Chapter 6: Gold and Seals

  With over 10,000 people joining the city, Xiangyang became even more bustling. Xiahou Yuan had to temporarily enter the Zhaoxian Hall for recuperation due to intense battles, so in the city, only Jiang Wei was busy reorganizing the troops.

  The result was, of course, delightful. After a busy period, they had actually recruited 3,000 musketeers, 4,000 swordsmen and shieldmen, and 2,000 archers. As for the majority of the low-level Yellow Turbans, Qin Lan directly ordered them to lay down their arms and return to their fields, becoming ordinary civilians in the city. Unless Xiangyang City faced another survival crisis, the likelihood of them re-becoming righteous soldiers would not be too high.

  Watching Jiang Wei lead them in intense training on the school grounds, Qin Lan let out a sigh and quietly walked back to the city master's mansion. In these two consecutive battles, his mind was highly concentrated, although he wasn't fighting himself, but as the master of Xianyang City, Qin Lan worried more than anyone else. During Xiahou Yuan and Jiang Wei's battle, his thoughts were racing rapidly, thinking about what would happen if they lost, what treasures could save them, what treasures could avoid the battle... So now, Qin Lan's fatigue level was absolutely no less than Xiahou Yuan's, although he indeed had treasures that could directly restore Xiahou Yuan's physical strength and injuries, but in the end, he didn't choose to do so.

  Qin Lan always believed that nothing can be gained without effort, if you want to get something, you must first pay the price. Qin Lan currently does not have a true general, what he has are only the cards given by the game "Hot Blood Three Kingdoms", and from this battle, it can be imagined that Xiahoudun and Jiangwei's performance will make it very difficult for him to gain the loyalty of a true general in a long time. This world has completely changed, the generals have their own things to do, they won't stay foolishly in one city waiting to be caught.

  So, Qin Lan hopes that these loyal and dedicated card generals in his hands can have more opportunities to grow. Even if they cannot become true generals, at least with one more battle, they will gain one more experience, and familiarity can breed cleverness. If Qin Lan were to use a treasure to fully heal Xiahou Yuan right now, he would immediately go help Jiang Wei reorganize the troops. As a general, he definitely wouldn't want his subordinates to be completely without troops. In that case, this excellent opportunity for battle reflection would be wasted. Moreover, Qin Lan is also very clear about one thing: although his treasures seem numerous, he doesn't know how long he will stay in this strange world of Motu Continent, nor does he understand what kind of trouble he might encounter in the future. The road ahead is still very, very long, but these treasures are being used up one by one.

  Extravagance is shameful.

  Qin Lan himself didn't take any medicine, he sat on the city lord's throne and chose to quit the game. In the real world, it was still deep in the night, the dark room only had Qin Lan's screen glowing softly in front of him, rubbing his sore head after opening his eyes, Qin Lan thought for a moment before shutting down the game and computer, finally falling asleep with exhaustion. With the computer on, Xiangyang could continue to develop, but there was also the possibility of being retaliated against by the Yellow Turbans again, although Jiang Wei and Guo Jia were present, Qin Lan wasn't at ease.

  The next morning, when Qin Lan got up, the maid Mi Xue who was serving him seemed a bit distracted. The water she brought for Qin Lan to wash his face was not only scalding hot but also made his clothes all tangled and messy... Originally, Mi Xue was the maid of Third Miss Qin Cong, but after Qin Lan's three sisters ran away, Mi Xue was arranged by Qin Buqun to take care of Qin Lan. Qin Lan didn't mind this little girl at all, he just thought that she suddenly looked so worried, had her feelings been stirred up?

  However, when he finished breakfast in his own courtyard and went out to prepare for class at the college, passing through the main hall of the mansion, he learned what Mei Xue was worried about.

  The three young ladies have returned.

  They were not invited back, but the three of them were tied up and carried back, now kneeling in the middle of the hall, receiving Qin Buqun's scolding. All three had a look of despair on their faces, or perhaps just a hint of numbness. Because beside the three of them stood several soldiers wearing imperial guard uniforms, one of whom had even set up a brazier in the middle of the hall and was holding... branding irons!!

  Qin Lan immediately understood what they were going to do. No matter who, once becoming an official slave, this life would never be able to turn over again, because the big brand on your forehead is a nightmare that can never be eliminated forever. Moreover, the branding iron was blessed with magic by the great masters, and after being branded with the mark, no matter where you ran to the ends of the earth, you could be found by people.

  Three cheap sisters, this is also a crime that deserves punishment... However!! Qin Lan didn't think and quickly stepped into the hall, turning on the computer with one hand.

  "Father, everyone, please wait a moment!"

  "Lan'er, I've promised you that I'll bring those three wretches to you. Now they're right in front of you. Once the branding iron is applied, they'll be your slaves from now on. You can vent all your past grievances and dissatisfaction on them." Qin Bugui's eyes lit up when he saw Qin Lan. Although he had lost three daughters, he had gained a son with extraordinary strategic thinking. From the fact that this son could endure over ten years of suffering and humiliation, it was clear that he possessed patience and tolerance that others did not have. With such a son, and with more to come, what more could one ask for?

  Qin Lan was not polite to him at all. "Hey, Father, can we skip the branding?" As a modern person, Qin Lan naturally couldn't accept such barbaric behavior, especially since he had already considered his three cheap sisters as his own private possessions, how could he tolerate others desecrating them? Moreover, originally they were several girls as beautiful as flowers, but after being branded with that ghostly thing on their foreheads, their beautiful faces all turned into evil spirits. This made Qin Lan wonder if he would still have the heart to look at them in the future.

  The three girls originally had their heads down and were silent, their hearts as still as death. But suddenly hearing Qin Lan speak up for them, their bodies involuntarily trembled slightly, thinking back to how they used to bully him...

  "This, Young Master Qin, doesn't follow the rules." A leading figure among the guards, stroking his chin without a beard, "We've also come out this time, and we must do things properly to be able to report back, right?"

  "Hey big brother, wait a minute." Qin Lan saw the light screen unfold and immediately walked to the study in the living room, then began to summon. What he summoned was gold...

  Summoning gold, every 1000 units requires 1 physical strength and 1 mental strength. Qin Lan casually found a pouch and put in 1000 units of gold, weighing it with her hand, roughly about one kilogram. Walking out, Qin Lan directly handed the money bag to the leading Imperial Guard, "Everyone has worked hard, this is my little token of respect, for your tea money. The three of them, no matter what they say, are also my sisters for over ten years, I really don't want to see them break up. Forget about the branding incident, how about it?"