Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

Chapter 407: Japanese Pirates Come to the Door

"I never thought that Xu Shichang was actually a spy sent by the Japanese pirates!"

……

After listening to Yang Ling's analysis, the villagers suddenly understood and their anger was evident in their expressions.

"Sir, we must arrest Xu Shichang and punish him severely!"

"Yes, Xu Shichang is too bad. He actually colluded with the Japanese pirates to harm the people of Yuyang!"

Everyone started shouting in indignation.

"Sir, you said that Xu Shichang was instigating the Japanese pirates to attack our fleet behind the scenes, then why didn't he react at all after we burned their food and supplies on the beach? Isn't he afraid that the Japanese pirates will come to our door?" someone raised doubts.

Yang Ling smiled and said, "Of course he is afraid! Although the Japanese pirates are cunning, they are all farmers after all, and their brains are not flexible. We burned the food and grass under their noses, and they thought we were deliberately luring them to attack, so they were not prepared."

"If the news of us burning the food and grass gets out, wouldn't Zhenjiang be prepared in advance?" Someone else raised a new question.

"This is even easier. We just need to announce in the city that the Japanese pirates are attacking." Yang Ling explained confidently.

Yang Ling then warned, "My fellow villagers, my advice just now only applies to this case. Before we find out the truth, I hope you will not leak this matter, otherwise it may cause trouble for the people."

"Don't worry, sir. We will never talk nonsense."

"Sir, we all know your good intentions, but the Japanese pirates attacking the military camp is a capital crime. I'm afraid it will be difficult to deal with it?" said the old man with a worried look on his face.

Everyone looked worried when they heard this. The Japanese pirates killed so many officers and soldiers and almost burned all the food on the ship. Who would believe them if they said they were innocent? Now that Yang Ling said he wanted to deal with this group of vicious Japanese pirates, these people were a little hesitant.

Yang Ling said calmly: "Don't worry, everyone. Although the Japanese pirates are extremely evil, they were once the people of the Ming Dynasty. Now that they have fallen into my hands, they will naturally be judged by the court. I promise not to implicate you. As long as the Japanese pirates are executed, you can leave Yuyang and return to your homeland. But everyone, please be careful and don't provoke the Japanese pirates again. If they flee into the mountains and forests, then it will be a big trouble!"

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. Yang Ling said it lightly. How could they know how powerful this group of Japanese pirates were? If they knew that the Japanese pirates were vicious and cruel, they would definitely stay away from them.

Yang Ling added: "Let's escort those Japanese pirate captives to the government office first. After the situation calms down, we will discuss how to deal with these captives. What do you think?"

"Your Excellency is very considerate. I am willing to obey your orders."

"We have no objection!"

"Okay then! Let's get going right away!"

After Yang Ling and his men left Yuyang Village with the captured Japanese pirates, they immediately rushed to the county government office.

After arriving at the county government office, Yang Ling ordered the detectives to tie up all the Japanese pirate captives in the torture room, and then sent someone to inform the county magistrate, the county magistrate, the registrar, the chief clerk and others.

Everyone was overjoyed by Yang Ling's arrival. Yang Ling was their immediate superior. Now that the Japanese pirates had been captured, he naturally had to report the battle situation in a timely manner. So everyone hurried to the outside of the torture chamber, waiting for Yang Ling to speak.

Yang Ling saw that everyone came in a hurry, without even changing clothes, and had obviously just climbed out of bed, so he ordered: "My lords, the Japanese pirates have been surrounded by our army and are now being interrogated. However, I am worried that the Japanese pirates will hurt our people in desperation, so I came to ask for your support."

"The Japanese pirates have been captured, don't worry, sir." Governor Liu assured, patting his chest.

Yang Ling nodded, turned around and said to the captain, "You guys separate these pirates, put ropes on each of them, and stuff their mouths with cloth to prevent them from biting their tongues to commit suicide."

"Yes!" The detectives agreed and tied the Japanese pirates up like dumplings according to Yang Ling's instructions.

After seeing the Japanese pirates tied up, everyone showed an expression of pity, but when they thought about the fact that these Japanese pirates killed so many Ming soldiers, they felt that they deserved to die.

Yang Ling then asked: "Sir, how do we deal with these pirates?"

"These thieves have committed many evil deeds and they deserve to be beheaded in public, but their companions have already fled and we regret it too late. We might as well spare their lives for the time being and let them atone for our sins." Governor Liu said in a deep voice.

"I will follow your orders, sir!" Yang Ling said with a bow.

"We must not show mercy to the Japanese pirates. Lord Yang, how do you plan to deal with these captives?" Governor Chen next to him suddenly asked.

Yang Ling thought for a moment and then replied, "These pirates are extremely evil, but considering that they once served the imperial court, I have decided to hand them over to the East Factory for disposal."

"East Factory? Will they let it go?" Governor Chen hesitated.

Everyone frowned when they heard this. Although they were afraid of the power of the Eastern Depot, they did not think that the Eastern Depot would give up pursuing them just because of a few Japanese pirates.

Yang Ling said confidently: "Don't worry, everyone. Since I have made such a decision, I will be sure of it."

Yang Ling then ordered the detectives to take the pirates away, and arranged for yamen runners to guard the scene to prevent the pirates from becoming desperate and causing unnecessary casualties.

Yang Ling led his men back to the backyard of the county government office. The women and children there had already left one after another, and the entire house became empty.

Yang Ling paced in the yard. What he was most worried about now was the two women and children. If they didn't escape, it would be a big trouble.

Thinking of this, Yang Ling immediately called a few of his followers and asked them to search along the way.

Yang Ling's worries were not groundless, because when they just arrived in Haining, two carrier pigeons flew to the capital to report the victory, and the messenger also successfully told the court the situation here.

After receiving the victory report from Haining, the court was naturally shocked by the war, but at the same time quite relieved, believing that the Ming Dynasty finally had the opportunity to wipe out the pirates and bring peace and prosperity to the people, so it immediately issued an order to convene officials from the cabinet and six ministries to discuss the matter.

Soon the imperial edict spread to all levels of government offices. The officials of the Six Departments and the Ministry of Rites were naturally overjoyed, because they deeply realized that the merits of this bandit suppression were enough for them to be promoted and have their salaries increased, and they might even be able to get a high position of the third rank.

As for the Jinyiwei and the Dongchang, they were naturally very depressed. It turned out that these people were still thinking about taking advantage of the opportunity of suppressing bandits to get rid of Yang Ling and then seize Hailing Mansion, but now it seems that the plan has failed.

Yang Ling stayed in the county government office until noon, then left with his troops in a hurry. He still had a lot of things to do. He planned to go to the county town's medicine shop to buy some herbs to treat the wounded soldiers. This time, almost all the participants in the bandit suppression trip were armed personnel and strong men, and there were very few injured people. However, Yang Ling still planned to seize the time to prepare some herbs to bandage the wounds of the injured.

After Yang Ling left Haining County on horseback, he headed straight north. Soon he came across several mule carts carrying goods. Yang Ling pulled the reins, stretched his neck and carefully observed the goods on the mule carts.

"Please sit down for a moment, sir. I'll go get the shopkeeper!" The driver respectfully clasped his fists and saluted Yang Ling. Yang Ling smiled and nodded in thanks: "Thank you for your trouble!"

Yang Ling sat down on a chair in the corner of the carriage. At this time, several waiters pushed carts into the carriage and introduced enthusiastically: "Dear customers, this is a cargo ship going to Fujian. You see, our goods are genuine and of fair value, unlike some shops that sell fake goods. If you need any medicinal materials, just tell us. We will give them to you for free as long as you can afford it!"

Hearing that there were free herbs available, Yang Ling's eyes suddenly brightened up, and he quickly asked, "Do you have any ointments for treating bruises and injuries in your store? I want the kind with stronger healing ability."

"Yes! Yes!"

Yang Ling said hopefully, "Is there any ointment that can heal wounds quickly?"

The clerk scratched his head and said with a simple smile: "Sir, we do have that kind of ointment in our store, but we only have two bottles. Which one do you want?"

"Two bottles?" Yang Ling was stunned. He remembered that when he was in Haining, he didn't seem to see any drugstore selling this kind of ointment.

At this time, the waiter next to him interrupted and said, "Are you going to buy it for your wife or concubine? Hey, this ointment is very expensive! It costs two strings of silver!"

"Damn, why is it so expensive!" Yang Ling's eyes widened and he shouted angrily: "If I had money, I would have bought two bottles of ointment to save the lives of my brothers. Would I have bargained with you?"

The more Yang Ling thought about it, the angrier he became. He turned around and shouted to everyone around him, "Drag that waiter away and chop off his head!"

The attendants around him turned pale with fear when they heard this, and they all tried to dissuade him, "Sir, please wait!"

Yang Ling snorted coldly, "This kind of black-hearted profiteer deserves to have his head chopped off. He deserves it!"

The guy was frightened by Yang Ling's ferocious appearance and begged: "Sir, please spare my life, I was wrong~"

Yang Ling was too lazy to listen to his explanation and shouted, "Take him away!"

Several of his followers then dragged the waiter out of the carriage, and he cried and kowtowed repeatedly. At this time, someone next to him whispered, "Brother, don't be impulsive."

"Bah, you bastard got away with it." Yang Ling spat on the ground, got into the car cursing and continued on his way.

Fujian is about four hundred miles away from Haining. Due to the difficult road conditions, Yang Ling and his companions walked until dusk before arriving outside the city.

Yang Ling ordered them to stop to eat and rest, then sent out two sentries to investigate first. After confirming that there was no enemy, he led his troops into the city.

It was already dark when Yang Ling led his troops to the outskirts of the city. He simply let the troops camp where they were and then led them into the city.

After Yang Ling and his companions entered the city, they went straight to the Censorate's Office. At this hour, Deputy Censor Xu Jie should not have been off work yet.

Zhao Wenhua, the deputy inspector, was on duty. When he saw Yang Ling and the others, he hurried over to ask, "Excuse me, sir, do you have any business?"

Yang Ling nodded and replied, "I have been ordered to come to visit Master Xu. I wonder if you are free tonight?"

Zhao Wenhua hesitated for a moment, then said apologetically, "My lord, it is my duty to do so. I cannot leave my post without permission. Please report this to your Excellency."

Yang Ling did not take it as an offense, and smiled and said, "If I have been disrespectful, please forgive me, sir."

Zhao Wenhua said goodbye to Yang Ling and turned to go into the back hall. After a while, Zhao Wenhua came out again and said with a smile: "The master wants to see you, please come in!"

"Well, thank you for leading the way, General!"

Yang Ling led his men and Zhao Wenhua into the Fujian Provincial Surveillance Office. He looked up and scanned the magnificent and solemn office, his eyes gleaming with passion. Although he was only a thousand households now, he had heard of the splendor of this place when he served under Hai Rui.

Yang Ling followed Zhao Wenhua to the flower hall in the back court. The lights were on and the sound of laughter could be heard faintly. It was obvious that Xu Jie was discussing government affairs with his staff.

Yang Ling and others stood at the bottom of the stairs and waited quietly. About half an incense stick of time later, Xu Jie finally finished his discussion with his staff.

When Xu Jie saw Yang Ling, he immediately ordered, "Zhao Wenhua, quickly ask someone to serve tea!"

"Yes!" Zhao Wenhua agreed and went back to arrange for someone to make tea, then he closed the door and stood guard outside the house.

"Captain Yang, please take a seat!" Xu Jie pointed to the main seat and greeted him with a smile, his attitude very friendly.

Yang Ling was not hypocritical. He walked over and sat down, then asked directly, "Master Xu, I have just been transferred to the post of governor. I was planning to return to my hometown to organize resources before taking up my post. Unexpectedly, I was attacked by Japanese pirates and suffered heavy losses. I came here to ask for your help."

"Japanese pirates?" Xu Jie frowned and asked, "How come I have never heard of Japanese pirates appearing in the territory?"

Yang Ling said bitterly, "My Lord, you don't know that we haven't seen Japanese pirates along the coast of the Ming Dynasty for several years. Not only have all the Japanese pirates in Shandong been wiped out, but even pirate ships are rarely seen on the sea, and they have disappeared in the past six months. No one could have imagined that Japanese pirates would appear in this remote area!"

"Why did the Japanese pirates suddenly appear? Is there some conspiracy?"

"It is possible, but the Japanese pirates attacked our fleet for money!"

After thinking for a moment, Xu Jie asked, "Captain Yang, I wonder how you plan to deal with this group of pirates. If you need me to send troops to help eliminate them, we must keep it a secret and never let the bandits escape."

"Of course I hope to eliminate the bandits, but this time the pirates are too cunning. I and others have been tracking them for a long time, but we still can't find their hiding place, so I came here specially to ask for your help!" Yang Ling said sincerely.

Xu Jie nodded slightly and said, "Since Captain Yang has spoken, I will take care of this matter. I wonder what you want to do specifically?"

"I plan to pretend to surrender first, lure the bandits out, and then concentrate our superior forces to encircle and annihilate them!" Yang Ling pondered and said, "I will leave some troops behind to attract the bandits, and then you will lead the troops to chase and kill them in the chaos!"

"Okay, let's make it like this. Are your subordinates reliable?"

"Most of my men are new refugees. They are well trained and not likely to betray us. As for their fighting capacity, there is no need to worry." Yang Ling said confidently, "I will bring 300 cavalrymen with me this time. Together with your escort, there will be 500 to 600 people in total. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be enough to wipe out those bandits!"

Yang Ling was not talking nonsense. He had more than 300 cavalrymen, and together with the troops of Zhang Boyu and Luo Zhuoying, as well as the 500 elite infantrymen borrowed from Beijing, this force was indeed enough to deal with the Japanese pirates.

After Xu Jie pondered for a moment, he shook his head and retorted: "Captain Yang, wiping out these bandits is a matter of state, how can it be a joke?"

(End of this chapter)