“Oh, my poor young master! Losing your mother at such a young age, now banished and enduring hardships, not to mention facing dangers!” The steward cried as he covered his face.
Minister Zhang, feeling troubled and expressionless, shot a glance at the steward and sternly reprimanded, “If you have time to weep, you should quickly prepare!”
The steward hurriedly wiped his tears and turned to leave to make the necessary arrangements. He took along a considerable amount of money and brought two of the best martial protectors from the mansion. On his way past a tavern, he even packed some of Zhang Fang’s favorite snacks.
Minister Zhang changed into official robes and left for work as usual. His calm expression bore no trace of emotion.
Chapter 19: The Prodigal Son of the Minister’s Family
Chen, the eldest, was filled with regret as he followed the group!
The mercenaries had divided into ten teams and departed one after the other, totaling at least a thousand people! Chen followed the team personally led by Clerk Yang. Although this team consisted of only a hundred men, it was enough to make Chen anxious! These were deadly fighters! Trained for many years, they were fearless of life or death, and they all possessed martial skills!
Chen was very clear about the men under Zhang Fang; after all, they were a bunch of little brothers who used to hang out with him. This group only had mediocre skills, and some didn’t possess any martial talent at all! They were no match for these professionally trained fighters! If a fight were to break out, Chen would undoubtedly find himself killed by these mercenaries!
But at this moment, accompanying Clerk Yang, even if Chen regretted it, he had no way out. He could only hope that Zhang Fang could devise a good strategy, preferably a cunning one, that could efficiently eliminate this team without any bloodshed!
If Chen knew that Zhang Fang had already collapsed, he would probably flee that very night!
Zhang Fang could only endure for three days in Meixian before succumbing. After sorting out important matters, he fainted, startling everyone around him.
Hao Zhuang and Shi Houde felt very conflicted. This was a great opportunity to take Zhang Fang away, but they only had about ten officers among them, which were not enough to confront the mountain bandits! Moreover, with Mu Qing and the three skilled fighters protecting Zhang Fang, kidnapping him would not be an easy task.
The steward from the Zhang family hired many martial artists along the way, and this team had at least over a hundred people. In a grand procession, they boarded a ship heading straight for Jiangzhou.
The flooding issue in Meixian couldn’t be concealed from the governor of Jiangzhou, Xu Chang. He sent someone to inform Chen, but to his surprise, the bandit hideout was deserted! Chen had disappeared without a trace! Xu Chang had a bad feeling, suspecting that Chen had fled without informing him. But he also thought it impossible, after all, he was the only one who could tolerate Chen. Where could Chen possibly go?
Chen was indeed Xu Chang’s right-hand man; many affairs relied on this group to handle. With no lead on the bandits, Xu Chang’s available manpower was limited. He sent people to search for Chen while also dispatching a boat to Meixian to assess the local flood situation. Xu Chang also conveyed a message to the relevant authorities.
With Zhang Fang’s collapse, Meixian was placed under martial law. Search and rescue fleets went out each day to seek trapped individuals, and among this, city residents were not allowed to enter or exit freely.
One day, a ship arrived. Yuan Juan, noticing strangers, felt cautious. Before Zhang Fang collapsed, he had instructed that if outsiders came by boat, they should be detained to prevent them from escaping.
The outsiders knew this area had not been flooded and planned to enter the city for a meal. After meeting the local clerk, they would report back to Xu Chang. Seeing the city gate open, they were slightly surprised, as it contradicted what Xu Zhizhou had said. They had expected to give a password to enter but found the process remarkably smooth. They suspected nothing, as they were unaware of the true situation in Meixian. Since the gate was open, they simply walked in. Unexpectedly, as they stepped inside, they were immediately tied up!
Zhang Fang slept in a stupor for two days before finally waking up.
Upon seeing him awake, Mu Qing and the others breathed a sigh of relief and quickly reported the situation of the past few days.
“Young Master Zhang, we found the gold mine. We have already controlled that group of people. A few days ago, we captured someone who came by boat from the outside, and after interrogation, we confirmed he was sent by Xu Chang to gather information.”
Zhang Fang felt sore all over, his limbs weak. He struggled to prop himself up, covering his head with his hand, unsure if his hand or face was colder. Zhang Fang appeared blank for a moment before slowly speaking, “Great job. Were there any injuries among our people when securing the gold mine?”
Mu Qing immediately answered, “Two of our men suffered knife wounds, but it was not serious. We killed three of the rebels guarding the gold mine and severely injured six, while the rest were captured. Moreover, there are still many laborers caught there, and we don’t know how to handle them.”
Yuan Juan clarified, “Most of those people are locals from Meixian. Because their families cannot pay taxes, they were seized to work in the gold mine. Once captured, there’s no leaving, only death. Some have been held for as long as twenty years, as this gold mine has been exploited for at least twenty years now.”
Zhang Fang tapped his forehead, concentrating on the current situation.
If those inside the gold mine were released now, the news of the gold mine would certainly spread. Until the emperor sends someone to take control, these people cannot be set free. This means Zhang Fang will have to send reliable people to oversee the gold mine. Those mountain bandits would not be suitable as they are likely to harbor greedy thoughts.
Zhang Fang asked, “Who is currently guarding the gold mine?”
“There are a total of twenty people. Ten are officials, and ten are those mountain bandits.” Yuan Juan had thought this arrangement through. He was also concerned that appointing only bandits would lead to greed and attempts to seize the gold mine, so he deliberately assigned ten people from the officials and ten from the bandits to watch over the gold mine, keeping an eye on one another.
“This arrangement is good. Where is A Biao? I need to see him.” Zhang Fang was concerned about the whereabouts and movements of those deadly fighters.
Mu Qing turned to find A Biao.
When A Biao saw Zhang Fang, he looked worried and said, “Young Master, you finally woke up! We were worried sick!”
Zhang Fang was currently their pillar of support; if he fell, their group would be leaderless!