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墨書 Inktalez
The execution ground to the east of Wudang County was not particularly spacious, after all, it was just a county town, and throughout the year, there might not even be a few prisoners sentenced to death for serious crimes.
However, today the execution ground was quite lively. A group of Official Soldiers had tied up more than a dozen elderly, weak, women, and children on the execution platform, and the executioner's blade gleamed sharply, exuding a fierce aura.
Pang Yuanying sat high at the judge's bench, casually sipping tea. The Magistrate of Yun County stole a glance at him, showing some reluctance in his eyes, but still called out loudly, "There are rebels from Dawang Village who attacked the Yamen and committed acts of rebellion. Their crimes are unforgivable. We have captured over three hundred people, with ten leaders among them. Today at noon, we will execute them."
As time passed and noon approached, some onlookers in the surroundings began to sweat and murmured among themselves.
With noon nearing, the Magistrate's expression turned somewhat grim as he turned to look at Pang Yuanying. "Marquis, is it really necessary to execute them?"
Pang Yuanying sneered, "What? Sun County Magistrate, do you sympathize with these rebels?"
"No, no," Sun County Magistrate's face turned pale as he forced a smile. "I think it should still be reported to the Ministry of Justice for approval."
"I am an imperial envoy and have the authority to execute first and report later," Pang Yuanying lazily stretched his back and glanced at the sky, frowning. "Why aren't you getting on with it? You actually made this Marquis wait under the sun for so long!"
With no other choice, Sun County Magistrate had to give the order.
Just as the executioner raised his long knife, a group of people suddenly surged out from the crowd outside, each holding sticks and charging towards the execution platform.
The leader shouted angrily, "I was the one who attacked the Yamen; don't harm my mother!"
Pang Yuanying's spirit jolted as he straightened up abruptly. The Official Soldiers who had been lying in ambush around quickly swarmed in. These were all trained elites and were certainly not comparable to ordinary rebels. In less than a moment, they captured and bound this group of people, with only a few managing to escape in disarray.
"Capture them alive!"
Pang Yuanying stood up tall. He had been feeling humiliated these days and was filled with anger. He drew his long knife from his waist and directly chased after those fleeing individuals, using the back of his blade to strike fiercely at their necks.
Sun County Magistrate was startled; this Marquis usually appeared to be a playboy and looked delicate like a flower, even more tender than women. He did not expect that at this moment he would exude such murderous intent and be so violent.
Not long after, all those who had stormed the execution ground were captured.
Pang Yuanying let out a breath, feeling invigorated, as the frustrations of the past few days were swept away.
Du Jiu saw his Marquis smiling broadly and shook his head, sighing, "These are just poor commoners who have been used. Clearly, there is a mastermind behind this. Marquis, do not let your guard down."
Pang Yuanying shrugged indifferently, "That person hiding in the shadows causing trouble is just a cowardly rat. Now that I have severed his arm, let's see who dares to heed his instigation from now on. Although we may not know the identity of the mastermind among these people, with severe interrogation and thorough questioning, we can surely extract some information."
This Marquis acted decisively, conducting overnight interrogations of all the offenders. The elderly, weak, women, and children who clearly lacked the strength to cause chaos were naturally given a lesson and released. Those who participated in the uprising were dealt with harshly; some were executed for their crimes, while the rest were sent to labor in the mines for reformation.
In an instant, Yun County Wang Village was left with only half its population.
The people of Yun County witnessed the methods of this Marquis and no longer dared to speak recklessly; discussions about him in teahouses and taverns diminished significantly.
Pang Yuanying felt refreshed and pulled Du Jiu over, laughing as he asked, "In the northwest, General Gao's Thunder Battle Flag has caused the enemy to retreat in fear. My brother treats him like a god. Yet I don't understand how a mere illegitimate son of the Gao Family, who was once known as a notorious wastrel just five years ago, has transformed into an undefeated general. It must be exaggerated; if we talk about martial arts, he probably can't even compare to me."
Du Jiu cleared his throat twice and lowered his head, maintaining a serious expression while allowing his Marquis to indulge in his thoughts. After all, even if he pondered aloud, it wasn't likely that his words would reach General Gao's ears miles away.
Pang Yuanying dealt with those who had disturbed his sleep—some were imprisoned while others were executed. Although he did not capture the main culprit, he did not dwell on such rats and happily returned to enjoy his leisure time, secretly contemplating how to win over Consort Qin's heart.
Qin Yaru listened to the events at home and couldn't help but laugh. The saying goes that preventing the mouths of the people is more difficult than preventing floods. With Pang Yuanying's methods, he could suppress them temporarily but not forever; in the eyes of the common folk, he had likely been completely demonized.
As for Pang Yuanying's reputation, Qin Yaru naturally did not care. She had nearly finished tidying up her belongings and had painted over a dozen floral designs to sell at Establish a Family shop, earning a total of two hundred taels of silver.
As for the oil workshop, it was a partnership with the Chen Family Clan, so she didn't need to worry about it. She simply entrusted Matriarch to save her annual share for her and planned to buy more good land if any quality fields came up for sale.
Everything was going smoothly; she was just waiting for her journey to begin.
On this day, Da Lang was tracing characters in the study, while Qin Yaru was weeding her medicinal herb patch in the yard when she suddenly heard the sound of a stone rolling.
Qin Yaru turned her head sharply but saw nothing. However, when she turned back, she found a tall, slender man standing in front of her, his gaze carrying a hint of malice.
"You are Consort Qin? Indeed, you are as beautiful as a flower, even I feel a bit tempted just looking at you."
Qin Yaru's gaze fell on the man's hands and noticed his knuckles were prominently protruding. She was startled; if he wasn't suffering from rheumatism, he was likely a skilled martial artist. Clearly, the latter possibility was more likely. She sighed inwardly but dared not cry out for fear that Da Lang would come running.
In that moment of hesitation, the man slid a dagger from his sleeve and pressed it against Qin Yaru's waist, smiling softly, "Beautiful lady, will you come with me willingly, or do I have to use force?"
Qin Yaru sighed and resignedly removed her apron, folding it neatly and placing it on the nearby Stone Table. She did know some self-defense techniques and could handle three or five burly men without issue. However, although this man did not appear particularly strong, his muscles were solid and well-defined. He clearly wasn't an ordinary person, especially since he exuded an inexplicable sense of danger—almost more terrifying than the experts under Gao Feng.
Her mind raced through several thoughts before she ultimately decided to comply with him for now. At the very least, she didn't want to create a scene at home; if Da Lang got hurt in the process, that would be disastrous.
The man clearly regarded Qin Yaru as a weak woman and did not seem overly cautious. He did not search her but simply blindfolded her and bound her hands before putting her into a carriage.
Qin Yaru sat quietly, slowing her breathing and trying to shrink into the corner to avoid drawing attention. She perked up her ears to listen carefully.
At first, aside from the sound of footsteps from passersby outside, there was no conversation inside the carriage. It was clear that there was more than one person involved in her abduction. Besides the tall and slim person who had taken her, there was another individual inside the carriage along with an outside driver—three people in total.
Qin Yaru took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down. She silently assessed their journey; although she was blindfolded, it was her habit to familiarize herself with her surroundings whenever she arrived at a new place—knowing where the roads were, where the markets were located, where there were crowds, and where it was sparsely populated. Even though she couldn't see now, she could still guess her general location since they hadn't traveled far yet.
After traveling for a while, the people in the carriage seemed to relax more and began to speak.
A strange voice said, "For me, this Consort Qin may be beautiful, but she's just a married woman. What kind of person is our master? Why bother with her? For a soft egg like her, do we really need to send ourselves out…"
"Shut up." The man who had kidnapped Qin Yaru reprimanded sharply. "Do your job well. Remember, those who talk too much don't live long."
As soon as he opened his mouth, a chill ran through him. His companion clearly had some reservations about him, muttering a few words before falling silent.
Qin Yaru regulated her breathing and listened to the conversation between the two. It seemed that they were sent by the Gentle Blue Princess, but for some reason, she felt that something was off. This approach did not seem like the Gentle Blue Princess's style.
Regardless of what she thought inside, the Princess always appeared gentle and gracious on the surface, even managing to impress the Empress Dowager. Otherwise, how could she, a daughter of the Xiangyang Wangfu's concubine, almost be conferred the title of princess?
However, at this moment, Qin Yaru could not afford to think too much. She did not care what twists and turns were involved; she was not willing to joke about her safety in order to get to the bottom of it.
Silently calculating her route, Qin Yaru took a deep breath and began to slowly cut through the ropes with the surgical knife hidden in her sleeve. She had always thought her sleeves were long and wide, making it inconvenient to move, but now she was extremely grateful for her loose robes, which helped her avoid detection.
The carriage was moving at a moderate pace; being in the city streets, it could not go particularly fast. Just as the carriage made a turn and slightly slowed down, Qin Yaru suddenly sprang up, forcefully pushing open the wooden window and leaping out. She rolled on the ground for two circles on the bluestone pavement but did not have time to feel any pain as she quickly got up and ran away while shouting at the top of her lungs: "Help! A kidnapper is trying to abduct me! Help! Help!"
"Damn it!"
The two people in the carriage jumped down one after another and chased after Qin Yaru. They looked fierce and intimidating, startling the pedestrians on the street. At this time, people were still quite warm-hearted and did not behave as indifferently as in later times. Instead of avoiding the situation, several people rushed forward to block them.
Unfortunately, both men were skilled fighters and easily pushed aside those who tried to intervene. They took large strides, and Qin Yaru could not outrun them; in no time at all, they caught up with her.
The tall, thin man reached out and grabbed Qin Yaru's arm angrily, saying, "Still trying to run?" He did not expect that the woman before him was not as weak as he imagined. As soon as he touched her arm, he felt a sharp pain in his wrist, and blood gushed out.
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