Chapter 22: Unexpectedly Encountering Bandits on a Rainy Night

  Huayin County

  In front of the county government office was Yuanbao Street, although it was the middle of the night. But on this Yuanbao Street, there were rows and rows of strong men standing in formation.

  Under the crackling sound of burning torches, everything was eerily silent. Except for the gleaming knives, swords and clubs, there were only solemn faces. No one spoke, nor did they have the heart to say anything. Occasionally, a few coughs sounded unusually abrupt.

  The third watch, the weather was slightly cool, and County Magistrate Liu added a worn-out windbreaker with flowers on it. He walked out of the gate of the prefecture, accompanied by two county captains, and stopped in front of the stone steps. Standing high above, he looked around at everything below him.

  The streets were filled with the sound of clanging metal, with nearly a thousand, or perhaps eight hundred. County Magistrate Liu was extremely pleased with himself, having never led soldiers before, but today he had played the role of general, and naturally he was quite proud of himself.

  In the past few days, I have repeatedly sent people to the provincial government to submit petitions, among which, whether written in detail or exaggeratedly about the severity of the banditry, the provincial government has not made any clear statement. The governor's side is even more silent, only saying that "the county itself should arm and defend against the enemy, and the official troops will be ready to come after they are properly arranged".

  The meaning of the provincial capital is clear, but Liu County got such an awkward answer and was happy to do so. Immediately, he posted a notice in the city, sketching out the evil deeds of the strong men on Mount Shao Hua, listing all the bad things that did and didn't exist, and attributing them all to their heads.

  In short, we must tell the people that Mount Zhonghuashan is coming to our Huayin County. If we don't work hard to defend it and let them break in, it will be disastrous. At that time, not only will our years of family business be lost, but even our lives may be difficult to preserve.

  County Magistrate Liu was indeed cunning and deceitful, with his own set of tricks. In Huayin County, taxation and fundraising were inevitable, and this time each household had to be allocated a quota, with strong men being forcibly recruited.

  Unexpectedly, in these few days, those lies were passed on more and more, and became more and more divine. The number of civilians who came to join the army and defend the city also increased.

  This has allowed County Magistrate Liu to find the feeling of being a national hero. Originally, he had planned "if things don't go well, even if it means risking beheading, I will escape", but now, not only is he not talking about escaping, on the contrary, he's shouting "as long as the city exists, the people exist". When this statement reached the ears of the common people, they were overjoyed.

  County Magistrate Liu listened with great relish, his spirits lifted and his face involuntarily raised slightly, speaking with the same authoritative tone as before, "summoning the wind and rain, scattering beans to form an army".

  Standing below, the strong Ding saw the county magistrate come out, wearing a square iron helmet made of pure iron on his head, with a black tassel about the size of a dou on top. He wore a suit of bear skin armor, lined with a robe embroidered with cloud patterns and a pair of boots with inlaid lines and cloud-shaped heels. Around his waist was tied a belt made of green silk with a pattern of victorious lions.

  Looking at it this way, County Magistrate Liu actually has quite a bit of the air of a general. Normally, people only thought he was just muddling through his official duties and embezzling some money. But when it comes to critical moments like these, he really does have some backbone. Everyone thinks this way, their spines straighten up even more, and they're even more willing to risk their lives.

  At this time, County Magistrate Liu began to lecture in a loud voice.

  "Originally, you were all common people, the source of my livelihood, and I have always shown respect. But now, you are soldiers! You are the Great Wall of flesh and blood for the numerous parents of Huayin County! Advance at the sound of drums, retreat at the sound of gongs. Everything follows the general's orders!"

  Liu County Magistrate looked around and said: "When that thief comes, we must ambush him on the way and guard the gate."

  With a mind full of words, he was about to launch into a passionate speech, his voice involuntarily rising.

  "When the city gate is closed, it's the day of desperate defense. When the battle begins, anyone who retreats before the order will be beheaded on the spot! If a soldier retreats before his general, he will be beheaded! If the front line retreats, the rear line will behead them! Even if we fight like this, we still can't hold off the enemy. Even if the city is breached, they'll have to step over my dead body first!"

  County Magistrate Liu's words were spoken in one breath, leaving everyone present in admiration.

  "Set up camp outside the city tomorrow!"

  After he returned to the mansion and rested, he himself felt that his words had moved even himself.

  Shijiazhuang

  It was probably around three o'clock in the morning when dark clouds suddenly appeared out of nowhere to cover the sky and block the moon, and before long it started raining.

  The patter of the rain on the roof, gathering into streams that flow down from the eaves. The sudden flash of lightning through the paper windows makes the room bright and dark at times.

  The old locust tree in the backyard of Laojiazhuang was also rustling in the wind and rain on this night.

  Shi Jin gazed at the scene before him, and couldn't help but think of his childhood. Every time it rained like this, he would think about grabbing an axe, sneaking past his father, and chopping down that annoying old tree that disturbed his sleep. But every time, it was just a thought, and he would toss and turn, covering his ears with the quilt, before eventually drifting off to sleep.

  Because Shi Jin's mother had said that the old tree was planted by Second Grandfather when Father was born, he hoped that this locust tree could bear all the winds and rains of the world for Father, and also hoped that Father would grow like this locust tree, shading and protecting the large manor.

  At this moment, Shi Jin leaned against the door frame, staring blankly at the old locust tree, but no longer felt annoyed by it.

  The wind blows through the treetops, and the rain pounds against the branches and leaves.

  Shi Jin gradually became numb. He muttered to himself: "The tree wants to be still... but the wind does not stop, the child wants to be raised... by his parents, but his parents do not wait."

  I originally wanted to serve Father and enjoy his company until the end of his years, living a peaceful and stable life with Zhong Ling. Such an ordinary wish, but this official family does not even allow that.

  As the leader of the counterfeiters, I must do it with honor and prestige, make a name for myself in the world, not only to make people admire me, but also to bring comfort to my deceased father.

  But if you want to achieve great things, you must recruit soldiers and buy horses.

  At this point, Shi Jin suddenly had an idea and thought of someone - his master Wang Jin.

  It would be even better if you could invite Master Wang to come up the mountain.

  With this in mind, he swept away the stuffiness and bitterness in his chest, returned to the house, picked up his pen and inkstone, and was about to write a letter to Wang Jin.

  Just as he had just explained the reason for his fall in the letter, the kitchen suddenly shouted.

  Shi Jin's thoughts were interrupted, and he felt displeased in his heart. He paused for a moment, but the shouting not only didn't stop, it became even more boisterous. It seemed that something big had happened. So he called over the yamen runner in front of him to take a look.

  No need to say more, Lao Liu is back and says that a black-clad man with a mask was found in the house next door, and is now being surrounded by everyone on the roof.

  Shi Jin's eyes suddenly narrowed. At this critical moment, the surrounding tens of miles were sealed off and locked down by the government, not only were there no traveling merchants, but even the surrounding villages were stationed with soldiers for strict inspection and isolation. The current situation of the county's military deployment was unknown.

  Just worrying about having no one to ask, you coincidentally come knocking on my door. Isn't this heaven helping me too!

  Shi Jin was overjoyed and hastily drank a few mouthfuls of wine to hold up the oil-paper umbrella.

  "Take me to see!"