Chapter 341: No Turning Back

“Everyone, take a look—have I missed anything?”

A calm voice echoed in the officials’ ears as Gu Ning’an set down his wolf-hair brush. The officials surrounding him hurriedly stepped forward, scrambling through the stack of rice paper to find the one with their own name on it.

In no time, each of them was holding a personal “wealth inventory.”

And the moment they looked at it, they broke into a cold sweat.

Among the officials present, the lowest-ranking one was merely a village head—yet even he possessed nearly 100,000 taels of silver!

That much silver couldn’t even fit in this private room, which was spacious enough to accommodate dozens of people!

They knew best how much they had embezzled. But never in their wildest dreams did they expect that this unexpected Mr. Gu could know just as clearly as they did!

If they weren’t holding the detailed inventory in their own hands, with every asset listed in black and white, they would never have believed that anyone else could have such precise knowledge of their wealth—down to what they had hidden in their undergarments!

Since no one spoke up, Gu Ning’an smiled and said, “Since you all remain silent, I assume the numbers are accurate.”

He then turned his gaze toward the two highest-ranking officials, who were just as dumbfounded as the others, and said with a light smile:

“If I may trouble you two to set an example—please provide a token or sign a declaration. Once the assets are gathered, I will see that they are swiftly distributed among the refugees of Great Wu.”

At these words, Minister Ma and General Zhong exchanged glances, each seeing shock, confusion, and a mix of emotions reflected in the other’s eyes.

True, they no longer cared much about wealth—but that didn’t mean they had no need for it at all!

Though they had cultivated body-strengthening techniques, their daily expenses for food, clothing, and housing were still immense!

Besides, at their age, they had countless children and grandchildren. Their extended families’ daily expenditures alone were astronomical!

Yet this Mr. Gu intended to drain them dry!

Even a household raid would overlook some hidden wealth—but somehow, he had managed to uncover everything they owned?

“Gu… Mr. Gu…”

Minister Ma swallowed hard before speaking again:

“At least leave us something—we can make do, but our wives, children, and families still need to eat… If you take everything, how are they supposed to survive?”

Seeing their leaders speak up, the other officials, who had been hesitant to say anything, immediately joined in.

“That’s right, Mr. Gu! I have an elderly mother and a wife and children to support. If my house is confiscated, what am I supposed to do—let them become refugees too?”

“Mr. Gu! There must be a mistake in my inventory! I’m just a lowly village head—how could I possibly have nearly 100,000 taels of silver?”

“Yes, yes! Mine must be wrong too! I admit I have some savings, and I do like to buy property—but over a thousand estates? Even if you sold me, I wouldn’t be worth that much!”

Watching the officials wail as if in mourning, Gu Ning’an chuckled.

“To be honest, even I didn’t expect you all to be this wealthy…”

“You all know better than anyone how you obtained this wealth.”

“And more importantly—you were the ones who volunteered to donate everything for the people’s welfare.”

“If you wish to go back on your word now, then you’d better think carefully about how to write the phrase No Turning Back.”

No Turning Back!

These four words struck their hearts like a heavy hammer!

To them, every word spoken by Mr. Gu now represented the will of the Fifth Prince!

Someone who could uncover everyone’s assets so precisely, even those of a first-rank minister like Minister Ma or a high-ranking general like General Zhong—just how terrifying were the Fifth Prince’s methods?

More importantly, this seemingly frail scholar, standing alone, dared to utter such a clear and undeniable threat: No Turning Back.

What did that imply?

It meant that resisting was not an option.

It meant that this money would be taken, whether they agreed or not.

And if they refused… they might not just lose their wealth—they might lose their lives, along with the lives of their entire families!

“Sigh…”

With a long sigh, Minister Ma finally picked up a brush and wrote a formal declaration on the rice paper.

After signing his name, he respectfully placed the document before Gu Ning’an and said solemnly:

“As officials, we should prioritize the country over our families… Donating these material possessions is merely an act of accumulating virtue for our descendants…”

Beside him, General Zhong also quickly finished writing his pledge and placed it on the table, speaking solemnly, “Minister Ma is right. In this time of national crisis, it is better for us officials to suffer a little than to let the common people suffer even more.”

With both high-ranking officials signing without hesitation, what else could the remaining officials say?

Earlier, outside, they had sworn to follow the lead of these two high officials.

That overly talkative, squinty-eyed county magistrate was already crossing the Naihe Bridge, drinking the soup of forgetfulness. If they were still reluctant to part with their silver, they might just end up following him to the afterlife right then and there.

Since refusing meant certain death, any sane person would choose the path of survival. What use was wealth to the dead?

Having realized this, the officials resigned themselves to their fate. One by one, they found paper and brushes, wrote their pledges, and placed them before Gu Ning’an.

Of course, they didn’t forget to sing praises of Great Wu and express their admiration for the Fifth Prince, subtly hinting that Gu Ning’an should ensure the prince remembered their “generosity” in donating their wealth for the good of Great Wu.

After collecting all the officials’ property records and written pledges, Gu Ning’an rose and said, “Very well, I shall take my leave now… No need to see me out.”

Minister Ma and the others instinctively wanted to escort him, but he waved them off, dismissing them.

Once the white-robed scholar had disappeared from sight, the officials felt as if they had just awakened from a nightmare. One by one, they slumped into their seats, their faces ashen, wearing expressions as though they had lost their entire families.

“I never imagined… never imagined… that the Fifth Prince had already investigated us so thoroughly!”

“They say the Fifth Prince has little influence in the court, that he has no foundation in Great Wu… What utter nonsense!”

“With such terrifying methods, I dare say no emperor in Great Wu’s history could compare—absolutely none!”

At the secondary table, a district magistrate in his fifties slumped into his chair, drenched in cold sweat, his eyes filled with sheer terror.