CH 30

Ch30 - Rapacious Designs

The donkey-pulled carriage rolled along at a snail’s pace. The government had stopped fixing the roads in recent years, cause of all the war, making the already difficult mountain path even more rugged. Perhaps due to the driver’s lapse in attention, the carriage jolted fiercely, nearly toppling over.

Having solidly banged his head, Tian Chang couldn’t bear it anymore. He flipped open the curtain and yelled at the carriage driver, “Wang Er, are you blind?! Watch the road or you’re going to flip the carriage!”

The man didn’t even spare him a glance as he lazily slouched in the driver’s seat, humming some annoying folk song.

“Are you really hoping to find another dependable driver in Huai Village?” Behind him, his aging, yet still lovely, wife said angrily, “Didn’t I say you should find a driver in the county town? But no, you just had to hire this ruffian!!”

“Shut up!” Tian Chang instantly lowered the curtain, “You ignorant woman! Can’t you see that all these people passing by are refugees? They must be fleeing some famine or disaster. If it’s just the two of us on the road, it’d be a miracle if we weren’t robbed!”

“I’m ignorant? No, I’m blind, to have married crude and unlearned trash like you! Back then, if my head of household hadn’t taken a shine to you, how could I have ever married the likes of you?! And now, after all these decades, not only don’t we have any children but we’ve been chased out of house and home… aaahh why’s my life so difficult! Back then, I was the old madam’s personal attendant!” Mrs. Tian wasn’t willing to let it rest. She began sobbing and bawling.

Tian Chang merely felt terribly irritated. On the day he’d been booted from the Liang Estate, the Jie barbarians had been watching his every move; he hadn’t the chance to bring many belongings at all. He’d only managed to gather up some valuables before taking flight with his wife, then staying in a nearby village for a few days. Who knew that even after he’d finally hired a donkey carriage, his wife still wouldn’t stop talking his ear off. If she hadn’t egged him on into trying to take control of the estate, they wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place!

“Stop that blubbering! Once we reach Jinyang, I’ll find another noble family to cling to. It isn’t hard to be some nobleman’s guest, and Jinyang City is far better than that backwater hole!” Tian Chang sneered sourly as he crabbily scratched his beard.

“Better your ass! What family would want an old coot who’s already got one foot in the grave? Not to mention, you were banished by your previous head of household. If they found out, they’d beat you with a stick!” Mrs. Tian berated tearfully, her whole world falling to pieces.

“You bitch….” Tian Chang was simmering with rage. He wanted to slap her across the face. But suddenly, they heard screaming coming from outside, as well as the clapping of horse hooves.

“Shit!” Tian Chang reacted quickly. He instantly poked his head outside the carriage and saw that everything had devolved into a great big mess. Dust was flying everywhere, a mass of refugees was being herded in their direction by a band of horseback riders. People screamed in terror and bolted off the road. Those too feeble to run kneeled by the road, cowering with their hands behind their heads. Bandits!

“Wang Er, hurry! Hurry and turn around…” Tian Chang panickedly called for the driver, except he’d already abandoned the donkey carriage and scrambled madly towards the woods.

Tian Chang was beginning to feel lightheaded. He roared, “Quicky, abandon the carriage! Hide in the forest…”

“But our valuables are all here!” Mrs. Tian blanched; they’d spent decades saving all this, were they really going to throw it all away?

“You dumb wench!” Tian Chang, who couldn’t be bothered to care about his wife anymore, jumped off the carriage. He had a dozen taels of silver on his person, all of it secretly squirreled away. In the city, it was enough to buy a small plot of land and peacefully live out the rest of his years. Besides, his wife was vicious and infertile. If it came to it, he’d just marry a new woman!

The moment his mind was set, Tian Chang sprinted even faster. The donkey carriage was a big target, but it was perfect for luring the bandits’ attention away from him. As long as that woman could buy him a bit of time, he’d slip through these bandits’ fingers. He got as far as a kilometer or two away before stopping, huffing and panting as he leaned on a nearby tree and looked behind him.

It seemed that no one had chased him. How fortunate! He wiped his sweat with the back of his hand; his back slid against the tree as he sank to the ground. Because he was old and sedentary, his heart was nearly beating out of his chest after that short jog. If it weren’t for Liang Feng, how would he have fallen to this extent!

When he thought of all his belongings on the carriage, of that still attractive woman, Tian Chang’s chest was practically bursting with anguish! If he ever managed to ingratiate himself with some powerful family, he’d surely make Liang Feng pay!

As he stewed in his resentment, he heard something crashing through the foliage. Then, someone yelled, “He went this way!”

“After him!”

Tian Chang, alarmed, jumped to his feet, stumbled, and collapsed to the ground with a pained wail. He was in agony now, but he couldn’t stop. He clenched his jaw and crawled into a bush.

The people behind him, hearing his voice, hastened their steps. Shortly, two shabbily dressed machete-wielding men bored through the thickets. One of them hollered eagerly, “Ah-Niu, looks like the old coot is just up ahead!”

The other was already charging, “Where’d you think you’re goin’!”

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

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The man called ah-Niu ignored him. He yanked Tian Chang up by the collar and demanded, “You that retainer from the Liang Estate?”

What? Tian Chang was dumbstruck. Had they come specifically for him? Was this good or bad?

Seeing that Tian Chang was still woolgathering, the man pulled his machete out of the mud and pressed the edge to Tian Chang’s neck, “Talk! Yes or no? Don’t waste our time!”

The machete was still slathered with wet blood. Tian Chang hastily blurted, “Yes, that’s me! Please don’t kill me, sir!”

“Ha, finally caught you,” the other man cackled. “Ah-Niu, let’s go back and get the reward!”

Without further explanation, the two hauled Tian Chang away. The situation was much different now than when he’d been trying to run away earlier. His legs were weak, he was sweating buckets, and he was being jerked along by two men. Tian Chang’s headdress tumbled to the ground, his greying hair scattered about him; he was utterly unseemly. After being dragged for so long that he was on the verge of fainting, they finally stopped.

They were in a small copse. Several horses, tied up nearby, idly grazed on the wild grasses at their hooves. About a dozen refugees huddled together in fear and confusion. Quite a few of them were barely clothed after being strip-searched. They were likely going to be taken to the mountains and used as slave labor. The sound of high-pitched, hysterical crying occasionally came from behind the bushes.

The mountain bandits had come down to rob the passing refugees then. There was a bitter taste in Tian Chang’s mouth. If they were roaming bandits, usually they’d go once they got their money. But these “king of the mountain” types were like feral mountain lions: exceptionally cruel and vicious. There was no escaping from their jaws!

“Boss, he’s the one!” Ah-Niu abruptly shoved Tian Chang, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Tian Chang howled at the impact, then cautiously raised his head. A large man sat before him; red face, wild beard, the word savage was written all over his face. But that wasn’t the end of it – there was a disheveled woman kneeling, quaking by his side. Who else could it be, if not his wife?!

“This old thing is the Liang Estate’s retainer?” The boss asked.

Mrs. Tian chokingly answered, “That’s the bastard! Great king, I’ve already confessed! Please, let me live, great king!”

“Take her away!” The boss snorted coldly. He gestured to the people nearby and they instantly tugged Mrs. Tian away by her arms. The woman shrieked, but only once, before she was gagged. Now the only sound coming out of her was a kind of hair-raising whimper.

Tian Chang’s back was soaked with cold sweat, his teeth clattered against each other. He’d thrown his wife away to save his own skin, but who could’ve thought that she’d sell him out? And this “great king,” why was he trying to capture him?!

“A little while ago, my nephew went down the mountain to do some business. But then he got killed. I heard it was the Liang Estate that done it. You know what I’m talking about?” The boss asked, coldly pinning Tian Chang with his stare.

How could he not know! Tian Chang opened his mouth, then suddenly buried his head in his arms and started wailing, “It’s that damned Liang Feng! It’s all him! He’s the reason I’m like this now!! Great king, Liang Feng’s the one who killed your nephew! He’s even scrounged up a band of soldiers and said he’s going to clear out all the nearby bandits; great king, wise king, I was driven away by that sickly invalid!”

The hatred in his heart bubbled like poison. Tian Chang had never been as clearheaded as he was in this instant. He knew that these people were after him for revenge. As long as he put all the blame on Liang Feng, he might just have a chance to get free. No… not only that, he could lure these people to the Liang Estate, and raze it to the ground! Teach that presumptuous little Liang brat a real lesson!

Tian Chang’s head snapped up as he declared, “If you’re not opposed, great king, I’m willing to serve you with everything I have and help you conquer the Liang Estate! The Liang family’s titled nobility, they’ve got hundreds of thousands in wealth and riches and lots of pretty servant girls; it could all be yours, great king! You’ve got strong men and hale horses, great king, why content yourself with a mere mountain? Why not take over the Liang Estate and be a warlord instead?!”

A few of the mountain bandits were already panting with anticipation at his instigation. One of them stepped forth and said, “Boss, this old coot’s got a point. Those gov’ment soldiers keep fighting with each other and people keep rebelling all over the place; everything could change in a blink. We might as well take that estate and use it as our base?”

The boss was visibly steadier than his bandit underlings. He mulled it over for a moment before saying, “Ah-Lu brought over a dozen people down the mountain and still got beaten. Now, the other’s hidin’ behind high walls, and we’ve only got a hundred people. How’re we supposed to take that huge estate?”

Zhang Lu, his blood-related nephew, obviously wasn’t incompetent. After he’d taken an anonymous job and gotten killed, how could Zhang Hun not be angry? That was why, after hearing that woman say there was a retainer from the Liang Estate, he’d sent men to catch him. He’d originally planned on killing him as a sacrifice to his nephew, but had instead gotten such juicy information.

Tian Chang, the old fox, saw at a glance that the boss was tempted. He hurriedly added, “That Liang Feng’s and intractable reprobate; he’s already offended all his subordinates. He’s the one who kicked me out. There’s another pair of brothers in the estate who got caned for no reason, they must hate him too. They used to be guards, so if they help us from within, even the Liang Estate’s high walls can’t stop us!”

Finally, Zhang Hun’s eyes gleamed with sinister light. He laughed, “Underlings, help Retainer Tian up. Let’s have a good talk…”

※

“Have you heard? The woodworks’ makin’ chain pumps, and I hear they’re makin’ a lot of em this time. The farmers’ll all get to use em!”

“But of course! And I also heard that not only do those soldiers get good fields, they even get to lease the best strains of crop without payin’ any interest. Anyone workin’ as a tenant farmer on their fields even get to use cattle ploughs!”

“Is that true?! Who’d you hear it from?” Soon, they would be planting crops for the summer harvest season. Being a tenant farmer on those new fields would be absolutely worth it if they got to use better strains of grain and ox-pulled plows. The families of those who’d gotten into the militia were practically beaming, about to go and lease the seeds right then and there.

The person who’d leaked the news was rather self-satisfied, “I heard it from the steward, ah-Liang himself! Before, that Tian fellow was hoodwinking the master, but now that the master knows what kinda lives we’re livin’, of course he’s having mercy on us!”

“Buddha’s blessings! The master’s benevolent after all!” The more pious ones were already starting to mumble prayers.

Another person, whose family had gotten a tax exemption, butted in, “It looks to me like the Liang Estate’s gonna be on the up an’ up again! Which family uses land tax to reward their soldiers, right? If the master becomes an official, our lives are only gonna get better!”

His words garnered sounds of agreement from the crowd. The early mornings, before they went down to the fields, were the perfect time to talk and gossip. Farmers didn’t have much access to news – they had no clue which emperor was on the job, but they were extremely sensitive to even the slightest happenings in the Liang Estate. It did, after all, greatly affect their livelihoods. They couldn’t afford not to be informed. Thus, everything that’d occurred in the last month or so, Tian Chang being dismissed, the clothworks closing down, most everyone knew all about it. But they weren’t startled or alarmed by those changes; on the contrary, they were somewhat delighted.

Wu Quan was a lecherous pervert, Tian Chang was arrogant and useless, and even the two Wang brothers, who’d been caned, were frequent troublemakers who loved to bully the other serfs. Now that all these people had gotten their just deserts, didn’t that prove their master was brilliant, strong, and stunningly perceptive?! And among the other things he’d done, exempting the tax of those who’d fought off bandits, giving land to the new troops, fixing irrigation infrastructure, and leasing interest-free seeds, which one of them wasn’t something worth celebrating?!

These people who looked to the skies for their next bowl seemed simple, but they weren’t dumb. They knew who treated them well, who treated them poorly. How could they not be overjoyed at seeing a ray of hope after years of drought and living hand-to-mouth?

“Heh! Quick, take a look, those fellows are training again!” someone yelled. Everyone’s gaze instantly drifted over.

A group of fit young men was running by the courtyard wall not far away. They wore short sleeveless tunics and long pants, the pantlegs tied up high. Their clothes were all the same cut and gray-black color, but it made them seem impeccably orderly. Each person also carried a three-meter-long wooden spear on their backs, but even so, they all ran at with the same gait and not a single person fell behind. A cloud of dust followed them as they ran into the distance.

“Aren’t our Liang Estate’s soldiers impressive!” someone sighed enviously.

Everyone knew they got great food and land. It’d hardly been a couple of months, and they already seemed like legitimate soldiers. Of course, people were jealous. Though, they knew that training was difficult too. They had to run two laps around the estate every morning, stand in formation, and practice spears. It looked even more strenuous than planting fields. But then again, watching them train really did give them a sense of safety. In times like these, who didn’t want a powerful force of soldiers protecting their homes?

The crowd of people looked upon the militia from afar as if they were watching a play. At that time, a monkey-faced youngster quietly made his way around the courtyard wall and headed to a thatched cottage deep within the fields. He looked left and right, checking that no one else was there, before dashing over to a run-down house.

There was a person gnashing his teeth and cussing loudly in the thatched cottage. Ever since Wang Hu and Wang Bao had been caned, they’d been thrown all the way over to this old shack. They’d lost their cushy jobs, got a bunch of injuries, and didn’t even have anyone to look after them. It was only because the two brothers were in decent shape, and had managed to scrounge up enough money to pay the woman next doors to bring them porridge every day, that they hadn’t croaked.

“Brother, these caning wounds are almost healed; are we really gonna stay here and farm?” Wang Bao dolefully asked as he rubbed his waist. Most of the wounds on his back had scabbed over already. It wouldn’t be long before they were fully recovered. But they’d lost their jobs and were too used to lazing off; could they really handle the hardship of planting fields?

“That fucking Jie’s the one causing all this mess. If only the master hadn’t listened to all those damn slaves!” Wang Hu’s injures were more severe. He could hardly do more than sprawl on his straw mat and cuss up a storm. Of course he knew they were in an awkward situation, but they couldn’t go back anymore. How else were they supposed to keep going?

The brothers, one standing, on lying down, were both frowning miserably when they heard a soft knocking on their door. But it wasn’t time for food yet, was it? Wang Bao limped over and answered the door.

“Ah-Yan?” Wang Bao lurched at seeing the shifty-eyed fellow outside. Wasn’t that the peddler from the nearby village, ah-Yan? He did occasionally drink and gamble with the two brothers, but why was he at their door? To point and laugh at them?

Wang Bao’s expression darkened, “What’re you doing here? Didn’t I return all the money from last time already?”

Ah-Yan chuckled, “I heard you got injured, brother, and as it happened, I’ve got just the medicine for it, if you want it.”

Then, he raised his hand and flashed a shiny chunk of silver. Silver! How could an ordinary person get their hands on it?! Wang Bao quickly moved aside and let him in.

The odor of mold and rot rushed up his nose the moment he entered. Ah-Yan sniffed and said clicked his tongue, “Seems like you’ve had it rough ever since the Liang family’s head went insane. This hovel must’ve been abandoned for years, I can’t believe you guys are living like this now!”

“If you’ve got something to say, say it straight!” Wang Hu roared. He didn’t have the patience to beat around the bush with him.

“Heh, speaking of, it’s good news.” Ah-Yan discourteously found a somewhat clean mat to sit down on and said, “It was quite a coincidence. A couple’a days ago, my family’s General Zhang went down the mountain to hunt and just so happened to run into Retainer Tian. General Zhang got along great with Mr. Tian, so he hired him as Qingyang Stronghold’s military advisor.”

The Wang brothers’ faces slackened with shock. As locals, they knew Qingyang Stronghold didn’t have any general, just a bunch of thieving, murdering mountain bandits. Their leader, surnamed Zhang, was known by the peasants as “Hungry Tiger Zhang.” Who could’ve thought that Tian Chang would ally with him, and even become his military advisor?!

“Don’t talk nonsense! How would Tian Chang buddy up with… you, you’re from the Qingyang Stronghold?” Wang Hu’s voice quavered as he came to that realization. He was tough on the outside and weak on the inside. The only thing he had the guts to do was push around the serfs in the estate. Mountain bandits, though, were a whole other matter.

“Good…. good, uh… ahem, good birds are picky about trees of course!” He’d wanted to sound sophisticated, but couldn’t remember what the actual phrase was. Ah-Yan coughed dryly and said, “At any rate, Advisor Tian said, since Bing Province is already such a mess, may as well rebel sooner rather than later. That way, we still got the time to enjoy some luxury! If you two can help General Zhang succeed, there’s no doubt the two of you can become officers of some sort.”

Wang Bao finally spoke up, “Could you tell us what Tian – Advisor Tian has in mind?”

“Ah-Bao – you!” Wang Hu glared at him. His brother really wanted to cooperate with Tian Chang?

“Brother, we really can’t keep going on like this in the estate. Let’s hear what ah-Yan’s gotta say first.” Wang Bao was smarter than his older brother; Tian Chang had need of their help! If he was brazenly sending people to find him already, then it meant the bandits had already decided on a plan. They were dead either way, so they might as well pick sides early and see if it gave them a chance of survival.

Ah-Yan laughed, “I knew you’d catch my drift, ah-Bao! General Zhang’s been gathering his troops, preparing to attack the Liang Estate. When the time comes and all the men and horses have surrounded the main gates, all you two need to do is sneakily lead a few men into the main residence and capture Liang Feng. That shouldn’t be too hard, am I right?”

That really wasn’t hard at all! Wang Bao thought it over; getting in to the main residence might be difficult for other people, but he and his brother knew it like the back of their hand. Not to mention, they weren’t doing the kidnapping themselves. All they had to do was show the mountain bandits the way in and they’d be heftily rewarded!

Wang Bao salivated when he recalled the storehouse he’d pass by when he made his rounds. He swallowed then said, “But the Liang Estate’s trainin’ troops now. What if those guys don’t leave the master’s side?”

“Relax, General Zhang’s bringing his own soldiers too!” Ah-Yan’s eyes glinted malevolently; he leered, “If those guys don’t come out and fight, we’ll wreck the farmlands first, then attack the main residence. After we break the doors and set fire to the place, they’ll have to come out then. But, if that happens, you two won’t’ve made much contribution at all. You never know what accidents might happen in all that fighting, right?”

Threats and temptation. He had those two people in the bag. Wang Hu and Wang bao looked at each other. A moment later, Wang Hu finally decided, “I’ve done guard duty for the Liang Estate for years, and I still got caned just like that! Who wants a master like him?!”

Wang Bao was more straightforward, “Whadda we get if we succeed?”

“You could be a sergeant no problem! And you get money, women! You’ll get your pick of all those pretty girls in the estate. Ah, and here’s something from General Zhang for your wounds. Hurry up and buy some medicine so you don’t hold us back!” Ah-Yan casually placed the little chunk of silver in front of the Wang brothers.

All the words in the world weren’t as convincing as money. Wang Hu swallowed, “Fine, we’ll do it!”

The author has something to say:

As for how Tian Chang’s wealth was dealt with, a thousand coins is about 6 kilograms. Ten thousand coins would be around 60 kilograms, if he embezzled a hundred thousand… heh, that old man definitely couldn’t carry all that weight.

So he could only hide the few silvers he’d exchanged before, but since silver isn’t a commonly used currency, he won’t have too much on him.