Wife, Don't Be Like This!

Chapter 109 - Drop the Butcher's Knife and Become a Buddha on the Spot

"Song Yan, save me quick."

Perhaps because he had suffered too much fear, his voice was extremely shrill, like fingernails scraping forcefully across an iron plate. Hearing it, even Song Yan subconsciously squeezed his eyes shut.

Looking closely, only then did he recognize the scholar on the ground, covered in blood.

Who else could it be but Linghu Rui?

He was shocked.

Just before, he was still accusing him of being cruel and violent, bloodthirsty by nature, a butcher, and 'a live-in son-in-law, the lowest of the low.' Less than an hour had passed, and he was actually starting to ask him for help?

Are these people's skins all that thick?

Where is your scholarly pride?

The surrounding mountain bandits were clearly also startled by the name 'Song Yan'. Their faces changed instantly. After all, that was the ruthless man who had burned several thousand Wokou alive.

Thus, in a short time, the two words 'Song Yan' could be said to be known to every household in Song Prefecture and the many surrounding county towns.

Some families had already started to use the two words 'Song Yan' to scare their children.

With things like 'If you misbehave again, Song Yan will come.' It often had a pretty good effect.

When Kong Chan had cheerfully told Song Yan about these things, he was full of helplessness. What was all this about? Was he that scary?

Precisely because of this, these mountain bandits also subconsciously became vigilant.

Although their side had several dozen men, and Song Yan's side only had a few people, with many being women, not a single one dared to relax. Some of the bandits even felt their palms were sticky with cold sweat.

In the end, it was a sturdy man in the lead whose courage was a little greater. He took a step forward and cupped his fists towards Song Yan.

"Brother Song, greetings."

"Greetings."

Just then, the unpleasant cry of Linghu Rui, who was writhing on the ground, sounded again.

"Song Yan, what are you doing? Quick, kill them! They are all mountain bandits from Black Wind Fortress."

In Linghu Rui's view, although he had indeed had some unpleasantness with Song Yan before, those were just small matters.

Song Yan had once protected the entirety of Ningping. No matter what, he was also a scholar of the Ning Kingdom. On the other side were mountain bandits. Song Yan should be very clear on who to help.

Linghu Rui didn't feel there was any problem with his request. Or it could be said that for a person like him, no matter what he thought about, he would always subconsciously start from the angle most beneficial to himself.

But Linghu Rui's words were directly ignored by Song Yan.

Black Wind Fortress?

Such a familiar name. He felt he had seen it in many wuxia novels and historical novels.

But this was also normal. After all, most of those who fell to the point of becoming bandits were not cultured people. The names they chose were often things like Black Wind Fortress, Green Dragon Mountain, and the like. As long as it sounded intimidating, it was fine.

Speaking of which, there really did seem to be such a band of mountain bandits near Song Prefecture.

They were called the Black Wind Fortress, but they didn't seem to have a fixed mountain stronghold, more like a group of refugees wandering in the deep mountains and old forests.

They usually made a living by robbing passing merchant caravans. Basically, as long as you gave them money or grain, no matter how much, they would mostly let you pass. He had never heard of them killing anyone.

The Song Prefecture side had also arranged for bailiffs to suppress them a few times, but these people had lived in the mountain forests for years and were extremely familiar with the terrain.

Several suppression attempts had all returned without success. The Songzhou Provincial Governor's side then no longer bothered with them. After all, they hadn't really caused any deaths.

Song Yan's gaze swept over the corpses on the ground. There was a clear knife wound on Linghu Rui's side. It seemed a certain bandit had thrust a knife, and Linghu Rui had just managed to dodge a little, so the blade had scraped past his waist, tearing open a gash and avoiding the fate of being disemboweled.

Because they were all 'refugees', it was not suitable for the female family members like Luo Yuheng, Gu Banxia, and Li Qingyue to come out. So, these matters were all left to Song Yan to handle.

The drivers, Zhang Long and Zhao Hu, also remained steadily seated, with no intention of getting out of the carriage. But their fingers had also quietly fallen on the hilts of their sabers.

At the slightest sign of trouble, the two men's curved sabers would be unsheathed in an instant with thunderous might.

Song Yan could see that among this band of mountain bandits, there wasn't even a single ranked martial artist. Most of them relied on brute force. If they were to really fight, in just half a quarter-hour, Zhang Long and Zhao Hu could cut off the heads of these several dozen men.

"Your Black Wind Fortress has always taken the money and left, without taking lives, right?" Song Yan's voice was still steady, unhurried.

As for Linghu Rui on the ground, he was twitching from the pain.

He didn't understand. Isn't this Song Yan a butcher who kills without batting an eye? Shouldn't he have immediately raised his butcher's knife? Why was he in such a good mood now? Could there be some difference between mountain bandits and Wokou?

Damn it, he had to get to a clinic to see a doctor immediately, or he would die.

The bandit leader, seeing that Song Yan had no intention of making a move, also secretly let out a sigh of relief.

He didn't know why, but although he was already over thirty and the other party looked to be only sixteen or seventeen, the moment that pair of eyes swept over his body, he felt an indescribable tremor.

He had a premonition that if Song Yan really wanted to kill them, he was afraid that in a few breaths, all several dozen of his brothers would lose their lives.

Especially that blackish thing that Song Yan was holding and playing with in his hand. He didn't recognize what it was, but he instinctively felt it was extremely dangerous.

Forcibly suppressing the numb fear in his heart and moving his neck with effort, the leading bandit finally spoke again:

"I am the First Chieftain of Black Wind Fortress. What Brother Song says is correct. My Black Wind Fortress has always only sought wealth and not lives, and we do not rape. This is the rule of Black Wind Fortress."

He was clearly a big and burly man, but his speaking voice was practically a whisper. As he spoke, he kept secretly glancing at Song Yan's face. Seeing that Song Yan's brow was slightly furrowed with a serious expression, his heart couldn't help but become more apprehensive.

He spoke very seriously, going into every detail, to the point that even Song Yan felt he was a bit long-winded.

After a long while, Song Yan finally understood the situation. This First Chieftain of Black Wind Fortress's real name was Ma Han, a name quite familiar to Song Yan. If he could find a Wang Chao, then all four of the great guards would be assembled.

Just like the other mountain bandits beside him, they were all villagers from Ma Family Village in Song Prefecture.

The amount of arable land in Ma Family Village was extremely small. Fortunately, there were many wild beasts in the mountain behind the village, so the villagers of Ma Family Village mostly made a living by hunting.

But three years ago, Ma Han's younger brother took a batch of game to the county town to sell. In the end, he was inexplicably arrested, and in just three days, he was beheaded at the marketplace on the charge of murder and rape.

For the son of a noble family like Song Zhen, a death sentence still required the review of the Ministry of Punishments. Ordinary commoners did not have such treatment.

Later, Ma Han learned that it was a scholar from Xilin Academy who had defiled a merchant's daughter. The girl, unable to bear the humiliation, killed herself by smashing her head against a wall.

That scholar was afraid and sought help from the County Magistrate. That County Magistrate was a student from a previous class of Xilin Academy, and could be considered the scholar's senior brother.

In this County Magistrate's eyes, this was just a small matter. So he arranged for his confidants to randomly grab a scapegoat from the street. It just so happened that Ma Han's brother appeared, and dressed in animal skins, he looked savage and fierce at a glance, making him the most suitable scapegoat.

Three days later, the head was chopped off, and the case was closed.

Xilin Academy is very united. Ma Family Village is also very united. In a fit of rage, Ma Han led a few dozen relatives and friends, found the scholar, and directly chopped off his head. Then, under the cover of night, he stabbed the County Magistrate to death.

Having committed such a great crime, he naturally couldn't go back to Ma Family Village, so he simply entered the deep mountains and became a bandit.

Although he had killed people, Ma Han still held onto a trace of conscience. Even though life in the deep mountains was hard, he still set down a rule of not killing commoners and not abducting women. It wasn't until today, when the scholar in the carriage announced the name of Xilin Academy, that Ma Han's ferocity was once again provoked, and he committed the sin of killing.

These words made Song Yan see this Ma Han in a new light.

To be able to personally kill the enemy for his younger brother proved that this Ma Han was a person who valued relationships, righteousness, and had courage.

To become a bandit and still be able to restrain his subordinates proved that his good nature had not been extinguished. Even though their days were hard, so many brothers were still willing to follow him, which showed he was skilled in managing people.

Could this person be a talent?

Actually, from ancient times to the present, talent has not been hard to find.

I forget who said it, but the talent from just one city or county, if it could be unearthed, would be enough to contend for supremacy over the world. Looked at this way, to inadvertently discover a talented person was not a strange thing. He couldn't help but have the thought of recruiting him.

Although he had previously arranged for Lei Yi and the others to recruit the scattered border soldiers, those were definitely not enough. If he could subdue this band of men under Ma Han, it would also be pretty good.

After saying it all in one breath, Ma Han was also a bit parched. But he didn't dare to hesitate for too long. Taking a deep breath, he bowed to Song Yan:

"I know that Brother Song hates evil like an enemy. If Brother Song wants to arrest me and bring me to justice, Ma Han will absolutely not resist."

"It's just that this matter of killing has nothing to do with these brothers of mine. I ask Brother Song to let them off the hook."

Rustling sounds came from the other mountain bandits. Some people's faces even showed some defiance.

Although Song Yan had a fierce reputation, he was ultimately just a youth. Could it be that with so many brothers, they would still be afraid?

Immediately, some people started clamoring that they would live and die with Ma Han.

A trace of cold sweat appeared on Ma Han's forehead. He hurriedly stopped his brothers' shouting and secretly glanced at the strange black stick-shaped object in Song Yan's hand, and his scalp tingled. This feeling was even more exaggerated than encountering a tiger in the deep mountains.

Therefore, he did not dare to act rashly in front of Song Yan at all.

Song Yan smiled: "Arrest you and bring you to justice? Why would I arrest a good citizen like you?" Dıscover more novels at NoveI-Fire.ɴet

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was stunned.

Good citizens?

The mountain bandits couldn't believe they would have a day where they were called 'good citizens'. Some people even looked at the bloody corpses on the ground. How could this scene have any connection to 'good citizens'?

Linghu Rui was even more dumbfounded. His body shivered, and he subconsciously shouted:

"Song Yan, you... what nonsense are you talking about? They are mountain bandits! Kill them quickly! I am a ‘Xiucai’ (entry-level scholar). The Ning Kingdom has laws. When a scholar is in danger, one must do their best to help. You are the Baron of Anning County. How can you treat the law as a child's game? I demand that you kill them."

Song Yan let out a breath. The Ning Kingdom was ultimately too lenient with its scholars. Look at what kind of bunch had been spoiled.

Complaining internally, the smile on Song Yan's face deepened:

"Brother Linghu, I truly apologize. I feel that what you said to me before was very reasonable."

"In this short time, I have reflected on everything I have done. The act of burning the Wokou before was truly too cruel."

"So, I have dropped the butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot."

"Even a butcher like me who kills people like scything hemp can be civilized. It seems the Four Books and Five Classics that Brother Linghu has mastered truly have a magical power. Why don't you, Brother Linghu, try to use your Four Books and Five Classics, your benevolence, righteousness, rites, and wisdom to civilize these mountain bandits?"

"Brother Linghu, I have faith in you. You can definitely do it."

In an instant, Linghu Rui's eyes widened, his mouth agape, but he couldn't make a sound.

Civilize them?

Civilize them my ass!