Chapter 602: You

"... That's not the work of a human being — it's the work of beasts. Three women, along with the maids who served them — some of the bodies weren't even whole anymore, all charred black by the fire, yet you could still smell that rank, foul stench. I've seen plenty of corpses, but that night I couldn't stomach a single bite..."

After that drinking session, once the coroner sobered up, he went straight to Meng Chao's elders. Meng Chao's father gave Meng Chao a savage beating and made it perfectly clear: if he kept courting death like that, they'd break both his legs. Even if it meant giving up the job, they weren't going to stand by and watch him bring disaster on the family.

Meng Chao swallowed that anger. A few days passed, and he thought he'd put it behind him — until he heard someone talking again. A certain family's daughter outside the city had accidentally crossed glances with Guan Tao. She was dragged off the street on the spot and only sent back the next day. Her family refused to let her back through the door, and the woman threw herself into the river.

The officials dared not intervene. The scholars dared not speak. Even the jianghu stayed silent. Meng Chao knew his own level of skill — going in alone would be suicide and would drag his family down with him. He'd had no choice but to endure it. But now, Qingjiangpu had one more power in play, and this power was ferociously strong. Over these past few months, everyone had come to feel that this power handled matters with real fairness.

No matter how much the people here cooperated with the Zhao Camp, deep down they still felt humiliated. After all, they'd been beaten into submission by an outsider and forced to bow their heads — the resentment among officials and the jianghu was especially strong. Meng Chao remembered it vividly: his group had gone over, and the scene was a river of blood, corpses everywhere, forbidden weapons scattered all around — yet they'd brazenly defied the official constables and driven his entire group back by sheer force.

But now that things had reached this point, there was no one left — no person, no power — who could help. The only option was to go to the Zhao Camp and try his luck. Meng Chao had no idea whether going to beg would do any good, but he knew one thing for certain: if he just swallowed this and did nothing, he'd never sleep soundly again for the rest of his life.

Meng Chao changed his clothes, planning to sneak his way in. He actually had a scheme: slip inside the gate of Zhao Jin's residence, then drop to his knees, kowtow, and shout. Sooner or later he'd get an audience before Zhao Jin, and he wouldn't have to worry about being spotted by anyone from Qingjiangpu. Multiple birds with one stone.

But Meng Chao had never imagined the Zhao Camp's security would be this tight. There were sentries and lookouts several streets away — he'd barely taken a few steps before someone had eyes on him. Before he could even identify himself, he was gagged, bound, and hauled off, delivered straight to the underground cells. The torture instruments were already laid out and the interrogation about to begin when he frantically blurted out who he was. They called someone in to verify his identity, and only then did he escape that calamity.

Weren't they just some jianghu sect from Xuzhou, or guards kept by a big merchant house? How could their arrangements be this meticulous? Plenty of big shots from the capital and Nanjing had passed through Qingjiangpu — those men traveled with large retinues of family and guards, military escorts, and local runners to clear the streets. But compared to this, all that was at most an impressive show of force; in tightness and precision, it fell far short.

And how could a bunch of Xuzhou bumpkins be so familiar with the yamen's constables? In the span of a breath, they'd actually managed to find someone to identify him. What was even more shocking — the person they found was someone even he didn't recognize.

Doubts upon doubts, shock upon shock — but right now he could only suppress it all in his heart. Meng Chao knew what mattered and what didn't; he remembered exactly why he'd come here.

But precisely because of what he'd just witnessed, Meng Chao laid out the matter in extraordinary detail. The past atrocities of Niu Shengjie and Guan Tao, the backing they relied on, the retaliation suffered by those who'd dared to stand up for justice — he spelled it all out with absolute clarity. If he didn't explain everything up front, these Xuzhou men, with their capabilities, would definitely be able to investigate and uncover the truth afterward. If they mistook this for a setup to entrap them, then real disaster would come crashing down.

He was so detailed that, at the start, an impatient look even flickered across Zhao Jin's face. But as the account went on, everyone in the room was listening with rapt attention.

When Meng Chao finished, Cheng Dahu, standing behind him, couldn't help but spit on the ground. "The whole lot of Qingjiangpu are spineless cowards — have they all been gelded?" he cursed with utter contempt.

If something like this had happened in Xuzhou or the surrounding regions, even common folk would have the fierce spirit to fight to the death. Yet the entirety of Qingjiangpu had swallowed their rage and stayed silent. No wonder Cheng Dahu held them in such contempt.

Meng Chao had been kneeling so long his knees ached sharply and both legs had gone numb and tingly. Hearing the contempt from the man beside him, he felt his face burn and couldn't lift his head — the other discomforts didn't even register. Only after stewing in shame and embarrassment for a moment did he remember what mattered most. He'd said so much — in the end, would Master Jin agree or not?

The smile had faded from Zhao Jin's face where he sat. After hearing so many accounts of inhuman evil, there was indeed nothing to feel cheerful about.

"Meng Chao, is there anyone in the Niu household who's innocent?" Zhao Jin asked abruptly after a moment of silence.

Meng Chao froze, unsure of the meaning behind the question. He answered hesitantly, "There might be some innocents, but the majority deserve death ten times over. That Niu Shengjie is a sniveling weakling, and Guan Tao's a stunted rat — without that pack of running dogs helping them, how could they have pulled off so many utterly inhuman deeds!"

Zhao Jin nodded and asked again, "Can you point out which ones are innocent?"

Meng Chao froze once more, then lowered his head and said, "Master Jin, this humble one dares not show his face. If I'm recognized, and the Niu family's desperadoes out at sea come looking for me — this humble one will take responsibility for his own actions, but the dozens of people in my family will inevitably suffer for it. This humble one dares not step forward."

Seeing a smile surface on Zhao Jin's face and hearing contemptuous snorts from the others in the room, Meng Chao gritted his teeth and said, "This humble one is no coward. If Master Jin doesn't believe me, this humble one will end himself right here — trade this life for justice!"

"Did everyone hear that?" Zhao Jin asked. Meng Chao, still kneeling, looked bewildered as a short young man stepped out from behind the door and nodded at Zhao Jin with a smile.

"This Meng Chao is not bad. He's got guts, he's got a conscience. He can lay out a matter clearly from start to finish and even investigate on his own — you don't find many talents like that in the Xuzhou constabulary. And he's got brains too; he knows that stepping forward himself brings no benefit, only disaster. That kind of level-headedness is something all of us brothers lack," Zhao Jin remarked.

Even this Master Jin was younger than himself, and the short newcomer certainly couldn't be older either — so how were they speaking with such world-weary authority? Meng Chao was thoroughly baffled.

"The constables and clerks who've come over from the Six Gates so far are all just in it for the perks and the silver. We've been short one man who's genuinely committed to the work. I'll keep you on," Zhao Jin said.

"Big Brother's luck is good — even when someone comes begging at the door, you find a promising sapling like this. I'll take him!" The newcomer was Liu Yong, and he took up the thread with a grin.

After exchanging a few words, Zhao Jin turned to Meng Chao and said, "That head constable of your yamen is a muddled fool — an idiot who took silver and walked right into a death trap, and afterward even tried to goad the garrison commander into sending troops. Let a bungling idiot like that stay in the post any longer and he'll surely bring disaster on your yamen. You'll take over as head constable and manage it on my behalf. If anything comes up, come and report."

Meng Chao was still in a daze. How had the topic suddenly shifted? They'd been talking about righting a wrong — how had it turned into making him head constable? Both head constable posts in the constabulary were fiercely contested; whoever landed one could rake in a windfall and set up his own business operations outside the city. How could it possibly fall to him? And how could some men from Xuzhou just casually arrange it as if it were nothing?

"Come, kowtow three times to me, and three times to Liu Yong. From now on, you're one of our Zhao Camp!" Zhao Jin beckoned with a smile.

While Meng Chao was still in a fog, Cheng Dahu, behind him, gave him a light kick. He heard Cheng Dahu's low, urgent voice: "What are you standing there dumb for? Get up there and kowtow — your big break's arrived!"

Instinctively, Meng Chao shuffled forward on his knees. After barely two paces he stopped, frozen, then straightened his back where he knelt and asked, "Master Jin thinks highly of this humble one — that is this humble one's good fortune. But before that, this humble one must ask one question. Will Master Jin take up this matter or not? If not, this humble one must apologize."

At those words, the expressions of everyone in the room except Zhao Jin changed. Cheng Dahu's face darkened as he stepped forward, but Zhao Jin raised a hand to stop him and nodded approvingly. "Neither servile nor overbearing, clear-headed — this is good."

After saying that, a smile spread across Zhao Jin's face. "If I weren't going to take it up, I wouldn't take you in."

Meng Chao's whole body shuddered. An instant later, understanding hit him, and he immediately brought his head down with a heavy thud — the sound echoed loudly through the room. When he looked up, his forehead was already bruised purple, but Meng Chao paid it no mind. Overwhelmed with emotion, he declared, "Master Jin's sense of righteousness reaches to the heavens! Master Jin is seeking justice for this humble one — no, for all of Qingjiangpu! This humble one will go through fire and water for Master Jin from this day forward, will be crushed to powder and shattered to pieces, and will never flinch even in death!"

"No more kowtowing. One more knock and your forehead's going to bleed," Zhao Jin said with a laugh. Laughter rippled through the room, and the atmosphere, heavy from the harrowing tales earlier, lightened considerably.

Zhao Jin stood and glanced at the sky outside. "It's not even noon yet. Let's wrap this matter up today."

Meng Chao, still kneeling, froze and said urgently, "Master Jin, the Niu household has dozens of desperadoes, and they've got backing from the big pirates out at sea. Going in broad daylight like this is bound to take some doing. This humble one has a few ideas..."

Before he could finish, Zhao Jin cut him off with a smile. "For something this trivial, what schemes and calculations do you need? Just go straight over and deal with it. Pirates at sea? What kind of thing is that? And once they step on land, what are they supposed to be?"

After a few dismissive remarks, Zhao Jin turned and spoke quietly to Liu Yong. Liu Yong nodded and headed out the door. Zhao Jin turned back to Meng Chao with a smile. "You head back first. Once this matter is settled, come find me again."

Meng Chao still had no idea what was about to happen; he remained dazed and uneasy, yet somehow felt Zhao Jin's attitude was trustworthy. When he came to his senses, he realized the men who had escorted him in were already gone. After that exchange just now, Meng Chao no longer dared to be the least bit remiss with Zhao Jin. Before rising, he kowtowed several more times, adopting the full demeanor of a household retainer, and only then got up, took his leave, and departed.

He had just stepped outside when he heard the thunder of hooves. Looking over, he saw dust billowing — several dozen riders were charging toward the Shanyang county seat. Meng Chao stared blankly for a second, then jolted in realization and immediately broke into a frantic sprint after them.

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