Chapter 180 Concealing Faults and Shaping Loyalty

The faint morning light illuminated the chaotic mess of the great hall.

Liu Ziming wiped the bloodstains from his face, looked in the direction where Qi Huan had departed, and sighed.

"Chen Mu, he may have left, but our business isn't over yet. We need to come up with some kind of explanation for this."

Chen Mu was crouching beside the corpse of the Five-Tailed Demon Fox; he looked up upon hearing this.

"What kind of explanation?"

Liu Ziming rubbed his face vigorously to calm himself down.

"Xu Changze is dead, the Magistrate is gone. The commotion last night was so loud that half the city heard it. Once day breaks, the commoners will surely come to investigate."

"We need to come up with an excuse. We can't just say the Magistrate colluded with demons and we butchered him, can we?"

Chen Mu stood up, his Hunyuan Calamity Astral Qi circulating slowly within his body, mending the hidden injuries from the recent fierce battle.

He truly hadn't considered this issue, or rather, he had always only thought about how to kill enemies and how to become stronger. As for the intricacies of handling the aftermath, public opinion, and the hearts of the people, these were not areas he excelled in.

"What do you want to do?"

Liu Ziming frowned in thought, then turned to look at Old Wang the Lame, this temporary City God.

At this moment, he had already withdrawn the heart-palpitating pressure from before and returned to his hunched, timid appearance, though there was now something indescribable in his eyes.

"Lord Wang."

Liu Ziming spoke cautiously, his tone respectful.

"Although this Xu Changze colluded with demons and met his end here, if we were to announce this matter truthfully, the people of Yunmeng would surely panic. I fear they would lose faith in our Demon Suppression Division and the legal authority of the imperial court."

"I worry that once the hearts of the people are in chaos, it will only be easier for demons to take advantage of the situation."

Old Wang the Lame was silent for a moment. His eyes stared straight at the morning sun outside the window, then swept over Xu Changze's already cold corpse in the hall, as well as the true form of the Five-Tailed Red Fox. After a long while, he spoke slowly.

"Magistrate Xu... to protect our people of Yunmeng, fought fiercely against the Beimang demon fox that had infiltrated the city, and unfortunately... unfortunately died in the line of duty."

He paused, seemingly organizing his words.

"The demon fox was cunning and vicious. Although Magistrate Xu fought with all his might to slay it, he himself suffered heavy injuries and, in the end... died of exhaustion."

"This is a tragedy for Yunmeng, a pain for the people. However, evil cannot triumph over good. The demon fox has finally been slain, and the order of Yin and Yang has not been disrupted, all thanks to... Magistrate Xu and the brave warriors of the Demon Suppression Division who risked their lives!"

Once these words were spoken, not only Liu Ziming but also the officers of the Demon Suppression Division, who were bandaging their wounds and collecting the remains of their colleagues nearby, were stunned.

These words were far too high-sounding, even somewhat distorting the truth.

Xu Changze—who was clearly a traitor and a parasite who colluded with demons, stole the wishes of the people, and was finally killed by Chen Mu—how did he become a hero who died protecting the city in the words of Old Wang the Lame?

But soon, a flash of understanding passed through Liu Ziming's eyes.

In this world, sometimes truth is needed, but sometimes an explanation that puts people's minds at ease is needed even more. While laying out the whole truth might be satisfying, the resulting impact would be devastating.

And shaping Xu Changze into a tragic hero who fought demons and unfortunately died in the line of duty, while hypocritical, could stabilize the public heart to the greatest extent, preserve the reputation of the government and the Demon Suppression Division, and minimize unrest.

As for Xu Changze's true crimes, those who know the inside story will naturally judge and record them. Perhaps in the case files of the Prefecture, it will be a different story.

Liu Ziming took a deep breath and nodded heavily.

"Lord Wang is absolutely right. Lord Xu died fighting in the line of duty and is a model for our Yunmeng. This subordinate will go and make arrangements to properly lay Lord Xu's body to rest and issue a proclamation to the whole city."

Old Wang the Lame nodded slightly and said no more.

He was currently presiding over the City God Temple, and speaking these words in the capacity of a temporary deity carried different weight. After all, the truth confirmed by the City God himself was undoubtedly the most convincing.

Chen Mu listened quietly from the side, never saying a word.

He didn't care about how Xu Changze's death was being whitewashed. After all, he had already obtained the value that corpse could provide—the over nine hundred years of plundered Lifespan.

Liu Ziming acted quickly.

He assigned trusted officers to carefully handle Xu Changze's corpse, trying their best not to disturb the fatal wounds while creating the illusion of a sacrifice after a heroic struggle. As for the true form of the Five-Tailed Demon Fox, it was carried to a conspicuous place to be displayed as the culprit behind the chaos in Yunmeng last night.

About an hour later, the sky was already bright, and voices began to be heard from the streets outside the City God Temple.

The commoners whispered among themselves, and soon the government's public notice was posted, and the bailiffs beat gongs while announcing it along the streets.

"Last night, a Beimang demon fox infiltrated our Yunmeng with evil intent. Magistrate Lord Xu took the lead and personally led the brave warriors of the Demon Suppression Division to the City God Temple to suppress it. The demon fox was vicious and stubborn. Lord Xu fought it with all his might and finally slew the fox demon, but Lord Xu also suffered heavy injuries and unfortunately died in the line of duty."

Once the news was out, it was like throwing a stone into water, stirring up ripples.

The commoners were immediately shocked and lamented, followed by heated discussions. Xu Changze had operated in Yunmeng for many years; although he couldn't be called a father to the people, his surface-level work was passable. Coupled with the endorsement of Old Wang the Lame in his capacity as City God, most of the commoners quickly accepted this explanation, sighing at his untimely death and sacrifice for the people.

As for deeper inside information, ordinary commoners had no way of knowing and were unwilling to delve into it. They only needed a reasonable explanation, one that would allow them to continue living their lives in peace.

The City God Temple was temporarily closed, and Xu Changze's mourning hall was set up at the County Yamen. Old Wang the Lame, in his capacity as the temporary City God, personally went to offer incense, further solidifying his heroic deeds.

Liu Ziming was so busy he didn't have a moment to rest. He had to handle Xu Changze's funeral arrangements, appease the clerks at the County Yamen, reorganize the Demon Suppression Division, provide compensation for the casualties, and stabilize the public heart.

After resting for a while, Chen Mu found Liu Ziming.

"Has Xu Changze's residence been searched yet?"

Liu Ziming looked up from a pile of documents and rubbed his throbbing temples upon hearing this.

"I haven't had the chance yet. That place has always been guarded by the trusted bodyguards he raised. Without a suitable pretext, it's hard to force our way in. Now that the news of Xu Changze's death in the line of duty has spread, those bodyguards must be in disarray, so it is a good time."

He glanced at Chen Mu's face, knowing that this god of slaughter probably sensed something, or simply wanted to see what filth was hidden in Xu Changze's lair. He immediately selected a dozen or so capable bailiffs.

"Let's go! To the back residence of the County Yamen. Just say we are acting under the orders of the City God to inspect Lord Xu's belongings, in preparation for reporting to the Prefecture and applying for compensation."

Liu Ziming made up a somewhat passable excuse and led the men away.

The Magistrate's back residence, with its high walls and deep courtyards, was now a place where everyone feared for themselves.

When the news of their master's death in the line of duty arrived, the servants were all at a loss. The few trusted bodyguards Xu Changze had left behind also had suspicious and fearful expressions, gathering in the front courtyard to whisper.

Liu Ziming led Chen Mu and a team of bailiffs, armed, as they burst in. The few bodyguards instinctively wanted to block them, but Liu Ziming shouted coldly.

"How bold! We are acting under orders to inspect Lord Xu's belongings. How dare you resist!"

The few trusted confidants looked at each other, then at the bailiffs behind Liu Ziming, and finally at Chen Mu's martial attire, which hadn't been changed yet and was still stained with blood. In the end, they didn't dare to move, watching helplessly as they marched straight in, unable to do anything about it.