Taiheiki

Chapter 40 Contradictions
"We just fought the bastards who killed our eldest and fourth uncles!" Zhang Ping finally exploded. "Third uncle, you're asking why we're all injured? What do you mean? Are you going to leave our eldest and third uncles unpunished?"

"Revenge?" Zhang Boan snorted coldly, "Did you take your enemy's life?"

"Not yet, but I'll attack again later and I'll definitely chop off that bastard's head!"

"Attack again?" Zhang Boan sneered, "Look at the time now! It's almost dark. The enemy has a barrier to rely on, and if you charge forward with nothing, it's not certain who will chop off whose head!"

"You—?" Zhang Ping felt like his lungs were about to explode. He stared at Zhang Boan fiercely, his eyes flashing with sparks. However, Zhang Boan was too lazy to pay attention to his hot-tempered nephew. He knew very well that after this defeat, his nephew no longer had any influence among these people.

"Pack up and go back to the manor!" Zhang Boan waved to everyone and said loudly, "Those who are injured, please support each other. If there is anything, we can talk tomorrow!"

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"The bandits have retreated!" Zhao Yannian whispered on the fortress.

"What a pity!" Wei Cong sighed, "If only we could bump into each other again!"

"Yes!" Zhao Yannian shook his head: "Look at the man on horseback. He's a clear-headed person. He must be an elder of the Zhang family!"

"That would be troublesome!" Wei Cong frowned. Young people are full of vigor, brave but also reckless, while middle-aged and elderly people are experienced but cautious. The same trap may work on young people, but it would be difficult to use on middle-aged and elderly people.

"It's nothing actually. If we lose this battle, the Zhang family will have a lot of fun tonight!" Zhao Yannian smiled.

"What do you mean?" Wei Cong heard something hidden in his subordinate's words.

"Do you remember what I said?" Zhao Yannian said with a smile, "Among the Zhang brothers, the eldest, Zhang Bolu, was the most capable and had the highest prestige. The second brother died early, and the fourth brother died with Zhang Bolu that day. The only one left is the third brother, Zhang Bo'an. This third brother usually just manages the farm, but he is good at it. He has basically never been involved in attacks, wars, or looting. The one who just attacked today should be the leader of the next generation of the Zhang family! The one who came on horseback should be Zhang Bo'an. When he returns, he will definitely scold the one who brought the people to attack us. Do you think he can hold them back?"

"I understand!" Wei Cong laughed. "The guy who brought the men to attack us must have wanted to use this opportunity to overwhelm Zhang Bo'an and his peers and take over the power of General Zhang Bolu. He didn't expect to show his face instead of his ass. Zhang Bo'an will definitely give him a lecture when he gets back. Given his personality, he probably won't take a scolding!"

"My dear, you are right!" Zhao Yannian said with a smile, "Thanks to you for killing the two Zhang Bolu brothers on the river, otherwise today wouldn't be so easy!"

"Haha! This is luck!" Wei Cong laughed. "How about this, let's just add fuel to the fire for the Zhang family. Yannian, find a prisoner and have him take a letter back for me!"

"letter?"

"Well, I plan to tell Zhang Bo'an in the letter that the Zhang family is unrepentant and has attacked court officials today. Their crimes are unforgivable. If you don't want your entire family to be exterminated, then kidnap the person who was in charge today, and I will give the elderly, weak, women and children of the Zhang family a chance to live!"

"Good plan!" Zhao Yannian's eyes lit up. Wei Cong's letter was like pouring fuel on the fire at the Zhang family tonight. If those members of the Zhang family who participated in today's battle didn't want to be bound and brought to Zhang Bo'an, they would have no choice but to rebel. Even if Zhang Bo'an knew the intention of the letter, it would be useless. After all, not everyone in the Zhang family could be a thief. There were also the elderly, the weak, the women, and the children. They didn't want to die with the thieves and would definitely try every possible means to survive. No matter how strong the Zhang family's Wu Fortress was, it couldn't be defended if the people inside were in disarray. The only way was to suppress the chaos with one's own prestige, but unfortunately, the only person in the Zhang family with such prestige was already at the bottom of the river.

"Come, bring me some paper and pen!" Wei Cong called for paper and pen, and quickly finished writing the letter. He then took out the official seal from the leather bag at his waist, stamped it, and handed it to his men, instructing them to select a less injured prisoner to take back. He then breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Finally, it's done. Now it's time to reward them!"

"Reward according to merit?" Zhao Yannian was stunned. "Isn't this a bit early? After all, we haven't caught all the thieves yet."

"Catch all the bandits? How long will that take? Yannian, you were a soldier too!" Wei Cong laughed, "Don't you know that things like rewarding merit should never be delayed. The sooner the better, so that the soldiers will work harder next time? Most of the people we brought this time are a ragtag group recruited at short notice. We absolutely cannot delay this!"

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Zhangjiawu Fort.

The meeting took place in the hall, where four long tables formed a square, open upward. Zhang Bo'an sat in the center, flanked by his uncle, the last surviving member of the previous generation of the Zhang family. His nephews and brothers from other branches sat to his left and right. Zhang Ping, who had just suffered a defeat, sat near the end on the right, his face brimming with anger, his eyes fierce, as if he was ready to prey.

From the outset, the meeting was a tumultuous quarrel, which continued late into the night. Everyone had a chance to speak, and they seized it, throwing their all… some yelled, some cursed, some reasoned, some slammed their drinks on the table, some threatened. From time to time, someone would angrily leave and return with a sullen expression. Zhang Boan sat quietly, listening intently.

According to intelligence, the Zhang family lost a total of 125 men in the recent battle. Some of these men died, others escaped on their way back, and over 30 were injured and unable to fight again. This represents over a third of Wu Fort's combat-ready forces. Even according to the most optimistic estimates, the enemy's losses would be no more than 30 men. This stark contrast has caused the pro-war faction to tone down their voices considerably.

"There's no point in continuing the fight!" a middle-aged man shouted, his voice so powerful it instantly overwhelmed the others. "Honestly, this battle shouldn't have been fought in the first place. If it hadn't been fought, the government wouldn't have known Zhuangzi's strengths and weaknesses, so we could have negotiated. But now that the battle has begun, the government has revealed Zhuangzi's strengths and weaknesses. How can we even talk about it? It's like we're just going to do whatever they want."

"What should we do? Our eldest uncle and third uncle just died at the hands of others, and that Wei Cong has stepped on our faces, and we are just going to endure it?" Someone retorted.

"What can we do? Who told you that you can't win? You should understand that the winner is a king and the loser is a thief, right? When Brother Bolu was here, he could lead you to victory, but now he is gone. If you still do what you did when he was here, of course it won't work!"

"Kneel down if it doesn't work? Do you have any shame?"

"You have to kneel when you have to. We can't all wait to die with our eyes open, right?" "You kneel if you have to. Er Gong won't kneel!" With a roar, the table was overturned. Someone drew his knife and glared at him. The man opposite also jumped back a step, drew his knife and looked at him vigilantly.

"Put away the knife. This is a family matter, how can we use a knife!" This was the first time Zhang Boan spoke tonight. His eyes were bright and his expression was dignified, as if he had become a different person.

The steel knife was sheathed, but the fierceness in his eyes remained unchanged. Zhang Boan raised his right hand: "No matter how hostile you are to each other, don't forget that when the nest is overturned, the eggs will also be broken. The soldiers of the thief Cao are outside, waiting to kill us. Don't fight among yourselves!"

"Bo'an!" an old man said in a deep voice, "There's no point in arguing like this; it'll only get worse. When your brother was alive, he made all the decisions, big and small. Now that he's gone, you'll take his place. You decide what to do next, and we'll just follow your lead!"

"Yes! This is still the best!"

"Fifth Uncle is right. This kind of thing won't get any results from arguing. It will only make things worse!"

"That's right, a snake can't survive without a head. You are the head of the snake now, and whatever you say goes!"

"This..." Zhang Bo'an looked hesitant. He knew that he could not give orders like his elder brother Zhang Bolu. At least those desperate teenagers recruited by his brother and ambitious young men like Zhang Ping would definitely not listen to him. But what his fifth uncle said was right. At this time, someone had to stand up and lead everyone, otherwise the Zhang family would be destroyed in the crisis.

"If that's the case, I'll have to do it reluctantly!" Zhang Bo'an stood up and coughed. "The situation is critical right now, but the more so, the more we must unite as one. Otherwise, otherwise—" Zhang Bo'an said a few words, only to see the faces below, each with a different expression. Normally a farmer, his energy mainly focused on crops and livestock, he had never seen such a scene before. He was immediately speechless, stammering. Zhang Ping, who was sitting below, saw this and snorted coldly. He stood up and walked out. Several Zhang family members hurriedly called out to him, but he left without even turning back.

Zhang Ping left the house, fuming. Honestly, he wasn't ungrateful. He knew he'd lost miserably in today's battle, and it was unrealistic for him to succeed his uncle and become the next "Jiang Yi General." But seeing Zhang Bo'an's cowardly, barely able to articulate his words, he couldn't accept him as his successor. Just as he was feeling both regretful and furious, a familiar guest ran over and said, with a cryptic look on his face, "My dear, Chu Hui is back!"

"Chu Hui is back! That's good news!" Zhang Ping was delighted when he heard this, then immediately realized, "How did he come back? I remember him getting shot in the leg while climbing over the barrier and falling off. How could he have escaped back like that?"

"My dear, you have a good memory!" The guest laughed and said, "That's right, Chu Hui was indeed shot in the leg by an arrow and captured by the government's thieves. He was able to come back this time because that Wei Gongshi asked him to bring back a letter."

"Where is he?" Zhang Ping suddenly perked up.

"I left him in the stable, with someone watching over him!"

"Well done, don't worry, I will never forget your kindness!" Zhang Ping nodded with satisfaction.

"Whether it's good or not doesn't matter. We're all about shared interests, not profit!" The guest sneered, "Who in the Zhang family hasn't benefited from the general over the years? But the general was murdered, and you're the only one truly willing to risk your life to avenge him. For this reason alone, we're willing to fight to the death for you, sir."

"Good brother!" Zhang Ping patted the guest's shoulder with emotion. The two of them went to the stable and saw two people standing at the door. Seeing Zhang Ping coming, they nodded and made way. Zhang Ping saw Chu Hui sitting on a bunch of horse grass, looking a little nervous.

"Where's the letter?" Zhang Ping stretched out his hand.

"Here!" Chu Hui handed the letter to Zhang Ping with both hands. Zhang Ping took it casually, opened it, and read it in two or three seconds. He cursed, "That bastard Wei Congshi has such a vicious heart!"

"What does the letter say?" asked the guest.

"That fellow wrote to me, saying that our Zhang family is unrepentant and has attacked an official today. Our crimes are unforgivable. If you don't want to see our entire family exterminated, then kidnap the man in charge today, and he'll give the elderly, weak, women, and children of our family a chance to live!" Zhang Ping sneered, "The situation is clear today. Either our entire Zhang family will be wiped out, or that bastard Wei will be beheaded. There's no third way. He wrote this letter to confuse us and incite us to kill each other!"

"Bah! This official is truly vicious!" the guest spat. "Then just destroy the letter!"

"It's useless!" Zhang Ping shook his head. "If he can send Chu Hui to deliver the letter, he can send someone else to do it. There's no way to stop him. What matters is everyone in the Zhang family. With the fortress of Wu, that Wei Gongshi won't be able to come up with any solution for a while. As long as we delay, there will be a chance of a turnaround!"

"That's a difficult question!" the guest sighed. "Even ten fingers are of varying lengths, let alone hundreds of people. It was fine when the general was here, but he's gone now. Your reputation still can't compare to the general's!"

"It's okay if he's not famous enough. My uncle wasn't born with that reputation!" Zhang Ping smiled. "Chu Hui, take the letter to the hall. They're discussing things there. Don't let anyone else know what's happening in the stables!"

"Sir, what's wrong with you?" the guest asked in confusion.

"Have you ever picked out millet?" Zhang Ping said with a smile. "At first glance, you can't tell which are the shriveled and which are the plump ones. But if you pour it into water, the plump ones will naturally sink to the bottom, while the shriveled ones will float on the surface. It's instantly clear! This letter is the basin of water. It's instantly clear which are the good millets and which are the bad ones."

"I understand now, sir, your idea is indeed brilliant!" The guest suddenly realized and clapped his hands and laughed.

"Choose twenty men with tight lips and ruthless hands, and ambush them in the side room in the corridor behind the back hall. Listen to my orders! Do you understand?" Zhang Ping whispered.

　This book will be on the shelves tomorrow. I will post the remarks later. Weber is going to eat first.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)