Chapter 112: The Bandits Do Not Agree!

The Great Zhou Dynasty is currently like an old man in his twilight years.

The rebellion in Yuezhou was originally nothing more than an unremarkable scar on the old man’s body, or at most, a festering sore. The old man has too many pressing matters to attend to and lacks the energy to focus on a place like Yuezhou; it is precisely for this reason that people like Qiu Dian have had the opportunity to grow in power.

However, if one day the imperial court realizes that the Yuezhou rebellion is not merely a sore, but a cancer that could cost the state its life—or is at least capable of doing so—then even if the court is facing chaos on all fronts and struggling to manage, it will inevitably divert its resources to address this matter and excise the infection in Yuezhou.

In other words, the moment the imperial court learns that Qiu Dian has declared himself king, it will certainly dispatch heavenly troops to suppress the rebellion. Even if deploying such force might accelerate the decline or even the collapse of the dynasty, the court will no longer stand by and watch as "rebels" gain strength.

Yuezhou will soon become the core arena for all parties to contend for power.

Li Yun wants to go to Ningguo County specifically to get as close to Yuezhou as possible, hoping to see if he can secure a piece of the pie amidst the coming chaos. Ideally, he hopes to carve out his own territory in the impending age of turmoil. If things go poorly, he can always retreat; his Bandit Suppression Squad is only responsible for suppressing bandits, not quelling major rebellions.

Magistrate Xue frowned, looking at the righteous young man before him. For a moment, he even doubted whether he had misunderstood this Commander Li all along. After lowering his head to take a sip of tea, Magistrate Xue said slowly, "You now hold the official commission for bandit suppression from the prefecture. Within Xuanzhou, no one can hinder you wherever you wish to go, but I must remind you: be steady in your actions."

He paused, then continued, "I have heard that you are now using bandits to suppress other bandits."

"Bandits are inherently ferocious. Even if they serve you for a time, you cannot trust them too much. You must keep your guard up."

Hearing this, Li Yun found it somewhat amusing. In all honesty, the most ferocious bandit in all of Xuanzhou was none other than himself, Chief Li. Magistrate Xue could never imagine that all the bandits who had surrendered in Shidai—especially those who had been personally beaten by Li Yun—now trembled at the mere sight of him. There was no helping it; Li Yun’s almost abnormal combat prowess had left them with deep psychological scars.

"Rest assured, Magistrate. Since I dare to use them, I am capable of keeping them in check."

Magistrate Xue hummed, waved his hand, and said, "Just be mindful of that yourself." He stood up and added, "It is very late. Do not return tonight; rest at the county office. Stay in the room you occupied before."

Li Yun acknowledged this, stood up, and cupped his hands in a salute. "Magistrate, after I go to Ningguo County, should the Yuezhou rebellion spread to Xuanzhou, even if I cannot stop them in Ningguo, I can at least offer some resistance to buy some leeway for the people of Qingyang."

These words moved Magistrate Xue quite a bit. He patted Li Yun on the shoulder and said slowly, "The rebels have already formed an army; this is no longer a matter you should be involving yourself in. Do everything according to your strength."

"Rest assured, Magistrate." Commander Li’s expression was calm. "I know what I am doing."

"Besides," Li Yun smiled, "those rebels are perhaps not as formidable as you imagine, Magistrate."

Qiu Dian’s forces had swept across Yuezhou in just a few months, and to everyone else, this self-proclaimed King of Yue must be incredibly powerful. But in Li Yun’s eyes, it was not necessarily so. He had seen the combat effectiveness of local troops; to put it bluntly, he was confident that he could take his two hundred Xuanzhou soldiers and go head-to-head with them on an open plain.

The troops in Yuezhou would not be any stronger. Furthermore, if Cao Rong, the Administrative Commissioner of Xuanzhou, could hollow out the military payroll until only two hundred men remained out of a thousand, how many could possibly be left in Yuezhou? There was nothing strange about Qiu Dian occupying Yuezhou. To speak arrogantly, if Li Yun were to turn his head now, he could easily take Xuanzhou and declare himself the King of Xuan—it just wouldn't last long.

As for Qiu Dian holding off the offensive of Zheng Kui, the Inspector of the East Jiangnan Circuit, and even winning consecutive victories, it did not seem particularly impressive to Li Yun. The local armies had long since rotted to the core.

After bidding farewell to Magistrate Xue, it was too late to leave the county office, so Li Yun stayed in his former room. When he woke the next morning, the sun was shining in. After washing up, he slipped out of the county office and returned to his small courtyard.

After changing into clean clothes and grabbing breakfast by the roadside, he returned to the rear of the county office, where he happened to run into Dong'er.

Li Yun approached her with a smile. "Miss Dong'er, is the young lady at home?"

Dong'er looked at him and turned her face away. "What do you want with my young lady?"

"I haven't seen her in a long time." Commander Li coughed. "I came to pay a visit."

Dong'er glared at Li Yun, grinding her teeth as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately kept it to herself. She muttered in a muffled voice, "You... follow me."

The Qingyang county office was not large, so Miss Xue did not have a traditional embroidery tower like those of wealthy families. However, as she had come of age, Magistrate Xue had prepared a separate small courtyard for her. Li Yun followed Dong'er to the courtyard; Dong'er went inside to announce his arrival, while Li Yun sat down in the courtyard.

After a while, Dong'er emerged from the room, gave Li Yun another look, and without a word, stomped out of the courtyard, making sure to close the gate behind her.

Li Yun scratched his head and was about to stand up when the door opened slowly. Miss Xue, dressed in simple white, stepped out. She bit her lip lightly, looked at Li Yun sitting in the courtyard, and spoke with a hint of sorrow in her eyes: "You..."

"When did you return?"

"Last night," Li Yun said with a smile. "I was passing through Qingyang on my way from Xuanzhou to Shidai, so I came back to check on things."

"Check on what?" Miss Xue asked.

Li Yun instinctively wanted to answer, "I came to check on you," but he worried that might sound too frivolous. He hesitated and said, "Just... checking on everything."

Miss Xue turned her head away and said nothing. Ever since they had held hands last time, their relationship had become ambiguous. Now that they were alone together, Li Yun found himself at a loss for words. The atmosphere grew tender and lingering.

After a long while, Li Yun stood up, walked over to Miss Xue, and asked with a smile, "It’s been over two months. Have you been well?"

"So you do know it's been two months." Miss Xue’s eyes turned slightly red, and she looked away.

"I had no choice," Li Yun sighed. "There were simply too many things to attend to; I couldn't get away."

"Last month, I found a very beautiful hairpin in Shidai. I wanted to have it brought to you, but I was afraid of gossip..."

Miss Xue looked back at Li Yun’s face and reached out her hand. Li Yun understood immediately, took the hairpin from his robes, and placed it in her palm.

Xue Yun'er looked at it for a moment, let out a soft hum, and said nothing more. Li Yun leaned forward to peek into the room. Miss Xue’s face immediately turned bright red, and she scolded, "What are you looking at, you rascal?"

"Nothing, I didn't see a thing."

Xue Yun'er gritted her teeth. "You are not allowed to look right now."

Li Yun smiled. "I won't look, I won't look."

"When are you leaving?" Xue Yun'er asked.

Li Yun thought for a moment and replied, "The Bandit Suppression Squad still has many matters that require my attention. I must set off by the day after tomorrow at the latest."

"Oh."

"And when will you return to Qingyang?"

Li Yun thought seriously. Next, he intended to head to Ningguo County. It was very close to Yuezhou, and by now, it might already be affected by the situation there; the conditions there were still unclear. Thus, it was hard to say when he would return.

Seeing Li Yun silent, Miss Xue did not press him. She only asked, "You... what are you thinking in your heart?"

Li Yun pondered and asked, "Does the Magistrate know about me..."

"I haven't told my father." Miss Xue lowered her head, biting her lip. "But Father is very clever. I think he has likely guessed your identity, but he just hasn't said anything..."

Li Yun scratched his head. "Then I can only wait until I have suppressed the banditry in Xuanzhou before I can bring this up to the Magistrate."

Miss Xue let out a soft sound. "Because of you, I have ended up like this and can no longer marry anyone else. In a few months, I shall become a nun."

Commander Li reached out and grabbed her hand, laughing, "And whose sect will you join?"

Xue Yun'er struggled for a moment, then stopped and said in a small voice, "I'll go become a Taoist nun."

Commander Li smiled. "I'm afraid no Taoist temple would dare to take you in."

"Why?" Xue Yun'er asked, curious.

"Because there is a bandit chief..."

"Who won't agree."