Volume One: The Menial of Changshui County Chapter 135: A Path to Riches
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“Still refusing to talk?”
Lu Jiuzhang glanced at the bandit’s other arm. “Have you ever heard of someone losing both hands and feet yet remaining alive, spending every day begging for a living?”
The burly bandit could not help shivering.
“It was Magistrate Wang, the Deputy Magistrate of Changshui County!” the bandit hurriedly confessed. “I acted on his orders and paid him ten thousand taels of silver every month. He also supplied us with information about passing merchant caravans. If we wanted the details, he charged extra—at least twenty thousand taels of silver!”
Deputy Magistrate Wang?
Lu Jiuzhang’s face darkened instantly.
What audacity—to collude with bandits!
The man had to die!
“Besides you, are there any other bandits along the main road to Anxi Prefecture?” Lu Jiuzhang asked in a low voice.
“There’s another bandit group near Anxi Prefecture. They’re extremely powerful, and people say they have a martial cultivator stationed there,” the burly bandit hurriedly replied. “But we keep to our own territories. We’re too far apart, so conflicts are rare.”
“I’ll spare your life for now. You may still be useful.”
Lu Jiuzhang tossed him a leaf from the spirit medicine. “Swallow this leaf, and it will save your life.”
“Stay by my side. If you dare make any rash move, you die.”
Lu Jiuzhang did not say much, but the words left the burly bandit no room for argument.
He kept the man alive so that he could testify against Deputy Magistrate Wang.
As for the others, there was no need to spare them.
…
Lu Jiuzhang and Big Black Dog looted the entire bandit stronghold.
They found nearly eighty thousand taels of silver within the camp.
There were also countless treasures, together worth at least a hundred thousand taels of silver.
These were all the spoils they had accumulated by robbing passing merchants.
According to the burly bandit, he had already handed more than two hundred thousand taels of silver over to Deputy Magistrate Wang in monthly payments.
Who knew how many merchant caravans had suffered at the hands of the bandit and Deputy Magistrate Wang?
Staring at the mountain of silver before him, even Big Black Dog could not help sighing. “Ninth Master, there used to be a saying: two years as a clean-handed prefect, and you’ll have a hundred thousand taels of snow-white silver.”
“Looks like that saying still underestimated the truth,” Lu Jiuzhang replied. “Right and wrong, justice and injustice, all lie within the hearts of the people. Beneath the workings of karma, no one is exempt.”
“I don’t understand any of that. I only know that we’re about to make a fortune!” Big Black Dog shook his head. “I contributed this time too, so I’ll take thirty thousand taels. Little Sister Bai didn’t lift a finger, so give her two thousand taels as a welcoming gift.”
“Divide it however you like,” Lu Jiuzhang said without objecting.
Big Black Dog had indeed contributed. He had found many of the places where the silver was hidden.
There was nothing wrong with giving him thirty thousand taels.
As for the two thousand taels for Bai Xiaosu, Lu Jiuzhang cared even less about that sum.
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At that moment, Lu Jiuzhang was undeniably a wealthy man.
After setting aside the shares, he had roughly fifty-three thousand taels on him.
He also possessed a great many spirit herbs and spirit medicines.
…
Destroying the bandits had not taken long.
Most of their time had been spent searching for the silver and counting the treasures.
By the time they left the stronghold, the eastern sky had already begun to brighten.
In early summer, dawn came quickly.
With the help of the spirit medicine, the bandit’s injuries had healed.
He was a witness, and had to remain by Lu Jiuzhang’s side in preparation for bringing down Deputy Magistrate Wang.
Besides that, Lu Jiuzhang needed someone to lend him a hand.
Doing everything personally was not his style.
“Big fellow, can you drive the carriage with one hand?” Big Black Dog asked when they reached the wagon.
“Master Black, there shouldn’t be much trouble,” the burly bandit answered respectfully.
“Then it’s settled. You drive. I’m going to take a short nap.”
Big Black Dog lay down inside the carriage and soon fell asleep.
Holding his sword, Lu Jiuzhang sat atop the carriage roof, resting with his eyes slightly narrowed.
Bai Xiaosu was full of energy. She kept peering through the window, taking in the world outside.
The burly bandit glanced at Lu Jiuzhang on the roof, then looked toward Big Black Dog inside the carriage.
To be honest, he wanted to wait until the man and the dog were asleep before fleeing.
At the very least, he could drive the carriage to the edge of a cliff, abandon it, and let everyone else plunge over the precipice.
“I’m an eighth-grade martial cultivator too. If you’re harboring any wicked intentions, don’t blame me for what happens next.”
Sensing the bandit’s hostile gaze, Bai Xiaosu waved her fist.
“What a beautiful woman,” the burly bandit muttered inwardly. As for Bai Xiaosu’s harmless appearance, he paid it no mind.
“You look down on me?”
Bai Xiaosu threw a punch, accompanied by the sharp crack of splitting air.
With spiritual power reinforcing the blow, a large tree several yards away came crashing down.
“Uh…”
A chill ran down the burly bandit’s back. “Miss Heroine, you’ve misunderstood. I have no ill intentions. I’m an honest man.”
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Changshui County, just before dawn.
Deputy Magistrate Wang smiled and rose to leave. “It’s already this late. Lu Jiuzhang must certainly be dead by now. Director Chen, let’s go. From today onward, Changshui County will once again be the same Changshui County.”
“I remain the deputy magistrate, and anyone in the whole of Changshui County who dares oppose me will meet a miserable end!”
“It’s a pity about my nephew, though. Both his legs have been broken, and he’ll have to spend the rest of his life in bed. Still, a Demon-Slaying Officer from the Demon-Slaying Office paid for it with his life, so it can hardly be called unfair!”
“To have attained rank in both martial cultivation and Confucian cultivation already makes one a prodigy. A prodigy giving his life in compensation is an even better bargain!”
Chen Xuanfeng’s expression darkened. “Deputy Magistrate Wang, do not push matters too far. Every person has some blood in his veins. If you go too far, be careful that someone might decide your life is worth more than this official hat.”
“Oh? Director Chen, are you threatening me?” Deputy Magistrate Wang sneered. “With your strength, you cannot stir up much trouble in all of Changshui County. You have the frontier army behind you, so do you think I have no one behind me?”
“Before the Zhong Family fell into decline, it was a supreme clan. Zhong Zhengming might have been able to suppress me, but you, Chen Xuanfeng, are not qualified to do so.”
With that, Deputy Magistrate Wang flung back his sleeve and left the Bliss Quarter.
After returning home, Deputy Magistrate Wang could hardly wait to summon his informant and ask for news.
“My lord, the gentleman has returned!” the steward came to report.
“He’s back? Quickly, invite him in!” Deputy Magistrate Wang exclaimed excitedly.
A short while later, an old man carrying a saber and radiating black qi stepped into Deputy Magistrate Wang’s courtyard.
“Sir, did you capture Lu Jiuzhang?” Deputy Magistrate Wang asked.
The old man radiating black qi and carrying a saber was none other than a member of the Ghost Blade Sect.
He shook his head. “The information was wrong. I waited on the road for a long time, but never saw Lu Jiuzhang.”
“You didn’t kill him? Damn it!” Deputy Magistrate Wang flew into a rage. “How did this happen?”
“The information was wrong…”
“Wrong? Do you think I’m keeping you around to eat for free? The Ghost Blade Sect has been destroyed, with only a few stragglers left. I was the one who took you in,” Deputy Magistrate Wang berated him. “I honored you as sir, and this is how you repay me?”
“Do you truly think I have a good temper?”
Facing a seventh-grade evil cultivator, Deputy Magistrate Wang showed no fear and scolded him to his face. “If I can take you in, I can also take your life!”
“I hope you remember that.”
“You are right, my lord.” The black-qi-clad old man bowed slightly.
“Lu Jiuzhang definitely has not returned. Chen Xuanfeng has already been intimidated into silence. Search along the road, and try to catch up with him. Kill him before he reaches Anxi Prefecture!”
Deputy Magistrate Wang issued the order.
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