"Zhang Jie Yu, even your death is not the end result."
"You've killed the Chief Patrol Officer. You're an official. The Great Xu Dynasty has just been established, and it's time for us to be swift and decisive in establishing our authority. No matter how many connections you have, as long as I kill you and bring your head to the authorities, not only will you die, your influence in the county will be uprooted, and even your family will not be able to escape."
Hearing Pei Zi Yun's words, Zhang Jie Yu's face fell. He then thought to himself, "Not good, I've fallen into his trap!"
In the early stages of Dao arts, the heart was the most important. Now that he had lost his will to fight, the backlash came at him. Pei Zi Yun leapt forward, and his sword flashed.
In the face of death, Zhang Jie Yu rose up, and his blade flashed. He did not retreat, but instead charged forward.
"If you want me to die, you die too!"
In that instant, sparks flew everywhere. The speed of the two of them was blinding. Within a breath's time, the two of them separated. Zhang Jie Yu's left rib cage trembled, as if he had been struck by lightning.
"No, you can't kill me. I am an inner disciple of Holy Jail Sect. If you kill me, I will be avenged."
"Save me, I can still be saved!"
Before he could finish his sentence, the sword flashed and pierced through his heart. Zhang Jie Yu spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, as if he wanted to say something. However, he could not finish his sentence, and died.
Pei Zi Yun looked at the corpse and laughed. He then turned around and left.
Snail Village
When Pei Zi Yun returned to the village, the bandits had already escaped. Those who did not manage to escape were all killed. Corpses were strewn all over the village, and the blood on the ground had already solidified. The stench of blood permeated the air.
Archers could be seen inspecting the corpses. Every time they saw a corpse, they would stab it with their sword. Seeing that it was motionless, they would then cut off the heads and pile them together. These were all bandits, and killing them was a meritorious deed.
Even these few archers had heavy hearts. The Chief Patrol Officer had died, and half of his brothers had died as well.
These were archers who had retired from the army. The villagers were even worse off. After the battle, many of the villagers woke up from their excitement and collapsed onto the ground, their minds blank.
Some of the villagers saw that the archers were cutting off their heads, so they ran away. Killing people was one thing, but cutting off people's heads was another. Some of the more cowardly ones couldn't take it anymore, and hid in a corner and vomited. It was as if they were about to vomit out their bile, and their mouths were filled with bitterness.
Pei Zi Yun looked over and saw that not only were there bandits, but there were also the corpses of the villagers. Some were villagers who could not escape in time.
The village chief looked on blankly, as the muscles on his face twitched uncontrollably. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. One of the villagers was severely injured, and was on the verge of death. When he saw Pei Zi Yun approaching, tears rolled down his cheeks, "Master Top Scorer, I still have an old mother, wife, and children at home …"
Pei Zi Yun's heart ached as he spoke in a low voice, "Don't worry. As long as I, Pei Zi Yun, am here, I will not let them suffer from hunger or cold!"
When the man heard this, he immediately breathed his last. Before he died, his eyes were filled with the desire to live.
Pei Zi Yun sighed. A villager was helping Cao San bandage his wounds. Cao San had been injured in the ambush earlier, but thankfully his injuries were not serious.
Seeing Pei Zi Yun enter, Cao San walked up to him and whispered, "Master Pei, the bandits who escaped were all killed."
"The two thieves have been killed. Send someone to drag their corpses in, but don't cut off the heads of these two." Pei Zi Yun then remembered that Zhang Jie Yu's corpse would be of great use, "Especially the head of the bandits. Don't chop off his head as well. We'll need to verify his identity in the future."
"Zhang Dashan," Cao San shouted. He had been there a moment ago, but now he was gone.
"Here!" Zhang Dashan came over with a gourd and wiped his mouth. It turned out that he had gone to get some wine. He had just killed a thief, and his hands were still trembling. However, Zhang Dashan was much braver than the average villager. He did not vomit, but he was flustered, so he went to get some wine to calm himself.
"Good lad, you have guts. If it was in the past, you would be soldier material."
"There are two corpses outside. Bring some men and drag them in." Cao San made the arrangements. When he saw Zhang Dashan turn to leave, he shouted, "Leave the wine for me. I want to drink a few mouthfuls as well. It will help with the pain."
As he said this, he snatched the wine from Zhang Dashan's hands. Zhang Dashan did not have time to react. Cao San kicked him and said, "What are you waiting for?"
Only then did Zhang Dashan react. He ordered two villagers to drag Zhang Jie Yu's body out of the village.
Cao San drank two mouthfuls of wine, and felt the pain on his back lessen. He then approached Pei Zi Yun and whispered, "Master Pei, so many people have died tonight. What should we do?"
"I just took a look. The bandits are not ordinary. One of them is a group of monks from Silver Dragon Temple, and the other is a bandit from the prefecture. I saw one of them when I went to burn incense. I've heard that these people have connections with the prefecture and the prefecture. If we kill them, I'm afraid there will be people seeking revenge in the future."
After examining the faces of these bandits, Cao San realized that they had connections behind them. If they were to kill them now, there would be trouble in the future.
Pei Zi Yun could not see his expression clearly under the light of the fire. He did not reply to Cao San, but walked up to him and whispered, "Cao San, these people are here to kill you. How can you not kill them? Forget it, let's not talk about this. Let me ask you, if the Chief Patrol Officer is dead, are you responsible? Do you wish to be pardoned, and even be promoted to the position of Deputy Chief Patrol Officer? "
Cao San froze, and looked around. He then lowered his voice and asked, "What should I do?"
Cao San had retired from the battlefield, and had a murderous nature.
"This matter is not too serious. If the bandits attack a village, we will report it to the authorities. These people will be rewarded with money. Who knows, they might even punish you for failing to protect the Chief Patrol Officer and send you to jail." Pei Zi Yun whispered into his ear.
Cao San heard this and hesitated. The smell of blood filled his nostrils. He touched his back and clapped his hands, "Master Top Scorer, I'll do it."
After the bandits were killed, the villagers reported the news. Many people came out to look for their family members. Two men found the old hunter from afar and carried him over. He was not injured much, and only had a broken leg.
Pei Zi Yun recognized one of the women. She had just gotten married, and her husband had joined the village. Looking for her husband, her legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground. She hugged her husband's body and cried.
Cao San was silent. That man was brave and courageous when he killed the bandits. He did not expect the bandits to retaliate and kill him.
These villagers came out to look for their family members. As they searched, the entire village was filled with cries.
As he counted the news, the village chief's legs were trembling, and his face was pale. Pei Zi Yun then asked Zhang Dashan, "What's the situation like?"
"Seventeen bandits were killed, but twenty-one of us were killed. One was severely injured, and five were lightly injured. We managed to find over twenty swords, spears, bows, and arrows. We also found over ten taels of silver on the corpses." Zhang Dashan said in a sorrowful tone, "Half of the dead were women and children. They were killed the moment they bumped into them."
These black robed men were skilled in martial arts, and were bandits. Their attacks were ruthless. Once the villagers were hit by them, they would not sustain any injuries. Most of them died.
Pei Zi Yun was silent for some time before he walked up to the village chief, "Village chief, arrange for someone to buy some good coffins. I will pay for this."
The village chief was taken aback, "You can't do that. The villagers died protecting the village, and the village will compensate for it. How can we ask the old master to pay for it?"
"So many people have died today, and I feel bad about it. I still have something for you to do. These bandits have a mastermind behind them, and if we don't get rid of them, the problem will not be solved." Pei Zi Yun said coldly.
The village chief looked at the basket on the ground, and saw that it was filled with human heads. He then agreed.
All the men in the village were gathered by the village chief, "It's almost daybreak. Go to the various villages and buy some coffins. Those who have coffins, borrow it first, and pay for it later. I believe the villagers will give me face."
What many people didn't understand was that in ancient times, coffins and tombs weren't considered taboo. Most rich old people would prepare their own coffins while they were still alive. As for emperors, they would build their own tombs the moment they ascended the throne.
According to historical records, in the fourteenth year of the Ming Dynasty (1381 AD), Zhu Yuanzhang ordered for a tomb to be built for himself. In the third year of his reign, the Emperor of the Xu Dynasty ordered for a tomb to be built.
Hence, the twenty over coffins could be easily obtained by ransacking the surrounding villages.
A villager hesitated, "Village chief, who would sell coffins now? Everyone is already asleep. Why don't we sell them tomorrow morning …."
Before he could finish his sentence, the village chief looked at him. This man was a gangster in the village. He loved to steal chickens and dogs, and was a lazy person.
"Pa!" The village chief slapped him across the face, catching him off guard. He had used a lot of force, and almost fell to the ground.
This man wasn't happy. The village chief looked at him coldly. When the bandits came, this man ran away. Now he wanted to be a burden. How could there be such a stupid person?
"Capture him and beat him up. As long as he doesn't die." The village chief shouted angrily.
One of the villagers pounced on him and held him down. He then tied him up with a rope. He laughed, "Zhang Ping, you still dare to be stupid at this point. You're asking for death."
The villagers had just killed the bandits, and were filled with killing intent. They glared at the man, and he didn't dare to speak anymore. The villagers didn't dare to argue, and took the money and left.
A coffin was worth five taels of silver. Since twenty-one people had died, that would be a hundred taels of silver.
He then turned to the village chief and said, "So many people have died. We can't leave them in the village. Let's bring them to the Earth Temple!"
The village chief and the families of the deceased discussed and agreed, "Bring them to the temple. With the gods around, there won't be any trouble."
Earth Temple
Within the village, there was a Earth Temple. There was a shrine, and it looked very old. The village chief walked up to it and lit some incense. He then kowtowed a few times and cried, "Lord Earth, today, my Snail Village has suffered a great calamity. We shall leave the villagers here temporarily. When the calamity is over, we shall kill the pigs as a sacrifice."
After burning the incense, the village chief then arranged for the corpses to be carried into the temple. He placed them down and covered them with a white cloth. He then arranged for people to keep watch. Some of the family members of the deceased entered the temple and cried. The village chief couldn't stop them, and could only let them be.
Seeing that everything was done, the Chief Patrol Officer's horse was still in the village chief's backyard. Pei Zi Yun entered the yard and mounted the horse. He pulled on the reins and drank a mouthful of wine. He then smashed the bowl on the ground and shouted, "Jia!" The sound of the horse galloping could be heard as it galloped out of the village, disappearing into the night.
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