Chapter 108: Chapter 107: Filthy Morality
“Where are your men and horses?”
Yun Ce tied the towel over his face and looked around.
Pei Chuan waved his hand, and dozens of armored strong men came from the hills, quickly helping Yun Ce dispose of the corpses of the men and horses on the road cleanly.
“It seems I acted too soon. If I had waited a bit longer, you would have killed this Inspector too.”
Pei Chuan sat dejectedly on a stone and roared at Yun Ce: “Give me one more day, and I could have broken into Daizhou Prefecture. My child wouldn’t have died.”
Yun Ce looked at Miss Hong and said: “In that case, you knew about the Shehuo even earlier than I did. No wonder when I told you not to attack Yun City, you didn’t. When you left the Royal Hunting Ground, you were already planning to attack Daizhou Prefecture.”
Miss Hong said: “When the Great Han expels Chuyun Prefecture, Chuyun Prefecture’s Shehuo will surely be extinguished. But we waited a long time and saw no celestial phenomenon like when Haikun Prefecture fell. We thought it would stay that way forever. Unfortunately, when we learned that Chuyun Prefecture Inspector Han De had been killed and the Shehuo disappeared, we began preparing to conquer Daizhou Prefecture. In the end, we were still a day late.”
“Now, Dragon Gate Bridge has a dangerous position, not easy to seize…”
Yun Ce did not respond. Miss Hong’s words were all about using him to take Dragon Gate Bridge.
Even though she had seen him kill, Yun Ce was unwilling to help them attack Dragon Gate Bridge. No matter what, he hoped that after E Ji and the others crossed the bridge, Miss Hong and her people would then go scheme against Daizhou Prefecture.
1 “Although Chuyun Prefecture has lost its Shehuo, its land, population, and resources are still there. Why go to the trouble of expeditioning to Daizhou Prefecture? Even if you take it, when Chang’an’s Ancestral Fire extinguishes Daizhou Prefecture’s Shehuo, won’t you have to keep advancing all the way, not stopping until you take Chang’an?”
1 “It’s not like that. The Shehuo of Protectorate Prefectures was originally the Ancestral Fire divided into two hundred portions. Even if Chuyun Prefecture’s Shehuo is extinguished, the power of the remaining one hundred ninety-nine Shehuo will strengthen.”
1 “So, losing a few Protectorate Prefectures is no big deal.”
1 “Daizhou Prefecture’s Shehuo here is different. It is the foundation of the Great Han’s three hundred military prefectures. If the Ancestral Fire extinguishes Daizhou Prefecture’s Shehuo, it will completely lose that portion of Shehuo. Once the Ancestral Fire’s power weakens to a certain extent, a stronger Shehuo will automatically become the new Ancestral Fire.”
1 “Taking Daizhou Prefecture means we will have our own Shehuo.”
1 Miss Hong had just miscarried and was still very weak, but her spirit seemed vigorous. Watching the dark clouds roll in with her hands behind her back was an unforgettable sight for Yun Ce.
1 The dark clouds from Chuyun Prefecture gradually spread over, bringing heavy rain and a long convoy.
1 Miss Hong did not mention Dragon Gate Bridge, and Yun Ce did not want to ask. Once they reached Dragon Gate Bridge, Old Pan and the others would naturally find a way into Daizhou Prefecture.
1 When the heavy rain fell from above, it was truly very dark. Only near Daizhou Prefecture on the horizon was there a patch of fish-belly white.
1 A fire dragon raced through the darkness. Yun Ce stood on the high ground watching this racing fire dragon. The convoy’s numbers were already thirty percent less than when they set out.
2 “You can change horses here, then head nonstop to Dragon Gate Bridge. Three days later, when my main force arrives, I will attack Dragon Gate Bridge. Remember, you only have three days.”
2 As soon as Miss Hong, wrapped in a rain cape, finished speaking, Pei Chuan carried her away from this high slope. At the foot of the high slope, a group of cart-pulling sheep were grazing in the rain, one mouthful at a time. These livestock, mild-tempered to the extreme, never cared about the future.
2 Yun Ce saw E Ji. That woman deliberately left her face exposed. She seemed to know Yun Ce was watching her and knew how to reassure him.
2 Old Pan saw the herd of horses and immediately stopped the convoy. The previous horses had already run over two hundred li nonstop and could no longer hold out.
2 Watching the convoy busily change horses, Yun Ce mounted the red date horse again and galloped straight to Dragon Gate Bridge.
2 When dawn broke, Yun Ce finally arrived at Dragon Gate Bridge.
2 With Dragon Gate Bridge, there was naturally a Dragon River beneath it. The Dragon River originated in Daizhou Prefecture’s Cangshan Mountain. After flowing out from Cangshan Mountain, its water volume was extremely abundant.
2 When Huo Qubing established the Great Han’s three hundred military prefectures, he had used the Dragon River as the boundary: inside the Dragon River was the Great Han, outside was the barbarian territory that could be conquered.
2 Ever since killing those four red-armored cavalrymen, Yun Ce always felt that Daizhou Prefecture’s cavalry were inferior to Chuyun Prefecture’s. It was one thing to be no match for Tiger Guards Army’s Zhou Chengming, but even Dianjun Captain Zhao Ling’s subordinates seemed far inferior.
2 Cavalry like this could serve as escorts for the Inspector, undoubtedly Daizhou Prefecture’s elites. And these were considered elites?
3 Yun Ce changed into a set of dry clothes from the waterproof saddlebag. The food was also prepared by E Ji. Though not soaked by rainwater, after being left overnight, it was now as hard as stone. Yi Tree flatbread should be eaten while hot.
3 Behind him, Chuyun Prefecture’s dark clouds roiled with lightning and thunder like a demonic realm. In front, Daizhou Prefecture was clear skies and bright sun, birdsong and flowers like an immortal realm.
3 Clearly, the people at Dragon Gate Bridge ahead had no idea that a large group of Chuyun Prefecture refugees would soon cross this bridge into the Great Han Homeland.
3 Old Huang was the Patrol Inspector of Dragon Gate Bridge Post Station. Following Old Cao’s instructions on the way, after entering Dragon Gate Bridge Post Station, Yun Ce immediately found a Patrol Inspector named Zhang Yi.
3 After mentioning Old Huang, the man seemed unconcerned, just squinting at Yun Ce with a smile, and had already placed one hand under the table.
3 The gold ingot that Daizhou Prefecture Inspector Chen Lin wouldn’t accept became Zhang Yi’s in one second. And this was just the greeting gift.
3 The man was a good fellow. Seeing Yun Ce exhausted and his horse spent, he invited him to eat a meal of stewed meat. Yun Ce no longer asked where the meat came from. Since he was going to live, work, revolutionize, and rebel in the Great Han, he had to adapt to life here.
3 The stewed meat was unexpectedly delicious, especially the golden soup. One sip filled Yun Ce’s already withered stomach with vitality.
3 “One thousand taels of gold, and as your big brother, I’ll lift the ban for half an hour.”
3 “How could that work?” Yun Ce was greatly shocked.
4 Zhang Yi’s face, originally smiling like an ingot, immediately darkened. He said softly: “This price already factors in Old Huang’s face.”
4 Yun Ce grabbed Zhang Yi’s hand and said softly: “It’s not too much, it’s too little.”
4 “How so?”
4 “These one thousand taels of gold are for Brother Zhang. If you take it all, what about your brothers under you? And what about Brother Zhang’s superiors, do they not get a share?”
4 “Brother Zhang, our goal is to handle this neatly. Think about it: what is Chuyun Prefecture like now? Is it a place for living people?”
4 “This time, we finally have His Majesty’s decree giving us a way to survive. As long as we can live, who cares about money?”
4 Zhang Yi swallowed and gritted his teeth: “One thousand five hundred taels of gold. Big brother will lift the ban for one hour.”
4 Yun Ce shook his head: “What we’re doing now is not something ordinary people can handle. If it comes out, it’s heads rolling.”
4 “Before we do it, we must consider all the relationships front and back, left and right, think them through, make sure no one knows, no ghost suspects—just you know, I know.”
4 Zhang Yi looked at Yun Ce in confusion: “I really can’t figure it out.”
5 Yun Ce said softly: “How to handle the identities of the people coming in? Some are going to Chang’an, some to Luoyang, the farthest to Hongzhou.”
5 “Though they are all convicted prisoners now, once in the Great Han, think about it: how could they be willing to bear a convicted prisoner identity and continue being looked down on by Great Han people?”
5 “Brother Zhang, think about it: don’t trouble two parties for one matter.”
5 Zhang Yi finally understood. They wanted official identities, true Great Han Homeland identities. He himself had a Great Han Homeland identity. Normally, it was useless. Those Han people who should eat their fill already had, stuffed full. Those who should starve inevitably starved desperately.
5 Being a Great Han person didn’t mean clothes and food without worry.
5 Zhang Yi slammed his fist on the table: “Two thousand taels, big brother will handle it for you.”
5 Yun Ce smiled: “Three thousand taels is the price fitting Brother Zhang’s status.”
5 Hearing three thousand taels, Zhang Yi was not surprised. He just tapped Yun Ce’s chest twice with his finger: “I’ll give you five hundred blank identity tokens. Fill them yourself.”
5 Yun Ce cupped his hands repeatedly and agreed with Zhang Yi that as soon as the convoy arrived, they could pass immediately.
5 E Ji would reach Dragon Gate Bridge at earliest in the evening. Yun Ce had plenty of time to communicate with Miss Hong and Pei Chuan about silencing the witnesses.
6 As for the three thousand taels of gold, Yun Ce would certainly pay Zhang Yi in full, and this gold would need contributions from several parties.
6 Yun Ce thought it was great. The matter handled, and the gold ending up as his own—a perfect closed loop.
6 Miss Hong somewhat despised Yun Ce’s cautious manner. She felt a true man traveling the world should hold his head high and declare his innocence to all under heaven. If she had to live like Yun Ce, she would scorn it.
6 There was no point comparing with a big rebel. Seeing Miss Hong’s subordinates gathering more and more, Yun Ce anxiously looked back at the road they came.
6 He was really worried that once Miss Hong and her people acted, he would have a hard time finding another government organization at Dragon Gate Bridge that met all his requirements.
6 Fortunately, when fiery clouds appeared on the horizon, the convoy finally arrived. Old Cao’s eyes were red like charcoal fire. Seeing Yun Ce, he asked: “Is the matter settled?”
6 Yun Ce said: “I didn’t want to enter Daizhou Prefecture as Chuyun Prefecture refugees, so I spent a bit more.”
6 Old Cao turned to the gathering crowd: “I think this money is well spent.”
6 Then he looked at Yun Ce again: “No more than four thousand taels of gold, and the matter is done.”
6 Yun Ce shook his head: “They want three thousand taels. Deliver the gold, and people and vehicles pass immediately.”
7 Old Cao punched Yun Ce’s chest: “This is handled beautifully.”
7 Yun Ce said: “Bring the gold, pass the checkpoint.”
