Taiheiki

Chapter 48 Hero
"I'm replacing Zhang Bolu?" Wei Cong couldn't help but laugh. "I'm a prefectural official! Besides, I'm not Zhang Bolu, who's been running rampant in Jiangbei for over a decade. I'm still a foreigner. Why should others obey me?"

Huang Sheng breathed a sigh of relief when Wei Cong didn't directly refuse. He quickly said with a smile, "Sir, your position as a prefectural official doesn't conflict with this! Besides, if you don't want to come forward yourself, you can always send a trusted subordinate to act as your agent, as long as they use your name. As for whether others will listen to you, you don't have to worry about that. This time, you have killed Zhang Bolu and wiped out his family. Your reputation will only surpass Zhang Bolu's. No one in the surrounding prefectures and counties will dare to resist your mediation!"

"If I kill Zhang Bolu, my reputation will surpass his, and I can replace him?" Wei Cong was a little confused. "If that's the case, then Zhang Bolu has been assassinated every few days in recent years?"

"That's not the case!" Huang Sheng explained. According to the customs of the time, to replace Zhang Bolu's status in the martial arts world, simply killing him wasn't enough; one had to prove superior power. Wei Cong had first killed Zhang Bolu in a naval battle, then defeated the Zhang family's crimson-robed thugs, who had been supporting him for over a decade, in a land battle. Finally, he captured the renowned Zhangjiawu Fortress in a matter of days, proving with concrete actions that he possessed the power to crush the once-renowned "Crimson-robed General," making him a natural successor to Zhang Bolu's position in the martial arts world. Other contenders, unwilling to share Zhang Bolu's fate, refrained from opposing him.

"Rest assured, my dear. I guarantee that before long, word of your killing Zhang Bolu and capturing his Wu Fort will spread, and your fame will naturally spread far and wide. Even if you stay indoors, people will come to you to mediate disputes." Huang Sheng smiled and said, "Besides, this kind of thing can bring both fame and fortune. Back then, Zhang Bolu could have earned at least a million yuan a year from this, as well as three or four thousand hu of grain and two or three thousand bolts of cloth!"

"So many?" Wei Cong was shocked by the astonishing number Huang Sheng said.

"Of course!" The old man's face lit up with a 'you know what's going on' smile. "According to custom, if it's a dispute over property or land, after mediation, the person who goes to arbitrate can take 10%; if it's for something else, they have to give a corresponding gift. Otherwise, how could Zhang Bolu afford to support three or four hundred desperadoes dressed in fine clothes and eating fish in his own home? Those desperadoes can't be dealt with by simply eating vegetables and wearing plain clothes. Just robbing people on the river? That kind of thing doesn't happen every day, and the stolen goods are very troublesome to deal with, how can it be as convenient as this!"

"Father-in-law, you're telling me all this, so I'm sure you have something to ask for, right? Just say it directly. As long as it doesn't violate the law, I will agree!" Even if Wei Cong was a fool, he could tell that the old man had something to ask for, otherwise he wouldn't have put such a big benefit in his mouth. Of course, he didn't care about that. The world is bustling, all for profit; the world is bustling, all for profit! How many people in the world do things not for fame or profit? If you are unwilling to share the benefits with others, I'm afraid even your family will find it difficult to use them, right?

"Sir, you are really generous!" Huang Sheng showed a happy expression: "I want to ask for two things: the first is an old story. My third brother had a child. In the past, he offended the Zhang family for a trivial matter and was beaten to death. My third brother died of depression because of this. So--" When he said this, Huang Sheng's old eyes stared at Wei Cong, his face full of expectation.

"Is your enemy among those prisoners?" Wei Cong said with a smile, "That's easy. If you want to seek revenge privately, I'll hand him over to you. If you want a formal punishment, I'll declare his crime in front of everyone tomorrow and then hand him over to you for punishment! How's that?"

"Thank you, my dear!" Huang Sheng was overjoyed and kowtowed repeatedly.

"No need to be polite, old man!" Wei Cong held out his hand and said, "I am an official serving the people. It is my duty to redress grievances for them. When you go back, you can tell others that if they have similar grievances, they can come and appeal to me!"

"Thank you, my dear!" Huang Sheng raised his head, his eyes red and swollen, his face covered with tear marks. He sighed, "I thought I would never get my revenge in this lifetime, but I never thought—! God have mercy on me, God have mercy on me! Even if I die tomorrow, I will have the dignity to see the Third Brother and that poor nephew!"

"The master just said there were two things. What's the other one?"

Huang Sheng blushed slightly and smiled bitterly, "My dear, I have a young son named Huang Ping. He's not very capable. He spends his days wandering around the countryside and refuses to work properly in the fields. He's almost thirty and still hasn't married. This good-for-nothing has caused me so much worry. I wonder what will become of him after I'm a hundred years old."

Wei Cong listened to the old man complain about his useless youngest son. On the surface, he pretended to be quite sympathetic, but in his heart he was secretly amazed at the old man's physique. He was already 78 years old, and his youngest son was not even 30. Wouldn't he have been born at 50? He was truly in good health.

"Father-in-law, do you want to find a job for your son in the government?" Wei Cong asked.

"That's not the case!" Huang Sheng shook his head. "My son's dissolute nature makes him unfit for the government. If we force him to work, it would only harm him. But my son has one good thing: he's quite open-minded. He can sit down and drink with everyone, from county officials to peddlers, and everyone is happy. You need someone familiar with the situation to run back and forth when you're adjudicating conflicts. Would you mind taking me in as a backup?"

Seeing the old man staring at him intently with a nervous look on his face, Wei Cong thought to himself, "So this old man was waiting for me here! No wonder he went to so much trouble to push the village mediation issue onto me. But it doesn't matter. Since he's the Third Elder, his family must have a certain amount of influence in the local area. For an outsider like me, having a member of a large family under my command will make many things much easier. Even if he's really a good-for-nothing, I can just keep him. Does that mean I'll have to pay him less?"

"Since your father-in-law trusts me so much, I'll leave the mediation of the village affairs to your son!" Wei Cong said with a smile, "But I'll be frank. Although I'm just a thief's assistant, I have hundreds of people under my command and I have my own laws to follow. Your son, when you come to my place, will naturally be subject to the laws. If you violate them, don't blame me!"

"Of course!" Huang Sheng said with a smile, "If you hadn't been strict with the law, how could you have killed the thief Zhang? Now that my son has been handed over to you, I will naturally leave everything to you. I won't hesitate!"

After seeing the old man off, Wei Cong let out a long sigh and stood up. The orange tree outside the window had lost all its leaves, leaving only a few bare branches pointing toward the sky. Wei Cong walked under the orange tree and gently stroked the rough trunk. Judging from the thickness of the trunk, this orange tree must have been planted before Zhang Bolun built Wu Fort. Now the tree is still there, but Wu Fort has changed its owner. If the tree had a spirit, I wonder what it would think?

"If trees are like this, how can people bear it?" Wei Cong sighed softly, and at this moment he couldn't help but think of the great African Scipio (a famous Roman general and destroyer of Carthage), who shed tears as he watched the final destruction of his country's old enemy Carthage: such a great city-state, with vast territories and control of the oceans, showing more fortitude and courage than those huge empires in the most critical moments, but still could not avoid destruction. Think of the Assyrian Empire, the Persian Empire, the Macedonian Empire, and that noble Troy in the past. Which empire could have avoided such an end? I am really afraid that someone will do the same thing to my country in the future! If I hadn't come, Luoyang would be like this more than 20 years later, right? Thinking of this, his eyes moistened.

"My dear! My dear!"

Wei Cong wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes without leaving any trace, and turned around: "What's the matter, Yannian?"

"The people of the four townships are begging to avenge the Zhang family!" Zhao Yannian's face was filled with joy. "How should we deal with it?" "We are officials of the imperial court. Naturally, we must judge the crime according to the law and represent the people!" Wei Cong said, "As long as there are witnesses and it is true, we will hand it over to the wronged to deal with it!"

"Yes!" Zhao Yannian replied, bowing to Wei Cong. "Sir, your handling of this matter is so thorough that I cannot possibly match you!"

"Haha!" Wei Cong laughed. "Everyone has their strengths. Without you, Yannian, I wouldn't be able to capture Wu Fort and wipe out the Zhang family!"

"There are thousands and thousands of people like Yannian in this world, but there are very few like you!" Zhao Yannian said, "Meeting you on the road was truly the greatest honor of my life!"

"I thought so too!" Wei Cong said with a smile. At this point, the two of them couldn't help but look at each other and burst into laughter.

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Jiangling, the residence of the prefect.

The sky was dark and damp; it had been raining all morning. By afternoon, though the rain had stopped, the sky was still overcast, the sun was nowhere to be seen, and the air was filled with a bone-chilling chill. Yet, warmed by the four-cornered braziers, the room remained warm and dry. Han Chun sat on his bed, leaning against a brocade cushion, sipping warm mutton soup and saying with a smile, "Brother Ziyan, you and Feng Cheqi must be old acquaintances, right? He's heading south to quell the rebellion this time. As an old friend, why don't you go visit him?"

"Forget it!" Huang Wan said coldly, "We only met once, we're not close friends. Besides, I'm a useless man now, reflecting on my mistakes, and he's a dignified General of Chariots and Cavalry. Why would I bother to bother him?"

"You can't say that!" Han Chun laughed. "Who can predict the fate of a person? How many people are successful today and lose their official position tomorrow? As long as their clan is not exterminated, there is still a chance for recovery. Brother Ziyan, with your talent and reputation, as well as your friendship with General Chen, are you afraid that there will be no chance for recovery? On the contrary, Feng Qi's expedition to the south to conquer the Wuling Barbarians may seem majestic, but in fact, it is full of hidden dangers. If you are not careful, you will end up in trouble!"

Huang Wan nodded in agreement upon hearing Han Chun's words. As Han Chun had said, the rise and fall of officials had been normal since ancient times. As long as one's faction survived, there would always be a chance for a second chance. Now, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the emperor's days were numbered, and since the empress was the daughter of a partisan, it was only a matter of time before the partisans rose again.

At that time, Huang Wan's return to Luoyang as a Nine Ministers, or even a Three Dukes, was commonplace. Feng Gun's recent trip south as General of Chariots and Cavalry, however, demonstrated the court's high hopes for him, hoping he could quickly turn the tide. However, the climate and soil of southern Jing differed from those of the Central Plains, and the terrain was extremely complex. The Wuling barbarians were fierce and adept at fighting, making a quick victory difficult. If the war dragged on, the emperor's health could weaken the ruling elite, and the court might not have the patience or financial resources to support Feng Gun's continued efforts, easily leading to the demise of his life's work.

"My Lord!" The Chief Clerk appeared outside the door. "An envoy from Wei is waiting outside!"

"Wei Cong's messenger?" Han Chun waved her hand nonchalantly. The maid beside her took the soup bowl away. "Are you looking for reinforcements? This is really troublesome!"

"It seems not!" The chief clerk replied in a less-than-sure tone, "The envoy brought a carriage with him when he entered the city, and the ruts in the carriage looked quite heavy!"

"Oh?" Han Chun's interest was piqued. "Carriage? Then let him in!"

"As you command!" The Chief Clerk replied and left. Han Chun smiled and said, "It's a very boring day. Meeting Wei Cong's envoy will help kill some time!"

"I hope it's not bad news!" Huang Wan snorted coldly. "Feng Cheqi should be arriving in the next two days. I heard that when he left Luoyang, the emperor issued a special decree: 'General, please make the necessary arrangements for the proper entry and temporary measures. Regarding matters outside the city, the imperial guards will no longer be responsible.' They even performed a special ceremony at the Luoyang city gate. My Lord, you'd better be careful!"

Hearing Huang Wan's profound warning, the carefree, cheerful expression on Han Chun's plump face vanished, replaced by tension and worry. Then, the chief clerk entered with a man named Wang Shou. He knelt and kowtowed before Han Chun, saying, "I, Wang Shou, am here to bring you an urgent letter on the orders of the Lord. Please accept it!"

"Give me the letter!" Han Chun took it from the Chief Clerk. As soon as he opened it, the worry on his face instantly vanished. "Good, good, Wei Mengde is indeed a capable and capable minister! Brother Ziyan, look, he captured the Zhang family's Wu Fort yesterday, and all the thieves were captured and killed! Haha, there's nothing to worry about now, right?"

Huang Wan's cheeks twitched slightly as she looked at the letter. "My Lord, you and I both know about the Zhang family's Wu Fort. Wei Congshi only has fifty county soldiers, and with the guests and followers he already has, there are only two or three hundred at most. The Zhang family alone has three or four hundred desperate criminals. How could they have taken Wu Fort in such a short time? There must be something hidden!"

"Haha!" Han Chun had regained his usual carefree and optimistic demeanor. "Of course I know Meng De used some trickery, but as long as he takes him down, that's all that matters. Zhang Bolu's crimes over the years are certain to be annihilated. Could there be any innocent people left in Wu Castle?"

(End of this chapter)