Chapter 1134: Can't Back Down Now

After those clerks and runners confessed, they were locked up as criminals in the yamen jail. The Jining Patrol Corps squad didn't care about any of that — they went straight to the cell gate and shouted for the warden to hand the men over.

Hearing this demand, the warden first stared dumbfounded, then his face filled with distress. Smiling apologetically nonstop, he said, "The magistrate and the gentlemen inside all issued documents under seal. These men were brought in with official paperwork — I can only release them with proper authorization. Otherwise, I'd be committing a grave offense. Gentlemen..."

Before he could finish, the squad leader drew his blade and pressed it against the warden's neck. The Jining warden never expected them to act so directly. He shuddered in fright, and his neck brushed the blade's edge, immediately opening a small cut. A trickle of fresh blood seeped out. The squad leader stared at the warden and said, "One more word of nonsense and I'll kill you. What matters more — your life, or the rules?"

The warden's eyes went wide. Instinctively he wanted to say something tough, but the blade pressed down harder. He could feel the sting on his neck now. This was the attitude of someone who didn't care in the slightest about killing.

"Let's talk this over, let's talk this over. I'll open the doors and release them right now." When it came down to it, his life mattered more. The warden caved.

By now, the jailers and runners from the prison had all gathered around. Seeing this scene, none of them dared step forward. The warden stood there shouting orders: "Take the gentlemen from Xuzhou inside to get their men, quick! Do whatever they tell you. What are you standing around for? Go!"

A jailer who was the warden's trusted man hurriedly stepped forward to lead the way. The Patrol Corps squad began following him in. The squad leader sheathed his blade. Only then did the tension fade from the warden's face. He was just about to say some polite, face-saving words when the squad leader raised his blade, flipped it over, and brought the spine of the blade cracking down. That iron thing smashed across his face. Half the warden's face immediately swelled up, and several teeth were knocked out along with it. His mouth filled with blood.

The jailers and runners, who'd thought the trouble was over, instinctively stepped forward — then all hurriedly scrambled back. The squad leader sneered and said, "Warden Zhou, you're a man who knows how the world works. You know who you can afford to offend and who you can't. So how'd you get the nerve to give our Zhao Camp the bureaucratic runaround? Who put you up to this? Spit it out clearly, or I'll take your head right now and walk. You can test whether the yamen can save you!"

After he said this, the squad leader gestured with his blade. The warden shuddered all over in terror and immediately said through a mouth leaking air, "The magistrate's legal advisor friend and the gentlemen from the law office all said Zhao Camp wouldn't dare go head-to-head with the authorities. They said just talk about the law and the rules and it'd be fine. That's the only reason this lowly one had the nerve. It's got nothing to do with me."

The squad leader spat, then sheathed his blade with contempt. He glanced back once, then turned and stood firm. The dozen or so patrol soldiers beside him had already leveled their pole blades, ready to start fighting and killing at any moment. The jailers and runners all retreated even farther, not even daring to raise their heads and meet his eyes. These Xuzhou men were simply too savage. Inside the city, a waist saber or an iron ruler would've been enough — why did they have to bring out pole blades?

"... It was the magistrate and the gentlemen who gave the orders. We lowly ones dared not disobey. Our lives and livelihoods are all in other people's hands. Gentlemen from Xuzhou, I had no choice, I had no choice..." Even outside, they could hear the shrieks coming from within the cells. Before long, the men had all been dragged out. Every single one of them was weeping and sniveling, struggling and begging for mercy.

Going into that jail, even if you didn't die, you'd lose a layer of skin — washing up and such was out of the question. Yet these guilty clerks and runners were fully dressed and tidy, showing no signs of suffering at all. They looked as if they'd just been there on official business. These men were already panicked and terrified, but when they saw the warden kneeling on the ground with his face covered in blood, their expressions turned even uglier.

"Brother Cai, we've drunk together before! You've got to help put in a word for us. This really wasn't something we lowly ones could decide."

"Tell it back at the Patrol Corps headquarters! We'll let you get a taste of Xuzhou's interrogation methods."

Dragging prisoners straight out of the jail and taking them away — not a single person from the jail dared step forward to stop them. This Jining Patrol Corps was truly awe-inspiring in every direction. The idle onlookers and common folk were all murmuring: they really are this overbearing. Were they toughing it out all along, or were they never weak to begin with?

That squad leader walked over to a horse cart by the roadside. From inside the cart came Ma Chonghao's voice: "Take the men to the corps headquarters and lock them up. Your squad is not to go out again. Guard them securely. Tonight, we'll send men to relieve your shift."

The squad leader acknowledged the order and carried it out. From another direction, however, came the sound of hoofbeats. A mounted patrol soldier hurriedly dismounted and went over to report. The squad leader, who had already led his men some distance away, turned back to look. He sensed the atmosphere in Jining city had suddenly grown tense.

The teams sent to arrest those gentry were one Patrol Corps squad per household. Arresting those four Xiucai scholars took no real effort. All four were wealthy households in the city with their own influence, but that influence amounted to a dozen or two dozen servants and retainers at most. Against a Patrol Corps squad, they were utterly outmatched. When they were seized, they hadn't even imagined the other side would dare come straight to their doors to make arrests. All they could do was shout wildly: "This is against the law!" "Is there still law under heaven?" Their families wailed but dared not step forward to stop them. They could only watch helplessly as the men were taken away.

But at the Juren graduate's gate, they ran into trouble. Having spotted the Patrol Corps squad coming from a distance, the Juren's household had already shut its main gate tight. The household servants and such were all armed with clubs and makeshift weapons, ready to resist. Someone was also shouting at the top of his lungs: "Fellow villagers, come help! The Xuzhou men are bullying our Jining folk!"

However, after the Patrol Corps squad shouted twice and got no response from inside, they didn't waste another word. They directly forced their way into the Juren's neighbor's house, piled tables and chairs beneath the Juren's wall, and clambered up to launch a direct assault. The Juren's servants, clutching their clubs, wanted to fight back — but the moment they saw the other side's cold, gleaming blades, they went weak all over in terror. The instant one patrol soldier climbed onto the wall, the rest scattered in a panic.

The Juren hid under the bed in his concubine's room in the inner quarters. When they hauled him out, he was trembling from head to toe, saying only, "Let's talk this over, let's talk this over. I'll tell you everything. Don't use force."

Holding an examination degree meant tax exemption and the authority to deal directly with officials. So once someone earned a degree, their family assets would swell accordingly. Xiucai was one rank; Juren was a rank higher still. But among these six who had been reported first, the largest household belonged to that Xiucai with a relative serving in the capital. Only a small part of his wealth came from his own degree; the bulk of it came from that capital-official relative. Though he was merely a Xiucai, he could sit as an equal with the Jining Subprefect.

A local power broker like this kept hired guards and had vicious thugs ready for brawling, and plenty of hangers-on besides. By the time the Patrol Corps squad was still two streets away, this Xiucai's household had already started beating gongs to raise the alarm. If you were inside Jining city, there was nowhere to run — they could only dig in and defend. But more critically, no one had imagined Zhao Camp would react this fast.

When the Patrol Corps squad arrived, they first exchanged hand signals with the covert agents on the street to confirm the target hadn't fled. Then they began shouting for the man to come out. The reply from inside was tough: Our master is a full-fledged Xiucai, and we have family serving in the Ministry of Revenue. What right do the private soldiers of some Xuzhou strongman have to come shouting and making arrests? Are you trying to commit violent crimes in broad daylight?

This powerful Xiucai was different from the previous households. When his people started shouting, a crowd really did gather nearby — every face hostile, cursing without pause. Seeing this, the Patrol Corps squad, which had been preparing to storm the large residence, immediately formed up for self-defense. The covert agent who'd arrived first, however, saw the situation turning sour and slipped away.

"Anyone looking to die, step up and try! See if your grandpa here really dares to use this blade!" Though the crowd surrounding them was larger, the Patrol Corps squad showed not the slightest sign of backing down.

But before any fighting broke out here, men arrived from the Jining Subprefect's yamen. Over fifty mounted and foot constables surged over in a mighty wave. This show of force made the Patrol Corps squad pause — since when did the constables and runners in Jining city have this kind of nerve, daring to come and confront them head-on?

Once they arrived, it was clear every one of those constables had a wooden expression. Some kept stealing glances and smiling apologetically whenever they caught someone's eye. Even the two head constables leading them seemed hesitant and uncertain. But no matter how they acted, these several dozen runners armed with sharp blades, combined with the surrounding able-bodied men eyeing them like tigers, now held absolute superiority over this Patrol Corps squad.

"In broad daylight, you threaten gentry with naked blades — do you not know the law?" The lead head constable shouted this, though his voice lacked any real force.

"Brothers, we won't suffer any major loss in this city. But if we turn coward and back down now, we'll be severely punished when we get back. We have to fight! Follow me and fight!" The squad leader spoke through gritted teeth. This situation was seriously wrong.

But just as the two sides began their standoff, the roar of hoofbeats thundered through the air. Many couldn't yet see what was coming from beyond the street. Some local commoners shouted with excitement: "Government troops are here!" But those several dozen constables and runners knew the real situation in Jining city, and their faces immediately turned extremely ugly. Before long, the surrounding streets were sealed off by a mounted force — only this mounted force was a unit of horse patrol soldiers, armored and bearing blades, dense with killing intent.

"Xuzhou Patrol Corps business! All unrelated persons disperse, or you will be killed without mercy!" someone shouted, brandishing a long blade.

Seeing this display, who still dared linger? The men who'd been rallied by the gongs scattered in a panic. The hesitation on the constables' faces turned to fawning smiles, each terrified of getting caught up in this. The two lead head constables exchanged glances, then stepped forward with ugly expressions to explain: "Gentlemen, we were merely following orders on official business. We had no choice. Give us some face — how about we settle today's matter right here?"

"You two stay. Explain things clearly to us. The rest can go." The leader of the mounted patrol soldiers was utterly blunt, pointing his blade straight at them as he spoke. The two head constables' faces went pale. They were about to say something, but when they saw the mounted patrol soldiers all drawing blades from scabbards, some even nocking arrows to bows, they immediately swallowed their words.

Thanks to the three old friends "User 107474524 (sorry, I mixed you up with Cold Night in the last chapter), Yuan Henry Zhen, Great Ming*Martial Man (this one really isn't my alt account)" for the tips. Thanks everyone for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Brothers, Great Ming Martial Man needs monthly tickets at the end of the month!