor of Xiazhou?!”
“Yes, that’s what I heard,” the lackey said. “I overheard it from the wives of some of his soldiers.”
For this long journey, some of the He family’s guards had brought their families along, as they might not have another chance to return to Blackwater City after traveling so far.
Lu Han slowly grinned, then burst into laughter!
But after just one laugh, he suddenly remembered that the mountains were quiet at night, and loud noises might scare off their prey.
So he stifled his laughter, causing his chest to rumble.
His trusted men exchanged confused glances, unsure why their boss was so thrilled.
“Boss, isn’t this a fat sheep?”
“Fat? It’s more than that!” Lu Han’s expression was animated. “When he introduced himself earlier, it jogged my memory! This guy was the prefect of Qiansong County, stationed in the borderlands for over a decade. By now, there’s probably no one in the central bureaucracy who even remembers him. Hah, from Qiansong County to Xiazhou, it’s more than a thousand miles! Do you know what that means?”
The men shook their heads.
“The people of Xiazhou have never seen this new governor!” Lu Han couldn’t help but laugh again. “If I take his official documents and seal to Xiazhou, I’ll be the new governor!”
“Heaven hasn’t abandoned us. I thought we’d have to decide our fate tomorrow, but now the heavens have given us a way out!” Lu Han clicked his tongue. “This position is mine! His wife looks delicate, and those two brats of his are just as tender!”
He licked his lips, and the men around him chuckled.
But soon, a question arose: “But that corrupt official has the Imperial Mandate. If you want to impersonate him, how will you deal with the Mandate?”
“Who says we can’t handle it? Do you know what the Imperial Mandate is based on?”
The men shook their heads.
They knew that the Imperial Mandate was usually issued by the royal court, granting officials and generals the authority to command.
This was why government troops had a natural advantage over bandits and rebels—
Not that they always won.
“The position is designated, and so is the person,” Lu Han explained methodically. “If we get his documents and seal, we’ve essentially taken his position. As for the person, it’s a bit tricky, but not impossible. Let me share a secret with you.”
He patted his subordinate’s shoulder, “How does heaven determine that you are you?”
How does heaven determine that I am me? The subordinate thought for a while, then pointed at his nose and asked, “By name?”
(End of Chapter)