Chapter 422: Leveraging Force
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
On the night of the seventh day of the eleventh lunar month in the 13th year of the Yuanping reign, the Shatu people attempted an a.s.sa.s.sination on Lei Sitong in Pingxi City. The news shocked the whole Gan Province!
It had been decades since the Shatu Seven Tribes submitted to the Great Han Empire. This was the first time a top Provincial Governor had ever encountered an a.s.sa.s.sination attempt by the Shatu people. Gan Province was a border province in the first place, so for a Military Governor to be targeted for an a.s.sa.s.sination by a foreign tribe, the impact of this event was even greater than the Ye Clan’s case.
The a.s.sa.s.sination, of course, was not successful. Three a.s.sa.s.sins attempted to murder Lei Sitong but all three were caught red handed and killed on the spot. Not a single one managed to escape.
According to the news from the Provincial Governor’s Office, Lei Sitong’s bodyguards and Pingxi Military Governor Liu Yucheng led his soldiers to surround the a.s.sa.s.sin’s accomplices and found out that the three a.s.sa.s.sins were hiding themselves among one of the Shatu Seven Tribes’ caravans. After a battle, the majority of the members from the caravan were killed. The few captives that were still alive not only confirmed that the a.s.sa.s.sins were indeed from the Shatu Seven Tribes, but they also confirmed that many of the caravan members were part of the Blackwind Bandits.
The Blackwind Bandits who once wreaked havoc in the northwestern region, killed countless people, and were feared by many traveling merchants were all in fact a disguise by the Shatu people from the Shatu Seven Tribes.
Many people were utterly shocked by such news.
After encountering an a.s.sa.s.sination attempt by the Shatu people, Lei Sitong, who was nicknamed Tiger Lei, naturally wouldn’t let things slide. There was a saying that ‘The rear of a tiger cannot be touched.’ The Shatu people had not only wanted to touch his rear, but they also intended to chop his head off this time, so of course Lei Sitong was furious.
On the night of the seventh day of the eleventh lunar month, Lei Sitong gathered Pingxi City’s troops and his own guards to search the Shatu community to capture the “a.s.sa.s.sins’ accomplices”. The troops and Lei Sitong’s guards conducted a ma.s.sacre in the Shatu community under Lei Sitong’s command during this search. Around one hundred rebellious Shatu people were killed. Those arrogant Shatu people who thought that the Han Chinese would always bow down to them if they caused riots and rampages in Pingxi City finally got their first taste of the Great Han Empire’s swords and spears. During that night, the Pingxi City’s troops and Lei Sitong’s personal guards uncovered a large quant.i.ty of weapons and arrows hidden in the bas.e.m.e.nt of a warehouse in the Shatu community.
The next day, the citizens of Pingxi Prefecture who wanted to enter the city in the early morning immediately noticed an additional few dozen wooden frames on the city gate’s tower. Inside those wooden frames were the decapitated heads of the Shatu people.
Most of the residents in Pingxi City noticed that the atmosphere of the city had changed as soon as they woke up. The streets were filled with patrolling soldiers and bailiffs. News about the a.s.sa.s.sination attempt on the Provincial Governor spread like wildfire in the city. Not only that, but Lei Sitong had also displayed all the weapons, bows, crossbows and arrows on the public square at the entrance of the Prefectural Governor’s Office for all the residents of Pingxi City to see.
Although the residents in the city hated Shatu people, most of them purely hated them and did not give much thought about it. However, when they saw the Prefectural Governor’s Office showcasing a ma.s.sive amount of military weapons that were confiscated from the Shatu people this morning, they were all shocked.
There were over five to six thousand different types of swords, several hundred bows and crossbows, and tens of thousands of arrows. There was also a ma.s.sive amount of different armor and military weapons. Those weapons were sufficient enough to equip two battalions of elite soldiers. Why would the Shatu people in Pingxi City keep stock of so many weapons? If the Shatu Seven Tribes bought the weapons, then why were they secretly stashed within the city and not directly delivered to them?
Anyone with common sense would probably give that question a good thought.
It was also on this day that the Pingxi Provincial Governor of Pingxi City Lei Sitong issued new laws to every prefecture and county in Gan Province.
——From now on, all prefectures of Gan Province will increase the toll by three times for any Shatu caravans that wish to enter any city. City gates are to tighten security measures and conduct stricter checks on the goods transported by Shatu caravans. Any weapons transported by Shatu caravans will be confiscated without exception.
——From now on, the Shatu people are prohibited from carrying weapons in public within the Gan Province. If any Shatu people are found carrying weapons in the city, anyone is allowed to kill the offender on sight and be awarded five hundred taels of silver. Any official caught covering up for any Shatu offenders will be charged with treason, and be subjected to raids and clan extermination. The Provincial Governor will personally carry out the trials.
——From now on, any Shatu people who gather around to cause riots or attack any bureaucracy offices, barracks, or cause obstruction to bailiffs or soldiers while they are carrying out their duties in Gan Province will be killed without exception. Any Shatu people who violate the laws and orders of the Great Han Empire will be heavily penalized without exception. Military Governors and Law Enforcement Officers who arrested any Shatu offenders have the right to carry out voluntary decision without reporting.
——Every prefecture and county are to put up a notice of the new laws for a month upon receiving them, and ensure that their citizens are well aware of the pa.s.sing of the new laws.
Pingxi City was the first to post the new laws issued by the Provincial Governor. With the announcement of the new laws, the citizens of Pingxi City were impa.s.sioned. Everyone was eager to spread the news. Regardless of the civilians or the military, everyone felt satisfied with the new laws from the Provincial Governor that were aimed at the Shatu people. With them, the residents of the city could finally stand up to the Shatu people and no longer be suppressed by them. Tiger Lei was suddenly known as Justice Lei by the citizens of Pingxi City and his reputation was at its peak.
The situations of the other cities in Gan Province were pretty much the same as Pingxi City. The citizens were all rejoicing and eager to spread the news. The Shatu people from all places immediately withered and lost their arrogance.
Of course, this was not enough for the Provincial Governor.
While the citizens of Pingxi Prefecture were busy spreading the news, Lei Sitong was speaking loudly to the Records Official beside him in the study room of his manor. “Do you need me to teach you how to write the report? Just write that I was surrounded by a few hundred a.s.sa.s.sins from the Shatu Seven Tribes and I had sustained dozens of wounds on my body. It was a narrow escape as I only managed to defeat those Shatu a.s.sa.s.sins at the very last moment and found out that they were from the Shatu Seven Tribes. The fact that they attempted to a.s.sa.s.sinate me means that they harbor ill intentions on Gan Province. The province is now in a dire situation, but there are insufficient armaments. The city checkpoints are in need of repairs. Our soldiers’ armor and weapons in various regions are getting worn out. This is an official request to the imperial court to allocate thirty to fifty million taels of silver as military funds so that I can resolve the issue with the Shatu Seven Tribes and protect the Great Han Empire so that it does not fall into the hands of the Shatu people. Just write down how serious the situation is. Is that difficult to do so…?”
The Records Official inside the study broke out in cold sweat, ” But the Grand Chancellor…”
“Lin Qingtian is nothing. There was an a.s.sa.s.sination attempt on one of the provincial governors from the imperial court. Conclusive evidence, statements from witnesses, and the corpses are all available. What is there to be afraid of? Whoever wants to see the heads of those Shatu a.s.sa.s.sins, I can cure those heads with lime so that they can place them on their ancestors’ graves….” Lei Sitong shouted. “So what if I am to pa.s.s a few orders in Gan Province that target the Shatu people? The Shatu people are not his father. If he is to stand up for the Shatu people, is he not afraid of being criticized by the ma.s.ses? Even if he is the Grand Chancellor, do you think it’s fun to be pointed at the nose and be called a traitor or the adopted son of Shatu people by everyone?”
“Yes, yes, my lord… I know what to write now…” The Records Official nodded as he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
“Then quickly finish it up. Seal it and let the military’s postrider deliver it…”
“Yes!” The Records Official bowed and left.
After the official left, Lei Sitong turned his head and a friendly smile appeared on his face. He looked at Yan Liqiang who was also in the same study room, “Liqiang, what do you think about this?”
Yan Liqiang also smiled, “Congratulations Uncle Lei, you have gained both fame and fortune. I just heard that when the citizens of Pingxi City saw the notice, they all started calling you Justice Lei. The few laws that you pa.s.sed down today felt really satisfying and honorable to everyone. The citizens of Gan Province have longed for this day…”
“Hahaha, if there is such a situation again in the future, come look for me!” Lei Sitong laughed heartily and touched his beard.
“There were too few a.s.sa.s.sins last night. There wasn’t enough to kill. I’ve been thinking about how to punish those Shatu people every day, but I couldn’t find an excuse to do that. I couldn’t believe they delivered themselves to my doorstep this time and presented me with the perfect opportunity. I must thank you for this!”
“I only did what I am supposed to do!” Yan Liqiang smiled modestly. He had used this opportunity to deal with those Shatu people. Together with Lei Sitong, they managed to keep the destruction that the Shatu people could cause to the minimum and plan ahead. Yan Linqiang felt a sense of relief and all this was well worth the ha.s.sle. Both Lin Qingtian or the Shatu Seven Tribes probably didn’t antic.i.p.ate things to turn out this way.
They could decide the beginning but not the outcome…
Lei Sitong looked at Yan Liqiang. His smile faded as his expression turned serious. “The Shatu people have incurred such a big loss. I don’t think they will let this slide. Their target was you Liqiang, do you need a bodyguard? If you do, I can find a few experts so that the Shatu people wouldn’t even have the chance to harm you!”
“We can discuss the bodyguards again in the future. By then, I may need to trouble you, Uncle Lei. This incident somehow worries me. I have decided to find a place to cultivate in seclusion in two days time. After all, the most logical solution is to strengthen myself…”
“Not bad, not bad!” Lei Sitong nodded, “But about the salt business that we discussed…”
“Uncle Lei, how about we set a time limit of half a year? You will settle the salt pans within half a year and once I complete my training, I will take over the salt pans!”
“Half a year…” Lei Sitong muttered to himself irresolutely but eventually nodded. “It would indeed take around four to five months to take over the few large salt pans. Half a year is not too long. We have a deal then…”
“Great!”