The Red Chamber: Starting from Saving Xue Baochai

Chapter 3 This scholar is a bit cruel
Yingtian Prefecture, the back hall of the government office.

Jia Yucun was checking the official documents on the desk.

A man walked in holding an exquisite wooden box the size of a square foot.

"Sir, Mr. Liu from East City sent someone to deliver a gift box and this letter."

Jia Yucun stopped what he was doing, looked up, and his expression did not change.

These days, it is not uncommon to see people asking officials for favors, and he receives gifts every now and then. He has his own discretion whether to accept them or not.

"Bring it here."

The doorman stepped forward, placed the wooden box and the letter on the desk, then respectfully left.

Jia Yucun casually opened the wooden box and took a look.

Immediately, his pupils shrank, his eyes were filled with fear, his face instantly turned pale as paper, and he slumped down on the wooden chair.

It took him a long time to recover. He closed the box, picked up the letter next to it with suspicion, and opened it to check. During the whole process, his hands could not stop shaking.

After reading the contents of the letter, Jia Yucun's expression changed, as if he was surprised and happy.

"Somebody come!"

"master."

"Where is the person who gave the gift?"

"My Lord, that person is waiting outside the mansion."

"Ask the servants in the mansion to bring the person here."

The doorman was a little confused when he heard this. Normally, when the master received guests, he never allowed the yamen runners to be present. Why did he specially ask the yamen runners to come today? He didn't ask too much, so he replied respectfully and was about to go out to call for help.

"and many more!"

Jia Yucun hesitated again. After contemplating for a moment, he said, "Let the man wait in the front hall first. Go and tell Guo Tai to come and see me."

The gatekeeper left as ordered.

Guo Tai mentioned by Jia Yucun is the garrison commander of Yingtian Prefecture and a fifth-rank military officer with two thousand soldiers under his command. His duty is to assist the prefect Jia Yucun in maintaining public security and stability in Yingtian Prefecture, which is a bit like the armed police in later generations.

About a quarter of an hour later, Guo Tai arrived.

"grown ups."

"Take a look at this first." Jia Yucun handed the letter to Guo Tai.

Guo Tai took it and read it carefully. His eyes gradually brightened, and then he became suspicious.

"Sir, is this credible?"

"Look at this again." Jia Yucun pointed to the wooden box on the table again.

Guo Tai took a step forward, opened the lid of the box, and was instantly shocked.

"This is Ao Debiao! It's Ao Debiao's head!"

Jia Yucun was delighted when he heard this, "Are you sure?"

"Sir, I am sure!"

The bandits in Aomen Village had been causing trouble for several years. Guo Tai had led his troops to suppress them many times, but because the village was easy to defend but difficult to attack, and the government troops did not want to take too much risk, they returned empty-handed every time.

"What do you think about this?"

Guo Tai thought for a moment and said, "Since the head of the bandit leader has been delivered, the letter is probably true."

After receiving Guo Tai's confirmation, Jia Yucun became more convinced. He called the doorman and ordered, "Go and invite the messenger."

"Yes, my lord."

The doorman responded and went to the front hall. After confirming that the man had no weapons, he took him to the back hall.

"Student Shen Yuan greets His Excellency the Prefect."

Jia Yucun was a little surprised to hear the visitor call himself a "student". He took a look at him and saw that he was indeed handsome. He asked, "Have you been to school?"

Shen Yuan said: "I took the college entrance examination last year."

"Oh? And he's a scholar." Jia Yucun asked, "Do you have any proof?"

Shen Yuan took out the ivory plate from his arms and handed it over.

The Great Zhou used ivory plates as proof of identity. Although it was called ivory plates, generally only middle and high-level officials and above used ivory plates. The next best thing was bronze plates, and the worst was wooden plates.

Shen Yuan's ivory plate was a bronze plate.

Jia Yucun took it, checked it, and felt relieved when he saw that it was not a fake.

"The letter said that you killed Ao Debiao with your own hands. Did you have any help?"

"There was no helper. The student took advantage of his deep sleep and beheaded him. Then, he escaped through a secret passage."

"Is there really a secret passage?"

"Indeed, otherwise the students would not have been able to kill the thief leader and escape unscathed."

Jia Yucun nodded and asked some more detailed questions, to which Shen Yuan answered calmly.

Although Jia Yucun didn't know why the young man was so calm, what he said was reasonable. The key was that the bandit leader's head was right in front of him, so he had to believe it.

"You are brave and courageous, not at all like a weak scholar."

"Students have learned some simple martial arts since childhood to strengthen their bodies."

Jia Yucun no longer had any questions and returned to the point, saying, "You killed Ao Debiao, but no one else found out, did you?"

Shen Yuan said: "The student sneaked into the thief's bedroom, then closed the door and killed him. No one noticed, but... after a long time, other people in the village might get suspicious."

Upon hearing this, Jia Yucun ordered in a deep voice: "There is no time to lose. Guo Tai must quickly organize his troops. Shen Yuan will lead the way. We will feint a frontal attack, sneak in through a secret passage, attack from both inside and outside, and take down Aomen Village in one fell swoop, restoring peace to Yingtian Prefecture."

Guo Tai bowed and said, "I will obey your orders."

But Shen Yuan seemed not to hear and did not respond.

Jia Yucun looked at Shen Yuan with a fixed gaze, knowing that the young man would not give him a great achievement for no reason, and he must have something in mind.

"Tell me, what do you want?"

Shen Yuan didn't want to beat around the bush, so he said directly: "I only have one request. I hope that after the matter is completed, you can give me the status of a martial arts scholar."

After hearing this, Jia Yucun and Guo Tai were both stunned and puzzled.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, civil officials are valued more than military officials. You are already a scholar in the civil examination, so why do you want to get the identity of a scholar in the military examination?

Then Shen Yuan continued, "I want to take the path of the martial arts examination, but the autumn examination is approaching."

After hearing this, Jia Yucun suddenly understood.

The so-called Autumn Examination is an examination for scholars to be promoted to Juren, which includes both civil and military candidates and is held every three years.

According to the normal process, one must first pass the county examination, prefectural examination, and academy examination for the military examination, and only after becoming a military scholar will one be eligible to participate in the autumn examination for the military examination.

If Shen Yuan started taking the exam from the beginning, he would definitely miss this autumn examination. The next time would be three years later, and he didn't want to wait.

The supervision of the military examination was not as strict as that of the civil examination, especially for a low-level title like Wu Xiucai.

With Jia Yucun's status as the prefect of Yingtian, it was not difficult for him to get Shen Yuan the identity of a military scholar. Although it would involve a little risk, it was nothing compared to the great achievement at hand.

"Okay, I promise you."

After saying this, Jia Yucun gave Guo Tai another subtle look, which Shen Yuan did not notice.

Guo Tai nodded, understanding what he meant.

Shen Yuan reached a deal with Jia Yucun and without further ado, followed Guo Tai out of the Yingtian government office.

In the sixteenth year of Yuanzhen, on the sixth day of the eighth month, in the evening.

The crescent moon hangs high in the sky, but the moonlight is not very bright.

Guo Tai led more than 300 people, led by Shen Yuan, and sneaked into the secret passage in the back mountain of Aomen Village.

A group of people lit torches, divided into two columns, and moved forward slowly.

"How is Brother Shen's martial arts?"

Shen Yuan said: "I have only practiced a few boxing techniques to strengthen my body, which cannot be considered kung fu."

Guo Tai looked suspicious and chuckled, "You are too modest, little brother. How can someone who can easily sneak into Ao Debiao's bedroom and take his head be an ordinary person?" "I just used some smoke and tricks. I am just a weak scholar."

Shen Yuan knew that Guo Tai was testing him with his words. Although he didn't know his purpose, he became wary.

"arrive."

When he reached the end of the secret passage, Shen Yuan pressed hard in a very hidden place on the right side of the stone wall.

"Boom!"

The stone gate in front of them slowly moved sideways, and a faint light gradually appeared. Guo Tai and others looked tense and remained alert.

Soon, the stone door opened, revealing a room with no sound coming from inside.

Shen Yuan entered first and took a look. It was no different from when he left.

It seems that the abnormality inside has not been discovered by anyone.

Given Ao Debiao's past habits, it was common for him to indulge in debauchery behind closed doors for a whole day, and other people in the village did not find it strange.

Guo Tai followed closely with a dozen men and entered the room. The bedroom could not accommodate too many people, so the rest of the government troops waited for orders in the secret passage.

When they saw the headless male corpse in the bathtub and the erotic female corpse next to it, Guo Tai and others were also somewhat horrified.

The bathtub was dark red. After soaking in the water for a day and a night, the body was visibly swollen.

"Is this person Ao Debiao?"

Seeing Shen Yuan nod, Guo Tai sighed and said, "We never thought that the bandits who we were unable to kill would die at the hands of Brother Shen."

Shen Yuan did not respond. At this moment, his mind was racing and he remained highly alert.

Because with his keenness as a warrior, he could already sense the hidden murderous intent in Guo Tai's eyes.

Only then did he recall the unintentional eye contact between Jia Yucun and Guo Tai.

Jia Yucun wanted to kill him as a bandit.

He has done such a great service to Jia Yucun, but this man doesn't want to take any trouble. He is an even more selfish and shameless villain than the one in the original book!
While Shen Yuan was talking, he had unknowingly approached the door, and Ao Debiao's knife was not far away.

Guo Tai didn't know his strength, so it wasn't difficult for Shen Yuan to escape from the room after a desperate struggle.

In such a narrow space, Shen Yuan might be able to kill Guo Tai first, but after all, he is just a commoner now, and killing a fifth-rank military officer will bring him endless troubles.

Just as both parties were secretly moved, they suddenly heard a hurried knock on the door.

"Big brother!"

"It's bad! There are a large number of government troops attacking the village gate at the foot of the mountain!"

Guo Tai was stunned for a moment, then winked at his men.

The man walked forward and slowly opened the door, and the bandits outside rushed in in a hurry.

"Brother."

The bandit's words got stuck in his throat when he saw the room was filled with government troops.

"Fuck me!"

He reacted immediately and tried to rush out, but the door had been closed and he was surrounded.

The bandit's heart suddenly sank to the bottom of the valley, and he felt cold all over.

He turned his head and saw Shen Yuan right beside him.

Fear turned to anger, and he shouted, "You son of a bitch, scholar! You betrayed the stronghold!"

"Even if I die today, I will take you with me!"

After saying that, he raised his knife and slashed at Shen Yuan.

Shen Yuan was already in a combat-ready state, reacting extremely quickly. He blocked with his knife, showing extraordinary skills.

The bandit was stunned and became even angrier.

"Fuck you, you've been hiding in the village all along! Die now!"

Seeing this, others were about to step forward to help, but Guo Tai raised his hand to stop them.

If Shen Yuan died at the hands of bandits, it would save him the trouble.

But he was soon disappointed. The more they fought, the more frightened he became.

Unexpectedly, Shen Yuan's kung fu was so amazing that after two rounds, he turned defense into offense and beat the bandit.

Guo Tai couldn't sit still anymore and stepped forward with his sword in hand.

"Brother Shen, I'm here to help you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the blade had already reached Shen Yuan's back.

While Shen Yuan was fighting with the bandit, he had already been on guard against Guo Tai and others. Sensing the murderous intent behind him, he quickly moved to the side and avoided Guo Tai's knife.

Guo Tai was surprised, but he was unable to retract his knife in time, so he chopped down the bandits with his knife.

How could the bandits have expected the other party to cooperate so well? In a panic, they were hacked to the ground and half dead.

Shen Yuan dodged to the side and stared at Guo Tai. At this moment, his heart was filled with anger. I'm helping him!
You really think he's a weakling, don't you?

He suppressed the anger in his heart, raised his knife, walked forward, and chopped off the bandit's head with one stroke.

Bandit: “.”

Then, Shen Yuan looked back at Guo Tai with cold eyes and said in a cold voice: "I have an extremely important news that I need to tell Lord Jia in person."

Guo Tai was shocked by the fierceness Shen Yuan had just shown, and after hearing what he said, he couldn't help but hesitate.

"what news?"

"This concerns the prefect's future and life. Lord Guo, are you sure you want to listen?"

Guo Tai was stunned when he heard this. He didn't know whether Shen Yuan was lying to him, but he didn't dare to ruin Jia Yucun's plan. He decided to put aside his murderous intentions for the time being and leave it to the prefect to make the decision.

Seeing that Guo Tai had given up his murderous intention, Shen Yuan said no more and simply opened the door and left the room.

"grown ups."

Seeing that Guo Tai was in a daze, his subordinates began to remind him.

Guo Tai regained his composure, waved his hand, and said, "Brothers in the secret passage, please come out. It's time to perform meritorious deeds. Follow me and fight your way out!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Soon, Guo Tai led more than 300 people and broke out from the center of the stronghold.

With a large army attacking the village from outside and a powerful enemy stabbing from inside, the entire Aomen Village fell into chaos.

Guo Tai saw that the matter had been accomplished and did not want the government troops to suffer too many casualties, so he shouted: "Ao Debiao has been killed by me. The rest of you should quickly lay down your weapons. Those who surrender may be spared!"

The men around him also shouted in unison, their voices echoing throughout the mountain stronghold, and their momentum was deafening.

The government troops also threw Ao Debiao's headless body into the village, which shocked everyone in Aomen Village.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the bandits lost all will to resist and began to lay down their weapons and surrender.

Several of the bosses also began to waver.

At this moment, a young man in blue clothes raised his sword and shouted: "The bandits are no longer able to resist. Kill them and you will be rewarded. Kill!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a bandit was beheaded.

The other bandits were shocked and angry when they saw this.

"Damn the government troops, they are trying to trap us and kill us. Let's pick up our weapons and fight them!"

The situation, which had just calmed down, fell into chaos again.

Shen Yuan did not stop after killing one person, but continued to kill wildly. With every swing of his sword, a head rolled down, and he instantly turned into a cold-faced Shura.

This group of evil bandits, every one of them is innocent, they are a bunch of beasts, their crimes cannot be redeemed even by death. There is no need to wait for the trial according to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he, Shen Yuan, will be the judge today.

Guo Tai looked at the scene in front of him and the corners of his mouth couldn't stop twitching.

This scholar is a bit cruel!

Who the hell said that he is the weak scholar?

(End of this chapter)