Chapter 43: Thunderous Means

  Under such circumstances, only the bandits came to kill them, there was no other way. The crowd felt dizzy and were about to faint.

  The timid ones burst into loud crying, while the braver ones could only take a deep breath and force themselves to hold back their fear, so as not to lose face.

  "Hum! You are so timid, what kind of integrity is this? We who eat the imperial salary should be loyal to the king's affairs. Even if we die, we cannot lose face for the imperial court!" Zheng Taizong snorted, raised his head, puffed out his chest, with a heroic air of going to death.

  Those officials did not have his courage, shrinking back and forth, not even daring to breathe. For a time, Zheng Ta was proud and excited, standing out from the crowd, particularly eye-catching.

  But nobody imitated him, and all people could do was wait for death.

  "Bang!"

  The door opened and Wu Ji suddenly appeared at the entrance.

  "Lord Wu, is it you?"

  Everyone was shocked and amazed when they saw Wu Jie's face, with their eyes wide open like bronze bells.

  "Director Wu, you've caught He Wanquan?" The county magistrate's eyes rolled back, and he nearly fainted.

  The entire county government officials, only Wu Ji and Huang Fu Su escaped. Although the possibility of coming to rescue them is small, there is still a glimmer of hope. If Wu Ji was caught, it would be completely cut off their hope.

  A drowning man will clutch at a straw, it is also hope!

  "Am I mistaken? Lord Wu is so calm and composed, truly a good example. But no matter how calm one is, it's still impossible to escape death!"

  "What kind of people are around him? How can he be so happy?"

  "They all look so happy, can't they have any sorrowful matters, and can't wait to die early?"

  Everyone's eyes fell on Wu Qing, Yang Xiu Xiu and the others, only to see that each of them had a joyful expression, as if this place was not a death trap that made officials tremble with fear, but rather a paradise.

  "Governor Wu, you wouldn't have annihilated the Liufeng bandits, would you?" Zheng Tai's gaze fell upon Wu Ji's appearance, and a thought that felt utterly absurd surged to her mind, slipping out of her mouth.

  Wu Ji looked neat and tidy, with no signs of a fight. Moreover, the people who came with him all had smiles on their faces, and Zheng Tai couldn't think of any other explanation.

  "It's not even worth mentioning annihilating them, just getting rid of these bandit leaders like He Wanquan is enough!" Wu Ji took a step forward and untied Zheng Tai.

  "It's impossible! It's impossible!"

  As soon as Wu Jie's voice fell, there was a burst of noise, and the officials rushed to shout loudly.

  "Feng is extremely ruthless and cunning, with quick reflexes and mastery of martial arts. He's not someone to be underestimated!"

  "Mr. Wu's abacus skills are superb, getting rid of the thief leader is impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

  Yang Xiuxiu came in and busied herself untying the ropes for everyone. In just a short while, she had untied many people's bonds, and the officials couldn't help but have their confidence shaken: "Could it be that the thief leader has really been rendered useless?"

  "It's possible that if we don't get rid of the leader of the thieves, how can Lord Wu and his men enter?"

  "Yes! But how did Governor Wu abolish such a cruel and ruthless bandit chief?"

  Everyone made various guesses, but none of them guessed the real reason.

  Wu Jie ignored them and briefly explained the situation, and everyone suddenly realized it with surprise and joy. They had originally thought they were doomed to die without a glimmer of hope, but unexpectedly Wu Jie turned the tables and reversed the situation.

  "Shame! Shame!" Zheng Ta's face was filled with self-reproach: "I, Zheng Ta, as an official appointed by the imperial court, am actually inferior to Wu Daoren, this chief clerk. Shame, shame!"

  This matter, to Zheng Tai, was like a dream. He was captured by He Wanquan and he couldn't believe it; he was rescued by Wu Ji and he couldn't believe it either. This capture and release were like a dream, making it hard for people to believe.

  "Lord Zheng, although the bandit leader has been eliminated, however, the situation in the city remains severe." Wu Ji's face turned solemn as he reminded Lady Zheng: "Firstly, there are many remnants of the bandits within the city walls. Secondly, there are 500 mutinous soldiers. If not handled properly, it would only take an instant for Rongxin City to be reduced to ruins."

  The bandits and mutinous soldiers together numbered several hundred, and if they were to wreak havoc, looting and burning, it would be a simple matter to reduce the temple to ruins.

  "Reasonable!" Zheng Ta frowned and looked around the room, sighing: "With so many soldiers, how can we control them with just a few people?"

  Zheng Tai was a perceptive person, and after some deliberation, he said: "The soldiers' mutiny, although there were people who were coerced and had no choice, but after all, they participated in this matter, and their hearts are uneasy. Even if the officials promised not to pursue them, they may not necessarily be willing to serve me wholeheartedly. Not to mention that there are still remnants of the bandits in the city, and if they stir up trouble, the consequences will be unpredictable."

  "Indeed! Indeed!" Wu Ji greatly agreed with Zheng Tai's analysis and said: "It is precisely because of this that I did not worry about them, but came to rescue Lord Zheng first. Does Lord Zheng have a good plan?"

  "Difficult! Difficult! Difficult!" Zheng Tai said three "difficult" words in a row, scanning the people in the room and saying: "We are only fifty or sixty people, and even with the addition of Wu Shi's military industry and Qi Yun She's good men, we still have less than one hundred people, it is difficult to control the soldiers!"

  These nearly hundred people, except for the good men of Qiyun Society, are not worthy of being on the battlefield. Once they start fighting, they will only be slaughtered. However, if the soldiers are not controlled, the situation will still be difficult to handle, and Wu Ji's efforts will come to nothing.

  "Governor Wu has already done us a great favor by rescuing us. You all go ahead and leave, I'll go talk to the soldiers, explain the situation to them, if it doesn't work out, I'll die for the imperial court." Zheng Tai was not one to give up easily, she decided to give it a try.

  "Sir, you can't!" The officials all shouted in unison.

  "This is a consequence of my own actions, and I should pay for it with my life!" Zheng Ta said resolutely.

  He spoke seriously, not pretending at all. Wu Ji's good impression of Zheng Tai increased a few more points. Although he had made mistakes, he was able to make amends with his life and tried his best to salvage the situation, which is something only a good official can do.

  "Lord Zheng, it's actually unnecessary." Wu Ji thought for a moment and already had an idea: "I do have a plan, but it's too ruthless."

  "Oh! Lord Wu, you have a plan? Quickly tell me!" Zheng Tai was overjoyed, and up to now, he had more and more admiration for Wu Ji.

  Before, he just thought the idea was novel and the abacus method was good. Today's events made him unexpectedly discover that Wu Ji remained calm in the face of danger, calmly and quietly turning impossible things into possible ones, reversing the situation.

  "Yes! Lord Wu, speak quickly!" The officials all urged him on.

  "The soldiers' families aren't in the city, are they? As long as we control their families, we can control the soldiers. This move will definitely make them surrender, it's just a bit ruthless!" Wu Jisan said, expressing his own thoughts.

  The Song Dynasty army was different from any other army in Chinese history, with family members following the troops. This accompaniment was not a temporary reunion, but a long-term garrison together, even when the Song army went to battle. Except for special circumstances, family members would follow along.

  Fighting with family members is a unique feature of the Song army.

  The families of the garrison troops are in the city. If these families can be controlled, the soldiers will be forced to surrender. Soldiers are also human beings and cannot abandon their loved ones, even if they become bandits.

  This move by Wu Jie really hit the soldiers' weak point, it's just too ruthless. If things hadn't been forced to this point, Wu Jie wouldn't have come up with such a vicious plan either.

  "Ruthless! Ruthless! Indeed, it's ruthless enough! But it's a good idea!" Zheng Tai wasn't one to drag things out either. On the contrary, he was also a ruthless and decisive person. When it came time to make tough decisions, he wouldn't hesitate: "We don't have many people here, we can only mobilize the common folk to help us. Hmm, the city gates must be sealed off. This matter will require troubling Wu Shi's military engineers and the brave men of Qi Yun Society!"

  The city gate must be sealed off, Wu Ji strongly agreed with this and led his men to take the city gate. The Flowing Wind Bandits were guarding the city gate with swords in hand, and no one dared to approach. As soon as Wu Ji arrived, the heroes of the Qi Yun Society took the lead, a wave of arrows flew over, followed by thunderbolt bombs, and the Flowing Wind Bandits became corpses, and the city gate was taken back.

  Guishen City was that big, with only four city gates, one in each of the east, west, south and north directions. It was quickly taken back by Wu Ji.

  Retake the city gate and have the good men of Qiyun Society guard it, the bandits inside the city will be like fish in a barrel, only to be captured alive.

  After completing the task of seizing the city gate, Wu Ji returned to the county government office, where he heard Zheng Taizong passionately and fervently explaining the righteousness to the soldiers: "The official knows that you were forced into this situation. You did not want to betray the imperial court. The official guarantees that the imperial court will not hold past mistakes against you. As long as you follow the official's orders and defend the city of Guishen, you will be credited with meritorious service!"

  He spoke eloquently and passionately, but none of the soldiers believed him.

  "Let our families go!"

  "If you let our families go, we'll believe you!"

  The common people, armed with kitchen knives, cleavers, hoes and wooden clubs, were escorting over a thousand family members, confronting the soldiers. The soldiers were shouting their wives' and children's names, their faces filled with anxiety and worry. Meanwhile, the family members had looks of terror on their faces, trembling with fear.

  The Liufeng bandits were holding steel knives, facing the soldiers, and would not let them go, wanting to kill them. The Liufeng bandits were afraid that the world was not chaotic enough, they wanted to rush up and stir up trouble, it's best to kill some family members, everything will be easy to handle. However, the soldiers were worried about their families, how could they let them leave, surrounding them in a circle.

  Letting go of his family would mean losing his bargaining chip, so Zheng Ta naturally wouldn't fall for it. He spoke loudly and tried to persuade them with righteous words, speaking eloquently, but the soldiers were not convinced.

  "What a troublesome thing!" Wu Ji had no good impression of Zheng Tai's words, and to deal with these soldiers, he had to be ruthless.

  "Hand grenade, throw it! Throw it into the crowd!"

  Wu Jie lit a thunderbolt and threw it at the Liufeng thief who was confronting the soldiers.

  "Ah! Throw it into the crowd?" Yang Xiuxiu and the others were startled, but Wu Ji ordered them to throw it, so they didn't hesitate, lit the thunderbolt and threw it into the crowd.