Chapter 564: The Great Cudgel

"... This is the chief guard of the Seven Skill Pavilion, take him out..."

"... This is the head of the dock laborers..."

As Zhang Yunxian stood in a daze, small squad after small squad had already walked into the kneeling crowd, loudly calling out names and then taking the named people away. What astonished the kneeling crowd was that some in these squads even spoke with the accent of Qingjiangpu in Huai'an, and the leaders of every faction were easily identified. How much preparation had these Xuzhou men done beforehand? There had to be moles among their own people. Everyone looked at one another, no longer daring to trust anyone.

"Good thing those people on the salt routes knew what was good for them, otherwise we'd have had to put in a lot more work!" Liu Yong said, watching the scene.

Quite a few Yangzhou salt merchants did favors for Zhao Jin's sake. The salt smugglers and salt dealers around Qingjiangpu were mostly under the Yangzhou salt merchants. Using that connection to pressure them, they dared not disobey. Unlike the self-contained setup here in Qingjiangpu, the salt smugglers and dealers roamed far and wide and knew the ins and outs of every place in South Zhili. They understood full well how much blood the Zhao Character Camp had spilled and how powerful it was. With their cooperation, plus Wang Dagang and the remnants he had gathered, and those carters who hauled goods in Qingjiangpu — though they had lived hard in those years, they had been here long enough to know the faces — along with a few Internal Guard household troops who had once spent time in Qingjiangpu and had their own connections of one sort or another, all these efforts combined gave them such familiarity with the people in this scene that not a single leader was missed.

For the leaders of the various Qingjiangpu factions, no one had imagined this time would be a dragon's pool and tiger's den, that blood would flow across the ground, that it would turn into such a one-sided rout. Everyone had thought they were coming to do the Big Cart Gang a favor, to do Warehouse Commissioner Lian a favor, and pick up some benefits along the way. For something like that, naturally the leaders had to come in person — otherwise it wouldn't show enough respect, enough regard. And so one by one they had come, and now every one of them had been singled out.

The most meticulous search was for the two Big Cart Gangs. Rewards were even offered to the others who had been caught — identify someone and get this or that benefit. Things had already come to such a pass; who still cared about the code of the jianghu? Getting themselves out was all that mattered. Besides, the gang bosses of the Big Cart Gangs were all figures of some note in Qingjiangpu on ordinary days — there was hardly anyone who didn't recognize them. They were picked out with ease.

From the gang leader down to the bosses, not a single one was left. All were picked out. When that squad reached him, Zhang Yunxian watched one familiar face after another being dragged away. His dazed mind grew clearer and clearer, and he began to feel that things were turning very bad.

When the squad came before him and someone said "Zhang Yunxian," before the words had even faded, Shi Biao had already leapt up, dagger in hand. Another guard beside him raised his goose-quill saber as well. The two moved swiftly and coordinated well. The moment they made their move, the others stirred faintly too. If they could throw the situation into chaos and everyone could flee, then today's matter might still have a chance to turn around.

But the instant Shi Biao jumped up, an arrow struck him in the chest, half the shaft burying itself in. Another arrow nailed the other guard in the shoulder. Both men cried out in pain, their movements pausing for just a moment. Then the sound of arrows hissing through the air rang out — swoosh, swoosh, swoosh — and the two men bellowed as they were hit, seven or eight arrows embedded in each of them. They swayed and collapsed. Only then did everyone notice that several archers had been watching this spot the whole time, deliberately or not keeping themselves within bowshot range.

Besides those two, others beside Zhang Yunxian had been about to move, but the moment they saw the arrows fly, they stopped. Yet even though they stopped, the squad paid them no mind. The man at the front swung his blade backhanded and cleaved down — head separated from body in an instant, fresh blood spraying out. Zhang Yunxian's face was drenched in it.

"This lowly one is willing to give up his entire family fortune! This lowly one is willing!" Zhang Yunxian had been in a daze the whole time, until this hoarse shriek jolted him. It was the voice of that Tall Horsewhip.

Hot blood on his face, someone shrieking in desperation beside his ear — only then did Zhang Yunxian snap awake and realize. Two days ago, someone had ridden a horse to his doorstep and laid out terms: dissolve the Big Cart Gang and hand over twenty percent of his family assets. At the time, he had been furious. But in truth, he had only thought he was furious. Even then, he had felt a faint, vague terror. He had been afraid all along...

At this thought, Zhang Yunxian shuddered violently from head to toe. He didn't even bother to wipe the blood from his face. He just yelled at the top of his lungs: "This lowly one is willing to give up his entire family fortune, dissolve the Big Cart Gang! This lowly one is willing!"

But the squad paid him no attention. They simply stepped forward, seized him under the arms, dragged him out, and flung him straight to the ground. Zhang Yunxian didn't dare even struggle. Only after he hit the ground did he realize how bad things were. He wasn't even bound. Zhang Yunxian scrambled to his knees and began wailing, louder and louder. Most of the people weren't tied up either, but all of them stayed perfectly obedient. No matter how fast you were — could you outrun a bow and arrow?

He wailed on and on like that, until even the local Qingjiangpu factions watching him began to look at him with contempt. The leader of the Big Cart Gang was supposed to be somebody. How could he be such a coward?

Zhang Yunxian didn't care what anyone thought. Staying alive was what mattered. What was face worth? He shouted in every direction, but with so many people, he couldn't tell who was in charge.

Until a man walked up to him. Zhang Yunxian looked up and saw a stranger, a man in his thirties, powerfully built, staring fixedly at him. The man stared for a while, long enough to make Zhang Yunxian's skin crawl. Even as he begged for his life, Zhang Yunxian was racking his brain, trying to remember what grudge he might have with this man. But he couldn't recall a thing. After so many years as the Big Cart Gang leader, when would he ever have gotten his own hands dirty? The burly man seemed to realize this too. He suddenly spoke. "Do you know who I am?"

Zhang Yunxian shook his head blankly. Looking at the man's coarse hands and big feet, this wasn't the kind of person he would ever deal with normally. All he could tell was that the accent was from Xuzhou. Who knew who he was? On an ordinary day, if they passed on the street, Zhang Yunxian wouldn't have so much as lifted an eyelid. But now he dared not be dismissive. He forced an ingratiating smile and said, "Your face is unfamiliar. How should I address you, good sir?"

The burly man let out a "Heh." A bitter smile seemed to flicker across his face, but the rims of his eyes had already gone red. In a rough voice, he said, "I am Wang Dagang."

At that name, Zhang Yunxian froze. Then it hit him, and his whole body began to tremble. He shuffled forward on his knees and knocked his head against the ground again and again, crying out, "Spare me, spare me! Brother Dagang, spare me!"

"We brothers just wanted to earn a living here in Qingjiangpu, just wanted to make some hard-earned money. But you sent men to hunt us down and kill us to the last. We couldn't beat you — we can't blame anyone else for that. But what wrong did the women and children do? Every day I've recited your name, but you didn't even know what I was called. I'll say it once more. My name is Wang Dagang." Wang Dagang's voice had gone hoarse by now.

Zhang Yunxian trembled uncontrollably. So the Xuzhou men really had come back for revenge. How did that poverty-stricken backwater Xuzhou have such power? He'd heard there was someone there called "Zhao Jin" or something. His mind spun wildly, his spirit on the verge of collapse. In the end, all he managed to shout was: "Brother Dagang, it was all others who put me up to it! I didn't know anything! You—"

His plea for mercy was only half out when the great cudgel in Wang Dagang's hands came smashing down with savage force. One blow and blood flew. Zhang Yunxian's body crumpled to the ground, twitching without cease, but making no other response. Gritting his teeth, Wang Dagang brought the cudgel down again. Then a dozen or more men surged forward with him, swinging cart shafts and bringing them down with all their might. They swung furiously, some wailing, some cursing — only blood and flesh flying could be seen.

Beaten like this, it didn't take long before Zhang Yunxian was pounded to a pulp. Next came the dozen or so gang bosses — the ones who had been especially ruthless, or had played a part in the gang slaughter, the ones with blood debts on their hands. None of them would be let off. Seeing Zhang Yunxian's fate, they knew what awaited them next. Some pleaded piteously, some cursed and swore, but all were beaten to death by the cudgels.

The great cudgels smashed down with dull, heavy thuds. The ones being beaten could only cry out once before they stopped moving. Since they weren't bound, some stood and tried to flee, but they were clubbed down before they could run a few steps. Some tried to resist, but barehanded, how could they stand against heavy staves? A few had decent fighting skills and even managed to wrest away a wooden club, but before they could make another move, the arrows from outside shot them to the ground.

Watching these familiar faces beaten to death alive like this — even though there were ruthless men in the crowd who wouldn't blink at killing, seeing this scene before them still made their hearts pound with terror, their bodies shaking uncontrollably, the trembling impossible to stop.

A great vengeance was had. One by one, the gang bosses connected to the bloodbath were clubbed to death. Their comrades and those family members could finally rest in peace. Wang Dagang and his fellow carters stopped their hands. They were covered in blood from head to toe. They looked at one another. On some faces was an expression of vented fury and satisfaction. On others, only blank bewilderment. Wang Dagang wiped the spattered blood from his face with a casual hand and looked toward Zhao Jin, who had already come over in the big cart.

Zhao Jin had been watching this side with a smile the whole time. To the eyes of everyone present, for someone his age, he was far too composed in the face of such a bloody scene. Seeing Wang Dagang look over, Zhao Jin merely stretched out a hand and pointed to one side, his hand chopping down lightly.

In the direction Zhao Jin pointed, that Tall Horsewhip was kowtowing without pause, his forehead already streaming blood. The dozen or so gang bosses beside him looked utterly terrified, as if their souls had left their bodies.

Seeing this, Wang Dagang was very bewildered. The ones he had a grudge against were the Shandong Big Cart Gang. What did these Henan Big Cart Gang people have to do with him? He stood frozen for a moment, then his whole body shuddered violently again. Wang Dagang's face turned ashen white. He understood what Zhao Jin's gesture meant.

No grudge, no grievance — and they were to be beaten to death too? How could he bring himself to do it? The look Wang Dagang gave Zhao Jin now carried a hint of pleading. The smile was still on Zhao Jin's face. He pointed again, his hand chopping downward. Only this time, the smile was a little colder than before, and the force of the chop was heavier.

Suddenly, Wang Dagang remembered the gang slaughter — his brothers hacked to death by wild blades, his home burned to white ash. He remembered the brutal carnage just now, the ground awash in blood. He shuddered again, tightened his grip on the great cudgel, turned his head, and shouted: "Brothers! This Tall Horsewhip colluded with Zhang Yunxian — together they brought ruin on us who came from the north! Avenge our brothers! Avenge their whole families, old and young!"

Thanks to old friends "Kong Se Liang Nan," "Tao Jiji," "User Cold Night," "Mu Ming," and "Yuan Heng Li Zhen" for the tips. Thank you all for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Thank you all.