roccoschili Chapter 97 The Drums of the Troops Shake the Earth
Chapter 97 The Drums of the Troops Shake the Earth
Chapter 97 The Drums of the Troops Shake the Earth
Upon hearing the words "Imperial Guards," everyone present was astonished, and Scarface immediately drew his sword.
Pointing at Qin Jisheng, he angrily shouted at the leader, "What does this mean?!"
"Sheathe your sword!"
Seeing the scarred man's reaction, the middle-aged woman shouted and, along with the two people beside her, drew their swords from their sheaths.
"I'm just a lowly errand boy, not a member of the Imperial Guard."
Seeing that the group from Huaizhendao were almost forced to back down, Qin Jisheng sneered and said, "Considering the past favors we had, I'll show you all a way out."
"A way out?"
A middle-aged man with a goatee sneered at Qin Jisheng, "You traitor, who would believe your nonsense?!"
"Eleventh Brother, what are you saying?"
Qin Jisheng looked at the man with the goatee and retorted, "I haven't betrayed you!"
"Stop!"
Seeing that the situation was gradually getting out of control, the leader stood up, followed by several of his disciples.
He first addressed the scarred man in a stern voice, "Fourteenth Brother, if you still remember the rules, put the knife away!"
The scarred man, his expression grim, remained silent for a moment before sheathing his sword. The middle-aged woman and the other two also sheathed their swords.
The leader then looked at Qin Jisheng and said, "Hey Qin, what directions are you going to give us? Tell us."
"Ha, it's laughable. Actually, the government troops were initially mobilized only to suppress the bandits, not to capture you all."
Qin Jisheng sneered and explained to everyone, "However, the Longtian and Bangchui families, for some unknown reason, are plotting to start a rebellion!"
The government army has tens of thousands of troops, and there are also the capital's garrison and the border troops in Jizhou and Changping. The uprising is bound to fail.
When that time comes, Longtian, Bangchui, and those other families will be in trouble, and you, being outsiders, won't be able to escape it either!
But as long as you help me, we can destroy the Longtian, Bangchui, and those other families—or rather, the Wenxiang Sect.
"Then I can ask my superior to spare you all, what do you say?"
Everyone fell silent.
The government troops' mobilization this time was indeed very large, and they were quite panicked; several cowardly ones had already fled.
"Ah, Lord Qin is truly kind-hearted."
The leader suddenly sneered and questioned Qin Jisheng, "But does your superior know that you were once one of our sworn brothers?"
He strode up behind Qin Jisheng, grabbed a corner of the man's clothes, stopped, and continued to question him: "Do you know that the precious scriptures passed down by our patriarch are tattooed on your back?!"
Qin Jisheng fell silent for a moment before speaking, "I kindly offered you a way out, and you repay kindness with enmity?!"
Thank you so much!
The leader returned to the table and sneered at Qin Jisheng, "But you are now an official, while we are thieves! What brotherhood is there between officials and thieves?"
Li Ruzhen, the commander of the Western Division, led two hundred of his personal guards from the capital and stationed himself in Zhangjiawan City.
Also accompanying them was Chen Jizong, the commander of the river works camp, who led a hundred of his personal guards to the Liangshuihe camp outside Zhangjiawan city.
In addition, there were 100 guards under Zhang Ye, the tax supervisor of Tongwan, 500 horse-breeding warriors from the Imperial Horse Administration, and 1,000 men from the Four Guard Battalions.
Twenty-five imperial guards from the Thousand-Household Office, fifty constables, and fifty militiamen from the Patrol Office were dispatched to apprehend the suspects.
The river work battalion has 1,500 able-bodied men to protect the river, 100 transport soldiers under the command of the transport corps commander, and 400 transport laborers.
There were a total of 625 soldiers and 3500 able-bodied men. The horse-breeding warriors of the Imperial Horse Administration and the Four Guard Battalions could only be counted as able-bodied men.
They were jointly responsible for the defense and suppression of Zhangjiawan.
Gao Yingjie, the garrison commander of Tongzhou, dispatched one of his officers, a captain, to lead three hundred men to garrison Hexiwu.
In addition, there were 1,700 guards from Tongzhou Sanwei, Dingbianwei, Shenwu Zhongwei, Yingzhou Qiantunwei, and Wuqingwei.
Zhang Kun dispatched Yang Desheng, the garrison commander of the river work battalion, leading 100 men from Zuo Liangyu's First Bureau, along with 500 able-bodied men to protect the river.
Twenty-five imperial guards from the Thousand-Household Office, fifty constables, and fifty militiamen from the Patrol Office were dispatched to apprehend the suspects.
The transport unit was led by a commander of one hundred soldiers and four hundred porters.
There were a total of 525 soldiers and 2700 able-bodied men, and the guards of each garrison could only be counted as able-bodied men.
They were jointly responsible for the defense and suppression of the enemy in Hexi.
In reality, the actual military force was much larger, including the Ministry of Revenue's granary and river management officials, and the Censorate's granary and river patrol censors, among others.
These officials dispatched by the imperial court to Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu also had their own retainers and militia, totaling several hundred people.
In addition, the guards employed by various businesses and the laborers hired at the docks also provided a certain level of defense.
Finally, Zhang Kun personally led Cao Meng's second unit and Tang Sheng's third unit, totaling 150 men, from the river engineering battalion.
As a mobile force providing support between Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu.
In addition, 2000 able-bodied men were stationed to guard the camps in various suppression areas and provide logistical support.
To Zhang Kun's delight, Zhang Zhiyuan and Zhang Jingzhen from the Duke of Ying's mansion led 200 servants to come and help!
In this way, Zhang Kun's mobile forces have doubled!
"If you help me destroy the Fragrance Sect, then we will no longer be thieves."
Qin Jisheng advised the crowd, "Why fight a losing battle and make enemies of the government troops?"
"That's easier said than done."
The middle-aged woman coldly questioned Qin Jisheng: "Who knows if you will sell us out to gain more credit?"
Who can guarantee that your superior won't go back on his word and arrest and kill us as well?"
"Alright then,"
The leader suddenly smiled, stood up, and made a condition to Qin Jisheng: "Your superior may not care what you did in the past, but he certainly cares about what you do now."
"Help us plant some people in the Embroidered Uniform Guard so they can be on our side, and then we will trust you."
Qin Jisheng sighed and said with a wry smile to the leader, "I've said it before, I'm just a spies, how could I possibly have the ability to plant people in there?"
"I'll work for you first."
The leader turned to the youngest disciple, beckoned him over, and, supporting his shoulder, introduced him to Qin Jisheng: "He is the bloodline of Third Sister, named Chu Hua. How about he be your adopted son?"
Upon hearing his third sister's voice, Qin Jisheng suddenly clenched his fist tightly, and after a moment agreed, "...Okay."
Seeing that Qin Jisheng had agreed, the leader said to everyone, "Today I will personally bestow the Ancestral Master's True Scripture upon Chu Hua. Brothers and sisters, please help me perform the ritual so that he may be listed in the Book of Guidance."
"When the final cataclysmic event arrives, I will use this to return to my true home in the void!"
The secret room was where they usually performed rituals, and everyone present began to prepare.
Qin Jisheng stared intently at Chu Hua's face, making Chu Hua feel uneasy, and she turned her head away.
Once preparations were complete, Chu Hua took off his clothes and knelt naked in front of the table where the statue of the Eternal Mother was placed.
The middle-aged woman approached, pricked Chu Hua's finger with a silver needle, and dripped blood into a porcelain bowl filled with water.
Then the porcelain bowl was brought to the leader's side, and the leader, who was chanting incantations, took out a talisman, lit it, and poured it into the porcelain bowl.
Then a middle-aged woman brought it over and gave Chu Hua the talisman water to drink.
"net!"
The leader walked up to Chu Hua, made a hand seal, and shouted.
He smiled at Chu Hua and said, "After you drink the Three Lights Water and get rid of the Three Corpse Worms, you can return to your home in the Void."
Then he walked behind Chu Hua and used a silver needle to pierce a line of Huai Zhen Dao scripture.
After tattooing the scriptures, the leader reached out and helped Chu Hua up, guiding him to look at the statue of the Eternal Mother. He said, "Bow to the Eternal Mother. Regardless of gender or age, we are all her royal children, and we will eventually return to our true home!"
Chu Hua knelt down and kowtowed. The leader then pointed to a picture of Confucius, Lao Tzu and Buddha on the wall and continued to guide him: "The second bow is to the saints of all religions. The saints of all religions are our elder brothers. They came to the world to enlighten us because of the decree of the Eternal Mother."
"They passed down the true scriptures, allowing us to return to our true home in the void."
After Chu Hua kowtowed over the Three Saints Diagram, the leader walked to the table and sat down, making hand seals. The middle-aged woman beside him guided him, saying, "Bowing three times to welcome elder brother, elder brother, you have learned the true scriptures passed down by the saints of various religions from the patriarch, and you have cut off your three corpse worms."
"Your name is listed in the Register of Guidance; he is your guiding elder brother!"
Following the middle-aged woman's instructions, Chu Hua knelt down and kowtowed to the leader.
Seeing this scene, Qin Jisheng's eyes were filled with sorrow, and he closed his eyes and sighed deeply.