Wei Yu was very satisfied with Tian Hu’s response.

“It’s really a good thing that you’ve come around.”

This guy was a stubborn sort with some signs of PTSD—no amount of words would do as much good as just getting things done.

So Wei Yu pointed at Ding Facai and said to Tian Hu, “From now on, follow him. He’ll teach you how to be an excellent spy. You don’t need to worry that we’ll just toss you out there to die. After all, I’m a law-abiding citizen—we don’t do things that harm people, okay?”

Whether or not he was truly law-abiding, that was another matter. As Tian Hu was about to leave, he cast one last glance at Wei Yu, a very conflicted one.

Because Tian Hu held back from saying something to Wei Yu—That was:

In all his years of living, he had never seen someone so shameless at such a young age!

–

In Ziyang County, the biggest news of the past two days was:

The people from the Ding family grain shop who had gone to deliver food to Oxhead Mountain all came back safe and sound!

Because it was so surprising, practically everyone who went to deliver food that day was questioned by curious folks.

Questions like “What’s going on at Oxhead Mountain?”, “What about the bandits outside the city?”, “Did you run into any bandits?” and so on.

None of the delivery people hid anything when answering. In fact, they saw it as something to brag about and spoke in great detail about Oxhead Mountain!

For example—

“The people on Oxhead Mountain are actually all bandits, but some kinda look like officials…”

“The area outside the city is very safe now, nothing unexpected happens when you go out…”

“The bandits have all been brought under control by the chief of Oxhead Mountain. That chief is eight feet tall, has three heads and six arms, super imposing—none of the bandits dare defy him…”

This was the kind of bragging typical of the working class—exaggeration came easily.

They clearly didn’t understand the real situation at Oxhead Mountain. They’d only heard someone mention the “chief” during the food delivery and then started spouting off nonsense like in old operas.

The more questions asked, the wider the stories spread.

Before long, the people throughout Ziyang County had all heard the rumors.

So had the innkeeper who, just a few days ago, had been chatting like a brother with Wei Yu.

The innkeeper was shocked.

So what that young Brother Wang said the other day was actually true?

The bandits outside the city really had been subdued?!

The innkeeper had initially been skeptical of Wei Yu’s claims, and was even thinking of sending someone to check things out. Then he heard the Ding family grain shop was delivering food to Oxhead Mountain.

He’d just been considering whether to send someone, and someone else had already done it—straight to Oxhead Mountain, no less!

Since he could get results without lifting a finger, of course the innkeeper preferred to wait and hear the outcome before making plans.

But now that he had heard the news…

The innkeeper was conflicted.

Didn’t Brother Wang say that the hero was kind-hearted, strikingly handsome, both scholarly and martial—a rare talent of the age?

Why did the grain delivery guys say something completely different?

So which is it? A rare talent, or someone with three heads and six arms?

–

It wasn’t just the common folk of Ziyang County who heard the news—the county yamen did too.

The County Magistrate of Ziyang was an old man in his fifties who had held office for three terms—nine years total.

In Great Wei, local officials typically served three-year terms. Whether they were reassigned depended on their performance.

Good performance meant promotion; average performance might mean promotion or staying in place; poor performance? Ha, forget staying put—if you weren’t dismissed and punished, you were already lucky.

So for a county magistrate to serve in one spot for nine years, it either meant mediocre performance, no patrons backing him for promotion, or he’d offended someone above.

As for Ziyang’s magistrate, Hu Yong?

He was a fourth case—

—Willingly colluding with his superiors in corruption and refusing to leave.

Over the past two months, Hu Yong had been constantly on edge due to the uprising of bandits in Qiling and the Prefect’s fury over it.

On one hand, he feared the bandits in Ziyang might copy Qiling’s example and attack the city, putting his own life as county magistrate at risk.

On the other, he worried the Prefect might vent his anger on him and assign him a bandit-suppression task…

For over two months, Hu Yong had lived in fear and anxiety.

He had never been a brave man. Years of being a local official had only corrupted his heart with wealth—not made him any bolder.

When dealing with his superiors, he could fake politeness and play the sycophant. But when it came to vicious bandits, all he could do was send his subordinates.

And the county office only had so many people.

Excluding clerks, there were just over thirty yamen officers capable of fighting.

After hearing what happened in Qiling, Hu Yong—just in case—had long since stationed people at the city gates to keep an eye on bandit movements.

With no disturbances for so long, Hu Yong had begun to relax.

Unfortunately, trouble couldn’t be avoided.

The bandits didn’t attack the city—but they had united as one!

After hearing the rumors spreading in town, Hu Yong immediately rushed to find his wife.

“Madam! Something terrible has happened!”

The grand magistrate’s residence had green brick floors and expensive flowers, plants, and trees lining the path—nothing but rare and costly varieties.

Hu Yong made a beeline for the study where his wife often stayed. He pushed open the door, went straight to the second floor, and found her reading by the window.

In a panic, Hu Yong ran over to the elegant woman in green and said, “Madam, something terrible has happened! The bandits outside the city have all set up camp at Oxhead Mountain!”

The woman held a book in her hands and didn’t even look up at the commotion.

Hu Yong didn’t mind her coldness. His face pale, he bowed his head and poured out his fears.

“They used to be just scattered, disorganized ruffians. But now, somehow, they’ve all banded together and are camping at Oxhead Mountain! A few days ago, they even bought over ten thousand jin of grain from the Ding family grain shop… Doesn’t this mean they’re preparing to attack the city?!”

Hu Yong anxiously looked at his wife. “What should we do, madam? Do you have any ideas? Speak quickly! If we can’t handle this, we’ll have to pack up and flee!”

At the mention of fleeing, his wife finally reacted.

She looked up and cast a cold glance at Hu Yong. “An imperial official fleeing without a fight? Do you want to be exiled?”

The woman looked about thirty years old, with refined features and a scholar’s air of cultured elegance.

Hu Yong, frantic, said, “Come on, Madam, don’t joke around—this is life and death! If we’re a step too late and they break in, we won’t be able to escape!”

His wife looked at him, a faint trace of mockery in her eyes.

She stood and walked toward the bookshelves. “It’s just a group of bandits. Even if they’ve gathered together, just shut the city gates. You think they have siege weapons?”

“But that’s no real solution!”

Hu Yong thought of Qiling. “Look at Qiling—they’ve kept their gates closed for two months already. The bandits keep them surrounded. If this keeps up, the people in the city will starve to death!”