Chapter 56: Wu Han’s Ambition
Early the next morning, Lu Yuan had just woken up and eaten something. He was about to find Old Huang and have him notify everyone to gather at the city gate at noon when...
BANG! BANG!
A frantic knocking echoed from the door.
Lu Yuan didn’t even have to guess who it was. No one knocked with that much force except for Zhou He.
He opened the courtyard gate and, sure enough, saw the man standing outside, looking as shifty as ever.
"What is it?"
"Let’s go inside first," Zhou He said, pulling Lu Yuan into the courtyard. Only after shutting the gate did he whisper, "Wu Han sent a message last night. Said there’s a big job. He’s asking if we’re in."
"How big?" Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow.
"It’s supposedly some military equipment. The Sun Clan is secretly selling it Beyond the Passes," Zhou He said.
"The Imperial Court banned the salt and iron trade with the Northern Barbarians long ago. Those bastards actually dare to sell weapons," Lu Yuan said in a low voice.
Once those weapons fell into the hands of the Northern Barbarians, they would become sharp blades turned against the Warriors of Dayong.
He pondered for a moment before continuing, "If that’s really the case, couldn’t we find a chance to expose them and have the Imperial Court deal with the Sun Family?"
"Heh, what are you thinking? You think the Sun Family would dare to do this alone? There are big shots behind them. If word really gets out from us, even if the Sun Family and their backers are implicated, we’ll be finished too."
"The Zhou Family won’t be able to protect us either."
"Do you really think these General’s Mansions don’t have eyes and ears everywhere? They’re furious about this too, but they can’t afford to offend the people higher up."
"Matters in the Imperial Court are complicated. Without absolute power, we should just look out for ourselves."
"If you’re willing, we can leave the city and make a little something from this. They won’t dare to blow things out of proportion. As long as there’s no evidence, it’ll all just blow over. Plus, we can help Wu Han get some revenge, collect a little interest."
Zhou He explained.
Lu Yuan nodded. "Then what’s there to consider? When do we leave?"
"As soon as possible, if we can," Zhou He said, his voice low.
Lu Yuan nodded. "I’ll get my things."
With that, he grabbed some essentials and left. He didn’t bring any weapons or armor at all.
He couldn’t do this openly; concealing his identity was a must.
Once they were out of the city, Wu Han was sure to have some to spare.
Ever since the last blow they’d dealt to the Sun Family, no one was tailing him anymore, so there was no need for the two of them to hide.
After some brief preparations, they headed out of the courtyard.
After leaving the city, they rode straight for the Black Pine Forest.
Less than an hour later, they saw a burly figure standing at the edge of the woods, his shiny bald head incredibly conspicuous.
He was clad in iron armor.
A long saber hung at his waist, and he carried a dark gold Mountain Axe in his hand. It was none other than Wu Han, looking far wilder and more ferocious than he had in the past.
Upon seeing him, Lu Yuan and Zhou He first put on the masks they had prepared to avoid being recognized by Wu Han’s men. Only then did they dismount their warhorses, walk up, and give him a hug.
Lu Yuan could feel that Wu Han was much sturdier than before.
"Haha, long time no see! You’ve really bulked up," Lu Yuan said, looking at the completely transformed Wu Han before him.
"I’m a long way from you. A Silver-armed Iron Kite... and you killed it. I really can’t imagine anything you can’t do," Wu Han sighed in a low voice.
He had already sent his men to a distance.
Then he pulled Lu Yuan and Zhou He to sit by a campfire.
He then passed them a flask of wine.
"Do you have a plan? When do we move?" Lu Yuan asked after taking a drink.
"The day after tomorrow, one of their caravans is heading Beyond the Passes. The Sun Family’s own leader is supposedly leading it. I estimate that with my own strength, even if I could win against him, the losses would be heavy. That’s why I thought of you two."
"They have about fifty to sixty men. One at Tendon Refining, five at the Bone Forging Realm, about ten at Body Tempering, and the rest are just ordinary guards," Wu Han analyzed.
Lu Yuan glanced at him. "How many men do you have now?"
"Two hundred men, eight at Entry Level, plus me at Bone Forging," Wu Han said without hesitation.
These past days, he had been doing quite well for himself Beyond the Passes.
Both his personal strength and the number of his subordinates had grown.
"Alright, it’s settled. We’ll hit their shipment the day after tomorrow," Lu Yuan said, taking a bite of a roasted leg of lamb.
"Yeah. If we succeed this time, my force will grow stronger. At the very least, getting a set of armor for every man won’t be a problem," Wu Han said with a grin.
He then pulled a stack of silver notes from his robes. "This is what I’ve plundered lately. It’s not much silver, just over eight thousand taels. You two split it for now. After we hit the caravan, the silver is all yours. I only want the armor and weapons."
Clearly, Wu Han had great ambitions; he wasn’t content with just the men he currently had.
Just as Lu Yuan and Zhou He were about to refuse, Wu Han said with a serious expression, "We agreed from the start that this force belongs to Lu Yuan. Now that we’ve had some gains, it’s only natural to give something back. I don’t mean anything else by it."
"I’ve already put my own share aside. Don’t you dare say you don’t want it. That would be looking down on me."
Hearing this, Zhou He snatched the silver notes, counted out three thousand taels for himself, and handed the remaining five thousand to Lu Yuan. "You’re the leader. This is what you deserve. Wu Han’s right, there’s no need to be polite."
Seeing them act this way, Lu Yuan didn’t insist on refusing.
Even a cunning rabbit has three burrows. Besides, it was said that the General’s Mansions of the Northern Border all maintained private armies Beyond the Passes for self-preservation in times of crisis. For him to support a force of his own was simply preparing for a rainy day, so he didn’t refuse.
After the silver was divided,
Wu Han stood up. "Let’s get going. Tonight, we’ll head to my stockade and have a good drink."
Lu Yuan didn’t object. He and Zhou He got up, mounted their horses, and rode in the direction of the stockade Wu Han had mentioned.
The two of them were actually quite curious, as they had never seen a mountain stronghold before.
After riding for several dozen miles, they entered a forest and saw a sizable stronghold standing within it.
It was built entirely of wood and looked rather simple.
Wu Han laughed. "We horse bandits raid once, then move to a new place. This is just a temporary residence. You’ll have to make do for a few days."
After speaking, he led them inside.
Seeing him return, many men came forward to greet him.
"Chieftain."
"The Chieftain is back."
...
At the same time, they eyed the half-masked Lu Yuan and Zhou He with suspicion, though none dared to ask any questions.
As night fell, the three of them began drinking in the simple camp.
Wu Han let out rare, hearty laughs from time to time.
Meanwhile, in a dungeon in Dayong’s Yan Province, a man dressed in a Mandarin Duck Battle Robe and a black cloak walked out of a gloomy cell, wiping fresh blood from his hands.
Faint, blood-curdling screams echoed all around.
He was a Thousand Households of the Brocade Robe Guard Office stationed in Yan Province.
Several days ago in Yan Province, he had captured a high-level spy the Northern Barbarians had planted in Dayong. The agent had been caught just as he was emerging from a dormant state. This person held a significant status within Dayong, and they had just pried a piece of intelligence from him.
A high-ranking member of the Northern Barbarians was hiding in Icefield Fortress.
Although the spy didn’t know the person’s exact rank, he knew they were of extremely noble status.
Upon receiving this intelligence, the Thousand Households naturally did not dare to delay.
He had just stepped out of the cell when he spoke to the trusted Hundred Households by his side, "Immediately send a carrier pigeon to Sai City. Explain the situation and order them to arrest the hidden Northern Barbarian noble at once."
"My lord, I’ll see to it at once. However, the nearest Brocade Robe Guard Offices are on the front lines of Youzhou and Yan Province. It will take two days at the very fastest for the message to reach Sai City."
"Send the message first. If the target is still there, problem solved. If he has fled, send men out of the city in pursuit. As long as he hasn’t crossed into Northern Barbarian territory, he must be captured and brought back," the Brocade Robe Guard Thousand Households said coldly.