Chapter 1175: Emerald City Surrenders
"Officials from Emerald City..."
Zhang Tuohai looked at the group of officials kneeling below, walked back and forth twice, and then slowly spoke.
"Are you the only locals in charge of the Emerald City? Who are the people sent by the Empire to oversee it?"
Zhang Tuohai asked.
"There is a shadow governor and a finance minister." The fat white man in the lead said hurriedly.
"Which one is it? Bring it out."
Zhang Tuohai said.
"Quick, pull them out."
The fat white man said to the guard not far away.
The guards immediately rushed over and pulled out two middle-aged men in gorgeous robes.
"What are you doing? We are officials sent by the Empire to manage this place. You have no right to arrest us, let us go!"
The two middle-aged men shouted loudly.
"You, kill both of them. Each of you stabs them once, and no one is allowed to fall. Whoever falls will be a running dog of the empire, and the result will be that you will be executed together with them. Make your choice. I give you ten seconds to choose. Ten, nine..."
As Zhang Tuohai counted down, the fat white man and his men looked at each other and made up their minds.
The fat white man pulled out a rapier from the waist of the guard next to him and came to a middle-aged man.
"What are you going to do?" The middle-aged man was scared. "I am the shadow governor sent by the Empire to manage this place. If you dare to kill me, it will be regarded as rebellion. Are you ready to face the revenge of the Royal Navy? By then, the whole island will be razed to the ground, the houses will be burned down, and all the people will be sold into slavery. The whole island will no longer exist. You must think carefully!"
The middle-aged man shouted loudly.
The fat white man said nothing and stabbed the middle-aged man in the lower abdomen with a sword.
"Well--"
Blood flowed from the corner of the middle-aged man's mouth.
The fat white man suddenly drew out his sword and stabbed at the second middle-aged man.
The second middle-aged man wanted to resist, but his arms were twisted by two guards and he could not move at all. The fat white man stabbed him through the heart and lungs with a sword.
The fat white man let go of the sword in his hand and stood back.
The political officer stepped forward second, drew his rapier, and stabbed the shadow governor and the financial officer with one sword each, piercing them through.
Next came a series of officials including the captain of the guard, the fleet commander, the chief craftsman, etc., each of whom stabbed the two men with a sword.
When the last person finished, Zhang Tuohai nodded with satisfaction: "Go hang the two bodies on the city wall so that everyone can see them, and also hang up the Longya flag. If you don't have it, go ahead and do it. If I don't see the Longya flag flying on the top of the Emerald City tomorrow, then there is no need for the Emerald City to exist. Do you understand?"
Zhang Tuohai asked in a cold voice.
"I understand, I understand." The fat white man responded quickly.
“Just do it when you understand it.”
"Yes, yes, yes." The fat white man responded quickly.
"Please go to the City Lord's Mansion to rest." The fat white man said respectfully.
"Don't worry about where I go, just do your own thing. I will check on you from time to time. If I find that you are not doing well, hmph..."
Zhang Tuohai snorted coldly at this point, turned around and left without saying anything else.
Molly hurried after him.
"roar--"
Alduin roared at the fat white man, then quietly followed Zhang Tuohai with his wings folded.
Zero looked around, turned around and followed behind.
"Why do you just let them go?" Molly asked curiously, "I'm not questioning your poor performance, but there are a few people among them who defected in the past. If you just let them go, won't it be too lenient and make other people feel less psychologically burdened when they defect?"
"The main reason is that time is too tight right now. We don't have enough time to replace people. If we want Emerald City to function, we still have to rely on these experienced people. However, after this period of time, when the Royal Navy's first round of counterattack has stopped, we will have time to organize our internal resources. Then we can find other reasons to deal with these people."
"Once we have established a firm foothold, won't these people be ready to be manipulated at will?"
"When employing people, it is better to set up a virtuous example."
"Besides, they have already surrendered. Everyone has taken action against the imperial officials. In the eyes of the empire, they are traitors. Where else do they want to jump to? Not following you is a dead end. Now it is not you but them who are determined to fight against the empire."
"Because you failed, you can just pat your butt and ride away on your dragon. They can only wait to die on the island."
Zhang Tuohai said with a sneer.
"So that's how it is."
Molly nodded in understanding.
"So where do we go next?"
"Follow the route and retake the area ruled by Longya. Which city is the closest to here?"
Zhang Tuohai asked.
"The closest place to here should be Scallop Island, a place rich in scallops. It's not far from here. Just go northeast." Molly said after thinking for a moment.
"Understood."
Zhang Tuohai nodded, took Molly back to the boat, set sail and headed towards Scallop Island.
At the same time, the Governor of Emerald City brought everyone back to the Governor's Palace.
"Go, change the sign of the Governor's Mansion to the Consul's Residence. Also, burn all the flags of the Empire, remove all the decorations related to the Empire, and make the flags of Longya overnight. If I don't see the flags of Longya hanging all over the city walls tomorrow, I will hang all the tailors on the city walls! If I can't survive, no one else can either!"
The fat white archon shouted loudly.
At this time, the captain of the guard came over.
"Your Excellency Archon, there is no need to make such a big fuss, right? I see their ship has already left here. If we change the flag like this, will it cause dissatisfaction from the Empire and will they really send the navy to attack us? We cannot withstand the attack of the Imperial Navy."
"Oh, leave?" The fat white man sneered, "They have flying dragons. Do you know how fast a dragon can fly? You think they have left, but they may be on top of you in the next second."
"Besides, do you think we have any way out now? Each of us stabbed the Shadow Governor with a sword. In the eyes of the Empire, we are all rebels. Once we are caught, even if we surrender, we will only be hanged. Our family members will be auctioned off as slaves."
"So, we can only win, not lose."
"Then our military strength is indeed insufficient..."
"Then go buy them!" the fat white man said coldly, "We have money, but our own military strength is not enough, so we go to other city-states to buy soldiers, mercenaries, ships, artillery, and weapons and equipment. Buy everything you can, and remember not to be afraid of spending money. When the money is gone, we can continue mining, but if we lose the war, we will all die!"
