Chapter 202

Chapter 202

At this moment, Ding Changsheng, the County Magistrate of Sitong, reclined on a warm couch, savoring honeyed dates. A young girl, barely ten, knelt beside him, massaging his legs.

His nephew, Ding Qi, sat on a small stool, one leg bandaged. "Uncle, those Qiang barbarians are truly despicable. Why don't we just execute them outright?"

"Ah, what's the rush? People can't be killed so casually. Even an autumn execution requires approval from higher authorities. If anything goes wrong, I wouldn't be able to bear the responsibility."

"What could possibly go wrong? Those barbarians can't even speak our official language properly. Even if we kill them, they have nowhere to complain."

"Better safe than sorry. You don’t need to worry about this. Just lay low these days. The prefectural office should be sending troops soon. Once they arrive, we can wipe out the entire Qiang village in one fell swoop—wouldn’t that be far more satisfying?"

Ding Qi flashed a sinister smile. "Uncle, you are truly wise! I'll go back and await your news."

"Go ahead, and take good care of your leg. You’re the only male heir in our Ding family. I’ll be counting on you in the future."

"Yes."

Two servants came to carry Ding Qi out, while another draped a fur cloak over him as they headed outside.

The incident had begun half a month earlier. After the Qiang people escorted Chen Qingyan and his group away, the city was placed under strict curfew. Ding Qi, having suffered a silent humiliation, stomped his feet in frustration.

Though Chen Qingyan was out of reach, surely those Qiang people weren't?

From that day on, he began arresting people in the city. Any Qiang person who came to trade was seized without question and thrown into jail. After four or five days of this, he finally caught the young man who had come down the mountain to sell goods that day.

Mai Lian had come down the mountain alone this time. He thought enough time had passed since the incident that it would be safe, but as soon as he entered the city, he was seized by two officers.

He struggled fiercely. "Why are you arresting me?"

"Why? Do you recognize me, boy?" Ding Qi swaggered over with an arrogant gait.

When Mai Lian saw him, he knew trouble was brewing and remained stony-faced.

Ding Qi grew even angrier at his silence and punched him several times, leaving his nose and mouth bleeding before stopping. "Take him away and lock him up tight! How dare you cross me and think you can get away? I’ll kill you!"

Mai Lian was the son of Chieftain Mai. When he didn’t return after a day on the mountain, the tribe grew deeply worried. Given the recent events, Old Mai immediately suspected his son had been captured in the city.

With no other choice, he took what little silver the family had and went to plead for mercy. Not only did he fail to secure his son’s release, but he ended up imprisoned himself.

With the tribe now leaderless, the already volatile Qiang people decided to storm the city to rescue their chieftain and young master. An armed clash broke out in the county town, resulting in several tribesmen being injured, though they failed to rescue anyone.

The county town didn’t fare well either. The Qiang, excellent archers from their life in the mountains, shot Ding Qi in the leg, an injury that still hadn't healed properly.

Since the county had no stationed soldiers, the Qiang people descended like madmen, launching attacks from time to time. With only a few dozen constables and minor officials, it was impossible to capture them all. County Magistrate Ding had no choice but to send word to the Shanzhou Prefectural yamen, requesting the Prefect to dispatch troops for support.

*

Six days later, Chen Qingyan and his group arrived in Sitong County.

Lord Feng did not come on this trip but sent his trusted subordinate, Deputy General Cai, to accompany Chen Qingyan. Before departing, Lord Feng instructed his men to look after his eldest nephew.

Chen Qingyan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Throughout the journey, Deputy General Cai indeed took great care of him. The trip, which normally would have taken four days, was extended by two days for his comfort.

Upon entering the city, they went straight to the county yamen. County Magistrate Ding had been waiting for a long time. As soon as he saw them, he knelt and kowtowed. "Your humble servant Ding Changsheng pays respects to all esteemed officials."

"Magistrate Ding, please rise."

Ding Changsheng had never met Chen Qingyan before but recognized his official robes. "You must be the newly appointed Vice Prefect. I never expected you to come in person. This is both an honor and a surprise. I have prepared a welcoming feast. The weather is freezing cold—I hope you will have a cup of warm wine to warm yourselves…"

"No wine for now. Let’s handle official business first," Chen Qingyan interrupted, striding directly into the county yamen. The deputy general followed closely behind.

The smile on Ding Changsheng’s face faded somewhat as he trailed behind them.

"Magistrate Ding, your letter mentioned a Qiang rebellion, with burning, killing, and plundering in the city. Yet when we entered, the streets were orderly and tidy, with no signs of burning."

"Your Excellency may not be aware, but those Qiang people are truly vile. Though they did not burn any houses, they did riot in the city. They carried bows and arrows and injured many people!"

The deputy general asked curiously, "For no reason at all, why would they come down the mountain to shoot innocent people?"

"The Qiang language is unintelligible. They are uncivilized, barbaric, and unreasonable. It’s no surprise they would do such things."

"I see."

After a moment of thought, Chen Qingyan asked, "Have you captured any live Qiang people?"

Ding Changsheng nodded. "We have captured a few, but they don’t even speak the official language. Communication is impossible."

Deputy General Cai, standing nearby, said, "It doesn’t matter if you can’t understand them. Among my troops, there are Qiang soldiers who speak the official language. Bring them here, and we can question them."

"This, this…" Ding Changsheng had not expected there to be Qiang soldiers in the army. He was caught off guard and began sweating nervously.

Chen Qingyan rose with a stern expression. "What? Can you not bring them here?"

"No, no! It’s just that those Qiang people are stubborn and filthy. Allow me to have them cleaned up first before bringing them for questioning…"

"No need. I’ve seen dirty people before. I’m not that fussy. Bring them here directly."

"Yes…" Ding Changsheng regretted his decision deeply. He should have listened to his nephew and executed those people directly. It would have been better than risking exposure. Now he was in a bind.

Ding Changsheng had initially planned to send two subordinates to administer poison to the prisoners, but the new Vice Prefect was so thorough that he sent his own men to accompany them. Now, even that last opportunity was lost.

Soon, the prisoners were brought out from the dungeon—over thirty people in total. Besides the chieftain and his son, many innocent Qiang people from different tribes had been captured.

Locked in cold, hungry conditions, Old Mai had contracted a serious illness, and Mai Lian was injured. Both were in critical condition.

As soon as Chen Qingyan saw them, he guessed the truth of the matter and grew increasingly angry. Still, procedures had to be followed. "You Qiang prisoners before the court, why have you repeatedly sent your tribesmen into the city to kill and plunder?"

Old Mai and Mai Lian did not recognize Chen Qingyan. The two leaned against each other and remained silent. However, several other Qiang people began chattering excitedly.

The Qiang soldier translated, "They say they did nothing wrong. They were just in the city to trade when they were captured."

Ding Changsheng quickly added, "The situation was too chaotic at the time. I had no choice but to detain all Qiang people in the city. If any were wrongfully detained, it was unavoidable. I hope Your Excellency will understand."

Kneeling below, Mai Lian glared fiercely at County Magistrate Ding. If not for the shackles on his hands and feet, he would have lunged forward to tear him apart.

"If they were wrongfully detained, release them after the matter has been investigated thoroughly. They cannot be kept in jail indefinitely."

"Yes, yes. Previously, we had no one who could understand the Qiang language. Now, with Your Excellency’s help, we will resolve this as quickly as possible."

After careful questioning, the Qiang prisoners were released and allowed to return home. Only the members of the Mai tribe remained.

Ding Changsheng said, "These are the ones who came into the city to kill and plunder recently. Several constables were injured trying to capture them, and even my own nephew was not spared—his leg was wounded by these villains, and he still cannot walk."

Chen Qingyan thought to himself: *Serves him right. A bully like that deserves to have both legs shot off so he stays home and stops causing trouble.*

"Those below, why did you enter the city to kill and plunder?"

The soldier translated the question. To everyone’s surprise, Mai Lian responded directly in broken official language: "Bah! You corrupt officials! If you want to kill us, just do it. There’s no need for so many words!"

"How dare you be disrespectful!" Ding Changsheng ordered the constables to strike Mai Lian hard with a cudgel. The pain was so intense that everything went black before his eyes, and he nearly passed out.

Chen Qingyan snapped, "Who allowed you to hit him?!"

"I... I acted because he showed disrespect..."

"You dare to punish someone on your own without my order?!"

Ding Changsheng was so frightened that he quickly knelt down and said, "I know I was wrong..."

Chen Qingyan was livid and immediately ordered someone to help Mai Lian up. He stepped forward personally and asked, "Are you alright?"

Mai Lian was in so much pain that he wanted to curse, but then he recognized Chen Qingyan as the person who had saved him that day. His eyes widened in shock, "You..."

Chen Qingyan shot him a look, and the young man, sharp, immediately understood. "You crooked officials! You bully others with your power. Now that we’ve fallen into your hands, go ahead and kill me!"

"Bullying with power? Explain how we bullied you."

Mai Lian then recounted everything that had happened from beginning to end. It all started when Ding Changsheng’s nephew tried to extort money from him, and he refused, which led to the conflict.

"Moreover, my tribesmen did not burn, kill, or loot in the city as he claimed. They only came to rescue me and my father. Their arrows weren’t aimed at vital spots—otherwise, with our hunting skills, how could we have only injured his leg?"

After listening, Chen Qingyan asked, "Magistrate Ding, is this what happened?"

"That's a complete lie! My nephew is the most honest and decent boy. How could he possibly extort money from him in public? This Qiang boy is utterly cunning and should be interrogated harshly until he talks!"

Chen Qingyan sneered, "First, bring your nephew here for a confrontation."

"I'll have him brought here at once. I hope Your Excellency will judge fairly and clear my nephew’s name."

Ding Changsheng naturally wasn’t worried about Ding Qi—after all, that kid was an even better actor than he was. As long as he denied everything, the Qiang man could argue all he wants, and it wouldn’t make a difference.

Standing nearby, Deputy General Cai wore an expression of someone ready to enjoy the show. The Prefect had already explained the whole situation to him before he came, so he knew exactly what was going on. He was just waiting to see how County Magistrate Ding and his nephew would wiggle their way out of this.