Sure enough, when you're on the side of the people, they naturally support you. Hearing them call out "Justice," Chen Mo's face turned slightly red.

This extremely bloody scene didn't make the people feel afraid; instead, they clapped and cheered, each falling into a fervor.

After returning from the execution ground, Chen Mo officially distributed money to his subordinates.

When distributing the money, Chen Mo deliberately selected the location of the camp housing the defectors so they could watch.

Seeing the heads surging below, Chen Mo raised his hand, clapped his hands, and immediately several personal soldiers came over, each pair lifting a box, sequentially ascending the platform. The Divine Brave Guards, who had seen such a scene before, had flushed faces and could roughly guess what was in the boxes.

Only the defectors and Xianzhen Guards were a little puzzled.

When Chen Mo ordered them to be opened, the personal soldiers unlocked the boxes, revealing strings of copper coins inside, and their eyes sparkled. Some soldiers who knew they had merits even secretly rubbed their palms together.

Sun Meng brought the Merit Register and handed it to Chen Mo. Chen Mo opened it and announced loudly, "Luo Yong."

"At your command." In the Divine Brave Guards lineup, a soldier stepped forward.

"Luo Yong, in the battle of Shiling County, you were the first to climb the city wall, earning you the merit of Xian Deng. You are rewarded with thirty gold bars, one hundred bolts of brocade, ten servants, ten acres of fertile land, one volume of Cultivation and Martial Arts, and promoted to Centurion. Furthermore, I have reported to the Court to request a title for you."

Thirty is thirty, and "bars" refers to a unit of measurement for rod-like items, so thirty gold bars are indeed thirty large gold bars.

This is not a reward replaced with copper.

But solid gold.

As soon as these words came out, the scene was immediately in an uproar.

This reward is too generous!

Apart from money and food rewards, there were even Cultivation and Martial Arts rewards, and he was promoted to Centurion, with Marshal Chen personally requesting a title for him from the court.

Everyone's eyes turned red with envy and jealousy.

Especially some companions who were friends with Luo Yong, hearing these words, their hearts were utterly turbulent, even realizing that from now on, Luo Yong seemed to no longer be a part of their world.

"Wen Heng." Amidst the noise, Chen Mo called out Wen Heng's name again.

In the battle of Longmen County, Wen Heng won the first merit, so Chen Mo wanted to set him up as a role model among the defectors. Considering he was an Eighth-Grade Martial Artist, his reward was even higher than Luo Yong's.

Indeed, hearing the rewards Wen Heng received, those defectors below were all slack-jawed.

As defectors, they were well aware that since ancient times, although they could save their lives, except for those with status, the rest wouldn't receive high treatment and instead would be considered expendable.

But now Wen Heng had just defected, yet he received such high rewards, leaving them stunned.

Seeing the defectors' reactions matching his expectations, Chen Mo's expression also turned more pleased, and he began to announce the merits of those who captured flags and each person's achievements in the Wei Yang Slope battle.

Chen Mo announced loudly, "Xu Mu."

"Pre... Present." Among the defectors, a young man stepped out.

Chen Mo noticed a red number 32 on his forehead.

With a smile, Chen Mo said, "Xu Mu, in the battle of Wei Yang Slope, you killed the enemy with merit, achieving Level 8 in the ranks of war, and shot and killed an enemy Centurion. You're rewarded with one hundred units of money and promoted to Centurion."

Then Chen Mo turned to the defectors and said, "Xu Mu, you may select one hundred men from among them to serve under you."

Xu Mu was stunned and did not move.

Because he never thought that, without Wen Heng's background, and without such merits as his, as a defector, he could still receive rewards.

"Xu Mu." Seeing Xu Mu silent, Sun Meng frowned and shouted.

It was only then that Xu Mu reacted, hurriedly giving a salute to Chen Mo: "Thank... you, Marshal Chen."

"No need for excessive courtesy; this is what you deserve." Chen Mo said.

Subsequently, Chen Mo called several other defectors out of the lineup to distribute rewards to them.

After the entire process was complete, the sky had grown dark, but those below had been standing for so long without feeling tired, instead feeling incredibly excited and thrilled.

Some who hadn't received a reward were mentally berating themselves, wondering why they didn't fight harder before.

"I know some of you may have certain thoughts in your minds, but rest assured, since you've all defected, I will treat you as my own, with equal treatment and clear distinction between rewards and punishments," Chen Mo said loudly.

...

On the other side, inside the side room of the Government Office.

Liang Xue's restless heart gradually relaxed because, during these few days, except for not being able to leave the room (aside from answering nature's call), everything else was the same as her usual life, and no soldiers came to harass her, nor did the situation she imagined occur.

Even some small requests she made were basically met after being reported by the guards outside.

It seemed they were just being held separately.

In this calmness, perhaps not wanting to appear too oppressed, the two women even began to play pitch-pot in the room.

Pitch-pot was a game played by nobles during feasts in ancient times, and it was also considered a form of etiquette.

In pitch-pot, arrows are tossed into a pot, and the one who lands the most arrows wins, while the loser drinks according to the prescribed number of cups.

The guards wouldn't give the two women arrows, so they used chopsticks instead.

Each woman held five pairs of chopsticks, aiming at the mouth of the pot to start throwing.

Being from a major noble family, Liang Xue lacked the pedantic nature of smaller families and was trained in martial arts and archery, though never meant for the battlefield, purely for physical strength; moreover, as an Eighth-Grade Martial Artist, her aim was decent.

Ning Wan downed several cups of wine, her charming mature face flushing instantly; even the prominent fruits about to be exposed took on a ruddy hue.

Spending over a month together in one room, the conflicts between them seemed to have eased considerably, growing closer in relationship.

Liang Xue allowed Ning Wan to win a round; after all, winning constantly was uninteresting. After a few cups of wine, a rosy hue appeared on her face, hinting at a slight intoxication, making her already charming face even more captivating.

Under the numbing effect of alcohol, the two women seemed to forget their current predicament until the door was pushed open, and a powerful voice rang out: "Who is Liang Xue?"

The arrival was not a guard but a personal soldier of Chen Mo.

The two women instantly sobered significantly, with Ning Wan clinging to Liang Xue's arm, feigning calmness, and asking, "What is it?"

"Are you Liang Xue?" Sun Meng stared at Ning Wan.

He hadn't seen the two women before, and despite Ning Wan being Liang Xue's aunt, the age gap was small, appearing almost like a pair of sisters standing together.

Ning Wan patted Liang Xue's arm, letting out a soft "mm".

"My Marshal Chen invites you," Sun Meng's voice softened a bit, then he clapped his hands, and two old women came into the room.

Upon hearing this, Ning Wan's heart skipped a beat, with Liang Xue hurriedly asking, "What do you want to do?"

Sun Meng ignored her, issuing the order: "Take her away."

The two women escorted Ning Wan out of the room.

Liang Song disliked overbearing women and, when considering another marriage, prioritized beauty above all; as long as the family background was bearable, it was sufficient. Therefore, Ning Wan, untrained in martial arts, lacked the strength to match the two older women.

"Stop, she isn't Liang Xue, I am..." Liang Xue embraced Ning Wan, not letting them take her away.

Upon hearing this, Sun Meng raised his eyebrows and called in outside guards to verify, only upon confirming the true Liang Xue did he have the two old women release Ning Wan, taking Liang Xue away.

After leaving the room, Sun Meng did not immediately take Liang Xue to see Chen Mo.

Instead, he escorted Liang Xue to a bathing room, where the two older women were to attend to her, while he waited outside.

Knowing she couldn't escape, especially with her father in the hands of the enemy, Liang Xue did not resist, letting the old women proceed.

During the bath, however, a sense of unease swelled in her heart once more, growing stronger. Was that scene destined to occur?

After the bath, the older women did not apply any makeup to Liang Xue, they only brought a new skirt for her to dress in, then a dry towel to wipe her damp hair, before calling out, "Done." outside.

Afterward, under Sun Meng's lead, they slowly proceeded towards a corridor room.

It was now 7:45 PM; though the sky was dark, the round moon in the firmament was exceptionally bright, accompanied by the sounds of croaking frogs and various insects.

Upon reaching a courtyard, Liang Xue paused, realizing it was her former room.

The courtyard was heavily guarded, passing through three checkpoints before they managed to enter after exchanging the proper signals.

Her original boudoir was now brightly lit.

Outside the boudoir stood an exquisitely beautiful woman in black attire wielding a sword, pacing outside. Upon hearing movement, she turned to look. As her gaze landed on Liang Xue, her brows furrowed deeply.

As a woman herself, Liang Xue sensed hostility from the other woman.

Liang Xue was clueless about the reason.

"Miss Xia, Liang Xue is here," Sun Meng greeted Xia Zhining with a slight bow before departing with the two older women.

Xia Zhining approached, grasping Liang Xue's chin directly; the latter naturally resisted, engaging in minor combat, and surprisingly, Xia Zhining was at a disadvantage.

This infuriated Xia Zhining, prompting her to draw her long sword.

"Don't move recklessly, if this fine skin and delicate face gets scratched, I'm not responsible," Xia Zhining's voice was cold and detached.

Liang Xue took a step back from the sword tip, barely an inch from her face.

"With a face like a fox spirit and remarkable martial skills, it's no wonder that bastard is infatuated."

Xia Zhining sheathed her sword, approached closely, and began frisking Liang Xue: "Don't move."

Thoroughly from top to bottom, Xia Zhining examined diligently.

Only after personally verifying that she was inferior did Xia Zhining's lips slightly curve, then she lifted a hand to pat Liang Xue on the grindstone, adding, "The bastard is waiting for you inside, go on."

"A word of caution, don't act rashly, it might spare you some suffering."

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