Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 73

Chapter 73 Close the Door and Beat the Dog
A new day quietly arrived with the rising sun.

After a night of silence, the wooden door slowly opened with a loud sound of gongs. Then, countless Han and Mongolian merchants pushed their carriages, pulled their horses, and pushed their horses. Horses bumped into each other as they walked into this not-so-big discussion field.

Of course, such a lively scene must be temporary. It was only a few days after the opening of the discussion hall that so many Meng people rushed over. Once the needs of the Meng people from the nearby tribes were met, this place would be much more deserted. But even so, the environment of Guangling County has been greatly improved. Perhaps Lu Zhen can even do something big with this opportunity.

However, at the very least, County Magistrate Lu did not have any plans in this regard. His mind was only focused on capturing the murderers for those soldiers who had perished.

When An Bu arrived at the discussion arena again, Lu Zhen’s heart was also a little vague. He didn’t know if those Mongolian people from the Thoroughfare Tribe would be as greedy as he had expected and attack again, nor did he know when and how they would appear.

It had been two days since Lu Zhen borrowed troops from the barracks and hid them inside and outside the barracks. This was not a small gamble for Lu Zhen. Naturally, it would be great if those fellows came, otherwise, the county magistrate’s face would be a little shameful. However, in order to stabilize the dubious field, he had no choice but to make such an arrangement. However, it was clear that he would not be able to last for long if he waited patiently like this.

After taking a deep breath and suppressing the hesitation in his heart, Lu Zhen finally walked into the discussion field again with full emotions. His gaze did not only look at the goods like ordinary people. Instead, he was examining the expressions of the ordinary merchants in the surroundings to judge their harvest.

At this moment, the faces of these people were filled with joy. It was obvious that everyone had made a lot of money from this. The conflict a few days ago had been completely forgotten by everyone.

Seeing this, Lu Zhen felt both gratified and uncomfortable. The Han people are always so kind and obedient not to remember old hatred, which is undoubtedly a good thing for the future development of Qiaochang. However, if a people didn’t even have the slightest bit of anger, it would be somewhat regrettable.

Just as he was thinking about it, a county government servant disguised as an ordinary merchant suddenly came up to him. Because he had already given the order, that person did not greet him. He only whispered, “My lord, they have indeed come!” As he spoke, he pointed at the stall in front of the entrance.

Hearing this, Lu Zhen’s body trembled. He immediately looked over and saw a group of five or six Mongol horses unloading leather goods and other things from their horses. It seemed like they were going to set up a stall here. Amongst these people, a burly man was making arrangements. Although he could not see clearly from a distance, Lu Zhen could already tell that this person should be the cause of the events of that day.

Seeing that Lu Zhen’s gaze stopped on that person for a while, the messenger said, “The leader has a birthmark on his face. He is the leader of the day. However … they also obeyed the rules this time and handed over all their weapons before entering the discussion arena.”

Lu Zhen nodded and said in a complimentary tone, “He has some guts. He actually dares to come back, and he is so brazen.” After a pause, he ordered, “Then put away the net. Remember, don’t hurt the innocent people around you. Remove the people around you before you make your move.”

“Yes!” The servant nodded in agreement, then brushed past Lu Zhen and went to make arrangements.

Lu Zhen, on the other hand, continued to patrol the market as if nothing had happened. He had always worn official uniforms and had several servants by his side, so the target was obvious. Everyone would subconsciously salute him when they saw him coming.

After circling for a little while, Lu Zhen calculated that the people outside were almost ready, and then he turned back to the entrance of the gate and brushed past the stall of the Thoroughfare Division.

As he passed by, Lu Zhen unintentionally turned his head to look and collided with Huo Zang’s gaze. There was indeed a large birthmark on this person’s face, which was extremely eye-catching. There was also a tuft of black hair on it. However, his eyes were full of spirit. Even if he met Lu Zhen, he didn’t have the slightest intention of retreating. On the contrary, there were traces of bright light that people didn’t dare to neglect.

Lu Zhen sensed the vigilance from the other party, so he stopped and smiled at Huo Zang, “Which part of the grassland did you come from? Where is this the first day you came to our Guang Ling Questionnaire?”

He spoke Mongolian, which made Huo Zang and the others stunned. The servants following behind Lu Zhen were even more shocked. They never expected that this official could speak Mongolian.

Huo Zang naturally couldn’t ignore this. He stroked his chest and bowed. “We are from the Thorn Division. We came to sell some leather goods because we heard that Guang Ling has a new discussion area. This is the first time we’ve come. I hope this lord will take care of us in the future.”

Seeing that he was lying, Lu Zhen only smiled and said, “Of course. As long as they are Mongolian people who come to our Great Ming Court, as long as they obey the law, this official will definitely protect their rights and safety.” As he spoke, he left.

From the moment he walked past to the moment he spoke, Lu Zhen could not see the slightest bit of hostility. Although intentionally coming into contact with them was somewhat abrupt, Huo Zang did not take it too seriously. He only said that this Ming Dynasty official was just on a whim. After Lu Zhen left, several Meng Ren revealed mocking smiles on their faces.

“This Han official must have never dreamed that we would have killed his people a few days ago, seized his things, and disturbed the entire discussion.”

“Actually, so what if he knows? Does a small Guang Ling County really dare to convict us? Give him ten guts, and he won’t dare to offend our Thoroughfare Division!”

In their discussions, Huo Zang’s expression changed slightly. “Don’t talk too much, why are there so few people around?”

“Ah?” The few people who spoke clearly couldn’t keep up with Huo Zang’s rhythm. They looked left and right blankly, and then they cried out in surprise, “Why are they all going inside?”

Because they were at the entrance, they felt exceptionally lonely when they went inside. This feeling made them feel very uncomfortable. Just like cattle and sheep in the distance, they felt very insecure.

“Not good!” One of them’s expression changed, “When I first arrived, I noticed that there seemed to be people watching us, but they couldn’t find the target, so I didn’t say anything. But now, it seems that they’ve probably seen through our identities!”

“That’s impossible … Didn’t that Han official just say hello to us?”

Huo Zang’s face suddenly flashed with astonishment and killing intent, “The Han people are the most cunning. That fellow deliberately came to speak in order to attract our attention! Now that everyone has avoided him, I’m afraid their people will be coming!”

In the blink of an eye, his judgment had come true. Dozens of officers and men, servants, and soldiers disguised as ordinary merchants had already unveiled their weapons and rushed over. They spread out and completely wrapped Huo Zang’s stall in the shape of a crescent moon.

Seeing that the other party was indeed prepared, and that many people had come up, the muddled people immediately panicked. Even though they were brave enough to fight, the gap between the enemy and us was so great, but they still didn’t have the confidence to fight against one of them.

“What should we do?” They had always followed Huo Zang’s lead, so if anything happened, he would naturally have to make a decision.

Huo Zang judged that the situation was very unfavorable to him, and a head-on battle would only result in an ugly death. Therefore, he did not hesitate and immediately ordered, “Get on the horse, let’s rush out first!” He believed that as long as they rushed out and reached the vast grasslands, even without bows and arrows, they would still be able to protect themselves. Adding on the fact that there were other clansmen outside, even if they couldn’t win, it would still be easy to escape.

With a command, all the Meng people quickly rushed to the side of the horse in front of the stall. With a twist of their bodies, they quickly mounted their horses. Without caring about the leather goods, they immediately shook their reins and turned around to ride their horses outside.

The officers and soldiers obviously did not expect their reaction to be so fast. In a moment of shock, they could only watch as they rushed out of the open door.

Actually, these Han people don’t have much ability. Although they seem to have some arrangements, I still managed to escape easily. Fortunately, I was prepared to set up a stall right next to the door. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be so easy for me to leave!

Huo Zang thought proudly as he rode his horse forward. Of course, there was still anger. He had already made up his mind that he would definitely lead people to take revenge for today! As for the murder and looting that they had done in the dubious arena, he had long since forgotten about it. To the barbarians, robbing and killing people was a matter of course, and it was a big mistake for others to retaliate.

Just as this group of people were running forward proudly, someone even took out the dagger concealed in their body and held it in their hands. Suddenly, a gong sound came from both sides. Dozens of officers and soldiers with knives and guns rushed out of the forest, intending to cut off their path.

The Han people actually have an ambush!

Thinking of Lu Zhen’s meaningful smile when he left, Huo Zang knew that he had underestimated this young Han official. They were indeed extremely cunning!

“Charge! Our horses are fast, they can’t catch up.” Only the dagger was unable to contend head-on against the Ming army with the spear, so Huo Zang made another wise decision.

Everyone shouted and rode their horses forward at an even faster speed. As long as they rushed out of the encirclement and ran a few miles north, they would be able to enter the grasslands. As soon as they entered the grasslands, they were like dragons entering the sea and tigers returning to the mountain forest. Dozens of Great Ming officials would no longer be able to catch up.

But just as they thought that they could escape, several arm-thick ropes suddenly jumped up from the originally flat ground, blocking them right in front of them …