But the enemy is ultimately still the enemy.

Everyone has a family and a business, children and grandchildren. Just as Huangfu Jinyuan said, it’s merely a matter of winners and losers.

As for Huangfu Kangping, after witnessing Huangfu Jinyuan’s fall, he roared in anger and wanted to fight desperately.

Unfortunately, he was isolated and powerless and was ultimately captured alive with his hands and feet broken.

At this moment, the battle at Golden Beach finally came to an end.

As an official figure, Zhou Zhenwu, the captain of the Patrol Third Battalion, said gravely, "Although this battle is over, there is still a lot of work to be done in the later stages. Whether the Celestial Person Huangfu Family was involved, no one can say for sure, but the Qianma Huangfu Family probably cannot escape involvement. I need to report everything truthfully to Lord City Guard, and the final decision on how to handle it will be up to him."

After speaking, he cupped his hands to the crowd: "Ladies and gentlemen, I, Zhou, will take my leave first and attend to the follow-up matters."

...

Almost at the same time.

Fortune Gambling House.

Night had deepened, and the gambling house finally closed its doors, ending the day’s business.

On the third floor, in a well-guarded room, Chief Shopkeeper Huang was lounging in a master’s chair, leisurely puffing smoke while being attended by two seductive maids, his expression one of great enjoyment.

"Chief Shopkeeper Huang." Ding Youde, with a fawning look, rolled a tobacco leaf for him and carefully lit it, "You truly see things with foresight. That kid Wang Zongwei indeed didn’t have the guts to report; he’s been behaving very well these past few days."

Chief Shopkeeper Huang took a calm puff of the tobacco leaf, his eyes half-open and half-closed, looking serene.

He had dealt with similar matters more than once, so naturally, he wasn’t as easily excited as Ding Youde.

He inhaled deeply, savoring the taste of the tobacco leaf. After a long while, he said, "You did well on this task. Follow me and work hard in the future, and you’ll be rewarded."

With that, he waved his hand.

The seductive maid next to him immediately brought over a tray, on which two bundles of Qian Gold were neatly stacked. Each bundle could be made up of one hundred coins, so two bundles amounted to a full two hundred Qian Gold.

Ding Youde was instantly overjoyed, gratefully accepting the bundles while nodding and bowing constantly, showering him with compliments.

Although it seemed like he managed a lot of money every day, it was all the gambling house’s money, and the portion he could actually touch was not much. These two hundred Qian Gold were already a significant sum for him.

As the two were talking, suddenly the door of the gambling house was kicked open by someone, and a squad of soldiers in Patrol Camp armor barged in like wolves and tigers.

"What’s going on?"

Chief Shopkeeper Huang sensed something was amiss and went downstairs with his people to check. Upon seeing the scene, his expression changed immediately.

"Officers, let’s talk this over. Is there some misunderstanding here?" Ding Youde’s eyes flickered as he quickly moved forward, attempting to make contact with the soldiers.

However, the soldiers seemed not to notice him at all, ignoring him completely, sealing both the front and back doors of the gambling house and blocking all exit routes.

Amidst the chaos, there suddenly came a series of respectful salutations from outside the door.

"Commander."

"Greetings to the Commander!"

Chief Shopkeeper Huang and Ding Youde’s attention was immediately drawn over.

They heard the sound of extremely faint footsteps, and shortly after, a dignified figure slowly appeared at the door.

He looked middle-aged, wearing the standard officer’s armor of the Patrol Camp, with a severe expression and an extraordinary demeanor.

The light of the palace lantern at the entrance fell on his face, illuminating his well-defined profile.

"Wang Ding Race!" Chief Shopkeeper Huang’s eyes narrowed, his heart instantly understanding, "Are you here for Wang Zongwei?"

It turned out that this officer at the door was none other than the only member of the Ping’an Wang Family currently developing within the official system, the third young master of the "Ding" generation, Wang Ding Race.

More than two years ago, Wang Ding Race had successfully advanced to the Spirit Platform Realm.

Afterwards, Wang Shouzhe had spent considerable effort on his behalf.

Wang Ding Race himself had also put in significant effort, leading teams to exterminate several groups of Loose Cultivator bandits operating within the Changning Guard area, successfully gaining promotion and becoming the commander of the Patrol Second Battalion of the Changning Guard.

Wang Ding Race glanced at Chief Shopkeeper Huang but didn’t respond to him, instead directly issuing an order.

"Search it!"

"How dare you?!" Chief Shopkeeper Huang was furious, the menace clear in his triangular eyes, "If you act so rashly, aren’t you afraid that Lord City Guard will hold you accountable?!"

This Fortune Gambling House had a minority share held by the City Guardian’s Mansion; every year, a generous tribute was offered to Lord City Guard. He couldn’t believe Wang Ding Race would dare risk offending Lord City Guard to search the Fortune Gambling House!

The soldiers of the Patrol Camp were evidently aware of this as well, hesitating for a moment.

Wang Ding Race shot Chief Shopkeeper Huang a glance and said coldly, "I, the commander, have received reliable reports that the Fortune Gambling House has been colluding with an enemy of the state, the Yin Sha Sect. According to Daqian Law, any individuals or organizations found colluding with the Yin Sha Sect must be dealt with immediately, with delays being treated equally as treason. Now that Lord City Guard is not in the mansion, I have no choice but to take immediate action, apprehending those committing treason and then reporting to Lord City Guard."

"What?!"

The soldiers of the Patrol Camp were utterly shocked.

Before coming, Wang Ding Race, fearing a leak, had only informed them of the assembly point, and only a few trusted circles knew about the operation against the Fortune Gambling House.

At this moment, they had just learned the truth of the matter.