Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Unexpected Harvest
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"I'm Zhang Liao, styled Wen Yuan. I gladly pledge to follow the Unit Commander."
Zhang Liao knelt on one knee and bowed his head. Seeing that, I couldn't help but break into a satisfied grin. My eye for talent hadn't steered me wrong.
If I'd let a gem like this slip away, I'd have been kicking myself in regret.
"Enough with the kneeling. I don't stand on that kind of ceremony."
I waved him off and hauled him to his feet. Glancing around at his men, who still carried an air of awkwardness, and my own subordinates, I asked,
"So, spill the story. What's a county clerk from Anwen County doing out in these backwoods, swinging swords with his crew?"
Zhang Liao scanned the surroundings briefly, let out a sigh, and opened his mouth. A dry sarcasm laced his voice.
"Hoo... Our commandery administrator believes the best way to deal with bandits is to pile up taller walls and send memorials to the court begging, 'There are so many bandits—please send reinforcements.'"
"Ha!"
I burst out laughing without meaning to.
"And?"
"It'd be nice if the bigwigs in the capital read those and sent a punitive force, but unfortunately, his voice doesn't seem to carry that far."
"Kahaha! That's a masterpiece!"
I clutched my belly laughing. I liked this guy. Skilled with a blade, and his tongue was just as sharp.
'Good. Talented, and he knows the top brass is worthless. Top-tier recruit.'
We were bantering like idiots, our guards down, when a familiar, booming voice rang out from the distance.
"Brother! Wei Sok reporting in! We've wiped out every last rat bastard over here!"
Wei Sok came charging up, covered head to toe in blood and dirt, puffed up with pride.
He started to report his feats to me but froze on the spot when he spotted Zhang Liao chuckling at my side.
Wei Sok's face screamed, 'Who the hell is this punk cozying up next to my brother?'
I sighed and called him over.
"Wei Sok, get over here and say hello. This is Zhang Liao, Wen Yuan—our newest addition."
At my words, Wei Sok scowled openly and stomped toward Zhang Liao. He raked him over from head to toe, then picked a fight right off the bat.
"Hey, newbie. Even if the brother picked you up, we still gotta set the hierarchy straight. I'm this unit's original right-hand man and number-one little brother. Better listen to me from here on out."
Utterly childish—and pure Wei Sok.
I sighed inwardly, watching to see how Zhang Liao would handle it. Playing along with that brainless hazing would wear anyone out; ignoring it would just make Wei Sok bounce off the walls even harder.
As if to scoff at my prediction, Zhang Liao merely gave him a quick once-over from top to bottom.
His gaze was like that of a scholar studying some novel insect. After a brief appraisal, he gave a short nod, as if settling on a price.
"Got it."
That was all.
A perfectly flat, businesslike reply devoid of any emotion. Then he turned to me, tossing out a question as if Wei Sok weren't even there.
"Unit Commander, where's our next target?"
"Y-you little—!"
The utter dismissal lit Wei Sok's face beet red.
Worse than the snub itself was his fury at not even grasping why he was being dismissed. He huffed and puffed, planting himself in front of Zhang Liao and bellowing,
"Hey! You ignoring me right now?! Do you even know who I am?!"
Zhang Liao finally glanced back at him, visibly annoyed.
"I heard you're the lord's first brother."
"That's right—I'm the first brother! The brother and I aren't just boss and subordinate—we're like blood kin! I keep this unit's discipline in line. That's the deal!"
Wei Sok thumped his chest for emphasis. At that, the faintest smirk—like a sneer—flicked across Zhang Liao's lips.
"Like blood kin... In that case, you're the Unit Commander's little brother. Should I call you 'young master' going forward?"
"W-what?! You mocking me?!"
Wei Sok instinctively caught the deep sarcasm dripping from 'young master' and flew into a rage.
Dumb as they come, but even simpletons spot mockery like pros. Seeing his hand drift to his sword hilt, I had no choice but to speak up.
"Wei Sok."
He flinched at my low call and whipped around.
"Cut it out."
"But brother! This guy's—!"
"Shut your mouth."
One word from me, and he bit his lip, choking down his anger without further tantrum. Watching him, I pressed my throbbing temple hard.
'Ha... what a headache.'
Things were about to get real noisy.
The hunting method changed.
At Zhang Liao's point that chasing down every scattered rat one by one was inefficient, we overhauled our approach entirely.
Wei Sok and Zhang Liao would each lead a detachment to sweep the left and right flanks like beaters, herding the rats through the mountains. I'd hold the broadest valley pass like a net, scooping up whatever they drove my way.
"About time they showed."
I perched on a boulder in the valley's heart, idly polishing my spear as I murmured.
Behind me, fifty elite riders held their breath, poised to strike.
Moments later, faint horn blasts echoed from afar—the agreed signal. The hunt was on.
"Here they come!"
"Kyaaak! Run for it!"
"You lunatics—quit chasing us!"
No sooner had the words left my mouth than hundreds of bandits came pouring into the valley mouth, shrieking in panic.
They bolted blindly ahead, scared out of their wits like something was hot on their heels. No doubt Wei Sok and Zhang Liao's forces were tightening the noose from behind.
"People up ahead!"
"It's a trap! Damn it—a trap!"
They finally spotted me and recoiled in horror, but it was far too late. The valley was a massive dead end.
"Kill them."
"Waaah!"
At my curt order, the elites surged forward as one. With nowhere to flee, butchering the trapped rats was less a battle than a slaughter.
As the one-sided affair wrapped up anticlimactically, another scout came dashing in.
"Unit Commander! Bandits flying white flags approaching from the west!"
White flags? I flicked the blood from my spear and peered westward.
Sure enough, just as reported, hundreds more bandits advanced cautiously, weapons discarded. At their fore, two men who looked like ringleaders dropped to their knees.
One of them drew a dripping sack from his bosom and rolled it to my feet.
"Unit Commander!"
The man who rolled it slammed his forehead to the dirt and cried out desperately.
"This is the head of our boss—Black Ghost, the fool who dared raid Jin Yang's grain wagons a few days back!"
Black Ghost. A name from the reports. I stared down at the pair wordlessly. They pressed on.
"Our boss lost his mind and picked a fight with the 'Martial God of Saibang'! We figured we'd end up dying like dogs at this rate... so we took his head ourselves and brought it to you! Forgive our crimes—spare our lives, please!"
A textbook tail-cut.
It was obvious some snakehead was pulling their strings from the shadows, but no need to uproot it now.
I'd just claim the profit in front of me. Those two had eyes that weren't run-of-the-mill.
"Names?"
"I'm Cheng Lian!"
"I'm Wei Yue!"
Cheng Lian and Wei Yue. I committed the names to memory.
"Fine. Lives spared. Crimes don't vanish, though. From now on, you fight under me. Atone by taking heads from bandits and foreign scum—equal to the villagers you harmed."
"Yes, sir! With pleasure!"
Just then, Wei Sok and Zhang Liao arrived, units in tow, hunt complete.
I flashed a satisfied smile at the fresh hundreds joining us. Zhang Liao sidled up and murmured,
"Snake lopped off its tail and bolted. But it's a meaty tail—not a bad haul."
"Yeah. One day I'll chew through that snakehead myself. For now... let's savor this tasty tail."
Wei Sok cocked his head, barging into our talk.
"Brother! Huh? Snakes? Where? Tails taste good? I ain't big on snake meat!"
"Hoo..."
At the purely idiotic question, Zhang Liao gazed skyward and heaved a profound sigh without a word. Spotting it, Wei Sok flushed crimson again.
"What the—you ignoring me?!"
The instant Wei Sok geared up to explode, I clapped a heavy hand on his shoulder. He jolted and turned.
"Brother?"
"Wei Sok. Your strength is valor. Brains aren't."
"Huh? What're you..."
"That guy."
I jerked my chin at Zhang Liao.
"His strength is brains. Next time he says something you don't get, zip it and nod. At least you won't look like a total fool. Clear?"
At the blunt words, Wei Sok worked his mouth wordlessly for a beat, then nodded glumly like he'd accepted it. I turned to Zhang Liao.
"And Wen Yuan."
"Yes, Unit Commander."
"Dumb as he looks, but he's the one I trust at my back. Thinks with his body, not his head. Figure out how to put that body to good use."
Zhang Liao's eyes flickered wider for a split second.
He studied me a moment, then gave Wei Sok a light bow. The sudden gesture left Wei Sok baffled but not pissed.
"Enough chit-chat."
I left the pair behind and strode toward our new hundreds.
"Reorganize the surrendered into units. Treat the wounded! We march out of this valley before sundown!"
At my command, the troops sprang back into brisk motion.