The Affairs of the Martial World - Vol 4: Chapter 13

Zhu Que arrived in Qingshui County, not going to see Zhuang Yuxie at the Zhuang Residence, but went straight to the county office.

At the county office, Zhu Que displayed the Wang golden token. The county magistrate, Zhu Shengxian, was alarmed to hear that someone in the county had colluded with a cult and that the cult members had conspired with Man Si to rebel. He was both panicked and worried. When he learned that the higher authorities were still unaware of the situation in Qingshui County and that it was Zhu Que who had uncovered it alone, he finally felt relieved and began ingratiating himself with Zhu Que.

He was shocked and afraid when he heard Zhu Que say that the court had dispatched Xiang Zhong as the governor, bringing tens of thousands of troops to encircle Man Si. The shock came from the fact that the court was already aware of the rebellion and had made preparations in advance, while he, as a local official, was completely oblivious. The fear stemmed from the uncertainty of how many rebels were within his county. If there were any collusion from within, and Qingshui County was attacked, it was doubtful whether Zhu Shengxian could keep his official position, let alone whether his head would remain on his shoulders.

He was also a person who made decisions very quickly and immediately decided to hand over the command of the garrison in Qingshui County to Zhu Que, allowing him to lead the effort to eliminate the local cultists.

The collusion between the Zhao family and the cult was undoubtedly inevitable.

Qingshui County has three thousand stationed troops. Zhu Que ordered one of the deputy generals to take five hundred men, then pointed out the direction to him, instructing him to surround two locations: the Zhao Residence and the house where the Fragrance Cult was gathering in the bustling market. He was to capture everyone in these two places and imprison them in the dungeon, awaiting interrogation.

The remaining two thousand people left five hundred to stand guard in the county town while the others went to the cemetery.

After Zhu Que brought people to the graveyard, fearing that the dungeon had other exits, he dispatched three hundred soldiers to occupy the nearby high ground and personally inspected the entrance to the tunnel.

However, Zhu Que did not know how the tunnel entrance mechanism worked, but he remembered the entrance’s location. Among the stationed troops, there was a quartermaster in charge of gunpowder. Zhu Que instructed him to bury gunpowder near the tunnel entrance, preparing to blow it open.

The gunpowder was set up, and the steward lit the torch, preparing to ignite the gunpowder, when suddenly, he heard several cries for mercy coming from underground. The people in the pit voluntarily opened the entrance; it turned out that they could see outside through a ventilation hole, and the entrance switch was also hidden within the pit. If they chose not to open the door and surrender, they would surely be blown to pieces, and even if they weren’t blown up, there was still the risk of being buried alive.

Zhu Que stopped the steward from igniting the gunpowder, allowing the people inside to come out.

The people inside knew they could no longer hide and gradually walked out. As one came out, the soldiers moved forward to bind them. These individuals realized the situation had already unfolded, and no one dared to resist; they all surrendered willingly.

A total of more than eighty cult members were captured, and to prevent any oversight, Zhu Que sent people in to search again, confirming that there were no more individuals inside.

Some of them were astonished to see that the troop leader was the “dead” Zhu Que, their mouths agape in surprise. However, they quickly realized that their rebellion had already been exposed since Zhu Que was not dead, and they all obediently surrendered.

The stationed general was amazed by the vast space inside and clicked his tongue in wonder. Zhu Que knew that the cult had been plotting for a long time; this tunnel could not have been dug in just ten days or a month. Moreover, the cult had to carry out these activities secretly to avoid being discovered, which meant they could only work at night. Considering this, such a massive project could not be completed in just a few years.

To prevent the cult from using this as a stronghold again, Zhu Que ordered the stationed troops to place explosives in every nest within the underground cave and ignite the fuse. The entire underground lair collapsed with a loud, muffled explosion, and this filthy hideout was no more.

At this point, Zhu Que had finally avenged the atrocities he suffered here.

The members of this cult were imprisoned, with Zhu Shengxian personally overseeing the trial while Zhu Que monitored from the side. For those who stubbornly refused to confess, County Magistrate Zhu showed no mercy in applying torture. After interrogating a dozen people back and forth, he understood the ins and outs of the matter.

However, Zhu Que noticed that none of the Fragrance Cult elders were captured this time. Upon inquiry, it turned out that they had all gone to Kaicheng County. It seemed that the Fragrance Cult was undoubtedly plotting a rebellion, and it had also been confirmed that they sent Honglian to the Iron Fist Sect to scheme for the Wei family’s assets, which their leader, Wang Zhaoxian, personally orchestrated.

At this time, several elders accompanied Wang Zhaoxian, and they were likely in Guyuanzhen, Kaicheng County, drinking with Man Si and discussing plans for attacking cities and seizing land, still unaware that a major stronghold within their sect had been completely uprooted.

The Zhao family, a prominent household in Qingshui County, was soon interrogated for their involvement with the cult’s rebellious activities.

At this moment, Zhu Que finally saw the person who had spoken in the Zhao residence that evening; this person was Zhao Zhongjun, the head of the Zhao family.

Zhao Zhongjun was gluttonous and indulgent, and it was clear at a glance that he was a person who sought pleasure. During the interrogation, he did not wait for severe punishment but voluntarily confessed his crimes. He detailed how he colluded with the Fragrant Cult, how he was forced to provide property, helped them purchase weapons and horses, and even provided clues about wealthy households nearby to the Fragrant Cult, allowing them to rob military supplies intended for the rebels.

After confessing his crimes, he defended himself by saying that his family was wealthy and he would never have committed such acts. However, under the coercion and temptation of the members of the Fragrant Cult, he was first filled with fear of their ruthless methods and, second, blinded by greed, which led him to commit such heinous acts.

He knew that he could not escape the death penalty, and he did not waste his breath trying to plead for himself but only asked for mercy for the underage children in the Zhao family. They were still young and had nothing to do with this matter.

Zhu Shengxian listened and sneered, “Isn’t it too late to beg for mercy now? You foolishly call yourself loyal to the emperor, yet you don’t understand the meaning of loyalty or emperor. As for rebellion, how should it be judged? This matter is of great importance, and as a mere county magistrate, I cannot make the decision. Once this is reported, you can just wait in prison for your fate.”

Zhao Zhongjun, upon hearing this, collapsed on the ground, trembling all over, unable to get back up, and was dragged away by two fierce-looking constables.

Zhu Que felt a bit reluctant to listen, but there was nothing he could do. If he had known it would come to this, why bother in the first place? Zhao Zhongjun deserved his fate, but what sin did his children commit?

But the court was most wary of rebels; the remnants of rebellion were even more intolerable to prevent the embers from reigniting. Once involved in matters of insurrection, it would inevitably lead to the punishment of the entire clan.

Sure enough, not long after, an order was issued: all cult members, as well as various individuals colluding with the cult, were to be executed immediately. Zhao Zhongjun was sentenced to the extermination of his entire clan as a warning to others.

In addition, Zhu Shengxian, the county magistrate of Qingshui County, was promoted to a rank higher for his achievements in eliminating rebels. He rose from a regular eighth-rank county magistrate to a seventh-rank county magistrate, with a salary of the seventh rank, while his jurisdiction remained unchanged, still in Qingshui County. All stationed troops in Qingshui County received a reward of three months’ salary.

Having received a promotion, Zhu Shengxian was very pleased. Thinking that the credit for this unexpected fortune was all due to Zhu Que, he prepared three thousand taels of silver vouchers for him, which he called a bonus.

Zhu Que thought it would be a waste not to take it, so he quietly accepted it.