Yue Cangshan had never expected to hear such an answer, and for a moment, he was stunned. After all, anyone would feel terrible in such a situation. Just during the day, he had been with his sister, thinking they were going out as usual. But this time, they were separated by life and death. He had survived, while his sister, who had been abducted, was now dead.
"How could this happen? How could this happen?" Yue Cangshan murmured to himself, his pupils constricted, and his entire face looked lost and dejected, as if his soul had been snatched away. He kept repeating these words, clearly unable to accept the fact that his sister was dead.
Shen Feng now spoke to comfort him, "We have killed all the black-clothed men who abducted you, and they are now hanging on the city walls. After this, we will also find ways to kill more bad people. However, those who have already died can never be brought back to life. You need to find solace in this!"
After Shen Feng said these words, Yue Cangshan remained silent. He had intended to speak, but before he could say anything, tears streamed down his face. He then collapsed onto the sickbed, pulled the covers over his head, and began to sob. Although he tried his best to suppress his cries, everyone in the room understood his feelings.
At this moment, Yu Renshu said, "Shen Feng, you should give him some compensation. After all, it was your two daughters who took them out to play together, which led to this tragedy. If they had stayed obediently at the banquet, none of this would have happened. Therefore, your daughters also bear responsibility!"
Shen Feng understood this point and replied, "I understand this, of course. But now is not the time for me to offer compensation. Let this child calm down first. After he has recovered his composure, I will give him an ability potion and make him a powerful person!"
Then, Shen Feng said to the boy who had his head buried in the covers, "When you've thought things through, come and find me. I will make you even stronger then, and you'll be able to protect yourself if something like this happens again! In three days, I will contact your father and inform him of this matter. If you want to see your father then, you can come along too!"
Yue Cangshan did not reply to anything. After all, such a sudden disaster had befallen him, and he was just a boy of about ten years old. How could he possibly bear such a terrifying event? He was still crying, his mind in disarray, and he was incapable of responding.
Shen Feng then left. He didn't know how to face his good friend, especially when his good friend asked him if his two children were alright. He found it impossible to answer. However, as the saying goes, whether you stick your head out or hide it, it's still a blade. This blade would eventually fall, so it was better to cut the Gordian knot quickly and tell the truth directly!
Over the next three days, Shen Feng ordered his subordinate troops and mercenaries to go all out in searching for people without identification in the city, making them honestly explain what they were doing. If they were law-abiding citizens, their identities would naturally be registered, and they would have a place of household registration. But now, many people had mixed into the city, and this required strict investigation to prevent future problems.
During this process, the terrifying strength of the army was also displayed. Under normal circumstances, the army in Yuzhou would not casually enter residential areas, as it would undoubtedly disturb people's normal lives. However, now the soldiers could not afford to care about that. They had received orders to get to work immediately, so they directly entered the urban areas and began questioning households. As long as people had identification, everything was fine. If they didn't have identification but had someone to vouch for them and prove their innocence, that was also acceptable. But for those who had neither a guarantor nor identification, they had to be investigated. If they dared to resist, they would be shot on the spot.
"Shen Feng is completely venting his anger. His two daughters are fine, yet he's causing such a commotion, disturbing everyone!" someone complained in secret.
However, such complaints could not change the established facts. The fact was that most ordinary people had already registered their household registration and identification, so their backgrounds were clear, and they could produce their identification at any time. But those who had ulterior motives and had infiltrated Yuzhou were suspicious. As long as they were carefully checked, their problems could be discovered.
Tu Xuhuai also did something even more drastic. He specifically opened a channel for delivering letters. If anyone discovered that someone around them had done bad things, such as cheating, swindling, or arson, they could directly report it. Then, someone would go to investigate. If the reported situation was true, they would be arrested and sent to prison. 138 Reading Network
As a result, many people in the civilian population used this channel, writing down the information they knew and mailing it out. In fact, many people in the civilian population were afraid of powerful people around them. They were not afraid of high-ranking officials, but they were most afraid of local power brokers who held the power of life and death.
In the Chuan-Yu region, there was a very strange custom. During times of chaos, power would become disordered, and for the common people to seek fairness, they could only turn to one institution, which was the tea house.
There were many tea houses in Chuan-Yu. While these tea houses were good places for drinking tea and chatting during leisurely times, they became places for hearing cases and making judgments during times of chaos. Therefore, it was best to go to a tea house to have a case judged. In fact, this reflected the phenomenon of local power brokers controlling people's lives and activities.
These local power brokers held the right to judge cases, so they had very high prestige among the people. But this also meant that they had their own forces. These brotherhoods also had their own hidden agendas behind them, and these people were stained with blood. Thus, taking advantage of this opportunity, some people reported these local power brokers, and when the army intervened, these local power brokers were all pacified.
As a result, the air in Yuzhou carried a scent of blood. In recent times, some people even dared not go out casually, because their greatest fear was being questioned by soldiers when they went out and being unable to answer. Then, they would be in trouble, most likely being shot and dragged away.
Three days later, Shen Feng began to contact Yue Hengyi in Yuzhou. Although the other party had already reached the stratosphere and had flown into the sky with a huge base, there were always ways to contact him. He could be contacted through WeChat. If he had flown beyond the ionosphere, it would not be so easy for Shen Feng to contact him, but Yue Hengyi had not yet reached that point.
Beside Shen Feng stood a young boy, which was naturally Yue Cangshan. His gaze was vacant, a stark contrast to his previous liveliness. After all, he was someone who had experienced life and death separation, and even though he was still a boy, he had grown up in an instant. However, this growth came at a price.
Above this Lotus Base were many advanced equipment, most of which were used for spray devices. However, there were also some equipment used for contacting the ground. After all, the situation in the sky could change at any time, so if there was no timely contact with the ground, it would cause huge problems. However, it was not something that ordinary people could do to contact this base in the sky; it could only be used at critical moments.
Shen Feng had someone dial the phone and waited for three minutes before successfully being connected to the Lotus Base in the sky. At that time, Yue Hengyi happened to be in this communication room, so he immediately established contact with Shen Feng. However, the signal was not very good, and it was difficult to see the other person's face, only to hear their voice.
"Little Yue, it's Shen Feng. How are you doing up in the sky?" Shen Feng asked.
"Look at what you're saying, as if I'm already dead. What do you mean how am I doing in the sky? Of course, I'm doing very well. We can use wind turbines in the sky, and the wind in the stratosphere is very strong. Our base is currently operating well, and we can continuously collect volcanic ash from the stratosphere. However, we need to go to every region and cannot stay in one place. Currently, I am flying over the Atlantic!" Yue Hengyi replied with a smile after hearing Shen Feng's question.
After hearing the other party's reply, Shen Feng understood that his current situation should be quite good, otherwise, his mood would not be so good. Looking at the sky now, it seemed brighter than before, not the hazy red and gray appearance of the past. It seemed that the base flying into the sky had also played a huge role.
However, Shen Feng thought of the bad news he had to deliver next, and his mood immediately soured. But in the end, he still had to deliver this situation.
"Actually, I'm contacting you today because an unexpected situation has occurred here, which happens to be related to your family. So, I have to call you now. Please be mentally prepared!" Shen Feng said.
Yue Hengyi on the other end of the phone immediately fell silent, whether it was because he had already thought of some bad news or because the distance was too great, causing a delay in communication. In any case, there was no sound from the phone for these 10 seconds.
"Just tell me what happened. I can handle it!" Yue Hengyi said in a low voice.
Shen Feng could only take a deep breath and said, "Four days ago, an accident occurred. My two daughters took your two children out to play, and unfortunately, they encountered danger. Your daughter was tragically killed, and her body has not yet been found! I have already killed the culprit, but your son has also suffered a great shock. He hasn't eaten or slept well these past few days, and his body might not be able to withstand it!"
After hearing this news, Yue Hengyi fell silent again. Shen Feng didn't know what expression Yue Hengyi had on the other end of the phone, but he must have been extremely sad, as his daughter had died before she could even grow up. Any man would be unable to bear such a consequence.
Yue Hengyi remained silent for another three minutes. Shen Feng could faintly hear many chaotic sounds on the other end, and he didn't know what he was doing. However, he soon regained his composure and said to Shen Feng, "Since it has already happened, I cannot blame you. After all, I was the one who entrusted the children to you back then. I should have expected that accidents could happen even in Yuzhou. Now, please hand the phone to Yue Cangshan. I have something to say to him."
Although the other party's words sounded very calm, Shen Feng could still hear a tremor in his voice. It was obvious that the other party could not accept this fact and was merely trying to maintain his composure and not break down crying.
Shen Feng could only say, "My condolences," and then handed the phone to Yue Cangshan beside him.
Yue Cangshan took the phone and then burst into tears, crying as he said, "Dad, it's all my fault. I couldn't protect my sister, which is why they were taken away by bad people. I will definitely become stronger from now on. Don't worry about me. I buried my sister next to Mom's grave. You'll be able to see her whenever you come back!"
Although Yue Bitiao's body had not been found, her heart and other organs had been removed. Therefore, these body tissues were used to build a grave. A small box containing these organs was buried next to Bai Fengying's grave. The grave looked small and low, appearing very desolate.
Yue Hengyi said to his son, "I originally thought that Yuzhou was the safest place, which is why I sent you there. But now it seems that there is no absolutely safe place in this world. Therefore, you must also become stronger. Only by becoming stronger can you protect yourself! I am very pleased that you understand this principle. As a father, I failed to protect you, and I am very self-reproachful. But now that it has happened, nothing can change it. You must become strong as soon as possible. In the future, a strong person will not be bullied no matter where they go!"