Chapter 503: Luring the Snakes Out of Their Holes

Three days later, Lin Dong stood up. Around the small grassland, there were few remaining bandits. These people no longer just wanted to watch; they stayed to find out the identities of Lin Dong’s group of seven.
Of course, no one would tell them those identities. At the speed of Lin Dong and his companions, it was impossible for anyone to keep up.
As the sun set, the grassland, cleansed by a light rain, regained its lush greenery. Only a huge scorched area about thirty meters east of the seven of them stood out in stark contrast. Those who had witnessed the massacre knew that there, the ashes of nearly ten thousand corpses had been scattered by the wind.
“Boss, shall we not wait any longer?”
Seeing Lin Dong’s attitude, Cheng Bao and the other five stood up. Qiao Tianhao looked particularly eager. When it came to cruelty, he now fully admired Cheng Bao, but when it came to excitement over the massacre, Cheng Bao, who hadn’t killed anyone in over two years, was slightly behind him.
“No need to wait!” Lin Dong waved his hand. Three days was enough time for the bandits from Skull Camp scattered elsewhere to hear the news and rush over. Even if a few who hadn’t heard the news managed to escape, their total number would likely not exceed a hundred. The chances of these people attracting powerful fighters were slim, so there was no need for him to stay here any longer. Even Cheng Bao and the other five could go back to focusing on their role as top chefs.
A few guards would be enough to deal with these remaining fugitives later. The guards of Lin’s Inn all reached the seventh level of the Mind State, making it easy for them to handle such low-level threats.
Hearing this, Cheng Bao and the others got to work.
They hadn’t killed all the bandits from Skull Camp. Aside from Liang Feihu, who served as a decoy, there were still about twenty underlings. These underlings were carefully selected by Lin Dong and Cheng Bao. To meet the criteria, one had to be a bandit fighting at the back, another had to be at only the fifth level of the Reverse Heart State, and yet another had to be hesitant about fleeing.
On top of that, good luck was required. In fact, there were quite a few bandits who met these conditions—sixty or seventy, surely. Yet Lin Dong only wanted about twenty, and that was even the upper limit. Without exceptional luck, they were nothing but fertilizer to nourish the small grassland.
They packed Liang Feihu and those twenty underlings into sacks, tied them in threes, and threw each bundle over one shoulder. Cheng Bao carried two on his shoulders, both left and right. Once ready, they all turned to look at Lin Dong.

He put the wooden chair back into the mobile counter, and Lin Dong, with empty hands, waved his hand. Cheng Bao and his five companions shot toward the capital city, quickly overtaking the bandits stationed outside and disappearing into the sunset. Lin Dong, still with empty hands, glanced at the scattered bandits around him before vanishing in an instant—no one could see where he had gone. On the small grassland, only groups of bandits remained, shouting in panic and looking around frantically for Lin Dong. As soon as Cheng Bao and his group returned to the inn, Lin Dong immediately went to the front yard and knocked on Ma Chun’s door. “Owner, is it done?” Ma Chun asked. Lin Dong nodded and ordered, “Go ahead and dispatch a team of guards to gather in the back yard.” “Okay, I’ll do it right away,” Ma Chun replied, rushing off to the back yard. Lin Dong followed shortly after. Before long, Ma Chun came out of the storage room with a team of guards. Before they could reach Lin Dong, shadows flashed, and Cheng Bao and his group leaped in carrying sacks. “Who is Liang Feihu?” Lin Dong asked. Cheng Bao threw down all six sacks on his shoulders, untied one of them, and half a head appeared—undoubtedly Liang Feihu. He tied the sack containing Liang Feihu back up and handed it to one of the guards. Lin Dong instructed, “This man is Liang Feihu, the leader of the largest bandit camp on Chongping Mountain. You guys go to the center of the small grassland halfway up Chongping Mountain, tie him up, and wait for the bandits from Skeleton Camp to rescue him. Kill anyone who tries to come, and stay there for a month.” The guards nodded firmly and flew away with Liang Feihu, like a flock of birds, in the dim light. “That’s it, Cheng Bao. The rest are up to you,” Lin Dong said after watching the guards disappear, turning his gaze to Cheng Bao. Cheng Bao nodded. “Owner, what about me? What about me?” Qiao Tianhao stepped forward urgently. “If you don’t cause trouble, you can join in if you want,” Lin Dong said with a smile. Qiao Tianhao nodded repeatedly, knowing he wouldn’t dare cause trouble for Cheng Bao anymore. “Go! Force them to surrender as soon as possible, then inform Ma Chun,” Lin Dong said calmly. The six top chefs picked up the sacks again and followed Cheng Bao back to the front yard. “Owner, what’s this…” Ma Chun was confused about why so many bandits were brought here. “Witnesses!” Lin Dong replied simply. “Witnesses?” Ma Chun was surprised. “Weren’t we told that bandits won’t reveal their mastermind?”

“Those who know the mastermind behind this surely won’t confess. But these lowly thugs can still serve as witnesses,” Lin Dong explained. “These are all carefully selected bandits. Out of twenty, maybe a dozen can’t withstand Cheng Bao’s harsh torture. Once that happens, just make them name whoever we want.”
“But what does this have to do with the mastermind?” Ma Chun was still confused.
“After Cheng Bao informs you, find Prince Qingliu and ask him to spread the news. Say that a princess in his palace was injured by a group of people, and in his anger, Prince Qingliu captured all these bandits. Under torture, some of them have already confessed that they belong to the Skull Camp in Chongping Mountain and were sent to the capital to carry out a mission. Due to the princess’s injuries, Prince Qingliu, enraged, personally led his men to destroy the Skull Camp and is now forcing these bandits to reveal their whereabouts in the capital. The minor leaders and bosses are still being interrogated, but the lowly thugs have already confessed. They only know that the camp is connected to a top restaurant in the capital, and the bandits were sent there because of that restaurant.”
After a pause, Lin Dong continued, “That’s roughly the idea. Organize and tally it up. Once the news spreads, arrange guards to monitor the owners of the major restaurants around the clock, making sure to know their daily activities and conversations.”
“Do you want the mastermind to reveal himself?” Ma Chun asked eagerly.
“That’s not all. I plan to force all the major restaurants to unite,” Lin Dong said calmly.
“Force them to unite?” Ma Chun hesitated. “If all the major restaurants team up, our inn will face even greater pressure. The advantage…”
“The advantage is that they won’t be able to use underhanded tactics against Lin’s Inn,” Lin Dong smiled.
Ma Chun’s eyes lit up as he instantly understood Lin Dong’s plan. Lin’s Inn still had many trump cards unused, and its chefs’ skills were getting better by the day. It wasn’t that it lacked the strength to compete with the major restaurants; on the contrary, if another incident involving bandits or outlaws arose, Lin’s Inn would be even more overwhelmed.
After some thought, Ma Chun asked, “If you want to force the major restaurants to unite, why not just have the bandits confess that they’re working together to murder the princess?”
Lin Dong shook his head. “If we did that, there would be no need to owe Prince Qingliu a favor, and it would also hinder exposing the mastermind. After all, if all the restaurants are involved, the mastermind will surely guess that we’re trying to bring him out.”

“How can we force the major restaurants to unite then?” Ma Chun asked in confusion.
“Once we find the mastermind, have the King of Clear Streams frequent Lin’s Inn. Then introduce spicy dishes and grilled meat at the same time. There’s no need to worry they won’t join forces,” Lin Dong said calmly.
Ma Chun understood. If the King of Clear Streams appeared regularly at Lin’s Inn, it would greatly boost its business. Moreover, with the restaurants controlled by the mastermind going bankrupt and another Lin’s Inn opening next door, it would be easy for the owners of the other restaurants to suspect that the King of Clear Streams’ actions were actually planned by Lin’s Inn.
If it happened once, why not a second time? Although it was passive the first time, who could guarantee that Lin’s Inn, having tasted success, wouldn’t take the initiative to do it again? Just as Lin’s Inn feared that larger restaurants might use similar tactics with the mastermind, the other restaurants would also worry that Lin’s Inn might exploit the King of Clear Streams’ status to frame them with unfair means. Only by uniting and agreeing to use their networks together if one restaurant faced official trouble could they possibly rescue the person from the King of Clear Streams’ grasp.
Plus, with Lin’s Inn offering attractive spicy dishes and grilled meat, the united efforts of the major restaurants would add another driving force.
“Boss, the threat from bandits is gone. What should we do about Lin’s Inn next door? Shut it down or what?” Ma Chun asked.
“Wait a bit longer. Closing it too early might make people think we forced it to close, and it could also alert the mastermind. Once we find the mastermind, we can hang a big VIP card at the inn’s entrance as a sign. Close it only after Lin’s Inn next door’s business keeps declining,” Lin Dong said with a smile. “Of course, assuming no one shows up with a land deed claiming it’s theirs.”
Ma Chun also smiled. He thought the prerequisite should be that someone would show up with a land deed before selling it. As long as they could find the mastermind, both of these prerequisites would be guaranteed.
“By the way,” Lin Dong tapped his head and said, “I almost forgot to remind you—make sure to tell the King of Clear Streams to investigate thoroughly all the bandits’ crimes and records before spreading the news.”
Ma Chun nodded. Only with solid evidence could they ensure that once the relationship between the King of Clear Streams and Lin’s Inn became known, it wouldn’t lead to unnecessary speculation from anyone other than the restaurant owners.
“How’s the preparation for Wanbaozhai going?” Lin Dong asked.
“Everything’s arranged. We’re just waiting for the boss to return to open it,” Ma Chun said with a smile.

“Alright, we’ll open tomorrow,” Lin Dong reminded. “If you want to join in the fun, remember to cover your face and change your appearance before going.”
Ma Chun nodded firmly. With Wanbaozhai opening, the guests would be powerful warriors. Even if Lin Dong didn’t mention it, he would still ask for half a day off to go and see it.