Chapter 591: Yellow Soup Flowing Underfoot
Hulan wanted to compete with him in horse riding, and the two of them ran happily all the way. In the evening, they entered Huojing County in Qiongzhou. Zuo Liangchen arranged for them to stay at Chunjiang Inn downstream.
The couple took a shower and changed their clothes, and fell into a sweet sleep after a fierce battle. While they were dreaming, they were awakened by a cry for help.
Later, Zuo Liangchen came to report: the noise came from the direction of the fishing dock, and the brothers had been arranged to rush over.
He felt that the management of Huojing was chaotic, many houses on the streets were built haphazardly, ruffians were rampant at the city gates and on the roads, garbage was everywhere, and it was obvious that the management was poor.
Because Zhao Yulin was competing with Hu Lan in riding skills, he was just galloping on his horse and didn't pay attention. He felt that these remote places were barren and cold, and the environment and management were definitely not as good as Chengdu.
The two were still talking when they heard people shouting and making noises on the dock. Soon, countless torches appeared and illuminated the entire dock area.
He immediately pulled Hu Lan and quietly went out towards the fish dock. Zuo Liangchen was afraid that he might get into an accident, so he quickly called for the guards to follow.
The group carefully crept through the back street and heard a guard shouting from a distance, "Quick, rush out to find Liangchen."
My god, where did these thieves come from? They are so fierce that even the guards can’t stand them.
Zhao Yulin didn't expect that the New Song Kingdom, which he had built for many years, still had such vicious thieves. He turned around and looked at Zuo Liangchen beside him, and Liangchen told him that he had already gone to call his brothers.
He saw that on the distant dock, a large group of strong men armed with machetes, bows and arrows, and harpoons were surrounding the two guards and shouting. In the middle, a fierce man with a face full of flesh was waving a torch and shouting, "Kill them all! Come on, knock them all down, chop these two idiots to death."
Oh my god, no wonder these two guards shouted for help.
This place was not a battlefield, and the guards were in a dilemma, charging left and right without daring to kill. Zuo Liangchen immediately stepped forward and shouted, "Stop, stop, the Shenwei Army is here. Whoever dares to move will be killed without mercy."
When the group heard that the government troops were coming, they were still afraid and immediately stood there in a daze.
The two guards immediately ran out.
More and more people gathered around, and the Baimo River was filled with large and small fishing boats.
Some shouted anxiously: "Stranger, run away! Stranger, run away!"
Some said with regret that the stranger would surely be in great danger, and if he didn't die he would at least be missing limbs, and he even dared to pretend to be a member of the Shenwei Army to show off his prowess.
Some couldn't help sighing when Huojing had become like this, and the fishing tyrants were about to openly rebel.
Zuo Liangchen yelled at the two guards: "What are you doing? Didn't you tell me you had dinner last night? You can't even beat a few shrimps. You really embarrassed the Third Young Master."
The guard said aggrievedly: "They are just fishermen and ordinary people, how could they have the heart to do that?"
The good ministers scolded them for being so kind-hearted. How could they be called common people when they were holding machetes? They were just criminals and bandits. Why should we be afraid of killing them? The Third Young Master was in charge.
He was still trying to reason with his brothers when the muscular man over there started shouting again: "Fuck it, where did the Shenwei Army come from? They are kidding. I am the government army, come on, come on, make them all lie down on the ground."
Hu Lan nervously pulled Zhao Yulin back to the shore, but unexpectedly a group of people rushed in from the fish market on the dock and surrounded them in an instant.
The fat man threw the torch at Zhao Yulin's feet and said to an old man dressed like a gentleman who came out of the fish market, "Dad, these people don't know what's good for them. They actually bullied me. If I hadn't known how to swim, I would have become a water ghost."
Two guards who had just escaped from danger shouted in defense: "It was you who pushed me into the river. Can't I just dodge?"
The muscular man cursed and said, "You are meddling in other people's business, and you dare to hide from me. You are seeking death by causing Grandpa to fall into the water."
Damn, this guy is so cruel. He accidentally fell into the water and still wanted others to take his life with him.
At this time, the old gentleman said: "My son, the prime minister, is a man of great generosity, so just take one of his legs." You see, the father is so kind that he only punishes one of his legs.
The group of thugs immediately stepped forward and surrounded Zhao Yulin and the others, demanding that the guards go out and cut off one of their legs to accept the punishment.
Zhao Yulin couldn't bear it any longer and asked Liangchen to take action.
The guards immediately started working, knocking down the several criminals in front of them to the ground like chopping melons and vegetables, and confiscated their weapons.
The muscular man was shocked, and then became furious. He called the remaining bandits to retreat to the riverside, shouting, "Hold your weapons, grab your weapons." These are all underworld jargons. "Hold your weapons" means that the opponent is too good and powerful. "Grab your weapons" means to fight with weapons.
The group of people coming out from the shore also ran towards the fish market while shouting "grab your weapons".
A kindhearted person in the river shouted to Zhao Yulin and his friends: "Run, strangers! Run! They are very cruel." Zhao Yulin immediately pulled Hulan and ran towards the small house on the shore. Before they entered the house, they heard the sound of arrows breaking through the air.
My god, it turns out that this group of strong men have powerful bows and crossbows. Weapons such as broadswords are strictly prohibited by the imperial court and are not allowed to be possessed by civilians privately. Yet this group of men are fully armed.
The criminals pressed forward while shooting arrows, and some even shouted to set fire to them.
Zhao Yulin became furious and said, "Damn it, you're looking for death."
Liangchen was scolding his men for being slow. Why hadn't they arrived yet?
Just when the situation was tense, a familiar voice was heard coming from the iron loudspeaker: "Everyone put down your weapons and raise your hands. We are the Shenwei Army. Put down your weapons and raise your hands."
After this roar, the scene immediately became quiet.
Then the iron loudspeaker shouted again: "Put down your weapons and raise your hands, or you will be killed without mercy."
This rare loudspeaker amplified the voice of an ordinary person by more than ten times. The resonant voice of a soldier was like thunder, and the sound covered the entire county. The people in the mountains had never seen it before and were amazed by it.
There was silence all around, only the river was flowing.
Suddenly, the muscular man roared like a madman, cursing the stranger for pretending to be a ghost and deceiving people.
The Shenwei Army is fighting with the Northern Barbarians in the north. Where did the Shenwei Army come from? I am the king of Huojing. Come on, beat them to death and burn them to death.
This guy was crazy and wanted to instigate his men to charge forward, but only two of his buddies, one on the left and one on the right, followed him with crossbows, shooting as they walked. The muscular man waved a torch and shouted, wanting to personally set fire to the hut where Zhao Yulin and the others were hiding.
The torches were getting closer and closer, and Zhao Yulin was very puzzled. How could there be such a naughty and vicious man?
Who gave him such courage?
Liang Chen roared, "You're looking for death, I'll kill you."
Immediately there was the rustling sound of arrows and the popping noises of gunfire. The three gangsters immediately fell to the ground, unable to get up. They stretched their limbs a few times as if they were having cramps and then became motionless.
The surrounding criminals were dumbfounded, and they threw their weapons into the ground and the river and fled. The guards immediately rushed over and caught the criminals and took them aside.
At this time, torches from the distant path on the shore floated in lines, and the garrison of the fire well was dispatched.
As soon as Zhao Yulin walked out of the hut, the county lieutenant of Huojing jumped off his horse, surrounded by constables.
The old gentleman immediately went to the front and cried out his grievances.
It turned out that the old man was the county lieutenant’s old Taishan.
The fellow tremblingly pulled the county lieutenant to see the muscular man lying on the ground, and howled at his son-in-law to help him bring the gang of criminals to justice and avenge his good son.
Haha, the old man immediately turned into a victim.
Under the rule of Lord Gao, the Chengdu Prefecture was just as stable as Lord Ding. The reform of the Ministry of Personnel had been completed long ago, and they had not yet taken any action on the prefectures and counties below.
Especially in these remote counties, no one in Chengdu has definitely come to sort them out.
After Chen Chen took office, he was busy only in the surrounding areas of Chengdu and had no time to investigate openly or secretly, which led to rampant banditry.
It was already dawn when the county lieutenant arrived at the dock. He saw that his elder brother-in-law was dead with his body full of arrows from the Shenbi crossbow. He was shocked and knew that it must be a high-ranking official from Chengdu who did it. Still pretending to be righteous, he stood up seriously and rushed to Zhao Yulin, raised his whip and pretended to hit him, asking them what they were doing and how could they act so recklessly and kill people in broad daylight?
When Liangchen saw that the whip was about to hit Zhao Yulin's face, he went up to him and slapped him twice, then kicked him over and told him to get out of the way. He then ordered his men to call the magistrate, the county magistrate and other county officials.
Zhao Yulin ordered the guards to control the garrison and disarm them first.
Soon, the magistrate came running over with a few people.
Hu Lan started to scold them and said they were all good-for-nothings.
The imperial court had long ago issued orders to eliminate bandits and tyrants, and to crack down on gangs and evil. Yet there are still people in Huojing who are armed with powerful bows and crossbows, occupying the fish market and doing evil. What kind of officials are they?
In the river, the fishermen and the common people on the shore cheered when they heard it, and said that the scolding was good, saying that they were simply a bunch of turtle bastards who ate human food and shit dog shit.
The county magistrate was furious and questioned who Hu Lan was. He said that it was extremely arrogant for a mere woman to insult her superior.
Liangchen cursed the county magistrate for being blind and slapped him twice, saying that he didn't even recognize Madam Hulan. The third young master of the Shenwei Army was here, so who dared to act rashly?
The county magistrate's eyes were filled with tears due to the pain. He couldn't even scream out and just stared blankly at the pain.
When had these county magistrates in remote areas ever seen Zhao Yulin and his women? Not to mention seeing Mrs. Hulan in person.
Zuo Liangchen took off his gold medal and handed it to the county magistrate. The county magistrate was shocked when he saw the glittering pure gold token.
This kind of gold medal is extremely rare, and only high-ranking officials at the level of the head of state in the New Song Dynasty can hold it.
The magistrate took a close look at the golden token on the front, turned it over and saw the big word "Zhao", and confirmed that it was undoubtedly the third young master. He immediately raised his hands above his head and returned it to Zuo Liangchen.
Liangchen accepted it, and when he saw him fall to his knees with a thud, he immediately pulled him up and whispered: Kneeling is not a custom in the New Song Dynasty.
Zhao Yulin took the iron trumpet and shouted to the garrison members, "The county lieutenant has violated the law. Who will arrest him for me?"
