Chapter 74

Ma Bao's nickname is Bao'er. His childhood friends who grew up playing together usually called him Da Bao. However, these were just childhood nicknames. Now, Ma Bao is a thirty-year-old man and hasn't heard such a nickname in a long time.

When he turned around and carefully looked at the woman speaking, his eyes darted around several times before he finally asked in disbelief, "Sister Hui? Are you Fuging's elder sister? It's really you..." A chill ran down Ma Bao's spine. He rubbed his eyes and confirmed again that the woman was indeed Fu Hui.

Ma Bao collapsed to the ground as if he had lost all strength, his heart filled with despair.

The Eight Banners system was originally a military organization structure of the Manchus. After they successfully entered the pass and secured their rule, they implemented the iron pole crop policy, and this organization began to become secularized.

The descendants of the Eight Banners intermarried and formed alliances, creating a vast web of relationships. Over several hundred years, almost all families had various subtle connections, and the generational relationships were extremely complex, making it impossible for outsiders to understand the detailed relationships.

For example, Fu Hui, according to the Fucha family's status during the Qianlong era, was part of the imperial family. Qianlong's original wife was a Fucha woman, who was also Fu Heng's sister and Fukan'an's aunt. This made the Fucha family the maternal relatives of the Aisin Gioro clan, though just one branch of all the maternal relatives.

As time went on, a Fucha woman gave birth to Empress Dowager Cixi, making Fu Hui a relative of the Yehenara family, with Cixi being her cousin. Of course, this was just the tip of the iceberg in the vast web of relationships. The Fucha family had very close ties with other famous Eight Banners surnames.

This web of relationships was so extensive that it encompassed all the Manchus. In the old city of Beijing, there was no Manchu who was not familiar with each other. Especially for those like Ma Bao, Fu Hui, and Qing San Ye, who grew up in Beijing, they knew all the intricate relationships and the secrets of each family.

Ma Bao never dreamed that the hostage would be his childhood friend, Sister Hui, who was only two months older than him. She had always been the leader of the children, and Ma Bao had been bullied by her since childhood, to the point where he had developed a psychological shadow.

More importantly, Ma Bao was well aware of the Fucha family's background. As Cixi's cousin and a relative of the Aisin Gioro clan, she was a significant figure in the Upper Three Banners, while he was just a small worm among the Manchus in the old city of Beijing, not even in the same league.

"My dear grandmother! How did the dirty rat kidnap you? Sister Hui, what are you doing in Tanggu..." Ma Bao was on the verge of tears. If the Emperor and Empress Dowager found out that he had kidnapped their direct relative, his entire family would be executed.

Thinking of this, Ma Bao suddenly pulled out a knife and quickly cut the ropes binding Fu Hui. "Sister Hui, go! When I return to Beijing alive, I will beg for forgiveness... Go!" He pushed Fu Hui out of the circle.

"Ma Bao, are you crazy!" Huang Juren was no longer polite, pointing at Ma Bao and shouting, "You bastard, if you want to die, go die yourself. We can't lose this hostage. I don't care about your Eight Banners relationships... Dirty rat, take action!"

At this moment, the dirty rat was also desperate. He jumped up, grabbed Fu Hui's hair, and dragged her back forcefully. "No one is allowed to come near. If anyone comes, I'll kill them... Get us a carriage, no, no, we don't want a carriage. We want these warhorses, quickly..."

Ma Bao couldn't stand this. As a high-ranking official, he couldn't be controlled by a lowly scholar and a thug. He grabbed Huang Juren's braid and placed his saber at his neck, shouting, "Dirty rat, release her now. Do you know who she is? If anything happens to her, none of us will survive..."

"I won't release her. You have no soldiers left, I'm not afraid of you... I want to live, I don't want to die!" The two groups that had just joined forces split into two.

No one realized that this sudden argument delayed time, which ultimately led to Huang Juren and his group's complete downfall. No one knew that at this moment, Xiao Letian was already prepared to let them return to Beijing, even if it meant he would have to flee overseas. He wouldn't regret it.

Xiao Letian, after all, was just a穿越小白脸 (穿越 means "穿越" which is a term for time travel or alternate reality, and 小白脸 means "pretty boy" or "handsome young man"), and although he had been trying hard to become a cold-hearted politician, his inherent kindness could not be erased. For him, he wanted both the empire and the beauty.

"Huniu, Sister Hui, you are the ones I love the most. If I can't protect you, what kind of man am I..." Thinking of this, a strange feeling welled up in Xiao Letian's heart. "What's going on? Why am I equating Sister Hui with Huniu? Calm down, I must stay calm..."

Xiao Letian shook his head and shouted loudly, "Everyone, don't move, let them go... I, Xiao Letian, swear on my honor that I will let you leave and will not attack you halfway. But remember, if anything happens to the two women, don't blame me for being ruthless."

General Zeng Guoquan looked at Xiao Letian with disappointment, shaking his head lightly. He was very disappointed in Xiao Letian. A man should not show his weaknesses to others; otherwise, they would exploit them. However, he then thought that a master of Western learning with some flaws would be easier to control. If he were too perfect, it would be terrifying.

In the end, Ma Bao couldn't resist the dirty rat and Huang Ye. He realized that this group had gone mad, especially the dirty rat and Xiao Bian Sun, who had completely lost their minds. To protect Fu Hui, Ma Bao had to admit defeat.

Warhorses and carriages were quickly brought. When Fu Hui and Huniu were pushed into the carriage, just as they were about to escape, a group of people stumbled out of a small alley.

"Magistrate... Magistrate... Brother Ma... Wait for me..." Everyone looked closely and saw that the person running with sweat streaming down his face, almost out of breath, was the chief civil official of Tanggu, Zhou Mingkui.

"Help! Brother Ma, save me. The magistrate's office has been attacked by rioters... Someone is chasing me..." Sure enough, behind Zhou Mingkui and his guards, about forty to fifty men were chasing them, half of them dressed as foreign guards and the other half dressed like the personal guards of the Ninth Marshal.

Ma Bao had a good relationship with Zhou Mingkui. Seeing this situation, he couldn't help but save him. He shouted at Xiao Letian and the Ninth Marshal, "Make your men stand still, all of them... Old Zhou, come here quickly, we have hostages..."

Huang Juren also had a close relationship with Zhou Mingkui. They had colluded to harm merchants and civilians, and Huang Ye had given the magistrate several tens of thousands of silver taels over the years, so he had no doubts.

However, just as Zhou Mingkui reached the group, panting heavily, a sudden change occurred. The chief constable and the guards around the magistrate suddenly attacked. Daggers stabbed into the soldiers' hearts, and muskets shattered the thugs' temples.

Zhou Mingkui let out a strange cry, jumped onto the carriage, and knocked the Green Standard Army soldier to the ground. "Drive, drive, drive... Run, run fast..." At this moment, the chief constable's dagger stabbed into the mule's buttocks, and the animal, in pain, bolted forward.

Almost simultaneously, without waiting for orders from Xiao Letian or the Ninth Marshal, Lao Ying and Xiang Shaolong rushed forward, followed by a group of Green Standard Army experts.

"Brats, you've disgraced me, you're all going to die..." Long Ye's wrist flicked, and dozens of poisoned darts pierced the throats of the thugs. Lao Ying, the silent expert, sank his eagle claws into the skulls of the dirty rat and Xiao Bian Sun, and with a light twist, their heads were split open.

The situation turned rapidly, and Huang Juren and Ma Bao's men were almost instantly killed, without a chance to resist. In the end, Xiang Shaolong and Lao Ying each tightly controlled one of them, and they finally came to their senses.

"Zhou, you scoundrel! You're a traitor... You took my thirty thousand taels of silver, and you promised to help me against Xiao Letian. How could you betray me..."

"Ninth Marshal! Zhou is one of us, we should all die together... Zhou Mingkui, even if I become a ghost, I won't let you off. I remember all your dirty deeds. How did the boss of the Jixiang cargo station in the west of the port die? Wasn't it because you killed him for his wealth..."

Huang Juren and Ma Bao knew the situation was hopeless. All they could do now was to drag a few more people down with them. They wouldn't let Zhou Mingkui live comfortably.

However, Zhou Mingkui didn't care. The disheveled magistrate handed the carriage over to his chief constable and ran to Zeng Guoquan, kowtowing and kneeling.

"Ninth Marshal, this humble official, Zhou Mingkui, has sinned. Please punish me heavily..." He kowtowed until his head was covered in blood.

After kowtowing more than ten times, Zhou Mingkui felt dizzy and heard Zeng Guoquan's cold voice, "Hmph! You still have some wit. It's your ancestors who have protected you. Get up."

Zhou Mingkui's heart finally settled. He stood up cautiously, nodded gratefully to Xiao Letian, and respectfully said to the Ninth Marshal.

"Ninth Marshal, you don't need to worry. I have already arranged everything. I will prepare all the evidence and confessions within half a day..."

He then bowed deeply to Xiao Letian and said, "Mr. Xiao, this humble official greets you... In this riot, it would be best to add some testimony from foreigners. Since you have good relations with them, I hope you can help obtain their testimony. If the foreigners testify, it will be impossible to overturn the case in Beijing..."

At this moment, the Ninth Marshal waved his hand, "You handle it. I won't interfere. But remember, after all the procedures are completed, execute all the criminals here immediately. Do not send them to Beijing..."

"Understood... This humble official understands!"

After everything was arranged, Xiao Letian let out a long breath and finally went to check on the two frightened women. However, as he passed by Huang Ye and Ma Bao, the two men suddenly shouted.

"Xiao Letian, the sins of the father should not be visited upon the children. Spare our families, and I will serve you as a slave for the rest of my life, and even in the next life... I beg you, spare our families..." The two desperate men kowtowed repeatedly, finally realizing that the local snake could never defeat the strong dragon.

Xiao Letian looked at them coldly and said, "Ma Bao, why are you begging me? The fate of your family is in the hands of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. I wouldn't dirty my hands by killing them. As for you, Huang, you have too many enemies. I won't seek revenge, but others will..."

With that, he walked away.

When Xiao Letian lifted the carriage curtain, two figures suddenly pounced out, knocking him to the ground, and the cries shook the sky.