The Xipu County Magistrate also knew that it was very risky to go down. If there were many pirates below and they stabbed him, he would not be able to keep his life. Therefore, he would not take the risk and let the bailiff under him explore. It was a good way to avoid danger. Anyway, the bailiff's life was not worth much. If he died, so be it! When the time came, he would just give him more compensation.
The bailiff who was called out was not only nervous, but also regretful. Why did he have to talk so much? If he didn't, he wouldn't have had the chance to go down. Now that the county magistrate had called him down, he couldn't refuse even if he wanted to. He also didn't know what the situation below was like. If there really were pirates below, wouldn't he be in danger?
These pirates were all desperadoes. They were all people who did not care about their lives. If he went down alone, wouldn't he be courting death? Being a bailiff was just to make a living. Who would be willing to sacrifice their lives? No bailiff wanted to die. Even if they had to sacrifice themselves to catch pirates, they would not be willing.
"County Magistrate, it's dark below. We can't see anything even if we go down!"
The bailiff did not want to go down to die and said.
"Why are you talking so much nonsense? Go down when I tell you to. Hurry up."
The county magistrate was angry and said angrily.
The bailiff's face was full of pain, but he still prepared to go down.
With such a big commotion above, the pirates hiding below could naturally hear it. Their hiding place was discovered by the soldiers. How could they not be nervous? At this moment, as long as the soldiers blocked the well, they would be suffocated to death below. Even if they did not suffocate to death, they would starve to death.
In short, from the moment they were discovered, it indicated that their time of death had come. They had no way to survive.
"Boss, what should we do? The soldiers have found the well. We have nowhere to run."
"Are we going to die as heroes in this place?"
"Sigh, dying in the well is not a hero. If I had known, I would have killed my way out."
"Actually, I shouldn't have come to the county today. It's not worth it to lose my life for such a small amount of money."
"Boss, the bailiff is coming down. Let's kill him first. Killing one is enough."
The pirates all seemed a little crazy. They were really going crazy. In the face of impending death, who wouldn't be afraid? Anyone would be very afraid in the face of death. Even the desperate pirates were no exception. But other than fear, they also had other emotions. For example, they felt that if they died at the bottom of the well, it would not be enough of an impact. There were also some who felt that they should kill a few more bailiffs and drag a few of them down with them. In short, everyone's heart was not calm. They were all rather agitated and were even in danger of losing control.
The pirate leader really didn't want to die. He still had three beautiful wives at home. He still had so much wealth. He still wanted to live a good life and enjoy the beauty of this world. But he was going to die now. He was really unwilling.
If he had known that this would be the outcome, he would have rather been a small merchant. Although he wouldn't have gotten rich, at least he could have lived a stable life. He wouldn't have died at the bottom of the well.
The pirate leader now regretted it, and so did the rest of the pirates. Only now did they begin to regret walking down this path of no return. As they ate and drank, they felt that being pirates was quite good. It was much better than being a normal person. They lived a much more carefree life than a normal person. If they had no money to spend, they would rob. It was a very comfortable life, while a normal person had to work very hard to earn a basic income. It was a very sullen life.
But at this moment, they were forced by the soldiers to hide at the bottom of the well in a very dark and damp corner. The worst thing was that the soldiers had already surrounded this place. They couldn't escape even if they had wings. The only thing that awaited them was death. One had to know that they were all responsible for the lives of others. It was normal for them to be executed by the soldiers.
When they were carefree, they naturally felt comfortable being a pirate. But when they were about to be arrested, their thoughts weren't like this. They began to regret it. They regretted that they had become pirates. If they hadn't been pirates, they wouldn't have fallen to such a state.
It was like many people at the bottom of society in the future. When they were in school, they thought of ways to be mischievous. They didn't want to study hard and didn't want to get into a good school. They just wanted to muddle through and spend their childhood comfortably. They didn't want to study hard. When they became adults and entered society, they truly discovered the cruelty of society. Every day, they did the hardest and most tiring work for the meager salary. It wasn't an ordinary suffering. It was too much suffering. At this time, many people would regret it. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were young. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were young. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were old. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were young. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were young. They regretted that they didn't study hard when they were old.
This was also the so-called "grieving for the misfortune and angering for the failure to strive". Later generations would say that a pitiful person must have something hateful. In short, it was because they coveted a comfortable life and did not work hard for the future, which led to difficulties in their later lives, causing them to fall into great difficulties and suffering.
These pirates only thought that robbing was fun. They could get the entire ship's cargo in one go. If they were lucky, they could even get a large amount of cash. Life was very easy and comfortable. They definitely didn't expect that what awaited them would be such a fate.
As the bailiffs came down from the well, the light on the side of the well became darker. At the same time, it made the pirates feel more and more hopeless. Their hearts were in a panic and were on the verge of collapse.
"Boss, do we kill or surrender?"
A pirate finally became timid. When he was holding a knife to kill others, he was very high-spirited and felt that he was the master. But when he was about to be captured by the soldiers, his heart became timid. He became extremely afraid and terrified.
There was more than one person who was extremely fearful. Several pirates were so nervous that they were trembling. In other words, their previous ferocity and fearlessness were all a pretense. Or rather, it was a fluke in their hearts that supported their valiance. Once they were in an absolutely hopeless situation, their pretense of being strong in their hearts would collapse. The so-called fearlessness of death would also turn into cowardice.
Of course, not all pirates were as cowardly as mice. There were some pirates who were more courageous. They really didn't care about life and death. Even if they were killed immediately, they would have no regrets. These were the true desperadoes. They were also the most difficult people for the soldiers to deal with.
The pirate leader was naturally the kind of person who liked to enjoy life and didn't want to die. But even if they surrendered, what was the fate that awaited them? Would the soldiers let them go? It was obviously impossible.
The bailiff went down bit by bit. He wanted to see the situation below. As such, there wasn't much time left for the pirates to think. They had to make a decision immediately. To fight or to surrender, they had to make a decision immediately.
The pirate leader said softly, "Take him as a hostage and negotiate with the soldiers."
Obviously, the pirate leader knew that he couldn't escape. Although guarding the side hole could prevent the soldiers from attacking, this side wall was a dead end. The soldiers didn't need to attack. As long as they guarded the mouth of the well outside, they naturally couldn't escape. In a situation where there was a lack of food, they couldn't hold on for too long. The mouth of the well was their only way out, but it had been blocked. The best way was naturally to use a hostage to negotiate.
However, the pirate leader was obviously too confident. Even if they took the bailiff as a hostage, it wouldn't be of much use. This was because in the Tang dynasty, a lowly bailiff was nothing. The county magistrate wouldn't casually agree to the pirate leader's demands for the life of the bailiff. Wanting to use a lowly bailiff to threaten the county magistrate and negotiate terms was simply wishful thinking. It was an impossible wish.
"Ah …"
As soon as the bailiff reached the mouth of the hole, he was suddenly pulled in by the pirates inside. As soon as he let out a scream, his mouth was immediately covered.
Immediately, the county magistrate and the others above were anxious.
"What's going on? What's the situation below?"
The county magistrate asked.
The pirate leader below took the opportunity to shout, "Soldiers above, listen up. I'm Shopkeeper Liu. Can we talk properly?"
Hearing Shopkeeper Liu's familiar voice, the county magistrate's mouth revealed a very relaxed smile. After working hard for half a day, they finally caught these pirates. The pirate leader, Shopkeeper Liu, was below. This time, they couldn't escape even if they had wings.
"Haha! Shopkeeper Liu, it's been a long time! We've known each other for so many years. Why didn't I see that you were a pirate? You've really hidden it well! "
The county magistrate said proudly.
The pirate leader replied, "County Magistrate, I was muddle-headed for a moment. My goods were robbed and I had no way out, so I went to rob others. I had no choice but to do so. I'm willing to turn over a new leaf. County Magistrate, can you give me and my brothers a chance? Can you plead for us in front of the county magistrate? "
The county magistrate relaxed and smiled, saying, "This will depend on your performance. If you perform well, you will naturally be lenient. However, this isn't up to you. Now that Assistant Minister Li has moved into our Xipu County, it's not up to the county magistrate or me to decide whether you should be lenient. Everything depends on Assistant Minister Li."
"Assistant Minister? Such a high-ranking official? Then call him over. I want to talk to him. "
The pirate leader said.
"Hahahaha!"
The county magistrate laughed loudly. After laughing for a long time, he suddenly said, "Shopkeeper Liu! Are you kidding me? You want Assistant Minister Li to see you? Who do you think you are? Oh! I understand. You still have our hostage in your hands. However, why don't you open your eyes and see clearly who your hostage is? Is he a prince or a descendant of the imperial family? Humph, even if you put a knife to my neck, Assistant Minister Li wouldn't blink an eye, let alone a lowly yamen runner. Who gave you the confidence to take a lowly yamen runner as a hostage? Hahaha! "
It was obvious that the county magistrate didn't care about the life or death of the kidnapped yamen runner. Now that Ang Lee was in the county town, the county magistrate was also anxiously guiding the capture of the pirates. At this time, capturing the pirates was the highest priority. It was absolutely impossible for him to lose his composure because of a lowly yamen runner. There were plenty of yamen runners in the county town. One yamen runner could be replaced immediately. All he needed to do was to send some compensation to the family of the dead yamen runner.
Seeing that the county magistrate didn't care about the yamen runner's life or death, the head of the pirates felt extremely pained and exhausted. The few cowardly pirates were also in extreme pain and despair. Judging from the county magistrate's tone, it was useless for them to kidnap the yamen runner. This lowly yamen runner wasn't a bargaining chip at all and had even become a burden. They couldn't kill him, nor could they release him. If they killed him, then their crimes would become even more serious. No one would believe them if they denied that they had killed anyone. And if they released the yamen runner, they were afraid that the county magistrate would directly seal the mouth of the well. Then, they could only suffocate to death step by step. That feeling was even more painful than being beheaded. After all, beheading was only a short while, but suffocating to death was a very long and painful process. It was even more painful and frightening.
"Boss, why are we still talking to them? Let's kill the one in front of us first. We have to drag someone down with us before we die."
A scar-faced pirate said angrily.
Actually, this guy was also a little afraid, but he was stronger than the other pirates. Even if he couldn't keep his life, he wanted to drag someone down with him before he died. That way, he would feel more at ease.
"Don't, I don't want to die yet! What's the use of having a scapegoat when we're already dead? "
Immediately, a pirate objected to killing the yamen runner that was being controlled.
The head of the pirates also didn't want to die. He still wanted to save his own life. Seeing that a portion of the pirates were also afraid of death, he made up his mind and decided to surrender to the officers.
He now had three bargaining chips that weren't very valuable, or rather, at least three ways to curry favor with the officers. First, he had a large amount of money in his hiding cave. This was the most suitable way to bribe the county magistrate. Second, he would let the yamen runner go. It could be considered to curry favor with the officers emotionally. Lastly, he still had the whereabouts of the remaining pirates. As long as he told the officers where his remaining companions were hiding, then he would be able to perform meritorious service. Perhaps saving his life wouldn't be a problem.
In addition, he had many hidden treasures in his house. Other than himself, no one else could find them. These could all be used to save his life.
"County magistrate, what's there to talk about? We can talk, we can talk!"
The head of the pirates shouted.
The county magistrate above had a relaxed expression. He shouted, "Shopkeeper Liu, as long as you come up, we will have time to talk. That's right, send my subordinates up too. If they kill him, then we have nothing to talk about."
"Okay, okay, okay, we will go up immediately."
The head of the pirates shouted loudly. Then, he ordered his subordinates to release the yamen runner and let him up.
"Boss, are we really going to let him go?"
A pirate was unconvinced.
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