Tai Hao smiled slightly, and his tone revealed a kind of inquiry into the unknown: "Originally, I just arrived, and I really want to see the 'four major families' of Jiutu City, you tell this official, what are the origins of these 'four major families'?" ”

Hearing this, Yang Shun's eyes flashed with cunning, and he asked tentatively: "Vice General Taihao, can you leave after the little one?" ”

Tai Hao raised his eyebrows, and there was a hint of displeasure in his tone: "When the official asks you, you say." Don't talk to the official about the conditions! ”

When Yang Shun heard this, his face turned pale, and he hurriedly lowered his head and said, "Yes, the little one understands!" ”

Tai Hao nodded, motioned for him to continue, and said, "Tell this official about the 'Four Great Families' of Jiutu City. ”

Yangshun took a deep breath, as if to start telling a grand story: "If you want to talk about these four families, you must first talk about the Luo family in Dongcheng. They make a living by running casinos, and the head of the Luo family is called Luo Gu, who is over fifty years old this year, has no children under his knees, and has only one daughter named Luo Nu. In fact, the people all know that the business of the Luo family is now managed by his son-in-law Tang Ming. Their means are superb, and the casino business is doing well, which is admirable. ”

Taihao frowned, he already knew something about this Locke family. He motioned for Yang Shun to continue.

"Let's talk about the sheep family in Xicheng." There was a mystery in Yangshun's tone, "They make a living by opening a green building." In this sheep family, Vice General Taihao should have less contact, because what they do is too hurtful. ”

Tai Hao asked curiously: "Opening a Qinglou is a legal act in the Eastern Empire, what else do they do?" ”

Yang Shun's eyes flashed with cunning, as if he was weighing whether to tell Taihao the secret. After a while, he spoke: "In addition to opening the Qinglou, they will also do some trafficking in women and children. They would buy them from the poor people for a small amount of silver, and then they would send the women to the green houses and sell the children to other cities, and I almost sold them when I was a child. ”

After hearing this, Taihao became angry. He slapped the table and said sharply: "In my Eastern Empire, there is such a thing!" ”

"Vice Adjutant Taihao, don't be angry." There was a sense of appeasement in Yang Shun's voice, as if he was trying to calm Taihao's anger. He continued: "Although the Yang family will only do these hurtful things, I heard that they also pay the most tribute. The head of this sheep family is called Yang Wei, but the little one has never seen him. Between the words, Yang Shun's eyes flashed with cunning, as if trying to hide something.

Taihao nodded and motioned for him to continue. His gaze was as sharp as a knife, as if he wanted to see through Yang Shun's inner thoughts.

Yang Shun took a deep breath and continued: "Next, let's talk about the Sun family in Beicheng. They make a living by collecting protection money, and the people in the city have to pay them protection money regularly, if they don't pay, they will not be able to live in peace in Jiutu City, even if they report to the officials, it is useless. There was a kind of helplessness and anger in his tone, as if he was crying out for the suffering people.

"The head of the Sun family is named Sun Fa, and their family has been in the same house for five generations, and the people in the city have called them nothing that they are not afraid. In addition to this, they also do some lending business, that is, they let hundreds of people fall into the abyss of debt and become their eternal slaves. Yangshun's voice revealed a deep sadness, as if he was feeling sorry for the people who were persecuted by the Sun family.

He paused, as if adjusting his emotions, and then continued: "The Sun family is cruel and merciless to the people. They will use all means to force the people to hand over their money, even to the point of violence. Under their rule, the people of the northern city lived in fear and did not dare to resist anything. ”

Finally, Yangshun talked about the Mu family in Nancheng: "In the end, it is the Mu family in Nancheng. In the past, wealthy merchants and nobles were all in the business of the Mu family, and theft and robbery were everywhere. The head of the Mu family is two brothers, the eldest is called Mu Dalang, and the second is called Mu Erlang. ”

Taihao frowned after listening to Yangshun's story. He has a deeper understanding of the dark side of the city, and he is more determined to eradicate these black forces. There was a kind of firmness and determination in his gaze, as if to herald the coming storm.

Tai Hao looked at Yang Shun and said lightly: "Even you, a young man, know these things, it seems that in this Nine Earth City, there are no people who don't know this." But the officials here pushed all these things to the bandits on Kunwu Mountain. There was a deep sense of helplessness and sadness in his tone, as if he had anticipated the darkness and despair of the city.

Now, Taihao finally understood why Jiutu City was so poor. The four major black forces are like four huge black hands, secretly controlling the operation of the city, making the people live in fear and despair. These underworld forces are intertwined, penetrating into every corner of the city and affecting everyone's life. They use illegal means to gain money and power, which makes the city's economy difficult and the people's lives difficult.

And what role does the government play in this dark world? Taihao understands that they have undoubtedly become the umbrella of these black forces. With the money obtained by these underworld forces by illegal means, they can do whatever they want with a part of the money they use to buy off the government. The government will use this money to bribe the officials above in exchange for the opportunity to be promoted. This cycle of corruption has deepened the darkness of the city and made the hope of the people more and more diminishing.

Taihao has already thought about these things clearly, but he also understands that it is too difficult to eliminate these underworld forces and bring down unhealthy trends. It was an uphill battle that required tremendous effort and sacrifice. However, Taehao also understands that if this battle is not fought, then the city will be plunged into darkness and despair forever. He took a deep breath and whispered, "No matter what, I have to find a way to clear these black forces and make Nine Earth City shine again." ”

Yang Shun asked tentatively: "Vice Admiral Taihao, the little one has already told you, can you let the little one go." ”

The corners of Taihao's mouth curled slightly, as if he was thinking, and then said indifferently: "Why worry, it's not dawn yet, I'll let you go back when it's dawn." Tell me that you stole a few of your guests' things tonight? ”

Yang Shun's eyes flashed with ingenuity, as if thoughtful, and then sighed and said, "The little one came to Snow Lotus House for the first time tonight, alas! Originally, the principal had told us not to come to Snow Lotus House in the past few days, but the little hands were itchy, and I knew that the people staying here were all distinguished guests, so I ......"

When Tai Hao heard this, he smiled slightly, pushed the broken silver stolen by Yang Shun to Yang Shun's side, and took out two ingots of silver from his baggage and handed them to him, saying, "These are all for you!" There was an unmistakable majesty in his voice.

Yang Shun's eyes widened, he looked at the silver in front of him in disbelief, and hurriedly knelt down and said, "Don't dare, please Vice General Taihao spare your life!" ”

Tai Hao looked at Yang Shun indifferently and said, "These are really for you, but you have to help the official do one thing." ”

Yang Shun asked curiously, "I don't know what Vice Admiral Taihao asked the little one to do?" ”

Tai Hao said in a deep voice: "You go and help me go to the house of the pawn Jiang Bao and steal a brocade box in his bedroom." ”

When Yang Shun heard this, his face changed, and he kowtowed again: "The small one doesn't dare, the small one doesn't dare, the deputy general Taihao, the small one doesn't dare to steal." ”

But Taihao was unmoved, and said indifferently: "The official is talking to you seriously, don't be afraid, just go." When you steal the brocade box, the official will reward you. ”

Yang Shun had a bitter face, and said helplessly: "This makes the little one embarrassed, Vice General Taihao, although the little one is a thief, but the main thing has regulations, we must do three not steal." ”

Taihao frowned slightly and asked, "Which three don't steal?" ”

Yang Shun explained: "First, don't steal officials, whether it's those officials in the government, or the soldiers and officials, you can't steal; Second, we must not steal the property of the 'Four Great Families', because in Jiutu City, the 'Four Great Families' divide their spheres of influence and do not invade each other; and third, we must not steal those bandits who came down from Kunwu Mountain, and not only can we not steal their property, but we also have to thank them. As long as the government investigates it and pushes it directly on them, and the people don't dare to ask for it, we can sit back and relax. ”

Tai Hao sneered and said, "It's a good three don't steal, but the official asked you to steal the brocade box in the pawn Jiang Bao's house, otherwise the official will punish you." ”

When Yang Shun heard this, his face changed, and he hurriedly said: "Vice Admiral Taihao spares his life, and the little one agrees!" ”

At this time, the golden rooster reported the dawn, and the sky was just bright. Taihao looked at the gradually brightening sky outside the window, and said to Yang Shun: "When can I bring it?" ”

Yang Shun's eyes flashed with cunning, and said, "The little one will go later, and the brocade box will be sent in two hours at most." ”

Taihao asked curiously, "Oh? You can steal it in broad daylight? ”

Yang Shun smiled proudly: "There is a way to steal during the day, and of course there will be a way to steal at night, and it is a professional to be a thief." ”

Tai Hao nodded and said, "Okay, this official believes in you!" ”

Yang Shun showed a look of gratitude on his face and said, "That...... The little one went? ”

Taihao nodded slightly. By the way, a bone got up and quickly slipped out. As he walked through the hallway, his figure flickered in the dim light, like a cunning shadow, silently blending into the darkness.

After listening to Yangshun's narration, Taihao already had a clear blueprint in his heart, and he knew that the root cause of Jiutu City's fall to this point was the ugly phenomenon of the "official bandit family". The connivance and negligence of the officials have allowed the "four major families" to act recklessly here, like a fish in water. However, to change all this, it is undoubtedly more difficult for Taihao to do it alone. He needs a good helper, someone who can share the pressure on him and fight the forces of evil together. However, the officials of Jiutu City have become accustomed to this way of life, they have been corrupted by money and power, and Taihao knows that most of them can no longer be trusted. So, who should he look for to help him?

In his mind, the first thing that came to mind was Jiang Bao's figure. Tai Hao knew that Jiang Bao also had collusion with the "Four Great Families", and knew that he must have received a lot of benefits from them. However, he also knew that letting Jiang Bao's identity help him was undoubtedly seeking skin with the tiger, which was extremely risky. So, what should he do?

Taihao's idea was to let Yangshun steal Jiang Bao's brocade box. He wanted to know if the brocade box contained gold bars, so as to judge how deep Jiang Bao's sins were. If the brocade box was indeed gold bars, then he would have the handle to deal with Jiang Bao, and use this as a fuse to start investigating the crimes of the officers and soldiers of the entire city, and he would also have the opportunity to change Jiutu City. If it weren't for the gold bars, he would have been able to convince Jiang Bao to help him investigate the case in Jiutu City and change the status quo in Jiutu City. He knew it was a risky move, but he also knew that for the sake of the future of Nine Earth City, he had to take a risk.