Chapter 652: Eradicating Evil
Chapter 652: Eradicating Evil
Liu Zhongxing rode on a warhorse and led 2,500 soldiers to rush towards the county town at high speed. It would be more appropriate to call them bandits rather than soldiers. They had no armor and were all dressed in tattered cloth. They held a variety of weapons in their hands, including spears, hayforks, hoes, and wooden sticks, long and short. Each of them was skinny and pale, but the desire to rob was burning in their eyes and their faces were flushed with excitement.
They finally rushed out of the narrow mountain road and the road suddenly opened up. A few dozen steps to the right was a large bamboo forest.
At this time, Kong Qingming whispered behind Shi Xiaozhen: "The man on horseback is Liu Zhongxing!"
Shi Xiaozhen nodded and ordered, "Shoot the horse rider!"
Twenty sharpshooters raised their crossbows and aimed at Liu Zhongxing on his horse. Shi Xiaozhen shouted, "Shoot!"
Twenty crossbow arrows were fired almost at the same time, shooting towards Liu Zhongxing with incredible speed. Liu Zhongxing was looking at the city wall in front of him and did not notice the sneak attack in the bamboo forest at all. At first they were quite vigilant, but when they were only three miles away from the city wall, everyone's vigilance disappeared.
Liu Zhongxing suddenly felt something and turned around. "Puff! Puff! Puff!" Twenty crossbow arrows shot into his body, from forehead to throat to chest, and none of the twenty crossbow arrows missed. The last ray of light flashed in Liu Zhongxing's eyes. It was despair. All his ambitions and dreams were shattered at this moment. He and his horse rolled down the long slope and finally fell into the turbulent Qingge River. He rolled up a white flower and disappeared.
The remaining 250 crossbow arrows were shot at the soldiers. More than 100 soldiers in the front screamed and fell down under the dense crossbow arrows.
Shi Xiaozhen yelled: "Kill!"
He charged towards the enemy with a lance in hand. Nearly three hundred of his inner guards jumped up and followed their leader to charge towards the enemy with lances in hand. The inner guards were wearing Ming Guang armor, eagle-ridged helmets, and equipped with swords and crossbows. They were extremely well-equipped and usually had war horses, but because they came by boat, they did not bring any with them.
But even so, they are still the elite among the elite. Each of them can fight one against five, so dealing with these bandits is no problem for them.
In just a few moments, thousands of bandits were killed and their bodies were scattered all over the ground. They cried and shouted, and turned back to escape. The mountain path was narrow, and in the crowd, soldiers were constantly pushed down the slope, tumbling into the river.
Under the powerful shooting and attack of the Sui army's inner guards, more than 600 bandits were killed in a short period of time, including the main general Liu Zhongxing. All the bandits who entered the open area were killed, and the battlefield quickly shifted to the narrow mountain road.
The Sui army in front stabbed with their spears, while the Sui army soldiers behind shot with crossbows, and waves of enemy troops fell down the slope.
After the bandits collapsed, they scrambled for their lives on the mountain roads, and the Sui army soldiers chased them and shot arrows at them.
Less than two miles after they ran, thirty inner guards who had been ambushing in the rear rushed out. They built a sandbag wall with sandbags, cutting off the bandits' escape route. They hid behind the sandbag wall and shot the fleeing enemy soldiers with crossbows.
With pursuers behind them and blockades in front of them, more than a thousand bandits were trapped in a desperate death trap.
This was a carefully planned and prepared ambush, and also a one-sided massacre without any suspense. The gap in equipment, skills and tactics between the two sides was too great. The bandits were restricted by the terrain and did not take advantage of their numbers at all. Instead, they trampled and pushed each other in an atmosphere of fear. Hundreds of bandits were pushed down the slope and into the river.
The rest of the bandits were either shot or stabbed to death with spears. It was no use kneeling down and begging for mercy. Shi Xiaozhen showed no mercy and ordered them all to be killed.
It took nearly two hours, and all 2,500 bandits were killed, with no one surviving. The Sui army only paid a minor price of seven deaths and more than ten injuries. The mountain roads and hillsides were dyed red with blood.
Shi Xiaozhen left 100 people and local soldiers to clean up the battlefield, and he led 200 soldiers and Ma Yuan and Kong Qingming to Wangjiawan, and arrested the four bullies of the Wang family, father and son, and more than 20 evil slaves. Fortunately, they found the shopkeeper Mao and the boat boss of Wuhu Town in the Wang family's mansion. The two rushed to report the news, but they were a step too late, so they hid in the Wang family's mansion and were found by the soldiers. Shi Xiaozhen immediately interrogated the shopkeeper Mao and the boat boss, and basically confirmed their guess that the restaurant in Wuhu Town was invested by the Wang family. When the Wang family learned that Chen Gui's family went to Jingkou to complain, they notified the shopkeeper Mao to attack the officials who came to investigate, disguised as river thieves to commit crimes. The boat boss took 500 strings of money from the shopkeeper Mao, and took two of his boatmen to attack the investigating officials of the Ministry of Justice.
Thirty people knelt in the yard, with their hands and feet tied behind their backs. Shi Xiaozhen held up the Jinwang gold medal and said loudly, "This is the Jinwang gold medal. You will die knowingly. According to Article 17 of the Jinwang Order, anyone who participates in rebellion and kills officials or seriously endangers the people will be killed without mercy. You killed six investigators from the Ministry of Justice, resulting in the deaths of five people. Your crime is unforgivable!"
Shi Xiaozhen pointed at his twenty or so men and said, "You have aided Zhou in his evil deeds and raped so many women. Your crimes are extremely serious and you shall all be put to death!"
Everyone was so frightened that their faces turned pale and they shouted for mercy. Shi Xiaozhen gave an order and thirty soldiers rushed forward with spears in their hands, piercing the chests of the thirty people, killing them all.
Ma Yuan and Kong Qingming were secretly shocked. Although he was an experienced official, he had never seen such a cruel and ruthless general. But when he thought about it, it was what he deserved. They tricked dozens of women, and they were all raped by these servants in turn.
Shi Xiaozhen ordered that the bodies be burned and buried deep, all properties be confiscated, and all female family members be driven out of the house, forcing them to return to their parents' homes to survive.
The head of Wangjiawan Village was also arrested and had his leg broken. Kong Qingming, who had just been appointed county lieutenant, removed him from his post.
So far, there are still two boatmen on the run, and the Ministry of Justice is now trying to capture them.
At this time, the soldiers brought in two people, Chen Sanlang and his wife. They knelt down and thanked him in tears.
Chen Sanlang then explained how he killed the soldiers who stayed behind in the mountain stronghold and rescued his wife and other captured women.
Shi Xiaozhen was surprised and happy. He was preparing to lead people to attack the mountain stronghold, but he didn't expect that all the problems were solved by Chen Sanlang. You can't tell from his honest and simple appearance, but in an emergency he is brave and careful, ruthless and decisive. What a talent!
He praised, "I'm glad you're all right. This house and the Wang family's land are yours as compensation for the Wang family's harm to you. I will ask for permission to let your family come back. The evil has been eradicated, so you don't have to worry about it anymore."
Chen Sanlang clasped his fists and said, "I want to join the Sui army. General, can you accept?"
Shi Xiaozhen took out a military badge and handed it to him, saying, "Wait until your father and brother come back and arrange your family affairs, then come to Jingkou Neiwei to find me. My name is Shi Xiaozhen, Langjiang of Neiwei, and I'm here to recommend you!"
Chen Sanlang was overjoyed, "Thank you for the recommendation, General!"
Shi Xiaozhen put her arm around his shoulders and whispered to him, "Your wife has suffered a lot. You should take good care of her like a man and don't despise her."
Chen Sanlang shook his head. "I won't despise her. She is my wife and the mother of my two children. My children and I cannot live without her. We should just regard the past as being bitten by a wild dog."
Shi Xiaozhen praised: "This is what a man should do. Go back and work hard in the army, strive to make military achievements, and fight for a future for your children in the future."
Chen Sanlang immediately rushed to the mountain stronghold with the internal security soldiers, cleaned out the stronghold, and finally set it on fire to burn it cleanly.
(End of this chapter)