Chapter 105: Fighting Fire with Fire

The Gu family acted with impressive efficiency. By the next day, they had already begun organizing a fundraising drive.

While Li Yun was still resting at the inn, he was paid a visit by two bailiffs from the Shidai County office. Upon seeing Li Yun, both men bowed politely and asked, "Are you Constable Li from Qingyang?"

Although Li Yun had been to Shidai before and had even carried out "joint operations" with their local officers, the only people he had communicated with back then were the ranking officials, such as Clerk Guo. And those familiar faces had since gone on a long journey—one from which they would never return. Consequently, these bailiffs did not recognize him.

Constable Li looked the two men over and said with a smile, "Your Shidai intelligence is quite sharp. I’ve only been in the county seat for a day or two and haven't notified anyone, yet you already know I'm here."

"Constable Li, you may not be aware," the bailiff replied with a grin. "Master Gu has summoned several local gentry today to raise funds for your bandit-suppression campaign. This caught the attention of the Magistrate, who ordered us to find you as soon as possible."

Li Yun paused, looked around, and lowered his voice. "Brother, is the Magistrate of your county not..."

Shidai had been in chaos for the past year or two. The previous magistrate had been killed by the Hexi rebels, and the new magistrate, upon his arrival, had also been stabbed by those same rebels. His concubine had thrown herself in front of him to block the blade and was killed on the spot. As for the Magistrate himself, he had been severely wounded—at least, that was the word that reached Li Yun back in Qingyang.

The bailiff coughed and said, "His Honor the Magistrate suffered a stab wound to the shoulder from the rebels. After a month or two of recuperation, he is much better now."

Li Yun nodded and asked with a smile, "So, what does your county office want with me?"

"The Magistrate heard about your plans to suppress the bandits and wishes to meet with you."

Li Yun nodded readily, looked back at Li Zheng, and said with a smile, "Stay here with the men and wait for me. I’m going to go see this... Magistrate of Shidai." He looked at the bailiff with an inquiring expression, and the latter immediately understood, bowing his head. "The Magistrate’s surname is Zhang..."

"I shall go see Magistrate Zhang," Li Yun said.

Shidai was not a large county seat. Following the bailiffs, Li Yun soon arrived at the county office and met the Magistrate in the rear chambers. To Li Yun’s surprise, the man was quite young, appearing to be only in his twenties. At that age, reaching the position of a county magistrate was rare unless one was a scion of a prominent family—though those families rarely cared for such minor local posts.

Li Yun cupped his hands and bowed slightly. "Li Zhao of Qingyang, paying respects to the Magistrate."

Magistrate Zhang was a bit shorter than Li Yun and had a fair complexion. Perhaps due to his past injuries, his face lacked color. Seeing Li Yun, he forced a strained smile. "Constable... Constable Li, there is no need for such formalities."

"I have long heard of your name."

Li Yun quickly shook his head. "I am unworthy of such praise."

Magistrate Zhang gestured for Li Yun to sit. After Li Yun was seated and tea was served, the Magistrate spoke. "Forgive my presumption, Constable Li, but could you show me the official documents from the Prefect regarding the bandit-suppression campaign?"

Li Yun took the papers from his robes. After reading them, Magistrate Zhang handed them back with a smile. "In these times, banditry is rampant everywhere. I deeply admire your courage in taking up the banner of suppression and doing real work for the people."

He paused, coughed, and added, "As for this bandit-suppression effort, Shidai will cooperate with you fully."

***

During his previous assassination attempt, he had been seriously wounded. Although it was only a shoulder injury, the assassin had aimed for his heart; it had missed by only two inches. Even now, though his life was saved, he had not fully recovered. Ordinarily, with an injury of this severity, the imperial court would have sent another official to take over Shidai while he convalesced. However, once Magistrate Zhang regained consciousness, he had personally petitioned the court to allow him to remain at his post.

Since it would take at least a month or two for a replacement to arrive, the court had simply agreed. This had caused quite a stir in Shidai. People whispered that it was because the Magistrate came from a humble background and had spent a fortune to secure this position, fearing he would lose his post if he stepped away for a few years.

After taking a sip of tea, Magistrate Zhang looked at Li Yun and said slowly, "However, compared to the mountain bandits, there is another group of rebels within Shidai that is even more hateful and poses a far greater threat!"

Li Yun took a sip of tea and asked, "The Hexi rebels?"

"Precisely." A flush appeared on the Magistrate’s pale face. He slammed the table, his hand trembling slightly with emotion. "I had just arrived in Shidai and had never crossed these rebels, yet they struck without warning. That day... that day..."

His voice trembled. "If Qingping hadn't blocked that blade for me..." He clenched his fists, his teeth gritted. "I share an irreconcilable hatred with these traitors!"

After recovering from the assassination attempt, the first thing Zhang Xiaoyu had done was write to the court to stay in Shidai. Outsiders thought he was greedy for power, and some even rumored that he had pulled his concubine in front of him to block the fatal strike. Very few knew that the girl named Qingping had done so of her own volition. No one in Shidai knew how many storms the girl and her "Zhang Lang" had weathered together over the years. It was after that day that the young magistrate determined he would wipe out the Hexi rebels—if not for the sake of the court, then to avenge his beloved.

After a long while, Magistrate Zhang calmed down. He pulled a handkerchief from his robes with a trembling hand, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and offered Li Yun a smile. "I... I lost my composure."

Li Yun was moved by the man's raw emotion. He looked carefully at the magistrate, who could only be twenty-five or twenty-six, and felt a stir of empathy. Since leaving Cangshan, he had encountered many officials—from magistrates to prefects, to young Master Pei from the capital, and Gu Wenchuan. These men of the bureaucracy rarely showed such intense emotion; their every action was calculated to serve their interests, hiding their true selves behind masks. Even Magistrate Xue was like that most of the time.

But the Magistrate before him was far too emotional.

Li Yun sighed. "That girl named Qingping..."

Magistrate Zhang looked down at his tea.

"Had I not been married, she would have been my wife." After exhaling a long breath, he continued, "Ever since I regained my strength, I have been tracking these Hexi rebels. Recently, I discovered they are hiding in the deep mountains within Shidai’s borders."

"Constable Li, mountain bandits are merely a local nuisance, but these rebels are a threat to the state, a scourge to the court. Your campaign in Shidai should focus on rooting them out!"

Li Yun sighed and said, "Rest assured, Magistrate. As long as there is concrete intelligence, I will do my utmost to exterminate these rebels and avenge Miss Qingping."

These words seemed to strike a chord in Magistrate Zhang. He stood up and actually bowed to Li Yun.

***

Five days later, at the Seven Tigers Stronghold on Mount Xianyu.

The stronghold, which was of significant size within Shidai, had been captured by Li Yun, his Bandit-Catching Team, some local Shidai personnel, and the "local militia" he had brought along.

The operation, involving over a hundred men, had gone smoothly, aided by the militia’s familiarity with the mountain paths and Li Yun’s own bravery at the front. It took only a day and a night to take the stronghold.

Now, aside from the twenty or so bandits killed in the fighting, the rest were kneeling on the ground, bound tightly.

Li Yun looked at the Shidai bailiffs and said with a smile, "Brothers, you may take these bandits back to Shidai to report the success. I will handle the rest."

The Shidai men hadn’t contributed much, and having seen Li Yun fight like ten men, they didn't dare challenge him. They simply took a few of the bandits and headed back to Shidai to report.

Li Yun and his men sat in the main hall of the stronghold. Li Yun took the head seat and looked at Zhou Liang, who had come from Qingyang with reinforcements. "Third Uncle, how do you think we should handle the remaining prisoners?"

Zhou Liang stroked his chin and whispered, "If we can win them over, that would be best. After all, as you intend to suppress bandits across the entire Xuan Prefecture, you can't keep pulling men from Qingyang."

"Besides, you are now operating under the banner of the government..."

"That is my thought as well," Li Yun said slowly. "The ringleaders will be sent to the government to close the case, but as for the others..."

"They may be of use."

"Let us start this experiment with the Seven Tigers Stronghold." He turned to his lieutenant. "Thin Monkey, take them all out to the clearing and bind them."

Li Zheng acknowledged the order and soon gathered the remaining bandits in the clearing. Li Yun, dressed in his official black robes, walked before them with his hands behind his back. He scanned the crowd and said, "Do you know what the penalty is for being a mountain bandit?"

"Those who were taken away earlier might be lucky enough to be conscripted into the army and thrown onto the front lines of the battlefield."

"If they are unlucky, they will be beheaded immediately."

Constable Li spoke with righteousness and gravity. "That was supposed to be your fate, too!"

"But now, the court is suppressing bandits, and we are short on men!"

"I am giving you a chance to turn over a new leaf!"

The Constable’s voice boomed with authority.

"Either you follow me to take down other strongholds, or!"

"You rot in prison to await your sentence!"