Chapter 233: Wind’s Lull (Part V)

Zhang Kai, as someone caught up in the events, knew better than anyone the truth of the harbor battle days earlier.

Now that the Japanese pirates' uprising had utterly failed, Zhang Kai knew full well he was unlikely to escape this calamity. These days, he was merely bracing himself for the axe to fall.

Seeing Le Wuya arrive unannounced and graceful, he forced himself to muster some spirit and asked, "My lord, to what do I owe the honor of your visit? What instructions do you have for me?"

"Brother Meng'an, you've lost weight in just a few days," Le Wuya said with sincerity. "I've come to deliver a message for you... good news."

Seeing Zhang Kai silent as dead wood and cold ash, Le Wuya let out a soft sigh.

But when he spoke, his words were far from kind: "After a joint review by three tribunals, your uncle Zhang Yue's case has been settled. In the Huangzhou affair, he was negligent in his investigation, wrongfully put to death the calligrapher and art dealer Rao Gaoming and his entire family, and secretly withheld evidence for personal gain. The Emperor personally endorsed the sentence: 'Such incorrigible wickedness deserves punishment according to the law.' However..."

Le Wuya paused: "The Emperor, out of regard for past service, merely stripped your uncle of his rank and exiled him to Lingnan. At least he got to keep his life. Brother Meng'an, you can visit him in your spare time."

A brief flicker of light passed through Zhang Kai's eyes, but like a spark in smoldering ashes, it vanished in an instant.

He gave a hopeless, inward laugh: How is this any better than death?

Once stripped of his post, the reckoning would surely come. How could he possibly avoid it?

He forced a smile, grinding his molars: "Thank you, my lord. My uncle committed a grave error; to have his life spared is already the Emperor's immense grace. I dare not ask for anything more."

"And there's more good news," Le Wuya said, taking the proffered tea, inhaling its aroma as he said calmly, "Shinsui Shitaro is dead."

At these words, Zhang Kai's reaction was a hundred times more intense than when he'd heard his uncle had been spared.

He shot to his feet, eyes bulging, glaring at Le Wuya: "...What did you say?"

Yuan Zijin, quicker to react, put a hand on the hidden dagger at his waist, ready to strike.

Le Wuya set the teacup back on the table, smiled, and pointed at himself: "We captured one alive, but then I thought better of it and killed him."

Zhang Kai's chest heaved repeatedly, his nails digging into his thigh, using the pain to keep himself from losing his composure: "Why would you do that, my lord? That... Shinsui Shitaro, I heard he was the leader of the pirates. What a feat it would have been to capture him alive! To let such credit slip through your fingers, my lord—what a waste!"

"I told you, Brother Meng'an and I have a connection. Your uncle has already been brought down; how could I bear to see you dragged into litigation?" Le Wuya leaned in close, making a slicing gesture with an air of familiarity, "So I gave him a quick death. He got off easy."

Zhang Kai trembled all over, shaking like a leaf, his heart hammering wildly in his chest.

It took every bit of his strength to fight the urge to lunge at the man and strangle him.

This Wen Ren bastard wasn't trying to make friends!

He was out to take his life!!

Zhang Kai knew Shinsui Shitaro's nature better than anyone.

That man was a rabid dog through and through, a rabid dog with an iron spine. Even if the authorities took him alive, he would never give Zhang Kai up—Shinsui Shitaro still hoped to keep him as a hidden asset to keep making trouble for Wen Ren Mingke.

Given that madman's nature, he'd most likely lash out in all directions, like falsely accusing the military commander Mu Jiazhi of being in league with him, throwing the whole Tongzhou bureaucracy into chaos.

With his methods, he'd have long since prepared a pile of evidence and stashed it at his residence, ready to use in a last-ditch effort.

Zhang Kai wasn't afraid of Shinsui Shitaro being taken alive.

What he feared was Wen Ren inciting other weak-spined pirates to falsely testify against him, dragging him down.

Who would have thought this man was even more ruthless, more absolute!

In truth, the gentry of Tongzhou who had ties to the pirates all knew in their hearts which pirate faction each of them supported.

It was just that none of them had clean hands, so they maintained a tacit understanding and left each other alone.

But recently, when the prefect launched his great campaign against the pirates, he seemed supernaturally well-informed, yet deliberately spared Master Xi's group, which had already bred resentment among many gentry.

Later, Shinsui Shitaro gathered scattered remnants and rogue bandits, like cornered dogs leaping a wall, and launched a desperate final strike—only to be utterly routed by the prefect leading the garrison soldiers in three charges.

The prefect even personally slew Shinsui Shitaro, proving himself a master of both letters and arms, a hero of the age.

In others' eyes, this was the prefect seeing with keen insight, identifying the enemy, and executing the culprit on the spot—a satisfying justice.

As for why the prefect suddenly rose and killed Shinsui Shitaro, the explanation was simple:

Who knows if that pirate beast had disguised himself, mixed among the captives, intending a desperate last gambit, and was cut down when the prefect saw through his scheme?

In short, a good death.

After all, it happened suddenly, and the only witness to the entire affair was Yuan Zijin, who was at the prefect's side.

But in the eyes of many gentry who colluded with the pirates, this was clearly deliberate protection!

These people weren't familiar with Shinsui Shitaro's rabid dog nature.

So, the prefect must have long been in secret collusion with Zhang Kai. When he discovered Shinsui Shitaro hadn't died in the chaos, he used that as an excuse to silence him, killing Shinsui Shitaro to cover up Zhang Kai's crimes!

They had lost family and fortune, lived in fear, and yet Zhang Kai, the ringleader, could walk away scot-free?

How could the world allow such injustice?!

The prefect had handled this matter flawlessly; even if the gentry harbored deep resentment, they could find no fault with him.

Their anger, with nowhere to vent, would naturally fall entirely on Zhang Kai.

Having lost Zhang Yue as his pillar of support, Zhang Kai was already a fattened sheep awaiting slaughter. Now, drawing the hatred of the circling wolves, his fate was sealed.

The constables from the Provincial Surveillance Commission sent by Zheng Miao were, in fact, protecting Zhang Kai.

If that layer of protection were removed, with countless open and hidden attacks coming at him, he'd have no place left to stand in Tongzhou!

This was the endgame Le Wuya had designed for Zhang Kai.

After slaying Shinsui Shitaro in the harbor battle, Le Wuya had gone to the island overnight—was it merely to wipe out the remnants and map the terrain?

Upon landing, he had swept Shinsui Shitaro's residence clean, uncovering letters forged in Mu Jiazhi's handwriting.

As he had suspected, that old mad dog should never have lived.

After gathering and tidying up, Le Wuya burned all that filth to ashes.

As the flames devoured the forged evidence, Le Wuya had already calculated:

The pirates captured alive in this battle numbered barely a hundred, mostly low-level water bandits and fishermen-thieves, unlikely to have solid proof to accuse Zhang Kai of treason.

If national law couldn't touch Zhang Kai, then Le Wuya would rally the other wronged gentry and deal with him through private justice!

...

Facing Zhang Kai, whose eyes were split with rage like a trapped beast, Le Wuya flicked his sleeves and rose: "Today I came to your esteemed residence with good news, to repay Brother Meng'an for the umbrella you once gifted me. Unfortunately, the sky is clear today, and Mingke didn't bring an umbrella. When you have leisure, Brother Meng'an, you may come to the government office for a chat."

Seeing that he was about to leave, Zhang Kai, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly rasped, "Wen Ren Ming Ke, if I had come to you and pledged my allegiance when you first arrived in Tongzhou, would today have turned out differently?"

Hearing this, Le Wuya raised an eyebrow: "You think so?"

"Is it not so?"

Le Wuya shrugged, and burst out laughing.

He raised a hand, with an apologetic smile: "Forgive me, I couldn't help it."

Meeting Zhang Kai's confused, resentful stare, Le Wuya twirled a lock of hair by his temple and said with a grin: "Then you've truly misunderstood, Brother Meng'an."

"As the saying goes, when you strike a dog, you mind its master. But in this world, is there any sense in beating the master because of the dog?"

Zhang Kai's sallow face went red, then white: "...What?"

These words were like a poisoned blade, flaying away the last shred of Zhang Kai's dignity.

"You don't get it?" Le Wuya turned back, raising his hand with cruel delight, "Brother Meng'an, you think too highly of yourself! You were never my target. You're nothing but a dog."

Yuan Zijin hurried out alongside Le Wuya, glancing back over his shoulder repeatedly, fearing that Zhang Kai, humiliated beyond measure, might grab a cleaver and charge at them to take them both down with him.

Only when they reached the vermilion gate and saw the constables lined up on guard did Yuan Zijin's tense shoulders finally ease slightly.

"You really aren't afraid of getting a beating," he grumbled. "I don't know how you've survived this long."

"Aren't we lucky to have our Yuan Xiao'er here?" Ever since Yuan Zijin had started showing promise, Le Wuya had naturally shifted his attitude and strategy toward him, slinging an arm around his shoulder. "With you along, I feel totally safe."

Hearing this, Yuan Zijin said nothing, but the corners of his mouth and his tiger tail were already perked up, along with his tiger tail.

Le Wuya asked again: "Has your dad written you yet?"

At the mention of this, Yuan Zijin showed a strange shyness and awkwardness: "...Not yet."

He looked at Le Wuya with hopeful eyes: "Do you think, after this achievement, my father will no longer see me as the shame of the Yuan family?"

Le Wuya mounted his horse and casually ruffled his hair: "You are his own little tiger. Whether you make something of yourself or not, you're his pride. Don't talk nonsense like that again."

Yuan Zijin's eyes grew hot at his words, and fearing he might cry in front of him, he quickly lowered his head and urged his horse forward, obediently following Le Wuya on the ride home.

On the spring main road, butterflies circled the horses' hooves, dancing in the fragrant dust stirred up by the horses.

After bullying someone, Le Wuya was in an especially good mood. He took the intricately woven flower crown from his saddle, held it up to the sun with a grin, then suddenly spotted a cluster of pretty wildflowers by the roadside. He immediately reined in his horse, dismounted, carefully plucked them, and added a newly bloomed flower to the crown.

...

Xiang Zhi had originally come to reward the troops, and only lingered here because he had "accidentally" encountered the wokou raids. Now that the battle was settled, he needed to return to the capital immediately to report back.

Meanwhile, Xiang Zhi Jie, on the pretext of rewarding the soldiers, was allowed to stay in Tongzhou for a day or two longer.

Xiang Zhi Jie was sitting in Le Wuya's chair, leafing through a martial arts novel he had left behind, when Xiang Zhi Shi found him.

Xiang Zhi Shi looked weary, clearly having gone several nights without a good night's sleep.

Haunted by a single thought over and over, he couldn't take it anymore.

His voice was cold, hard as iron: "I need to talk to you about something."

Xiang Zhi Jie closed the book: "You rarely come to me."

Xiang Zhi Shi grabbed him by the sleeve: "Let's go!"

Xiang Zhi Jie allowed himself to be dragged along, walking out.

At the door, he suddenly raised his hand and grasped Xiang Zhi Shi's wrist in response.

This touch made Xiang Zhi Shi go rigid.

He hated physical contact with him.

Because it reminded him of when they were fused together in their mother's womb, blood and bone, inseparable.

That was the closest they had ever been as brothers.

He instinctively tried to shake him off, but couldn't break free.

"Let go!" Xiang Zhi Shi growled. "...What are you doing?"

Xiang Zhi Jie gazed at him calmly, his eyes showing no pride, no arrogance—only the calm, steady gravity of an elder brother: "As it happens, I have something to tell you as well."