Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 394 They deserve to die!
"This way, this way, my residence is to the east. It's quite a distance from the front of the imperial city..."

Li Bangyan was also anxious. He saw soldiers running everywhere. What if these soldiers actually rushed into his house?
Mei Zhan then spoke up, "Master Li, get in the carriage and let's go. We can keep up!"

"Alright, alright, I'll definitely keep up!" Li Bangyan hurriedly got into the carriage, with the driver on either side and the servants running alongside.

Behind them, Mei Zhan and Shi Qian also mounted their horses, followed by a troop of soldiers, about a hundred men in total.

They just kept going, and along the way were soldiers rushing about. After walking for a while, they left the soldiers running around behind...

Just as they were about to pass the southern gate of the imperial city, Li Bangyan suddenly lifted the curtain of the carriage and poked his head out, saying, "General Mei, we must quickly surround the imperial city..."

Mei Zhan nodded and replied, "Don't worry, we'll be able to surround this place once we get to Master Li's house and return..."

"Good, good, good!" Li Bangyan was busy with three things: first, the army was besieging the capital to rescue the emperor; second, he was thinking about the two people he still needed to capture; and third, he was thinking about protecting his home as quickly as possible, making sure the rebel army didn't get in...

There are three things, and not one of them is not urgent...

Li Bangyan was so anxious that he was covered in sweat...

He couldn't help but urge the driver on: "Faster, faster...faster..."

The coachman just kept raising his whip high to lash the old ox's rump...

The residence of Prime Minister Li Bangyan is within reach.

After getting out of the carriage, he said, "This is it. General Mei, leave some men to protect it. Let's hurry to the capital..."

Mei Zhan was dismounting when he looked up and surveyed the scene: the doorposts, the gate, the stone lions, and the walls extending to the left and right...

"What a huge mansion..." Mei Zhan exclaimed in surprise, as he had never seen much of the world, let alone Tokyo.

Li Bangyan waved his hand: "It's nothing..."

Mei Zhan continued walking towards the main gate, but stopped when he reached it. He peeked inside and asked, "It must be very big inside, right?"

Li Bangyan suddenly realized that this was a country bumpkin coming to the city, and simply said, "Isn't it easy to say? General Mei has performed such a great service this time, when His Majesty comes to reward him, no matter how big a mansion he wants, it won't be a problem..."

"Really?" Mei Zhan also asked.

"Of course!" Li Bangyan said with absolute certainty.

"Master Li, may I go in and take a look?" Mei Zhan asked.

"What's so interesting about this..." Li Bangyan blurted out anxiously, but then realized his mistake and added, "There's no rush now. We can invite General Mei to come and see it another day. He can look at it however he wants. Right now, we should hurry to the capital to save His Majesty!"

As he spoke, Li Bangyan reached out and grabbed Mei Zhan's arm, as if to hurry up and leave...

Mei Zhan remained unmoved and said in an unfriendly tone, "What if I want to see it now?"

Upon uttering this sentence, Mei Zhan felt a strange sense of pleasure. In the past, he would never have seen the so-called dignity of a prime minister.
Not to mention speaking to the prime minister like that...

In the past, let alone prefects or governors, even a county magistrate wouldn't dare to speak carelessly; he would have to bow repeatedly...

Today, in the capital city, before the prime minister, he felt a strange sense of catharsis, even if it was just a harsh word...

Li Bangyan was taken aback and kept looking at Mei Zhan, wondering if this soldier had lost his mind.

At this critical moment, why must I visit a house?

"General Mei, when can't we stroll around the mansion? Right now, as long as we break through the imperial city and save His Majesty, it's His Majesty's Genyue Garden. You can stroll around however you like. Hurry up, don't keep His Majesty waiting..."

Li Bangyan still tried to persuade him with kind words.

But then, seeing the plum blossoms in full bloom, he suddenly started walking and headed straight for the main gate...

Li Bangyan quickly pulled him away, saying, "General Mei is a loyal and righteous man. How can you not distinguish between what is important and what is urgent?"

Mei stretched out her arm to pull him, turned around and glared at him, then cursed, "You old bastard, let go!"

Li Bangyan was so frightened that he immediately let go, but he was also completely confused. He saw Mei Zhan continue to walk in, and not only Mei Zhan, but also many soldiers went in.

Outside the gate, soldiers were running around the mansion's perimeter wall...

How is this going?

But then Mei Zhan, who had already been admitted to the hospital, suddenly turned around and said, "Why don't you come in, you old scoundrel?"

Li Bangyan was still standing there dumbfounded outside the door, completely baffled as to what was going on...

Suddenly he felt a huge force pushing him from behind. He looked around and saw a soldier on his left and a soldier on his right, who were indeed pushing him forward.

"How dare you!" Li Bangyan shouted instinctively.

The soldier wouldn't tolerate him. He raised his hand and slapped Li Bangyan across the face, shouting, "You old beast, get out of here!"

If they continued walking, it wouldn't be pushing anymore; instead, soldiers on both sides would be carrying Li Bangyan towards the front yard of his house.

Li Bangyan was slapped across the face, his vision filled with stars, and he was lifted up with his legs dangling in the air. He looked around blankly, as if he were in a daze.

He was only in a daze for a short while before regaining his senses and shouting, "What's going on? What's going on? General Mei, what's going on?"

No one answered. The soldiers simply followed Mei Zhan inside, passing through the front courtyard, entering a large hall, walking along a corridor, and then into the middle courtyard...

There were still many servants and young men in the front yard, all looking dazed and confused. In the middle yard, members of the Li family, including their sons, nephews, and grandsons, all rushed out of their rooms to see what was happening...

The soldiers came in single file, like wolves and tigers, the sound of their swords being drawn ringing out...

Then, the fierce-looking man was already close by, shouting, "Behold my blade! Don't move! Kneel down on the ground, or you will be killed without mercy!"

The numerous nephews, nieces, and grand-nephews were all dumbfounded, unable to react for a moment, yet they could see the gleaming steel knife truly pressed against their necks, and their bodies trembled in fear...

Then, Li Bangyan was also carried into the central courtyard and thrown to the ground by two soldiers.

The fall left Li Bangyan, an old man, completely disoriented. Once he had regained his footing, he looked around and, finding Mei Zhan in his direction, immediately asked, "General Mei, what is the reason for this?"

Mei Zhan turned around and looked down at them sideways: "You dogs, are you all any good? You're all parasites! You're the deadliest things in the country. If we want the country to prosper, we have to kill all of you dogs!"

These vicious words terrified Li Bangyan, who trembled with fear. However, he was quick-witted and immediately said, "General Mei, have you suffered some injustice in the past? Now that you have made great contributions, you also have power in your hands. In a few days, just settle your scores and grievances. Why involve the innocent?"

Mei Zhan didn't answer, his head already turned away: "Go into the backyard, bring out all the women, search them thoroughly, don't let a single living creature escape..."

The soldiers, as fierce as wolves and tigers, continued into the inner courtyard. Not only was there an inner courtyard, but there were also side courtyards and a garden on the other side…

The search and capture were already underway everywhere, and countless cries of despair were inevitable...

Li Bangyan repeatedly said, "General Mei, you mustn't be so stubborn. I'm your ally, I'm here to help you... There will only be benefits in the future, no harm..."

Mei Zhan turned around and asked immediately, "Sponsoring you? That's perfect. Where do you hide your money at home?"

Upon hearing this, Li Bangyan felt a sense of relief and immediately replied, "If you wanted money, you should have said so earlier. Money is no problem. I have it, I have it. The first room on the left inside is where I live. There's a secret compartment under the bed. It's inside!"

Mei Zhan nodded, waved goodbye, and said that the soldiers would go and find him.

A moment later, the soldier returned, carrying a rather large box with him.

The box was carried to Mei Zhan and opened; inside were gold and silver items, but mostly bronze...

Mei Zhan glanced at Shi Qian, who smiled faintly and remained silent.

Mei Zhan suddenly drew his sword, not even glancing at Li Bangyan, and went straight to the left, looking for a boy of about thirteen or fourteen years old, dressed in fine clothes, whose name no one bothered to ask.

"What are you doing?" Li Bangyan shouted.

What was he doing? In the blink of an eye, Mei Zhan killed someone. His movements were extremely fast; with a swift stroke, he severed half an arm and a head.

The boy reacted quickly; when the knife came at him, he instinctively raised his hand to block it, but his arm was severed, his head fell off, and blood gushed out and sprayed down!

Blood splattered onto Mei Zhan's iron helmet and shoulder armor, then dripped onto the bluestone slabs in the courtyard...

The bluestone slabs in Li Bangyan's house must have been carved out of the mountains by soldiers from the capital region...

tick...

The entire area fell silent, and the soldiers naturally refrained from shouting.

The others were terrified, frozen in place.

Li Bangyan stared in disbelief as the youthful head rolled on the ground, blood still dripping, and the boy's body twitching as it hit the ground...

After what seemed like an eternity, Li Bangyan exclaimed in surprise, "My grandson, my dear grandson! My good grandson..."

Li Bangyan was crying and screaming, crawling on the ground toward his beloved grandson, first trying to pick up the severed head...

Mei Zhandao is still horizontal...

Shi Qian chimed in, "Hmph! You have your good grandsons and granddaughters, but what about people from Jiangnan and Zhejiang? What about people from Hebei? What about people from the capital region? You've only lost one, but countless others in the world have died..."

Shi Qian witnessed all the tragedies that had befallen the Song Dynasty! How could he not be moved?

These are Shi Qian's words: "When bandits rose up in Jiangnan, the corpses in Hangzhou were indeed devoured by wild dogs. Women were all forced into the bandit camps, wailing every day. When the Jurchens crossed Hebei, countless people died or were wounded. Men were enslaved, and anyone who resisted was beheaded. Women were made maids, raped by the barbarians every night... Alas... the number was in the millions... You are in Tokyo, you can't see it..."

Shi Qian sighed to himself, and as he spoke, he couldn't help but recall countless tragic scenes, and a deep sorrow welled up within him...

As Shi Qian spoke, Mei Zhan listened, and her heart ached as well…

Just look at the front and back courtyards; the women, young and old, are all being brought in, a whole bunch of them weeping and wailing…

"You old codger, you've been a close advisor to the emperor for many years, enjoying high office, wealth, and glory. You can't even manage to cultivate yourself, govern the country, and bring peace to the world. You should at least experience the suffering of the world..." Shi Qian continued, raising his hand in a gesture.

Mei Zhan didn't move, but raised his hand to point: "Tie that one up and kill him, he'll be this old dog's son!"

Just follow Mei Zhan's gaze, and immediately a middle-aged scholar kneels down and kowtows: "Spare me, spare me, sir, spare me!"

Over here, Li Bangyan, holding his grandson's head, suddenly shouted, "We have money! We have money! We have money!"

The soldier who was about to kill Li Bangyan's son paused, looking at Mei Zhan.

Mei Zhan simply nodded.

He started hacking away with his broadsword. Perhaps the soldier was badly skilled, or perhaps he just wanted to vent his anger by making a few more cuts. So the soldier just slashed wildly.

The middle-aged scholar raised his hand to block while rolling on the ground trying to avoid it...

A flurry of blows left a pool of blood; whether one tried to block or roll away, after a dozen or so cuts, they were all dead...

"I said I have money, I said I have money..." Li Bangyan sat on the ground, holding his grandson's head, his bottom twitching repeatedly: "My son, my son..."

His face was covered in wrinkles, his eyes were wide open, and he was crying out in anguish, his heart breaking with unspeakable pain...

"The people of the world have died, and so have your family. You are right. You corrupt officials should pay for the lives of millions of people! Their wives, children, and elderly parents died, and so did yours. Only then is it fair. Don't rush, my eldest son is still in my army. Where is the money?"

Mei Zhan remained calm; he didn't feel any psychological burden when the people in this house started killing each other.

The women over there were crying uncontrollably, but Mei Zhan took two steps with his sword across his body, and they immediately stopped crying.

"Money!" Mei Zhan shouted.

"Yes, yes, go to the main hall in the back courtyard. There's a hidden door behind the hall, and a portrait of the emperor hangs in front of it. Open the door from behind the portrait, and you'll find a cellar..."

Li Bangyan spoke rapidly, like a string of arrows, pointing with his hand and nodding with his head...

Mei Zhan simply raised his hand...

More soldiers went.

This time it was real; boxes were being carried out one by one, containing gold, silver, bronze, and various papers and contracts...

They carried it for quite a while, and the pile kept getting bigger and bigger in the yard...

During this time, things quieted down in the courtyard. The soldiers stopped killing people, and the women stopped crying and screaming. Mei Zhan had already spoken: "Come on, bring them over one by one and line them up in one place."

At that moment, a soldier walked in from the doorway, holding a piece of paper in his hand. This piece of paper was very important.

It was sent by Yan Qing, delivered door-to-door, and copied from the household registration documents of Kaifeng Prefecture.

We still need to count them to see if the number of people in the main household is correct.

The household registration records in Kaifeng Prefecture were quite complete, because in that era, scholars who wanted to study, take exams, or receive imperial favors were all registered, and it was impossible for any male members of wealthy families to be missed...

Even women couldn't be overlooked, because in this era, marriage also required registration at the government's household registration office...

Unregistered individuals are considered unregistered persons, and if discovered, it's a serious crime.

Of course, with such a large-scale operation, it's impossible to catch no one; the goal is to minimize the number of suspects.

The papers were delivered to Shi Qian, who began counting and calculating...

Mei Zhan continued to give instructions: "The master's servants are over here, and the servants and maids are over there... Do not hide anything. If anyone does, they will all be killed!"

The screams continued, sending shivers down everyone's spines. The sight of the corpses on the ground made them tremble, and the rising stench of blood made some cover their mouths and noses, trying to suppress their nausea and vomiting...

We're from a wealthy, scholarly family; where have we ever seen anything like this before?

These people were already so terrified that they were completely obedient, doing whatever they were told to do...

Once everyone was kneeling in rows, and the master and servants were separated on both sides, the servants and attendants were all sent outside in an orderly and efficient manner.

At this moment, Li Bangyan was looking left and right at the two corpses. His heart was breaking with grief. He sat weakly on the ground, breathing heavily...

Shi Qian walked over to him and squatted down: "You are a human being, and the people of the world are also human beings. This is to let Prime Minister Li feel the pain. In the past, you all disregarded the affairs of the country and only cared about your own interests. You didn't take the affairs of the country seriously. Today you deserve this punishment. The King also said, 'Have you not heard of the Great Tang? You all deserve this punishment!'"

"Who?" Li Bangyan suddenly looked up.

Shi Qian remained silent, but instead looked around at everyone in the room before leaning closer and saying, "Others will certainly not know, but you are different. You can know that my king is His Highness the Prince of Yan!"

"Ah?" Li Bangyan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets; he was utterly horrified and could only look around at the soldiers...

Suddenly getting up, Li Bangyan kowtowed repeatedly: "Your Highness, please forgive me! Your Highness, please forgive me! I was momentarily bewitched. It was all because of the Emperor... it was all Zhao Ji who forced me to do this. I never truly wanted to go against Your Highness. I was just... trying to appease Zhao Ji. My heart has long been with Your Highness, and I am only waiting for Your Highness to ascend the throne. Your Highness, please understand!"

These words stunned Shi Qian. The King of Yan? Where is he?
The King of Yan isn't here either!

Shi Qian stood up and saw that the boxes were piled up so high that the yard was almost completely full...

Kneel down in a row...

Shi Qian raised his hand and counted, and soon after, Shi Qian nodded.

Mei Zhan then said to the left and right, "Kill them one by one, this old dog, the last one..."

The soldiers didn't wait long; they grabbed their knives and started slashing, and their guns and started stabbing.

The devastation was indescribable.

Many people were so stunned that they couldn't even beg for mercy anymore.

For a moment, Li Bangyan felt darkness before his eyes, but no swords or spears came to kill him. As soon as his vision cleared slightly, he cried out in anguish, "Prince Yan, I was wrong! Prince Yan, spare my life! Spare my whole family's lives! I... From this day forward, I will serve Your Highness Prince Yan like a slave. I... I am guilty, Prince Yan, please forgive me! Prince Yan, please forgive me! Prince Yan, please forgive me! Prince Yan, I am still useful! When you ascend the throne, how can you not appease the people of the world? I can serve you in this way. I will follow your lead without hesitation and give my life for you! Prince Yan, please forgive me and spare my life!"

Shi Qian looked over and saw Li Bangyan kowtowing to the ground repeatedly. He wondered if the old man was in a daze and really thought that the king was nearby.

Does he really think the Prince of Yan will come to kill him personally?

What does he think he is? Does he really think he's something special? Does he need His Highness the Prince of Yan to personally supervise his killing?

The group of seventeen or eighteen men and women, young and old, surrounded by soldiers, were fighting with knives and spears. A pool of blood flowed and spread everywhere.

Li Bangyan's head was bleeding from kowtowing, his voice was hoarse from shouting, and his eyes were lifeless...

It was his turn. The spear stabbed repeatedly, and Li Bangyan's face contorted in pain... his features were all twisted together...

Even in death, Xu believed that the Prince of Yan had discovered his schemes and was therefore punishing him in this way…

Xu was still thinking, how could the Prince of Yan not forgive him after he kowtowed and begged for mercy like this?

In his last remaining thoughts, Li Bangyan's gaze swept left and right. They were all dead, all of them dead—men, women, young, and old—all of them were dead…

died……

He died too...

"Search, search again..." Shi Qian waved his hand. Actually, it was unnecessary. These wealthy and powerful families in Tokyo didn't really have any sense of crisis. They wouldn't have made any preparations for taking precautions. The number of people had been counted clearly, and nothing was missed.

But Shi Qian still ordered another search, just in case. What if there was some kind of "switcheroo"?

"Move the corpses to the main street outside and set them out. Also, have people guard this courtyard. Don't let the servants and men leave yet; we'll interrogate them later..."

This had been discussed before entering the city, and Shi Qian said it again now.

Mei Zhan nodded in agreement: "Of course! General Shi, rest assured, we would never dare to touch the King's property..."

"Let's go, let's ride around and take a look!" Shi Qian set off, still busy with various tasks, needing to inspect and supervise the work in different places.

Just go outside and walk along the street. Everywhere there is a stench of blood, extremely foul and nauseating.

The streets were littered with rows of corpses; the grand gates and wealthy houses were filled with them...

The inner city was a scene of utter devastation, and the outer city also saw many other horrific scenes...

Those who were once high and mighty, now lie dead on the streets...

The streets were deserted, long gone. A few daring individuals were still out walking ahead, but the moment the soldiers began their bloody battle, there was no one left on the streets.

Only pairs of terrified eyes peered out from the cracks in the doors and windows...

It seems that some people are slowly realizing that today's killings are only for the wealthy and powerful, and have nothing to do with ordinary people...

The tragedy that befell Li Bangyan's family was also happening in Bai Shizhong's family...

Even in Wang Zhongshan's own home, something similar was happening, and Wang Zhongshan, too, suffered the fate of having his entire family wiped out...

It is evident that this matter has a wide scope. It is not that Su Wu did not care about old friendships at all, but that the Wang family has been officials for generations and is a proper high-ranking family in Dongjing. Their disciples and former officials are all over the world. How could they be overlooked?

Besides, how could people like Wang Zhongshan be good people?
This is a "revolution" that targets the entire social class, not just any one individual.

The entire social class has failed this country, this nation, the nation and its people, our ancestors, and our descendants...

It wasn't any one person!

One member of the Wang family survived: Qin Hui's wife. After all, she was a married daughter and no longer considered a member of the Wang family.

Qin Hui's death will not be today!
At this time, Qin Hui was serving as a cruel official in Jinghu, and the powerful families of Jinghu hated him to the core.

One day, Su Wu will avenge the noble families of Jinghu and vent his anger.

Mei Zhan and Shi Qian rode their horses around everywhere, thinking they should visit every household to ask questions. They might not be able to see everything, but they wanted to see as many as possible and do their job well.

I walked for who knows how long, and visited countless homes. When I stepped outside again and looked up, the sky was nearing dusk, and the setting sun seemed much redder than ever before, a deep, blood-red hue…

It exudes an indescribable allure!

We'll continue tonight; this work won't end until tomorrow morning.

The corpses that have been laid out on countless streets will not be collected for another day, so that everyone can see them clearly!

They even chose a burial site: not far from the Yellow River embankment to the north, there was a relatively low-lying area...

That place is not suitable for fertile land; whenever the Yellow River rises even slightly, it will flood that area.

Perfect, it can be used as a mass grave. This time, there will be about 17,000 to 18,000 people killed.

They filled in the corpses, then brought in soil to cover them up, making a layer about ten feet thick.

They even want to erect a monument, commemorating Mei Zhan's killing of all the corrupt officials in the world and burying their corpses here!
These matters must be completed within three days. Once completed, the Prince of Yan will ride swiftly from the north.

Meanwhile, inside the imperial city, Emperor Huizong had been waiting until the sun had set, growing increasingly anxious with each passing moment…

He even went so far as to ask the armored guards at the gate, "Are there bandits outside the imperial city?"

The armored guard at the gate simply replied, "I only deal with matters within the imperial city; I know nothing about matters outside the imperial city!"

"Well..." Zhao Ji didn't know what to say or ask next, he just kept looking around, looking to the left, looking to the right...

He wondered to himself: Li Qing, where are you? Why haven't we heard any sounds of fierce fighting?
Where exactly did things go wrong?
Could it be that... Liu Yanqing and Mei Zhan are engaged in a fierce battle outside the city, and the outcome is still undecided?

Could it be that... Mei Zhan has been bribed by the likes of Cheng Wanli and Liu Yanqing again?
Could it be...

The emperor had countless wild and random thoughts...

Liu Yanqing was still on the Nanxun Gate when he heard a soldier report what was happening in various parts of the capital.

A soldier beside him asked, "Prime Minister Liu, what should we do?"

It was indeed a complicated situation, and the soldiers themselves also had mixed feelings...

A strange feeling...

Little did he know, Liu Yanqing also felt a strange sense of exhilaration, though he was also conflicted and hesitant. Ultimately, he said, "Let's wait and see!"

I can't help but think, he deserved it! He deserved to be killed!

They deserve to die!

That heart, which had turned to ice, was now somewhat soothed.

Liu Yanqing was also anxious. The Prince of Yan had returned. How could he explain this situation?

Perhaps, it's a good thing?
This kind of country...sigh...speechless...it's impossible to say what's right or wrong, what's impossible to blame, what's impossible to say what's good or bad...

The things of this world are truly so difficult to explain...

He remained silent, standing still, not looking into the city, but towards the south beyond, where the vast plains stretched for thousands of miles, where the crops were growing...

Looking closely, in the distance, very far, scattered like stars, there were even farmers weeding and working.

It was a strange thing, an indescribable oddity. Inside Bianjing City, there were mountains of corpses and seas of blood, yet outside the city, farmers still dared to go out to work in the fields...

That's true. If they don't work, what will they eat? No matter who's in charge or who's the emperor, the farmers still have to work...

……

Inside Bianjing City, there was another person trembling at home, and that was Cheng Wanli.

The bandit soldiers had come and gone from his doorstep several times, each time terrifying him to the point of utter dread...

But each time, no one came to knock on his door.

The servants in the household also discerned some clues: the bandit army from Yingzhou was entering the city specifically to kill those from wealthy and powerful families...

Cheng Wanli was so frightened he could barely breathe, while outside the door, soldiers were running with rapid footsteps...

But they didn't knock on his door, nor did they commit any barbaric acts of intrusion...

He gradually calmed down and fell into deep thought...

(End of this chapter)