Chapter 1140: Vengeance Without Fail

"Everyone charge in, fight these scoundrels to the death!" Scholar Chen roared, his face filled with the grim resolve of a man ready to die. But before he could take a step forward, the people behind him held him back desperately. Someone pleaded earnestly, "Scholar Chen, staying alive is what matters—why go throw your life away!"

Another spoke with biting sharpness: "Old Chen, there's no winning fame today. Dying here would be a pointless death. Let's just keep quiet!"

Scholar Chen bellowed in fury, yet he dared not put down the spirit tablet in his hands. He just stood there holding it high and shouting, but with people grabbing and pulling him back, it was all in vain.

Just then, several saber-wearing brawny men were seen walking this way, each with a grim expression, their complexion and attire marking them as men of the Zhao Camp. The moment they were spotted approaching, the group dragging and clutching Scholar Chen all let go and retreated. Scholar Chen had been straining forward with all his might—the instant their hands released, he stumbled several steps ahead, and the spirit tablet he had been cradling flew from his grasp.

Without that tablet, Scholar Chen's entire body drained of strength in an instant, as if all his spirit and vigor had been entrusted to it. He collapsed straight onto the ground.

As for those scholars hiding behind Scholar Chen, they were even more pathetic. Seeing the tablet of the Ultimate Sage and Foremost Teacher go flying, they felt as though the shield before them had vanished and immediately scattered in a panic. Not one of them bothered with the utterly despondent Scholar Chen.

Watching the tablet fly toward him, the lead brawny man reached out and caught it, yet he handled it without disrespect. Holding it flat in his left hand alone, he walked up to Scholar Chen and said with a smile, "Carrying on like this, you've truly disgraced this tablet. We have some questions for you. Come with us!"

"You people want to sever the civil traditions of all under Heaven—I..." Scholar Chen gritted his teeth and raised his head, just about to deliver a few impassioned words, when a man beside him flipped his hand and drew his blade. The edge landed precisely against his neck. Scholar Chen's entire body froze instantly, his face deathly pale. All that heroic spirit of sacrificing himself for righteousness vanished completely.

The scene at this moment was utter chaos. The crowd had gradually dispersed, the ground littered with the wounded. Some lay completely motionless—their fates likely even more wretched. No one noticed that in the attic above the shopfront of the Cloud Mountain Trading House branch, three men were looking out.

Of the three in the attic, one was Ma Chonghao. He wore a smile, looking thoroughly pleased and refreshed. Li Can, standing beside him, wore an expression of deep discomfort. Below, the dead and wounded were a pitiful sight, blood flowing across the ground, and the earlier crush of the crowd erupting suddenly into violence—the shock of it was more than he could stomach. As for the third man, he was a sturdy, vigorous young fellow, travel-worn and dusty, dressed entirely like a traveling merchant.

"The brothers all know the fundamentals," Ma Chonghao remarked with a smile of approval. After speaking, he turned to the young man and said, "Next comes questioning the mastermind behind this. If there are results, we will certainly send word by fast horse to Master Jin."

Ma Chonghao's manner of speaking was very courteous. The young man answered with great deference, "Master Jin has set up camp at Gegou Station. Send the news from Jining there. Since matters here in Jining have been handled according to Master Jin's wishes, this subordinate will hurry back at once to report."

"Does Master Jin need any assistance from Jining in this matter?"

"Since Master Jin gave no instructions, that means he does not. Commander Ma, Steward Li, this subordinate takes his leave!" The young man exchanged a few brief words, then immediately departed at a brisk pace.

The young man mounted his horse in one fluid motion. Three mounted patrol riders promptly emerged from the pacification scene to escort him away.

Li Can watched the young man ride into the distance from the attic and let out a sigh of relief unbidden. Turning around as if granted a great reprieve, he said to Ma Chonghao, "Brother Ma, it's all thanks to your decisiveness this time. If we'd let those sour-faced pedants stir up trouble unchecked, who knows how great a disaster they'd have caused. And Master Jin wanted this chaos put down firmly—if we'd been slow to act, we'd certainly be blamed and punished."

Ma Chonghao shook his head with a smile and said, "It was my duty. Steward Li, no need for such formal talk between us. But from here on, everyone must be cautious and vigilant. This chain of incidents, one linked to the next, and several manors around Yizhou and Yishui being breached and massacred—someone is pulling strings behind this!"

"Now that you say it, it's true. Who has such audacity? In the territory of Shandong nowadays, there's still someone who dares to move against our Xuzhou!" Li Can said angrily. After speaking, however, realization dawned on him, and his expression darkened as he added, "Just how many eyes are watching us? A single report of a breached dike and floods, and this many people follow suit and make their moves."

Anyone who had been to Gegou Station before would find the place utterly transformed. Even the residents of Gegou Station themselves felt the drastic change, though they had no way to voice this impression to outsiders. As the eleventh month approached, a large force arrived, and the entire town was sealed off. Everyone's movements in and out were restricted; even going out to gather grass or cut firewood had to be done under guard. Any attempt to flee was punishable by death without exception.

Ox- and horse-drawn carts laden with supplies came from the south and were piled in various open spaces within Gegou Station. Setting aside the provisions and matériel, the sheer number of these ox and horse carts and the stout oxen and sturdy horses used to pull them was enough to make one's tongue click in amazement. How much fodder must be consumed to feed so many large draft animals? How much silver and material must be spent to build so many carts? And yet they were being used as freely as flowing water. The local proprietors of several large cart inns, who dealt daily with merchants traveling north and south, could discern from the accents of the carters and those armed men that some came from the Yanzhou Prefecture and Yizhou region, while others hailed from further south, around Xuzhou and Pizhou.

Cart after cart unloaded supplies here. Some set off on the return journey, while others remained. Every day, matériel was being transported northward. The prominent figures of Gegou Station still remembered how, a few days earlier, over a thousand cavalry had suddenly halted at a spot some ten-odd li from town. At first, everyone was terrified and at a complete loss, but unexpectedly, the next day, that thousand-strong cavalry force moved north. After that, the great wagon convoy arrived. The more quick-witted among them could even make a connection—several manors Xuzhou had in this area were said to have been washed out by bandits, with many people killed. They wondered if it had anything to do with this...

Ox Head Mountain, near Yishui, was like most of the mountains in the Yi and Meng mountain region—a low, rocky hill. Halfway up stood a mountain stronghold. The stronghold had over three hundred able-bodied men, making it a major bandit gang between the two counties of Mengyin and Yishui. Though situated on the mountain, access was actually quite easy, with a winding road built along the slope. Although a rocky mountain, the terrain between the mountains was flat and broad, making movement in and out convenient for both men and horses. Moreover, it was separated from the outside by just a single mountain. A newcomer would find it hard to detect, and only those familiar with the area knew how close it truly was.

With the ability to field over three hundred able-bodied men at once, even the local authorities had to show them some face, let alone the villages and stockades of the region. In normal times, they didn't engage in much outright looting and plundering. Instead, they went from place to place apportioning tribute, collecting it on schedule, and only resorting to blades against those who refused to pay. This stronghold's real money-making ventures were raiding beyond the county borders or taking payment to fight and shed blood for others—that was their true business. Such a stronghold, ordinarily so imposingly majestic in the region, was today in a state of utter panic. Shouts and terrified screams filled the stronghold, chaos reigning supreme.

Last night, all had been quiet. The chief had procured a dozen-odd jars of fine wine, said to be a blend of famous Xuzhou liquor and local rotgut, and had brought up a few sheep from below the mountain as a reward for everyone's hard work over the past days. Everyone had eaten and drunk their fill. But at first light the next day, they were jolted awake by the sentries on the stockade wall. Looking again, they saw that at some unknown time, over a thousand troops had appeared at the base of the mountain. Their orderly and formidable appearance resembled government troops, yet they were far more crack and elite. Setting that aside, in all of Yishui County, Mengyin County, and Ju Prefecture, which official force or local power could muster a thousand cavalry? Wait—how were they also wearing iron armor!

"Chief! The mountain path at the rear has been blocked too!" Someone rushed over to report. This news threw the stronghold into a fresh panic. The chief was a deserter from the Shandong military, said to have once held the rank of Squad Commander. He wielded a fine podao and had been given the nickname "Heaven-Flipping Tiger." At this critical juncture, he alone retained some measure of composure.

Looking at the trusted lieutenants around him, who were milling about like headless flies, he kicked one of them to the ground and cursed viciously, "Panicking over nothing! The enemy hasn't even climbed the mountain yet. We've got several hundred men holding the high ground—defending this stronghold to the death won't be so easy for them to crack. Besides, if it comes to it, we can just pay them off and send them away. Don't any of you put on funeral faces! Get your men in order, fast! The next one to panic, I'll cleave him in two myself!"

The stronghold was barely steadied. The chief, bearing his weapons, climbed onto the stockade wall. The moment he saw the mountain path directly facing the stronghold gate, his eyelids couldn't help but twitch violently. The enemy had not halted at the mountain's base. Instead, they were advancing in formation along the mountain path and were already less than a hundred paces from the gate. This chief had once served in the government army and had seen something of the world. One look at the enemy's formation told him these were no easy opponents.

"Gentlemen below, where do you hail from, and what is your purpose? Everything is open to negotiation. If you want heads, we have heads. If you want silver, we'll scrape it together for you. If nothing else works, our three hundred-plus lives can still trade for a few hundred of yours!" Heaven-Flipping Tiger had originally intended to open with fierce threats, but after seeing the enemy's battle array, he said everything that needed to be said.

Below, the force advanced another ten paces or so before halting. Someone raised his voice and answered, "We come from Xuzhou, to avenge the manors at the foot of the mountain."

Hearing these words, the chief recoiled sharply two steps backward. Had his trusted men behind him not caught him, he would have tumbled off the stockade wall entirely. By the time he steadied himself, his expression had changed drastically. He shouted at the top of his lungs, "Brothers, our enemies have come knocking! Our only chance to live is to fight! If we don't fight, it's a dead end!"

The entire stronghold erupted into turmoil once more. No one could really notice that the chief's voice was trembling uncontrollably. His trusted lieutenants, however, roared angrily, "To the walls! To the walls! This stone wall of ours won't be so easy to break open! Bottle them up! Rewards will be handed out today, and another day we'll lead everyone down to wash out a village for some fun!"

Like most of the mountain strongholds and earthen enclosures in the Yi and Meng mountain region, the stockade walls and perimeter walls here were built from piled loose stones, bonded with mud mortar. Moreover, the stronghold gate and walls were positioned precisely to block the strategic choke point of the mountain path. Anyone wanting to attack would have to scale the walls. With this stone wall to rely on, everyone still had some confidence for a face-to-face fight to the death.

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