Chapter 637: Niu Jinbao

What happened next confirmed everyone's guess. On the third day after the constables arrived, two more men who looked like stewards from prominent households showed up. They paid a hefty sum of silver and had the battalion headquarters first seize Niu Jinbao's old mother. The current battalion commander was the very man whose arm had been broken back then — he had inherited the post from his father. Although many in the garrison looked down on the tactic of arresting an old woman, old grudges and hatred left no room for such scruples.

From the fact that Niu Jinbao sent money home every year, everyone knew someone in the garrison must have been tipping him off. Sure enough, as soon as his mother was seized, Niu Jinbao came to turn himself in — directly to the magistrate's yamen.

The man now in charge at the yamen was Zhao Shiyi. He was effectively the representative stationed there by Chen Wu and Zhao Zhentang. Though he did not even hold the rank of constable chief, every clerk in the various offices had to consult him on matters. This case was a standard one to begin with; once he surrendered, a simple transfer should have closed the matter. But Niu Jinbao came from the garrison, and Zhao Shiyi, himself a son of the Xuzhou Guard, grew curious and went to ask him a few questions.

After the questioning, Zhao Shiyi went to find Zhao Zhentang. Zhao Zhentang also went to take a look, and then had Zhao Jin called over.

"You need a man like this by your side. Those brothers of yours are loyal enough, but each has his own business to attend to, and they're all as run off their feet as you are. Having someone like him around would put my mind at ease, at least a little." Zhao Zhentang's meaning was perfectly clear.

The place they ended up going was not the magistrate's yamen, but the Xuzhou prison not far away. From the warden down to the jailers, everyone treated Zhao Jin with the utmost awe and deference, hastily ushering him inside.

Word had been sent well in advance. Niu Jinbao's cell held only him, and it had been swept spotlessly clean — there was even the lingering scent of wine and meat.

When the Zhao father and son arrived, Niu Jinbao was sprawled on a pile of straw, snoring loudly. The warden saw this, slapped the bars, and barked, "The Old Master and Master Jin are here to see you! What are you still sleeping for!"

Niu Jinbao sat straight up from the straw. He was a powerfully built man indeed, with a frame comparable to Chen Sheng's — thick and stout. What was unusual was his short-cropped hair, mere stubble. His beard, though unkempt, was also short. He had ox-like eyes and a wide mouth, a thoroughly vicious-looking countenance.

Vicious though he looked, his conduct was very measured. Squinting, he recognized Zhao Zhentang outside, hurriedly rose, and knelt before the bars, saying in a muffled voice, "This lowly one pays respects to the Old Master, and pays respects to the Young Master."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Zhao Jin, showing he had already guessed who Zhao Jin was. Zhao Jin's face remained expressionless, but his body instinctively tensed.

This Niu Jinbao had certainly killed many people. Whether it was the so-called "reek of blood" about him, or his bearing and every gesture, he closely resembled several men in the Inner Guard. In fact, he had likely taken far more lives and shed far more blood than any of them.

"Your mother is being looked after now. Her health is decent enough, but she spends all day worrying about you and weeping without end. As for that Battalion Commander Li, you needn't worry. And those constable overseers from Weihui — you needn't worry about them either. They will never trouble your mother again," Zhao Zhentang said in a deep voice.

Hearing this, Niu Jinbao knocked his head heavily against the ground several times. Zhao Jin had learned about this matter on the road. The day after Zhao Shiyi had informed Zhao Zhentang, Niu Jinbao's old mother had sent someone to seek him out. Since the man had already surrendered, there was naturally no further need to detain the old woman — she could not run away in any case.

That his mother found her way to Zhao Zhentang was no surprise. In the Xuzhou region these days, who had not heard of Zhao Jin's fearsome reputation? As a military household of the Xuzhou Guard, by asking around here and there, she could always find someone to point her in the right direction. She had to try.

Battalion Commander Li, who had detained Niu Jinbao's mother, did not dare hold her for long either. The matter had already stirred public outrage, and even officials at the level of the Commander were beginning to inquire about it.

"For the Old Master's immense kindness, this lowly one would serve as an ox or a horse to repay it. I ask for nothing else, only to see my mother once before I am taken away, and to give her the savings I've scraped together these years for her old age," Niu Jinbao said in a thick, muffled voice.

Zhao Zhentang smiled and glanced at Zhao Jin beside him. "Don't be in such a rush to arrange your final affairs. I have a way out for you. My son has many matters to attend to outside and needs a capable man as a guard. Your skills seem far from poor, so I want you to come lend a hand. Not only will you have a path to live, but your mother will also have someone to care for her. You can move her into the city or to He Family Village — she'll live far better than she does now."

Niu Jinbao hesitated. Zhao Zhentang smiled and said, "I know you still want to tend to your mother yourself. But what were you doing for those ten-plus years? Now your portrait is posted, and you have a case with the authorities. Do you think you can still live in peace and be a filial son?"

The words were blunt, without any feigned maneuvering. Niu Jinbao naturally knew how to weigh the choice. He immediately kowtowed heavily again, saying only, "I will follow the Old Master's arrangements."

"For what comes next, my boy here will ask you. Whether he wants to employ you or not — that's his affair." Zhao Zhentang finished with a smile, then went off with the warden to drink tea in the front.

While Zhao Zhentang was present, Niu Jinbao had been somewhat tense and restrained. Once Zhao Zhentang left, Niu Jinbao visibly relaxed a little. Zhao Jin paid no mind to the change. The light in the cell was dim, and by now it was hard to see clearly. Zhao Jin ordered someone to bring a lantern. Once the cell brightened, Niu Jinbao impolitely raised his head to look around. After a few glances, he became proper and respectful again.

Zhao Jin understood perfectly well the reason for this change. Zhao Zhentang held Niu Jinbao's life and death in his hands, so of course Niu Jinbao had to be reverent. At first, not knowing Zhao Jin's true depth, he had taken him for just a young man and felt a measure of contempt. Once the light grew bright, Niu Jinbao could see that despite Zhao Jin's youth, the authority and killing aura he carried were no less weighty. He instantly grasped the other man's true measure.

Throughout the journey here, Zhao Zhentang had left many things unsaid. Now, by having Zhao Jin ask for himself, he was clearly letting him make his own judgment.

"Tell me what you've done since leaving Xuzhou all these years. What crime did you commit? Who did you offend?" Zhao Jin asked.

Hearing the steadiness in Zhao Jin's tone, Niu Jinbao straightened his kneeling posture. Before he could speak, Zhao Jin added coolly, "Don't tell lies, and don't hold anything back. Even if you bluff your way through now, it'll only be trouble when it's uncovered later."

"Rest assured, Young Master. Old Niu here has no lies to tell. These deeds were done openly and honorably — no shame in speaking of them!" Niu Jinbao said gruffly, his tone brimming with confidence.

After leaving home, Niu Jinbao had gone straight to Henan. The master who had taught him martial arts followed the Shaolin school, so Niu Jinbao also went to Shaolin Monastery to study. But learning martial arts was not so easy. Without silver to offer as alms, he could only labor for the temple. After enduring several years of hardship, Niu Jinbao did manage to learn real skill. Then, unable to bear it any longer, he and some fellow disciples sneaked down the mountain and together went to the home of one of them — Xinxiang County in Weihui Prefecture.

With martial skills and reckless natures, they quickly carved out a piece of territory, violently clashing with a local strongman and seizing the illicit salt trade there. Supported by the salt profits, they soon gathered over a hundred men. Every business and small village in the area had to pay them regular protection fees, and they naturally ran brothels and gambling dens as well. Life was very comfortable.

There was one amusing detail: having come from Shaolin Monastery and grown accustomed to being monks, they simply took over a dilapidated temple and lived there, dressing as monks in their daily lives. No wonder Niu Jinbao's hair was cropped so short.

Niu Jinbao knew his duty as a son, but he also knew that if he left Xinxiang County, he would have no source of income. So he had secretly returned a few times to visit, leaving silver behind before hurrying back. Later, he entrusted others to deliver money. For other folk, separation from family was a grave matter, but in the garrison, countless sons went out into the world to seek their fortune — the elders could bear it.

Filial though he was, Niu Jinbao was unwilling to take a wife and have children. First, his line of work was dangerous, and he feared dragging others down. Second, he was enjoying his own life.

Just when he had been in Xinxiang nearly ten years and was thinking of settling down with a wife and children, times grew hard. A Daoist temple had been built in the area. It called itself a temple, but its dealings were exactly the same as Niu Jinbao's — all underworld business. There was one difference, however: this temple had the backing of the authorities.

Niu Jinbao's gang had been in Xinxiang so long they had connections in the county yamen. From those familiar contacts, they learned that even the county magistrate dared not offend the Daoist priest of that temple — the connection reportedly went all the way to the Prince of Lu.

Pressed on all sides, their livelihood grew difficult. They clashed with the other side several times, only to discover that although their opponents wore Daoist robes, they too were desperate men of the underworld — and far more numerous. They were simply no match. In the final battle, Niu Jinbao's gang was utterly crushed. Several of his brothers died; only Niu Jinbao, the most skilled, managed to escape. Among the brothers, only the youngest had a wife, who was seven months pregnant. When the enemy struck, they were caught off guard, and she was seized and taken back to the temple.

Niu Jinbao hid out for two days, bandaged his light wounds, then infiltrated the temple under cover of night, thinking to rescue the woman and then return straight to Xuzhou. It was time to settle down. The way of the underworld was to arrive alive and leave dead. If he could leave alive, his life would have been well enough. Saving his brother's wife would be his final duty to his brothers.

After capturing and interrogating someone, he learned that his brother's wife was already dead. While still alive, her belly had been cut open and the fetus removed to make some sort of Great Tonic Paste, to be served to some dignitary that very night. Then Niu Jinbao saw the corpse...

Niu Jinbao, already of a violent temperament, went berserk on the spot. He slaughtered his way through room after room. His martial skill was already high, and his nighttime attack was so sudden that the temple was caught completely off guard. By the time the killing was done, Niu Jinbao was drenched in blood, and only the temple master and that honored guest remained — the Great Tonic Paste only half-eaten.

The temple master was no weakling, but the moment they met, Niu Jinbao hurled a hand-axe that struck him down. That honored guest, clearly pampered and used to luxury, had already had his two attendants killed. He could only beg for his life, claiming to be from the Prince of Lu's household. Niu Jinbao paid no heed. He carved the man up slice by slice, bundled up the gold and silver in the temple, and then set a great fire.

Had he simply left then, no one could ever have traced him. But Niu Jinbao, who had always conducted himself with a strong conscience over the years, did not kill women or children. He had released the women and children the temple had abducted beforehand.

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