Chapter 9

The strongest army of the Western Xia came from the various Qiang tribes in the Yinchuan and Hengshan areas, known to the Song people as the Mountain Chiefs or Hengshan Chiefs.

The people at the foot of Hengshan, including the Tangut, Qiang, Tibetan, and Han, were also very fierce.

Since they were not the ones who killed them, there was no fear, and the surrounding villages, upon hearing the news, rushed over, disregarding whether they were soldiers or not, and even conflicts broke out over the competition for the heads.

However, could Shao Liangzuo admit it? Once it was confirmed that the Black Bee Bandits were actually soldiers in disguise, it would stir up endless public resentment.

After a cursory inquiry into the situation, he issued a proclamation throughout the region, stating that this time it was private salt traders who had killed the patrolling soldiers, and the Black Bee Bandits' veils were placed on the bodies of the soldiers to frame them.

He then ordered an investigation into which merchants were selling private salt that day and which village's people were the mules.

The matter was more complicated than he had imagined.

The border region was impoverished, and the weapons and horses in the hands of the Black Bee Bandits had disappeared, but there was still wealth, which was the clothes on the dead bodies. In this era, many people could not afford clothes or enough food.

The reward wanted the heads of the bandits, not their clothes. So the clothes were stripped from the bodies, and thus the treasure maps were discovered...

These seemed to be treasure maps, but not quite!

The villagers, while holding their heads to claim the reward, also followed the maps to search for the mysterious treasure.

The treasure was not found, but a few days later, in a cave on Jiaoniang Liang, about thirty miles north of Shun'ning Village, in a relatively remote area, many items were discovered, including blue salt, silk and cloth, medicinal herbs, and spices.

As Wang Ju had analyzed, the goods might have been converted into wealth and then spent by the soldiers, or turned into paper money and gold and silver, hidden in the barracks. However, these goods needed to be handled slowly, as private salt traders could not operate in the open, and neither could the soldiers.

Where could it be?

First, it must be a place that is secluded and rarely visited.

Second, it must not be too far from the area of plunder, as blue salt is heavy, and the mountain paths are rugged, making long-distance transportation time-consuming and easy to be discovered.

It might be these goods.

However, the several treasure maps marked different locations.

The news spread, and the people of the surrounding villages went mad.

But trouble also came.

When the people cleared the brambles hiding the cave entrance, it meant that Shao Liangzuo's lie was exposed.

Over the years, the Black Bee Bandits had not only plundered private merchants' goods but also driven out some surrounding villages to cover their tracks, committing many heinous crimes.

These victimized villages might also have mules, but they were not killed during the mule process.

The goods in the cave confirmed the identity of the Black Bee Bandits as soldiers, which stirred up the anger of the many suffering villages.

The most furious were the merchants and local strongmen. As Wang Ju said, even though the Western Xia was poor, it was still a country, with over 700,000 households registered, not to mention its influence over the distant Zhubu, Tatar, and Uyghur people.

The scale of commerce was too large, like the later Ming Dynasty's maritime ban, which could not be enforced.

Fortunately, the Song Dynasty's policy was relatively lenient, turning a blind eye, otherwise, a strict ban might have caused major unrest in the northwest.

This was a dense network, especially in the Security Army, where almost 90% of the strongmen were involved in large-scale private trade.

However, the battle at Heiao Ridge only killed part of the Black Bee Bandits, and it seemed that the top leader, the Spear Bandit, and the third leader, the rumored strategist of the Black Bee Bandits, were still at large.

With evidence, the strongmen pressured the government.

The peculiar administration of the Song Dynasty, where officials were appointed by the court, but the local clerks came from the local strongmen.

If the officials were capable, they could control the clerks, but if they were weak, they would often be overpowered by the local clerks. With Shao Liangzuo's abilities, how could he control the strongmen of the Security Army? The strongmen were pressuring, and the clerks were pressuring...

What made Shao Liangzuo most frustrated was not the strongmen, clerks, and people, but the military camp.

Without seeing the heads, since the news of the ambush on the mountain path spread, through the missing and injured soldiers from various camps, there were already suspects within the military camp.

Not all soldiers had turned into bandits, although they could not be expected to be as disciplined as "not taking a needle or thread from the people," so the participants were only a few soldiers. They had the meat, while the other soldiers did not even get the broth, what kind of mood would they be in.

If handled improperly, it might trigger a mutiny in the Security Army, or even the entire Yan Prefecture.

And since the reign of Emperor Taizu, the Song army had experienced multiple mutinies.

The treasure maps caused the people to go mad searching for treasure in various mountain areas, and Shao Liangzuo had no choice but to report the incident to the new prefect of Yan Prefecture, Cheng Kan. Cheng Kan scolded him and had to report it to the court.

"Yu Zhaizhu..."

"Liu Jianya, I'm sorry, but the brothers want to live." After Yu Feng, the chief of Weilin Village, finished speaking, he pulled out his iron spear, and blood splattered as Liu Jianya fell.

Five days after the battle at Heiao Ridge, the chief of Weilin Village rebelled, killing the supervisor and many soldiers in the village, and fled with over a hundred subordinates. Thus, the true identity of the Black Bee Bandits was fully revealed.

They were the chief of Weilin Village, Yu Feng, and most of the soldiers of Weilin Village in disguise as bandits.

After the battle at Sanchuan Pass, Tumen fell, and later, the Western Xia gradually took over Tumen. The Song Dynasty had to build eleven forts in Yan Prefecture: Shun'an, Huaining, Heishui, Shihu, Dantou, Anding, Qingjian, Qinghua, Zhaoan, and Weilin. Weilin Village was on the north side of Hun Prefecture, less than 150 miles from Yan Prefecture and less than 60 miles from the Security Army city. Its purpose was to control the Tumen route of the Western Xia to the north and the defense of the Great Wall Ridge to the west.

However, relatively speaking, its status was not as high as the other forts.

Of course, the benefits were not as good as the other forts, but its influence was wide. If the soldiers turned into bandits, they could secretly move between Tumen and the Great Wall Ridge to commit crimes.

With the motive and conditions for the crimes, it was believed that Cheng Kan of Yan Prefecture now had evidence of the crimes.

However, it was too close to Wangjia Village, just east of it, less than twenty miles away.

The news reached Wangjia Village, and almost all the able-bodied men who participated that day were drenched in cold sweat.

It was too close. If not for Wang Ju's plan to force them out, these people might have found them and come to the village on a dark and windy night to massacre the village. It was not impossible, as the number of people they had killed over the years was not much less than the number of people in the village.

The three leaders of the Black Bee Bandits were also exposed. According to the rumors, Yu Feng was an expert with the spear and highly skilled, undoubtedly the Spear Bandit. Another was Meng Doutu, who was good with a knife, possibly the Knife Bandit, possibly not. And under Yu Zhaizhu, there was a fallen scholar named Song Ji, who, if not for an accident, was likely the Fan Bandit.

The news spread, and the entire Fuyan Route was in an uproar.

Shao Liangzuo was relieved, as Weilin Village belonged to Yan Prefecture... it was not entirely my fault.

...

"Still, it's the third brother who thought long-term. Fortunately, we set up this small estate in advance."

"Big brother, although this place is remote, you must also control the brothers and not let them go out during this period. Let me think of a long-term plan."

"Alright, Lu Shijiang, how are the two women being investigated?"

"I went to Yan Prefecture City and asked the innkeeper. The time matches, and they were not in the inn those days, but there was a man with strange behavior accompanying them."

"How strange?"

"Probably the servant of the lady, but he never spoke, and the people in the inn found him strange. Three days before the incident, the man went out with the two women, and only the two women returned. Another thing, although they were missing for several days, the maid staying at the inn did not dare to report it, just cried, and the servants in the inn did not think of it until now, just found it strange."

"Even if they thought of it, they wouldn't want to get involved and report it," said Song Ji, dressed as a scholar.

"Indeed. However, that young man is quite slippery, and he followed the convoy to Yan Prefecture at night, making it inconvenient for us to act. After arriving in Yan Prefecture, they immediately hired a carriage and left, still following the convoy. But Water Laoer has been following on a donkey."

"So they are confirmed to be involved."

"Without a doubt."

"Why did they leave Yan Prefecture and head south?"

"I'm not quite sure, but the people in the inn said they were from Kaifeng."

"From the capital?"

"Yes."

"Why are they from the capital?" Even the wise Song Ji was puzzled this time. He thought for a moment and said, "Never mind, Lu Shijiang, take five brothers and head south immediately to capture these four people and find out the truth. No, what is that young man guarding against? Yes, he is guarding against the boss. So, after passing the Fuzhou area, their guard will be lowered, and you can find an opportunity to act. Then..."

He made a gesture of beheading.