Transmigrated into a minor official in a county government, with children at home waiting for rice t

As Zhao Xie finished speaking, he suddenly laughed, a laugh tinged with lingering fear. "If those two convicts hadn't been unarmed, and if three other men hadn't failed to stop me, I'm afraid I would have really been doomed in Jinshi Lane tonight."

Li Hang put down his teacup, his brow furrowing. "So, there are quite a few formidable figures at Shou Li's residence?"

"Lu Sanbao, who guards Zhang Shouli's door, used to be a capable henchman of Kong Youan. There are also four convicts with tattoos on their faces who usually guard the alley entrance."

Zhao Xie toyed with the teapot lid in his hand. "That's why I climbed over the empty house next door through the back alley, just to avoid these five people. When I rushed out, two of them chased after me."

"They had short sticks and ropes, so it was clear they had practiced some encirclement techniques. Luckily, only two people came. Wu Yan and the coroner didn't coordinate well with them, which allowed me to hold out for a while."

"I saw Zhang Shouli watching from the sidelines, and then I saw the Xu brothers and Fang Zhong'an fighting to the death to protect each other. You were right, everyone in the torture chamber has completely turned to Zhang Shouli. I'm so angry I want to kill that bastard Fang Zhong'an with my sword!"

"When the time came, I couldn't bring myself to do it, so I just scared him a little. Sun Jizu chased after me then and actually threatened me, saying that if I hurt Zhang Shouli, I wouldn't be able to leave Juancheng! Humph!"

He put the teapot lid back on the spout. "The real tough guys for Zhang Shouli are the coroner and Sun Jizu, both of whom are formidable fighters. One has incredibly sharp ears, and the other is a seasoned veteran. In a head-on confrontation, I might not be able to defeat them."

"With these two protecting me, and four accomplices at the alley entrance, plus that night watchman Lü Sanbao, I might not be able to escape unscathed next time I go."

Li Hang picked up his teacup, shook his head, and smiled wryly. "Changyan, I never agreed to you going. You're just too competitive; you insisted on testing Shouli's background. Now you've found out?"

Zhao Xie leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the lamp wick. "I've figured it out. He not only has Sun Jizu, a veteran soldier, openly protecting him, but also has spies watching over him."

"The courtyard wall was raised twice and still has shards of porcelain stuck in it; the gate was reinforced; even the backyard windows had crossbeams added. What does it mean that a minor county official's residence is so heavily guarded?"

He looked at Li Hang, "That means he's been on guard all along. Ever since he moved to Kujing Lane, he's been on guard against people climbing over the wall at night. But it's understandable, though. Back then he was just a lowly clerk, and he got beaten up twice."

Li Hang didn't reply. The room was quiet for a moment. The wick popped twice, and Zhao Xie trimmed it with scissors, stabilizing the flame again. "Changyan, Shouli is more cautious than I expected. He probably already knows it's you."

Zhao Xie stood up in shock, moved his left shoulder, and winced in pain. "How is this possible?"

Li Hang's expression turned serious, and he tapped his fingers lightly on the table twice, as if he were carefully choosing his words. "You probably don't know the true strength of County Magistrate Sun."

"I have seen his character's appearance. If we talk about his bravery, since the founding of this dynasty, there are probably only a handful of people who can rival him."

"In the fourth year of the Taiping Xingguo era, he participated in the campaign against the Northern Han. He was the first to scale the western city wall of Taiyuan and killed three defending generals with his infantry. He was wounded several times but did not retreat. When Taiyuan fell, he was the first to rush into the barbican and captured a palace guard commander alive."

"For his merits in this battle, he was awarded the title of Acting Cavalry Captain and selected for the Golden Spear Platoon of the Palace Guard. I don't need to explain what the Golden Spear Platoon is; you know it better than I do."

Zhao Xie's Adam's apple bobbed, and he muttered to himself, "Skilled in spear and horsemanship, unparalleled martial arts! One in a thousand, undefeated in a hundred battles!"

Li Hang glanced at him. "In the autumn of the same year, we went to fight in Fanyang. When the army was defeated, the twenty-eight members of the Golden Spear Squad covered the rear for the emperor. Sun Jizu fought against the Northern Dynasty's Iron Forest Army for a long time and killed seventeen riders by himself. His horse died and his bow broke, but he still fought on foot with his spear."

"Later, he was ambushed and lost an arm. Enraged, he chased after the enemy general for a hundred paces, then hurled his spear with one hand, piercing through the armored warhorse. The moment the enemy general landed, he pounced on him with his bare hands and strangled him to death on the battlefield!"

"When the siege was broken and the troops returned to camp, only this one of the twenty-eight personal guards remained. After this battle, he was appointed as a commander. Because of the loss of his arm, he begged the government to allow him to return to his hometown. He was then transferred to a civil service position and appointed as the county magistrate of Juancheng."

Li Hang, looking directly at Zhao Xie, said, "Changyan, he wounded you with one spear thrust, but he held back. If he wanted to kill you, the spear tip wouldn't have only pierced two inches into your shoulder. How do you compare to a fully armored warhorse?"

Zhao Xie was stunned upon hearing this. "This... Sun Jizu is... so fierce?"

Li Hang rolled his eyes at him. "This man comes from a poor background. He has survived hundreds of battles in his ten years of military service. His martial arts skills were honed step by step in the face of life and death. How can they be compared to mere techniques?"

The color drained from Zhao Xie's face little by little.

He subconsciously raised his hand to touch the gunshot wound on his shoulder, which was still throbbing faintly. His fingertips trembled slightly when they touched the bandage.

After a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth: "This...this isn't a county constable, he's a jinx!"

Li Hang put down his teacup, his expression grave. "That's right. If he hadn't recognized you, why would he have shown mercy? He had just lost an arm, yet he could still chase after a galloping horse. If he hadn't recognized you, why would he have let you escape?"

Zhao Xie's thoughts raced for a moment, then he shook his head and smiled wryly. "Jingzhai, your reminder made me realize that Wu Yan seems to have recognized me as well. And seeing Zhang Shouli facing the sword without any fear, he probably recognized me too. Could it be...?"

Li Hang slowly shook his head. "Let's leave it at that. Shou Li is a smart man; he should have realized you meant no harm. Let's just pretend nothing happened."

Zhao Xie looked somewhat dejected. "Jingzhai, I underestimated everyone. From now on, I'll listen to you and, Changyan, I won't be so stubborn again!"

He had just finished speaking when he seemed to remember something, and his expression became very serious. "Oh, right, I saw someone on this trip who looked remarkably like..."

Tonight seems to be eventful; not only is there undercurrent of activity in Juancheng, but there is also excitement in Puyang City, a hundred miles away.

Inside the main room of the Jiang family mansion, the lights were on.

The servants who had been serving in the courtyard had all left long ago, leaving only the door to the main room half-open, with the draft blowing the candlelight on the table swaying from side to side.

"The traitor!"

Zhou Ji slammed his hand on the table, the teacup jumped, and the lid rolled off the edge of the table, smashing into two pieces on the blue brick floor. No one picked it up.

Zhou An knelt in the hall, his back ramrod straight, the stubbornness from his earlier argument still lingering on his lips.

"Say it again?" Zhou Ji's finger trembled as he pointed at him. "Who are you going to marry?"

Zhou An, his neck stiff, declared, "I'm going to marry Wang Yun. Her mother has been a widow for many years and has established a female household, working as a maid in Uncle Zhang's house. Yun is skillful, gentle, and never argues with anyone. She's virtuous..."

"Enough!" Zhou Ji stood up abruptly, his sleeves flipping over a teacup on the corner of the table, spilling the remaining half-cup of cold tea all over the table. "A poor girl living under someone else's roof! She doesn't even have a father! You want to marry her?"

"Your maternal grandfather was a retired military clerk! You ignored so many refined young ladies from scholarly families in the city and married a widow's daughter? Do you know how much effort your maternal grandfather put into you? You..."

"I will marry no one but her!"

"You beast! I'll beat you to death!"

"Grandpa has already given his approval!"

"……what?"

Zhou Jiju's hand froze in mid-air, his furious expression still lingering, his mouth half-open, like a fish being pulled out of the water.

He blinked twice, slowly lowered his hand, and then slowly sat back down in his chair. "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

Zhou An knelt on the ground, his lips twitching: "You didn't even let me finish! Your temper is even worse than my uncle's!"