Chapter 125: Chapter 104: The Impressive Dismount and the Feast at Hongmen
Translator: 549690339
Three days later, after traveling more than a hundred miles, Wugang County was finally in sight.
Before entering the county, Sun Siwen had sent someone ahead to inform the county town that the new county magistrate was coming.
In fact, the local factions in Wugang County had already learned of the arrival of the new county magistrate two days ago, through spies embedded in Fu City.
Not only did they learn of the news, but they also found out that the new county magistrate was coming with an official force of 500 troops.
Upon hearing this news, many local influential families were shocked.
For a small county with a population of twenty or thirty thousand, a force of 500 troops was a significant number.
Previously, the army sent by the prefecture to quell the rebellion was only around two thousand strong.
As a result, many individuals who had initially harbored ulterior motives held back, planning to first observe the direction of the winds and test the new magistrate before deciding on their next course of action.
Thus, early in the morning, escorted by the messengers, representatives of the five major families in the county, two gangs, and several Miao People’s villages outside the city, had gathered at the city gate.
With them, hundreds of ordinary citizens who had been forcibly gathered to inflate the crowd had come to welcome the arrival of the County Magistrate.
The sun slowly rose, and soon it was noon.
The crowd at the city gate had been waiting for more than an hour, their feet weary and foreheads covered in sweat.
These lords, who were used to sitting in high positions and living in luxury, started to grow impatient, grumbling under their breath about the yet-to-arrive County Magistrate’s arrogance.
Even the hot-tempered gang leaders, who normally mixed with the Jianghu underworld, no longer wanted to wait around and were thinking of leaving.
Fortunately, the representatives of the big families from the county managed to restrain them, persuading them, “Perhaps the County Magistrate is late because of a delayed departure, so that’s why he hasn’t been able to arrive yet. As a new official, if we local gentry don’t come to greet him, he might think we’re being neglectful. Brother Zhao, let’s wait a bit longer.”
This Zhao Brother was the leader of the Qinghua Gang in the city.
Originally a small gang with only dozens of members, the Qinghua Gang took advantage of the chaos in the county town to expand rapidly in a short period of time, with the number of gang members ballooning to three or four hundred.
Now controlling two streets, two or three residential blocks in the city, they maintained their hundreds of gang members by extorting protection fees from businesses and residents in the streets and residential blocks.
Yet, undeniably, this was stealing the government’s interests.
As a result, Zhao, the gang leader, was very dissatisfied with the arrival of the new county magistrate, and the least he wanted was for him to take office.
He had initially planned to ambush and kill the newly appointed official on the way to taking office.
Unfortunately, the newly arrived county magistrate was escorted by a large army of 500 troops, which was even more than the gang members he had after several rounds of expansion.
Thus, the original plan had to be abandoned.
Thinking about all of this, Zhao the gang leader was fuming, but after being persuaded, he descended his stance and said sarcastically, “Ning Family Master, we are afraid of neglecting the new county magistrate, but I wonder if he has ever thought about neglecting us?
Everyone here are the elites of Wugang County, and the new county magistrate is being disrespectful to us. I wonder if he has ever thought that without our help, he, an outsider, would have a hard time governing such a large county?”
Hearing this blatant provocation, the expressions of the representatives from various factions present changed accordingly.
There were those who sympathized, those who remained expressionless, and those who frowned secretly…
Seeing this, the gang leader’s heart lifted.
The reason why he acted this way was not simply because he felt slighted. He wanted to take this opportunity to unite the various factions and then collectively sideline and resist the new county magistrate.
He refused to believe it.
If all the factions in the county combined their forces to gather two or three thousand warriors, even if the new magistrate had 500 troops, what could he
Taking advantage of the situation, the gang leader wanted to say more, but at that moment, a cloud of dust rose in the distance.
Then, the ground trembled slightly as the soldiers marched towards the county town in a formation that stretched for a mile.
After several days of training, Lu Yuan’s troops in the formation had gradually taken shape.
At this point, from a distance, they looked quite like a powerful and valiant army. The mountain people’s inherent fierceness was further enhanced by the armor they wore, making them even more intimidating.
Initially wanting to speak, the gang leader eyed the scene and found his throat choking, his mouth opening and closing, but in the end, no words came out.
At this moment, three or five riders suddenly broke away from the main group and galloped towards the city gate.
The rider in the lead was wearing black armor and riding a red horse, exuding an extraordinary air of authority.
Lu Yuan rode up to the crowd of people waiting, his sharp gaze sweeping over them, causing everyone to tense up. Then, in a calm tone, he asked, “Have all the local heroes from the major families in the county come?”
Although his words were plain, they carried a strong sense of authority, amplified by the large army behind him, which put great pressure on the crowd.
Gulp!
The sound of people swallowing nervously could be heard all around.
“In reply to General, all the five major families, the two gangs, and the three clans of the Miao People in the city have arrived,” said the Ning Family Master who had previously persuaded Master Zhao.
“Really?”
Lu Yuan’s gaze roamed as he sat high on his horse, glancing down at the crowd. Seeing their nervous expressions, a faint smile appeared on his face: “That’s good. On the way here, County Magistrate heard that bandits were causing chaos in the county and was worried that there were bandits everywhere, defending the city. It seems that there are still some good people in the city.”
Hearing these sarcastic words and Lu Yuan’s condescending attitude, the faces of these “important figures” who were used to being powerful and influential in the county turned displeased.
However, seeing the approaching army in the distance, they dared not act rashly, not even daring to retort a word.
Lu Yuan sneered at the cowardly appearances of these people, then waved his horse whip and said, “Alright, since the County Magistrate has arrived, you have fulfilled your duty to welcome him. Now, step aside. From today on, the city’s defense will be taken over by my troops.”
“Do any of you have objections?”
As he spoke, his gaze rely upon she crow a Dewy
Those who initially wanted to protest against the takeover of the city’s defense shrank back and lowered their heads under his stare.
Many people could tell that this general was demonstrating his authority.
But.
Seeing his imposing figure and the army behind him with flying banners, no one dared to be the bird that stuck its head out.
Because no one knew if they would end up being the sacrificial chicken to warn the other monkeys.
At this time, the army in the rear had already reached the city gate.
Following Lu Yuan’s earlier arrangement, they swiftly entered the city, dispersed the ragtag army guarding the gate, and took over the city’s defense.
As the city gate’s defense was taken over, Sun Siwen’s carriage also arrived.
The carriage stopped at the entrance of the city, and Sun Siwen stood up from inside.
Looking around, he saw the local heroes from the major families, their faces slightly pale from Lu Yuan’s intimidation. A smile appeared on Sun County Magistrate’s face, and he said with a bow, “Thank you all for waiting. I have traveled a long way and am exhausted from the journey, so I won’t say much now. ”
“Tonight, there will be a banquet at the county office, and I hope you will all grace us with your presence. During the banquet, I hope to discuss plans for governing the county together with all of you.”
Seeing the new county magistrate’s refined demeanor, the frightened local heroes finally relaxed.
At this point, it seemed that he intended to work together with them to govern the county, and they couldn’t help but feel secretly pleased.
“County Magistrate, if you are tired, please rest first. If you are worn out, it would be our fault.”
“Sir, rest assured, I will definitely attend the banquet tonight.”
“Exactly! If the County Magistrate invites us, who dares not to attend would be going against me!”
The people immediately made their statements.
As they watched, Lu Yuan and Sun Siwen exchanged glances, both seeing the amusement in their friend’s eyes.
The trap of the Hongmen Banquet was set; they were just waiting for the fish to take the bait.
Afterward, Sun Siwen excused himself for his fatigue and returned to the carriage.
Lu Yuan escorted him and proceeded towards the county office.
Since they had decided to hold the Hongmen Banquet, preparations had to be made. Otherwise, if things were chaotic and a mistake was made, what would they do?
In this aspect, the two friends were quite serious about it..