Chapter 86: A Small Fortune

While the retainers and military households of Weihaiwei were busy scrambling for heads and looting valuables from the corpses, Chen Xin had already led his troops toward the bandit lair. In the just-concluded battle, one man had died and five were wounded; four fire-handlers were left to tend to them, while everyone else hurried toward Yuhuang Peak.

Tongtian Liang, trussed up tightly with ropes, walked in the middle. One of his less-injured trusted men was being escorted at the very front to lead the way. Because the bandits had nearly poured out in full force, their main strength had already been routed, and those left guarding the passes were all old and weak. Having learned from the first routed survivors that the Big Boss had lost the battle, they had thrown down their weapons and already fled. The column advanced unhindered, pressing on at full speed, crossing hills and ridges. The results of their daily physical training showed themselves now. Along the way, any bandits who fled too slowly and spotted the government troops dove into the forested slopes on either side; Chen Xin sent no one to pursue them.

When Chen Xin's main force reached the outside of the stockade wall, they were astonished to find the stockade gate wide open, yet the wall completely deserted. Scattered by the entrance were some jewelry and bits of broken silver, and from within faintly came the sound of women weeping.

A bandit, grinning broadly, turned the corner from behind the stockade gate, his arms cradling a bulging bundle of silver. As soon as he looked up and saw the large force of government troops before him, he stood there dumbstruck; he had never imagined the government troops could arrive so quickly. With a wave of Chen Xin's hand, Lu Chuanzong led a squad of killers charging forward. The bandit spun on his heel and fled, silver falling to the ground behind him, shouting as he ran, "The dog government troops are here!"

Inside, all was chaos — chickens flying and dogs leaping — with wails shaking the heavens. The three squads of combat troops entered in sequence, leaving one squad of killers and the firearms squad to guard the entrance and prevent other bandits from returning to the stockade.

The remaining bandits in the stockade had not a shred of fighting spirit. Some of the more nimble ones scrambled over the stockade wall and fled into the woods; Chen Xin did not pursue them. Those who failed to escape were killed in part, but most knelt and begged for mercy, and were quickly gathered in the open ground at the center of the stockade — over twenty men squatting there. There were also more than ten young women in disheveled clothing, presumably abducted victims; they were made to squat in the southwest corner.

Chen Xin went straight into Tongtian Liang's main hall and had Tongtian Liang and his two men brought in as well. Across the hall were written three large characters: Hall of Gathering Righteousness. "Water Margin has truly poisoned many a mind," Chen Xin said, shaking his head with a smile. To Nie Hong and Hai Gouzi he said, "Take his two underlings to another room and ask them where Tongtian Liang's silver is."

With that, he seated himself in the place of honor. The large chair was cushioned with a bearskin, soft and warm to sit on. He then said to Zhang Dahui, "Go outside and ask those who surrendered: whoever can tell us where Tongtian Liang's dirty silver is hidden will be spared and rewarded with one hundred taels of silver. If no one can, you may pick out a few and kill them." Zhang Dahui quickly acknowledged the order, turned, and went out.

Tongtian Liang, kneeling on the ground, saw the situation turning dire and hastily said, "My lord, I know — I will tell you myself. I beg my lord to spare this lowly one's life. Henceforth, should I ever see my lord, I shall immediately take a detour and leave."

Chen Xin chuckled and shook his head. "Tongtian Liang, there are plenty here willing to talk. Why should I let you, the bandit chief, escape with your life?"

"M-my lord, this lowly one has never done anything truly wicked. It was only last year that I killed a few people, and even then, this lowly one's heart was set on seeking amnesty and recruitment. My lord, spare my life..."

"So Lord Tong was seeking amnesty. No wonder you hung up a sign for the Hall of Gathering Righteousness — you wanted to emulate Song Jiang. Did you not know that Song Jiang changed the Hall of Gathering Righteousness to the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness? In the future, read more books; don't make such mistakes and let others laugh at your lack of learning. Besides, even after his amnesty, Song Jiang met no good end. Why would Lord Tong bring such suffering upon himself?"

Seeing that Chen Xin spoke not a single serious word and gave him no way to extricate himself, Tongtian Liang, in his desperation, wept with tears and mucus streaming down. For all the savagery these bandits showed toward common folk, when the blade turned on themselves, their courage proved pitifully small.

Only when Chen Xin saw him reduced to this state did he smile genially and say, "Since Lord Tong is minded to repent, I find myself moved to compassion. If Lord Tong can provide something others do not know, there may be a path to survival."

Tongtian Liang perked up at these words, straightened his body, and said with desperate urgency, "Does my lord speak true?"

Chen Xin's expression changed, and he rose as if to walk out. "If Lord Tong does not believe me, then forget it. Commander Yang has greater authority; you would surely believe whatever he says."

Tongtian Liang knew full well that he had robbed Yang Yun's things and that Yang would never let him go. He had no other choice and hurriedly kowtowed, saying, "My lord, please stay! This lowly one will speak now. My silver is in the storehouse behind the main hall — that much others know. But the most valuable looted treasures, only this lowly one knows where they are."

He raised his head to observe Chen Xin, and seeing Chen Xin watching him expressionlessly, he gritted his teeth and continued, "There are two bundles in all. One is on the roof beam of this lowly one's bedchamber; the other is buried beneath the bed."

"Is there anything else?"

"Nothing more. Truly, that is all."

Chen Xin's face remained impassive. Just then, Nie Hong and Zhang Dahui both returned and quietly reported the results of their interrogations to Chen Xin. The silver storehouse matched what Tongtian Liang had said, and indeed no one had mentioned the two locations Tongtian Liang had named. Chen Xin left Zhou Shifa to guard Tongtian Liang and sent Lu Chuanzong with a squad to the silver storehouse. He himself took Nie Hong and Zhang Dahui, escorting one of the trusted men, to Tongtian Liang's bedchamber. Nie Hong flipped over Tongtian Liang's large bed in two moves; on the ground, there was indeed a patch of earth with a different color. As Nie Hong was about to use his knife to dig, Chen Xin said, "Don't damage anything by stabbing."

Nie Hong had no choice but to put away his knife and dig with his hands. Zhang Dahui, meanwhile, climbed up the pillar toward the roof beam. The bound trusted man on the ground said ingratiatingly, "My lord, be careful — don't fall."

Chen Xin crouched down and said to the trusted man with a smile, "If you know of any other places where stolen goods are hidden, tell us now and I'll let you go immediately, and give you twenty percent of their value in silver."

The trusted man shook his head. "My lord, there truly is nothing more. Even these two places, this lowly one did not know of. I've only followed the Big Boss here for two years. This lowly one has never done evil. Every time the Big Boss killed someone, this lowly one would try to dissuade him — it's a pity he never listened to me."

"Oh. In that case, you are of no further use." Chen Xin, still smiling, stood up and slowly drew the Japanese sword at his side.

The trusted man's face froze in shock. Why would this lord suddenly think to kill him? "My lord, my lord, spare me! This lowly one — this lowly one — ah!" The Japanese sword, without the slightest hesitation, thrust straight into his heart. The trusted man, stabbed directly through the heart, died instantly. Chen Xin coldly withdrew the Japanese sword, wiped the blade on the corpse, and returned it to its scabbard. Above him, Zhang Dahui, and on the ground, Nie Hong, turned their heads to look back, said nothing, and continued searching for the loot.

Chen Xin lowered his hands and hid them in his sleeves, not letting the two see them trembling slightly. He looked down at the bandit on the ground, mouth agape. This man he had killed himself, yet he felt nothing in particular. This bandit had seen them taking the loot and absolutely could not be left alive — though it had not necessarily required his own hand. He had done it himself to test the feeling of killing with a cold weapon. In today's battle, he had stayed at the rear the entire time and had not personally fought in the melee.

"Why is there no urge to vomit?" Chen Xin wondered to himself, secretly puzzled. Perhaps because he had already witnessed much slaughter aboard the sea ship and just now, after killing a man with a blade, he felt only a slight nervousness.

"My lord, there really is something." Nie Hong and Zhang Dahui reported in succession. Zhang Dahui took down a bundle from the roof beam and opened it: inside were all women's gold and silver jewelry, and the rest were either eastern pearls or gemstones of every color — surely worth a great deal. The bundle Nie Hong dug up from the ground was even larger; besides some jewelry, it contained many gold ingots.

Chen Xin casually picked up two smaller gold ingots. In the Ming dynasty, one tael of gold could be exchanged for seven or eight taels of silver. He could not help but smile. "Dahui, these trinkets are far more convenient than silver for giving gifts."

Zhang Dahui played along. "Indeed. In the future, when paying New Year's respects to our superiors, we'll have less to carry on our backs."

Nie Hong's eyes shone at the sight of the treasures covering the ground, but with Chen Xin present, he would not dare take anything even if given ten times the courage. Reluctantly tearing his gaze away, he asked Chen Xin, "My lord, what shall be done with Tongtian Liang?"

"Kill him. Take his head back to fulfill our duty."

"Good. Let your subordinate do the deed. Bandits' blood is filthy; do not let it stain my lord's hands."

At that moment, Lu Chuanzong also came looking for them and reported that the silver storehouse contained roughly over three thousand taels of silver, and together with what had been searched from captives and corpses, the total was close to four thousand. It was fortunate they had arrived early; otherwise, the bandits returning to the stockade would surely have looted it all.

Chen Xin's eyes flickered. "Kill all the captives. As for those women..." Those bandits had blood on their hands and would be difficult to reform; he had no intention of incorporating them. But those women were all suffering souls who had been abducted; killing them might have an ill effect on these combat troops.

After pondering for a moment, Chen Xin casually picked up a gold ingot, toyed with it in his hand, and said, "Kill all the captives. Leave one thousand taels of silver in the storehouse; pack and bundle up the rest for the logistics squad to carry. After the captives are killed, dispatch two squads of combat troops to take the women and the logistics squad and leave first. Do not take the original route; go south for a stretch and exit through a different mountain pass. Once down the mountain, head directly back to Mazidun from the west side of Foding Peak. Do not let those women escape; escort them back first, and we'll deal with them later. What happened in this room is not to be disclosed. If I find out anyone has loose lips, it will be dealt with as a breach of confidential military intelligence."

The several men acknowledged the order in turn. All were ruthless and hard-hearted men, and felt no psychological burden.

"Dahui, gather up everything in this room. If a single item is missing, you will be dealt with according to military law. The three of you, after we return, come to me individually to receive a separate reward — likewise, do not make a show of it."

Nie Hong and Zhang Dahui felt a surge of delight upon hearing this. They hastily tore down the bed sheet and bundled up everything on the floor. Once they had gathered everything, they went out together and handed the bundles to the logistics squad. Zhang Dahui went outside to relay the order. Zhou Shifa, with one stroke of his blade, lopped off Tongtian Liang's head and carried it to the open ground.

Chen Xin called out the two squads of combat troops that had been in the rear ranks and ordered them to deploy. The bandits squatting on the ground were already panicked and fearful, watching the surrounding soldiers gripping their sharp weapons with anxious eyes. Now, at the sight of Tongtian Liang's head, they grew even more terrified and began to stir restlessly.

Chen Xin shouted to the field: "Killer Squad Second and Fourth Squads, Logistics Squad, receive your orders! Tongtian Liang has been executed. The remaining bandits aided tyranny, incurred countless blood debts, and among them there is not a single good sort. Execute them all!"

Upon hearing this, the twenty-odd bandits immediately exploded in panic. Their hands were only bound; they leaped up one after another and scattered in all directions, fleeing for their lives. The two killer squads charged in and slaughtered them like chickens and sheep. The logistics squad, wielding blades and staves, surrounded and clubbed any who slipped through the net. These two killer squads had both been in the rear ranks and had not faced the enemy directly; Chen Xin deliberately had them do the killing to better acclimate them to bloodshed. The logistics squad also gained a tempering experience. Battlefield experience was extremely precious, and Chen Xin planned to gradually transform them into combat troops as well.

In a short while, all the bandits had been executed. The ground was littered with corpses, fresh blood everywhere. The women on the other side were so terrified that they broke into loud wails. Chen Xin immediately ordered Dai Zhenggang to lead two killer squads and the logistics squad, escorting the women, down the mountain by a different route. The silver and those jewels were also carried away with them.

The remaining two killer squads and one firearms squad searched the stockade once more, finding no one who had escaped the net. Chen Xin then ordered them out of the stockade. Afterward, he took his personal guards to the silver storehouse, gathered up some loose bits of silver, and scattered them in various places. He also scattered some among the corpses, creating the appearance of a scene after looting.