Chapter 95

A little earlier, as night deepened, Yu Chong did not speak, but carefully looked into the distance.

This place was a desolate wasteland, with an old burial ground nearby. On the distant hill, a faint light glowed in the night, but here, there was complete silence.

Yu Chong was a few generations of a family-born retainer, with several generations of meritorious service, loyal and dedicated. He was granted the surname Yu and enjoyed the same treatment as a branch of the Yu family, now considering himself a part of the Yu clan.

After a moment, Yu Chong turned to a spy and said, "Brother Qiu, tell me exactly what happened."

It was clear they were not a regular army from the way they addressed each other.

The spy, Qiu Yin, was also a family-born retainer. He spoke in a low voice, "I have it all figured out. This is Fang Mao from Pingshou County. He was originally the leader of a local militia, but he offended someone and ended up as an outlaw."

"He gathered some ruffians and old bandits, occupying this mountain. There are about sixty of them. They often kidnap for ransom and rob women, but they still have some restraint, so the county hasn't launched a full-scale attack."

Everyone nodded, finding this reasonable. Yu Chong pondered for a long time. He believed that with the Yu family's troops, he could capture this stronghold, but the casualties would make it a Pyrrhic victory. The Yu family's troops were still a private army, not yet ready for major battles, and they couldn't afford to lose many men.

But he made a decision. He waved his hand and said calmly, "The first team, put on armor, and the archers go first!"

This small unit, though not large, had a complete range of troops, prepared for future expansion.

"Yes!" The order was given, and they immediately responded, the atmosphere becoming tense.

The group climbed silently, and they could see the small stronghold on the hilltop, with two people patrolling. Yu Chong sneered, "Fang Mao, being a former militia leader, knows some military tactics—shoot!"

There were two "thud" sounds, and two arrows flew, felling the two lazy patrollers, who fell with cries of pain.

Yu Chong turned to see the five team leaders standing solemnly, awaiting orders. He said in a low voice, "Attack, leave no one alive, kill them all!"

The five bowed, their armor clinking, "We understand the order!"

Fifty men rushed forward, climbing the two-meter-high wooden wall. Inside, someone shouted, "Thieves!"

The thieves cried out, "Thieves are attacking the stronghold..."

Those who had climbed up jumped down, and Yu Chong felt relieved. In no time, the gate was wide open, and the group rushed in.

Never overestimate the reaction speed of bandits. As they charged in, people started rushing out of the houses, but before the bandits could form a line, the team leader of the archers ordered, "Shoot!"

Several bandits who had just rushed out of the houses fell back with cries of pain. After the arrows, the armored soldiers clashed with the bandits, engaging in fierce combat. In the firelight, the cries of pain were continuous, but these bandits, though some were skilled, lacked military discipline.

They fought with raw courage, while the armored soldiers, trained in the Great Yi Martial Canon, emphasized teamwork and had fought many battles on the grasslands, making them elite.

With their armor, they were invincible, and anyone who stood in their way fell with cries of pain.

In a moment, over a dozen bandits were killed, and a few, seeing the situation was dire, broke through the line and tried to escape.

Yu Chong stood at the gate, watching the battle calmly, with five armored soldiers and five archers standing quietly by his side, awaiting further orders.

Seeing this, Yu Chong calmly ordered, "Brother Xiao!"

An archer team leader immediately responded, "Understood—shoot!"

There were several "thud" sounds, and a bandit, who seemed to have some martial arts skills, leaped onto the wooden wall but was hit by three arrows, falling like a sandbag, blood gushing from his body. Two more cries of pain followed, and the escaping bandits were all shot dead. On the battlefield, only five bandits were left fighting desperately. In the middle was a man in his thirties, roaring with several wounds, blood streaming, wielding a knife with a desperate fury, showing some influence of the Great Yi Martial Canon, but not much. The spy, Qiu Yin, pointed and said, "That's Fang Mao!" Before he finished speaking, there were two "thud" sounds, and two long knives pierced through his leather armor from two angles, deeply embedding themselves in his body.

Fang Mao's roar was cut short. The long knives were pulled out, and his body fell to the ground, lifeless, his eyes wide open, unseeing.

Yu Chong entered, his expression unchanged, and heard a report, "Commander, all bandits have been killed. We have no casualties, only eleven wounded."

Yu Chong said, "Clean up the battlefield, check the bodies, and give them the final blow." Someone responded, "Understood!" The group cleaned the area, stripping weapons and armor, counting silver and grain, and seeking Yu Chong's instructions. Yu Chong said calmly, "Write it down in the records. Rest today, and tomorrow, immediately investigate the Ye Family Village."

"Also, wash and wear the bandits' clothes. We will attack as bandits."

"Also, sacrifice to the bandits, asking for the protection of the Yu family's ancestral spirits, and first cleanse the Ye family's ancestral spirits!"

"Yes!" Everyone responded. Half an hour later, a simple altar was set up, with the bodies of sixty bandits piled in front. Two hundred and fifty Yu family soldiers stood solemnly, bowing to the altar. The smell of blood spread quickly, and black shadows appeared, with a flock of crows circling overhead.

In Pingshou County, the Ye Family Village was also solemn on the day of the state examination. This was a stone-walled ancestral hall, with over a thousand clan members gathered on the open ground outside, all silent.

The Ye Family Village was a village in itself, with about eight hundred households, two hundred of which were clan members, and the rest were tenant farmers and family-born retainers, forming the current layout through generations.

Ancestral worship was a major event for the clan, usually held during festivals and the New Year, but it could also be held for significant events. This time, over three thousand people gathered, filling the open ground.

The male members of the Ye family stood at the front, while women and children stood at the back, and tenant farmers and family-born retainers stood on the periphery.

All clan members with some knowledge knew that the examination hall was protected by Daoist magic, but they also knew that the core members of the clan were striving in the distant state capital, which would determine the Ye family's fate for the next thirty years.

Out of heartfelt hope, all clan members spontaneously gathered in front of the ancestral hall.

In the main hall, the clan leader, Ye Mengqiu, led Ye Zifan and other key family members in prayer, "Descendant Ye Mengqiu and the clan members pray with one heart, may the ancestral spirits protect Ye Qing, allowing him to perform without hindrance..."

The hall had five levels, following the rule of "three for commoners, five for scholars, seven for nobles, nine for emperors..." In simple terms, commoners could worship three generations, scholars five generations, nobles seven generations, and emperors nine generations.

On the first high platform, there were three spirit tablets, made of wood, with red lacquer and golden names, adorned with cloud patterns. These were the tablets of the scholar-officials, the family's ancestral spirits. Below were the densely packed ancestral tablets, arranged in four layers by generation, also made of wood, but without red lacquer or cloud patterns, with names written in ink.

At this moment, someone came forward, distributing three incense sticks. The people at the front formally lit the incense. Ye Zifan stood behind, watching his white-haired father light the incense, feeling a sense of sorrow.

Their family's status was originally red, and while child scholars and scholars were acceptable, scholar-officials could not be influenced, so they dared not pray for success in the examination, only hoping for the best performance. Intelligent people knew that no examination was solely based on performance.

Since the three scholar-officials in the family, regardless of whether his father had passed the examination or Ye Qing this time, they could not receive much support from the family. The gathering for the sacrifice was merely a寄托 of hope.

As he thought, it was Ye Zifan's turn. He no longer hesitated, holding three incense sticks to the incense burner, lighting them on the candle, bowing three times sincerely, and placing the incense in the burner. After offering the incense, he looked up and saw the top level with three spirit tablets glowing with a red aura, while the thousands of tablets below emitted a faint white aura, forming a pale red cloud covering the hall.

Ye Zifan, of course, knew that this was the spiritual light of a large clan's sacrifice, which could bless the ancestors, and the accumulated qi protected the descendants.

"Incense offering complete, clan members bow!" After the incense offering, Ye Mengqiu ordered, and the command was immediately passed down. The clan members outside the hall, who did not have the right to enter, all bowed solemnly.

The tenant farmers and family-born retainers also bowed. With three thousand people bowing, the hall was filled with a sacred aura of white and red qi.

After a moment, the ceremony was complete. Ye Zifan hurriedly helped his father, saying, "Father, don't worry. Qing is the champion of the Dragon Lord's banquet, and the Dragon Lord has promised him the same rank as a scholar-official. There should be no problem."

Ye Mengqiu's eyes were dark. He knew that the rank of a scholar-official was no small matter, and the Dragon Lord's promise might not be enough. However, he couldn't say this now, so he waved his hand, "I understand. I'm tired. You go and host the clan banquet and toast everyone on my behalf!"

As he spoke, a strange sound suddenly rang out, making everyone shudder. They looked up to see one of the spirit tablets on the five-tiered altar crack. If they could see the qi, they would have seen the red light suddenly extinguish.

Almost simultaneously, two other spirit tablets lit up, the red light intensifying, connecting with the white and red qi of the entire hall, as if resisting.

A cold wind blew through the hall, and the faint sounds of battle and the smell of blood carried the final message. Ye Zifan, being a scholar, was different from others. Tears streamed down his face, and he felt a sudden emptiness in his heart, instinctively knowing that something had happened in the underworld, and the ancestral spirits had been attacked and killed by other ghosts, while two others immediately became alert and defensive.

The situation was extremely urgent. Ye Zifan felt his legs go weak and a sense of impending doom, but he was momentarily dazed and couldn't react.

At this moment, Ye Mengqiu, with the rank of a scholar-official, quickly regained his composure. He pressed a mechanism on the altar, revealing a pre-set magical array, and the red light gradually stabilized. Then, with a grim face, he struck the ground with his cane, shouting, "This is a warning from the ancestral spirits. Something major must have happened outside!"

"Sound the alarm, order the clan members to enter the clan walls immediately, and the clan soldiers to arm themselves and defend the walls!"

"Zifan, you go out and command personally!"

The three orders were given, and everyone found their resolve, responding and stepping out.

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