Chapter 134: Old Acquaintance

Outside the Eight-Character Wall of the Tongcheng county yamen, a sea of voices surged as a dense crowd of commoners pressed against the yamen gates, many clutching the short spears they had used defending the city, with cleavers, clubs, and sticks beyond counting.

The Zhuang Squad and Fast Squad before the main gate all held short spears at the ready, the front rank bearing shields to prevent the crowd from storming the entrance.

"Bring those roving bandits out!"

"We want to beat them to death."

"Blood debts paid in blood! Bring them out!"

The clamor carried into the yamen compound, clearly audible even outside the South Prison gate, as Yang Erming emerged from the cellblock door with Pang Yu and the rest following behind.

Yang Erming stopped at the gatehouse, turned his head, and looked at Pang Yu. "Most are wounded roving bandits. The majority carry Henan accents; ten-odd have Shanxi-Shaanxi accents and are likely old bandits. The remaining Henan ones I fear are coerced people. Pang Squad Leader, question each one thoroughly. The old bandits deserve execution; the coerced folk may perhaps be dealt with leniently."

Pang Yu replied, "This humble one obeys. But as you just saw, Your Honor, half the rioters detained from the earlier civil unrest are still in custody, and now so many roving bandits have been locked in as well, many bearing wounds. The Outer Prison cells are cramped and filthy — those wounded bandits likely won't last long. Since their hands can barely move anyway, could they be held under watch outside?"

Clerk Zhang of the Punishment Office, standing in attendance at his side, spoke through gritted teeth. "So detestable — should we put them up in fine houses instead? Let them suffocate to death in their cells, and only then will the suffering of our Tongcheng folk be vented."

Just then, waves of shouting erupted from the cellblock behind them — some of the local rioters detained in Tongcheng were loudly cursing the neighboring roving bandits.

They had been locked up since the last civil unrest. Those with money at home had already bribed their way through the Punishment Office to secure exoneration; those left were mostly penniless, nearly all from within the city or its outskirts, and many had kin and friends slain by the bandits. Prisoners who got word of it were all hurling abuse at the bandits.

Pang Yu bowed to Clerk Zhang. "Sir Zhang, quell your anger. This humble one does not pity them. Living captives have their uses. First, they allow us to learn the bandits' circumstances in detail. Some days ago the county yamen submitted a Detailed Report of the great city-defense victory to Anqing — living captives are the witnesses. Should Anqing Prefecture come demanding the captives and find barely any left alive, it would not be so easy to explain."

Clerk Zhang owned a two-story building outside Purple-Cloud Bridge, right beside the Official Road in a prosperous stretch outside the city, which he normally rented to a cloth merchant from Anqing Prefecture. He also had an inn outside the South Gate. Both had been burned to ash in a single blaze. A man of the city outskirts himself, he had not only suffered grievous property losses but had seen many kin and friends in his clan killed or wounded. The mere mention of roving bandits stoked an uncontrollable rage; he itched to drag them out right then and put them to death by slow slicing.

Hearing what Pang Yu had just said, he offered no further rebuttal, but neither did he consent to moving the wounded bandits outside. Without even waiting for Yang Erming, he turned on his own and headed back to the Main Hall.

The other clerks kept their heads down. Mr. Sun pointed at Clerk Zhang, as if meaning to call him back, but in the end no name left his lips. He merely stole a glance at Yang Erming.

Yang Erming sighed low and did not pursue the matter — after all, no one's mood had been good of late.

The clamor outside the yamen continued, the commoners showing not the slightest sign of dispersing. Thousands had been killed outside Tongcheng, the entire outer city burned to the ground. Nearly everyone within the walls had suffered losses; the people's fury had nowhere to vent, and these living roving bandits were the perfect target.

Yang Erming shook his head. "Under such circumstances, holding them separately elsewhere is still inadvisable."

Pang Yu said quietly, "Then could we transfer those rioters to the Ye Family Residence, guarded solely by the Fast Squad, and leave the South Prison to hold only the roving bandits? That way the bandits would be less likely to escape."

Yang Erming hesitated a moment. He had just reported a great victory to Anqing, and Anqing Prefecture kept sending dispatches asking for details — sometimes two official documents in a single day. It was plain to see that Pi Yingju took this matter extremely seriously.

From the reports arriving one after another, after the roving bandits entered Nanzhili this time they had swept all before them. Among the cities attacked, Shouzhou, Luzhou, Shucheng, Taihe County, Lu'an Prefecture, and Tongcheng had successfully defended; all the rest had fallen.

These few prefectures and counties that had defended successfully, though all under Nanzhili, fell within different grand coordinators' jurisdictions. The first five all belonged to the Fengyang Governor; only Tongcheng belonged to the Yingtian Grand Coordinator — and it had also slain the most roving bandits. This was of great importance to Yingtian Grand Coordinator Zhang Guowei.

Within Zhang Guowei's jurisdiction, only Anqing Prefecture hung isolated north of the river. Compared to the heft of the Jiangnan Ten Prefectures, Anqing counted for little. But with something as heaven-shaking as the Imperial Mausoleum being burned, the Emperor's fury could well be imagined. Fengyang Governor Yang Yipeng was doomed beyond escape — that everyone could see — but who else would suffer calamity depended on just how far the Emperor's rage extended.

Now that the roving bandits had withdrawn, the court had reached the season for settling scores after autumn. Many officials throughout Nanzhili were walking on eggshells. Amid a field of defeats, if a great victory could be produced, Zhang Guowei could extract himself from danger — and the same logic held for Pi Yingju. For Yang Erming it was even more useful: he was the chief official of Tongcheng, and this merit would fall to him no matter what.

Pang Yu, too, wanted a share of this military merit. The Detailed Report to Anqing was still being drafted, with Pang Yu and Mr. Sun jointly managing the matter. Pang Yu was weighing practically every word and phrase, over and over.

At this moment, when he was angling for an official post, this Detailed Report was especially critical — and those severed ears and captives were equally critical.

Anqing Prefecture might indeed send for the captives at any time; keeping them alive for now was necessary, as they could serve as corroborating evidence for Tongcheng's battle achievements. Yang Erming thought it over, then nodded. "Do it that way. Escort the rioters to the Ye Family Old Residence. The Fast Squad must guard them tightly — these people are still criminal offenders."

"Your subordinate will arrange it at once."

Yang Erming sighed again and led his cluster of clerks out toward the Eight-Character Wall. When the commoners saw Yang Erming emerge, a cheer went up at first, then dissolved into a chaotic din, demanding that Yang Erming let them inside to beat the roving bandits to death.

Pang Yu did not go out. After organizing the city's defense this time, his renown in the city was at its peak. He had not only saved all of Tongcheng's people but had also sallied out and killed over a thousand roving bandits, and had even brought one dead man back to life — his standing was not far off from that of a demigod.

To appear at the main gate under such circumstances — the cheers he drew might overshadow Yang Erming's. That was a limelight Pang Yu dared not steal.

He stood inside the gate for a moment. Outside, Yang Erming had already begun to speak, telling the commoners to return to their homes.

From the Yamen Runner Room across the way came sounds of movement as the runners filed out to listen to Yang Erming's address. Wang Dazhuang walked out last, and the moment he stepped through the door he came face to face with Pang Yu.

Wang Dazhuang's expression shifted — he seemed almost startled. He sized Pang Yu up with a couple of glances, then turned around and went back into the Duty Room on his own.

Pang Yu did not even have the inclination to pay him any mind. That Runner Squad leader who had been so difficult to deal with a few months ago now dared not even meet Pang Yu's eyes. As Pang Yu mulled this over, he turned his head to look at He Xianya beside him, and the two of them suddenly burst out laughing.

Just then, Pang Ding's figure emerged from the Duty Room. Seeing Pang Yu right there in the corridor, he hurried over. "Sir, that archer from the Mata Stone Inspection Office has been summoned — he's waiting in your Duty Room."

Pang Yu and his companions immediately turned and entered the room. Inside stood the very archer they had seen that day. Things had been rushed atop the city wall then; now, studying him closely, Pang Yu saw the archer had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his arms both powerful and long-limbed — the ideal build for drawing a bow.

Only, viewed from behind, his spine was somewhat twisted, giving the impression his whole body leaned slightly to the right.

Seeing Pang Yu, the man hastily cupped his hands. "This humble one is Yang Xueshi. I greet Pang Squad Leader."

"A learned name. Brother Yang, please sit." Pang Yu returned the courtesy and had tea served. Hearing Pang Yu call him "Brother Yang," Yang Xueshi rose in some fluster, though his bearing remained composed, his expression barely shifting.

"Brother Yang, that day on the wall, not a single arrow of yours missed its mark, and you dealt the roving bandits' ferocity a heavy blow. This time, I will personally petition His Honor for recognition on your behalf and will make sure Brother Yang's great name is entered into the Detailed Report, so that all under heaven may see just how mighty Brother Yang is."

Yang Xueshi's expression finally changed. He lifted his head to look at Pang Yu, his manner somewhat stirred.

Pang Yu waved a hand. He was just talking off the cuff anyway — there was nothing that could truly make "all under heaven" take notice. It was merely a means to win Yang Xueshi over and make the conversation that followed go more smoothly.

"Where did you learn archery?"

"This humble one formerly worked as a postal runner at Lüting Post. As a child I used a medicinal crossbow. Later, at the post station, I picked up a bow — likely lost by a passing military officer from Jiangxi. I didn't drill with it much back then. After the post station… closed, I went to the Inspection Office, and that was when I practiced a great deal."

Pang Yu asked, puzzled, "Why would you practice more at the Inspection Office? Was it needed for making arrests?"

Before him was an archer from an Inspection Office, around thirty years of age — the very man who had shot dead that bandit woman atop the wall that day. Later, during the city defense, Pang Yu had kept him on the eastern wall, because the buildings in that direction were too numerous and gave the bandits good cover, making it hard for ordinary archers to hit their marks. According to the community soldiers stationed nearby afterward, this man had likely shot and killed five roving bandits.

"No. This humble one pasted a portrait of Liu Mao onto a straw dummy. At first it was just firing a few arrows each day to vent my anger. As the days wore on, it felt wrong if I didn't shoot arrows for a while each day."

Pang Yu let out an "Oh," though he had no idea who Liu Mao was. "Is this Liu Mao a personal enemy of yours?"

Yang Xueshi froze, shook his head, then nodded. "You could say so."

He Xianya leaned in close. "Liu Mao was the high official who, back then, submitted the memorial urging the abolition of the post stations. The Emperor heeded his words and cut the post stations, cutting off many people's livelihoods. Among the postal corvée laborers, many turned bandit. At court, everyone cursed him behind his back. It's said he died of rage. When his body was being transported to Shandong, not a single carriage would take it on; even adding silver didn't help. It sat there a full year without being able to return to his hometown."

Pang Yu had never heard of the man, but the account was probably true. What he couldn't fathom was this: Liu Mao had merely offered a proposal; the one who gave the order was the Emperor. The masses dared not do anything about the Emperor, so all their fury concentrated onto Liu Mao alone.

He couldn't help but chuckle. "To make the carriages of every region unite so solidly — under heaven, I fear only he could manage that. Though he provoked the wrath of all under heaven, in the end he still had one use: training a divine archer for our Tongcheng."

He Xianya laughed twice at that. Yang Xueshi heard it too and seemed to want to join Pang Yu in a laugh, but at the words "Liu Mao" the laughter wouldn't come. In the end, only the skin of his face twitched oddly.

Pang Yu put away his smile. "The Zhuang Squad still needs hands. You've seen the corvee soldiers I've been drilling, there on the city wall. Would you be willing to come serve as a Guard or a Runner?"

Yang Xueshi hesitated a moment. Pang Yu waved a hand. "You needn't reply in haste. Go home, think it over, and come back. I intend to make you an Archery Advisor, responsible for training those Guards. I can give you three taels of silver a month, and take you to fight roving bandits."

"Then I am willing to go."

Pang Yu nodded. "In that case, Brother Yang, go home today and pack your things. Report to the Ye Family Old Residence tomorrow."

Yang Xueshi rose and took his leave. The moment he stepped out the door, Tang Weimin walked in.

He came up before Pang Yu. Seeing the sweat covering his forehead, Pang Yu laughed. "Weren't we saying we'd deal with Yuan Granary Inspector this afternoon? What's got you in such a fluster, Tang?"

Tang Weimin leaned in close and lowered his voice. "That Mr. Ma from Suzhou is here again, escorted by Prefect Pi."

"Mr. Ma?" Pang Yu paused, startled. He naturally remembered this Mr. Ma. Pang Yu had planned to ask Mr. Ma for an introduction once he reached Suzhou, so he could speak with Zhang Guowei. He never expected Mr. Ma to come to Tongcheng first.

"Shall we go and receive him?"

"No need. He's already outside the city, at the main gate of Wuyin Temple right now, watching over those mass burial pits. The moment he arrived, he set us a difficult problem."

"What problem?"

"He wants us to dig up all the Roving Bandits we buried. They've changed their minds again — now they want heads."