Chapter Six: The Imperial Army Arrives!

No matter what group you are in, if you want to seize power, you must gain control of two things: the purse and the gun.

Li Yun himself was the force to be reckoned with in the Cangshan stronghold. With his straightforward manner and the accumulated prestige of two generations of Li family chiefs, he had little to worry about in terms of martial strength. Now, what he needed to grasp was the purse.

With control of the purse, he could further secure authority over personnel, and eventually hold the entirety of Cangshan firmly in his hands.

As a stronghold that had lasted twenty years, Cangshan was not exactly poor. To say nothing else, the old chief Li had a pit beneath his bed—a cache of wealth his late father had gathered over twenty years. Of course, that was his private treasure.

The stronghold’s main storehouse, however, had always been under the management of Second-in-command Yuan Zhengming. Now Li Yun intended to seize that storehouse for himself.

After a small council meeting, none of the six captains present dared oppose Li Yun, not even the second-in-command, who refrained from uttering another word.

As soon as the meeting concluded, Li Yun went straight to the storehouse. Yuan Zhengming hesitated for a moment before following.

The storehouse stood as an independent compound, guarded by men day and night. When Li Yun arrived, Old Eight and Old Nine had already brought their men.

Old Eight was Zhang Hu, Old Nine was Liu Bo; both were second-generation members of the stronghold, just like Li Yun. In twenty years, the stronghold had nurtured its own second generation, and these two had grown up alongside Li Yun. Once Li Yun became chief, he worked out ways to elevate them to positions of authority.

Though the previous chief may not have thought much of it, this was, in fact, a very sensible approach. Each era has its own ministers.

When Li Yun arrived, Zhang Hu had already finished counting the supplies. He swaggered over to Li Yun’s side.

“Chief, Old Nine and I have checked everything. There’s a thousand or two pounds of grain—enough to last a few months. Plenty of silver and money besides…” He scratched his head. “I’m not much with numbers. Old Nine is still counting.”

Li Yun patted his shoulder, glanced at the stacked grain, and then turned to Yuan Zhengming.

“Second Uncle, isn’t the grain a bit short?”

Yuan Zhengming stroked his ample belly, smiling. “Chief, the storehouse has been under my care since the old chief’s day, twenty years now. Never once have I let the brothers go hungry.”

“I’m not saying you starved the brothers,” Li Yun replied, casting a meaningful look at the chubby ‘Second Uncle’ before sweeping his gaze over the storehouse. “Never mind, let bygones—”

“Be bygones.” Li Yun continued, “The past is past. From now on, I’ll handle the storehouse myself. Second Uncle, you can rest.”

At first, Yuan Zhengming found the chief’s manner of speaking somewhat odd, but said nothing further—he simply looked at Zhang Hu and Liu Bo with a cheerful smile.

“Chief, Old Eight and Old Nine… are they up to it?”

“If they aren’t, I’m still here, aren’t I?” Li Yun looked at him. “I’m not dead yet.”

To quickly gain full control over the stronghold, this was not the time to judge men by their ability, but by their loyalty.

By comparison, Yuan Zhengming was certainly more experienced, but Li Yun had to push this man—who once threatened his position—out of the core circle of power.

It sounded almost laughable. For a stronghold of barely thirty men, what core of power could there be?

But in truth, every group and even every government office uses the same logic. In his previous life, before falling gravely ill, Li Yun had been a modest leader, and understood these methods all too well.

These bandits were no match for him.

“Chief!” Old Nine, Liu Bo, finally finished counting. He jogged over, head lowered. “Chief, besides two thousand pounds of grain, there’s about two hundred strings of cash, a dozen taels of gold, and three hundred taels of silver.”

Li Yun stroked his chin.

Such assets, in the lowlands, would place one among the middle-to-upper landlords. But for a stronghold of thirty men, it was not much.

Li Yun looked again at the second-in-command and nodded. “Old Nine, from today you’ll live in the storehouse. Anyone taking grain will come to you.”

“Do you know how to keep accounts?”

Liu Bo scratched his head, looking at Li Yun. “Chief… you want me to keep accounts?”

Li Yun frowned. “Is there a problem?”

“I do know some characters…” He gave Li Yun a puzzled look. “But you don’t seem to be literate…”

Li Yun rolled his eyes. “I can read now.”

With that, he turned and walked out.

Liu Bo and Zhang Hu stood in the storehouse, exchanging glances. Zhang Hu lowered his voice, “Are the women in the city so strange? In just a few days, Second Brother… actually learned to read?”

Liu Bo, fair-skinned and clever, shot him a glare. “Stop spouting nonsense.”

He was a bit more astute, and stroked his chin. “I suppose the chief’s wife is literate, and helps him with the accounts.”

Yuan Zhengming watched Li Yun’s departing figure thoughtfully. After a while, he turned back to Old Eight and Old Nine and said slowly, “Take good care of it—this is twenty years of my hard work.”

The two hurriedly nodded. “Yes, Second Uncle.”

……

“Miss Xue.”

Li Yun dragged a small stool and sat across from Miss Xue. He coughed once and began, “Can you tell me about the current court?”

Xue Yun’er hadn’t eaten much all day. She glanced at the food in front of her and frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Well…” Li Yun gathered his words and asked, “What’s the current dynasty called? Who is the emperor, what is his surname…”

Xue Yun’er blinked, staring at Li Yun in bewilderment.

Bandits… are they really this ignorant?

But having witnessed the chief’s prowess, she dared not voice her thoughts. She considered for a moment, then began to answer his questions seriously.

“The current dynasty is called Zhou…”

And so, Li Yun asked while Xue Yun’er answered. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Li Yun finally gained a clearer understanding of this strange world.

Yet—

The more he learned, the stranger it seemed.

When he was satisfied, Li Yun stood and walked outside, his gaze uncertain.

“Great Zhou… the imperial clan isn’t named Yuwen, nor Guo, but Wu…”

“And it isn’t the Zhou of Wu Zhao…”

He looked up at the sky and murmured, “Over two hundred years…”

“How peculiar.”

Miss Xue had appeared behind him, her own face full of questions. “Hey,” she called.

“What did you mean earlier about a female emperor?”

She was curious. “Can a woman become emperor?”

Li Yun took a deep breath, turned to look at her, and smiled. “I was just speaking nonsense.”

“And another thing, don’t call me ‘hey.’ My surname is Li.”

“Li Yun.”

Only then did Xue Yun’er learn the name of the stronghold chief who had kidnapped her.

Leaning against the doorframe, she looked at Li Yun. “Didn’t you say you’d let me leave the mountain? When will you let me go?”

“If you want to leave, you can go now. I’ll have someone escort you to the main road.”

“Fine.” Xue Yun’er bit her lip. “Tomorrow, you send me down the mountain.”

Whatever happens, leaving the mountain is better than living like a wild person up here. Even if her reputation was ruined, at least life would be easier.

Li Yun nodded, about to agree, when suddenly he heard the loud crack of a signal arrow overhead.

He frowned and strode out.

Not far away, Baldy rushed over, panting as he reached Li Yun.

“Chief!” He was breathing heavily, and it took him a moment to compose himself.

“The guards say—the guards say—”

“The government troops are here!”

Li Yun’s brows knitted. “How many?”

“At least a hundred!” Baldy whispered. “All wearing armor!”

“Armored…”

Li Yun’s tone was meaningful.

“Armor, eh…”