plumnovel Chapter 83 Triumph
Chapter 83 Triumph
Just as the hatred in Zhongmei's eyes was growing stronger, he was suddenly hit on the head.
Li Chong patted her and laughed, "Alright, stop looking so bitter and resentful. Isn't killing one enemy enough? As for that Zhu guy, I have my own ways of dealing with him. Just wait and see."
"Hmph." Zhong Mei lowered her head. "Who knows if what you're saying is true or false."
As she spoke, Zhongmei regained her steady pace and kept up with Li Chong.
Shaking his head and smiling, Li Chong looked ahead with a confident smile on his face.
Before long, the large, dusty group arrived in front of Zhu Zhicheng and his companions.
"This old man welcomes you with open arms..."
Zhu Zhicheng, with a forced smile, stepped forward to pay his respects, but was interrupted before he could finish speaking.
"Welcome back in triumph, Your Excellency!"
Led by Wu Dalang, the yamen runners who had returned early shouted in unison, making quite a spectacle.
The sound was deafening and startled Zhu Zhicheng.
"Oh dear," Li Chong stepped forward quickly, "That's too much, too much. It was just a fight with a bunch of bandits, why make such a fuss?"
Li Chong waved to the crowd, signaling them to quickly put it away.
However, the smile on his face didn't fade at all.
Zhu Zhicheng muttered a few complaints to himself, but still managed to get up: "Your Excellency has returned in triumph today, ridding Yanggu of a great scourge. I am deeply grateful. A welcome banquet has been prepared at the manor. Please, Your Excellency, come and let me hear about your victory over the enemy."
Li Chong laughed heartily: "Of course, of course, please, Master Zhu!"
He had only taken a few steps when Sun Jun approached Li Chong: "Your Excellency."
"Oh, it's Clerk Sun! Come, come, let's have a drink together!" Li Chong greeted him warmly. "We owe our victory over the enemy largely to your efforts in transporting supplies. This county magistrate will remember your merit!"
Looking at the enthusiastic Li Chong, Sun Jun's face was full of solemnity.
Like Zhu Zhicheng and his son, he didn't believe Li Chong had actually won; he thought Li Chong was just putting on a brave face.
Sun Jun felt a mix of emotions, including guilt towards Li Chong and disdain.
Can someone like that really govern a county?
Torn between two conflicting thoughts, he asked instinctively, "Your Excellency, the drinking is not urgent. Many of our brothers have returned in the past few days. What should we do with them?"
Upon hearing this, Li Chong raised an eyebrow: "Those people, well, well, I'm in a good mood after winning the battle, so I won't punish them. Let them all go to the feast. There should still be some grain left in the storeroom, so take it all out to reward everyone."
Sun Jun looked up at Li Chong and was secretly disappointed to find that Li Chong showed no remorse.
"Yes, I'll go and make the arrangements right away."
He was too lazy to attend the banquet. Firstly, he didn't have the nerve to do it, and secondly, Sun Jun didn't want to see Li Chong again anytime soon.
But seeing Li Chong's smug look, Zhu Bingzhong couldn't stand it anymore.
He cupped his hands in a forced smile and said, "I've heard that Your Excellency has successfully defeated the bandits and captured their leader. Would you be so kind as to let me see for myself? I've heard that those bandits are ruthless killers, and I'd love to witness it for myself."
Zhu Bingzhong had just taken a close look and found that there were no prisoners in the troops that had returned with Li Chong, and everyone was covered in dust and dirt. They did not look like people who had won a battle.
Li Chong's smugness prompted Zhu Bingzhong, who thought he had seen the truth, to jump out.
But people like Zhu Bingzhong probably don't know that marching and fighting is not like composing poems. The battlefield is in the mountains. Even if you win a battle, who will look good on the way back?
Even Li Chong's clothes were quite tattered; if he hadn't washed them in the river on the way, he probably would have stank.
Even so, he still looked somewhat disheveled.
However, in Zhu Bingzhong's eyes, these circumstances became irrefutable evidence that Li Chong was putting on airs.
He couldn't wait to jump out and expose them; he just couldn't stand anyone being so arrogant in front of him.
Moreover, if it were confirmed that Li Chong had won the battle, wouldn't that make him even more pleased?
Little did he know that Li Chong was just waiting for him to be his straight man. If no one challenged him, it would seem too unnatural for him to speak up later.
"Your Excellency," Zhu Zhicheng said, still unwilling to completely sever ties with Li Chong. He took over his son's words, "My son is unruly and ignorant due to his youth. Please forgive him. Please go inside for the banquet and ignore him."
Zhu Zhicheng glared at his son and gestured for Li Chong to continue into the village.
Li Chong waved his hand: "Hey, old man, what are you saying? I think your son is very intelligent. It's good for him to broaden his horizons, so that he can be prepared if he encounters bandits in the future. Those people are ruthless."
Before his own father could reply, Zhu Bingzhong quickly said, "Then please, Your Excellency, allow me to see for myself."
"You'll see something new." Li Chong smiled slightly at him, stopped, and turned around.
"Hurry up, let the people behind you move faster. Aren't you going to hurry up and eat?"
Zhu Bingzhong eagerly awaited the news, wanting to see for himself if Li Chong simply grabbed two lowly henchmen to fool him. He was determined to humiliate Li Chong once again.
But soon, his smile vanished.
Behind Li Chong and his group, an even larger group emerged. Among the dense crowd, a group of ragged criminals stood out.
Everyone had their hands tied and were being driven forward, their eyes filled with fear and unease.
"This, this..."
Zhu Bingzhong pointed to the group not far away, stammering and unable to speak.
Li Chong smiled at him: "That's right, those are the prisoners you wanted to see. They're all over there. Go see whoever you want to see."
Zhu Bingzhong was stunned for a moment, then suddenly trembled, lowered his head, and dared not say anything more.
Zhu Zhicheng's gaze was grave. After a long while, he turned to Li Chong and said, "Your Excellency, I didn't dare to ask too many questions earlier, but these prisoners..."
"Forgive my bluntness, but the officials who returned a few days ago said that the magistrate had fallen into the bandits' ambush. How could there be such a great victory now?"
"It's nothing," Li Chong said casually. "Those people weren't lying in ambush on me. I had already led my men into their village when the main force entered the mountains. Like the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind, they were ambushing me, but weren't I also ambushing them?"
Zhu Zhicheng's expression changed slightly. Li Chong's words were almost an explicit indication that he knew there was an informant, which was why he had hidden himself and launched a surprise attack.
As it turned out, Li Chong succeeded.
With a forced laugh, Zhu Zhicheng insincerely praised, "Your Excellency's strategy is truly remarkable; I admire you greatly."
Li Chong waved his hand, then stood on tiptoe and called out, "Erlang! Come here!"
Wu Song, carrying a burly figure, strode forward.
Li Chong greeted everyone, "Come and see, everyone! This is the biggest gain from this bandit suppression campaign—the second-in-command of the mountain bandits! If I hadn't killed their leader in the chaos, I could have let you all see him too."
Upon hearing Li Chong's words, Zhu Zhicheng seemed rooted to the spot, frozen in place and refusing to step forward.
Du Heng and Deng Meng both know him!